Tres's 7th Birthday Pokemon Card-y!

So I've been waiting to get pics downloaded from my Mom's camera... we took pics with hers and mine at the party, and I know how to upload from my camera, but not hers! Maybe my super helpful and handy husband will help me out with that! But I want to get down the details before my memories of the day start getting fuzzy... and let's face it... after three kids and dividing and multiplying my attention so many times now... my memory ain't what it used to be folks! It's somewhat diluted. Smile!

First of all, he was a sick puppy the week before his birthday. We had planned to have his party the weekend before, but due to a high fever, and a very lethargic little boy, we were forced to reschedule his party. But, we rescheduled it for his actual birthdate day, and he thought that was pretty cool!

Hank took the day off, and we saw the boys off to school. They both skipped off to school in their Pokemon shirts! Then the madness began for us! We were wrapping presents, picking up last minute party items, getting goody bags ready, etc. We stopped mid day and went and ate lunch with our boys. (That is one thing I love to do.) Seeing them come down the hall with their class, walking orderly and looking around hopefully until they spotted us... then their little faces just lit up! I didn't realize I had the camera with us until after we had eaten with the birthday boy! C'est la vie!

After lunch, we headed over to my Mom's house to set up party central. About this time, I remember looking at the sky and realizing it was gonna rain. I was just praying it would hold off. It was hot enough to still let the kid's swim and run around outside... and all of the parent's were hoping for a good way to burn off some energy!

Hank ran to pick up the kids while I continued party prep... and before we knew it, we were in a countdown to party time!! But, the rain did not hold off, and as it started to pour, and I mean soaking-wet-through-and-through rain, Tres started to get worried that his friends would decide not to come.

{Insert picture of Tres sitting on Mom's front porch cross legged waiting for his friends to come, while it pours! Pic on Mom's camera.}

We had to pull my parent's grill into the door way of their garage to grill the hot dogs, and we had to make sure we had plenty of indoor games planned... well, at least, garage games! :) I was beginning to get worried that no one would come out either, and as I watched Tres sitting on the porch so forlornly, my Momma's heart started to hurt. But just about that time, I saw a car making a slow pass by the house... I had just enough time to grab the camera! I snapped the best shot of my baby waving to his first guest from the porch.

{Insert pic from Mom's camera here!}

I grabbed an umbrella, and began the wet task of ushering EVERY GUEST that we invited (with the exception of Caleb, who was sick) quickly into the house.



Then it was time for food! Hot dogs, chips, drinks, cheese dip, cookies. We got the kids set up and eating first. I was a little hardcore about no one putting hands into food. I was the sole server, and I had someone go around with the Germ-X once the kids were settled. Once they ate, I shifted the kids into the den for opening gifts and let the adults dig in...



Man was it fun to watch Tres open this year! My little man takes pure joy in all things, and has since he was a baby. He has always been and will always be my joy. Just look at that face!



He took great pride in reading each card this year. One of his classmates was sitting beside me and told me that Tres was the best reader in his class! That made me smile. Then she sighed and said wistfully, "I wish I could read that good."



Bryant is such a good brother. I really pray that my boys continue to develop their friendship. My sister and I were and are close and I love that. There is really something special about someone who knows you so well, that actually likes you too! :)


After presents, I handed out goody bags. This year, instead of the standard junk in a bag, Hank and I went online and ordered a huge lot of Pokemon cards. We divided it up and gave those as goody bags. The kids began trading immediately and were throwing around words like 'starley' 'rocario' and 'eevvee.'



Then it was time for the ice cream sundae bar! We went all out finding all sorts of topping to make this the best for the kids! And they really, really seemed to enjoy it! Again, I was the only one dipping ice cream, and Hank was the only one handling toppings.



Then we took the kids out to the garage and let them let with a nerf gun and a tower of pokemon characters! It was so fun, and the kids loved the satisfying racket the cans made when they shot 'em down! We had prizes for everyone, so everyone was a winner!



Well, that's all I have for now, folks! I promise when I get the pics from Mom's camera, I will insert them!

Ava Sophia ~ 2 Years Old

Where to start with our tiny dancer? Ava Sophia completed our family 2 years ago at 10:34 am. She is full of life, makes us laugh often, and while she gives us our fair share of frustration, the good far, far outweighs the bad! Here are a few things we want to remember about our Sophia Girl!

~ She gives her Daddy an equally enthusiastic welcome when he comes home from work... just as enthusiastic as her brothers
~ She calls her brothers, "my boys"
~ She has a horrendous fake laugh... well, here, check it out for yourself... I mean it's bad, but it makes us laugh just the same

~ She runs really funny... most of the time with her arms straight at her sides
~ She gets very, very serious when she is trying to tell you something and she can't get us to understand.
~ She has an EXTENSIVE vocabulary for a two-year-old
~ She gets on to Tres a lot
~ She tattles on Bryant even more
~ She is most happy when both of 'her boys' are playing with her!

~ She is very possessive of anything she likes... she will say, "Dis is me my toy!" ~ She can count to 5, and when she feels like it all the way to 11. And 11 is her favorite number to throw in randomly! :)
~ When she is done performing a trick, like counting, she will bow her head, close her eyes, and say "Tank you much!"
~ She has no fear. And this scares us.
~ If you are not paying attention to her while she is talking to you, she will physically turn your head with her little hands.
~ She is so very stingy with her kisses... but every now and then she will give you a kiss for no apparent reason, and those kisses are so very sweet!
~ She loves baby dolls and Barbies (or 'Darbies' in her world)
~ She can get entranced in Dora the Explorer, Go Diego Go, or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse in a split second.
~ She loves to dress up and look 'pitty'
~ She makes me paint her fingernails and toenails about once a week (between you and me... it really isn't a hardship!)

~ Her favorite 'pincess' is Ariel and she loves to play in the pool like she is Ariel or Flounder and I am Ursela
~ I like that she calls Sleeping Beauty 'seeping cootie'
~She got her ears pierced and her first pair of earrings shorly after Christmas. In Spring, she lost one, and I was able to wrestle another one in that ear... but it took nearly 3 months to get the other one out and the matching earring in!



~When I made a list of things I wanted to remember about Soph at age 1, and posted it here with pictures, she was wearing the same tutu outfit... which brings me to my next point! She is little for her age and we love it!
~ Her nicknames are 'Itty Bitty,' 'Tart 'n' Tiny' 'Sophia,' 'Sophie,' and 'Sophie Girl.'
~ She is strong willed and stubborn, and while I know those will be admirable traits as she gets older, they are tough to overcome at 2!
~ She is learning her colors now! She doesn't get them right all the time, but she tries!

Okay... that's about it for now... if you have something about her you would like to add, please feel free to do so in the comments section! There is so much and it's hard to remember it all!

Happy Birthday, Itty Bitty! I don't know what we would do without you. You bring fun, chaos, and laughter and we absolutely adore you.

PS She loves her daddy, but she's still a Momma's girl! :)

Brody is 1!

With all the Easter madness, and then end of school chaos, I forgot to wish one of my favorite Morrison boy a big 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!' Isn't he the cutest little cake eater!! Kayla went all out from the cute blue with brown polka dotted cake to the three outfit changed Brody had!

I couldn't resist posting this one of Tyler! He's all boy and so much fun! I love how he says my name too... "Jaaayyyy-me!"

Energy Level: Low

I feel a little deflated today... wish I looked it! Ha! Seriously. We went to Huntsville Saturday and Sunday for a volleyball tournament. We had a pretty good time, but we didn't finish well in the tournament. I have some changes in mind for that, but we'll see.

We got back home around noon and stopped by our house on the way to get the van since we drove the Camry to Huntsville.Isn't everything so pretty with a nice, white, fresh layer of snow? And the roads were still safe, so all the better!

We went and played with the kids at Mom & Dad's house since they had been waiting on us all morning.We made snow angels... ...built a couple of snow men... (sorry about the blurry pic, but Bry had gotten me and my camera already with a snowball!)...introduced Sophie to the idea of 'so-baw' fights......the boys turned their snow men into a fort......but they weren't expecting an attack from behind from the woman who gave them life!My Dad even made everyone some Snow Cream and the boys loved it!

We decided about 3 or so so load them up and head home to relax a little before heading to Sierra's (my niece) 10th birthday dinner at O'Charley's. Well, I had corralled the boys outside and had Bryant inside the van. Hank had just finished loading our snow wear and the kid's overnight bags into the back of the van and had just closed the back door. With Sophie in my arms, I walked around the front of the van, and just as I got to the front passenger side door, I heard a loud cracking sound and looked up just in time to step back and put Sophie under my arm before half of a dead tree fell onto my van. It busted the back windshield, heavily dented in the passenger side, scratched and dented the top of the van, and put a branch literally through the back bumper.This is the branch that pierced the bumper.We called the cops, but it turns out we don't need an accident report since no one was at fault. So we have a call into the insurance company and are waiting on an adjuster to call us.

After that.... phew... I wanted to go home and go to bed... but we still had to celebrate a certain yound ladies birthday! I can't believe it's been ten years since I first laid eyes on her! Look at how cute!!I just loved, and still love, the idea of being the fun aunt! This pic was taken right around when I graduated college... so wow!Happy Birthday Sierra Miran! I love you! "Sierra Miran... Sierra Miran... She was so tiny, she fit in a turkey pan!" [Sung to the tune of Cruella Deville]

Unscathed? Not Quite...

We almost made it through another action-packed weekend with no causalities! Hankie and his parent's cheered Bama on in Tuscaloosa against Ole Miss to squeak out a win. Hank said it wasn't pretty... but it was a win. I don't think I've watched more than 30 minutes of football since the season started, what with soccer, volleyball, church and everything else that goes on. So, I'll just take his word for it!

Yesterday morning I made it over to the last day of Kids Market. Most everything was 50 % off, so I got Tres jeans, pants, shirts, and sweaters. Then I headed over to see what I could get for Sophie... I have winter stuff but not small enough for my Itty Bitty (another nickname I use on her). I got her a couple of sleepers, some little baby jeans, and THE CUTEST little Christmas outfit! I averaged $2 on each item! Good times.

Then the kids and I headed over to Tyler's third birthday party.I could not get Tyler to pose for a picture, though, so I just settled for this group shot! He made out like a bandit! He even got a Smart Cycle... and my boys looked at me accusingly when he opened it, cause they've wanted one for a long time! So can we come and play, Tyler? Tyler is such a fun little boy and my kids love playing with him! They had a little playground area set up outside, and a bubble blower going, but the piece DE resistance was the giant monster truck inflatable bounce. Sophie got to experience it for the first time!By the time she did her inaugural bounce, she had already been given cheese puffs, so she was nice and messy! She loved it, she would try to bounce, then take a few steps and fall. Then she would get up and clap and say "yeah!"

The boys were in hog heaven! They ran around outside, got loud, and had fun! They even saved the world from the evil bubble blowing machine......while the royal princess looked on from her throne!

After the party, the kids and I headed over to my friend Mandy's (new blog alert!) house so that she and I could put together baskets full of CVS stuff for Pastor Appreciation Sunday. We beat Mandy to her house, so used the opportunity to take some pics of my kids!She's a poser, this one! "Cheese!" That little sweater I got at Kids Market for $1. My little brown-eyed boy. It was a gorgeous day, and I couldn't let the autumn setting go to waste!This was Tres earlier in the day at Tyler's birthday party (sporting a long sleeved Disney polo shirt I got at Kid's Market for $2 and a pair of jeans we got for $1.50). He was having fun and lively! But by the time we got to Mandy's and he had got in a short nap, I noticed he was starting to seem a bit off.He sat in the car while I took pics and Bryant ran around in the back yard. I did get them to all pose together, but this was the best I got.

This morning, I got up early to make pigs in a blanket for Pastor Appreciation. While I was getting them ready for the oven, I hear Tres calling me. He was in the bathroom and it was locked. I told him to unlock and he says, "Mom, I have to warn you. I had a really big accident!" He wasn't kidding. I spent the next 45 minutes cleaning him and the bathroom. And just when I thought I had it all done, he had another accident IN the tub. So I got the tub cleaned and them him again.

Anyway, I called the church and told them I wouldn't be there, but Hank rode his scooter over to deliver the pigs in blankets and a few other things. I hate to miss church today. But not only was Tres not up to it... but Sophie has been sleeping restlessly for the past 3 nights. Have I mentioned that she has a single ear infection (only the second of her life) and Bry has a double (the bizillionth of his life). And last night was no different, but she woke up so mad and nothing satisfied her, so we made the call to keep our kids at home.

Three's

Three things happened this weekend: First, Tres got sick on Friday night. He ran a fever of 101.8 and just wanted to be in bed. He tossed and turned (with me in my bed) just about all night. I alternated tylenol and motrine and we used a cool rag cause he felt like he was on fire. At around 4:30 am, he woke me up and said he felt better, so I got him comfy and he slept. I wasn't about to wake him up so I told Hank to take Bry in Tres's place to soccer. His little soccer team was already down one of six players, so without Bry they couldn't play. So he was a 'pinch kicker!'He did pretty good and seemed to have a really good time! Later that day, between Alabama's win and Auburn's loss, Hankie got himself a new toy! He went and bought himself a scooter. He loves it and it should cut our gas bill by half, even after the monthly payment, insurance, and fuel! Hank loves it!And so do the boys! The third took up a lot of my weekend, but it was so worth it! Tres had his birthday party and it was a success. He was all better from what must have been some sort of fever virus... and a full 24 hours had passes since his fever broke, so we felt confident that we could have a party without infecting everyone.

We've been so busy, that we just called our friends and asked them to come... instead of sending out invites. But it all worked out. I think only one couldn't make it. It was a sunny day and good for outdoor activities just the same! So I made sure to have plenty of water guns handy and we had the trampoline to jump around in. Tres had asked for a LEGO Indiana Jones cake, and then proceeded to pick out Indiana Jones napkins, GI Joe party favors, and a Spider Man pinata! He's such a boy, and we love it!His only other request was corn chips. He kept trying to tell us what they were and would describe them as the chips that smile or frown. How cute is that? He invited a lot of little friends over to Grandma's house for a final swim of the summer. None of the adults were brave enough to try, but the kids all did for a short time until they were all shivering... which was like, 15 or 20 minutes into it! After the kids all defrosted, we sang Happy Birthday to the birthday boy!


Did you guys see Tyler try to blow out the candle? I thought Tres handled that like a big boy! Then it was on to presents... Speed Racer movie, a small LEGO, a Transformer, a tee ball stand, and a couple of gift cards. He is a very blessed little boy!

Then it was time to work off the sugar and take a whack at the pinata! I thought Caleb and Zach were too funny cause they took it so seriously!

NOTE TO SELF: Do not put stampers in goody bags EVER, EVER, EVER again. Seriously, Jamie... what were you thinking? You had to bathe both boys twice, and use facial astrigent on their entire bodies to get nearly all of it off!My two boys, Mr. Green Chicken Pox, and Rudolf.

I'm ready to scale back on birthdays though... especially having Ava Sophia's and Tres's so close together!