Sleepy Cousin

Bubby wore out his 4 year old cousin earlier this week .... it was a full day of playing. I love little boys .... a spiderman blanket and a rubber snake. Could it get any better?

Summer Fun

We had our first summer cookout of the year with some good friends last weekend.

Bubby got to have to some fun with good pal "W".

Picking Peaches

Fancy helping "W" to make a good choice

Bubby sees an ant crawling on him (had I snapped this one second later, you would have gotten to enjoy the chaos that followed)
Here is Bubby picking us an onion.

After all the hard work of harvesting .... we enjoyed a yummy meal of ribs, corn on the cob, potatoes, watermelon, and cherry pie! YUMMMMM!

How excited does Fancy look to be at the "kids table"?

Some Party Pictures

Fancy had a mini slumber party last weekend for her birthday ... just the right amount of girls to deter drama.

It was a fun night.

Some Soccer Pics

Fancy just finished up a season of Soccer. She had a great time and did a good job. She is not sure she will play again next year though .... running and sweating aren't her things.




Hmm ... wonder how she got the nickname "Fancy". =)

Bubby was sad/pouting/whining because it wasn't his game day.

More From My Sculptor

Bubby was working silently for a LONG time yesterday ..... so long that I went to see what was going on. I'm sure all you other Moms understand that statement ... especially if you have boys.

Here are some pics of his handiwork:

The Living Room

The Chair and Foot Stool

The Dog

The TV

(Ok ... how does a child born in 1999 even know about Rabbit Ears???)

And last but not least ...

Version #2 of the pencil holder .... this one is more functional!

Happy Birthday ........

........... to my favorite girl.

I am so proud of the young lady you are becoming.

2 weeks old

1st Birthday

2nd Birthday

3rd Birthday
Love You Fancy Girl!

My First MeMe

I've been tagged .... by my new(ish) friend Cyndi. It looked like fun, so I had a seat and gave it a whirl.

Favorite person (outside family)? I have way too many great friends to try to choose one person. All of my friends are so important to me ... all in their own ways. I know that seems like a "safe" answer, but it is so true.

Favorite food? Mexican .....mmmmmmmmmm ..... I could honestly just have the chips, hot sauce and guacamole ...... There is no need for an entree.

Quirks about you? I think I have more quirks than most, but I will share just one: I despise dry skin ..... ugh. Makes me weak to think of it. I go through so much lotion it is sad really. And my poor Hubby .... God bless him if he tries to hold my hand when his hands are dry. Ewwww.

How would the person who loves you most describe you in ten words or less? Hmmm ..... I would have to ask The Husband and he isn't home. I would bet he would say quirky in those ten words somewhere. I won't indulge myself by trying to make any glowing guesses.

Any regrets in life?
Time wasted .... so much time

Favorite Charity/Cause?
One that is dear to my heart and that I have worked with on a personal level (with a friend who lost a child) and on a professional level (multiple times at work) is Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep. These are professional photgraphers who volunteer their time and services (even when we call them and ask them to come at 2 in the morning) to families who have lost their children. Caution: Do NOT click that link if you think you might be too sensitive to view the photos. They are beautiful but emotional.

Favorite Blog recently?
Stuff Christians Like ...... It makes me laugh out loud daily. He is such a smart writer and brings up some great points as well.

Something you can’t get enough of?
My iPod. I love love love music (all kinds .... well almost all) .... I also listen to about 20 or so sermons a week on it. It is one of those things that I would have to replace IMMEDIATELY if I lost it.

Worst job you've ever had?
Subway ... in High School. Yes, I was indeed a "sandwich artist"!

What job would you pay NOT to have?
Kindergarten teacher. When Bubby was in PS there were 28 kids in his K class. 18 were boys. I have had nightmares about that ... really. It was the worst year ever .... and I was just a Mom of one of those kids. That poor teacher.

If you could be a fly on the wall, where?
Ok, so I honestly just can't come up with anything clever here. I tried.

Favorite Bible verse right now? Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworty - think about such things. - Philippians 4:8

Guilty Pleasure?
My iPod, 80s music, Coca-Cola, my kids giving me back rubs, being alone in my Jetta with my own music blaring, playing American Idol on the Playstation!

If you HAD to spend $1,000 on YOURSELF, how would you spend it?
A trip for me and The Husband to Mexico ... we never even had a honeymoon.

Favorite thing about your house?
My dark, quiet bedroom decorated, painted, and window shades placed specifically for a Mommy that has to sleep a couple of days a week with kids and/or a husband at home. It is my little haven.


Least favorite thing about your house?
I wish my bedroom was on the main floor. It is upstairs with the kids' rooms.


One thing you are bad at?
Staying on task .... I get distracted easily.


One thing you're good at?

Making lists/planning/organizing ..... but then refer to last question .... I make the list then don't get to check the things off. It's ok though, I make a new list, including all the things not checked off the previous list. Yes people, this is a repeating pattern.

If you could change something about your circumstances, what?
I would love to be able to quit my job. Don't get me wrong. I absolutely LOVE what I do. I would miss it greatly. But I also LOVE my kids and am constantly aware that they are going to be moved out of my house in less than 10 years. I hate missing any important moments.


Who would you like to meet someday?
Paul .... as in the Bible Paul.

Who is your real life hero?
I have many really, but a couple of them are this family and this family .... both in Haiti. I really want to go there sometime and help them....really. It is amazing what these fabulous people are doing with their lives. They HUMBLE me.


What is the hardest part of your job?
If we are talking about my paying job (RN in a NICU) it is seeing families lose their children. There aren't words to describe it. I witness the hardest thing I can imagine on a regular basis.

When are you most relaxed?
My days off ..... I work all my nights together so I can have nice stretches of being home. Those are the days I feel most like myself.

What stresses you out?
The nights I work ... feeling like I have so much I need to be doing at home, or that I am missing a soccer game, or a volleyball game. Are you starting to see a running theme here?

What can you not live without?
I don't know how else to answer this one:
Ok, so I love the show Survivor. So when I see this question it makes me think of that. You know ... they let those people take one item with them ... a "luxury item". I've thought about this before .... what could I not live without if I were on that show .... so that is how I am coming up with this answer. It is my toothbrush .... hands down.

Why do you blog?
I do it mostly to update friends and family .... especially since we started homeschooling, there are MANY questions about what is going on in our world. This makes it easier. Somehow, it is also reassuring to me to see what we do "all on paper". Sometimes when I have my not so good days, feeling like I don't do enough with or for my kids .... I can look at the blog and think, "yeah, I guess my kids really are doing things that are important and fun and meaningful and blah blah blah .... and maybe I am not such a terrible Mom after all."




Who Am I Tagging?

New/Newer bloggers- Nicole, Debbie

Bloggy friends - Sarah, Robin

I don't have original answers for these next two so I have shamelessly copied Cyndi:

Bloggers you’d like to get to know better -

YOU if you're reading this and have a blog!

Bloggers who you don't think will respond, but you hope will-

I'm not sure who to put for this one! If you read this and want to play along, consider yourself tagged!

Rules:

1. Answer the questions

2. Link back to whoever tagged you


3. Tag eight bloggers to do the same, 2 from each category:

New/ newer bloggers (since we want to share the love and send them traffic)Bloggy friends


Bloggers you’d like to get to know better


Bloggers you don’t think will respond, but you hope will

Family Fun Night

We went out to dinner and shopping tonight .... mostly in honor of Mothers Day and Fancy's upcoming 12th birthday.

She chose our favorite local Italian place for pizza. It was tasty as always (note ... we eat here WAY too often). Ugh.

I got a GREAT new camera for Mothers Day so I had to play with it tonight and take a few snapshots. I love this gift. I've had a digital for years but it was from when they first came out. It was 2.8 MegaPixels. This one was quite an upgrade ... and SO cute too. My Fancy did a GREAT job picking it out. Love you Baby!!

We ran into Staples tonight so The Husband could get a label maker he's been needing for work .... we all had some fun with it tonight including labeling the dog. "MAX"

The evening was wrapped up with some fun on the PS2 American Idol game that we bought tonight. I would say it is for the kids but I have wanted this game for YEARS. I was SO excited to play and JUST NOW stopped (12:20am).

Off to bed ..........

School days are coming to a close ..........

We are wrapping up school over here with maybe a week or two left. We are all excited at the prospect of some lazy summer days. I have enjoyed this year thoroughly but we all are ready for a break. WOO-HOO!!

Here are a few things we've been busy with this week (along with all the usuals of course ... Math, Language, Reading, Geography, Science Projects, blah blah blah).


Fancy chose a beautiful quote for her copywork today. It is from the Amy Carmichael biography I am currently L-O-V-I-N-G. I have been reading this for WEEKS as it is one to be savored. The quote is actually a writing to Amy from her widowed Mother in January, 1892. She wrote this encouraging Amy to follow God's call in to the mission field. Amy was hesistant to leave her precious Mother behind. It says:

He who hath led will lead
All through the wilderness,
He who hath fed will surely feed ....
He who hath heard thy cry
Will never close His ear,
He who hath marked thy faintest sigh
Will not forget thy tear.
He loveth always, faileth never,
So rest on Him today - forever.

Brings a tear to my eye to read it .... especially in my sweet daughter's handwriting.



On a lighter note .... Bubby fashioned himself a pencil holder from clay yesterday. He was QUITE proud until he realized the pencil cannot be removed from said holder for use. Bummer. He took it all in stride .... with a sheepish grin. Lesson learned.



Here he is diligently learning to write in "Cur-Viss". In his defense, this is what Fancy called it as a young girl and so we all say "Cur-Viss" ... he just picked it up from us. I guess I should correct him .... it's hard though, it's just so.darn.CUTE.

Anyway, I have been holding him back from cursive because his manuscript is just plain sloppy. I finally conceded as I came to the conclusion that he is indeed a boy and maybe my expectations are too high. He is very excited to learn it .... We shall see.

Have a GREAT weekend!

The Tornado

Here are some pictures I forgot about ..... on our way out of Virginia last Monday, we barely missed being in the middle of a tornado. As we were driving that morning, The Husband was napping in the backseat with Bubby and Fancy was riding in the front with me.

She was fascinated with how dark the sky was in the middle of the morning and took a couple of pics to document it. We were probably almost into Tennessee by the time she took these, but our morning had been mixtures of pouring rain and darkness since we had left Yorktown at around 6am. In retrospect, I should have been listening to the news on the radio as the skies certainly suggested severe weather. Instead, Fancy and I were jamming our way through Virginia on some 80s music. Mom of the Year here. =)

These 2 pictures don't even really do justice to how scary the skies looked .... they were taken at around 10am I guess:

When we stopped for the night in Jackson, TN, we saw on the news that we had been just ahead of a tornado along with severe storms hitting many areas that we had literally driven right through that morning.

Later in the week, we received these pics documenting just what we had dodged.

These were taken at the Naval Base in Norfolk, VA:

I sure am glad we drug ourselves out of bed that day at 5am!!

The Wedding

We had a wedding to go to Saturday night. It was nice to have my family all dressed up. Our church is fairly casual, so we don't get pretty too often. hehe. The Husband was even in a TUX. This had to be documented in pictures people!

It was great to see lots of out of town family we don't get to see very often.

The bride was The Husband's cousin. She looked beautiful and a good time was had by all.

Here is The Husband with his brother:

....... Thanks for the loaner KK ..........

Last of the Virginia Pics

Here we are with "Mamaw" and PaPaw". They were the sweetest hosts. They fed us WELL ..... I swear, we spent the whole weekend feeling like we were at a Bed and Breakfast. They spoiled us all rotten. My kids fell in LOVE with them. I was so happy to have my family get to know them. They were a great influence on me in high school.
Me, The Husband, and "B" and "D" ..... we had such an awesome visit. It was so great to see them again after so many years.

Here we are with all the kiddos. "D" and I just couldn't get over how we would sit in this very same house together having junk food and watching "Dallas" after school and now here we were with our husbands and kids. Wow. Time flies .....

Thanks for a GREAT visit guys .... we hope to see you all again real soon !!!!

Historic Yorktown

Here are a few pics of our little day trip to Yortown. The boys (big and small) really enjoyed all the old war memorabilia. Being somewhat of a history buff, I was quite happy as well. Fancy was less impressed but was sweet spirited throughout the day.

Here is "B" explaining military terminology to the boys. They were FASCINATED with the cannons.

These two were SO excited to see a cannon aimed out over the water, especially after we had watched a film in the visitor center that included recreations of the battles on the ships. They RAN as fast as they could to get down there and have a look.

Here is Bubby excited to have his picture made with George Washington. This life size cut out had a lot of info about our first president including his height ..... 6'2.

My sweet girl .... who told me several times that she had enjoyed the day before much more (the day at the beach). I guess you can't win 'em all.