Christmas 2008

We had a perfect Christmas this year. On Christmas Eve the kids and I baked cookies and pies and then the whole family went to church. Oh, before church we took our annual family photo while we were all dressed.

After church we went to Outback Steakhouse which was surprisingly crowded. There were other kids in the waiting area so the kids were entertained until we were seated. After we ate we went home and sprinkled the reindeer food over the front lawn. Then we read, "Twas The Night Before Christmas" and put the kids to bed. Every year we try to cut back on gifts but it doesn’t ever seem to work. Jason and I had fun playing Santa and getting everything ready for the next morning. The kids didn’t wake up until 8 am which surprised us. I know when I was a kid I was the 1st one up usually around 6 am. The excitement on their faces was priceless. They told us about hearing the reindeer outside and Santa on the roof. They had fun opening presents and Jake even had a present that was stuck in the fireplace. Taylor got her Woody, Buzz, & Bulls-eye dolls and Makayla got her Barbie and The Diamond Castle dolls. Jake got a lego Star Wars ship which took him and Jason all day to build but they had fun. We had our annual cinnamon bun breakfast and the kids went back to playing with their gifts. It was very relaxing, we stayed in pajamas all day, and had a great turkeydinner. Then we ended the night by watching “Elf”.

Exercising, Peeing, and Our New Addition

Today when I got my exercise clothes on, so did Taylor. Her idea of exercise clothes was a little bit different than what I wear though (ok, I always wear my faux mink shawl). Then as always, after I finish the treadmill, the girls need a turn on it. When Makayla was running, Milo jumped on and ran with her. I wish I could have caught that on tape but unfortunately I didn’t have my camera with me.

We’re working on potty training with Makayla. She does #1 just fine. If she doesn’t see me, she asks Taylor for help so I had to make Taylor a helper chart for stickers just like Makayla’s potty chart. She’s still refusing to do #2 in the pot which is starting to become frustrating. I guess I should start reading the message boards on this topic. Taylor was so easy so I thought Makayla would be the same. Her Dora Snow Princess Panties are waiting for her.

On another note, we have a new addition to the house. He’s an elf that will surprise us every morning in a different place in the house (thanks J. from Jersey). The kids have been bugging me about how Santa can always see them so now the elf is Santa’s eyes and reports back to the North Pole every night and returns in a different part of the house in the morning. Hopefully they’re not scared of it and they start being on their best behavior. Tonight we read the book about the elf and I told them that if we all wished hard the elf would appear in the morning and to think of a name for him. So our new friend's name will be Scooter.

Holiday Pictures

Our Month In A Nutshell

Wow, it's been almost a month since I've last written. Things have been busy around here. We've had visitors and have just been busy with Christmas things. We had a great Thanksgiving with the family in Randleman. The day after the kids and I decorated the tree and the house. I thought they had outgrew the breaking the ornament thing but Makayla was on a role. My poor ice skating ring no longer has lights. Oh well, the Hallmarks stay put in the box for another year. Their favorite decoration is our Santa that pulls his pants down and the reindeer that sings Grandma Got Ran Over By A Reindeer. This week we also took our Christmas card picture (me taking 500 pictures and cutting and pasting the best faces together). Thursday we went to Portrait Innovations and had holiday pictures taken that I was really happy with. Today we headed to the Christmas Bazaar at the girls preschool. Santa was going to be there so I thought I would get a picture of the kids with Santa. Before we left Taylor packed a shoebox with things around her room to give to Santa for his gift. I thought that was so sweet and thoughtful. The girls were scared at first (Makayla has never sat on his lap) but she was the 1st one to hop on this time. I got some cute pictures. Taylor wants Woody, Buzz, & Bullseye dolls from Toy Story, Makayla wants the Barbie and The Diamond Castle dolls, and Jake wants everything Star Wars. I can't wait to see their faces on Christmas morning. They are alwasys so excited. Well I have lots of pictures from the past couple of weeks and I'll post them when I get a chance. Happy Holidays everyone!

Over The River and Through The Woods

Last night Jake slept over my parents NC house so today being Family day we headed over to Randleman for some fun and dinner and to fetch Jake. Before we got there they discovered a place with walking trails not too far from their house so Jake anxiously waited for us to arrive so they could take us there. So all of us plus E and P and their dogs headed over to this park. We started walking on the trail which is alongside a river. The kids were excited because there were plenty of ducks to feed but first Jake and my mom wanted to show us something they found in the woods. We kept walking deeper into the woods where we got to see what they found, deer legs. No body, just legs. The rest of us wondered how and why they went so far into the woods to find the legs. My dad said, "When we start finding body parts, it's time to go home." We headed back and planned to feed some ducks on the way to the cars. The ducks didn't seem very hungry so we decided to climb across the rocks in the river. This started off fine until the dogs jumped into the river and onto the rocks and the rocks became slippery. We carefully climbed from rock to rock. Then a bird crapped on me. This should have been good luck but it was just the start of our bad luck. As we hoisted kids from rock to rock we tried to avoid the wet dogs as it was quite chilly today. Next thing we know Makayla falls into the river. I pull her out but not quick enough b/c she is soaked and crying. Poor kid, I couldn't stop laughing mostly from shock. It was all in slow motion. People passing us were just looking at us weird. I know they were thinking, "Stupid Northerners!" We did have a good time though and the kids did ask to go back again. That's all that counts.

Going To The Chapel And We're Gonna Get Married

9 years ago at this time we were newlyweds, dancing the night away at Portabella's. Where does time go? I wouldn't trade my wedding day for anything (although I could have done without Jason's broken finger). We had such a great time. 3 kids later and we're still having fun.

Jake says he'll never get married and that he will live with mom forever. Taylor has different plans, she says she is going to marry Jake (I told her we moved south but not that far south). Makayla wants to marry Dylan across the street who is 10 years old.

So much has happened in 9 years. We had kids, we moved, started a new business. Before we know it the kids will be grown up. As Ferris Bueller said, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it."

Locks of Love

OK. I finally did it. I chopped 14 inches of hair off my head.

Cute Thank You Note

Jake came home with this card from school today. It's so cute and thoughtful of his class to make this.

Happy Halloween

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Random Stuff

Last week was a busy week for us. Between soccer and school activities I just couldn't find the time to write. Here's a brief recap. The kids and I made Halloween sugar cookies and decorated them. I put the decorated cookies too close together on the cookie sheet so they became one big cookie by the time they came out of the oven but they still tasted good. Jake had his class trip to go panning for gold and visit the quarry. It was a nice trip although it was very cold. After panning we went to Jamestown Park for lunch and play. Later that night Jake had his 1st tournament soccer game, which he won. The next day the kids wanted to paint the pumpkins that they got at the school pumpkin patch. They had a fun time. My mother and brother came into town so they were over to visit. Jarett hasn't seen the kids since July so they were all happy to see each other. We discovered the aerobic hula hoop game on the Wii. Video games are addicting. When everyone left and the kids went to bed I tried to beat the high scores in all of the games. I'm still working on it. I shouldn't play any kind of electronic games that give out daily stamps. I feel bad for the game when I miss a day so I make myself crazy trying to complete the games for the day. Ever try brain age? That's one of my addictions. Then there is my pet Stella on Facebook. God forbid I forget to feed her. I'll wake up in the middle of the night afraid she will die and I will not collect my 200 puppy points. I know I'm weird. Remember those key chain pets? Mine was alive so long it just expired. It couldn't get any older. Anyway, Sunday we carved our pumpkins. This is always a fun activity for the kids. Basically they pull all of the guts out of the pumpkin and Jason and I carve them. Then we headed to Randleman for my dad's birthday celebration. This is the kid’s favorite place to go. They get to see Grandma and Grandpa and run around until they can't run anymore. Last night they got to sleep over which is the ultimate treat for them. Jake was a tiny bit disappointed that his sisters were staying too but they all had a good time. I had Jake's teacher conference this morning (Monday). He had an excellent report card. I can't believe the things he learns in 1st grade. This week he will start having timed math tests. He must complete 50 addition problems in 2 1/2 minutes. This is hard. I know because it is a game on Brain Age. Later on this evening we have our playgroup’s Halloween party and then Jake has his 2nd tournament game. Hopefully we won’t freeze again. Well that was our week in a nutshell.

Just A Glimpse Of Our Week

This week Taylor had her 1st school field trip. They went to a farm where they learned about apples and how to make cider. Then they took a hayride and went to a pumpkin patch. It was a fun day and it was great to see Taylor interacting with her friends. I was worried about how she would behave with me there but she was on her best behavior. I think this is attributed to the banning of Max in our house. Max is the brother bunny off the cartoon Max & Ruby. A friend told me about how Max behaves on the show by demanding the things he wants using one word commands. Something Taylor has been doing a lot. So Max is out.

Jake had his last soccer game Thursday night (or so I thought) but I found out he has tournament games now. Jake has been playing goalie for his team. I think it’s more stressful for me than it is for him. His team consists of 6, 7, & 8 year olds so he is one of the young ones. When a big 8 year old is coming at him about to kick the ball I feel like pulling him out of the way to protect him. It’s very hard to watch but he loves playing.

Today Taylor had a soccer game where she actually played and didn’t stand around like a statue. I did bribe her with M & M’s if she touched the ball just once. After lunch we baked pumpkin bread and then had a hot chocolate tea party. Then we played a game that Taylor got for her birthday. All and all we had a pretty quiet week compared to most.

My Baby Goes To School

All summer long I was struggling with the decision to send Makayla to preschool. She desperately wanted to go since she sees Jake and Taylor going. On one hand I want to spend as much time with her as possible before she grows up and on the other hand I sometimes need a break. Well she’s been going since September and she really loves her class so I am glad I sent her. She only goes 2 days a week from 9 – 12 so it’s a good start. We found out she loves to tattletale. On the way home she gives us a rundown of what each child in her class did. “D didn’t eat his snack, L hit K, M said Yuck, D was in time out and ran away.” I truly am scared about what she is sharing about us when she goes. The 1st day of school I went to pick her up and her teacher says, “Makayla is so funny. She told us that her mom was a maniac and ran over her finger (long story).” Great, I feel embarrassed so I just laugh. All and all she has such a great time going and she’s learning some new songs. This is one of the songs she learned and I could watch it over and over. I think it’s adorable. Where does the time go? My baby is growing up.

Jake and The Gigantic Pumpkin

Kids With The Spider

Me & The Kids In The Corn Bin

Family Day

Sunday’s around here are called Family Day. Usually each Sunday we go to my parents NC house and have dinner or if their not in town we will invite my brother, sister-in-law, and nephew dogs over for dinner. No one was around today so we went to the J. Razz & Tazz farm for some family fun. The kids had a blast playing in giant corn bins and going threw the corn maze. The corn bins were lots of fun but I have to remember next time not to wear low rise jeans as the corn kernels quickly filled my pants. Makayla had a few souvenirs in her diaper as well. They also rode a cow train which Makayla cried on. The kids wanted to pick pumpkins but there wasn’t a big variety so we started a new family tradition. Corn bins and cow rides then off to Wal-Mart to pick pumpkins out of the boxes. Yippee! The kids loved it. Jake found a gigantic one (gigantic being his new favorite word used to describe anything big). Although they had a great time Jake was disappointed that he didn’t get to go on a haunted hay ride. Jake comes into our room about 3 times a week scared out of his mind and wants to sleep with us but now he wants to be spooked on some hay ride. Maybe some other time when I’ve slept a full week without being woken up by one of my little angels. He got over it when we told him we’d order pizza for dinner. Our day was a success.

Moving Picture Box

When I first moved to North Carolina I started a blog so that I could share our daily life with our out of state family and friends. I was pretty good at keeping it current since we had no social life and basically never left our house. Then Makayla came along and I made the decision to find us some friends. Jake was begging to meet the little boy across the street and I desperately needed some adult interaction. I found us a playgroup and packed up the 3 kids and headed out. The kids and I had a great time so when we got home I marched them across the street and let Jake play with the little boy. This was the start of our life with some really great friends. With that said, our lives changed and we became insanely busy. There was never a dull moment as I shuffled the kids from playgroup to playgroup and became involved in my neighborhoods Ladies Drinks. We always had something to do. I knew we had made a success of life in NC when Jason said, “Ok, you can stop making friends now.” Then I realized that I wasn’t keeping my blog up to date so I deleted it. Now that I think about it, I wish I had kept it or printed it out so I could always remember the memories we made. It seems like the kids amaze me everyday and I need a place to keep track of all the great things they do. When I was a little girl my dad said, “One day soon I’m going to get a moving picture box so we could always recapture the good times we may otherwise forget.” This is my moving picture box.