Cap'n Patchy turns 8

Eight is the best age... still young enough to not be embarrassed by the silly things your parents do, but old enough to appreciate it. My middle son turned 8 and we celebrated it in the typical fashion, WAY over the top of course! But, I have to say, it was just as much fun
for me and the hubby as it was for all the kids.
After all, you only turn 8 once.

The cake I didn't make, thanks to Albertson's.
But now I have all the cute pieces, so my kids
will get a home-made pirate cake every birthday
from now on whether they want one or not.

The "Scurvy Dogs" (Fleas optional.)

The long-lost treasure map found,
and the loot of a thousand pirates awaits!

Ho! What's this?

Could it be??

We've found it! We're rich beyond our wildest dreams!

Those are some happy pirates..
complete with a sneer from "Cut-Throat" on the left.

Time to sail away with equal shares of the treasure!

Or just blast the ship to smithereens with an air cannon!

Another thing 8 year old boys love? Destruction!

It was a wonderful, tiring day full of laughs, pirate talk, and some mayhem thrown in for good measure. Thanks to all the kids who came. Happy Birthday, Cap'n Patchy! We love you.

No More Potty Pictures!

Sorry to all of you who have stared endlessly at the gorgeous picture of my son going poo. It was a fluke, anyway. For some reason he has become DEATHLY AFRAID of the toilet. That reminds me of a dream I once had as a child... Oscar the Grouch lived in the toilet and tried to bite my bum unless I flushed him as fast as I could.... but that's a story you probably didn't want to hear.

Moving on.

We had a wonderful trip to Moab this past weekend, and despite the many "hiccups" along the way, it was still one of my favorite trips we have taken as a family. When we arrived there wasn't a single camping site available. Anywhere. Within 50 miles. So, we ended up at the RV park, which was actually really fun! I got my daily hot shower, air conditioning, and a great spot next to the Colorado River. The kids had a blast riding their bikes around everywhere, and we took in the beautiful sights of Arches National Park. We actually did all the stuff we didn't get to last time, so there'll be a whole new crop of pictures never before seen. Yay!

The hike to Delicate Arch was hot even at 9 in the morning.
But what a view! Sean took this picture and caught a
cool looking bird flying by. For the sake of scale, the photo
below of the boys shows the first crack in the rock they are
leaning against. Compare that to the upper photo.
Yeah, it's that big.

Just a random photo of the gorgeous red rock country
...and some darn cute kids!

The Mathis boys taking a break.

There were a lot of fun rock walls and caves to explore.
I have never seen Brennan so happy.

So pretty it could be a postcard.

Anything you can do, I can do better.....

Jumping into soft sand isn't a soft landing....

They call these petrified sand dunes "slick rock",
but it's not slippery at all. More like "grip rock".

Again, Brennan in heaven in between two rock walls.
Only he could fit in this crack.

We weren't allowed to have campfires at the RV park,
so we gave the kids a couple of briquettes
from the grill and called it a campfire.
(Brennan isn't naked, just pants-free.)

It was a great trip. One I will always treasure.

If you don't know already, I adore the three boys you are looking
at right now. What would my life be without them?

Potty time! Woo-woo!

Can it possibly be? The day has finally come that Brennan entertains the idea of sitting "ON" something vs. "IN" something? Amazing, but true! I have to give him an "A" for effort...he really tries to get it all out in one sitting. What a big boy you are, Brennan my love. Keep up the good work. (Just so you know, he had like 4 chocolate chip cookies prior to his lovely performance, so that's what is smeared all over his face. Just wanted to clarify that).

The Abyss (otherwise known as FaceBook)

I have a new addiction. It's Facebook. That's the reason why my Blog is dying a horribly neglected death. When Shanna first mentioned Facebook, I thought "Hmmm, no thanks. There are enough weirdos and pervs in my life already". (Joke) But when I saw Sean set up his profile and find friends he hadn't seen in 20 years, I became a tad jealous. The next day I set up my own profile, and began finding friends, old neighbors, family members, dead pets...etc. For the past couple of weeks, I have spent HOURS of time (I could've been doing something totally productive with) on Facebook. It's been an absolute delight reconnecting with old friends and family. I did take a short break during our Disnyworld trip (pictures and posting will come someday), but I always wondered if I was missing out on something. Sad, sad, sad.
One small breakthrough has occured however. I only allow myself to Facebook when Brennan is down for a nap, or it's late at night and I cannot sleep. That's it. I am getting better at managing my addiction. Will I ever give it up "cold turkey"? Uh, no. It's just too darn fun. In fact, if you want to join me in my deep cozy abyss (if you haven't already) go here:http://www.facebook.com/

See you soon! Mwah-ha-ha! :)

Christmas "All-a-day"

I know it's the middle of January and I am just now getting caught up on Christmas. That's just the way I roll. We had such a great time in Houston with hubby's side of the family! In fact, a new holiday was born....or better named "All-a-day". What in the world is that? Just like the name suggests, it's all the holidays of the year rolled into one, fun-filled, crazy day. First, we had an Easter egg hunt...

I think Brennan is still hunting, so he's not in the photo.
The little darling on the right is my niece Tabitha.

I could go on and on about her,
but I will save that for another post coming soon.

Is your arm getting a little tired Gav?
That's quite the haul, buddy.

Brennan's entire face would light up when he found an egg.

Opening the loot is just as much fun!

See what I mean? Couldn't you just kiss those cheeks off?

Or these cheeks, too?

Connor wanted to take us all for a tractor ride,
but that's George Washington's job. (aka Grandpa)

It was a great day...an Easter Egg Hunt,
dressing up for Halloween, an old-fashioned hayride,
and decorating (and eating large quantities of) Christmas cookies.

Christmas morning never gets old.
Especially when worn on the face of a toddler.

Hover-copters, air-pellet guns, night-vision goggles! Oh my!

Antique Legos passed down from Gavin's 3 uncles and daddy.
I think Gavin has reached kid nirvana.
(And no, we will not sell them to you on Ebay).

Mario cart, anyone?
Brennan just drives around in circles, but it's still fun.
Connor, on the other hand, takes his game very seriously...
complete with realistic crash sound effects.

Yep, Christmas was a blast. My kids are still talking about it,
and that's pretty rare considering my kids have an attention
span of 15 minutes. It will be fondly remembered for years to come.

My Baby Is Growing Up

For all of you who have kids (human or fur-covered), I am sure you can relate to the first haircut you ever give your baby. Suddenly they aren't as pudgy, or curly, or baby-looking. They look like a much bigger boy/girl. My baby boy Beckett went to the groomers and got a trim today, and I am sad that his baby fur around his face is gone. He suddenly looks all grown up. I am glad he can actually SEE something in front of him now, but I miss the scrappy Mohawk between his eyes. They grow up so fast.




And here's an interesting side-note....
I have a sort of embarrassing question. What is "cleaning the anal glands" ?! Sounds painful. Poor puppy got a bum shave, so that the other dogs won't point and laugh at the dingle-berries.

Meet Beckett

We had a great time in Houston visiting the Mathis side of the family over the Christmas holiday. We even brought home a little souvenir! Meet Beckett, the wonder dog. Isn't he the sweetest thing you've ever seen? Everyone say, "Awwwww"...


Once upon a time, I didn't like dogs. Even the thought of owning a dog made me shiver in fear and break out in hives. Why? Well, growing up we didn't have very good experiences owning dogs in our house. Pooper was eaten by our cousins' neighbor's Rottweiler, Penny was psycho and ate a bunch of Styrofoam out of her dog house and then ran away, Lucky was destructive and peed on everyone when he got excited, and Baby was hit by a car, I think... anyway, you get the picture. Not that our family didn't try, I just think we didn't train very well. (And a good dog requires lots and lots of training, love, and patience as I am quickly finding out).

This is Mags....
or Margaret Sheridan Mathis if you want to be proper.

She comes from a long line of Show-Dog Champions. She is a pure-bred Norfolk Terrier as are her 4 puppies...all boys. The father of the pups is named Bandit, and he too comes from Championship dogs. He looks a lot like Mags, but has a rusty-red coat instead of the sandy-blonde. I have already posted about what an awesome dog Mags is. I think that's the main reason I decided to give in and adopt one of her puppies. As soon as I saw the little rascals, there was a connection with Beckett. He was sweet, not hyper, didn't bark much, and took to Gavin right away. He was already crate-trained and almost potty-trained. (We are still working on that, but he rarely has an accident). Although this puppy is a lot of work now, I know it'll pay off in the end and we will have a fantastic family dog who will be loved and cherished more than he already is.

Want to see all the boys? Here they are in order from left to right:

Cooper, Barney (not facing camera), Beckett, and Kendall.
Cooper is a fur ball full of energy... lots & LOTS of energy!
Barney is very brave, and likes to bark at bigger dogs.
Beckett is a little shy, but sweet, loving, and playful.
Kendall is the most social, and is always happy to see you.

I cannot thank Janie enough for our new bundle of fun. I have really bonded with him, and I know the kids have too. So, for the first time I can proudly say I am a "dog person"!

P.S. I will post pics of Christmas soon.