Beaming

I usually downplay situations or accomplishments because I'm not real big on attention. I know some of you are saying, "Yeah. Right." But, in my own mind, at least, I don't like coming across as a "Look at me!" or "Look at us!" kind of person.

However, this past weekend deserves some serious merit. So I am putting the usual discomfort aside and saying....

Look at us!

We did it!

I say "we" because trekking into the unknown involved more than one person here. This was the whole reason we took off for Texas.
Jacob graduated from SMU Dedman School of Law on Saturday, May 16. He even graduated Cum Laude.

I'm so proud of him. So proud.

Plus, he got to wear a really fun hat.

The last three years were a giant leap of faith, and one that we knew was right. We've discovered so much about ourselves during this process and learned really how much our Heavenly Father looks after us and makes things possible when we rely on Him.

Also, thank you to family and friends who have provided so much love and support.

Here is a video clip of Jake getting hooded. When he told me a while back that he would be hooded at graduation, I pictured something completely awesome.... like a dementor cape. I amused myself with all kinds of images in my head. Well, it was still awesome but in a very different and much more subtle way.

For anyone who doesn't know what comes next....

Jake just started his Bar Exam prep course which will last into mid July. I'll also have the baby sometime mid July. Then he will take the exam at the end of July. He is only taking the Texas Bar. There is no question that this is where we are supposed to be for now, and we're happy about it. Jake starts working for a great firm in Dallas in August --we feel extremely fortunate.

And then, sometime in the fall we'd like to get a vehicle with working A/C, doesn't shake when it goes over 60, and has a little more space. It just might happen.

Tap, tap, tap.

After waking several times during the night, I'm convinced I'm carrying the next Gregory Hines.

Photo c/o Sneaky Russian on Flickr.

Milk

Plain, with chocolatey Ovaltine , or on cereal...

Oh, how I love it.

I think I'm breaking records with how much I'm downing.

.

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PS For a possible future reference... where does one get maternity pants that don't fall down and sag? I'm forever hitching.

Photo: courtesy of Frank_F. on Flickr.

Easter

Okay. My turn to post about Easter. We did the Easter Bunny basket thing on Saturday morning.

I got her hair out of her face for breakfast (thus the crazy loop), ate, and then afterward we had her try on the swimsuit the Easter Bunny brought her. She felt like hot stuff. This is my favorite diva pose to date. "Mmm hmm. That's what I thought."

We colored eggs on Saturday night.

Headed to church on Sunday...

And we had an Easter egg hunt with friends that evening.

Now I know why we always do the real eggs instead of plastic eggs with candy in them. I've never seen the kid on a sugar rush like I did when we got home that night. Jake and I both made ourselves sick eating too much sugar (gotta love Easter mixed with no self control), and I'm pretty sure Tessa ate her weight in it. She could have powered a small town with the energy she was expending. I could still hear her talking to herself an hour after she'd gone to bed.
She had to borrow a bigger basket than the one she brought mid-hunt. Fifty-eight eggs is a lot for three little girls. :)

Good Friday

This was the third year in a row we have gone to a zoo on Good Friday. I'm liking this tradition.
We met Dan, Michelle, and little Jacob there and had such a nice time with them. I should have gotten a picture of them too, but I'm lucky if I remember to pull out the camera at all when we're out and about. It was a beautiful day. Too bad the elephant was MIA.

Not bad. Not bad at all.

So, you know how I'm taking forever to put Tessa's big girl room together? Well, I'm almost there. I finished one project last night that gave me the idea for her room in the first place. This would be finishing the pictures I wanted to hang. First of all, this was my first time using Mod Podge --which is awesome. A good friend of mine just completed a great Mod Podge project and posted it as well: a girl's bow holder. Let's face it, Liz, those who haven't discovered the fun of this glue/sealer should.

This is how it started: Jake's parents gave us a really fun calendar for Christmas. It has beautiful depictions of fairy tales and nursery rhymes. I thought, "These pictures would be great for a kid's room." So, this was the direction I decided to go with Tessa's nursery graduation. I asked around about what people thought I could do. Custom framing? Holy cow, no. NOT in the budget. I wanted at least six. I could have chopped and fit to size into cheaper frames, but nah, not when Dianna gave me another idea. Wood boards and Mod Podge.

1. First we went to Home Depot and picked out a big pressed wood board (3/8" thick). We had the worker guy cut it down into the sizes that we wanted (1/2" smaller on each side than the calendar picture). We also picked up some sawtooth hangers so we can hang the pictures. This all totalled around $9.00.

2. Then, at the craft store, we picked up some brown acryllic paint, a foam brush, and matte finish Mod Podge. (Total around $7.50.)

3. I sanded the sides of the wood boards and then painted them brown since centering the pictures (esp. with the top calendar holes) wouldn't result in the side edges being completely covered.

4. Then, I cut out the six pictures from the calendar (free, thanks to the in-laws), glued them to the boards using the Mod Podge, smoothed it out the best I could, folded the pictures around the sides of the wood, and double layered the Mod Podge on top of the pictures.

5. They dried relatively quickly, and now we just need to put the sawtooth hangers on back. I'm very pleased with them! Now, like any project I do, if you come over and see them, please don't look closely. I tried my best to smooth out the bubbles, but they aren't perfect. However, they were made with love, I figure, and the kid would never notice the difference. And HOORAY for an awesomely cheap project.

I've got a couple more things I want to do in her room, and then I'm done. Then I have to move on to baby boy's room. I've got no ideas. If you do, please share.

You feel like a million bucks when...

your two year old tells you the peanut butter and honey sandwich you made for her is "delicious".