Run and HEB

Noah woke up around 5:30am for some reason. I was able to get him back to sleep and he slept until about 10am.

Once the boys were up and dressed we went for a run. I ran 3 miles and then let the boys walk/run some.

After the run I made a smoothie for all of us and we went to HEB. I had a ton of stuff to buy. We were there for a while.

I got dinner started.

Gabby came at 3:45pm and I tutored.

Morry finished getting dinner ready and I got home around 5:45pm.

I had to leave again at 6:45 to go tutor.

I got home around 8:45. The boys were in bed, but Noah was still awake.

The Zoo

This morning Morry went for a run.

We he got back we packed up stuff for the zoo. It was going to be a nice day today so we wanted to do something outside. I made a picnic lunch while Morry got the boys ready to go.

The zoo was nice and we all enjoyed our picnic lunch. The boys had snow cones for dessert there.

For dinner we went to Red's Porch. The service was terrible. They brought out my food but go the order wrong. The waitress took my food, but we were waiting and waiting. After a very long time she came back and told me they were out of bread and I could order something else. Somehow they had run out of all sandwich bread including hamburger buns. Since we had already been waiting so long and Morry and the kids had finished their food, I just asked for mine to go. They gave us my food free, but I feel like they should have done more. The manager never even came by.

We put the boys to bed once we got home and then I ate my dinner.

Noah is still awake now. It's been 2 hours since we put him to bed.

here's a video from the zoo today.

Susie, Ryan, and Anika

This morning we were able to sleep in a little.

Around noon Susie, Ryan, and Anika came over. We were giving them some baby stuff (crib, changing table, ...) and they came to pick it up.

They took us out to lunch at Home Slice Pizza. We all had a nice time. We had to wait about 30 minutes for a table, but the kids were able to play outside while we waited. Evan made friends with some other boys and they played ping pong together.

Evan ate really well at lunch. He had a ton of pizza. Noah had one slice.

When we got back to the house the kids ran around in the yard while Ryan loaded up the truck.

Below, is a video of the kids playing around and then Evan riding his scooter and Noah on the tricycle.

I tutored a student at the house from 4-5pm.

For dinner we weren't that hungry. The kids had pasta. Morry had pasta and I just had some soup.

We put the boys to bed a while ago, but they are still not asleep.

Running and Running Errands

This morning I wanted to go for a run, but Noah didn't want to get dressed. So, Noah went in his pajamas in the stroller. I'm not sure whether I should fight him and get him dressed or just not fight the battle.

I took Lizzy and had the boys in the stroller. I ran 3 miles in the neighborhood.

Later, we went to Old Navy to get some winter clothes on clearance and then to the bookstore next door. Evan and Noah enjoyed playing with the trains and then they picked out a cookie to share. They always choose the same one - sugar cookie with sprinkles.

When we got home Noah actually took a nap. I put on a movie for him and he fell asleep in his room.

Morry went out to dinner with a friend so the boys and I just had dinner at home.

Morry came home around 8:15 and we put the boys to bed.

They are in their rooms, but not asleep.

Mr. Popular

We got to school late again today. Evan especially likes to stall in the mornings. A lot of time I just don't feel like fighting. I'm going to have to get stricter because he won't be able to arrive late to kindergarten next year.

While the boys were at school I cleaned the house and went to the bank.

When I picked Evan up at school he was playing with Jaden. Jaden told me Evan was his best friend. On the car ride home Evan told me a girl was chasing him on the playground. He and Benjamin had to climb up high to get away from her.

Evan and Noah played outside for a little while at home and it was nap time. Evan was in the game room and Noah watched Evan and Noah videos on the DVD player in his room. Noah did not sleep though.

Gabby has the flu and couldn't babysit. Riley came to babysit at 4pm. We had Riley come about 1 1/2 yrs ago to help me out with Noah. They boys said they had a good time with Riley today.

I tutored and got home around 6:30pm.

We had leftover tacos for dinner tonight.

The boys had baths and now they are supposed to be in bed. They are both still playing around in their rooms.

Sick

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

I stayed home sick today. I've felt very exhausted the last few days and this morning I woke up with a very sore throat and a bad headache. I decided it was best to stay home and give my body a rest. I did work, but I didn't want this to get any worse. My headache is gone but my throat seems to be somewhat congested.

I came downstairs to do some work and Noah got up shortly thereafter. He went into Evan's room and woke him up. They played upstairs for a bit.

Rachel got up and wanted to go running, but it stayed cold here for a while. When it finally got above 40, she took Lizzy and the boys to go running at the lake.

When they got home, the boys played some and then Rachel put Noah in his room and put on a movie for him. Eventually, Noah actually fell asleep.

Rachel went to tutor and I finished up work and sat down with Evan for a bit.

I woke Noah up and made pasta for the three of us.

I just put the boys to bed. Neither are sleeping now.

Until next time..

Out to Lunch

This morning Evan gave me a little bit of a hard time about going to school. He didn't fight too much and we got to school ok this morning.

I picked up food for Lizzy at Petco.

For lunch I met Liz, a friend of mine from when I taught at West Ridge. She was the Spanish teacher there. She is now retired. We ate lunch at Panera. I enjoyed chatting with her. It had been a while since we had seen each other.

School pick up went smoothly too. Noah's teachers said he had a good day. Evan seemed happy too.

At home we did reading and writing.

For naps Evan went in the game room and Noah in his room. That didn't last long. Evan asked if Noah could come out of his room and play with him. I said ok, but then both boys were getting cranky and whiny. I was glad when Blanca came at 3:45.

I tutored and came home around 7pm.

Morry and I had tacos for dinner.

We gave the boys baths and put them to bed, but both are out of their rooms for some reason right now. I need to go see what's going on.

Sunny Day

We finally had a nice day today. It was cool, but nice and sunny. We still took it easy even though Evan is feeling a lot better.

I went for a 3 mile run with the boys in the stroller and Lizzy. I packed lunch for them to eat, but they didn't eat much of it.

Gabby came at 2:00. I had a 2:30 check up appointment with Dr. Patt, my Austin oncologist. Everything looked good. I see her again in 3 months. In February I'll have my appointments in Dallas with all of my doctors there.

When I came home Noah was watching a movie in his room for nap time.

The boys played outside for a little while while I started getting their dinner ready.

Morry stopped off at HEB on the way home and we just made a quick frozen Chinese meal for dinner.

I tutored 1 student after dinner and Morry took care of the boys.

I got home about 8:45 and the boys were in the rooms, but still playing.

I Got A Feeling...Pittsburgh's Going to the Super Bowl

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

The title of the blog is a line in a chant that the Steelers fans would say in the 70s It's been adapted into countless songs since then. Well the Steelers are headed to their eight Super Bowl and 3rd since February 2006. The game looked like a blowout, got tense at the end, but the Steelers hung on. Whew!

This morning, Rachel got up with the boys and made cinnamon rolls. The boys got up relatively late for them - around 9am - which was nice.

When I came down we ate and then we went to run several errands. We had to return a few things and then Rachel wanted to get some soaps at Bath and Body Works because they were on sale. Borders is next door and they sell Star Wars Legos. Evan and Noah each had $10 to spend so they brought their wallets. Actually as we left, Noah said he didn't have his wallet so we turned around and went back home. Rachel searched the house and then realized that Noah really did have it in the car.

At Borders, Evan bought the Legos and Noah got three Golden Books. The total came to $19.86. So I gave them each 7 cents of the change.

When we got home, it was nap time and Noah stayed in his room a bit. He watched the movie Cars.

After a little while, Noah came downstairs and they had snacks. We watched some TV before the Steelers game started.

Rachel went and picked up Little Caesars for dinner. The boys and I ate at the coffee table.

They are still up now. Evan is whining and crying that he wants milk.

Until next time...

A Day at Home

This morning the plan was to get together with Susie and Ryan. We are going to give them our crib and they were planning on coming over here and going out to lunch with us. I let Susie know that Evan was sick and they decided to reschedule.

Evan still had a slight fever this morning so we just stayed home. This was the first time in a long time that we could just hang out at home. We had nothing going on and no where to be.

After lunch I gave the boys haircuts outside.

Then, for nap time Noah watched a movie in his room and Evan and Morry watched tv downstairs.

For dinner we went to Hula Hut. We sat our their deck, but they had heaters so it wasn't too bad. Noah got a corn dog and ate pretty well. He still picks off the breading and just eats the hot dog. We ordered shrimp for Evan, but he didn't eat anything.

When we got home we were going to give both boys baths, but Evan said he just wanted to go to bed. I gave Noah a bath and Morry put Evan to bed.

The boys are in bed now and they both seemed pretty tired.

Evan's Tummy

Last night Evan didn't eat much for dinner. Around 2am he came in our room and told me he was hungry. I got him an orange and sat in the game room with him while he ate it. He said he wanted more to eat, but I asked him to wait until the morning.

Morry left the house around 5:30am and Evan got up again at that time too. Morry gave Evan some food to eat in the game room. A little while later Evan came in our room crying that his stomach was hurting. I felt so bad for him. I offered him some Sprite or to rub his stomach but he didn't want either.

We ended up staying at home today. We had plans to go to a lunch for the Pink Ribbon Cowgirls, but Evan still wasn't feeling well. He did end up eating a little bit of lunch today.

At nap time, I tried to put Noah down, but he wouldn't nap. He was screaming and crying at his door, unplugged the monitor and night light, pulled the sheets and comforter off his bed. Eventually, I just gave up and let him go in the game room.

For dinner we all went out to eat at Mongolian Barbecue. Noah ate very well. Evan hardly had anything and was complaining a lot at dinner. He said he was cold, but wouldn't put on his sweatshirt.

When we got home Morry took Evan's temperature and he had a slight fever.

Both boys are in bed now, but not asleep.

Pajamas Day

This morning I had to wake up Noah a little before 9am. He was very cranky and did not want to get dressed. I tried a few times, but just didn't feel like fighting. So, Noah went to school in his pajamas today. In fact, he stayed in his pajamas all day. I'm not sure if he if really learned any lesson. He got a lot of attention at school for being in his Sponge Bob pajamas. I'm worried he'll want to do that every day now.

At pick up the boys were in good moods. When we came home they played outside for a little bit and then we did reading and writing.

For nap time I put Noah in his room with the portable DVD player. He chose to watch Star Wars. He didn't sleep, but at least he had a little bit of wind down time. Evan got to watch TV in the game room as usual.

Gabby came at 4pm. I tutored and came home around 6:45.

For dinner we had flank steak and potatoes. We had to put the steak in the oven since our propane tank ran out while Morry was trying to heat up the grill. It still tasted good.

We just put Evan and Noah to bed.

Running and Cleaning

This morning I ran 3 miles with Lizzy and the boys in the stroller. Once I had done 3 miles, I let Evan walk the 1/2 mile home from there. He ran a lot of the way. It was a nice, sunny morning and I could tell the boys were enjoying the weather.

The rest of the day was spent at home. We had lunch, but neither kid ate much. They had a lot of food in the stroller. In the afternoon while the boys were supposed to be napping I worked more on cleaning the office downstairs. It's almost done.

Gabby came at 4pm. I tutored late. Morry took the boys to Wendy's for dinner.

I came home around 8:15pm. Both boys seemed to be asleep when I got home.

More Stuff around the House

Evan and Noah got up a little before 9am today. Noah was not in a good mood this morning. He didn't want to get dressed. Finally he let me get him dressed as he held his breakfast (a fruit roll thing).

School drop off went well and I came home and got stuff done around the house.

When the boys got home from school they wanted to do reading and writing at their new desk. I had to clear out a space so they could get to the desk. They both liked sitting in the office at the new desk.

For nap time they both were supposed to be relaxing in the game room. Every time I went in there to check on them they were running around. I need to figure out what to do at nap time with them. Noah and Evan both need downtime in the afternoon. They don't necessarily need to sleep, but they need to have some quiet relaxation. Noah gets really cranky if he doesn't have that. I may need to start separating them at that time.

Blanca came at 3:45 and I tutored 2 students.

I got home around 7pm. For dinner we had bacon wrapped pork, quinoa, and I had salad.

We are about to put the boys to bed now.

Literally Running Around all Day

This morning I took my time getting everyone ready and went for a run. It was the first time I have run in a while. Between being sick and the weather not being so great, I had many excuses. I put the boys in the stroller and brought Lizzy too. I went a total of 3 miles and ran the majority of the time.

When we got home I got my coupons together and then we went back out again. This time we went to the library to drop off a book. The library was closed so I just put the book in the book drop. Evan read the word "book". He said, "I know what that says. It says book."

Then, we went to HEB. I needed to buy a lot of groceries. It took us a while. The boys were getting cranky toward the end.

I had just enough time to put the groceries away before Gabby came over. I quickly got ready for tutoring and then left to go tutor one student.

On the way home I stopped to buy a desk and printer stand from someone off of Craigslist. I wanted to get another desk for the downstairs office and found a good deal on Craigslist. I was glad I had the van. I was barely able to get the desk and stand in the back of the van without having to remove the boys car seats.

For dinner Morry had steak and I had fish.

Evan was throwing a fit at bath time. He was crying a lot. It was very unlike him. Either he is tired or getting sick.

Evan and Noah are in bed now and it seems to be quiet up there.

Running Errands with Grandma and Papa

We were able to sleep in a little bit today. Evan came in our room around 9:30am and I helped him get set up in the game room.

A little later Grandma and Papa cut up some fruit and they and the boys had breakfast.

Then, we all went to run some errands. First we went to Home Depot. Papa was going to help us fix some things around the house. Morry and Evan ran into Academy to get some oil kit for Evan's baseball glove. Next, we all went to Office Depot. Then, we had lunch/brunch at Kerbey Lane. The boys were very good during everything. Noah ate a lot of his blueberry pancake at lunch but Evan didn't eat much of his raspberry pancake until the very end when we were all ready to leave.

When we got home Papa helped us fix some things in the house and then he and Grandma drove back to Dallas.

I spent most of the afternoon working on cleaning up the downstairs office. It's a major project. I finally went through everything in that closed. Now, I need to figure out how to organize the stuff we are keeping and get it back in the closet.

For dinner we had pasta.

Evan and Noah are in bed, but not asleep yet.

Wimberley

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

Yesterday, Papa and Grandma came down so that Rachel and I could go to a bed and breakfast in a small town southeast of Austin called Wimberley. We had gotten a deal from Living Social. They took care of the boys last night while we went.

We enjoyed our time although the weather was not good. It rained the whole time so we couldn't really walk around the town. That's ok, it was still enjoyable. We went to an Italian restaurant last night. Today after we had breakfast delivered to our room, we ended up driving into another small town called Dripping Springs. We had lunch there at a nice cafe called the Creek Road Cafe.

When we were driving home, Rachel called her parents. They were taking the boys to lunch and to go bowling.

Everyone got home as the Steelers game was starting. It was divisional playoff round against the Steelers' rival, the Baltimore Ravens. It was a very tense game, but the Steelers pulled it out at the end. Now the Steelers are in their 4th AFC Championship game in 7 years and 8th since 1994.

For dinner we went to Phara's. The food was really good and the boys were well-behaved.

The boys appear to be asleep now as it has been a late night.

Until next time...

Suzi's with Aunt Susan

Evan and Noah both slept until after 9am. School starts at 9, but I let them sleep in. They needed their sleep. Evan was a little bit crabby. Once we got to school around 10am both boys seemed excited to be there and and didn't give me any trouble.

When I picked Noah up his teacher was reading the book "Going on a Bear Hunt". Noah was very interested in the book. He didn't even notice I came in. When we got to Evan's class they were finishing making igloos. Evan was very proud of his. They used sugar cubes and icing to put them together.

Blanca came at 4 and I tutored until a little after 7pm.

We met Aunt Susan for dinner at Suzi's. We had a nice time and food was really good.

We just put the boys to bed, but both are still awake.

Getting Things Done

Last night Noah was up in the middle of the night. He wasn't going back to sleep, so eventually we just let him cry. Then, Evan came in our room around 4am and he spent the rest of the night in bed with us.

Noah slept late this morning.

I vacuumed and cleaned up some. Then we went to Barnes and Noble for a little bit. After that we went to Newflower.

Gabby came over at 4. I tutored late. Morry and the boys had dinner here while I was tutoring.

I got home around 8:45pm. Noah was asleep but Evan was still up.

Here are pictures from our trip.

I'm hoping to get the video up soon. It's uploading now to YouTube but it takes a long time.

Tucson, AZ

Hello everyone, this is Morry.

We just spent the last 4 days in Tucson, AZ visiting my sister. We flew in on Friday night and flew back today (and boy, are our arms tired).

Our first day started off with a shock. That is when Gabrielle Giffords was shot at a "Congress on the Corner" event she was hosting. For those of you that don't know, my sister was featured in a commercial for Gabrielle Giffords during this last campaign. In fact, my sister supports Giffords so much she would have been at that event if we hadn't come in to visit, since it was fairly close to her house. Needless to say, my sister was distraught over the news.

My nephew Quin is Evan's age and they both like the same things. The boys played really well together the entire time. When the Giffords' news broke, we took Quin out for some lunch at a restaurant called Bobo's. It was very good.

We also got to meet my niece, Lennon. She was born in May but unfortunately we have not been able to see her. She is really cute.

On Sunday, we went to the Desert Musuem. The kids seemed to enjoy their time there as well. We saw a friend of mine who lives in Tucson. She met us there.

Monday, we decided to drive up to the Mt. Lemmon Ski Resort. It is about an hour to an hour an a half from Tucson. Our boys have never seen deep snow. Quin hadn't either. They all really loved it. Evan and Noah loved it so much they didn't want to get back in the car - especially Evan. Evan was busy making snowballs and throwing them. We ate lunch up there and got some fudge as well.

Today, we had lunch on the University of Arizona campus. The whole trip was really nice and Evan kept saying he was sad to not be with Quin. It was just nice seeing how much they enjoyed it.

The kids are now in bed.

Until next time...

Noah is definitely in the terrible twos

This morning Noah was horrible. As I was getting dressed Evan came in my room and asked if Noah was allowed to be eating yogurt in Evan's room. Noah had gotten a spoon and cup of yogurt out of the refrigerator. He opened the lid and had taken a few bites. I told Noah he could have the yogurt but he needed to eat it downstairs in the kitchen. Well, that set him off. He was screaming, throwing a fit from that time until drop off at school. He threw his shoes over the stair railing. He was knocking things over. I had piles of clothes in the hallway that needed to be put in the suitcase. He unfolded those and threw some of those over the railing as well. I could barely get him buckled in his car seat. I was so glad to drop him off at school. I felt bad for Evan. Evan was being really good. He was trying to talk to me in the car, but I couldn't hear anything he was saying.

When I picked up Noah at school he was fine. He was happy to see me.

When we got home we did reading and writing and then the boys played outside for a little bit.

Blanca came at 4:30 and I tutored 2 students today.

Morry gave the boys pasta for dinner. I had the leftovers when I got home.

Evan and Noah were both handfuls tonight. Morry was trying to get them to clean up the game room. By the end both boys were crying. They wouldn't help clean up.

Evan and Noah are in bed now, but still awake.

Lunch with Morry and Back to Tutoring

Around 11:30 we met Morry at work. It took me a while to get the kids out of the house. Both of them were not cooperating.

We went to lunch at Red Robin. The boys ate well and were well behaved. Noah had corn dog and Evan had pizza.

After lunch we came home because the boys were getting cranky. Evan and Noah played outside for a little bit and then I tried to put Noah down for a nap. I could tell he was tired, but he just wouldn't sleep. I gave up and let him play in the game room with Evan.

Gabby came over at 4:00. Evan, Noah, and Lizzy were very happy to see her. I tutored and got home around 7pm.

For dinner we had breakfast tacos. I made them a while ago and put them in the freezer.

In a few minutes we'll get the boys ready for bed.

Back to School - Yea!

Hooray! The boys went back to school today. :)

I had to wake Noah up a little before 9am so we could leave the house. Evan and Noah were both good a drop off.

I was able to do some stuff around the house today. My project now is cleaning up the office/bedroom downstairs. I'm finding all sorts of things. I found some old pictures, an American Airlines wing pin (? don't know where/when that was from), my blue sequin shoes from prom, lots of computer equipment including some 3 1/2 inch floppy disks. What do I do with those? Are there even computers around that can still read them?

Evan was in a good mood when I picked him up, but Noah got really cranky as we were leaving. I'm not sure what set him off. I had to fight him to get him in his car seat. He kept saying he wanted Daddy to do it. Daddy was at work.

When we got home I tried to get Noah to nap, but was unsuccessful.

For dinner we finished the stuffed peppers from yesterday and had some rolls and salad to go along with it.

Evan ate really well. He finished his whole plate of shrimp, tomatoes, spinach, yogurt, and veggie booty.

The boys are eating some ice cream right now and then we are going to get them ready for bed.

Wild Boys

Evan and Noah slept until around 9am today.

I'm feeling a lot better, but still not back to normal so I didn't want to try taking the boys out today.

I started cleaning the office downstairs. I only got through the top shelf of my filing cabinet. I kept getting interrupted.

The boys played outside while I got lunch ready and then again after lunch. They pretended to dig for dinosaur bones.

The boys were really wild and cranky today. I got a call about tutoring and Noah was crying and whining the whole time. I was really embarrassed. I could hardly talk on the phone.

I tried putting Noah down for a nap, but he wouldn't sleep.

For dinner we had stuffed peppers (from the freezer) and mozzarella sticks.

After dinner we took a short walk. I asked Noah to go to the bathroom before we left, but of course he refused. I little bit into our walk he started asking to go to the bathroom. He was able to hold it until we got home, but we had to cut our walk short.

We are about to put the boys to bed. Tomorrow is a school day - the first in a while. It will be nice having the boys at school so I can get some stuff done.

Target and Closets

This morning we went to Target to pick up some organization stuff. Morry got some bins/containers for his office and I picked up some baskets to help me organize the closets in our house.

Today I was able to clean up Evan's closet and the linen closet. Here are some before and after pics.

Evan’s Closet Before

Evan’s Closet After

Linen Closet Before

Linen Closet After

While I was cleaning the closets Morry and the boys were downstairs watching the Steelers.

Morry made fried rice for dinner and after dinner he took apart Noah's crib. We have had that crib up for a long time.

We are about to put the boys to bed. Let's hope they sleep well tonight and don't give me a hard time tomorrow when Morry goes back to work.

Strep Throat

The boys slept in this morning and I had a doctor's appointment at 10:30pm.

The nurse came in first to take my vitals and immediately did a strep test. A few minutes later the doctor came in and had the results. I have strep. He checked my throat, ears, etc. He prescribed some antibiotics and something else to help my sore throat.

I stopped at HEB on the way home hoping my medicine would be ready, but it wasn't.

When I got home Morry and the boys were upstairs watching tv. Morry had to wake Noah up around 10:30.

A little while later we went back to HEB to get my medicine and then to Scooters (a coffee shop). Morry was hoping to get a Red Bull smoothie there, but they were out of Red Bull. Morry and boys got smoothies and I got a coffee. We sat at a table for a little while. The coffee shop has toys and games for kids. Evan and Noah had a good time playing with this all-in-one wooden board game table. It had lots of different games and pieces.

For lunch we had leftovers.

Evan and Noah didn't nap and both were getting pretty cranky by the end of the afternoon. For dinner the boys had leftover pizza. Morry ran out to get a burger from P Terry's and Subway for me.

We put the boys to bed, but they are still awake and our neighbors are still shooting off fireworks.