Our Kind of Day.

Yesterday was the kind of day we here at the Martin house live for.

No plans. No errands. No to-do lists.

Just us. Our shades. Some sun.

A trampoline. And a dad who will jump until a certain little girls says stop.

Yep. Those are our kind of days.

Passed Us By.

Did you know the VMA's were on Sunday night? Yep. They were.

Sunday was a hard night for me. I've been watching the VMA's for over half my life.

(sorry, mom. i know wasn't supposed to watch MTV when i was 12, but, well, sorry.)

And this year it came as a total shock to me they were even on.

Actually, first it came as a total shock to me that we even get MTV here in the great state of Louisiana. Then it came as a shock to me that the DVR wasn't set. Then, like any good student of pop culture, we plopped on the couch ready to feast our eyes on one of the most outrageous nights of the year.

And then 3o minutes later we turned them off.

Who are these people?

No. Literally. Who are they? I've never heard of them. Or seen them.

Britney Spears got a lifetime acheivment award. Wasn't she shaving her head and chasing papparazi like last summer? Sure, Beyonce and Jay-Z were there. But who were all the other people.

Seriously. Can someone tell me who they are?

Oh never mind. Who am I kidding.

Pop culture passed us by.

Jump Around.

What you see here is a picture of Blake in a very rare moment. Why is rare? It's rare because she's sitting still. This very rare moment lasted approximately one second.

This picture is far more accurate.

Or these.

Yes. These are much more accurate. Blake is rarely still. One day when she's 13 and won't clean her room because she wants to lay on the couch I'm going to show her these pictures. It probably won't be enough to ply her off the couch, but it may just make us laugh.

Oh, and just in case you were wondering
Yes, trampolines are ALWAYS fun. Yep. If you're two or twenty-nine plus two! Super fun. Especially if you add a sprinkler.

Today.

The following is a list of animals that are hiding in Blake's room, therefore making it impossible for her to fetch her pink blanket on her own. Those of you who know B personally know how important the pink blanket is to a lovely and peaceful day.

mouse

cat

furry monster

rooster

If any of you have any tips or tricks for eradicating these pesky creatures please let me know. I keep putting them in the backyard, but somehow they keep sneaking back in.

Things I Miss About Texas.

Tex-Mex.

(In fact, the first person to deliver Maudie's to my door wins my eternal love and devotion.)

note: eternal means forever.

Jax.

(People, there no words.)

Maddie Pie and Tee Poo.

(Never, ever a dull moment.)

Sweetwater Nails.

HEB.

My family.

My friends who may as well be family.

A general working knowledge of where things are as well as the best and most direct way to get there.

whaaaaaaa.

We're Not in Texas Anymore.

We're in Louisiana.

And when you're in Louisiana

You eat beignets.

So we did.

one time thing.

Per the usual we all packed up at the end of June and headed up to Colorado for the 4th of July. This has been the norm for a while now, but the new norm is that some of the kids now have kids of their own.

This is our kid.

She's real cute.

And before I tell you the story I'm about to tell you there are few things about this kid you should know. She is sweet and precious and lovely. She almost always says please and thank you. She loves to give hugs and kisses. She also knows exactly what she wants, and like many other toddlers, would like you to satisfy those wants in a timely fashion. Failure to do so may result in whining and/or crying. Perhaps even the occasional flailing of arms and/or legs.

Now, generally the whining and/or crying and/or flailing doesn't phase me. It's a tough life out there. We've all got to learn to roll with the punches.

Except this one time. When I let myself get talked into riding up on a chair lift with her.

Please take a minute and notice the vice like grip I have on the side of the chair lift. And also on my daughter. Did I mention heights aren't my thing? It's one of the reasons (there are several) why I'm allergic to skiing.

Sooo...here's what happens. B wants to go alpine sliding. She is granted this request, and subsequently loves it. She wants to alpine sliding with me. I politely decline and point her to one of the other adults who are willing and able to take her. Griff tells me to put my big kid pants on and take her. I give him a dirty look. While walking to get in line.

Don't mess with me.

We get on the chair lift where I put a proceed to firmly hold the side of the lift with one arm and my child with the other.

In this particular photo things are chugging along just fine. I'm inwardly congratulating myself for checking my silly fear of heights at the door and having a moment with my daughter. Life is just swell.

And then there's this photo. We're a little higher now. And I just remembered that it's okay to be afraid of a few things. Like snakes. And lightning. And chair lifts with toddlers. Unfortunately, at this point, there is simply no where to go but up.

So up we went.

And really, it was fine. Fine.

Until Blake decided she didn't want to sit in my lap anymore. And then things got, shall we say, interesting.

There was whining. There was crying. There was arm flailing. There was leg flailing.

There was also begging and pleading on my part. I promised ponies. Ice cream for breakfast. Every day. Until she went to college.

She wasn't having it.

And right about the time I was calculating the distance between us and the ground, and debating how many bones would be broken, we got to the top. And I kissed the ground. And vowed never again to check my fear of heights anywhere.

And then we slid down.

And everyone lived, bones intact, happily ever after.

The end.