September 16, 2009

We got a great start to our week Monday morning when we managed to get out the door to school leaving behind 2 out of 3 of the kids' backpacks. Later that day, I shut my car door and the window rolled itself down and wouldn't roll back up. Thankfully, it wasn't too hot. I got Vic to put a garbage bag over it during the night so the raccoon didn't move in.

Tuesday morning I got all the kids out the door right on time and with all three backpacks. I ripped the garbage bag off the door, and loaded all the kids in only to find out my battery was dead. So, Grammy gave the kids a ride to school and Grampy came over to jump off my battery. So, I spent the day riding around with the window down but glad that the van was running. I also got to help in Jamie's classroom, which was fun. I am going to get to be the center time helper every Tuesday from now on. :)

Today I dropped the kids off for school successfully! Then I signed Caleb up for gymnastics and took my van to the shop to get the window repaired before the rain arrives. Then I spent a very quiet day at home. Just me and the laundry. The maid was also here to keep me company for the morning. Grammy delivered Caleb and later Jamie and took Carson home to her house.

Jamie has made fast friends with the little girl who moved in down the street. Tonight she went over there for dinner. At one point she showed up at home again "Hi mom, I forgot to wear underwear. Just here for some underwear." Well, at least she remembered. She came home and told me she had some chicken with some sauce that looked like blood and a half of cookie that had paper inside of it. So, I guess she was treated to Chinese food. I hope she kept her thoughts about the sauce to herself. She's not very good at keeping her thoughts to herself, though. :)

September 9, 2009

Today was a big day - the first day of preschool for Caleb and the first day of the new MOPS year for me.

Vic was in charge of getting all the kids to school today, since I needed to be at MOPS early. I spent half the morning at the check in table and then ducked out to pick up Caleb from preschool. They had a half day today.

I rode with a friend from MOPS who also has a son at the preschool, and Caleb didn't say a word on the ride back to the church. I think he was confused about being picked up in a different car. He was also fascinated by my friend's 3 month old baby, and stared at him the whole time.

I then further confused him by checking him into the MOPPETS program so I could finish the MOPS meeting. He didn't seem to mind, really, and showed up just in time for goldfish and apple juice.

He was much more talkative when we got home and told me and later Grammy on the phone that "Daddy took me to the wrong class this morning" He went on to say that he never did get to go to the right class, he stayed in the wrong class the whole time. Vic said he didn't have any problem finding the right class, but that Caleb was confused and thought he was supposed to be in the same class as last year. I guess that would be confusing! I'm sure he'll figure it out soon.

We don't have any pictures from his first day because the card was missing from Vic's camera when he tried to take pictures. We'll do a first day of school re-do photo shoot soon. :)

Tonight I loaded up the kids and drove Jamie to cheerleading practice. They fought the whole way there, then I got their shoes on, got all their water bottles, bag of goldfish crackers and herded all the kids to the practice area just as thunder rumbled and the coach cancelled practice. :sigh: At least we got home earlier, which made dinner and bedtime easier.

Sorry I have been away from the blog so long. Between MOPS stuff, Vic going out of town and Jamie having a stomach virus, I haven't had much spare time lately. Now that MOPS is up and running for the year, I hope I will have more time for writing!

September 1, 2009

The kids enjoyed their first day of school today. Well, Jamie did. Carson tolerated it. Carson was disappointed because the one boy he knew who was in his class got transferred to a different class. He told me he made a new friend today in his class and that he got to play with some of his good friends who are in other classes at recess, which the school now refers to as "Wellness".

Jamie said her favorite part was center time. She got to play with some magnets. Carson never would tell me what his favorite part was, but I would guess it was "Wellness" time.

Caleb and I had a very quiet day today. It went by fast, too. I didn't get nearly as much done as I had planned to. But there's always tomorrow. :)

Time to go get everything ready for day 2!

First Day of School pictures

First day of school pictures are up in our web album. :)

August 31, 2009

Our last day of Summer was a rainy one, at least in the afternoon. We managed to get in some fun before the rain, though. I took the kids out to Beef O'Brady's and they played in the arcade and enjoyed their curly fries. After that we went to the playground and they played for almost an hour when the clouds started rolling in. We made a quick stop by Publix to get doughnuts, which is what they want for their back-to-school breakfast tomorrow, and then headed home for the rest of the afternoon.

Jamie's cheerleading practice was rained out, and I was secretly cheering about that. Vic brought home a pizza for the kids, and I made a healthy shrimp stir fry for us. Did I mention he has lost 25 pounds now? I am trying to step up my diet plan to catch up with him!

Caleb was excited today because his Skechers Hot Lights shoes arrived in the mail. Skechers does an incredible job with marketing. My three year old asked for these shoes by name. He also told me how they "Light up the night", per the ad. So, he's been wanting these for months and I promised that when it was time to buy back to school shoes, he would have his Skechers. Today was the day. The first thing he did was turn out all the lights, put them on and run around. "They do light up the night, Mommy!" I'm glad they made him happy. :)

The Third Grader, Kindergartener, and the little guy are all in their beds. We are all ready for the big day tomorrow. Uniforms are laid out, supplies are labeled and packed, and I'm about to go pack what I can of their lunches and snacks. I'll post pictures tomorrow!

Back to school countdown . . . 0 days!!

August 29, 2009

The kids all had a fun day today. This morning I took Jamie to a friend's birthday party. It was a pool party, so she spent the morning in the pool. She only came out for pizza, cake and ice cream. It was such a nice morning for a pool party. Not too cold, not too hot. I especially appreciated that since I spent most of the three hours in a lounge chair by the pool.

While we were at the party, Vic took the boys to the Flying Frogs(it's like Chuck E Cheese but less awful). They had a good time eating pizza, playing games and playing in the playground area. Carson was very proud that they won 200 tickets with only 20 tokens. :)

After the pool party Jamie and I went to Walmart. We had to go get more school supplies since the list I got from Carson's teacher was a little different than the one on the school's website. This happens every year, so you'd think I'd get used to it. It's still annoying, though. Just when you think you have everything ready. . . Well, we will be ready after tonight. I have a few more things to label and a couple of more folders to put paper in and then he is ready for 3rd grade, at least supply wise. I don't think he's very excited about third grade at all and would just as soon continue summer break forever.

Last night we got to meet the kids' teachers. We started out in the K hall, where Jamie didn't get the teacher she really wanted (the one who taught Carson), but she did get a very nice teacher and she has a few friends in her class. She is so excited about starting Kindergarten. She keeps asking me if she gets to go tomorrow.

Then we moved on to the 3rd grade hall, where Carson got to meet his new teacher, who also seems very nice. Carson only spoke about two words and didn't even try to seem excited about 3rd grade. Oh well, he definitely didn't seem to be the only kid who was less than thrilled about school starting.

Caleb got to hang out with Grammy at the library while we met the teachers, so we picked him up and headed to Applebee's for some takeout to celebrate the new school year.

Time for me to finish getting those school supplies ready!

Back to school countdown . . . 2 more days!!

August 27, 2009

All three little bundles of energy went to spend the night with Grammy and Grampy last night. Woohoo! Vic and I finally went out to eat for our anniversary.

We went to Ruth's Chris steak house. It was very good, but one of those places where you pay $35 for just a steak. No potato, no salad, just a piece of steak. So, not exactly the kind of place we usually go. I did spring for the $9 sweet potato casserole to go with mine. It was yummy, but not as yummy as the one my MawMaw and my mom make. The waitress told us that they broil the steak at 1800 degrees and then serve the steak on a 500 degree plate. I found out they weren't kidding when I tried to move my plate, momentarily forgetting about the 500 degree thing - ouch! I very much enjoyed our nice night out, burned finger and all. They even brought us champagne on the house for our anniversary. I thought that was nice.

I haven't been downtown in a while and remembered why when we were driving round and round looking for parking. On the way back to the car, we passed the valet parking for the restaurant. Too bad we didn't see that before spending 15 minutes touring downtown. Well, at least it is pretty downtown.

This morning, Grammy and Grampy took all the kids to the Flying Frogs. Have I mentioned lately how much I love Grammy and Grampy? There were some people there from my MOPS group and a couple from the kids' school, so they had friends to play with and had a great time. I had a nice and very quiet morning at home. No one was fighting, no crying, no yelling, no one trying to run inside, or scattering toys. It was weird. It is going to be even weirder when they are all in school very soon!

This afternoon, they came back home in full force. They weren't too bad, really. Carson played outside with friends, and Caleb and Jamie mostly stayed in except for going out to play in the water for a while. They were too tired to fight, I think. That was nice.

Time to go tackle those dishes and get some rest!

Back to school countdown . . . 4 more days!!

August 25, 2009

The kids were somewhat calmer today. That was nice. They weren't very calm, though. I think they are getting excited about school starting and that is somehow causing them to not be able to pass within 3 feet of each other without one of them knocking another one in the head.

I took all three to Publix today. Good times. If there had been a big bowl of eggnog there, I would have been drinking it like Clark W. Griswold on Christmas Eve. In fact, maybe I should just keep a big bowl of eggnog around here until school starts.

We picked up some ice cream and some toppings at Publix and made ice cream Sundaes after lunch. I enjoyed a nice ice cream sundae with hot fudge, pecans and a cherry on top. It wasn't exactly good for my diet, but it's not like the diet is doing any good anyway. Might as well eat ice cream. The kids enjoyed it too, and ended up very, very sticky and happy.

Tonight I got to go to a baby shower for a friend from MOPS who is having twins. It was fun, and it was good to get out for a while with no kids.

Earlier, Jamie was talking non-stop, telling me story after story after story. I said, "Wow, you sure do have a lot of stories." She replied, "Well, I've got to clear out all of my stories from pre-k so that I can make room in my head for Kindergarten stories!"

Back to school countdown . . . 6 more days!

Some random pictures from the last week or so

Here are some pictures from the last week or two:

Caleb taking a picture of himself. This one cracks me up.


Caleb with his army guys




Caleb and Jamie playing stuffed animal beauty shop:



Caleb and Carson with their remote-controlled airplane. This thing was much fun, but lasted exactly one day.



A photo Caleb took of me and Jamie. Not bad for a three year old.


Carson after making his first "A" on Dance Dance Revolution.

August 24, 2009

Today, the kids spent the day fighting, making messes, and getting in trouble. I took them to lunch at McDonald's and even took along a book thinking I could read while they played in the play area. It didn't work out quite as well as I hoped, but I did get a chapter read, and they didn't fight.

Back at home this afternoon, there was more fighting and fussing, the frog escaped from his tank twice, some extra kids came over, I found out Carson and a friend had stuffed a neighbor's mailbox with walnuts, and I got to go spend an hour and a half at cheerleading practice with an over-tired toddler. Actually, the over-tired toddler was a little angel all of practice until we ran into the para pro from Jamie's class last year. Then he turned into devil child. That was right after she remarked that she hoped he'd get to be in her class when he's in pre-k. I bet she's re-thinking that now. Oh, and Jamie is supposed to be cheering out in Rincon this Saturday for the practice game. Thank goodness she has already RSVPed to attend a birthday party Saturday morning. Rincon is a bit far of a drive to go shake some pom poms. I hope the regular games will be here on the island or in Savannah. It would be great if we got a schedule.

On a positive note, Carson was invited to stay at William's house for dinner while I went with the little ones to cheer practice. Also, it was announced that Wednesday cheer practice is cancelled for U8 cheerleaders and probably will be also for U10. Jamie is on the U10 squad(they are divided according to the team for which they will be cheering, not by age), so here's hoping that they cancel too. I think they will.

Vic brought home pizza tonight. That means no dishes before bed - yay! So, I'm off to get some rest. Here's hoping the frog stays in the tank all night. I have no idea how he's getting out, but if he gets out during the night he's on his own.

Back to school countdown: 7 more days!!

August 20, 2009

Carson spent the night with Grammy and Grampy last night, so I took the opportunity this morning to go grocery shopping with just two kids. That would have been great if someone would hurry up and install dividers in those little race car carts. They just couldn't stop picking at each other. I think all the kids are bored with Summer now. They can't seem to find anything to do but fight with each other.

This afternoon, they played with friends and I did laundry. I sent the last extra kid home tonight at 7:15, when our chicken stir fry was ready. This is the third chicken stir fry I have made this week(different recipes). I have figured out that Vic and two out of the three kids will eat some vegetables if I stir them around with some chicken. So I've been sticking to that. Tonight Vic suggested that I maybe cook some shrimp next time. Guess he's had enough chicken. So tomorrow night Shrimp stir fry!

I took a few pictures yesterday and today. I'll try and post them tomorrow. Right now it's time for bed!

Oh, and sorry for the lack of blogs lately. I have been putting a lot of time into getting ready for the new MOPS year. I am in charge of a couple of different areas this year, so there's a lot of work getting everything ready. Hopefully I'll have more time for writing after the new school year stars - 11 more days!!

August 17, 2009

Today is Grampy's birthday, so I let the kids chose what they wanted to get him. Caleb chose doughnuts, Jamie chose "those mints that are white and shaped like doughnuts", aka Lifesaver mints, and Carson chose Reese's Peanut Butter cups. They also suggested a Sonic gift card, so we got that too. Then, we got to take Grampy his gifts, along with the cards the kids had made for him. We enjoyed visiting Grampy, and he was so nice to share his gifts with the kids. :)

We spent the afternoon at home. I worked on MOPS stuff, Jamie and Carson played with friends, and Caleb took a nap.

Later, we headed out for Jamie's cheerleading practice. On the way there, she cheerfully told me that she has a make up practice this Saturday. I reminded her that she already had her make up practice last Saturday. She said, "No, that was just cheerleading practice. We didn't put on any makeup at all! " lol.

August 15, 2009

I went to a five-hour MOPS planning meeting this morning, and Vic stayed with the kids. He took them all to Jamie's cheerleading practice and then took them to McDonalds and let them eat and play for an hour. I think they had a good time. Caleb was asleep on the couch when I got home, and the other two were playing quietly. There were no extra kids in the house, either. I should really go out for the day more often!

We had more rain this afternoon, which was nice. It was a quiet afternoon, even after the kids' friends came over, and I got a lot of MOPS stuff done. Vic decided not to drive to the office after I got home from my meeting because of the rain, so it was nice to have him around all day.

The neighbors across the street got a new car today, and their 9 year old daughter was over this afternoon and told me that she hated the new car and loved the old one and that she cried and cried when they traded in the old one. So, I guess Jamie isn't the only one who gets overly emotional over cars. Maybe it is a little girl thing. Good to know.

Time to finish the dishes and get some sleep!

August 12, 2009

I dropped Carson off with Grammy this morning, and the little kids and I headed to Target for a morning of shopping fun. After Target, I completely blew my diet as soon as I saw the DQ sign. I remembered that they have Tagalong blizzards now. That's right. Tagalongs and ice cream. Mixed together. So, I enjoyed every bite of the Blizzard and called it lunch.

This afternoon brought thunderstorms. We got an email from the football coaches that practice was still on. He said the showers looked scattered, so we'd hope for the best. I thought that was nuts, since it had been raining and thundering and lightning for at least an hour and showed no signs of stopping. Then I got an email from the cheerleading coaches that cheerleading practice was cancelled even though football practice was still on. Thank goodness. I didn't want her to miss practice, but I wasn't going to take her to practice in the lightning.

Caleb fell asleep tonight at 5:00 and woke up at 7:00. I thought he would never go back to sleep. He threw a fit for about half an hour in his bed because he wanted to play with play dough right then in his bed. He's finally out and I'm ready for bed myself!

It's time for the countdown to the first day of school: 19 more days!!

Wow - I have been away from the blog a long time! We had such a nice time on our vacation.

I learned a few things:

1) Three rowdy kids + a hotel room = a big headache

2) Caleb very much enjoys slinging the door open while I'm using the bathroom at the Theme park.

3) Someone could make a whole lot of money by making car divider walls to put between kids on long drives. Apparently poking at each other is much more fun (and much louder) than any of the car fun activities I painstakingly packed in each of their bags.

4) The radio does not drown out the sound of Caleb and Jamie fighting. It only adds to the headache.

5) God bless the inventor of the Nintendo DS. I hope this person is ridiculously wealthy. The DS is worth way more than what I paid for it. Carson was great in the car.

6) Never pack a swimsuit for my five year old with criss-cross straps to change into at the water park. It is almost impossible to get the straps untwisted when changing in a rustic, small "family bathroom" with exposed pipes in the ceiling when it is in the 90s and humid. Oh, and especially after she looks up at the ceiling and yells "RAT!!! MOMMY DID YOU SEE IT? A RAAAATTTT!!"

7) Always take note of where you park the van, especially in a 7-story parking garage. Actually, Vic learned that one. I think he also learned to appreciate the relative peace of his job.

8) Gas station bathrooms are still gross, but not as bad as they once were I think. I should know because I visited approximately 332 of them while traveling with the kids. We stopped about every half an hour and as soon as we were on the road again after a stop, one of them had to go again. Every time. Once we even pulled over on the entrance ramp to the Highway to let Caleb pee. This was right after we pulled out of the gas station. Once, I tried letting Caleb use an empty water bottle while we were driving. That went all kinds of wrong.

It was a ton of fun. We enjoyed Carowinds, and I think Vic and I have seen enough of the park for a while. We have been there about 12 times in the last 3 years. The kids would probably never get sick of it, though.

After leaving Charlotte, we had a fantastic time visiting with Poppa and Nana. The kids loved playing Whirl Ball in the basement with Nana, watching the rabbits and chipmunk outside, visiting the aquarium, picking tomatoes from the garden, and playing with Pappa Jim who stopped by with Aunt Gayle on Saturday morning. They enjoyed every minute of it, and so did we!

I have put some pictures from our vacation up in our web album. If you are on facebook, they are the same pictures I posted there.

Today, Vic and I celebrated 13 years of marriage. After Jamie's cheerleading practice tonight, it was late and I was trying to decide what I could cook for dinner that would be really fast. He walked in and surprised me with flowers and my favorite Indian food! :) He got me a very nice card, too. We will go out by ourselves and celebrate again soon. Maybe this weekend.

August 2, 2009

We got a call as we were getting ready for church this morning from Vic's parents that his Nanny passed away this morning. She had been quite sick for a while now, and she got to go home from the hospital before she died, which was what she wanted. So, we are sad but glad that she got her wish. There won't be a funeral since she didn't want one, so we are going ahead with our planned trip for next week.

Vic took the kids to Sunday school, except for Caleb who had been up since the crack of dawn and was tired and grumpy. Caleb and I stayed home and did laundry and worked on getting ready for the trip.

Jamie and I joined the crowds at Walmart this afternoon to shop for school supplies. They don't start school for another month, but I wanted to get all the supplies on tax-free weekend. Then we got caught in a downpour and had to run to the van, which was all the way on the other side of the parking lot. I was in heels and she was in a dress and "jelly" type shoes, so we were quite a sight. I'm just glad that I have the supplies done now. I still need a rolling backpack for Carson and some primary pencils for Jamie.

It was gloomy and rainy most of the rest of the afternoon. Carson was over at a friend's house, and Jamie and Caleb watched a Bob the Builder video and we baked cookies. I also got a lot of packing done. I can get a lot done on rainy days since there is less doorbell ringing and kids running in and out of the house.

I just have a little more packing to do and a little more straightening to do around the house and we are ready to roll. I will try to write from Charlotte, but if not I'll be back in a week!

July 31, 2009

Jamie enjoyed her last day at Pixies and Fairies camp today. She got to dress up in her fairy costume today and have a tea party with her friends.

This afternoon all the kids enjoyed having Madi over to play for a while. They had a lot of fun playing and then watched a Hello Kitty video together. Aunt Karen brought their new kitten with her when she picked up Madi. Jamie got to hold the kitty and thought it was the greatest thing ever.

Vic brought home a new car tonight. He traded in his Passat and the truck and got a new BMW. It is pretty and has that great new car smell! It even has a sunroof, which the kids were already hanging out of tonight. "Waking up in Vegas" was on the car's radio at the time, and it was perfect background music for the kids hanging out of the sunroof. It was parked in the driveway at the time, of course.

We are all happy about the new car except for Jamie, who has decided she will never love another car like she loved the Passat. Plus, she pointed out, the BMW doesn't have cup holders in the back. She sobbed for a very long time about that. That one can create drama out of anything!

Here she is:

July 30, 2009

We had a day of running around today. We dropped Jamie off at Pixies and Fairies camp, went to the grocery store, home to unload groceries, back to pick up Jamie early from camp, dropped Jamie off at a birthday party, home for about an hour, then back to pick Jamie up again.

Then I realized that I had forgotten one ingredient I needed for the dinner I was making tonight. I couldn't stand the thought of taking the kids out again, so I called Vic and requested Indian food. That was interesting. It was good, but apparently their oven was broken so no Mozzarella kulcha. Then they went crazy with the cloves and Vic's chicken curry was watery. It was like they ran out of a bunch of stuff and tried to make do with what they had. Oh well, at least I didn't have to cook.

Jamie had a great time at Pixies and Fairies camp and at the glamour girl birthday party she went to. At the party, the girls got their hair styled and their nails painted. There were tons of dress up dresses for them to try on, and at the end they put on a fashion show. We got there just in time for the fashion show. It was really cute.

I finally uploaded a bunch of pictures today. They are up in our web album. I still have more to upload from Vic's camera.

This picture is Jamie after the glamour girl party today. I think she is going to want her hair curled every day from now on.

July 28,2009

Jamie had fun on her second day of Pixies and Fairies ballet camp today. She colored a picture, made a fairy wand, and of course danced.

The boys and I made a trip to Publix and then hung out around the house until time to pick up Jamie. Carson sulked most of the time because he found out that he will be going with me to watch Jamie dance on Friday, and also because I wouldn't let him play games. He's also still upset with me because he doesn't like the haircut he got yesterday. I took him to a different place than the place where Vic takes him. He was not happy at all. I think his hair looks fine, though.

We picked up Jamie and dropped Carson off at Grammy and Grampy's house to spend the night. I'm sure he was happier there!

I took Caleb and Jamie to swim lessons this afternoon. They are both making great progress. Caleb is working on taking breaths while swimming, and Jamie is working on swimming with her face in the water. Tomorrow is their last lesson.

Off to finish up the last load of laundry for today and get some rest!

July 26, 2009

We went to Sunday school today, and I got to help out in Carson's class. Those kids were crazy! I don't know how the teachers haven't quit by now. No wonder one of them is taking the Summer off.

This afternoon was hot and we mostly stayed inside. I did go out with the boys for a while to try to launch the Titan blast rocket that I got for Caleb half price at Target last week. He has been wanting one for the longest time. We have watched the youtube video in that link about 100 times. The kids managed to tear the inflatable rocket opening the package, so we had to patch that with electrical tape, which is really only slowing the leak. Then we took it outside and roasted in the sun while trying to keep it balanced, inflated and get the water tank filled. We ended up with a deflated rocket, a bunch of mosquito bites, a couple of ant bites, and water mysteriously spewing out of the bottom of the tank but most definitely no rocket launch. Well, at least I only paid half price. Maybe we'll try again in a few days.

Jamie and Caleb were tired and went to bed early today. Carson stayed up later and played flashlight tag outside with some friends. Time for me to get some rest now. I have to get my little fairy to Pixies and Fairies camp early tomorrow morning.

July 25, 2009

We had a great time at the pool this morning with the family. Well, all the family except for Vic, who had to work all day. Jamie and Caleb showed us their new skills they learned in Swim lessons last week. We only ended up having two lessons last week and will have the other two next week. I can't believe how much progress they both made in only two lessons!

Carson and Jamie finished their Gym and Swim camp on Friday, and Caleb and I got to go watch them show off what they learned at camp. Carson is great at doing flips into the foam pit! Jamie loves the foam pit, too. I think she will have tiny pieces of foam stuck in her hair for a long time, since they went swimming first, and then came in with wet hair to jump into the foam pit. Jamie is excited about ballet camp next week. It is pixies and fairies themed, so that is pretty exciting!

The kids went home with Grammy for a while after the pool while I went and cleaned the church. Tonight when Vic got home from work he grilled some chicken for us and I baked some potatoes. While we were getting dinner on the table, poor Caleb was trying to get down off the counter when he slipped and bumped his chin on the counter and bit his tongue pretty bad. He got over it pretty fast, but I bet that will be sore for a few days!

Time to get some rest. I didn't get to have my tail kicked by Jillian today. I have no energy left after swimming, cleaning at the church and keeping up with the kids all day. No way I can keep up with Jillian now! I have managed to do the workout video five out of the last seven days. That's pretty good for me! I'll pick it back up tomorrow.

July 21, 2009

The a/c was fixed this morning, so I got to run the dryer today without sweating. The capacitor needed to be replaced. The two guys fixed it up in about 10 minutes - yay!

Carson and Jamie had another fun day at gym and swim camp. Then I took Jamie and Caleb over for their afternoon at Grammy and Grampy's, which turned into an overnight trip.

Carson played with William all afternoon and I got some cleaning done. The maid is coming tomorrow, and I can't let her know that I really need a maid. ;) Then I put in my time on the 30-day shred. Day four was much easier. I am not as sore, plus I used my ipod instead of listening to the DVD. It wasn't bad at all! Of course, I'm still on level 1. I guess I will move up to level 2 after day ten, but I'm going to enjoy level 1 for the next six days.

Tonight I went out to dinner with some friends from MOPS at my favorite Indian restaurant. It was lots of fun, and good to leave the island for a while!

July 20, 2009

I dropped Carson and Jamie off for their first day of Gym and Swim camp today. Then Caleb and I ran some errands and enjoyed a quiet morning.

We picked up Carson and Jamie at lunch time and headed home for the rest of the afternoon. I did day four of the 30-day shred with Jillian Michaels. Jamie asked me as the DVD was starting how long it was going to be before I was skinny like those girls on the TV. I told her it would take a long time for me to be that thin. She said, "Well, I think you're getting thinner already!" I thought that was very sweet. Then she added, staring at my stomach, "Well, maybe just a little bit. . . just a teeny tiny bit." lol. I made it through the DVD, but it was tough today because I am sore from days 1 & 2. I am very much afraid of day 30!

Today was another cooler, overcast day. I am loving this Summer weather we have had this year. It's not unbearable to be outside! Yay!

All the kids were in bed tonight by 8:45. Not bad for Summer time. I am going to be heading to bed soon, too. I am doing a good job of going to bed by 11:00 every night lately. It makes it harder to write at night, though. I am going to try to write more during the day. Vic brought home a device I can use to upload pictures to the computer. As soon as I get it figured out, I promise to start getting pictures on the blog again!

The A/C repair guy is coming out in the morning to fix our downstairs unit. I hope he can fix it easily. Even though the weather is fairly mild, it is pretty hot downstairs, especially if the dryer or oven is on.

July 17, 2009

We made it through our week in Ancient Rome at VBS. It was actually a lot of fun. I loved the curriculum. It was easy to follow, took very little work, and the kids learned a lot and even got a great history lesson about ancient Roman culture.

Of course, we didn't make it through the week without incident. Our group's "home" was right next to two large, hard plastic columns and two walls made out of foam. During our opening time one of our kids accidentally leaned back on a column and it toppled over, knocking over the other column, which landed on the piano. Both walls also fell. I had flashbacks to Macy's back in 1995.

Carson played with friends this afternoon and the little kids played together. We are all worn out from bible school. I think I am way more tired than the kids, though. Vic brought home fajitas for us tonight so I didn't have to cook. :) I can't wait to get some rest! I hope the kids sleep until at least 7 tomorrow!

July 14, 2009

Another fun day in Rome today. I was really glad that none of the kids in my class were called on to recite yesterday's verse at the opening assembly!

After lunch Carson played some more baseball, the little kids played inside and rested, and I did some laundry. Jamie asked me this afternoon "When are they going to let that guy go?" She was referring to Paul (played by our pastor) who we visit every day in "prison" at VBS. I told her I wasn't sure how long Paul was in prison, and she said, "No, I don't mean Paul. I mean that guy that's locked up at our church. He's been there two days already!" lol.

Time to go study up for tomorrow and get some rest. VBS really wears me out!

July 13, 2009

The first day of bible school went well today. We only had six kids in our "family". A couple of them had a whole lot of energy, but it wasn't too bad. Oh, and I accidentally taught them all the wrong scripture reference with today's verse. Oh well, they can say the verse. They'll just never be able to find it in the bible. ;) I'll teach them the corrected version tomorrow.

The set up is pretty cool. We visit Paul in prison with his guard, Brutus, and then we are taken to the underground church to deliver messages from Paul. The underground church is in a cave created in a hallway with dark plastic sheeting. We have to go through a small dark jungle to get to it. Thank goodness the ancient Romans somehow had a fan inside their cave or it would have been very hot in there! Of course, the people in the underground church were very anxious to hear about Paul and his message. So, when they all began excitedly asking how Paul was doing and what message we had brought, one of our more energetic ones felt the need to break it to them that, "Paul's going to be beheaded soon. Hate to tell you." They pretended not to hear him.

It was really neat and the kids in my class weren't scared as I had feared they would be. I did hear, though, that Jamie was scared when her class went in.

This afternoon, Carson swam with a friend and then played baseball in the cul-de-sac with a whole bunch of boys. Caleb and Jamie were very tired and played inside most of the afternoon. I am very tired, too! Time to get some rest before I go back to ancient Rome tomorrow!

July 11, 2009

This morning, I took Jamie to sign up for cheerleading. She is very excited and can't wait to get her uniform! She will be cheering for the Talahi Tigers 8U football team. After that, we went to Walmart for the cheer shoes that we were told she needed. I had no idea that there were special shoes for cheering! We found them, so now she needs some pom pom socks and orange ribbons and we are ready. :)

After that we picked up the boys from Grammy & Grampy's house and went home. The kids spent the afternoon playing, and I spent the afternoon cleaning up. Vic had to go to work for a while, but ended up with two new listings so it was well worth a few hours work.

Tonight, Christy and Patrick came over for dinner. Christy was so sweet to bake me a birthday cake. It was great! She even brought ice cream. :) We ate steaks, potatoes, and a really good corn pudding that Christy also made, and then enjoyed cake and ice cream. It was a fun night. I am most definitely not winning the weight loss challenge on Monday, but I have enjoyed celebrating my birthday all week. I wonder how much longer I can keep celebrating and still be able to button my pants.

Off to finish up some stuff for bible school and then finally get some rest.

July 9, 2009

I had a very nice 34th birthday yesterday! It was my favorite weather, cool and rainy, and that almost never happens in July. Carson spent the day at gymnastics camp, Jamie and Caleb spent the day with Grammy, and I spent most of my day at Target! Woohoo! I even saw Miley Cyrus's mom there!

After that, I took dinner to someone in our church who just had heart valve replacement surgery. I feared his heart couldn't take my cooking, so I picked up a rotisserie chicken and some sides from the Publix deli. Actually, I just spent too much time at Target and didn't have time to cook, but Publix is probably a better cook than I am anyway. :)

I picked up all the kids and we baked birthday cupcakes for me and then Jamie and I iced them with chocolate fudge frosting with mini chocolate chips mixed in! Mmmmmmm! So, my diet is shot for the week. Then Vic brought home Indian food for us and McDonald's for the kids. I forgot to buy candles, so Vic lit one of my Yankee candles and I blew that out.

After that, Caleb and Jamie put on their new rain boots I picked up for them at my favorite store, and went out to play in the rain before bed. Carson opted to play Wii instead. It was a great day!

Today it was rainy most of the day. Caleb, Jamie and I went to Publix and I only had to fix my windshield wiper one time! I really need to get a new one of those. It is getting embarrassing to have to stop somewhere and stand in the rain trying to pop the blade back into place.

This afternoon the weather cleared up and it started to feel almost like Summer again. I picked Carson up from camp and then let all the kids play on the new playground at the Y. It is a really cool playground!

We had take out food again tonight(Japanese this time), as I am stretching this birthday thing out as far as I can! So, no dishes to clean up! The only thing standing between me and sleep is one load of laundry to be folded, so I'm going to tackle that and get some rest!

July 7, 2009

We dropped Carson off at camp this morning, with a swim suit this time. Then we headed to Toys R Us to pick up a couple of things the kids had earned as rewards. Jamie got a swimming baby doll that she has been wanting forever and Caleb got Better Batter Baseball, which is a reward he chose for potty training. So, we got those things, and looked at about 100,000 other toys and then headed home.

The weather was so nice today! It was in the low 80s with cloud cover. Pretty crazy for July, and a very nice break from the heat. So, the kids got to play outside. Caleb had so much fun with the Better Batter baseball. I was proud of myself for putting it together. It came in a whole bunch of pieces with a bag of screws and, thankfully, some instructions.

Caleb and Jamie also gave themselves a bath this afternoon. I heard water running and discovered that they had run themselves some bath water and hopped in. They played with Jamie's swimming baby doll. Then I washed their hair and declared them clean. Saved me some work at bedtime tonight!

Carson spent the night at Grammy and Grampy's house, and took every Wii game in the house with him. I'm sure he had fun. :)

July 6, 2009

Carson had his first day of gymnastics camp today. I was concerned that 9-4 would be too long, but he had a great time. They even went for a swim. Well, Carson didn't, since I didn't think to send a swim suit with him to gymnastics camp, but tomorrow I will.

The little kids and I had a quiet day at home and only ventured out once to go to Publix. They played outside some, since the weather was a little milder today, and made plenty of messes playing inside, too.

After Carson got home, things were much less quiet, since three of his friends came over. They played hide and seek inside and played Wii. I never knew that either of those activities could be so noisy! They were playing the Punch Out game that Uncle Brent brought over last night.

Vic brought home pizza for dinner - yay, no cooking! Then I set up our new voice mail system while he supervised bath time. We just switched our home phone service to T-mobile a few days ago, and I had no idea we had voice mail service until Grammy mentioned to me today that she had left me a message. So, I looked up instructions on line, and found out that we had 8 messages. Whoops! Good thing there was nothing urgent on there!

July 4, 2009

Happy 4th of July! Hope everyone had a fun day celebrating!

We all went to the pool today with Grammy and had lots of fun. Carson's friend was there again, and Jamie found someone to play with, too. Caleb tried his best to hang with the big boys. He is quite the little swimmer with those water wings on!

We had a quiet day at home this afternoon. Vic went to visit some of his friends who were staying at the beach for the weekend. The kids were tired from the pool, so we stayed home and got takeout from Applebee's for dinner.

I think the fireworks have died down now, so I am off to get some rest!

July 3, 2009

We had a great time at the pool with Grammy this morning. Carson found a friend to play with there, and Caleb and Jamie had a great time splashing around with me and Grammy.

This afternoon, Caleb and Jamie decided that they were kittens and played kittens quietly all afternoon. They also made a big mess downstairs, but at least they were quiet and happy.

Carson spent the afternoon swimming over at a friend's house, and now he has gone to watch some fireworks with Vic.

Caleb and Jamie are definitely not quiet right now because they are unhappy with me for not letting them go to the fireworks. They are tired and need to go to bed! Plus, they are watching the fireworks from a dock and I don't trust Caleb to not try to jump into the water.

So, off to put these two to bed and then take advantage of the quiet time to restore order to the downstairs!

Hope everyone has a great 4th tomorrow!

July 2, 2009

I took all the kids to The Flying Frogs this morning, which is an indoor play area and arcade that is similar to, but much more tolerable than its evil cousin, Chuck E Cheese, and has way better pizza. The kids played in the play area, blew through a whole bunch of tokens super fast, and devoured a whole pepperoni pizza. Carson won a stuffed animal for all three of them on the crane game. He really has a gift for that!

We spent the afternoon at home. The kids watched some TV and ate popcorn, and Caleb took a fairly long nap.

Later I went for a walk with the kids. It was overcast outside, so I thought the heat wouldn't be too bad. It was pretty bad, though, especially when pushing Caleb and Jamie (a total of 83 pounds) in the stroller. I only made it 25 minutes, but it's better than nothing. Vic has been jogging and is kicking my tail in the weight loss competition, so I have to get serious!

Time to get some rest now!

June 30, 2009

This morning I was getting the kids' things together for the beach when I heard Caleb say, "Mommy, how you get pixo out your ear?" I knew that couldn't be good. I looked and sure enough, he had stuck a green pixo deep into his ear. Vic and I both tried and failed at getting it out with various methods, then I called the doctor's office.

I dropped Carson and Jamie off at Grammy and Grampy's house so that they could go to the beach and then took Caleb to the doctors office. Once there, they aggravated me by claiming that I owe them $384 for some bill from May of 2006 that they haven't managed to bring up in the last three years. So, I got to have a lovely discussion with the billing lady about that. I can't believe they really thought I was going to pay that. Then, I got to wait with a three year old for about half an hour in the exam room. We didn't see our regular doctor, but luckily the doctor we saw was very nice and fished the pixo right out of his ear.

After that, I decided to go by the athletic shoe store I have been meaning to go by for a long time. Only I couldn't find it and got lost in the ghetto with the empty light on on my dash. That's always nice.

After the beach crew returned to Grammy and Grampy's house, I dropped Caleb off over there for some fun while I ran errands and worked on laundry.

They all had fun at the beach. It was nice today, in the 90s but with low humidity. I hear they all stayed in the water most of the time, even Jamie! She was excited to have seen some fish, a dolphin and a sting ray.

June 29, 2009

We started out the morning with a whole bunch of kids here. At one time there were eight kids from a couple of different houses on our street. That was more than a little crazy. Luckily, it was time to go pick up Karen and Madilyn for our play date right then, so I sent them all home.

Jamie had a lot of fun playing with Madi today, and I enjoyed talking with Karen and the relative peace of having only 3 kids in the house(Carson was at a friend's house most of the time). We ordered pizza and hung out for a little while.

After that, it was laundry, laundry, and more laundry for me. The kids played quietly and the doorbell didn't ring even once! It was a nice, peaceful afternoon and evening.

The kids are looking forward to going to the beach with Grammy tomorrow, and I am looking forward to some more quiet time!

June 27, 2009

The kids and I started out this morning with a trip to the pool with Grammy. Brent, Karen and Madi were there too, and Grampy even stopped by after golf. It was lots of fun. The kids really enjoyed playing with Madi. Vic missed out because he was helping a friend with some tile work this morning.

We spent the afternoon resting at home, except for Carson who went swimming again at a friend's house. Then we all headed over to a pool party at the apartments that Christy manages. So, Carson spent the day going from pool to pool to pool! All the kids were completely worn out by bedtime. I am worn out, too.

Plus, I managed to get a sunburn on my shoulders, despite using SPF 50 sunscreen. How did I make it through two days at Carowinds water park with no sunburn and can't make it through two and a half hours at the pool without getting cooked? Oh well, hopefully I'm better at applying aloe than I am at applying sunscreen and this will be healed up fast. Time to get some rest now. We have nursery duty at church in the morning!

June 25, 2009

The kids and I ran some errands today. I had forgotten just how much fun it is to run errands with three kids. I decided it's probably a good thing to take them all with me. Surely I spend less money since I am focusing on nothing but buying what we need and getting out of there. We made it through Walmart and Publix and then headed home where I fed them lunch and opened the back door so they could go wild.

I bought them a package of water balloons and a ball that you are supposed to pass around like a hot potato. When the timer goes off, the balloon busts and whoever is holding it gets wet. The kids loved it and the boys played outside for hours with it. I don't suggest getting one, though, unless your kids can tie water balloons themselves or you would enjoy tying a water balloon approximately every 45 seconds. Jamie didn't play outside very long. She really doesn't like the heat.

The kids were thrilled to get a package in the mail from Nana and Poppa today. Carson put on his 4th of July t-shirt right away, and then immediately got it filthy playing outside with the water. Jamie wore her new dress to VBS tonight, and Caleb is sleeping in his new shirt. They were also excited about the mints and gummy bears and Pixos. They waited until I was out of the room and tore into their mints like wild animals. When I returned, there was nothing left but tiny scraps of Mento wrapper all over the den. Thanks, Nana & Poppa! You made the kids' day.

Jamie and Carson are really enjoying VBS. Jamie told me tonight that she wished it would last a long time, like regular school. Tomorrow is the last night. I am looking forward to watching the kids sing at family night tomorrow.

Caleb fell asleep at 6:15 tonight, so I am heading to bed. He will be up before the sun tomorrow!

June 22, 2009

We're back! Vacation was lots of fun. It was an interesting experience having the five of us in one hotel room. It wasn't bad at all in Charlotte, where we had a suite, but a little bit cramped in Asheville, where we had a regular room.

All the kids had a great time. We ended up going to Carowinds Tuesday afternoon, all day Wednesday and all day Thursday. Caleb rode everything he was tall enough to ride. He was so excited. I think his favorite ride was the jet planes in the nickelodeon area. He liked to make his plane go up as high as it would go. Jamie liked the ride, too, but kept her plane close to the ground. Caleb's favorite part of Carowinds wasn't the rides, though. It was the water park. I have never seen him so happy as when he was playing in the kiddie sprinkler play area. He was dancing and jumping and smiling the whole time.

Jamie's favorite ride was the carousel. By the second day, she even got brave enough to get on a horse that moved!

Carson was into the roller coasters this year. He rode all the coasters he was tall enough for and loved it. He even rode the brand new "Cobra" that goes through loops forwards then backwards. He is braver than I am. He did talk me into riding the Cyclone with him this year, though, and it was fun!

Friday we headed to Asheville and visited the Western North Carolina Nature Center. It was great except that it was so hot that day. It was so hot that the animals weren't out in the petting area. They were inside the barn. The kids had been looking forward to petting the goats and sheep, so that was disappointing, but it was still fun.

Saturday we got to go to Fun Depot with Grandpa and Gran. The kids love that place! They all enjoyed the games, plus Carson rode Go Karts and played Laser Tag, and Jamie and Caleb played in the indoor play area. They got some lovely prizes with their tickets, including one of those fake candy containers that a squeaky snake pops out of when you open it (thankfully this one broke fast), and some really nasty slime that Jamie managed to drop into the garbage disposal at Grandpa and Gran's house. I managed to fish it out, but it was ready for the trash after that experience.

Sunday morning, we met Grandpa and Gran for breakfast and then hit the road towards Savannah. It was such a fun vacation, and for the most part we had great weather. Tuesday and Wednesday especially were overcast and very pleasant, plus cloudy skies meant not much of a crowd at the park. We were able to ride everything with no waiting!

I didn't get too many pictures, but I will post them when I can. The printer with the card slot in it broke, so I can't get the pictures onto the computer right now. Vic has something at his office that I can use, so when we get that here and hooked up, I'll post some pictures!

As for today, we spent the day mostly at home. I did laundry and got everything unpacked except for the big suitcase and the toiletry bag. Aside from that, I broke up fights and tried to keep the kids from destroying things and hurting each other. It's going to be a long 11 weeks.

Tonight Carson and Jamie went to VBS at Grammy and Grampy's church. While they were there, Caleb, Vic and I went out to dinner with Grammy and Grampy and our new sister in law. That was nice. It's so much easier to go out to dinner with just one child!

Carson and Jamie had fun at VBS. Carson has a girl from his Sunday school class in his VBS class, so I was glad that he knew someone there. Jamie has one of our neighbors and her new step-cousin in her class, so she has friends there, too. Jamie and her friend both agreed that it was the best class ever! :)

Heading to North Carolina

We are about to leave for vacation - woohoo! I will update during the week when I can. :)

June 14, 2009

I spent most of the day packing today. Somehow, I managed to make quite a mess around here while packing up! I think the kids contributed some too. Caleb tries to unpack the things I have packed, and Jamie tries to pack 5x more than she needs. She says she'll just "miss her toys soooooooo muuuuuuchh!!!"

Jamie and I went to Target this afternoon to look for a new pair of shoes for her since her princess shoes broke last week. She tried on at least 10 pairs of shoes, and in the end she chose a white pair with rainbows and butterflies on them, and we found the same princess shoe as she had before, but on clearance. So, we got those too.

It took us about 50 minutes to get home, due to traffic because of an accident on the highway. Jamie was so busy chatting that we had been sitting at a stand-still for about 20 minutes before she said, "Hey mom, how come we're not moving?"

Tonight Vic got takeout Mexican food for us, and they left out my fajitas! Restaurants are out to get me lately with the takeout food. They didn't charge us for them either, so we shared Vic's chicken fajitas. We discovered that it is the perfect amount of food for us to share, especially since I like the veggies and he likes the chicken. So, now we can save money every time we order Mexican takeout! :)

Off to clean up the kitchen now and get some rest!

June 12, 2009

Well, summer vacation has officially begun! The last day of school was a pretty busy one.

Caleb and Jamie went downstairs before I did this morning and tore into the celebratory box of doughnuts I had bought like wild animals. Carson joined them soon after and the three of them completely polished off the box, except for one doughnut that I ate. So, they were nice and sugared up before school.

Later in the morning, I had a doctor's appointment and took Caleb with me. He did a good job, despite being very tired. I was there yet again because of the vague pain I've been having behind my rib cage. It was hurting more in the back, so I wanted to be sure I didn't have a kidney infection before we leave for Charlotte next week. Nope. She said she thinks it's my reflux, and suggested that I try actually taking the Prilosec that I'm already supposed to be taking on a daily basis. She said it more nicely than that, though. :) So, okay, I'll give it a try.

A little later, we picked up Carson and Jamie from school a bit early. They had both enjoyed their last day of school. Carson had a hat that all the kids in his class had signed, and he also made a water bottle holder that he can wear around his neck. They were watching Nemo when we arrived. Jamie had enjoyed an ice cream sundae party and made tons of art work.

Then, I headed to the pediatrician's office with three very hyper kids to get a rash checked out on the inside of Caleb's elbow. The doctor said it's impetigo that probably started out as eczema and got infected. The poor guy. It looks pretty painful. He's on an oral antibiotic, so hopefully it will clear up fast. It's also highly contagious, so hopefully we won't be passing this around while we're on vacation, or at all for that matter!

On the way home, I stopped and got the kids McDonald's for their dinner. After dinner they frosted and put sprinkles on some sugar cookies that Caleb and I baked earlier in the day. So, it was a day full of junk food and celebrating. Tomorrow they are looking forward to kicking off Summer Vacation with a trip to the beach with Grammy!

June 11, 2009

I dropped Caleb off at Grammy and Grampy's house this morning, picked up Carson, dropped Carson and Jamie off at school and then went to the awards ceremony for 1st and 2nd grade. It was way, way too long. Why on earth would they have the 4th grade chorus sing 3 songs at the 1st and 2nd grade awards banquet? I was secretly kind of hoping Carson wouldn't get an award this year. I thought we could just go out for breakfast and skip the whole thing. But the little card came home on Tuesday saying that he was getting an award, so we both got to attend. I'm glad we went, though, because he got the perfect attendance award and it would have been pretty funny if he were absent on awards day! He also got an award for making honor roll all four marking periods.

I ran out quickly after that and got the teacher gifts for tomorrow and stopped by the grocery store before heading back to the school for Carson's end of year luau. All the kids had a great time, even though it was terribly hot and humid outside. They got to make a lei, decorate a frisbee, eat lots of luau food, have snow cones, play games, get temporary tattoos, and get their face painted. Carson was only interested in the food, snow cones, and a tattoo(a turtle on his cheek). His favorite part was the tiny sword he got from the pineapple pieces. After a while, we had had enough of the heat and I checked him and Jamie out early.

After school, Carson went for a swim at his friend's house and Jamie had a friend over to play. I can't believe tomorrow is the last day of school! I am going to go get some rest now. I'm going to need it!

June 9, 2009

This morning Caleb and I went to Target again. I think Caleb likes Target as much as I do. When we pulled into the parking lot, he called out, "Yay, Target! We're coming for you!"

I spent the afternoon cleaning out and organizing stuff in the kitchen and laundry room. I made good progress in the kitchen, but the laundry room needs way more work, since that's where I stash stuff that I don't know what else to do with.

Jamie got to go to Grammy and Grampy's house this afternoon and Carson played with friends all afternoon. Caleb slept all afternoon and as a result was up late tonight. I hope this means he'll sleep until 7:00 tomorrow!

June 8, 2009

This morning I pulled the circus van up to the school for the last time this year! Only two kids to drop off from here on out.

Caleb and I went home for a while and then stopped by Publix and Walmart. We did some shopping to get ready for our upcoming trip to Carowinds. Caleb was very good and helpful, except that he tried to get me to buy every toy and piece of candy in Walmart.

This afternoon Jamie had a friend come over and play. They mostly did artwork. Then there was much drama after she left because I let her take home the card she made for her dad in a small gift bag, and Jamie declared right after she left that the gift bag was her favorite thing ever! Oh, the drama. There was much crying and wailing. Eventually, she settled down and watched Madagascar with her brothers.

Vic played pizza delivery man tonight and brought home Mellow Mushroom pizza for us and Papa Johns for the kids. That was such a nice treat!

Jamie enjoyed "Barbie Day" in her class. The girls brought Barbies and the boys brought action figures to play with at center time. Her only complaint was that they didn't get to play Barbies all day.

Carson also had a fun day at school. His class had "camping" day. They each brought in a flashlight, a book, and a blanket and camped out and read by flashlight. Carson is thrilled that he doesn't have any homework this week. I'm pretty happy about it, too!

June 7, 2009

Vic had sound at church this morning, so I took the kids to Sunday school. After Sunday school, we went home and Caleb took a nice long nap, so I got stuff done around the house. I cleaned out my side of the closet, which I haven't done since we moved in here almost four years ago. So, that took a while. I can't believe how much stuff I had in there that I never wear. I still didn't go through my shoes. I was tired of being in the closet after going through all my old clothes and purses.

Later I had a VBS teachers meeting. We are doing Paul and the Underground Church, and it looks like it will be a lot of fun. We are doing something different this year and dividing the kids into "families" of mixed ages. It will be interesting to see how it works. The theory is that the older kids will behave better because they will be helping out with the younger kids and not competing with each other for attention. I hope it works! Last year was kind of rough!

The kids spent most of the day playing inside because it was raining off and on. The doorbell has been strangely silent all weekend. I think it rang twice yesterday and not at all today. It has been nice. I talked to one of the neighbors who is moving today and got two bits of good news for Jamie. The first one is that they are giving Jamie their Barbie jeep. I haven't told her yet; I'm not going to tell her until we actually get the jeep, but she will be so excited! The other good news is that the people who are renting their house have a daughter Jamie's age and another child(don't know if it's a boy or girl) who will be at Caleb's preschool. :)

Time to get some rest now. I can't believe this is the last week of school! I know it will be a busy one!

June 6, 2009

Carson had his last soccer game of the season today, and they won again! It was good to end up the season on a high note. After the game, all the kids went over to the coach's house for a cookout. Shortly after we got there, it started pouring rain. The poor coach tried to go out and start the grill in the pouring rain using his daughter's tiny princess umbrella, but soon gave up and decided to boil the hot dogs instead. The kids all had a lot of fun and they each got a medal.

Tonight we dropped all the kids off at Grammy and Grampy's house and Vic and I went out to dinner at the new Asian Fusion restaurant near our house. It was so good! It is owned by the same people who own our favorite restaurant, Tangerine, but it's only 5 minutes away instead of half an hour! :)

When stopped by to pick up the kids after dinner, we stayed for a while and watched some old home movies of Vic and Brent when they were very little. It was neat to see how much our boys look like Vic did when he was little. Jamie saw a portrait on the wall of Vic with his family when he was about 9 years old and said, "Hey, look! There's Grammy and Grampy when they had kids!" I asked her if she knew who those kids were, and she said, "I don't know. It's just Grammy and Grampy and some kids!" She knows that Grammy and Grampy are Vic's parents, but I guess she hasn't quite figured out that Vic used to be little. :)

I'll close with another Jamie story that I forgot to share from last weekend. We were eating take out Japanese food. Jamie's chicken had sesame seeds on it. I put her food down in front of her and she got very excited, "Hey Mom! I found a seed on my chicken! Can I go plant this outside and grow a chicken tree?" I guess we need to go visit a farm soon.

June 4, 2009

Caleb got to spend a fun day with Grammy and Grampy today, and I went to have my hair cut and highlighted. I went to yet another new person. Well, she's not totally new because she did cut my hair at the MOPS spa day. But, I'm always nervous about someone new putting color on my hair.

She did a good job, and she seems normal, too. In my experience, it's hard to find a hairdresser who is good and not crazy. I will stick with this lady, if she doesn't disappear before my next appointment. I have that effect on hairdressers lately.

This afternoon I met with Jamie's teacher for our last parent/teacher conference of the year. She had nothing but good things to say about Jamie. She was especially impressed with Jamie's acting abilities and said that she did a great job playing the mother cat in the story of the Three Little Kittens when they acted it out in their classroom. She said Jamie needed no direction and scolded those kittens like a pro, complete with a pointing finger. Hmmm, I wonder where she learned that from? She also said she was very impressed with Jamie's reading skills. I am, too. I can't believe how fast she is picking it up!

We had a rainy afternoon this afternoon and stayed inside. Caleb and Jamie played and Carson worked on his homework. I am so ready for a break from homework! I hope this was our last night of it and they won't have any next week!

June 2, 2009

Caleb and I had a pretty quiet day today. I planned on taking him to an indoor play area with a bunch of inflatables to climb and slide on, but he insisted he did not want to go. So we stayed home and played with bubbles and read books and watched the fuzzy caterpillars that were all over the driveway this morning.

This afternoon, he decided he did want to go to the play place after all. Of course by then it was almost time for Carson and Jamie to come home, so we couldn't go. So then I got to listen to him throw a big fit because he wanted to go to the place that I tried to get him to go to earlier. Such is life with a three year old, I guess.

Jamie got to go to Grammy and Grampy's house today. She made a sand art peacock this time. It is on her dresser with the elephant now. She is very excited about her new creation. She was also over tired tonight and cried for about 30 minutes straight after she got home. She was crying because I told her I couldn't understand her whining and asked her to speak normally. So, she cried instead. For half an hour. She must be the loudest child on the planet. Good thing she's sweet most of the time, and cute too! :)

Vic went fishing all day today and caught some Mahi. He just got home, so I'm going to go find out how his trip was now. Looks like we'll be eating fresh fish tomorrow!

June 1, 2009

My keyboard mysteriously quit working last night, so no blog. This morning it mysteriously started working again. Who knows. Maybe one of the kids spilled something on it.

Yesterday, we went to church and were *this* close to being on time! Later, the boys all went to the beach and Jamie and I went to Publix. Jamie would have gone to the beach, but she was upset with Vic for putting her in time out for hurling a hard plastic toy over the railing on the top of the stairs, narrowly missing hitting him in the head. That big meanie. So, I got to have some company at the grocery store. It was probably better that Vic didn't have all three kids at the beach by himself anyway, especially since the boys want to be in the water and Jamie likes the sand.

Today, Caleb and I took Carson and Jamie and the neighbor girls to school and then drove straight to Target! I think Caleb loves Target as much as I do. He had a great time. He wanted a "Bonzai 3-d Shark Bite slide" as his potty training success prize, so we picked that up and he was happy with it for about half an hour while we shopped. Then he decided the shark head was too scary. He traded it for a much less scary, and much cheaper, Elmo bubble blower. So, I also got him a bubble refill bottle and a small toy boat. I am so happy to be done with diapers that I would have bought him almost anything. :)

This afternoon Carson played Toontown with Grammy online while Jamie and Caleb played with friends outside. My friend who lives two doors down told me they are moving to Wisconsin in August. I am sad that they are leaving. I will miss chatting with her in the afternoons while the kids play. I feel bad for Jamie, too. She loves playing with her three daughters. Plus, two other friends of Jamie's on our street will be moving. One in July, and I'm not sure when the other one will be leaving. Poor Jamie. At least she'll still have one friend left on our street.

I signed up for WW online today. I think I need to get back to counting my points again, since I tend to eat a lot without thinking. I was up .4 at today's weigh in, so I decided I have to do something different. Here's hoping I get good news at next Monday's weigh in!

May 30, 2009

We started out the morning at Carson's soccer game, which they won, 1-0! Yay! They were all so excited. The coach was the most excited, I think. Carson played goalie the last quarter and did a great job, sealing the win! These pictures were emailed by a mom of another player on the team. I missed the winning moment because I was taking Caleb and Jamie to the bathroom. So, I was glad to see the pictures of the happy kids! :)

After the game, Vic went to the office, and the rest of us went to the pool with Grammy. It was a great day to be at the pool, and we had lots of fun. We weren't the only ones who thought it was a great day to go for a swim. I have never seen so many people at that pool.

Tonight Vic brought home Zaxby's for us and this time they gave me my boneless wings! Well, sort of. I got buffalo chicken fingers, but that's close enough.

I will get pictures up soon from Caleb's last day of preschool program from yesterday morning. Summer has officially begun for Caleb!

May 28, 2009

Yesterday, Caleb and I had a great time at his preschool's park day. They went to a park in midtown with playground equipment and a water sprinkler play area. Caleb ran around for a couple of hours, mostly in the sprinklers and had a great time with his friends.

Today, Grammy, Caleb and I went to Jamie's park day at Memorial park on Tybee. Jamie had fun playing with her friends and Caleb had fun playing with the big kids. We all had lunch there under the pavilion. Shortly after that, Grammy, Caleb and I had had enough of the heat, so we left and went to Grammy's house.

Caleb made a sand art elephant while we were there. Jamie made one earlier in the week, and he wanted one like hers. After that, we checked Jamie out of school basically just because she wanted me to. I think she was trying to avoid nap time. The girl hates nap time!

Tonight Carson and I went to his soccer game. I left Caleb and Jamie at home with Vic because they were over tired and I didn't want to deal with them at the soccer field. He told me when I got home that he wished he had been the one who went to the soccer field. They were pretty cranky. I had a nice time at the soccer game, though. I got to chat with a friend in relative peace and Carson's team tied the other team 1-1. :)

May 26, 2009

Caleb and I spent the day hanging out and running errands. It was oddly quiet after having everyone home for 3 1/2 days. I got a lot done. I was able to go through and bag up clothes that Jamie and Caleb had outgrown and I culled out two trash bags worth of toys. I still didn't make much of a dent in the toys, though. These kids have way too much stuff!

Grammy picked Carson and Jamie up from school today. They stayed and played on the playground for a long time. I think the kids are very happy that the sunshine has returned! Jamie went to Grammy's house this afternoon, where she filled a little bottle with sand and decorated the top to look like an elephant. She was so excited about it. It is right next to her in her bed now. :)

Carson ran around with his friends outside all afternoon. He never even came inside the house until about 6:30. He came home soaking wet after a water war with his buddies.

I finally put up some pictures in our web album!

May 25, 2009

The kids slept in until 7:00 this morning, so I knew it had to be a good day. :)

Jamie and I painted our nails and then went to the mall for the morning. Jamie is truly in her element at the mall. She had a great time. She loved posing by the mannequins, and expressed her displeasure many times about some of them not having heads.

She got pizza for lunch, picked out a pair of shoes, a shirt, sunglasses for herself, Carson and Caleb, and big lollipops for herself and her brothers. She also helped me pick out a new pair of sunglasses. I ended up buying a pair that she found for me to try on, and I really like them.

Meanwhile, the boys also had a fun morning. They ended up going to the pool at the Y because that's what Carson and Caleb wanted to do. They had fun, and Vic said Caleb was giving some of the other kids tips on how to swim(even though he was wearing a life jacket).

Tonight we all went out to dinner with Grammy and Grampy. It was fun, even though I think I spent as much time taking Caleb and Jamie to the bathroom as I did at the table. I think Caleb went 5 times. Still, it was great to get to go out. Plus, Vic did the dishes and lots of laundry after they got back from the pool and while we were still at the mall. So, I have nothing to clean up tonight! Woohoo!

May 24, 2009

I woke up at 6AM to more rain today and to the sound of Jamie with a cough that sounded like a barking seal. I wasn't sure if it was her reflux, which usually affects her earlier in the night, or the croup. So, I stuck her in a steamy shower and gave her some Prevacid, just to be safe.

She was fine after about an hour, so I guess it was the reflux. Carson was doing better today too. He still has a sore throat, but he is definitely feeling better. He was pretty much back to his old self again today.

This afternoon, I wanted to get out of the house, so we all went to the happiest place on earth. No, not Disney World -- Target! I got the kids a slip and slide that we will try out when the sun returns. We picked up a few other things, but not much. We were really just there to get out of the house.

We don't have anything planned for Memorial Day tomorrow. Usually we have a cookout, but with Carson being sick, we just didn't put anything together this year. If the weather isn't too bad, Jamie and I are going to the mall in the morning and I think the boys are going to go put out crab traps and maybe do a little fishing. Carson wants to go see a movie, too, so we'll see if we can fit that in.

I will get those pictures up soon. Hopefully tomorrow. Right now it is time for some rest. I hope it is nice and cloudy tomorrow morning and the kids will sleep a little bit late. At least later than 6:00!

May 22, 2009

Poor Carson woke up with a fever and a sore throat this morning. So, he got to spend the day resting on the couch. He played DS and watched TV. I'm always amazed at how calm he is when he's sick. It's odd when he's not whirring around the house like the Tasmanian devil. I hope the poor guy feels better soon.

Caleb went to preschool and made good on his statement that he was not going to use the potty there. He also didn't have any accidents, though. Of course, we went straight from the preschool to the parent pick up line at Jamie's school since she had a half-day today, and as soon as we stopped in the car line, he had to go. So, he got to pee on a tree at the side of the drive.

This afternoon, Caleb and Jamie played and Carson rested. Oddly, no kids rang our doorbell except for a teenager explaining that she and the teenage boy who live next door were in our garage trying to catch and injured bird. I guess they got it, because when we went out to check it out a few minutes later, they were gone.

Vic was so nice to bring home Zaxby's for our dinner tonight, but they left out my order. Grrrrr. Well, they did give me my side salad. So, I was forced to eat healthy tonight. I hope it pays off at Monday's weigh in!

May 21, 2009

Today was a nice relaxing rainy day. Caleb and I stayed at home and read books, played with trucks, played catch, hide and seek and also played in the rain. I got a lot of laundry done, too. Even better, he stayed dry all day today! Yay! He still says he doesn't want to use the potty at school tomorrow(and he meant it yesterday when he said it), so we'll see. But he's making good progress. Our diaper days are almost over!

I forgot to mention in Tuesday's blog that Jamie lost a tooth at school. She was very excited to get a visit from the tooth fairy and is putting the money towards the swimming doll that she wants. Her savings got even bigger on Wednesday, after she came home from school missing another tooth. Two teeth in two days! :)

This afternoon the kids played outside in the rain with their friends for much of the afternoon. They all got soaked and had a great time.

Now I am going to go get some rest and enjoy the sound of the rain.

I will try to get those pics up sometime soon.

May 19, 2009

Caleb, Grammy and I got to go downtown this morning to watch Carson dance a Mexican Hat dance at the annual May Day celebration, which was held late this year because of CRCT testing in the schools. It was cool and windy, but as one of the speakers at the ceremony said, there were no gnats out! There was a very drawn-out ceremony, including a lady who spoke right after the school board president and basically shamed the school board for cutting the budget of the Massie Heritage Center, which sponsors May Day. So, that was nice. Then finally the dancing began. Carson was in the second group to dance, so we didn't have to wait much longer. He did a great job, and was super cute in his sombrero!

After his dance, the kids strangely disappeared to the buses for a lemonade and cookies break. When they returned, we decided to make a break for it. So, we told Carson goodbye and "Good job!", and went to lunch at Clary's. Caleb ordered a cheeseburger. I think that's the first time he's had a cheeseburger at a restaurant and it was almost as big as his head!

The rest of the afternoon was very quiet with a little rain here and there. Carson was able to play ball for a while outside with his friends, and Jamie and Caleb played with a friend inside.

We worked on potty training again today, with less success than yesterday. Oh well, at least he's on the right path.

These chilly days in May are very unusual, but I'm enjoying them because I know it will be miserably hot soon!

I will post pictures of our little hat dancer soon!

May 18, 2009

Today was the coldest day I ever remember having in May. It was rainy, windy and the high temp was 61. That's crazy for around here in May. It was nice for a change, though!

I dropped 5 kids off at the elementary school this morning and then Caleb told me he didn't want to go to school. He wanted to stay with me. I think he was afraid it was going to thunder. So, I took him home with me and we spent the day hanging out. We spent some of the day snuggling on the couch and watching Noggin. It was perfect for a rainy day.

Today Caleb declared that he is through wearing diapers. He wore big boy undies most of the day with only one accident. Yay! I am not sure how tomorrow will go, since we are going on a field trip with Carson in the morning, and I don't think there will be bathrooms there. We'll see. But I am so excited that he made good progress today. My diaper changing days are coming to a close after 8 years!

Time to go get Carson's clothes ready for tomorrow. They are performing a Mexican Hat Dance and the teacher has requested certain uniform clothes be worn that will look best under the Mexican costume. I can't wait to see this!

May 17, 2009

We had a nice, fairly quiet rainy day today. Vic had to work all day, so it was just me and the kiddos. Jamie had a friend over for a while and they made lots of artwork and played nicely with Caleb. Carson played with friends for a while and played games for a while.

We were pretty much inside all day because of the rain, and the kids got a little stir crazy by the end of the day. We did venture out to Publix this afternoon because we had to get flowers for Carson's teacher for tomorrow. Next week is teacher appreciation week and the kids are supposed to take something to their teachers every day this week. The room mothers set up the schedules. In Carson's class, tomorrow is flowers day. Jamie's teachers will be getting cards.

Even though the kids were cooped up inside most of the day, it was great not having to listen to the doorbell ringing 100 times or having kids running in and out all day. It ended up being a fairly relaxing day! :)

May 16, 2009

We started off the day at Carson's soccer game. They won for the first time ever(5-0), so it was extra exciting. At the end, the parents always make a tunnel for the kids to run through and we cheer for them. Today they were so excited they kept running in circles and going through the tunnel over and over. Even the other team got in on the fun!

After the game, Vic went to a fundraiser his company was having for the Fresh Air Home onTybee. He was in charge of working the grill. I stayed home with the kids and watched them run here there and everywhere.

Tonight, we got to take Grammy and Grampy out to Applebee's for Grammy's birthday celebration. We came home for cake and ice cream and had a great time celebrating with Grammy. I probably gained a couple of pounds tonight, but it was fun!

May 14, 2009

Caleb and I made a trip to Walmart and Publix this morning and picked up Subway for lunch. Caleb fell asleep on the way home and slept until time to pick up Carson and Jamie, so I had a very quiet afternoon and got some laundry done.

Jamie brought home kites she had made for herself and Caleb at school. They ran around the back yard flying them until they heard thunder and came running inside. Then they got out the new art supplies Caleb and I had bought at Walmart this morning and spent the rest of the afternoon making a lot of art work and a big mess.

Carson had a field trip downtown today. He reported that it was boring because they just learned all about James Oglethorpe and they already know all about Oglethorpe. They probably do know a lot about him as he was a pretty important guy around here. Maybe by the time he's in high school he'll be ready for a job as a downtown tour guide. :) Carson spent the afternoon playing with a friend and then finishing up his spelling homework.

I guess they didn't get to run around enough this afternoon because they were definitely not tired at bed time. I thought they would never go to sleep. As for me, I can't wait to get some rest!