Remembering April Ariel Leone

It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved albino African black-clawed frog, April Ariel Leone (2009-2009). She was only with us a short time - a little over two months - but she left an indelible mark. We loved so much about her - especially the way she ate (she liked to shovel blood worms into her mouth). One time she swallowed a whole chunk -- and she had to take a break from eating for a while. She was an early birthday gift for Elisabeth, who was so excited to have a pet of her own to care for. The girls took the passing very hard - it has been an emotional day.

We love you, April, and we'll miss you!

- The Leones

July 4 Fun

In addition to the traditional 4th of July activities, we had a new favorite - trains! Matthew has a lot of wooden trains but it seems like we never have time to play with them. So this July 4 weekend, we spent time doing just that. Take a look at our creation - and the builders. We had a blast!

Making A Business Trip Tolerable

I have to take a few business trips to Vegas each year. Most of the time, I am working long days, so there isn't much time for fun. But in May, that changed - at least for a few hours. I typically stay with good friends while there. This time, we took some time to experience the Bootleg Canyon Flightline (www.bcflightlines.com/). It was a blast! Here is a photo and video of me in action. Still was a lot of work on the trip, but we definitely had one fun time on the zip line!

Touching Gold

It's not every day you get to see a gold medal, let alone touch one - and meet the winner all at once! This year, the girls are taking diving lessons at the Woodlands Diving Acadamy - which is the proud home of Olympic gold medalist Laura Wilkinson. She grew up in the Woodlands and eventually won gold at the Sydney Olympics. She also competed in the Athens and Beijing Olympics. Now she is associated with the same diving academy, and the girls competed at the Laura Wilkinson Invitational. They are doing a great job - and they loved the chance to meet Laura!

Fun With Great Grandma Perk

We've had a jam-packed February and March! We had Great Grandma Perk in town, so we had a nice excuse to get out and see some great sites. We also took her to the Houston Temple on Sunday afternoon to see all of the beautiful flowers in bloom - she was used to snow in Utah and was quite surprised by all of the color.

In addition, we had an early spring break this year -- we stayed close to home, opting for day trips to the Houston Children's Museum and the Museum of Natural History in the Woodlands Mall. Plus, the kids spent one afternoon in the sprinklers -- they loved that as much as anything else we did!

Here are the highlights of our last few months in video format. Enjoy!

Texas History

While Grandma Perk was in town, we visited an important location in the history of Texas - the battlefield where Texans led by Sam Houston defeated Santa Anna and his army, which led to Texas independence. Today, there's a monument located where the battle took place (see behind Brad) -- in Texas fashion, it's bigger than the Washington monument.

We had a great time walking around the area and developing a greater appreciation for Texas history. Right next to the monument was the Battleship Texas, which was awesome to see. It was one of the few ships that served in both World War I and II, and it was also the first U.S. battleship with anti-aircraft guns and first to launch a plane from its deck. Today you can literally walk through the entire ship and sit on the anti-aircraft guns and aim them. Very cool!

Matthew's Conflict Resolution Skills Shine Forth

After an afternoon of frustration (yet another potty-training fiasco), Matthew had spent a good amount of quality time in his bedroom. (I like to make him stay in there for as at least as long as it takes the odor to fade -- today's event required an extensive stay even with the window open.)

Anyhow, he had been testing the boundaries of his confinement by increasing the distance of his trips outside his room. Eventually, he came to me asking if he could join his sisters outside. Here's the conversation that followed:

Me: "Dude, I don't think you've spent enough time in your room."

Matthew: "Mommy," he says in a very serious tone. "I need you to be nice to me."

Me: Looking at him, incredulous.

Matthew: "What you need to do is have a deep, deep, deep breath ... like this." At this point, he patiently demonstrates breathing in through his nose and blowing it out of his mouth.

Matthew: "See Mommy? Have a deep, deep, deep, deep, deep breath ... That will make you feel better," he says encouragingly.

Me: "Wow. Gee, thanks, Matthew."


It's the least he could do, don't you think? Having sent me into a fit of frustrated cursing not 30 minutes before? No wonder he loves Daddy more -- of course, he never poops in his pants on Daddy's watch.