We went on a family vacation!!! This was so very exciting because we had had a very difficult weekend and I was away from the kids a lot, so it was nice to be together for a few days. I can't say vacationing with 4 young children is relaxing, but it was still nice.
We visited the Great Wolf Lodge - a resort with an indoor waterpark that caters to young children. Besides the waterpark, the resort has a few restaurants, ice cream shop, Starbucks, swim shop, gift shop, arcade, teen room, crafts room, build-your-own-stuffed-animal place, spa, kids' spa with mani/pedi's, storytime in the lobby, shows in the lobby, and MagiQuest. MagiQuest was as much fun for Andy as the waterpark. Colin had fun waving his wand around, but it was all a little over his head. In MagiQuest, you buy a magic wand and follow a little guide book as you go on quests and adventures throughout all 8 floors of the hotel. There are pictures, treasures chests, animals, pretty much anything, that you can wave your wand at and they open, or say something, or light up, or do something to make you think you've done magic. At the end, if you've completed all the adventures, you get to fight some animated dragon. We didn't make it that far, but the boys still had fun.
It was a little difficult in the waterpark because Colin wasn't tall enough to ride the big rides, so we took turns taking Andy on the big waterslides while the other one stayed with the little 3 in the kids' pool. That was difficult because it was one adult with 3 children who of course ran in 3 different directions. We still had a good time though.
Oh yes, our room was one of the best parts. We stayed in what was known as the "Kid Kamp" suite - meaning it had bunk beds for the boys. This was a huge hit and all 4 kids had fun climbing all over the beds. It's the little things, you know!
I would highly recommend the place, but I think we'll wait to go back until the kids are a little older and a little taller so we have more freedom to ride everything. Hope you enjoy the pictures!
Monday, July 27, 2009
My Dad
In the midst of a pool party with 10 young children in my backyard, I received the very difficult phone call that my dad was dying. Though I knew all morning that it would be coming soon, it was still a shock. I am forever thankful for my best friends who were so understanding as I left them in my house with Ryan and Elizabeth so I could be with my mom and sisters at his bedside. If you know anything about me, you probably know how close I am to my family, so you'll understand why it was so important to us that we all be there when he died. It was very peaceful and a very precious moment in my life. Though we are all saddened by his death, we are comforted in the knowledge that he is in a better place and his body is finally healed. We know he is in heaven and we'll be with him again one day.
I don't really know what I'll miss the most about him. But I know I miss his comforting presence, his wonderful sense of humor, and how much fun we had together as a family. It saddens me that my children never really knew him, as Andy was only 14 months when he had his stroke and the others born after that. But I know I have many memories to share with them. I don't really know what else to say, so here's the obituary from the paper.
Richard " Bud" Marshall, 67, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, July 16th, 2009. He died 5 years to the day after suffering a hemorrhagic stroke. He was born in Carthage, Texas on September 12, 1941 to Charles and Laura Marshall, who preceded him in death. He attended Baylor University and graduated from Stephen F. Austin University. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in 1965, where he won a Championship under the leadership of Coach Vince Lombardi. He went on to play with other NFL teams, including the Houston Oilers.
Bud is survived by his wife of 45 years, Kay Morgan Marshall, his daughters, Jennifer Marshall Milholland and husband Bob, Kelly Marshall Cook and husband Lance, Kim Marshall Baggett and husband Jeff, and Lisa Marshall Graham and husband Kyle. He is also survived by his brother, Mike Marshall of Carthage, Texas. He took great pride in his 14 grandchildren: Kaytlin, Kathryn, Melaina, Morgan, Ben, Jackson, Andy, Claire, Colin, Micah, Elizabeth, Ryan, Shane and Sarah.
The family will receive visitors at Rosewood Funeral Home on Friday. July 17, 2009 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm. Services will be held on Saturday, July 18, 2009 at 10:00 am at Rosewood Funeral Home, 3939 Pasadena Blvd., with interment to follow at Forest Park Lawndale. Dr. Charles Redmond will officiate.
A special thank you to the staff at San Jacinto Manor for the continuous devotion and care that they showed to Mr. Marshall and his family over the last few years. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the building fund for First Baptist Church 7500 Fairmont Pkwy. Pasadena, TX 77505 or online at www. fbp.org. Words of comfort may be shared with the family at www.rosewood.cc. under current services.
I don't really know what I'll miss the most about him. But I know I miss his comforting presence, his wonderful sense of humor, and how much fun we had together as a family. It saddens me that my children never really knew him, as Andy was only 14 months when he had his stroke and the others born after that. But I know I have many memories to share with them. I don't really know what else to say, so here's the obituary from the paper.
Richard " Bud" Marshall, 67, went to be with the Lord on Thursday, July 16th, 2009. He died 5 years to the day after suffering a hemorrhagic stroke. He was born in Carthage, Texas on September 12, 1941 to Charles and Laura Marshall, who preceded him in death. He attended Baylor University and graduated from Stephen F. Austin University. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in 1965, where he won a Championship under the leadership of Coach Vince Lombardi. He went on to play with other NFL teams, including the Houston Oilers.
Bud is survived by his wife of 45 years, Kay Morgan Marshall, his daughters, Jennifer Marshall Milholland and husband Bob, Kelly Marshall Cook and husband Lance, Kim Marshall Baggett and husband Jeff, and Lisa Marshall Graham and husband Kyle. He is also survived by his brother, Mike Marshall of Carthage, Texas. He took great pride in his 14 grandchildren: Kaytlin, Kathryn, Melaina, Morgan, Ben, Jackson, Andy, Claire, Colin, Micah, Elizabeth, Ryan, Shane and Sarah.
The family will receive visitors at Rosewood Funeral Home on Friday. July 17, 2009 from 6:00 - 8:00 pm. Services will be held on Saturday, July 18, 2009 at 10:00 am at Rosewood Funeral Home, 3939 Pasadena Blvd., with interment to follow at Forest Park Lawndale. Dr. Charles Redmond will officiate.
A special thank you to the staff at San Jacinto Manor for the continuous devotion and care that they showed to Mr. Marshall and his family over the last few years. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the building fund for First Baptist Church 7500 Fairmont Pkwy. Pasadena, TX 77505 or online at www. fbp.org. Words of comfort may be shared with the family at www.rosewood.cc. under current services.
A Whole Lotta Kids!
A few weeks ago, my college roommate Jill came to visit us with her 3 kids. We were very excited about her visit and the boys had thought of lots of fun things to do with Julia, Samuel, and Caroline. Unfortunately, the visit did not turn out quite like we planned, so we'll have to try again next year. But we had a great time with them during their (too short) stay.
On the first day of their visit, the kids got to know each other, they played for a long time by themselves in the playroom, we walked to the park, we had pizza and ice cream sandwiches, and we survived bathtime and bedtime with 7 children in the house! We were proud.
The next day, our wonderful friends Sarah & Erika brought their children (3 boys total) out to visit us and we had a swimming party. While we've talked a lot about our kids to each other, we never get to spend much time together, so it was fun to introduce the kids and see them interact. It was a little crazy with 10 children in the pool, only one of which was able to swim by himself without any type of floatation device. Just so you know, we had one 6 year old, one 4 year old, one almost 4 year old, two almost 3 year olds, one 2 year old, and four one year olds. Whew! That makes me tired just thinking back on it! It was comical to watch the sunscreen and pool preparations, then the chaos of lunch, but we all had a great time!
Unfortunately, I got called away because of my dad and took Andy and Colin with me. I am forever grateful to Jill, Erika, and Sarah for being so understanding as I walked out the door and left them with my 2 screaming cupcake-covered twins. I knew Ryan and Elizabeth would be perfectly fine and would calm down soon after I left, but I was a little worried about my friends' ears because of the ear-piercing shrieks! :) While I was sad to leave the party so soon, I was happy to see everyone and glad they got to visit each other longer. Girls, I guess we'll just have to do it again soon!
Jill was planning to stay until Saturday but left on Friday instead because of everything going on at our house. It was a little crazy on Thursday! Not only was that the day my dad passed away, but Jill's car had to be towed because it was leaking oil, we had to hitch a ride with my brother-in-law to go anywhere because we had too many kids to fit into one car and Kyle was out of town with our other car, and my nephew had to be taken to the emergency room that night because he pulled a glass bowl off a counter, sliced open his thigh, and needed stiches. Then, while I was doing funeral preparations all day Friday, Jill was stuck in the house with Kyle and all 7 kids while she waited for her car to be fixed and returned to her. All ended well and she and Kyle both made it through the crazy day. Jill, next year's visit will be better and less eventful!! (we hope!)
Click here to see all the pictures!
On the first day of their visit, the kids got to know each other, they played for a long time by themselves in the playroom, we walked to the park, we had pizza and ice cream sandwiches, and we survived bathtime and bedtime with 7 children in the house! We were proud.
The next day, our wonderful friends Sarah & Erika brought their children (3 boys total) out to visit us and we had a swimming party. While we've talked a lot about our kids to each other, we never get to spend much time together, so it was fun to introduce the kids and see them interact. It was a little crazy with 10 children in the pool, only one of which was able to swim by himself without any type of floatation device. Just so you know, we had one 6 year old, one 4 year old, one almost 4 year old, two almost 3 year olds, one 2 year old, and four one year olds. Whew! That makes me tired just thinking back on it! It was comical to watch the sunscreen and pool preparations, then the chaos of lunch, but we all had a great time!
Unfortunately, I got called away because of my dad and took Andy and Colin with me. I am forever grateful to Jill, Erika, and Sarah for being so understanding as I walked out the door and left them with my 2 screaming cupcake-covered twins. I knew Ryan and Elizabeth would be perfectly fine and would calm down soon after I left, but I was a little worried about my friends' ears because of the ear-piercing shrieks! :) While I was sad to leave the party so soon, I was happy to see everyone and glad they got to visit each other longer. Girls, I guess we'll just have to do it again soon!
Jill was planning to stay until Saturday but left on Friday instead because of everything going on at our house. It was a little crazy on Thursday! Not only was that the day my dad passed away, but Jill's car had to be towed because it was leaking oil, we had to hitch a ride with my brother-in-law to go anywhere because we had too many kids to fit into one car and Kyle was out of town with our other car, and my nephew had to be taken to the emergency room that night because he pulled a glass bowl off a counter, sliced open his thigh, and needed stiches. Then, while I was doing funeral preparations all day Friday, Jill was stuck in the house with Kyle and all 7 kids while she waited for her car to be fixed and returned to her. All ended well and she and Kyle both made it through the crazy day. Jill, next year's visit will be better and less eventful!! (we hope!)
Click here to see all the pictures!
Funny Things My Kids Say
Inspired by my friend Sarah, I decided to record funny things my kids say so I can remember them when they're grown. So this post is about Colin - the one we can always count on to be funny when he doesn't mean to be. Tonight I had a bad headache and Colin asked, "Does your head hurt because you talk so much?" Thanks.
And as you know, my dad passed away a few weeks ago. I was talking about it with the boys and told them that Papa died because he was very sick and now he was living with Jesus. With a very serious and sad face, Colin asked, "Did Papa throw up?" I guess in his little world, it doesn't get any worse than throwing up! He brought lots of humor to a very sad day.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Picture Time
I decided this week that the kids needed their pictures made. What was I thinking??! Actually, some of them turned out really cute, especially the individual shots. There was never a good group photo where everyone was sitting where they should have been and being still, but we still got some cute ones. Thankfully, neither Kyle nor I are perfectionists, so we didn't really care that the kids aren't posed great in the group shot. Seriously, what can you expect with 4 young kids? We also learned that when you have 2 timid 18-month olds, photo shoots are nearly impossible. So after Elizabeth and Ryan stopped screaming and crying because we expected them to get out of our laps in an unfamiliar place, this is what we got.......
How cute are they?!
Elizabeth and Ryan are still sharing a crib. They sometimes fight over blankets and their little puppy dogs and they occasionally keep each other awake but every time I think about separating them, I walk in to see this. I think they're adorable and should stay together. What do you think?
The summer is flying by!
I would apologize for the length of time between my blog posts, but I warned you early on that I'm an excellent procrastinator and have trouble following through on tasks. That being said, here's what we've been up to so far in July.......
We went to our church's July 4th event to celebrate Independence Day. They had a small train ride,
moonwalks, 
camel and pony rides, 
lots and lots of food, a small concert, and then the city fireworks. (Sorry, there are no pictures of Ryan. He was off playing with my niece for awhile, so he must have missed picture-taking time.) The kids loved it, of course! We always enjoy sitting outside with friends and family to watch the fireworks.
The weather here has been so miserably hot that we try to spend lots of time in the pool or indoors. So we've been to the nearby beach-entry pool the kids enjoy and had friends over to swim in the backyard with us. The kids get more comfortable in the water each time. Andy can now swim underwater and likes to swim between our legs.
Colin still has trouble remembering to move his arms and legs at the same time, but he's trying. 
Ryan still loves the water and Elizabeth is actually enjoying it more.
I had the fun of enjoying a Girls' Night Out recently with some good friends.
This past week was fairly eventful for us. Kyle's car died while he was driving to work one day, so we got to make a trip across town to get him. A new timing belt and $1200 later, it's running great again. So far, at least. We also learned that Andy will be having surgery in early August to repair an inguinal hernia. It's a minor procedure and should only take half an hour, but he still must be put under general anesthesia. I'm not really worried about the actual surgery, but because I'm his mother, I just don't want him to hurt or be scared. So I admit I'm a little nervous.
But we have lots to look forward to as well! This next week, my college roommate, Jill, is coming to spend a few days with us and bringing her 3 children. So we're excited about having them to play with and getting to know the kids better. And two other college friends are coming to join us one morning for a pool party! I'm very excited about this next week!
The following week we're taking a little family vacation to Great Wolf Lodge, a hotel/waterpark that's completely geared towards children. Reports from friends say it's lots of fun, so we're looking forward to trying it out!
That's all I have for now. Hope everyone is having a fun summer and staying cool!
We went to our church's July 4th event to celebrate Independence Day. They had a small train ride,
moonwalks, 
camel and pony rides, 
lots and lots of food, a small concert, and then the city fireworks. (Sorry, there are no pictures of Ryan. He was off playing with my niece for awhile, so he must have missed picture-taking time.) The kids loved it, of course! We always enjoy sitting outside with friends and family to watch the fireworks. The weather here has been so miserably hot that we try to spend lots of time in the pool or indoors. So we've been to the nearby beach-entry pool the kids enjoy and had friends over to swim in the backyard with us. The kids get more comfortable in the water each time. Andy can now swim underwater and likes to swim between our legs.
Colin still has trouble remembering to move his arms and legs at the same time, but he's trying. 
Ryan still loves the water and Elizabeth is actually enjoying it more.
I had the fun of enjoying a Girls' Night Out recently with some good friends.
This past week was fairly eventful for us. Kyle's car died while he was driving to work one day, so we got to make a trip across town to get him. A new timing belt and $1200 later, it's running great again. So far, at least. We also learned that Andy will be having surgery in early August to repair an inguinal hernia. It's a minor procedure and should only take half an hour, but he still must be put under general anesthesia. I'm not really worried about the actual surgery, but because I'm his mother, I just don't want him to hurt or be scared. So I admit I'm a little nervous.
But we have lots to look forward to as well! This next week, my college roommate, Jill, is coming to spend a few days with us and bringing her 3 children. So we're excited about having them to play with and getting to know the kids better. And two other college friends are coming to join us one morning for a pool party! I'm very excited about this next week!
The following week we're taking a little family vacation to Great Wolf Lodge, a hotel/waterpark that's completely geared towards children. Reports from friends say it's lots of fun, so we're looking forward to trying it out!
That's all I have for now. Hope everyone is having a fun summer and staying cool!
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