Thankful Thursday

 Today I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for my parents, brothers and sister, grandparents,aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, in-laws, husband and daughters. The Lord has given me a wonderful family and a wonderful second family with the Liesers. I am thankful that the Lord placed Jared and I in christian families and that we were able to grow up knowing that Jesus loves us and the importance of having a relationship with him. I am thankful that God brought Jared and my families together and that the girls will be brought up as we were.  I am so thankful the girls will grow up knowing how important family and the love of a family is.

I am thankful for sisters. I am thankful for my sister and know that if I ever needed anything she would be there for me. Claire and Quinn love each other so much and they are such good friends. They take care of one another and will look out for the other. I am thankful for their friendship and their love towards one another even this young. I am thankful that they are sisters and that they will always have each other.

I am thankful for friends. I must admit I don't have many but the ones I do have I truly treasure. I especially cherish the ones that have lasted over the years and even though we only talk once a year I know that nothing has changed and that we could pick up where we left off. I am thankful for godly friends that give me godly advice and  encouragement. Amazing!

Oklahoma Earthquakes 2011

On November 5th at 2:12 am the girls slept through their first ever earthquake in Tulsa, OK. It was registered at a 4.7. It woke Jared, the dog, and I up...Jared told me it was probably a very strong wind and we went back to sleep only to hear the next morning it was a quake. We had no idea since we had never been through an earthquake. Tonight, still November 5th, at 10:53 p.m. the girls slept through their second earthquake. (after shock?) Jared and I were awake for this one that registered at 5.6. The after shocks have been going on all day we just couldn't feel them. I have to admit I was a little freaked out by the last one. It lasted a minute or so which felt like forever and I wasn't sure what to do. Who knew that we would experience this in Oklahoma. Girls you will never remember it but it's true.

Thankful Thursday

One of my friends did this on her blog last year for the month of November and I loved it. Thanks Desiree for the idea, I am now stealing it from you. :)

As I write this I am getting over being sick with a horrible stomach bug so I am first off thankful for Jared.  He didn't go to work yesterday or this morning to take care of the girls and myself. I know I couldn't have made it without him. I honestly don't know how single moms or moms that have  husbands that can't get off work do it. Claire was also sick yesterday and he took really good care of her. He cleaned the house and made all the meals. He even went to the store to buy me sprite. I have it good I tell you. The best part is that the girls saw their daddy taking care of me and loving me.I am thankful that he is there for me for better or for worse and that he is a good example to our girls.

"The greatest thing a father can do for his daughter is to love her mother". Elaine S. Dalton

Without Power

We have finally seen some rain the past couple of days. It was so wonderful and an answer to prayer...we needed to cool off. Last night the storms brought along power outages for parts of Tulsa. We were part of that. We lost power for about an hour. It was right after we got the girls out of the bath, thank goodness not while they were in the bath. They would have flipped out. Trying to explain to Claire the lights didn't work and that we would not be watching 1 Curious George before bed was difficult. The girls did think daddy was pretty cool reading their bedtime book with a flashlight. Once the girls were in bed the power came back on. Twenty minutes later a loud whoosh and firecracker sound came from our back yard. The green box in the corner of the yard that holds electrical stuff for OG&E had black plumes of smoke coming out of it. We tried calling OG&E and when all we got was a recording we called the fire department on their non-emergency line to see what we should do. They felt they needed to come and a few minutes later we heard the sirens and saw the flashing lights. So did all the neighbors. I think Jared talked to neighbors he has never even met before. The firemen looked it over and called OG&E whom said they would be on their way. The firemen told us they would wait in the firetruck out front until the electric company arrived. We thanked them and as Jared talked to all the neighbors I came in and read a book with a book light. (I have not had time to read a book in forever) We had called the fire department at 8:30 p.m. and at 11:00 p.m. they were still out front and we still didn't have power. We finally went to bed and at midnight when Claire woke up we looked out and they were gone. This morning we woke up and it was still dark. We were hot but thankful that the power didn't go off on a day that was over 100 degrees. OG&E showed up around 8 a.m. with a new green box and tools to take our fence down. They had to drive the new box in and the old one out. Once they got it all in and the electricity on they blew something else two doors down and they had to turn the power off again. After it all we were without power for 15 hours. Better than days I guess. The girls were entertained today by watching them work. I am so thankful the weather was cool today and we could play outside till it rained and by then the power was back on. It could always be worse and if anything we now know our neighbors a little better.

Sharks, and turtles, and fish Oh my

We recently made our first visit to the Jenks Aquarium. I was actually impressed. I have only been to the Aquarium in New Orleans so I was not expecting much. It was nice. It was very crowded, everyone had the same idea we did and wanted to be somewhere inside and not out in the 107 degree heat. Claire and Quinn had a good time and loved to get as close as they could to the glass of the tanks to see what was inside. We tried to get them to touch a sting ray but the rays were not cooperating with our side of the tank. The girls did put their hands in the water...not sure if they would have actually touched one or not. Claire really liked to sharks. I asked her if she thought they were scary and she responded "No, they not scary mommy." They are scary to me but I didn't tell her that. Quinn's favorite was probably the turtles. We were at the turtles for a long time. I am contemplating getting a family pass. The girls really enjoyed it and it is somewhere we can go during the summer. If we do decide to do that just know in advance if you come to stay with us we will entertain you by taking you to the aquarium. ;)

Day of Art

Today we made our way to the Philbrook Museum of Art for their free family day. This was our first time going and we had a really good time. The girls were able to do art projects and they even had fun going through and looking at the art. We did not get through all the rooms of art so Jared and I are looking forward to next month already. The girls were given an art supply carrying case that they bring back each month and then they will get new art supplies. The case came with a sketch pad, pencil, eraser, and crayons. FOR FREE! They have free family day when they have these projects for the kids on the 2nd Saturday of each month. They also have storytime, a children's theatre, and this month had a scavenger hunt for kids older than mine. If you have not been to the Philbrook you must. The gardens are beautiful! I think we will enjoy them more when it is not 107 degrees outside. I, of course, tried to take pictures of the girls. It was so hot that they did not want to participate in any photo shoot. No worries...I did manage to get a few. ;)

 Making pinwheels.

 Claire obviously did not want to take a picture.

 Pinwheels

 Claire's collage.

 Quinn's very first painting. (Watercolor)

 The gardens are beautiful!

So I figured that since we were at an art museum I would try to be artsy with my photography. This is the best I could do. Jared said it would make a good wallpaper on the computer. I am not sure if he was serious or not. :)

Last trip of the summer.

If it were not for the heat we could say summer is officially over. We have just come home from our last summer get away. We no longer have any fun trips to look forward to. We just got home from Marshfield, MO for our annual get together with Jared's family. We have the best time at Nana's getting to see grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and this year 2nd and 3rd cousins. There were a few young one's this year and all of the parents handled themselves very well,  despite short naps or no naps at all.(I am, of course, talking about the children not having naps not the parents themselves.) The girls had fun playing with cousins in the kiddie pool and getting lots of attention by someone. Claire even put on a mini concert singing her VBS songs. We attended the parade on the 4th. This was the first year Claire was ready to participate. She actually picked up candy and waved to the floats. Quinn sat very content in her stroller watching the floats go by. We always look forward to this time with family every year, it's fun to catch up with everyone and see how much the kiddos have grown. Claire had such a good time that as we were pulling into the driveway she said "I don't want to be at my house. I want to go to Nana's house."   

Nana and 6 of her 9 great-grand children.

The crew

At the parade

CANDY!!!!

Quinn's first lollipop.

Lieser Family Vacation

The Lieser family got together this past weekend in Pauls Valley and spent a couple of days exploring the surrounding area. We had such a good time visiting the Pauls Valley train depot museum, Arbuckle Wilderness, Turner Falls, Field's Pies (It wasn't open to tour but we did buy one of the best pecan pies I have ever had), Bedre Chocolates (They were not making chocolate when we got there but they were handing out free samples, awesome!!!), Chickasaw capital and their beautiful cultural center (Outside of Sulphur), and on our way home we stopped at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural history in Norman.

It seemed like a lot of driving in 3 days time, but maybe that was because the girls were not fond of their car seats...all though they did enjoy the new portable dvd player and the Backyardigans dvd we bought. I told you we would be buying one in the near future...I wasn't kidding. :) Once we were at our destination and they were out of the car they were almost perfect little angels. If you are ever in that part of Oklahoma I recommend everything we did. It was a good time had by all. Pictures??? Of course... Pauls Valley
I loved this train...great photo op and you know I took advantage.

Arbuckle Wilderness

Claire was a little nervous when the animals came up to the windows. That is an emu neck and I must admit emus and ostriches give me the willies...they have crazy eyes!

Quinn enjoyed the animals. The girls were a little young because they couldn't see everything because they were strapped in their car seats. Overall, I think they enjoyed watching their parents freak out when the emus would come peck the windows. Scary birds I tell you!

Claire was tired.

Inflatable slide.

She did it all by herself!!

Yummy fruit punch! First time and she loved it!

So much she licked the outside because it was cold on her tongue.

Sulphur, OK

The Lieser Family

Family picture at Red River

Silly photo uploader forgot this one too. :)

Quinn on the horse.

Quinn was not afraid at all to get up on the horse. Grandpa Riley would love it!!

Riley Family Vacation 2011

This summer the Riley family made their way to Sayre, OK to stay a week at the Red River Ranch Retreat. It felt like we drove all the way across Oklahoma, and the 3 1/2 hour drive took us closer to 5 because the girls (and maybe me too) needed lots of breaks and we stopped frequently. I think a portable dvd purchase will be in our near future. I never would have thought I would buy one but those girls need to be entertained and me turning around singing and making silly faces only lasted out of the neighborhood. The ranch offered lots of things to do, so I will tell you about our week...with, of course, pictures! This picture is actually when we packed up and were on our way home but as you can see the car was just as full when we left the ranch as when we arrived. Jared makes fun of me for the way I pack because I tend to "over" do it. It's fine with me because we did not need anything at all while we were there because I practically packed our house.
We went for a walk to check everything out on the first day. (Quinn was taking a nap so she missed out on the cousin photo op) Just a word of warning, strollers are a big pain in the yaya when you are carrying them over cattle cards while children are sitting in them. I guess I should have thought of that...we were on a working cattle and horse ranch so naturally we had to cross 4 of them just on our short walk.

Across from our cabin was a fenced in petting zoo with sheep, geese, chickens, ducks, and cows. Claire had the best time feeding the ducks. Malachi had the best time chasing the sheep!! It was too cute.

They had a salt water pool with a diving board and slide. This was the picture right before we left. They look like they are ready to go.

Both girls spent most of their time in a floaty or having Jared or I (mainly Jared) hold them. The water was freezing so I tried my best to just have my feet in. Claire did, however, manage to fall in from the steps while trying to catch a floating away pool noodle. I was able to get to her and rescue my little princess. She was kicking and kicking but her head never made it above water. She was just fine but did tell me it scared her. The best part was that as soon as I realized she went under I was very calm and collected. (Ummmmmm....that may not be entirely true.) ;)

I actually had to get into the freezing water because my brother pulled me in, so I figured I would freeze out Quinn too. (The girls actually didn't mind the cold water. I am just a big baby.)

Lounging

You could ride horses while there. Claire fed the horse and it scared her to death. So when it came time to sit her on a horse for a photo opportunity she refused! (I just realized the picture of Quinn with a horse did not load...it will be on a blog by itself.)

The girls loved this trip because they were able to be outside a lot. One of their favorite things!

This is pretty typical for Quinn. She loves the wind in her hair. When outside she often just stands or sits there and lets the wind blow. Super cute!

They also had bunnies! We were so excited when we found out we could hold them. Claire tried but the bunny was nervous and it made her nervous so she decided petting it would be best.

Quinn liked the bunnies too!

Love it.

The ranch also offered fishing in ponds and we were right on the Red River. As you can see the river was down.

They did not like the sand on them.

Yuck!

Quinny wanted nothing to do with putting her feet in the river.

Looking for shells.

Chilling as far away from the water as possible.

The Riley Family

(-Josh & Larry)