Sunday, October 30, 2016

Technical Difficulties

So long story short my Mac, my iPhone, and the software I use to post these are not working so well together.  They have become an old married couple that can't hear the other so well.  Oh well here is what we have been up to.


Cookies are a big deal in our house!  We all love it when they are fresh out of the oven!


These monkeys picked out their first set of similar hats and just like their personalities they are polar opposites.



We played a little miniature golf while on a short vacation at Jellystone!


The Nutrition Nazi and I managed to get away for a night for his birthday at Hotel Zaza!  So much fun to be just adults for a night, and not have to be mom and dad!


Early driving lessons for Camo at the children's museum!


A little fun feeding the giraffes at the zoo!  Camo always wants to feed the babies!


A little less than fun on the first day of school!  Gotta love Camo and his face.  It did not go nearly as bad as he makes it seem!


 A new kind of workout thanks to one of my awesome neighbors!  Changes in perspective = changes in mind!


NN won a trip to Mexico this year for being a top producer!  We had a blast thanks to our awesome family who watched the Little  Popes


Celebrating Paw Paw George's 96th birthday!


Happy Birthday George!


The Team Leader is all about comfort in the supersac!


Fall fun with Grandma Bread at Blessington Farms!



Cameron Pope, Rush Chair.  Damn glad to meet you!


Ying and Yang and their respective pumpkins!


Enjoying the beautiful fall weather in October for the two days it was not above 90.


Having so much fun on the zip line!


Selfies at Little Pope's Fall Festival! He had so much fun!


Sweet Captain America with his pumpkin!


Camo says to Little Pope in a parking lot, 'Hold my hand.'  So they hold hands and my heart melts!

Sunday, June 26, 2016

Four and Counting

I can't believe Little Pope just turned 4 a few weeks ago.  It seems like time is quickly passing.  Here are a few highlights from his birthday party!


A few weeks before his birthday he got to take cupcakes to celebrate his birthday at school.  He decided he needed to make sure the cupcakes were ok the night before by sampling one!


We rented a super fun bounce house that took up a good chunk of our backyard!  The kids had so much fun and some of the big kids got in as well.


We had a super cool greeter hanging from the second floor balcony!


Little Pope loves birthday parties and presents especially when they are his own!


They may look cute, but looks can be deceiving!  These two are the definition of trouble-makers!


Exhibit A...Camo was caught trying to feed the dog chocolate since she was not allowed at the party.  And for the record I am not a mean person.  The Team Leader has had a few relapses with her knees and counter-surfing for food so I decided this was the safest place for her.  Camo actually crawled in with her at one point and requested a pillow and a blanket from my mom.


Not too much longer before I won't be able to pick up this birthday boy!


Family pics are more of a hope-for-the-best-after-20-shots style.


Still looks like a mini adult version of the Nutrition Nazi, with more hair of course!


One of his favorite parts, and his new friend in the background!


Presents are probably Little Pope's favorite part!  His neighbor friend helped him open and play with all his presents!  


Grandma supervised so I could write down what he got for thank you notes!  And for those of you with really sharp vision that is a baby I am holding that belongs to a friend of ours.  He is so sweet and I get to give him back! 


This year Little Pope wanted a piƱata so I bought the kind that you can pull the strings instead of hitting with a stick.  My new house was super appreciative that I did not give bats to toddlers to swing uncontrollably!


It was a really big hit!


And then the pandemonium started once it broke open with all the kids trying to get as many goodies as possible.


Some of our new neighborhood friends needed a little help since they are not as seasoned at the older kids!


I was super on my game this year - ha!  I bought a 'stick the emblem on batman game' and of course it was little girl that won!


This is how my child posed when his friend's mom wanted to get a pic on their way out!  Once a Pope always a Pope when it comes to being an attention whore!  I love that he already has a few friends in our awesome neighborhood!

Happy 4th Birthday Little Pope!

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Family is Family

Family is Family in church or in prison.  You can't live with or without them, you might talk about them, but if someone else does well then you'll knock them out because when it's all said and done their the only ones that you got.  Thanks to Kacey Musgraves for the very poignant lyrics.

Today I would like to celebrate my mom for all she has done for me. 
She was a great mom growing up, but I think she waited her whole life to be grandma! Though Mother's Day is this weekend, her birthday is today! 


My mom was so excited when she found out that she was going to be a grandmother.  She started spoiling Little Pope before he ever arrived!


And then he arrived and she was, as usual, the foundation that held everything together in a very challenging time.  I know underneath it all she did not feel that way, but being a mom is about continuing down the sometimes broken road.


I always tell her that she is definitely an old lady trying to get into heaven the way she spoils the kids because that is not the woman I grew up with.


Little Pope took his first steps towards her on his first birthday, which was a huge achievement for a preemie.


I am so happy that my crazy little ones have my mom to love them and say yes when I might say no!


She has always been there, even when things were a little scary, or even a lot scary!


When I was looking for pics there were about 10 of this exact shot of her holding a new-to-the-world Camo.  Guess she was a wee bit excited! Hopefully I picked one that you love Mom!


Every year she makes sure to get a pic with the kids, even if they are oblivious.  The memories are what matter!


I love that she watches my kids so I can shower uninterrupted.  They love her so much.  I love this blurry pic!  She later realized that the kids had gotten peanut butter on the lens!  It's all part of our crazy world!

Happy Birthday and Happy Mother's Day Mom!  I love you for all that you do for us!

Monday, April 4, 2016

Time Keeps on Slippin into the Future

For those of you now stuck with the Steve Miller Band song stuck in your head after reading the title, I am somewhat sorry, but it was what came to mind.  I did not mean to stretch out my posts to three months, but it has been C.R.A.Z.Y. at the Pope house.  I am hoping that going forward my posts will be a little more frequent!  Here is our first quarter of 2016 in review.


We finally sold our house in Sienna.  Everything always works out just as it was supposed to be, though the road is often uncertain.


It took 2 large moving trucks and a trailer to move us and all of our stuff to Katy.  It was definitely different with the kids this time, but our wonderful family helped watch them so that we could pack and move with minimal disruption to the Little Popes and Team Leader.  We love being closer to the Nutrition Nazi now!


This sweet little monkey turned 2 in February.  We somehow managed to have a wonderful party with our family and friends in the middle of packing!  The rule was everyone had to pack two boxes before they could have cake!  Just kidding I'm too Type A to let someone else pack my stuff!


I seriously don't know where the time is going and can't believe how big he is getting.


There is still no denying who this kid belongs to! 


He learned how to open gifts from his big brother, and with a little help from our friends ripped through them in no time!


Every year I try to get a pic of me holding them to show how they've grown, and this may be the last year for that.  He is so tall his legs will probably be at my knees next year!


Of course there is the camera switch and NN gets in on his own pic! 


Shortly after we moved into the new house there was a brutal ninja sword fight that NN got caught up in.  Just kidding!  He was playing with the Little Popes when Camo's teeth caught his forehead.  Ouch! 


The kids settled in nicely in Katy.  They love the parks!


They especially love to chase each other up the slide!


The Team Leader is loving our new patio!


The beginning of March brought us another trip to the Rodeo, and we actually went to the show this year.  Beforehand Camo had to sample some of the food in the midway!


Of course they loved the rides!  This was Camo's first year of eligibility in carnival rides!  Luckily he had Little Pope close by to ease his fears.


Surprisingly this sweet face loved the actual rodeo, especially the bull riding.


I love this photo of the amazement on his face.  He was so enamored with the fireworks show before the concert.  The concert was less impressive.


The end of March brought several days of Easter festivities, beginning with a soggy parade at school.


This was how things were going about halfway through all of our events.  Definitely not a good sign.


Camo did at least participate for a few minutes in the egg hunt.


Little Pope was really excited, though, the picture says otherwise!


Thank goodness Little Pope looks like his mama!  Camo is looking at his future in this pic!


At least one of my children was excited about their Easter basket!  She also learned a new trick...blending in with the new rug!


Every year she always has the most fun in the Easter egg hunt, though Camo is starting to jump on her train.


This one used up all his excitement in the days leading up to Easter.


Once they woke up I got a few smiles!


I guess this is Camo's way of telling me no more pics.


And just for grins I threw in this pic of their reaction to seeing me blow a bubble with gum for the first time.  They thought is was the funniest thing ever.  Luckily we 'ran out' of gum or otherwise my jaw would be beyond sore!