It's About That Time!

Jake Man washing the gator.

Me and my Dad with my gator. She was 6'10".

That's right kids! The alligator hunting season is once again creeping up on us! I can't wait to get my name in the hat to possibly be drawn to hunt! I am a very girly girl but I tell you what, I love the adrenaline rush that you get from alligator hunting...you motor into a quiet spot up river and shine your light around...the number of red glowing eyes is breathtaking...I really don't know how to describe the feeling, but I certainly hope to be one of the lucky few this year! Keep your fingers crossed for us...we have quite a few family members who will be applying this year...my Mama included...so let's hope that at least one of us gets drawn.

I Wanna Be a Rock Star!

We (Jake and I) were riding in the car last night...destination Kroger. He says "Mama, look at me." I turn around to see him wearing 2 pairs of sunglasses, one Spiderman, the other HotWheels. He says "do I look like a rock star with these two sunglasses on?" As a matter of fact you do my dear!! I love that little guy!!

Sleepy Guy

This is what happens when you don't get to take a nap at school...This picture was taken at about 7 p.m. The poor child is absolutely worn out when he gets home from school now!! He can hardly hold his head up at the dinner table and often winds up asleep on the couch before bathtime!! One plus is that he is now sleeping longer on the weekends!! I really think he will adjust to the napless days pretty soon...we all had to do it, right? Please tell me that I'm not the only one who doesn't get to take a nap at work!!

I Know, I Know!

Our Hotel Room

Yes I am still alive! We've been incredibly busy lately and tonight is the first time I've been able to "force" myself to sit down and write....so....where to start. I think I shall start with our 6 year anniversary...that's right...6 wonderful years!! I have known Mark for just about all of my life and I have always...ALWAYS...had a crush on him. I never dreamed that we would get married, have a beautiful child and such a beautiful life together. I love that man with all that I am. He is a wonderful friend, husband and father. I couldn't ask for more! To celebrate our anniversary, we headed off to New Orleans on Saturday June 7th. We stopped for lunch at Middendorf's and had some wonderful fried catfish and softshell crab...that place brings back so many wonderful memories from my childhood. See, my grandparents lived to eat. It was nothing for them to come down to my parent's house, that trip alone took them an hour, and then drive us all the way to Middendorf's to eat lunch on a Saturday...that's almost 2 and a half more hours. The restaurant hasn't changed a bit over the years that I have been going there and the food is still every bit as delicious!! We finished our lunch and headed on into the big city. We stayed at the JW Marriott which comes highly recommended by me. They were super nice and the room was beautiful. We ate dinner that night at Acme Oyster House which is another one of my favorites! I had the oh so delicious chargrilled oysters!! YUMMY!! We spent the rest of the evening wandering Bourbon Street and ducking in and out of all of the local dives. Our drinking of adult beverages ended when we went to the bar in Razoo and ordered one Bud Light and a double Malibu and Diet Coke...the bartender says "$17.50"... I thought Mark was going to pass out!! I tried to tell him that the double that I ordered was like $12 or $13 and his beer was $5! Next time we think we'll bring our own cooler on wheels and drink out of that! Only problem is that my White Russian daiquiris won't keep in a cooler!

We woke on Sunday and exchanged our anniversary cards before heading off to eat beignets for breakfast. We wandered the French Market for some souvenirs and headed out of town at about 1 p.m. It was a wonderful weekend! It doesn't hurt that I absolutely LOVE New Orleans!! I don't know why I'm fascinated by the people in New Orleans (locals, not tourists). I find myself looking at people and wondering what their story is, how did they end up there...what was it like to grow up in New Orleans...what did you do during Katrina...did you stay, did you leave...did you have to suffer with the masses waiting for rescue? Most people would never want to live there but I would love it....I think.

A Morning at the Museum

Studying an exhibit

Jake with a Triceratops family...complete with babies hatching out of eggs!

We took Jake to the Natural Science Museum on Saturday morning. They are always running some sort of special exhibit. The feature now through January is dinosaurs. Anyone who knows Jake has probably heard him go on and on about every kind of dinosaur there ever was. He even knows the scientific names of many of them and can pronounce them better than I can. He loves the museum anyway but the dinosaurs were just an added bonus. They are life sized dinosaurs that move and make noise. Jake was expecting dinosaur bones...which are fascinating to him too...but got a big (scary) surprise when he walked into the exhibit room and saw the T-Rex! We had a great time exploring and talking about all of the animals at the museum. Of course, we had to stop by the gift shop on the way out....UGH....I wish they would hide museum gift shops so that we parents aren't forced to try and explain to our children why we don't want to pay $15 for a toy we could get at Wal-Mart for $5. We made it through with a $3 purchase of dinosaur "goo".

And on to a New Chapter

Jake ended his stay at his old school with the end of the year program on May 23rd. We all got to enjoy a very relaxing Memorial Day holiday before it was off to a new beginning at his new school. We are still trying to learn the ropes as parents but Jake hasn't skipped a beat. Thankfully, there are 2 kids in his class at JA that were in his class at his old school...instant friends. We've had some trouble adjusting to the fact that there are no naps when you get to 4K! When I came to pick him up on his first day, he was absolutely worn out! He wanted to know if I had his blanket in the car so he could take a nap on the way home...it has made bedtime much easier on me. So far, so good. We're looking forward to the rest of the summer and next school year at the new place....the next battle is sure to begin in August when I have to make him wear a uniform...he's very picky about his clothes. Hope he likes navy and white!!

Last Day of School

My guys

The Jake-man himself...it was a challenging hair day!

For some reason, the American part of the skit involved all of the children dressing up like farm animals...I haven't quite figured that out yet

Jake had his end of the year program at school on May 23rd. The 3 and 4 year old classes put on a little program and then we all enjoyed a pot luck lunch. Jake's class sang a song using Japanese words and also sang God Bless America. Did you know that there is a line in God Bless America that references the light from a BUG? When Jake sings the line that goes " stand beside her and guide her, through the night with the light from above "....it comes out as the light from a bug....with a whole lot of emphasis on the g in bug. He cracks me up! Anyway...I've included some pictures from the event. There weren't many good ones...it's hard to photograph kids who are constantly bouncing!

More About Me

maybe i should let my hair grow back out...or maybe not...I think about this constantly.

i love the smell of Jake's freshly washed hair.

people would say that I'm very easy to get along with.

when i wake up in the morning I want to roll over and go back to sleep.

i lost my willpower...I can't think of anything for this one! I've got plenty of willpower!

life is short...we should not assume that there will be a tomorrow

my past is just that, my past...I've learned from it and I let it stay in the past.

i get annoyed when people are so eager to talk that they don't take the time to listen.

parties are fun!!!

dogs are fantastic...at least mine are...

cats are extremely annoying. I can't stand cats...sorry to all you cat lovers out there.

tomorrow is not guaranteed...as stated above.

i have low tolerance for stupid people.

i’m totally terrified of losing Jake...literally losing him...this is why he still rides in the buggy at Wal-mart.

i wonder why i ended up with the best husband anyone could ever ask for. I don't deserve him!

never in my life have i tried any sort of illegal drug...just not my thing.

high school was okay most of the time but I would not do it again.

when i’m nervous I can't sit still.

one time at a family gathering we all had too much to drink...happens at a lot of family gatherings...on my side of the family anyway!

live each day like there will be no tomorrow...haven't we been over this like 3 times already??

making my bed is something that has to be done before I can leave the house in the morning.

i'm almost always in a good mood...it's hard to get me down.

i’m addicted to running...

Happy Birthday!!! (A Week Late)

The cake.

Ripping into a present.

Jake's birthday actually fell on Mother's Day this year so we got to have a double celebration day. I can't think of a better day for his birthday to fall on cause without him, we wouldn't have a reason to celebrate at our house. Don't get me wrong, we love our own mothers but it's so special to be a mother yourself.

The day started with a lot of cleaning, picking up the cake and getting ourselves ready to greet our guests. Note: Don't pick up the cake at 10 a.m. when the party isn't scheduled to start until 1 p.m....and if you do, keep it hidden. Jake fussed all morning about wanting to get the black Spiderman off the top of the cake. He was so thrilled when we finally sang happy birthday and let him have the figurine!

We had a great day surrounded by family and good friends. Chad and Kellye came over with Hayden and Seb. Jake and Hayden played very well together and I got some good baby lovin' from Seb.

It's Been a Long Week...

I can't begin to describe how glad I am that tomorrow is Friday. I am looking forward to a restful weeked with Mark and Jake....maybe do a little 4 wheeler riding...catch a few rays...and just relax!!! Here's hoping for a very relaxing weekend!