He finally has a name!

Update: They just named baby boy Jonah Bryant!

Congratulations Josh and Melissa!

Bryant and I are the proud Uncle and Aunt of a new nephew! Baby boy was born at 3 a.m. this morning and weighed 6 lbs. 12 oz. We are so incredibly excited, yet a little terrified for Josh and Melissa. They have two little boys just eighteen months apart - just like Josh and Bryant! LOOK OUT WORLD!

Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt 2008

We were so lucky to move into our neighborhood. We love it. Every Easter they have an Easter Egg Hunt with lots of arts and crafts for the kids to do. Arts and crafts are always a big hit with my girls.

Tag! I'm it!

I've been tagged again. (Sorry it took me so long, Jessie.) So here are 7 interesting (and I use the term loosely) facts about me. I have already been tagged one time, so I will see if I can come up with seven more.
1. I love to see people fall down. It is the funniest thing in the world to me. Sometimes my children or someone else that I love falls down, but I can't control myself. I literally have to laugh and then go and check on them once I have regained composure. This has been a problem for me since I can remember. Just ask my family. My mother has had to send me out of a doctor's office waiting room before for laughing at an old man for falling all the way across the room. That one still cracks me up. Terrible - I know, but I truly can't help it. Sometimes when I need a good laugh, I go to youtube and look up people falling down.
2. I always wanted to live on Alabama's Gulf Coast. It is so beautiful and I spent so much time there as a child with my grandparents. Bryant and I hope to retire there.
3. I was Homecoming Queen in Junior High and High School. I was never a cheerleader, but both of my sisters were, so I know all of the cheers. I almost went out for cheerleading a couple of times, but I just couldn't manage to summon up the courage. I was too afraid of rejection.
4. I hate it when Bryant's eyebrows are disheveled, or anyone's eyebrows are disheveled for that matter. Sometimes he exploits this pet peeve of mine by messing up his eyebrows and turning around and surprising me. I also am disgusted by cactus flowers. They look like warts to me. Bryant also exploits this pet peeve by exclaiming something like, "Look at that huge dog over there!" at which point I turn and discover, much to my chagrin, a wart-laden cactus.
5. I love to study dialects. I think it is fascinating to think about how an accent originated and how languages evolve. I love to guess where people are from after hearing them talk. My brother, Josh, also has a passion for this. He has a PhD in the romance languages. I love to speak Spanish with Bryant, and he loves it too because he gets a good laugh at my expense.
6. I talk in my sleep really loudly. I know that is surprising because I am usually so quiet. Yeah right! Poor Bryant gets awakened by my rantings all the time. I once was having a dream that I was at my parent's house and it was during the Civil War and we were being raided by Union forces. I was going on and on about them "stealing horses, beans, and what-not." My most recent episode occurred when I woke him up asking him if he was "bringin' the shotgun with us." Speaking of, I am a good shot, but not as good as my brother, Jacob, who is the alpha sniper for a swat team in Utah. At any rate, Bryant has not yet figured out a way to exploit this habit of mine, although I am sure he will in due time. Bryant is also a sure shot. Right after we were married, he impressed me by shooting a hornet's nest down by it's small stem from 20 or 30 yards away with just one shot. I knew I had married the right man. He is hot. I love his goatee, but I digress.
7. I am a member of Phi Alpha Theta, which is History Honor Society. Bryant quickly found a way to exploit this. He would go to my meetings with me so that he could gawk at and later make fun of us history nerds. He is so supportive of me.

All of this was incredibly fascinating to you - I know! So, I am tagging Rayel, Melissa, Caroline, Natalie, Alaina, Arah, Michelle, and Amanda.

Skyler's Field Day

Boy are we busy! Skyler really enjoyed her field day yesterday. She is very athletic. She obviously gets that from Bryant.

Sibley's Music Concert

Today Sibley's Kindergarten class had their Spring Music Concert. It was very cute, and we were so proud of our little flower, Sibley. She did a great job and had a fantastic time too!

The Best Daddy

Our elementary school had a western themed daddy-daughter dance, so Bryant took the girls. They had a great time and gave mama a little break too! Bryant is such a great dad. He is so involved and is great about playing with the girls and making all of us laugh. We are so lucky to have him. We realized this on Friday when he had to fly to San Francisco for work. It was only for a day, but we missed him so much. We thought we'd get our minds off of him by going to watch a movie, but that was a big mistake. We went to see College Road Trip, which is all about a daughter and daddy!

Picacho Peak Battle Reinactment

Today the Bryant Slade family headed south to Picacho Peak for the annual battle reinactment. It was a beautiful sunny day with just enough breeze to keep us comfortable. As you can see from the pictures, we had lots of fun hiking and exploring caves near the campsites. Every year the participants reinact three different battles that took place in the New Mexico Territory during the Civil War. (The one that occured at Picacho Peak was actually more of a skirmish than a battle.) The one we saw reinacted today was the Battle of Glorietta Pass. The other battle that took place in the New Mexico Territory was the Battle of Valverde. You'll never guess the name of the Confederate General that commanded the Texans in the Battle of Valverde - General Sibley! We even found a Sibley tent and had the girls pose for a picture. (The Sibley tents are the ones that look like teepees.) It was very interesting for me to see a battle reinactment in the West. The other battlefields and reinactments I have visited were all in the Southeast. I thought about how the soldiers would have had to adapt their tactics, diets, and everything else to the foreign desert environment. I'm sure the lack of water was especially tough on them. On the other hand, the snipers and scouts had lots of great vantage points to choose from.

Skyler's 4th grade music recital

(Skyler is on the left, hiding underneath her hat.)

Dear sweet Skyler,

We don't mean to toot our own horn, but you are so pretty, smart, and talented, and we are incredibly lucky to have you in our family!

Love,

Mama, Daddy, and Sibley

DINO DIG!

They had a dinosaur dig at the park by our library this afternoon, so I took my girls and my scouts. As you can see, they dug right in and had a great time! Sibley, who is an amateur rock hound, would find a rock and dust it off with her special brush just as she would a precious prehistoric dinosaur bone. Coming soon: Skyler's 4th grade music concert!

One reason to love Arizona

It is only March 1st and the girls are swimming! Can you believe it? It is still way too cold for me, but it doesn't seem to be bothering them. To each his/her own.