Baylor Baseball Game

We've been talking about going to a Baylor Baseball game for a while now.  Earlier this week we realized that their final regular season game was this week.  So, we loaded up the kids and headed out to the ballpark last night.

The Bears had already secured the Big 12 title, so they were giving away t-shirts to pretty much everyone who came last night.  I'm kind of tired of the obnoxious neon yellow (Jadie got a basketball version earlier this year), but it'll be fun to wear it anyway.  We actually got one for Caleb and Sarah, too, and I plan to restyle them to fit the two of them.

Yes, those are beavers on the t-shirt.  You can read about that HERE.  Feed the Beaver!

Since we took all 3 kids with us to the game, I really can't tell you much about the game itself.  I know that Baylor scored 3 runs in the 1st inning and 1 more in the 2nd inning.  I don't know anything beyond that.  We left after the 5th inning, just after the sun finally moved behind the scoreboard and stopped blinding us.  At that point, it was already 8:15pm and time to get the kids ready for bed.  Next season, we'll be working on finding a babysitter so we can actually pay attention to the game.

In case you're wondering where exactly our seats were...we sat on the grassy hill on the 1st base side.  It was awfully tempting for our kiddos to slide down the hill or to run around and play.  I think that made things even tougher on the parenting front.  We'll know for next time!

And The Rest...

Although my little story came to an abrupt end, the trip did not.  Here's what else happened...

Tuesday evening, Mom went on to her Bible Study so the kids and I went to IHOP for dinner.  Kids eat FREE from 4-10 pm every night in April.  Yipee!

Wednesday morning I wanted to head home, so Mom and I made a quick trip to Wal-Mart to complete my paper organization seminar.  What?  I didn't tell you that I am an organizing expert.  No?  Well, that's because I'm not.  I just have a few ideas.  And generally my paperwork at home is organized.  Catch the more detailed story below.

Wednesday afternoon, Mom and I drove separately to Ft. Worth to have lunch with Kristin.  It was 1:30 or so.  She recommended a local Mexican restaurant.  It turned out to be a seafood/Mexican restaurant.  Loved it!

I made it home around 4pm on Wednesday.  I was pooped!


Paperwork Organization Tips
So, I gave mom a few tips to wrangle her paperwork.
Accordion File for Receipts
I file them alphabetically until the date for return is passed.
File Box with Hanging Files
Categories such as Monthly Bills, 401(k), Home Repairs, Car Insurance, Homeowner's Insurance, etc.
Stacking Trays
This is the work in progress section.  I label 4 trays this way: 1. To Do (things like invitations or things you just aren't sure what the heck to do with) 2. To Pay (bills, etc.) 3. To File (with the stacking tray, it really limits you so that you don't end up with stacks and stacks of unfiled paperwork) 4. To Shred (same thing here.  no major pileup.  when it's full, shred it!)

Back in Time

I have been busy since the last blog post!

Saturday we spent some time at Vanessa's for our nephew's 12th birthday.  Family time and cupcakes.

Saturday evening we sold our 1998 Chevy Truck for a wad of cash.  Although we already miss the truck, recouping some of the cost of buying the minivan was worth it.  And it's less money out the door for insurance, registration, inspection, oil changes, and gasoline (which is $3.69/gal at the moment).  We are finished shuffling vehicles in and out of the driveway, too.  That's been annoying.

Sunday morning we fulfilled our quarterly childcare duties during the church service.  I got to hold babies, change diapers, calm screaming, and make a certain little baby laugh his little head off.  That made it mroe enjoyable.

Sunday afternoon, the kids and I drove to Keller to spend some time with mom.  We enjoyed some down time and homemade spaghetti.

Monday morning, we did some light shopping and had lunch at Chick-fil-A.  I found some dish towels at World Market to make a few of these tote bags...Dish Towel Tote.

Monday evening, we ate dinner at a locally owned Mexican restaurant named Kassandra's.  It was yummy.  Mom and I shared an appetizer plate of nachos, taquitos, and quesadillas.  Caleb had the kid's quesadilla and Sarah had a big bowl of refried beans (and several bites of our quesadillas).

Tuesday morning we headed for Dallas, the source of our title today.  I requested that mom take me on a little trip back to the neighborhood where we spent most of my childhood.

We drove by:

Our old house in Dallas

Harry Stone Park

The building previously known as Happiness House (the day care/school where I attended from 18 months - 3rd grade)

The Dairy-ette

Kiest Elementary

My best friend Jana's house (I believe her parents still live there)

Casa View Library (which was empty)

The Mexicali Cafe (no longer in business)

The skating rink where I tried to impress a certain boy in 5th and 6th grade

Mom's childhood home

MawMaw's old house

Nanny's old house

Town East Mall

Overall, I was surprised at how well maintained the area was, how peaceful it was, and how much things had stayed the same.  Keep in mind, we were driving around during school hours, so there weren't any teenage hooligans running around.

Some things I want to note:
Happiness House--Although the school was no longer called Happiness House, it was still a daycare.  I asked mom to drive down the alley next to the playground, and things back there was just as I remember them.  The building next door was part of the school when I attended, but was up for sale, leading me to believe that it was no longer owned by the daycare.
Our old house--It was fun to be able to name everyone who lived in the surrounding houses.  I was surprised at what I remembered.  Most of our neighbors were retired when I was a child, and have since died.  I could almost see them as we drove by their houses.
Jana's old house--I knocked on the door to see if either of her parents were home.  No one answered.  I wonder if they are both still teaching...
Harry Stone Park--It still seemed to be running in much the same way it had been when I was a child.  The layout inside was the same.  Some men were playing basketball in the gym.  Some seniors were attending a painting class.  There were posters up advertising other classes, like Zumba.  There were a few people walking on treadmills and there was a weight room.  The outdoor pool was well kept and clean.  The park was updated and there were children playing.  The tennis courts were well maintained, but empty.  Dallas spoiled me.  There isn't a place like that around here that I know of.
The Dairy-ette--The food was still delicious, but they only accept cash.  Are you kidding me?
Kiest Elementary--Was much the same, but with more portable buildings.  Driving past the recess area brought back memories.  We played out there every day after lunch.  We had school carnivals out there.  Good memories.

So, I will bring this to an abrupt end.  I just wanted to dump all of that out there.

We Did It: Paying Cash for a Minivan

How we created enough savings to buy a (used) car with cash only:

• After we paid off our Saturn  a year and a half ago, we started paying ourselves, building significant savings.
• The only debt we have is our home mortgage (even owing that drives me bonkers).
• In case you didn't know this about me, I don't pay full price for many things.  I shop the rewards program at CVS and use coupons or buy store brands whenever possible.
• Most work around the house is done by Jadie.  Even our bathroom remodels last year came in under $2,000 total.

Here's how the deal went down:

• We made a mental list of what we wanted.

1. Stow-n-go for all 5 seats.
2. around 50K miles, if possible.
3. 5 years old or less.

• We shopped online for minivans, getting a firm idea of the going rate for what we wanted.
• We stopped at a Carmax in Austin to get an education regarding pricing and features of various minivans.  They have No-Haggle pricing and No-Pressure sales, so we felt free to ask questions.
• While working in Temple, Jadie spotted a 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan with 54K miles and 5 Stow-N-Go seats.
• We drove down to take the minivan for a test drive with the kiddos.
• We almost walked away that night, but the manager of the dealership quickly made a $1,500 price drop to keep us interested. (I'm assuming this is because this vehicle had been sitting in their parking lot for over 2 months.)
• We still walked, saying we'd think about it.
• We looked at every dealership in Waco to scope out comparable or better deals.  Zip.  Zero.
• Jadie called the dealership in Temple and negotiated another $500 price drop.
• Jadie brought the minivan home last night so we could have our mechanic look at it today.
• No major issues with the minivan functionality or under the hood.
• We gave the dealership a list of things we saw and wanted to have repaired.  They agreed.
• We drove to Temple to pay for our new minivan!

Can You Feel the Excitement?

If not, put yourself in my place.  In less than 24 hours, Jadie and I will be leaving the kids behind with their one and only Granana so we can get away for the weekend!

If it were you, you'd be excited too.

Where are we going?  Wimberley,Texas, of course.  The most captivating location in the world.

Not really.  Yes, we are going to Wimberley.  No, it's not the most captivating place on earth.  But it is quite a slow-paced, peaceful kind of place.  And we will enjoy ourselves.

A group of married couples from our church takes a trip to Wimberley each year around Valentine's Day.  There will be lots of fellowship and good food along with a few seminars that are very laid back and informal.

So, adios, y'all!

Vacation Time!

This year, we decided to limit our vacation to spending a few days with my grandparents in East Texas.  Sunday was our 6th Anniversary and Father's Day, so we headed to East Texas Saturday afternoon after driving to Grapevine to meet up with a couple of my friends from high school.  

We enjoyed seeing family, golfing, fishing, eating at a couple of the local restaurants, watching the beekeepers, eating snow cones, and more.  

Caleb "Fishing"

We won't be trying this again for a while.  He really wasn't interested enough for Granny to have worked so hard getting the fishing gear out and the lines ready.

Granny, Caleb, and PawPaw watching Doug and Jake remove the bees

Caleb Playing with the Bubble Gun Aunt Debra Bought for Him

Weekend Trip

We haven't seen my grandparents since Christmastime, so we made our "Easter" trip to Van this past weekend.  Before having Caleb (and on Caleb's first Easter), we would go to my grandparents for family time and Easter egg hunting.  The last three years, we have decided to stay home for Easter and visit my grandparents either the weekend before or after Easter.  We have been doing our own smaller family egg hunt and we plan to go to church on Easter Sunday at our home church.  This year, we were able to go to our home church, but we had childcare duty and missed the sermon.  The person who coordinates the childcare volunteers promised we would not have duty on Easter Sunday next year.  I hope not!

Anyhow, that's what we did this weekend...we drove to Van Saturday morning and back home Sunday afternoon.

Tomorrow's the big day to find out baby's gender!

Valentine's Day 2009

I began creating Jadie's Valentine's present on Tuesday evening.  It would be a decadent chocolate silk pie with cool whip and chocolate shavings.  Yummmmy!  I only read the ingredients list before starting, not the instructions.  To my dismay, I realized that the last step of the recipe was to add 4 eggs, beating the batter 5 minutes between each egg addition.  Then I was to refrigerate the pie for 2 hours.  Notice that there would be no baking of the eggs.  Poor me, I would not be able to devour half of Jadie's chocolate silk pie.  Raw eggs=not a good idea for pregnant women, elderly women, or children under three.  I did take a little nibble and rest assured that I will be making this goody again in about 6 months!

On Friday, we made our way to Wimberley for our church Marriage Retreat.  We stopped at Golfsmith on the way down so that Jadie could try out a golf club he's been eyeing.  We made it Wimberley in time for BBQ dinner catered by Salt Lick BBQ.  Delicious.  

We had our own cabin; it was nice to be alone in he evenings even though we were surrounded by other couples from our church during the day.  

Ironic tidbit: This is the second time we've stayed at a Bed & Breakfast where we had access to a hot tub (this time it was ours exclusively, on our back porch).  And this is the second time I've been pregnant while having access to said hot tubs.  Relaxing in the hot tub is a no-no when you're expecting since it can raise your body temperature for a prolonged period of time and can put the baby in danger.  So for the second time, I watched Jadie oooooh and aaaaah while I sat on the side with my feet in.

The weekend was relaxing in that we were "away from it all" and beneficial in that we were really able to spend some time focusing on our marriage.

San Antonio

As Jadie has pointed out, I am addicted to vacations.  I really crave one every year.  I am already preparing myself for next year's "vacation drought" due to the threat of the union strike in 2009.  The possible strike is important though.  It means the difference between phenomenal company benefits and healthcare and going broke paying for insurance and such out of pocket.  Anyhow, back to the vacation subject.

I know we just went camping, but our "real" out-of-town vacation this year was to San Antonio.  This was our first year to take Caleb along.  We thought he'd enjoy Sea World and the Riverwalk (and it doesn't hurt that it's still free to take him along).  We all had an enjoyable time, but here are a few things to note for those of you with small children thinking of vacationing with them.

1. Caleb is used to a loose naptime/bedtime schedule, but both were hard to adhere to when trying to catch all of the sights and sounds we were interested in.
   
2. Trying to wheel a stroller down the Riverwalk is next to impossible.  Thankfully, I have a strong, uncomplaining husband who carried Caleb and the stroller (while Caleb was still sitting in it) up and down bout 15 sets of stairs along the river.
   
3. Caleb is also used to having easy access to a fresh drink whenever he wants it, and there aren't many suitable drinks available at the drop of a hat.
   

Before we left, we searched for some ways to save on dining costs.  We found one really great website for purchasing gift certificates to restaurants.  We purchased a $25 certificate for only $6 and another $10 certificate for $2.  The website doesn't have much available for the area where we live, but it had a few choices for the San Antonio area which helped us save a little cash. 

More Pictures

View From Our Room (looking straight down) on the 23rd Floor

My Boys Relaxing!

San Antonio Pictures

Sea World

San Antonio Children's Museum

Riverboat Pictures

Camping Trip

We returned from our camping trip today!!!  We had a lot of fun, but I think we've decided that next time we'll go kid free.  At least until Caleb's a little older.  Some of the things we wanted to do (like swim without a kid attached or fish off of a dock without sufficient railing for a 2 year old) would have been easier without worrying about keeping Caleb safe and/or occupied.

Enough of the jabbering...here's what you really want, right?  For you literary types, I'll still give you plenty of reading material along the way.  Something for everyone, ok?

Lance and Stephanie...who may not have known quite what they were getting into.  Just kidding.  These two are wonderful with Caleb and were quite comfortable roughing it for a few days.

Us, of course.  As Stephanie pointed the camera at us, Caleb leaned his head to mine and gave a big cheese.  Beautiful!

Thanks for the swimsuit, sis!

Here are our digs...a nice size, 3-room tent that Jadie purchased 3 years ago with some incentive points he earned by selling phone service.

This was just for us and our junk.  Lance and Stephanie had their own, very similar tent to sleep in.  What you cannot see are all of the millions of tiny ants that were under, on, and in our tent.  During day two, we acquired a can of Raid to take care of that nasty little problem.

Check out this beautiful, God-given weather we were graced with!  I snapped this one on Saturday night at sunset (as you can tell).

Swim-time Friday night.  This was as close at Caleb would get to the water without some serious effort.  I know you can't see the numbers, but that post showed the water to only be 3 feet deep within the roped-off area.  After last week's episode at Lake Waco, Caleb was cautious when it came to water.  He had to be held the entire time and would only stop whining and fussing after about 10 minutes of convincing.  Anyhow, this was Friday night.  I didn't get any pictures of our 4 hour pebbly beach experience from Saturday afternoon.  We went through the same holding and wading routine Saturday and Caleb finally fell asleep on the beach towel after about 2 hours.  Steph went and got an umbrella and covered him with a towel to protect from the sun.

Caleb discovered this little stump and thought it was a good spot to stop and rest between golf games.  Yes, we took his little golf set and he played and played at our campsite.

We found a long machete in this tree trunk.  Scary!  The tree behind Caleb had a hollowed out split that someone had probably stored it there during their stay.

Jadie fishing, but not catching anything.  We didn't really have much luck all weekend.  The two pictures you'll see later are two of the fish we caught out of three different trips down to the dock.  Besides the pitiful fish you see below, Jadie caught a small bass and Lance caught an ugly gar.

Beautiful day.  Lance is getting read to fish.  Little does he know, they just aren't biting.  They preferred to nibble.

First catch!  Just a pesky little perch.  Oh, well.  I did it before the boys!

Jadie's catch of the weekend.  I know, you're thinking that it's impressive.  Actually, it is pretty impressive.  There's a story to this catch.  Jadie  wasn't content to fish with just one line, so he tied some fishing line to the metal bar of the dock.  He tied on a hook and dropped it in until he could get a weight and bobber ready.  When he had the weight and bobber in hand, he pulled the line back out of the water to find this silly little fish who is apparently attracted to siny things in the water.  That's right.  Just a hook.  

Steph sat out during the fishing experience.  It's just as well given our luck with catching the big ones.  She let Caleb bother her instead. Ha!  

Caleb just thought he could wear the goggles. Really, they're not flattering on anyone. Not even a handsome young thing like him.

These are the stairs we had to climb up and down to get to the fishing dock.  As said before, we ventured down to the dock 3 times.  The last time, Saturday night.  Caleb took a tumble on the way down.  I had been walking ahead of him, but decided to stop and let him catch up.  I let him pass me by one step.  I started thinking that it would be better if I were below him in case he lost his footing.  That way I could stop him from tumbling down.  Anyhow, at the very moment that I decided to step down to the step below him, he did take a tumble.  I freaked!  Amazingly, while he was head down, bottom up, I was able to grab the strap on his life jacket (the one that runs between his legs).  I grabbed it with my pinky finger, screamed for Jadie who was already at the dock.  I pulled Caleb up (still with just my pinky), dropped my bag, and took a look at his head.  It was bleeding, of course.  It is absolutely amazing what God allows us to be able to do in the excitement of a scary moment.

Here's Caleb showing off his "owie."  Another amazing accomplishment of God.  What a tiny little scrape in light of what could have happened.