muchas gracias...

To all those awesome, reliable friends who offered help...the shower went great. Funny, that pretty much everyone can't stand shower games YET still do them. Those darn traditions die hard!

Friends...HELP!!

SO I know I have some of the most creative friends and family out there...so help me. I have been to a fair share of baby showers in my time. I am in charge of GAMES/ENtertainment for a shower on Friday. And I have seen the generic measure the belly, word scrambles, taste the baby food, baby food in the diaper,bottle sucking.....does anyone have anything they've done or seen done that was so ingenius?? I am counting on all y'all for some out of the box ideas.... OR I'll be forced to smear prunes on a diaper for entertainment!!(sounds tasty, eh?!!)

Wiggle it...just a little bit...

We wiggled it and I might have done a quick YANK...then Christian played with it a lot. It was quite an exciting but anxiety-filled time. Christian did NOT want to finish first grade without having lost at least one tooth...com'on, the rest of the kids had! One final yank...and Christian's shocked look made it evident that the long covetted lost tooth had ARRIVED. It must have also given him extra batting power for his baseball playoffs. He had a much improved game once that tooth was gone.

On the flip side...at the same time....our little garbage disposal, Shane, was eating so poorly. Not really eating much of anything, pushing away all of his favorites. All to my discovery yesterday...that he had GAINED 3 new molars. Now that they have broken through the gums...he is back to his hungry little self. And is relatively more content without the painful teething. Who would have known?? I just figured he was putting himself on a diet!!

No Mo-Mo Idol

For my fellow Idol fans, tough break for our buddy David Archeleta. He is SUCH a talented guy and seems super unfeigned by Hollywood. Hopefully he makes some success of all this, regardless of the outcome. Pretty cool that a Mormon teenager pulled off a 2nd place in a reality show! Probably because it didn't involve drinking, improprieties or being next to naked!
Now...we move on to Christian's favorite show...So you think you can DANCE!!
...Shawna out!!

Beach to Babe

My Cheering section at the end of my length

5 of 6 of the Team...not the best but its all I have!

Saturday was a beautiful day here in Corpus...slight breeze, low 70s, mix of sun and clouds...a perfect day to RUN. A bunch of girlfriends from our ward and I ran the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon. It was a total marathon length, broken up into 6 legs. I ran the 4.8 mile length from the front of the Air Station to the back gate of the Air Station. It was such a neat experience to have with our new friends here in Corpus. And, I have to mention, I did run a personal best for races. I am NOT a speed runner. So my 7.9 min/mile was definitely a record. Plus, it was my longest race so far. Thus far, I have been perfectly content with 5Ks. It seems my next feat will probably be a 10K...maybe after the summer heat is over I can look for a fun location!


So- thanks ladies for making a fun memory!


As a side note...we forgot our camera (of course) so the only pics we have are from our cell phone cams with great quality...but they're better than nothing!

Worth the wait...

Our latest trip took us home to SAN DIEGO, where we got to attend the wedding of one of our best friends, JIMMY (aka Small Hammahhh). Thanks to our friends, the Barnes, we were able to go kid-free. It was such a touching day to spend with Jim and Whitney. Gav even got to surf a bit and I got to run in my hometown, Carlsbad, on the sea wall. You just cannot beat that scenic run! And although I didn't get to spend Mother's Day with my kiddos, it was worth the sacrifice to be there on such a long-waited event. And now that Jim is married (did I mention he is the last of the surf crew to FINALLY tie the knot) maybe surf trips will be a little more spouse/family friendly. Then, again, what am I thinkin'!!

Year of a Million Dreams...

This year has already been a grand treat of many fun things...our trip to Orlando was truly magical! Does it get much better than Disney, family and beautiful weather?!

We met all Gav's family there in Orlando where we stayed at Orange Lake Resort(thanks to Gav's parents). It was an awesome set up where we all stayed in 2 HUGE 3-bedroom condos.

Our schedule went like this:

Day1- travel to FL

Day2-had to try and re-issue our thrown out tix (disney was SOOooo accommodating)... then a full day of MAGIC Kingdom

Day3- Animal Kingdom

Day4- Relaxed at the Resort and enjoyed all the amenities...lazy river, multiple pools, gym...

Day5- Hollywood Studios

Day6-Epcot- WARNING: I made the mistake of closing my eyes on MISSION SPACE- a flight simulator mixed with G-force spins....not such a wise choice. I was a bit green!

Day 7- MAGIC KINgdom Take 2...we split the big group and went on some of the smaller rides for Shaney. Then met up at Rainforest Cafe for a Finale dinner, where I kids fit in quite well with the local animal noises!

Day 8- Played at the pool until we left for the airport.

So, Gav flew with us until Houston, then I took the boys on the last leg of the trip while he turned around and went back to FL (Ft. Lauderdale this time) for an ophthalmology conference. After all of the exhausting fun in Orlando, I got to pull us all back together to get back into normal life.



We had been to Disney World twice previously and I have to admit I was a little less than enthusiastic about making yet another trip, in a year's time. But,I have to admit, this was a trip my children will remember for a lifetime. To get to spend 8 Magical days with their cousins and grandparents was truly priceless (okay, actually quite priceY but well worth every penny). I also have to admit that I was a little nervous about being in such a large group for an extended period of time....and I was so pleased to have walked away with such positive memories of the trip. We love our family and miss being close to them while we pay our dues to a medical career. Hopefully, this trip was a good bridge to close the gap our kiddos sometimes feel between all the fam, that get to see each other all the time, and us, who have lived various places outside of sweet home SAN DIEGO.

M-I-A

These last 3+ weeks have been such a whirlwind of fun and celebration and craziness...hence my missing in action on the blogging board. I had a wonderful birthday...above is a pic of some of what we did. Gav took me away to San Antonio for my birthday weekend. We stayed in a beautiful hotel on the RiverWalk, ate at one of my favorite restaurants, took a 4 mile run Sat. morning along the RiverWalk, then played at Six Flags. My actual birthday was equally great just being with my little family. I was overwhelmed by the well wishes...and mostly by my sisters tribute on her blog. So, now that I am another year older, and maybe wiser...the next two weeks we went to Orlando for 8 days with Gav's whole family (which is a whole other post...to come!) and then Gav had to go back to FL for a conference. So, I have been a single mom for 6 days! He comes home tonight...and we are all a bit excited. Just keeping up on everything by myself has been quite a task. And trying to recooperate from DisneyWorld....well, that just hasn't happened quite yet. Yep, still have a half full suitcase on the floor. I am such a procrastinator unpacker...I just pull the dirty stuff out, wash it and then pull from the suitcase until I have worn the remainder of the clean....efficient?? Probably not the best approach.
Anyhow, Gav has the laptop and all the pics from Disney....so we will do a big post when he returns and I can think again!

Take me out to the ball game...

Its what we do at least 3 nights a week, its the white pants I am washing every other day, its the practicing in the backyard sometimes for hours on end,its the discussion of how to be good enough to play in college, its the pride in Gav's eyes when Christian chases a kid a head taller and tags him out...it's all for the love of the game!

I know God loves me because...

He gave me...a best friend...a shopping buddy...a playmate...a soundboard...someone who loves me unconditionally... A sister!! My sister(most affectionately called "De" in our house) and I are super close. We were born only a year and 13 days apart. We have almost always been the best of friends. As we got older and she moved away, I vividly remember being devastated thinking how do I function without my other hand. We have both since found our better halves, our hubbies...but to me she is still my female bestest friend. She continually amazes me at all she has accomplished and by the girth of her hidden strength.
She came to visit us here in TX on a surprise birthday present from her cute hubby. We had a GReat time. We shopped our little hearts out and loved just hanging out. I love that she got to see what we're all about here in Corpus. And even got to relax a bit from her usual hectic schedule.
Anyhow...Happy Birthday De...we love you soooo much!!