One for fun…
Posted on January 31, 2010
Yesterday, I photographed K and her new husband, J. I’ll have them a proper preview by tomorrow, but for now, there’s just this one:
Obviously, this one is just for fun, but I love it! Ha!
Congratulations again and I can’t wait to edit all of your pics. 
Filed Under Business, Relationships | 2 Comments
The Swamp Story
Posted on January 29, 2010
Jacob is not a reliable reporter of information regarding what happens each day at school. Actually, he says he “can’t remember” what he did earlier in the day when I pick him up in the afternoon- unless they did some type of science experiment. He starts excitedly relaying details of the experiments before he’s even finished buckling his carseat. But in the absence of science experiments, he doesn’t recall a whole lot of what goes on at school (or doesn’t want to tell me…).
Monday morning before he got out of the car, I told Jacob, “Remember what you do today, because I’m going to ask you about it when you get in the car.”
Monday afternoon:
Me: So what did you do today, Jacob?
Jacob: Oh, you see those steps over there? (points to steps leading down a hill at a house neighboring his school)
Me: Yes.
Jacob: Well at the bottom of those steps is a swamp. Today, our class walked over there and saw it. We didn’t see any alligators or anything, but it was still pretty cool.
Me: Wow. That’s really interesting.
Jacob: I know. It was fun.
Tuesday afternoon:
Me: What did you do today, Jacob?
Jacob: Today we went back to that swamp! Mrs. K brought some old rubber boots and we each got to take a turn slipping them on and stepping into the gooey swamp mud!
Me: Really?
Jacob: Yeah, just at the edge. There’s no alligators or anything.
Me: Oh, hmm. Okay.
Wednesday afternoon:
Me: What did you do today, Jacob?
Jacob: Today we went back to that swamp AGAIN!
Me: Seriously?
Jacob: YES! And today we had a MUD FIGHT with the swamp mud!!!
Me: (*It is at this point that I realize that I have been fooled by a four year old for three days in a row.*) Jacob, there is not any mud on your clothes.
Jacob: Mrs. Kathy washed them. She gave us some other clothes to wear while she washed them. They were a little big, but it was just for a little while until our other clothes were clean. You should have seen how muddy my clothes were!
Me: Jacob, I don’t think this story is true. What did you REALLY do today?
Jacob: I can’t remember.
Filed Under Children, For My Bad Memory, The Sweetness | 3 Comments
Overcompensating
Posted on January 29, 2010
Something happened to Jacob at school this week that made me remember this story from my own school days:
When I was in seventh grade, I was a ’starter’ for the basketball team (probably not because I was a talented player, but because I was taller than all of the other girls). After our first game of the season, my mom and brother encouraged me (again and AGAIN) to “Be more aggressive. You’ve got to be more AGGRESSIVE!” Our next game was against my school’s cross-border rival, Logansport, hometown of low-down creatures such as Sal Vazquez. 
A particularly *tough*-looking girl and I met at center court for the tip off. Once the ball was in play, the other girl turned her back and took off down the court. I recalled what my mom and brother had said: “Be more aggressive!!!” So without any provocation whatsoever, I pushed that girl face-first down to the ground. For no reason. At all. I received a technical foul. And if I remember correctly, the crowd booed me. Amazingly, the girl didn’t stand up and punch me in the face. I never tried to be “aggressive” again. And no one ever encouraged me to “be more aggressive” again, either.
So back to the Jacob story:
At the two parent-teacher conferences I have attended this year, his teachers have expressed their concern that Jacob doesn’t talk in school. (-which, of course, leaves me befuddled since he speaks INCESSANTLY at home.) Earlier this week, with the best of intentions (just like my mom and brother), I encouraged him to “speak up more frequently in class”, let his teachers know that he understands the information, “don’t be afraid to talk”, etc.
Every week, I receive a weekly behavior progress report from his teachers. The top half of the sheet lists various ‘Needs Improvement on’ behaviors and the bottom half lists several ‘Doing Well in’ behaviors. He’s never had any ‘bad’ behaviors checked; he usually gets “Working Diligently” and “Making Wise Choices” checked among the positive behaviors each week. This week’s report was different, though. At the top of the sheet, his teachers had marked that he needs to work on “Talking without permission”.
I asked him about it after school and he told me, “You told me to talk more!”
Indeed.
(^grain intentional there^)
Filed Under Children, For My Bad Memory, The Sweetness | 2 Comments
For Amber
Posted on January 26, 2010
Filed Under Children | 3 Comments
Mug Shot
Posted on January 26, 2010
Crime: Extreme fussiness (due to lingering sickness and tooth #7)
Filed Under Babies, Pollywog | 3 Comments
‘Tis the Season
Posted on January 25, 2010
Did you know that children in south Louisiana don’t go to school on Mardi Gras? It’s THAT big of a deal. Growing up in Texas, Mardi Gras didn’t have a lot of significance to me. (Well, there’s that Mardi Gras celebration in Galveston if I remember correctly, but… meh.) Here, Mardi Gras is a real stay-home-from-school holiday and the decorations to mark the occasion have been in the stores since before Christmas. I’m sure we’ll go to a parade or two some time in the next few weeks, and Jacob (yes, he’s been eating popsicles) is ready for the party:
Speaking of Louisiana and parties, when I was in the grocery store this morning, I heard EVERYONE talking about the Saints game yesterday and their impending inaugural Super Bowl appearance. EVERYONE. As a child, my dad was (and still is) a Saints fan- even though we lived in Cowboys country. I grew up watching the Saints… um, lose… while the Cowboys rattled off Super Bowl win after Super Bowl win. It’s really nice to see New Orleans go this far. Good luck to them!
Filed Under Children, The Sweetness | 4 Comments
From Christmas
Posted on January 25, 2010
I know it’s almost February now, but I am just getting around to working on my family’s Christmas picture.
Every Christmas day at my mom’s house, we all pile onto the steps and porch of the small cabin behind her house after lunch for a group photo. I usually misfire my camera’s remote several times and we all laugh. (They are laughing WITH me, not AT me, right? Hmmmm…) This Christmas, for kicks, I also forgot to bring my tripod so I had the pleasure of trying to set up the shot without knocking my new camera off the hood of a Camry. Then I slide into my spot, scoop up Jacob, smile, and hope that at least ONE of the about-four shots I get before everyone starts to scatter turns out to have at least 75% of the participants looking in the general direction of the camera. It’s actually great fun for me; it is probably a dreaded event for everyone else. 
So, without further ado, the photo that documents the remote-misfiring, child-scooping, smiling, squeezed-between-two-trees moment where we all smile at a Canon-7D-sitting-atop-a-midsized-Toyota-sedan:
(Note to Keith and Jake: You guys are not going to be able to get married or have lots of children. Sorry. We don’t have any extra space between the trees. Okay? Great. Thanks. )
Filed Under For My Bad Memory, Relationships | 6 Comments
Weekend
Posted on January 23, 2010
Both kids have been sick the last few days, so we are spending a lovely, restful weekend around the house. Jacob and Sal have been playing Mario on the Wii (okay, I’ve been playing, too), Molly and I have strolled around the neighborhood, and I (of course) took a few pictures of my favorite girl.
She last wore this skirt here.
Have a great weekend everyone!
And Go Saints!
Filed Under Babies, Pollywog | 2 Comments
Well fed
Posted on January 21, 2010
Filed Under Babies, For My Bad Memory, Pollywog | 3 Comments
Pollywog
Posted on January 19, 2010
Filed Under Babies, Pollywog | 5 Comments