Ice Man

Funny title since my 3 year old actually loves Top Gun and you better believe that he knows who Ice Man is. My husband likes to think he's Maverick or Ice Man but don't let him fool you, he is Goose all the way, and that's the way I like him!

Anyhow, I had visited this mom's blog that has lots of great ideas to engage your small children. Well, she had posted about this ice excavating activity where she froze layers of water filled with finds. I knew Lawyer, being as OCD as he is and with being a very hands-on child, would love this so I actually bought a bag of "value" beads and just threw them in a container of water and froze each layer, adding more beads and water and freezing.

Well, this was a huge hit and it ate up at least 1 hour and 15 minutes. I gave Lawyer several choices of "tools" and he got to pick and choose and decide which was going to work best for him. I do have to say though that my collection of toothpicks, a toy screwdriver, and a wooden hammer didn't exactly blow his socks off. He announced that he would be right back and for me to not move. Lawyer came back out with his real child's-sized hammer and that would work better. Duh, mom.The hammer ended up being his favorite tool (big surprise there!).Of course, to really get the job done, he needed to get down and dirty on the ground.And here's what we ended up with...Oh and these are some great pics of Lawyer, his favorite part was eating the small bits of ice that broke off the big ice block.Who knew that ice chips were such an indulgence to be had and enjoy?

A Painting for Granny...

One would think that a title like that would make you want to be so proud as a parent that your child is being so thoughtful to think of someone else, especially their granny, when deciding to paint. I certainly did. Shoot yeah, that sounds like a great idea! It will eat up at least an hour of our day too!Nice technique, my child.He's so thoughtful when deciding where his next stroke should go.Hey Lawyer, why don't you smile for the camera for mommy?Never mind.

Here we're getting fancy with the artsy/photo techniques. If you know more than me about photography (which I assume is most people) then look away now.He definitely follows after his dad in the OCD department (see post below on Dad). Look at him lining up his brushes AND they are color coded for the paint that he will use for each one.See? What'd I tell ya? Blue brush must go with blue paint...no exceptions.Beautiful technique.Lawyer, say cheese!Fun side note about the container used for Lawyer's paints...it was the egg container that came with my fridge. Pretty smart of me, don't you think?Don't you just love grubby little 3 year old boy hands? I especially like the dirty, chewed up nails.Look at the seriousness in this kid's face. He means business when he paints a picture for Granny!Check out ol' OCD child's right hand straightening out the brush...he is OCD dad's kid all the way.Coming back to where I started with the joy that exudes out of me when my child wants to share such beautiful art with others. When asked what he called this painting, he looked at me with mischief in his eyes and said...The Gun! Nice, I've raised my boy right...guns and paint. Redneck and refined.

Lawyer...Say Cheeseburger...Gloom and Doom, people, gloom and doom. The End.

Still Swimming...

that's all we've been up to the last few days!

Pool Fun

Ah, summer. My favorite time of the year. There's something that awakens in me every time I feel the warmth on my skin. I feel alive and healthy when I step out into the hot Texas sun. Not very many people I know share this same sentiment but luckily I have a son and husband that can't wait to be outside each and every summer day.

We also are very blessed to have a pool right in our own backyard, complete with palm trees, an outside fridge stocked with our adult beverage of choice, and a ridiculously fabulous 10' square bright red umbrella. I love my backyard. I literally wake up every single morning and thank God for my family, what I have, and where I live. Especially when I open my curtains and blinds to let the outside in.

Lawyer is my summer baby. He loves being outside, he loves the water and, when we go to the beach, he loves the sand and ocean. He's also fearless when it comes to swimming. He's 3 and thinks nothing of jumping off the diving board without the use of kiddie floats. He's a super great swimmer. Praise the Lord because I don't know what I would do if I had a child that was scared of the water.

Granny just got him some new goggles for the pool and he thinks they're grand. He's almost Willy Wonka-like when he has them on (Johnny Depp Willy Wonka, not Gene Wilder Willy Wonka which is still my favorite). Check out the fun that goes down on a summer day in our slice of paradise.
We hope your summer is as grand as ours has already gotten to be. Lots of memories have already been made around here and it's only the beginning of summer!!

Feeling Exposed...

I recently read a blog post over at Pioneer Women's website that was posted by Miz Booshay, a guest writer/photographer about getting exposure right the first time. I've really been working in Manual on my camera lately and I do say that when I get the exposure right, it feels good. I won't necessarily claim that the pictures have perfect exposure but I'm slowly getting there.

So on my quest for great pictures SOOC (straight out of camera - no editing), here is what I captured.I love the magical feeling to this picture. I think taking pictures from different perspectives and having those special touches (sun glare in the back) really can turn out fun.

Let me know what you think about my SOOC pictures. While I think it's decent stuff, if you consider yourself a bit of a photographer, I would like to know what I could do to take better pictures!

My Husband

This is Jason, he's my husband. He's also a lot of other things: my best friend, my baby daddy (haha), my handy man, my motivator, my shower cleaner and vacuum-er, my supporter, and much much more.

Jason is a unique individual. He's a tad OCD which works well for him in his line of business. He's one of those "if you don't do it right the first time, then don't do it at all" types of individuals. He likes to hand-water the grass before the sprinklers turn on, just in case the sprinkler doesn't do it's job. Like I said, a tad OCD.

He also is a big goofball that likes to make people laugh (and he's kind of a center-stage hog). This makes people love or loathe him. I happen to love him. Through all of my moodiness and grouchiness and nagginess (I sure love making up words), he's the one that makes it his mission to make me laugh. And he always succeeds whether I want him to or not. He has a hearty laugh, a big spirit, and most always a smiling face.

His son is the center of his world and he loves to play with him. Partly it's because he's an overgrown 3 year old but mostly it's because he knows that one day Lawyer will look back on growing up in this house and know that his dad loved him more than anything. And Lawyer and Jason are two peas in a pod. They do everything together and all of Jason's quirks, idiosyncrasies, and habits have been passed down to Lawyer. Right down to how Lawyer sits and crosses his legs when he's lounging, it's SO Jason.

Thanks Jason for being the backbone of our family and always knowing how to make a girl laugh. It was that spirit that made me know I was going to marry you the first time I met you. We love you lots!

Summer Breeze, Makes Me Feel Fine

First off, how old do I make myself when I can put down those lyrics. Now I know I wasn't born when Seals & Croft came out with that song but the sheer fact that I know it and can sing the next line "blowing through the jasmine in my mind" makes it utterly obvious that I was born in, if not the tail end, the '70's.

Anyways, I digress. Wanna know what goes into a fun summer around here? Here's a little of what we've been doing...

Swimming

Bug-Catching

Sand Box Playing

Puppeteering (I made this word up)

Night Light-Sabering (another made up term)

Outside Eating & Napping (notice the strategically placed bug in the second picture)

We've also managed to cook together, go on bike rides, play a little catch, go to a Rangers baseball game, get on a waverunner (where Lawyer fell asleep...how do you sleep while going 30 mph on a wavy lake?), watch fireworks, watch movies and just play.......AND it's only the beginning of June. We've done well, danielson.