We spent our day today in Covington at a volleyball tournament for our daughter Anna. Won 1, Lost 2. I'm still proud as we lost to teams older than our girls. Interesting Sunday it has been. The lovely, to many infamous, mayor of New Orleans daughter happens to be on Anna's team. It was just strange to hear him cheer my daughter's name as she served. I'm only accustomed to hearing him on TV defending himself or his great city; I enjoyed seeing a different side. So, now on to Jake...the little mischievious 6-year-old. He played with a few other kids for a while. Next thing ya know, he's running to his dad with 3 other little boys chasing him. I knew, instantly, that this meant trouble.
Oh yeah....Little Boy #1 (actually about 2-3 years Jake's senior): Your son was outside saying a curse word over and over again. Little boys #2 and #3 in agreement, shaking their heads up and down, but not saying a word.
Me: Okay, I'll take care of it. You can go away. Jake, were you cursing?
Jake: It was an accident. I didn't know it was a bad word. (Everything is an accident, according to Jake).
Me: What word were you using?
Jake: It was the F word. (I sigh, maybe gasp).
Me: Where did you hear that word?
Jake: On that medium sized boy's cell phone (gasp again...this is not the first time Jake describes someone as medium sized...and why does this kid have a cell). He pinky promised and
sweared that if I said the word, he wouldn't tell on me. I can't believe he told on me....I mean he
PINKY PROMISED and SWORE. He is not my friend. Can I go back outside momma?
Me: No. No. No. (He begged and begged and begged, relentlessly). ABSOLUTELY NOT! You will sit here with mom and dad and stay out of TROUBLE.
This, my friends, is nothing that a mom wants to hear. My son seems to be easily persuaded to do wrong. I need to work on that.
Thirty minutes later: A tournament official approaches us. Jake has been in Cory's lap this entire time, writhing to go back outside.
Official to Jake: "Have you been on a cell phone outside?"
Jake smiling: No, I was not talking on that cell phone.
Official: Did you call 911?
Jake: No, I did not call 911. It wasn't me. (Official looks at me for some kind of answer).
Me: He's been with us for the last 30 minutes, but yes, he was outside earlier. (She gives me a look of disapproval. At this point, I know the blame is being placed on Jake. She leaves with that all so dreaded "watch your kid lady" look. WHATEVER.) Jake, did you call 911?
Jake: No, it wasn't me. I did NOT call 911. I know that you go to jail if you call 911 and there is not an emergency. That boy is going to be in so much trouble. He might go to jail.
I believe him as it is extremely easy to catch Jake in a lie. Mostly, he doesn't deny when he has done something wrong; he just uses the "it was an accident" defense. I also came to the conclusion that he was the scapegoat for the other kid. I'm not in denial. I just know. I know Jake. I know his lies. I know his truths. I'm his momma! Oh what a day! Thank God this was the last tournament of the season.
Just as soon as we were finally able to move into our house, it was time for vacation. That means we left the house that we had been waiting three years to move into full of boxes. The little week in the Smokey Mountains was well worth it! We all needed a break. 
Tonight we celebtrated Anna's 10th birthday. I could just cry. She's my baby girl, always.
This sink has been a pain in our royal a&#. First, the granite guy needed the dang thing in order to measure the countertops precisely which meant we had to have the plumbing supply company give us our sink before the plumbers were due to come back. That is a feat itself. Then, we get the sink. It weighs nearly 100lbs as it is a solid, clay fired piece. Moving it around to find the perfect place was difficult. The next disaster: the cabinet guy built and installed the cabinets without the sink; therefore, the sink didn't fit. He had the measurements but we all seemed to have skipped over the (+ or - 2 inches) and the tiny statement clearly saying that the cabinet maker should have the sink during cabinet construction. There is now a piece of cabinet missing; noone will know but me! It doesn't stop there. This lovely sink needed to be braced...with 2X4's and plywood from beneath as it weighs a ton. No big deal, right? Well, the 2X4's and plywood were installed, the sink was put in it's place, the granite went on, and everything looks beautiful...except the drain hole. It's blocked by one of the 2X4s. My wonderfully talented, patient husband fixed the problem without dismantling the entire setup. So, I better ENJOY this sink for the rest of my life.
It's 80 degrees out, but we had to try on our new pjs and robes! Harrison, Avery, Anna, and Jake..love these babies!
On December 11th 2008, snow fell in Louisiana. Mother Nature left us with 3 inches of the lovely white blanket. The kids had a blast. "This is the best day ever." Today, the ground is a mixture of brown and green (yes some green) once again.
The floors have been laid. Now, we just have to sand and stain! I say "just" very lightly; I know that task will be one of the hardest we'll encounter.
Cory has begun the daunting task of installing the wood floors downstairs. They are absolutely beautiful, much prettier than the stuff upstairs. Of course, the picture above shows the floors in their unfinished state. We still have to stain and seal them. There is nothing like the "sound" of REAL wood. 
Some pics of the guest bedroom...WHO WILL BE OUR FIRST VISITORS? There are a few finishing touches still missing, ie, shoe molding, paint on molding, clean up, light fixtures, a bed, ha.
My man and his dad hard at work, again! WE, or I should say Cory and his dad, are installing all 3700sq ft worth of floors. Although Cory has never laid wood floors, he's handling it like a pro..especially in our lovely, unleveled house. The floors are a bit dusty at the moment due to left over sheetrock residue, but man they are pretty. My time is coming with the bathrooms; you tube is an excellent resource on laying tile.
I'm not quite sure how we ended up with crown molding before new floors, but it looks lovely. Three sets of original french doors are also being put back in their respective places. There is no baseboard molding yet.....floors first!
The kitchen cabinets have been installed. Of course, it's not as easy as 1,2,3. They now have to be painted white, and the framed doors need to be brought to the glass shop to have the glass installed. I'm happy with the outcome!
Our summer visit with Madelyn has ended; Anna cried herself to sleep. She'll miss her nanny and Maddie as they make their way back to Italy. Until next year!!!! Zachary, Madelyn, Anna, Caroline, and Jake
Okay, so I'm afraid the color is a little dark, but it's already on the walls and I happen to like it! High Tea...that's the name!
Another pic of the living room. I love it love it love it. I'm thinking about some red couches.
We're taking a short break from our painting project. Anna's Allstar team is playing in Slidell...the final tournament of the summer. They've done well, and of course, I'm proud. At this particular tournament, there was a parade of all of the teams competing. Below are pics of Jake without the lute (tears) and with the lute (smiles).
Jake has tagged along for most of his sister's games. The tears come often, but so do the smiles:) He's even managed one or two fist fights (literally) with boys that are mostly bigger than him. He is ONE OF A KIND! Sweet Jake. 
My 9-year-old daughter, Anna Catherine, chose to have a brown and aqua themed room. She debated on blue and green, hot pink and orange, mint green and pink and at the last moment, she decided she didn't want her room to look like every other 9-year-old's room. So, these are the colors that SHE wanted. I think her room will be more elegant than funky. We're planning to use one of the old fireplace mantels (since a fireplace no longer exists) along with some old window frames to liven the place up. Oh yeah, she get's a chandelier too and the best windows in the house!
