awww...my little man is growing up!

Another little milestone has been reached in this house. My second born has lost his first tooth! He is so proud of his snaggle tooth smile. Ah...the joys of watching them grow.

They are MULTIPLYING!

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!


I woke up this morning and..and...and....and there were TWO MORE! I blinked hard and no...there were still two more. I looked at MA and gave him THE LOOK.


"Did you do this to me?" I asked.


he answered, "no, you did this to yourself"


"oooohhhh...yeah, that's right, I forgot"



I had told Misty, (remember her from the birthday party post...the one who could have never found true love and happiness with out me, she NEEEEEEEEEEEDED me to find the ONE person who would put up with her...er I mean marry her...er I mean the one person who would love her forever (I kid Misty...maybe.... :P)) anyway, she has spawned three children of her own, and asked me to watch her two oldest one day this week. Her girls are 6(almost) and 7, and are great friends with Makayla.


They arrived early in the morning much to the joy of my own babes. Like the PERFECT mother I am I fixed pancakes, like I do every morning (I will repeat my disclaimer here of breakfast, "EVERY" in this case means maybe once a month, or when the moon is blue) because you see, I am SUPER MOM!!

CAMERON...quit pulling on my super mom cape!!


ok....moving on, Cameron took off with my Super Mom cape...mumbling something about me getting stuff from his toy box...dang kids and wanting to play with their toys.


Misty brings her kids who have not eaten in DAYS, or at least 20minutes.
(if one is going to take pictures of her house, one should remove the basket of laundry eh?)



poor poor little malnourished children...if they only could eat at home....**shakes head in despair**

It was not long until the girls had located Makaylas make up. Let me tell you, when you turn 3 6-7 year old girls loose with make up, many things happen, including glittery hair, perfume to make you choke, several colors of lip gloss, eye shadow, blush and finger nail polish..all at one time....one the same girl.

See Makayla in the back ground getting ready to attack somebody with more hair glitter?

What are they doing under my cabinets?

Get out of my cabinets child! What is my child doing? Is she trying to get IN the cabinet?

Mayci looking not to badly attacked.

uh oh, the little brother is crashing the party...

Look, these three have found Sponge Bob...we love Sponge Bob.

Do you need more proof?

I can not imagine how you could doubt the "girlieness" of Olivia since you saw her sleeping with Makaylas' purse over her arm. However, if you are in need of more proof, please allow me to provide it to you;


See this sleeping babe? Oh, doesn't she just make you ache because she is so sweet.

My precious thumb sucking little angel.

See how she is curled up and resting, sleeping and recharging her little mind, and....wait...what is that there beside her head?

Is it? Oh my, yes it is. It is make up and perfume from Makaylas' box. You know that it is imperative that a young lady have on perfume and lip stick while she sleeps, just in case her mama comes in to take pictures.

More proof could not be needed, I rest my case, the jury can go deliberate...the verdict is certain; we have our hands full

I would like you to meet

Cameron, Joey, Rosie and Makayla

You see, our family lives in the west and we need horses to ride so we can move around, or so Cameron says.

Didn't he do a great job building the people and needed horses for living "out west"?

I think so, but of course I already knew that he is a genius.

Night in Nashville

As promised, the complete run down of our night in Nashville.

We arrived at MAs' aunts home around 6pm on Sunday night. The kids jumped and ran from the van to see Rachel, Bessie and Rodney. But mostly Rachel...

When Makayla found out that Rachel was going to be home this weekend, she could have cared less if the rest of us were there, or if Aunt Bessie was there, only that she was getting to see Rachel.

Immediately she scooped up Olivia to love on her.

Then she took them down to Uncle Rodneys' pond...or puddle...what ever you want to call it. After a few minutes, the door opens, in walks Makayla, Olivia...............................no Cameron. I peek around the corner to see Cameron dangling from Rachels' arms, being stripped naked.

Curious, I asked a flustered Rachel what happened, then I see the mud that covers Cameron from his knees down. Evidently he thought it would be a nice afternoon to go wading, even though he protested saying it was "just an accident" I am quite certain his little feet knew exactly where they were going.

After running embarrassed in his skivvies through the house to grab his HULK pajamas, he was back to get some love from Rachel too.

Makayla, not to be left out was sure to stake her claim to Rachels' lap for the rest of the evening.

Sadly, we didn't get to spend as much time with them as we would have liked, they had to work the next morning, and we had plans as well.

We took Rachel to breakfast and then to the airport for the flight back to L.A., and headed for Opry Mills Mall to spend the rest of our day.

Makayla had a few dollars burning a hole in her pocket and wanted to go to Build A Bear so badly, Cameron wanted to go to the arcade at Dave and Busters. Upon Arriving at Build A Bear Olivia decided that this would be good place to spend some of her money too...she wanted a "PUFFY!!!" "I want a PUFFY DADDY!"

So we are now the proud owners of a Bunny and a "Puffy"

At this point my camera battery died so I have no more pictures of our day, but just know that Dave and Busters was a BIG hit, Cameron had a blast. I wish I had video of him on the Dance Revolution game....that was hysterical, I haven't laughed that hard for quite some time. He had a little audience even.

It was a very nice weekend, and we can't wait to see Aunt Bessie and Uncle Rodney again soon and be able to spend some more time with them next visit.

A GREAT Birthday!

Yesterday I entered the last year in my twenties. MA surprised me with a beautiful gold/yellow Cala Lilly. We went to lunch with my parents at a local Mexican restaurant..mmmmm......

We then bolted to MAs' company pic-nic. We stayed the appropriate amount of time and then blew out of there headed to Tennessee.

We spent the evening with MAs' aunt, uncle and cousin. They are the most welcoming and loving people. The kiddos love them completely and absolutely adore going to visit them. We then bunked there for the night, and spent today shopping and having nice family time, and just got home a few hours ago. I will update tomorrow with details and pictures....I promise I really will!

What is that?

What is that? Do you see it? Right in the middle. Among the mish-mash of left over lunch residue. There, among the tiny little finger smears. Could it be???


IT IS! It is a foot print!

Why is their a foot print in the middle of the table? Do I really want to know?

Probably not.

Friday.....

Friday nights are special in our home. Friday signifies the end of the school week, a rest from getting up early. A night when you come home, drop your back pack and don't look at it for two days.



Supper is normally something easy and kid friendly. It could be soup and a pb&j. It could be pizza or Mc Donalds. Followed by a leisurely warm bath to wash away the week, as opposed to the rushed bath that happens on school nights, to make sure we meet bed time. Daddy tucks in on Friday nights, that is a treat, it is the only day he is home late enough to do that.



Friday is also the day that I change the sheets on the beds. So on Friday night, after the back pack dropping, kid friendly supper, warm bath, off to the fresh, clean smelling sheets, and a warm bed, already turned down. The movie is already playing in the TV, a luxury only for Friday nights. Daddy follows to do the tuck in honors.

Doesn't this make you want to crawl in?


Look at the paint peeled on the walls...I give up.....but the bed...doesn't it look inviting?



They may be spoiled a little, but that is ok. Watching them snuggle down into their fresh covers and drift off to sleep is worth it.

Hangs Head in Shame....

Long long long ago I told you that I would fill you in on Makaylas' boyfriend.

I did not.

So today I will make it up and start a little saga we will call...As the Second Grade Turns.

Makayla was the girlfriend of Jeffery. Jeffery asked her to be his girlfriend, and if she wouldn't he would just DIE! Jeffery is a cute little boy, his mama is sweet, and Jeffery is a good kid. He is 7 going on 87.

Jeffery was her boyfriend for several weeks, even when Treyton asked Makayla to be his girlfriend too, Jeffery got mad at Treyton.

Alas...it did not last, Jeffery "broke up" with Makayla because she wasn't playing with him enough on the play ground. (I giggle at "broke up")

Makayla was completely unaffected by this. I tried to down play the whole "boyfriend" thing by saying, "well in second grade you are all friends anyway right?"

"Oh Yeah!" was her answer

The next week, the new boy, Logan, became her next boyfriend. (Logan is 8..so an older man) She told me that "Logan looked at all us girls and said I was the prettiest..so he asked me to be his girlfriend"

Logan is quite smitten with my little lady...his parents have joined our Sunday School class, and when we introduced ourselves and told them that we are Makaylas parents, they laughed, and the mom said "Logan is quite happy to have Makayla in his class".

By now I am slapping my knee laughing, and MA is building a gun tower and digging a moat with one of my dads toys, I'm quite certain he has bought some alligators also.

Yesterday we went to the zoo with Makaylas' class and I noticed that Ann and Treyton were together a lot, even !holding hands! I almost died! I asked Makayla later if Ann and Treyton are now boyfriend/girlfriend. She said "How did you know!?" I said, "Well honey, I saw them holding hands". "Oh, well don't tell anybody, Ann wants to keep it a secret, she doesn't even want Treyton to know that he is her boyfriend"

Now I am rolling in the floor laughing, tears streaming.....you guys...this is heavy stuff!

Straight A's, New Puppy, Birthday, Fall Break.....

ok, there you go! All caught up!



I'll see you guys some time next week!



























Okay, Okay...I'll elaborate a little...



First: The first report card of the school year came home last week. Makayla blasted through her first 6weeks with straight A's! WA-HOO Makayla!!! Last year she went through the whole year with all A's and only one B, which was a 90 in math. She is shooting for all A's this year.



Cameron does not yet get a report card, but his parent-teacher conference went very well. He is doing good learning letters and sounds, his hand writing is among the top in his class and *surprise surprise* he is the class clown..haha.



Second: Meet Alyce,

Alyce is Makaylas' new puppy. She is a standard poodle. My moms dog had a litter of 10! Can you imagine nursing 10 babies at once? Eek... Anyway Makayla picked her out when she was only 2 weeks old and named her Alyce. Be sure, it is not Alice but Alyce, Makayla made it very clear that this is how her name is spelled. Alyce is 8 weeks old and very soft..snuggle your face into her fluffy fur soft. Her color is officially "Cafe". Alyce is a very sweet dog, is doing pretty well with potty training, but is having trouble with the whole "we sleep at night not bark and whine until dawn" thing. Some nights I wish I could nurse her so I could sleep!! (no not really)

Third: I enter the last year of my twenties on Sunday. I will be 29! We will be leaving Sunday and going to Tennessee, this ties into the Fourth item today. Fall Break starts Monday, we are going to visit with Mikes aunt and uncle and to just hang out for a day. Mike has taken off on Monday and Tuesday. I am excited for Fall Break...it means I don't have to get up so early, oh and the kids will be home too! ;)

Remmber those men?

A few days ago I talked about two of the most important men in my life, and I also hinted that there is one other man who has a huge part in shaping who I am today, (is that good or bad?). The other man in my life is my dad.

My dad has a lot of toys. Big toys. Earlier this week, he was using one of his big toys to work on a piece of land next to us that he has leased.

As the kids went outside to play after school, they saw dad on his big toy. Dad saw the three saucer-eyed babies standing and watching. He called for Cameron to come and ride...and he took off like a streak, climbed up the tracks of the bull dozer and rode, even drove.

Look at this huge smile on my little mans face;

here he is working the controls that make the machine go forward and back. He was having so much fun.

Olivia was wanting to ride, but we told her that she was only authorized to operate small equipment, like swings;

Next up was Makayla, here she is sitting proudly with grandpa;

and my heart skipped a few beats, look at the angle of that thing, my baby is on there!!

Still Olivia wanted to ride, but again we explained to her that only small equipment is in her league; things like coupe cars;

and wagons. She was ok with this, and even happy to pull her bubby around in the wagon.


All was well and everyone was happy..........UNTIL........

Do you know what lives in thickets and around on the ground?

Bees live in thickets and around the ground. Big bull dozers will not protect you from bees if you get into their hive. They will "bump into my face with their stinger!" See the swelling under her right eye? THAT was the end of our day.


However, riding the bull dozer with grandpa, even if it ends with a bee sting, makes for a great day.

Girly-Girl

You will often find Makayla outside digging elbow deep in the mud, looking for worms or other creepy-crawly. She will then come in and want her nails painted. She must have a closet full of clothes and is a shoe hound. She is a great mix of tom boy and girly-girl.

However, the other little female that inhabits this home would not be caught even fingernail deep in dirt. She is a little princess at all times. Even at the tender age of two carries a purse everywhere, and requires a bow in her hair first thing in the morning.

Don't believe me?

Check this out. Today, when I went to check on her during nap time, I found this;


Yes, that is in fact her sisters Coach purse on her shoulder, while she is sleeping, what can I say, the girl has good taste. (yes her sister has a Coach, it was for her birthday, and it was with in birthday budget)

And a bonus, one shoe on, one shoe off coloring on a Magna-Doodle. Just because I think it's cute.

Two of the most important men in my life

Two of the most important men in my life worked side by side today and I just loved watching it so much that I decided it needed to be recorded in pictures.

Yesterday my dad (the other major male figure in my life) took down a half dead tree in our front yard. This tree was not only half dead but was a visual obstruction when trying to back out of our drive way. Papaw wanted that wood for his wood stove, to use this winter.

Bright and early this morning, he called and wanted to know if MA was ready to help him. Of course, he is always ready to help papaw.

Did I mention that he is, quite possibly, the best man ever? He is the kind of man that this country was built on the backs of. Hard working, simple, and the best papaw ever. When any of my kids spot him from across the room, or across the yard, they yell; "PAPAW!" and run as fast as possible until reaching him. This is the reaction most of us have. I love my papaw.

MA is of course my MAN. Much like my papaw, he is hard working and simple. Does not require much frill in life, with the exception of a new toy now and then. He loves his family more than life, and the kids have much the same reaction when they see him as they do when they see papaw. I love my man too.

Watching them work together today, well...I just love watching them work together, it makes my day a little brighter. So go through this day with me....

Here is the "hole" that the tree came out of. There is MA with the chain0 saw...more of him in a minute. First, lets just gaze at this hole for a minute. Look at the massive-ness (is that a word?) of this hole, look how tiny that grown man seems standing next to this. Yes, this is in my front yard, right next to the road, yes...lovely.

This is the root ball of the tree...it was a BIG tree.

For reference, this is Olivia standing next to it.

Here they are up in the branches working on trimming off of the small pieces.

Here is my papaw carrying off some branches. Did I mention that he is 79 years old? How about this, two years ago...he broke three vertebrae in his neck and had surgery to repair it. See...I told you that is an amazing man.

Discussing things; life, elections, trees, logs. You know...things that really matter.

Nothing makes you as proud of your man as watching him handle power tools.

Again, working together..did I tell you that he is 79 years old?

Look at that fore arm....

there he goes again, handling those power tools.....

Olivia watching, wondering why I had her out so early, standing in front of huge trees and listening to that loud whirring thing.

At this point papaw was telling a joke to MA, he told me too, but I can't remember it. All that matters is that he is 79 years old and had a broken neck but can still tell a joke.

Zarie was all sorts of confused.

And later, MA on my dads Bobcat, scaring me to death I was so afraid he was going to go over that hill. He was filling in the huge gaping hole with some left over dirt.

Yeah, showing off a little. Yeah MA, I see your big 'ol bucket.