color-{me happy}-ado

It was back to work today after a refreshing trip to the mountains! I wish I could remember every detail to tell you about it, but I don't think I can. The only thing that would have made it perfect is if King Pea had been there. He would have loved every second of it like I did.

The first day we awoke very early (3:30 am; thanks, Dad). By the time I woke up again, there were (small) mountains around us. We set up camp at beautiful Vallecito Lake. I could have stayed there forever! It was really beautiful. It wasn't far from Durango; which is where we spent most of our second day.

We went into town pretty early to check out the downtown. I had to buy a car adapter for my phone charger. I didn't realize we would literally have no electricity! Downtown was super cute; I could have walked around there all day. We ate at a yummy local brewery, Steamworks. The food was good, but the beer was better!

After lunch, we went white water rafting! Okay, so the "white water" was a little lacking, but we still had a blast! It was my first time rafting and I can't wait to do it again. Every one in Durango was out on the river; some just tubing, others in kayaks. I was really wanting to kayak! (I'll have to go back for that!) Every one there is outside as much as possible. There were bikers every where (bicycle bikers and motorcycle bikers; mostly bicycle bikers though).

Anne Pea and Abby Pea had fun too! They've been rafting before (yes, I'm totally jealous) but this is the first time one of them got tossed! Abby Pea fell out of the raft once; I only had a ~mini~ heart attack. She was quickly saved, but almost fell out again! But, she managed to stay on board the second time. Our rafting guide was pretty cool; he did save my daughter's life after all. Anne Pea was a bit of a sour puss. I borrowed {okay, stole} one of her watches and wore it that day. Let's just say she didn't let me live it down.

We spent our last night at Vallecito Lake by playing games. Any one who knows the Barrett family knows we have to play marbles! That's also the night Mom and I went to Margaritaville, and it was a little better trip for me than it was for her! :)  Love ya, Mom! You have to let loose every now and then!

The next day, we headed back towards Pagosa Springs. We spent some time around another gorgeous campsite (no view of the lake though). I could hear the river at the campsite; that was nice. We took a closer look at the river and I did get a few photos.

That night we went into town to the hot springs. After a couple of shower-less days, we needed it! The hot springs were ah-(wait for it)-mazing! If you're ever in the area, you have to check them out! Here is a linky-poo (see how I made that so easy for you!). I highly recommend it, but wait until your last night. Although it was fantastic before our monstrous hike, it would have been well worth it to wait until the next night. {End commercial break} :)

The last day of our stay we went for our (as previously mentioned) monstrous hike. It was beautiful and I am so glad I had been working out more than normal for a while beforehand. I really don't know how my Daddy Pea does it, seeing how he never works out. It was well worth it though! 3.5 miles and about 1,000 feet in elevation up; and what goes up must come down!

Once we got to the end of our part of the trail, Dad and the girlie peas went fishing. I took pics (not with my camera; it's too big and I did not want to lose it in the river!). I used Dad's old camera, so I don't even know how those photos turned out. Anne Pea took a little dip by accident, bumping her knee in the process. She shed a few tears, but kept going! Mom found a small clearing by the river and spent time napping and reading a book. I went to join her as soon as I noticed clouds rolling in. I got half a tiny glass of wine down before the rain started! That was the end of the fishing. (Abby Pea did "catch" one, but when they were about to get it, he got loose. He lived to see at least one more day because he would have been our lone fish at our fish fry!)

As the lightning and thunder got going, we hoofed it pretty quickly down the mountain. The lightning struck pretty close at one point. We were saying our prayers before, but that really got us praying! Of course, God in His sweet mercy got us all down the mountain just fine. Abby Pea talked Mom's ear off the whole way down, so she wasn't as focused on the impending storm. Abby Babbles' babbling is good for something! :)

Seven mile hike--check!

We had pizza for dinner that night; all fish were spared. We got packed up as much as possible and then soaked our tired feet in our camper pedis. (Our dish buckets filled with hot, soapy water; scrubbies optional.)

We packed up the next morning and I was not ready to come home (though I did miss my King Pea, a lot!). I have always loved the mountains, but I am ready sell all my belongings and move there! (Haha, not really, well maybe, no no, we can't, but after the girls graduate, we've been known to do crazier things, I don't know, we shall see.)

We'll just get started by planning a camping trip up there next summer. Around mid-June, if any one is interested. You have to rough it though; taking tents, no electricity, and King Pea is definitely on the guest list this time. :)

summer dayz

The summer is already going by so fast, I can't believe it. I haven't spent near as much time at the pool, the one about 50 feet from my door, as I wanted to. The Pea family has so much going on right now, it seems like we never have a break!

Abby Pea is in driver's ed this month. Watch out, McKinney! I managed to get *most* of the blue and red out of her hair (Don't let your daughter use Kool-Aid for hair color; you will thank me later. Luckily, I think I have just the recipe for getting it out in case it's too late for you!). She and I have this weekend together, just the two of us. We went out for sushi together last night and then did a little shopping, only for necessities of course. I have a project list she gets to help me whittle down! :)  She is looking for her first job and *trying* to become the responsible teenager we all know she can be! Her summer is about to get busier with dance classes and camp coming up!

Anne Pea is on her way to Amarillo then HC with Daddy Pea this weekend. He is headed for a long overdue visit with his precious G.G. (I'll update in a minute.) She has been either at a friend's house or having a friend to visit all summer long! She's been babysitting and keeping herself busy too. She wanted to spend the entire summer lazing by the pool. Sh-yah! Right! Haha! I won't get to see her until Thursday and I am already missing that sweet pea!

Anne Pea is quite the comedienne, I think I have mentioned that before. The other night she and her pea pal, Hannah, pulled a prank on Abby Pea. They made fake dog poop with a wet toilet paper roll. They put it on Abby's bed. When she went to bed, she found it, and while she was trying to figure out what to do about it, Hannah picked it up with her bare hands and threw it at Abby! Haha!! This all happened at about 2:45 in the morning, waking the big peas up! It wasn't funny to us until after about 7:00 am!

King Pea is doing great! His job is going extremely well. He mentioned to me the other day what he told one of his coworkers:  "Isn't it great to actually look forward to coming to work every day?" I am really happy for him and think that he will be with Saltgrass for a long, long time. It is so "him" except for the country decor! :) Seeing that is the only issue he has with the restaurant, I think he'll be just fine!

So, G.G. update:  Not so great. She is home; but on hospice care. I think she was really glad to go home from the nursing home. She hasn't progressed in some time. We are all trying to make time to see her and love on her as much as possible. Abby Pea and I laughed about something cute she did at her 80th birthday party last year. Then I just broke down into tears. It's so hard to see such a vibrant *young* woman struggling after such a long, hard road. She is my grandmother, too, and I love her as such. King Pea and I have been through this too many times and it never gets easier. I hope he can bring her much joy this weekend during his visit! It will only be a fraction of the joy she has brought to our lives.

Back to something more uplifting! Us girlie peas are headed to Colorado with my parents next weekend and I can't wait! I need a vacay! I will not have my computer, but I will have my camera! I will post to my blog as soon as I can. We're going camping, hiking, whitewater rafting (I've wanted to do that my whole life! Eeeek!), and relaxing! It is so up my alley! I miss the mountains like crazy. I am definitely a mountain girl, and I hope I don't have to wait until I retire to move there and enjoy them full time! (Any one know of any one hiring in Taos? For two, please.) Maybe when I finally get to put King through culinary school, we can head that way.

Keep our family in your prayers, especially for G.G., Pat, and Brian. Pat needs extra blessings for sure!

teddy's time

I've been waiting a while to post this post. In fact, I've been dreading it. It's been a hard week. We lost our Sweet Teddy Boy on Tuesday. He may have been *just* a dog. But, he was my dog. The girls don't remember a time without Teddy. He's been through so much with me personally. Any time, good or bad, (and there have definitely been plenty of both), he was always there with his happy, funny personality. He could make me smile no matter what. He was bouncy and silly. 

I remember one particular time King Pea and I watched him trying to "get" this huge, red ball in the backyard. He was at it for what seemed like hours! He couldn't get it just right to bite it, so he would try to hold it down, but he was far too short. He was barking at it like crazy, like the ball was purposely trying to get away from him! If you're dreaming of catching a ball, it might as well be a giant red one, right? What a little dreamer!

I'm sure he hated me putting bows in his hair, picking at his gooky eyes, and treating him like a baby doll (just sometimes!). I know wasn't the perfect pup-parent. But, I will miss him greatly. I still ache to hold him just once more. He was a cuddle bug! He *allowed* me to hold him just about as much as I wanted. When the girlie peas got bigger and wouldn't let me hold them anymore, well, he was always a nice substitute.

The last few months we knew this time was coming. He was sick and old, and all around just not his happy, wonderful self. Knowing it's coming doesn't make it any easier. I thought it would, but as I type, I have tears streaming down my cheeks. I wasn't ready. I didn't want it to be time. Even as he was going to sleep, I wanted to scream out that I changed my mind. But, he wouldn't have wanted it. He was tired.

I don't know what happens to dogs after they're gone. I know Teddy had a great, sweet spirit. He had a soul. I hope all dogs go to heaven. I'm not sure I want to be there if they don't! When I need the comfort that all things happen for a reason in their own time, I reflect on Ecclesiastes, chapter 3.

A Time for Everything

 There is a time for everything,
    and a season for every activity under the heavens:

     a time to be born and a time to die,
    a time to plant and a time to uproot, 
     a time to kill and a time to heal,
    a time to tear down and a time to build,
     a time to weep and a time to laugh,
    a time to mourn and a time to dance,
     a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
    a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
     a time to search and a time to give up,
    a time to keep and a time to throw away,
     a time to tear and a time to mend,
    a time to be silent and a time to speak,
     a time to love and a time to hate,
    a time for war and a time for peace.

What do workers gain from their toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on the human race. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end. 

It was Teddy's time. I didn't want the time to come. I wanted one more of everything. One more lick, one more walk, one more playtime, one more, one more, one more.

Here are a couple of my favorite photos of Teddy. I miss you, little buddy! More than you know.

Teddy and momma. Shih Tzu's were considered royal and holy dogs in ancient Tibet. He was destined to be the dog of a Queen! :)

He was actually playing with me here. He would always crouch down with his rear up, wagging his tail. He would bark at me and try to *get* me! Such a sweet pea!

a birthday fit for a king

King Pea recently had a birthday, and I think it may have been the best ever! He had the entire weekend off, so we had to fill it with some fun goodness! We ate pizza at this amazing place, Picasso's. Not your momma's Pizza Hut, that's for sure! We met up with our favoritest friends for some brewskys at a downtown Dallas bar. Then we went to the Dave Matthew's Band concert, with a little tailgating before and after! They're also our favoritest! (It's a word; I just made it up!)


I can't remember having such a laid back, awesomely, awesome day! I love my Sweet Pea! He's a keeper! 

Birthday buddies, King Pea and Laura Kay! I don't know if May 19th can handle any more awesome births!

We were singing to them and they had Pop Rock cupcakes! Yum!

Awful picture! Fun times though!

It could not have been more beautiful!

This is obviously before Dave came out because we're all still sitting down! After they hit the stage, our bums didn't hit the ground again!

anne pea update

Yes, I do have another child! She's just in her "off season." She recently had her Spring Band concert. She's quite the beautiful flute player! I love listening to her practice in her room. The flute she's playing with was my Aunt Suzy's, then mine. Abby Pea used it for two years, then it got passed down to Anne Pea. I can't remember how well Suzy played, but I do know that Anne is definitely the best player out of the three Peas! She loves band, so I hope I get to hear more of her talent in the future. 

She is also looking into babysitting classes to take over the summer. She has a few "regulars" and since she's the more nurturing of the two, I think these classes will come in handy. She told me she wanted to relax all summer and have no plans. Yeah, right! 

I'm going to brag about her for another minute. She may be my less "visible" child, but she's also my most compliant, easy-going, all-around sweet pea! And, she is our comedienne, believe it or not. She makes me laugh and smile every day! I don't have to fight with her about her grades, doing the dishes or cleaning her room. She's certainly the Yin to Abby's Yang. Or is it the Yang to Abby's Yin? Either way, I just wanted you to know! :)

Here she is at her last concert. She can't hide from my camera when she's in the middle of playing a concert. 

Ha, Anne! I got you this time!

marquette this, marquette that

This seems to have become the Abby Pea blog! Since she has become a Marquette, it's been a whirlwind of blue and gold. She recently performed at McKinney High's spring football game. I have to say, I was pretty impressed with how awesome they were! The football team was...eh. The cheerleaders were...eh.  I thought the Marquettes would be about as impressive, but man, I was wrong! They were fantastic! I wish I would have gotten it on video, but alas, my first instincts are to take photos. So, here's Abby Pea, Marquette-style!

They were just practicing here. They're usually much more smiley!

Summer showing her "L's!" L is for Lion!

This is Abby's friend, Lindsay! They've danced together for a while now, and she's a Marquette officer this year.

Abby is the second from the left! They did their kick routine to the fight song.

Her kicks were amazing!

I got one of her mid-air!

Final pose! This is the first time I can't wait for football season!

i know! i've been neglectful!

I have no idea how long I've been *not* blogging, but it's been way too long! I'm even embarrassed to look back at the last post date! What has not happened in our lives lately?!? Where do I even begin?


How about starting with many answered prayers! Boy, we have had our share of amazing blessings lately! There was a point a few months ago when everything was going wrong and we just wanted to turn back the hands of time and do a total redo! Well, within just a few weeks, we found an awesome house, King Pea found an amazing new job just down the street, and our G.G. Pea is doing so much better. Blessings do abound! Abby Pea has become a varsity Marquette (that news may have been in a previous post) and Anne Pea is done with track and keeps me updated with how many school days remain until summer.  :)


Our girlie peas are doing well, still sassy as usual, but nothing too bad. They are thrilled to have their own rooms once more. We didn't realize how crappy our *temporary* apartment living was until we had a little room to stretch out again! As you may realize, our temporary living situation turned in to a year long headache! 


King Pea is now with Saltgrass Steakhouse, and it's super yummy! He has been home every night, except for one. That's a miracle in itself! He is a much happier King and his little kingdom has noticed the change! The management seems really great so far and I have not one bad thing to say about anything. That's a miracle, too! :)


My life is pretty much the same; except with allergies! Luckily, I'm going to the doctor this week, so hopefully I'll be back to normal soon. Since I can't be outside for more than twenty minutes at a time, my running has suffered (as well as my waistline!). I can't wait to enjoy the outdoors again! I'm pretty sure I have almost overdosed on Zyrtec and Benadryl! 


Our sweet G.G. is doing well! She no longer has her "trach" in and does all of her breathing on her own. She's lost a lot of weight, but has been able to eat some real food for a while now. And she is speaking again! She is going to be in a nursing home for a while to rehabilitate, with the hopes that she can return home someday! She doesn't seem to be in a great hurry; which only bothers us impea-atient family members! 


Abby Pea had to do a speech over dance and needed photos to go along with it. I got some pretty cool dance photos for her that were fun to take. I haven't done *leaping* photography before, so it was a learning experience! I would love to get some of Anne Pea one day, but alas, she is still my anti-photo child (although, she has no problems taking pics of herself with her phone). Anyhoo.....


We send our love to all of our friends and family! Praying for you always! 

Yes, you can be jealous of her gorgeous legs! I know I am!

I love my dancer pea! Now, how do I sneak pics of my baby pea....