My finger!

Baker and Cooper were sitting at the bar eating dinner, Sonic!  Healthy huh?  Anyway, I hear Baker crying, I come into the kitchen thinking he is playing a joke on Cooper and ask him what happened.  He replies that he bit his finger.  “I thought it was a french fry,” he says.   I was playing and joking with him and this was his response-”Mom, you shouldn’t be laughing at me, you SHOULD be worried!”  Worried???  That he would actually bite off his own finger??  Lesson learned, always appear to be worried, even if I’m not… not in the least bit!

Remembering…

 

 

 

I was at dinner with some friends last night and we started talking about old movies.  Several were dubbed as “must sees.”  Do you remember Coctail?  I loved that movie!  Some others were, The Adventures in Babysitting, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, When Harry Met Sally, Annie, and E.T.  What are some of your favorite oldies? 

Deals, deals, how I love a deal!!!

Oh, how I love to save money!!!!!  Thanks to imommies, I was able to get my boys some accesories for our Wii!  I got a steering wheel, the sports pack, the light gun, and the boxing gloves all for $33.97!  And that included shipping!  I placed the same items in a cart at Wal-Mart and the total was $85.12!  Can you believe it???  Thanks imommies.  Anyone need any electronic devices…check it out.

Kids say the Darnest Things

We had a couple of friends come by to turkey hunt the other day and the boys saw them and rushed outside.  They were dressed in full camo with rifles on shoulders.  Baker in complete awe looks up and says, “Are you reeeaal army men?”  They laughed and just said they were hunters.  A little while later as we were heading out to play, Cooper looks around the field and says, “Mom, where did those halloween guys go?” 

We have made it through the wilderness!

Tommorow, May 17th, Brandon and I will celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary!  A while back our Pastor, David Landrith, did a series on marriage.  I was shocked to find out the “hardest” years for a marriage to survive.  Year one, a given! Year five..maybe, and year 10!  I was confused at this year.  I knew our 10th was approaching quickly and I vowed not to allow the devil even the tiniest hole with our marriage.  I began praying daily for my husband and our marriage.  All around me, it seemed as though more marriages were falling apart.  I encourage you if you are not already to begin praying daily for your husband.  I do mine when I slide my wedding ring on each morning.  I am thankful for the husband the Lord has given me and thought I would celebrate with 11 things you may or may not know about us.

1. We were high school sweethearts.  Brandon played football and I was a cheerleader
2. We were married at The Handcock House, a bed and breakfast on Gallatin Road.
3. Our first home-an apartment across from the old Wal-Mart in Hendersonville.
4. We tried for 3 1/2 years to have Baker.
5. We were foster parents to some very special children.
6. We moved into our current house on Valentine’s Day.
7. We both attempt to play golf, Brandon much more than I do.
8. We both have divorced parents.
9. We both have one brother and one sister.
10. Our first date-The Mavericks and Taco Bell (anyone remeber that movie?)
11. We love the Lord!

 

When are they old enough?

We are getting to the age where the boys are always wanting to spend the night with friends and have friends over.  Is there a rule about being old enough? And responsible enough?  It all began in our home with us helping out some friends at church.  Our boys are the best of friends and have been for several years.  They had a serious illness they were dealing with and were traveling a lot back and forth the Nashville to the hospital.  Something their 4 year old definantly did not want to do.  So, he came to hang out and spend the night with us.  The boys had so much fun!  They have had several sleepovers since then and we have really enjoyed them.  But now with kindergarden coming up, I am not sure how I feel.  How do we seperate from who we know well and those we don’t with out hurting feelings?  Do we set a “general rule” and how do you go back?  I’m not sure we want to go back. 

What have your experiences been with sleepovers?  Do you allow them?  And with who?

And I know the obvious is to “know” the parents, but is that even possible now a day?  Because just when I think I may know someone, I find out I had it all wrong.

Boys verses Girls

I guess this is an age old battle.  All I can say is why I absolutly adore my little girl, I will take boys hands down!  I can remeber when I found out I was pregnant with Baker, how I longed for a little girl.  I even may several comments about if it was a boy, I was sending him back!  I just didn’t know what to do with a boy.

I guess I have figured it out…you just roll with it!  Boys are such dare devils.  My boys have little to no fear!  They are constintly playing in the side yard which is the snake pit!  They have seen them and been warned about them.  But something about the rush of it all gets them.  Sometimes, I almost wished they would get bit, maybe then they would have a little fear!

As most of you know, we live on a huge family farm.  Noone can see our home and our neighbors are not “next door.”  For that reason, and the fact that they are almost always covered in mud, we have allowed our boys to pee outside.  We have explained several times the rule.  Come on…. I can only clean up mud so many times during a day!  Yesterday, we were at Moss Wright Park and Cooper has his shorts pulled half way down!  As I rushed over to him, he explained to me that it was ok, he was behind a telephone pole.  Now, this pole is between the bleachers and the field!  Everyone had a full view of what he almost did!

On the other hand, my darling daughter is the most dramatic child!  Although she can definantly “hang” with her brothers, she will let them know she is the boss!  Wonder where she gets that????  I heard someone say last week I am not bossy, I just have a lot of ideas!

I’m Back

OK, so I know it has been a really long time!  Through being sick and internet issues (yes, having to use dial up!) I have not been posting anything new.  I am vowing to change that!  I am really going to try and post something weekly.  And maybe bi weekly.  Things have really been really crazy around here.  On April 26th I ran my first half marathon.   I have completed 2 halfs, but walked in both of them.  I did ok, I fininshed in 2 hours and 40 minutes!  If it were not for my friend, ALyssa, I don’t think I could have finished!  We spent a lot of time just praying and thanking God for people in our lives.  It was an awesome expereince!

Yesterday, I celebrated my 30th birthday!!!!  Not to eventful.  SOme friends took me out to Cracker Barrell for breakfast and then I hung out with Brandon.  We all went to Cheddar’s to dinner that night.  Fun Fun!  As my friend Tracy says, now that I’m in my 30’s maybe people will take me serious!  We’ll see.

Well I guess that is about it for now!  And oh yah, I just entered complete insanity stage because I registered to run the Marine Corp Marathon!  That is 26.2 miles!  Anyone want to join me?  I saw some really cute shirts at the expo for the Country Music Marathon and I will leave you with those…

In my dreams, I’m a Kenyan!

People call me crazy for doing the one thing that keeps me sane!

I’m the one your mother warned you about! (this doesn’t apply to me!)

I know I’m slow, get over it!

The small town flashback

For those of you who don’t know, Brandon and I both graduated high school from a very small school.  I was in the largetst ever graduating class, 120 people.  Brandon was one of the smallest, 60 people.  Neddless to say, it was a small town.  Brandon’s Mom still lives there and we visit every so often.  Last night, one of his employees got “hitched” (as they say!) and we once again found ourselves reliving the small town life!  Here is our experience:

We dropped off the kids at my Mom’s and were running a little late, so we decieded to just run into Subway and grab a sandwich.  They actually have 3 choices for Fast Food now, Hardee’s (the only choice when we lived there), Sonic, and Subway.  We walk in and to the right of us is the “employee” table.  It is filled with drinks, cookies, half eaten sandwiches, and lots of tanning lotions!  Apparently they go next door to the tanning bed on their breaks!  All three girls had lovely tans!  The customer in front of us-we weren’t sure at first if she was female or male.  We saw her sweet face and knew she was female.  Her hair was cut in a mullet, thus the confussion.  The customer behind us very impatient at the line-must have been an employee from the tanning bed place on break!  We finally get through the line and head out to the car.  Mind you that it is POURING down rain.  Apparently the builder wanted to save a few bucks and did’nt put up gutters, so we were showered with fresh rain as we exited the building! 

 Now, off to Fred’s (also a new addition since we have been gone) to pick up a wedding card for the couple.  Although, Brandon thought it was perfectly accaptable to just hand them the cash!  I ask Brandon to go in alone because at this point I am already drenched.  He comes out laughing at his experience-as he was in the checkout line, someone exits the store and the security alarm begins buzzing.  The two employees both look at each other puzzled and one ask the other, “what should we do?”  the other replies, “I don’t know why they are going off, she didn’t even buy anything.”  Exactly, they aren’t put there to let you know someone paid for something!  As we pull out of the parking lot, we laugh about a truck that had apparently gotten stuck on a hill and just simply left there.  It appeared to have been there a while now.  Do they have tow trucks here?   Imagine a truck trying to 4 wheel up the bank of the new Indian Lake Sreets and just simply being left there.  Wouldn’t that look nice?

2 task down one to go-the wedding!  On our way there I notice a huge field on the left hand side of the road.  In the field there is a circle, about the size of a baseball field, sectioned off with tires, half dug into the ground!  What’s up with that?  Anyone know???

The wedding was sweet and uhhh…small townish??  As we open the door to the church, we immediatly ar in the face of the bride and groom-the bride is instructing the groom when to give her the ring and when to say “I do” and “I will.”  The groom is laughing with his buddies and half paying attention.  Obviously, there is no “unveiling” of the bride as she is escorted down the aisle.  Everyone is rushing around in the sanctuary.  I think there was even a small daycare going on in the back 5 pews.  Nothin’ like a little down home country music playin’ in the background!  The ceremony shortly begins and the guest are all ready, cell phone cameras in hand.  Some on record and some of camera.  Flash, chi-ching, chi-ching, flash…was this supposed to be the bridal march?  As  the bride is walked down the aisle by her Dad, who I think the Pastor forgot to release???  She looks lovely!  The Pastor finally releases the Dad and the bride to be and groom to be exchange rings.  The groom is a little confused where her ring is.   Did he not pay attention to her instructions, I sure did, I knew exactly where is was.  I wanted to just say, your pocket dude, check your pocket!  After getting a “no” from the ring bearer, the light came on-pocket!  He placed the ring on her finger and exchanged his vow.  Now for the bride.  She knows exactly who has her ring, but apparently she failed to pay attention to what hand it went on.  As she put it on the right hand, her sweet groom tried to discretly swith hands with her-she was having none of that!  Apparently, she thought she had the correct hand.  After the exchange of the vows, the couple went to light the unity candle where the husband did switch the ring onto his left hand.  The “unity candle song” had just began as the Pastor nudges them, a couple of times, to come back to the center where he motions for the music to stop and then pronounces them Husband and Wife.  Ohhh it’s not over yet! 

 We still have the reception.  My sister-in-law is a bridesmaid and is informing me of who everyone was.  By the way, she looking adorable in her capris and pink polo shirt!  Yes, I did say bridesmaid.  I ask her who one girl is imparticular and she replies, “Oh, her, she is in love with my husband!”  Uhh..ok?  Apparently, she is an old fling who I will have to say demonstrated a few sighns as though she does have a thing for my brother-in-law.  After we all wrote our piece of “advice” for the bride and groom on placement cards, we decieded we were going to head out.  Not so fast, they were cutting the cake!  In traditional style, the bride smears cake all over the husband’s sweet face and he puts a little dab on hers! 

Wow, the things you miss when you leave a small town!

Our encounter with dead guys, real dead guys!

OK, so it’s been awhile!  Ok, maybe a long while.  Anyway here is how things have been going!  Last week was Spring Break.  It was a long week for us.  On Thursday, we headed downtown to the farmer’s market.  Baker wanted to make a pie!  As we are pulling into the market, they are a lot of workers there, some from the city jail and others just doing landscaping duties.  As we round the last turn-a-bout, Cooper shouts with excitement, “Mom, real dead people!”, “Baker, did you see those guys, they were dead!”  I try with all my might to contain my laughter, I don’t want to crush his spirit.  Before I can get myself contained, he has convinced Baker that there were really 4 dead guys back there and Baker is begging me to turn around so he can see them.  Now, let me see if I can convience you that they weren’t dead people at the Farmers Market.  There were 4 hispanic guys laying in the sun on their backs taking a little siesta! (I think that’s right)  But it was the highlight of the Boy’s week!