My Sister-Mamas

These are my sister-mamas. I have spent almost every Wednesday the past two and a half years with these women. We are in a mom's Bible study and have shared many laughs, tears, wisdom, and love. I have grown tremendously in my faith and spiritual knowledge with them and because of them.

Last night they threw us a going-away party at the park and it was a blast. We had a great time and great food. I would like to know how many hot dogs were cooked because it was a bunch!!

I love you guys (and your kiddos) and ya'll are one of the main reasons I burst into tears when I think about moving. Thank you all for the love, prayers, and support you have given my family the past years. Each of you are an amazing mom, wife and friend. You guys are truly a blessing in my life!!

I can't wait until we have a play date at my house, when Matt and I can teach your kids about nutria rats and crayfish!

**By the way, did you notice all of the moms-to-be?? Don't drink the water when you get around this group.

One week from today...

One week from tonight we will have a U-Haul sitting in our driveway filled with our possessions.

One week from tonight we will sleep on mattresses on the floor.

One week from tonight we will eat our last meal in our tiny kitchen.

The home where Richard carried me over the threshold.

The home where we became a family when we brought Matt home.

One week from tonight we will spend our last evening in our home of 10 years.

One week from tomorrow we will start a new adventure and begin a new chapter in the Lewis book.

Buglers' Holiday

The Symphonic band played at Round Top Friday night. Richard had the opportunity to play with two former students. One who was a three year All-Stater and the other is now a doctoral student at UT for trumpet performance. It was incredible. Richard is the middle one in case you couldn't figure it out. I think Eric described the moment perfectly: It was like a proud father with his to long lost sons. Needless to say, Richard is very proud of these two gus. And I am very proud of my cutie-pa-tootie hubbie.

Maifest

So last weekend our little town celebrated Maifest. I have lived here for 10 years and Maifest is still a mystery to me. The locals like to say it is a "celebration of the youth" but I am still trying to figure it out.

The way it works is that there is a junior king and queen (I think an 8 year old) and a senior king and queen (an actual high school senior). There is a junior parade and coronation and a senior parade and coronation. There is also a carnival for about 3 days, a big festival on Saturday with a biergardten (is that how you even spell it??), and a bunch of other hoopla. Basically the whole town shuts down for this celebration.

This year was the 118th Maifest and Matt was asked to participate in the senior Maifest (the king is a band student). So he and his girls Leah and Baillee were snorkelers. Oh that's the other thing, there is a theme and the kids are assigned parts and costumes.

Aren't they cute?!?After the parade we went to the carnival or Six Flags as Matt liked to say.

Yeah, I guess I can see why he thought he was at Six Flags. The fence, the grass and random tree, the big power box...

Doesn't he look thrilled? I think he figured out he's not at Six Flags...

But in the end, all he cared about was the free swing. If you know anything about my son, you know he LOVES to swing.

Hope you all have a great weekend and thanks for the encouragement!!

Home

Sorry I haven't posted much; I have felt more lazy than inspired lately.

Things are chugging along here. It kind of seems like this ride we are on is getting faster and faster and will very soon start running out of control. Hmm...sounds a little dramatic. I guess a better way to say is that we have a boat load of things to get done before June 3.

Many of you have asked about the house situation and we did get the house we bid on (is bid the right word??). I think we will be able to move in on June 4. Here is a pic of it, keep in mind we will eventually paint the outside and clean up the landscaping.

Do you see all the shade in that yard?? I am so excited about trees and shade, we both are.

We did not have that big moment of walking in, hearing the angels sing, and that voice saying buy me. The neighborhood was the one who did the talking. This was the first neighborhood we drove into that we could afford where we felt like we were home. It is full of trees, kids, and a great park. An extra bonus is that we have no neighbors behind us and we are about a 3 minute walk from the park.

Here is the other thing I am excited about: the kitchen. My kitchen has an island!!! I have a ton of counter and cabinet space. Anyone who has been to our current house knows we have a tiny kitchen. I promise I am not exaggerating when I say tiny. So my new kitchen seems like a palace. Let me take back what I said earlier, I did hear "buy me" when I walked into the kitchen.

Well anyways, there are two glimpses of our future home. Once we move in, I will post more.

I know I have asked already but I am asking again, please pray for my family during this time. Richard and I have been on an emotional roller coaster lately. This has all been very exhausting and overwhelming for us. We have so much to do that we are to the point of wanting to move in order to get our life back to normal.

However, we are excited about what God has planned for our future and we know that he will be there with us. Two scripture that I am meditating on for the moment are Proverbs 3:5 and Philippians 4:6-7. If you have any to add please write them in the comments because I would love to read them.

Tubes

Matt had his tube surgically removed yesterday. The little guy did fine except his ear hurts him from time to time. Also, the drops we have to give three times a day hurt as well. I think the medicine must burn where his tube was attached.

I guess the only thing scary was when they put him to sleep because he keeps talking about the scary mask. Otherwise, I think he had a pretty good time because he got to see a big red car, open magic doors, and watch movies.

Thanks for all the prayers. We definitely felt them.

Sunday Lunch

Here is a little taste of Sunday lunch at the Lewis house.

Matt is singing I've Been Working on the Railroad , but for some reason, he is only singing the same line over and over. Also, I love the way he moves his hand when he says "turn it around." That cracks me up.

Hope he brings a smile to your day.

No Artificail Ingredients

The following photos are my feeble attempt to capture nature with my simple Kodak.

Country Bumpkins

The past couple of Saturdays I have woken up very excited. Not because it is the weekend or I have the cutest guy sleeping next to me. It is because the Farmer's Market is back in action!!

I went there a couple of weeks ago with the kids and bought eggs, carrots, peas, potatoes, and broccoli. Last week I bought mixed greens (Kale, Turnip, and Beets), peas, radishes, and potatoes. This week one of the farmers expects to have green beans, squash, and ...PEACHES! I am way too excited about this!

I love going down there and just looking at all the fresh produce, canned preserves, and watching the people. I know, I am weird. So I highly recommend that if you live here and have not been, check it out. You will definitely leave with something.

After this last trip I decided to see if Matt wanted to help me with shelling the peas. He actually sat and helped me shell two pounds of peas and had a great time. From the mom and teacher side, I have to say it is a great fine motor skill activity to do with a toddler. He loved "tearing" them apart to find the peas. After awhile, we found a worm in one of the pods so that added quite a bit of excitement to the project