Mommathon

It's that time of year again...it's time to plant the garden. My mom and step-dad had already tilled it and gotten the soil ready for us (thank you!), so all we had to do was come in and plant. We planted three tomato plants (cherry and regular), cantaloupe, watermelon, cilantro, sunflowers, lavendar and basil. Our purple salvia from last year has come back and is doing great.

Planting the sunflower seeds


Counting out the pumpkin seeds


Digging a trench for a tomato plant


This picture was taken right before he turned around and soaked all of us...oh he thought he was so funny! :)


All of that hard work deserves a snack

Liam's school picnic was on Thursday and the boys had a lot of fun. They gobbled down their lunches so they could go play on the equipment. They played hard for a good hour and a half. Colm took a very good nap when we got home.

Liam was finally able to get a new violin today. Since it was so close to concert time she didn't want to have him upgrade to a bigger size since they get used to putting their fingers in a certain spot and changing the size changes where your fingers go...just a little bit. But the concert is over now, so we got the green light to trade in. He was definitely ready. The lady who fits the violins said that he is almost ready to move up to the next size. This is Liam's third violin. It is so funny when you get these violins because they are rentals so they have a history. The violins and bows usually look okay, but the cases look like they have been through a war. We battled with our last case because the zipper was broken when we got it, as was the clasp that holds the strap on. (I eventually just threw the strap away, it was useless). The case we got today is no better. The outside looks okay, but the inside it all beaten up. The thing that holds the bow in place doesn't hold the bow in place. Hmmm... that poses a problem. Colm will soon be getting a violin, too. He is very excited!

I don't think I have read a book written by this author that wasn't a pageturner. She knows how to tell a story and you can't put the book down because you HAVE to know what happens next!

I can't handle graduations...any graduation. I cry. It's just too much! The music, the nostalgia, looking forward to the future...I can't handle it. It doesn't matter whose graduation it is, either. You could probably send me to the graduation of a complete stranger and I would still cry. Now, what happened tonight? Our eldest child graduated from preschool and let me tell you folks, it was taking every ounce of strength not to really start weeping. It was the slide show with the MUSIC that really got me and then all of the kids brought their moms carnations. Now come on...who can make it through that!!!? Congratulations, little man, you are really growing up. :)

This is not a place you want to take the kids, but if you are ever in Tulsa, eat at the Garlic Rose. We went with a group of about 15-20 people last weekend, so there was a lot of food sharing. We ordered several different appetizers, the baked brie was yummers as was the domestic and imported cheese plate which had a lot more to it than just cheese. We had some great wine, too. I had salmon for dinner and it was done just right and Sean really liked his pasta as well. I don't know if I will ever have a reason to go back to Tulsa, but if I do, I want to eat there again.

I just have to sound off about something that really bothers me. Now before I begin, let me state that my children watch TV. They know there are rules about how much and what they can watch and that includes computer time, too. However, when I see a mom pushing her preschooler in a stroller and he has a portable DVD player with him I have to say something. Come on, now. Is it really necessary to watch TV while you are on a walk? Is it too much to ask to maybe talk to your child while you are on a walk? Or maybe just let them be alone with their thoughts for a while. The same goes for TV in the car. Now I can understand if you are traveling across the country or something, but do the kids really need to watch TV while they are on their way to preschool or the grocery store? I don't care how educational the TV is, kids need time to just sit and think, stare out the window, or look at books, maybe even color. They don't need to have a screen in their face everywhere they go. Oh, and that reminds me. Yesterday the boys and I went to go tour a local healthclub to see what they had to offer as far as swim lessons go. They make you go on the complete tour, however, even if you just want some info. Anyways, that was fine. They have an awesome pool-inside and out. We also went into the childcare center where parents can drop off their kids so they can go get fit and trim. Do you know what most of those kids were doing while their parents were exercising? Yep, they were sitting on their bums watching TV. They were all lined up in a row, maybe about twelve of them. There was one kid playing basketball maybe three or four kids playing on the play structure and one little girl coloring. Turn off the TV for a while, folks, just for a little bit.