The most wasted of all days, is one without laughter!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Quick update
Bry started school! He is so full of energy and wide-eyed excitement. I'm so glad, but wish I could keep my little brown-eyed monkey with me a little longer. I know this is best for him, though. He needs the socialization and he needs to be in a structured environment to learn and improve his speech. I recognize this, but I don't have to like it... so I don't.
My Mom is out of surgery. She is sleeping off her meds. The doctor said she had to be in serious pain cause her hip joint was bone-on-bone, with no cartilidge. I'm so glad she had this surgery done. Now, we need to pray for a quick recovery and productive physical therapy.
My class went well, too! I have 7 students (all girls), and the class is still open until next week. I had fun today! I hope all my girls did too!
I just did the carpool for both boys and we're at home getting baths before we head across town to watch Ashton play and grab some dinner!
A busy day, but a good one, I'd say... surgery and all.
Not!! That's what my siblings and I used to do when we were teenagers. Pretty annoying, huh?
Tomorrow will be a whirlwind day! Very full and exciting.
First and foremost, my Mom is having hip replacement surgery in the morning around 7:30 or so. She has been in severe pain for a long time, and we all finally talked her into slowing down and following her doctor's recommendation. The surgery will be followed by weeks of physical therapy and recovery. Lots of love from kids and grandkids, too! I love you, Momma, and I'll be there tomorrow!
Then Bry heads to his first day of K-4. I'm repressing my emotions on this one.
Then from 10-12, I have my first public speaking class! Yeah! I am so thrilled to meet everyone and get started.
Then after I pick up Bry, shortly followed by Tres... we will head over to a local school and watch my niece Ashton play high school volleyball! I'm thrilled to get to see her!
Busy, busy, busy! Anyone want to clean my house??? Bueller... Bueller?
There is a new product at CVS called 24/7 acne cream treatment. It advertises that it can eliminate acne is as little as 7 days. How is that possible? Don't you have to treat acne from the inside out? I mean, and it would take a while to get rid of acne-type scars, right? I mean... I struggled to keep a clear complection in high school, but I never had to deal with acne, thank the God Lord! I had enough to deal with there... what with being so much bigger chested than the whole entire class.
Why does all the hard and embarrassing stuff have to happen to us when we are under the microscope the most? Zits in high school when you are dealing with voice changes, growth spurts and fits of hormone, just seems really unfair to me. Of course, if you live in the zip code 90210, apparently these pitfalls are not part of your life.
I ready and waiting when the school supplies go on clearance... how bout you? I'm even armed with some coupons for some name brand items. I'm always willing to spend a little bit of cash on pens... especially personalized pens that write smoothly! I want one to say, "This is the PERSONAL PROPERTY of Jamie... Don't Steal Me." Probably too much, but fun, I think! I like pens that have some sort of cushion at the top, and are fine point. It makes me use my very best penmanship when I have an excellent pen.
Well, if this week is any indication of things to come for the year, I may not be blogging as much as normal! Sigh... It's been a bit hectic, but good.
Monday, Tres started back to school, while I struggled to get stuff done around the house with two extra shadows, one of whom wanted me to 'play with him' all the time now that brother is unavailable. I'm doing my best to balance that with not letting our home get completely nasty! On Monday evening Tres started soccer practice. He is extremely excited about his team, the Cobras! There are even three kids on his team from his school, so that helps a lot.Even Bryant enjoyed himself at practice! And when he started getting a little bored, I gave him a photo assignment. I'll have to post some of his assignments soon. They are always interesting.
Tuesday, I had to take Sophie girl to Children's for a sweat chloride test. Let me explain. When I took her in for her one-year check-up, she was in the twentieth percentile, when her nine month check-up had her in the twenty-fifth percentile. So they wanted to make sure that nothing was amiss medically. And guess what??? Nothing was... she's just an itty bitty bundle of attitude! :)
Two more things were going on Monday and Tuesday. The first was my Dad and Hank began working on remodeling our front bathroom. We now have a new countertop, double vanities with new faucets, and a new paint color. We plan to tile it soon, frame out the mirror, and add crown molding. Add that to the already updated light fixtures, painted cabinets and new hardware, and I'm pleased to say that our bath is gonna be awesome! The seond was that I began feeling badly.
Wednesday, Bryant and I headed over to his school to Orientation. I was a little worried that since he had never been in a school situation outside of Tres's experience that he would be a little attached, but he wasn't. He was excited and eager... breaking my fragile Mom's heart just a little more. I know... it's a bit melodramatic, but it's sort of true. I went to a parent meeting while he met his teacher and classmate. He has been talking about it ever since, and has been telling me about 'planting' a flower in color water. His teacher says it will turn his flower red. Cool, huh? Then, I had to invest in some new clothes for myself... since I begin teaching my class next week, I want to make a good impression. The plans for my class are coming right along. I am so excited about it and keep coming up with fun stuff that I would like to do, too. The problem will be fitting it all in! Ha! Also, on Wednesday, my brother turned 29, and we celebrated with a noisy chaotic family dinner that was great! I love those kind! The cupcakes were yummy, and the kids got to ice and decorate their own. But my brother decided to start an icing war and 4 of us (yes, including me) ended up with a face full of strawberry icing! Sorry, I did not get pictures of that. I was too busy defending myself, since my husband was being Matt's accomplice!
On Thursday, Tres had soccer again and then it was straight to Praise Team practice for me.
Friday was catch up day in our house... laundry, laundry, and more laundry. Then when Tres was home, I made a trip to CVS. The CVS's in our area are a test market and are trying out running the adds from Friday to Thursday. I don't like it. It messes up my routine, and it means that if I want a chance at getting the good deals, I gotta go with my kids. Ugh!! It was a frustrating trip. But... this is about $125 worth of stuff for right around $5.50. Then we went to Target... and that's where my frazzled nerves gave up on me. I could not handle corralling two boys overly excited about the weekend any longer. We came home.
Now, we are trying to finish the bathroom and still get in some good family time. I know that Hank plans to take the boys to see The Clone Wars at some point... and I know that I need to exchange some pants for Tres at Belk, but other than that... no set plans.
I don't really feel like doing the breakdown, but this is $206.96 worth of merchandise for right at $10 OOP. I had some very helpful CRT's this time... like a $10 off 24/7 skincare and $1 off Gold Emblem Candy. That and some really good MC, and this was a great day. A lot of really useful things (milk, fabric softener, sandwich bags, drinks and water. You can't beat that!
Yesterday, my friend Nikki over at Nikki's Nacs honored me with a blog award! It made me feel good to know that my new friend likes me! :) So I am passing on my award to a few young ladies that make my day!
The rules of this award are: SHARE THE LOVE!!! Share this award with all those blogs out there that you love. All the people who make you smile. All those that make you laugh. All those that make your day. All those that leave uplifting comments on your blog.
**All I ask, is that you include a link to this post with the award and ask your recipient to do the same**
I have decided to nominate.... Drumroll, please...
** Crystal at Pink Lucy: Crystal never forgets a birthday, is constantly searching out more of God, and is totally in love with her husband and her fur-babies. She has proven to be one of the best friends... willing to drop anything to listen, and never embarrassed to offer a prayer over the phone, in the car, or anywhere else for that matter. If you don't already know Crystal... you are missing out!
** Rhiannon at RhiDesign: Rhiannon is a loving mother and a pastor's wife. I grew up in the same youth group and have found then and now that Rhi is one of the most genuinely sweet people. Her kids are gorgeous and she is all about family.
** Nicole at Life In A Full House: Nicole is fun! She is a devoted wife and the mother of a teenager, a three-year-old, and twin two-year-olds. She's honest and sometimes blunt, and I find it refreshing. You never know what you're gonna be reading about from day to day and I like that! Go stop by her blog and check out the madness that is Nicole! :)
And last, but by no means least...
** Amy Lee at My Memory Makers: I went to high school with Amy Lee and she lived just down the street. We were in our high school's production of Steel Magnolia's together... she was Clarice and I was Annelle. It was so much fun! We were also roommates our first sememster in college. She is now mother to 3 1/2... three girls and one TBA! She is a super creative mother and I couldn't be prouder to call her friend!
I love you all ladies! I hope you have a wonderful and blessed day! Now... Share The Love!
You can't call me a wimp, Mel! I went to CVS... got $208.08 worth of merchandise. I spent a total of $4.04 OOP. Hank and I like Alavert, so I cleaned the shelves of that. Only the first box earned ECBs, but the price is low and with a coupon, you can't beat it!
*When you smile, and I mean, really smile... your eyes disappear and your nose crinkles! *You are still just a little bit of a baby, and I love that. *No matter how much we encourage you, you WILL NOT say 'Momma!' *You say what sounds like a version of brother, dada, ball, bye-bye, look, what's that, and (mom's personal favorite) cool. *You also do a fake laugh when you want our attention and you growl on cue. Just yesterday you were crawling around and the boys were pretending you were a doggie and feeding you animal crackers and telling you to growl. You did it happily. *You take a pacifier when you are tired and ready for sleep. *Bathtimes are so much fun to you! You love to scoot yourself around backwards in the water. You usually fuss at me when I let the water out. *You will put anything into your mouth... bubbles, LEGOS, bugs (let's not talk about that... it makes Mom shiver), leftover food from your brothers. *You love to eat!! Right now, you love eggs, noodles, chicken, peas, bread... well, just about anything we are eating. *You still have two birthmarks. One on your chest and one under your arm. We also found one on the back of your neck! It's light, but there. *You only nurse at night, and only for a little while. *You have six teeth and you are working on more right now, little miss grouchy pants! *When you don't want your brothers to play with you, you hollar at them and wave your hands in front of you. *When you do want your brothers to play with you, you follow them around and mess with whatever they are trying to do. *You stand up by your self... you don't even need anything to pull up on. But you haven't taken a step yet. Most times, you just drop down and do what I call the SuperBaby crawl... you know, in one place one second and across the room the next! *When you feel like it... and only then... you give the best love! I mean, open mouth with tongue kind of love! *You like to play 'Where's Sophie?' with anyone that will do it.
*You like to wave bye-bye, except when it's Momma leaving... then it's time to cry! *You are fast becoming a Daddy's girl, I think. At least that's what this Momma has noticed. There is nothing sweeter than seeing you get excited when Daddy comes home. You demand his attention and are only happy when he picks you up. *I think you like to play with Bryant the best. That's probably because he will play the stuff you enjoy, like Little People, dolls, and trains. *Most of the time, I make your bows. And you pretty much leave them alone unless you are just tired and ornery! *When you get tired, you need that pacie, then you stick your hand down the shirt of whoever has you, lay your head down and settle in. *You took really naturally to a baby doll. You hugged it, put a blanket over it, gave it a bottle, then threw it down on the ground! *You like to tuck yourself away on shelves, in the corner, or in any tight place. Most of the time, we have to rescue you though. I laughed out loud when I was clipping coupons in the kitchen the other day, and I looked down to see you nestled into a corner playing with the sunlight on the wall... you were wearing your little onsie that says, "Nobody puts baby in the corner." *We still call you Sophie, Soph, Sophie Girl, Ava Sophia (mostly when you are in trouble), Sister, A-boo, and Soapie... most of these have stuck around since you were itty bitty. *You loves Sesame Street! Especially Elmo and Abby-Cadabe (sp?). You also love Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. *Your eyes are brown, but they have just a hint of green to them. Your hair curls up in the back, and you get ringlets when your hot. *You will sleep in your bed, but you prefer to be between mom and dad! *When I'm singing in the car or the kitchen or wherever, you like to sing with me... and it's one of the sweetest sounds ever. I think you are gonna live up to your name: Ava = Filled with Praise
*You are most definitely strong willed. If you want something, want to do something, or don't like what's being done... you let us know. *When you laugh, Sophie Girl, everyone who hears it smiles. *You let me paint your toenails for the first time the other day. I had to do it while you ate and really quickly, but it made me happy. You just can't get away with painting a little boys toes!
I got up around 6 am to make her birthday cake from scratch... I made a butter cake with cream cheese icing. Then I put strawberry/marshmellow toppers on it! Everything is gone now... toppers and all.Sophie's one-year-old-dive-into-me-and-get-messy cake! This one I made from a box, but was still fun to decorate!Here's the table. We also had hot dogs for those that were hungry. And we had red and blue juices for the kids to drink.
THE PRESENTS:
The princess of the house got a throne! Isn't it cute??Thank you Aunt Kayla & Uncle Matt! Sophie was wondering what to wear to CVS on Saturdays!Awwww! My baby giving her new baby some love! Gettin' a little help from big brother... check out the look on Sophie's face! Ha!In this picture, she is sporting a dress that Aunt Jennie got her, drinking from a cup that Luke got her, and trying out her new seat that Hank & I got her.
THE FAMILY:
Aunt Tonnie tries to steal my 'cool aunt' title and spreads the love among the two littlest cousins.Kisses are best from Grandmas!My two sisters.My beautiful sister-in-law and the baby with the best smile around, Brody! My brother Matt was too busy splashing all my friends (didn't your mother teach you any manners, young man?) to sit still for a picture!
THE FRIENDS:
My long-time friend Becca, her husband Scott, and their kids Maddie and Caleb came to help us celebrate!My new friend Mandy and her husband Chad brought their two kids, Kayleigh and Patrick. The relationship between Kayleigh and Tres is a whole different post... and I'm saying that so I remember to write about it later!My wonderful friend, Crystal Dawn and her husband Daniel came to the event. Check out the camera around CD's neck... I know she is probably tapping her foot, ready for me to post, so that she can post her pics! She's so polite and waits for me to post first! Thank you Crystal!
The only one I didn't get a picture of before she left was my friend, Kelly! She was pretty taken with my nephew Brody and sat with him for a while, chatted with Crystal and my family, then had to leave for a hot date! :)
THE FESTIVITIES:
Cake time!! Okay... now what am I supposed to do again?You want me to eat with my hands?? But that gets my hands yucky!Ummm... seriously, can you put down the camera and take care of this mess, please?Okay, Okay! I'll try it.Oooo... that's good!She ended up making a pretty good mess of herself! Although she did prefer to be fed instead of feeding herself. Oh! And we think the red icing broke her out a little. She had a red rash on her face for a little while, but it went away with no trouble.
We had several Olympic events planned for the kids... but we should have done the non-pool events first, cause once they got in the pool, they didn't want to get out! They did a goofy diving competition though!
It was a fun day, and a unique way to celebrate our little girl! I can't believe my baby girl is a one-year-old... why, oh why do they have to grow up? I want to know who they will become, but I am so enjoying their baby and child hood stages! Sigh.
Butter cake... cream cheese icing... chocolate covered marshmellows... pretzels... chips... dip... ice cream... hot dogs... coke... M & M's... peanuts... cupcakes... and coke. Those are just a few of the reasons I think I need diet pills right now. I need something to magically melt away about 30 pounds and make this bloating disappear! I want to exercise, but the pace of life is a little too fast right now. School, house, doctor, parties, laundry, grocery shopping, packing lunches... the list never ends it seems.
Seriously, I know that it's time to buckle down and get myself in shape. I'm just having a hard time finding the motivation to take care of myself when I'm using all my energy to take care of my family!
