The Presidents Rap

Not your ordinary third-grade performance! Sarah is in the second row from the top, about three kids from the left. This was a President's Day tribute.

The best part ... the rap!

Want a cookie with that?

Sarah's troop set up a table to sell Girl Scout Cookies at the grocery store this weekend. They sold 77 boxes in two hours, which I thought was great. When Sarah handed customers their Thin Mints while wearing this costume, she yelled "they're taking my babies!" which made everyone laugh!

Twins Day

Sarah and her friend, Ali, decided to participate in Twins Day at school. For a $1 donation to the animal shelter, the girls got to dress up like each other and participate in a contest at lunch. The night before, they talked on the phone for a long time; going through their closets to find similar outfits to wear. I thought they did great, even though Sarah is about six inches taller than Ali! See them in purple stripes in the front row.

Long weekend fun

Lucas finished his week of being Star Student by bringing Walter the Wildcat home for the long President's Day weekend. Poor Walter's adventures get chronicled in a notebook that travels with him and in the last six months, his nose has been bitten off by two different family dogs! I'm sure he reveled in the chaos that is our house knowing at least he would not have to fight off any animals. 

We hosted Sarah's Girl Scout troop meeting where the girls earned their "My Best Self" badge. They presented colorful drawings of themselves and five things that made each of them happy. They tried new foods - beets, salmon, tangelos and pomegranate juice.

They learned about different kinds of bandages and listened to Dr. Gonzales (a neighbor who is the kids' dentist) talk about the amount of sugar in foods and proper brushing techniques!

On Monday, we went to our friend Pam's house for lunch and a sweet treat: chocolate fondue! The kids had fun dipping marshmallows, pretzels, fruit and Girl Scout cookies in chocolate. after initially poo-pooing the idea, Lucas even requested we do it again at our house!

Pam gave me a belated birthday gift that has me howling with laughter. A parody of the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy, this cookbook is written from the viewpoint of a submissive chicken and it is hilarious! 

Happy Valentine's Day

Hallmark's got nothing on Lucas.

100 Days of School

Lucas celebrating the 100th day of school! Or as they might say in his Spanish immersion class: Es el centesimo dia de escuela!

Pinewood Derby 2013

Ethan's new den highly recommended a Derby Car Workshop where you took your block of pine to this guy's house and three hours later you would have a finished car. Mark and Ethan were able to cut, sand, prime and paint his car at the workshop, but then let it sit around for almost a month before Mark put the wheels and stickers on the night before weigh-in. Which made it all the more special when Ethan's car broke the 3-second barrier multiple times, won the Wolf Division and almost became Derby Champion! The event was held in a garage on the grounds of the Texas Motor Speedway, which was extra fun for the kids - especially when there were drivers racing around the track!

Grandma Nault Comes to Visit

We were fortunate to have Mark's mother, Barbara, spend almost two weeks with us at the end of January. She got to spend lots of time with the kids and witness lots their activities, such as Ethan's Pinewood Derby and PTA performance; the Irving Arts Center for Jacob's art merit badge; making pasties with Mark; and exploring The Flower Mound from which our town got its name.