Lake Titans {Football}

For the past two weeks the boys have spent four days a week at football camp for the Lake Titans. Originally, only DJ was supposed to play, but after a couple of days watching his brother practice Cameron couldn't take it any more, and wanted to join too!

I have to say that I was pretty nervous about the boys playing tackle football, but it has actually been really good for them! They are both showing more maturity and are getting along better. I also enjoy going to their practices. It seems that I'm becoming quite the southern football mom.

We also recently celebrated Dj's 9th birthday, and because we don't have any family here we planned a nice birthday dinner with make your own pizzas, cupcakes, and ice cream sundaes!

WHO DAT!

Football season in Louisiana is something like I've never seen before! Schools are invloved, stores, newspapers, restaurants...EVERYONE! I don't even like football, but the vibe in the city just sweeps you in and makes you a fan.

Today at the boys' school is NFL day. They will be participating in NFL themed activities in both the classroom and during PE, and were allowed to wear their favorite team's jersey along with their uniform shorts. DJ chose the Saints and Cameron wanted the Steelers but there wasn't a Pittsburg jersey to be found anywhere in a three parish area...So he opted for the Saints, too.

Evan got in on the fun with her Fleur de Lis dress and matching NO Saints bow!

The List {Updated}

I am slowly, but surely making my way through my 35 before 35 list! I have accomplished so many new things (items 4,5,6 and 30, 31,and 32)! I'm also only one goal away from finishing compiling the list.

My J-O-B is going well and has been the driving force behind me accomplishing so many goals. I've got my office, my "SHELF", and was able to relocate south! As you can tell from all my previous posts Louisiana is FAB and there's a lot to see and do hear. It's DEFINITELY the best decision we've ever made.

35 before 35

1. own my own home (again)

2. spend my anniversary on a beach

3. finish my masters degree

4. get THE SHELF

5. put THE SHELF in an office of my own

6. relocate to the South

7. decorate my living room

8. have a real dinner party

9. learn to French braid

10. make Thanksgiving dinner

11. finish that third novel

12. take my kids to Disney World

13. go out on New Years Eve

14. celebrate homecoming at TSU

15. “Would Ya Like it” in the rain

16. Have date night once a week

17. Visit Washington DC

18. have a picnic with wine and cheese

19. wear red lipstick

20. go Up North

21. grow a plant

22. make a cake for a loved one’s birthday

23. restore a piece of furniture

24. attend a Broadway play (does not have to be in NY, although that’s a bonus)

25. get rid of all unnecessary debt

26. eat healthier

27. answer the question, “What’s wrong?” honestly, the first time.

28. institute a new family tradition

29. take a cooking class

30. Find the perfect school for Cameron

31. Learn to let go

32. Invest in great pics of the kids

33. Learn a new language

34. Renew my wedding vows

35.

Number 30-Find the Perfect School for Cameron- has been and on and off type thing. Last year when we placed him in Montessori we thought we had found the right environment for him...WE WERE WRONG. Montessori was way too free for Cam and he just took it as an excuse to do whatever he wanted. Now, he has an IEP and is in an Inclusion Classroom. He receives push-in services from a SPED teacher and para-pro and Pragmatic Language Services from a Speech Therapist.

Already wev've seen a MAJOR change in Cam's behavior and academics. He has only been to the office once and is currently receiving straight A's!!!

DJ is doing well too and we're seriously consierding having him tested for the gifted and talented program within the Praish they attend school.

Evan has moved up to the 2 year old room at daycare and with thatcomes potty training and Pull-Ups. I think she'll be much easier than the boys because she loves to take off her diaper.

Honey Island and New Orleans

Sorry, for the looong time between posts. I've been so busy with work that the month between my birthday till now has just gotten away from me! I just got back from nearly two weeks in Grand Rapids for work and school starts Tuesday. No rest for the weary.

At the end of July DJ turned 8and we drove the hour to New Orleans to celebrate. Before we stopped at the Audubon Aquarium we hit Honey Island Swamp tours for a little trip down the bayou!

I am taking ANYONE who comes for a visit on a Swamp Tour! It was fabulous! We learned all about the bayou, saw alligators up close and personal, and heard about how Katrina affected the local swamps. Evan didn't care for the trip too much (she was terrified), but everyone else had a great time.

After that we headed into the city driving down Bourbon street and checking out the Superdome.






This summer was DJ and Cameron's first day camp experience. Surprisingly, Cameron had ZERO problems, but DJ was bullied a bit. Everything turned out fine, but it really drove home the point that DJ is growing up.

FOOD INC.

Have you guys watched this? It's gross...just gross. It'll make you change the way you eat. Now, since having viewed this documentary, Damon and I have decided to change the way we shop for groceries, how much we patronize fast food restaurants, and what we allow the kids to eat. Instead of regular old ground beef, we get organic...Instead of fruit snacks and fruit cups, we buy fresh fruit. We're still learning, and the boys are fighting us every inch of the way, but we are holding fast. Like right now, they are going to bed early because they are refusing to eat my delicious Hot and Spicy Tortilla Soup courtesy of Gina Neely.

And because of our new way of eating (and the fact that my mom got me a subscription to Family Circle) I've been cooking.

Here's my onion, spinach, and bacon tart. SOOOOOO good (although I skipped the onions for the kids). Even Cam cleaned his plate!

The picture below is of the uncooked tart. THe cooked version has cheese all over it and you can't really see anything.

Sidebar- Check out Evan in her Princess Cozy Coupe.

Busy, busy

So...I broke my promise. I know I said that I would blog more, but I've just been too busy with school, work, and dealing with all things Cameron.

We've been to a Piston's game, the orthodontist (Dj's getting expanders), the doctor to discuss Cameron's behavior issues again (after he got suspended), and gymnastics (which DJ started, just as we consider taking Cameron out because he WILL NOT behave).

On the job front I'm still awaiting word on the southern jump off. They're having a hard time finding a principal, so things are kind of at a halt. Damon and I are exploring our options though, and none of them are in our home state.

Next week Damon and I will be seeing a family therapist in preparation for Cam's psychiatrist visit. This situation has been a MAJOR point of stress for us, and we're really at loss. Child Study stuff has started and they have put new interventions in place to see if they can help him. So far, they've been working at school, but...The doctor also suggested we give him benadryl before bed to help him sleep. We see a difference, so I guess that's progress.

I also learned to make a new dish. It doesn't have a fancy name, but it's cabbage with bacon...sooooo good.

Here are some pics of what we've been up to.

I really miss blogging!

So I'm going to TRY to update more. We've just been so busy lately with work, school, grad school, gymnastics, and all the hours I spend watching General Hospital, One Life to Live, and the Young and the Restless (LOL) there's just not enough time in the day!

Anywho...I will be using this winter break to improve my culinary skills, with my first undertaking being collard greens. I'm posting my second batch, because while the first batch was good, this new batch that's going to Damon's fam's house for Christmas dinner is FIYA! They would probably taste even better with smoked turkey leg and I would have used one too, if I hadn't waited till 5 minutes before Kroger locked its doors on Christmas Eve to look for one. Beef Bacon was used instead.



I would post pics of the mac and cheese I made, but I REALLY screwed it up, so it's just not worth it. My next undertaking is candied yams. I'll post pics when I'm done.

And for cute factor here are some recent pics of my tribe.

GQ smooth and NOwhere to go
Running his mouth as usual!
YES, she's still on the bottle...

Halloween

Bonus Post: Blast from the Past

DJ AND KAYLA AT 10 MONTHS...THE SAME AGE AS EVAN!


DJ AND KAYLA AT ABOUT 17 MONTHS OLD

Way behind...

in posts that is . Sorry it's been so long, but we've been pretty busy around here. The school year is coming to an end, Damon is switching jobs :), Cameron is preparing for his preschool graduation, there's football practice every Thursday and games every Sunday, I'm in grad school, and Evan is still adorable.

*** Dj is well on his way to another all 4 report card, and has perfect attendance! What a scholar. I can't believe he'll be going into the second grade already. It really does seem like he was just born!

***Cam's school/behavior issues have begun to rear their ugly heads again. It's becoming evident that he's having some kind of issue that's lending itself to his behavior problems. We're going to be making an appointment with his pediatrician to find out if there's anything we can do. The problems have also started to trickle into flag football. He fights on the field when another kid takes his flag. It's sad and hilarious all at the same time.

***Evan is wrapping her her first "school year" at daycare. We're taking her out for the summer so that we can spend some time, save dome dough, and keep her from getting a runny nose every few days! She's also crawling (finally) and yesterday we caught her standing up in her bed! Yay, for milestones. Still no "dada" or "mama", but she does say what I consider to be "Hey" and wave on a regular basis.

****Kayla was over last weekend and things went well. I was able to evaluate her and found that her teacher speaks in hyperbole. She can't read, but she's not nearly as bad as the teacher made her out to be, and the suggestion of ADD was hilarious! If that child has ADD my kids need straight jackets! Anyway, we've decided to put her into the school Damon will be teaching at next year. She'll go into the novice 2nd grad class and work on remedial skills, until she's ready for grade level concepts.

Here are a couple of cute pics of the boys until I have time to do something better.

Mother Son Luau

Yesterday, DJ, Cameron, and I attended the Mother Son Luau at our school. We dressed in our Hawaiian gear, ate snacks, and Danced a grand total of three times. Once to the ChaCha Silde, once to the Cupid Shuffle, and once to a slow song I can't remember. The other hour and fifty minutes were spent watching all the boys in the gym running back and forth at full speed sweating like donkeys, telling DJ to stop crying because he lost at limbo, and chasing Cameron out of the bathroom. Fun times.







In more Evan news....

She now has 2 teeth!

The Rams and The Cardinals