The Jones'--trying to keep up

Could we take a decent picture?!!

2009-09-01T12:05:00.000-07:00

So I give up! 3 kids, with a 3 second delayed camera....ain't gonna happen.

First Class to Utah

2009-09-01T11:28:00.001-07:00

So we headed to Utah the first week of August for a visit home. We didn't ride first class--but the kids pretty much thought we did.

Egg McMuffins, a laptop movie with the Wonder Pets and the boys thought they were living the high life.

This was Mason's first flight and he was a charm.

Blessings from Heaven

2009-06-09T15:00:00.000-07:00

Mason was blessed on Mother's Day. (What a wonderful, reassuring gift for his mom.) Here's the handsome dude in his zoot suit.:)

Very First Primary Talk

2009-06-09T14:59:00.000-07:00

So Shay gave his very first Primary talk this last Sunday and he wrote 90% of it (which I was completely surprised about.) I just had to make complete sentences here and there. It is as follows:

Faith helps me and my family because it makes us happy and you want to be kind to each other. We are trying to be a forever family.

Prayer helps me and my family because we get to talk to Heavenly Father and Jesus. When something goes wrong, like you have a bad dream, you can talk to Heavenly Father and tell your Mom that you need to kneel down in prayer.

Repentance helps me and my family when somebody does something wrong. They need to say sorry. They need to go to the person and tell them, "Sorry" and then help them feel better and ask them, "Do you want to play a game?"

Forgiveness helps me and my family when someone says sorry and you say "That's ok" and you're still happy friends and go play together.

I love Jesus and Heavenly Father, my mom and dad and brothers in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

By small and simple things....:)

More of Mason

2009-05-21T19:09:00.001-07:00

This post is dedicated to Lynn Westbrook.:) Thanks for your interest and sorry I'm SO behind. (It's pretty ridiculous of me and I should just get a handle on things and pull it together. But it all fairness,three is difficult for me-- wonderful but difficult.)

I've Learned things from People

2009-04-03T19:50:00.000-07:00

I've been contemplating my life lately; I feel so very blessed. The people that Heavenly Father has put into my life have taught me so many things and I'm listing just a few specifics today:

My mother---There is always room for everyone.

Juls--Continually strive to be better.

Lisa--Watch out for others, it's important.

Ben--If something is difficult, gut it out and get through it.

Rena--be yourself 100% and LOVE it!

Rebecca Rampton--the day isn't complete until you've served someone.

Shay--Anything can be a game.

Jen Jones--Good friends can be close even though they're far away.

Lynn--True friends really know their friends.

Carolyn--Playing is necessary.

Anne-Marie--Sincere compliments make people grin from ear to ear.

Cassie White--acceptance of others is effortless (that's the way she seems:)

So thanks to everyone that has made such a wonderful imprint in my life. I love you all! Keep teaching, because I'm still learning!!

Our 3rd Boy Finally Came

2009-03-16T18:44:00.000-07:00

For those that didn't get the memo yet...here it is.:)

Hey Everyone!

Just wanted to let you all know that our 3rd boy arrived on Wednesday, March 11th 2009 at 8:40am weighing in at 8lbs and 4 oz. being 19 inches long. My water broke at home around 1:30 am and so we headed into the hospital knowing that we were not returning without a kiddo in our arms--a relief because I went into the hospital once already because of a false labor and came home completely embarrassed.

Mason headed down the birth canal face first--his nose, chin, and lips were the first things the doctor saw and she quickly stopped and told me this kid was a "special baby". There's not many babies that make it through the whole ordeal without getting pushed back up and taken C-section. So Mason and I were both blessed that he progressed well and came out in three pushing contractions. His poor little face was so swollen that he couldn't even open his eyes, but he recovered quickly and had minimal bruising so we were happy about that.

He's been a treasure from the start and is already settling into a good sleeping and eating routine. We, as a whole family, have been miticulously taken care of from the very start. Friends and neighbors, in and out of the hospital, have kept their eyes on us and have offered so much help and encouragement--taking the kids and everything else. Thanks everyone! I can't tell you how many doctors Ben knew who came in to wish us well and offer any help we might need. And the OB doctor that admitted us and stabilized the labor is a wonderful friend of ours, he passed the torch at shift change but we were grateful to have him there when he was.

So Mason is here, I'm recovering (slowly:), the boys are happy and Ben's been home for a whole week---I couldn't possibly ask for more.

Hope all is well with you all and that you enjoy the pictures,

The Jones
Ben, Teresa, Shay, Cade, and Mason

Spoiled Rotten!

2009-03-01T19:56:00.000-08:00

Some wonderful gals out here in Texas gave me a baby shower!... The sneakers passed out invitations before they even told me the day, time, and place; luckily, for me, I was able to go:). When I first heard the news, I was totally hesistant and somewhat embarrassed because what would anyone possibly want to give a mom who was having her 3rd boy?! But clever as they are, they suggested "books and staples" on the invitation. It was a perfect time and so many women that I truly look up to came and made it such a special time. Not to mention these awesome gals totally "pulled out the stops" hosting this thing. They had some seriously delicious food and a stork cake and did so much more than I would even imagine for a baby shower. I think our family has enough books now that we can open up a Jones' Family Library.:)

These pictures are all from the baby shower and of a much higher caliber than I ever get to post so this is a real treat--they're from a talented friend who attended and brought her camera. I'm actually surprised to see how much my boys look like ME!

Pool Party

2009-02-22T19:03:00.000-08:00

Look who's excited for the pool! It's lucky our pool season is about the longest in the country because these kiddos can't wait to get back there; not to mention I'm excited to tan up my legs--they are looking embarrassingly white these days.

A few more practice runs with our goggles and I think these little fish will be geared up for bigger waters.

Oh, Sweet Day...

2009-02-15T19:39:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day to one and all! Wish we could be close to everyone and share some love and sugar personally--until that happens, enjoy the pictures and know we're thinking about you.:)

Cade's personal design.

Shay made this master piece, stood back to look at it, and had this to say "The tastiest cookie I've never seen in the whole world." Poetry...--he loves his sugar just like his mom. I guess there's more than one reason we nicknamed him Suga' Shay and it stuck like glue.

One of our family home evening treats. Ben says rice crispy treats are ruined by adding chocolate...yeah right!! I'm taking a poll on that one!!

Happy Late B-day Cade

2009-02-15T19:20:00.000-08:00

Cade had his second birthday Jan. 17th and though I'm a month late, I figured I'd better include it for the record. So Happy Birthday Buddy, we love you bunches! All the boy wanted was a ball for his birthday so we decided to make him a ball cake too.

"Here's how you open it Cade, let me show you..." Shay feels like a pro after his birthday party and Christmas.

Don't worry, he got what he wanted for his birthday--there was a ball or two included in the gift opening.

In Preparation...for the next baby boy

2009-01-21T18:17:00.000-08:00

So with this new baby boy coming soon, we're making adjustments before hand to prepare. We moved Cade out of his pack'n play into the full size bed that Shay's been sleeping in--ALONE-- since he was 18 months old. A body pillow serves as a nice divider and I guess we'll see how it goes. Cade hasn't realized he can get up and out by himself and still hollers for help when he's ready to get up.:)

Other preparations: Cade is done with his binkie, and Shay is peeing standing up all by himself, and I am working like a mad woman to accomplish all the things I've wanted to get done and haven't. (Painting, sealing grout, spring cleaning, and planting, re-organizing...) Oh, the little day to day things that lend themselves to HUGE progress step by step.

A Happier Note...

2009-01-08T20:00:00.000-08:00

Ben was aghast that I could be such a downer on my New Year's Eve post and took these pictures specifically for me to bring the mood on the blog up to a happier note. So sorry for the depression, I guess this post will serve as medication for it--it's what the doctor ordered...j/k

Our garage has become Ben's toy box per se and these are the fun "investments" that he uses to leave the stresses of work behind. I would say I use the toys as well, but I'm slightly out of commission right now beginning my 8 month of pregnancy...

So now that everyone is much more upbeat because they've seen some materialistic possessions...have a great day and if you have any side effects due to the medication report those to the doctor immediately.

Christmas Visited--since I haven't mentioned it yet

2009-01-08T19:33:00.000-08:00

Here's Shay with his very first stitches. ( We got to take them out on Christmas Day.) He cracked his head open at our YMCA and immediately thereafter we went on an adventure to the emergency room. He walked away with 5 stitches and bragging rights on who has the best scars begins. When he was able to get a REALLY close look at the blue suture that was used for the stitches, he asked slowly, "Momma, why did they sew my head back together?" Needless to say, having the stitches come out on Christmas day wasn't one of the better presents Shay got, but on the bright side having a doctor in the house comes in handy every now and then.

Cade opened this adorable, little pony very first on Christmas morning and has been pleased as punch about it ever since. The other gifts were obsolete and we had to urge him to finish opening the rest. He insists on going to the trouble of finding his helmet and shoes EVERY time he hops on for a ride--I guess he suspects the pony will start bucking one day and he wants to be completely prepared...?:)

As for me, I went through a rite of passage you might say. I consider myself a true matriarch now--that makes me sound 1000 years old! For the VERY first time in my life I made a holiday feast for my family. All the fixin's--and a turkey!--and pie to finish it off. No crutch of mother or mother-in-law to lean on this year and no friends' potluck donations; just me, the kitchen, and my skills. Stare in awe at the beauty folks because I honestly don't know when it's going to happen again.:)

A New Year's Goal

2009-01-04T19:30:00.000-08:00

One of my New Year's goals was to put effort into having a better blog. Just trying to get started...:) Has anyone ever actually had their blogs printed off yet? I've heard that you can do that, but I don't know of anyone that actually has...

Happy New Year!!! (Big Whoop...)

2008-12-31T19:55:00.000-08:00

Here's to all those wives out there that don't have their lover to kiss at the stroke of midnight tonight.

Ben's on call at the hospital and I got my one and only phone call from him today at 8:12pm; it lasted approximately 9 minutes. He had been in surgeries all day and was ready to see if he could get some rest before the drunk driving accidents began to flood the emergency room and surgeries needed to begin again. So "Happy New Year" to my man--click--went the phone line and my boys are in bed. I've got a major chunk of my Christmas decor down and now I'm going to sulk in my alone-ness in front of the boob tube and call it good for the New Year festivities. 2009 you better be much more awesome than the first few hours of your year....:)

Birthday Boy--4 years old...finally!!

2008-12-20T17:46:00.001-08:00

Shay's been waiting to be 4 since April. This picture doesn't do justice to any feelings he conveyed that day.
A volcano cake, a jungle party, and fantastic friends made his birthday an absolute winner. It was the first all-out birthday party he's ever had and he was actually old enough to really appreciate it.
A word of caution: for those ever depending on dry ice in the near future...it disappears, even in the freezer! I bought a brick-size portion the day before the party, went home, and shoved it in my freezer thinking it would surely last until the big event. I pulled it out 10 minutes before the party began and there was less than a golf-ball size remaining.:( So the intended smokey volcano was tragically disappointing. On the bright side, Shay couldn't have cared less--so it was just me that felt royally jipped--blasted dry ice....

Ben ALWAYS gets what he wants for Christmas!

2008-12-20T17:39:00.000-08:00

The other day Ben was saying that Christmas can't come without snow...well, that very night it hailed in San Antonio. I took some pictures of our neighbors houses to remind Ben how spoiled he really is.:)

50 Degrees

2008-11-22T19:37:00.000-08:00

Who gets cold in 50 degree weather?! Well, I pathetically admit that I do. I guess I've acclaimated to San Antonio weather because I've pulled out my turtlenecks and sweatshirts--I was FREEZING today! Here's to "Winter" and good times sipping hot chocolate.

Three Ghouls and a Mom out on Halloween

2008-11-02T14:41:00.000-08:00

Ghoul number one wanted to be a bat for Halloween. I asked him the first part of September what he wanted to be and he never changed his mind once--that's a little impressive to me, I remember changing my mind 10,000 times.We even had sharp teeth for him but he didn't want to scare anyone trick or treating so the teeth stayed home.

Ghoul number two was forced into being Gus-Gus the mouse on Cinderella. (Our children don't get to pick until they are two.:) "Gus" is Cade's nick name in our family and it evolved from the fact that he has such a big belly. He's definitely the cutest mouse I've ever seen.

Ghoul number three doesn't have a picture posted because we don't have a scanner. We got our first two pictures of him on Halloween---Yup, WE ARE EXPECTING AND IT IS ANOTHER BOY!! I'm 20 weeks and due on March 14th.

Ben was on call on Halloween but the boys and I had fun. Shay said he wanted to "fill up his whole pumpkin!" We did a quick turn in our neighborhood and surprisingly the bat got his wish. His whole pumpkin was full by the time we got home. So happy Halloween one and all!

(The boys are practicing their treat or treating techniques on our doorstep before we hit the road and make it official.)

Ready to go!!

Let the Holidays officially begin!

2008-11-02T14:00:00.000-08:00

Now that Shay is getting older he's really starting to get into the holidays. Of course that sparked my motivation and I got itching to enlarge our decoration supply. Here's what we've done for Fall/Halloween/Thanksgiving.

Ghosts in the trees. Shay helped me make these and both he and Cade love saying "bye" to them whenever we are off for an errand trip.

Cobwebs and spiders hanging above. They loved throwing the spiders into the webs.

Cassie White gave me this fun idea. Shay and I had so much fun, we're planning on changing both pumpkins to turkeys this next week.

What's fall without a little mantel decoration and table top display? With fall leaves on the windows and pilgrim stickers added Nov. 1st. (neither are pictured) we are lovin' the holidays this year. Hope the holidays are well with you all and that the days counting down to them are as enjoyable as ever.

Farm Fun at Thanksgiving Point

2008-10-16T19:02:00.000-07:00

Moo, cow. Moo!

So Shay has been fascinated with milk and cows and where milk comes from and I told him before we left San Antonio that maybe we could find him a cow to milk so he could see for himself what the whole story is all about. ...Well we found a cow (however synthetic it may have been) and Shay got to milk it. Can you tell how excited he was?

I even took it one step farther and told him all about ice cream. Then we made some homemade ice cream at Grandma Norman's house to top it all off. This happens to be one of my shining moments as a mother. How sad that this could be a shining moment--but if sugar's involved...it's gonna to be a great moment for me!

And this is our jail bird. They had a jail house at the farm and it was a little uncanny that Cade would pose for these pictures so well.
His sentence for being so criminally cute was to go without his binkie for 5 minutes! Harsh, I know.

We're back!

2008-10-11T21:18:00.000-07:00

So I've been totally out of it for a LONG while. A blog break I guess you could say--but part of that was a 3 week vacation to Utah. So we're back, since yesterday, and are settling in... and trying to catch up on everyone's news!:)

Some of what we did in Utah:

Grandma Jones' got some birds. Shay named them Cockatoo and Cockatoo-2. Pretty creative for a 3 year old.:) Cade was always very suspicous of the flyers, but his apprehension was confirmed when one bit his finger and made him bleed. He got over it, but was VERY careful after that.
We got to go camping and enjoy the great outdoors. I'm the one lingering in the shadows on the back of the 4-wheeler.
A yummy donut party! I found a killer donut recipie, link follows: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Crispy-and-Creamy-Doughnuts/Detail.aspx and made them between General Conference sessions on Saturday. At least we all had enough sugar to get us through the afternoon seesion--I usually dose off unintentionally during that one.
We got to eat apples directly off of Grandpa Norman's apple tree. Talk about DELICIOUS!! They were the best apples I've eaten for a long time and tasted just like Honeycrisp apples. (Lynn introduced me to that brand.)

Utah trip to be continued....
(How can you jam-pack 3 weeks of continual fun into one post?)

Go Palin Go!!

2008-09-05T17:37:00.000-07:00

I'm a Palin fan loud and proud!

Waterfall in the Buff

2008-08-03T18:58:00.000-07:00

I normally don't post riske' things...this is G-rated at the very best--it might not be exciting enough to even rate.

Here's is our backyard waterfall. Ben found the time, how I do not know, to put this project into motion last year and this is what came of it. I was his hoddy/hottie (except for potty breaks, meal times, and a second feature DVD replacement for Shay every now and then) so it was a team effort. I kept telling people it was nice to work together on a masterpiece other than marriage.--Not that marriage isn't a worthwhile thing to work on-- We've enjoyed the running water and flowers that Grandma Jones helped us plant. Shay likes to "fish" and catch the leaves that fall in the pool.

**"in the buff" refers to the cement dye that we mixed in to get our mortar color. It was Buff. ha, ha! Sorry, I couldn't resist. Maybe my next post will be PG, but don't count on it.:) Oh, and I hope you all enjoy the wonderful background noise. I was going for a silent take so all you could hear was the water...but it didn't happen.

Mallow Mishaps

2008-07-18T07:21:00.000-07:00

Here's some of our summer experiences with the Mallow medium. Ben and I have had some good laughs watching the boys live and learn.

Tagged by Alisha Loveridge

2008-07-13T18:04:00.000-07:00

Never been tagged before... here it is:

10 years ago: I was 18 and had just graduated from High School (Wow! That's crazy to think about.) Great Summer, sad Fall saying good-bye to friends headed to the northwinds for college and things, headed up to Utah State University with hopes it would be a blast. It was.

5 things on today's "To Do list":
Dishes...Ugh!
It's Sunday so that is the only cleaning on my list, I love Sundays.
Went to BYC and Church.
Hoping to work on some crocheting for my two new little nieces--baby blankets for them, YW Value project for me.
...I guess I only have four things...

Snacks I enjoy:
black licorice of any kind
fresh fruit in season
and any nostalgic thing I ate as a kid--jello popcorn, caramel popcorn, homemade pulled taffy, Grandma Norman's sourcream chocolate cake, Otterpops

If I were a millionaire:
I think I'd just keep on living--life is good. Maybe I'd have someone come and mop my floor once a week. hee!hee!

Places I've lived: (I hope that includes for 6 weeks or more.)
Utah, California, Maryland, Fort Hood, Tx., San Antonio, Tx., Hawaii, Tacoma, WA....looking to go abroad sometime..

Tagging: Julie-Goose, Mal-Gal, Kathleen, Rachelle, and Lynn

More of South Padre

2008-07-03T20:08:00.000-07:00

Crazy amounts of sea shells. The Jones' on the beach--our truck is holding the camera.
At turtle refuge--pretty cool sea turtles tying to heal and be placed back into the wild.
Swallowed by Jaws and lived to tell the tale. The store's doors are at the back of this shark's throat.
Nice dolphins and a bright sun.
We recommend South Padre to anyone. It's not to touristy but there's enought to keep you busy.

Thanks for voting

2008-07-03T19:52:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all those that voted on our poll a little bit ago--we always enjoy the input. We've checked "Take a Vacation" off the list. We headed down to South Padre Island so check it out. We had some great adventures.

The drive down, this was a peaceful as it got...Our hotel room--the highlight of the trip, according to Shay...at least he's easy to please.
Driving on the beach! $3 dollars "and worth every penny" said Ben. A dream come true.

Cade didn't appreciate the waves (much too scary) so Ben made Cade his own, little, sand pool and I daresay he was as happy as a clam after that!

Swimmin' Sugar Shay

2008-06-27T20:16:00.000-07:00

This is dedicated to Shay's wonderful Grandmas who are too far away to watch in person. He loves them so much! (And so do the rest of us.:)

In Action!!!

2008-06-26T21:27:00.000-07:00

Waaa-hooo! I tell you what friends, this was a heroic feat on my part. Technology...

All In a Row

2008-06-14T20:18:00.000-07:00

There are 20 roses blooming on this tiny Gemini rose bush! I think it's a little unusual that they are all lined up for what looks like a roll call or something. It reminds me of the long forgotten movie "The Gnome-mobile" from Disney's good old days. All the girl gnomes (as pretty as flowers) rush to jump in line and meet Jasper, the only boy gnome left--then the chase is on! All the girls attack trying to catch him--it's by far the best part of the show (at least it was when I was 8...I haven't seen it, or thought about it, for a long time.)

Carolyn, my wonderful mother-in-law, bought some rose bushes for me as a house warming gift. This little one was planted in a poor spot of soil--little did I know at the time. Oops! But just look how it's rallying. Go Gemini go! I can learn a lesson from this bush. 20 roses blooming at once!! Are you kidding?!?

Grinning with Grahams

2008-06-07T22:11:00.000-07:00

One of my fondest memories is learning how to dip graham crackers in milk. It's a precise process that needs to be handled with delicacy. Dipped too long and it collapses into the milk, too short and the bite isn't comforting. I'm starting these boys early so they can master the art and enjoy the experience of being professional dippers, living happily ever after...

Good-bye May? Oh! Hello June...

2008-06-01T19:22:00.000-07:00

So where did May go? If anyone knows where May went could you tell her to come out of hiding next year and show herself to me?...I'm not a talented seeker and May was an excellent hider this year. I didn't even get HALF of my "to do" list accomplished and now its June! Though, I did buy Ben an excellent birthday present this year (on the second go-around:)--I guess that is something worth noting, but his birthday is May 1st so that hardly qualifies...

June, please be a better friend than May!

To reminisce, last June was memorable for the Jones family--especially me. We closed on our house June 6th 2007, we moved in and unpacked, and I died my hair orange because of a freak accident (long story short). Kudos to all those new people I was meeting who were able to look past the first impression of trashy Teresa Jones...and yes I am still dealing with the hair trauma. I've sworn off all home care kits---Never again! I can guarantee that there will be no hair trauma this June.

Kickin' it for FHE

2008-05-15T20:11:00.000-07:00

What could be better than Candy Land, juice, and leftover lasagna in a tent, in your very own back yard "where the green grass grows all around all around and the green grass grows all around"?
Turned into a movie theater and a sleep out! It was one of our most memorable FHE's thus far.

Burger Boy

2008-05-15T19:58:00.000-07:00

Even though Ben doesn't think our food should be blog business, I thought this burger was good enough to post. Notice the burger is the only picture featured. The boy thought a picture of himself was completely unnecessary. Ben's eyes are too big for his belly...I mean, ripped six-pack. This burger is close to 3/4 lbs. of meat, stuffed with two slices of cheese, topped with one more slice of cheese and sauteed mushrooms, served on buttered-up Texas toast with seasoned fries on the side. I'm thrilled to say he couldn't finish the thing, but he tried his darned-est.

Poll Sum-up

2008-05-04T19:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all those who voiced their opinions about Ben's big purchase. He still has not bought anything as of yet, but we'll definitely keep you posted. (Pun conveniently used.) He's shopping. Knowing Ben he's going to look and look until he can find the best bike and jet ski at the best price in an accessible location.

200 lbs ot'ta do

2008-04-27T18:39:00.000-07:00

Shay's trying really hard to fill his Daddy's britches (I thought the article of clothing was suppose to be shoes but...). If you'll notice, the drawstring had to be put around Shay's neck so the shorts would stay up around his belly button--Grandma Dial style. Big kid but he still needs a few more inches and about 200 pounds exactly.

Safari--Texas Style!

2008-04-26T20:26:00.001-07:00

When Grandma Jones was here we went on a Texas safari. Animals roam free and we hide in our truck. It was fun--We've never seen these animals so close.

Fragile Friend

2008-04-21T20:49:00.000-07:00

This little butterfly got blasted by our sprinklers and couldn't fly for a bit. I thought her down time could be an educational experience for Shay. He's never been able to hold a butterfly before. It quickly turned into an emotional experience--he knew they were good friends. (He's a big fan of Disney's "Little Einsteins".)
It crawled all the way up to his shoulder and gave him some real butterfly kisses on his cheek before drying off enough to fly away.
Shay wondered why a friend would fly away. Don't we all? Bittersweet.

Medina Lake

2008-04-19T20:31:00.000-07:00

Beach Boys!!!

Mothers close your eyes! That's what I would have done if I hadn't been busy taken pictures.

When they were headed off I yelled to Ben, "You don't think this is illegal or anything do you?" His comforting reply, "Probably" and off they went. If you ask Shay about it he'll say it was fun until "the scary part." When they were coming into shore the jet ski started tipping a little because of the slow speed and the heavy weight. After a few screams from Shay, they made it to shore safe and sound. You can open your eyes now.

A day at the Farm...for only $6...

2008-03-23T20:04:00.001-07:00

Boys and the Bus Stop

2008-03-20T19:47:00.000-07:00

Garage door up; shoveling breakfast into open mouths; waiting for the "silver rocket" (Rampton's Minivan); bye Shay have fun at school...

Cheese in the Cupboard

2008-03-16T19:13:00.000-07:00

So this Bub-Rub thinks he's being super tricky by finding a "new" appliance to claim as his own toy. Luckily everything still works, even after multiple play sessions, so I don't mind the exploring--I just wish everything would grow legs and walk back to its proper place when playtime is over. That, or my snap needs to become much more powerful so things float back into position. I'd rename myself Mary Poppins and be measured as "Practically Perfect in Every Way." Who can begrudge cleaning up after this cute little cheese?...not me.

Your Body is a Temple

2008-03-14T18:45:00.000-07:00

Creativity at it's best--ask any kid around...After a lecture from Mom and a few pictures of the experience, the markers are up for a bit and Shay is sticking to the crayons and colored pencils. Washable markers were a genius invention, someone should be getting an award with a little notoriety for inventing them.

I didn't even notice Shay had left the border of his paper and was working on this alternative medium. Proud of his artwork, he was confused when I laughed, took pictures, and told him not to do it again. I know I slipped out of my "Mom" role a bit, but he completely surprised me--I'll do better on the second take.

Shamu's Gates

2008-03-09T15:41:00.001-07:00

"Mom, the Shamu gates are open!" shouted Shay when Ben told him we were going to Sea World on Saturday. Yes, they are open and we went to say hello again. Shay thought it was the best thing that's happened since Christmas. Cade actually enjoyed it as well. It looks like the Jones' are going to spend quite a bit of time there this season--our passes are good for two years and it's open through Christmas every year. Texas weather is great for outdoor businesses. Anyone up for Sea World?

A Night Worth Noting!

2008-03-05T20:02:00.000-08:00

Back in June I had one of Shay's little friends look at me and say "Your eye is BLUE!" I readily agreed saying, "You're right they are blue. What color are your eyes?" Staring oddly and touching the skin under my eye he said, "No... B-L-U-E!" I immediately thought, "Houston, we have a problem." Bags. Severe bags. I know kids don't lie when it comes to reactions like that, so those bags must have been a ghastly sight. I just couldn't figure out why some kind adult wouldn't tell me before a child freaked out over it. I would have tried a better concealer or something. So my goal was set---I needed to get some better sleep.

Ta da! I did it. Sunday night was the first time since Shay was born (3+ years) that I slept through the WHOLE night without grudgingly waking up with one or the other child-or both! Shay and Cade went a full 12 hours in their REM-cycles. That, or exhaustion finally won against maternal instinct. I hope there are more blissful sleeping nights to come. (Is eight hours of snoozing too much for a mother to ask for?)

Ben's such a doubter when it comes to this fact. He thinks I've had at least a few nights of uninterrupted sleep before now--but he's sleeping, so how does he know?:) To his credit, he has encouraged nap taking whenever I lag too far behind and my blue bags return.

(Photos are of boys I love--note the sunglasses and me on "Blue" bag day)

2008-03-02T18:33:00.000-08:00

So here's Cade glamin' it up. I rarely get a smile from him because the flash from the camera makes him grin and my camera isn't quick enough to take another picture while he's still sporting a smile---double, or triple speed is definitely needed for a one year old, which means I desperately need an upgrade. These lips are pretty darn cute though.

Chicken Through and Through

2008-02-29T19:42:00.000-08:00

So Ben's on call tonight, my security system is on, the kids are sleeping and I'm watching Paula Dean's "Black and White Party" wishing there was a party going on in my home right now. I HATE being alone! Being the youngest of 12 children, with an identical twin, didn't really give me much opportunity to practice loneliness. (Not that I would've appreciated the practice.) In fact, I don't think I had ever been alone in my home at night until I was at least in my 20's...and even then it was never for the whole night. Some might think that's a little pathetic, but looking back, I'm thinking it was absolutely bliss. Since I might as well get used to the call nights, and even the possibility of a future deployment (sad but true) I guess I should just get over it, get used to it, or whatever would help the situation. I'm still going to be much more comfortable about it all when Shay and Cade are old enough to wield base ball bats.

2008-02-22T19:05:00.001-08:00

This is Shay with his bread dough snake that he played with for over and hour and a half. When he finally left it to go to bed I threw it away. The next day he was wondering where it had gone and I told him the snake had left. He quickly made up this elaborate story about the snake slithering outside to go find his family and dashed for the door to see if he could find his snake in the grass. I told him the next time we make bread his snake will come around again to say hello. Little does he know that Mom is being brave--I don't even like to pretemd about snakes...and I was the one that taught Shay how to curl it up! It gives me the hibbie-gibbies just thinking about it. If Shay ever did see a real snake on the loose, he'd probably squeal like a girl and run. At least he'll know how to if we ever see one together, because I'm positive that's what I'd do. Ben says I need therapy.

2008-02-22T19:03:00.001-08:00

So I'm trying a new background, but I don't think it's working like it's suppose to. I will perserve. I just have to check to see what it does with this post.

Valentine's Day and Beyond

2008-02-15T18:46:00.000-08:00

(So I'm never going to get this blogging business perfect...I give...but promise not to be too critical.)

Valentine's Day lasted a week in the Jones home. We had a preschool party, a friend party, and a family party. I was hoping for a parents-only date night or something but Ben's schedule is way too busy right now. So we take what we can get and call it plenty for the time being.

Shay and Cade have seen their Dad for an accumulative 3 hours this week and that's close to an over-estimation. There was a three day span where it was literally 5 minutes of Dad and sons time and it's pretty tough on the kids. Shay has taken to dressing himself in size 18 month old bibs, put on backwards and Cade is eating dirt. But they are both still smiling and life is definately manageable. When Dad gets home it's play time!! (Shay thinks he's "a train-man" [a.k.a. engineer] when he wears those overalls.)

Happy Halloween

2007-11-10T18:48:00.000-08:00

Well, we ended up with a BUNCH of candy and guess who's eating it all. No one pounds the sugar in this family like me and all I can say is "the Holidays have finally arrived!" Our neighbor's all thought that our little skunk (Shay) and our little lion (Cade) were so cute that they deserved a little extra candy...how could we say no.

Shay was a great little skunk. He even had the spraying part down. He'd go up to some one and lift up his tail and go "Pssst." He was a little shy about it at our ward's trunk or treat and never did it while we were trick or treating but he loved "spraying" his mom and dad and baby brother.

Cade didn't like his costume at all. I'm sure he would've been as happy as a clam if I would have dressed him as the New Year Baby.

Not so sure about the dots

2007-11-07T19:29:00.000-08:00

I like the dots, but I don't think Ben will appreciate them. He'll like the nature colors, but not so much the dots--I guess that's why they call marriage a compromise. I once learned in a communication class that collaboration (not compromise) is what people should be going for when they have differing viewpoints. Collaboration is finding a solution that satisfies everyone's needs and wants without giving in or giving up. Most of the time that's what I try to go for but when it comes to limited blog templates I'm pretty sure that collaboration is out of reach. So we'll use compromise this time.