Delaney

My teenager, angel face, reader, little mother, hugger, curly-Q, giggle girl, gamer, MS. FIX IT, duct tape diva, compassionate and kind.

Delaney's favorites:

• color: LIME GREEN
• food: spaghetti rice
• drink: Arizona green tea 
• TV Show: NCIS
• Song: "Delaney Talks to Statues" by Jimmy Buffett
• Movie: The Avengers
• outside: jump on the trampoline
• inside: read
• sport: jujitsu 
• games: Just Dance and Band Hero
• working out with my sister
• ripstick with the boys

Vegan chocolate cupcakes with cream cheese icing

Emma

My teenager, twin sister, reader, thinker, funny, silly, sarcastic, lover of the literal, good friend, protective big sister, chef, writer, sweeper extraordinaire, wonderful :-)


Emma's favorite:

• color: purple
• food: kale
• drink: chocolate soy milk
• TV show: "My So Called Life"
• Books: "The Hunger Games", "The Giver", The Harry Potter Books, books written by Margaret Peterson Haddix, Books by Lois Lowry
• Sport: running
• Outside: run
• inside: read
• Subject: Language Arts
• hang out with friends
• being with Jax, Ollie, and Delaney
• playing with my cousins

pancake with strawberry jam cake

Twirling with Joy Emma

JAX

My 10 year old, the best brother, Ollie's best friend, ripsticking maniac, swimming fish, long haired cutie, snuggle man, Chef, song writer, Rock star, photographer, adventurer, good friend, gamer

 I wanted to share some of Jax's favorites:

• color: white
• song: "The City is Ours" by Big Time Rush
• TV show: Avatar the last Airbender
• Movie: Avengers
• Game: Need for Speed Nitron for Wii
• Outside: have a nerf war or dodgeball
• inside: play with Ollie
• book: "The Haunting of Derek Stone: City of the Dead"
• joke around with my family
• sport: baseball
• food: corn dog 
• drink: Dr. Pepper
• When I grow up: photographer

Coconut Creme Pie

Pure Joy!

Been Adjusting

Whoa, it has been a long time since I posted! Life has just been incredibly crazy :-) I finally graduated in December.... WHOOP! Walking across that stage was a very proud moment and turning my ring to face the  the world brought tears to my eyes. I also started Homeschooling the boys after the Winter break (hence, no time to blog!). It has been really good to reconnect with them on a deeper level. I have also been able to light a spark for learning and reading. Everyday they are glad to start school. We play and have lots of fun. AND get this they love reading.... HUGE step for my boys with dyslexia!
We are keeping our fingers crossed for an overseas assignment for Dax. We hope to be traveling the world within the next year. Dax and I really feel passionate about exposing our kids to different cultures and ways of life... this would be a wonderful way to do just that.

Highlights since the last post:

• Christmas in Disney AGAIN! So fun and my sister's family joined us. We wore Halloween Colors on Christmas Day....oops!
• My Meme and Grandy celebrated their 70th Anniversary
• Ollie turned 8! Favorite moment: Ollie embracing his Dad thanking him for a Macgyver knife (Swiss army)..... Both of their faces contained PURE JOY!
• The girls performed in Shakespeare Come to Gravel Gulch. They did a great job. Both had tons of lines.  Dede was Cactus Cate. Em was Cordelia. De even saved a scene when another girl forgot her lines.The girls had tons of fans at their performance: Me, Dax, Jax, Ollie, Mom (Doc), My brother, his wife, and 2 kids, My sister and 2 of her kiddos, and sweet Lizzy! Plus, Dede’s boyfriend and 3 of their best friends!!! STARS in the MAKING!
• The boys and I went on fieldtrips to the Houston Museum of Natural Science (many times), the Houston Children's Museum, the Bluebell factory, the Natural Bridge Caverns, they worked at the farm with MY Grandy and learned about growing veggies, Home Depot (Lizzy and Doc joined us for a few!)
• The boys got to see BIG TIME RUSH and CHINA ANN MClAINE at the Houston Rodeo
• The girls went to the 7th grade dance.  Man, time sure flies! They had fun and get this..... EVERYONE DANCED!
• Jax is so excited that he learned about pi. He loved showing his mad skills of finding the circumference of a circle to his Daddy!!!
• The whole family went to the Hunger Games premiere. All 6 of us read the books and LOVE them! The darn movie ended up being so shaky that Em PUKED on the herself and the person in front of her! He sister and I both got some puke splatter on us too ;-( YUCK!!!!! We can laugh now!
• We now have a 3rd grader, 5th grader, and two 8th graders in our house
• We saw Avengers (and many other movies BUT that was our favorite) at the Showboat Drive in! We love the drive in :-)
• My niece and nephew turned 16! WOW, I can't believe that they are so grown. 
• For mother's day, I was surprised with a family trip to the bay! We had a BLAST! Dede made me a crayon canvas. Emma wrote me the BEST poem ever. The boys got me a Sock monkey. Dax got me a necklace that has a mother embracing 4 kids. I don't know what I did to get all that BUT it was perfect!
• Ollie learned how to ripstick! Now all the “little”brooks have this awesome skill J They take after their super dad!!!

• We made several trips to Gruene! We always love getting to see Doc, GrandHarold, and Nanny.
• We actually Ooooo’ed and aaaaaaaaa’ed in a gas station in New Braunfels. Jax called it Buc-eeWorld J

Sad news since the last post:

• There is a new angel in heaven. Alice Marie Busby, my Nanny, went to be with our Lord on Friday, April 20 at 10:55. I have been very fortunate to have all my grandparents live such long lives. She is greatly missed. 
• Our sweet dog Aggie died. It was really hard on all of us... we are still missing her very much!

                                                Art from Dede

16 year olds 

Getting his Macgyver knife

Priceless Hug of thanks

Ollie's 8th Birthday

Cousins

Em and Dede's Fans

Proud Parents

the cast

Lizzy at performance

Friends at the girls performance. They even brought flowers!

Cousins

Working at the farm with Grandy

Bluebell

Bluebell

Kissing his girlfriend

My growing girls

Natural Bridge Caverns

Ollie took this picture.... Jax's face cracks me up!

Natural Bridge Caverns with Doc

Ollie Ripsticking

Jax ripsticking

Meme and Grandy's 70th Wedding Anniversary

Buc-eeWorld

Mother's Day Beach Trip

Home School

Emma's Poem for Me

Is it really November 2011?

I can't believe it has been so long since I last blogged! I guess to say life has been a whirlwind is an understatement. We moved back into our LOVELY house at the end of Feb. It took a while to unpack and I still haven't really gotten the house decorated totally.

I am in my last semester of college... WHOOP! I just finished interning in a Kindergarten classroom. It was a wonderful experience and I had a FABULOUS mentor. What a blessing! I graduate on December 17 and am filled with JOY! I can't believe that this journey is ending. I've made so many wonderful friends and learned much. Being back in Aggieland and hanging with 20 somethings has been keeping me young............... BUT, I am looking forward to being that mom I used to be or maybe a better version. I long for not being exhausted every evening and searching for quiet. I can't wait to spend my weekends with the rest of the family NOT in front of the computer. SO WHAT IS MY PLAN after graduation? Well, that is still up in the air. I am toying with the idea of homeschooling the boys. We are also working hard for my hubby to get an overseas assignment.... SOON! So really, I am not sure what I am going to be doing besides finally going through the piles of fire LOSS items in my garage. I started a box the other day it took me 4 hrs. to get through ;-) I am fast!

My honey, Dax, is doing great. He is loving his job which makes us ALL happy! He has been my pillar the last 2 1/2 years. I don't think I could have made it through school without him. He has listened to me cry, panic, and had to talk about numerous education topics that would bore most. He is my everything and I can't thank him enough for being the BEST husband and daddy any family has ever had!!!! His encouragement is what made my finishing possible.

Oh, and I have to also give HUGE props to my sister..... who has equally had to listen to me whine and cry and talk me off the ledge of giving up WAY too many times! She has also been our sick ward and taken care of my babies when I couldn't. I could always leave knowing they were happy and safe..... I sure love my BFF, my sister!!!!!!

My kids are champions! They have had way to many choose your own adventure dinners these last few years. I really have enjoyed being the person they run to excited to see at daycare or at home when I come in real late. I always remembered being jealous of Dax.... so now I have experienced that joy. Still, I am thinking I miss those cuddles and hugs on a more regular basis. The kids are all so proud to be coming to watch me graduate. They are equal in the experience. Without their love and strength nothing would have been possible.

Santa Paws has sent his pup! (our version of elf on a shelf)

Source: Uploaded by user via Beth on Pinterest

OK... so I have been wanting to jump on the Elf on a Shelf band wagon, BUT I am cheap and didn't want to spend a ton of money! Today at Walmart I found this cute sock puppy. My kids are animal LOVERS and really like the idea of Santa Paws.... so Santa Paws is going to be sending us a PUP ;-)