I'm So Over Winter and READY for Springtime!!

I've never been a fan of winters and I hate complaining about it this year, especially since we haven't had to deal with snow and ice like we are accustomed to. BUT my kids cannot stay healthy.....and I'm going to blame the up-and-down temps just because I have nothing else to blame. We have been battling sickness since October with strep throat, ear infections, pink eye and once one of the boys recovers, it's a matter of hours before the other contracts it. Why can't we stay healthy? The boss is not loving on my once-a-week phone messages (that I leave at 5am to ensure he hasn't arrived yet!) that tell him I will be MIA AGAIN! What can you do? Our babies need us when they are feeling puny.

I will give thanks for this....and I HOPE AND PRAY I do not jinx us but we have been flu-free this season, despite the horrible cases going all around us. As a family, we did receive flu shots ~ whether that's the primary reason we are staying healthy, no one knows but I'm so thankful for that. If we can just make it through another month or so!

A funny thing did happen last night. When d2 is stuffed up (as he is now), we are all aware that if he sneezes, he's likely to create quite a mess from his nose. Well, while we were eating dinner, he sneezed and out came a perfectly round HUGE bubble that remained in tact until I could wipe it up with a tissue. At least we were at home for this production; usually I'm driving and trying to wipe it from the drivers seat, all the while running off the road and steering with my knees.

On a final note of griping, d2 currently has another ear infection ~ second one this month. We have probably paid more in healthcare costs in the last 5 months than we have in the last 4 years (baby deliveries included!). Absolutely absurd! We're pumping him full of yet another antibiotic and praying that the fluid stays far away. We dodged the bullet last year of having tubes placed in his ears so pray that we miss it again!

House for Sale

Well, it's official ~ our house is on the market! By that I mean we stuck the "For Sale By Owner" sign in the front yard and we are just waiting for the right person to drive by. D1 and I have decided to take a leap of faith and see what happens....so many unknowns right now but our first priority is for me to become a SAHM with the boys. That's just not financially possible if we drop my income. It's amazing how much priorities change within just a few short months. If someone had told me that I would want to be a SAHM a year ago, I would have fallen on the floor and laughed until I cried. It was NOT in our plans....but something has changed in me. I never imagined it would be a thought I would even entertain. All I know is that right now my beautiful boys see their daycare teachers more than their Momma and Daddy on a daily basis. It's time for a change....



So, what does this mean for our new life here in the South? We don't know at this point. Lots of things up in the air and we are likely to have tough decisions to make in the near future. One thing is absolutely certain ~ we trust that God will lead us in the right direction and we know that where He guides, He provides. Now all I need to do is work on that "giving my worries to Him" topic we so often discuss in BS. Please pray for our family that we make the right decisions and that we feel peace with whatever path we journey upon.

And if you know anyone house hunting in the Greer area, I have just the home for them......

I'm Going to See Kenny Chesney!!!!!!!

Those who know me well know that I am a fan of country music, but I LOVE Kenny Chesney! I have been waiting and waiting and waiting to see him live in concert for about 4 years now and it seemed like everytime he came to town, I was pregnant and about to pop! D would never take me because he was always afraid I would go into labor while I was singing loudly to "The Woman With You" even though I promised I would keep the baby in until the show was over. No budging!


Well, I heard last week that KC was coming to Columbia and....whattya know....I'm not pregnant (a minority these days with all the preggers I'm surrounded by). Soooo, as a Valentine's/Birthday/Anniversary present to each other (for the next 2 years), D and I are going to see Kenny in April!! Yaaaaaay!!!





Now, let's just hope our childcare doesn't fall through at the last minute.....or the little d's might be going to their very first concert!

Christmas 2007

A little behind on the Christmas pictures but better late than never, I suppose. Despite this being our first year in SC, we decided to travel back to Missouri for the holidays. With D1 being a teacher and having a nice, long break and myself having a little vacation to burn, it just made sense to take a little trip. We had a FABULOUS time! The boys had great quality time with Grandpa and Grandma S. d1 had a blast feeding the cows and swimming in the hot tub. We got to visit with Uncle A on Christmas Day, we visited Papa M's farm (with a ride on the tractor AND 4-wheeler, against my better judgment), and we got to visit all of our friends whom we have missed TERRIBLY. Both boys got so many wonderful gifts from everyone, and Santa even remembered to stop by and leave a few things as well.





"Santa remembered" - well, for the most part! d1 sat on Santa's lap back in November at Haywood Mall and asked him for a red and purple bicycle (tricycle). I think Santa got his colors mixed up....or maybe D1 sent Santa a memo asking for NO purple? In any case, d1 was very excited about his gift!

"Look at me, Mommy!" Uncle A got d2 a cool Tonka truck that he can ride on and tow other cars with. Unfortunately, he doesn't get to play with it much if d1 is in the room....we are officially to the "I Want What He Has" stage and it stinks! It doesn't seem to matter if they get the EXACT same toy in the EXACT same color....they will inevitably fight over it. I can't count how many times I find myself saying, "Leave him alone!" or "Give it back to him!" or "Get away from each other!" One thing is certain, though...d1 may have 20+ lbs and be a head taller than d2 but d2 will not be pushed around. He gives it right back to d1 and he doesn't show any mercy. D1's mom has told some stories of D1 and his older brother when they were kids and it's extremely frightening to hear what the future may hold for our household. Hammers through the wall, forks being used as weapons.....good stuff! Oh, I often daydream what it must be like to have a sweet, CALM little girl.......guess I'll never know! As rough and crazy as these boys are, though, they are also the most precious gifts God has bestowed upon us and we praise Him everyday for them!! Especially when they are asleep......

For the Love of the Game...

Ever since d1 has been walking, there has usually been a ball in his hand. I guess it has a lot to do with his daddy being a basketball coach for so long but nonetheless, he has a passion for it. This is the first year that D1 isn't coaching so we wondered if d1 would lose his desire but we see that is not true. The last two years that we went to cheer D1 on, d1 would just sit, stare and eat popcorn with an intense study on his face. Most toddlers his age would be interested with running up and down the bleachers but not him. He watched, waited and cheered "Two Points, Mama" when our team would score. He picked up quite a few pointers over the score of games we attended. And his own skills have only benefited from it. I may be biased but I think he's pretty darn good for a 3-year-old. He's graduated from his Little Tikes 3-ft-goal to the Kansas Jayhawks rim-over-the-door hoop in his playroom (about 6 ft tall). He can dribble, shoot a lay-up and knock down most free-throws! See my future Jayhawk below! Such aspirations!

Trip to the Movie Theater

This weekend was d1's first trip to the movies. We've been waiting to make this trip for awhile; we wanted to wait until we thought d1 would sit still for at least 1/2 of the movie. We were pleasantly surprised when he managed to make it through the entire movie with just one bathroom break and a few (okay, about 10) seat changes between his seat, my lap and D1's lap.

Let me preface this by saying that not only was this our first movie theater trip but this was also a big reward for d1. You see, d1 can be quite a handful with his energy, enthusiasm and love for life....oh, and his desire to use words that his friends are teaching him at school paired with his unusually strong will. That being said, last week he "moved up" to the next class at school (daycare just sounds so wrong), which brings a new teacher and a new set of rules. His former teacher and his new teacher are like night and day with completely different techniques and I think it was just a matter of d1 adjusting to this new atmosphere. His new teacher has a "grading scale" for behavior - green card=GOOD day, red card=needs improvement, black card=BAD day and there are some others in between...you get the point. Well, d1's first couple of days were "free" days meaning he didn't receive a rating. However, the first day he got a pretty red card (not good but could be worse). We talked with him on how we are to act at school and thought it would resolve itself. Ha! The next day, D1 picked him up to see that he was exceptionally naughty and this card was a very dark, sad color of BLACK. Of course D1 and I discussed this with d1 all night long and asked what he did to deserve this card....and he honestly and openly admitted to us that he called his friends stupid, told them to shut-up, and he didn't pick up his toys at clean-up time. We were very unhappy and explained (as well as you can to a 3 year old) that this is unacceptable behavior, that we DO NOT say those words EVER and that we ALWAYS pick up our toys. In fact, we practiced that night in our playroom....and we quickly saw how he earned a black card! He had no interest in cleaning up; he just kept finding more toys to play with and kept saying he would clean up "in a minute" (I believe he learned that phrase from D1). We purposely made that evening quite uneventful to show d1 that we do not get rewarded for naughty behavior - no dessert (his fav meal of the day), no hide-and-seek, no fun stuff until our behavior improved. So, D1 and I decided that if he had a better day on Friday, we would do something super special for him. When D1 picked d1 up at school that afternoon.....HOORAY!! He did it! He got a green card. I don't know if I've ever been so proud of him....and he was pretty darn proud of himself! Which leads us to the reward....

As I mentioned above, we had been waiting for the right time to venture out to the big movie theater and we decided this was the best time to do so. We took d2 to Grandpa's for a couple of hours and made this movie night all about d1. You can see in the pictures that he had a great time. I think his favorite was the large bucket of popcorn that he held on with a firm grasp....he even saw a friend sitting behind us watching the movie, too!

One final note to this incredibly LONG post....we really had a great time, no meltdowns, no tantrums, really just a great night all around....except for the PRICE! If anyone has been to a movie lately, they can relate to my astonishment. Seriously, we went to a matinee and it cost us $20 just to see the movie and then another $16 for popcorn and two drinks. Where has the increased costs to the movie theaters come from??? Absolutely ridiculous....in all seriousness, I doubt we will be going back before d2 is ready for his first movie trip!

Happy Halloween!

The boys had such a good time! This was the first year that Spiderman (Dagen) really understood how this works - walk up to the door, ring the doorbell, say "Trick or Treat" and get candy. Well, he was fine walking up to the door but, at first, he didn't want to wear the Spiderman mask; he just wanted to be Dagen. Then, when he did finally succumb to the pressures of the mask, he didn't want to wait for the nice person to fill his bucket ~ he wanted to determine what candy he would have by grabbing a handful out of the nice person's bowl. Fortunately "most" of our neighbors were okay with his slight bossiness. By the end of our trip around the subdivision, Dagen figured out how the scenario works and he had it down pat - just in time to be done and head home! As for Davis the Turtle, he just followed Dagen.....as usual. In any case, they were super cute and it was a fun night. It was also a great way for us to meet our neighbors who are otherwise holed up in their homes.