smarty pants

Bryce is always saying things that crack me up. And he is really quick witted...the things he think ups blow me away. Pretty much a mini Bryan. Here are 2 that had me laughing yesterday.

When picking Bryce up from preschool his teacher pulls me aside to tell me something (my first response is oh no...here we go again). She tells me that for weeks she has been telling Bryce that things are only funny once. You see, he has a very bad habit of repeating anything that might make someone laugh (jokes, faces, falling down, etc). So yesterday he walks up to her with a very serious expression and says "Mrs. Real, can I tell you something?". Of course she said yes. Bryce then says "now you need to pay really close attention because I am only going to tell you once". I guess he has been paying attention after all!

Yesterday afternoon I had to go to the bank for my dad. I decided to do the drive thru thing since I hate dragging (and I do mean dragging) 2 kids into the bank. They were really, really, really slow. I think I had to wait about 15 min before we even got up to the window. And once we did reach the window the banker's computer could not read the check I was depositing so she had to take it to the manager and get her to handle it. Seriously, at this point I think we had been waiting approx 25 min. Way too long to be waiting with 2 kids in the car. Bryce started badgering me and asking why they were slow. He asked me to honk at them to make them go faster. He asked me to yell at them and tell them to "get a move on" (do I say this to him?). He then looks at the people around us and realizes that most of them are Hispanic (including the banker). He gets this huge smile on his face and goes "I know mommy.....how do you say slow in Spanish?". The lady in the bank heard him and started cracking up. I didn't know if I should laugh or hide my head in embarrassment. On a side note...I have no idea how to say slow in spaninsh. I'll have Bryce ask uncle Stephen next time he's over.

where is the gas?

I am really getting sick and tired of this gas problem we are having in Atlanta. Today I sat in line to pump $30, the maximum you could buy, into my truck. It didn't even give me a 1/4 of a tank (gas is over $4 a gallon). I probably used more gas finding the station and waiting. On Friday I drove up to my friends house for a sex in the city party. I did a running tally of gas stations on my way and here was my total...22 to 4. That's 22 with no gas to 4 with gas. The 4 with gas had lines 20 cars deep and stretched out into the streets. It is complete madness! Oh and after I finished pumping my gas the gentlemen from the station proceeded to put a plastic bag on the pump. Seems I got the last of the gas from his station. Yeah me...I guess.

Here is what most stations in Atlanta look like.

bring on the colds

In our house you know it's fall when the runny noses start. I had been hoping all week, call it wishful thinking, that the slight drip from Callie's nose would be only that. Maybe caused from her molars coming in. No such luck. We woke up this morning to everyone (Except Bryan) having full on colds. No fun.

I had also been praying that Callie's colds would be only that this year, and not turn into chest congestion, pneumonia, etc. Last May the doctor finally diagnosed her with RAD (Reactive airway disease). They think that the bronchiolitis she had as an infant had "hung on". New research shows that it can take 2 years for the virus to leave their systems. So, the doctor thought that maybe she would outgrow it over the summer. I was keeping my fingers crossed too. In May they finally decided that the albuterol was not enough and we would have to do pulmicort too (an inhaled steroid). I'm not to up on giving my 2 year old steroids. Don't get me wrong, I want her to be able to breathe (kind of important), I just don't like medicating her for 3 months after the symptoms end (per doctor). Anyway, all week I have been waiting for the wheezing, coughing to start and it didn't....until this morning! So we are back on the neb and the steroids and hoping that it clears up by itself and we don't have to make any trips to the doctor. And at least Callie tolerates it pretty well. She pretty much just sits there with the mask on her face without complaining. Big thing seeing it takes about 20 minutes to do a treatment.

new pajamas

My mom bought Callie the most adorable pj's today. I love them and so does Callie. When we went for our walk this evening with my friend Kat and her little girl, Callie had to wear them. She looked so adorable....minus the huge bike helmet she was wearing. For some reason she thinks she has to wear a bike helmet when riding in a stroller.....safety first!

poem

I love this poem... it is our human nature to see the hard side of life first. We can be prone to having a whinge about how hard life is, the constant work, illness etc etc. This is one about putting it into perspective. Even on the hardest days I feel so blessed to have such a loving family and wonderful friends. Hope you all like it as well.

Drinking From My Saucer

I've never made a fortune and it's probably too late now.But I don't worry about that much,I'm happy anyhow.
And as I go along life's way,I'm reaping better than I sowed.
I'm drinking from my saucer,'Cause my cup has overflowed.

I don't have a lot of riches,and sometimes the going's tough.But I've got loved ones around me,and that makes me rich enough.
I thank God for his blessings,and the mercies He's bestowed.
I'm drinking from my saucer,'cause my cup has overflowed.

I remember times when things went wrong,My faith wore somewhat thin.But all at once the dark clouds broke, and the sun peeped through again.
So God, help me not to gripe about the tough rows that I've hoed.
I'm drinking from my saucer,'Cause my cup has overflowed.

If God gives me strength and courage,when the way grows steep and rough.I'll not ask for other blessings, I'm already blessed enough.
And may I never be too busy,to help others bear their loads.
Then I'll keep drinking from my saucer,'Cause my cup has overflowed.

~ John Paul Moore ~

crafty

I got a really random email this evening. Someone saw a picture of the cupcakes I made for the kids bday party and wanted to know who made them. They wanted to order some just like them! Too bad for her that I don't take orders (not a bad idea) but good for me as it made me feel super crafty. Yup...from now on just call me Martha Stewart.

on a side note....kind of weird that some random person could google up monkey cupcakes, view my pictures, and email me. Freaks me out just a little.

party like a rock star...kid style

We partied hard all weekend. Friday night I had a much needed girls night with Mary Glenn and Sheri. We walked around target (it's a different world without kids!), went to dinner, and saw a movie (The Women). It was a great night. I laughed more then I have in a very long time and that is a very good thing.

Sat. We had 2 parties...both of them for 3 year old girls. The AM party was at a jumpy place and was for a little girl in Callie's class. It was a lot of fun. Callie is quite the brave little girl and had all of the other kids going down the slide head first. The PM party was for our friends Kat and Brian's little girl. They live right around the corner so Bryce rode his bike and I walked with Callie (Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that Bryan was out of town this weekend!). The kids played in the yard and we sat around, watched football, and relaxed. Bryce has a crush on a little girl that was there so he was very excited to get to play with her. They had our jumpy set up in the yard and the kids wore themselves out.

Sunday we had a party at Chuckee Cheese for our friend's Craig and Crystal's little girl Sydney (she's turning 4). Not my favorite place but there were 2 older girls that decided it was their job to watch Callie. I love mommy's helpers!! I let Bryce and Callie eat all (yes I said all) of the candy from Saturday's goody bags before the party. I figured they could get all of the sugar out of their system at the party and boy was I right. They crashed when they got home!

An entire pizza, three publix cakes, three goody bags filled with candy, and about 12 juice boxes later and they we are pretty much partied out. I don't think anyone was really up to eating dinner Sunday night. Even Maxi....she decided it would be a smart idea to eat one of the kids candy bracelets. Swallowed it whole! Tummy aches for everyone at our house!!

Callie's 3 favorite friends from school

Callie demonstrating the art of sliding head first

c

Abbie's party....nothing beats a picnic

war eagle

Last Sat. we took the kids to their first Auburn football game. My brother has season tickets and invited us to come along. We had a great day of tailgating and cheering at the game. It was very, very hot so we left the game a little early. Bryce and Callie had a blast. Callie made her debut on the jumbotron at her very first game(Bryce had trouble understanding why he wasn't on tv too).Such a fun time!!

Hallie Would ya?

On the way home from school today I did the typical "what did you do today?" mom routine. Usually Bryce doesn't give much info. It's actually like pulling teeth to get any answer from him. Here is our conversation today...
Me: What did you do today at school?
Bryce: nothing. I played on the playground. We went to chapel.
Me: How was chapel. Did you see Callie there?
Bryce: yes, I saw her and she sat the entire time (good to know!).
Me: What did you talk about in chapel?
Bryce: We sang. Do you want to hear what we sang? It goes.... Hallie Would, Hallie Would, Hallie Would, Hallie would ya, Raise sheep dear Lord.
Me: Huh? Sing it again.
Bryce then repeated the above lyrics
Me: (after thinking about it for a while, realize he is actually singing Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Praise ye the Lord) Ohhh....I know that song
Bryce: Yup and do you know what Hallie Would ya (Hallelujah) means?
Me: what?
Bryce: It means get down. Anytime you say that word you have to squat down on the ground.
Me: No, actually it is a word you say....
Bryce (interrupting me): your wrong mommy, it means get down. You don't know what your talking about.

His teacher also reported that he punched a kid today. When asked why he responded that the kid hit him first and his daddy says if someone hits you to hit them back!

first day

Today was the first day of preschool. Callie is going 5 days a week in the 2 year old class and Bryce is going 5 days a week in the pre-k class. Both of them had a great first day. No tears for either of them. And it was so cute watching Callie's eyes light up when she saw her friends. I absolutely love all of their teachers (Callie has 3 and Bryce has 2) and am really excited about the upcoming year. It was a bittersweet day knowing that it is the last "first day" of both of them going to preschool. I will keep everyone posted on the ongoings of preschool life.

lake weekend

We have spent the past 2 days on the lake with friends. It was a much needed change of pace and even though I am exhausted, I feel refreshed. The kids played and swam as did the adults. We beached the boats on an island on Lake lanier (thanks to the drought there are a lot of sandy spots) and set up. We had drinks, played horseshoes, hung out in the lake, and just sat around enjoying the great weekend. Sunday evening we went to a friends house for the night and then started all over again this morning. Sherri's mom brought Sausage and peppers, one of my favorites!! It was a great way to end the summer as the kids both start school tmrw. I will sleep really well tonight, despite being a little sunburned. Hope everyone had a wonderful Labor's Day weekend.

Pooped out!

football and hairbows

It seems the two are a rite of passage in the south. It's pretty much standard to have an sec team that you cheer for. and get heckled for, depending on the year. It is also pretty standard for little southern girls to wear ginormous hair bows. The bigger the better it seems. I have been putting bows in Callie's hair since it was long enough to do so. However I have avoided the huge bows until today. Today football and hairbows collided for Auburn's opening game. And she did look completely adorable. I'm not sold on the huge bows but I will be putting this one in for game days. Thanks again Aimee for the most adorable Auburn outfit ever!!

bryce's view on girls bathing suits

Bryce: Daddy, Know why girls have big ones up here (pointing at his chest area)?

Bryan (chuckling under his breath): I'm not sure....why do you think?

Bryce: To hold up their bathing suits. If they didn't they would fall right off.

chipmunk

I think Callie is part chipmunk. Seriously, not kidding at all. She has the most adorable chubby cheeks. She's had them since she was a baby. People used to stop us to say she had huge cheeks. I never knew how to respond to that. "Thanks for calling my baby fat?". Anyway...some of the baby fat has started to disappear but they are still pretty chubby.

Well, I guess she has decided to put those cheeks to use. Lately she has started storing food in them. No joke. Tonight, about 2 hours after we finished dinner, I noticed she had something in her mouth. I said "Callie, what is in your mouth? Please show me". and her response was "my food!". She still had dinner stored in her cheeks! I'm not sure how to put a stop to this so if you have any ideas please let me know!!

See any resemblance?

swinging

We have several August birthdays in my family. Tonight we had our usual family birthday dinner. This one was for my mom, Jason, and Jeff. It was a very relaxing evening spent eating good food and just hanging out. It was a much needed break from the chaotic life that we have been living. Earlier in the evening my dad pushed the kids on the tire swing that he and Jason hung for the kiddos. They absolutely love it! Here are some pictures. Also, I am finally starting to play around with some of the different options with my camera and the software it came with. I had fun trying out different textures, lighting, etc. Let me know what you think. My goal is to take a photography class in the next year. It's something I've always wanted to do but just haven't found the time to do it.

It's finally over

I love doing the golf tournament.....really I do. It's just so much work. I am happy to say that it is finally over and it was worth every bit of energy I put into it. Everyone had a wonderful time and we raised a nice amount of money. People might be saying it was rigged this year. Bryan's team won first and Jason's team won second. My mom won the putting competition and the best prize of the day....a weekend with golf at Myrtle Beach!! The girls and I had a blast... I even taught one of my friends to drive a golf cart, something she has never done before. And don't worry...if you didn't get a chance to come out and participate this year we will be doing it again next year!

Hanging out on the course with Heather (She was in charge this year, thank goodness)

A great day for golf on the lake

Bryan's team....they won first place

Jason's team.....love the blue shirts

My mom and dad's team

chaotic life

Sorry for not posting for such a long time. And I hate to say it, but this is just a quick post to let you know that I have not forgotten....I have just been over the top busy. Seriously, I don't even know what day it is. Well, that is a lie, I know it is Friday and it's my mom's bday making it Aug. 15th. Any who, between the kids and the 3 Day I have no extra time. When I do finally sit down at night (usually around 9:30) I end up watching the Olympics until the wee hours of the morning. Not good, I know, but I am addicted. The golf tournament is this weekend and hopefully we make enough money that I do not have to worry anymore about fundraising.

So look for a very informative post the beginning of next week when I have recovered from the craziness. Until then I am posting Callie's latest pic for her agency. I think it might be my favorite one yet. Also I am pasting an email that I sent out not long ago named "Bryce's favorite things". I filled in his answers and sent it out to several people. I think you might find it amusing. Until next time.....

My friend Aimee sent this to me with her son Ethan's answers on it. They were so funny I thought I would try it with Bryce. He took it very seriously and sat still the entire time. Kinda funny!

Subject: Fw: FW: 2008 survey

Welcome to the 2008 edition of getting to know your friends.

Change all the answers so they apply to you, and then send this to your

friends including the person who sent it to you. The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known!

1. What time did you get up this morning? at 6am (not really, he got up at 9)

2. Diamonds or pearls? .....I like both of them because they are pretty. and I like tractors and ducks>

3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? ....Kung Fu Panda

4. What is your favorite TV show? ...Magic School Bus

5. What do you usually have for Breakfast? ..Pancakes and waffles I think

6. What is your middle name? ...Stephen

7. What food do you dislike? ............ hot sausage and pepper and rice and sauce

8. What is your favorite CD at the moment? Mary had a little lamb

9. What kind of car do you drive? Huh...a convertible. I'm so funny mom

10. Favorite sandwich? I like turkey sandwiches with the bread and I like the crust too.

11. What characteristic do you despise? when people are mean

12. Favorite item of clothing? my tractor pajamas that i got brand new today (he didn't get any pj's tday)

13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would> you go? To New York City so I could see RoRo and Tracy

14 Where would you retire? I would like to live at Sydney's house

15. What was your most recent memorable birthday? When I turned 5 and Reiley and all my friends came

16. Furthest place you are sending this? Arizona

17. Person you expect to send it back ?

18. When is your birthday? June 16th

19. Morning person or a night person? Morning when we stay home

20. What is your shoe size? The size of my feet...that's a silly question. Maybe 200?

21. Pets? Maxi

22. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? Yes. My exciting news is I got a splinter and it didn't even hurt

23. What did you want to be when you were little? a fireman

24. How are you today? I'm fine

25. What is your favorite flower? dandilions

26. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? tmrw morning

27. What are you listening to right now? volleyball on tv

28. Do you wish on stars? yes I do...starb right, star night

29. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? purple because you like that color

30. How is the weather right now? pretty good and I like the storms because they water all the flowers and I have an umbrella and I can keep my head not wet

31. Last person you spoke to on the phone? mommy when I speed dialed her cell phone from the home phone (FYI....don't ever teach your kids to do this!)

32. Favorite soft drink? I like soda and Sprite

33. Favorite restaurant? Wendy's cause they have chicken nuggets and french fries and chocolate milk

34. Hair color ? blonde

35. What was your favorite toy as a child? my rattle

36. Summer or winter? winter because we get to have snowballs and snowmen

37. Chocolate or Vanilla? Vanilla

38. Coffee or tea? They are both bad

39. Do you want your friends to email you back? no

40. When was the last time you cried? today but I don't know why

41. What is under your bed? my books

42. What did you do last night? fall right asleep (yeah right!)

43. What are you afraid of? rattlesnakes because they rattle and bite you

44. Salty or sweet? sweet

45. How many keys on your key ring? I think 100

46. How many years at your current job? That is a silly question

47. Favorite day of the week? Sunday

48. Do you make friends easily? Yes, cause I like friends

Callie's latest modeling shot...such a cutie!

3 day fundraiser

Today we had a 3 Day fundraiser. It was our "streetwalker" fundraiser!! Basically, we stood at a major intersection downtown and walked around with our buckets asking for donations....just like the Shriner's!! Desperate times call for desperate measures and I am in high need of donations. I have around $800 right now but need to have $2,200 in about a month and a half!! Five of my teammates and I spent 4 1/2 hours in the heat (it was around 95 degrees). We raised around $850 which is great (we do split it 6 ways so my take was almost $150. Afterwards we went to Chipolte for dinner and to discuss the signs of heat stroke!!

Seriously, if you are reading this and haven't made a donation to the 3 Day in my name yet please think about doing so (pretty, pretty please with a cherry on top). It is for a great cause that effects women of all generations. Just click on the link to the right.

When I got home Callie was thrilled to see me and wanted to dress up like mommy. She is our future team member. It also reminded me of one reason I am doing the 3 day....so her generation never has to worry about such an awful disease!

big brother

Bryce is turning out to be a pretty good big brother. Sure, they have their fights. and yes, he tends to be really, really, bossy with her. But all in all he is really sweet with her. Tonight he sat with her while I read her good night book. He then decided it was his job to put her in bed (kinda hard since she is still in her crib) and kiss her goodnight. So cute. She looked up and him, smiled and said "thank you Bruba (how she says brother)....goodnight. Made my heart all warm and fuzzy.

Callie hearts hats

Callie is a girly girl. There is no denying it. She loves to play dress up...shoes, jewelry, tutus, and especially hats. Lately hats are her favorite things. Doesn't matter what kind or who they belong to...she will put it on and parade around with this huge smile on her face. If it's big enough, she will pull it down over her eyes and play peek-a-boo with anyone that will go along with it. So cute.