Memorial Day

After the kids got out of school, we packed up the car and headed to the country. The McHorses recently bought a ranch about an hour outside of Austin and this was our first family trip there (minus the few hours we spent there the week before when Megan cut her eye and had to get stitches). All sixteen of us were there and all the cousins had a great time together. I was a little traumatized by the copperhead that slithered across the road right in front of me and that Ed and Cathy's dog got bitten by a copperhead the next night. Thankfully, the dog is huge and after a trip back to Austin to the emergency vet and a week's rest, she was back in the game. The snakes were just a reminder to me of what a city girl I am. I really like the idea of the country - it sounds so peaceful and relaxed, but in reality, I do enjoy the comforts of my home in the city.


There aren't many things that can entertain a 2 year old and a 12 year old alike, but occasionally we get lucky. All the kids (Jacob got in for the picture and splashed around but didn't participate in the sliding) had such a great time on this slide. It provided hours of entertainment.
All the McHorse cousins

After hours of jumping and sliding, all the kids were ready for a little downtime. Kanga decided to join in on the fun.

G'Daddy fishing with Tyler and Matthew. This is Tyler's first fishing adventure. He has never wanted to fish before because "fish smell."
Of course, Tyler had a great time fishing and caught fish his first two casts. Not everything has changed though. When I asked him if he touched the fish, he said, "no because they smell so bad." I thought it was hilarious that he managed to catch fist without ever touching them. Thanks G'daddy for your help!
Megan loved having time with her one younger cousin. She is very motherly and loves to help "take care" of Jacob or any baby that will let her for that matter.

Tyler's Last Day of Preschool

Tyler's (and Megan's) last day of preschool was about a month ago now, but better late than never. I can't believe preschool is officially over. It has been a great experience for Tyler and for Kevin and me. Here are a couple pictures after he came home from his last day. In case you can't read it, the face painting says TUMC 2008. Believe it or not, this is actually the first time Tyler has ever had his face painted. In he past, he has been completely opposed to the idea. However, this time, he was proud to display his CDO graduate status on his face.


I have had difficulty uploading photos recently, so since I originally wrote this post, Tyler has now completed his summer session at CDO. This means that there is no denying it now - he is a kindergartener. The summer is flying by and we will be walking into elementary school before we know it!

Something is Happening Here

Over the past month and a half, strange things have been happening. First, Tyler's room is clean one day and Kevin nor I had anything to do with it. This has never happened before. Tyler has always been a child content to leave the things he is playing with as they are until he is ready to put them away. Okay so he was never ready to put them away but his room had to be cleaned at least once every week or two. This cleaning process is something Kevin or I have always been very active in. Otherwise, it would not have gotten done. Well, not anymore. I can't say I know what sparked the change, but his room is now clean all the time and 90% of the time his bed is made when he comes out of his room in the morning. Some other things he has been doing - making his own lunch for school, making his breakfast and sometimes Megan's too. While there is a part of me that would like to deny it, I am afraid he really is growing up.


Here Tyler and Megan are in his "new" room.

A Whole Hour!

I am told they are the age for constant bickering, and Tyler and Megan are putting that theory into motion to say the least. Our entry into summer and more time spent together as siblings has been very different from one year ago. They are both much more sure of themselves now (which I am thankful for most of the time). However, it also invites many more disagreements about virtually nothing. This morning, though, we had peace for an entire hour and I don't mean peace because they were playing separately. They played together happily for an entire hour and I am thankful! We have since moved on back into our new sense of normalcy but that hour sure was nice. I know I just need to get used to it, but I am afraid it will take me a while.