sweet lucy.

one thing i will miss about texas is good BBQ.

mmm.

last week the professor and i travelled a bit out of town to a little drive thru place called Sweet Lucy.

it was SOO good.

(especially the ribs)

yup.  i think i'm going to miss this.

maybe oregon will have drive-thru seafood...

snow.

i LOVE Texas weather.
yesterday, we were doing this...

and Saturday, we were doing this...

it's cold here today.

Last night i cooked the BEST chicken and dumpling soup in the WHOLE world.

(it's pioneer woman's chicken and dumpling recipe- here)

easy and SO GOOD.

especially with a thick piece of homemade bread... and a quilt on your lap... and snow out your window.

mmm.  i just ate the last of it for breakfast.

drew said, "mom, snow isn't as fun as i remember it." 

i laughed.

and i TOTALLY agree.

give me 75 degree weather the end of January any day!

i LOVE Texas.

and, since it only snows once every two years or so, i guess i'm ok with the snow.

we did get a snow day yesterday!!

widows welcome.

luckily we felt inside jakob's shoe BEFORE he put his foot into it.

can you believe there was a BLACK WIDOW spider inside??
ughhh!!!
Texas has bugs.
BIG bugs.
They're NASTY and sometimes dangerous...
the professor stepped on a scorpian in our BEDROOM.
(we live in new construction... on what used to be a cotton field...)

maybe tomorrow, just check before you slide into those old tennies.
or don't.
you may become good friends with an old widow.

cotton field.

This is our last fall in Lubbock. 
And, every year I dream of pictures in the cotton fields.
I LOVE COTTON FIELDS.

 they are fields of huge "cotton balls"... just like the ones you wipe your makeup off with, only bigger.

this afternoon i drove by my favorite field and noticed that the field across the street was already stripped.
i knew it was now or never.
so, i picked my kids up from school, put them in semi matching attire, called my friend rachel who graciously agreed to be our photographer, and loaded up the car...
the professor was not too excited about invading someone's field.
but, he complied, because he loves me.

i love these pictures.
they aren't perfection... 6 kids makes perfection difficult to achieve...
but, they are perfect for this time in our lives.

and, definitely cotton.

 Texas, we will miss you!!

this was the real live sunset in Lubbock... i took it on our way home, out of my window...  oh, lubbock skies.

it's that time of year... the professor is applying for teaching positions at universities across the country.
oklahoma.
oregon.
south carolina.
kansas.
iowa.
some in texas.
and this is only the beginning...

i love this country.
i know i can be happy anywhere.
but I HATE transition, change, saying goodbye.
i feel like we will be saying good bye for a year.
i try not to think about it, but it is there.
seeping into my thoughts.
i forbid myself from looking at university websites or real estate sites, until we have an actual offer.

but... i do find myself ALMOST looking.

{i took these pictures out of my car window on Saturday... we were driving back from Post- about 40 minutes outside Lubbock.  have i told you lately that i really love lubbock?}

new heights.

the professor and the boys went on a two-night camping trip with the boyscouts.
i was a bit nervous for them... they were by far the youngest there... and, there was a BIG hike.
the BIGGEST mountain in Texas.
yes.  they DO have mountains in Texas...
Mount Guadeloupe.
9000 ft high!!

i love camp-outs.
i love boy scouts.
i love that my boys have a dad that is an eagle scout.
i love that he takes them camping.
i love that he is so proud that his tent was staked so well it didn't blow over.
i love texas scenery... so different from my virginia roots.
i love that my boys are tuff.  they did it.  9 miles (4.5 up-hill, 4.5 down-hill).
i love that the professor DIED... even though he's been a diligent exerciser... it's always good to be reminded of our age.  :)
i love that they got caught in a 60 mile per hour wind storm (i try to tell west texan's that in the rest of the world, wind mph's are NOT part of the weather report... i'm not sure that they believe me.)
i love that they woke up to SNOW.
builds memories.
and, builds good, strong boys.


[here at home we had a rockin' st. patty's day party- a day late, and watched Shirley Temple's Little Princess, while wearing green wigs.  come to find out, green hair is a VERY important part of a st. patty's day party...  that builds sweet, sensitive, tap-dancing girls- who will someday hike guadeloupe peak. :)]

no giraffes.

on leah's special day we headed to the pet store.
actually, we went to TWO pet stores.
they LOVE us at the pet store.
leah was so excited she talked for DAYS about all the animals we would hold.  she was SURE that we would NOT hold giraffes because they are scary.  (who's afraid of a giraffe?)

at the mall we held puppies and swam with the fish
and at our favorite WALTER'S WORLD OF PETS, we held baby bunnies, got attacked by dogs (no not really), and saw snakes, possums, and other animals heading to zoos...
i love the dialog
"this bunny is just like scampers."
"scampers died."
"he was hard like a rock"
"yeah, i miss scampers."
"and snow, snow was so cute."
"we don't know where snow is."
"she's probably dead too."
"yeah"
"yeah, she probably got eaten or something."
...
"mom, please can we buy another bunny?"

no trip to Walter's would be complete without special pastry treats.
this time, we choose the mouth watering, charming in it's own way, Donut Depot.

dogs and donuts.
what a divine day.
see... i'm still smiling!