Piano Room

This would be the room formerly known as the piano room. My dear husband decided to help me decorate. What do you think...does he have talent?

Santa Fe Basketball

Another update on Collin...he spent the past week at the Edmond Santa Fe High School basketball camp. His team went undefeated the whole week and at the awards ceremony yesterday Collin won two awards: 2nd place for Best Dribbling and All-Star Team (one of five players chosen). We're very proud. Yea Collin!

This morning Collin and my husband left for a father/son trip to Arlington with Collin's baseball team. Today they're all eating lunch at Joe T. Garcia's in Ft. Worth, swimming at the hotel pool, then attending the Rangers game. Tomorrow they've rented out the Rangers Youth Ballpark and will be playing there several hours against a local rival team.

Meanwhile, Cambryn says she and I are having a Girl Power weekend. "Girls Rule, Boys Drool!"

Milestone

Collin has reached a new milestone in his tween development: he now will not allow me to put sunscreen on him in public. Apparently it's the kiss of death for a ten-year old to be seen with his mom rubbing him down with lotion. Instead, my job is to watch him put it on himself and carefully monitor the level of absorption. This is our new routine:

Step 1. He applies, rubs, then asks, "Is it all rubbed in? Can you still see it?"
Step 2. We repeat Step 1 a thousand million times until his skin is covered and there aren't any white splotches.

It would be so much faster and easier for me to rub it in. I'd hate to stunt his development, though.

A Year in the Life

Since my one devoted reader is begging for an update, specifically about the book I'm reading, I will oblige. Although tempted to simply give the name of the book and its author, I will include my own brief book review. I'm quite sure my reader will hasten to the nearest bookstore and buy the book so that we might engage in lengthy discussions of its contents. Or maybe he'll just be bored out of his skull by this blog post and quit asking for more.

The book is A Year in the Life of William Shakespeare: 1599 by James Shapiro.

This is a detailed study of the significant political and cultural events of 1599 that would have influenced Shakespeare's writing. It was during that year that he wrote Henry V, Julius Caesar, As You Like It, and Hamlet, and erected the Globe theater. I recommend it to all readers interested in Shakespeare, Queen Elizabeth I, and British military history. Although it sometimes reads like a textbook, it is well-written and interesting.
.....................................

If you're not interested in the book maybe you'll at least be interested in some of the places I've been reading it.

• on my bed
• on Collin's bed
• on Cambryn's bed
• in the bathtub
• on the couch in the family room
• on the couch in the study
• in the car during softball practice
• in the car before baseball games
• in the car between basketball games
• in the carpool line at school
• at my parents' house
• at the pool
• on my patio
• on our trampoline

I have absolutely no idea how to make this post any more interesting, so there you have it.

Just scrapped a photo of Collin from a couple of years ago.

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I'm back. Don't faint, Mom. Here's a little story for you...

Someone in our Sunday School class mentioned that she prays with her kids each morning on the way to school. I figured we should try it. We started last week and it has significantly cut down on the crying and fighting in the car. Of course, one morning when I asked Cambryn what she wanted us to pray for she said, "for Collin's head to explode," but at least we're trying to move in the right direction.

Just wanted to document a Cambryn quote before it's gone forever.

Background information: (1) Several weeks ago Collin's basketball team played in a tournament in Tulsa and we had reservations at a Doubletree with an awesome indoor pool. (2) William is the younger brother of one of the basketball players. (3) Before we left, Cambryn called me from from my in-laws' house.

(Telephone ringing)

Leslie: Hello?
Cambryn: Hi Mom. It's Cambryn.
Leslie: Hi Cambryn.
Cambryn: Is William going to Tulsa?
Leslie: Yes.

(pause)

Cambryn: Mom, can you pack my striped bikini?

Yes, I'm still alive.

Just popping in to say that I've been ailing for awhile. Just when I think I'm getting better "IT" morphs into a new and improved ailment, all reflux and respiratory related. Ugh! As soon as it's gone I'll be back.

Happy thoughts!

Here's a new vintage layout. Isn't my mom beautiful?

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Credits here.

Bye!