Football Weekend & Halloween 2014

Our yearly tradition didn't stop just because we moved to a different state....NOPE! 

On the plane leaving Houston

In Raleigh about to head to Charlotte

B and I flew to NC for a weekend to catch a football game with J/K and visit friends quickly.  This whole conversation started when B told me that he would be at a conference in Nashville the weekend we were supposed to drive to NOLA to watch the Saints play the Panters in the Dome.  I, of course, was bummed, but I tried to be understanding.  Coming to the realization that we would not make a game, was very sad for us.  B came home one day and said "we should just go to Carolina for the game.  It's on Thursday and I have Friday's off, it can work out" so I looked for tickets and found some.  We asked J/K and they were on board so we made it happen.  We didn't tell a lot of people at first, but then we started sharing our news. I knew it would be a quick trip, so how could we see as many people as we wanted without being in the car the entire time...???  Kristen O'Janpa to the rescue.  More about that in a minute.
Thursday we left Houston at 9:30 and landed at RDU at 1:00.  K picked us up and we went to Wild Wing Cafe for lunch.  Oh it was so good!  We waited for Jen to get home from work and then we headed to Charlotte.  We checked into the hotel and then caught the train into town for the game.  The game was great and we won (Sorry K).  It got chilly so the boys bought us hot chocolate to help keep us warm.  So much fun!

Catching the train before the game

We stayed the night at the hotel and ate in the continental breakfast before leaving back to Raleigh.  J let us have her car for the weekend so our next stop was Wake Forest Middle School.  I'd been communicating with Kline so he was expecting us.  He was on planning so we chatted with him for a while before seeing Linda and Chris and a few other people.  I wish I had had more time, but it was Friday afternoon on Halloween so I knew people wanted to get home.  At 3:30 we went to Sheree's house and ate with she and Ahmad.  I think we were there for a little more than an hour before heading to the Caldwells for trick or treating.  My favorite Halloween memories are from the Caldwell house and I was very happy to be back.  I missed my kids though and wished they could have been back with us to see their friends. I was so grateful that Nicole opened her home for us and there was food and fun.  The O'Janpa family came as did some of N's family.  In ways, I feel like N's sister is my sister and her mom was my second-mom.  We've been great friends with the Caldwells for so long.  We just love their family.  That night was great and I sat with N on the sofa til 1 in the morning just talking.  Boy, have I missed NC. 
Saturday started with a great home-cooked breakfast by K and game day on the TV.

My god-daughters

Our plans were to hang out with them for a short while before heading over to K/V's house for the open house.  K/V were gracious enough to open their home for us and let our friends come over and visit.  She came to our rescue because we couldn't figure out how to see all the people we wanted to see without driving all over town.  Her invitation said 11:00 so we got there early to hang with just the O'Janpa family.  B and V made a quick run to Home Depot while I visited with K and Bella.  We had a great time at their house and saw lots of friends:  C. Buck, Linda, the Kline's, the Boas family, small group families, and Lauria.

The Kline's

The Boas's

K had a great spread set out and I think small group people all brought a little something to help.  We just grazed on the snack food all day long.  Our original plan was to leave at 4:30 to be back at K/J for a fish fry but it was more like 5:30 before we left.  I didn't want to leave because I love K's house.  There have been so many play-dates, workout sessions, and dinners with V/K.  Next time we come to visit, I think we will stay at least 1 night with the O'Janpas.  We had snacked all day, but not enough to be full because K was frying fish and wings for us.  J and I made fried pickles and it was a normal Hantla-Gillam sleepover minus the 4 Hantla kids.  We watched football, ate food, and the wives fell asleep on the sofa while the husbands watched a movie.  I don't exactly remember the time, but I think I went to bed around 1:00 am.  B & K were still watching a movie.  I think the only thing that could have made our weekend any better, was having our kids.  Don't get me wrong, it was better for us for the football game sake, but the other visiting and stuff, our kids would have loved seeing their friends.  And everyone asked how the kids were doing so we would talk about our kids and that made me miss them even more. 

Tinkerbell, Mikey, Donny, and Alphaba

We flew home early

On our flight home

Sunday and P/V and the kids picked us up from the airport.  We were so excited to see them!  P/V were nice enough to fly down to take care of our kids while we went away for the weekend.  They took the kids to Katy, TX for Halloween and trick-or-treating

with their cousins and played with them the rest of the time while we were gone.

P/V are such a blessing to our family to allow us the chance to fly to NC.  We are so thankful and grateful for them.

Me and my boys

Oklahoma Weekend Oct 2014

Way back before we moved to TX, our friends Sara & Andrew were planning a trip to Oklahoma for his brother's wedding.  His brother was getting married in Edmond and so we offered P/V's house for S/A and their family.  Everything was planned.  Then we moved and thought it would be a great chance to see our friends for a weekend, so we decided to drive to OK to see S/A and P/V.

We checked R out of school about 30 minutes early to get on the road.  Everything was going great and even the traffic wasn't that bad.  We hit a little traffic in Dallas but the majority of the trip was easy driving.  Lorenzo was house sitting and dog sitting for us.  I think it was around 10:00 pm when we arrived and all the kids had fallen asleep.  They woke up to visit with Gran & Papaw for a while, but the Daniel kids were already asleep.  We set up their sleeping bags and put the kids to bed.  I think we stayed up with S & A talking til around 1 am. 

Friday morning Gran made us breakfast of bacon and eggs.  S&A didn't have to be anywhere early so we had a chance to have a relaxing morning with them.  We took the kids to the playground in the neighborhood and they played in the backyard too.  It was just a nice morning with friends and family.  We left to meet Papaw for lunch and then took a trip to Walmart to find B and OU hat.  Gran picked up a few things for the kids to do at her house.  I think it was around 3 in the afternoon when we made it back to their house and E took a nap.  I dozed on the sofa while Gran played with the 3 bigs.  I don't even know what B did for 2 hours.  Our Friday night plans included a high school football game at B's Alma Mater, Edmond Memorial.  We watched the Bulldogs play West Moore HS and ate dinner at the game.  R loved watching the cheerleaders and A enjoyed the football game.  I think E was frustrated being in her stroller but Gran took her out for a bit.  The weather was great and we had a good time.  We left shortly after the half-time show to head back home for bed time.

R watched the cheerleaders the whole game.  One came to talk to her during half time

Hanging out in the back yard

Being silly

Saturday morning started out rough when W puked pretty much in his sleep.  It was the strangest thing.  B and I were awake but just laying in bed and then we heard sounds that were similar to the sound Cooper makes when he vomits.  All four kids were in the room with us and we knew it wasn't E, but it was a toss up to which of the other 3.  I pulled my phone out and used the flashlight to discover W's poor head near a pile of vomit.  It was gross and sad.  He was upset and obviously didn't feel good so we took action.  We put A and R in the bed to get them off the floor.  I took W to the bathroom and put him in the shower and B started cleaning up the floor.  While in the shower, W called out that he needed to poop, so I took soaking wet W and put him on the toilet...poor guy had diarrhea too.  I think once he got it all out of his system he was fine because that's the only time he got sick.  We thought maybe it was the food he ate at the football game.  Either way, we got it cleaned up and it made for a gross/funny story later that morning.  A/S had a brunch with their family so they were busy.  We made plans to eat at First Watch with Gran and Papaw, so that's where our day started.  Breakfast there was very good and most everyone cleaned their plate.  After the yummy breakfast, we headed to a park so the kids could play for a while.  I don't even know the name of the park we went to, but it was near some water supply.  It was cute and the kids had a great time.  On our way home, we stopped by a cute pumpkin patch that had free train rides and face painting, which the kids absolutely loved! By the time we got home, E had passed out so she took her afternoon nap (while I slept on the sofa again). Gran cooked spaghetti for dinner and it was delicious.  It was nice to eat at home after eating out for 3 days.  We all had a craving for ice cream for dessert so we headed to Brick-town in OK City.  It was a nice evening and we enjoyed walking around together.  I think we stopped at a Marble Slab and it's been years since we've been to Marble Slab.  The one in Wakefield NC shut down a few years back.  Our visit was coming to a close and Marble Slab Ice Cream was a great way to end it.  Ice cream always makes things better.  After getting all the kids into bed, we stayed up with S/A until 1:00 am again just chatting and catching up.  They had an EARLY flight Sunday morning that I felt bad about keeping them up but....we never seen them anymore!

Raff

Monster High

Leo

E's butterfly

So Sunday around 3 am, R wakes me up that she needs to throw up.  Here we go again....Round 2 with R except she pukes 4 times between 3 am and 6 am.  I think she finally stopped at 6 and fell back asleep until 7:30.  The kids got up so I sent them down stairs for breakfast.  R tried eating a banana and she threw that up pretty much immediately.  I let B sleep since he had to drive us home and I packed all the bags and tried to clean our room up, even though it needed a good bleach cleaning due to our puke germs.  I think we finally left at 9:30 am and just started making our way back home.  We knew we didn't have Awana that night so our goal was to make it home for Sunday Night Football because the Saints were playing the Packers in the Dome. About an hour and a half into our drive, E started to fuss and we just thought she was hungry.  I gave her some cheese-it crackers and we kept driving.  Not long after that, she was still fussing so I turned around to talk to her.  Then I saw a stream of orange liquid run out of her mouth all down her into her car seat.  Round 3 in the van without any notice.  Of course E couldn't tell us that she felt bad or she thought she needed to throw up but she obviously felt bad and needed to throw up.  We pulled over at the first stop and B bought some paper towels and febreeze at the gas station.  Poor R got sick again while we were stopped.  I think that stop lasted an hour but when it was all said and done, E was naked (except her diaper) sitting in her seat with no pads (they were disgusting) but we were on the road again.  I think we made it an hour before E puked again, and without warning so there was no way for me to catch it in the throw-up bucket.  R was done by this time and finally said she felt better.  W and A were fine and wanted to eat lunch.  B & I were a little hesitant to eat a full lunch just because we figured we would be next.  We stopped for a bite to eat and then made our way to TX.  The trip lasted about 9 hours and the ended was a blur.  I remember I-45 was shut down so we had to take back roads that added extra time to our drive.  We picked up a hot and ready and made it home with time for baths before the SNF game.

How we felt on Sunday

So here's the scene.  We are sitting in the living room watching the game and eating (some of us).  I'm holding E so B can eat and I can feel her tummy rumbling and then, projectile vomit all over me and the sofa.  I couldn't do anything except for giggle and just sit there with it all over me.  Needless to say, we got back in the shower again and I washed more clothes and towels.  Poor E, that was her last time to vomit, but she went out with a bang.  I think that was possibly one of the worse travel days we've ever had! 

Together after 9 hours, 3 kids puking but we are happy!

Date Night in TX

A long awaited date night finally happened thanks to Aunt Mo and her family.  B coordinated with her and she agreed to watch our four along with her 3 on a Friday night.  We took our kids to her house and dropped them off.  Of course they were so excited about cousin time.  My kids LOVE spending time with their cousins.  That's been a huge blessing of moving to TX.  I didn't realize how much fun it would be seeing them play and interact with their cousins.  Sure, there are some problems every now and again, but that's normal.  They are learning conflict resolution right? 

Our ride to Katy

Everyone is excited!

Right after dropping the kids off with Aunt Mo

But anyways, B and I planned to go to Old Navy so I could finally use a gift card that I've had since E was born but I refused to buy any new clothes until I lost baby weight.  Well I'm proud to say that I have, so it was time.  We were going to do a little kid-free shopping then grab dinner at Red Lobster.  I knew there was an Old Navy at the Katy Mills mall so that's where we headed first.  They were having a sale so B ended up getting a pair of pants also.  We love sales and we enjoy shopping together.  Not so much with the kids, but when it's just the 2 of us, it's fun.  So after shopping we tried to find the Red Lobster, but couldn't so we ended up at Olive Garden which was just as tasty.  Overall, we had a great date night and it was awesome to just talk. 

My Love

We miss our friends from NC a lot, and one thing they've got going for them is the monthly date night rotations.  It's so important in your marriage to date your spouse and when someone can provide free babysitting, that's a huge blessing.  B and I will try to not let 4 more months go before having another date night and it shouldn't be too hard because our anniversary is in December:)

Rin's School Friend

R has made a friend named Sarah.  She seems sweet and she came over to play one afternoon.  R & Sarah walk home everyday together and one Monday afternoon, R asked me if Sarah could come over and play.  I told her we would have to ask S's mom and that day, S's mom happen to be waiting for her.  Usually we don't see Sarah's mom so this worked out great.  S's mom agreed to let S play until 5:00.  So I made them do their HW together and then they could play.  I'm so glad R has made a friend and I'm thankful that S is interested in hanging out with R.  I love R's sweet personality and friendly disposition.  She's very outgoing and bring joy to others around her.  We thank God for giving us Rin!

Pumpkin Carving....or Not?

I know it's past Halloween but the end of October got crazy busy for us!  Wow, now that I'm reflecting, I think we were gone 3 weekends in a row, wow!

So last year after Halloween, I bought some pumpkin decorations on sale and thought it would be good to change things up a bit.  I got 2 girl and 2 boy things to be fair and every kid was happy.  So when it was time, we bought 4 pumpkins and one afternoon, Daddy took the kids outside to decorate the pumpkins.

*I would highly recommend this to anyone looking to save time and clean up.  There was virtually no mess (except trash from packaging) and it was so quick.  And the pumpkins really look cute. 

Pre-Nuptial Celebration

My cousin Kristin and her fiancee Rich had a pre-wedding party in Hammond before their destination wedding in Hawaii.  It was scheduled to be Saturday afternoon, October 4th starting at noon and the blessing was scheduled for 4 pm.  My dad and Ella were asked to lead the blessing ceremony and of course they were delighted to do that for Kris.  The day was perfect weather with a cool breeze and sunshine.  Family and friends showed up and got a chance to love on Kristin and Rich.  The prenuptial ceremony was really nice and 'Pastor Ella DeDeaux and Deacon James DeDeaux' did a great job.  I was so glad we got to be there and celebrate with them since we wouldn't be at the wedding.  Marriage is such an important bond and it's one of the closest we have to begin to understand God's love for us.  B and I prayed for K&R before we left.

my crazy big brother, Lloyd

The Happy Couple!

Reminded me of when Bubba talked at our rehearsal dinner.

My pops!

Saturday night after getting the kids cleaned and asleep, B & I played spades with Gma Lupe.  I love playing cards with G-Lupe.  I'm always her partner and we usually win.  This night was no different.  We pretty much stomped Bryce and Lorenzo.  It was fun and I haven't played cards with G-Lupe in a long time.  I look forward to playing with her again at Easter.  I love my G-Lupe.