Some Thoughts

Here are some thoughts I had tonight.....

1. You know you are getting old when your friends have never seen Little House on the Prairie or The Waltons!!

2. Jacob's question for the night....."Mommy....why does the moon follow our van?"" hmmm...

Jacob Grayson

I have posted so much the last few days about Joshua, I thought it was time to post about Jacob today. I know you can't tell by the picture, but he is writing his name. I know the "b" has a lot of working to do, but I am proud that he can at least jot this down by himself. I did some flashcards with him today to see how many letters he knew, and I think he only got 1 wrong and that was the letter "v". He even knew the sounds the letters made, so the leap frog video has worked once again. Not to bad for a 3 1/2 year old. Of course his reward is a gumball from Joshua's new machine. Jenna knows how to write J and E. He has really picked up on a lot in the last two weeks, and I am proud of him. Joshua got his first report card this week. He did pretty good too. He only got one "needs improving", so we will work on him with that.

Someone asked me a few days ago if I was certified to teach because they needed a kindergarten teacher and they thought I would be good for the job. I wish so badly now that I would have stayed in education. I would love to teach at a Christian School and have my kids go free. There is no possible way that we could ever afford to have 3 kids in a Christian school from here till graduation. I am still struggling with the home school issue. I know when Joshua hits second grade I probably will home school, but I am struggling with next year. I would really love to work at preschool one more year. I love my job and I know that this would be the last possible year I would ever be able to do it.

Back to Normal

I really didn't know what to title this. I guess we are going back to normal after a weekend of birthday celebration. I think a party would have been faster....one day and we would have been over, but he has had a party every year, so I agree he needed a break. We had a good time at Logan's last night. My parents joined us and Joshua was very excited about that. He was surprised when a group of workers came over for his birthday. I think he was a little embarassed. I know all the weight I lost is back on with all that marble cake with whipped icing, and our dinner last night at Logan's, so I hit the gym this morning at 4:45 I did the eliptical for 15 minutes and then did 45 minutes of aerobics. I am tired! I'd like to go back tonight for my Tuesday night class, but Idon't know if I will make it. I didn't get to go last week and Tiffany can't watch the kids tonight, but maybe I can go late!

Isn't he cute? (part 2)

Happy Birthday Joshua!!

Happy Birthday, Joshua!!! I can't believe I have a six year old little boy. It seems like yesterday you were just born. I remember how excited I was to know I was finally pregnant! I remember waiting until the superbowl was over to have to go to the hospital! I remember when you arrived at 5:50 am in the morning! I can remember how fragile we thought you were and how careful we walked around with you thinking you were going to break! You are such a joy to this family and we love you very much! Happy Birthday, Joshua!!!

Fun with Friends

We enjoyed our time last night with Scott, Traci, and Travis. The kids were so excited with Joshua's new toys that they didn't want to go to bed. They really enjoy the new Wingo, so thank you! I think I need to get Scott and Traci to move to Clayton! We are truly thankful for all the friends that God has given us. Thanks for a fun night and we hope to get together with you again soon!

Birthday Weekend

Well, our birthday weekend is off and running. We decided not to have a birthday party for Joshua this year since he has had one every year. We are doing a lot this weekend for his birthday, even though his birthday isn't until Monday. Last night, we went to the hockey game. Jack's company got tickets so we snatched up three of them and took Joshua. He really enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun. We slept a little late this morning. Jack took Jacob to Faytteville this morning to work on his car. Jacob is so excited! He loves tools, so he should be in heaven today. I am going to pick up Joshua's cake, register him for soccer, and then clean house for our company tonight. Everything got messed up because I got called into work yesterday. I didn't mind because it is extra money, but it did put me a little behind. I am posting a picture of Joshua's cake that we will be eating tonight. It's my favorite...marble cake with whipped icing!

Friday

I am attaching more pictures of donuts with daddy day! I hope to get the house cleaned today as we are having company tomorrow night. I am excited to see our friends from Bethany Hills again! Joshua's birthday is Monday, so Travis is coming over Saturday night for Josh's birthday. I am excited to see Scott and Traci!! Tonight we are going to a Carolina Hurricane's Hockey game. We are taking Joshua so that should be interesting. I haven't been to a hockey game in years, so I am really excited to go.

I am looking for some more help....Joshua's class is collecting the tabs from soda cans, soup cans, any aluminum cans that has the pop tabs. If you could save them for me, we would really appreciate it. He only has a couple more months of collecting them. Thanks to all of you who have helped me in the past!

Donuts for Daddy Day

Today was donuts for daddy day at school. Since father's day falls in June, the school likes to do something special for the daddys. Jack took a couple of hours off this morning to come have donuts with Jacob and Jenna. (Joshua got a bo-berry biscuit since he didn't get to go. I stopped by after my 5:00 aerobics class to get him one). The kids sang a couple of songs for dad and then they also did some special art projects. It's really a fun time. This is the first year I have gotten in on the action, since I am a teacher. I always wondered what was going on when I wasn't there!! They do a mother's day tea in May and that is always fun. I am glad Jack got to come and I know Jacob and Jenna were very excited to have daddy eat breakfast with them this morning.!!

Jennifer's ABC's

So, last week I got "tagged" by Sara. I didn't know you played tag in blogs. Since I didn't have anything exciting going on, I decided I would finally do this and tag Jennifer and Tiffany (my only other blog friends at this time)...So, here are my ABC's


A-available or single? No, happily married.
B-best friend? Hands down, Jack
C-cake or pie? Marble cake with whipped icing
D-drink of choice? Diet Coke
.E-essential item I use everyday? Computer, diet coke
F-favorite color? purple
G-gummy bears or gummy worms? Bears
H-hometown- Oneida, Illinois
I-indulgence? CHOCOLATE, bubble baths
J-January or February? Both, January is Josh’s b-day, Feb is valentines day!
K-kids and names? Joshua, Jacob and Jenna
L-life is incomplete without? God, Jack, family
M-marriage date? August 23, 1997
N-number of siblings? 2-Catrina, Mark
O-oranges or apples? Apples
P-phobias or fears? Driving a stick shift, water over my head (swimming)
Q-favorite quote? ???????
R-reasons to smile? My Family.
S-season? Spring
T-tag 3 0r 4 people Jennifer, Tiffany.....Blame this on Sara!
U-unknown fact about me?????I am an open book.
V-vegetable you don't like? All of them
W-worst habit? Worry, rubbing my face when stressed or worried!
Y-your favorite food? Steak, pizza, cheese fries.
Z-zodiac? I think it is Aries

Up and Running Again

I can't start this entry without first thanking my wonderful husband for fixing my computer. After a long day at work, working with computers, fixing the virus at work, staying late, he came home and worked on mine. Then, when my computer did not cooperate this morning, he walked me through how to get it running! Thanks sweetheart!! I hate not being able to check on my friend's blogs. It's like I am talking to them every day by reading what they have to say!

Anyway, today has been a normal day. Nothing out of the ordinary. Jacob helped me make muffins for daddy last night. I love to see the kids character traits coming. Joshua is the social one....never meets a stranger. Jacob, he LOVES to help....whether you want it or not!!! He always asks if he can do something. Jenna....well, she is just the princess for now. I am not really sure yet about her. Anyway, Tuesdays have seem to be my day to do something for Jack....even something very little to let him know I love him and appreciate him. So, when I found out he had to stay late, I scrambled to get muffins made, the pan put away, and the muffins hid when he came home! I snuck out to his car and put some in there for him this morning!!! At least he actually got a breakfast this morning. Again, thanks for getting me up and running....I appreciate you and love you!!

Kids4Truth

We had a great weekend together. My computer is still acting up, and I hope to get the issue resolved soon. I know nothing about computers, except how to turn them on and off. That is totally Jack's department. It makes met get a little on edge because I like to blog, and I like talking to my friends and family. It gets a little lonely around the house when you have no one to talk too except kid talk!

My kids did a great job last night in Kids4Truth. The verses lately seem to be more on their level and more attainable. Joshua is very excited about his patches he has earned. Joshua, we are proud of you too!!

Happy Homecoming

I didn't think Jack was going to get home last night. His flight from California got delayed over 3 hours!! Luckily, he managed to get a flight to Chicago and then to Raleigh. He got in at 9 instead of 7:45. The kids and I went to the airport to surprise him. We went one time to surprise him and this time we went down to the baggage claim so he wouldn't know we were there. He looked for us at the top and figured since it was so late and I hadn't said anything we weren't there. I swear, I felt like a newlywed again with the warm welcome I received at the airport. I was really missed!! Of course, he was really missed too. The kids were so excited to see daddy. Today, Jack and I left around 11 am to have our "date night" (only during the day). We went to Carolina Ale House and had lunch and then went to Toys R Us, Best Buy, Old Navy, the mall and Target. It was so much fun. Tonight Jenna said she wanted to play bingo and play play doh. It will be fun regardless what we do. I am just so glad to have him back!! Thanks, Tiffany for watching the kids for us to get out! I am anxiously awaiting our dates next month!!!

Home Project

Yippee! It's Friday! Jack is coming home!! I can't wait! I know it will be about 9 pm before he gets here, but at least he is coming!! I heard Texas was having bad ice, so I hope nothing happens and he gets stuck there. That would be a nightmare for all of us. I know the kids are ready to see him too. I hope they all get a nap in so that they can see him when he gets home. Tiffany is supposed to come tomorrow and watch them around lunch time so that Jack and I can have our date. I think we will do lunch and then shop and then come home for Family Night, since we can't do it tonight. It should be interesting since it's Jenna's turn!!! Ok, so here was my project while Jack was gone. Jenna's room was a very light blue and I painted it purple. Her comforter is pink and purple with princesses on them. We had these Winnie The Pooh stickers up since Joshua was a baby, and then when Jacob was born, we moved them to the other room. They have really served their purpose. I don't know why we left them up when we put princess stuff in Jenna's room. Anyway, I hope to find some princess hangups and accessories as money will allow. I hope Jack likes it. I am not a good painter, but I thought I did a much better job this time. Joshua does not have school today, so I know he will be excited. He is off Monday too, so it really doesn't matter if we get the bad weather. I won't have to get out in it. Happy Friday!

Answered Prayer

I know...two posts in one day, but I am so excited!!! We found our Bible Story book!! (if you missed the details, see Monday, January 15th and my saga) The kids are so excited to hear "Night Light's" next Bible story. The kids were the best I have seen them in a long time. We went into the boy's room and I climbed up on Josh's bed and ripped off the sheets. Of course, it wasn't there. I went ahead and put clean sheets on while I was there. I checked the entire closet. Joshua and Jenna emptied the entire toy box and them put everything back in. I checked every dresser drawer. Jacob kept telling me "God knows where it is". I was going to move to Jenna's room next but came out the the living room. I checked the cushions one more time and then I moved the entire couch out and there was the book!! I don't know how we missed it the first time, but we are so excited to have our book back. I am excited because the kids have been praying that we would find it and we finally did!!! I hope next time I lose something it won't take me almost a week to find it!

First Winter Blast

I was hoping for no school today. I hate driving in this stuff, but I guess Clayton isn't as bad as the other areas. I wonder if Sunday night will be as bad as this stuff was. I guess this isn't bad, it's just a hassle for me! I had an easy day at preschool as only 3 kids showed up. I guess no one wanted to get out. At 10 am, one of my other boys showed up, so we finally ended up with 4 so it was still a good day.

Almost There

Well, we are halfway through the week. I can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel (and no, it is not an oncoming train!!) but Friday evening (late) just seems like it will never ever get here. We had a pretty good day yesterday. I got to go to aerobics last night (thanks, Tiffany!). That always makes me feel really good. I just love taking this lady's class. I put the kids to bed early and then tried to clean a little bit. Today I think I can get caught back up. I hope to work with Jacob and Jenna again and then maybe take them to the library. I hope to run to Target too as I need to take something back. So, I guess yesterday and today are nothing but average. I am including more pictures of our trip since I don't have any new pictures.

Fun with Friends

We had a lot of fun yesterday at the museum. The kids really enjoyed getting out with all of their friends. Jenna enjoyed riding with Skye and "taking care of her". I really enjoyed it too. It was so fun to see my kids enjoying themselves and it was fun to get out with my friends too. Kids are so funny. There is so much to see at a new place and they are more fascinated by wanting to ride the escalators. Like they have never seen one before!! They got to touch a turtle. None of the kids wanted to touch the cockroach (good for them) or the baby aligator, but I was so proud of my little one who touched the guinne pig! She is scared of everything, but she was sure proud of herself! I am sure you can see even more pictures if you check out Sara and Jennifer's blog too! I'll include some more photos tomorrow. Thanks guys for such a wonderful time!!

We are back into the routine today. I know Joshua will not want to go to school. At least he has a short week. No school on Friday either!!! I was tempted to call my boss and tell her I wanted to take a day off (I get two). I was tempted to send Jacob and Jenna and just sleep a little and get caught up and enjoy some time to myself, but I think I better save my time. We still have a lot of time and I am sure there will be some point where the kids will be sick and I will need it.

The Lost Book

Am I the only mom who can't find something in the house? Am I the only mom that looses something? We got the kids this devotional book for Christmas. It features "Night Light"...this little bug that tells a story, asks questions, says a little prayer and then has the word for the night. It's more for Jacob and Jenna's age. The kids LOVE it. We sing this song every night and then read the story. At the end, they always ask me "mommy...what's the next story?". Every night when I ask them to put on their PJ's, they say "mommy...don't we get a Bible story". I put it on the table Friday night after family night. I was just too lazy to put it back on it's normal spot. The kids "cleaned" up the living room Saturday and must have included this book. I have check EVERYWHERE....under the couches, the cushions, under beds, in their beds (yes, somehow toys get in their beds), the toy box, the closets...I even took every book off our book shelf to find it. I am thinking to myself " Lord, my house is only so big". It's absolutely driving me nuts! I can tell them Bible stories, but they really liked this book. The kids now are praying that we can find it, so maybe it will help them see that God cares and he answers. I know EVENTUALLY we will find it.

I did pretty well last night. I worry about Jack putting in late nights and a lot of time! Joshua doesn't have school today and he is excited. He is already dreading tomorrow. (so am I). Today, we are going to the museum with Sara and her kids, Wes, (5) Wil (3) and Skye (11 months?) and with Jennifer and Sam (4). I look forward to getting out with the other moms and letting the kids get with their friends. I look forward to getting to know Sara better as I haven't spent much time with her other than church. I'll post some pictures tomorrow morning so that I have something to talk about!!!

Someone special

This post is dedicated to my wonderful husband! I love you sweetheart!

We went to church this morning early for choir practice. The kids were very well behaved. I was very proud of them. We tagged along with Al, Jennifer and Sam to Ruby Tuesdays for lunch. Thanks, Al and Jennifer, we had a great time! Thanks for letting us tag along with you. We have Kids4Truth tonight and then Joshua has the day off tomorrow. It will be nice for all the kids!

Outdoor Play

I enjoyed getting outside yesterday with the kids. It's like we had cabin fever! We enjoyed family night. It was Jacob's turn and he wanted to play play-doh. After about an hour Joshua and Jenna wanted to play bingo, but Jacob just wanted to play play-doh. We kept telling them it was his night and he got to decide what we would do. It was funny listening to them trying to convince him, but he wouldn't budge! At least we have some variety to our Friday evenings.

I woke up this morning and went to two yard sales, but I didn't find anything. Then, I went to aerobics. It was so nice to get to go since I probably won't get to the gym at all next week. She gave us a hard workout. I got there early to get my spot (you have to on Saturdays) and had extra time so I walked a 1/4 mile and jogged a 1/4 mile before aerobics started. I am so tired now, but I feel good, even though I am a little sore. Now, if I could only keep my mouth shut, I would drop those pounds back off in no time, but that's the problem...I can't keep my mouth shut. The kids are out with daddy now helping him change oil in his car and playing on their bikes. I just love Saturdays when things aren't so rushed! Have a great weekend!!

Finally Friday

I am so glad it is finally Friday. Even though I don't work, I can anxiously await Fridays. Joshua gets a break from school, and we can enjoy the weekend together as a family! It looks like a warm weekend, so I hope to go out and play with the kids. Today, Joshua has his first report due. He has homework every week, but this was his first "report". They are learning about Artic Animals and had a choice between about 10 animals to choose from. He chose the polar bear. Of course, I went on line and found the pictures and the info, but he cut them all out, glued them on the way he wanted and then did all the writing. He is very proud of it. I was glad to finally get something a little less time consuming. Just a couple more weeks and my boy will be 6! I can't believe it. Happy Friday!!!