Happy Birthday(s)!

Happy 9th Birthday, Makenna!!! (October 28)

AND

Happy 6th Birthday, Noah!!! (November 21)

A Whole New World

This August marked the beginning of a whole new world for me. As of now, both children are in school full time...Makenna now in 3rd grade and Noah, the baby, has started Kindergarten. Obviously, I knew this day would soon come. There was no way of stopping it. I've had very mixed emotions about it and even now that they have been in school for a full month or more, I still find myself wavering. There was a part of me that didn't want to face that the little one is growing up, yet there were days I couldn't wait for school to start so that I could get some peace around here for more than 10 minutes at a time.


I cried for three days before the first day of school. Becuase I'm used to Makenna being gone now, I was thinking that maybe I wouldn't be a ball of tears on the first day. Even as we walked both kiddos into the building, I still hadn't shed a tear. That is, until we were getting ready to leave Noah's classroom. Poor little buy burst into tears as we sat him down at his desk. I was torn. I knew the best thing to do was to leave and he'd be okay in about five minutes. We've had previous experience with this method in pre-school and it worked out fine. Both mom and Noah made it through. Then there was the part of me that was thinking, "Just get me a chair and I'm gonna sit right here with him all day." This, of course, was not an option.


I am pleased to report that both are doing well. They both have great teachers and Noah seems to be enjoying himself. As for me, there are times I'm still not sure what to do with myself. Fortunately, I am able to work from home and this gives me more time to sit down and get things accomplished, uninterrupted. The first few weeks, I did find myself looking at the clock around 11:00 a.m. and thinking I had to get ready to go pick Noah up from pre-school. And then I'd realize that wasn't the case. He'd be home with Sissy on the bus in a few hours. I'm able to sit down and eat my lunch and watch my Y&R without having to clean messy hands or referee the dogs so that they don't steal someone's PB&J.


I'm definitely getting used to it, but as I said, it sure is a whole new world.

First Day of School 2011-2012

End of School 2010/2011

Yet another school year has come to a close. We had a great year!!

Thank you to Mrs. Bryson and Mrs. Ireland for making 2nd grade a year that Makenna will always remember as one of her favorites. Mrs. Bryson and Mrs. Ireland truly are the best of the best. It just doesn't get much better!!

Thank you to Mrs. Kim and Mrs. Cheryl for making our final year of pre-school so much fun. We will miss all of our SFBCDC family!

Kindergarten, here we come!!!

First Day of School 2010

Round 1...

August 17, 2010 - Mauldin Elementary School
Have a GREAT year in 2nd Grade with Mrs. Bryson!!


Round 2...

August 23, 2010 - SFBCDC
Have a GREAT year in K-4 with

Mrs. Gendreau and Mrs. Cheryl!!

Good-Bye, Old Girl

A couple of months ago, we unexpectedly had to say good-bye to our precious pup, Cassidy. She was our first wedding anniversary present, housewarming present and first baby all rolled into one. She gave us 13 great years and we continue to miss her each and every day. Good-bye, Cassidy. We love you and you will forever live in our hearts.

Reindeer Food

Sprinkle on the lawn at night,
the moon will make it sparkle bright.
As Santa's reindeer fly and roam,
this will guide them to your home.

Recipe: equal parts oatmeal (uncooked) and red and green colored sugar.

Halloween and Boo in the Zoo-2009

Trick or Treat this year was something to remember, for sure. It was WET! However, we went anyway. I mean, what's a little rain? The kids surely were not going to allow it to keep them from collecting a horrendous amount of candy. We even got Fallon in on the action, even though we had to bring him back home after after about five houses becuase he got tired. Okay, let's all say it collectively...AWWWWWW! {Yes, he's a bit lazy.) So, we headed out, in the minivan with doors wide open, Daddy driving and Mommy and kids ready to hop out at any given moment. We got half way around the block and caught up with a group of four or five families who were trick or treating togehter. This is when it got to be not so fun. The big kids (and I mean BIG kids) ended up almost trampling Noah at one house to the point where he almost fell down some stairs. Yikes! Come on, people, teach the kids some manners. Anyway, by this time, the kids' buckets were overflowing to the point they were saying, "Mommy, can you carry this? It's too heavy." We were all sopping wet and just ready to go home.



A couple of weeks before Halloween, we continued with our second annual visit to Boo in the Zoo with Makenna's very first friend from K-4, Alanna. Turns out her mommy and I both went to Southside together, although we were a few years apart and didn't really know each other. We all became fast friends and have enjoyed getting together for Boo in the Zoo and then our pizza dinner at Stevi B's. Hopefully, this will continue to be a tradition that we carry on for years to come.

Once Again...Time to Play Catch Up

It's about that time again. I hate that I'm slacking off so much and not keeping my blog up to date. I'm on the computer all day long, so you would think I would be better at this. Truth be told, by the time I've done nothing but type for five or six hours a day, the computer is the last thing I want to deal with. So, because of that, I have this long list of ideas for posts just sitting on my desk. At any given moment, I will have a random thought about a good blog post and things that I need to document for the kiddos. So, here's the deal...I know it's almost Valentine's Day, but I'm going to back-track a little bit, but hey, better late than never, right? I'm probably going to take you back as far as Halloween, so just bear with me over the next several posts. I've got a plan and hopefully within the next week, I will be all caught up. Cross your fingers!!

Birthday Party 2009

Happy 4th Birthday, Noah!

Happy Birthday to the sweetest little boy in the whole wide world!

Mommy and Daddy love you so much. Have a great birthday, Bugaboo!

Noah's First Field Trip

Noah went on his very first field trip (which he had to ride the bus for) on October 13, 2009. The K-3 class went to May-Lan Tree Farm, not too far from the school. It poured down rain the day before, so up until the last minute, we were not even sure we would go. The rain finally stopped the day before. The field trip was a go. Thanks to a suggestion by one of the other moms, I took Noah to Target and purchased a pair of rain boots for Noah to wear since we were told that it would be pretty muddy. (Thanks, Bridget!!)

We were on our way the next morning. It was still a little misty outside and pretty foggy. Oh, and did I mention, cold? Anyway, once we arrived, we all piled onto the wagon for the hayride. After the hayride, the we all went through the maze, which we were a little disappointed in (see picture). Next was the "bat cave." This actually wasn't a cave at all. It was merely a greenhouse tent with plastic bats hanging from the ceiling. The kids enjoyed it, though, and learned a little about bats. Next was the inflatable slide that looked like a huge inchworm. Noah freaked out when we came to this part and decided not to do it. It was not really a big deal. He was not the only one, but wouldn't you know it that when it came time to move to the next area, he decided he wanted to do it. Because all of the kids had their turn, we were not able to go back so that he could slide. This prompted one of his classic melt downs and it just got worse from there.

We moved on to the farm, which Noah was not too interested in. They really didn't have many animals. The pig was about the only interesting thing there. We also did Alligator Alley. This consisted of different raised obstacles the kids could walk over and on the ground were some of those alligator yard ornaments. It was kind of cute. By the time we got to pick a pumpkin and have snack, the melt down was in full force. Of course, Miss Jennifer explains that Noah does not normally act like that at school. To that I replied, of course not, only when Mommy is around.

Once snack was over, I thought we were on the mend. Noah had calmed down enough to drink his juice pouch. We then moved back toward the front of the farm and proceeded to take class pictures. Of course, my kid is not in any of them due to his tantrum.

It was time to board the bus and once on the bus Noah was great. Had to see that coming, right?

Happy 7th Birthday to Makenna

I know I say this every year and will probably continue to say it until the day I die, but where in the world does time go? I can't believe that my baby girl is a whopping seven years old today. She's not a baby anymore, not even a toddler or pre-schooler or even kindergartener. She's a kid and a big kid at that.

Well, no matter how big she gets, she will always be my baby girl. I love you, Makenna. Hope you had a great birthday!

First Day of School...Round 2

Noah had his first day of school on Monday, August 24, 2009. He has returned to SFBCDC and is in the K-3 program this year. His teachers are Mrs. Jennifer and Mrs. Dodie.

Have a super year in preschool!
Mommy and Daddy love you!

First Day of School...Round 1

Makenna had her first day of 1st Grade on Wednesday, August 19, 2009. She is at Mauldin Elementary School again this year and her teacher is Mrs. Jones.

Have a great year, baby girl!

Summer Vacation 2009

What did we do for Summer Vacation? Not much. Most days were pretty lazy and we did a lot of staying at home. As most of you probably know, I work from home, so the kids spent most days just hanging around the house. They caused a huge amount of racket with all of the fighting...I mean, playing...with each other. I had grown accustomed to the quiet around here, so this was surely an adjustment.

We did head down to Litchfield Beach for a few days in July. We usually stay at the Litchfield Inn, but this year decided to try the Litchfield Beach Resort. We stayed in the Bridgewater Building, which was right on the beach. We also had a huge pool and lazy river right in front, which the kids absolutely loved.

Last weekend, we made a shopping trip up to Charlotte where my sister lives. The kids were excited to see Kirstin and spend a little time with her. We did, however, decide to visit the new Ikea store, which was fabulous. Makenna now has some new ideas for her room. Heaven help us! I will have to keep everyone posted on this subject.

It is now the end of August and time to get back into the swing of things.

Kindergarten '08-'09- A Look Back

Field Trip to the Fire Station

Just before school let out, Noah went on his very first field trip. Here is Ms. Julie's and Mrs. Kathy's K-2 class at SFBCDC.

Sleep Walker

A little background...

When Makenna was about 4 years old, we started noticing something about her. She sleep walks!!! It started out as a minor thing...getting up in the middle of the night, opening her door, closing her door and going back to bed. Over the next few months, it progressed into somewhat intense night terrors. She would wake up screaming at the top of her lungs. I would rush to her to make sure she was okay and the look on her face was always the same...blank stare, but screaming hysterically at the same time. We would try to talk to her to try and calm her down, but nothing worked. We basically had to just hold her until she snapped out of it. At first, it scared me to death. I didn't know what to do, but as time went on, we figured out how to handle it. Thankfully, this has completely come to an end...the night terrors, that is.

Even though the night terrors are behind us, Makenna still continues to sleep walk on occasion. She hasn't done anything that she could get hurt doing, or hurt someone else, for that matter. This was our experience the other night. Mind you,the sleep walking is not that funny, but on this occasion, I couldn't help but laugh...

Keith works at night, so I'm here by myself almost every night with the kids. Makenna got up and came into my room and proceeded to my side of the bed like always. She was wrapped up in her blanket and whimpering a little, but no big deal. I told her to go back to bed and she proceded to turn around and do just that. After a minute or two, I decided to get up and check on her. Her bedroom is right across from mine and when I opened the door, I noticed that it was a little lighter in the hall than usual. Makenna had gone back into her room and turned her light on. Now, sometimes she gets up and turns the light on and goes back to bed. So, I opened the door so that I could turn the light off and I found her standing in the middle of her room. She had taken her nightgown off and threw it in the floor and was desperately trying to put on a pair of panties. The funny part was that she already had some on and was trying to put on yet another pair on top!!! After calling her name a few times, she woke up and I took the second pair of undies from her, put her nightgown back on and put her back to bed. The next morning, she didn't remember a thing about it. When I asked her, she looked at me like I had three heads!!!

Makenna, I know that when you're all grown up and read this, you will probably be a little embarrassed, but I couldn't help but tell the story. No matter what, I still thought it was kind of cute.

Mr. Smarty Pants

Keith arrived home a little earlier from work this morning and decided to ride with me to take the kids to school. As we had dropped Makenna off and were headed to pre-school to drop Noah off, this was the conversation in the car:

Noah: "Mama", "Mama"

Keith: "Yes, Noah. What do you need?"

Noah: "No, Daddy...I talk to Mama."

We still have a hard time with Noah due to his speech issues, but there was no mistaking what came out of his mouth on this occasion.

March Madness

This month has proven to be somewhat maddening. Here's what we've been up to...

The month started off with a snow storm. Yes, a snow storm in March. When all was said and done, I think we ended up with almost six inches. This also resulted in two days out of school and a two hour delay the third day. This was actually the first time Noah had really seen snow and understood what was going on. This is our front yard as the snow is falling on Sunday night, March 1, 2009.


Of course, we all know that living in the South, you never know what kind of weather we're going to get. We had the snow storm and the very next Monday what did we do? Noah and I went to the zoo in short sleeves and Crocs with no socks. I think it was even warm enough we could have worn shorts. If this isn't March Madness, I don't know what is!



Finally, the Tooth Fairy paid yet another visit to our house. Frankly, I'm tired of him showing up. Just look at her! In total, we've lost 7 teeth! Thankfully, there are no more visits, other than routine cleanings, looming in our future.


Talk about a crazy month!!