bright eyes + blue eyes

d-cot : trafalgar square

Mom & Dad

Trafalgar Square, c.1973

Hunter & me

Trafalgar Square, 1999

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related: Ban Tourists from Trafalgar Square Lions, Says Report

sunday ten

1. Worship (early service) with Hunter's parents at FBC.
2. Worship with my parents at CPC.
3. BBQ lunch at my brother's house. Took a few family photos in the front yard after lunch.
4. Drove up to F'ville to see Benton, JB, and kids.
5. Got to meet sweet little baby Marion!
6. Marion is now 11 weeks old. She is Benton & JB's fourth child. Their oldest is in 1st grade. Needless to say, this is a busy season for their family!
7. And add this to the mix: When Marion was 4 wks old, Annie Grace (almost 3 yrs old) fell off a bar stool and broke her wrist.
8. And add this to the mix: When Marion was 10 wks old, Annie Grace (same child!) tripped inside, fell on the hardwood floor, and broke her tibia (did I get the name of that bone right, JB?) Annie Grace now has a huge cast on her leg.
9. Let's all stop and say a prayer that AG heals quickly, and that the Lord protects her from any more falls! Sweet girl! ....also, let's all stop and say a prayer for JB as she takes care of these precious little people! JB is amazing.
10. While we were visiting them, little Annie Grace just sat on the floor wherever her parents positioned her. The other girls would congregate around her and they would all play together. Annie Grace would call out when she needed anything. After a while, JB had the idea of Whitlee and Pumpkin pushing Annie Grace around (indoors) in the stroller. That was a HUGE hit. The little patient enjoyed being able to move around the house a bit. :-) The bigger two girls loved pushing the stroller. Here's a tiny video clip of the three of them. Unfortunately my camera's battery ran out, so it's a very short clip...but you do get to see that enormous purple cast! (You can also see the black wrist brace on her left arm....)

 
 

friday & saturday ten

{I am back home now...but I'm still going to post my "trip notes," which I ended up jotting down on paper because it was easier.}

1. Went to visit my grandmother. So happy to see her. Sat in the living room & enjoyed visiting.
2. Nannie has a dresser drawer full of toys. I played with those toys when I was little. Now my kiddos play with the same old fashioned wooden toys. Then Mary & Caleb came over....and Caleb (almost 2 yrs) went STRAIGHT for that same dresser drawer. So cute.
3. Visted Mama Frances, Poppa, and Grandaddy's gravesides & thanked the Lord for their lives.
4. Exited the cemetary by going through the part with the really, really old headstones. Saw a white marble (or granite? I don't really know) stone that simply said, "Christ is my hope." It was beautiful.
5. Went to the zoo with my sis-in-law, my nephew, Gram, Aunt Beva, Pmpkn, and Sprboy.
6. Kids had a movie night with cousins. Watched Tangled.
7. I ate some yummy shrimp gumbo that Papa made. Got the recipe.
8. Allison & I took Mom to B-Side to celebrate my mom's birthday.
9. Went to the lake house. Saw the progress on the cabin renovation/addition. Amazing. Love it.
10. Win stopped by at the cabin. Great to see him! And we also got to see his new motorcycle.

 

thursday ten

1. I've had the JOY of getting to babysit my sweet little niece a couple of times this week. She will be one later this month. She's walking everywhere and loves to play peek-a-boo.

2. When you babysit a new walker, it should really be called "baby following" instead of babysitting. I just follow her around the house....Make sure she pulls things off of shelves & out of drawers that are safe for her. This age = the age of exploration and discovery!

3. Superboy & Pumpkin adore her. They love it when she chases them. They run down the hall and she comes toddling after them as fast as she can.

4. Yesterday I got to attend my mom's Bible study with her. The lesson was on Isaiah 52-53, the suffering Servant. The lecture was so edifying.

5. My dad orchestrated an AMAZING birthday meal for my mom earlier tonight. He spent hours in the kitchen & we all gathered around the table together in awe of the delicious meal. It was so much fun. Good food, good conversation, and the chance to celebrate an incredible woman!

6. Hunter & I watch Survivor together each week. It's one of those shows that I need to watch WITH someone. There's so much to talk about. This week my mom watched it with me. 

7. I can't decide if I like wisteria or not. It's everywhere right now. Seems like it must be detrimental to the trees it hangs on...?

8. I do like it on an arbor or pergola. No downside there.

9. I watched a couple of old Frasier episodes with my mom & dad last night. My dad was cracking up big time. 

10. Here's another youtube clip that my dad showed me. It's about one minute long. Watch the clip very carefully! It tests your attention. Test Your Awareness  If you watch, let me know how you do.

 

 

tuesday & wednesday ten

1. My brother has a labradoodle named Angus. Angus & Izzy have had the chance to get to know each other. Dog psychology is fascinating. Angus is the alpha dog.

2. Superboy has enjoyed playing the Wii at Gingi & GPoppa's house.

3. Both kids have been practicing for the children's musical that they're performing in later this month. They've been listening to the practice CD and singing along.

4. The kids and I had a lunch date at our favorite burger & milkshake joint. Not fast food. This is an old school place with really good burgers. I got a blue cheese burger & was full after about five bites. It was so good.

5. In the parking lot of the restaurant, the kids and I were approached by a lady who was asking for money. She had a long story about where she was trying to go & why she needed the money. I didn't have any cash on me, on top of the fact I was conflicted about whether to give her cash or not. As an alternative, I asked if she would like some food. We went through a nearby drive-through and got her a meal.

6. After that = a great conversation with the children. As a mom, I pray that they will be overflowing with compassion and be deeply motivated to help people in need. On the other hand, I also have the responsibility of teaching them to have an appropriate dose of caution in certain situations. {Mainly I'm referring to our decision not to ask the woman to hop in the car with us & let me take her where she needed to go.}

7. Don't you just wish there was an easy way to immediately discern the truth of stories like the one the woman told me?

8. The kids and I also had a brief conversation about addiction. {I did not imply to them that the woman was an addict. However, I did point out that addiction is common in situations involving homelessness and poverty.} 

9. Whenever we talk about addiction with our kids, Miss Hannigan (from the movie Annie) comes up. That is their mental image of alcohol addiction.

10. (new topic...) There's a song we sing at our church called "Desert Song." I'd like to post more about it in a future post. (Note to self.) The kids & I have been listening to it a couple of times a day in the car when we've been driving here and there. Wow. The lyrics are so powerful. And I love the melody. 

 

monday ten

Spring break travel. Husband at home. The kids & I are visiting both sets of grandparents. (We'll miss you, Hunter!!)

I'll try to publish some quick posts about our trip. Here are ten tidbits from today:

1. Before leaving my house: make sure ipod has new TAL episodes on it. Mandatory for long car trip.
2. Kids watched a couple of Inspector Gadget episodes.
3. I submit that the Inspector Gadget theme song is one of the most annoying Ohrwurms ever.
4. Kids did their math practice on Superboy's DS. We've been doing daily math practice on that nifty little machine every day for the last six months or so. So convenient.
5. A few days ago, I picked up the Hardy Boys DVDs from the library on a whim. (From the 1950s. With that guy who was also in Old Yeller.)
6. In the car, the kids watched the Hardy Boys look for clues & solve mysteries. I was surprised at how much the kids liked this vintage TV!
7. Izzy did great in the car today.
8. When I'm driving 70mph during daylight hours, I feel fine. All good.
9. When I'm driving 70mph at night, I feel like I'm hurtling through space at warp speed.
10. Earlier tonight, my dad showed me this video & it REALLY cracks me up: Guilty Dog

 

he's back

Hunter's back home from Mexico. Hooray!

Here's what he brought for the kids.....

 

 

 

 

road trip: on the way back home

A bit of context...

• Gingi (my mom) helped us find a great lunch spot. I called her from the road in search of a Panera location. She gave me an address to punch in to my GPS. Yippee--our lunch was so yummy, and the kids wanted to thank Gingi for her help.
• We love baby chicks. At the Museum of Science and Industry, one of our favorite exhibits was the chick hatchery. On one side of the hatchery, we could see baby chicks emerging from their eggs. On the other side of the hatchery was a separate enclosure for bigger chicks (yellow, fluffy, and full of spunk.)

road trip: on the way back home from ellie and abbie on Vimeo.

 

chicago: metra

We rode the Metra into the city today and had a ball at the Field Museum.

We *almost* missed our train this morning....we cut it a little bit too close, but were saved by the fact that Uncle Gary knew the back route to the station.

Here's Pumpkin's recap:

chicago : on the metra from ellie and abbie on Vimeo. 

chicago: we're here

1. We're here! Had a great road trip up to Chi-Town. I'm sitting on Aunt Judy & Uncle Gary's couch at the moment--very happy to be here. The weather today was ab-so-lute-ly beautiful. We're going to have such a great week.

2. Fun in the car: We listened to Sign of the Beaver (the audio book.) It's a great book about a boy in the late 18th century who befriends a Native American boy about his age.

3. More fun in the car: While the kids were watching a movie, I listened to the RadioLab episode about Parisites. I'm now officially freaked out about blood flukes.

4. I cleaned my own windshield at the gas station--and missed my hubby! He's always so sweet about cleaning the windshield/windows for us on our trips.

5. We listened to Gary, Indiana (song from Music Man) when we were driving through Gary, Indiana.

6. The kids are now old enough to follow along on the atlas as we drive from state to state. I love that they can track where we are.

7. Another thing I love? Our GPS. Love it.

8. The kids know that they are allowed to pick out one souvenir during our trip. Theoretically, their choice is supposed to be something that is related to Chicago in some way, shape, or form. Well, we made it as far as the Cracker Barrel in Kentucky before they started asking "Can THIS be my souvenir? Please?" (while holding up a Webkinz.) Unless it is a Chicago Cub Webkinz or something, then the answer is no.

9. Lake Michigan is enormous.

10. I've got a big day tomorrow, so I'm going to sign off and hit the hay! We're headed to the METRA station in the morning to choo-choo our way back into the city.