Valentine's Weekend

Dave organized a romantic Valentine's weekend in Austin for four couples and 7 children. :) Romantic, yeah, right. We had a great time catching up with fraternity brothers, their wives, and children.

We left DFW headed the 200 miles to Josh and Sara's house Friday around 6. It should take just about 3.5 hours to drive down. However, with traffic, it took us an hour and 45 minutes just to get to downtown Ft Worth. So just before 11, we got to Josh and Sara's. Rylee and Avery were fast asleep, and Josh was playing soccer. We chatted with Sara for a bit allowing Gavin to check out his surroundings before heading to bed.

Saturday morning, Gavin was ready to see Rylee.

After playing around the house for a bit and a great scrambled egg breakfast, we loaded up and headed to Zilker Park to meet up with the Clelands and the Gulbransons. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day.

At the park, Gavin made a b-line for the swings. After about 40 minutes in the swing, we were able to pry G away to go look at the doggie we could hear barking.

Daddy and Gavin watched a dog fetching in the water.

Then, they went down close to the water to check it out.

After some time on the playground, we all loaded onto the Zilker Zephyr for a ride.

It was getting close to lunch time, and Gavin hadn't had a snack, so we had some Apple Cinnamon Quakes on the ride.

At one turn, a guitarist was there serenading the riders.

A view of the Austin skyline.

After a great lunch at Uncle Billy's, we parted ways for naptime. Avery took a nap. We made several attempts to get Gavin down for a nap, but he wasn't having any part of it.

He did, however, love Avery's water and sand table. Sara loved Gavin's run. I think the picture below does a great job of capturing it. He lowers his shoulders before taking off; you think by his posture that he is getting ready of a great burst of speed.

After playing in the sand and water, Gavin went straight to the bathtub. As he was getting out, everyone was arriving for the evening.

We played, we chatted, we grilled burgers. We had a great time.

Sara, Rylee, Christopher, and Lisa

Tonya

Josh, Chuck, Dave, and Pete

Miranda, Lisa, Avery's bottom, Sara

Scott & Chuck (foreground)

Pete and Tonya (background)

Sara, Gavin, Rylee, Miranda

Pepper deserves a special award for putting up with everyone in her house.

Gavin and Christopher are intently playing with their toys.

Christopher--love those cheeks

Sara's delicious cake balls

Gavin, Pete, Lisa, Christoper, Tonya, Sara, Chuck, Dave, Scott, Avery, and Josh

Sunday morning, Gavin was up and ready to take a baby on a stroller ride.

Rylee loves the swing we forced upon Sara. I sent it with Dave to Austin shortly after Rylee's birth. Sara was hesitant since Avery didn't care for a swing. I have yet to find a baby that doesn't like the papasan swing. Sara is now so thankful that we were forceful with it. Rylee is such an easy-going baby. We heard her cry a few times when she was hungry. Other than that, not a peep out of her. She grabs for toys, watches big movements, and smiles.

Avery and Gavin had some yogurt to tide them over until we could meet the gang at Rudy's for breakfast tacos.

Gavin impressed us by eating the better part of an egg and cheese taco.

Sara and Avery pause to smile.

Everyone is happily eating their tacos at this table.

Yes, it takes two picnic tables at Rudy's for all of us.

Christopher is all smiles.

Gavin enjoyed playing with Pete--it was a better than average time. (Sorry, it's an inside joke.)

When it was time to go, Sara C. gave Gavin a big hug.

One more trip to the park before hitting the road. Gavin was supposed to run off energy. That's hard to do in a swing.

Avery is a pro at the "rock climbing wall."

Gavin got jealous once when he saw me racing Avery down the slide, so he got out of the swing, climbed up, slid down, and ran back to the swing. Later, we got him to go down the slide to race Avery.

On your mark.

Ready. Set. Go. Gavin flew down and back to the swing. I guess he knows what he likes.

We had a great time. I'm sorry that it took Pete and Lisa's impending move to DC to get us all together. The next Kappa Sig get together will be in DFW; we need to set the date now.

Early Birthday Party

On the first Friday of each month, Gavin's school celebrates all the birthdays for the month. Parents can bring in cupcakes or cookies for the monthly birthday parties during afternoon snack time. Since February 4th was a snow day for us, Gavin's school party was on the 11th. Ms. Rosa, Gavin's teacher, has a soft spot for him. (I used to think that she made every parent feel that way--and I still do--but I'm realizing that Gavin has a special place in her heart.) Ms. Rosa had negotiated with the director to delay Gavin's transition to the 2 year old room until after the birthday party. The snow and ice threw that plan off, as Gavin began transitioning on the 7th, but did get to have his party with Ms. Rosa.

During the snow, I baked cupcakes. Gavin loved them, but boy are they messy. Since I also baked snickerdoodle cookies during our snow vacation, I decided that would be the treat of for Gavin's party. Those older toddlers are party animals. They had cookies and a cheese stick for their afternoon snacks.

Gavin and his friends, clockwise: Gavin, Carlos, Presley, Jackson, Carter, Valerie, and Mama.

Daddy and Gavin look at the fishies on his napkin. And now you can see Presley's face.

Man, this juice is good.

Gavin's birthday party was a nice farewell. Dave and I were happy for the opportunity to visit with Ms. Rosa. I know Gavin is missing her this week as he makes the permanent transition into his new class. During the transition week, I dropped him off in his class with Ms. Rosa. She then took him over to the two year old room, where he spent the mornings.

This week, I had to start dropping him off in the new classroom. On Monday and Tuesday mornings he cried at being dropped off. Wednesday morning there was pouting, but no tears (at least that I know of). The two year old room is more structured than the toddler room. In the two year old room, kids are allowed free play. So they roam from one toy or area to another. In the toddler room, kids have to stay in centers. At drop off, kids have to sit on the rug and play with Legos. They have calistenics each morning--that's what they call it, not me. It cracks me up to think of two year olds doing calistenics. They have circle time. The kids choose centers or are assigned centers; those who bring their listening ears get to first choice at a center. They say the Pledge. Gavin got to hold the flag last week. There is no diaper changing station; instead, diapers are changed in the bathroom, where potty training begins. I'm not quite ready for potty training; Gavin definitely isn't. But with exposure, I'm sure self-awareness will come. He won't move to the next room until he is potty trained. I know Gavin will learn a lot in his new class, and Mama will, too.

Just a Swingin'

As cold as it is now, it's hard to believe that on Friday, January 28, it was a warm beautiful day. So after school, Gavin and I went straight to the park to swing. That boy is like his mama, he loves to swing.

Sometimes I push from behind and check out the view of the back of his head.

But sometimes, I go to the front, so that I can watch his smile as he comes toward me.

Sometimes a boy just needs to look down to see the ground.

That Saturday was nice. So we met Dean, his grandmother, Glenda, and Paisley at the park for more swinging. (There was some sliding, too, but it's hard to take pictures when you're constantly on guard.)
And when Grandmother was too busy chatting, Dave was happy to step in and give both boys their necessary pushes.

I took several pictures of Dave and the boys, but limited to just a few here. It's fun on my computer to "flip" through the pictures, because it's almost like watching a movie. Maybe next time I'll take the Flip Camera; the only problem is that Gavin LOVES to watch movies of himself. So, when he notices the camera, he comes straight to you to sit in your lap and watch videos, which makes filming him difficult.

Here's dreaming for warm, swing weather to come again soon.

War and Peace

My bedside table is breathing a sigh of relief. War and Peace is finished. It can move from its seemingly permanent perch on my bedside table to its more permanent home on my bookshelf. In the summer of 2008, a friend, Kelli loaned me her copy of War and Peace, saying it was her favorite book. She and I had been reading books together for a few months, so I trusted her. I sat down to start her 800+ page book to find that it was an abridged version. Hmmm. If I'm going to read 800+ pages, I'm going to read the entire book. So, I checked to see if the translators of Anna Karenina, Pevear and Volokhonsky, had a translation of War and Peace. They did. And it would be out in paperback by Christmas. I put the book on my list, and Letha got it for me. I started to read. I made it through 200 pages before Gavin was born.

With a newborn it was difficult to hold such a large book. I took a break from War and Peace and read books on my iPod. I read The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers. Neither of which is particularly short. But holding a nursing baby in one arm and a iPod in the other hand, I read them. I slowly began to read other books. Real books-not electronic ones. June 2010 rolled around, and I knew it was time to go back to War and Peace. I started reading by scanning the Spark Notes so I could remember where I was and what was happening in those first 200 pages--no way was I going to re-read them.

I truly enjoyed the fiction surrounding the story of Natasha, Andrei, Pierre, and Mary. Learning who they were and what their life circumstances were before the French invasion of Russia and during the war was interesting to me. Reading about war strategies was not. If you've read Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath, some of War and Peace reads much like Steinbeck's comments on social structures and society that interrupt the flow of the fictional narrative. I don't like that. But, Tolstoy's interspersing of the social commentary with fiction does serve a purpose, people read it and they think. (Or some people like me get tired of it and skim. I hate to say I skimmed, but I did.) I did learn more about the battles fought by Napoleon. I can't say that I paid that much attention to any class discussions that I had in World History about Napoleon. I've read Vanity Fair, Thackery's historical fictional account of Napoleon's conquests from a different perspective. I'm intrigued by how going off to war was like a journey for some couples to embark upon. Young wives would follow their husbands and camp a bit behind the soliders. It sort of makes war seem not so bad. I can't imagine families being just a bit behind enemy lines the way wars are fought today.

I'm no stranger to long novels. My aunt Lesa introduced me to my first in 1993, when she gave me Middlemarch for Christmas. I loved Elliot's story so much that I didn't want it to end. I've read John Jakes' North and South trilogy. I've read all the Harry Potter books. In 2004, I read Anna Karenina (800+pages) in a span of about 10 days--there were 3 plane flights and a glorious week on the beach in Tampa during those 10 days, but I read it in 10 days. I enjoyed the story. Tolstoy still had some social commentary in it, but it didn't go on for page after page. Perhaps I'm just not that intellectual, but I could really care less at this point in my life. When I read, I read to escape. I read books the way some people watch TV or movies. I keep a journal of books I've read and when I read them. I was happy to add War and Peace to the list.

My bedside table looks lonely with only my Bible and devotional on it. War and Peace looks beautiful next to Anna Karenina.

So, would I read it a second time? No. Been there; done that. If I had it to do over would I read it again? Probably. It's a feather in my hat. But, I'm learning that it's OK to skim or read synopses of portions that don't interest me.

Would I recommend it to another? In certain circumstances and with the caveat that it contains a lot of commentary about war and human nature. Not that that's a bad thing. It's just a thing.

And now, off to another book. Actually, there are several books I need to be reading for work. But that's not an escape, now is it?

Snowball Making Lessons

Gavin took to snowball making like a fish to water. Anyone who has spent much time with him knows that he loves anything that has to do with a ball....basketball, soccer balls, baseball, and especially football. So naturally snowball making and throwing was heaven for our little ball player. Who knew that you could make as many of these snowball things as you want and throw them and then make some more?

Mamma and Daddy insisted on the gloves the first time outside, and then Gavin demanded that he wear them anytime he handled the snow.

The snow is just about gone except for the shady areas and places where it was piled up from shoveling. But luckily for us, we are supposed to get another ice storm followed by snow on Tuesday night....we can't wait!

Cabin Fever

Cabin fever set in days ago. With an almost two year old boy in the house, there is only just so much to do. Miranda has had it worse than I have since I have been able to get to work the last couple days. We have read books, played with trains and cars, and watched tons of TV over the last four days.

The roads cleared up enough yesterday that Dean was able to come over for a playdate. The boys got some much needed peer interaction, and the mom's got some much needed adult conversation. Thankfully Gavin has taken everything in stride. He has only been a little bit fussy at times, and has been mostly content to snuggle with someone on the couch while watching cartoons.

Gavin preferred to eat his grilled chesse sandwich on the couch while watching the Tech vs Miami basketball game. Mason was standing guard just in case any crubs were to hit the ground.

Snow Snow Go Away....

We are still having to cope with the winter weather that has hit north Texas. Yesterday the roads had almost gotten to the point where you weren't driving on ice the entire way to work. And then last night we got another 3+ inches of snow on top of what we still had on the ground...and it is still snowing pretty hard outside.

Mason is loving it as usual. Gavin seems to be content to stay warm under a blanket inside the house while watching cartoons. He hasn't even asked to go outside in the last couple days, and that is what he always asks to do.

No kayaking in the near future for me.

A shot looking down the cul de sac.
The McLaren casa covered in snow.
The playscape is looking pretty sad covered in snow.
Winter doggie dandruff (snow).

Miranda's handy little space heater has been a lifesaver for keeping the pipes in the garage from freezing. That little dude just needs to keep chugging along for another day or so.