Texas Andersons

The past week was spent gearing up for the first day of school…

Thursday we went to Meet the Teacher night, where Ben got to see the class list and was SO excited about a few friends that would be in class with him!

Then he headed to my parents’ house for a few days of fun and some special time with Granmom and Papa. Mom took him to Incredible Pizza on Friday where he got to bowl, play putt-putt, and play in the arcade. And they both took him to the Witte Museum on Saturday where he got to explore the time, electricity, and weather exhibits.

On Sunday we took the boys downtown for some tourist fun. We had a safari at the Rainforest Cafe, complete with a volcano cake and lots of squeals! And then we took a riverboat cruise along the Riverwalk. So much fun!

On Monday, Ben was up and at ‘em, ready (and excited) for the first day of first grade. Evan and I drove him up to school and picked him up. Then we headed out with Nathan to have ice cream at Marble Slab to celebrate.

He said he had a great first day back; he had a fun time with friends; he thinks his backpack is super cool. (what more could a mom ask for?)

By Alice Bradley, from Parents Magazine…

Dear Mom and Dad,
Thank you for your interest in remaining my parents. Below is a list of my demands…

I Food
A. For breakfast, there will be only milk from my sippy cup while I’m watching television.
B. From breakfast until what you probably call lunch, I will be provided with an unending supply of cookies. No arguments.
C. For lunch I will eat yogurt. Anything containing fruit on the bottom will make me pick out the fruit and throw it on the ground or else throw it up on your carpet. So no fruit on the bottom.
D. From lunch until dinner I will enjoy having something to lick. Why not a lollipop? Why not seven? Between licks, I may place the lollipop on grandmother’s Turkish rug. This will be okay with you.
E. For dinner I will have macaroni and cheese. Any attempts to give me vegetables in addition to the macaroni and cheese will result in tears.
F. After dinner, you may provide me with ice cream.

II Television
A. The TV will be on all the time, unless I say differently. You are to sit by my side, quietly, hands folded in lap, while I watch my shows. You may arise to fetch me a snack.
B. No diaper changing or pleas to engage in physical activity will be tolerated during watching of television.
C. Turning off the television will result in much kicking and screaming.

III Toys
A. There will be many. They will always be strewn about the house so that I may simply reach down and pick up a toy, no matter where I am. They will be loud, complicated, and contain many small pieces. Nothing that results in any type of learning, please.

IV Friends
A. They should be available whenever I’m in the mood to use someone else’s toys or ingest someone else’s cookies. These friends may not ever so much as look at my toys or cookie supply.

V Sleep
A. Is when I say, where I say, and how I say. If I want to sleep upside down with my legs locked around your neck, then that’s how it will be. And you will enjoy it.

VI Affection
A. Occasionally I enjoy being hugged and kissed. I stress occasionally.
B. I will not be pelted with wet-mouthed assaults on an hourly basis. Should you feel the need to hug or kiss, you must provide me with a written request. And then wait for me to offer my pudgy cheeks.

CONGRATS to friends Kevin and Daniella on becoming parents!

Their brand new baby boy is named Alexander Samuel. He was born last Thursday, August 13th. Alex weighed in at just 6 lbs 7 oz and was 18.5 inches long.

He is a darling little peanut… and looks so much like Kevin!

Congrats, guys, on your new little family.

Wow, have we been busy!

We spent an afternoon at the city pool with my mom. Evan and I swam while Ben went off the diving board over and over again (my mom swears at least 60 times!).

I took the boys to the Children’s Museum the next day. They had a blast exploring all the exhibits. They loved flying the airplane, playing with the balls and chutes, and shopping in the childrens-sized grocery store. And then they got to spend the night at Granmom’s!

We spent Saturday in Austin. Ben and I attended the “Mommy and Me” session at Dream Dinners. And not only did he help me with preparing the meals, but they also had a kids’ station set up so that he could make his own snack mix (yum!). Then we spent the afternoon with Jenny and Myk, complete with a lunch at Chuy’s.

Yesterday we spent an afternoon at Fiesta Texas with Nathan and rode every single ride we could get to in the last two hours they were open.

And we just got back from a picnic lunch and fun at a local playground. There was so much running, sliding, and squealing going on!

And tomorrow we start gearing up for the start of the new school year. I hope at least Ben will remember all the fun we had this summer. And I hope both boys had a great time. Having this much fun, for me, was exhausting!

Many of you know me well enough to know that I had horrible morning sickness with both boys. Both pregnancies led to dehydration, emergency room and urgent care clinic visits, and even a hospital stay. With one, the sickness lasted for the first few months. With the other, the agony lasted almost until the very end.

We were excited that despite the morning sickness we were blessed with two big, beautiful, healthy baby boys. But now we may end up having geniuses on our hands!

Recent research is linking mothers’ morning sickness to their children’s higher iq’s…
Article

The summer of ‘09 sure turned out to be sunny and steamy! But thanks to our little pool and some fun activities, we were able to have some really cool fun…

We spent Wednesday at the zoo again. This time we never left the Tiny Tot Nature Spot, so the boys got to visit with the fish and monkeys and spend all morning staying cool in the water at the beach area. Then, as usual, we had a great ride on the train.

On Friday we had a playdate here at our house with a few of our favorite friends. After a great morning of playing Twister and hide-and-seek, we all had lunch, and then we headed to Pottery Creation to paint some more masterpieces.

Saturday we attended Madison’s 7th birthday party. With delicious cakes, a pinata, and pool time, everyone had a blast.

And while we’re still having a great time despite the heat, it sure would be nice for some clouds to roll in and drop some rain on us. Fingers crossed!

Ben is busy collecting pennies this summer. No, not just any pennies. We’re on a mission to visit places that have pressed penny machines…

I guess it started some time last year when we thought it would be fun to get one at the Tower of Americas. Then, why not the Alamo? And how about the Rainforest Cafe too? So we decided we had to make it an official collection.

I found this website I wanted to share-
PennyCollector.com
At this site I bought him a book to hold his collection. And we found an awesome listing of the location of all the machines. (so now we know exactly where we need to go!)

So far: Tower of Americas, Alamo, Rainforest Cafe, Witte Museum, Zoo, and Buckhorn Museum.

Getting in the next couple of weeks: Bass Pro Shops, Fiesta Texas, and the Children’s Museum.

We had another great afternoon at the city pool last week. Evan and I spent almost two hours swimming while Ben did nothing but enjoy the diving board. Then Granmom Loretta came and picked the boys up for a night and then treated us all to a day of swimming at Paradise Canyon.

This week we drove into downtown SA for a tour of the Buckhorn Museum and lunch in their saloon. Lots of great friends joined us, and we had a wonderful time looking at all the animals and exploring the western town. We got to spend a morning with Marli and Lillian when they came out for Lillian’s one-year portraits. We had a fun storytime and then playdate with Madison and her brand new puppy. And today Ben and I headed to play putt-putt golf while Nathan and Evan enjoyed playtime at Gymboree for Connor’s first birthday party. FUN!

PS- And we got the great news that Shutter-Happy was voted one of the Best of the Best again (silver again!). Five years in a row, every year in business. I’m tickled pink… or magenta… or whatever that color is I’m wearing!