Benjamin's BIG Game!

Benjamin had his absolute personal BEST game of the season today at his last soccer game. Although he really wanted to play soccer back when we signed up in December, as the season has progressed, he's decided to hang up the cleats next year and head to piano lessons instead.

We're just proud of him for sticking it out and still going to every game and practice with a smile and positive attitude.

But, today...man oh man. What a PROUD moment we all had when he had his special time to break away with the ball and dribble it halfway down the field. He almost made a goal! We are blessed to have one of those AWESOME teams where the parents cheer for ALL of the kiddos...not just their own. When Benjamin had his big moment, it kind of took us all by surprise and the stands went WILD for our guy! David & I even had some pats on the backs and congrats. Sure will miss this amazing group of parents. (Happy that they're all Timber Ridge parents as well and we still get to say hello every school day!)

I was over the moon that I got all of it in photos!!

And what's a last game without awards and a pizza party at the park?

Benjamin got the award for the "BEST ATTITUDE". Coach Anna said he was the "easiest to coach on the team!" That's our boy! We {big puffy heart} our coaches! There's a slight possibility that they may be Jonathan's coaches next year (fingers & toes crossed).

(Oh yes...Jonathan is beyond ready to play soccer next year. He missed this year's age cut off by two months.)

David was Drink Daddy for the par-tay.

The Texans' Chant (on video below):

Who are we? TEXANS

What are we? CHAMPIONS

What are we? CHAMPIONS

One: FASTER

Two: MEANER

Three: STRONGER

1-2-3-TEXANS!!

The REAL El Rancho Dominguez

We were so blessed to spend the afternoon and evening out at our sweet friends' ranch on Sunday. Robert & Jane Dominguez have the biggest hearts. They invited our Life Group out to their ranch in Milano and boy, did we have a great time. From time to time, people think we're related to Robert & Jane with the last name thing and all. We're just so stinkin' in love with them that we're about to start telling people that we are related. They're that great. They went above and beyond to show all the kiddos (and grown ups) one great time. A perfect end to spring break.

Lots of fishing.

Jonathan & Robert

Jordan & Jenae

So bummed that Jenae's little sister had pink eye and half of the Hubbards missed the fun day. We missed you, Debbie!

Jordan's reeling in THE BIG ONE with the princess pole.

Jonathan petting the horse while Blair's petting Jonathan.

The kiddos pretended that the gator was a roller coaster and squealed with delight the whole time!

Aren't these faces precious?

Cowboy Benjamin on the hayride. The hat blew off the hayride more than once.

The three cowpokes: Truitt, Benjamin & Jonathan

A little swimming in the hot tub.

And jumping in off the side.

Sweet Benjamin


Jenae & JonJon

And some serious eatin'!

After a great spring break and a super fun weekend, there's a bit of a hitch in our giddy-up this week. 48 school days until summer...

Spring Break 2011...it ain't over yet!

We have one more fun day planned tomorrow as we spend the afternoon out at Pirtle Pines Ranch (or as we call it...the real El Rancho Dominguez) with our awesome Life Group. The boys are excited to go fishing and ride horses with all their favorite friends.

We've already had a full week of fun (and craziness). Secretly, I am *somewhat* ready to get back to our normal routine. This whole hanging out thing has been fun and all...but I'm a routine-oriented kinda gal. My schedule has been thrown off...I usually try to do small loads of laundry everyday and keep the house picked up. Those ideas have flown out the window the past few days and I'm in for it Monday when I catch up on all of it.

The BIGGEST (and I mean BIG) thing we did was our new playscape construction in the backyard. We've been researching and pricing playscapes since December. We settled on a new line that Lowe's is carrying and our "load" of fun arrived on Monday. In about three. zillion. pieces. We had made prior arrangements with the handiest man we know, aka my dad (seriously he's Mike Holmes & Bob Villa rolled into one...can build or fix ANYTHING), to come help us. Even he was a bit shocked at the sheer magnitude of pieces. We had estimated 1-2 days and put in a good 4 in the end...not including the day it has spent drying from the sealant we applied.

I was a HUGE help in the building process. I walked around with my camera each day capturing the progress. SO helpful, eh? I did manage to fix/or purchase lunch every day and keep bellies full and bodies hydrated.

Day one of building...lots of "groundwork". Literally. Laying everything out on the ground.

Day two...actually looks like a playscape.

Freckles!

Midnight the dog even helped out. She basically laid down in the middle of the action and let everyone work "around her". Helpful.

Day three let the rock wall and ladder go up so the boys could start playing on the finished areas.

Lean mean playing machine

Annnnnd done. The slide (day four) proved to be the trickiest part. They also added the monkey bars (in the back) that day. Whew. This is David & my dad with the "extra pieces". Always nice to end up with those.

This also proved to be a very pricey week as my dryer finally gave up the ghost, too. Not sure how many visits to Lowe's we made this week. We kind of saw the dryer nearing its end. It's been taking two 75 minute rounds on med-high heat to dry an average load of clothes. Not exactly efficient...for my chores or our electric bill. We actually had the washing machine/dryer fiasco of the century back in October (and I mean FIASCO). Long, complicated story. The "short version" amounted to us literally moving in and out three different sets of machines from this shop in Austin that we thought was giving us a good deal. They finally told us we must have damaged the sets in the transport from Austin to Killeen (because people never have to move washers & dryers?) and they wouldn't service it. So, after paying for a set from this shop, we ended up at Lowe's buying a new washer anyway in October. And now...the dryer from that shop has gone out. So, we've now purchased the mate to the new washer. All in all, for the money we spent with this ordeal, we could have just walked into Lowe's and bought the nicest set they had and saved a whole lot of time and aggravation. Instead, we have a nice, new, high-efficiency set, but not quite the "top of the line". Kind of makes me want to throw up. Major lesson learned here. While we're all about helping mom & pop shops, this put a very bad taste in our mouths and we're sticking to Lowe's from now on. We purchased the super extended warranty after this whole thing, too. David has told me he will never again move another washer or dryer.

So, the big Lowe's truck will be here on the 28th. Amen & hallelujah.

And now I'm off to HobLob to drown my sorrows in new fabric and Easter decor. Just sayin'.

Dad-- thanks a bajillion for all you do! We would have been clueless without you this week! There aren't words enough to show our appreciation. And mom...thanks for coming along and keeping me company. And going to Walmart with me and not being overly-embarrassed of the massive coupon binder that rides in the buggy at Walmart with me. Love you guys.

How Cool Is This?

I'm beyond amazed by the talented Brittany of Grey Grey Designs (her awesome event planning company) who took the Easter Kit I designed for her (and YOU) and worked some serious magic! Check it out:

If you head over to Brittany's post about our Printable Panache, you can find out a way to get a great discount on this pack. Just in time for spring, this kit contains a banner with precious egg-shaped penants, menu cards (that can be personalized for $3 more), cuppycake clothes (includes picks and wrappers), water bottle wraps and treat bag toppers.

Order your pack today for only $12. Email me at designingkristi@gmail.com

A little something for all the peeps! ; )

21 Of My Favorite Things About Canton

SIX new cabinet pulls for my favorite piece of furniture.




FIVE chocolate-covered cake balls....mmmm! They included red velvet, chocolate & white cake. To be clear...I did only have four of them. I was trying to be *somewhat* good. Not that good. Just somewhat.




FOUR flowery things...2 on a headband, 1 on a pin and my favorite on this hair clip. I MUST learn how to make these. Loving 'em.




THREE new canister toppers. Goodbye, apples....hello, fleur-di-lis! I am sensing a theme, here with the fleur-di-lis. One more item makes a decorating scheme.



TWO of my favorite things ever....the bff, LORI along with my new crown. Lori helped me see its true beauty by telling me that "when you're having a bad day, just put it on." Amen, girlfriend.

ONE full heart after a great visit with Lori and a fabulous trip to the happiest place in Texas. My very first trip to Canton (in like 1997?) was with Lori and both the friendship & shopping have just gotten better with age. Love you, bestie.

Nobody puts Baby in the corner...

...or in a Goodwill donation receptacle. I know this since I was knee-deep in a Goodwill receptacle this afternoon digging for our beloved Baby.

If you know us, chances are you know Baby. He is the Tigger stuffed animal who has been Jonathan's lovey since he was 10 months old. He is a constant-companion that doesn't leave Jonathan's side except for when he's at preschool (because what drama that would be if he were left at preschool one day).

Seriously, looking at this photo, what mama wouldn't dive head-first into the big bin of junk to search for this sweet boy's Baby?

All afternoon, I cleaned out closets to switch clothes around for spring/summer. I went to hang out with the bestie this weekend and she sent me home with a huge bag of clothes for the boys and I had to make some serious room in their unorganized closets. I managed to get a heaping pile of stuff from their closets to take over to Goodwill. I scooped it all up and put it in a bag and took it over there (this is out-of-character for me...usually, it makes it to the bag and then to the garage to wait until I decide to take it. I was just in a spring cleaning mode).

After getting home from a play date and the Goodwill drop-off, Baby was nowhere to be found. He goes missing from time to time, but quickly turns up in someone's hamper. Or Tupperware cabinet. Or china hutch. Or tool box. I could go on and on with this.

This time was different. We checked ALL the usual hide-outs, and Houdini still wasn't making his presence known. And then it dawned on me...Baby had been on the floor in Jonathan's room this morning. My mind started racing as I pictured myself inadvertently scooping him into the bag with the stuff from the closets. I honestly started to tear up at the thought of losing Baby (don't even get me started on when we lost Benjamin's beloved Bunny at the La Quinta in Abilene...I cried more than he did over that one).

So, I phoned Goodwill. Believe it or not, they had three Tiggers that were recently dropped off. When I got there, I realized none of them were our Tigger. : (

Then they told me about the reject bin. And that's when I went dumpster diving for the first time. And last. Bleh. I guess Goodwill's screening process is very lenient because the only stuff in the "reject bin" was absolute trash. Some of which really made me wonder what in the hee-haw people were thinking about donating it to Goodwill? This ain't no soup kitchen....no food items, please! Gag.

I was somewhat relieved to not find Baby in that bin. Not sure his well-loved self would have survived the clean up process he would have undergone to be welcomed back into our home after being in there.

Came home and about the time I was putting Jonathan to bed, the search began again. He went to bed without him. And moments later, Baby made a relatively boring appearance underneath all the clean clothes in the laundry I was folding. Of all places. Quite the irony that he was in such a clean place while I searched in what I concluded to be the dirtiest. place. ever. Darn you, Baby. You're about to get an eviction notice if you don't quit that.