Plumbing and Playing: Our summer so far

We're wrapping up the second week of summer around here.
Last week the kids had their last day of school, I worked two days, and we spent two days with our favorite plumbers.
We've had a slow draining shower, so Adam called Curly's Plumbing to snake it out. It turned out to be more than a slow drain; we had tree roots in the line.  So the plumbers jackhammered up the master bathroom floor and repaired the pipe.  This is the second time this year we've had to jackhammer up our foundation. We love these guys because they are good at what they do, but they are also so nice! They don't care if I take pictures of them every five minutes to send to Adam.  They also don't mind stopping countless times to explain to the kids what is going on.  I know when I'm working the last thing I want to do is stop to explain everything I'm doing.  But they do it!
The kids recently learned the term "plumber's butt" so they kept following the plumbers around the house to see if they had "plumber's butts." Both guys were wearing belts, though, so they were safe.

I had decided that this summer we will stay home at least one day a week. I say that every summer and then if an offer for something else comes by, we do it.  We never stay home for the entire day, so this year I mean it. It's easy to be at home, realize you need something and jump in the car and get it.  But every year that snowballs and I end up being gone the whole day instead of a few minutes. So last week with the plumbers we had to stay home, but I wandered through the house a little unsure of what I needed to do.  This week went much smoother.  The kids played the entire day and I worked on housework, taking intentional breaks.

Last weekend we travelled to Medieval Times to celebrate Paul's birthday. Luckily I was able to nab a teacher discount to make it more affordable.  The kids loved it and we even got to bring some friends.

Claire took her stuffed otter to the zoo to see a real river otter.

This week we've had a trip to the zoo and much birthday celebratoryness.  Adam and Paul's birthdays are only three days apart so that makes for a week of celebrations.  We went to Six Flags on Tuesday.

Yesterday was our stay-at-home day and it went much smoother. I worked on polishing the hard wood floors and baked Paul's birthday cake. The kids played nicely all day long. They didn't fight one time and I was amazed.

Today is Adam's birthday so we're not quite done celebrating. Even though I'm trying hard to slow down, summer is flying by!

Birthdays and Growing Up

Tomorrow is my birthday. Growing up, birthdays were always exciting. My mom would make me a yellow cake with rainbow chip frosting every year.  I haven't seen a can of rainbow chip frosting in years, but I can still remember the taste.  It was the taste of joy.

As I've gotten older, birthdays are just as big of a deal, but for different reasons.  When I was younger, the emphasis was the presents. Now the focus has shifted from presents, which are still exciting, to relationships and service. 

I have friends both near and far and my birthday is an excuse to connect with ones I don't get to keep up with often. Even something as simple as a Facebook greeting can be a conversation starter and a reminder to touch base with loved ones I don't see regularly.

I express my love for others through acts of service, and my birthday is a time when I stop and let others take care of me. I pause to remember that I am loved and that people are thankful for my service and presence in their lives.  It's also the time when I can get the kids motivated to help with chores all weekend long.  I have asked Paul to clean his bedroom as his gift to me.  Claire fed the dogs and everyone helped with laundry without complaint.

The past year has been one of great personal growth for me. At this time last year I had accepted that I would eventually enroll in seminary, but it was still far off in the distance and I wasn't brave enough to voice that dream to most people around me. Now I spend my free time studying and I am relishing every second in the classroom learning more about faith and church history. In the fall I'll stretch myself even more as I take two classes instead of just one.  I also know now what each class will require of me so I can prepare for the demands.

Today I am a better writer than I was last year. I know more about myself now than I did then. I've always been comfortable in my own skin, but self-discovery has led to even more self-acceptance.

My baby is in kindergarten, my daughter is blowing everyone away with her intelligence and perceptions, my husband has found he loves reading almost as much as me.

So while I'm not physically growing anymore, this past year has been one of great personal growth. I can't wait to see what my 36th year will hold.

Boyette Summer of Fun

When the kids were little and I stayed at home, our fun activities were going to the library, zoo, and museum.  They're older now and still love that, but since they're both in school, I spend a long time each May planning out what we are going to do each summer.  Most activities we participate in are free, and many of my friends want to know about them, so I thought I'd share some of our schedule.

In June
Monday mornings at 9 a.m. the zoo opens early for members.  This happens every Monday in June and we're not going to miss it!

Wednesday, June 12 at 10:30 a.m. the Amon Carter Museum has free story time with a craft.  Click the link for details.  This happens every Wednesday and we're going to try to make them often.

4:00 p.m. the Modern Art Museum has Wonderful Wednesdays with free admission and an explanation of an artist shown at the gallery.  There is also a craft, often a sketch.

Friday, June 14 at 6 p.m. the Cowgirl Museum will have a Battle of the Burger.  Admission is free and there will be armadillo races!  As an added bonus, Adam will be at this event in his official capacity as a Sugar Daddy (men's PTA at Claire's school).

On June 26 we'll be in Arlington for a free concert at the Levitt Pavillion.  The band is Vocal Trash and they sound like they'll be interesting.  This show happens twice, so we'll hit the one that fits our schedule.

Another activity we'll do are the Free Fish Feedings at Bass Pro Shop on Wednesdays at 12:30 p.m.

Every Saturday during the summer you can buy a family TRE pass at the ITC station for $10.  We'll be using that more than once to go to the Perot Museum in Dallas, or the Dallas Museum of Art, etc. etc.

On July 17 at 9:30 a.m. we'll go to Calloway's Nursery for Tin-Can Painting.  Free.

We always try to hit as many museums as possible and visit downtown Fort Worth to feel fancy, visit the library, and ride Molly the Trolley for free.  This year I might venture to take the kids to the Water Gardens; I'm a little bit braver and they're a little more steady on their feet.

The Fort Worth Public Library has a slew of activities and we'll go to many of them, but the one I want to tell people about is Lucas Miller.  We saw him last year and I can't say enough good about this singer-songwriter.  He writes catchy songs for kids about major science themes.  (He has one about symbiosis!)  He'll be in Fort Worth in July and I recommend it to everyone!  His program is called Science Rocks.  Click this link to see the schedule of his performances.  I bought one of his CDs last year for $10.  The kids have memorized it, and I even took it to school to play for my third graders.  If you want a sample of his songs, check out his youtube.  Here's one of the kids' favorites:

Movie, Coin Show, and Birthdays: A weekend of fun!

This weekend was absolutely perfect.

On Friday night, we watched Herbie the Love Bug on the front lawn at our church. I packed a picnic dinner and we had fun!

On Saturday morning, Adam took the kids to a TNA show. That's right.  It's the Texas Numismatic Association.  The kids participated in an auction and won free coins. 

They were kind of  hyper toward the end apparently.  They had a lot of fun and Sarah enjoyed going to Kohl's by herself.

Saturday night was my maternal grandpa's 80th birthday party.  Here's my grandparents with all their kids.

The fab five.  My mom is on the end.

We tried to get Grandma and Grandpa to kiss, which was  hilarious.

We all had a good time laughing about their squished noses.

They are so cute!

In this photo, Grandma isn't mad.  She's in shock because my aunt got the group photo developed at Wal-Mart during the party.  She had a frame waiting and gave the framed photo to them.  Grandma couldn't wrap her brain around how it happened so fast.

On Sunday we celebrated Claire's birthday at Build a Bear Workshop.  This was a pretty good bargain.  For $171 each of our party guests took home a bear with a sound box inside and clothes.  Our party leader was awesome!  He also asked if I did stand-up comedy on the side which tells you about what level his humor was.

Claire, her best friends, and her brother with their new bears.

Group hug!

Paul's bear is named Batty.  Wonder why.

Claire's bear is named Blackie.


It was a weekend full of laughs and happiness.  I can't wait to see what this summer has in store!

Female Fun in Fort Worth

Yesterday was beautiful.  Not just the weather, the entire day.  My family strolled through the day without a care in the world and no agenda until Adam took the kids camping.  They are currently asleep on the TCU baseball field.  I like camping, but when given the option of going camping or spending some time by myself, I choose myself.
Last night I met my friends Stacy and Helen at Rodeo Goat for burgers and fun.  Stacy and Helen both went to high school with me, and oddly, they still don't mind being seen in public with me.
After burgers, we piled in my car and went downtown for Main Street Arts Festival.
I love festivals in downtown Fort Worth.  I know how to get around, so instead of wondering which way to walk or decide on a defined route, I get to focus on people. It makes me happy to be in a familiar place full of people because I know I will meet fascinating folks.
Since I was driving, I also gave Stacy and Helen a mini-tour of downtown FW, Boyette-style. ("That sign says Burnett Plaza is for tired moms.  That is FUMCFW.  The guy that owns that restaurant makes sandwiches for  homeless ladies.  Best burgers in town at Blue Tower.  Police Cat Fluffy lives there.  Library!")
Here are some photos of our adventures:

At this point, we had just parked the car.  Woohoo!  After at least 15 minutes of sitting in traffic we got a parking space! (Yes I know it's kind of lame to take a picture after parking a car.)

Inside the old Fire Station No. 1 is Fort Worth's smallest museum.  150 years of Fort Worth all celebrated in one room.  Here Stacy reaches for the stars and hopes for 150 more.

Helen who is a marathon runner.  If you call her that, she'll blow it off like it's no big deal, but this lady runs marathons!

I decided to sit side saddle and try to make the cheesiest picture possible.  

Here was our first new friend.  We all got to touch that awesome hair!  Really, anyone that spends that much time to perfect a look deserves applause.

This was our friend Willie at Green Mountain Energy.  Stacy actually filled out an advertisement form (she loves the environment), so we got to talk to him for a long time.  Another lady came up and was patiently waiting to ask if she could have some candy.  Helen and I tried to fill her purse.  She acted like she was really hungry and this was the only food she was going to get.  We kept urging her to get more, and then even Willie said, "Girl, you help yourself."

The lady that took this photo for us missed how to use the flash.  Oh well.  We are supposed to be the Wild Bunch.

Street preacher.

One of the highlights of the night was the street preachers.  As a person of faith myself, I am always fascinated at how differently the message of God's grace sounds from a street preacher.  Also, I have to applaud these people who feel that the only way they can save the world is by doing this.  They suffer ridicule but are still out on the corner preaching.

I didn't get to have a long conversation because Stacy and Helen were with me and I had embarrassed them enough, but I would have liked to compare notes.  If their goal is to share the consequences of people's actions, I think they got me beat.  I don't do that.  But if their goal was to share the message of God's love, I would be curious to how many people they were able to engage in conversation or to offer love to.  Because for me, sharing God's love last night included lifting a stroller over a curb for a frustrated dad, offering my koozie to a starving artist, sharing Willie's candy with a hungry lady, admiring an afro, offering compliments and admiration on artwork, and actually looking for people to engage in conversation with.

All the street preachers were on one quadrant and at each corner, they had a different tract about going to hell.  I made sure to get all of them for my pal Jason.  The best one was a "Get out of hell free" card.  At the last corner, when I engaged the preacher in conversation, I complimented him on the marketing brilliance of creating a tract that looked like a Monopoly game card.  He asked where I got it and I pointed to another corner of the square, where the African-American man that gave me the card stood.  The preacher said, "Oh, I don't know about him.  He's not with us."  That was so interesting to me, because these guys are standing about 20 feet apart doing the same thing, and they hadn't talked to each other?  

Then the street preacher asked me if I had been saved.  I told him I was a big-time Jesus lover.  He looked confused.  "I love Jesus.  Big time.  Go ask my friends."  He looked very uncomfortable like he wasn't sure if I was lying or not.  I guess people don't often come up to him and admit to being a Jesus lover.  I enjoyed throwing him for a loop.

I can't wait to hear how the camping trip went.

Adventures in Birthday

Yesterday was my birthday.  I turned 35, and I'm quite happy with that.  I'm not too young and I'm not too old.  Old enough to accept that I'm an adult but young enough not to act like one sometimes.

We have a friend who used to be a missionary and a pilot.  About nine months ago the kids started showing an interest in learning more about planes, so I asked him if he could possibly take us for a flight in his.  He agreed and we've been trying to schedule it since then.  With unpredictable weather and busy schedules, we finally decided  yesterday would be the day.

The kids and I were excited.  We'd be in the plane and Adam had plans to stand on the roof waving at us.  When our friend arrived at our house, he gave me several ziploc and shopping bags just in case we got sick in the air.  I laughed and on the plane, put them in back, almost out of reach.

Yesterday was a very windy day, and to sum up our 45 minutes in the air, it was bumpy, Paul got scared, and Claire and I had to reach for the bags.  We did get to see Adam on the roof, but I was nearly immobile with nausea and couldn't take photos in the air. Our pilot was so kind and generous, but we just couldn't take it. Luckily, I don't think the kids will be scarred for life from this.  For me, I am glad I am wearing the "adult" label now because I am adult enough to say, I don't need to do that again.  I am so grateful we had the experience, and now I can go on with life.

Besides that, I took a lovely nap, went to the grocery store by myself, and then we had friends over.  I decided that I didn't want to mess with a restaurant on a Saturday night and feeding people makes me happy, so that's what we did.  The boys manned the grill and the girls chopped vegetables and chatted while I made homemade tortillas.  We finished the night by playing the Awkward Family Photos game, which every time, makes me laugh so hard I can't breathe.

I received two birthday cakes.  My dear friend Stacy made one for me: (lemon poke cake)

And Adam bought the other:

You might wonder why my name isn't on that cake.  We have a friend named BettieCarol who instructed the kids on the proper North-Carolina way to say her name.  "BettieCarol" pronounced something like "BayCarl" is the kid's new catch phrase.  They run around the house saying, "Oh BettieCarol!"  Paul invented this knock knock joke and every time he tells me it I have to take a moment to stop laughing.  Adam wanted the cake to say something funny, and as he puts it, "What's funnier than this?"  I loved it!

It was a good birthday.

First Week of Summer Recap

We are in full-on summer mode around here.  Here's some photos to recap our first week.  My last post told everyone what we did last Monday.  I am learning that it seems that we will have one day of academic excellence and awesome activities followed by a day that everything moves slower.  That's okay, though.  It's summer.

Last Tuesday night was the transit of Venus.  Apparently the next time Venus will pass in front of the sun where we can see it on Earth will be 100 years from now, so Adam made sure we got to see it. 

At the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, they had many professional telescopes set up on their front lawn.  You'll have to ask Adam to explain all this, but this is a picture of the reflection of what was happening in the sky.  The white circle is the sun and the dot is Venus.

Here Claire and Paul were looking through a fancy telescope.  I have an eyeball phobia (seriously) and everyone kept telling each other not to look directly at the sun because their eyes would burn up and they'd be blind.  I couldn't tell you what any one's faces looked like that night, but I can tell you about their ankles.  I kept my face to the ground the whole time.

This facial expression is what Paul looks like at the beginning of swim lessons.  For some reason, he has a lot of anxiety about it and it takes him several minutes to warm up to it.  We're taking lessons at the Benbrook YMCA and both kids teachers are fantastic.

Here's Claire jumping into 7 foot deep water.



Here's Claire with Miss Alli, floating on her back in 7 foot water.

After swim lessons last Thursday, we headed to downtown Fort Worth for a picnic and other activities.  We ate outside at Burnett Plaza, and the kids climbed the spider web.  Then, predictably, one of them needed to use the restroom, so we pretended to know what we were doing and went into a fancy office building.  Guess what!  They had a tunnel that went underground.  Here's a picture of the kids in the tunnel.  Paul was trying to make a weird face.

After our adventures underground we went to the Sid Richardson Art Museum for Kids at the Sid.  The kids got to make fabric puppets with fancy materials for FREEEEE!  Paul's is SuperMan with a goatee.

After we made puppets, the kids toured the Sid Richardson Art Museum.  It's tiny; just the right size for kids.  The staffed docents that really like kids and were interacting with them about the artwork.  Here Paul is completing a puzzle which is a picture of a painting hanging above his head.  I highly recommend Kids at the Sid.  The museum actually likes kids and wants them there!  And it's free!

On Saturday, I took Claire to a kids sewing class at JoAnn's Fabrics.  The class was on sale for $17, but of course we had to buy supplies.  I think we ended up spending about $50 in all.  She learned how to make a pillow with a pattern and hand-sewing.  It was fun, but harder work than I anticipated.  Keeping her focused on sewing for three hours straight was the most difficult part.

Claire's puppet is a cowgirl with a feather in her hat.

Paul Eating Ice Cream

Yep, our son decided the best way to eat an ice cream cone was from the bottom up. For some unknown reason, it actually didn't make a mess.

Molly the Trolley

Last week the kids and I discovered Molly the Trolley. From 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. the trolley runs around downtown Fort Worth every 15 minutes and it's free.
Claire was in need of an adventure the other day, so I took the kids down to ride the trolley. We got on in front of the Sheraton and rode around downtown. Of course we had to stop at Marble Slab and Barnes and Noble, so while the transportation was free, the trip cost me $42. Oh well.
Last night we rode Molly again and went to Jamba Juice. The kids love it! This morning, if we can get everyone together, we're going to ride to the Stockyards to see the stampede. The trolley costs $1.50 on Saturday, but the stampede is free and we're bringing a picnic lunch, so we'll have lots of fun for under $10. Pictures coming later!
http://www.mollythetrolley.com/

This Week

We've been very busy the past seven days. Friday afternoon, Adam loaded our truck Clampett-style and we went camping in San Marcos.



We went with a group from our church and we all had a fun, with the exception of Wesley Eugene. He was the only dog in the group, so he got constant attention. He's not fond of children to begin with, so this was a weekend of torture for him. Luckily he didn't snap or bite any of them.

Claire learned to use a port-a-potty. The first time she sat down on it she said, "Hmmm...This is interesting."



We all went tubing down the river, even Claire and Paul. The water was calm enough for even the littlest Boyette to enjoy it. Claire even took a nap while tubing with Adam.



Sunday we headed back home.

Monday morning, I took Claire and Paul to the zoo, for the special "Members Only" activities. Claire got to get up close and personal with a flamingo.



Tuesday morning, I took the kids to see Kung Fu Panda. It was a free showing, so I didn't feel bad taking a baby to a movie theater. We went with our friends, Alli, Emerson, and Declan, and Alli and I later kicked ourselves for that. Emerson and Claire might as well be sisters. They fight all the time and feed off of each other. About 20 minutes into the movie, Claire needed to go potty. As soon as we got back, Emerson needed to go.

About that time, a family arrived late and sat directly behind us. Our noses told us that. If you've ever been to the Fort Worth Zoo, you know it has a very distinctive smell, a mix of animal poop and stagnant water. Sometimes (and this has happened to me) you leave the zoo smelling like it. It's pretty bad.

So immediately when this family sat behind us, Alli and I looked to each other and verified it wasn't our kids smelling like that. I kept sniffing Paul to make sure he didn't have a dirty diaper. I guess that family had smelled like that all day and didn't notice it. (This has also happened to me, but the Adam has been gracious enough to let me know.)

At one point in the movie, the smell got a lot worse. The boy apparently pooped in the seat because soon after the smell worsened, he ran down the steps with a package of wipes in his hand. The rest of the family left soon after, and the smell remained. Apparently he pooped on the chair.

Alli and I had been very stressed out about our kids during the whole movie. Claire wouldn't sit down, Paul tried to crawl around the theater, Alli's kids were restless as well. But when the kid behind us, who had to be seven or eight, pooped in the seat, it made me grateful. It could always be worse. I could be fleeing from a darkened theater where my kid just pooped on the seat.

Tuesday night, Adam and I went on a hot date to see Twelfth Night at TCU. Wednesday we went to the library twice, once for story time and once to see clowns. We also had a pool playdate.

Last night, after all her friends had left, Claire asked me, "Do people have tails between their legs right here?" She made a gesture toward her privates. "No, silly," I said. "Why do you ask?" "Because Gabe and Paul do." Apparently Claire had walked in on her friend Gabe using the restroom, and she sees Paul naked all the time.

Claire is definitely getting to the questioning stage. She also asked me recently if Paul had peanuts. She definitely needs the information, but I'm not ready to give it to her, so I blew her off with "That's just their bottoms. They're boys, so it's a little bit different."

Claire's pretty smart, so I don't know how long my vague explanations of body parts will last. I want to teach her all the correct words, but I don't want her to shout at the library that boys have penises. (Yesterday, she yelled, "That boy is sooo black!" I don't even know where she got that, because I never talk about that.) I'm going to have to wait until she has developed a little discretion. Of course, that might be a mistake, too, because I know I am not her only source of information. Parenting is hard work.

Claire by the Central Market cheese