Now THIS Is The Life!

So what's your problem?

2012-01-24T20:37:00.006-05:00

I'm already on Facebook TOO MUCH. And now I've found Pintrest. OH BOY! And I feel guilty that I'm not "keeping up" with this blog. My problem of spending too much time on the computer is SO MINIMAL compared to what others have to deal with. Seriously. I need to get over myself!

I have a friend who has just found out she has to MOVE within two weeks. And she has a young daughter. And her car is not working. AND she just separated from her husband. Seriously praying for her!

I have another friend who is a mommy to three young daughters. Her good friend and mom just started chemo for breast cancer. And at the same time, she found out that she has cancer. CANCER! At 39! When she has 3 daughters to raise! Seriously??? I'm praying hard for her and her family.

Another friend's father-in-law just passed away. And now her mother-in-law is in the hospital. Oh my! How much can a family take? Prayers being sent!

I found out about a former coworker who's daughter - 33 years old - DIED suddenly. She was at home and having an asthma attack. She wasn't able to get her medication but did call 911. There were 3 dogs at her house, one is a pit bull. The EMS were not able to get into the house in time. Her two children came home from elementary school a little while later. While the police & ambulance were still in the road. Praying HARD for these children who are now without a mother. And for my former coworker - how do you get through your own child dying? How is that possible?

The title to this post sounds super sarcastic. It's not meant to be sarcastic at all. There's just so much going on and it's all so hard. Only prayer can get you through these kinds of "hard" situations.

And I'm worried about spending too much time on the computer? Oh please!

Ephesians 6:18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.

Excuse me, where have you been?

2011-09-16T22:01:00.007-04:00

Forgive me father for I have sinned. It has been OVER A YEAR since my last blog post.

OOPS.

I blame Facebook. Seriously, I do. Once I got onto the 'book and became "friends" with family members far and near, I had no real need to post pictures of my darling Superstar and Princess on this blog. I was posting them on FB. All. the. time. The mobile FB app helps too. Oy, technology has pulled me away from blogging.

Remember when blogging was "new". Wow, what a long time ago THAT was. Like, what, 2 years ago or something?

Maybe I'll start posting more often now? Doubtful, but maybe. At least it'll give me a place to post my ramblings. FB has limits on that, you know. Blogging, not so much.

Here is a "current" view of the Superstar, he's 9 years old now -

HOW DID THAT HAPPEN??

The Princess is 4. Yep, 4.

She's preparing for a busy wedding season.

Flower girl in 2 weddings.

Dress up time in a fancy dresses?

YES, PLEASE!

What happened to our summer??

2010-08-10T21:42:00.007-04:00

The Superstar had fun at Golf Camp:

We went to the "Back 2 Class Bash" where the Princess took to the anchor's desk with our local CBS affiliate's sports reporter, Clayton Ferraro, to "report" on the day's events:

Here she is in "high definition"! The Superstar wouldn't take a turn.

We took a trip to the beach where both kids enjoyed the sand and the water:

The Superstar and the Princess took swimming lessons and learned a lot from their teachers this summer.

Shake Weight Jingle Contest (Matt Carlson, Brandon Froedge, Matt Wilke)

2010-07-27T11:44:00.000-04:00

SUMMER TIME!

2010-07-06T22:48:00.005-04:00

It's summer time and the kids have already been busy! The princess took two weeks worth of swimming lessons and the Superstar started weekly golf camp! They both enjoy their activities. We've also been to the library several times for book checkout and special events. We need to get out there and bowl again soon! We signed up with http://www.kidsbowlfree.com/ and enjoy this new family past time. Here are some pictures from our summer so far...

Promotion Night

2010-04-30T22:35:00.004-04:00

Tonight was promotion night at the Superstar's dojo. He was promoted from a green belt to a blue belt. He is so proud and so are we!

STOP THE INSANITY!!!

2010-03-25T19:52:00.001-04:00

The WINNER!!!

2010-01-28T19:23:00.003-05:00

I entered this picture in an online photo contest and WON THE GRAND PRIZE!! From the website, www.family-vacation-getaways-at-los-angeles-theme-parks.com/Christmas-Photo-Contest.html - "Our Grand Prize winner is Kerri Haycook of Florida. What a heart-melting photo of her children sharing the warmth and love of the Christmas season with a hug!" WOW!!! Grand Prize Winner!!! WOO-HOO!

FIRST PLACE!!

2010-01-25T12:47:00.001-05:00

The Superstar won FIRST PLACE in our school invention fair! His first entry and first place! We are so proud of his creative idea. Now, on to the regional fair...

My Little Inventor

2010-01-19T19:11:00.003-05:00

The Superstar had a problem - he couldn't hear when his ears were underwater. That problem is no longer a problem for our Superstar! He invented the Underwater Listening Device (the ULD) and is presenting it in the school Invention Fair this week.

The Superstar is so proud of himself for coming up with idea all by himself. And so am I. We had fun putting this project together.

3??? How can it be???

2010-01-10T15:54:00.003-05:00

January 10, 2007
January 10, 2008

January 10, 2009

January 10, 2010

Our Princess is now 3! She is:

beautiful

smart

feisty

strong willed

spunky

happy

attached to her silkie blankie at sleeping times

loves her big brother

loves to play pretend with dollies

makes her toys talk with other "voices"

We love you!

Happy Birthday Princess!

2010-01-09T15:49:00.001-05:00

We had a little get together for the Princess' birthday on Saturday. It was a coooooold day outside. We had a "Berry Good Time" at the Strawberry Shortcake party. Thank you to our close family & friends for joining us!

How to make the Princess happy...

2009-12-28T23:23:00.002-05:00

The Princess had lunch with Brody and his mommy today and got to hold him for the first time! She was elated!!!

Gift Exchange with the Pirate and the Mermaid

2009-12-27T11:49:00.003-05:00

the boys

playing with the Doctor's kit

a car driving up the wall???

working on the baby

Christmas Morning!

2009-12-25T11:44:00.000-05:00

Christmas Eve

2009-12-24T23:42:00.000-05:00

on our way out to church...

Edison & Ford Winter Estates Holiday House

2009-12-23T23:38:00.000-05:00

The Pirate & Mermaid's mommy & I took the kids to the Holiday House to see all the decorations. It was a nice night out!

hanging out with Henry Ford

chillin' in front of a banyan tree

posing in front of Santa's horses!

Santa Claus Visit!

2009-12-11T21:52:00.000-05:00

We made our annual visit to the mall to visit Santa Claus along with the Pirate & the Mermaid. The last two visits, The Princess cried (well, last year she screamed so much Santa said, "Please take her. I can't take it anymore.") All the grownups were wondering what the outcome would be. The Princess and I talked a lot about going to see Santa and talking - not crying. She promised she would be happy.

I tried to get a good picture of the Superstar and the Princess before we left.

We got to the mall and (YAY!) there was no wait. The Princess walked right up to Santa and started talking about what she wanted for Christmas. HURRAY!! I love this picture (above) because all the other kids are happily waiting for the Princess to go first. They were probably just relieved that she wasn't screaming.The Superstar had a turn to talk to Santa too.And then we tried to get good pictures of all 4 kids together.

Here they are, post visit, hamming it up in the mall. What fun!

The Outtakes...

2009-12-06T19:43:00.005-05:00

Here are the outtakes from our most recent photo session...

Some of these will be used in future graduation or wedding video montages.

Tree Trimming Time

2009-12-05T01:35:00.004-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2009-11-26T23:07:00.002-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

It can be very easy to get bogged down by all the "stuff" that happens along the way. Especially when if feels like you are constantly walking behind the elephant and getting constantly dumped on. There have been a lot of "things" going on in our lives lately. But today is a day to put the junk behind and think of things we are thankful for. At lunch/dinner today, the Superstar said he was thankful for his family and the princess said she was thankful for McGregor. As parents, we are thankful for both of them as well as our close family and friends who help us get through all the "stuff". THANK YOU!

Bows!

2009-11-22T21:09:00.003-05:00

I have handmade hair bows for the Princess and the Mermaid in the past and started making some more for Christmas. And now, I'm selling them! Let me know what you think...here are the ones I've made so far.

green & white stripped flowers
Alice in Wonderland with long streamers

Moss & Cinnamon loops

Red Polka Dot flowers

Green & Red Little Loops with green jeweled accents

Green & Red Little Loops with Green Button accent

Medium Baby Blue bows with button accent

Christmas flower bow with streamers and wreath accents

more songs from the Princess...

2009-11-21T22:20:00.002-05:00

In the Spotlight!

2009-11-13T19:59:00.001-05:00

The Superstar was "In the Spotlight!" in his classroom last week. We sent in pictures and his teacher made a bulletin board with them.

The Superstar learned a "new" song...

2009-11-13T19:48:00.001-05:00

"Jingle Bells, Batman smells, Robin laid an egg. Batmobile lost a wheel and Joker got away, hey!"

Chorus Performance

2009-11-10T19:51:00.002-05:00

The Superstar is in the 1st and 2nd grade chorus at our school. They had a Veteran's Day performance at the Neighborhood Walmart. They did great!

before the show
Little sisters waiting to watch their brothers!

Look who came to watch!

"Light One Candle"

the chorus

The Princess sings...

2009-11-04T18:30:00.008-05:00

The Alphabet Song

Twinkle Twinkle (or Crinkle Crinkle) Little Star

Row Row Row Your Boat

I think she's such a genius and then she does this...

When all else fails, stick a happy meal box on your head and call it a day!

Not for you, Princess!

2009-11-04T18:01:00.000-05:00

Pretty McGregor!

2009-11-03T18:00:00.001-05:00

?????

2009-11-01T17:59:00.001-05:00

I have no words to explain this.

Trick or Treat!

2009-10-31T17:53:00.001-04:00

Dinner before...
Photo op...our sweet girls...

ready to trick or treat!

Wait for meeeeee!

SCORE!!

sweaty Minnie Mouse...

sweaty Scooby-Doo...

sweaty Shaggy...

sweaty Daphne...

Pumpkin Carving Time!

2009-10-30T20:39:00.006-04:00

Playtime at the Park

2009-10-30T20:34:00.003-04:00

Too Much Cartoon Network...

2009-10-24T19:56:00.002-04:00

HILARIOUS!!

2009-10-22T22:02:00.000-04:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

2009-10-22T19:13:00.001-04:00

"It really is a signed document. I guess if you have a signed document, you have to do what it says. Maybe this is the year I finally kick that football."

Pretty hair!

2009-10-17T08:57:00.001-04:00

He eats fruit!!

2009-10-17T08:56:00.000-04:00

No more crib!!

2009-09-21T23:07:00.004-04:00

The Princess is no longer in her crib! She has moved on to a toddler bed. Daddy and the Superstar put it together.

The Superstar explained sleeping in a big kid bed to the Princess.

And the Princess went to sleep in her new bed! She's still my baby though...

(And yes, she is in there somewhere between all those stuffed animal friends!)

The Family visits Brody!

2009-09-20T16:38:00.003-04:00

We went over to visit 12 day old Brody today! Both the Princess and the Superstar have been anxious to meet their new little buddy.

so precious!!

The Princess LOVES her Brody!

The Superstar is overjoyed to meet Brody!

I'm so proud of Megan! Brody is doing so great - and so is she! :)

Brody likes to cross his hands and think.

Grappling Tournament

2009-09-19T16:31:00.001-04:00

The Superstar participated in a Grappling Tournament with his martial arts school. According to his definition, grappling is when you grab your opponent by his uniform top, throw him to the ground by pushing or sweeping him with your legs, jumping on top of him, and pinning him down at the neck. Sounds rough, doesn't it? Well, IT IS!!! But he has fun doing it and is proud of himself! That's what's important.

lining up before the matches

waiting for his turn - blue mouthpiece in!

are you ready??

getting pinned to the ground! Phooey!

I love BRODY!!!

2009-09-11T22:59:00.003-04:00

We made it!

2009-08-28T19:47:00.004-04:00

We made it to the first Friday of the school year! Yay! Here's the Superstar and I this morning. It's school shirt day! During the school day today, I read The Gingerbread Baby, The Gingerbread Girl books and sang The Gingerbread Man song to/with my class. We made a gingerbread boy and that sneaky cookie ran off on us! We search all over our school for him! When we thought we would never find him, he did! He ran back to our classroom while we were out looking. So we ate him up. Yummy!

First Day of Second Grade

2009-08-24T22:16:00.000-04:00

The Superstar has started the Second grade. His first grade teacher was moved up to second grade and he is lucky enough to be in her class again! He really LOVES her and she is an excellent teacher. Here is our obligatory "first day of school" picture that we take every year. He's so happy to be in second grade.

And here's the Princess in the morning too, ready to go to Miss Sara's house:

The summer is over...

2009-08-23T16:19:00.002-04:00

The summer is over.
It's the eve of the new school year start.
I've neglected my blog.
But here's some pictures to keep in your heart.

my bestest, Darolyn, at the Vera Bradley party...

trying to have a "Raggedy Ann" photo shot with the Princess...

So pretty!!

the family at the Butterfly Estates in Ft. Myers

That's a whole lotta Vera!

2009-08-04T17:28:00.000-04:00

Zoo trip!

2009-08-03T17:41:00.002-04:00

We went to the zoo! What did we see? A llama:
a new baby rhino:

elephants playing in the water:

elephants nuzzling in the field:

and the Princess & Uncle Paul watching the one year old orangutan open her birthday presents!:

After all the HOT walking around, we played in the fountains and got WET WET WET!

Happy Birthday, Aryn!

2009-07-31T21:29:00.002-04:00

My niece, Aryn, had a VERY special 6th birthday! She started the day by going to Pump It Up! playtime, then we met up with her at Chuck E. Cheese, and then she went for a "Glitz n' Glam" makeover at a little girls' salon. What a special day!

After a photo session at JC Penney's and then dinner out with the family, we all went back to Grandma's house for GIANT cupcakes for Aryn and the Superstar's birthdays. Wow!

They were delicious!

We gave Aryn her very first Vera Bradley purse...yay!

The Princess and Aryn show their Vera purses.

The Princess has a Mod Floral Blue Little Katie and Aryn has a Raspberry Fizz Audry.

Crocodile Dock ROCKS!

2009-07-26T22:20:00.007-04:00

This summer's Vacation Bible School theme was Crocodile Dock. It was a whole lot of FUN! We've enjoyed listening to the CD of songs ever since then.the Superstar with his crew...

Sunday morning, the VBS kids helped to lead our church service. It was wonderful! The Superstar was front and center and did a super job helping to lead the congregation in song.

After church, we continued listening to our CD of VBS songs and the Princess "got into it" and sang along! In fact, she hasn't stopped singing since!

The Superstar has a sleep over birthday party!

2009-07-25T21:54:00.002-04:00

For the Superstar's 7th birthday party, he wanted to have his friends sleep over and hold a light saber/Jedi duel. We compromised and had his friends over for a sleep over and watched Star Wars episode 1 instead of the duel. We started with a hot dog/hamburger dinner:

The Superstar is not a fan of cake (????) so I made him a giant chocolate chip cookie instead. Thank goodness Aunt Karen was here to help do the decorating!

yummy!

Aunt Karen even put the candles in the shape of a 7 - awww.

Oh what fun!

watching the movie...

the tents!!

The Pirate is ready to sleep!

All smiles the next morning :)

YAWN...we're still a little tired.

Time to play the piano!

The party was a lot of crazy fun! We had 9 kids sleeping out in two tents - along with Daddy and Uncle Jaime. Three of the kids ended up sleeping inside but no one needed to be taken home during the night - yay! I don't know if we'll do this again - it was real hot in the tents - but we'll remember this party happily.

haircut, Chuck E. Cheese, and presents!

2009-07-23T21:40:00.001-04:00

The Princess went for a haircut today while the Superstar was at Vacation Bible School. She told me SEVERAL times, "I NO get a haircut anymore! I don't WANT to. Mommy get a haircut! I no get a haircut!" Our hair stylist gave her a lollipop so she stopped crying and at least sat on my lap for the first half of the cut. Then the Princess stood on the floor while Crystal finished trimming her up. All that drama! But her haircut is GREAT! Thank you, Crystal!

The Princess even "allowed" her hair to be blow dried! Look at that face - geesh!

After the haircut, the Princess put on her pretty dress and we picked up the Superstar from VBS. We surprised him by taking him to Chuck E. Cheese - YES!

Several of our friends met us there for a fun play date. Thanks for coming everyone!

Afterwards, we went home and the Superstar opened up his birthday gifts. He even let the Princess help him!

He loves those Transformers!

Happy Birthday, Superstar!

2009-07-23T09:16:00.008-04:00

Today is the Superstar's birthday. Today, he is 7!! Happy Birthday, Superstar! We love you!

age 7

age 6

age 5

age 4

Party Weekend!

2009-07-19T09:09:00.005-04:00

This was a party weekend for our family! Saturday was our friend the Pirate's birthday (7!!) and the Superstar and Daddy went to his Spongebob swimming party. The Princess and Mommy went to Herbie's baby party (Brody is coming in about 6 weeks! Whoa!) We all had fun. The Superstar got to spend the night with the Pirate too - yay!

Sunday, we went to the Princess' friends, Hunter & Hayden's, birthday party. They turned 3. It was a fun party.

7-11 = FREE SLURPEE DAY!!!

2009-07-17T23:47:00.005-04:00

On July 11, 7-11 offered free 7.11 oz. Slurpees! YUM! The Superstar enjoyed his banana flavored one. Delicious!

The Superstar JUMPS!!

2009-07-08T13:08:00.004-04:00

The Superstar had another swimming lesson today and he completed 3 firsts - swimming by himself, jumping in the pool without help, and jumping off the diving board! WONDERFUL!

Venice Beach

2009-07-05T23:32:00.004-04:00

We took a trip up to Venice Beach - about an hour away from us. It was a beautiful day, hot but not too hot or humid. The Superstar and Daddy searched the water/sand for shells and sharks' teeth. The Princess played in the sand. UNTIL, she realized that she was getting dirty! She HATES to be dirty! She asked for a wipey to get clean. Poor girl! I took her down to the water to clean up and she screamed LOUDLY! "NO WATER!!" She screamed, cried, and carried on until it was time to leave. Then, we tried to rinse her off in the showers/rinsers at the end of the boardwalk. She did NOT want anything to do with that! Again, more screaming! And more "no beach!" The Superstar enjoyed himself at least. However, it will be awhile before we go on a family outing to the beach!

Independence Day

2009-07-04T23:23:00.005-04:00

We had a great time on the Fourth of July this year! We joined our friends, The Pirate and the Mermaid, for swimming and dinner at their house:

No, she didn't nap! But she did enjoy the Mermaid's bed!

After playing at their house, we went with our friends to our annual "spot" to watch our city's fireworks display. It was fun! We played with bubbles and glow sticks while we waited.

Check out that American Spirit! Go, Mermaid! Show the Princess what it's all about!

Swimming Lessons...fun!

2009-07-02T13:20:00.003-04:00

swimming with a kick board
There he goes with a noodle!

Here he comes with a noodle!

More swimming with a kick board.

Doing a back float - his instructor is only holding him with one finger!! Yay!

Happy Blog-iversary!

2009-06-30T13:45:00.004-04:00

Today marks one year of keeping this blog! Happy Blog-iversary!

then... now...

A lot has changed and a lot has stayed the same! Both the Superstar and the Princess have grown - and especially the Princess' hair has grown! The Superstar is reading like a champ and the Princess is singing NON-STOP! The Superstar is learning to swim at his lessons which will continue through next week. More fun ahead! Happy Blog-iversary!

Swimming Lessons!

2009-06-29T14:21:00.003-04:00

The Superstar had his first group swimming lesson this morning. He was a bit nervous and tried to say he was too sick to go. But, after a lot of encouragement (and a promise of a Target shop afterwards!), he was ready to go. We got to the pool a few minutes before his class was supposed to start. We checked in and I asked how many kids were going to be in his class. The swim instructor said, "he's the only one." Waa-hoo! Private lessons for the YMCA group price - AWESOME! The superstar did GREAT today. He used a kick board and went down a back in the swimming lanes a few times, bobbed under the water once (he said he would go under 3 times tomorrow), and jumped into the pool at the 3 ft. 6 in. area and the 4 ft. area. The Superstar also learned how to use the stairs to get in and out of the pool and tried a little back floating. More fun tomorrow!

Cranes, Bikes, and Ducks

2009-06-26T13:24:00.012-04:00

Kasey Krahne is back again and brought along (the Superstar named - ) Tony Krahne! They wanted to eat but we were out of birdseed! The horror! So Daddy went out to refill the birdfeeder and the "Krahnes" stayed close by to get first dibs on the goods. Delicious!

Here they come...

What? No food?

We are SO out of here, Kasey!

Daddy goes out to save the day! Yum yum!

After all the crane-watching, the Princess went out for a bike ride...

There are also two duck families that like to come by for swimming and meals...

There's Mama Duck with her 10 babies out for a swim.

And here's another Mama Duck with her 5 babies for a snack.

That bird feeder is doing a great job this summer!

Introducing...

2009-06-23T18:29:00.004-04:00

...Kasey Krahne!!

This is the Florida Sandhill Crane that frequents our backyard and eats the birdseed from our bird feeder. He likes to hang out in our yard. We've named him Kasey Krahne. He likes to pose for pictures as you can see.

Happy Father's Day!! We love you, Daddy

2009-06-21T08:22:00.013-04:00

Our first Monday of SUMMER vacation!

2009-06-15T22:44:00.002-04:00

Today was our first Monday of summer vacation. We went to the library where we read books:

...signed up for the summer reading program and got "shh'ed" in the adult section! GEESH!

After the library visit, we went shopping at BJ's and had lunch there -

Playing at Coconut Point Mall

2009-06-13T22:34:00.000-04:00

We went shopping and playing at Coconut Mall. It was HOT but fun!

Cousins!!

2009-06-09T22:29:00.001-04:00

Let's Go Fly a Kite!

2009-06-08T22:26:00.000-04:00

Pretty Hair!

2009-06-08T06:34:00.002-04:00

The Princess says she has "Aryn hair" today. Thanks for the inspiration cousin Aryn!

Dining with Royalty...

2009-06-05T21:08:00.001-04:00

The Florida Sandhill Crane

2009-06-03T20:39:00.003-04:00

We have some cranes that live in our neighborhood. I'm pretty sure they were here before any of the houses were. Our neighborhood used to be a BIG swampy, tree filled area. Now, the cranes like to wonder our streets and backyards squawking noisily! I looked up information on them and they are called Florida Sandhill cranes and are endangered. There are about 5000 left and we have at least 3 of them here in our neighborhood.

We have a bird feeder hanging in the tree in our backyard and one of the cranes came by for dinner. He has no problem standing on the ground and sticking his beak in to get some seeds. So that's where all the birdseed is going! The other birds (and ducks!) are scared to come near the tree when the crane is eating. It is quite a sight! It's like Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom has entered our backyard!

Here's a video of the crane having dinner. You can see the pair of ducks in the background wanting to come up and eat but scared to! The crane would squawk if they came any closer.

Playing in the backyard on a sunny day!

2009-05-31T20:35:00.000-04:00

1st Grade Awards

2009-05-28T20:28:00.000-04:00

The Superstar had his awards program at school. He was so excited! He has really done well this year in first grade. We are very proud of him. He earned awards for AR, participating in Chorus, and having STRAIGHT A'S ALL YEAR! WOW!

Buddies with their favorite 1st grade teacher!

1st grade buddies!

The Superstar LOVES his teacher!

Double Rainbow

2009-05-14T20:25:00.001-04:00

Somewhere, over the rainbow...

Beautiful!

Rainbows are God's promise to never flood the earth again. I also take it as His promise to never "flood" us or overwhelm us with too much stress! God will never give you more than you can handle. I'm trying to remember that myself these days.

Daddy, let me "help" you with your puzzle!

2009-05-13T20:23:00.001-04:00

UH-OH!!!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

2009-05-12T20:21:00.003-04:00

We enjoyed yummy Carvel ice cream cake for Daddy's birthday. He turned 37. Yay!

Martial Arts Tourney from April 25

2009-05-06T17:29:00.003-04:00

The Superstar is a green belt in karate/martial arts. He participated in his 4th tournament on April 25th. He did very well in his kata and in sparring. He didn't place in kata but got 3rd in sparring! Yay!

before kata...
all geared up for sparring...

Aunt Norma came up to watch the Superstar shine!

The superstar is on the right. Check out that kick!

Look at that punch!

He's ready to spar!

The Superstar with his trophy - he is smiling under there!

The Princess was happy to have a turn holding the trophy too.

celebration dinner :)

2009-05-06T15:39:00.002-04:00

On the evening of the Martial Arts Tournament, we met up with our friends - the Pirate and the Mermaid - at Bubba's for dinner. Yum!

Typical!!

OH NO!!!!

Momma Duck!

2009-05-03T11:07:00.002-04:00

There is a pair of expectant duck parents who have made a nest and laid eggs at our school! There are several eggs in the nest and the momma has been staying on them this past week. Exciting! The kids are spreading different rumors around about the eggs - a racoon ate them (gasp!), one started cracking open, etc. I've only seen the momma duck sitting on the nest so I can't say for sure what is going on with the eggs. This nest is right in the front "reception" area of the school, under the teacher's lounge window.

Renaissance Celebration

2009-05-03T10:58:00.008-04:00

Our school celebration great grades, behavior and attendance with the Renaissance program. We have quarterly celebrations to celebrate the winners. The Superstar earned the GOLD (highest!) award again! Yay! Here are some pics from the 3rd quarter celebration we had on Friday:

walking up to the stage...

walking on the stage...dancing on the stage...going off the stage...

The winners got the chance this celebration to walk and dance across the stage to celebrate. Fun!

a first for the Superstar!

2009-04-29T18:14:00.002-04:00

Picnic in TN Park - nice!

2009-04-09T18:34:00.000-04:00

Hooray for Dollywood!

2009-04-08T18:23:00.000-04:00

Uh-oh! The Princess got dirty during lunch! Ack!

The Princess and the Superstar ride the Busy Bee together.

Mommy and the Superstar after getting WET (ICK! It was COOOOLD!) on the River Battle.

The Princess watching Daddy and the Superstar on the Veggie Tales ride.

The Superstar waiting in line for the car ride.

The Superstar DRIVING the car on the car ride - my future nightmare in 10 years!

The Princess was DRIVING this pink car with Daddy - my future nightmare in 14 years!

The Superstar on the carousel.

After the Princess had a GIANT temper tantrum (YIKES! People were looking & everything!), she got to ride the carousel.

It was a cool and super fun day at Dollywood!

Grandma Blankies in TN

2009-04-08T18:18:00.001-04:00

cousins with their special Grandma Blankies!

When each of the kids turned 2, Grandma gave them a special quilted blankie. She picked the "theme" based on what their favorite thing at the time! The Superstar was into flags when he was 2, Aryn loved princesses, Nathaniel was stuck on Clifford and the Princess was singing, "I love you" non-stop (and still does sometimes!) to Barney. OF COURSE, they all traveled to TN with their special Grandma Blankies and we made sure to take a picture of them in front of the cabin! Thank you Grandma for our special blankies!!

SNOW in TN!!!

2009-04-07T19:43:00.000-04:00

Our van enjoyed the snow :)
soooo pretty....the snowy woods...

the Superstar and his cousin playing in the snow

the Superstar's snow-chunk...

the Superstar and Daddy in the snow...I was with the Princess while she slept in the car...

waiting for our table at the Apple Barn Farmhouse restaurant:

the Superstar and his cousin waiting for dinner...

Our Day in Gatlinburg

2009-04-07T19:01:00.000-04:00

We went to Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokey's. It was very crowded and very fun.

the Princess and the Superstar checking things out
the Princess getting her big 9 year old cousin to pick her up

3 sharks swimming above us!!

the Princess on her leash, I mean, backpack harness

the Princess inside an aquarium with her cousin

the Superstar by the Giant Spider Crab

the Princess eating lunch, yum!

watching it snow during lunchtime

cousins hanging out in downtown Gatlinburg

VACATION!

2009-04-05T22:14:00.003-04:00

We are on vacation in Pigeon Forge, Tenneessee! We just arrived in TN today and will be staying until Saturday in a BIG cabin with my sister and her family. Hooray! The drive up was nice and fairly easy. We took two days - stopped overnight in Atlanta. We hiked in Northern GA before lunch today and wondered around a rest area/old farmland area in the Great Smokey Mountain National Park on the NC side this afternoon. We made it to the cabin after dinner and the kids (all 4 of them! 2 of ours and my sister's 2 kids) have finally crashed for the night. We are looking forward to lots of fun in the days to come. I'll upload pictures when I get the chance.

Happy 9th Birthday, Nathaniel!!!

2009-04-05T20:19:00.002-04:00

We spent Nathaniel's birthday driving from Atlanta to Pigeon Forge, TN. When we finally made it to our cabin, we celebrated his birthday with brownies and cookies. Yummy!

Spring Concert and Art Show

2009-04-02T20:35:00.002-04:00

The Superstar performed with the 1st and 2nd grades chorus at the Spring Concert and Art Show. The "big kids" also performed.
The Superstar can play the xylophone! He was the only 1st grader from the 1st and 2nd grades chorus to be chosen to play!! I'm so proud.

Listening to the big kids perform...

The Superstar's piece in the art show...

Here's the Pirate with the Princess!

Best Buds Always!

Getting Ready for the Spring Concert at School

2009-04-02T20:28:00.000-04:00

All dressed up and ready to go to the concert -

I TRIED to get a good picture of the Princess but...

...she wanted to dance and spin around instead.

Another first!

2009-03-31T20:25:00.000-04:00

The Superstar has his first wiggly tooth!

We will keep you updated...

Aryn's haircut!

2009-03-29T20:18:00.001-04:00

Our cousin, Aryn, decided to get her LONG LONG LONG hair cut. It was so long it went beyond her waist!

First, she got it washed.

And then, Charles the hair dresser, combed it all out, measured 12 inches and cut it off!!

A little more primping,

And VOILA!! Gorgeous haircut!! She donated it to Locks of Love.

Pretty girl!

We went to visit Grandma & Zayde!

2009-03-29T20:05:00.001-04:00

The Princess and I went for the weekend to visit Grandma & Zayde. We had dinner with Aryn on Friday night.

On Saturday, we rocked outside Cracker Barrel.

And then we went to watch Nathaniel play baseball.

Knock one out of the park for me, Nathaniel!
The Princess was soooo tired!

New Hobbies!

2009-03-22T20:54:00.004-04:00

The Superstar got his first pair of roller skates! He has skated before at a roller rink and was excited to get his own pair of skates for skating at home.

Daddy got a pair of inline skates so he can join the Superstar.

The Princess got a new outside toy too:
She LOVES riding on her own tricycle!

Playing in the backyard

2009-03-21T21:10:00.010-04:00

It's a bird! It's a plane...I love the wind in my hair!

I love to run around the backyard! Me too!

Hugs! Pick me up!/Look, I can pick her up!

The "best" pose I could get today.

pigtails, homework, and Hello Grandma!

2009-03-21T20:45:00.006-04:00

Baby Shower!

2009-03-16T19:00:00.003-04:00

This past weekend was my friend, Spinnie's, baby shower! Baby Blaise is coming in about a month and we were all happy and excited to get together to celebrate him already!

How the Princess plays...

2009-03-16T18:53:00.003-04:00

This is how the Princess plays with the babydoll bed she got for Christmas. Baby in the bed??

This is what the dog thinks of it...

random pictures

2009-03-16T18:37:00.002-04:00

my delicious baked spaghetti...
the Superstar NOT eating it...

the Princess devouring it...

gorgeous green eyes!

You can see the Superstar's tonsils in this one!

oh so pretty!

sucking on a ring pop

I think she's bilingual.

2009-03-05T19:07:00.002-05:00

What is she saying??? I have no idea!

Rallies for Education

2009-03-04T17:47:00.009-05:00

From our local rally here in Lee County:

The Princess believes in Making Our Schools A Priority!

And so does Lee County!

The Princess and Mommy

fellow teachers from our school

some of the signs we saw

a video from the rally as our Superintendent, Dr. Browder, spoke to the crowd

From the statewide rally in Orlando at the UCF Arena:

newstrucks at the rally

There's our sign!

Chuck (our principal) & Matt (3rd grade teacher) on the bus.

Melissa (3rd grade teacher) grading papers on the bus.

Drew (Kindergarten teacher) & Tonia (3rd grade teacher) having fun on the bus.