Shopped Until I Dropped


Literally, I shopped until I dropped.  Have you ever been to Canton, Texas for trade days?  If so, OH. MY. GOODNESS. If you haven't- go there.  Seriously get out your calendar.  Look at  next month and put your finger on the first Monday.  The weekend right before it- that's your weekend to shop. 


My friend, "The Fashionista,"  and I headed to Canton on Thursday night.  We drove, drove, and then drove some more.  On Friday morning we woke up and headed out.  We had no idea what to expect.  We were shocked and over whelmed.  But we quickly got out our cash and credit cards and took control of the situation.  There was so much stuff!  Great stuff, one of a kind stuff, and stuff that looked like came from the world's worst garage sale. 


One of the best parts was all of the people the Fashionista and I got to experience.  My favorite lady had a dog stroller decorated for Christmas with tinsel, two small dogs wearing matching frocks, and of course she was wearing a matching poncho.  I love to get cute bandannas for my dogs, but really?  There was a line and that lady clearly jumped over it.  We encountered a few obnoxious Longhorn fans.  Yes, we were wearing OU sweatshirts - it was cold.  We were clearly shopping and not wanting to discuss football.  Come on people.  We also met a very nice man who can't distinguish between red and green and another who would like to see Nebraska and OU return to the "glory days."


The HIGHLIGHT of my trip though, was the crepe.  Hands down. Every bite I took was a slice of Heaven blessing my tongue.  It was divine.  All in all it was a great trip.  The Fashionista and I had so much fun and laughed until our stomachs hurt.  There were a few missed exits and turns made along the way but when you are having fun- who cares?


This momma needed a weekend and I couldn't have dreamed up a better one.  Canton, Texas, I am coming back- prepare yourself!

Thankful

I have so much to be thankful for.  A wonderful husband, two healthy children, a loving family, a home, friends, and the list goes on and on. 

But last week, the most amazing thing happened to me.  I was sitting in the teacher's lounge when another teacher looked at me and said, "We should talk."   We sat together in her classroom and talked for about 45 minutes.  This may not seem amazing to you but to me it was life changing.  She has walked my road.  Her first words to me were, "My son has Sensory Processing Disorder."  Today, her son is married and has a very successful career as an attorney.  Her words were encouraging, hopeful, and empowering.


She made a great analogy for me to use when describing the Movie Critic to other people.  Most people walk on a 6 line highway and when a washing machine falls off of a truck we can just go around it.  The Movie Critic walks on a 2 x 4 plank and when a pebble falls in front of him he can't just go around it.  It makes sense.  So today, for example, when a rock fell in front of him- we got through it together and moved on.  All the while I heard her voice in my head telling me about her son.  


I am thankful for many things but mostly for people who reach out to others.

"Special"


I have always considered myself blessed and I am.  I am happily married to a wonderful man and have two amazing children.  I have the life I imagined when I was in middle school.  I can't imagine my life any other way. This blog is entitled Blessed with Boys and I am truly blessed with my boys, Lego Builder and Movie Critic.

I feel an urgency to write about my Movie Critic. You see he has always been a bit of a firecracker.  His preschool teachers described him as "All Boy."  In the back of my mind I always thought there was something else going on with him.  My suspicions were confirmed in Kindergarten.  It has been a journey filled with new experiences and terms.  ADHD and Sensory Integration Disorder are part of our everyday vocabulary.  The Movie Critic has specialists he sees and therapy to attend weekly.  We confer, we talk, we learn, and most importantly we love.  He is more than a disorder. He is a sweet, smart, funny, inquisitive, faithful little boy. Every obstacle he faces he does so with bravery.  I am so proud of him.


The Movie Critic has challenged me and because of that I am a better mother.  

My First Time

I have discovered that I really enjoy reading other peoples blogs.  I check them everyday- you might say I am a bit obsessed.  So I have decided to take the plunge and blog (this is also a great distraction from grading papers). I also LOVE to write and this is a great outlet for me.  I just hope someone reads it! HA!

About 12 years ago I married the love of my life, The Sooner Fan.  We were blessed with our sweet boy # 1, Lego Guy, and 28 months later sweet boy #2, Movie Man. The boys are ages 8 and 6 and keep The Sooner Fan and I on our toes.

For example, we just returned home from a short spring break vacation to the Great Wolf Lodge.  It was so much fun and I highly recommend it to any family.  At every opportunity lego guy would pounce on movie man, put him in a head lock, and scream noogie at the top of his lungs.  There was no consequence we could think of that outweighed the sheer joy he was getting torturing his brother.  Needless to say, this happened several times.  The Sooner Fan and I were completely amazed that there was not retaliation.  We kept waiting. Nothing ever happened.  The noogies stopped.  We thought we were done.

Little did we know that movie man was plotting and waiting for the best time to stage a sneak attack.  It happened this afternoon while both of them were relaxing together on the bottom bunk watching a movie.  The next thing Sooner Fan and I hear is a blood curdling scream for their room.  Did I mention lego guy has a flair for the dramatic?  It seems as if movie man found the perfect opportunity to seek revenge.  He took my old cell phone and hurled it at lego guy hitting him in the ear.  Lego guy freaked out.  Movie man did not throw a fit when put in time out.  6 minutes later they were back on the bottom bunk watching the movie again.  All was right in the world.

I am so thankful the God blessed me with a sense of humor- otherwise I think I might go nuts!