The Doeschers

Saturday Morning Gallery

2012-02-11T11:02:00.001-06:00

I don't know what was going on in Keira's head when she drew and named this one... but I really love it nonetheless.

"Tic Tac Toe"

Below is an assortment of Star Wars villains by the boys (Lennon colored the green guy). The blue and green characters (Jango and Boba Fett) are actually cutouts, and they used these to play pretend Star Wars games on Friday.

Awesome.

"Rogues Gallery"

Marshmallow Sculptures

2012-02-08T12:56:00.001-06:00

This afternoon we tried to make some creations out of marshmallows and critter glue. Keira is still enjoying the sticky mess, while everyone else is done already.

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Candid Kassidy

2012-01-31T23:49:00.001-06:00

Guess who found my phone camera this morning before I woke up?

Sleeping Cutey

2012-01-31T23:45:00.001-06:00

This was Keira tonight, fast asleep on our bed.

She almost made it all of the way on, but now its back to her room for her.

Lodging with the Wolves

2012-01-31T23:43:00.000-06:00

We just got back from spending the night at the Great Wolf Lodge, which is a really cool indoor splash park that serves as a mini-vacation destination for a lot of people around here. The facilities, service, and expenses all say resort, but then you step outside and you're still in Dallas...

It was a school day for the non-home schoolers, so what I imagine is typically a madhouse during summers, vacations, and weekends ended up being relatively peaceful for us.

Keira and Kassidy mainly stuck to the kid pool. Kassidy made a few dashes to some of the bigger pools, but she does that anywhere nowadays. The girl seriously needs a leash...

Katharine hit all of the water slides (and dragged me onto a few of them).

No complaints here- they were all a ton of fun.

When I wasn't around to bring along, she would always find a new friend to play with.

The boy's favorite activities were the wave pool and winding river. They just kept going back and forth between the two for the whole time.

Keira and Kassidy were usually done after an hour, but Katharine and the boys stuck it out for up to 3 hours at a time.

This is when I knew that Lukas was ready to call it quits.

Happy Birthday, Katharine!

2012-01-21T20:52:00.002-06:00

The 2012 birthday calendar has officially kicked off. Katharine turned 9 years old today, and is celebrating it on a trip to the ballet with a few of her friends from dance class.

Here is Katharine's annual portrait, wearing a dirndl dress that she had picked up for Easter.

Katharine and Trinity, who visited yesterday to kick off the first part of the birthday celebration.

This morning, blowing out her birthday cupcake.

Katharine got a bunch of American Girl doll accessories and another dollhouse.

Later on that evening, the girls met up for pizza, strawberry cheesecake, and more birthday candles before heading out to the ballet.

Here is the ballet troupe as they get ready to head out to the Winspear for a performance by the visiting American Ballet Theater company.

Katharine facts:

She loves to dance- and is currently enrolled in 6 (!) classes (plus the competition team)

She started to learn how to play the piano this year, and has already composed some original songs

Her favorite drink is Sweet Tea (just like her Dad)

Her favorite food are strawberries

Her favorite subjects in school are Art, History and Science

Her favorite books are the Harry Potter series, which she has already read through twice

She is trying to save up for the 'Diagon Alley' Lego set

When she grows up she wants to be a professional dancer or choreographer

She also wants to have 10 kids...

She still loves to draw, and has been drawing family portraits and Monster High dolls as of late

She is an avid reader, and often falls asleep with a book open on her pillow

She is currently reading a coffee table sized animal life almanac that she got for Christmas, and some American Girl books

She has lots of favorite colors, but gold is currently high up on the list

Katharine describes herself as "a very detailed girl" and "a crazy bookworm and the keeper of my room"

Some of her best friends are Charlotte, Maya, Sarah, Nicole, Claire, Liam, Davis and Kaylee

Three wishes: more food for the poor + more money + a mansion

She loves to snuggle with her Mommy

She loves to snuggle up and watch Harry Potter movies with her Daddy

She likes to keep all her little brothers and sisters OUT OF HER ROOM

Harry Potter house: Gryffindor

A day in Daddy's Life

2012-01-20T20:16:00.004-06:00

I gave a "career day" talk at a local middle school today, and brought along some slides of a typical day at work.

I arrive at Gearbox early in the morning, anytime between 6:30 and 8:30.

I usually walk up the 11 flights of stairs to get some exercise.

Here is our cool lobby, which I walk through when I'm taking pictures but typically never see (I work on the floor below this one).

Eating cereal at my desk, and catching up with Shacknews and Confluence.

Starting work in the Unreal level editor.

Morning meetings...

meeting with the producer and LD's for a production update.

Lunch meetings...

attending Colonel Antal's weekly leadership class.

Free snacks and soda always beckon from the break room (now you know why I walk up all of those stairs every day).

After lunch, everybody in my office is hard at work- except for me, who is taking photos :P

Around 6 PM I shut down the computer and head home.

Then I get pounced on by my kids, although it's always fun to hear "Daddy's home!".

Later on I'm off to the drawing board once everybody is asleep.

When I'm not drawing I'm playing console games or catching up on TV.

And every night I need to read for at least a half hour before I fall asleep, no matter when I go to bed.

Lights out.

Good night!

Temperatures Rising

2012-01-20T19:55:00.000-06:00

The thermometer hit 80 degrees in Dallas today, so the kids were outside in the back for most of the afternoon,

It should be dropping back down to the 50's tomorrow- time to break out the winter coats again!

Girls night out

2012-01-20T19:35:00.000-06:00

Iria took Katharine and Trinity to the Gautier show at the DMA tonight, where they are having a Madonna/GaGa inspired costume show.

Looks like everybody is going to fit right in.

Huh?

2012-01-17T20:52:00.001-06:00

It is always interesting to find one of these cryptic letters from Katharine laying around.

Iria wasn't sure what the problem was, so at least it's not anything major.

It probably relates to her current obsession with obtaining "Monster High" dolls...

Super Kids

2012-01-17T20:49:00.006-06:00

The kids in costume from a few nights ago.

Lennon wasn't mad, he was just trying to look tough as a knight.

The Tooth Charmer

2012-01-11T11:17:00.001-06:00

We took the kids to the dentist this morning, and Kassidy walked the floor to make sure that everybody stayed cheered up.

Mismatched

2012-01-08T11:32:00.001-06:00

I was folding laundry this morning and ended up with 33 mismatched socks when I was done.

Welcome to having five kids, Erik...

Lukas's Birthday Party

2012-01-07T23:56:00.002-06:00

Lukas (finally) had his birthday party at Infinite Bounds, a fun gymnasium that encourages the parents to play as much as the kids. Yeah, his birthday was almost a month ago, but with the holidays and scheduling it was easier to have the party in January. He was certainly not complaining...

Here he is after the party with some of his gifts. Can you detect a trend?

Back to before the party, where the kids were waiting around for the guests to arrive. Kassidy was really working that whale spout today.

The kids loved the gym, but these pictures show that even a big empty big room can be fun enough.

Katharine had an interesting style going on today.

And speaking of fashion, Kassidy was looking very chic (when she wasn't flashing her tummy).

One of the coolest things at this gym is the big foam pit that you can jump into.

After the foam jumping, the kids moved on to foam wars.

Lukas had asked for a "Godzilla Cake" this year, so we built a miniature cake city for him to smash through.

And now let the random party pics begin...

All in all it was some fun times.

Now there is only one more party to go before we get a break for four months :)

Flashiddy

2012-01-07T23:35:00.003-06:00

Before the party started, Kassidy was flashing her tummy to anyone who she would walk up to.

Kassidy and Kate

2012-01-07T23:31:00.001-06:00

Another frousin friendship is beginning to start up.

Kassidy is 6 months older than Kate, similar to the age difference between Aiden and Lukas.

They have just recently started to pair up a bit more when visiting. Kassidy tried to give Kate a hug today, and they both poked each other a few times. They also share an interest in shiny things that can get knocked over... but what baby doesn't?

Favorite Necklace

2012-01-02T15:47:00.001-06:00

Kassidy is styling: She swiped Katharine's necklace and wears it everyday.

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Conversation Starter

2012-01-02T12:58:00.001-06:00

Theses are absolutely fabulous and I wish I owned a pair.

Visit to the DMA

2012-01-01T16:01:00.001-06:00

I took Katharine to the Dallas Museum of Art today. Katharine has been wanting to see the Gaultier show for a while now. We also happened to see a special exhibit about African Head Dresses which was cool. Kassidy loved exploring Arturo's Nest, the museum's area for little ones.

There is a cool section in the connections area where kids can explore space in different ways. Katharine loved the metal beaded curtain.

Here she is thinking about space from a dancer's perspective.

Katharine's box art

Kassidy's box art, well, she had some help from me.

Exploring Arturo's Nest

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Pretzels and Punch

2011-12-31T20:57:00.003-06:00

Celebrating New Year's Eve with homemade pretzels and punch while watching Swiss Family Robinson (and some funny Top Gear reruns).

Happy New Year!

A Night At The Museum

2011-12-31T09:33:00.000-06:00

We went to the Caravaggio show at the Kimbell in Fort Worth last night.

The show is closing on the 8th (and it was half price ticket night) so it was pretty busy. We had to park on the edge of the lot, but found this amazing tree on our walk to the entrance.

Kassidy in tow.

We don't this very often anymore, but the stroller might have been too bulky with the crowds. I'm sure that Kassidy didn't mind.

No pictures inside the gallery, but I shot this one at the entrance. There were good sized crowds, but it wasn't mobbed or anything.

The half price tickets start at 5 PM om Fridays, so by the time that we got through the gallery the kids were starting to get tired and hungry.

All in all, it was a really great show.

Smaller than I imagined it would be, but definitely more Caravaggio s than I have ever seen in one location. It was interesting seeing his work next to all of his followers paintings, who were certainly accomplished but lacked that incredible light and movement that was evident in most of Caravaggio's work.

The little kids got tired and cranky at some points, and we had one close toy projectile call when Lennon launched his Bear lovey. But all in all the kids had fun, and we were able to engage them in the stories that these amazing paintings told.

And seeing his "John the Baptist" painting in person was worth the price of admission for me.

Christmas Day

2011-12-26T12:21:00.002-06:00

Here are a few random pictures from Christmas.

The kids ended up waking me up around 7:30. I think the first ones came downstairs around 5 AM (as in, that's when they woke Iria up). Last year Lennon woke up at 2 AM...

It ended up taking around an hour to go through all of the gifts, and we haven't even peaked yet (Kassidy still gets a little less).

Afterwards, Iria made a great dinner that included ham, spaetzla (German pasta), asparagus, green beans and rolls.

Birthday cupcakes for Jesus capped everything off.

A great day!

Here they are doing their Christmas dance, minutes before we started opening the stockings. Do they look excited enough?

The stockings were filled to the brim. I'll be sweeping up those toys for many nights to come.

Lukas got this castle from the grandparents. Both the boys are playing with it as I type.

Lennon's new Batcave has been really popular as well. It's buried on the bottom of Lennon's stack of other irregular shaped toys (which must have been a real nuisance for Santa's elves to wrap).

Loved Kassidy's Christmas tights.

Katharine got a new American Girl doll from her grandparents...

Along with two zhu zhu pets, an outfit for her new doll, some Harry Potter books, a Harry Potter DVD, a Harry Potter Lego set (Hagrid's hut, which she built in an hour), a Barbie doll, an animal research book, more Calico Critters and more Squinkies.

Whew!

Here is Keira opening her Anglina Ballerina dollhouse.

And more Angelina Ballerina accessories.

Lukas was very careful when unwrapping and sorting his presents. They were all lined up in a neat row next to his bench.

Kassidy got a play phone, which will hopefully be a good substitute for Iria's iPhone.

Here is everybody post-present opening.

Present assembly started shortly afterwards. It was a pretty easy year along that front.

One of Keira's favorite gifts was a box of play-dough.

She LOVES play-dough.

The boys love video games. Go figure...

Iria's Christmas fashion.

Katharine loves tea- iced or hot.

And finally, Jesus got cupcakes for his birthday this year instead of cake.

I'm sure he won't mind (they were good cupcakes).

Not a creature was stirring...

2011-12-25T02:06:00.005-06:00

Santa drop-off confirmed..

Gifts from relatives and friends sorted...

Now we're finally going to get some sleep, and in a few hours the "Lets try to drag Daddy out of bed" games will commence.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T21:14:00.001-06:00

Church and Indian Food - another annual ritual.

We were able to get a decent family portrait tonight.

Iria requested that I Photoshop the band-aid off of Keira's face. She usually teases me about all of the photo touch-ups that I do, but made an exception for tonight.

Speaking of that band-aid...

Back at church, we sat in for the children's service.

The older kids performed a nativity scene, but Kassidy was stealing much of the show.

As they perform the nativity, kids bring ornaments up that relate to whatever part of the story that they are telling.

Random picture #1: Katharine's friend, Kaylee (I couldn't pass up that photo)

Random picture #2: Keira's shoes (she was quite proud of them)

After service we snapped some Christmas portraits.

After that we went off to dinner.

The street was lit up, and we would have been having a white Christmas this year if it were around 10 degrees cooler...

The kids are now asleep, and Iria is due back from the late service in about an hour. It's going to be a busy night, but I'm going to relax and read a book in the meantime.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Cookies

2011-12-24T19:19:00.001-06:00

Every year we decorate ginger bread cookies for our house elf and Santa (and always manage to sneak in a few bites for ourselves).

Happy Birthday, Lukas!

2011-12-16T23:53:00.001-06:00

Lukas turned 6 today.

We celebrated with Breakfast Cupcakes, which is fast becoming a tradition.

Lukas Facts:

Lukas loves to sleep with his stuffed tiger, Raj
Lukas hates to wear long pants
Lukas just started playing video games (Ultimate Alliance and Lego Batman)
Lukas is a fast runner
Lukas is a really good smeller
Lukas loves any kind of seafood, and also asparagus
Lukas loves to snack on goldfish and green apples
Lukas drinks a cup of chocolate milk every night before bed (warmed up + 3 scoops)
Lukas has started saying "Dude" and No way!"
Lukas hates peanut butter
Lukas wants to be a soldier or the Nutcracker with the Frisco Ballet
Lukas loves to draw and uses my lightboard to trace my art
Lukas loves anything Ninjago
Lukas's favorite superheroes are Batman, Hawkeye, Captain America and Wolverine
Lukas loves the "Piggy and Elephant" books
Lukas's friends are Aiden, Gwen, John, Jack, Danny and Gavin
And he actually plays really well with Lennon (they like to stage battles with their toys)
Lukas is really good at school (when he puts his mind to it), but he especially excels at Math and Phonics
Lukas's favorite color is green
Lukas wants to be a policeman when he grows up (first I've heard that one)

Breakfast with Santa

2011-12-10T22:58:00.001-06:00

Today we dressed the kids up and sent them off for sausages, pancakes, juice and a seat on an old guy's lap.

The Methodist Men always serve up a great breakfast with awesome service.

We had gotten there really early, so the elf/kid ratio was something like 3 to 1.

Lennon and Katharine had the longest lists, and Lukas's only ended up being around three items. He has offered up a lot of restraint this year, which makes it challenging when his birthday and Christmas are only ten days apart.

The big payoff picture was interesting, and I present it un-Photoshoped so that you can see it in its true glory.

Santa and Katharine are looking at the camera, but the four other kids are all checking out Iria off to the side (who must have been doing some pretty wild hand waving routine based on their expressions). Keira is playing the recurring role of "terrified kid", and either the print was off or they were using some Photoshop filter that made the film look like it was shot in the 70's.

But these are the pictures you always cherish, so they either need to come out really good or really strange to be truly memorable.

I shot a few more pictures afterwards because the kids actually did look really nice today, and I didn't want the above picture to be the only memory of it.

Blue Christmas

2011-12-03T10:49:00.001-06:00

Iria pointed out that Kassidy is the only one of our baby girls who ever kept her hats and headbands on. Better take the photos while it lasts...

Squinkie Town

2011-12-01T20:15:00.001-06:00

Katharine has been obsessed with these new toys called "Squinkies" as of late.

It is this little squishy toy that comes in a small plastic bubble. They are quite collectible, at least in the sense that there are hundreds of these things and you can never seem to catch up with all of the new ones that keep coming out.

What's cool is that Katharine has been building an ever expanding town for them out of paper, and it keeps getting bigger and more elaborate. So if you buy any of these for your kids, skip the cheap plastic accessory pieces and just give them some paper, markers, tape, and scissors.

And don't call them slinkys or twinkies (she'll get mad... seriously).

Christmas Kick-off

2011-11-29T22:43:00.001-06:00

Iria and the kids put up the Christmas tree yesterday.

The ornaments always represent a good mix of our interests and passions.

And look who is back...

Mikel, the elf on the shelf!

The kids have been looking for him to appear over the past few days, but I guess he was waiting for the tree to go up.

For those who don't know, he is basically Santa's scout for Christmas and keeps his eye out for good and bad behavior. At night he flies back to the North Pole to make his report, and then he finds a new perch the following morning.

A little freaky, but the kids dig him.

Upon sighting him, the kids quickly got to work on creating an assortment of offerings to place under the tree and get on the elf's good side.

Below are scans of all of the pictures.

Keira has been working on hers for a few days, so this was serious business.

Keira

Lennon

Lukas

Katharine

Play Doh Creations

2011-11-28T09:25:00.001-06:00

This is a portrait of Erik by Lennon

Lukas made pepperoni pizza

Keira's portrait of me

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2011-11-27T17:34:00.001-06:00

Kassidy examined the Christmas tree at church this afternoon.

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Wall Art

2011-11-27T12:55:00.001-06:00

Here is a photo of Keira that I took in church today.

She is wearing a pair of Katharine's old slippers, which we dug up for her last night when she was jealous of Kassidy's footsie pajamas.

I think the drawing is of me... but the subject of any of her art is usually dependent on when you ask her and who is doing the asking.

A Night at the Nutcracker

2011-11-19T23:40:00.001-06:00

Family and friends met up to watch Katharine dance in the Frisco Ballet's performance of "The Nutcracker" tonight. She did an awesome job, and had a lot of fun.

We are so proud of her!

There were no opportunities to photograph her in her costumes (I'm sure they will try to sell us those), but I think I like this candid picture that I took of her after the show more than any posed costume shot.

The family dressed up, but they don't charge for pictures (well, maybe I need to offer a bribe every once in a while).

Ummm, yep.

That's Lukas... and Keira with a bob.

The lice came back this week and the hair came off. I actually like Keira with the shorter hair, but miss Lukas's longer locks. He was really distraught at first, but it will grow back pretty fast.

Here are some pictures from after the show:

Kassidy is starting to walk a lot now, and is getting a little more challenging to keep in focus.

Everybody was really tired afterwards, and eager to get back home.

Back at home, Iria and Katharine leafed through the program- a great mother/daughter moment.

This was quite a week.

my car was totaled / cats peeing in the dance class duffle bag / Katharine's long rehearsal hours / Kassidy, Keira and Lennon puking all over Iria's car on different days / the return of the lice for all five kids / head shaves and haircuts / looking around and buying a new car / The Nutcracker performance

I would like to say that we are going to take it easy tomorrow, but it's going to be all day at church and then the turkey dinner. Iria and the kids will leave the house around 8 AM and not be back until almost 12 hours later!

Sleeping Arrangements

2011-11-13T22:37:00.001-06:00

...and where do Erik and I get to sleep?

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Destination: Tyler

2011-11-13T19:34:00.001-06:00

This is the last of the photo sessions taken during Anita's visit two weeks ago.

The group took the 2 1/2 hour road trip to Tyler State Park, out in East Texas where the pine trees grow.

We always like to visit there at least once a year during the Spring or Fall to scavenge for twigs, leaves, and pine cones to bring back home. The kids call it the "Pine Cone Forest". There is also a really nice zoo nearby, but they didn't make it there for this trip.

Photos by Iria.

Pretty in Pink and Purple

2011-11-13T14:47:00.001-06:00

I complimented Keira's outfit this morning, specifically praising her "pretty dress", and was quickly informed that it was a "skirt or tutu"... and NOT a dress.

Oh boy...

Kassidy's whale spout

2011-11-13T08:10:00.001-06:00

Kassidy has been rocking the whale spout as of late.

It almost looks like a jet stream of hair shooting up from out of her head.

Keira's whale spout was more of the cascading variant, seen here when she was at a similar age:

http://the-doeschers.blogspot.com/2009/12/twas-day-before-christmas.html

Kassidy in the Tub

2011-11-13T07:29:00.001-06:00

Babies and bubbles always go really well together.

Here are some pictures that Iria took on Friday.

Celebrating the Troops and Troupes

2011-11-12T22:05:00.001-06:00

Today we attended the Frisco Community Parade, cheering on the soldiers and Katharine's ballet company as they rolled by.

It was windy... so definitely a good day for the flags!

We found a good spot near the start of the parade- just across the street from Gearbox's new offices that we will be moving into next year.

I liked all of the textures going on in Iria's outfit, and we still couldn't figure out what to call the pattern on her tights.

Kassidy found a cozy spot in my lap, so I passed the photo off to Iria for a pic.

Here is the "Sheena's Dance Academy" float. Their performance of the Nutcracker is next Saturday. Katharine has been rehearsing for it since September.

Kassidy is very comfortable around the Sheena crowd, and went right out into the street when they rolled by.

Some parting shots.

Chilling at Wholefoods

2011-11-11T11:55:00.001-06:00

I had a day off, so I swung by Wholefoods with some of the kids this morning. They have a nice fire pit that they light up once the temperatures begin to drop, and a tractor for the kids to play on.

I couldn't find the race car shopping cart this morning, so we improvised.

Here is a typical Wholefoods purchase for me- 'Red Hot Blues' tortilla chips, fresh baked pretzels, iced tea, milk, and sausage on a stick.

Dallas Arboretum

2011-11-10T23:55:00.001-06:00

Iria and the kids went to the Arboretum last week with her sister.

Here are some of my favorite pictures that they took:

Happy Fall

2011-11-10T15:21:00.001-06:00

Here is the first part of our Thanksgiving Tree. Now we just need to cut out circles, hoke punch, tie ribbons on and write messages on the paper circles. Then the circles will go on the trees.

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Blue

2011-11-09T00:09:00.001-06:00

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Missing Mommy

2011-11-07T21:26:00.001-06:00

This is what Kassidy always looks like when Iria leaves.

Worn Out Shoes

2011-11-07T12:54:00.001-06:00

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At the Zoo

2011-11-06T23:50:00.003-06:00

Iria, Anita, and the kids went to the Dallas Zoo last week and snapped some pictures.

Here are some of my favorites.

Halloween

2011-11-06T00:18:00.001-05:00

Here is a picture from Halloween night, taken right before dark.

A lot of the low light visual artifacts were beginning to kick in, but the result seemed pretty fitting for the occasion.

Styling

2011-11-01T11:08:00.001-05:00

Keira always lays out her outfits like this before she gets dressed.

Dress Rehearsal

2011-10-31T00:36:00.004-05:00

Some of the kids were dressing up yesterday, preparing for the big night.

Charlotte was as fancy as ever, and Katharine finally put together all of the elements of her Hermione outfit.

Keira donned her Minny Mouse dress, sans the ears. I think she likes the polka dots and frills of the dress more than the character.

Saturday snapshots

2011-10-29T21:40:00.000-05:00

My computer died on me three weeks ago, and I just got the new one up and running.

It had been a while since I snapped a lot of pictures, but I was eager to see how much faster the the new rig was going to perform (awesome, btw). So here are a bunch of random pictures that I took when we were playing out in the front yard earlier.

Last game of the season

2011-10-29T21:25:00.000-05:00

I am happy to report that the Tigers won their last game of the season, beating the Cowboys by a score of 8-6.

Not a good week to be named after a Texas team...

Cars, Cars, Cars

2011-10-29T19:42:00.001-05:00

Anita and I came across these beauties in the Whole Foods parking lot today:

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Pillow Plush

2011-10-28T00:17:00.001-05:00

Lennon always sleeps with his lovies under his head.

Painting Pumpkins

2011-10-21T18:15:00.001-05:00

Instead of carving pumpkins we opted for paint this year. The kids had a great time.

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Ghosts

2011-10-20T20:14:00.001-05:00

Yesterday we made some ghosts. We used old sheets, wire hangers that the dry cleaning was on, card board, tape, fabric markers, string and ribbon. We had everything around the house. The kids had fun putting faces on their ghosts and hanging them up outside.

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Team Tiger

2011-10-15T09:25:00.001-05:00

Team picture from before the game today.

Go Tigers!

Root Vegetable Candy

2011-10-13T22:03:00.004-05:00

http://thepioneerwoman.com/

inspired me tonight to cook. I made my own version of her recipe using beets, carrots, rutabaga, sweet potato and Jonathan apples, with salt, pepper, olive oil, honey and a bit of pumpkin pie spice.

I needed a creative outlet after treating the kids hair for lice all afternoon and evening. Katharine had adult lice, young lice and nits in her long, long hair.

Happy Birthday, Iria

2011-10-12T21:18:00.000-05:00

Iria had a cupcake with the kids before heading out with the big girls to celebrate.

The Heard Nature Museum

2011-10-08T13:03:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was adventure day 2. We went to the Heard here in McKinney. The animatronic dinosaurs are back and Katharine has been asking for a while to go see them. So we did.
After we walked the 1/2 mile dinosaur trail we visited the handful of wild animals that the Heard has: mostly raccoons and other small animals that people kept as pets and then dumped. Now they have a safe home. Then we went to the butterfly house and from there we hiked the prairie and wetlands trails. We walked around 4 miles and the kids only complained once during the last 5 or 10 minutes. The promise of candy got them going again, they all ended up picking out a snack instead. Needless to say that they were tired.

After the hike and they are still smiling:)

They all needed a snack and drink.

Rosehips

Oops, just noticed that this is in here twice. Oh well,...

A butterfly slowly coming out of the crysalis.

Kassidy was really scared of the dinosaurs. I ended up having to turn the stroller away from the dinosaurs and pull the canopy done as far as possible.

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Fall into Color

2011-10-07T14:36:00.015-05:00

After Keira's eye exam yesterday morning, we spontaneously decided to go to the Arboretum. It's been a long overdue and right now is the perfect time to go. Thousands of pumpkins line the trails and Cinderella Fairytale structures adorned with all kinds of that strange yet beautiful fruit.

I took over 800 pictures, here is a small collection: un-photoshopped. Erik's computer is "sick" at the moment and I don't have the fancy stuff on my computer, so this is what you get - perfect imperfection.

Kassidy was not in picture taking mood yesterday, so there are only a handful of decent pictures of her.

An uninvited guest during lunch.

I took this set of pictures in the Beast's Castle.

"How am I going to get in that fountain?"

I really liked the texture and color of the fountain, the slow running water and the purple blossoms in it.

The tile at the bottom of this pool is gorgeous.

My favorite part of the arboretum has always been the Women's Garden. I have a picture of the statue's head on my fridge. The kids and I could have stayed among the butterflies and flowers forever. It was so quiet and relaxing, away from all the people.

Katharine seemed to be in a bit of a sultry moon yesterday, which made for some interesting pictures.

What's inside this old pecan tree?

That girl LOVES to get messy!

New Art

2011-10-05T19:42:00.001-05:00

I found an assortment of art lying around when I got home tonight.

The first is a Wolverine puppet, by Lukas. He made one for around a dozen other superheroes as well..

Next up is Katharine figuring out the new hierarchy at Hogwarts once Potter's kids start attending.

Lastly, here are some "power cards" by Lennon and Lukas. It is interesting that the boys are already thinking this kind of stuff up before they even know that these kinds of card games already exist.

Boy bed, girl bed

2011-10-03T23:49:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday, Keira!

2011-09-22T22:46:00.001-05:00

Keira turned three years old today!

We had awesome birthday waffles for breakfast.

Keira birthday facts:

Keira's favorite food is macaroni and cheese

She still loves to drink soy milk, but was the only one of our kids who liked beer when she got to try it

She loves to play with dolls, and sleeps with Raggedy Anne and Perry

Keira's favorite book is currently "We're going on a Bear Hunt"

She is pretty tough, and will stand up to her brothers or anybody else who gets in her way

She stopped using her pacifiers a few months ago once the last one was lost

She loves to work on puzzles, and will complete 48 piece ones by herself

She LOVES the iPad, especially for watching "Phineas and Ferb" on Netflix

Keira's nickname is "Cutey Pie"

She is a definitely a Daddy's girl, and all of her siblings think that she is my favorite- don't worry kids, I love all of you the same :)

She loves to go to dance class

It is still too early to predict which Hogwart House that she would be sorted into, but it would likely be between Gryffindor and Slytherin

Her favorite color is purple

She can be bribed with M&M's

She likes to say "I love you, Mommy", "I am so mad at you!", and "Okayyyy!"

She likes to do everything herself

Keira also loves to stick band aids and stickers all over her body and draw on herself with markers... I predict that there will be some tattoos in her (adult!) future

Football Practice

2011-09-22T19:36:00.001-05:00

A beautiful night for practicing some flag football!

Happy Birthday, Lennon!

2011-09-19T21:29:00.001-05:00

Lennon turned four years old today!

His party is on Saturday, but he got gifts from the family and some birthday cake tonight.

Lennon Birthday Facts:

Lennon's favorite foods are nutella and salami (but not together)

Lennon is still addicted to soy milk

He loves playing with Superfriends toys

He wants to be a zoo keeper or a superhero when he grows up

He still sleeps with his Kathe Kruse towell dolls (two bears and a donkey)

His favorite superhero is Robin

Lennon is a night owl, and is usually the last kid to fall asleep

Lennon is very sensitive, and is definitely the whiniest of all our kids :)

We still call Lennon "Captain Lennon", or "The Captain" for short

He LOVES puzzles, and works on 300 piece puzzles with his Mom

If he went to Hogwarts, he would be sorted into the Ravenclaw house

Lennon is really good at finding out where I hide my iPad

For his birthday he asked for Superfriends toys, puzzles, and a flashlight

Lennon loves to ride in the seat on the back of my bike, but is getting too big for it

He insists on sitting on the big kid swing, but hasn't figured out how to get it moving just yet

His favorite TV shows are "Phineas and Ferb", "Scooby Doo" and "Wild Kratts"

Lennon's favorite books right now are "The Very Angry Ladybug", "Where's Waldo", and anything with superheroes

Favorite phrases: "You're smart, Mommy", "I'm hungry", "Can I have a little bit more milk please?"

He likes scissors

Lennon just started choir, and he still goes to dance class

After the Storm

2011-09-18T21:53:00.001-05:00

A big thunderstorm rolled through tonight, and we went outside to walk around and play after it was over.

I haven't said very many nice things about the weather as of late, but nothing beats Texas after a rain storm.

Happy B's

2011-09-18T18:22:00.001-05:00

Beer, book, and barbecue (and throw in a nice breeze for good measure).

3rd Grade Bibles

2011-09-18T13:24:00.001-05:00

The 3rd graders got their bibles today. There were about 100 of them. The congregation was standing and sang hymn 601 for the boys and girls.

Here is a picture of Katharine with Trin:

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First bike ride

2011-09-17T18:08:00.001-05:00

Kassidy and I pedaled to the library this afternoon. Her first bike trip was long overdue, but all of the 100 degree days kept me inside most of the summer.

She looked like this most of the time- a mix of fun tempered with thoughts of "what the heck is going on here?'

Kids' Photography

2011-09-16T16:28:00.005-05:00

The kids have been snatching my camera, I only have a Canon Powershot, lately. I decided to dump the pictures on the computer today and I came upon many interesting pictures that the kids, mostly Lennon, Lukas or Keira took. I thought it would be interesting to show some of their "work."

Lego Ninjas

Santa Riding the Firetruck, a bird's eye view

Superheroes and other characters

Perry the Platypus

above Reddish Brown", below "Blue"

"Big Sister Jumping over Little Sister on the Stairs"

Agent P

Self-Portrait

2011-09-16T16:25:00.001-05:00

Earlier this week Lennon and Kassidy were the first ones up and I snapped this picture of them.

Clay Play

2011-09-16T15:44:00.004-05:00

We broke out the clay after lunch today:

After sculpting things, they had fun making a mess.

Kassidy loved the taste of the clay.

Butterfly Feast

2011-09-10T17:57:00.002-05:00

This butterfly had a PBJ.

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Season Opener

2011-09-10T13:37:00.001-05:00

Lukas followed his t-ball coach to flag football this season (or the AFL "All Fun League", as the ref put it), and is having a great time.

Today was their first game, which they won by two points!

This week' art

2011-09-09T09:56:00.001-05:00

At Showstompers Keira and Lennon made doves and vases of flowers:

Lukas had to draw a nature scene inspired by Japanese artist Ando Hiroshige, using different lines. This is what he came up with: four Ninjas at a wooden gate on Mt. Fuji.

Katharine learned about Charles Wilson Peale and her subject was a detailed drawing of a butterfly:

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Flag-football and the Hundred Acre Woods

2011-09-08T21:48:00.001-05:00

Tonight was another practice night. Lukas had his act together and was the only one that listened. He also won the race at the end of practice. Go Lukas! Meanwhile on the sidelines Keira and Lennon climbed trees in the Hundred Acre Woods, sat next to Tigger, bounced around with Kanga and Roo and slept next to Owl. They took a spin on Saturn, stood on the sun and the moon, rode on shooting stars and threw a tree up into space. They then went to catch a bunch of monkeys, a bear, shark, goldfish, a dolphin and some manatees to bring them back to the Hundred Acre Woods. It's amazing to see what you can do with two blankets and a sidewalk when you're almost three and four years old.

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Superheroes

2011-09-07T23:56:00.001-05:00

Captain America

and Spiderman after a long day of superhero duty.

As you can see, the Halloween costumes arrived today.

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We Stand Strong and Stick Together

2011-09-05T22:19:00.002-05:00

Katharine wrote a story for an 'American Girl' writing contest last week.

We are really proud of the fact that she was able to write, finish, and submit a story. She has written a lot of small stories in the past, but never anything this long.

Hopefully this is the first of many more written works to come.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

We Stand Strong and Stick Together

You wouldn’t think two girls who were so different could become such good friends, but that’s what happened on the day of the big hoop race.

“You can’t catch me!” called Trinity, as she ran past the Pantheon, pushing her hoop. One more day to the big race, she thought. Just then she felt something on her.

Oh no! Trinity stopped running.

“Rain!” whispered Trinity to herself “Luckily it is just a practice race”. The rain was pit-pattering on the street.

“Let’s go!” said Trinity to a dry, waiting player. Suddenly the two girls were wet.

“Good luck” said the girl. “Good luck to you” said Trinity.

“GO!!!” shouted the audience.

Trinity ran as fast as she could. The rain fell harder. Trinity noticed that she was almost at the finish line- her heart was thumping, almost –

“Ahhhh!”

Trinity ran back to see what was wrong. It was one of the girls at the starting line. She was hurt. Trinity helped her up. Her face was pale, and she looked like she was dead.

“Hello?” Trinity whispered.

This was the scariest day in her life. Trinity put her hand onto the girl’s chest. Full of relief, she put her hand down. She’s breathing, thought Trinity.

“Hello?”

Trinity jumped. “Who are you?” Trinity asked.

“I am Maya, who are you?” she asked.

“Trinity”

“That is a pretty name” said Maya. “Thank you” replied Trinity.

“Where are you from?” asked Trinity.

“Greece” said Maya.

“Why are you here?” asked Trinity.

“Oh, I came here to visit my grandparents.” said Maya.

“It’s getting dark,” she said, “come on”. The two girls picked up their hoops, and walked through the stormy night.

“Wake up sleepy head!”

Trinity opened her eyes. Maya was right in front of her.

“What are you doing here!? I thought you were at your Grandmother’s house” said Trinity.

“Oh I just dropped by to wake you up!” said Maya.

Eventually, Trinity woke up and the two girls ate breakfast and set out for chores. Then they practiced hoop racing around the town square. Once they got home, they sorted out the letters that Maya’s Grandma gave to her.

“Oooo, this one is from Greece!” said Trinity.

“Oh, so it is!” said Maya, as she got hold of the letter:

Dear Maya,

We hope that you have settled in with your Grandmother. We miss you and hope to see you soon.

Love,

Mom and Dad

“Aww, that’s so nice of them” said Trinity.

“Thanks” Maya replied.

“Oh my gosh!” said Trinity.

“The hoop race is today!” said Maya.

The girls ran to the games fair.

“Hi!” said the players. “Hi!” replied the girls.

Outside the players heard the people shouting, and the kids screaming. The players walked out and the crowd cheered. It was a sunny and windy day. “Perfect” said Trinity.

The girls got ready.

“Good luck” said Trinity. “Good luck to you” said Maya, grinning.

“GO!!!” shouted the people. The players ran faster than they thought they could, and the girls were almost to the finish line. Trinity was falling behind and getting nervous. Suddenly she felt something- but this time it was not rain.

It was Maya.

“Let’s do it together!” she said.

“Yeah” answered Trinity.

The two girls held hands and rolled their hoops to the finish line.

“We won!”, said Maya, out of breath.

There was silence.

“Maya!”

There was a voice.

“Mom and Dad?”

“Time to go home” said her parents.

“Ok” said Maya.

“I’ll never forget you” Maya said. “Me too” said Trinity.

The girls hugged each other and finally departed.

Trinity realized that with a good friend to help you, a person can complete any task.

The End

Fall Today, Gone Tomorrow

2011-09-05T09:14:00.000-05:00

The thermometer will top out at 81 degrees today, and we woke up to temperatures in the 50's. The kids are running around exclaiming "It's Fall!", but the ten day forecast has us creeping back up into the 90's by the weekend.

Enjoy it while you can, kids!

Nighttime Stories

2011-09-03T19:12:00.001-05:00

Names

2011-09-03T15:48:00.000-05:00

Keira and I were writing all of our names out this afternoon. She loves names, and likes to say if someone is a boy or a girl now as well.

2011-08-30T10:48:00.001-05:00

Lukas wobbly finally fell out! At Nordstrom's, haha.

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By Request

2011-08-28T16:59:00.001-05:00

My mom asked for an updated portrait of Kassidy for the fridge.