Yo, There's Snow in Texas!!

For serious, y'all!
And it was enough to stomp around on.

This was Maven's first time to experience snow!

 

See that jacket above that Tay is wearing?  I didn't notice at first when Ryan dressed them, but after I went outside I realized what she was wearing.  That jacket is a size 3-6 MONTHS!!!!!  Her arms were stiff and her shoulders had no movement.  If she had fallen off that slide, she fully would've had to rely on her face to catch her.  She was about as useful as a T-Rex in that coat.  Think Tommy Boy, here.

Tay thought it'd be fun to jump on the frozen trampoline.  No one bothered to tell her that frozen things don't stretch.

 

Hobby Lobby with Hobbits

We went to Hobby Lobby.
We told the kids not to touch anything.
That was dumb.
Really dumb.

I think Tay only poked at the breakable things.  Whoever coined the term "bull in a china cabinet" was foreshadowing this experience.
She touched a plate on the display and created a landslide.
She fell off the cart three times.
She pulled down a tube of ornaments (that Ryan proudly caught like a true ninja).
She knocked over our entire cart, making a thunderous crash, creating a scene, spilling all of our contents, and bending the cart so it wobbled on three wheels for the rest of our crusade.  She seriously BENT the cart.  Everything about our presense was soooo obvious.

We let the kids each pick out a little tree for them to decorate.

I created a scene when I saw Tay's tree.  An uncontrollable laughter started and it ended with me on the floor.  (This is a recurring situation with me... laughter = floor.)

Are you kidding me?  Its look like a gimp tree had a gimp branch that had a gimp stick.  That gimp stick is now in Hobby Lobby and trying to be pushed off as a tree?  We bought it.

 

A turkey's gender can be determined by it's droppings...

I have finally scrounged up all the pictures out there for a Turkey Day post!
I might have the best camera in my family, but I sure do not take the most pictures.  I am usually running around trying to keep pants on my three.  Thats a chore.

This annual trip to the farm would not have been complete without colds.  My kids and their parents are healthy and snot free about 97% of the year.  If we do get sick, its a little cold and its around the time of some event... like Thanksgiving.  While the mucus camped out in our nostrils, we all camped out in the barn.  There were 16 of us in there at one time, not counting the two dogs.  And we probably could've still fit the tractor and 4-wheeler in there with us if we were feeling really hillbilly.  Surprisingly, my kids slept pretty well, sans Maven.  This means I didn't sleep very well, either.  She couldn't breathe if she laid down, but she obviously couldn't sit up while sleeping.  I had her propped up with a few pillows, but there is only so much that can be done on a blow up mattress. 
The food was spectacular, as always.  Its almost required to brag about Thanksgiving food, and for the most part I bet the rest of the population does have pretty good grub.  But, until you've eaten turkey that has been deep fried next to an open pasture (that is doubling as a family baseball field) and green beans grown by your neighbor, you don't know nothin'.  That turkey will steam piping hot and ooze seasoned juice all over the platter just up until the prayer is over.  Then, its time to eat and it turns luke warm/cold-ish.  Every.Freaking.Time.  But, nobody seems to notice.  We all wipe our dusty fingers on our muddy overalls, pull up a folding chair, and dive in like its our last meal.
Later, after dinner, if you're our family, the women put their boots up and the men grab their makeup. 
What's that?  The men grab their makeup?
Yes.  But they don't wear it.  That'd be silly.  They just put it on the women.

 

 

 The makeovers:

 

The men with their works of art:

 

 

 

 

 Aunt Sandra and I tied for first place.  I guess I should say Shane and Ryan tied.  So, if oil and gas doesn't work out for them, at least they both have cosmetology as a back up.

 

 

 Now that family suuuure is a looker!

Next year, we need to hit up Walmart.  We just might blend right in!
 

Grapevine Gawking, Part Uno

Sometimes I get this burst of cabin fever and want to run all over town.  But, I don't like to do it alone.  So, as any lunachick would do, I gather up the WHOLE family for a day out of the house.  All.freaking.five.of.freaking.us.  All mad as a hatter.
I get the kids ready while Ryan gets ready.  This is the system. Then, I get myself ready as Ryan stuffs everyone into the car, which resembles cramming a deflated air mattress back in its original box.  Only arms and legs are flailing and there are high pitched screams echoing throughout the garage.  This works because... after 13 trips to and from the car for things like Tay's pink deer zebra (which is neither - its a Pokemon creature) or a Sock Monkey sticker that Tay just NEEEEEDS or a rubber chicken dog toy that Maven has adopted or to put up a knife that CK snuck out the door with him... it takes about 33 minutes to get the kids packed and buckled (that time is no exaggeration).  And, we.always.forget.something.  Always.  Usually, its just a coupon or something irrelevant (yet, still, my mind will focus on that one forgotten thing for the rest of the day) but, othertimes, its a shoe or a bottle.  If its a shoe, its not worthy of a turn-around.  But, a bottle will calm a screaming baby.  Feeding a baby is one of those things that a parent is absolutely 100% required to do.  Double shoe-ing a kids isn't in the manual anywhere, so the rules are debatable.
Sssoooo... we went out to explore Grapevine and have a family day/annual anniversary dinner at the Gaylord.  First, right at nap time, we landed at the aquarium in Grapevine Mills.  I highly recommend this place.  I ran around in circles like a fat kid with a lollipop.  I looooove adventures and exploring.  I am so happy that this passion has been passed down to my kids. 

I took a picture of this sign for a very good reason.  Remember this?  <--- click on "this" and then scroll down to "crazy fish", around mid-post.
Okay, now read below:

ITS.THE.SAME.FREAKING.FISH.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 That little fish didn't just swim into that box.  I put him there.  ME!  MY HANDS!

Its a good thing I am immortal.



Anway, we all had a REALLY good time at the aquarium.  We will definitely go back.