Holding On For the Ride

100 Year Old AP

2012-01-25T06:39:00.000-08:00

Last Friday the kiddos' school celebrated the 100th day of school. Sadly, C's grade must be too grown up to celebrate :( Last year, C made a shirt with 100 things on it.

This year AP's class dressed up as if they were 100 years old. AP had been looking forward to the day for weeks! We put powder in her hair to make it look gray.

And borrowed glasses from a friendMy favorite part was the baggy nude panty hose with her sandals!

The Sport that We Are Figuring Out As We Go!

2012-01-23T08:07:00.000-08:00

So, C started karate the first week in January. He decided to take a break from baseball as he has played every fall and every spring since he was 5. He has been interested in karate for a while now. But, I must say that he has been twice a week now for 3 weeks and we still can't figure out exactly what we are supposed to be doing! I know C feels the same way. All of the commands that they yell out are in Japanese and their method of learning is that you just jump in, watch, and hope you figure it out. So far, C still says that he really likes it, but I know it is confusing for him! There was also confusion about which class he belongs in, I think we finally figured that one out after trying 3 different classes.

Last week he "earned" his white belt. I use the term "earn" loosely because the criteria for receiving your white belt was : 1) Obey your parents the first time they ask you to do something for an entire day 2) Clean your entire room, including under your bed 3) Try a new vegetable. #1 took us a few tries :) And #3 was actually more challenging that we thought it would be because C loves vegetables and has pretty much tried and liked every vegetable that he has ever been offered. Somehow he had never tried turnip greens, probably because I don't like them and so have never cooked them. He tried them at Cracker Barrel and LOVED them. So much so that he asked if he could drink the turnip green juice out of the bowl! Yuk! He said it tasted like "steak and asparagus".

Here is C waiting for the belt ceremony. (All of these pics are with my phone because I wasn't sure if you were allowed to take pictures. There seems to be all sorts of secret rules in this sport and I'm constantly afraid I'm going to break one that I don't know about!)

He is getting his new belt tied.

He is super proud of his belt, but you will never see him wearing it outside of the dojo (that's the word for gym). That's another one of those secret rules I didn't know about! Never wear the belt outside the dojo. It's a sign of humility.

Last Wednesday was family night. Thankfully, Daddy got home from a business trip about 30 minutes before it was time for karate, so he got to go be the participating parent! I think he got a workout!

Like Mother, Like Daughter

2012-01-13T19:18:00.000-08:00

One night this week, AP reappeared after being quiet for a few minutes (which is never a good thing!) and was dressed up in my clothes. She has on my sweater, necklace, shoes, purse, and bra (she even stuffed it!). Yes, she keeps us entertained :)

I sure do love that precious girl.

A Playdate for the Pups

2012-01-10T06:33:00.001-08:00

Last week we had a few really great weather for January days. We seized the opportunity and ventured to the dog park for the first time. Our good friends got a Schichon puppy for Christmas (that's the same breed as our Sammi), so we met up with our friends for a puppy playdate!

At first the dogs weren't so sure.

Then Sammi really got into it! He ran and ran and ran with big dogs. He was fastest, too!Biscuit is still too little to get in on the big dog play time.

But he can rock an agility ramp!Of course, our cute kiddos were there, too :) The kids begged to go back again the next day so we went again!

2011 Review in Pictures

2012-01-04T09:36:00.000-08:00

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

NovemberDecember

If you made it through all those pictures, then you can see that we had a wonderfully blessed 2011!!

Happy New Year!!

2012-01-02T07:55:00.000-08:00

This New Years Eve, my aunt and uncle volunteered to take the kiddos and celebrate the New Year with them! We got to hang out with good friends and had a great night! These are my girlfriends that I have known since kindergarten. I am lucky to have these relationships that have endured awkward school years, college adventures, dating, marriages, and children! And we are just as close now as we were then!

This was our attempt at a self timer group picture around 1am ;)

And just because I found this pic on my camera, here's the same group on a couch in the bathroom at Nordstrom's a few weeks ago!

Cousin Fun

2012-01-01T21:05:00.001-08:00

We had lots of fun with our cousins while they were here! One morning after breakfast the kids decided to turn the dining room table into a train.

The train cars (chairs) were crashing into the girls!

The cousins showing off their new jackets.

Bottoms up!

We love spending time with our cousins!

Reindeer Games and a little more Christmas!

2012-01-01T19:59:00.001-08:00

My sister and her family came to visit the day after Christmas so we got to celebrate an extended holiday!

Little T thinking about how he was going to get that train table out of the box.

We played our family's 2nd Annual Minute To Win It games. The pictures speak for themselves!

Don't these winners look familiar? They won the tacky sweater contest and the Minute to Win It games!!

A Holly Jolly Christmas

2012-01-01T19:00:00.000-08:00

A few snapshots from Christmas morning...

The kiddos were up bright and early to see what jolly St. Nick had left! AP really wanted a DS and a new Baby Alive. C really wanted a go-kart. Santa delivered both!

Last year we decided that Christmas Day afternoon was a great time to catch a movie so we did that again this year. We took the kiddos to see "We Bought A Zoo". Although it was a really cute movie, there were a few lines that were a little too "mature" for the kiddos to hear, but AP promptly repeated!

They have both really enjoyed riding the go-kart. We have had unusually warm weather since Christmas and the kiddos can be found riding around our cul-de-sac most of the time!

I just love this last picture!

Tacky Sweater Christmas Eve

2011-12-31T08:24:00.000-08:00

Our family decided to have a tacky sweater-themed Christmas Eve. I thought it would be cute AND tacky to make us all matching elf shirts- Mamma Elf, Daddy Elf, Nanna Elf, Big Elf C, and Lil Elf AP.

We all voted Survivor-style by looking into a camera and casting our vote for the tackiest sweaters. We voted for my cousin J below and his fiance. Their trees lit up and on the back it said "Merry Elfin' Christmas"! They ended up winning, too.

Way too many gifts later, we headed home to spread reindeer food in the front yard.

The kiddos were super excited about Santa's pending arrival. We had been tracking his location throughout the day on Daddy's phone so they hurried to bed and were out in a flash!

Cookies for Santa

2011-12-30T14:35:00.001-08:00

Nanna supervised,

the table was covered in flour,

we taste tested,

and covered every inch with frosting, sprinkles, and candy!

I hope Santa liked them!

Downtown Fieldtrip

2011-12-30T07:58:00.001-08:00

Last week the kiddos and I ran a few errands downtown. We ventured to the Sec of State office in the Tennessee Tower to get a post-placement report apostilled. The last few years we have taken a little walking tour of downtown afterwards. This year we cut through the Legislative Plaza to get to the Capitol Building and found ourselves smack dab in the middle of Occupy Nashville. It never even crossed my mind that it was set up there. The kiddos asked lots of questions that I did my best to answer, but honestly I still don't completely understand it!

The kiddos weren't fazed by it a bit, they talked to several of the occupiers. AP even asked one lady "Are you going to wrap your Christmas presents in that tent?"! I quickly changed the subject!

We eventually made our way to the Capitol and checked out their Christmas tree.

An interesting afternoon for sure!
(C had pj day at school that day, if you wonder why he is in his pj's :)

School Christmas Parties

2011-12-29T17:16:00.001-08:00

The kiddos got out for Christmas Break on the Wednesday before Christmas. That entire day was party day in the classrooms. Our first stop was AP's class. Here she is being goofy with her friends :)

Savannah is one of her best friends in her class.

Her teacher was actually enjoying herself at Disneyworld that day. But, the class knows this sub well and loves her!

Then on to C's class.
They had stations set up to do different Christmas crafts.

Daelen is one of C's good friends.

After the parties we were outta there! We are thoroughly enjoying our break. More posts coming soon...

Poor Samson Dynamite

2011-12-20T07:21:00.000-08:00

AP figured out that he fits perfectly into one of her baby's clothes!

Pictures and PTO

2011-12-19T19:40:00.000-08:00

Last week I took the kiddos to the greenway for a super fast photo shoot to try to get a picture for our Christmas card.
And we have a winner!

Although, this might be my personal favorite :)

Great picture with grandparents!

That night C's grade sang at their school's PTO meeting. It was...entertaining. They played a variety of instruments that together just didn't sound very good. But, the kiddos seemed to be enjoying it and the parents were proud no matter how bad it sounded!!

Christmas with Daddy B and Grandma

2011-12-19T19:11:00.001-08:00

We celebrated an early Christmas while Daddy B and Grandma were in town visiting from NC.

The most entertaining part was watching C and Daddy play Kinect Sports on the XBox. They are skiing in the above pictures. Keep in mind Daddy still has a broken shoulder! C beat him both times :)

Live Nativity and The Great Christmas Givaway!

2011-12-19T17:31:00.000-08:00

For the last few years, we have really enjoyed going to see the live nativity performance at our friends' church. This year we got to take Daddy B and Grandma with us. It is so neat. You take a hayride through the nativity story that is being acted out. You can see there were real camels!

See the sign above the inn door- "No Room"!

The Sunday that Daddy and Grandma were here was also the kids Christmas musical at our church, The Great Christmas Giveaway. AP actually had a little speaking part and did wonderful!! We discovered during this process that our outspoken girl does not like all eyes on her, even though she would lead you to believe that she does! But, she faced her fears and spoke her line like a champ! C did a great job, too. In his past performances, he has gotten so caught up in the music, that he pretty much turns around and watches everyone behind him sing and all you see is the back of his head. But, this time he stayed right on track! He faced forward and sang his heart out! He was in the back, though, so I didn't really get any great pictures :(
The basic message of the program was that giving is better than receiving, hence the title :) The kiddos are still singing the songs non-stop. Although, this afternoon in the car, I heard AP singing at the top of her lungs, "It's better to receive than give!"

Daddy's Birthday continues!

2011-12-12T05:54:00.000-08:00

After the kiddos and I celebrated with Daddy last weekend, the celebration just kept on going! This past Friday was his actual birthday. While the kiddos were practicing for their musical, we met up with family to celebrate again. Then after dinner and picking up the kiddos, we came back home to cake and presents. Hubs had requested that I make him a sheet cake, so I tried out a new caramel apple cake and it was soooo good. (You can see his stack of new birthday coffee in the background, he got a new coffee machine :)

Then Saturday his parents arrived from NC. Here is Hubs trying out his birthday present from them :)

We went out with them Saturday night to celebrate. I think that was the longest birthday ever!

Gingerbread Man Kindergarten Project

2011-12-07T06:28:00.001-08:00

We were sent a paper cut out of a gingerbread man and were assigned to decorate him any way we wanted. C had the same project when he was in K and we decorated his as a Tennessee football player! AP then wanted to do the same, but I'm not about copying her brother's :) So we traced the gingerbread man onto cardboard and cut him out so he would be sturdier. Then we glued graham crackers and trimmed them until he was a graham cracker man! AP added candy and frosting until she couldn't fit anything else on it. My favorite part is the gummy teeth/lips that we had leftover from Halloween. AP's favorite part was manning the glue gun all by herself!

Of course, we added hair and a bow to girly it up :) It was AP's idea to make fabric hair, then we just clipped one of her bows on. Perfect!

Thanksgiving and the first signs of Christmas!

2011-12-04T10:08:00.001-08:00

There were/are so many things too be thankful for this Thanksgiving, definitely too many to put into words, so apparently I avoided that post altogether! We had Thanksgiving appetizers turned meal at my aunt and uncle's house as is our tradition. There were grand plans for an all night card tournament leading to shopping in the wee hours of the morning on Black Friday. However, that didn't happen. After we all ate, everyone was too tired to do anything! My kiddos fell asleep and Hubs and I scoped out some Black Friday deals. We ended up joining in the shopping madness at midnight, but we were done by 12:30!

We finally got all of our Christmas decorations up last week. The decorating went a little slower this year as Hubs broke his shoulder (proximal humeral fracture to be exact) in our church's annual flag football game.

Friday night the kiddos and I took Hubs out to a surprise birthday dinner. His birthday is actually next Friday, but the kiddos have rehearsal for our church Christmas musical that night so we decided to celebrate early. We went to a steak house that he had been wanting to try. The food was good, the ambiance not so much. There are geese and ducks that camp out by the entrance in hopes that you have scraps to give them.They walk right up to you and one nipped at C's finger! The kiddos ran and jumped up on this bench. You can see the goose that chased them up there at their feet!

Last night we had our church small group Christmas party at our house. It was a lot of fun! We had a great dinner, including a huge yummy turkey and brisket brought by good friends. We had a couples gingerbread making contest, Dirty Santa exchange, a hot chocolate bar, and a Just Dance Dance Off! I need a nap today just thinking about it! I was behind the camera, so there are no pics of Hubs and I, but here are a few of the gingerbread house making!

Let the Christmas Season begin!

Field Trips

2011-11-25T09:24:00.000-08:00

On this day after Thanksgiving, it seems fitting to note that one of the things I am most thankful for is my sweet husband and the hard work he does to provide for our family. I never really mentioned it on the blog, but I didn't go back to work this year. One of the main reasons for that was so that I could be more available to my kiddos. I have had the opportunity this year to volunteer in both the kiddos' classrooms every week. I have been able to coordinate and volunteer at all their classroom parties and offer help to their teachers when they need it. In the last month they both had field trips that I was able to go as a chaperone.

AP's class went to the pumpkin patch. If I am truly being honest, I was not at all looking forward to another pumpkin patch field trip, but it was a fun day! (Between assisting at the school last year and my own kids' trips to this patch, I have been there 6 times in the last 3 years!)
It is so funny to watch little girls interact. There was a group hug as soon as we walked into the big barn, although they had just seen each other at school and ridden together on the bus :)

Then off to find just the right pumpkin....

We found it!

Then C's class went to Traveler's Rest. This field trip I was looking forward to! I've lived in Nashville all my life and had never been there. It is the former home of Judge John Overton. He was close friends with George Washington and Andrew Jackson. It was a very interesting field trip.

The kids played with toys that were popular in the time that the Overton kids lived there.

They also learned to write with a quill.They learned dances that were done to entertain guests and tried snacks that would have been offered to guests as well.

A great field trip! I look forward to going on that one again in a few years with AP!

Ohio Birthday Bashes

2011-11-25T08:24:00.000-08:00

Two weeks ago, we went up north to celebrate the birthdays of my niece and my sister. It was a super quick trip, but we are glad we got to be in on the party! My niece turned FOUR! She had a skating party and sported the shirt her Aunt Sissy made her :)

My sister made her a really cool cake. There were 4 layers that were all different colors. The candle spun around like a firework and eventually the burning flower opened it's petals. Pretty cool!

C is almost as tall as Nanna!
That night after the skating party we celebrated my sister's birthday, too.
There was a lot of celebrating crammed into 24 hours!

Just a Random Day in the Fall

2011-11-17T05:30:00.001-08:00

I honestly don't even remember when this day was. The kiddos were playing in our backyard and I was struck by the beauty of all the fall colors, so I just started snapping away!

Trick or Treat 11

2011-11-15T17:33:00.000-08:00

So, pretend it's a week or 2 ago and Halloween just happened :) Because, apparently, I am way behind! On Halloween night, AP decided to wear her pirate costume again, but she wanted to be "a pirate with lipstick" this time. The only problem with that is her mommy doesn't wear lipstick, so we had to search this house to find some! C really wanted to be something "scary", but settled on Darth Vader. He was really getting into the poses!

We met up with our friends and trick or treated through their neighborhood. We had a good lookin' group!

There was another Darth!
After spending time with our friends, we stopped by to see family and help pass out candy (and experience AP choking on a mouthful of Skittles!)Bo, the bulldog, was a pumpkin :)
We had a great night and are STILL polishing off all the candy!

Turkey Family Project

2011-11-03T18:32:00.001-07:00

Our assignment was to disguise the turkey that was given to us so that the farmer wouldn't cook her for Thanksgiving Dinner. Can you tell what AP disguised hers as?

Rocky Top Road Trip

2011-11-01T15:04:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we took the kiddos to their first UT game of the season. I think they love road trips as much as we do! We stayed at our favorite place, which is in great walking distance to the stadium. We were afraid that it might get too cold, but we managed. We all had blankets and hand warmers :) The Vols didn't end up winning, but we had fun!

I think one of the things Hubs looked most forward to as a parent was sharing the experience of Vol game days with his children. Here he is taking it in with his babies :)

We aren't fair weather fans in this house! We support our Vols even when they are all hurt and can't seem to win!

Boo To You and Bye to Disney

2011-11-01T08:57:00.000-07:00

On our last night at Disney, we attended Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween party at Magic Kingdom. Our whole family dressed as a brood of swashbuckling pirates :) The kiddos got to trick or treat through the park and go to several dance parties with the characters. We also caught a few of the rides that we had missed with very little waiting. We ended the night with Mickey's Boo To You Halloween parade. My favorite part was the headless horseman that galloped through before the parade started. I think we shut the park down at midnight! The next morning we let ourselves sleep in and the kiddos got to see the pool at the resort for the first time! A Disney vacation leaves very little down time! After a quick swim we hit the road for home! It took us several days to recuperate, but the fun times and memories made were well worth it!

Hakuna Mutata

2011-10-28T06:01:00.000-07:00

I've made it to the last day of recap! Day 4 started with breakfast at Chef Mickeys. We loved seeing all the traditional characters there. By this point, the kids had figured out that it was cool to get their autographs! After breakfast, we rode the monorail to the exchange terminal and caught the bus to The Animal Kingdom. We spent all all day at Animal Kingdom. Our first stop was the bird show, which we had been told was really neat. And it was neat, but our local zoo has a show very similar so we would probably skip that next time. We then when to the Bug's Life show, which was my favorite thing at that park. I love all the 3D effects and little surprises! We also caught the Lion King show, I really thought AP would love that one, especially when the monkeys started doing gymnastics, but she fell asleep! As far as roller coasters, we really liked the Everest ride (C did that one twice!) and the Dinosaur ride. We also enjoyed seeing some unique animals up close on the safari. We finished our Animal Kingdom day with their parade. All of the Disney parades are very entertaining! We ended our last day at Mickeys-Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, but that's a separate post of its own :)

Costume Night at Awana

2011-10-27T05:34:00.000-07:00

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Last night was the kids' costume party in their Awana program at church. My kiddos ended up with about 4 costumes each this year, mainly because I can't resist buying them after Halloween when they are marked down to $3! But, even with all our newish costumes, C chose to wear his ninja from last year :) AP, if you can't tell, is a fairy.

Happily Ever After

2011-10-25T17:03:00.000-07:00

After our naps on Day 3, we were off to catch the ferry over to the Grand Floridian. And it was grand! We really only saw the lobby of the hotel and it was super nice. We had dinner there at 1900 Park Fare, The Happily Ever After Dinner with Cinderella, Prince Charming, the stepmother , and her 2 stepsisters. They all acted out their roles perfectly. My favorite was the stepmother. She kept picking on C after she heard him say "seriously?" . She would come by our table and say "seriously!". After dinner, we rode the monorail for a late night Epcot trip. When we got there we really only had time for one ride, but it was one the big boys had been wanting to do, Mission:Space. C was tall enough to go on the "milder" version of the ride. I went with him and he took the whole thing so seriously. I think he thought we were really controlling a spaceship bound for Mars! After I rode with C, my friend and I did the "more intense" version and I thought my chest was going to cave in! There is some serious G force, or whatever it is called! We finished the rides just in time to see Epcot's laser, water, and fireworks show. That was one long day! We all slept well that night!

Tomorrowland

2011-10-25T14:40:00.000-07:00

On Day 3 at Disney we spent the entire day, actually the entire day up until our afternoon nap, in just one area of the Magic Kingdom- Tomorrowland. Day 3 was the first day that we decided that an afternoon nap was a must for young and old alike :) There was so much to do just in this one section. I rode Space Mountain twice, we drove race cars, went to a comedy show, got scared by Stitch, rode up high over the park in the Astro Orbiter (which we read later had caught on fire the day before we rode, good thing we didn't know that!), rode the People Mover, and several other rides. This was also the first day that it was sunny, so the crowd was larger and the lines a little longer. We sort of missed the rain!

My Pumpkin, Parties, and Pumpkins

2011-10-20T18:26:00.000-07:00

This is typical afternoon attire for AP (around here we call her pumpkin)! I decided to snap a few pics earlier this week just so I would always remember what a diva she was in kindergarten :)

Tuesday night we had C's fall baseball team's end-of-the-year party at a local skating rink. Daddy has really enjoyed being C's coach and hopes to have the opportunity to coach again in the future, maybe even softball!

I tried to get a pic of C skating, but they all looked like this! He has gotten much more confident on his skates.

AP got in on the skating, too. Tutu and all :)

C's number won in the number game. Glow stick prizes are the best.

Time for baseball cupcakes!

Man, he's cute :)

Tonight the kids and I added a little flair to the pumpkins on our front porch.

I love them!
(the kiddos and the pumpkins :)

To Infinity and Beyond

2011-10-16T12:47:00.001-07:00

Day 2 was spent at Hollywood Studios. The day started out really wet, but cleared up by lunchtime! Our first ride at this park was Toy Story Mania. That was also the longest line we waite4d in the entire trip. We had a fastpass to come back and do it later, but we decided the wait in line would be a nice break from the pouring rain. We had lunch at Hollywood & Vine, which was a lunch buffet with the Playhouse Disney characters. C's favorite part of Hollywood Studios were the stunt shows. We saw Indiana Jones and his favorite was the extreme car stunt show. It was really neat and Lightening McQueen himself made an appearance in that one. AP says she liked the Playhouse Disney Jr show the best. I, personally, liked the voyage of the Little Mermaid. As far as roller coasters, my favorite was the Aerosmith Rocking Roller Coaster (and not just because Steven Tyler has a little video clip at the beginning :) . C rode the Tower of Terror with us! He was scared, but says he liked it :)

It's A Small World...in the rain

2011-10-15T08:50:00.001-07:00

We just returned from a magical, exhausting, whirlwind, memory-making vacation to Walt Disney World! We went with great friends and really had a wonderful time, despite our first day being the wettest October day in Orlando since 1915!! We learned a valuable lesson, Disney in the rain = no lines! We donned our ponchos and played in the rain for 13 hours straight on Day 1. The kids loved it. I took more pictures than needed, as usual, so this post is full of pictures all from the first day! We had to take pictures of their cute outfits before we left our hotel because we knew they'd be covered in ponchos for the rest of the day. We spent the first half of the day at The Magic Kingdom. Our first ride was Dumbo, with absolutely no wait :) That afternoon we headed back to check into our Disney resort and then over to Epcot for our Princess Dinner at Akershus Banquet Hall. This was my favorite dinner, good food and all the princesses in one place! We took in as much of Epcot as we could after our dinner. My favorite ride was Soaring, which simulated hang-gliding over a huge Imax screen. The Turtle Talk with Crush was cool, too. C was the kiddo that Crush talked to in the audience. Crush also had a little talk with Daddy and discussed Tennessee. Both kids completely passed out on the bus ride back to our resort!

And Another!

2011-10-05T20:32:00.000-07:00

Monday night was the last game of the 7/8 Braves' fall season.

It was an awesome game! C got 2 triples! He may or may not have had the help of numerous fielding errors on the opponent's part, but to him they were triples!

They ended up winning their last game and the entire team got a game ball this time :)

Nastics, Mermaid, and Game Ball!

2011-10-02T18:59:00.001-07:00

This weekend AP had her very first gymnastics meet! She has been taking gymnastics for about a year and just moved up to the little competition team this summer. They have been practicing their beam, bar, floor, and vault routines for a month or two. AP really doesn't understand what it means to compete or what the judges are looking for at all, but she really enjoys it. On our way to the meet, she was telling me that she thought the judges would be wearing "red hats, gold shiny jackets, and black boots"! I have no idea where that came from!

Here she is with her best little friend who is also on her team.

Here she is waiting for her turn on the floor routine and talking to one of her coaches.

Here she is about to do her vault.
And the medals, her favorite part! They got a medal for each event and one for overall. So she was sporting five medals when we left. She wore them the rest of the day, too. We could hear her jingling around the house :)
She ended up coming in 5th overall, but she did get 2nd on the bars. The bars are her favorite. She thinks she "won", though :)While she and I were at her meet, C and Daddy were at the baseball field. I'm sure it won't be the last time that the kids' sporting events are scheduled at the same time. I hated to miss C's game and Hubs was really bummed to miss AP's first meet, but I guess we should get used to it! After her meet, we had a lunch date and then found the wig she needed to complete her Ariel costume. Is that not the cutest Ariel ever?!?

"This is how Ariel swims."
When we got home, C was excited to show us that he got the gameball!! C's last game of the season is tomorrow. Hubs has really enjoyed coaching his team. It's sort of sad to see this season end!

Wordless Wednesday ~ Girlfriends

2011-09-28T19:30:00.000-07:00

First Attempt at Wreath Making

2011-09-24T19:11:00.000-07:00

It was actually a lot of fun! The kids both helped and love seeing it hanging on the front door :)

Fabulous First Day of Fall

2011-09-23T18:26:00.001-07:00

This poor blog has been neglected! It's not because we haven't been busy, though. Since my last post, we have celebrated 5 birthdays, had family pictures made, had baseball pictures made, had 2 or 3 baseball games, had Mickey/Minnie Day at school, and spent time playing at the park. And I didn't take a single picture!

I made up for it today by taking lots of pictures of the kiddos playing with their friends in our yard on this first official day of fall! I know there are quite a few of little E, but girlfriend was loving the trampoline and it was too darn cute to pass up!

Crazy hair

2011-09-14T19:42:00.001-07:00

Tonight was Crazy Hair night in the Awana Clubs at our church. AP's idea was to "put 10 bows in my hair." And she did! She not only looked crazy, but pretty darn cute, too :)

C had a very specific request that involved orange hairspray and a Power T. I think my T turned out pretty good!
a little lightening on the side I was slightly panicked after spraying C's hair because we have a family portrait session tomorrow! It actually wouldn't bother me too much if he had his picture made with orange hair, it would add character :) It ended up being a non-issue, though, because it washed right out!

Let The Sun Shine In

2011-09-13T18:57:00.000-07:00

I have been struck by the beauty of the sun today!
This morning it was so bright that we were nearly blinded as we came out of the house to go to school.

Then this afternoon, the rays coming through the trees as the sun was sinking were stunning as well. Of course, my little sunshines are pretty amazing, too!The Braves smoked the White Sox tonight! C is playing catcher for the first time this season and is really starting to get the hang of it. He is hitting the ball much more consistently, too! Quite the little baller ;)

Nine Eleven

2011-09-12T07:02:00.000-07:00

We taught our kiddos for the first time this year what happened on Sept 11. We watched the memorial service together. C was intrigued by the fountains that flow where the twin towers stood. He wants to go see them in person. He had questions about why someone would want to do something like that. Hard to explain. AP just kept saying "that's so sad." They were proud to wear their red, white, and blue to church yesterday morning.
It's hard to believe it's been 10 years. I can remember, like most people, exactly what I was doing. I was a newlywed. I was driving into work, which consisted of about a 5 minute commute, and listening to 107.5 on the radio. They interrupted a song to break the news of the first plane. I thought it was a joke. By the time I got onto the unit of the hospital that I worked in, my coworkers were all gathered around the tv as we watched the rest of the day's news unfold.
It's sad that terrorism even exists. That I have to explain that to my kids. That they will one day have to worry about it themselves and explain it to their kids. Maybe I'm an idealist, flower child, or hippie at heart, but can't we all just get along? Maybe give peace a chance.

All About Me

2011-09-06T18:37:00.001-07:00

AP just finished her first kindergarten project.

Girlfriend LOVES to do homework.

After we finished making her "All About Me" book she begged to finish her homework for the entire week. I hope she continues to love her homework this much!

Inspired by the weather

2011-09-05T13:57:00.000-07:00

Although I am not ready to give up the summer, and I can't fully enjoy the crisp air and sweatshirts that fall brings because I know that means winter is right around the corner, I still love fall scents, fall decorations, and anything made with pumpkin!

A Little Rain, A Big Win

2011-09-04T14:55:00.001-07:00

Saturday we headed east to see the Vols kick off their season. We have season tickets again this year and I think these may be the best season ticket seats we've had so far.

It was super hot when we first got there. So hot that we actually saw several people need an ambulance due to heat exhaustion. But, right after we got settled into our seats we noticed that the sky was looking pretty spooky. The wind was picking up and the temperature dropped about 15 degrees.Then they evacuated the lower tier of the stadium and we ran for cover. The man that was standing in front of me (and shielding me from the sideways sheets of rain!) said that he has had his seats for 16 years and he's never been asked to leave his seat due to weather before!

The rain and lightening caused about an hour and a half delay. They were showing the radar on the jumbotron.

But after the delay, it was football time in Tennessee!

The Vols ended up beating Montana by around 30 points, I can't remember exactly and I could look it up, but it's really not that important :) We look forward to more weekend road trips to Knoxville this fall!

Picture Day and Puffy Collar

2011-08-30T13:21:00.001-07:00

Today was picture day at the kiddos' school. Of course, I had to take a few pictures of my own :)

Including pictures of our pitiful puppy in his puffy collar! He had a little surgery on Friday (we're doing our part to control the pet population :) and he will not leave his incision alone. We had to put a big puffy collar on him to wear this week so that he can't get at it. He still looks super cute, though!

T-Man Turns Two

2011-08-24T10:42:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we made another quick road trip up to Ohio to celebrate my nephew's 2nd birthday. When we got there Friday night, the kids were already asleep, so when T woke up on his birthday we were all there to sing to him!

Here he is blowing out the candle on his birthday breakfast.That afternoon we celebrated his birthday train style at Entertrainment Junction.

After blowing out his candles, he decided to just lean in and take a bite :) Isn't that an adorable cake?

As part of the party, we got to take a backstage tour of all the model trains. It was really cool.

Later that night I did a little photo shoot with AP and my niece in their matching back-to-school dresses. My niece is starting preschool next week!

This one is my absolute favorite.
My niece lasted the longest Saturday night so she was still up when we were icing cupcakes for the family party the next day. She was a lot of help :)Happy Birthday T! We enjoyed spending it with you!

I Can See Clearly Now

2011-08-19T10:24:00.000-07:00

I took these pictures on Wednesday afternoon. Really, it could have been any afternoon because this is what you'll find these two doing. But, Wednesday was a little different. Can you tell?

How about now?
Now that's better! C has glasses! These are his rec specs for sports, but he'll have regular everyday glasses, too, they just haven't come in yet.
We had no idea that he had problems seeing. He has never complained or squinted and his teachers never mentioned any problems at school. But, when we went for his annual well visit a few weeks ago, he failed the eye exam. As in the second line on the chart is where he stopped reading. That won us a referral to an opthamologist who we saw last week and who confirmed that he is near-sighted. He pretty much will need to wear his glasses all the time.
The good news is he is super cute in them!

And while those two were out playing in the yard, look who was longingly peeking out the window :)
while AP was trying to take a cat nap...or should I say dog nap :)

Sunday Afternoon Stroll

2011-08-17T05:57:00.001-07:00

We have been loving this slightly cooler than normal August weather! Even AP, my flip flop tank top girl, said she wished it would stay just like this forever.

Sunday afternoon we all set out on an afternoon hike.

AP got this doggy stroller for her birthday when she got her puppy, but it's our 11 year old dachshund that enjoys hitching a ride :)

Note the sign...

and the snake!

The dogs were worn out and pretty much put the brakes on about a half mile from our car. We ended up with one in the stroller and the other being carried!Later that afternoon we had a church wide potluck to kick off small groups. The kiddos ran, swang, and played some more. Needless to say, they crashed that night!
Now we are slowly getting back into our new school year routine. AP finally starts going full time tomorrow!

It's A Beautiful Day

2011-08-12T06:59:00.000-07:00

I hope and pray this zest for school continues! We were ready in record time this morning, happy to be up and moving, and excited to be headed to school!
It probably helped everyone's spirits that the weather is beautiful today!

Pumpkin goes to K!!!

2011-08-10T05:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was C's 2nd day of 2nd grade and AP's first day of kindergarten!!!!!

Several people asked me if I was crying because my baby was starting school. There were no tears here. If you know AP well, then you know that she sooo wants to be a big kid. I am excited for her. I can tell she is proud of herself and feels grown up :)

Our commute to school lasts approximately one minute. Just enough time to make a few silly faces :)

First we dropped C off with the big kids...
then we walked AP in. We are allowed to walk the kindergartners in on their first 2 days.

She found her cubby and immediately began unloading her backpack. She had stamped a picture for the principal and painted a picture for her teacher. Girlfriend knows how to get on their good side :) And no, none of that was my idea!
Her teacher loved her painting.She had a great first day. Her teacher reported that she was a "little mama". Yes she is!

Registration and First Day of 2nd Grade!

2011-08-08T06:22:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday was registration day for school! That really just means we go find out who our teachers are and take all of our supplies (and just a side note, we had a TON of supplies, as in 6 Kroger bags stuffed full between the 2 of them!).

I'm so excited about both of their teachers. I know they will both have amazing years.

Then today was C's first official day of 2nd grade!! He looks so much older to me in this picture. He did get a haircut yesterday, so maybe that's it ;)His biggest concern this morning was whether or not they would start Math today :) He knows he has at least 3 girls and 1 boy from his class last year, so I don't think he was too worried about finding friends. I can't wait to hear what he has to say about his first day!

Tomorrow is AP's first day of kindergarten! How can that be???

All To Ourselves

2011-08-08T05:18:00.000-07:00

There is a small waterpark not too far from our house. I used to go there growing up, but had never taken the kiddos there because it is always so crowded. Last week our friend who works there offered to let us come play there after it closed. We had the whole waterpark to ourselves and it was so much fun!

We stayed for a few hours that night then ended up going back one morning a few days later and playing for a few hours before it opened. The kiddos are never going to want to wait in a line again :)

Last Summer Road Trip

2011-08-02T17:12:00.000-07:00

Last week we made our last road trip of the summer. After going to Cincy the week before with friends for baseball, we came home for a few days then headed right back to Ohio to visit Nanna, Aunt Rach and family.

Nanna recently got a small pool for her backyard. That was the perfect entertainment for all the cousins as it was close to 100 degrees during our visit.

Friday night we went to their county fair and derby.
Both of my kiddos are apparently very good at throwing darts. C threw several times to win other people prizes and AP popped a balloon on her first toss. This was after my aunt and sister tried, but couldn't do it!Gotta love tacky fair prizes...

This is when I confess that when my sister mentioned going to the derby, I thought we were going to see horses race! I had never heard of a demolition derby :)

The kiddos were cooling off with a snow cone while waiting for the cars to begin their race to crush each other.

Then there was a junior demolition lawn mower derby! I kept thinking "Are their parents not worried about them getting hurt!?" I mean the goal is to crash into each other until you or your mower are rendered useless.

Then, imagine my surprise when grown men got on their lawn mowers! They were very serious about this.

The kiddos had time for a few rides after the derby. We were shocked to learn that C is officially too tall for the kiddie rides. There was even a fun house obstacle course type thing set up and he was too tall for that! He wasn't too upset, though, that just meant he could get on the big rides :)
The cousins enjoyed popsicles on Nanna's front porch swing on our last night there.

Little T dropped his on the sidewalk and the next thing we knew he was eating it off the ground face first!

Delirious girls up way past their bed time :)
We had a great visit and are looking forward to going back at the end of the month for T's 2nd birthday!

Go Braves!

2011-07-26T20:42:00.001-07:00

This past weekend was our 2nd Annual Reds vs Braves Road Trip with friends.

Note the friendly rivalry between friends :) Some of us are Braves fans, and some are Reds fans.
It was HOT! We had great seats, though, that provided a breeze and shade when we needed it.

Friday night was Fireworks Night. It was also Ladies Night. All the girls got free chocolate and pink Joey Votto tshirts.

AP and I chased down Rosie on Saturday so she could give her a hug. While we were waiting for our turn to talk to Rosie, we watched a guy propose to his girlfriend :)

AP was cooling off with a bag of what used to be ice on her head.

We had a great time with good friends. We ended up getting to see the Braves win a game, then the Reds win a game. Everyone wins :)
Now we are getting ready for yet another road trip!! The last one we can possibly squeeze into our summer before school starts.

Kindergarten Camp

2011-07-21T19:55:00.000-07:00

Wednesday AP got to experience a little bit of kindergarten. Her school had assessment days before they divide the classes up. As we were getting ready that morning, she said "I just keep telling myself 'Don't pick your nose or they won't be your friend!' " Haha! That's so much pressure!
She walked in like she owned the place, though, so I'm pretty sure she wasn't nervous. When I picked her up she came out and said, "I'm smart now, I don't need to go back" :)

And just a reflection on parenting the 2nd child:
The first day that C entered the school building as a kindergartner (who am I kidding, the first 20 days) he had on a brand new outfit, probably freshly pressed! On this, AP's first day, I let her choose. I did make sure it was clean, but her criteria for the shirt she chose was that it made her think of her best friend. Sounded perfect to me! It didn't even cross my mind to put on a new outfit until I saw some kiddos there who no doubt had on brand new duds from head to toe. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with new outfits, we even have a few. I just thought the difference in my own attitude and parenting was amusing.

Hello Great Wolf

2011-07-20T08:33:00.000-07:00

Last week we made a family vacation out of a required work trip for Hubs. We couldn't pass up the opportunity to spend the week at The Great Wolf Lodge. It was a little piece of heaven on Earth for my kiddos. They LOVE to swim and that's pretty much what we did non-stop for 4 days. There is an entire water park inside the hotel.

Hubs' parents live about 4 hours away from where we were so they came to visit. They even got in on the water park fun! Daddy Bob did one of the big water slides and Grandma Judy braved the wave pool :)

This was C's attempt at taking a picture of us eating dinner by the pool. As we were checking in the first afternoon there was a lady checking out who stopped us and gave us vouchers for 8 free meals that expired the next day! We used 4 at lunch and 4 at dinner and ended up saving close to $60!!

Each night there was Pajama Story Time in the lobby. We were able to catch it one night, then have our picture made with Wiley the Great Wolf mascot.

Saturday night we went out to eat to celebrate Grandma Judy's birthday and a belated Fathers Day for Daddy Bob. I love this pic of the kiddos waiting outside the restaurant.

Sunday morning we met up with the grandparents one last time for breakfast before we hit the road.It was definitely a fun trip. C almost started crying when we had to leave Great Wolf. He wanted me to promise that we would go back some time :)

Now we are home and gearing up for our next road trip in 2 days!!

Just Being Cute on a Sunday Morning

2011-07-09T10:09:00.001-07:00

Freedom, Friends, and Fireworks

2011-07-05T11:01:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been full to the brim with celebrating our freedom, fellowship with good friends, good food, boat rides, and lots of fireworks!

Saturday night our small group from church came to our house for a cookout.

After dinner and lots of fun playing with our friends we drove over to the park (or as close as we could get!) to watch our town fireworks.

Then Monday afternoon we met up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin to ride the boat down the Cumberland River and watch the Nashville fireworks downtown.

We had lots of fun playing on the water trampoline, listening to Darius Rucker who was playing on the riverfront, and watching the fireworks. Nashville's fireworks were amazing!! I don't think I've ever seen anything that compares, especially the finale!

Happy 4th!

2011-07-03T20:14:00.000-07:00

We Officially Have A Driver!

2011-06-30T19:50:00.000-07:00

Today was the last day for C and his friend at the Jr Golf Academy. Here they are with their teachers.They both had been looking forward to today because they learned how to use their drivers. I think they learned a lot in a short amount of time! C is already talking about moving up to the next level.

I think the girls enjoyed our daily trips to Franklin and our lunch dates.

Who knows maybe the girls will be learning golf next year!

Camp Adventures

2011-06-27T19:23:00.000-07:00

Last week C went to his first church camp. He went with our friend's church to Valley View Christian Camp. This is the same camp that me and my friends went to growing up. So many memories there!

It was cool to see our kiddos on the same bridge that we spent so much time on. And it made me feel really old!
This week C and his friend are taking golf lessons at the Jr Golf Academy in Franklin, TN.C enjoyed the first day and said he is looking forward to learning more about his pitching wedge tomorrow!

They Still Knew Us

2011-06-26T11:41:00.000-07:00

Last week our good friends that moved to Texas last December came to town for a few days. To say my kids were excited would be an understatement. We played with them 2 of the days that they were here. After the first day, C prayed "Thank you for J and N coming to visit and that they still knew us when they got here!"

Wednesday night we met them for dinner and then went to the park to play. The kids just picked right up where they had left off 6 months ago.

It was just like old times. They would have played happily together for hours if we had let them.

Thursday night we all got together again for pizza and more play time. My kiddos sure have been blessed with sweet friends that come from great families!
The saddest part was as we were leaving and C had to say goodbye to his "girlfriend" again, he said "this sort of feels like the end of the world!"

Sittin on the Dock of the Bay

2011-06-22T18:57:00.000-07:00

And here are the pics from the last 2 days of our trip. Can you tell I switched cameras?

The conference sponsored a Crab Chase for the kids after a cookout on the pool deck. It was called "Charlie's Crab Chase", how appropriate!

We searched
and searched
and searched

until Daddy found 3! We almost won. The most found was 4.

We met our friends at Baytowne Wharf on our last night there.

I love C's huge smile in these. Pure joy!

AP was so excited that she was finally big enough!

Our friend, T, did the bungee trampoline, too. I caught him mid-flip :)

C and I ziplined over Baytowne Wharf! It was so much fun! Can you see C hanging up in the sky above the roof line?
Here I am about to walk off the plank. That was the scariest part.
I'm the little blur in the sky above the buildings.That's all folks :)

Destination Sandestin

2011-06-19T19:06:00.000-07:00

This time last week we were enjoying the sand and surf in Sandestin. Oh, to be back there! The beach is our happy place :)

Hubs was there for a work conference that was very family-friendly. There was a Kids Club for the kids to go to at night during the dinner and adult activities. The kiddos loved it, and we enjoyed having a date on our vacation!

Good friends of ours were in Destin at the same time, too. We enjoyed dinner with them a few nights and having playmates at the beach.

I took my usual way too many pictures. (and this is only half of them, the rest are on another camera!)

To be continued....

Go Sounds!!

2011-06-18T20:37:00.000-07:00

Before I get caught up on our vacation last week, I have to back up to the last 2 games of the Sounds post-season tournament.

Last Friday night, we played and won to move on to the championship game.
C got a couple of really good hits! I caught him at the end of a slide across home plate :)

Boompa and Baba were there to cheer him on.
More of C's cheering section :)

The little sisters took a break to play "restaurant"

Then Saturday morning was the championship game. We didn't end up winning, but played a really good game. After the game it was trophy time!

C getting his trophy from his coach.

Who made this thing anyway?Way to go, C! He improved a lot this year, but most importantly, he had fun!

Summer Kickoff!

2011-06-10T12:54:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my cousins hosted their 3rd Annual Summer Kickoff Party. My sister, niece, nephew, and Nanna came down from Ohio to celebrate.

Little T was manning the drinks :)

My sis, Nanna, and me

AP and cousin S

my handsome boys :)

Do I have Cheetos in my teeth, Mom?

my cousins, the hosts

warming up the cornhole

my sis and niece sampling uncle's goooood bbq

Our friends joined us this year. This little guy partied, danced, cornholed, and ran until he crashed!

Little E and her dad enjoying the live music

While the musician took a break, they played Minute to Win It.

Did I mention he crashed? :)It was lots of fun! I'm glad my mom and sister were able to come for a super quick visit. I think they spent more time on the road than they actually spent in TN!