Pugliani Family

Attempted Burglary!

2012-02-10T21:20:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was a scary day! I had been at church decorating a bulletin board. When I came home, there were two police cars at my house and my alarm was blaring. Someone had kicked in my back door! Now, when we had our house rebuilt in 2008, we had it wired for an alarm system. We didn't activate it until 3 weeks ago! Thank goodness we activated it and thank goodness I actually turn it on when we leave the house! Our alarm company had tried to call but being that it was still so new to us, I hadn't stored the number in my cell phone so I didn't recognize the 800 number so I didn't answer. The alarm was triggered around 2:35. The police were called and I was called at 2:36. I came home at 2:45. Thank goodness the alarm scared him off and nothing was taken. He didn't even take a step into the house. The first police officer to arrive on the scene actually lives in my neighborhood and he was at my house within 1 minute of the call and did a search of the house and nobody was there.

Of course, I am upset that this happened but I am also grateful to my Heavenly Father. I am grateful because if we hadn't activated the alarm a few weeks ago, Zack and I probably would have walked in with a stranger in my house going through and taking our things! Unfortunately, this has been happening more frequently around here. This is a popular time because they assume that you are at the school picking up your kids.

There were shoe prints all over the door. He had to kick it over and over before it finally gave in. Based on the evidence that they collected, they have a suspect already. It is some of the same evidence that they have found in other burglaries. There was already a warrant out for his arrest so now we wait. I will continue to pray for protection every day!

The insurance company sent someone out last night to board up the door.

The dead bold was completely knocked out of the door. We are still amazed that the glass didn't shatter and go everywhere because it got the crap kicked out of it!

Be safe, get a gun, and an alarm!

Miss Valentine Pageant

2012-02-10T20:43:00.003-06:00

On February 4, 2012, Grace, Marianna, and their friend, Carol, all entered the Miss Valentine Pageant. Can you believe that I got Grace's dress for $6.00 at the thrift store! It cost $20.00 to dry clean and my Mom had to do some alterations and add the bolero jacket but still not a bad price.

This was a practice walk.

Question time! Both girls got very nervous during this part. Grace cried right before she went on stage and Marianna cried right after she got off of stage. However, Grace did say that it wasn't as bad as she thought and she was proud of herself for going through with it. We are proud of her too!

Age group line-up. The votes are in and this is the last line-up!

Crowning!

Grace got 4th alternate! It may not be queen but considering that she got upset right before she went on and still placed, we are very proud of her.

Two beautiful girls!

Florida!

2012-02-10T20:13:00.004-06:00

January 29 - February 2, 2012

For Christmas, my Dad got us LegoLand tickets! We decided that since Dan would be starting his "new" job closer to home that we would take a trip before his first day. LegoLand was AWESOME! It just opened in October in Florida so it is still very new. Of course, it is an amusement park but I couldn't get over all the cool stuff that was built out of legos. I also really enjoyed the shows. Dan, Zack, and Grace really enjoyed the roller coasters and Joseph just says that he loved it all.

I can't get over the size of this! All legos!

Can you spot my family? New York City!

Life-size car! I know, right?

After our time at LegoLand was over, the fun just kept going. We went to visit Dan's family. The kids got to see Grandparents and Aunts and even meet some new cousins. We also went to the beach and the kids (even my big kid, Dan) went swimming in Grandma and Grandpa's pool. Aunt Beth has an underwater camera and she took some really cool shots but I haven't received those yet. I will post them when I get them.

Cousins!

2012-02-10T10:28:00.002-06:00

I have really been neglecting my blog for the last couple of months. So, I am going to try to make up for it very briefly. This is December in a nutshell.

Christmas Parade- December 3, 2011

Zack was one of the wise men on our Church Christmas float. He said that he had a great time.

Grace was also on a float this year. She was on her art studio's float.

Grace's voice recital - December 8, 2011

Grace started taking voice lessons and her voice instructor decided to do a Christmas recital. Grace was very nervous. So nervous, that she started to cry and barely sang her song with her teacher. Unfortunately, her instructor has some things going on and had to cease the lessons for a while. I hope that they will start again soon!

Santa

You never can get enough of the big guy, Right?

Band Concert - December 15, 2011

Zackary started home school band this year. He plays the snare drum and the bells. He also had Christmas recital.

Gingerbread House

It has become a tradition to make a gingerbread house each year. We got smart this year, we got one already put together that we only had to decorate. It worked much better!

Christmas train ride

Of course, we had to go to the mall for the annual train. Joseph loves to do this and they grow up so fast that I figure that it is all worth it!

Saying goodbye is hard to do!

2011-11-26T13:41:00.004-06:00

Monique Sweet Pea LaRue Pugliani

October 9, 1994 - November 20, 2011

This is a sad post. We had to say goodbye to our dog of 17 years. Well, she was actually my dog. She was a Christmas gift from my Dad in 1994. I had her before I had a husband or children. She was a good dog and she is greatly missed. Please do not tell me that she was just a dog because to me she was a part of my family.

This is her right after we got her.

This is me and her a couple of days after we became a family.

This is Monique when I was dating Dan. That is him beside her.

She moved everywhere with us. Here she is in 1997 in South Carolina. This was mine and Dan's first house together.

Maryland - 2005 - "Playing" with the kids in the snow. Yes, I dressed her. But only when she was freshly cut and we were in the snow.

New York - 2006 - She loved to be on the couch. It was her preferred spot.

October 2007 - Back in Alabama for the third time. Around her 13th birthday.

My groomer was having a pet photographer come in to do pictures. My husband thought that I was a fool for spending money on pictures of my dog but I am so glad that I did it now. This was taken last year. They did a lot of photoshop because she was practically blind in both eyes at this point and her eyes were white and cloudy looking. They also had to clean up her face quite a bit. Everything became traumatic for her, baths, the groomers, standing, eating. She was on arthritis medicine but still in a lot of pain. She couldn't see or hear and her sense of smell was starting to go. At the end, she couldn't even stand.

I was with her when she passed. We brought her home with us and the kids and I made this stepping stone to mark her grave.

Goodbye Monique! We love you!

Circus

2011-11-19T10:29:00.003-06:00

The other day, Dan and I were talking and he brought it to my attention that Joseph has never been to the circus. Zack and Grace have both been but it has been years ago. So, when my friend told me the other day that the circus was coming to town, we decided to go. This was a very easy decision because we all got in for only $28.00.

The kids in front of the "Big Top".

Of course, the taking of pictures during the show is prohibited. But here are the kids at intermission.

We all had a great time and it was certainly worth the $28.00!

Joseph's preschool thanksgiving feast

2011-11-19T10:20:00.003-06:00

Joseph's preschool had it's Thanksgiving feast yesterday. The classes had a little presentation and then we ate. There was so much delicious food but my favorite part was Joseph putting on a show.

This is him saying his part, " Who is that peeking out of the TeePee?". However, Joseph's translation is "Who is that peeking out of the PeeTee?".

My little Indian boy.

The Inheritance Cycle

2011-11-19T09:56:00.002-06:00

Do any of you have a big fan of the Inheritance cycle (the Eragon books)? Well, I do. Zack couldn't wait for the 4th and final book to come out on November 8. We rushed to Target and he had it read in a week.

On Monday, November 14, Zack found a website that is listed in the book and on this website there was a link to meet the author, Christopher Paolini. The catch? It was the next day in Birmingham. The other catch, you had to have a line number card from the store that you could only get in person. Luckily, Dan knows a person from work (see, commuting to Birmingham has paid off) who lives right down the street from this Books-A-Million. He hopped in his car and got us a line number, number 210. It was set, we were driving to Birmingham to meet Christopher.

The book signing started at 6:00 but we had to be there early. We waited for over an hour, standing at the "security ropes", to get a front row view of when he came out to talk and take questions.

He told us how he was homeschooled and graduated high school at age 15 and how he was extremely bored. So, he decided to sit down and write a book. His parents self-published it and he was off on a promotion tour to local high schools and the like. Finally, it got picked up from a publisher and the rest is history.

Here he is reading a line from the first book, Eragon.

Reading from the second book, Eldest.

Reading from the third book, Brisingr.

Reading two pages from the fourth and final book, Inheritance.

In all, we were there waiting and standing for over 4 hours. Was it worth it? Zack couldn't stop smiling the whole way home!

Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-29T11:27:00.004-05:00

Remember the pumpkins from the pumpkin patch? Well, we carved them. Over the years, we have accumulated a lot of pumpkin carving pattern books. I love Target, especially the day after a holiday. So, I stock up on things like pattern books. Anyway, we have a plethora of things for the kids to choose from. Here are their selections for 2011:

Zackary

This is the second year that Zack's pumpkin has started to rot before he even cut into it.

Zack chose Star Wars (SURPRISE). This is dueling light sabers in case you couldn't tell.

The problem with this pattern is that it is too detailed. You need an enormous pumpkin to pull this off. His looks like a starburst now instead of dueling lightsabers.

Grace

I have bought her Disney Princess pattern books and what does she choose? Scroll down to find out.

She choose a cat (AGAIN, SURPRISE).

Joseph

He was doing this strictly for a photo-op. He really just supervised the carving of his pumpkin. You will never guess what he picked...

The Hulk (DOUBLE SURPRISE).

For the record, Dan ended up carving Zack's and Joseph's pumpkins. I carved Grace's pumpkin. What will we do next year? Well, that depends on what Target has left on Tuesday!

Trunk-or-Treat

2011-10-27T18:34:00.006-05:00

It's that time of year again. Costumes, candy, friends, fun, and the annual church trunk-or-treat. Ours was last night.

Zack is a zombie. He had a lot of fun getting his clothes dirty and ratty. Then, for a more dramatic effect, we sprayed fake blood all over his clothes.

Grace is a bloody doctor. Zack played this part in 2008. There is something about fake blood that my kids love.

Joseph is the Hulk. They do not want the kids wearing masks so we had to paint his face. He didn't like it and as you can see in later pictures, I had to take him to the bathroom and wash it off.

Zack with his friend, Ryan, both dressed up as zombies. Notice Joseph in the picture?

Grace with her friend, Emma.

Joseph with Roy. Roy is actually Zack's best friend but Joseph thinks that he is his best friend too.

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-27T17:46:00.006-05:00

Ah, traditions! Going to the pumpkin patch has become one of our October traditions. The kids love picking out a pumpkin to carve. We have found a pumpkin patch that we really like so that is where we go when we want a pumpkin.

The blow-up exhibit is a must. My kids could spend all day on these things. Thank goodness for $5.00 entertainment! Grace had a friend with her this year so that doubled her fun!

To the pumpkins! It is always interesting to see what kind of pumpkin each child is going to pick.

Ah, traditions and memories.

Catching up!

2011-10-27T17:02:00.006-05:00

October has been a pretty busy month and I have been a slacker when it comes to posting all of our fun activities. So, today I am playing catch-up. This post is all about Joseph. He has had some good times this month and here are a couple of highlights.

October 19, 2011 - First preschool field trip - pumpkin patch

A local church is having a pumpkin patch on their property for the month of October and Joseph's preschool went there for a field trip. I was a chaperon because I can't miss a photo-op! Here are Joseph and Brody (and the rest of their class) on the hayride.

Here they are at story time. They read a story about pumpkins.

Here is the pumpkin that Joseph picked.

They both wanted this HUGE pumpkin but that wasn't part of the $4.00 field trip. I convinced them that a picture with the enormous pumpkin would suffice.

October 25, 2011 - Library trick-or-treat

I take Joseph to our local library for story time and today they had trick-or-treating. Here are Joseph (I mean the Hulk) and Brody the train conductor. Earlier, when we were at home getting ready, Joseph told Brody that those were not boobs, they were muscles!

Trick-Or-Treat!

Is he a handsome Hulk or what?

What a good-looking group!

Look how strong the Hulk is!

Orange Beach, Alabama

2011-10-27T14:13:00.004-05:00

Every year, we are lucky enough to take a beach trip. This year, we thought that we were going to get to go a little earlier than last year. But Joseph broke his arm and that put a stop to our summer trip. However, last year we went in October and it was a great trip and it all worked out again. The weather was beautiful and the kids had a blast.

ZACK

GRACE

JOSEPH

I LOVE beach pictures! I LOVE kids in matchy clothes too! So, you put the two together and I LOVE LOVE it!

Zack is 13!

2011-10-27T10:37:00.003-05:00

Believe it or not, this is a hard post. Why? Because my baby is a teenager now! That's right, Zackary turned 13! It is still kindof hard to believe. However, as far as teenagers go, I think that he will be a great one. He can be shy and reserved at times because he has a very humble heart and spirit. He is a great big brother and an awesome son. I am so glad that Heavenly Father deemed me fit to be his mother. I feel like the luckiest gal in the world! Happy birthday Zack! Your birthday was truly a great day in my life (and my best birthday present to date)!

After last year's party (all of those big boys were a little wild), we decided to opt out of a party this year. We did the family thing on his special day. Here we are singing happy birthday. I am sorry but I failed to get a picture of the cousins that were here.

I hope that all of your wishes come true!

(Notice the box of matches right next to burning candles! Sorry ladies, but mom of the year belongs to me!)

Go Hurricanes!

2011-10-27T10:28:00.002-05:00

Zack decided to play soccer this season after a long break. He played with the city league and the name of his team was the Hurricanes. They had a great season and his team came in at #2. Zack improved his own skill so much. Zack is not an aggressive person by nature but he stepped it up on the soccer field this year and was able to come out of that shell a little bit. I think that we have re-ignited his love of this game!

Zack is number 5. Go Zack!

Here is Zack's coach "singing" his praises as he gives Zack his trophy.

We are so proud of you!

Publix Field Trip

2011-09-24T08:53:00.006-05:00

Yesterday, September 23, 2011, we had a fun field trip to Publix. Now, when I heard the words Publix and field trip in the same sentence I was a little skeptical. However, we had a really great time.

When we got there, she had the kids decorate a goody bag while we waited on everyone else to get there. Then, we moved on to the bakery. Each kid put on a hair net and gloves. The bakery lady came out and explained to them what she does every day and then they got to decorate their own cookie.

Zack is really concentrating. It takes a lot of thought to pile on icing and sprinkles! There was actually more icing than cookie when he was finished.

Grace? With a pink cookie? Who would have thought that she would have picked pink!

Next, the deli. Every where that the kids went, they were handed samples to eat! Here they were given popcorn chicken.

Fruit counter - more samples! Strawberry, grape, and cantelope shish kebobs.

Seafood and meat department. Here they ate pork chop samples.

Then, we got to go behind the scenes. It basically looks like Sam's with palletized food stacked everywhere.

The freezer! It was 0 degrees. You can see the coldness!

The refrigerator. She was showing them how they restock the cold stuff through this door in the refrigerator.

Pharmacy - they even got a baggie of goodies from the pharmacy.

Last stop, the registers. They got to scan items and even print out receipts. It was hard peeling them away from this part!

Here is the group! I think that everyone had a great time and I have to tell you, I love Publix even more now!

Sweet, little Joseph didn't get to tag along today either. He was at preschool and it was picture day and his first show and tell. Maybe the next one!

Lanark Field Trip

2011-09-20T19:05:00.004-05:00

One of the things that I miss about public schools is the field trips. This year, I was determined that we were going to do more "things". Today, we went on a field trip to our local wildlife park. Zack's 4th grade class went here and I chaperoned so we both kind of knew a little bit about what we were going to be doing. Grace, on the other hand, had never been. Since this was a homeschool day, we got to do even more than the public schools got to do.

The first thing that our group did was fishing. They used hot dogs as the bait so even the girls could bait their own hooks. Most of them wouldn't touch the fish though. I think that everyone there caught at least two fish.

Next, we had a digging expedition. They split the kids into groups and each group got to dig to see what kinds of things they could find.

Here are some of the things that they found . . .

Next, they went canoeing. Zack and Grace have been canoeing before at homeschool P.E. but they really enjoy it so they always welcome a canoe.

Zack and his canoe buddy (Zack's in the back).

Grace and her canoe buddy (Grace is in the front).

After lunch, we had a creek hike. This was my least favorite because we got really wet. The e-mail stated that the kids needed to wear play clothes and old shoes but didn't mention a full change of clothes and towels. Grace and a friend jumped off of a tree stump and got soaked!

All in all, it was a good day and the kids had fun. I am exhausted and ready for bed but we got out of the house. Now, we just have to catch up on our schoolwork!

Coming soon . . . Soccer!

Grace's 1st pageant

2011-09-06T15:44:00.006-05:00

Grace competed in her 1st beauty pageant. Our town has a Miss Labor Day pageant annually and Grace decided to participate in it this year. We had a lot of fun preparing for it. We had a seasoned pageant friend come over and teach her "the walk". She also gave Grace a pair of fake eyelashes and taught me how to put them on but Grace lost one of them before the pageant. We bought a new dress, shoes, and jewelry. We were both extremely nervous but she did a great job. She didn't place but it was her first pageant. Maybe we will try again next year.

On the stage. Can you tell that she is nervous?

One last look for the judges . . .

I talked a couple of friends into doing it too. Here are Grace and some of the other beautiful contestants. I think that you may recognize her cousin beside her. That's right, she did it too.

Now that all of the pressure if gone, here they are a little more relaxed. And goofy, on Grace's part.

We had to send a picture in with the application for identification purposed and if you wanted to be entered into the photogenic award. Here are three of the pictures that I took as possibilities. I love the first one but she looks sixteen. We ended up going with the middle one.

Joseph turned 5!

2011-08-31T19:32:00.003-05:00

We celebrated my baby's 5th birthday! That's right, Joseph turned 5!!

He wanted a SpongeBob party. Personally, I love SpongeBob so I didn't mind at all. Zackary had a SpongeBob party for his 4th birthday. I made his cake (Alisa, remember how much fun we had). My cousin, who is very good at cake decorating, helped with Joseph's cake. Okay, I baked it and she did all of the decorating. Adorable, right?

I wanted to have a craft for the kids to do when they arrived. I found a cute sea craft and made it work for SpongeBob. Here are some of the kids working on the craft.

Here is Joseph with his completed craft.

His only request was a SpongeBob pinata.

"Happy Birthday to you!" Make a wish . . .

I hope that everyone had a great time. I know that Joseph did!

School has started!

2011-08-29T08:31:00.002-05:00

Zack and Grace actually started school on August 15, but I am just now finding the time to post about it. We are homeschooling again this year (year 3). One of the good things about homeschooling is that the kids normally work in their pajamas. I made them get dressed because I hadn't taken any pictures of the new school year. They are getting too big for the school desks so they rarely sit in them. However, it reminds me of a traditional school classroom. So far, school is going well. It is very time consuming but worth it.

On Monday, August 22, Joseph started school! Since he has a late birthday, we decided not to put him in kindergarten this year. Instead, he is attending preschool three times a week. We are on week two and he is really enjoying it. I hope that we can continue to have a great year for everyone!

P.S. Joseph also got his stitches removed on August 22. We are cruising down the recovery road. Now, if we can only get full range of motion back in his arm we will be golden!

Glasses

2011-08-09T19:16:00.003-05:00

It's that time of year again. Time to get ready for the new school year. Since we homeschool, my kids don't need glasses to see the board but we decided to get their eyes checked anyway. Zack has been wearing glasses while he watches TV for a while now and then we noticed that Grace was squinting at the TV too. We went the the eye doctor and they got new glasses. The doctor said that Grace could have glasses or do without for now and she decided to go ahead and get them. No more squinting at the TV!

In other news...

Joseph got his cast taken off! It has been a long 4 weeks! Now, he will have surgery on Friday (August 12) to remove the pins and then we just have to finish healing. He was so excited to get it off but then he started crying because it was very stiff and felt weird to not have that support. Needless to say, it has been a LONG afternoon and evening with a LOT of crying. Please pray that his arm will continue to heal quickly and that the surgery will go smoothly.

Camping

2011-08-05T13:23:00.006-05:00

August 2-3, 2011

Last year, my Mom decided to buy a camper trailer. Now, if you know my Mom this seems very odd because she isn't an outdoorsy type of person. However, she wanted it, bought it, and cleaned it. It has been sitting in storage except for the one night that she and her husband took it out to make sure that everything worked properly before we started having big family campouts.

My sister was going out of town and my Mom was keeping her kids. My Mom thought that this would be a great opportunity to take the grandkids camping. The men, Dan and Michael, went early with all of the kids to get things set up and we women were going later (once the trailer was cooled). Now, we are in the south, and it is VERY hot! Dan called me and Joseph was screaming in the background and tearing at his cast. A fiberglass cast and 110 degree weather don't mix! Needless to say, he brought Joseph home and Joseph and I did not spend the night but we did go for dinner and back again in the morning.

Everyone else had a good time and the kids really enjoyed themselves. They rode bikes, went fishing, and went exploring.

Joseph was fine as long as he was in the air conditioning!

At the lake looking for fish.

The next day, the heat was too much for Joseph. This was as close to fishing that he got. We went back to the trailer as soon as this picture was taken.

Yes, she is baiting her own fishing pole. YUCK!

Splatter Painting

2011-08-01T17:25:00.005-05:00

When Grace took art, her class did a splatter painting. She had a great time doing it and she and her cousin, Marianna, wanted to do one during the Summer. Well, nothing is ever easy. It started with two people wanting to do it and it turned into five people doing it. Plus, it is EXTREMELY hot and most of this project has to be done outside. While my Mom and I were canning pears, we decided to let the kids do their painting. The good part, it was at her house so I didn't have to worry about the mess!

You start by painting the background (the entire canvas) with a light color.

Zack chose green.

Grace chose blue.

Joseph chose blue, too.

After that dries, you head outside and start splattering paint. It gets everywhere so wear something that you don't mind getting paint on.

Poor Joseph! Broken arm + extreme heat + bugs and bug bites = meltdown!

Here are the finished projects! I think that they turned out great!

Update

2011-07-16T14:30:00.002-05:00

It has been a few days since Joseph broke his arm and I am still trying to figure out exactly what happened. This is the bed that he was trying to jump off of when he fell. As you can see, it is not a bunk bed and it is not a high bed. He was just lucky enough to land just right to cause the break. After talking to the Doctor, I did find out that this is the 2nd most common break in children Joseph's age. It was a matter of a jarring and a twisting motion at the same time.

I am happy to report that he had a check-up yesterday and the Doctor said that everything looks really good. I also found out that he may only need the cast on for 3-4 weeks and not the 6-8 weeks that I originally thought. Only time will tell and it depends on how quickly his arm heals.

In the meantime, we are still struggling with getting comfortable especially at night. The cast is really heavy and he cannot lift it by himself if he is lying down. This has made for some sleep deprived nights and some crying on his and my part. The sling has helped a lot during the day so now he can get up and use the bathroom by himself and play with his toys. Please keep praying that his arm will heal quickly. Thanks and God bless.

Joseph broke his arm!

2011-07-12T19:10:00.009-05:00

I have a long list of things that I would never want any of my children to have to go through. I am sad to say that one of the things on my list happened today.

Every Tuesday, I take the kids to the library to participate in the Summer reading program. Today, started out like a typical Tuesday. I took my shower, got out and was getting myself ready when Grace came running into my room to tell me that Joseph had fallen off of the bed, was screaming, and that his arm looked weird. I ran out of my room (not even fully clothed yet) and even without my glasses I could tell that his arm was broken. Since Dan has to work the night shift, he was sleeping until I started yelling that Joseph broke his arm. I called the Dr and the insanity began. After the x-ray was taken, we were waiting in the x-ray room to make sure that the images came out. I could see the computer from where I was standing and as soon as the image came up, I knew that his arm was definitely broken.

When we arrived at the Orthopaedic surgeon's office the news got worse. He told us that Joseph needed surgery to install pins to hold the bone in place because of the type of break that it was. Really? The S word! However, he informed us that he could usually manipulate the bone without cutting his arm all of the way open.

We went to the hospital with the dread of knowing that our 4-year-old had to be put under anesthesia and possibly cut into, and have pins screwed into his arm. Can I please wake up from this nightmare?

I am happy to report that the surgery was a success and he did not have to cut him open. He does have 3 pins and will have to wear a cast for 6-8 weeks. Also, since it broke on a growth plate, he has to see the orthopaedic surgeon yearly from now until he stops growing to make sure that the bone is growing properly.

My poor Joseph! It always seems to happen to him! He is my first child to have stitches, first child to be hospitalized twice since birth (Grace was in the NICU but I am talking about after they came home from the hospital), and now he is my first child to have a broken bone. I hope that it will end here!

Here are the x-rays. There isn't supposed to be a big gap between the bones. This is the image that I saw when I knew that it was broken.

Grace called me at the hospital and told me that I had to come through the front door (I usually come in the back door). They had made a Get Well Soon banner for him.

They also made a Get Well card.

And they made all of his favorite figures out of clay.

Please keep Joseph in your prayers for a speedy recovery and no permanent damage! Thanks and God bless!

P.S. Don't let your kids jump off the bed!

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-07T12:35:00.004-05:00

As you know, we live in the South and it has been HOT! July 4th was no exception. Our town had a parade that started at 9:00 a.m. We got there 40 minutes early to insure a good spot. We parked close to the park so that the kids could play while we waited for the parade. After stepping out of the air conditioned car, I began to question my decision to shower before the parade because it was obvious that I was going to need another one. Now, our family loves parades so it was worth the sacrifice. I do have to say, that this was a pretty lame parade. Thank goodness for good friends to socialize with or otherwise it would may have been a total bust! We were celebrating the birthday of the greatest country in the world and I do feel blessed to live here.

Here they are! I love to do matchy things! Thank goodness my kids tolerate me!

I just thought that this was a cool picture. Our friend, Roy, was pushing Joseph and I held the camera up in the air and took this shot.

Here is the crew! Happy birthday America!

Here is Grace with her favorite cousin, Rebecca. My cousin had sweet Rebecca in January and Grace has adored her from the first time that she held her in the hospital. My cousin, Alisha, is extremely talented. She made the outfit that Rebecca is wearing and the bow in Grace's hair.

On July 5th, we got to see some cousins that we haven't seen in a couple of years. How lucky are we?

Although everyone had a great time, these two were inseparable. Joseph and Peter were the best of friends within the first couple of minutes of playing together. I love how easy it is for children to become best friends.

GOD BLESS AMERICA!

June in a nutshell!

2011-07-07T09:10:00.008-05:00

I was looking at my blog the other day, and I realized that I didn't do a single post for the month of June. I looked in my June photo folder to see what went on in the month of June to try to figure out why I didn't post anything. The answer: I was just being lazy! I am guilty of not taking as many pictures as I normally do but we did have some good times in June. We did our yearly garden but I failed to take pictures of our success. We had a lot of potatoes, green beans, spinach, and tomatoes. However, the birds are enjoying our tomatoes more than we are.

Zack went to Boy Scout camp from June 13-June 18. This was his first year spending the nights of the whole week. Last year, he just went up for the day. He was excited but a little apprehensive about the heat. It was EXTREMELY HOT! I am happy to report that he survived but that he is happy to be in the air conditioning. I think that he got a little homesick too.

He is packed and ready to go!

Friday was family day. We got to go up and see where he had been staying all week. Here he is with his tent.

While Zack was at camp, we tried to stay cool ourselves. We went to a movie and the splash pad with some friends. Believe it or not, it was even too hot for this!

Let's not forget Father's Day! We made Dan a cookie cake. I was a little nervous about how it was going to turn out. My kids could hardly wait for Dan to get off work so that we could cut the cookie. I have to admit, it turned out pretty good. We may even be doing this again sometime!

2011-07-02T14:15:00.003-05:00

This picture has nothing to do with this post. It is simply for your viewing pleasure!

I try to remember some of the funny things that my kids have said over the years but I am finding out that if I don't write it down that I can't remember. Here are a couple of cute conversations that have taken place over the last week or so with our 4 year old.

Scene: At the library for story time. We are hearing stories from around the world. This particular story takes place in China.

Librarian: Ni Hao! Does anyone know what that means?

All of the kids: Yes, it means hello!

Joseph (alone): Yeah, in Spanish!

Apparently, if it isn't in English, it is Spanish! Welcome to America!

************************

Now, we are at my Mom's house. She has a tiny kiddy pool that the boys love to swim in. While swimming yesterday, Brody started to feel nauseous. They both came in with their towels wrapped around them and stopped at the door of the living room where I was sitting.

Joseph: I am about to be constipated. I am about to throw up.

Wrong end, Buddy! I am happy to report that Joseph's bowels were fine but Brody did throw up! Well, at least he isn't constipated anymore!

It's a party!

2011-05-17T20:21:00.003-05:00

Joseph has successfully finished his first season of soccer and he has a trophy to prove it. Tonight was his last game and his party. Chick-fil-a, cake, and a trophy! What more could a kid ask for!

Joseph right after he got that trophy in his hand. Thank you Coach Casey!

GGGOOOAAALLL!!!

I took Joseph to the store today to pick out a gift as a thank you for the coaches. As we were walking into the store, he told me that he wanted to buy toilet paper. That way, when his coaches ran out, they would have more. I said that there was no way that we were going to give them toilet paper. After 30 minutes in the store and at least a dozen other ideas I finally gave in. I figured that it would get used and we were going to be late for the library. Later today, when Dan saw the t.p. sitting on the counter top he asked about it and I told him. He was not on board with the whole t.p. gift. I told him that he was more than welcome to take Joseph back to the store to try to find something else. As you can see in the next picture, he decided not to fight this battle. When it was time to hand out the gifts, I explained to the coaches that Joseph had picked the gift out himself and that it was an unconventional gift but that everyone uses it. Needless to say, they all laughed when they opened it. I don't think that any of them were unhappy with their gift.

Thank you Coach Eric!

Thank you Coach Peter!

Trophy and medal: CHECK!

Double Digits!

2011-05-14T10:01:00.007-05:00

On May 9, 2011, at 1:47 local time (2:47 birthplace time), Grace turned 10! She was counting down to those double digits. When we asked Grace a couple of months ago what she wanted to do for her birthday she answered that she wanted to go to Graceland. After looking into it, we decided that it was do-able but the trip would take the place of a party and it would be a big chunk of her gift. She still wanted to go. When I asked her if she was an Elvis fan she answered no. I then asked why she wanted to go to Graceland if she wasn't even a fan and she said, "because it's named after me!" The logic of a 10-year-old.

After a hotel was reserved and arrangements were made for the pets, Dan had a thought. Does she realize what it is? That it is just a house and not an amusement park? Well, the thought hadn't even occurred to me that she may think that it was an amusement park! Luckily, she knew exactly what it was so the trip went on as planned.

Here is Grace on May 9!

A friend of mine had made her daughter an ice cream cake and I thought what a great idea. So, I attempted to make an ice cream cake. It wasn't pretty but it tasted pretty good and she was happy with it so that is all that mattered!

"Happy Birthday to You!"

Where and when did the tradition start to blow out the candles? Does anyone worry about the spit that comes out too? No?! Okay, just asking.

As mentioned above, we did not have a party but we did invite relatives over for the ice cream cake. Here are the local cousins!

On May 10, our trip began. As we were driving, Dan and I had a conversation. We saw a sign for Tupelo, Mississippi, and Dan remarked that he thought that this was where Elvis was born. Not being a fan, I had no idea so we looked it up on the GPS. Sure enough, it was and his birthplace was only 1-1/2 miles from the road that we were traveling on so of course we stopped. After all, this was an Elvis trip, Right?

Here is the little two-room house that Elvis was born in on January 8, 1935. As you can see, it was a very small home. His family eventually lost the house because they couldn't pay for it. Elvis bought it back years later and it is now open to the public.

The furniture isn't original but they did try to match the style of furniture as closely as possible. His parents did state that this was the exact position of the bed so even though it isn't the exact bed, it is the exact spot where Elvis was born.

Memphis, here we come!

Here are the gates to Graceland.

Here she is! The reason that we made this trip. Elvis' Graceland.

This is the living room. When you first walk into the doors, this room is on your right. He died in 1977, so everything is decorated according to 70s style. Also, he had very unique (which is a nice way to say tacky) style all his own. The couch to the right of this picture is 15-feet-long. I tired to get as many good pictures as possible but you aren't allowed to use your flash so a lot came out blurry or too dark.

Gorgeous baby grand. Check out the TV!

This is the formal dining room. When you walk in, this room is on your left.

Here is the kitchen. Very dated but again they kept everything the same as when Elvis lived there.

This is the room that has become known as the "Jungle Room". Notice the carpet on the ceiling. This was very common in this house.

We were then taken to the basement where we got to see his T.V. room and his billiards room. With the lighting being even darker in the basement the pictures didn't turn out too good. The billiards room was outrageous. It had an ugly fabric that was used on the wall, furniture and ceiling. If you get a chance google it. You have to see it to believe it.

We did not get to go upstairs which is where Elvis' bedroom was and where he died. I have since read on the internet that the upstairs is exactly the same as the day that he died. Supposedly, the sheets haven't even been changed. Again, I read this on the internet and I don't know how reliable the source is.

We also got to tour his airplanes. Here is the Lisa Marie.

Here is Elvis' grave site. He was originally buried in a cemetery but due to his fame his father had him moved to the Graceland estate.

Even though I am not a huge Elvis fan, it was a great time. I am glad that we had the opportunity to see this. He was a big deal at one time. Now, if only they would open Michael Jackson's Neverland. I would enjoy that ever more!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRACE! WE HOPE THAT YOU HAD A GREAT 10TH BIRTHDAY!

I had a lot of trouble posting this today. It took me almost 3 hours. Is anyone else having trouble?

2011-04-25T16:26:00.007-05:00

Another Easter has come and gone and I feel that I need to make a new post on here. I could show and tell you about all of the fun that the kids have had at carnivals, egg hunts, and egg dying but I thought that I would do something different. I thought that I would take a trip down memory lane to see how much my kids have grown over the years. Most of the pictures were taken on Easter but a few were just taken around that time frame.

1999

Zack was born in October of 1998, so this would be his 1st Easter. Someone gave me this outfit and I couldn't pass it up. Dan was not very happy about it and he told me that Zack would be mad at me one day for taking this picture. I think that he is adorable no matter what he is wearing!

2000

2001

Grace didn't join us for another month so this was Zack's last Easter as an only child.

2002
There she is. This was Grace's 1st Easter. I have to say that she HATED this dress. She cried every time that I put her in it. We only wore it twice, for these pictures and for the first few minutes of church on Easter morning.

I added this picture to the post because she really was a sweet, beautiful baby and I didn't want you to be confused by the fussing picture above.

2003
I am still in the process of converting my negatives onto discs so these are the only pictures that I currently have for 2003. These were taken in May in Florida at Dan's parent's house.

2004

2005

2006

2007
This was Joseph's 1st Easter. This picture was not taken on Easter but it was the most decent one that I could find for this month.

2008

2009

This year, we met my brother and his wife in Tennessee for the weekend. This was one of the only pictures that I got of the three kids together.

2010

2011

I am so thankful for Easter and for what it represents and what we celebrate. I am thankful that I have three, beautiful children that I can watch grow and evolve into who they will become. From the Pugliani Family to yours, Happy Easter!

2011-04-21T21:05:00.002-05:00

It has been a busy day. We got up early and headed to Atlanta, Georgia, to attend the temple open house. It was a great experience and we were very happy that we could take the kids to see it since Atlanta was the temple that Dan and I were sealed in. When the tour was over, we asked the kids what their favorite part was and Joseph answered without hesitation, the refreshments!

Can you tell that Joseph was on the verge of a meltdown?

This was the scene in the car on the ride home. Nice and quiet.

However, our quiet time didn't last. We had to rush home for Joseph's 1st soccer game. I guess that it is a good thing that he crashed in the car so that he would be well rested for his big game.

GO DRAGONS!

Joseph is kicking the ball into play. This was the closest that he got to the ball. He kind of just ran behind the other kids when it was on the field. I have to admit, that it was very humorous to watch. We even had some kids doing cartwheels! Good times!

Last quarter and he has played half of the game. He is pooped!

Not too pooped for "Good Game"!

Green beans

2011-04-11T13:38:00.002-05:00

As you know, Zack is working on his gardening merit badge for scouts. Since he had to plant so many from sprouts, we planted green beans in a miniature greenhouse to get them started. Dan and Zack decided that they were ready to go into the ground. Not to be left out, Grace and Joseph got to plant some too. Dan bought some fertilizer to help with the growing process. When it was Joseph's turn to put a plant in, this was the conversation:

Dan: " Okay, Joe Joe. It is your turn."

Joe Joe: "Okay, but I need some cow poop!"

Quality family time, that is what it is all about.

Joseph started soccer!

2011-04-07T19:59:00.003-05:00

When I asked Joseph if he wanted me to sign him up for soccer, he told me that the only reason he was going to play was because he wanted a trophy. I didn't know if he was going to give me a hard time at practice or not since a trophy is not instant gratification. Well, tonight was his first practice and I got my answer. He LOVED it! He went right out there and had a smile on his face most of the time. Now that his first practice is over, I asked him if he was glad that I signed him up. His reply, "Yeah, that's why I told you to sign me up" (real sarcastic like). I just hope that he does this good of a job the rest of the season.

Here are the Cougars! Luckily, the coaches seem to be really patient and I think that it is going to be a great season.

Go Joseph!

GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

See what I mean? He can't stop smiling!

2011-04-06T12:59:00.006-05:00

SCOUT COURT OF HONOR

March 16, 2011

Zack's troop had a court of honor and Zack earned his Star rank and he also earned 6 merit badges. Eagle, here we come!

SPRING HAS SPRUNG

If the kids break a sweat outside they think that it is time for water activities. It was warm this day but I am still not sure if it was that warm. Zack is across the street in the neighbor's swimming pool and these four didn't want to be left out.

OUR GARDEN

As you know, every year we attempt a garden. Well, this year is no exception. There is a difference this year though. Zack is in charge and doing most of it because he is working on his Gardening merit badge for scouts. (I don't know why this font is different. It is set up like the others but it wouldn't change)

Good to see that he is still smiling. Just wait until the weeds start popping up.

There are several different things that he has to do. This is just another one of the requirements. We tied this into FHE and talked about self-reliance.

TEMPLE

March 26, 2011

I can't believe that I have a child old enough to go to the temple. This was actually his second time attending but I don't have any pictures from the first time.

BIKES

Zack and Grace were both 5 before they were ready to take off the training wheels. Joseph informed us that he was ready now at age 4 1/2. So, off they came and the process began.

We are still in the learning stage but maybe in a few more lessons he will have it.

LOOK WHAT I GOT!! The kids are always wanting to go on bike rides and I am always pulling Joseph along in the wagon because he is too big for a stroller. That wagon gets very heavy after a while. This was the solution that we came up with. Now, we can go faster and Zack and Grace won't have to keep stopping to let me catch up. Okay, they still may have to wait a little.

Ready to go!!

2011-03-10T13:32:00.003-06:00

Zack has been taking tae kwon do for two years now and on February 26, 2011, he finally tested for his black belt. He did such a great job! He is very excited about his new belt and for the first couple of days, he rarely took it off.

As for Grace, she had said that she wanted to learn how to sew. My Mom got out her scraps and decided that she was going to teach Grace and Marianna how to sew a quilt for their baby dolls since that would be pretty easy to do. The girls practiced sewing a straight line on a scrap piece of fabric. In the end, I think that my Mom ended up sewing about 95% of the quilt. I still haven't seen the finished project. Actually, I don't think that it was ever finished but I did take a couple of pictures of Grace at the sewing machine for the first time.

As for Joseph, he got over the pneumonia but then he started to run a fever again. I took him back to the doctor and they put him on more antibiotic. The chest x-ray came back clear but since it was a Friday, they wanted to make sure that he didn't get sicker over the weekend like the first time. He became very fatigued and wanted to sleep all of the time. I was getting very concerned and worried that he might have something like mono. Last night, I was crying from being worried and I decided to look up the side effects of this medicine. It turns out that extreme tiredness/weakness can be a side effect from this drug. I immediately stopped giving it to him and I took him back to the doctor. He ordered A LOT of tests just to make sure. When we were going to get blood drawn, he told the lady to use his right arm. She remarked how brave he was going to be and I asked him if he was going to be brave. His reply, "NO, I am going to cry." I am happy to report that after missing just two doses of this medicine that the fatigue is almost gone. I guess that it was a side effect from the medicine after all!

This is Joseph with my brother, Michael, when we went to Virginia last September.

A new perspective

2011-02-23T10:47:00.004-06:00

WARNING: MESSY ROOMS

Things around here have been crazy the last few days. Joseph started to get sick last Thursday and by Sunday, he was in the hospital. It all started with a little cough that turned into a 103 degree fever. Next, came the Doctor's office on Friday, with a tonsillitis diagnosis. Cough medicine and antibiotic were prescribed and we were sent on our way. By Saturday night, things took a turn for the worse. Joseph was struggling to breathe. I called the Doctor, gave a breathing treatment, and he seemed to be better. We were still dealing with high fevers, 103-104 degrees seemed to become his normal temperature. By Sunday afternoon, he was struggling to breathe again and his fever had skyrocketed. I had come to the conclusion that after being on antibiotic since Friday, that he shouldn't still be dealing with raging fevers. I administered a breathing treatment, a dose of Motrin, and we were on our way to the emergency room. Thank goodness the emergency room was dead so we were sent straight to the back. The nurse put the oxygen saturation device on his finger and began to ask me questions about why we were there and what had been going on. In the middle of my story of our last few days, she looked at the monitor, picked up the phone, and interrupted my story to move us to the back. He was immediately hooked up to oxygen and then there were 8 people in the room. They were listening to his lungs and asking me to start my story all over again. Pandemonium had set in and with that, FEAR. What was happening? What was going to happen? What was WRONG with my CHILD?! He is crying and I am summoning every ounce of my own willpower to be strong for him and not cry, even though inside of me the fear had gripped me and my heart was in my throat. If I started to cry, it was over and he would be even more scared than he already was. I was texting my husband (who was at work) and trying to call his cell phone but there was no answer. I finally got in touch with him and sternly told him that I needed him to come home. I was feeling helpless and I needed his support. Several tests were administered and then came an x-ray machine. Finally, the results. They found something in both lungs, double pneumonia the Doctor called it. I knew that we were going to be spending some time in a hospital. He was transported to a hospital in Montgomery (because of the pediatric unit) by ambulance. He loved the ride and talked the whole time. After being in the hospital for 53 hours, he was released.

So why the pictures of my messy house? Because, the mess means more than just a mess. It means that I have been blessed with healthy kids to play and have fun while making a mess. It is a reminder of that blessing. So, enjoy your children. Dare I say, enjoy the mess! You never know when you could be one cough away from your home to a hospital room! A new perspective to a messy home.

Joseph's preschool co-op

2011-02-16T15:02:00.004-06:00

A friend from church came up to me a couple of weeks ago and asked me if I would be interested in doing a preschool co-op with her and some others. I don't think that she quite finished the sentence before I was saying yes! We had our "mommy meeting", (that is what Joseph called it), and we made all of the plans. We went yesterday and picked out his supplies. I asked Joseph if he was excited for preschool to start and he told me that it wasn't a real preschool. Where does he come up with this stuff? I told him that it was a real preschool and that he was going to have a great time. I think that since is is going to be at friend's houses that he looks at it as a play date versus a school. Today was the first day and Joseph was pretty excited. When I picked him up, I asked him how it went and I got two thumbs up so I think that it went well!

I used foam sticker to put his name on his supply box. He refused to hold it upright.

I'm ready!

Joseph and Brody minutes before school started!

Basketball

2011-02-16T14:45:00.002-06:00

Another season of basketball has come and gone. Zack had a WONDERFUL coach and I think that he has progressed a lot this year. This was his second year playing and he even made a few points for the team. Unfortunately, our team was not having a lot of luck at winning. However, the very last game, WE WON!! It was a perfect way to end the season.

Notice the score board. We are the home team (20). Coach Harold is giving them a last second pep talk.

We finally won a game! CELEBRATE!

The "Miami Heat"

Zack with his goodies.

Look what we did!

2011-01-26T17:42:00.002-06:00

I have been trying to get Grace to take care of her own hair now that she is getting older. Well, it gets tangled, A LOT, and she hated brushing it. She told me a couple of months ago that she wanted to get it cut but I kept thinking that she was only saying that. Well, she kept saying it so today we decided to actually do it. I took it harder than she did. It does look really cute and she is still very excited and glad that she did it.

BEFORE

DURING ( This is the part where I am gasping)

AFTER

It will take some getting used to but it is cute!

2011-01-18T14:19:00.002-06:00

On all of our breaks from school, we try to find free or very cheap things to keep us busy. Luckily, my friend and her kids are always looking for the same kind of things (free) to do so we usually do them together. This year, we went into Montgomery. We took this opportunity to also get in a little history at the Capitol Building and the Archive Building. Since Grace is taking Alabama History this year, we have been reading about some neat things in Montgomery.

I am not posting pictures of everything because some days the thought of updating this blog is too much and today is one of those days! However, since Stephanie is waiting on me to post some of these pictures, I thought that I should at least do a post. One of our Montgomery trips we went to the Alabama Cattleman's Association, or The Mooseum. If you are interested, it is free and the kids seemed to have a pretty good time. I took Zack and Grace here a LONG time ago, in 2002, so I was worried that they wouldn't have as much fun this time but they did.

Here is the group outside of the building.

"Beef, it's what's for dinner!"

This is my Granny, Grace Eileen Ford. I am sad to say that she has left this earth. We were in Virgina last week for her funeral. She was 93 years old. We love and miss you, Granny!

One last chance . . .

2010-12-22T10:49:00.003-06:00

. . . to see Santa!

Our local library had a "Milk and cookies with Santa" so we decided to take advantage of it. My kids (well, only one was excited to see him) went to see Santa at the end of November. However, I found out the night before this program, that my sister's kids hadn't seen him this year. She has been working 7-days-a-week and hasn't had the opportunity or the energy to take them. So, I decided that I would take them. Santa read two stories, then there were crafts and of course, cookies and milk. I took several pictures so here are a few:

The whole group - the older kids are thrilled!

My Mom made the matching jumpers for the girls so I couldn't resist a picture opportunity!

The boys!

WE HOPE THAT EVERYONE HAS A MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Basketball and Ginger Bread House

2010-12-18T18:15:00.003-06:00

Well, we finally get through a season of football and then basketball starts. This is Zackary's second year playing and I can already tell a big difference. Last year, his coach was all about his own son. Now, his son was definitely talented and was absolutely our MVP but Zack didn't get a chance to touch the ball because they were only taught to pass it to the coach's son. We won every game. I mean, the coach's son won every game. Zack did not feel victorious. This year, the coach is more about the boys learning and coming into their own. We had our second game today and even though they have lost both games, Zack has scored for both games. Believe it or not, this year (even with our losses) is turning out to be a better season!

It has become our tradition that we buy and put together a gingerbread house kit. This year is no different. We finally had an opportunity to spend the evening together putting it together. I think that more candy went into Joseph's mouth than on the house.

We always have trouble with the house falling apart before it dries. Why should this year be any different?

Basically, I spent $20.00 for a small pack of skittles and M&Ms!!

2010-12-15T07:34:00.002-06:00

Okay, I have to admit it, I LOVE this show. I found out about this show just a couple of months ago. My sister and an aunt were talking about it and I couldn't believe that they liked it considering what it was about. After all of their reviews, I HAD to watch it. At first, I was a little put off by the hair, clothes, and skulls but I am so addicted now. I LOVE Billy and most of the rest of the crew. They seem to be good-hearted, knowledgeable exterminators. So, if you haven't seen it yet, check your local listings and see if you like it too! You may be surprised!

2010-12-10T21:16:00.002-06:00

Whenever my kids say something funny, I always intend to write it down. However, I always forget. So, I am using this blog to record a conversation that happened tonight.

We were watching this movie, Disneynature Oceans. Joseph only watched it for a couple of minutes here and there. At the end, there is a diver swimming with a shark. Here is the conversation that followed:

Me: You would think that he would be scared to swim next to a shark.

Joseph: Maybe it is his shark and it won't bite him.

Grace: No body can own a shark.

Me: Well, some aquariums do.

Joseph: Yeah, and he is some aquarium!

Who can argue with that?

My big (little) helper!

2010-12-10T16:31:00.002-06:00

There never seems to be enough hours in the day to get everything done. I stay very busy with homeschooling, trying to spend time with the kids besides when we are doing school, and you can forget about the housework! I have been feeling very guilty lately about my lack of time to offer to my children, especially Joseph. Today, I decided to change that. After we read, played, and cuddled, I decided that I should probably do some housework. Joseph was enjoying the attention and didn't want it to end so I asked if he wanted to help me in the kitchen and to my surprise, he said yes! He has been a great helper today starting this morning with the trash. It is usually Zack's job but Joseph helped every step of the way today.

I told him that I would take some before and after pictures to show him what a great job he did. This is obviously the before. I can't stand not being able to see my counter tops. Where are they?

Washing . . .

Drying . . .

All finished! Now it is time to play with his cousin!

Thanks Joseph! I couldn't have done it without you!

2010-12-07T08:06:00.007-06:00

It's that time of year again. People running around like crazy, spending lots of money, the fat man in the red suit! My question is, how much of this really has to do with our Savior's birth? Are we thinking of Him when we are trying to find that perfect gift? It's fun to do the things that I mentioned above. I enjoy going to the stores all night on black Friday (sort-of, and only if I go with a friend, thanks Stephanie). I enjoy the way that Joseph's face lights up when he sees Santa. I somewhat enjoy looking for that perfect gift. I don't, however, enjoy overspending. Either way, it is my goal every year to remember the REAL reason that we celebrate this beautiful holiday. I try to remember that we were given the PERFECT gift all those years ago and that no matter how hard we try we will NEVER find a more perfect gift. Not even the Michael Jackson video game that I desperately want! I try to teach my kids what this season is really about and I hope and pray that they will remember while they are opening the plethora of gifts. We are truly blessed.

Speaking of Santa, I had to share a few pictures. Joseph knows no stranger and Santa is no different. He always runs to him and gives him a hug.

This is Grace in 2002. She has never been a big fan of Santa. I can't imagine why since we drill in to their minds not to talk to strangers and as soon as a man in the red suit comes out that it is okay!

Even now, she tries to keep her distance.

On November 20, 2010, Zackary had his first temple trip. He was so excited and it was a great experience. It was a great way to start the holiday season!

Birmingham, Alabama

We finally put our tree up. The last couple of years, we have let the kids completely decorate the tree. There is always one spot that Joseph decides is his favorite and it always has about 30 ornaments on one branch. Who would of thought that you could cram that many ornaments into one small spot!

Zackary is getting tall enough to reach the top too!

Grace likes to find her own ornaments and put those on.

Here is the golden spot! And yes, he is in his underwear!

Our town had it's annual Christmas parade on Saturday afternoon. We go every year. The kids LOVE getting candy. This year there was an even bigger treat for them. They love the "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" books. They loved the movie. One of the actors, Grayson Russell that plays Fregley, lives one town over and he was the Grand Marshall of the parade. They took one of their books and asked Grayson to sign it. They even got a picture with him. He was at our local theater when the movie opened but we went to the matinee and I wouldn't take my kids back to see him. Zack was not a happy camper but it all worked out. Even mean moms get a break now and then.

Zack was over thrilled! Grace was being her shy self.

Here we are waiting for the parade.

The parade gets longer every year. Joseph actually fell asleep during the parade! Who does that? One tired 4-year-old, that's who!

Merry CHRISTmas!

2010-11-09T16:31:00.003-06:00

Guess who had a birthday? If you guessed Zackary, then you are correct. Yes, I am posting his birthday 3 weeks late but that is about my running time of getting things done around here.

We decided to throw a Halloween party this year to include a haunted house. Thank goodness for the internet! I was so worried that all of my party ideas would be completely lame to a bunch of 10-13 year old boys but as it turns out, they only wanted to play flag football so why did I plan anything? Well, as long as they had a good time. Dan and I worked all day on getting the "haunted" part of the house and the food finished. I tried to get a few pictures but I was so busy getting things ready that I only took a few.

Here are a couple pictures of the haunted house. We had the kids enter through one hallway, go through the kid's bathroom, through the spare bedroom ,and then out of the other hallway. The first hallway we covered the walls with black table cloths. Then we painted masks in different bright colors. My cousin (which I failed to get a picture of) wore all black and one of the masks. When the kids came by, she jumped out and scared them. Next, was the bathroom. We decorated the sink area and my mom's husband dressed up as Frankenstein (again, I failed to get a picture) and stood in the toilet area of the bathroom and jumped out grunting. Next, was the spare bedroom. There was a "corpse" on the bed with guts hanging out. There were torture tools and body parts on the table. Then, before you exited the "house of horrors" you had to pass by the hanging skeleton in the second hallway. Of course, all of the lights were turned out except for flashing strobe lights and scary music too. The kids went through several times and I had no idea that it would be so popular.

Here is the victim, I mean doll head with stuffed clothes.

This is the kid's bathroom. Again, I didn't get a picture of Frankenstein. It was quite crazy by the time the guests started to arrive and that is when everyone got into place.

Spare bedroom - "torture chamber"

Here are the goodies. We made fingers, ogre eyes, spiders, and popcorn skulls.

Here is the cake. Not your traditional cake, it it? Zackary saw this on-line and he just had to have it. I did not try it but I was told that it was quite tasty.

A sneak peak of the outside of the house. The graveyard!

The spider nest!

The hay ride!

It is hard to believe that this used to be mt baby!

3 months

3 years

6 years

9 years

12 years

October 31, 2010 - Zackary's first time passing the sacrament in church.

2010-10-31T14:37:00.006-05:00

BASKETBALL

Joseph's first basketball season has come to an end. He really enjoyed playing and he says that he wants to do it again. He informed me that since he is a basketball player now he can do things that he couldn't do before. It is because he is super strong now. This is the same kid that told me that he can see in the dark because of his blue eyes.

GO JOSEPH!

This was his favorite part of the whole season. He was super excited to get his trophy since his brother and sister have trophies.

PUMPKIN PATCH

Every year we go to the Grand Ole Pumpkin Patch and pick a pumpkin. If you have been following this blog for a year, these pictures will look very familiar but I promise that these are pictures from this year.

Trunk-or-Treat

Another tradition is the trunk-or-treat at our church. We had some bad weather roll in the day of so everything had to be moved inside. I wasn't able to get any pictures of them walking around but here they are in their costumes. They had a great time and got lots of candy!
(Joseph didn't like wearing the feathers because they made him itchy. I made him wear them for the picture. Look at his face! He is not a happy camper.)

HALLOWEEN

Look familiar?

What a good-looking group!

Geography Fair

2010-10-22T11:28:00.002-05:00

We participated in our first homeschool geography fair last night. We choose India to research and present. Luckily, we have a friend in our ward that has Indian ancestry and she graciously helped us to prepare. She even provided the authentic Indian clothing for Zack and Grace and she prepared the chicken curry which was delicious! I love India because of its style of clothing and jewelry. I love the way that the women dress. It is always bright and colorful and sparkly! The kids had a great time learning about a different culture too. Grace's favorite part is Bollywood and Zack loves that they eat a majority of their food with their hands (he doesn't like using utensils either). It was a great opportunity and I am glad that we participated.

Here are the kids with the display table.

We had to alter the clothing so that it would fit. The outfit that Zack is wearing was actually one car ride away from goodwill. Grace's skirt was almost turned into a pillowcase. I am glad that we talked to Sister Mackey early enough. Joseph wanted to wear a "costume" too. I did not have anything for him to wear from India but he did have a Native American Indian costume so that is what he wore. Hey, it made him happy!

2010-10-21T08:32:00.002-05:00

Is it weird to have beach pictures with a Halloween background? Well, maybe a little. But, luckily, in the south we can do that. Every year, we try to make a little trip to the beach. This year, our plans were delayed thanks to the oil spill. But, with the temperature still getting to the high 80s during the day and with the oil gone we made our trip. I had heard that there were sharks seen just a couple of weeks ago so I was very leery of the water. We did not see any sharks but there were a lot of jellyfish. Zack was stung by a little one on the wrist and then they wouldn't get back in the water (which was fine with me) so we played in the sand. There was also a lot of seaweed. The brown that you see in the water is actually seaweed. As usual, it was a great time!

Happy Beachin'!

Dribble, dribble, shoot, shoot, take that ball to the hoop!

2010-09-29T13:04:00.002-05:00

Along with football, cheerleading, art, scouts, tae kwon do, and piano, we have added basketball to our weekly calendar. Joseph barely made the cut-off but he insisted that he wanted to play. Feeling bad that I have to drag him all over town for his big brother and big sister's activities I decided to sign him up. The first practice was a disaster. He came running off the court, crying! Since then, he has loved it. They had their first game Monday afternoon. They don't really keep score but both teams got a few points ( I lost count). I am very surprised at the talent that some of these kids have. Even so, it is still quite comical to watch!

OFFENSE

DEFENSE

Next, football!

NOT!!!!

Make-Up!

2010-09-28T08:08:00.003-05:00

As you know, Grace is cheering. However, she tends to be a little quiet when she is cheering. I bribed her with a hair and make-up get together with her friend Emma if she would be louder. Luckily, my friend (and Emma's mom) is a beautician. Grace is doing a LOT better at being loud so we got together after Saturday's game and here is the result.

MAKE-UP

HAIR

MAKE-UP

HAIR

After Christmas, I went and bought a huge make-up set for 80% off. I pulled it out for this occasion. There are a ton of color options. Each girl got to pick her own color choices. Grace picked the BRIGHTEST blush and the REDDEST lipstick. When they were all dolled up, we took them down the street to a cotton field (I love cotton fields) to take some pictures. They had a great time and we have had a few laughs looking through the pictures.

Are these the new faces for vogue?

Work it girls!

Are you ready for some football?

2010-09-16T14:11:00.003-05:00

That's right! It's football season! Zack is playing for the first time through the YMCA. Grace is also cheering. Luckily, Grace gets to cheer for Zack's team. That way, I only have to be in one place at a time instead of two! There team is the New York Jets (in case you couldn't tell by the logo below). Saturday was their first game and it is still EXTREMELY hot here. I rolled Grace's hair but thanks to the humidity it was almost flat after only 30 minutes. Other than the heat, it was fun. Our team lost but that just gives us a reason to work harder next time.

I made Dan, Joseph, and myself a t-shirt with the NY Jets logo on it. I thought that we should show some team spirit. Here are my boys in the stands, sweating to death!

Thanks to Zack's size, he plays the guard position. Push him back, push him back, WAY back! Zack is number 95, right in the middle of this picture.

Here are the cheerleaders! Grace is on the second row, all the way on the other end. I will be taking more pictures at our next game in two weeks so I am sure that I will be posting more soon!

Our trip to Va and WV!

2010-09-13T08:50:00.005-05:00

On September 1st, we took the LONG drive to Virginia. This is one of the joys of homeschooling. You can do your schoolwork anywhere! We had planned on doing schoolwork in the car on the way there and on the way home. We found out that it isn't particularly easy to work in the car, especially if you get carsick easily, which I do. Another distraction was Joseph who wanted the dvd player going or someone to play with the whole time. Needless to say, we did schoolwork over the weekend to avoid having to do schoolwork in the car on the way home!

All in all, it was a great trip. I love Virginia/West Virginia. The mountains are gorgeous! There are always deer either in my brother's yard or my dad's yard. It was actually cool most of the time! Considering that we are still having 90-100 degree weather at home I welcomed the mid-eighties as the days high. It actually was starting to feel like fall! I loved getting to see my family and spending time with them (even if we did watch a lot of football).

Now, lets get to the good stuff. Our sightseeing! While on the interstate, I noticed a sign for Natural Bridge. My brother said that it was too far away but after consulting with my sister-in-law, I found out that it was only about 45-60 minutes away. We decided to take the trip. It was worth it! So, here it is. The Natural Bridge. It is a mountain that took the form of a bridge.

There was a Native American tribe that was from this area so they had a display. Luckily, we found this lady walking and I asked her if my kids could get a picture with her. Of course, she obliged and I was glad that I asked her because when we went to the Native American scene she wasn't there! She was going on her lunch break. There were several things to see on our "hike". The Natural bridge, the Indian tribe, a cave, and at the end a waterfall. But that's not all . . .

There was also a wax museum and a toy museum. I have always wanted to go into a wax museum. Some of the figures were creepy but there were some that were very impressive. My sister-in-law was a little uneasy at first but I think that she warmed up to the idea.

Here are the kids with a wax security guard.

I was very impressed with this wax figure of General Robert E. Lee. The details were amazing. They even put bags under his eyes.

There was also a cave that went deep into the mountain. Just like the wax figures freaked out my sister-in-law, the cave freaked me out. I kept thinking about the walls caving in and us being stuck! Luckily, my fears were unwarranted. I don't know what Joseph is doing in this picture. Maybe he was nervous too.

There was a part that went even further into the mountain but he warned us that it didn't have oxygen pumped into it like the rest of the cave so that if this bothered you not to go. I really didn't want to go but didn't want to look like a chicken. Luckily, Grace didn't want to go either so I volunteered to stay behind with her. I am glad that I didn't go because Dan told me that the guide turned out the light to show how dark the cave really was. I KNOW how dark the cave can be without lights and I would have been freaking out! Thank you Grace for being my way out of torture! Here is the gang coming out of the "pit". Notice that Dan is holding Joseph. Joseph went down holding Uncle Michael's hand and came up clinging to his daddy!

Right down the steet from all of this excitement was foamhenge. It is an exact replica of stonehenge only made out of foam. Definitely a must see!

Here are the kids with my 92 year old Granny. She is in a nursing home and only knew who we were about half of the time but it was good to see her. This is the Granny that Grace is named after.

On Monday, my brother had a cookout and invited all of our family that lived close by. Here are the kids with my Dad and my step-Mom. Of course, we went to WV to see them and did a lot of fun stuff. The 4-wheeler riding is always a big hit!

After our tummys were full, we decided to go the the railroad museum in my brother's town. We got there 30 minutes before it closed so we didn't get to see much but we did get to ride the train! Isn't this adorable? Dan was thrilled!

Time to go home. My brother and his wife were ready for work as we were getting ready to leave! We love and miss you guys!

Coming Soon . . . FOOTBALL!

I'm 4!

2010-08-28T10:10:00.007-05:00

It's that time of year again! Joseph had a birthday and he is the BIG 4! It is amazing to watch these little humans grow and learn. It is hard to believe that they go from this...

...to this and in only 4 short years!(this picture was taken after cake, excuse the messy mouth)

We had a pirate party and it was a lot of fun. Thank goodness for the Internet and the dollar store! We even had a "real" treasure chest with "real" gold!

On the invitation, we invited our guests to wear pirate costumes if they wanted to. We had to hit a few thrift stores to find something to wear but it was a lot of fun coming up with a costume. If you will notice the red belt-thing around Joseph's waist, that is a halter-top! It was so fun to see everyone dressed up and everyone looked adorable. Joseph was very specific about his guest list this year. He even invited a few pirate princesses to his party.

Remember my very talented cousin that made Grace's cake (look at May posts)? She also made a cake for Joseph. She never ceases to amaze me! She made a two-tier cake with the ocean on the bottom and the ship on top. ADORABLE!

As our pirate guests arrived, they decorated a pirate or princess hat. Joseph is modeling his pirate hat and eye patch in true pirate form.

I tried to have as many games as possible. The plan was for the party to be outside but mother nature had a different idea. It rained about an hour before the party and the ground was just wet enough to force the party inside. The first game that we played was to "walk the plank". Once they came to the end of the plank, they had to safely swim, avoiding all piranhas and snakes, to the other pirate ship on the other side of the room. The good news is that no one fell victim to the ocean!

Here is the crew on the other side waiting for their pirate friend to arrive in safety.

After we were all safe from the ocean, we played pin the X on the treasure map. Let's just say that these pirates were pretty lucky to have several places to hide their treasure. I do believe that Joseph is peaking!

Next, we had a beanbag toss. I found this piece at a local thrift store for $5.00. I taped some pirate pictures on it and there you have it! I told our primary president that the next time that primary has to come up with a game that we could do beanbag toss! It was a hit!

Here's the pirate crew! The older kids were our helpers. They did a great job at helping the younger pirates play the games. Sorry, but they are not pictured.

I wasn't going to do a pinata this year but after Joseph's cousin had one at his party, that was all that he talked about. While I was in Hobby Lobby, I spotted this pirate ship pinata. Well, when I took Joseph back to the store the next day to show him, his reaction was, "I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT!" I couldn't resist and I gave in and got the thing. It wasn't a very big pinata and it wouldn't even hold all of the candy that we bought! But it was cute!

"Happy Birthday to you!"

To end the party, we had a treasure hunt. After all, what is a pirate party without a treasure hunt? In the treasure chest was the goody bags. The kids would eagerly listen for the clue and then they would run to find it.

Parties are always a lot of fun but I am always so glad when they are over. It was worth all of the preparation, mess, and noise to see the smile on Joseph's face. Happy birthday JoeJoe, we love you!

School started!

2010-08-09T11:21:00.002-05:00

Today marks the first day of the 2010-2011 school year. We are homeschooling again this year and we hope to have another successful year. Do I still question my decision to pull them out of public school? OF COURSE, EVERY DAY! But I cannot deny the feelings that I have had that tell me that this is the right decision for my family at this time. We'll see what next year brings when it gets here!

Here is Zack - 6th grade

Here is Grace - 4th grade

This year, I am going eclectic, so I pick my own curriculum. This did call for a little more planning on my part but I hope that we will like it better. Here are the schedules for the month of August.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

My sister came over this morning and picked up Joseph so that we could have the morning to try and get into the swing of things. We have also joined a co-op this year so I will be sure to share details about that at a later date. Happy schooling!

Catching up!

2010-08-05T13:29:00.008-05:00

I know, I know. But this time I really have a good excuse. Our computer completely crashed (thanks to facebook) and I am just now getting the new computer up and going. I was kindof getting tired of blogging and even thinking about stopping but considering that I lost some of my pictures forever, I was so glad that I had posted pictures on my blog that I could retrieve. So, here are some highlights from our summer. This way, if anything happens again (don't worry, I have back-up for my back-up now) all is not lost.

BOY SCOUT CAMP - June 14-18, 2010

This was the first year that Zackary got to attend BOY Scout camp. He was very excited and it was very hot. He was able to get a lot of merit badges started and quite a few finished. He now has 8 completely finished and I think that it pretty good considering that he has not even been in boy scouts for a year yet.

Here he is getting his merit badges and two ranks!

June 24, 2010 - Zackary tested for the red advance belt in Tae Kwon Do.
July 1, 2010 - He passed and received his new belt. Next, is black belt!

We also had the opportunity to meet some more cousins! I love how kids can just pick up as if they have known each other forever.

SWIM TEAM - Zackary finished up another successful year of swim team. He was given the coach's award at the award ceremony. This is a really great achievement and he carried it around the rest of the day.

4TH OF JULY - Our town celebrated on the 3rd this year for obvious reasons. Zackary was in the parade for swim team and I think that he enjoyed getting everyone soaked a little too much. Grace and Joseph loved raking in all of the candy!

Is anyone familiar with Zoolander's blue steal? Well, check out Joseph. I can honestly say that he has never seen that movie but he insisted on making this face.

To pass the time while we were waiting for the fireworks, the kids played duck, duck, goose. And yes, that is my sister playing too.

THE LAKE

Well, it happened. I finally had to take a kid to the emergency room for stitches. I was hoping that this day would never happen. Zackary was giving Joseph a piggy back ride to the car and decided to jump into the van. Well, Joseph's head didn't clear the doorway and he smacked it on the frame of the van. The blood was immediate and after consulting with my brother we took him in. A lot of screaming and two stitches later we were on our way. Now, he wears them with pride but on the night that it happened, well, that's another story.

Coming soon ... SCHOOL STARTS!

The mind of a child

2010-06-24T10:33:00.002-05:00

The mind of a child is amazing and at times funny. I try to write down funny things that my children say when they happen but lately I have been really bad about it and I keep telling myself that I will remember. Well, my memory is horrible so I am using my blog to "write" down some things that we thought were funny and noteworthy. Here are some recent conversations that have taken place at my house with my 3-year-old.

Joseph: We need groceries, don't we?

Me: Yeah, I guess that I do need to go to the store.

Joseph: Well, I want to take a quarter so that I can get some gum.

Now, Joseph is a gum-a-holic. He ALWAYS wants gum. I found it a bit odd that he noticed that the pantry was running low but then when he threw in the quarter = gum bit, I knew that he had an ulterior motive.

As you know, we bought a pool. Joseph isn't tall enough to touch the bottom and he has only had one round of swimming lessons so the rule is that he doesn't go in without an adult. We had all been swimming and I had already dried Joseph off and he was supposed to be inside getting dressed. Meanwhile, I am on the porch drying myself off and when I came in, I went straight to his bathroom to find out if he needed help. He wasn't there. I called him but he didn't answer. My Mom was over so she started to panic and ran out to the pool. I figured that he was playing hide-and-go-seek but I was getting a little worried that he wouldn't answer me so I threatened him. He immediately popped out of his hiding place butt-naked. Here is the conversation that followed:

Joseph: Here I am.

Me: You scared me. I didn't know where you were.

Joseph: No I didn't. I didn't say boo!

How could I have been scared if he didn't even say boo? Happy parenting!

2010-06-07T12:21:00.002-05:00

It's official! It is too hot to do anything outside that doesn't involve water. Swim team has started full force with practices in the morning and afternoon. Last Friday, Zack had his time trials. He "raced" in two races, the freestyle and the back stroke. He was supposed to have his first swim meet today (June 7), but thanks to a massive ear infection he has been banned from the water for a couple of days. He has been up for the last two nights with an earache and when we finally got him to the Doctor the infection was pretty bad. He is taking it like a trooper and is a little discouraged about having to stay out of the water but he is in so much pain that he doesn't want to take any chances. Since he is missing his meet today, next week will be his first.

Joseph started his first round of swimming lessons. He has been talking about swim lessons all week and was very excited that today was the big day. He refused to smile for the camera but I can assure you that he is ready to go. He did awesome! He jumped right in, kicked his feet, and had a great time. He is looking forward to going back tomorrow!

HAPPY SWIMMING!

Summertime!

2010-05-25T16:11:00.007-05:00

It's finally here, SUMMERTIME! Well, I am only partly excited. I do have to deal with the insane heat and turning into a puddle of sweat as soon as I open my door! However, after our first year of homeschooling, I am looking forward to lazy days with minimal work. Now I remember why kids love summertime so much! That's right, we are mostly finished with 3rd and 5th grades. More on that later ... let's get to the good stuff!

Grace got a pair of roller skates for her birthday. Have you ever seen a dog walking on ice? Yeah, but I got to give her credit. Despite 10,000 bruises, she has picked herself up over and over again and has finally almost mastered the idea of "walking" on wheels. Marianna spent the night one night and even before changing out of pajamas, they were out the door to skate. Good times, good times!

My Mom teaches piano. Before I moved back "home", I would dream of how life would be when I did. In my ideal fantasies, my children would be expert piano players because after all, their Nanny teaches it! But alas, t'was only a dream! My Mom was going to have a recital for her students and she asked my kids if they wanted to participate. Grace declined but Zackary was persuaded into the idea. He was given two songs that he practiced over and over until he finally was successful in playing the notes (or memorizing them, not sure which)to perform at the recital. Now I am revisiting my fantasy of having my children learn to play the piano. Can I follow through? We shall see!

Moving on to our garden. Another fantasy! Again, I am thankful that my family doesn't depend on our garden or we would be in trouble. We planted some of the usual and we even branched out this year to try a few different options. Here is the line-up: potatoes, green beans, spinach, strawberries, watermelon, and carrots. We are still waiting on some things to sprout. I can't remember what we planted in the middle rows because nothing came of it.

Here is a potato plant.

And here is what we got out of about 20 plants. Again, thank you Wal-Mart!

Here is a spinach plant.

I have fixed a couple of salads with our spinach. It continues to grow!

Now, we have our carrots. Out of a whole row of planting only three sprouted. Dan pulled on out the other day and it was skinnier than a pencil and no longer than my child's pinkie finger. We quickly stuck it back in the ground.

Green beans. Something is gnawing on the leaves. We are still waiting on the beans to sprout.

Here we have watermelon. Again, nothing but leaves.

Onto our strawberries. If you look very closely, you can see a little berry. Most of them are being attacked and eaten by something!

Every year we try and maybe one of these years we will find our green thumb that has apparently taken a vacation.

Last Friday, May 21, was Joseph's last day of "school". They had a pizza party and of course I had to go and take pictures. Most of the friends in his class are military and moving away. Joseph asked me if he had school anymore and I told him that he was finished and he was quite happy that he got to stay home with me all day.

Here he is with his teacher, Ms. Tiffany. I would like to tell you that he is upset, notice that he had been crying, because he was going to miss his teacher but that isn't the case. He was mad at me because I had told him that he couldn't get any candy out the vending machine! Life-shattering issues here people!

Well, we took the plunge. Another fantasy of mine, is to have a pool. Well, since in-ground pools are extremely expensive, we opted for an above ground. In the past, we have always relied on the YMCA pool. However, when my friend's daughter came out of the pool with a silver dollar size scab (IT BELONGED TO SOMEBODY ELSE) on her leg and the fact that it was quite a work-out to get everyone ready to go, we decided to supplement with our own. I am still quite pleased with our decision. We have been in it almost every day. So, even though I still turn into a puddle of sweat when I leave my house, at least I know that I can get some relief in the pool.

COMING SOON ... ZACK JOINED THE SWIM TEAM AGAIN!!!

Grace's 9th birthday!

2010-05-10T15:24:00.007-05:00

Well, another one of Grace's birthdays has come and gone. It is hard to believe that it has been 9 years when I can so vividly remember the day of her birth but I can't remember what happened last week! I have included a few pictures of her throughout her life. To me, she looks the same but only because I can remember each of these moments in her life. What I cannot believe is how grown up she looks compared to her much younger days. I guess that time has a way of doing that to all of us.

Grace started taking art classes a couple of months ago and she absolutely loves it. Since I have an insanely talented cousin we talked to her and she said that an art party would be a lot of fun and would be easy to do. Thank goodness she lives close to us and was willing to lend us her talents and services. Since Grace has a pet frog (remember Oliver? rest in peace Yoda)she wanted to paint a frog. Now to my untrained and untalented mind, I was thinking that this was not going to be cute at all but Alisha assured me that it would be adorable. I have to agree with her now because look at what she came up with! She was showing the project in different stages to help the kids.

Here is everyone busy at work on their masterpieces. I love that Alisha started out by telling all of the kids that there was no wrong or right in art. It is whatever you imagine it to be!

Of course, the three 3-year-old boys couldn't paint a frog so we had finger painting for them to do. Joseph told me later that night that he loved to paint with his finger!

Not only is my cousin talented with paints, but she can make some awesome, delicious cakes. Look at this adorable cake that she made! The painters palette was made with chocolate and the paint blobs were icing. Look closely at the paintbrushes!

Here is Grace with her finished masterpiece. She looks quite content to me!

Here is most of the group. We only allowed 2 hours for the party. If you ever do a paint party, you may want to allow more than 2 hours. We lost a couple of girls before I could get a picture of the group. Every one of the paintings turned out a little different from the others but every single one was awesome.

Since Saturday was such a crazy day, we didn't make it out to dinner. So, we took her to lunch today. She chose a Mexican restaurant called Mexico Tipico. They sang to her, put on this hat, and gave her something that was deep fried-sprinkled with sugar-and drizzled with honey! She didn't eat it but gave it to Zack!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRACE! WE LOVE YOU!

2010-04-17T14:13:00.004-05:00

I love Easter time for many reasons but one of the reasons is because it is a good excuse to buy my kids matching clothes. Since I didn't get any pictures of them on Sunday in their Easter clothes, we went out this morning. Here are a few of the shots that I got. I am a little annoyed with some of the shadows but if I put my kids is sunlight, they squint! So, I am still learning and hopefully someday I will know what I am doing!

2010-04-14T15:51:00.007-05:00

I guess that I have neglected my blog long enough, so, I decided to do something about it. As always, things are crazy around here and there still aren't enough hours in the day but I am learning to accept that and be grateful for what I do get accomplished each day.

Speaking of accomplishments, we planted another garden! The kids are always very excited to help plant the seeds but nobody ever wants to weed the darn thing. Oh well, I guess that we will take help wherever and whenever we can get it from them. We planted strawberries, potatoes, carrots, spinach, and green beans. Cross your fingers that we have will some success!

We hope that everyone had a great Easter. We had a good one, despite Grace's pouty face in the picture. She is going through this phase where she won't smile when I am taking pictures. Instead, she pouts! Our Church had conference on Easter this year so my kids wore their Easter outfits this past weekend. However, since I had to be at the church at 7:50, I did not get any pictures. Don't worry! I am going to make them get dressed up again and take some pictures around town. Even without the pictures of the kids in their Easter outfits, I have included a few other pictures of our activities. We dyed eggs, had several egg hunts, had Easter dinner at Nanny's house, and of course we had a visit from the Easter Bunny!

We made the hour trip out to my Aunt Debbie's house on Easter to spend some time with the cousins. That is always a lot of fun. We had so many eggs this year that we ended up having to just throw them on the ground because we were running out of places to hide them! The kids got quite a loot and were very excited! There was even money in some of the eggs!

Here are the cousins with their overflowing buckets of eggs! Notice that Grace isn't smiling! At least she isn't pouting!
_

After the egg hunt, we had a wiffle ball game. I was the photographer at first but after the pitcher tuckered out I stepped in to help out. We even had a few home runs in there!

After all of the excitement of hunting eggs, wiffle ball, and food, we relaxed by a bonfire and made smores. My cousin brought out her guitar and serenaded us as we sat around the fire. Zackary and his cousin Peyton even entertained us with a dance! We had a great time and we were sad to see the day end, but all things must come to an end.

Now that Easter was over we had another event to look forward to! THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE! I ordered the tickets a while back and I didn't tell the 3-year-old boys because I didn't want to be asked every day when we were going. So, I decided to tell them the day before. I thought that it would be cool to pull up a video on line to show them where we were going. So, with Brody on one knee and Joseph on the other, we sat at the computer. The video starts and I am expecting a lot of excitement but instead they just sat there. When it was over and I asked what they thought, Brody said, "I want to ride on Salty." I told him that Salty would not be there, only Thomas. Next thing I know there are tears, and not Brody's either. Joseph was crying! When I asked him why he was crying he told me that he didn't want to ride on Thomas. Brody asked him if he wanted to ride on Salty and he said no. Well, I already had the tickets so of course we were still going but I was bracing myself for what may happen the next day when we got there. I am happy to report that everything worked out just fine. Everyone enjoyed riding on Thomas and Brody still asks daily when he can do that again. There was also a petting zoo, story time, and other exhibits but there favorite was the sandbox. Thank goodness there weren't any tears!

Well, the weather has been beautiful lately (except for all of the pollen) and the kids have been dying to get into their swimsuits. I bought them some water guns at the dollar store ( I love the dollar store) last night so I told them that they could use them today. If you look closely, you can see that Joseph is crying and is actually throwing his gun. GOOD TIMES! He didn't want to get wet! WHAT! Anyway, Zack and Grace enjoyed it. They complain daily about how hot it is and the whole time I am thinking we have 20 degrees more to go and 100% humidity! Good times are coming!

I am very happy to report that we only have 18 more lessons and 2 big tests left of our first home school year! YEAH!! I mean, I'm not excited or anything! HAPPY SPRING!

2010-03-19T12:46:00.004-05:00

SPRING BREAK 2010

We had a great day at the Exploreum Science Center in downtown Mobile, Alabama. The Exploreum is s great hands-on educational museum and right now they even have a dinosaur exhibit. My cousin had told me how much fun they had when they went and since I was looking for one day trips for spring break I decided that Mobile was a definite destination. Since I am watching my sister's kids I enlisted my Mom's help so she went with us. My friend, Stephanie, and her kids were looking for things to do so they went too. It is always more fun with more people.

We decided to walk through the dinosaur exhibit first since it was right outside of the ticket booth. Here are Clark, Zack (getting smooshed), Ryan, Emma, Grace, and Marianna. Brody wouldn't go outside the first time because dinosaurs are a little creepy to him and Joseph didn't want to sit up there with everybody. As you will see, he had to sit on the dinosaur by himself.

This particular dinosaur would "spit" out water every couple of minutes so here is everyone trying to get wet. Zack was very successful in getting wet. So successful that we had to get him a new sticker (that's how they know that you've paid) because his was soaked and wouldn't stay on. Mind you, this was all within the first 10 minutes of arriving!

Here's Joseph! ALL BY HIMSELF! Which is exactly what he wanted.

After the dinosaurs, we went in My Bodyworks section. There was a lot of hands on things to do but mostly for older kids. After a little while in there, the little boys were getting bored so my Mom took them to the Hands On Hall where there was a lot more for them to do. Once the older kids were finished, we found my Mom and the boys in The Dinosaur Dig. They were digging in sand for dinosaur bones. As you can see, it wasn't only the little ones that like this.

They had this area that was only for 0-5 year olds and it had some of the cutest things for little kids. One of Joseph and Brody's favorites was a boat in the middle of the "water" of balls. Joseph would get out of the boat and "swim" around the boat while calling for Brody to help him. Here he is climbing up the side of the boat.

He was calling for help and Brody was doing his own thing so I told him to swim to the life preserver. Which is what he is doing here.

Look at my little fisherman!

Grace, Marianna, and Emma were playing news anchor. Grace was acting so goofy as you can see. Instead of a green screen it was a blue screen and both of my kids had on blue so they kindof disappeared on the tv.

Here is a picture of the tv screen. Did you notice Grace in the corner? You can barely see here because of the blue in her shirt.

Here are our little scientists. After Grace looked through the microscope she looked at me and said, "I think my eye is goopy." EEWW! I hope that it was all in her imagination!

Zack and Clark were playing a game on another blue screen. Remember, Zack had on a blue shirt and couldn't be seen, except his head, until he took off his top shirt. I didn't get a picture of the tv screen.

Unfortunately, spring break is coming to an end. It is back the grind next week. Happy Spring Break!

2010-03-16T17:11:00.006-05:00

Our spring break started this week and since we are at home every day, we decided to plan a couple of day trips to get us out of the house. Our first trip, was to Georgia to a drive thru safari. Just picture Funniest Home Videos where the animals are attacking the people with their tongues through the window and that was our day. We decided to rent a van from the safari place and luckily there were bars on the window space so that the animals could only get in so far. You would be looking out one side and then when you turned your head there was another face in yours! With A LOT of fur and slobber. The rental vans were of course extremely filthy but better their van then mine! Dan drove while Grace, Joseph, and I sat in the middle row and Zack sat in the back row. It was kind of costly but definitely is a must do. We all had a great time.

Here is Grace and Joseph in the van with their cups full of food. It was amazing how fast we went through the food.

We're going in!

EEEEWWW!

Grace loved petting these. They are either emus or ostriches, not sure which.

Joseph eventually climbed into the front seat with Dan so that he could co-pilot.

This is what our van looked like on the way home. Grace and Joseph couldn't stay awake and Zack was enthralled in his gameboy. It was a great and exhausting day!

Cheerleading and Powderpuff Derby!

2010-03-03T20:05:00.004-06:00

Grace's activity day group (a church group) had their first annual powderpuff derby tonight. Dan only thought that he was finished making derby cars for a few years. True to his usual form, the first car broke and he was scrambling around all day today making a new one. Grace's only specification was that her car was pink and sparkly. DONE!

Here she is putting her car on the track!

GO GRACE GO!

After 3 failed attempts to place with Zack, Dan pulled it off with Grace. I guess that the fourth time is the charm! She won 1st place! Yeah, Grace!

The three amigos!

I can't forget about Grace's cheerleading! Yes, this post is all about Grace! Last Saturday was her last game. They cheered for the basketball tournament and they got to do their dance! They did the cutest routine to Michael Jackson's (my request of course)"Beat It". I made a white glove (well, I bought gloves and glued/sewed sequins on) for each of the girls. Another Mom provided hats and glitter glasses. SUPER CUTE!

Work it girl!

Here is Marianna doing the moonwalk, you go girl!

2010-02-14T13:27:00.009-06:00

In the last couple of years, our street has seen it all. We've had a tornado, a tropical storm, flooding, and snow. Here in the south we like variety, I guess. Last Friday, February 12, our little town shut down. According to our meteorologist, we got 3 inches of snow throughout the day. It really didn't seem like that much because the kids were scooping it up as soon as it touched the ground. There were 9 of them in all and they were like busy bees trying to collect snow for a neighborhood snowman. Of course, they would get sidetracked with a snowball fight but after several hours, and several changes of clothes, the snowman was finished. Oh, and what a fine snowman he is. With a carrot nose and coal for his eyes and mouth, he is very handsome if I do say so myself.

Here they are working together with one goal in mind. The ULTIMATE snowman!

Isn't he handsome?

Here we are on Saturday. The snow is starting to melt and now we have a mushy mess. The kids still had a great time but boy did they get wet! I LOVE this picture of Joseph. He had to wear his cowboy hat and boots to play outside.

Please don't eat the YELLOW snow!

What a sweet cousin! Pulling Joseph in his wagon! Grace only lasted about 5 minutes today. She really isn't a big fan of the cold, wet stuff.

Moving on, basketball. Zackary's basketball season ended on Saturday. His team was undefeated. This was Zack's 1st year to play so he is still getting the hang of the game. He finally scored his first and only point of the season.

Here he is with his basketball medal. We are so proud of you Zack!

Moving on again, Michael Jackson. Now, I LOVE Michael Jackson. I love his music, I love the way he danced, I love the gloved hand, you get the idea. I love that he was a humanitarian and that he gave so much of his time, money, and talent to help others. By their deeds shall ye know them. With that being said, I love his version of "We are the World". The new one is not as good as the original version. I like the reason for the remix but in my opinion, some of it does not sound good. If you haven't heard it, google it and see what you think.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Cute wreath!

2010-01-21T12:30:00.003-06:00

I love it when you can find cute ideas on other people's blogs. I typically don't have very many posted on mine because as much as I hate to admit it, I am not very creative. I can, however, copycat! I found this cute idea on http://houseofsmiths.blogspot.com/ . This is one of the blogs that I like to visit due to cute ideas. Once I saw it, I knew that I wanted to make one.

Yesterday, Grace had activity days at our church. Her leader told me that they were going to showcase things that they have made or accomplished. At that moment, I had an epiphany! Grace could make the wreath for this very purpose! Also, it would count as one of her requirements for her Faith in God (a program for boys and girls ages 8-11 at my church). So, with dirty dishes piling up, floors unvacuumed, and my 3-year-old destroying other rooms, we sat down and started her project. I LOVE how cute it turned out. She is quite proud of it too and can't wait to show it off! It really was quite easy and on the above mentioned blog you can find a link to another blog with a step-by-step tutorial.

Cute and Easy! That is my kind of craft!

IN OTHER NEWS . . .

Joseph got a bike for Christmas. Now, he had a tricycle before but it got left out and I kind of hit it with my van and bent one of the tires so he couldn't pedal it due to the amount of strength that it took. So, therefore, I have never seen him pedaling a bike until January 14, 2010. I am

officially calling this his first time riding a bike (with training wheels, of course).

GO, JOSEPH, GO!

2010-01-13T16:52:00.003-06:00

Just like the rest of the Eastern half of the United States, the state of Alabama has been VERY cold! With the cold weather, we have been stuck inside! Me, with 5 children (my 3 + my sister's 2), stuck inside! So, yesterday when the weather got into the 40s we had to take advantage of that!

One of my favorite Christmas gifts was a fire pit. Considering that I haven't been able to use it yet and since we were outside, I decided that it would be a great day to bust it out and have the kids make s'mores. Let me just tell you how these kids do s'mores. Grace and Marianna wanted to roast marshmallows but didn't want to eat them. They only wanted chocolate on the graham cracker. Joseph and Brody only wanted chocolate and raw marshmallows, not put together. Dan, Zack, my Mom, and I actually made them the "real' way. Thank goodness it doesn't matter how you put it together, it was a treat for everyone.

YUM!

From one extreme to the next. Raw or burnt? The choice is yours!

Why do 3-year-olds think that you have to say "cheese" for a picture? Notice the chocolate mouths? Oh yeah, the good stuff!

Moving on . . .

With my crazy days of homeschooling and having two 3-year-olds running around, I decided to take advantage of a program at, you guessed it, the YMCA (you know how much I love the YMCA). They have a program called Kid's club for 3-4 year olds. It is only 3-days a week for 3 hours. I decided to put Joseph and Brody in the program so that I can get most of our schoolwork at home done. I didn't want to put Joseph in a "preschool" this early but I decided that it may be for the best since my mornings are so crazy with the older two. This way, he still get to play with his cousin and he gets a few lessons of his own. Today was there first day. The program had already started but we only missed two days.

Here is Joseph getting ready for school. Saying cheese of course!

They are getting so big. Brody was very excited, Joseph not so much.

Such silly boys!

Does this look familiar? Yes, this is the playroom where Joseph had his 3rd birthday party. How appropriate that his class starts out in here since he already considers this room as his class.

Here are the three worksheets that Joseph came home with. When I asked him what the name of the shape was he told me that it was a tar-angle-le.

When I picked up the boys I of course asked how they did. Joseph got upset a few times asking for his Mom. Brody only got upset one time when they were playing with bubbles and he got pushed by accident. Other than that, she said that they did great. I hope that this will be a positive experience for both of them and that Joseph will learn to love school as much as Brody did.

Basketball

2010-01-09T13:20:00.002-06:00

I try to expose my kids to a wide range of activities so that they can discover new things and most of the time they really enjoy it. Right now, we are trying basketball and cheerleading.

This is actually Zack's 2nd time playing but the first time was a very short season for him. It was when he was in 2nd grade and he fell on a tree root and cracked his tailbone. Well, he had to wear a full back brace so that ended that season pretty much before it even started. Now, being in 5th grade, we decided to try it again. We signed him up through our local YMCA and he seems to like it. He is still trying to figure out all of the rules and I can't help because I have no clue but he gives it his all and that is all I can ask of him. So far, his team has won all 3 games that they have played. On a side note, I do have to say that at today's game I was very disappointed in the parents. You know the kind that I am talking about. My philosophy is simply this: THEY ARE CHILDREN!

Grace is trying cheerleading and today was her first game. Since the YMCA didn't offer basketball cheerleading we signed up for the downtown teams. She cheers for a different team each game and she cheers for two games. I thought that she was going to be sick this morning when they started because she was so nervous. However, as the game(s) went on she became more and more confident. I do believe that I had more fun than she did though! Her coach is a really nice lady who helps the high school cheerleaders so she should learn a lot of fun cheers.