Anna and Her Raisins

Anna was SO FUNNY at lunch today! Lunchtime falls right before naptime, so the kids are sometimes a little tired while they eat. Anna was zoning out while watching TV and eating her lunch, but she was incredibly serious about eating her raisins. I tried my hardest to grab it on video, but once I found batteries to put in the camera, they died. You can almost catch her fast-action left hand/right hand shovel method here. She is moving a little slower on video than she was before I got the camera.

This girl always makes us laugh!

Aunt Andrea Visits!

Andrea came to our house for a vacation over the weekend, and we had a blast! As soon as she arrived, the twins bombarded her with displays of affection, toys, songs, dances, and stories. We went out for "authentic" Texan BBQ for dinner that night.

The next day while poor Larkin was at work, the rest of us went to the San Jacinto Battleground and then to the Heritage Society downtown. On Saturday, Larkin joined us on our daytrip to Galveston. We spent the morning walking around historic downtown before enjoying a heavenly fresh seafood lunch on the coast. We went to the beach for the rest of the afternoon before getting back in time for Larkin to go to the priesthood session of General Conference. We relaxed and watched Conference on Sunday. On Monday, Larkin once again had to work, so the rest of us went to the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center for a half-mile long stroll through "the forest," as Will called it. Then we hit Hermann Park for a train ride and picnic lunch. We spent the afternoon in the Czech Center Museum to escape the rain outside.

We posted pictures of the whole weekend on Le Sueur Street. I also collected everyone's favorite moments of the weekend.

Larkin: "Playing board games Sunday night"
Allyson: "Eating on the wharf in Galveston"
Anna: "Playing with Aunt Andrea"
Will: "Being with my whole family"
Andrea: "Hmmm . . . being with my whole family" (I think Andrea was being facetious.)

The kids woke up sad this morning when they realized that Aunt Andrea was gone. I think that means that we're ready for more guests/adventures. Who is coming for a visit next?

It's a Major Award!!!!

Larkin doesn't like to brag about himself, but I, on the other hand, love to brag about him! He called me from work today to tell me some exciting news.
Larkin was voted Teacher of the Year by the other teachers and employees at his school! He is very touched and a little overwhelmed by this award - which proves to me how deserving he is. He has said that there are so many amazing teachers at his school that to be nominated and then to win this title (in only his second year teaching) is a huge honor.

I'm SO PROUD OF HIM!!!!!!!! I love and admire him so much, and I love when other people recognize what a wonderful person he is. Please join me in congratulating him on this achievement!!!!

Father/Son - Mother/Daughter Weekend

This weekend was our ward's father/son campout, and Larkin and William were very excited to go. Will talked about it all week; he was especially looking forward to roasting marshmallows and eating smores. (He is my boy, after all.) Occasionally, he would tell me, "Mom, remember - we go camping especially in the forest." I'll be sure to remember that, Will.

They got to set up the tent, sleep in sleeping bags, eat tin foil dinners, eat smores (of course), play football, hike, and finally pack up. Larkin took the camera with him, so we've got lots of pictures to document their campout.

We wanted Anna to have something special that weekend too, so she got to go to a local performing arts center with some friends in our ward on Friday. I stayed home to work and kept Will with me so that Anna could have that time for herself. Luckily, my friend who took her sent us some pictures afterwards. Here is Anna practicing her gymnastics skills.

I also promised Anna a "girl's night" when the boys were camping. They hadn't even pulled the car out of the garage before Anna ran to our movies and said, "Hey! We were supposed to watch princess movies when the boys were camping!" We fit in at least four Disney princess movies before the boys returned the next day. We had a picnic in the living room, put make-up on each other, ate popcorn, painted our toenails, and had a sleepover in "Mom and Dad's bed." (P.S. My sweet girl snores and talks in her sleep so much. I pity poor Will having to share a room with her.) We didn't take any pictures because the boys had our camera.

The twins share their favorite parts of the weekend.
Anna: "Putting on lipstick"
Will: "Being with Daddy"

How sweet is that?! I almost cried when Will told me that. He wasn't prompted by me or Larkin, and he's repeated that sentiment for the past two days. I'm glad he was able to spend that special time with his father. And I guess I'm glad that Anna learned a love of make-up. Now I pray that she'll forget about it for the next 13 or so years.

Celebrities in the Family

In the mornings, Will and Anna usually watch The Sunny Side-Up Show on Sprout (PBS Kids, 24-hour preschool channel). The three-hour program is live and asks kids to send in pictures, drawings, letters, etc. that the host could share inbetween the scheduled shows it airs (e.g., Thomas the Tank Engine, Play With Me Sesame, etc.). The theme this week is "Dinosaurs." This morning, the twins and I took this picture and sent it in to the show.

We were incredibly surprised when, about 10 minutes later, we saw this:

(Sorry about the bad quality. Thank goodness for DVR!) How awesome is that! The twins were so excited to see their picture on TV. I didn't really expect their picture to make it on air, but it did. The kids can sign autographs after naptime.

While Mom's Away. . .

. . . the twins will play.

Will and Anna sometimes find the most interesting things to do while I'm in the bathroom.

Sometimes it makes me afraid to use the bathroom again.

Sometimes it makes me sad that I missed their sweetness.

Child Labor

William and Anna like to help around the house. I probably don't take advantage of this as much as I should because they still enjoy doing it.

The other night, Anna was in the game room playing with Larkin. Will was otherwise engaged.

In my defense, I didn't ask him to help. He asked me if he could help. I simply obliged him.

I think he's ready to learn how to mow the lawn and change lightbulbs.