Off to K-5

A month has now passed since we sent our oldest son to his first day of kindergarten. And yes, I am a slacker when it comes to posting pictures but no one told me that your life REALLY would get beyond crazy when baby #3 arrives so that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it. Although, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to say that I haven’t posted the story behind this eventful day yet because I’m still coming down from my maddening rage but who has time to dwell? I know I don’t so maybe after I write this, I’ll be able to laugh about it. Yeah. We’ll see

To set the mood, let me just say, for those who don’t know me really well, that I am a planner. Some (my husband) might even say it’s borderline-OCD but nonetheless, I am one who needs to be on time, on budget and in order. To me, it’s essential in a world with small children. This was SO not the case for this big day. And I will try not to point fingers as to WHY this day didn’t go as planned but I’m sure you smart people will figure it out.

The night before, I had muffins made, clothes laid out, backpack ready, camera charged….all that was left for the next morning was to wake, feed and load up all three d’s for the trip to school. So, next morning comes and is seemingly smooth. While they are eating, I load the backpack, camera, and my purse into the van so that all we have to do is get in and go. D1 has to leave early to get his class ready for the kids to arrive so we tell him good-bye, that we will meet him there to walk d1 in together. We were even ahead of schedule enough to sit down and enjoy some good ole’ Tom & Jerry before departing. Everything is going just as planned, right? Five minutes before we were set to leave, d1 comes in and asks me to come unlock the van. I turn to get my keys and realize….yep, they are already in the van. LOCKED in the van. Apparently, ‘someone’ needed to get something out of the van before ‘someone’ left and ‘accidentally’ locked the doors when finished. It had to have been an accident, right? Because how many people lock their vehicles when they are in the GARAGE!!!!

So, I literally scream, ‘NO!!!!’ loud enough for all neighbors within a mile radius to hear and pick up the phone to call D1 at school. He explains that he can’t leave yet, maybe in 20 minutes. I am hysterical, crying that ‘my baby cannot be late on his first day of school’ and asking what I should do. And no, we had no spare key (we do now!) and there were no windows even cracked to try and reach in. The only solution I could come up with in my state of panic was to bust out a window. Yes, I know – a bit rash but what else could I do? I actually got to the point of tapping the hammer on the window and realized that I would probably end up severing an artery and that would probably scar d1 permanently AND ruin his first day so I decided against it. As I’m crying in the driveway and trying to figure out what to do (do taxis come all the way out here?), I look over at my neighbor’s house and realize they have three vehicles outside. They don’t need all of those, right? I run over, tell my story, and they tell me to take their van. They are AWESOME people and I was speechless….until I said, ‘Great, where are your keys? I gotta go!’ Keep in mind, EVERYTHING is locked in the van – drivers license, cell phone, backpack, CAR SEATS. d3 is the only one who had a real car seat (but fortunately their van had built in 5-point harnesses so I wasn’t completely breaking the law). We throw them in and I am feeling like Mark Martin on a NASCAR track with the turns I was taking and the speed I was hitting. Obviously, I know I’m not winning Mother of the Year award for this but we were not going to be late. I was not going to be that mom.

So we get to school, unload and head in. I am almost jogging into the school (in heels, no less – with a bit of streaked mascara and a 4-month-old, head-bobbling baby in arms), pulling d2 along and nudging d1 to hurry until we see D1 at the school entrance. He joins in on our little ‘race to the finish,’ unbeknownst to him on how we got there and we make it to d1’s class with about 30 seconds to spare. Other parents were crying tears of sadness/joy and I might have been one of those parents, had I had TIME. Fortunately, my tear-streaked eyes didn’t draw attention since every other mother was doing the same – although I can bet their mornings went a little smoother. And funny thing is, probably half of the kids were sad that their parents were leaving them. Not mine. Nope. He was probably thinking, ‘Get me away from this lunatic!’ I was so proud of him.

In the end, we made it in time, even if we had no backpack or camera (because, you know, I’ve only been planning this scrapbook page for 5 years now). So, the pictures you see below are from his second day of school – D1 was ‘encouraged’ to re-create the first day since the real one didn’t go as ‘planned.’

To those who have heard the story, sorry for the repeat but I need to document this for d1 to read some day because I’m certain there will be two sides to the story and he needs to know the truth. ;)

Fun Family Pictures

Recently, we met some friends in downtown Greenville on a Saturday morning and had some random pictures of our family taken, mainly for a project I've been wanting for our master bedroom wall (which I hope to post soon). We had a lot of fun taking them, met up with some other friends in the process and just goofed off. Here are some of the pictures PP snagged of my kiddos -

Funny thing about this picture - it's the 'before' shot. The 'after' is a soaking wet little boy - yup, he fell in the water. After 85 warnings that it would happen. Guess he had to make sure....

I just love his ornery grin.

Such a cute pose - isn't this girl just made for the cameras? Both of my boys are crazy about her - d2 even tried to push her into Reedy River. That's true love.

What a Deal!

So I am new to the 'game' of couponing and how amazing it can be. I have used coupons in the past but not to this degree and I can't believe how exciting it is to walk out of a store after spending only $18 with the amount and quality of food I got today over my lunch break. I LOVE www.moneysavingmom.com and that site is where I learn of most of my 'deals' so I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to save some $$ on their grocery bill. Having 3 boys with very hearty appetites, I have no choice but to start learning the ropes now on how to stockpile, bargain shop, and save. Here's what I got today for $18.29 at my local Food Lion:

*Healthy Choice Chicken Fettucine meal- $2.50 less $1.00 coupon = $1.50
*Lean Cuisine Panini - $3.49 less $1.00 coupon = $2.49
*Healthy Choice Lemon Pepper Fish meal - $3.49 less 40% = $2.09
*Healthy Choice Cafe Steamers - #2 - $3.49 less 40% = $2.09 x 2 = $4.18
*Food Lion Instant Oatmeal - $2.32 less $1.00 coupon = $1.32
*Food Lion Kookies Cereal - $1.89 less $1.00 coupon = $0.89
*Food Lion Raisin Bran - $2.49 less $1.00 coupon = $1.49
*Kelloggs Corn Pops - $1.99 less $1.00 coupon = $0.99
*Starbucks Mocha Frappucino - $1.89 less $2.00 coupon = $0.11 overage!!
*Ragu Spaghetti Sauce - #2 - 2/$4 less $2.00 coupon less $1.00 coupon less $0.55 coupon = $0.45 (yep, that's $0.23 EACH!)
*Hi-C 10-ct juice boxes - 2/$4 less $1.00 coupon = $1.00
*12-pk Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper - $3.00 less $1.00 in-store coupon = $2.00

You just can't beat these deals. I mean, seriously - if I can go shopping and make money just by purchasing a Starbucks Frappucino, it's a good day!! I could probably spend a little less on my lunches instead of spending $2 on my Healthy Choice meals but I buy them on sale and they really satisfy me, are quite tasty and are low in WW points so I'll splurge a bit now while I whittle away my waist line......hopefully sooner than later.....

Clumsy or Blind?

We're not quite sure but at this point, I'm looking for any reason to explain why d2 had his 3rd trip to the ER, on the SAME EYE. What can I say? Seems the kid leads with that side of his face. It's a good thing the last 2 incidents have had witnesses present or I'm certain we might not have left the hospital without a 'visit' from Social Services....the poor boy is either clumsy or blind and we'll find out soon if it's the latter.

So the story goes like this (and honestly feels a bit like de ja vu)- D1 called me on my way home from work and said that d2 had fallen on the stairs and he thought he would need stitches. I told him to meet me at the ER and I turned back around and headed back to the hospital. I first called the aunt & uncle who have helped on the other 2 occasions and they met us at the hospital and took d1 and d3 so that we could focus on the wounded soldier. My next call was to my co-worker, who is an M.D. and has ties with a plastic surgeon in our hospital. Typically, this wouldn't be the case to have a plastics doc sew up a simple laceration but in our case, it was the THIRD TIME and we were already concerned with how the other two scars were healing so it was warranted. Thankfully, he was willing to come in and handle it himself, even though he was not on call. And talk about feeling important - the surgeon was waiting on us when we got there.

They initially numbed d2 with a topical cream and were hoping to just sew him up while he layed there and watched. Yeah, that wasn't gonna happen. He remembered what this process entailed and the last 2 times, it involved a large needle. So, all we could do was mildly sedate him so that the doc could do a perfect job. That was FREAKY! They hooked him up with the monitors and gave him a shot in the hiney that literally knocked him out within 2 minutes. I was holding him when they gave him the shot and shortly after, he started to slowly lay back onto the bed. Eyes started glazing over and he was out. As a parent, that was probably one of the hardest things to watch.

It took no time at all and then we just had to wait for him to come out of it. Eventually he responded and was talking (albeit very slurred) about what kind of ice cream he was going to have. We had to wait in the ER while he fully came to and could walk and show the docs that he was progressing nicely.

Instructions were that he not eat heavily but could have an ice cream sundae. Soooo, after 3 1/2 hours in the ER, I took d2 to McD's at 9:00 PM and gave him the choice of hot fudge or a blueberry/strawberry sundae (a.k.a. Fruit-n-Yogurt Parfait). My health dude picked the parfait!! Maybe it was a bit of a trick on my part, maybe I might have talked the parfait up a bit but nonetheless, he loved it and thought it was a sundae. Who am I to argue with the precious patient? And I might have tossed some french fries back to him on the drive home....

While we had the plastic surgeon's time (and to save a consult co-pay), we asked about the other scars and what would be the very best way to heal them and he only suggested sunscreen on the scar. He said that no creams/lotions have been proven to help and that time will heal as children produce excess amounts of collagen and that his scars will look better as he gets older. We always use sunscreen on the boys but we're going to take it a step further. D1 is taking the older boys to Lids for Kids today to get d2 his very own baseball hat, personalized, in hopes that everytime he goes outside, we don't have to battle him to wear the hat. When asked what color hat he would like to have, d2 thought for a minute and answered 'WHITE.' Great...white hat on a boy? That will be brown in no time. I asked D1 to use my persuasion tactics (see above at McD's) and see if maybe d2 might like another color better....maybe blue or red?

All in all, the night went better than expected, considering our good fortune of connections and getting 'royal' treatment in the ER. That's almost an oxymoron, isn't it? I mean, c'mon. I feel dirty just stepping foot in the ER, like I want to sanitize head to toe when I leave. Oh well. Here's praying that the next set of stitches is in a less obvious place....

Starting 'Em Young

Since D1 has been playing Mr. Mom this summer and staying home with d1 and d2, he has been trying to keep it exciting for all of them (including himself) and has, twice now, taken them to the local country club for a round of golf. Golf is not a foreign concept to these boys. They play alongside their daddy most nights in the backyard and are getting pretty good. d1 got his very own set for his 5th birthday and has definitely put them to good use already. d2 has been using d1's old clubs that he had outgrown from Papa Murphy and has really done well. Especially given the fact that, in most things, d2 seems to favor using his left hand and he's using a right-handed club. We're in the market for a left-handed little-boy club for him but, for now, it's doing the trick. Last night when he was playing, he hit the ball really well and turned to me and said, 'Mommy, I'm a little Tiger Woods!' I was so proud of him, the way he just lit up with excitement. And hey, I could get used to the idea of having a son become the world's best golfer! Momma likes nice things....

Notice the club....

Where d2 doesn't care what club he uses, d1 seems to enjoy using his driver the most and he can get some power behind his swing and has, on occasion, hit his ball into the wooded area behind our house.

When he hits it really hard, he'll say, 'Best one ever!' and will give us a big fist pump.

And this is probably their favorite part of the outing....and I'm a little nervous seeing that the key is in the ignition and not in D1's pocket. Those boys are sneaky and like to hold the key and d1 has no reservations about going for a spin when Daddy turns his back.

Myrtle Beach 2009

We recently returned from a week at Myrtle Beach and I'm just getting around to writing about it. It was definitely an experience with 3 young children in tow - D1 and I were both ready for a real 'vacation' when we got back. Since when did time away from home in a beautiful place become more stressful than being at home in the everyday grind?




We really didn't plan this trip very far in advance so the fact that we got a nice condo at a low price a month before we went was amazing in itself. It was about 5 miles from the beach but turns out the boys really don't care much about the beach and the ocean just yet. And it didn't help that when we went, it was extremely hot and humid so I didn't really blame them for not being fans of heat exhaustion - I mean, there was NO breeze. Fortunately, I was able to take some pictures of them during our first few visits, when they did enjoy it. D1's aunt and uncle were down on the beach at Pirateland so we visited them quite a bit and spent some time in the lazy river and the pool, which was much more appealing to the boys than the ocean. Once d1's toes got nipped by a crab, he was D-O-N-E. It was just hard to spend time together outdoors because it was too hot for d3 to be outdoors for a long period so D1 and I were always tag-teaming with him.




I love this picture below because they are actually working AS A TEAM to dig sand and toss it back into the ocean rather than beating each other in the head with the shovels....yes, it really happens and lately has been happening more frequently. I dread their fighting as they get older - I've heard BAD stories of when D1 and his brother were younger and I would have had a coronary if I were D1's mother during those spats.

This is a funny picture but, believe it or not, D1 volunteered to be buried. And this was Father's Day - what a champ! We later discovered that d2's flip-flop was lost at sea and we believe it probably got re-buried in this hole after D1 emerged. Oh well!

At some point in the week, we decided to take a break from the heat and head to Ripley's Aqarium. This was a total waste of $$. At least for our family at this age. We spent approx. $50 and were in there about 30-40 minutes. It was disappointing, although the boys did get to pet the sting rays. And get this - you have to exit the aquarium thru the GIFT SHOP. Great marketing plan but what a crock....fortunately, we made it out of there only spending $2 on some little toys that are already lost somewhere in our van or house. Such is life....





Here is where we truly got our money's worth - Family Kingdom Park. We should have just went here everyday. The boys LOVED it here. We got the wristbands and they rode for about 4 hours (with a quick break for dinner at Friendly's - yum!). This park is truly made for the little crowd and they had a blast.

d2 was so patient, sitting with his hands in his lap while d1 drove him around. Definitely a key difference in their personalities - d1 would have never allowed that.....

While at the beach, we celebrated d2's 3rd birthday. He has just grown up so much this past year and yet he still wants me to hold him and cuddle him every now and then, which I absolutely LOVE. I love the feel of his skin and the way his little body just clings to me when I carry him (when he's feeling the need to be 'the baby' for a minute)...just hard to believe he's turning into a little man. Happy Birthday buddy!! We love you!!

Happy Happy Birthday

d1 turned 5 years old last week and it just seems so surreal that 5 years have passed since he entered our lives. It has gone by so quickly and that scares me at how fast the next 5,10 and 15 years will go. Now I think I can fully appreciate the song ‘Don’t Blink’ (thanks Kenny!)

To my firstborn - You came into this world on June 8, 2004 and captured my heart from the moment I first held you in my arms. You are such an amazing boy with a thirst for knowledge and a love for sports. You have big, beautiful, blue eyes and a smile that melts my heart. You light up at the idea of dessert and there isn’t anything in the world you would rather do more than to have ‘monster time’ with your daddy. It’s still hard for me to accept that you are going to begin kindergarten this fall but I am so excited for you. You are such a smart little guy and I know you will continue to amaze me with the things you learn every day as you begin this next phase in your life.

My constant prayer for you is that you will grow strong in the Lord and follow His examples in life. One day, when you are grown and gone away, I pray that we will have raised a well-rounded, confident, respectable young man who knows just how much we love him. We are truly blessed to have you in our lives and we will never take that for granted!

Children are a gift from the Lord; a child is a reward from Him. (Psalm 127:3)