Pwincess Mama

Hi, my name is Andrea. You might not remember me but I use to live here.

2011-12-17T15:40:00.001-05:00

If my blog had arms, we'd be in the middle of a big, warm hug. It's been a while. I've missed my little corner of the internet. We've been really busy in Kricketville. Most of the craziness stems from my new job here...

and to be more specific, here...

more on that some other day. It's really exciting but so are my Krickets and we have some catchin' up to do! I haven't taken many pictures since August but here is the first installment of Operation Catch-Up.

Caleb turns 8! Daddy made him smiley face chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast and a new wii game was waiting for some action.

Macy got her first hair cut. Here she is with hair extraordinaire, Jessica Howard Cureton.

Here is the finished product.

I geeked it up with the LHS alumni band.

Ryan turned 11. Yes. I said 11. I surprised him by picking up a couple of

his friends for some play time.

Halloween was in there somewhere. We enjoyed trick-or-treating with the Scott family again. They are so sweet to invite us to their real neighborhood with lots of houses with lots of candy!

So that wraps it up for now. Happy memories but boy is time flying!!!

Macy's First Day of School...ever! 3-K here we come!

2011-08-29T12:12:00.000-05:00

Macy has been waiting her whole little life for this! PRESCHOOL! Her first sentence was probably, "Me go, too, Mommy?" as we dropped Avery off. Well, today was the day that "me" could go, too! She had a blast...

Playing Play-doh with a friend. This little guy has a brother that was in Ave's class last year.

Using a glue stick! Whoa...mom usually says no to this one at home. Macy's thinking about what all she could stick together with this thing! Watch out friends!

I can tell we might have to straighten out some inaccurate story lines this year with Mrs. Dunlap and Mrs. Boyd. Macy was going on and on about something that scared her at home. Not sure what the whole story was there. All I heard was Mrs. Dunlap saying, "Oh no, Macy....REALLY?" Yikes.

It was a good day for my lovely little lady. Tomorrow is the first day without mama and I'm going to miss her so much! She might hear me asking, "Me go, too, Macy?"

Out The Door!

2011-08-18T12:09:00.000-05:00

There is nothing like the excitement level on the morning of the first day of school! All three of my little guys are at the same school this year which totally EXCITES me! It won't ever happen again and the mini-van will know it. Ryan and Caleb love school and bond over school events. They talk and talk about things they get to do, friends they make, who had what for lunch, and who was on their ball team at recess. I'm so excited about Avery having that opportunity as well.

We have wonderful teachers this year. Avery has Ryan's teacher ffom 5-K. Caleb has Ryan's teacher from 3rd grade. Ryan has his teacher from last year who looped with their class. We love these ladies so much and feel blessed that they are influencing our children.

Ryan's First Days of School

2011-08-18T11:51:00.000-05:00

2-K

3-K

4-K

5-K

1st Grade

2nd Grade

3rd Grade

4th Grade

5th Grade

*Yes we have the same shirt on for the 4th and 5th grade pics. Funny story...Caleb and Ryan came down for breakfast yesterday morning with the same shirt on. Ryan quickly went back upstairs to change. I guess my days of matching outfits are over!

Caleb's First Days of School

2011-08-18T11:34:00.000-05:00

3-K

4-K

5-K

1st Grade

2nd Grade

3rd Grade

Avery's First Days of School

2011-08-18T11:19:00.000-05:00

3-K

4-K

5-K

Summer Fun... Chapter 1

2011-08-17T08:54:00.000-05:00

So I haven't blogged all summer. It's been crazy. It's been fun. And sometimes it was crazy fun. I'm just going to do a few quick posts about our summer. The pictures say enough in most cases.

VBS 2011

My favorite VBS pic from the week.

We had a great Clemson Reunion with our wonderful friends.

We had a few fun nights with the Dailey and Foster families. I will never forget the CRAZY dance contest by the lake.

Lego MANIA all summer long. I love it!

Kevin snuck this pic of me early one Saturday morning. How dare him...but it does show me in one of my favorite places. We grew flowers this summer. Lots and lots of flowers. Everyone pitched in and it was fun!

End of the year Awards

2011-08-17T08:32:00.000-05:00

I honestly don't know what happened to all of my end of the year pictures. I took lots the last day of school and I can't find them. Hmmmm. We did have a few proud moments at the end of school. Both boys got awards for First in Math and Ryan has been chose for the new team. These boys love school and I am so glad!

Field Day 2011

2011-08-17T08:26:00.000-05:00

Field Day is the biggest day of the year at school! Honestly, my kids start thinking about it in August. Parents come to cheer on the classes. This year, they even had a parent relay which was so fun! I love going, mostly to watch my kids with their friends. I love how they form bonds through out the year. It's fun being in their environment with them! Check out the intensity below. Those who know my kids know how competitive they are.

Avery Turns 5!

2011-08-17T08:25:00.000-05:00

Avery looked forward to turning 5 for so long. He knew he wanted a car cake but can you tell that mom planned the rest? We had a ball balloon, animal bowls, Toy Story plates. Who needs one theme, right? Luckily, he loved all of it! Our friends the Harrisons came over to celebrate with us after school. It was "Baby Ryan's" birthday too. Happy Birthday sweet Ave! I can't imagine life without your sweet smile!

Mother's Day 2011

2011-08-17T08:11:00.000-05:00

I love my kids.

My mom and Granny.

Kevin did so well Mother's Day. He surprised me with Hudson's BBQ after church and a yummy cookie cake!

Take a vote!

2011-05-14T14:00:00.001-05:00

Will Macy actually walk down the aisle today? Results later!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Easter 2011

2011-05-14T06:24:00.000-05:00

Mother's Day Lunch at Preschool

2011-05-03T12:38:00.000-05:00

Whoever put Mother's day in May was nuts. It has to be the busiest time of the year. YES! Even busier than December! Moments like this, though, make it all worth it. Rare moments to have a Kricket one-on-one are so special! Avery and I shared lunch today at the preschool Mother's Day luncheon. It was super special this year because he is off to big school in August! Big thanks to Daddy who ate lunch with Macy and kept her busy until we were done!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Interesting perspective...

2011-05-02T08:16:00.000-05:00

I took this picture while playing dollhouse with Macy today. Later I noticed that the Dad is cleaning the kitchen while the mom is watching TV in the den. I just don't know where she learns these things :-)
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Easter Yummies

2011-04-23T08:07:00.001-05:00

We had Resurrection Rolls for breakfast and made bird nests for an Easter egg hunt later today. Macy ate her roll for breakfast and declared the Jesus is in her belly! She gives new meaning to being filled with THE SPIRIT!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Spring Break Day 4: Lincoln Logs

2011-04-21T09:41:00.000-05:00

We forgot to add DAY 3 so...yesterday we had a play date with the 'lil Bucks and swam with cousin Cayden in Great Uncle Jimmy's heated pool! What fun!
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Easter Break Day 2: Reading and Relaxing

2011-04-19T10:59:00.001-05:00

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Easter Break Day 1: Lunch on the Deck

2011-04-18T11:10:00.000-05:00

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Easter Break Day 1: Shrinky Dinks

2011-04-18T09:26:00.000-05:00

Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Stopping to Smell the Flowers

2011-04-06T22:19:00.000-05:00

Wow. Life has been unbelievably busy lately. We get up before the sun comes up, go to bed way too late, and never seem to have enough time to get it all done. Finding joy "in the moment" has become so important for me. Otherwise, I become totally consumed by this crazy life. Some of those joy-moments for me lately have been driving to preschool on a sunny morning as Macy and Avery sing together, hearing Caleb pray for friends that don't know Jesus, snuggling with Ryan at night as he talks about his day, and talking with Kevin on the sofa after the house is quiet at night.

I took the pictures below on one of the first warm days we had after a very cold winter. It was one of those rare joy-moments where we literally stopped to smell the flowers! It was such a wonderful moment until...Macy sat in an ant bed. It was pretty bad...bites everywhere. Actually, it was the perfect picture of where we are in life. Stop to smell the flowers... but don't stop too long or life will eat you alive!

March Madness!

2011-03-23T12:39:00.000-05:00

We went on a trip to see Grandma and Grandpa recently and the boys were so excited that there was a basketball goal at the neighbor's house! These guys can shoot hoops for hours and they've developed quite a few tricks!

Ryan is passing the ball to Caleb under his legs. Look at that smile on his face!

Caleb catches the pass and puts it for a score!

Next, Ryan dribbles between his legs and then...

up for basket! Uh oh...Daddy jumps into the game.

Good luck with that one, boys! He doesn't cut them any slack.

The best part, though, was playing with Grandpa. Hopefully we can do it again soon!

Macy turns 3!!!

2011-03-03T16:07:00.000-05:00

We've turned a very strange corner in our house. There are no itty-bitty babies. For the first time in 10 years, a child in our house has turned three without a baby sibling behind them. Our sweet baby girl turned three on Valentines Day and boy did we party!

She started the day with a rowdy "Happy Birthday" from the men of the house. She so loves attention!

On to the kitchen where we partied with Krispy Kreme Valentine donuts and opened a few presents.

She loved her new dollhouse furniture! Just a side note: The boys had been on "screen-time restriction" for a few days so after they all left for school and we took Avery to preschool, she said, "Mama, how 'bout some TV for this birthday girl!" She is such a crack-up!

After picking up the boys from school, we partied at Build-A-Bear. The boys helped her choose a bear to make and this sweet lady stuffed "Princess Bear". Macy picked up the...um....carcass?... of the bear before it was stuffed and about had a conniption. I'm not sure she quite understood the process until...

The lady asked her to hug "Princess Bear" to see if she was stuffed enough. Macy said, "NO!" Images of a pink carcass were still weighing heavy on her mind. The sweet stuffer lady added a little more stuff and then we all put a heart inside before she sealed her up.

Somehow I didn't get a picture of the finished product. I will...maybe...before next year and post it. Trust me. It was the tackiest thing you've ever seen but it was ALL Macy! She picked out a Disney princess shirt and blue jeans for her to wear and she sings a really loud birthday song. It was fun and the boys did so well helping Macy. They would bring all kinds of accessories over for Princess Bear to try on.

Afterwards, we partied over at Nana and Papa's with a french toast dinner.

Not that we needed anymore sugar but we ate cake, too, and opened a few more presents.

Macy loved her Bitty Baby accessories. Happy Birthday to our sweet girl! We are so thankful God blessed us with YOU!

Snow skiing ...South Carolina style!

2011-02-10T14:15:00.001-05:00

We had a huge snow in January! Huge for SC at least. It stuck around for about a week. The kids were out of school for four days. We had such a great time...at least for the first day or two. We were going a little stir crazy by the end of the week, though! We ended up going up to the church gym to ride trikes one day. Thank you, God, for planting us in the south! I love to see snow but also love to see it melt!

36.

2011-02-10T14:03:00.000-05:00

Birthday time for Kevin and me! We both celebrate our birthdays in January. For Kevin's birthday, the boys went to the LHS basketball game. Check out the bottom picture...how long can I get away with matching these boys?

Compton Christmas 2010

2011-02-10T13:39:00.000-05:00

Great Grands are growing up!!! We always look forward to getting together with the Comptons during Christmas. We all see each other occasionally but it's always nice to have everyone together at least once during the year. The little ones are growing up and enjoy playing together so much.

We enjoyed princess parades throughout the night.

We ate spaghetti, salad, and had lots of munchies!

Aunt Bek is the shrinky dink expert. She let all of the kids make one.

Watching the shrinky dinks bake was better than watching cartoon network. Everyone ended up with beautiful creations and we enjoyed a great night of catching up with family.

Christmas Cookies!!!

2011-02-10T13:30:00.000-05:00

Christmas Eve and Christmas Morning 2010

2011-02-10T13:24:00.000-05:00

Here are a few more Christmas pictures. We enjoy getting to spend time with my brother and sister-in-law on Christmas Eve along with my parents and Uncle David. We go to Christmas Eve service and then head back to open presents and eat grits, eggs, and salmon patties. Normally, we have a bonfire and watch fireworks from across the lake but it was soooooo cold this year we just stayed inside and enjoyed them from the kitchen table.

The gangs all here. Macy loves her Aunt B!

Papa helps put the finishing touches on dinner. Nana seems to be laughing at something...maybe Papa in the kitchen without hotdogs boiling??? Macy got a babydoll for Christmas. She immediately named the baby "Pum". Later we talked her into a more normal name...Sarah Baby which has finally been shortened to Sarah.

Santa came Christmas morning and left some goodies for the kiddos.

The big boys got a ping pong table, Avery a power wheels, and Macy got dollhouse furniture. The boys are hugging the DS they got from mom and dad. Caleb has passed out on the floor from sheer shock.

Macy also got a few princess toys. Notice that her PJ's match Sarah Baby's.

Aren't they cute!

Christmas: The tackier makes me happier!

2011-02-06T22:12:00.000-05:00

Thought I'd post some of my Christmas decor from this year. I change things up quite frequently. When we were first married, I had coordinating everything. Now that we have kids, we can't get enough colored flashing lights. Funny how kids change EVERYTHING!

My favorite new light set was the icicle lights around the kitchen the windows. I stole this idea from my friend Patrice. The boys love our Clemson tree!

Cute little mailbox and snowman that light up Caleb made the snowman in kindergarten.

More colored lights in a cookie jar.

I attempted to put out part of my village this year. Do you see the building with the fake snow on the roof? That's because there is no roof anymore. It caved in either from an elbow or a ball. No one will fess up to that one. I'm thinking we need to leave the village in the attic for a few more years!

Aunt Donna gave me this cute little tree set this year. It sparkles and I love it! In the background, you can see our big family tree. It's loaded with flashing colored lights. It's my favorite!

My Granny Taylor made this ceramic tree. It stays in our bedroom. It makes me smile and think of her! Below is the dining room...more lights from top to bottom :-)

We have a blank tree skirt. We trace the kids hands each year and then write their favorite gift on their hand. We love to put their hands up against the old drawings to see how they've grown! If Ryan's hand gets too much bigger we're going to run out of room fast!

10th Annual Dailey-Foster-Krick Caroling Night

2011-01-27T18:51:00.000-05:00

One of the highlights of Christmas time for our family is going caroling with our wonderful friends. When this tradition began, we would bundle everyone up, plopped the kids in strollers, and went out to sing. Believe it or not...this was our first year without a stroller! These eleven (all from our 3 families) kiddos are growing up! Take a good look at them!

The picture above is starting with the youngest and going up to the oldest.

The picture below is starting at the top with the oldest.

OK...now for the silly face shot!

We always include a birthday party for Jesus.

and eat lots of pizza!

Here is our oldest baby...now a TEENAGER!!

Yep, we let everybody sing.

We actually sounded pretty good this year even though most of the neighbors weren't home. We sang to a few barking dogs, a child who had just gotten out of the tub, a woman and her daughter barely spoke just enough English to tell us that the candy was inside (she thought we were trick-or-treating), and we sang to lots of closed doors...

Hopefully, someone saw Jesus in these little faces. We can't wait until next time :-)

Silly-Ave

2011-01-19T14:05:00.000-05:00

I finally upgraded cameras. This is my first shot and oh so typical of this little guy.

We've resorted to the dress-up box.

2011-01-17T08:45:00.001-05:00

After a week of snow days and a school holiday today, we're working hard to keep ourselves entertained around here! I found a Buzz-ninja-guy, pretty firefighter, a robot, and a baseball player trying to spy on me this morning! Funny how 4 kids think they can sneak up on me! Notice Ryan down in the corner of the picture. He's smart enough to know where my pictures go so he's protecting his tweenage reputation! Back to school tomorrow.

Learning to blog via blackberry!

2011-01-14T08:11:00.002-05:00

Uh-oh!!! For all of you complainers out there that keep reminding me that I haven't posted since December...watch out! I'm learning to provide you with breaking Kricket news!

Christmas 2010: Avery's Preschool Christmas program

2010-12-28T14:33:00.000-05:00

Managing family life during December (Christmas) and May (end of the school year) makes my head spin. My December calendar looks like an ink pen threw up on it...so much that I had to stop using it and found that flying by the seat of my pants was actually less stressful. That way, if I forgot something, I never realized it unless someone said something and if no one said anything then it must not be important or either they were too embarrassed for me because I forgot it and in that case I'd REALLY rather not know. So, now that it's after Christmas and January is right around the corner, maybe I can catch up on some blog posts!

Avery had his four year old Christmas program at preschool the beginning of December. There is nothing I love more than watching little ones reenact the Holiest of nights. Truly...it's precious, funny, meaningful and all wrapped up in 20 minutes. Program day began with the sudden realization (hands on both cheeks, mouth open wide while saying "OH NO!") that I hadn't made Avery's angel choir smocky, robe, shirt thingie. With no cheap fabric store in town, I headed to Walmart to buy a cheap white bed sheet and green ribbon. After standing in pick-up line at preschool that morning listening to the good mamas talk about hemming (two weeks ago) the edges of their robe to make it look cleaner I began to sweat. When one mama looked at me and asked me how a professional seamstress (that's the one who hasn't turned on her machine in 6 months) like myself made one I told the semi-truth and said that I was still working on it and planned to finish during naptime. Needless to say, Ave had his angel thingie on at 7 PM that night when it was time for him to show the world what an ANGEL he really is. Here is a picture of him with his friend Price.

Look at all of those angels! Avery was singing his little heart out.

These angel girls were precious. Our friend Larkin is the first one on the second row.

Avery's sweet teacher might have been laughing at the same thing we were for most of the program...

This. Joseph was a crack up. He made lots of faces, yawned, acted like a camel.

Here is a closer look. Wouldn't you do that, too, if you had a crying newborn in a cold stable? I think I've seen Kevin make that same face in the middle of some sleepless nights with newborn Krickets!

Many thanks to the wonderful teachers at our preschool for loving and teaching our children.

Merry Christmas from the Kricks!

2010-12-22T21:21:00.000-05:00

KRICK FAMILY 2010 top ten...

2010-12-16T14:38:00.002-05:00

KEVIN & ANDREA

10. Kevin ran a half marathon in the spring and an 8 K in November.

9. Andrea’s best mornings include Group Pump fitness class at church.

8. There isn’t a crib in our house anymore.

7. We celebrated our 13th anniversary in Hilton Head.

6. We went to Disney World in October where we always have as much fun as the kids!

5. Kevin took Ryan and Caleb snow skiing along with his college roommate and his son.

4. Andrea continues to love working in the nursery at church, especially because of #8.

3. Kevin served as president of SC American Society of Civil Engineers.

2. A new Publix is opening five minutes from our house. Really...that’s a huge deal!

1. We continue to enjoy and thank God for the wildest ride ever as parents to these four precious little ones:

RYAN - AGE 10

10. I played soccer, basketball, and football.

9. I was top player in my class for First in Math.

8. I loved snowskiing.

7. Soarin’ at Epcot was my favorite ride.

6. The Disney Philharmonic played Happy Birthday to me.

5. I like to read “The Hardy Boys”. Mom and I are reading "Harry Potter" together.

4. I’m Amos in our Christmas musical at church

3. I’m crazy about Clemson sports.

2. I got a camera and love to take pictures.

1. I love my family and dog Zoe very much!

CALEB - AGE 7

10. I went snowskiing.

9. I love to tube behind the boat.

8. My favorite NFL team is the Buffalo Bills.

7. I went to my first Altanta Braves game.

6. I rode Space Mountain four times with mom at Disney.

5. I wear my CJ Spiller jersey to school once a week and sign my papers

at school CJ because my name IS Caleb Jordan.

4. I played soccer, basketball, and baseball this year.

3.. I can do cool tricks on my bike.

2. I read 200 books in first grade and in 2nd grade I read chapter books.

1. I asked Jesus into my heart and was baptized this year.

AVERY - AGE 4

10. I can ride a bike without training wheels.

9. I can swim without swimmies.

8. I sit at the piano everyday and play songs that I've heard before.

7. My favorite part preschool is calendar time. I have my own calendar in my room.

6. I catch spiders and hide them in my room. Mom screams.

5. I rode Thunder Mountain Railroad 12 times at Disney.

4. I was Buzz Lightyear for Halloween.

3. Nana took me to the mountains all by myself. I can't wait to go back.

2. Mom made up a song about the planets and we sing it every night.

1. I’m mom’s helper and Macy’s best friend during the day.

MACY - AGE 2

10. I collected five My Little Ponies.

9. Dad bought me a pink baseball glove.

8. I now sleep in a big girl bed.

7. I rode on a tube in the water.

6. I saw princesses at Disney World.

5. It snowed 7 inches for my birthday.

4. I taught my brothers to jump when I say jump.

3. I can ride a bike with training wheels.

2. I loved the water slide at the beach.

1. Mom can put my hair up in piggy tails.

Macy Moment

2010-12-03T20:52:00.001-05:00

Sweet to silly in a split second.

Blog Blip

2010-12-02T20:34:00.000-05:00

It's been busy around here! Naturally, the holidays are a busy time but for the last five years, it gets super busy as the Christmas card picture requests come in. I know it's really hard to tell but I LOVE playing with my camera. Photography, along with sewing, has been my creative outlet during these "stay at home mom" years. This time of year, it makes me happy to get to see so many of our friends, to take pictures of their cute families, and then to later see the pictures on Christmas cards that I get in the mail. Thought I'd post just a few from the past month.

Scary that it's taken me this long to...

2010-11-19T14:51:00.001-05:00

post halloween pictures! We had a great time! We went to the Fall Festival at church and had a great time trunk-or-treating, jumping in the bouncy things, and eating free popcorn!

Ryan was a football player.

Caleb was some Star Wars guy. I'm not sure he knew who he was.

Ave was Buzz.

Macy was Minnie. Isn't the pillowcase dress cute?

On Sunday, our friends The Scotts invited us over to do some real trick or treating in their neighborhood. My kids have NEVER done that before and they were AMAZED! The neighborhood had a little party to begin the night with a crazy amount of food! I'm talking chicken and dumplings, chilli, pizza, every sweet under the sun. We came home with loads of candy. As usual, Mom and Dad have to ~~taste test~~ "inspect" each piece after the kids go to bed at night :-)

Blogger Community gone CrAzY!!!!

2010-11-18T13:00:00.000-05:00

If you haven't heard (and that would only happen if you don't blog-stalk which if you're reading this you obviously do) Shutterfly.com is offering a great deal to bloggers! 50 FREE HOLIDAY CARDS! That word FREE just jumps right out at Christmas time, doesn't it! So, of course, because Shutterfly quality is way above the rest, I'm jumping on this one. I've almost decided between the following. Let me know which one you want showing up in your mailbox :-)

Mickey Memory Monday: The MELTDOWN!

2010-11-15T14:20:00.001-05:00

I LOVE this memory!... or at least I LOVE what could have become of this memory. As usual, with kids, things never go as planned. We stayed out all day on Monday visiting Epcot that morning and making it into the Magic Kingdom by 3:00 PM for the parade. We found a great spot on the street to watch the parade and a few minutes later, Kevin surprised us with ice cream cones! OH how tasty they were... for the 2 whole minutes before they melted into a big messy puddle on the sidewalk and all over their little hands and shirts. Just imagine four kids crying on the street corner at the "happiest place on earth " with sticky ice cream all over them. OH it was a nightmare! As I was cleaning everyone up, the parade started which totally freaked Macy out. I think I've said before that it took her half the week to get use to the loud music and people with really big heads. She started screaming and jumping up and down in the ice cream puddles. These are the images I'd like to remember...

I was told that Kevin had bought he and I one to share. I vaguely remember that.

Wait...here it is.

It looks like it tasted really good!

Lifelong buddies

2010-10-26T16:41:00.000-05:00

I met Patrice almost 13 years ago. From the moment we met, I knew God had put Patrice in my life to be one of those close friends that would walk beside me through the ups and downs of life. You know the type...the kind where you take turns leaning hard on each other and during those times where you both need to lean hard it's understood that it's OK to have a pity party over a peanut butter fudge milkshake We immediately began meeting to pray together and holding each other to our mutual goal of becoming Godly women. Over the last 13 years, one of life's "ups" happened to us at the same time (although we probably drank more milkshakes during this joyful time than we ever have during a valley :-). We ended up with the same due date for my second child and her fourth! We were due on August 16th, 2003 with Matthew and Caleb. We called them belly buddies from the beginning.

Here we are about to POP! Patrice did pop early...probably a few weeks after this picture, on August 5th. Of course, as usual, baby Krick was late and Caleb was born on August 20th.

Here are Caleb and "Maff" (Caleb's name for him) when they were only two months old.

Here are the belly buddies on their first birthday in the picture above Below is one of my favorites.

Caleb and Matthew recently turned seven. A few weeks ago, Patrice told me that Matthew was about to lose his second front tooth in a row which shocked me because Caleb was, too. We knew we had to take a picture of these special guys as soon as it happened. Can you believe they both lost their front teeth at the same time? Don't they look so cute? How long can we say that and get away with it?

I'm so glad God fills those "gaps" in life with special friends :-)

Mickey Memory Monday: Avery's Favorite Ride was...

2010-10-25T13:00:00.000-05:00

"Funder Mountain Wailroad"! The kid road it about 12 times! One night, we went back into Disney to watch the light parade again and realized that it was the best time to ride rides because everyone was waiting on the street for the parade. We got on and off Thunder Mountain many many times and still caught the parade that ends right there in Frontier Land. I road with Ave a few times and he's absolutely hilarious! He squirms all the way up the big hill like he can't wait to get to the top. The last few times, he and Caleb were holding their arms up in the air like coaster professionals. He's going to be my thrill ride partner along with my dad (a later post will be all about the Rockin' Roller Coaster that Dad and I braved twice!) If you see Ave, ask him about "Funder Mountain" if you have about 10 minutes to spare. He'll talk your ear off about it! Avery and Kevin are in the pictures below along with Ryan and Caleb in the seat behind them.

I had to throw in this picture of Macy in her Tink shirt. We were waiting for the boys to get off Test Track...another Avery favorite! We sat and watched to monorails go over our heads.

Mickey Memory Monday

2010-10-19T06:45:00.000-05:00

I'm off to a great start with my Mickey Memory Monday! You're lucky to be reading this on Tuesday :-) We visited Animal Kingdom first on our trip to Disney. We enjoyed the rope drop show here because it was our first glimpse of the characters! We headed straight for the Safari ride and loved seeing the different animals! Here are pics of a few:

Hungry Hungry Hippo

Gorgeous Lion King!

Lion King's wife

Love this pic of a bird taking flight!

We see these guys all the time at Riverbanks but this one really knew how to pose!

Nana and Papa with the kids waiting on the train.

The boys LOVED the Kali River Rapids and I think Nana and Papa did, too! Avery and Nana got really really wet! Papa and I rode the Expedition Everest roller coaster. WOW! That was fun! I do suggest doing AK first. It's really great but isn't as "magical" as the other parks. I hear the shows at AK are great. Kevin could tell you. Macy freaked out every time we went into one because they are a little loud so I just stayed out with her. The neatest thing happened after I took her out of Lion King. Minnie Mouse was over in her meet and greet hut so I thought we'd attempt seeing a character. I was talking with Minnie's helper before it was our turn and told him about Macy's fear of the Lion King. He noticed she also seemed apprehensive about Minnie, too, so he walked us up to Minnie and asked Minnie if she would escort us to meet Mickey. They stopped the whole line so that Minnie could escort us over to Mickey's hut. We walked right up to Mickey and had a nice little visit with both Minnie and Mickey at the same time. How often does that happen? Of course, I had left my camera with Kevin. More Disney to come!

The Pwincess is BACK!

2010-10-16T21:28:00.001-05:00

4 1/2 years ago, we took a trip to Disney World with my parents. I was 30 weeks pregnant with Avery but still had an incredible vacation! On that trip, I became comfortable with the fact that I would always be a "boy mama" and would have to accept things like being tugged towards the Buzz and Woody meet and greet lines rather than the princess room where you could get autographs of all the Disney princesses! I was OK with that. In fact, that trip was when Caleb coined my nickname "pwincess mama" and declared me his pwincess. I love remembering those feelings of understanding my purpose in life as a mom to three boys because who would have ever thought on the next Disney trip...4 1/2 years later...I would have a picture like this!

I was giddy. I know it's silly but I was. Look at Macy's face. She couldn't wipe the grin off her face. She loved them...really loved them. My boys were such troopers. They stood in line for 15 minutes (and only complained twelve times and only tried to get out of the whole thing by insisting they were going to wet their pants if they didn't get to a bathroom) until those doors to the princess room swung open. Even my little three little guys were a little starstruck. They volunteered to get their picture taken with us and Caleb even blushed when one called him a dashing young prince.

I have so many pictures to post and so many stories to tell. I think I'll do it slowly...maybe a little each week. All I know right now is that I'm tired. Disney hangovers are real.

Thanks Nana and Papa for a fun trip. And YES...can I say it one more time? I got to meet a real pwincess!

Baseball, Parenting, and Hardball Lessons

2010-09-20T16:19:00.001-05:00

I've had to learn this lesson over and over as a parent: Never say never. Most of the time, it comes back to haunt me. The latest "never say never" lesson happened because I've always said that my boys will NEVER play baseball. The sport bores me and the league around here is borderline cult-like (in a happy, sporty, competitive, sort of way). It's just THAT serious! My feelings have been so strong about it that I about threw up when Caleb announced a while back that he wanted to try baseball. My answer was NO. Kevin, being the more level-headed parent took him out in the back yard to prove to him why we shouldn't try baseball. It didn't work. After hearing clang after clang after clang of the bat and watching ball after ball after ball fly out into the yard, Kevin starts ~~jokingly~~ talking about how our child might be our ticket to an early retirement. We gave in and Caleb has started the (not as serious as the spring) "Fall Ball" Dixie Youth Baseball season. How is it "not so serious" you ask? The season is shorter, it's suppose to be more instructive, and according to someone...get this...we encourage each other and the other team. Really, I know what this person meant, I think. So, Caleb had his first game on Sunday. FALL Ball this year means sitting out in 95 degree heat which we did to watch our little slugger help his team win their first game. Of course, I took a few pictures.

That's my boy!

Running bases. I don't know his stats from the game. Kevin does. All I know is that he crossed home plate a few times. Caleb being the dramatic kid that he is never just crossed home plate. He did this:

If I would have clicked two seconds sooner you would've seen a nice graceful slide. Sidenote: the ball was no where near him. He just thought it would be fun to slide. I will admit that I kind of had fun. OK, I really enjoyed myself and maybe sort of kind of might be looking forward to the next game.

Stay tuned because another "never say never" moment happens today. Ryan has his first football practice.

Macy Sets Mom Straight!

2010-09-17T14:12:00.000-05:00

There are so many things to keep up with in our household. Meal plans, coupons, grocery lists, laundry, toilets to clean, scrubbing this, sweeping that, homework help, disciplining, carpool lines, carpool lines, carpool lines, teaching responsibility, and just trying to keep up with a LIFE that often feels like it's on the verge of spinning out of control. Sometimes, my days just blend together and when I look back at each week, all I can see is a big blur of movement. On Monday (my get-things-back-in-order-from-the-weekend day) Macy looked up at me and said, "Mama, come play doll babies with me." Oh, melt my heart! I told her that I had to get a load of clothes in the washer first which I did plus 5 or 6 other things. When I finally got to her room I saw this...

She and her babies aren't exactly healthy eaters! Macy informed me that I had missed dinner and my heart sank. I thought back to my new years resolution and mentally threw my priorities back in order. I'm glad that happened on Monday because the rest of the week has been full of some great memories! Here are a few pictures of Macy from our trip to the park on Tuesday (where we stayed until Macy, not Mom, felt like leaving :-)

Happy 7th Birthday, Cay-Bug!

2010-09-14T16:41:00.000-05:00

Caleb was due August 16th. He could've come early and avoided the back-to-school-birthday but, like all Krickets, he chose to stay put...until August 20th which we made his birthday by the power of pitocin. So, his birthday seems to get shoved in with the school hoopla. This year he had a birthday pancake breakfast before school...

and a party that night with our adopted cousins the Fosters and the Dailey family. Caleb had a list of games and activities he wanted everyone to play which included football, baseball, and swimming (a given if we're having a party in August).

The football games got a little serious with some pretty incredible plays that took major huddle time and some tackles that I missed with the camera because I was too busy scolding.

We kept the chips and dip company while watching from the kitchen.

It was much better than College Gameday.

We are so thankful for our little Caleb! He's such a blessing to everyone he meets. He had a few other birthday treats that will hopefully make it to the blog before too long!

Beach Trip

2010-09-03T09:39:00.000-05:00

Right before school started, we took a three night whirlwind trip to the beach. The kids really enjoyed the water park where we stayed. The back of our condo was so pretty! Of course, the football made it out of the car and into the backyard pretty quickly!

Last time we came here I was pregnant (I can say that for most of the things that we've done in the past 10 years) so I didn't venture up the slippery slides. This time, we all couldn't get enough. The slides aren't huge but there's nothing like sliding down a water slide with your two year old! We giggled so much and both said, "MORE, PLEASE!"

Then we would sit under the huge bucket and wait and wait for it to drench us!

We played some putt-putt. Next time I think we'll reserve the course since we had a line behind us waiting that was a mile long. What do you expect with four players nine and under?

We went out to the beach every morning to dig and skurf and bury something or someone!

Caleb was born a wiggle worm. I have no idea how we got him to stay still long enough to bury him.

Ryan liked to skurf. He found a few friends his age out at the beach that were doing the same thing.

The kids also endured the yearly beach photoshoot. Here is what we got. Don't gasp if you see these again in December.

I love my little stair steps! We had such a good time together! It was a great way to end the summer!

Avery starts 4-K!

2010-08-30T13:08:00.000-05:00

Today was big for our little Ave-man! He started 4-K with his teachers Mrs. Lambrecht and Mrs. Whittle. We had a great time at orientation this morning. Here are a few pics along with his yearly school progression pictures on our front step. I really can NOT believe he wore the same thing last year for the first day. I hope I can keep these two pictures straight 10 years from now!

3 year old preschool - Mrs. Pack and Mrs. Sox

4 year old preschool - Mrs. Lambrecht and Mrs. Whittle (below- Mrs. L is on the right and Mrs. Whittle is on the left)

Avery is ready to work!

His favorite part of the morning was completing the scavenger hunt around the room. He's a Krick so that's probably because he got a bag of Skittles when he turned it in.

They sang the good morning song and he got a big hug from his friend Price!

We can't wait for a full morning tomorrow!

Take your weeds...

2010-08-24T11:12:00.000-05:00

and turn them into a bouquet.

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.

Romans 8:28 (New American Standard Bible)

Krickets take over the zoo!

2010-08-19T12:41:00.000-05:00

We've had zoo passes for almost ten years and it's one of our favorite places to go. If I have something to do, Kevin loads the kids in the car and takes them himself. This year, Riverbanks offered a special add-on to the normal zoo membership. For a little extra, all of the special activities at the zoo are free each time you visit. Because we go so much, and because our kids are at a good age to experience all of the extra activities, we decided to do it. Boy is it fun! Here are some pictures of a few of the activities.

The boys love the climbing wall. Daddy even joined in the fun!

Caleb made it up and down 10 times while everyone else struggled with their first.

The carousel ride is included and Macy loved it!

Feeding the Giraffes was really cool!

Feeding the birds is also included. I was not so thrilled that one landed on my shoulder as soon as I walked in. He scared me when he landed and then he got really comfortable and wouldn't leave.

The birds really are beautiful!

They also were able to ride the train....

And see a sweet little friend from church.

One of my favorite animals on this trip was the anaconda. They were moving really fast on this day. Usually they are sleeping. Look at the one in the back. I caught him yawning! Check out that mouth! We can't wait for the weather to cool off so we can head back to the zoo for more adventures!

School Days!

2010-08-18T10:03:00.004-05:00

School started this morning! The boys were so excited and didn't seem near as nervous as last year. Here are a few pictures from the morning and the next few posts will have their "First Days" pictures.

I love to watch them grow!

Feeding Zoe and hugging her bye.

I love this one. They talked all the way into school. Caleb was getting a little brotherly advice on recess, I think. Hope they like what Mama packed in those lunch boxes!

Caleb's First Days of School

2010-08-18T10:03:00.003-05:00

Caleb started second grade today! He is growing so quickly. He held my hand on the way down the hall to his class. I bet that's the last time that'll happen...made me tear up a little! Here are his first days pictures.

Caleb - 3 year old preschool at LBK (Mrs. Edwards)

Caleb - 4 year old preschool (Mrs. Martin)

Caleb - 5-K (Mrs. Crocker)

Caleb - First Grade (Mrs. Hubbard)

Caleb - Second Grade (Mrs. Herndon)

I got the "hug your teacher" photo with Caleb. Mrs. Herndon is so sweet and Caleb is so excited to have her for a teacher! He also saw his buddy Kodie. Can you believe that Mrs. Herndon, Caleb, and Kodie all have birthdays on August 20th? I can't wait to get a Caleb hug in a few hours!

Ryan's First Days of School

2010-08-18T10:03:00.001-05:00

Ryan started fourth grade today! Here are our yearly progression of pictures.

His legs are getting too long to fit in my pictures!

Ryan - 2 year old preschool LBK (Mrs. Rush)

Ryan - 3 year old preschool LBK (Mrs. Edwards)

Ryan - 4 year old preschool LBK (Mrs. Martin)

Ryan - 5-K (Mrs. Quiat)

Ryan- First Grade (Mrs. Taylor)

Ryan - 2nd Grade (Mrs. Fox)

Ryan - 3rd Grade (Mrs. Derrick)

Ryan - 4th Grade (Mrs. Brown)

He's too old for the "hug your new teacher" photo but I did get a shot of him walking in the door. His teacher is very nice...she hugged him as soon as he walked in. I could hear a child yelling, "Ryan". I can't wait to hear about his day!

Last Day of Summer

2010-08-17T14:07:00.001-05:00

There are so many posts that I need to catch up on from summer time but it's a big day today...the last day of summer 2010. Tomorrow begins a new school year but today...we CELEBRATE! We began the day with a quick breakfast so that we could make it to Edventure when it opened.

The kids love Eddie although I was a little disgusted about our conversation on the way home about how they should have fake poop somewhere. For those of you that don't know...you can go inside Eddie to see his spine, belly, brain, etc. No fake poop thank goodness.

I've written about these exhibits a number of times but this special Blue Man exhibit was new and lots of fun!

We made our own Kricket band!

We also visited the butterfly exhibit which was so neat! I could have spent lots of time in there except that I was afraid my Krickets were going to de-wing those poor creatures.

After leaving, we went to Walmart to pick out special notebooks and pencils to take to school tomorrow and ate pizza for lunch. I'm going to miss my big boys tomorrow. The house will be 1/2 as loud and only 1/2 as entertaining. They are so excited about school. Better believe our first day pics will be up tomorrow!

Everyday Fun

2010-08-14T12:51:00.001-05:00

This summer has absolutely flown by. I was a little down the other day as I realized how busy we were all summer and I felt like my favorite thing...just being together...was often put on the backburner. Then, I looked through my pictures and I realized how much we were "just together" making memories.

We set up a little people village on the screen porch one day which entertained everyone for quite a while.

I love watching them play together!

We made a lemonade stand. I know...on our road? We saw 2 cars in 2 hours. Thankfully Uncle David, Nana, and a nice man from down the street bought a cup.

We've done a few fun little activities like shining pennies.

The kids made a carnival. Here is Avery fishing for treats. They also bobbed for oranges because I was out of apples.

Check out the pulp oozin' out. YUM! Don't you want to stick your head in there! This guy did...

He's had his share of vitamin C for while!

We went a few places like Monkey Joes and the Zoo. The zoo post will come later. That's always one of our favorite things to do!

The boys spent two weeks at camp. One week was at music camp and one week at our church's "Grab it and Go" camp. Lots of fun!

My favorite thing about everyday during the summer? Hanging out together in our PJ's, eating breakfast together, and just taking it easy!

After 10 years...no more crib!

2010-07-31T17:06:00.000-05:00

It was a sentimental day for us on June 5th. Dad began his chores for the weekend and at the top of the list was painting Macy's new bed. That meant that for the first time in ten years we would be without a crib in our house. At one point we had two cribs so, without trying to sound too dramatic, this moment was kind of a big deal to this mama! I remember picking out this crib at Baby Depot. We didn't have a Babies R Us close by ten years ago. I remember wanting a drawer underneath to store sheets and blankets and boy did that come in handy! Honestly, Kevin and I can't believe how well this crib held up. It still looks almost brand new except for one or two scuff marks. Here is Macy waking up from her last nap in her crib.

Look how tall she is! She only tried to climb out one time since she turned two

and didn't quite like the rough landing :-)

Nana found Macy's bed at a garage sale for $25! Mom thought that was such a good deal (and I think she knew the seller) that she payed more for it. WHAT? That's what I said! Let me know when you're having a garage sale and I'll bring my mom! Here is her new bed in her room.

The bedspread was found buried in a closet at my grandparents. I found the dust ruffle for $7 and the chenille sham for $2 at Linensource.com. They have a great clearance section online! Macy saw the fluffy pink pillow at TJ Maxx and went "2 year old loony" over it...jump out of the buggy, kicking and screaming kind of loony. I usually don't appease looniness in stores by purchasing the want but I was kind of going a little loony over it myself. Plus, it was like $2. So now we are without a crib, but we have a cute little white iron bed instead. Over the last two months, Macy has only gotten out of bed one time (knocking on my wooden desk as I type) and she waits for us to come get her out. She's been great!

This was her first night in her new bed. She looks like a big girl doesn't she! Night Night!

We ARE more than just Bible Study girls!

2010-07-30T09:17:00.000-05:00

We know how to play and have a good time, too! I have a sweet group of friends who started meeting back during the winter for Bible study. It has been a wonderful chance for me to get back "out in the real world" after feeling very home bound the last few years with babies. It has given me a chance to not only dive into the Bible a little deeper but also to connect with these wonderful ladies. We haven't met for Bible study over the summer but we did get together to catch up. We had a great time visiting with each other at the lake, watching kids play, and just relaxing.

Mrs. Carrie brought a great activity for the kids: MAKING ICE CREAM! She had the full attention of every child there! They were fascinated!

They made chocolate and vanilla. Each child got to choose their flavor.

After adding the ingredients, they shook the bags until the ice cream was ready. You would not believe how awesome that ice cream tasted! It reminded me of a Wendy's frosty.

YUM!!!! We all ate ice cream and then played some more!

Summer: Time with family and friends!

2010-07-22T13:53:00.000-05:00

Summer time please slow down! It's flying by way too quickly! We've had some great time with friends and family. Here are just a few of the things that have happened around here!

These two have been friends since they were in two year old preschool together. We love for their family to pop up to swim with us with their new cute dog Drake!

Grandma and Grandpa came and the kids had a ball fishing. Each of the boys caught a fish or two! What a treat to get to fish with the fishing master: Grandpa!

We enjoyed a short visit with Aunt Beck and her sister Wimberly. My kids adore them both!

We watched the fourth of July fireworks with Uncle David on his boat!

I got an exciting facebook message from this long time friend one day. My sweet friend Kim was in town visiting family and wanted to come hang out with us for the morning. I was so excited! We haven't seen each other in 15 years. Kim was one of those friends that I could always talk to for hours and things haven't changed...we just didn't have long enough. I wish I had taken more pics. She has three precious children who fit right in with the Krickets!

I forgot to take pictures at the end of the year bash with the Dailey and Foster family, our Sunday School party and a few other play dates including one with cousin Addy and one with cousin Cayden. Next, I'll be posting a few from a Bible Study get together we had which was so much fun. I'm so thankful that God has surrounded us with such good friends and an amazing family.

VBS 2010: Saddleridge Ranch

2010-07-13T13:06:00.000-05:00

Can you tell that bloggin' takes a back seat during the summer? I'm a few weeks behind but here are pictures from VBS at our church. This is the first year that I have been every day all week in many years. Hmmm...there always seems to be a newborn in the house during VBS. Two precious friends of mine who have three kids a piece pushed through the entire week while nursing a newborn so it can be done...and they did it well with big smiles on their faces! Our theme this year was Saddleridge Ranch. The music was fun and made better by these ladies...

And every day started in a crazy silly way thanks to our pastors who are incredibly competitive! "Minute to Win It" was a highlight for the kids!

I wish I had pictures of the chicken races the last day! I signed up to float wherever they needed help but found my place in preschool recreation doing this with those two friends I mentioned:

We had a ball!
I also got to spend that time with Macy and Avery which was a treat!

One morning, I was able to take a few pictures for the

slide show at the end.

These are two of my favorite kids and pictures :-)

Here is a picture of Caleb's class taught by two more sweet ladies.

We all had such a good time! Can't wait until next year!

Stars and Stripes 4EVER!

2010-07-04T16:13:00.000-05:00

Happy 4th of July!

Rewind: Memorial Day with the Allreds

2010-06-29T13:40:00.000-05:00

The Allred family spent the weekend with us Memorial Day weekend and, as usual, we had so much fun! We love it when they come because they walk in along with their two kids and somehow, life with four kids get easier. The kids play well together, Kevin has a friend to play with, and Merri Anna and I have time to sit back and chat! They also bring their motor boat which is a huge treat considering you have to pedal or row everything we have. The kids do lots of this...

We eat really good, too. This year, Ryan and Merri Anna brought some BBQ from famous Pete in Rock Hill. I'm not one of those BBQ snobs that only likes it one way but this was the most delicious stuff I've ever put on a bun! Here are a few more pics of the kids from that weekend...

Caleb, Alex, and Ryan

The rest of the crew...Avery, Macy, and Emily.

We can't wait to see you all again!

Caleb's Baptism at Gibson Pond

2010-06-23T12:28:00.000-05:00

God made us all unique and special but when it comes to Caleb, I think he had some tricks up his sleeve! Caleb was born with massive amounts of determination and the willingness to do whatever it takes to get what he wants. As a baby, Caleb knew what he wanted, when he wanted it, and would howl until it was his. He even gave the nurses a fit in the hospital when he was born. As a toddler, Caleb would venture into "no-no" territory without fear of consequences and would pitch royal fits when reprimanded. He's the type of kid that makes most parents say, "If I had you first we wouldn't have had anymore." As we realized the challenge we were dealing with, we often prayed that God would mold this determined and strong-willed little guy into a young man who is passionate about serving God and determined to do it in ways that others won't. God has already started doing that and it began last summer as Caleb, determined as ever, asked Jesus into his heart. Kevin and I were a little wary about whether our six year old truly understood what he was doing but after hearing a precious discussion and prayer between Ryan and Caleb one night, we realized that God's time for Caleb was then. Caleb was baptized in Gibson pond on June 6th by our pastor, Mike Turner. The picture above shows Caleb praying with Pastor Mike and the group of people being baptized. Here are a few more pictures, of course!

I love that look on his little face. This picture reminds me of the story of Caleb in the Bible and this verse: Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it." Numbers 13:30. How in the world could we have known the extent of the similarities between these two Calebs when we named ours. WOW - The determination of those two! Our prayer now is that God will have big plans for our Caleb, too, and that he will continue to resemble the Biblical Caleb in this way: ²⁴ But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.

Whew!

2010-06-12T11:09:00.000-05:00

We counted down and now it's here! SUMMERTIME! yipee! Just wanted to post this picture of my boys as they arrived home from last day of school. I now have a fourth grader and a second grader. BUT...before we think about that, let's enjoy swimming, sleeping in (if you call 7 AM sleeping in), and being on our own little schedule for a while.

More May stuff: Field Days!

2010-06-07T20:29:00.000-05:00

Field Days are big days at our school. There are tents set up for each class and parents come out to cheer on their kids. It's usually blazin' hot but we lucked out this year with some cool South Carolina weather...lower 80's?! Ryan's was first. Avery was still in preschool so Macy and I went to cheer on Ry.

Here he is in the relay.

I can't remember which one this was but that's his sweet teacher Mrs. Derrick in the background.

Macy enjoyed sitting with the big girls. That's her buddy Cassidy. Macy ADORES her!

and Ryan hung out with his friends in between events. I love watching them interact with their school friends!

Caleb's was on Friday. Avery, Macy, and I all went to watch him. He's been very serious about field day for months now. It was his time to shine!

They started off by warming up with a little chicken dancin'.

And then a little racing. They don't call him C.J. Spiller of Milk for nothing!

Then, came a little jumping. I was so surprised at this! He did great!

Then he did a little persuading...trying to sneak in a few extra events for someone who was absent.

These two were great sports as well. They were great until I found Avery over next to the bushes with his hands and both sides of his pants about to push 'em down to his ankles. We found the restroom just in time.

The highlight of the day was having a few Lexington Wildcat football players on hand to help. They were great with the kids!

Stay tuned!

Lots of May stuff!

2010-06-04T09:00:00.001-05:00

Last May, a friend of mine posted this status update on Facebook: "Anyone who thinks December is busy has never lived through May." That is so true! From end of the season soccer parties to awards ceremonies, field days to church programs, May is packed full from day 1 to 31. Here are a couple of the great things that have filled our calendar.

Our little CJ read 200 books this year and made it into the 100 book club. They had a big celebration for those 100 Book Club members. Here is Caleb being recognized by his principal, Mrs. Lynn Boyelston and his wonderful teacher Mrs. Barbra Hubbard.

Of course, Caleb takes advantage of every opportunity to socialize and would probably be the president of the 100 Friend Club if they had one.

They brought in special guests just for this celebration. Cheer-readers!

What a great faculty we have!

Caleb also had a poetry signing in his classroom. The children wrote poems for a class book. Each family received a copy and were able to come to a poetry signing so that each little author could autograph their poem in our books.

Of course, Caleb's poem was about CLEMSON! Would you expect anything else from CJ? Do notice that his name on his paper is C.J. Kevin and I laughed so hard when those first school papers came home with C.J. at the top.

Avery went with me and loved sitting beside Caleb. He already loves school.

This is Caleb's wonderful teacher Mrs. Hubbard. She has worked wonders with our little guy and we are so thankful! He loves her to pieces!

Last but not least, Ryan received an award for "First in Math" this year. "First in Math" is a national online computer program that is available to the students. They compete against others in their school and in the state. Their level of difficulty increases as they pass off certain skills. They can play at home or at school. Ryan received an award coming in first in his class. He also came in 5th in the whole school. We are proud of him. I'm so glad he gets his math skills from Kevin!

More May stuff to come!!!!

Avery's 3 year old Preschool Program

2010-05-28T10:42:00.001-05:00

Avery has had a wonderful year in preschool this year as one of Mrs. Pack's piggies! He has loved every minute of his class with Mrs. Pack and Mrs. Sox and has grown in so many ways. We enjoyed watching him SING!!! during his preschool program. You may recall THIS CHRISTMAS POST when Ave preferred to solo sit in front of the preschool choir. We've come a long way, baby! He started by singing "God Bless America"...his "fabrit" song.

He sang some and at least participated in the rest of the songs like "itsy-bitsy-spider".

They sang "Going on a Bear Hunt" but, ya know...he really didn't think that was a good idea so he sat there unlike his cute little friends Ansley and Emily.

They wrapped up the program with another Avery favorite, "The Color Song".

He made sure that Macy heard him and that she knew that PINK is NOT in the color song.

Huge hugs and thanks to these special ladies who are amazing at what they do.

Ms. Betty, our director, who is absolutely incredible.

She has done an amazing job over the last two years here.

Ms. Sandi, our children's minister, who truly loves kids almost as much as God does.

Kathy Pack (in the blue) and Sue Sox (beside Kathy) were Ave's teachers this year. It was meant for him to be a Pack's piggie this year...I have no doubt! They have loved on my little guy so much and we can never thank them enough!

13 Pictures for 13 years

2010-05-20T06:32:00.000-05:00

Avery's 4th birthday

2010-05-17T06:43:00.000-05:00

This little guy has had a count down going on for his birthday since Christmas! He knew that May "tenf" was his big day and he was so excited when we tore off April on the calendar! We had a little lake party for him and invited a few friends to celebrate with us. These two sweet girls are two of his buddies from church who happen to be in his preschool class, too. He loves Emawee and Ansawee!

Avery picked out a Go Diego Go cake. It was a major decision in our house! When you count down to your birthday for five months, you can't take these decisions lightly!

He and his buddies analyzed each little part of the cake. He was so proud!

We sang Happy Birthday and Avery blew...

and blew and blew and blew and blew and blew out his candles! ...oh...and he blew some more. I wish I had pictures of this. In my rush to get everything together, I accidentally grabbed those candles that keep relighting out of my candle stash. I had no clue. Do you know how frustrating it is for a four year old to try to blow out four candles...much less four relighting candles? I sprinted across the yard to get a cup of water so I could drown those suckers!

The best part about the night was that everyone decided to stay for supper. Kevin and Mr. Jason ran up to the grocery to pick up hamburgers for the grill. What a fun birthday for Ave and a fun time watching the sunset with our friends.

We are so thankful for our little Ave-man! He gives the best hugs and has the cutest little grin! Now we'll start counting down for number five!

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-10T10:20:00.004-05:00

During church today, they showed a video of a very busy mom who changed into a chef's outfit when she was cooking meals for her family, a taxi driver's uniform when she was driving her kids from place to place, doctor's scrubs when her child fell down...you get the picture. I'm pretty lighthearted about most things, but I found it hard to laugh about what was suppose to be a cute, funny little video. I saw my life in that video and I also saw a moment (not shown on the video) at night when I want to sit down for a cry of exhaustion as I wonder if I can wake up the next morning to do it all again. I also saw the many moments of uncertainty when Kevin and I make decisions for our children while praying that they're the right ones. And what about the moments where I say or do something and immediately realize that my response was so far away from how God wanted me to respond? How many times have I asked God why He thought I could pull this mom thing off with one child, much less FOUR! Bottom line: I can't. I try everyday, feeling mighty independent, to do it all on my own. I roll out of bed with my game face on ready to tackle everything that comes my way. But, by 8 AM, I've already lost my temper a time or two and now it's time to coax the little ones to the car to go to preschool. I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. By noon, we've spent two hours in the car, washed four loads of clothes, read some books, realized that someone forgot their lunch box, tripped over fifty toys heading back to the car. He will not let your foot slip— he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. By 3 PM we've put in a little more car time, started homework, explained for the millionth time why we can't go (spend $25 on dinner) to PTA night at Chick-fil-a and that it's OK if they are the only ones in their classes that don't go, and headed outside to play. The LORD watches over you— the LORD is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. By 5 PM (crunch time) we are back inside and I'm trying to make something edible for dinner when I realize Macy is running around with scissors in her hand. The LORD will keep you from all harm—The kids are arguing as they get hungry and tired. Then I worry as I catch the traffic report because there is a bad wreck on the road Kevin takes home from work. he will watch over your life; We eat, take baths, read, lay out everything for the next day, pray, and tuck the little sweeties in bed. Then, I sit and wonder how I made it through and wonder how I'll ever do it again tomorrow. The LORD will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. Psalm 121:1-8

So as much as I love the warm and fuzzy feeling of "Mother's Day" with the bazillion homemade cards, cute little potted plants, cereal brought in at 6 AM for my breakfast in bed...I know the truth. It's not by my own might or super mom powers but by the spirit of the Lord that get's us through each day and then rolls me out of bed each morning to do it all again. And in between those crazy moments I get to enjoy this:

And that makes it all warm and fuzzy for me! Here are a few more pics from Mother's Day.

Big thanks to this guy who really has to roll me out of bed every morning.
It's not a task he takes lightly :-)!

One more chirp!

2010-05-07T13:18:00.000-05:00

So after I posted this morning I realized that I didn't have any video of "Macy music". Boy, if you want a concert, she'll give you one! Avery set up their stages and they were ready to perform. Keep in mind that this was taken this morning and Friday mornings are our "pajama day" so know that their attire is well earned after getting up and getting dressed 5 mornings in a row. Macy is performing "Joy to the World". Her arm movement cracks me up. She must have watched me in the shower one morning to learn that. Avery concludes with "The Color Song".

What you missed after the camera went off (that's always the best part, you know) is Macy trying to sing "The Color Song". She tries to sing about the color pink and Avery gets really upset with her because there is no PINK in "The Color Song". Macy starts shouting, "Yes, it do! Yes it do! Pink is my fabrit cu-yer!" Never a chirpless moment around here!

Some Musical Chirpings from the Krickets

2010-05-07T07:53:00.000-05:00

We love music at our house. It isn't unusual to find someone on the piano making up a tune or to hear a little voice humming while playing. Here are a few videos from the last few months. Avery learned "God Bless America" at preschool. I love "fwom the mountains to the berries"!

Caleb and Ryan have learned a little piano this year. Caleb even took his book to school and played for his music teacher and class. I think I've mentioned before that he LOVES a little spotlight!

And here is Ryan!

Table for two, please!

2010-05-03T13:00:00.000-05:00

Kevin and I were able to sneak away to Hilton Head for a few days last week to relax and to actually carry on a conversation. HHI is one of our very favorite places. We honeymooned there and have vacationed there off and on for the last 13 years (13 years...REALLY????) We haven't had "US" time in a really long time and it felt good to take a break from our crazy routine and to refocus. It took us one whole day to unwind and to remember how to "do nothing" but it finally came to us!

We enjoyed naps in the hammocks by the ocean. This is what I stared at for an hour...

and listened to the waves. We also enjoyed our favorite Sea Pines swing.

Kevin and I sit here each time we come to HHI. Here is another picture so you can see the HUGE tree...

Isn't it beautiful? I think I'll frame this one to remind me to relax a little more!

We also rode bikes for about 15 miles and ate really good food at our favorite restaurants:

Coigny Plaza- Just Pasta Cafe

Alexanders

The Sea Shack- Rachel Ray visited this "locals" hang out

Giuseppis Pizza

Kevin is chowing down on our Sea Shack picnic.YUM!!!! I linked to Alexander's porch picture page. That is where we like to sit when we go. Shrimp and grits there are AMAZING! And Giuseppis??? Our favorite pizza!

We rented bikes one morning and rode 10 miles thinking we would end up at Coligny Plaza to eat at Just Pasta Cafe. We got there and were so hungry but found out they aren't open on Saturdays for lunch. Who would have thought? I about had a meltdown but instead decided to race Kevin the six miles back so that we could get Giuseppis Pizza!

He won but we were back eating pizza with a relaxing ocean view in no time.

We had a great time but were so ready for four great big giant hugs when we got home (thanks Nana and Papa for taking such good care of them!). We can't wait to go back and to take them with us!

Strawberry-Pickin'

2010-04-27T12:45:00.000-05:00

"They're ready!" That's always the rumor late April around Lexington. We are always itchin' for the strawberry farm to open. My kids could live off of strawberries and taking them to a row with endless amounts of those juicy things is just asking for a belly ache! Nana and I took them last week after we picked the two biggies up from school. As usual, Nana did most of the picking. The kids did most of the munching. Yes, of course, I took the pictures.

So Ryan did some picking, too. He was proud of his basket!

This would represent the other three-fourths of the Krickets. Berry in mouth, juice on shirt, empty basket. I lined them up as they walked back into the house and squirted them down with "Spray 'n Wash". You'll have to picture that one in your head. Not much left to say except it was so berry fun!

Dress-Up Days

2010-04-22T09:59:00.000-05:00

From previous posts it's pretty obvious that my kids like to dress up. I thought I'd take a moment today to pull a few more dress up pictures from the past few months to post.

This was one of those freezing cold winter days. Everyone was going a little loony, including the boys. They thought they'd dress up Macy in her tutu to pass some time. As they were cleaning up, they found a few other goodies in the back of Macy's closet. This is what paraded in front me ten minutes later...

Look at Caleb's face. He knows what I'm going to do with this picture when I'm taking it! He doesn't care. Ryan did. That's why you don't see "The Little Mermaid" in this picture. What Caleb doesn't realize is that I have this picture flagged for his high school graduation party video and wedding rehearsal dinner video as well.

Someone also had to try on the high heels.

I got the very manly question, "Mom, how do you girls wear these things?"

Caleb dressed up like The Cat in the Hat for school when they celebrated "Read Across America Day" (which is also the birthday of Dr. Seuss) I made that shirt for Ryan in preschool and Caleb dug it out to wear.

Avery had his preschool storybook parade this week at school. He dressed as...

The man with the yellow hat from Curious George. He changed his mind the night before. He was planning on being Max which would have been so darlin' with this sweet Ruby...

This is a sweet friend of Avery's from church and preschool. Macy wants to be like this little friend...

because of her "fwuffy dwess" and big pretty "cwow-un"

OK...so that's it for the dress up clothes. We'll be "dressing down" and wearing bathing suits for next six months which won't be nearly as embarrassing for anyone except me.

Luckily, I'm the only one with the blog password!

Family Music Night

2010-04-13T12:45:00.000-05:00

Before Easter, our school had a family music night. First of all, I have to tell you how AMAZING our music teachers are at our school. I taught with Mrs. Amy Shealy back during my other life as a teacher (the life I have to close my eyes and think really hard to remember). I always wanted to stay with my students in her class because she made learning music so fun. We know Mrs. Senn from church where she often plays the harp. Mrs. Rooks is the wife of an old band friend from high school. They are all so talented and I'm amazed at how much my boys have learned in their classes. We had so much fun at Family Music Night. Two bands played while we picnicked and visited with friends.

Caleb line danced most of the time. I'M SERIOUS! He gets his moves from his Daddy...don't deny it, Kev! (Kevin danced in the show choir at Clemson).

Ryan played a few songs with the other third graders on their......HARMONICAS! How cool is that? I've always wanted to know how to really play one of those and not just drool into it.

The fourth graders played recorders. They were great!

As the steel band played, the kids formed limbo lines.

This is one of our sweet friends from church...look at Ave's face behind her!

Who is this limbo master?

Caleb! OK OK...so he gets his limbo skills from me!

Ryan got off easy but it still took lots of concentration to dunk one inch.

Macy-Mae even took a turn.

She took home the award for "going limp and throwing the biggest tantrum" as we left.

Big hugs to those wonderful music teachers! Thanks for a fun night!

Easter 2010

2010-04-05T10:20:00.001-05:00

Quick Krick pic from Easter morning.

Thank you, Jesus, for your sacrifice and for your love for us!

The Annual Bouknight Egg Hunt!

2010-04-03T21:47:00.002-05:00

Woohoo! We woke up this morning and jumped for joy! We waited 365 days for this day to roll around again! It's the day of the Annual Bouknight Easter Egg Hunt! Our sweet friends have this at their house every year and the kids absolutely love it. Here they are in the picture above waiting at the starting line.

Oh...below is a picture of my sweet friend Beth.

She is the planner and wife of the master egg-hider.

(I also couldn't have gotten through my fourth pregnancy without her :-)

Here are the baskets, swinging nervously and waiting for the go signal.

You can see little Macy anxiously waiting there in the middle.

Big boy is breaking a sweat! He has taken his competitiveness (thank you spell check)
off the court and into the pine straw!

Caleb has one eye on the egg and one eye searching for the next one. It's serious, I'm telling ya!

Avery analyzes each egg for cracks and to make sure the two pieces are firmly in place.

Macy is tickled at herself as usual!

After a down to the last second hunt, we feast on some incredible food. Look at who is at the head of the girlie table! Most of these girls enjoyed toting Macy around on their hips for most of the morning. Have I ever mentioned that she loves being the center of attention?

The boys were very serious about their food. Probably because they had lots of these...

to eat along with some other equally as sweet treats!

Later, we had round 2 of the hunt and Macy decided to plop down to count her eggs. She had "firty-pive" according to her count. You might remember a similar picture
from last year in THIS POST.

Thanks to Mrs. Beth for taking a picture of our family and thanks to you and Mr. Doug for a fun day!

You never know what's around the corner!

2010-03-25T09:53:00.000-05:00

It had been a day. I can't remember what had made it "one of those days" now but I'm sure it had something to do with preparing dinner for a family of six, folding clothes, helping with homework, and those surprises that ~~sneak~~ explode into the normal routine on a daily basis. Right in the middle of one of my survival daydreams (I think it was the one where I visualize myself on the beach in Hilton Head eating a picnic from Sea Shack) this pops around the corner...

ya need a closer look?

There she is...band-aid over one eye, cupcake stocking hat, Target dollar-spot hat, and groovy glasses! I'm sorry you can't hear it but she was singing "Joy to the World". Right when I turned to put up my camera, something jumped out at me...

do ya see it?

Her hands must have been cold or, more than likely, she thought it was a nice accessory. Having "one of those days"? She'll cure it before you can say Sea Shack!

Krick Family Rules

2010-03-18T13:08:00.001-05:00

I've seen lots of these rule posters lately on various blogs. I don't exactly know where they originated but each one I've seen has been a little different. If you google "family rules canvas" and then click images you'll see a ton of 'em. I cranked up photoshop yesterday during naptime to spit one out as well. I'll be sending this off soon to be printed as a poster to frame for the kitchen. Let me know if you see any typos :-)

Chips Off the Old Block

2010-03-14T14:16:00.000-05:00

Back during our time at Clemson, Kevin was known for wearing his church socks all day on Sunday. He would have FCA leadership meetings on Sunday nights and he'd show up in a sweatshirt, tennis shoes, AND his black Sunday socks. His theory? Why in the world would you dirty up an extra pair of socks? Man, I love him! Well, just take a look at what I found running around the yard last Sunday! I'm so glad to see that I'm raising boys that believe in only messing up one pair of socks a day!

Jumpin' for Joy at I Heart Faces

2010-03-09T13:11:00.000-05:00

Don't underestimate the small jumps in life! This third born often follows in the footsteps of his brothers. On this day, however, he took a different path just to see if extreme sports might be for him. From the look on his face, I think he's contemplating a future in sky diving! Check out other big and small jumps at i heart faces!

;

Don't try this at home!

2010-03-05T13:15:00.000-05:00

I spied on some Daddy and Macy time the other night and laughed so hard at what I saw! Kevin built a little ramp for Macy's caterpillar and Mr. caterpillar would ramp jump over the my little ponies. I know...the description doesn't do it justice so here are the pics.

1-2-3 GO!

Macy doesn't look too impressed. She's like, "WHHHHATTTTT?"

CRASH! Now that was cool! The ramp is made out of a little cup and a play cookie sheet.

Daddy makes up the coolest stuff!

Vincent Van Ryan

2010-03-03T13:02:00.000-05:00

Ryan's artwork from school was chosen to be in an art show at The Old Mill. There was an opening night gala that we missed because the boys were skiing but we did get by later that week. My kids love to draw and paint. They've grown up watching their Papa paint so art class is something they enjoy so much. We love the picture that was chosen for display!

Trust me...that isn't our house. First of all, the lady in the picture isn't standing in front of a whirlpool front loader. Secondly, the blue jeans on that clothes line don't have holes in their knees. We were so proud of our big boy and can't wait to see the next masterpiece!

Run, Daddy, Run!

2010-02-27T23:02:00.000-05:00

Back in the fall, a friend of ours from church encouraged Kevin to start training with him for a half-marathon. He decided to give it a try so he and a few other guys have been meeting periodically to run. Today was the big day...the Columbia Half Marathon! The race began at 8 AM so Kevin left early. We came on a little later so that we could see him finish. We were so proud of him!

He's heading towards the finish line!

It was below freezing when he started this morning so he wore a stocking hat that my mom knitted for him. No chance of us missing him with that on!

Kevin met up with his running buddies to compare notes afterwards.

Kevin, James, and Steve

Jerry, the friend that encouraged them to do this got sick the night before and was unable to run.

The kids were so proud of Daddy!

Our Valentines Day Birthday Girl!

2010-02-25T09:59:00.000-05:00

So many of our friends and family know the story of Macy. She's our little surprise blessing from God. Even two years later, I look at her and ask God if she's real. As I look back at spring 2007 in my journal, my prayers were very heavily concentrated on God asking more of me. I wanted him to. I had three boys and the youngest was a year old. I was ready to venture out! I watched a few of my friends travel oversees on mission trips, a few participating in some volunteer work and making a difference, and some going back to work and really having an impact on co-workers. Little did I know that God would ask more of me by keeping me within the four walls of our house for a little longer. God totally changed our plans and our lives in June 2007 when we found out about our fourth child and even more a few months later when we found out this little blessing was a GIRL! She is a constant reminder to us that God's plan is perfect and that He has assigned Kevin and me to the long term mission of raising four kids. So...on with the birthday pictures!

Macy was recovering from a stomach bug the day of her party, not to mention we had a billion inches of snow on the ground, so we pretty much called off the party except for Nana and Papa and Uncle David. I gave her a choice of two cakes: Princess and My Little Pony. She chose...

My Little Pony. She has Rainbow Dash and that pony goes just about everywhere with her.

More Ponies were wrapped up for her!

And Caleb read cards to her that some of his classmates had made her for her birthday. Isn't that sweet?

She blew out her candles, ate some cake and shared lots with her ponies!

These ponies had full bellies by the time Macy was through with them!

They also had nicely groomed hair thanks to Papa! Look at Ave's face in this picture.

The next morning, her actual birthday (and Valentines Day...another really cool move by God) we celebrated again with muffins and lots of hugs!

And then on to church. She wore the same dress as last year but this year, as a top.

We are so thankful for our little love! Caleb helped me put her to bed last night. After saying prayers with her, he looked up at me and said, "I sure am glad Macy gets to be part of our family." Me, too, but I'm more glad WE get to have Macy in our family!

I HEART FACES: "Hands-on fun"

2010-02-22T16:14:00.000-05:00

This week's challenge over at "i heart faces" actually focuses on hands! I immediately thought about this picture when I saw the challenge. We had all gathered at the hospital to greet my cousin's first child and were watching her get her first bath through the hospital window. As they were doing all of those first little tests on her, her daddy reached down to hold her hand. It was such a precious moment! I had to get a picture of it even if it was through the glass! Check out all of the other " i heart ~~faces~~ hands" pictures over at i heart faces.

A Snowy Day

2010-02-20T20:09:00.000-05:00

Days like February 12, 2009 only happen once every couple of decades in South Carolina. Many times through out the winter we have rumors of flakes that MIGHT be on the way. Our weathermen are notorious for building up blizzards that might, if we're lucky, result in ten flakes falling from the sky at midnight. This Friday, however, the flakes came and didn't stop! School let out early (The school district likes to add to the excitement!) so that the buses could finish their routes before we were knee deep in snow (sarcasm there?...you decide). So, the boys arrived home in time to see it all begin.

Those were some cold Krickets there! We ate dinner by our big picture window in the kitchen just watching the beauty happen! Later that night, I ventured out to take a few pictures. The house and the trees were beautiful!

But that was nothing compared to what we awoke to the next morning. Caleb rushed down to our room the next morning to wake us up, begging us to come to Ryan's window for the best view. He and I were the first to go out to make first tracks.

But we found that we weren't the first ones. We found these two sets of deer tracks going right through the field.

Later, we met up with Papa who was also out taking pictures.

It was amazingly beautiful!

This is one of my favorite pictures that I took across from our house.

The lake was so beautiful. The whole shoreline was white.

This was mid-morning as the snow began melting from the trees.

It was funny how the lake side of the trees were white.

One more of the back yard.

We finally rounded everyone up for a picture.

Nana and Papa watched us build a ...

Snowman! Of course he's a Clemson fan!

And then we warmed up by the fire. We enjoyed our snow while it lasted. The joy of South Carolina is that it's melted in 24 hours and then on to 60 degree weather.

Guys weekend to Winterplace, WV

2010-02-16T13:59:00.001-05:00

Kevin decided that, for his birthday, he wanted to take our two oldest skiing at Winterplace, West Virginia. I thought it was a great idea! I grew up skiing every winter with my family and knew the guys would have so much fun. I was even more excited when Kevin decided to ask his good friend Ryan Allred and his son Alex along. What a fun guys weekend this would be! Kevin put the boys in ski school for the two mornings they were there so that ~~he could have some time to swish down the black diamonds alone~~ they could have some expert training, knowing that it would be hard for him to teach both of them by himself. By the end of the trip, they were doing so well! Here is Ryan on the slopes:

Caleb had a good time but was a little nervous about the chair lift. I love this video of Caleb. He looks so cute!

Alex was such a trooper! He had to have staples put in his head before they left that Thursday. Link on to Merri Anna's blog HERE to see a video of him snowboarding!

They ate like guys all weekend. Pizza, cookies, and soft drinks!

They all piled into one hotel room where I'm sure the TV channel stayed on ESPN. That's OK. Mine stayed on HGTV while they were gone!

Ryan looks a little pouty in this picture but I would've been too. The high for weekend was 28 degrees!

There are those smiles!

Big thank you to Mr. Ryan and Alex for going with them!

It wouldn't have been near as much fun without you!

Happy Birthday to Us!

2010-02-11T14:14:00.000-05:00

I have to do some catching up here! January was birthday month for Kevin and me. Kevin was lucky enough to find an older woman to marry...older by 13 days! We celebrated my birthday with a shrimp linguine dinner prepared by my mom and Mrs. Saundra.

And then...the chocolate Chocolate Wonderland cake...YUM!!!!

Kevin celebrated his birthday on the ski slopes (that post will come eventually) and then with some cookie cake when he got home.

We both turned 35. I know, we don't look a day older than ...don't answer that! This year is going to be a great one! Kevin is set to run a half marathon in a few weeks and I, well, hmmm....I'll keep "running" the washing machine!

I took a few days off...

2010-02-07T20:32:00.000-05:00

and this is what I got! I don't normally mind laundry and do a little each day. Here's a previous post about my laundry room: My office . Well, life has been super busy around here the last few weeks and I went a few days without cranking up the machine...big mistake! I thought I'd document the craziness! My dad came by for a few minutes, laughed and said, "at least you have to finish before you can go to bed!" It was...but barely! I'm still not sure I've finished matching socks...which, by the way, I wash at least 84 socks a week (more during sports seasons). If anyone has an easy way to match socks PLEASE COMMENT!!!!

A little more about Grandmama...

2010-02-02T13:25:00.000-05:00

from the obituary in today's paper:

Grace Elma Jordan Compton

LEXINGTON — Grace Elma Jordan Compton, 94, died Sunday, January 31, 2010. Funeral service will be held at 11:00 a.m. Friday, February 5, 2010, at Lexington Baptist Church with interment to follow in Elmwood Cemetery. Visitation will be at Caughman-Harman Funeral Home, Lexington Chapel, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., Thursday, February 4, 2010.

Born in Aiken County, she grew up on the family farm helping her parents operate Tourist Inn, the Jordan home on U.S. Highway #1. Mrs. Compton was the daughter of the late Andrew Olin Jordan and Myrtie Sanders Jordan and widow of C.M. “Chick” Compton. She was a member of Lexington Baptist Church where she taught Sunday School for many years and was a member of the Agape Sunday School Class. She was also a member of the Lexington Literary Club. Much of Mrs. Compton’s life was devoted to education. She was 19 years old when she graduated from Newberry College, where she reigned as Queen of the first May Day Festival. She immediately began her teaching career at Little Mountain High School in 1935, moving to Batesburg-Leesville High School from 1937 to 1941. After her three sons reached school age, Mrs. Compton returned to the classroom in 1956, teaching 6th grade math and science at Lexington Elementary School. In 1959 she began teaching 11th grade chemistry and geometry at Lexington High School. She retired in 1968 to join the family in operating Compton's Department Store.

She was predeceased by her husband; parents; sister, Margaret Boatwright; and brother, Andrew Jordan. Family members celebrating her life include three sons, Jimmy (Charlotte), Charlie (Nancy) and Ben (Suzanne), all of Lexington; seven grandchildren, Christa Compton, Jason Compton (Tiffany), Andrea Compton Krick (Kevin), Claire Compton, Brian Compton (Rebekah), Carrie Compton Merrell (Judson) and Catherine Compton and eight great-grandchildren.

The family wishes to thank the staff at Oakleaf Village of Lexington and The Carroll Campbell Center. Their loving and compassionate care has been a blessing.

Memorials may be made to the Lexington Baptist Church Building Fund, 308 East Main Street, Lexington, SC 29072 or the Lexington School District #1 Educational Foundation, 100 Tarrar Springs Road, Lexington, SC 29072.

Grandmama

2010-02-01T13:36:00.000-05:00

The last time I posted this picture was 13 months ago when my Grandaddy passed away. This was the last time that my Grandmama and Grandaddy saw each other here on Earth. You can find that post HERE. Yesterday, they were reunited in heaven. A happy reunion for sure with Grandaddy probably telling her stories about the last 13 months. My Grandmama spent her whole life hiding God's word in her heart and practicing love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. That is partly proven by the condition of her Bible and totally proven by the way she lived her life. I could tell you so much about her but the thing that I'm remembering the most is that even during the last few years when dementia had set in and she rarely knew who we were, we would leave her side taking away some nugget of truth about life. Every word she spoke, even when she didn't know who or where she was, was something positive and encouraging to those around her. That's not something that comes natural to confused people dealing with dementia in a nursing home. It shows me that she had worked her whole life to hide God's word in her heart and that being kind and compassionate was a way of life for her. Even after she had lost her mind and memory, God used her heart to speak to us. Below are a few pictures and memories of Grandmama.

These were the books beside her bed when she left to go to the nursing home.

I always sat on the bed and watched Grandmama put cream on her face at night. She sat in this chair with those little lamps turned on. I can still smell the cold cream and I'm confident the conversations we had during this time were sweet and loving.

This is Grandmama's back porch sink. Normally, there were always tons of African Violets here being repotted or nursed back to health.

Words can't describe the meals made in this kitchen. Each of my cousins have memories of different favorites like 9 day pickels, homemade applesauce, pork with onions and rice, chicken pot pie, angel food pies, and my favorite...PEAR pies!

This is Grandmama with her boys just a month ago. What a special time with a special lady!

Jason, Catherine, Carrie, Brian, Christa, Claire, Andrea, and Grandmama December 2009

I don't know that Grandmama could even remember our names that night but I know she could feel the love that we have for her. I'm so thankful for the memories and for the life lessons she taught us.

Family Minute

2010-01-26T08:04:00.000-05:00

Kevin forwards me the "Family Minute" emails when it's something that really hits home with him. He sent this one this morning and it puts a good explanation to goals that Kevin and I often talk about when we discuss how we want to raise our children. Here's the link: http://www.familyminute.com/blog/?p=544

Pwincess Mama Resort and Spa

2010-01-25T10:40:00.000-05:00

Getting three boys and a Daddy off to school, preschool, and work is a hard job so Macy and I thought we deserved some girl time this morning! We decided to paint our nails! Macy hasn't had a manicure before and I think she liked it. She kept saying, "Nails...purty...paint 'dem!" Here's how they turned out.

Now...back to the laundry!

Who made me?

2010-01-22T14:34:00.000-05:00

Who made Macy?

God made Macy!

Who made Macy's feet?

God made Macy's feet!

OK...trick question! Who made Macy's belly button?

Well, hmmmm...Only God could make something that cute!

Now some of the guys join the fun.

Who made our ears?

God made our ears!

(to help us obey our parents, right?)

Who made our nose?

God made our nose!

Who made our mouths?

God made our mouths!

So you can kiss your mama!

Who made us cute?

God made us cute!

The newest member of the 100 Book Club is...

2010-01-18T16:01:00.000-05:00

CALEB! We are so excited about how well Caleb is reading thanks to his Super-D-Duper teacher Mrs. Hubbard and lots of practicing with his former teacher mama! He began reading for the first grade 100 book club in the fall and completed the challenge the week after Christmas. I asked him to name a favorite book and he couldn't. He says he likes all of them but I know the ones we read the most and they are Saturdays and Teacakes by Lester Laminack and Bubba and Beau books by Kathi Appelt.

His favorite place to read is.....Mama's lap, of course!