October 2012

We have not been able to make it to the pumpkin patch this year....I am a bit sad to not get our annual picture...but oh well...I will settle for this one and just keep it real....this is how it goes the majority of the time when I try to get a picture of all three.

We finished up Pee Wee cheerleading and the cheer competition this weekend. It was soooo cold this Saturday morning during the compeition....thankfully it warmed up a bit for the last game of the season that afternoon.

 I sent Snow White and Big AL off with James to the fall festival tonight.....Christian is still cruddy and I have a terrible cold so I thought it is better for us to stay in. I did not get a picture before they left......mom fail....ugh.  Maybe some chocolate will help..... Hope everyone has a Happy Wednesday!

Crazy....

Things have been crazy here!! Emily Grace and Austin have started back to school this week. Em is in the 4th grade and is changing classes with within her grade level and has a locker....can we say this is too close to middle school??

She was so ready to get to class and for me to quit taking her pic!! LOL She is also cheerleading this year and is very excited about that. Football games will start in Sept. so our weekends will get even busier...but it will be soooooooo worth it.

And my sweet 2nd grader....he does love school...now spelling not so much....it is like pulling teeth to get him to study his words. I love his teacher and feel like she is going to be wonderful for him. He has had a growth spurt and has gotten taller...so now we are in between sizes 6/7...some are too short...some too long...sigh...we were going to put him into football this year but with him being sooooooo skinny (and he eats all the time!) we were afraid he would get clobbered. So we are going to just do baseball this year and maybe basketball with upwards and see how he is next year.

He did not want to smile....he was so concerned about people looking at him while I was trying to get his picture...LOL ...he also just wanted me to leave so he could get to class...I had wanted to take pics by the bulldog statue but it was raining.

We were also very, very, blessed to be able to get this:

It is soooooooooooo nice for the monkeys to have rear air (our 99 explorer that I have had for the last 9 years did not have it) and a third row....everyone has space and car rides are much more nicer and enjoyable. We are truly blessed!!

We were able to take a mini vacation to Destin this past weekend (pics to come) even though it rained on Sunday and we didn't get to go to the beach we still had a great time!!! I really love it there! :)

A Night at the Musuem

The school had a fundraiser for the art program last week. They had a Night at the Musuem them and Em got to participate in the animal exhibit. She was a bit nervous but did really well. I only snapped a couple of pictures because the exhibit was in one of the classrooms and it was pretty crowded in there.

 Austin at his desk with his clay lizard that he made. We ended up having to glue the arms back on because they did not make the journey home well....LOL.

On of Em's artwork that we purchased. We did purchase all of them because they did a good job and we believe in supporting art in school.....it is sad when you think of the difference in a more rural area of what is avaliable to students with art and music then when we lived in the Birmingham metro area and they had it once a week....here they get art once a month and music starts in 5th grade I believe....but other than that the kids really do like school! :)

Play Date

 We went to the park last Saturday to try to enjoy the cooler weather before the rain came in that afternoon. Christian loves to just walk around the park...he laughs as he goes....it is just too cute.

 I was able to get one pic of Austin. Him and Em usually leave us in the dust. He is trying really hard not to smile here. LOL

Miss Em on her favorite- the monkey bars!

 Christian loves the swings. He also went down the slide too...but he lays down to slide down...LOL...love this picture of him smiling afterwards!!

First Haircut

 Christian finally got his first haircut. When he was mistaken for a little girl it was time! LOL We did keep some of the curls in the back though. He looks so much like a little boy...sigh....we have been to the ENT twice in one week with him and got the all clear....so know we are not sure if he really had an ear infection or not. He woke up this morning with a cough, runny nose and has been pulling at his ear again. I am hoping it is just allergies/cold or all has to do with his two-year molars coming in. He still is not sleeping well and is just pure restless at night....I do hope that gets better soon!

 Here are my babies on Easter morning at church....I can never get all three to look at me at the same time!

Happy Thursday Everyone!!

I got this idea from pinterest....love the way it turned out! I took Christian to his 18 month appointment yesterday....he weighs 36 pounds and is 36 inches tall.....I am raising a future linebacker I tell ya. We go to the ENT on Monday to see about tubes....hoping if he does get them that his language will improve more.....he does say 8-10 words clearly.....but since he is sooooooo laid back and calm it could be more of his personality!

18 months

I cannot believe my baby is 18 months old today....sigh...sniff....so much closer to turning 2....the last 18 months have gone by so fast....I wish time would slow down a bit!
Christian' stats:
                      weight: 34 pounds (off the charts!)
                      height:  37 inches (off the charts!)
                      size:  6 diapers though we are probably going to pull-ups this weekend
                                18 months-2T
                      words: Daddy, ba-ba (drink), boo, Roll Tide, dog, go, bye, mmm good, no
                      loves:  his brother/sister, walking, Phineas and Ferb, talking, singing, music,books
                      food: puff, cheese, cheerios, muffins, yogurt

I think we have skipped spring and jumped into summer like weather....the high has been in the 80's and I sent the kids to school in shorts....usually we have to wait until after spring break to do that. But I am not complaining!! I love warm weather....the beach...the water! Now hopefully everyone will stay well!

We are going to have a busy weekend but I am looking forward to it! Happy early weekend everyone!

Happenings...

We took Christian for his 15 month check up on Friday (a bit late). He weighs 34 pounds and is 37 inches and a half long. His doctor said he is as big as an average 3 year old. He is wearing 24 months-2T clothing and a size 6 diaper. He also had a horrible cough that had started about a day before. We really were concerned that is was whooping cough because he did have a bit of the whoop with it but the way he has reacted to his steroids (a 3 day dosage) means it is the croup. Poor baby has not really felt good.
I also took Em to the eye doctor last week since she had been complaining of not being able to see. She is getting glasses. :( I was really hoping that she would of been a lot older before she needed them (if at all)....but we picked out some really cute PINK ones and she is really excited about them. They should be in hopefully this week. I am so glad she was not upset about it like her momma....and thankfully they make really cute glasses for kids....not like when we were kids!
And I made it through the big dreaded day................the big....40.......I will be honest....it has been a bit hard leaving the 30's behind...but I am claiming 40 as the new 30!! LOL  I loved the devotion from Jesus Calling on that day though...."I am with you and for you. You face nothing alone-nothing!" 

16 Months

 I cannot believe you are 16 months old. Where has the time gone? We have your 15 month appt next week ( just a bit behind) so I am excited to see what your stats are. You are walking everywhere. You love your brother and sister. You think Austin is so funny and he loves to entertain you. Daddy was playing "boo" with you last night and you were laughing your head off and you started saying boo back to him....which you thought was so funny. Well..this morning you get up and stand up in the crib and looked over at your Daddy when he came into the room and said, "Boo!" It was so funny. You are very smart and very funny! You love music and to dance. You also love to practice your quarterback skills and love to toss things.You are such a sweet blessing to our family! 

Austin finally lost his first tooth about three weeks ago. Then he lost his second one this week at school and we had to write a note to the tooth fairy. The other tooth that is in the middle all by itself is very loose but has not fallen out yet. Poor boy won't be able to eat corn on the cob! :)

Breakfast with Santa

We got to go to Breakfast with Santa at James' work. It was fun. The kids got to do crafts,face painting, play in the bouncy house, see a magic show,see Santa and got a gift. Christian did not like sitting on Santa's lap...I had to take a pic anyway!! LOL

Catch Up

I cannot believe it is Nov. 1st. Time is just flying by...and life is busy!! On Friday we went to two pumkpin patches. The first one was at a farm and it was such a disappointment and we really did not get the pics we wanted. So we decided to go to the one in Dothan that we had found last year....much better. And well....trying to get all three to take a pic can be madness at times!

                   

 

Christian did much better this time sitting in the grass. He just looked around and played with a leaf for ever. I could not get him to look up much to take a really good picture.





After the pumpkin patch we decided to go to the park. The weather was awesome and it felt so good to be outside. Christian loved the swing. He just smiled and laughed. Later he decided to take some steps on his own walking back and forth between James and me. It was such a blessing that we both got to see him to his first steps. He just laughed and laughed while he did it. I tried to take some pics but he was so fast...I should start calling him Dash! LOL



On Saturday we went to the fall festival. The group that organized it did an awesome job and everything looked so good. Austin even won a cupcake at the cake walk. He was so happy about that. Em went as Dorothy and Austin as Indiana Jones. We had a shirt on Christian that had a mummy on it and said "I love my mummy."



We have been busy taking Austin to doctors/specialists. He is ADHD. We will also be testing for audio processing disorder. He is doing well in school...grades and behavior wise. He has great teachers that are willing to work with him. He does not care for spelling so that is like pulling teeth to get him to study...LOL. It breaks my heart when he gets off the bus sometimes as says kids make fun of his voice or his speech. I am hoping that gets better soon. I know that God has a plan for this special boy. We just want to give him the tools he needs to get through this life. Em is doing well in school and loves science and math. I cannot believe how fast she is growing up.....we are getting too close to double digits....sigh. Christian is growing by leaps and bounds. He is wearing 18-24 month clothing. I really think he will be walking or make that running by Thanksgiving. He has another molar busting through so he is not sleeping very well at night....so neither is momma....so I am thankful for caffeine!

James is currently the interim student minister at our church. I love our church....it is really a family. We have awesome people to count as friends. I love seeing what God is doing with the youth and the church. It is such a blessing to be there. Really all of the trials that we have been through the last couple of years and been so worth is to be here at this place and turned out to be such a big blessing.....a total "God thing" that we ended up here. I am so thankful for the way God has really blessed us.

 

This and That........

Yes...I am a terrible blogger. Life is CRAZY ya' all.  Here is life in a nutshell these days:

*Em is loving third grade. I love that she is excited about things...she loves reading and science. We already have had the discussion over and over again about the solar system and Pluto. James and I don't care that "they" (whoever they are!) have decided it is not a planet....it has been a planet forever! I mean how can you learn the planets if you can't do the "My Very Educated Mom Just Served Us Nine Pizzas" bit? That was always my favorite bulletin board to do! I am praying she does not have to do a model this year....it could get ugly!  She is growing up too fast....she starting talking yesterday about college, getting married and having kids...so as I am proccessing what she is telling me....she then says but it all has to wait until she is 30 to date anyway! Good girl...she remembered the rule! LOL

*Austin is doing well in first grade. His reading is much better....or should I say getting him to read without having a tug of war about it....he loves math so doing math homework is no problem for him. We have had some testing done with him and will get the results in about two weeks. More about that later. But he loves his teacher and his friends so that makes school fun.

*Christian will be a year old on the 15th....7 days from now.....this momma is not ready!!! Wasn't it just yesterday this sweet bundle was born? I can't believe how fast it has gone. Sniff...sniff...tear...babyhood is gone and enter toddlerhood.....so bittersweet when it is your last baby. He is crusing big time in the playpin and around the furniture. It won't be long before he is walking! And since football season has arrived I have taught him to say tide after I say ROLL........he says is so sweetly...Tide! Then I say touchdown and he throws his hands up! Gotta start early!!! Still haven't decided on what to do for his birthday yet...I guess I need to get on that! He has also been fighting a double ear infection..so some nights are just not fun....but I would not trade it for the world....I love power rocking with him (hmmmm...that could be a new sport!) Sleep is overrated anyway.



*I had gotten word last week about a friend that had passed away suddenly. I was so shocked and heartbroken ....and were so many of our friends from the youth group days. I had been trying to get up with him for a while...I just wish I had tried harder. I went to the funeral on Sunday....drove through some very bad weather thanks to tropical storm Lee ....but so thankful I got to go. I got to see so many from my "Carlisle Family" that mean so much to me and I got to say goodbye to a sweet friend. His funeral was one of laughter and tears. Many funny memories of him............he was so full of life and loved to pull pratical jokes. He has the best smile and laughter. I think he would of loved it. I know he loved Jesus and I know where he is and that I will get to see him again someday.

*James has had the opportunity to fill in working with the youth at our church. What a great group of teenagers! And what a blessing they are to him! I got to go in for a bit last night...love how they get into the lesson. We are really blessed to be apart of a great church and great people to be around! 

*A bit of cooler temps have arrived....I am not quite ready for Summer to be over...just the high temps....give me temps in the 80's and this southern girl is fine with that...I am not ready to give up my flip flops yet!

I will dance with Cinderella...

My firstborn and only daughter is eight years old today. (sniff...sniff). It has gone by too fast for me. It seems like yesterday this nine pound bundle of sweetness was put into my arms and made us a family of three. I remember when we left the hospital that James drove home very carefully. LOL It has been a joy to raise a precious girl that God has entrusted to us. I have loved the bows, pink....well...pink everything...princesses...barbies...dresses....squeals...singing at the top of her lungs.....everything about this sweet girl.

So since I can't make time slow down....I will slow down and cherish every moment with my favorite girl...and dance with Cinderella....

The following is the lyrics to her favorite song by Steven Curtis Chapman

She spins and she sways
To whatever song plays
Without a care in the world
And I'm sitting here wearing
The weight of the world on my shoulders

It's been a long day
And there's still work to do
She's pulling at me
Saying "Dad, I need you

There's a ball at the castle
And I've been invited
And I need to practice my dancing
Oh, please, Daddy, please?"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone...

She says he's a nice guy and I'd be impressed
She wants to know if I approve of the dress
She says, "Dad, the prom is just one week away
And I need to practice my dancing
Oh, please, Daddy, please?"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone

She will be gone

Well, she came home today with a ring on her hand
Just glowing and telling us all they had planned
She says, "Dad, the wedding's still six months away
But I need to practice my dancing
Oh, please, Daddy, please?"

So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something the prince never knew
Oh, I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone



I just hope the next eight years don't go as fast.......