The Weekend

Friday Joe didn't have to work because of the holiday. We LOVE it when he is off and this day was even better because it worked out the best way possible. My mom had to have some surgery on her veins and I was taking her. Joe is such an amazing Daddy. He took the kids out to breakfast at IHop before taking them to the Letter Club (yep he played Mommy for the morning) and joined my friends at the park. I have the say my friends were really impressed that he brought the kids and said their husbands wouldn't have done it. The kids had a great time and he scored major points with their friends too by doing all the cool stuff at the park that only dads do. By the time they got home for lunch and I got home with mom even Bug was telling me what a great time she had. She is a total Mommy's girl and wasn't all that sure about her Daddy taking her Mommy's place that day but he won her over. Caden of course didn't have to be won over he is all about his Dad.

Mom did good with her surgery though she was sore. She is able to walk around and all which is very good she just can't over do and can't stand still she has to keep the circulation going. I have to keep an eye on her she is queen of trying to push the envelope on seeing just how much she can do before it is too much.

Anyway So Joe ended up having to go to work Friday night and Saturday but he got overtime which is good for this time year so God is good! We had a great time though when he got home. Caden and I went to the Library while he was at work on Saturday (Caden has discovered that he really can read he doesn't have to just read from his lesson book) but Bug decided to stay with Grandpa and Grandma and watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas for like the zillionth time and yet another cooking show. I figure if she keeps watching all these cooking shows by the time she is tall enough to reach the top of the stove I will never have to cook another meal again.

Sundays are Church and then Bronco Football!!!! I have decided I do not like 1p.m. games. They mess up my day. It was a mad rush from church to Costco to the pizza place to try and get home in time for kick off and I had a coupon for Sunday only for a store and I had to go grocery shopping still too for the week. The kids were not happy about having to miss part of the game for naps and I had to leave at half time for all the things I had to get done. It was really inconsiderate of the football people to do that to us. Broncos won though!!!!! Browns lost : (

Caden's science project he is working on

racing Daddy

 I was gone at this point of the game see what happens when I am not around!

My Fishing Man

Caden has been asking to go fishing for a while now and since the weather has turned cooler my mom and I decided to take him. Before it was just too hot for me mostly because Bug has no intention of ever fishing and she has NO intention of touching a worm or shrimp and she has NO intention of sweating. Since I am the one that has to deal with the little princess while my mom gets to enjoy the boy and fish and I really didn't want to miss his fishing experience we waiting till I thought she wouldn't complain about sweating.

I have to point out that this pattern of one child enjoying fishing while the other has a strong aversion to it runs in the family.

As it turns out it was a PERFECT morning!!! Caden didn't catch anything but he had quite a few bites which was just as exciting as him actually catching a fish in his opinion. He was cute as could be with his fishing pole and the look of anticipation on his face. We got to see a bald eagle fly over us with a fish in his clutches. This excited both kids as it is Grandpas favorite bird and as a result Caden's too. I have to say God really blessed the trip it was beautiful out and we had a shady spot it was a little breezy too! Bug actually ended up having just as good of a time as everyone else pretending that the dirt, shells and sticks were food and cooking tools and she was making her own cooking show.  I didn't get to fish because I didn't buy my license yet but next time I will definitely be fishing too!!!

Here are a few pictures

A Few Pumpkin Photos

Waaaaay back at the beginning of October we got our pumpkins. The kids had a great time and here are a few pics from that outing.

Caden is big into ties right now. So he wears one when ever he gets the chance.

You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile!

This is the song Bug will be doing at her dance recital. She is beyond excited to say the least. Annie is one o her all time favorite movies and I love that she loves it because it brings back tons of memories for me. We would always watch that movie at my Grandma Krouts house when we were kids and it is impossible for me to see the movie and not think of her.  Anyway Bug was a little disappointed she wasn't going to do ballet because she like ballet better than tap (I think that is because she is better at it LOL) but she loves the song and gets to wear a hat so all is good. I threw her off by being in the room I wish I had recorded her when she didn't know I was watching because she did all the steps then but whatcha gonna do right? It's only the very beginning of the dance since they have only been working on the dance for 4 lessons now.

Enjoy the cuteness!

Out My Kitchen Window

The kids have been greatly enjoying the outside as of late. It's like they have discovered this new world and they must be out there in it at all times. I have to admit part of it is me. Joe and I were really cautious about letting them be outside without us so there playtime outdoors was limited to only when Mommy or Daddy felt like it. I grew up in this yard but Joe didn't so we decided to wait for them to explore the outdoors solo till they were older (well as old as 5 and 4 is). Joe still isn't super comfy with it but it has been awesome I have to say. I open the kitchen window and tell the kids to go have a good time but stay where I can hear and see them. I can do the dishes, make dinner, and fold laundry all while watching my amazing kiddos have the time of their lives out my kitchen window.

That is the whole reason I wanted that window there. Sure it kinda needed to be there because of the way the house is made but when we were talking about building I was insistent on having a kitchen window where I could see the backyard. It is so much fun!!

Yesterday I went out to hangout with them after getting the kitchen all clean and was texting my sister in Texas while she was having to do that whole 3 hour glucose test (she is fine by the way test came back good) and I was telling her Caden was hanging from the top of the swing set just like I used to do and then Bug climbed up on the slide and started singing into the pipe that is the top of the swing set (we do not have a fancy swing set we have the old fashioned kind) just like Heidi used too! It was so funny I just was dying. It was just like being sent back to when we were that age and we were the ones running around the same backyard having the time of our lives.

It made me really thankful for the great childhood I had. My parents were amazing we didn't have lots of money but they made sure we had moments just like these memories and we were beyond loved.  I am so glad that my kids are getting to enjoy some of the same joys. I pray they know they are as loved. God has blessed us beyond belief. Who would have thought so much joy could come from looking out the kitchen window.

Pumpkin time!!!!

It's Fall!!!!! I was so excited to have a little cool weather the other week that I spent the weekend doing yard work and hanging outside the whole week. Of course now that is over because it is so stinking hot right now but I am looking forward to it being cool again sometime in the future.

Today we are missing Letter Club for the first time since we started it : ( Caden has a cold and I didn't think that sharing those "I"cky germs with the other kids were be a good show and tell experience. The kids are bummed but Caden is feeling okay so we are going to take them to the pumpkin patch to pick out there pumpkins and we will be painting them tonight at family night. Caden is beyond excited it has pretty much been his favorite thing since he was 1. He already know what he is going to paint it too. It will be a fire breathing dragon to eat his sisters princess pumpkin that she is planning on painting. Gotta love that boy.

The Last 3 Weeks or So

Well the last 3 weeks have been pretty busy!

Caden started with the Classical Conversations every Monday. We are there from 9-12 and he gets to have a great time learning new stuff and I have a great time learning some great ideas for how to teach him things I would have never thought to teach a 5 yr old. Caden LOVES it and it helps that one of his friends is in his class. I really thought he would have a tough time with the show and tell part because he is so shy but he always can't wait to get up there. We are working on him not being so shy about joining in on doing the hand motions to the memory work songs. He loves to sing them but the hand motions help the kids remember and he is afraid of having people look at him while he does them. His favorite thing right now from it is History and Latin. We have learned about Christopher Columbus, the Mayflower, and this week is the Boston Tea Party. I read Caden and Bug a book about what it was like to live in Colonial times and they LOVED it I was going to take all week to read it but they wanted me to keep reading so we finished it in just 3 days. With Latin he is learning some words and definitions. I am not very good at it but he seems to really enjoy it. His all time favorite subject right now though is Math. I am really proud of him. He is trying his best (most days anyway) and we are able to get through all the things we need to and have a great time doing it.

Bug is not quite as interested in school yet. She says she enjoys being the baby but I tell her she still has to learn even if she is always going to be the baby LOL Her schooling of course is easier but she actually joins in on most of Caden's work. I wasn't going to mess with math with her till next year other than learning to write her numbers but she ended up coming back to the table every day and asking if she could do it too so she has been doing everything in the math area Caden is. Her favorite thing of course is going to the park for Letter Day with our friends every Friday. She is getting very good at writing her letters and numbers but doesn't really want to learn to read right now. She will do it with me but doesn't really want to so I don't push it.

Last week was Bugs 4th birthday! She is crazy about My Little Pony right now and so that was what she got everything My Little Pony. We even got her a shirt on clearance for her to wear celebrating. She very excited because she is out growing her little bed and Joe is going to make her a bed and we are using her Birthday money to get her My Little Pony bed stuff and she wants to paint her room pink but Joe isn't so sure about the painting thing. We went to Disney the day before her birthday (it's tradition!) we only got day passes because I am still trying to save for the passes for next year. The kids had a blast like the always do and it is the best time of year to go because there are hardly any lines at all. Bug was tall enough to go on Splash Mt for the first time and if you ask her she will say she cried "Happy tears" after the big drop...I am not sure how "Happy" she actually was from the look on her face but hey she says she liked it. Caden was tall enough to go on Space Mt for the first time and it is now one of his favorites. I was surprised because he usually is my timid one. (A bonus of homeschooling is we took Tuesday and Wednesday off from school but we just schooled on the weekend instead)

So that brings us up to this week. Bug got hit with the stomach flu at around 3a.m. Tuesday : ( She and I watched My Little Pony till Joe and Caden got up and we had our first time trying to school while one child was sick but the other needed to do work. Thankfully she felt better but the evening and Wednesday was only a little under the weather. Caden hasn't gotten it and I am so thankful!!! So please keep praying he remains healthy.

Tomorrow is Letter Club and my day to have a lesson and craft done and i haven't even looked at something yet so I should probably get on that.

Early Start on the Letter C

This week has been really amazing. We seem to have our routine pretty much down except for the curve ball that staying up late on Wednesday threw us. The kids have enjoyed schooling and the time we have spent outside. Mostly they really enjoy looking forward to the end of the week when we meet friends at the Part for Letter Club. Another friend joined us today so it was great fun the kids really enjoyed it and already are preparing for next week. We are bringing the snack so they have been giving me ideas about what of their favorite foods should be brought to the park.

Caden's favorite thing he learned this week was all about plants. How they grown, what they need to survive, and what each part of the plant does. When he really likes something he gets a little obsessed and I have read and reread many science plant books to him this week.

Bug's favorite subject was Beethoven. She thinks he is pretty cool but also gross because he cared more about his music than cleaning himself. She also enjoyed dancing to his music and requested it A LOT...I am glad she liked it but I have never really been a classical music person (something I will not be telling my kids till they have formed their own opinion) so I was a little over it and glad it is Friday so I can at least convince her to listen to some Chopin for the letter C.

They were great little students this week so they made all their 5 Happy Apples. This means they get to do something fun and special. This week it was meeting Grandma and Honey at the mall and going on the carousel. Grandma already had tickets from when Anna and Heidi were down so I didn't have to spend money on it which is one of the things I am aiming for in the special things they earn. I did get them each a sugar cookie from the cookie company because I just wanted to. Caden brought to my attention that carousel and cookie start with the letter "C" so I guess we are just getting an early start on that!

The Second Week Has Begun

For our 2nd week of school we of course are focusing on the Letter "B".

Bug had a great time last week doing the letter "A" and then going to Letter Club on Friday. Letter Club is something my friend Sarah and I came up with as a way for our kids to play together and show off a little of what they learned during the week. There is a Story Time, Craft, Show and Tell, and a whole lotta playing. It is nice for the little ones (and their older siblings in my case) to get together and learn some games that they don't really get to play in a two kids household. Some games like duck duck goose...this is rather hard with only two kids and totally not as much fun. Last week Sarah did the leading and this week it is my turn and we have another friend joining us YAY!! If she brings all her kiddos that will bring our little group up to 7. Bug is already trying to figure out which book she wants me to read and what she is bringing for show and tell.

Caden just got his new math book and he can't wait to use it but he is going to have to wait till next Monday as I need Joe to make me some pattern blocks. I refuse to spend 76.00 on a kit I can mostly make up of things at the house. So this week I plan on continuing his learning number order and practice writing his numbers. He tends to be really sloppy and you can't tell some times what he is trying to write. His letters are much better than the numbers but we will be practicing those too.

We also are studying Beethoven for music, Bruegel for art, Buchanan for presidents, Blue Whale for animal science, Tower of Babel for Bible and Plant Life just for fun because they wanted to. Reading Lessons continue from How to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons for both kids. Caden has moved to copying pages from his favorite books to practice both reading and writing skills. Their favorite school game is Sequence Letters. I really want to get the States and Capitals version too. I have some math games I got off of Confessions of a Homeschooler Blog. I decided to hold of on Geography this week because I am going to download Road Trip USA but I need to wait for another week or so since that is when we get paid again. They really enjoyed learning about Alabama but when I was at the library this week I figured I had enough other stuff not to shove too much in their poor little heads if I want them to continue to enjoy school.

Tomorrow we are making Banana bread as part of school too. I have really been enjoying it but it is such a learning experience. It can be a little overwhelming especially if one of the kids isn't in the mood to learn. I have learned to let them take a short break by going and doing something like clean the bathroom (which I know sounds like punishment but they love it!) or having a snack break. They tend to get back on track with better attitudes and so do I.

please keep praying for us as we continue to press on with all the learning. We want to make sure our focus is on God and that Joe and I are being good witnesses to the kids with our lives. I am so grateful for my friends support and my family helping me figure things out. Everyone has been really helpful and truly has had some great ideas!

First Day of School

Today was the kids "first day of school" I had them get up and get dressed as if they were leaving the house and then we sat down for our family breakfast. While they were eating we did our Bible Lesson and Flash Cards. Then I had Casey practice her ABC's while Caden did a work sheet. Next we went over words that started with "A". This was mostly for Casey's benefit as she is doing the letter of the week preschool lessons but Caden can always use the refresher. We played a game where they each had to run through the house as fast as they could and find 3 things that started with "A". It was really fun to watch them running around! Caden found his really fast and then of course big brother that he is kept trying to help Casey who didn't want help at all. After that I let Casey take a break and Caden did some flash cards for his counting. He can count pretty good but has trouble recognizing the numbers. We then did some president flash cards and I answered questions they had about some of the men and why they looked so funny : ) Casey did really well on her worksheets today. They were for practicing writing the letter "A" and finding objects that are the same. Caden loved doing his worksheets which were identifying the first letter of some animals and objects as well as a follow direction one. We also learned about Tomaso Albinoni for our composer of the week. Caden finished up with a reading lesson and then we called it a day.

In all I learned some important things.

1. Caden loves to get a big A on his paper with a 100% if he gets really annoyed if he doesn't

2. Bug works really really well if you tell her she will get a "Sad Apple" on her door if she doesn't listen and follow directions.

3. I didn't plan enough! My kids were wanting more and I had done everything for the day.

4. Caden can color in the lines but he doesn't think he should have to.

5. Bug does NOT liking being told which colors to use in a picture. If the girl wants to use blue for an apple you are not going to convince her to color it red.

Tomorrow we are doing more in depth research on one of the Presidents (Adams obviously because of the letter A" )as well as Albinoni and do a geography lesson on Alabama. I still have to get my Math curriculum and of course Caden's Classical Conversations doesn't start till September but for now this is working.

Please pray for our continuing work with the kids schooling and that we can keep God the center of all of it.

Dinosaur Kisses

I LOVE getting dinosaur kisses!

When Caden was 2 he fell in love with dinosaurs (he still is obsessed with them) and at night when I would read him his bedtime story he would say "Mommy I give you a dinosaur kiss" then he would start to growl as he leaned in to give me a kiss. It was the funniest thing I had ever seen him do so we kept it up. Now he is 5 and still will give dinosaur kisses at bedtime. <3 I will be so sad when he out grows them but for now I am just really enjoying his love and cuteness.

Hunt for School Items

Caden starts kindergarten in August. I am starting his schooling the same week Joe goes back to work for the public school just so that we have a starting point. We are doing Classical Conversations so I had to pay a fee for the 28 class days Caden and I will attend (which are awesome and I will post on that a lot this year) then the book that we make some of our weekly plans out of. I also need to get him a tin whistle and veritsa press history timeline cards. We are going to do Saxon Math too. Caden is really excited and can't wait for his "school" to start. I am pretty excited too except for the money we are paying. This is when I became a fan of searching for deals!!

The Foundations book is 50.00 bought new. I really didn't want to spend that so I started looking on e-bay and they didn't have any listed for cheaper than that so I put my need on Facebook. That is when my friend told me I should ask if there were any moms that weren't doing Foundations this year that did it prior and if they would sell me their book for cheaper. What a great idea except I am immensely shy and don't like to call people I don't know asking for things. I bit the bullet though and asked our coordinator and she gave me two names to call. God is so good!! One of the ladies told me I could just have the book! It is missing a page in cycle two but I won't need that page for 2 years so I don't care at all.

The tin whistle is only 10.00 I don't mind paying that.

The Veritas Press cards are the big ticket item. They are 100.00 for the whole 5 sets (which covers from Creation to Present Day History) I have become slightly addicted to e-bay because of this. I check everyday and am amazed at the people paying MORE than the retail price for USED cards. I mean come on people use your head. I have been outbid on every one I bid on because I refuse to pay more than 80,00. I am sure I will succeed though and it has been kinda fun trying.

Walmart is my friend too. They have terrific school supply sales right now! Caden got to pick out a lunch box and pencil carrier along with folders and scissors. We got some other things too and of course I didn't leave Bug out she is doing preschool with us after all.

Bug is very excited about it too I mean I did some with her last year but because she is going to be 4 soon she is sure she will be a great little learner.

I think it is going to be a great school year : )

email issues

I have a new e-mail address haleyshumway1@gmail.com if you would like to know why you can read my venting post. If you don't care but are wondering why I haven't responded to an e-mail you sent resend it to this address and I will get back to you I promise. If you don't care about this at all well you don't have to read any of it : )

About a week ago I went to check my Yahoo e-mail and couldn't get in because according to the little message my e-mail had possibly been compromised so I needed to change the password and all would be okay...

Sounded simple enough and I have changed my password a few times before so I did it just like they prompted me to. Only every new password I tried to pick they told me it was not a good password so I had to pick another one. This went on for like 5 different ones and then I got irritated. I read directions and I had followed all the criteria for a good password. So I decided I would just try again later. That was a BIG mistake. When I tried to sign on later nothing worked at all. when I tried to do a new password they said my old when wasn't my password anymore. So I tried all 5 of the new ones I had tried but they told me didn't take. None of them worked either. So then I followed the prompts for "I have forgotten my password" and they asked some security questions. The second one was "What is the last name of the maid of honor at your wedding" I put in my sisters last name. NOT CORRECT! I am sorry my sister wasn't my maid of honor?? Now I know she has a long last name so I tried spelling it all the ways you could possible misspell it because I thought maybe I did that or something. NOPE. Then I tried putting in our Maiden name because maybe I goofed up and put that. NOPE. I even tried her first name and even Jeni's name just because. NOPE NOPE. Now I am sorry but I don't think I would have gotten that question wrong. She is my sister AND it was my wedding. I tend to remember things like that.

So I tried to find a number a Yahoo rep. NO GO! So a live chat maybe?? NO! They are always too busy and it says 'Try again later"

Now by this time I am getting really frustrated and that takes a lot because I usually don't care but I mean at least be available to leave a message with people.

I filled out a form and they said they would get back to me within 24 hours. Then I got an e-mail (using Hubby's of course since mine was the problem) that said they were really busy it could be longer. I was okay with that they responded I was happy. Then  I got a nice e-mail asking silly questions I already answered in the form I filled out but I answered them anyway and sent it back...

That was last Saturday. I have heard NOTHING back. Since then I have replied to the e-mail again and filled out another form hoping for some more action but those didn't even get a response at all.

So now I am a gmail girl and hopefully when Yahoo fixes there busy schedule they will fix my e-mail and I can get all my contacts out of there and all the e-mails people have sent me in the last week.

Summer

We have had a very eventful summer so far!

Colorado was our big trip this year and we went with my mom and dad. When we were waiting to take off on our second flight my mom called my Honey and Papa to tell them that the flight had been late due to some problems they wouldn't tell us about and Papa informed her that Honey was very sick and couldn't even get out of bed. This was pretty shocking as we had just seen them that morning before we left but my mom told him to make sure he got her to the hospital right away! It turned out that Honey had a kidney infection that was so bad it had gone septic and was in her blood. She has Alzhimers and still lives with my Papa but my mom takes care of them but Honey and Papa had been hiding that she felt bad because of our trip. Mom wanted to come home right away but that couldn't happen and my Aunt was coming down with her family to take care of them anyway. So she came down a day earlier than expected. Mom was NOT happy about not being home but she also really enjoyed her vacation with all of us so it was definetly a time of mixed emotions for her. Especially when we got the call after Honey was home from the hospital that Papa had collapsed and was now in the hospital himself! AND my Grandpa (dads dad) was in the hospital because he broke his leg.

By the time we came back Papa and Honey were in much better shape and Aunt Janet had done a pretty good job being mom for a while LOL so well in fact mom asked her to move back but Aunt Janet said "No!"

My Aunt went home the 29th and my sister Heidi came in on the 4th of July for 10 days!

It was so much fun the kids had a great time with their cousin Anna and baby Brielle. We went to the mall, the outlet mall, the water park, and had lots and lots of family dinners. They left this morning to go back home to Dallas and I am not a happy camper at all to be sending my sister home.

I will hopefully have pictures and more on all of this a little later but for now this is the update so you know we didn't fall off the face of the planet.

Trying to keep a 4 yr old down??

You can't!  Caden's coughing attacks get much worse when he is up running around. Plus he then looks like death because he doesn't feel well and ends up just sitting down where ever he is trying to recoup. So logically I have been trying to keep him from being up and about. We have watched movies (my mom even let him watch the Magic School Bus movies he wasn't supposed to have yet) that worked for a bit till he felt he was well enough to go outside. So I got out his cars and dinosaurs. This worked again till he decided he really should be outside. Then another movie, more floor play, games, movies, and so on. I need to point out that Joe is home this weekend and has to work on Father's Day gifts so he is outside in the tool shed. Caden usually is out there with him. This means that in between all my fun ideas to keep my son from not feeling horrible and coughing till he can't breath Caden was getting quite annoyed with me.

It was a little hilarious actually. He would ask to go outside and I would tell him No that he can't be around the saw dust and the heat right now. He would then proceed to try to play some thing inside and would end up running circles around the table or get Bug to join him in a game that was too rough for him right now. It would end with him coughing and having to lay down of course. Poor kid just really isn't used to sitting for long periods of time at the house.

When is the sickness gonna leave!!

We are still sick at our house! I am sooooo done with being sick here. I thought we were getting over it. Bug was all better, Joe was healthy, I finished my meds and was just tired (but then I am ALWAYS tired) and Caden had fought to keep from getting it mostly. Then Thursday hit and Caden has a fever and cough started. Then just a cough. Then the fever again. He stops eating. Which if you know my son this is a big deal. He eats a TON! He prefers apples to candy but the kid will eat 4 apples before he says he is full then ask for another snack 5 minutes later so for him to say he is just not hungry it sent me into a little tailspin. He also actually fell asleep when I put him down for his nap yesterday. Again just doesn't happen. I still make him lay down for a rest because Bug takes a nap and he does better if he has his little "chill time" in bed for an hour with his books but yesterday when I went to check on him he was sound asleep. Those red flags went off again. Something was definitely up.

So today I took him to the doctor and found out he has croup. I am sorry he has WHAT?! isn't that what babies get?? My son is turning 5 in like 2 1/2 weeks and has never had that before in his life and I don't even know anyone who has had it! Well I guess you can get it at his age and he has it : ( I feel awful for him. He is enjoying me making him sleepy tea and getting other nice warm things to help calm down his voice box/ cords area so he doesn't stop breathing when he coughs. And it should only last 5 to 6 days so that is good.  We are also counting our blessings it isn't pneumonia or bronchitis.

It just means we will be under house arrest again this week so as to make sure no one else gets sick since he is contagious. Please keep him in your prayers and all our family as we leave in a little more than 2 weeks for our vacation we have been planing for over a year. I know colds aren't a big deal to travel with but we are flying and I couldn't imagine being a little kid with sore ears on an airplane!

I am gonna be an Auntie again!!!!!

Bug's ballet performance was this past weekend. Her rehersal went awesome she fell at one point and picked herself up and didn't even miss a beat just got right back into her little chasse'. I taped her rehersal because we aren't allowed to video the actual show and I wasn't going to spend 18.00 on a DVD where my daughter only dances for 2 minutes. It turned out better anyway because at the actual show she didn't know where we were sitting so she spent a little time looking for us before getting started LOL! I think we created a monster though because now she wants to be on a "Big stage!" all the time and is asking when her next "Big Show!" is going to be.

Caden was awesome through the whole show. He only complained about the heat (which I am not sure what was up with the school A/C but wow was it hot). He enjoyed the Hip Hop dancers and Bug's dance the best he said. He is such a good big brother he was so excited to see her and was really encouraging to her before and after her dance. It was so sweet.

Both of them are now feeling much better which I am so thankful for because I went to the doctor and was informed I have a sinus infection and bronchitis. yay me. I can't wait for all the sickness in the house to go away. I have been on meds for 2 days now and feeling a bit better and the cough meds are amazing they knock me out at night so I can actually sleep. Daddy ended up having to go to the doctor too because he has the same thing. Poor little Brielle ended up having to go to the doctor too with the same stuff so I guess Bug managed to spread her germies to everyone in the family except the Hubby. Which if you ask him it is because he has an immune system of steal!!

The biggest news though is that my sister Heidi found out that her and her hubs are going to be a new addition in early January 2012!!!!! I am so stinkin' excited it isn't even funny and I am sure this one is going to be a boy. I am not sure why I feel this way but I do and so I am going with it. Anna agrees with me and already called that she was going to have a brother before Heidi even found out she was pregnant :)

busy weekend ahead!

We have a busy weekend ahead of us! Well mostly just Casey Bug and I do but that makes everyone else's weekend crazy too.

It started Thursday with Bug's first Dress Rehearsal for her performance that is this Sunday. It was during her normal class time to get the kids comfortable in their costumes and used to dancing in front of an audience. I had mom and Caden come with us because Bug was so excited to show off. All the girls are so cute in the dance it is precious and Caden just loves watching!! I think he is just as excited about seeing her "Big Show" as she is being in it.

Before we went to that class though Caden got to pick out a pair of boots (his very first pair of real cowboy boots) because they are his birthday gift from Grandma and Grandpa. Let me tell you just how excited he is about this...he hasn't taken them off since Thursday in the store. I have convinced him to take them off for sleeping but he sleeps with them right beside his bed and then slips his feet back into them before coming out of his room. :)  I love it!

Today is Saturday and that means that I am taking Bug to her first On Stage Dress Rehearsal. I have to have her there at 1:30 for her to practice one dance then she has to be back on the stage again at 3:15 to practice another one. (this is going to be a very long day) I have tried to get her to take a nap but that isn't going very well. I have manged to get her to eat even though she is beyond excited so that is good. Mom and Daddy are watching Caden so he won't be horribly bored durning this entire time which I am very thankful for. Poor little guy I am sure would get burned out pretty quick of sitting watching little girls dance then have to go and see it again tomorrow.

Tomorrow is the big day this will be her very first show so I am bringing the video camera because you know there is a 50/50 chance of there being a complete meltdown on the stage or her just standing there waving. I am figuring on the second one because that is what she does when I come in and watch the class. She knows the dance remarkably well and actually didn't miss any steps at all the time I came in before this last time and she had a giant smile on her face but this last time when Grandma and Caden came with she was more interested in smiling and waving and making sure they were watching her LOL

Either way it should be very fun!! Oh and did I mention that she has an upper respiratory infection and I have a doozy of a cough and cold too? So tears may happen if she doesn't get a nap tomorrow so please pray she gets some rest so she can just enjoy.

Right now my lil' cowboy is singing at the top of his lungs while riding his horse wearing his boots and cowboy hat. He just cracks me up!!!

First Scary Moment

Caden probably took 5 years off my life yesterday afternoon. I am sure he will do this many more times in his life so this was just warming me up for what is to come.

Joe had left for UPS and the kids were ready for TeamKid but we had time to kill before we needed to head out so they were playing in Caden's room. He has a basketball hoop that can go over his door but he likes it on his bed because then it can be moved and Casey can play with it too so that is what they were playing with. They were using a soft small ball and having a grand time. I decide since I have the kitchen clean I will visit with my mom. W are in her living room (and I just get over there too which means my kids have a keen since of radar) when we hear Caden scream. Not just a little scream like he does sometimes when he falls and bumps his knee or head but this gut wrenching scream/cry that causes me to break into a run. I find him on the floor of his room crying beside Casey's tea table chairs (which are not allowed to be in his room because they have already been in trouble for climbing on them) and one of the chairs is knocked over. I pick Caden up who is still doing his scream/crying and he is holding his arm. My mom of course is right behind me so I tell her she has to check his arm because I don't want to have to move Caden or have him look at the arm if it was broken. Thankfully it was just a bruise with a bump so we iced it but he kept complaining of it hurting so I kept an eye on it and he starting using it and eventually he was playing blocks and wanting to go to church and the bump went down. This morning the doctor said it is just a bad bruise and he will be sore but just fine. I asked if Caden learned anything and Caden said "yea we don't use chairs to play basketball!" Casey on the other hand said "We don't climb on chairs or we could break ourselves!!" The doctor found this funny and told me good luck.

I knew these things were going to happen I just was hoping my first scare was going to be be a little later on. I was 6 when I broke my arm the first time. I don't want my kids to be over achievers. They could be more like their father too though who did really crazy things but never got really hurt. Yea I wouldn't mind that at all.

Growing pains

Really?? It's March already? This year is flying by way too fast and I am not really sure if that is good or not. I am really looking forward to Joe and my trip in a couple of weeks but there are a lot of things I thought I would have done by now that just aren't done but oh well no use in dwelling on that!!

The kids are doing really well. I was ready to pull my hair out last week because Caden has decided it is time to test mommy again. I could really do with out these little phases. He is far too smart for his own good and most of the time he is an angel so when he decides to "see how far he can go" with me I think that might just make it worse. We were at the mall last week with my mom and Grandma (Honey  to my kids). Caden and Casey both know the rules. If I let go of their hands they are to stay close beside me and use their inside voices. They usually are very very good at this. Casey will sometimes push the limits but I just need to grab her hand or do the "One!" and she is promptly back beside me. Caden is an EXCELLENT shopper. I mean he should get a gold star for it. He holds things out for whoever we are shopping for and will tell you how beautiful you look or how beautiful the outfit will look on whoever it is for. If it starts to take longer than his little boy limit I just offer him some food and he is back to being happy or will sit and pout a little but that is usually it. NOT SO THIS TIME!

He wasn't bad. Really it wasn't like he threw a fit or anything like that. It was more that he had a little bit TOO much fun. He ran through the racks of clothes (something which got him in a lot of trouble). He got his sister to laugh so hard she screamed (or squealed but to me it is the same thing and I am pretty sure it is the same thing to the other shoppers too). He laughed these LOUD laughs that busted ear drums. He hid in the clothes. Then he was done shopping so he kept asking if we were done yet and when we informed him we weren't he sighed and let his whole body sag like we let the air out of him. Which I know doesn't sound like a big deal but it is a big pet peeve of mine. There was no gold star this time!

It wasn't just the shopping it was with the school work too. He played tricks on me! He pretended he couldn't read some things the all of a sudden out of the blue he started reading these words I had no idea he knew how to read (this I found amusing and was a little in awe of not frustrated at). He would try to take over and tell me what we were going to be doing or tell me when we were done. It was a very tiring week for both of us and I had a lot of people praying us through it.

Blessedly at the end of just about every day he would crawl up on the couch with me and we would read a zillion books and pray together and he would snuggle like he always does.

He seems to have returned to his normal beautifully behaved self this week. He is an amazing kid and I know I have it really easy with him. These growing spurts of independance and seeing where the boundries are are just part of growing up but I am very thankful I have a lot of people praying for me.

Having a moment

I am having a moment...

My little boy is going to start kindergarten this year and yes we are going to be homeschooling him but still it kinda freaks me out!! The reason I am having this freak out moment is because I went to my friend Sarah's house this morning and looked over the curriculum that she is doing with her daughter who is 5. I LOVE it and I think it is what I will be doing with Caden. So I just looked online at the website for it and looked all through it all the way up to high school and then looked at the CHEACC website because that is the other step I have to take we have to be members of that so we know we are doing everything right for the state of FL. I JUST CAN NOT BELIEVE MY LITTLE BOY IS GOING TO BE 5 THIS YEAR!!!

I mean this year is "ABC's" and "What Really Happened to The Dinosaurs" and before you know it he is graduating  : ( And Casey is only 15 months younger so she is going to pretty much learn right along with him so will probably graduate with him!

Of course right now they are currently both taking naps because they had an exhausting morning of through sand at each other and their friends and playing with Play Dough so I guess I have some time before I need to really worry about that cap and gown.

My Birthday

Yesterday was my birthday and I LOVE birthdays. I always have and probably always will as I really can't wait to turn 30 for some weird reason and I just think life keeps getting better and who wouldn't want to grow old and see what God is going to do in the lives of people around you? So I turned 28 and according to my husband still am a little kid because for my party which we had with my parents on Superbowl Sunday was sliders that he made (because frankly ya'll haven't lived till you have one of my hubby's hamburgers), tater tots, nachos, and chocolate covered strawberries :) My mom made a really truly fabulous yummy cake that was dark chocolate for 2 layers and devils food for 2 layers. It had chocolate frosting and chocolate ice cream to go with it. YAY!!!

Caden and Casey went with Joe to pick me out presents and he let them pick anything they wanted soooo Caden picked me out a red bouncy ball and Casey got me a sparkly yellow hula hoop which I love though according to Caden I need more practice at because I can't keep it up for very long. They were so cute giving them to me and so excited <3

Yesterday we headed up to Disney for the day just my mom, kids and I because my dad and Joe had to work. We went to the Rain Forest Cafe it was so great the kids loved it and I am a huge fan which is why of course I picked it. We really had so much fun and it might be the last time the kids and I go because our passes expire next month and we aren't getting new ones because we can't afford them this year : (  I don't think the kids really understand this yet but I figure we will just have to save up and get them next year!

Here are a few pics of our trip

Caden and Casey Bug doing their cool faces

my lil' munchkins sleeping

God had other plans I guess

Today I was going to make some money by babysitting for Baby Caden and Ivy. This was making my kids super excited because it meant a day full of playing all sorts of fun things and I bought fun snacks that we usually don't get as a special treat for everyone and had made plans of taking the kids outside and working on the ABCs with Bug, Ivy and my Caden. I was all looking forward to it had even plans for the money I was going to make.  I tucked the kids into bed early so they would be well rested for our extremely fun day and all was well.

About 10 minutes after the kids were in bed though Caden came out of his room and informed me he had thrown up and frankly it grossed him out so I needed to clean him and his bed up. OOOOk then. He no longer freaks out when he gets sick so the whole ordeal was pretty painless except for the grossness of it and the fact that my poor little man was sick. He thankfully only got sick the once but coughed a lot and has a very nice congestion now. So after getting him all cleaned and tucked back into bed (on the floor since I refused to let him sleep on the loft bed in case he got sick again did freak out like he used to) I called Michelle and had to let her know what happened so she decided to take her little ones with her to her appointments of course instead of chancing them getting sick.

So today instead of the day we had planned we are instead having a very nice fun day of chilling on the couch with books, movies, and snuggle time. Tarzan right now is the movie of choice which is one of Caden's favorites.

I have to say that even though we had a fun day planned I guess God had a better plan because I will definitely take the spending time snuggling with my kiddos!!!

"But I wanna marry him!"

Lately my kids have been big into the whole pretending to be Mommy and Daddy game. Usually one will be the parent and the other will be the baby but some times they will be married and have their stuffed animals and dolls or even their blankets be their babies. So this has brought up many conversations of "Mommy you are married to Daddy right?" and "Grandpa is married to Grandma" and so on. Well that of course is followed but "When I get big I am going to be married too" which of course we say "If that is what God has planned of course you will!".

They already know who they are going to marry too. Yep that is right they decided they are going to marry each other. When I tried to explain that this just wasn't going to happen that God had a wonderful boy out there for Casey to marry that wasn't related to her...well this just caused her to cry. "But I wanna marry him!!" Then from Caden I hear "I want to marry her mom she is my best friend"  So I tried some more and thought I made some progress just to find out later from my mom that I broke my daughters heart because she told her Grandma "Mommy said I can't marry my broder. I have to marry another boy and then I will never see him again." Mom said she looked absolutely pathetic. So she gave it a try at explaining too. LOL

I find this hilarious and it is so going to be going in a keepsake book because later on when they are older and ready to kill each other I am going to remind them of  this : )

I love kids <3

Goals for 2011

I am totally stealing this from my cousin and his wife's blog. They decided to make a list of some goals that they wanted to accomplish in 2011 and I thought that was a good idea so here is a few things on my list.

1. Have a real quiet time with the Lord every day

2. Plant a garden (then actually keep it alive LOL)

3. Read at least one classic every month

4. Teach Casey to swim

5. Spend more time focusing on what is going on in my friends lives and what they need instead of being wrapped up in me

6. Keep a prayer journal so that I don't lose sight of the blessings that God has given even in the midst of trials

7. Have the kids send letters to their cousins once a month

That is all I have so far. A whole bunch of them pop into my head but I want them to be realistic. We have been learning a lot in church lately about what God calls us to do for others and how our lives should be reflecting Jesus. At this moment I am pretty sure I am lacking in many ways but He has brought to my attention a few ways that I can be more serving to to people who are around me every day. I am looking forward to seeing what all He opens my eyes too and pray that I will actually follow through with the actions.