Yard of the Month

New official "yard of the month" sign. Too bad I didn't have it three months ago.

In the beginning of June when they were judging the yards for the first winners of yard of the month, I had thought I won because I had gotten a letter saying " your hard work on your yard is much appreciated" or something like that and no one else had gotten a letter. But as the month went by and I didn't get any word about winning I figured it went to someone else. I was pretty bummed because I knew June, with my hydrangeas in full bloom, was my only shot at winning. So I was very surprised to come home after my DC trip and find a yard of the month sign in my yard. That's right I won the "Pope yard of the month" that's put on by the Military housing. And don't you love my sign. My dear friend made it for me because I was out of town when it was announced and I still haven't gotten the real sign. I won it for the month of June when my hydrangeas had just bloomed, my pansies were big and beautiful and my crate myrtle was full of blossoms.

Now the hydrangeas have since browned from heat, my pansies have mostly died and the crate myrtle blossoms have been blown away by storms past. The money I won ( and yet to have received) I've spend on two flats of purple, yellow and pink petunias and a climbing vine. I had to spruce up my yard since it was announced in the neighborhood news letter. I can't have people driving by saying "how the hell did this piece of trash yard win?" I posted pictures of when we first moved here to now. After three years of trying to grow grass we finally have some. Speaking of grass, I don't know how I won with my patchy grass.

Bolling AFB, Washington DC

We had so much fun hanging out with friends and watching the National fireworks over the Patomic river. We visited the National Zoo, this makes five zoos in five (six if you count when we were in Texas and I was pregnant) different states for Audric and four for Julie. Audric loves the airport acrossed the river. He could stay there all day just watching the planes and boats go by.

How much Pee can a pretty boy pee?

We drove six and a half hours to Washington DC, staying with friends for the fourth of July. We stopped once to eat and then the kids took a nap. So I'm about an half hour away from our friends house when Audric wakes up. He's got to go pee really, really bad. Of course he has to wake up while we are in traffic going five to ten miles per hour, with construction so there's no shoulder and no exits because we're about to go over a bridge. I give him two options. pee in a diaper or pee in a cup. He was not having the diaper so with him whining the whole time because he has to go pee so bad, I had him unbuckle his belt, I had to pull down his shorts and hold the cup all while driving. I thought for sure the cup was going to over flow it was so heavy. OK we did it, now to get Audric dressed and back in his seat. I had to pull up his shorts (why did I put him in these tighter shorts that day) snap them, and have him climb in his seat. Audric is a lazy boy. He always says he can't do something before he trys. And this is exactly what he said when I told him to buckle his belt. So still driving I some how (after three or four trys) get him in safe. What a relief.

Of course on the way back home he had to pee on himself in the public bathroom because he didn't tuck himself while sitting down to pee. That was an easy fix, but still, really?

*the cup in the picture was the same kind of cup but not the one he peed in.