Two Weeks...One Post....

Two weeks have flown by!! There was so much crammed into the last 2 weeks that I haven't had the time (or energy) to post about any of our events. Those of you that know me know that I can be a bit of a night owl and surprisingly I have been to bed before midnight almost every night during these 2 weeks.  With that bit of information alone shows how exhaustively busy we have been.  So here's my 2 weeks in review with a few updates added in (you may want to go to the bathroom now, you're gonna be here a while):

Monday - 16th
Checked email that afternoon only to receive some very, very sad news.  A sweet little friend of GSG's from our homeschool co-op passed away unexpectedly. We will greatly miss sweet little Aggie. I did not share the news with GoSissyGo until Thursday for many reasons but on Monday I, myself was still in such shock I could bare to even discuss it with her.
That evening GSG had her gymnastics recital! It was a lot of fun to watch her since we missed last year's performance due being on vacation.  It was fun to watch all the girls and boys performing at various skill levels. Looking back to GSG's very first recital when she was just 3 years old, she has come a looong way in her ability. We were so very proud of her!

GSG on the bars about to dismount

GSG (waving) waiting for her turn on the beam

GSG with her coach, Tripp, after the recital. She looks forward to the trophies most of all!

Thursday - 19th
My sweet little boy turned the BIG 3! I simply cannot believe that he is 3 years old now.  It seriously seems just like yesterday we were bringing him home from the hospital.  I never imagined on that day that I would blink and we would be celebrating his 3rd birthday. Happy Birthday to our Cool Cool Bubby! You truly are the coolest little boy we know! You amaze us every day with your unique personality.  How so much heart, determination, compassion, silliness, fearlessness, strong-will, and love can be contained into one tiny little body I'll never know, but it IS WHO YOU ARE and we love you to pieces!  Daddy brought home birthday donuts from Krispy Kreme. CB was very excited about them. We also let him open his gifts from us that day.

CB enjoying his Birthday Donuts

Mommy & Daddy got him a new Batman & Robin movie, Batman swim trunks & a Robin car and....

A NEW BIG BOY BIKE!! (he loves it!!)

Later that day we left to go set up out tent at McIntosh Reserve for a night of camping with several families in  our homeschool  co-op group. No longer did we get our tent pitched and settled-in, we had to leave to attend GSG's very last softball game for the Spring.  Her team made the tournament and played one game on Monday (which we missed due to gymnastics recital) and they won! Of course to make things difficult for me, their last game got scheduled for Thurs night and we had already planned on camping.  I got us to the game on time without a minute to spare! It was a nail-biter of a game. I won't go into all the details but due to several bad calls we lost and came in 2nd place in our division, but in reality (and forever in our hearts) we came in 1st!  It was a fun game to watch and GSG played her little heart out! (Forgot to mention in my anniversary post that we missed her Saturday game where she hit her first HOME RUN!! Of course she would hit a home run while we were out of town!!) After the game we raced back to the campsite to enjoy the rest of the evening with our friends.

Friday - 20th
After freezing my tushie off all night in the tent, I woke up bright and early to get a fire started.  I had never been so eager to wake up early in my life...even more so than Christmas mornings!  I HATE being cold! Anyway, we had a very fun day at McIntosh Reserve.  When we got home the kids were exhausted.  I don't think they could've handled staying another night.  Daddy had to work and couldn't go with us, so we had some of our very best friends stay in our tent with us.  We had 2 adults and 6 kids comfortably squeezed into our 6 man tent...for one night we made it work.  My dear friend has 4 children, all of which have never been camping before including my dear friend (at least not real camping with a tent). All of her children had a blast and want to go camping again, especially the oldest two. Unfortunately, I don't think my dear friend had quite as much fun and it will probably be awhile before she goes again.  She says she had a good time but I think she was stressed out keeping up with all of them, not to mention dealing with several kiddie meltdowns by Friday afternoon due to exhaustion.  I got lots of cute pictures of the kids playing and exploring the park grounds.  Besides the cold night, I forgot how much I enjoyed camping.  It was nice to see my kids being outside enjoying nature and making due with very few "comforts of home". Whenever I go camping it makes me realize how little we actually need to have a good time and for survival in general.  I think what I'll do in the future is go camping for a few days and then come home and clean out the house for a yard sale!!  It might make it a little more easy to let go of things.

The kids loved gathering sticks and putting them in the fire.

GSG & her BFF

My Dear Friend's youngest, such a cutie!

Cool Bubby & his best buddy

Dear Friend and her 3 youngest kiddos

Sassy Girls

CB & his buddy wore themselves out kicking balls & cones in the big open field

Saturday - 21st
This day was spent getting everything set & ready for CB's birthday party.  We held his party at one of the many park pavilions in our neighborhood.  He wanted a Batman & Robin birthday party.  Of course, all the premade decorations are just Batman and no Robin so I had to make his.  Oh well, I probably would have made them anyway because that's just me.  I don't think it could've been a better party and it was actually the simplest party I've put together thus far.  The park is set at the bottom of a hill and I brought several pieces of cardboard and the kids rode down the hill over and over again on the cardboard.  They had a blast! I think most everyone from adults to the smallest child had a turn riding down the hill.  The park was right beside the lake so we had a little fishing going on as well.  What was neat was one of CB's little friends gave him a fishing pole that day so he was able to open it right away and use it. He loved it!  It was quite a fun day. I told my hubby had the rapture happened that day as predicted by that nut-case, there wouldn't be a better way for me to go that day than to be outside, celebrating & having fun with him, my kids, friends and family that I loved.

Man, I LOVE these people! CB was exhausted at this point.

My homemade decorations

Fishing with his friend that gave him the fishing pole.

GSG & her friends ready to slide

This was too cute to not post.

Birthday Boy about to slide off his board

"Happy Birthday Dear Cool Bubby...Happy Birthday to YOU!"

Sunday - 22nd
If our week hadn't been packed full of enough fun we started a new week with even more! We started our morning with church and then GSG's softball team was having their end of season pool party.  In a short time we have formed many friendships with the 6U Viper families.  I can truly say that each and every family we met were so nice and it was amazing how well all the girls got along with each other.  I wish it were possible for us to keep the same team for Fall ball, but it isn't. (insert sad face here) We also couldn't have asked for better coaches.  It was very important for us that GSG have a good experience with her first season of softball and we couldn't have asked for better!  She really enjoyed playing the sport and she is actually VERY good at it!! She's got an awesome swing and is always "baseball ready" in the outfield.  We are proud of you Sissy! You always give 110% whatever you do! Vipers Rock 'n Roll!!

The entire 6U Vipers team

Bathing Beauty

CB was amazed that you could spray water out of the noodles

Team Cake...yummy...from Publix

GSG with her coaches, yet another trophy for her collection!

Noodle Hog

 Mid-week Garden Update!!
Our garden is GROWING!! I don't know who is more excited about the progress in our garden...me...or the kids. Each day we go out to water and look at how much things have grown since the day before.  GSG is particularly tickled about the corn and beans.  We don't have any actual harvest yet, it's still too early, but most everything has sprouted.  We have had some things that didn't spout so I took the time this week to replant a few seeds here and there. My next project is to build a simple trellis for the beans and peas to climb as they grow and to research pest control (I'm sure this will become an issue soon).

Indoor seedlings...Roma tomato & sweet peppers

Front-strawberries, middle-lettuce & carrots (hard to see sprouts), back-pole beans & peas

Front-herbs (very little growth, not sure what's going on), middle-zucchini, back-waiting for tomatoes & peppers

Front-broccoli (only 1 sprout, had to replant), middle spinach, back-corn

Saturday - 28th
We spent the day in Piedmont AL at Chief Ladiga Trail Campground with Nana and Papaw.  They were camping for the weekend and we joined them for the day along with my younger sister and her family.  I cannot tell you how wonderful this day was!! We arrived around 9:30-10 am and left around 9 pm. It was a full, fun-filled day! This was a neat campground. The kids fished a little but they had the most fun playing in the creek bed. GSG's Aunt M taught her how to skip rocks. Bubby loved all the frogs and bugs. I spent a lot of time behind my camera and took probably over 100 pictures. I knew it would be a good opportunity for me to learn more about all the cool settings on my camera. That being said, I'm not posting every photo, so here's a link to view them on Picasa. I'll just let the pictures tell the story. Enjoy!

Chief Ladiga

Sunday - 29th
We attended the Celebration Ceremony for a precious little girl that passed away.  I cannot tell you how moving the entire service was for me. There are just not words to express my sadness and joy that was felt all at the same time that day. The faith and love for God that her mother and father had was probably the most amazing thing I have ever witnessed.  It definitely touched me and made me take a look at my own faith and wonder if I could handle such a terrible tragedy in the same manner. Sissy and I would like to plant a tree in memory of her friend in August on her birthday, Aggie loved to climb trees and was very good at it!  Little AgnusDei, I will greatly miss seeing your sweet little smile at co-op each week. I was blessed to have known you....

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. 

Do not be afraid: do not be discouraged 

for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

~Joshua 1:9

Monday - 30th
This was the first year that I could actually explain to Sissy about Memorial Day and she could understand it's meaning and appreciate why we celebrate the day.  I had the kids help me put out some flags along our walkway and then we spent the entire afternoon at my sister's house.  The kids and I went swimming & Daddy helped Uncle R dig holes for their tiki torches and a giant umbrella.  It was a beautiful day and nice to spend it outside.  Wished we could've stayed longer but GSG had her first day back to gymnastics in her new class.  She stays for an hour and a half now but she doesn't mind.  They are really beefing-up on her skills and working a lot on technique. CB and I fed the ducks while she was in class but I was able to watch her a good bit too.  I love watching her.  I guess now that she's in class for so long I could leave and run errands or something but I truly do enjoy standing in that window watching.  CB start his gymnastics class on Wednesday. It will be his first time in gym class alone so it will be interesting to see how he does.

THE END!....(for now)

A Warrior's Anniversary

This past weekend Hubby and I celebrated 12 blissful years of marriage.  Now, you all know that when I say "blissful" what I mean is 'most-of-the-time' because "Who am I kidding?...I am married."  Twelve years.... Man, where have they all gone? In 2 more years, I'll have spent more of my life with him than I spent without him. Now that's crazy to think about.  I can still absolutely say that I love him more today than ever and certainly more than I show or tell him. (gotta work on that part)  He has seen me through some very happy & high points in my life and some very, very, low, lows...and somehow he's stayed-put.  Like a rock. Like a true man of God that is actually putting into action what he vowed on our wedding day, doesn't leave when the going gets tough and runs back when times are better. For better or worse, richer or poorer, sickness & health...Yep, we've seen ALL of it in just 12 short years.  He's here. For good, for keeps. He's my balance in life, my lover, my Jokey Smurf and best friend. I know some of you ladies think you have the best husband ever, but sorry, you are mistaken; I do. Ok, so now that I got all the mushy stuff out of the way I can explain my Warrior Anniversary!

Several months ago we made plans with 3 other couples to attend Warrior Dash weekend in Mountain City, GA.  We were really looking forward to doing something different this year for our anniversary and boy, did we pick "different".  We finally get on the road Friday around lunchtime after we nearly didn't have childcare for the weekend.  Praise God for my best friend! She stepped up when I needed it most and took on 2 more kids in addition to her own 4!! She's my Hero!  Anyway, we made just a tiny detour of our route to Mountain City to stop at a delicious burger joint in Atlanta called Flip Burger.  If you are Top Chef fans, such as myself, you'll know that Richard Blais from the show and winner of Top Chef Allstars, is the owner of this cool little burger boutique. If you are ever in Atlanta, check it out, it won't disappoint.  Back to the trip...
We stayed in a very cute and quaint cabin tucked in the mountain. I'd tell you which one, but we were only suppose to have 6 guests and naughty us, we had 8.  As you may have noticed from the Warrior Dash website, you have the option to dress in costume. You may even choose to go as far as entering the costume contest, as we did.  Now, when we planned the trip we didn't start out with those intentions, let's just say I was easily talked into it with less than a week to plan and then it was just 3 of the 4 girls dressing up...no guys.  "What do 3 grown women with 2 children each decide to dress-up as to try and "WIN" the craziest costume contest?", you ask. (Oh yes, we were going for the win. If I had to be sober all weekend...remember?...and wear a costume, you better believe I was going all-out to make it worth my while.)  "So, did you win?", you ask, even more intrigued. Well, they say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I'll let the pictures tell the rest of the story for the weekend. There were lots of great photos so I had to be selective. And I've never uploaded a slide show so hope it works. Enjoy!


So, to answer your long anticipated questions, in case you couldn't figure it out from the photos...We were the "Nudie Cuties", or at least that is what we put on our hats.  We created our costumes out of nude dance leotards and nude colored cellulite-smoothers, homemade girlie parts fashioned out of pantyhose & doll hair. We kept it interesting by each of us featuring a different "look"...and NO, we did not win the contest.  I know, I know, hard to believe... If there were a contest for Who-had-their-photo-taken-the-most-times-by-other-contestants; surely we won that award, whatever that may be...possibly called the award for the "Ballsiest Costumes" (or would it be balls-less?? hahaha) I don't even want to think about how many youtube videos or facebook pages we may be on.  Shesh. Well, all I can say is that it was good, clean (ha ha), fun and it is certainly a weekend I'll not be forgetting anytime soon!

Here's looking forward to 12 more fantastic years jumping in, out and over more fires of life...as long as he's by my side. Love you Babe!

My finishing stats: (not that I'm counting, but hey, I have a slight competitive bug in me. I believe on Saturday there were approx 8000 dashers)
Women 30-34 placed 226th, placed 1065th overall, time 37:36.40, pace 10:45/M

Hubby's stats: Men 30-34 placed 543rd, placed 2402, time 37:35.80, pace 10:44/M (he could've easily creamed my time, but he stayed with me the whole way, to run it with me! See, told you he's the best! I think he secretly pulled ahead at the end just so he can say he beat me, but that's ok with me.)

Poisoned Already...

Well, this isn't quite how I hoped to start my gardening adventure. (This is going to be long because a lot happens around here in 5 days) I went to the doctor today (by the way, I LOVE my family doctor) to have him look at what I thought was a spider bite and also a strange itchy rash.  Less than an hour later (yes, I made it in and out of my Dr's office in less than an hour, I know you're jealous) I am sent on my way with a prescription for some type of steroid that I have to take for the next 13 days! I have poison ivy and the bite is just some type of insect bite to which I had a bad reaction. Poison Ivy! Did I mention the majority of it is on my face?! UGH! I don't think I've had poison ivy since I was a kid!  After he rattled off all the possible steroid side effect, I thought to myself, "Man, that sounds a lot like my everyday personality!" It's going to be a loooong 2 weeks for my hubby and kids.  Did I mention that this happened at the worst possible time?  Hubby and I are going on an anniversary weekend get-away to participate in the Warrior Dash. So, no celebratory free beer for me. Steroids and beer don't mix. (I'll take my doctor's word for it) Double UGH! Then we have GoSissyGo's gymnastics recital, Cool Bubby's birthday, an overnight camping trip, CB's birthday party, GSG's softball end of season party, WHEN WILL THE MADNESS END??!!  Ok, I can't lie, I would much rather be busy with fun stuff like this than just sitting home twiddling my thumbs.

Speaking of kids, have I mentioned how awesome mine are?? No? Well, let me tell you...they are! Everyday they deliver the right mix of "Drive Mom Crazy" and "Dazzle Mom with Greatness".  Today was a singing day for CB. He is definitely my musical child, he's got some mad dance skillz too!  I think he sang "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" at least 20 times. Now, he's no Clay Akin (Thank you Jesus!) but his little voice is music to my ears.  At first he would get all embarrassed and act bashful when I would clap for him, but by bedtime when he was still singing, he would remind me to clap for him if I didn't. So cute! He also got his Robin, The Boy Wonder costume in the mail today.  He really likes to wear it.  He's the cutest blonde Robin I've ever seen.  GSG got her loooong awaited Batgirl costume.  She has only been asking EVERY SINGLE DAY for the past 2 weeks if it had arrived.  She looks very cute in it but I think she was a bit disappointed with how large it was. There's no way it was a child's small. We tried to make her feel better by telling her it will take her longer to outgrow it. Since planting all the seeds this past Saturday, the kids have rediscovered the waterhose.  They have gone outside every day to play with it for at least an hour at a time.  They squirt each other and laugh and squeal and then they got creative on Sunday and decided to play "car wash" with CB's tricycle.  They came in to ask for rags to wash & dry it then they used my watering can so they could pretend to fill it up with gas.  Watching their little imaginations at work warms my heart and brings back such happy memories of my own childhood.

Speaking of Sunday...I had a wonderful Mother's Day! Hubby let me sleep in only to wake me with breakfast in bed served to me by my kiddos.  Waffle, eggs & OJ with a side of 2 homemade cards and 1 very pretty pair of sterling silver earrings with their birthstones (or "born stones" as GSG calls them) from the kids.  We went out for a nice lunch to Panera Bread, dessert at In the Mix and home to plant the strawberries & marigolds in the garden. We finished the day by spending some time at the park with some precious friends.  Life is soooo good. God blesses me bountifully daily, I'm eternally grateful for all I have.
{I hoped to post some pics from the past few days but for some reason my camera software isn't cooperating, will try tomorrow after Hubby investigates}

A New Beginning...

Well, it's been a just over a year since my last blog entry...let's see if I can make it 2 entries this year!

As you can imagine a lot has happened in a year and it amazes me how quickly it has gone by, kind of scary actually...  So I'm starting fresh, remembering to appreciate and enjoy the simple things in life and it began today with my garden. Thanks to a little inspiration from the 2 community gardens in our homeschool co-op, I decided to bring our gardens back to life. This is what my beds looked like at the beginning:

Thankfully, I had very little weeding to do but unfortunately my cat has been using the beds as a litter box. I decided to put my mind at ease about any residual poo & dug down about 4" and removed that dirt.  I then laid down a layer of newspaper before I put my new soil mix on top.  I decided square foot gardening was the way to go.  I've been blessed to get some wonderful information from a fellow square-foot-gardener who did a lot of research and reading ahead of me but I know there will definitely be some trial and error on my part. One can only learn so much from others and just like in life, sometimes you have to learn on your own. I used a mix of vermiculite, peat moss, mushroom compost and hen manure. I can't tell you how nice it felt to run may hands all through that dirt to mix it. Yes, the hen manure stunk but there was just something so relaxing about feeling that fresh loose dirt run through my fingers. I know...weird.  My dear sweet sister dropped by to be a spectator but I guess she felt sorry for me and decided to help me put in the stakes & strings. This is our finished product:

I know it doesn't look like much but it was hard work and a good start.  So, my squares aren't exactly "square" but square-ish is good enough for me.  We put a layer of chicken wire over top to keep the critters (mainly the cat) out of the boxes.   I can still easily reach the dirt to plant seeds so I can keep them safely covered until the plants start growing. Can't wait to see little sprouts once I get the seeds planted.  Just can't resist adding a pic of the kids helping.  They really enjoyed playing in the dirt. I'm excited to have them help me! My Little Dirt Minions... Cool Bubby had to go inside to get his minion goggles in case he got dirt in his eyes. He is such a funny little boy, and Go Sissy Go, she has found a fascination with bugs. She came across a couple of grubs and was very concerned they were going to die because we dug them up. Thanks to her they found a new home in our old dirt pile and survived!