Glow in the Dark Mini Golf

Morry left the house around 6:30am drove to Dallas to get a new car.  They gave him a good deal and he thought it was worth the drive.

It took the boys a while to agree on what we would do today.  I gave them a lot of options, but they couldn't find something both of them wanted. 

After lunch we went to Main Event and played glow in the dark mini golf. The boys had a good time and Noah got a hole in one.

After that we stopped at The Container Store for me and then went to mall.  Noah wanted to go to the Lego store.  I told him we wouldn't buy anything and he said he just wanted to look.  The boys were good at the mall and I got them each a cookie on the way out.  While we were walking back to our car in the parking lot we saw Evan teacher from last year.  She stopped for a minute to say hi.

When we got home Morry was home with his new car.

For dinner we had pasta.

The boys are ready for bed now and Morry is on a phone meeting.

Change of Plans

Morry and Marilyn took Evan to school today.

Around 9am, we left the house to take Grandmom to the airport. Noah and I had an appointment at Wonders and Worries at 10am so we went there from the airport. We got to Wonders and Worries about 10 minutes early and the door was locked. We waited and waited. I tried calling the guy we were supposed to meet but he didn't answer his phone. At 10:20am I called again and left a message saying we were leaving to run errands and could try coming later. He called shortly after and said his son's school was closed today because of the fires. It was being used as a shelter. He apologized for not calling and we rescheduled for Thursday.

Noah and I went to Panera to get my free cookie. When I went to Panera the other day they forgot to put the cookie in my to-go order so they said I could come back later and get it. Noah and I shared a sugar cookie.

Then, we went to Kohls and Old Navy to return a few things. Old Navy is next to Barnes and Noble. Noah asked if we could go to the bookstore. So, we did for a little while.

At home, we ate lunch outside. It was a nice day today.

We drove to the path to pick Evan up. Evan and Noah were excited to see each other.

At 4:30 Kim came over to babysit.

Morry and I went to the Meet the Teacher night at the school at 5:30.

We got home at 6:30 and I left to tutor.

I picked up Popeye's for Morry on my way home.

The boys are in bed and asleep now.

Swim, Door, Tutor, ...

First I ran with the boys in the stroller.

Then, John came to start refinishing our door and outside shutters.

I took the boys to swimming. They did well. Noah still won't jump off the waterfall on his own. He didn't like that part, but seemed to do well with the other swimming. I promised the boys we could get Blizzy's (shaved ice) later in the afternoon since they had a good swimming week.

Morry came home at lunch time. We had the floor lady come by to measure the house and show us some samples.

Then, at 1pm I had a student come for tutoring.

Noah actually napped.

I woke him up around 4pm and we went to Blizzy's.

After Blizzy's we went to the bank and then Panera to pick up my dinner.

The boys and I were by ourselves tonight. Morry had a meeting. I made mac and cheese for the boys and ate my Panera's.

Evan and Noah are eating their Panera cookie and then I'll get them ready for bed.

Feeding the Ducks and Geese

This morning the boys were pretty good. Noah had a few bouts of crankiness.

I ran 2 miles pushing the boys in the stroller. Then, we went over to Newflower. Evan and Noah were good there and had lots to eat. They had samples and then got their free cookie after we finished checking out.

On the way home we stopped at park I had just heard about. It has a pond with lots of ducks and geese. I brought some tortilla with us and we fed the ducks and geese. There were a ton of them, but they all seemed really friendly and left us alone we were out of food. Evan and Noah liked walking around and watching the turtles in the water too.

We came home and the boys had a little bit more to eat.

I put Noah down for a nap, but he didn’t sleep.

Gabby came at 4pm and I tutored.

I came home at 7pm. For dinner I had salmon and Morry had pork tenderloin.

We gave the boys baths and now they are in bed, though not asleep.

Here are more videos from today.

Another Rainy Day

I had been raining a lot here lately. Since it was raining we didn’t do anything outside today.

As I was getting Noah dressed, I put his shoes on and he started complaining it hurt. I took off his shoe and inside was a GeoTrax guy. I asked him why the guy was in there and Noah said his shoe was the ship.

We stopped at the post office and then went to Barnes and Noble for a little bit. The boys needed to get out of the house and the bookstore usually works out well. Evan and Noah were good and on the way out I let them pick out a cookie to bring home.

The boys at lunch and then I put Noah down for a nap. He wouldn’t sleep.

Gabby came at 4pm and I tutored. My later student canceled because she was sick, so I met Morry and the boys for dinner at Mc Donald’s. Evan and Noah were very well behaved and they ate well.

We got our new computer today. Morry found a really good deal on a HP laptop on Woot. Morry’s working on setting it up now.

Evan and Noah have been put to bed, but they are not in bed now. I hear them both playing around in their rooms upstairs.

DirecTV finally got it right

This morning the boys slept somewhat late. They must have been worn out from last night. Oh, and Morry made it back safely from Dallas. He got in about 2:40am and said they had a good time at the baseball game.

We were supposed to have playgroup today, but it got cancelled.

Instead, I took Evan and Noah to Barnes and Noble. I was going to take them to the park or the Wildflower Center, but they both preferred to go to the bookstore.

As we were leaving Barnes and Noble I let Evan and Noah pick out a cookie to share. Of course they chose a sugar cookie with sprinkles on top.

When we got home I got lunch ready and then received the call from DirecTv that the guy was on his way.

I had little hope and didn’t want to get too excited about getting a new setup, but everything went as planned. We now have a whole home system where we can watch one thing and tape another. We just have one DVR but can access it from all TVs in the house.

While the system was being set up I gave Evan and Noah haircuts on the upstairs patio.

Once the guy left I put Noah down for a nap.

For dinner we went to Red Robin. Evan and Noah both ate well and were well behaved. It was a successful dinner.

We got home just a little bit ago. Evan just had sherbet and Noah had a popsicle. Now, we are going to put them to bed.

Newflower at Night

Evan woke up crying for Morry around 6am. Morry got Evan set up in the game room and left for work. Evan came in our bedroom around 8am.

Once Noah got up and I got the boys dressed I took them for a run. It was very humid outside. That was a hard run. It seemed like it was going to rain, but we only got a few sprinkles later in the day.

Blanca came over at 10am. While she was here I went out to lunch with Melissa and ran a few errands. I went over to Famous Footwear to return some shoes we bought online. I also stopped by Old Navy. They were having a clearance sale where everything on clearance was an additional 50% off. I got some stuff for Morry and me, but the boys section was pretty picked over. I only got a pair of jeans for Evan.

When I got home around 2:00 I put Evan and Noah down for naps. They both slept well.

For dinner we made pasta.

After dinner we went over to Newflower. We needed some fruit and other groceries for the next few days. Evan and Noah were good there and enjoyed getting their free cookie. Noah managed to get his cookie all over his face and shirt.

When we got home Rita (Blanca’s mom) was outside. She came over and talked to us for a little bit in the driveway. Noah even let her hold him.

We came in, put the groceries away, and then gave the boys baths. They are now in bed and it seems to be quiet.

Doctor, CVS, and Newflower

Evan was up at 6:24 am this crying for Daddy and did not go back to sleep.

This morning I made a doctor’s appointment for Evan. He’s had this little bump on his butt for a while, but the last week he’s been scratching it and it got bigger and more irritated. I was able to make an appointment for 9:45. Evan, Noah, and I went to the doctor. It took a while. We were there for about an hour. The doctor said Evan has Molluscum Contagiosum, a skin condition that causes raised, round, bumps on the skin. We have to give him an antibiotic cream 3 times a day for a few days.

After the doctor we went to CVS. There were a lot of items on sale there that we needed. We were there about an hour. Evan was not well behaved and it made the shopping take extra long. I also had to take him to the bathroom twice. I guess it’s not in a good neighborhood because when I was trying to get out to the car I realized the shopping carts don’t fit through the door. I had lots of big items (toilet paper, paper towels, ..). There was no way I was going to be able to get that stuff and the boys to the car without a cart. The checkout guy offered to help me to the car. That was very nice of him, but I was annoyed at the store.

Then, we went to Newflower, across the street. I got our groceries for the week and also got some good deals there. Evan and Noah were better behaved there. I gave them both apples to eat to keep them busy. After checkout I took the boys to the bakery to get their free cookie (kids get free cookies).

We came home, ate lunch, and the boys took good naps.

For dinner, we ate rotisserie chicken and leftover potatoes.

After dinner, I made Morry run with me. :)

I want to try and start exercising more. Maybe we’ll try running after dinner and see how that works out.

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

Smoke Detectors

Last night our smoke detectors went off at two different times during the middle of the night. It’s so annoying. They went off for just a few seconds each time. We had someone come and look at them before when this happened. He said that the smoke detectors have motion sensors and if a bug gets in there it will set it off. That’s most likely what happened last night. We have no idea which smoke detector is was. Because of the baby monitors it makes it even harder to tell where it is coming from. Luckily it didn’t seem to bother Evan and Noah. I’m sure they woke up, but just went back to sleep. It made Lizzy really nervous though.

I was really tired this morning.

Evan and Noah slept until almost 10am. They really needed the sleep.

Yenis and Kevin came over around 10:30 and then we went to the Hill Country Galleria. The kids played in the spray water fountain and then we sat at a table and had snacks. Noah did not really play in the water fountain. He didn’t want to get wet for some reason. Evan and Kevin had a great time though.

When we got home I made a smoothie. Noah drank his pretty quickly so I filled his cup with more. Somehow he managed to get the top off the cup and spilled the whole thing on the carpet.

Evan and Noah took good naps today.

When they woke up I put Sesame Street on for them so I could make dinner.

Morry got home a little after 6:00. We ate pasta salad and then drove to the mall. Morry needed more nice clothes for work. Before leaving I printed out coupons. We got a 15% coupon for Old Navy and a free cookie at The Great American Cookie. Noah was a pain at the mall. He didn’t want to be in the stroller and he was very fussy. He was throwing a fit at the cookie counter. He really wanted a cookie. We let Evan and Noah eat their cookies in the car.

We left the mall around 9 and got home and put the boys to bed. Hopefully they sleep well tonight and hopefully the smoke detectors don’t go off again.

Valentine’s Party

We got a late start this morning. Evan’s school starts at 9:00am, but the boys didn’t wake up until almost 9:00. I wanted to let them sleep. They both needed it. By the time we got to school it was almost 10:00. Evan gave me a hard time when it was time to leave the house. He wouldn’t let me put his shoes on, and then he didn’t want to get in the car. I told him I was going to get in the car with Noah. I left him in the house while I put Noah in the car in the garage. I couldn’t carry them both out to the car anyway. Evan was really crying. I think he thought we were really going to leave him.

Evan had his little Valentine’s party at school. Parents were invited, so Morry and I got there at 12:30. The kids got Valentine ’s Day cards from each other and decorated cookies. Evan was very excited to see Morry at school. We let Noah stand up at the table where all the kids were seating. Noah kept eating cookie crumbs off the table.

When Morry got home we ate hamburgers for dinner and then went to the mall. We needed to get a gift for someone so we went to Children’s Place in the mall. Evan and Noah had fun playing with the toys at Children’s Place. Evan did not want to leave. As we were walking out of the mall he had a scour on his face and was whiny. We passed the cookie store and decided to get some cookies. We asked Evan if we wanted to pick out a cookie and all of the sudden his mood changed. He was happy and running around. Morry and Evan picked out the same sugar cookies and I picked chocolate chip. We let Evan eat his cookie on the way home.

It’s about 9:30 and just put the boys to bed. It sounds like both are still awake.

Playgroup at our house

This morning we had playgroup at our house. I was busy this morning getting last minute stuff made and put out on the table. The playgroup went well. One of the moms is pregnant and due December 27 so we had a little shower for her as well. The kids played well together. Noah started crying at one point. I knew he wasn’t hungry since I just fed him. I though he was probably tired. I was standing up holding him and a few minutes later he fell asleep on me. I ended up sitting down for a little while so he could get a nap in. Evan ate a ton of cookies. There were leftover cookies from cookie decorating at school yesterday so I put them out on the table. Every time I turned around Evan was getting another cookie. Normally I wouldn’t let him eat so many, but on playgroup days I tend to be a little more relaxed.

We ordered an entertainment center to hold our new TV and it was scheduled to be delivered today between 12:30 and 4:30. I put Noah down for a nap a little before 3, but Evan was still up playing while I cleaned up from playgroup. At about 3:00 the men from Lacks came to deliver and set it up. Evan was very interested in the big truck. I took him outside to look at it. While we were outside Evan looked into the upstairs window and saw Lizzy. He thought it was funny that Lizzy was looking out the window at the truck and he wanted to go upstairs too and look out the window.

It was about 3:30 by the time I took Evan to his room for a nap. He never slept. It got quiet at times, but I don’t think he was sleeping.

For dinner we went to Suzy’s (Chinese). Both Evan and Noah ate a bunch of edamame.

We just gave the boys a bath and put them to bed. I hope they sleep well tonight since we have a big day tomorrow. The train ride is at 3:00, so most likely they will not get naps tomorrow.

What Evan Wants

Hi everyone, this is Morry for my weekly post. It's been a while since I last posted since I was gone last weekend. As I'm sure of some of you waited with anticipation for my post, the wait is now over.

So this morning, Rachel went to tutor the old guy for his GREs. They met at the LBJ library on UT's campus. She left the house at 8:15am. So I was with the boys this morning. When Evan and Noah woke up, Evan told me he wanted to go to the bookstore today. I told him we'd go when Mommy came home. Then he said he wanted to watch the Polar Express. So we watched that. I got breakfast ready for both boys while we watched. After the Polar Express was over, Evan insisted on watching the GeoTrax DVD. That DVD is so bad, I've debated over whether to pretend that we "lost" the DVD. Evan wants to watch it over and over and over again.

When Rachel got home, we made lunch and then, of course, we did what Evan wanted. We went to Starbucks. After seeing the Polar Express in the morning, Evan was really talking about hot chocolate. So I told him I'd get hot chocolate at Barnes & Noble and we could share it. So as soon as we got to the book store, he ran over to the Starbucks inside. While we were waiting in line, I noticed all the cookies and cakes in the case. My eyes locked on these sugar cookies they had with red crystals on them. Then, suddenly, Evan said, those cookies look good. He was looking at the same cookies. He was in front of me, so there's no way he saw what I had been looking at. I said, "yeah, I was looking at those too." I told him that we'd get one to share. He said "No, I want my own." We did not give in though. He and I shared the cookie. It was a good one. Evan and I obviously share the same taste in desserts.

Evan played with the trains at Barnes and Noble for awhile. We let Noah crawl around in that area for a bit. Then Noah and I walked around the store together. Noah wanted to grab all the books as I walked by, if I was close enough.

When we got home, we put the boys down for a nap. Evan must have been very tired as he never got out of bed.

Last night, Evan told us he wanted to go to Logan's for dinner, but we couldn't go there. Logan's is a steakhouse where you get peanuts and you throw the shells on the floor. So since we do what Evan wants, we took him to Logan's tonight. He was very excited to go. He kept talking about throwing the shells on the floor the entire ride. As soon as we sat down I opened up a peanut for him, gave him the shells and the peanut itself. He took the shells and threw them half way across the room. He definitely likes Logan's.

We brought cheese cubes for Evan for dinner but Rachel thought Noah might like them. Up until now, the only food that he's fed himself really has been the puffs. So Rachel cut up the cheese cubes into much smaller cubes. Noah had a blast feeding himself. It kept him occupied all night.

After dinner we ran some errands at Southpark Meadows. That's a massive shopping center which used to be a concert venue. We went to Sports Authority, Marshall's and Circuit City. You can get good deals at Marshall's, but man is that place a pigsty. (Note: I looked up the spelling of pigsty. I would have thought it was two words. Weird.) Every time I go there, I feel like I need a bath when I get out. I have bad memories of Marshall's and TJ Maxx from when I was a kid and my mom would drag me along. I also really hate TJ Maxx because they took over where the toy store was when I was 5 or 6. As a kid, it's a no-brainer. If you have a choice of going to TJ Maxx or a toy store, the toy store would win in a heartbeat.

Some other random stories that aren't from today: Evan really enjoyed watching the Steelers game with me the other night. When the game started, he climbed up on the couch and sat right down next to me. Every time Ben Roethlisberger was on tv, Evan would say "There's Roethlisberger!" When they weren't showing him, Evan would ask where he was or point to the player they were showing and tell me, "That's not Roethlisberger." Evan also wanted to play football during the game. He'd throw his little football to me, then I'd throw it back. He'd run around the couch and down the hall and dive onto the floor and yell "touchdown!" Then he'd leave the ball on the floor, run all the way back to me, give me a high-five, run all the way back to get the ball and then back to me where he'd start the process over. And finally, when Rachel got Evan up yesterday morning, he told Rachel that "Roethlisberger wears Number 7." (Yes, I am beaming with pride)

Meanwhile, Noah is really enjoying his crawling. That kid will not stay in one place. He's all over. It looks like he's trying to get up on his knees too.

Until next time...

Monday... last night at Oasis, walk, ...

We had a nice time last night at Oasis. We got a great table overlooking the lake and could also hear the band from where we were sitting. The Podbers also met us there. Evan loved dancing. He was jumping around and spinning. When the music would stop he would yell “More!”

This morning we took a run/walk. Evan walked a little of the way. As we walked by the elementary school we saw Amy and Abby (from our original Starbucks playgroup). They had just had lunch with Amy’s other daughter who’s birthday is today. Abby was eating a cookie and Amy asked me if it was alright if Evan had one. Evan was very excited to get a chocolate chip cookie. Somehow he managed to get chocolate all over his face though. I never understand how you can give this kid the littlest amount of chocolate, but somehow he manages to get it everywhere.

We forgot to add the other day that Noah is getting another tooth! He now has 2 teeth coming in on the bottom. It doesn’t seem to bother him too much.

I had a busy tutoring schedule tonight. Since a few of my students have a band performance tomorrow I had to move them to today. I was gone from 5-10 this evening. Morry had to take care of the boys on a football night. He’s watching the Steelers game now. Evan is still up making noise in his room. Hopefully he falls asleep soon.