One Sunday Afternoon

A dreamy, overcast Sunday afternoon in May. I wanted to take pictures because I loved how dark the wood looked and how green the grass was from the fresh rain. And I wanted to relish in the fact that I proved Nathan wrong. He said we would never use the brown cable sweater Wesley is sporting (that I had recently bought, on clearance, in a size that barely fit him, but couldn't say good-bye to). A hah! (And in case you're wondering...yes I totally have to bribe them to smile, to stay still, and hold hands)

Sienna just shy of 5 1/2.....is so ready for Kindergarten!

My monkey....is 2 1/2 years old and wants to go to school with Sienna. Everyday he's sad when it's time to drop her off and says, "want to go with us." (Because we always say, "Wesley, do you want to go with us?") I keep telling him that big kid schools don't like diapers and that he's got to use his big boy underwear if he wants to be with Sienna. No dice.
P.S. We took these pictures in front of the "house." We have a long deck with stairs that leads you from the carport to the front door.

Love it

Will Rogers, an Oakie immigrant to California himself, once remarked jokingly that the Oakies arriving in California increased the average intelligence of both states.

Tulsa Zoo

Very appropriate signage.....my monkeys at the Zoo nearby. I love this place! It is only 15 minutes away (20 if I get lost). I see more animals here, up close and personal than the San Diego Zoo or the Phoenix Zoo. It's just the way they have the animals displayed? I'm not sure how to phrase it. But there are always windows that the animals can come right up to and interact with you. For instance...the picture below. Me and the kids had been watching the chimps for awhile and as we were walking away this particular primate scurried over and was saying hello? to Sienna. It was so funny and surprising and cute. The very next second Sienna put her palm on the glass where the monkey's was but I missed the shot- it was like a E.T. moment!

My monkey mining for raisins. The kids were SO hungry that day. Are my kids the only ones that are hungry every 30 minutes to an hour?? Sheesh!
Picture below: See what I'm talking about? We are so close to the Jaguar (that's Wesley's head pressed against the glass). This jungle cat was beautiful! And very elusive...it made one lap and went back into it's cave and never came out again. I am so glad I got this shot.

Oh the Joys of Being an Oakie

It's amazing to me how little I cared about the weather when we lived in Arizona. Predictability I guess...was the root cause. Hot. Really Hot. Scorching Hot. It Can't Get Any Hotter than this Hot. My Face is Melting Off Hot. And last but not least, Someone Put me Out of my Misery Hot.
But here, in Oklahoma, right now, weather is everything. The only reliable forecast is unpredictability. The weather has been so crazy. Even as I type I am periodically blinded by flashes of florescent lavender light. Everyone told us when we moved here we were just in time for "Tornado Season."
We are lucky that the May 13th tornadoes that hit Missouri and Oklahoma were not close to home but it really gave me a good scare. I was glued to the Weather Channel and didn't fall asleep until after 1 a.m. I didn't want to be asleep when I heard the Tornado Sirens go off...I wanted to be awake, coherent and prepared. Luckily no alarm went off and instead of sleeping I was anxious and felt a strong albeit weird desire to "document" my first scare with friends and family. Do I love you guys or what?
I have to say though...this video clip of the sky the night of the tornadoes does not give a really good idea of the chaos in the clouds. I was too chicken to walk out from under the awning of the balcony...so you're seeing a minuscule portion of the sky. It was also extremely humid and felt exactly like a sauna.
K,so here is the clip of me filming the very beginning of a Severe Thunderstorm that would soon trigger local Flash Flood Warning Sirens to air on T.V. and more importantly, turn into 20 different tornadoes that touched down in Oklahoma.

An Oklahoma Night

See Clip

Happy Mother's Day

Hmmmmm....what to say about Jessica???? Sienna, what should we say about Mommy? "Mmmmm, I love her!" (Jumping up and down with that giddy smile of hers). "Wesley," I ask, "What do you like about Mommy?" "I want food." "You want food?" "YEAAAAA! (shaking his head vigorously up and down)"

Well, there you have it Mom, we love you and Wes wants food.

We do love you Mommy, and especially me, Nathan (the author of this horribly bad attempt at some funny commentary). What can I say? You make this family what it is today! I knew that you would be an amazing mother from the day I met you.

You have that loving touch, that warm embrace that makes you melt, feel peace when scared, and that soothing voice that calms the nerves. You bless our kids everyday by teaching them to have faith in Jesus Christ and to believe in themselves.
You are so wonderful with them and even though they drive you NUTS at times, you patiently wait for that cute moment......that glimpse of sanity when you think, "my kids aren't as crazy as I think they are." Well maybe they are, but I know they would not want any other mom, and I would not want any other wife to be mine and help raise our children. Just look at those cute faces above.....they wouldn't smile like that for just anyone! (Just the ones that give them sweet candy:-) And look at me, I only do that goofy grin for you hon!

Bottom line....you are loved, and adored, and appreciated tremendously by me, and even though they don't say it, the kids.

For all the times you clean up poop, for all the times you do the dishes, for all the times you fold the clothes, for all the times you make dinner, sweep, bake cookies, read books, write letters, buy my families birthday cards for me, scratch my back, sing sweet lullabies and for all that you do everyday that we don't ever see.....we love you!!

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!!!

Now can you put the camera down???

Oh No

The high today will be 89 degrees with 70% humidity. I look like a Chia Pet. I went to my 2nd ever Spin class today and as I type I am amazed at how many regions of my body are still......well.......wet. And while we're talking about Spin classes....can I just say that those cycle seats are not anatomically correct. Do they make seats for Latin booties?? Ok moving on..... what I was going to say is that I think Popsicle Season is almost here. This picture was taken about 2 months ago when we still lived in Arizona- so of course Summer weather had already set in. I've heard the humidity gets worse every month and lasts until October. What am I going to do?

Egg Hunt at La Fortune Park

Egg Hunt

This year's Easter Egg Hunt at La Fortune Park. We learned that Wesley is still afraid of the Easter Bunny and that at community wide egg hunts.....the egg-to-child ratio is not good. Poor Sienna I think she maybe got 6 eggs? Wesley isn't a numbers man.....he was so happy that mommy was letting him eat, "Chalk- O- Lit." It's the first time in years that we haven't been to a farm for an egg hunt...but I just couldn't find one. Better luck next year I guess. Happy Easter everyone!!

Aquarium

Nathan and I try and have date nights every Friday which we LOVE...but sometimes it really bums the kids out so we started family "dates." Saturday mornings we go out and do something fun as a family. Last week on our family date we went to the Aquarium. It was amazing- truly, truly beautiful and completely geared for kids. I love these kind of places where the kids can learn and feel a sense of awe and wonder about the world we live in.
There are room after room with tanks that are at filled with every imaginable fish, sea creature, and coral. It has tide pools you can touch, a turtle tank, and a sting ray bay where you can touch and feed the animals. At the very end of the aquarium is a huge, huge tank that is full of sharks. That's right SHARKS!!

More

The only reason I took a picture of this decaying old turtle is that the scientists suspect that this guy has been alive since the 1880's.

Wesley took one look down Shark Alley and booked it in the opposite direction...can you see the shark over his head?

Shark Attack

I am without a doubt terrified of sharks. Terrified isn't even a good word for it. When I have nightmares they almost always involve a massive great white shark. I have anxiety being knee deep in the ocean. Honestly, I don't even want to get in the water at all I just force myself. Even though it's completely irrational and insane......I get scared when I am in the pool. There's a part of me brain that thinks a shark is looming around a bend and out to eat me. I guess what I am trying to say......is that I felt very brave at the aquarium when I walked into the Shark Tunnel.