luckiest-est!

Our good fortune continues!

Monday was AWESOME!

Here's Rydger with the 'star' NASA.

Whoa, girlies! 

Don't fall into outer-space!

NASA has a super fun sports exhibit right now.

The kids had a BALL.  (hee hee)

Picture below of the beautiful Em and 

Kyle with his most HAPPY face on!

We spent the night in Kemah and then got up early and

 ate the FREE breakfast at the Marriott. 

(it's free stays like this that make it worth Spencer traveling:)

The best part was going BACK to bed after filling up our tum-tums.

Then we packed up and headed for Galveston.

Here are Kait and Kyle diligently searching for sand crabs.

They did this for more than an hour.

S-Man chill-axin' on the beach.

The kids spent most of the day digging this enormous hole.

(not completed in the photo)

Yes, they hopped on a boogey board here and there, 

but most of the effort of the day was spent here.

It was about 5 foot by 4 foot and more than 3 feet deep.

Teamwork!!

Kait made a special hole for Maddie.

She's all scrunched up and completely enjoying herself.

She couldn't feel her feet when she got out...

but hey- par for the course.

After hours upon hours - the hole was completed.

What did they want to do?

Be buried in it.

Awesome.

Such a fabulous day!!!!!

We are the most luckiest!

Our sweet nieces came to visit us in

this humid nastiness we call Houston.

We are so lucky!

We spent yesterday at the Aquarium.

I was so proud of Tyler.

He overcame his intense fear of merry-go-rounds.

Despite his crying for the conductor to "please slow down!"

He walked away a better man.

These are 'the fugitives'.

They run around the neighborhood trying to avoid

me - in my car- and make it to base safely.

I've wondered how the neighbors feel about

a bunch of teenagers diving under cars and into bushes

at 10 o'clock at night.

This is an accurate portrayal of how I feel

in the humid summer heat.

It even has my freckles.

 Our undersea adventurers.

There are beautiful white tigers at the Houston Aquarium.

Why? I'm not certain - but they are awesome.

(sorry - no real photo)

Beautiful girls on the ferris wheel with

the Houston skyline behind them.

This was my favorite ride. 

There was actually a breeze way up there.

Breeze + sweat = semi-coolness.

The toothless wonder and his beautiful cousin.

Girlies taking the DIVE.

Happy days! Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings!

summer happenings

Fourth of July

Swim/BBQ at the Black's.

(SO FUN!)

These gorgeous girls with their 

Martha Washington hair-do's.

 The little dudes hangin'.

 Summer school lesson.

First-aide.

Kyle's awesome rope-burn.

 The other morning I woke up to Maddie yelling

in a not-so-happy tone,

"The boys TP'd my room!!"

Gotta love brothers.

Summer happiness.

100% Spirituality

These are the "Sons of Thunder"

Jace, Jaren, Joe, &  my little Ty.

They totally rock.

They brought down the house at EFY variety show last week.

I've been trying with no success

 to attach the video.

They are also on youtube - just wasn't as good of a recording.

 

It's totally worth 3 minutes and 9 seconds

of your time!!

 

I'm going to request to the church that they

create a RETURN MONTHLY EFY program

next summer.  I'll pay any price.

This boy learned so much. He felt the spirit. 

 He made new friends.

He came home SO happy!!  

What an amazing program!

happy letter :)

I got some happy mail today! :)

What a great feeling to open that mail and see

"CONGRATULATIONS!"

I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to go back to school!!

Happiness!!!

Occupational Therapy...here I come!

Thanks for all your well wishes and faith in me!

Love ya'll!

Science Experiment

Halliday Summer School continues.

We performed a monumental experiment last night.

What happens when five boys stay up until

5:00 a.m. playing PS3?

Hypothesis: GRUMPINESS

RESULT: This is my family room at 11 a.m.

Still waiting to see if my hypothesis

comes to pass. I'm thinking yeah.

The 40 Follow-up

 I know, I'm not aging well. However, that is not the subject of this post.

 

 

Back in January, I set a few "finish before I'm forty" goals and I wanted to report:

Finish the Book of Mormon - check!! Awesome experience as always.

Go to the temple 40 times - CHECK!!! I went three times the week before my b-day, but I made it and what a fantastic blessing it was to me and my family.  I haven't gone the last two weeks and I MISS the peace and love that I feel in that Holy House.  SO grateful to live only 4 miles away from that beautiful place. Amazing blessings. Amazing.

Run alot - NOT check. This was a goal I didn't quite complete. I procrastinated starting the running for two months and once I did begin- I just couldn't catch up - but I did come close - I think I was only about 45 miles shy of my goal of 200 miles. I'm a dork.

Now -  the reason you have to look at hideous me.  This photo encapsulates my other goal - to  

Get accepted to the Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant program.  I made it through the first cut.  From what I hear there were about 160 applicants.  The second cut required a panel interview/ exam/ writing sample.  There were 40 of us.  They only accept 20 into this program.  I am SOOOOOOOOO nervous! I feel like I'm walking around with butterflies constantly.  My heart just palpitates whenever I think of it. I'm sweating right now.  I need chocolate.

The program director will notify me by mail (hopefully this week) and everyday the trek to the mailbox gets longer and loonnnngggeeerrr....

I could use any extra happy thoughts and prayers out there.  

I'm really exposing the vulnerable me - so if I don't get in send me lots of love, too!  Thanks friends!

As for the other goals - laundry and yelling at my kids - well - check and check.

One year older....

My baby is SEVEN!

I really love this little fella.

He still gives me monster hugs.

He likes hanging out with me.

He is a jokester.

 He had awesome b-day requests this year.

Under armor shirts (cheap Target style)

Gum

Hot wheels

Icee flavors &

a water bottle.

Awesome, I say.

We threw in a football & nerf darts.

 Fuzzy pic below.

Here is my sweet seven year old baby.

We went to Sweet Tomatoes (his choice)

for his birthday dinner.

I feel pretty dang lucky to be the momma to such a special kiddo as this one. The Rydge-it, as we call him, has the greatest sense of humor, LOVES to hang out with the big boys, and is still my cuddlebug.

Happy b-day, buddy!

n-a-a-a-alligators

This week has been such a blast with the Wydicks!

Poppa Bubs took us to the Alligator Park

in Brazos Bend State Park.

The trees were uh-mazing!

Look how huge...

We saw lots of these dudes.

And these dudes...

...and these...

...and then we were REALLY thirsty.

How 'bout a stop at the doggie water station?

Then we saw some more of these guys.

THE BEAST!!

This guy was enormous.

By our scientific calculations we figured

he was about 14 feet long.

A picture of our picture taker with the Beast.

Like another world.

Taking a little rest.

Three little monkeys sittin' in a tree...

Teasing mr. alligator, can't catch me!

One little monkey...

What an awesome tree!

Layni posing with the sweet

baby alligator.

I don't know who's cuter??!!

Fun, fun day.

Great, great memories!

Thanks, Grandpa Bubs!

Cousintz

Rydge and I had a lengthy discussion on how to say

COUSINS.

He insists it's COUSINTZ.

So below are the most beautiful 11

Elmer cousintz EVER!

 Sweet girls!

 Sleepover!

I am so blessed to have such amazing parents,

siblings, nieces, and nephews!

LOVE that we were all together for a couple days!

continuing education

I really worked my kids' brains hard today.

We began with a lesson in water physics.

Tyler, Kyle, and I discovered that when a 

water bottle is squirted at a horizontal angle -

people get wet.

Truly amazing.

 (Ty got his braces off-only pic I've been able to get so far :)

Below is a lovely picture of my hind-quarters.

This one's for you, Spencer.

 The aftermath.

Totally worth the physics lesson.

Next came our "what to do in an emergency" lesson.
Kyle and BFFFF Sammy were scared of 
catching Maddie cooties.
Only one thing can happen when two teenage boys put their heads together in search of a solution....
..... a moment of sheer brilliance!!
Why not tie sheets together and 
escape out of a second floor window.
Why didn't I think of that??

And why not invite our six year old brother to join us?

What could possibly be the danger in this experiment???

Success.  

Our next home school experience will be on finances.

For example - how the air conditioning bill SKYROCKETS

when certain boys leave an upstairs screen-less window open

FOR HOURS when it's 101 outside.