Mutton Bustin'

If you aren't familiar with what Mutton Bustin' is, it is basically kids riding a sheep rodeo style. This is what it looked like.


We went to the Houston Rodeo this week with some friends and had a great time. Baylor got to go Mutton Bustin' while we were there. Baylor's ride didn't look as bad as the ones in the video, so no need to turn me in for child abuse. He just rolled off the side of the sheep after 1-2 seconds. It was hilarious. He loved it. He happily jumped to his feet after falling off and waved to the crowd.

What's Happening

I enrolled Baylor in preschool last month. I still debate almost everyday with myself if I should start him in kindergarten this year. That is the main reason I just put him preschool. If I decide to start him in kindergarten he will have had preschool for a few months before starting, as opposed to not having gone at all. He has learned a lot from me teaching him at home, but I thought he needed to learn about the structure of school before he started kindergarten. I'm his mom so of course I think he is sooo smart, and I think will always catch onto new concepts quickly. He is big and tall for his age. He also has a strong personality, so I don't think he would have a problem being the youngest in his class. My main reason for considering holding him back is because he will literally be the youngest in his class. The cut off is September 1st, and his birthday is August 31st. Would it bother him to be the youngest, because he is a boy and the girls will all be older, will he be at a huge disadvantage, will it bother him to be the last to drive, date, etc? Even though he is beyond ready to start this year and knows more than what is expected, do I hold him back, because I'm not sure what will happen, and how he would feel about it in the future? I don't know, I'm think I want to start him this year, but I'm not sure. I just hope to have a happy, well adjusted, mature young man when all is said and done...is that expecting too much :)
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What's new with Chase? Chase has really grown up a lot lately. He is starting to talk pretty well and not as much like a baby, which makes me kind of sad because he is my baby. He is still as sweet as can be. In fact, he is so cute and sweet I couldn't get myself to take his pacifier away from him until this last month. He was obsessed with his pacifier, and i just couldn't find it in my heart to take something he loved so much from him. He loved it so much I was starting to think he would be taking it college with him, because he was never going to get rid of it. He took the best naps and slept awesome through the night because that was when he had his pacifier. I thought I had a flawless method to getting rid of the pacifier. That method is to cut it and when it was broken the kid won't want it and would throw it away. It worked like a charm with Baylor, but not with Chase. I did it with Chase's pacifier, and he did throw it away, but later found another one, so when I cut the other one he wouldn't throw it away. It was totally broken and didn't work or have suction, but he wouldn't take it out of his mouth. Eventually I did get him to throw it away, but since then he hasn't taken good naps, because it's just not the same without it.
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As for Brody and I, we are both doing well. I am still in Houston, and he is still in Lake Charles. We meet every weekend, so he can be with the boys. We are still separated and don't know what we are doing. We have decided to go to counseling again, and see if that helps us with our decision. We have a lot to do and think about before we decide. We want to make sure we will do what is best for both of us and our boys. So for now this is what we are doing.

New Years

Yeah, I know I'm a little late with my New Years post. Truth be told, I wasn't really looking forward to doing the New Years resolution thing. The last few months have been beyond difficult for me, and I think this upcoming year will follow that same pattern. Brody and I separated in November. It has been a very emotional and hard time. I moved back home to Houston, enrolled in college, and started thinking about changing many plans I had for my family’s future. This year my goals are based around that.

One of my goals has to do with school. It has been over 8 years since I was in college. I hope to be able to do well in my classes and obtain the knowledge I need to be successful. I am planning on getting a teaching degree. I feel like it is something I would be good at, and the fact that I will have the same holidays and summer off with my children is very important to me. I adore my children and want to be with them as much as possible if I'm a working parent.

One of my other goals is to be positive and strong. I have surprised myself with how strong I have been while going through this, and throughout my marriage and life. I realize my knowledge and testimony of the gospel has helped me more than anything. I don't think I would have gotten through this, and am going to get through these hard times without understanding my self worth and divine nature. I really do know that I am a daughter of God and that my worth is great, and that he loves me and wants me to be happy in this life. I have recently gotten answers to many prayers and felt comfort from my Savior more then ever before in my life. I know I am going to go though more hard and emotional times and will have to make some tough decisions, but I hope to be positive and happy about the choices I will make.

I also have a few other things I want to be working on throughout this year. I want to be more friendly, and I want to be a better listener. There are even a few more spiritual and physical goals I have, but that pretty much maxes me out. I hope all is well with friends and family and your year is full of happiness and joy.

I did it!

I did it! I ran a marathon. I still don't know why, because it was torture. It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life, and yes I have given birth to two children, but with an epidural that is a piece of cake. I thought I was going to die when I got to mile 22. I literally hit a wall. I could not run anymore. I felt like I was going to throw up and pass out, and my legs would not let me run anymore. I hadn’t done any long runs for the last 1 ½ months, and my body was not prepared, but I still finished. I walked about the last 4 miles. I ended up finishing in 3 hours 48 minutes, which is 8:45 mile pace.

My oldest brother, Steve is a marathon runner, and he convinced 10 members of my family to run this marathon/half marathon with him. Those who did not run cheered us on. We had 47 people in my family here for the event, so we had quite a support group.

And because everything is bigger in Texas, instead of getting a plaque or a simple metal to hang around your neck we got a metal shaped like Texas, 1/2 inch thick, and weighing over 3 lbs. I could eat Thanksgiving dinner off this sucker, because it’s so big. It is a little ridiculous and nearly impossible to wear around your neck without falling over, but that’s how people do things in Texas.

Will I run another marathon?....hum right now I don’t know. I still remember how torturous it was, but with time life has a funny way of making you forget how dreadful things were sometimes. If I were to do it again I would try to qualify for the Boston Marathon. I was only a few minutes away from qualifying, and that was with walking the last 4 miles and not being totally prepared, so I am slightly, very slightly considering running the St. George Marathon in October to get my qualification time and then running the Boston Marathon next year. Again, there is a very slight chance of that happening, because this year is going to be full of all kinds of changes which might make that hard to accomplish, but I guess only time will tell.