Randomosity

Jason graduates with his Masters of Divinity from Lipscomb University in 34 Days!!!!

Jason and I are celebrating this long journey with a Western Caribbean Cruise. We leave port in 36 days! I'll post more about that later.

Today I was asking Abby Kate some math questions while I was fixing lunch. I asked her "What is 5 minus 1?" She just looked at me so then I asked her, "What is it when you have 5 and you take 1 away?" She replied by saying, "Not being very nice!". After we all had a good laugh, she told me 4!

Jackson is crawling EVERYWHERE!!!

Can someone please tell me why my son wore 6 pairs of socks in the last two days?

If you ever need a good deep "belly laugh", you can take my daughter through the car wash. She absolutely "freaked" the other day!

Jackson is pulling up on EVERYTHING!!! He has the bumps and bruises to prove it.

My house is a disaster! I am in the process of "changing out" the closets of my THREE kids! Boy am I exhausted!

What is up with all of the Mayflies buzzing around my house?

Chocolate is my weakness!

I am really addicted to finding a good sale. I love saving all of the money that I can. A lot of times this means that I have to play the waiting game. Well, the coupons finally came out for Michael's, so I'm off this week to get my frames.

Should I get a Facebook?

I think that Jason should do all of my grocery shopping from here on out. Abby Kate and I left the boys Saturday morning to run some errands and pick up the groceries. Why is it that I always come out with more than what is on my list?

I finally got a new cell phone and a new plan. Hopefully we can save a little more money by sharing a plan.

Our first week of recycling is going really well!

My DVR

Last year when we moved into our new house, we got Dish Network. I was a bit skeptical at first. (If you know anything about me, you know that I like to keep things the same. I'm just not that adventurous. Case in point - I just now signed up for on-line banking. Who knew that paying your bills could be so EASY!) Anyways, there were MANY days where I called Jason at work asking how to just turn ON the TV. I've pretty much figured the whole thing out and now I sit back and wonder how we used to watch our shows.

Our lives are not consumed with our TV, but it is nice to have something to watch every now and then. Our TV usually gets turned on for the first time each day around 5:30. I don't know what it is, but when Jason comes home, the TV goes on. He doesn't sit there and watch it, he just likes to have it on. Personally, it drives me crazy. We have enough noise in our house WITHOUT the TV on!

Since this writer's strike has finally come to an end, I am really excited about the shows that are coming back. I really enjoy having my DVR.

Here are some of my favorite shows!

Flip That House

Trading Spaces - I'm an old-school Trading Spaces fan! Yeah for Paige Davis!

American Idol - We've been watching since Season 3!

The Celebrity Apprentice

Survivor - Jason and I have been watching since Season 3! This is our standing Thursday night date!

Ellen

Oprah

The Office - Jason introduced me to this show this past summer. I really love it now!

Lost - Another show that Jason got me watching. I'm not as hard-core as he is, but I enjoy the show.

CSI-Miami - This is the first one that I started watching. I like this one just a little more than the original.

CSI

Chuck - This show is really great! I started watching it last year when Jason had his weekly grad class at Lipscomb every Monday night.

The Biggest Loser

1 vs 100 - They've already finished the season, but Jason and I really enjoyed watching it.

So what about you?
What are some of your favorite shows?
What is the most random thing that you have on your DVR?
What's your favorite "new" show?

Oh Boy!!!

I put Jackson down for his nap, only to find that he had pulled himself up to STANDING!!! (He also wiggled out of his sleeves and pant legs). He couldn't be prouder!

Part Two - Let The Hunting Begin

This weekend, the kids hunted Easter eggs. They really enjoyed hunting this year. (They are finally old enough to really understand what they are suppose to do). Jackson sat this one out (being that he is only 9 months old and that we have 2 other kids to look after and help). After finding their eggs, we all enjoyed the nice day and played outside.

Playing Catch Up - Part One

Last week was Spring Break. We all enjoyed some time away together with family and friends. On Tuesday, we headed to the Birmingham Zoo with Corey, Alisha, and Will. We all had a great time together! I've posted some pictures from the trip. On Wednesday we headed up to Nashville to spend time with family. My mom and I took Joshua and Abby Kate to see "Horton Hears a Woo!". It was such a cute movie that we all enjoyed. Thursday, Jason and I took the kids out to Opry Mills. We are not really big "mall" people, but we enjoyed a little shopping. We followed up with lunch and DESSERT at Cracker Barrel. It was really great! While in Nashville, we were also able to visit with my sister-in-law, Tara, and her family. We really enjoyed our Break!

Our family at the zoo!

Checking out the fish and turtles.

Joshua and Abby Kate enjoyed playing together.

My big girl!

Jackson and the girls getting ready for his first train ride.

The boys getting ready to ride the train.

Abby Kate and I posed for a quick picture in front of the train.

Happy Easter

Jackson at Nine Months

16 pounds, 27 inches

I now have 5 teeth!

I can scoot backwards on my belly.

I'm finally sleeping through the night!!! I usually go down around 7:30 and wake up around 7:00!

I love to play with my Baby Tad, Tigger, and blankies in my bed when I wake up. I also like to kick my monkey crib toy and pull all of the ties on my bedding.

I can sign "eat", "more", and "nurse".

I love to eat puffs, cheerios, goldfish, and bread.

I can say "Momma", "DaDa", and "NaNa".

I've tried some new fruits and veggies this month. I loved Mango and Blueberries. I really did not care for the Asparagus. (Momma even had a hard time making that one. She gagged the whole time!)

I can wave hello and bye bye.

I follow Momma around by "rolling" after her.

I can imitate sounds. I especially love imitating my Daddy's sounds.

I've started going to the nursery and Sunday School. I really enjoy it and Mom enjoys being able to actually pay attention during worship and class.

This picture is totally blurry, but the look on Jack's face was worth putting this one on here.

Alright, enough with the pictures, Mom!!!

Weekend Fun

I hope that you have all had a great weekend. At our house, we really enjoyed our time together with each other and our friends. On Friday, Alisha and I met up to make another trip to a consignment sale. I think that Jason is beginning to tire of all of the sales, but I'm always on the lookout for a great bargain.

(By the way, have I ever told you about the steal of a deal that I got on baby food a few months back? Well, if not, I'm going to tell you now. As you know, I make all of Jackson's baby food. Whenever we go out to eat at someone's house or a restaurant, I always take the store bought stuff - You've got to love Gerber's! I had several coupons from Gerber's on their Organic 2 packs. Now usually, I don't really care if it is organic or not, but I thought I would hang on to the coupons and wait for some sales. Well, one finally came at our local Publix. They had 4-2 packs for $3. I had a coupon that if you bought 6-2 packs, you could save $2. Well, I bought 12 - 2 packs, spending $9.00. With my 2 coupons, I had already saved $4.00. As I was leaving the baby food section of the store, I noticed that Publix had some $1 off coupons on the Gerber Organics. If you bought 3 - 2 packs, you could save $1. Well, I grabbed three of those $1 off coupons (for my 12 packs) and proceeded to the check out. In the end, I purchased 12 - 2 packs of Gerber Organics. I paid $9 and with all of my coupons, I saved $7. Yep, that's right, I got all of that baby food for "on the go's", for only $2!!!)

Okay, where were we... oh yeah, consignment shopping (just wait, I'll fill you all in on my steals after all of the sales are over). Jason and Corey hung out at the house with Jackson and Will. We were able to all share lunch together and just have fun catching up.

Jason and I picked up the kids that afternoon from Preschool. This was only after he had spent a good 30 minutes on the phone with the insurance company. A lady pulled out in front of him a few weeks back and we are in the process of getting the claim filed, so they will pay for his truck to be fixed. For dinner that night, we decided to try a new pizza place in town. It's called Marco's and it is so delicious!!! The kids really enjoyed it, too. We always fudge a little on the rules on Friday nights, so we all ate our pizza in the den and watched some television. Later that night, I finally opened up the latest Nicholas Sparks' book and began reading. I really love his books and this one is not going to disappoint. I don't know what it is about his books, but when I buy them, I don't begin reading them immediately. Instead, I sit on them for several months before even opening them. I think that I've learned to pace myself. I used read his books in one sitting and then the months seemed to go on forever and forever as I waited for another. Any good authors you all would recommend?

Well, Saturday was a good day. We headed out to Guntersville to visit with our friends Lane and Kristen. Oh, and we also ate at this great place called Top 'O the River. They have these great fried pickles! We really enjoyed getting to see them! Jason also headed out to pick up Abby Kate's new bedroom furniture with Jon. Thanks Jon!

Today was a great day. We enjoyed lunch with our friends Stacy and Jon. When we ask Joshua what he is going to do this spring (play t-ball), he always tells everyone that he is going to play t-ball with Lawson. They are such great buddies.

Well, don't really know if anyone else is still reading this now, but I hope that you all had a great weekend. We had a great time visiting with all of our friends. I am so very thankful for the friendships that we have. God has truly blessed our lives with these and other relationships. I am glad that we were able to take the time to be with others and with our own little family.

The kids have Spring Break this week, so we will be doing a little bit of traveling. Jackson has his 9 month appointment tomorrow, so check back tomorrow afternoon if you want to read up on "all things Jackson". Also, I don't know if you've noticed our little March for Babies Campaign total over there. We are ecstatic about all of the money that has been raised "so far". A BIG thank you to all that have contributed!

"Jesus says you need to share"

Both kids are sitting in time out right now. Abby Kate did not want to share her sunglasses with Joshua, so he took matters into his own hands. Joshua shoved Abby Kate making her fall to the ground. Joshua's punishment was a "Big Time Out" and Abby Kate is having "time out" for not being nice with her words. As I was walking past the time out chairs, I overheard Joshua telling Abby Kate that "Jesus says you need to share Abby Kate". Just had to share that one!

Guess Who Looks Just Like Daddy

Jason

Jackson

Jason

Jackson

Jason

Abby Kate

Jason

Joshua

I think that Jackson looks just like Jason. Abby Kate has always looked like Jason, but Jackson is looking more and more like him. Everyone says that Joshua looks just like Jason, but I don't really see it in the baby pictures. What do you think?

A Day at the Garden

Today, I took the kids to the Botanical Gardens. We were able to get in for FREE, since it was the Community Free Day! We all had a great time. It was not crowded at all and we were able to walk around the whole park. The park was "decorated" with lots and lots of dinosaurs. The kids had so much fun looking for the "next" dinosaur. Joshua and Abby Kate spent a good amount of our time at the Garden Railway. They loved watching and listening to the train chug its way around the miniature town. The Aquatic Garden was a huge hit. They loved looking in the ponds and seeing the BIG fish! We walked along the Nature Trail, but it was pretty brown. We finished off our walk through the gardens at the Children's Area. They both had so much fun in all of the different play areas. Of course, Jackson loved watching the both of them run around and play. We had a great day together at the Botanical Gardens.

Some Ideas From Your Friendly Neighborhood Mom

When I have the time, I like to read up on my Parents and Parenting Magazines. I always find good advice or some great ideas that I would like to use one of these days. Since my motto is, "Less is More", I tear out the page that the idea is on and make a nice little pile, discarding of the magazine itself. Well, my pile has gotten a little big, so I need to purge. I thought of no better place to "store" all of these thoughts and ideas, than my weblog. Who knows, maybe someone out there can find some of these same ideas beneficial to their everyday living.

• Make a photocopy of the fronts and backs of all your credit/debit cards and IDs. Keep the photocopies in a safe place in case you lose your wallet. You'll know your account numbers so you can cancel easily.

• Turn recycling into a fun family project. (Our house is all about trying to "go green" this year!) Teach the basics, and then put the kids in charge of the items that are not breakable. Leave the glass to the grownups! Label the bins with a photo of the item so it will be easier for your child to know where to put certain items.

• Speaking of recycling, here is a list of the items that can usually be recycled: aluminum cans, most plastic bottles, papers (magazines, newspapers, junk mail), glass bottles and jars, paper bags. These items can almost never be recycled: plastic wrap, styrofoam, items with food residue, and paper with glue or adhesive.

• Weekly Allowance - 50 cents to $1.00 times the child's age.

• Pizza Squares - 1 tube (13.8 oz) refrigerated pizza dough, 1 pint grape tomatoes (cut in halves), 1 garlic clove (minced), 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning, 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Unroll and slightly stretch dough onto a greased baking pan. Combine the next four ingredients in a bowl. Cover and microwave for 3 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes and drain. Sprinkle dough with Parmesan. Top with tomato mixture. Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until crisp and browned. Let cool 5 minutes, then cut into squares and serve.

• Best Books Ever - For Babies: Pat the Bunny, Go, Dog Go!, Good Night, Gorilla, Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You?, Goodnight Moon. For Toddlers: We're Going on a Bear Hunt, Freight Train, The Napping House, The Happy Egg, The Very Hungry Caterpillar. For Preschoolers: Where the Wild Things Are, The Snowy Day, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Jamberry, Harry the Dirty Dog. For Kindergartners: Bread and Jam, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, Make Way for Ducklings, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, The Little Engine That Could.

• To Leave With Your Babysitter: Your cell phone number and the address of where you will be. Your home phone number and address. Your pediatrician's number. The number for Poison Control (800-222-1222). The number of a neighbor to call in an emergency. Your kid's medical info. Important house rules.

• 4'8" is the height that kids have to be before you get rid of the booster seat.
  

• Healthy Travel Snacks - Frosted Mini-Wheats, Reduced-Fat Triscuits, No-Sugar Added Applesauce, Kashi TLC Granola Bars, Carrots, Celery, Cherry Tomatoes, Part-Skim String Cheese, Danimals Drinkables, and Bottles of Water.

• Make a shopping cart cover out of a burp cloth. Simply sew a Velcro strip along each edge and snap around the bar to keep it germ-free.

• Place all of your baby's bibs in a netted, zippered bag. This will keep the Velcro tabs from snagging and damaging all of your other clothes in the wash.

• Double-Dipped Strawberries - 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips, 1/4 cup white chocolate chips, 1 1b. strawberries. In separate bowls, heat chocolate chips in a microwave on medium, stirring every 20 seconds until chocolate is melted. Dunk strawberries in semisweet chocolate. Shake off any excess back into bowl and place on a wax-paper-lined baking sheet. Refrigerate 5 minutes. Place berries in mini cupcake liners. Using the tines of a fort, drizzle melted white chocolate over berries. Refrigerate 5 minutes and serve. Makes about 8 servings.

• "Snacks to serve on a playdate that kids will like and that won't make moms roll their eyes" - Bite-size muffins, individual baggies of trail mix, portable bites of string cheese, yogurt sticks, and cereal bars, and fruit kabobs.

• Cinnamon applesauce - 2 1/1 lbs (7-8) apples (recommend McIntosh), 1/4 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 2 teaspoons lemon juice, or to taste. Peel, core, and quarter apples. Place apples in a heavy saucepan with 1/4 cup water. Add the sugar and cinnamon. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes, or until very soft. If the apples start to dry out, ad a little more water. Spoon the mixture into a food processor or blender and blend until fairly smooth but still a little chunky. Stir in lemon juice. Taste, adding additional lemon juice or sugar, if desired.

• Rent special dresses and suits for the kids at www.gagas.com. The prices are great on a 3 week rental for a special outfit.

• Disney Done Right - Buy your tickets before you go (www.disneyworld.com). Know height requirements. Visit during the off-season - September and October are usually the slowest months. Do it in reverse - Head to the back of the park first and then work your way forward. Go on the most popular rides at lunchtime or when others are watching the parade. If you can't wait until the off-season, plan your trip for the first two weeks in June or the last two in August. This is the least crowded time during the warm-weather months. Call the hotel directly and ask about any discounts or special offers available - Use the local number and not the "800" reservation number. Stay for four nights and five days (at least) - this is enough time to see all of the parks and still have some "down time" at the pool. Choose a Disney resort if possible - This makes it easier to go back and forth from the hotel to the parks. There is usually only a $20 a day difference between the Disney value properties and some off-site hotels. (I have not checked that out. I'm merely believing what they told the readers of their magazine.) See the fireworks from the top - Make reservations at the California Grill (407-939-3463). Plan your itinerary online - you can type in your kids' ages and what they like to do. The Website will give you a customized plan of action. Use a Rider Switch Pass - You and your kid can go first and request a rider-switch pass from one of the employees when they're about to get on. After their done, the other parent can skip the line with the pass. For autographs, meet the characters in front of the Magic Kingdom at the end of the day to avoid the rush when the parks open. Eat right - Grab lunch early (11 and 11:30), the lines usually don't get better until after 2. Make lunch your "big" meal for the day. The rates are cheaper than at dinnertime. Bring your own snacks and bottled water. Take a midday break - the crowds start to thin out around 6:30. Fit in a nice afternoon nap before heading back to the park.
  

Our First Snow Day

Today, we all woke up to a beautiful snow. This was the first snow for all 3 of my kids. It seems that anytime we get a snow, it is either not enough to go out and see or we are out of town. I captured a few pictures of us enjoying the snow this morning.

Joshua had fun making snow balls with Jason. He also "tried" the snow and did not really care for it too much!

Jackson loved being outside in the snow!

My boys!

Joshua and Abby Kate trying to keep me warm!

Such fun having twins!

We found more snow in the bed of Jason's truck.

Abby Kate loved eating the snow!


Jackson was worn out after having such fun in the snow!




The story of Snow Duck

This was supposed to be a snowman, but when Jason put the carrot nose on, he turned out looking more like a duck. Thus, "Snow Duck" was born!

"Daddy, I thought he was supposed to be a snow man, not a duck!" Nevertheless, the kids soon warmed up to "Snow Duck". Can't you tell how much we love our new friend?

"Here, let's set him on the side of the truck for another picture," Daddy said.

"Oh, no! Our poor little Snow Duck!"


Snow Duck, Version 2.0
Snow Duck Lives!