December Daily- Day 3

December 3rd: Sick Baby

Today was rough! About 11:30 last evening E woke up with fever. It continued through the rest of the night and by morning he seemed to be doing better. This is how he looked most of the day. No fever, running and playing and I thought that whatever had caused the infection was gone.

I bundled him up and went to school to pick up Carter at school. I told them that I would be at school Friday because I thought Ethan was fine. That was around 3:00. By 4:00 E looked like this. Running a high fever.

The fever cam down a little after I gave Motrin. I alternate between Motrin and Tylenol, but that is frustrating because the Tylenol just doesn't work as well as the Motrin does. Things went relatively well with Ethan just dosing in and out until about 8:00.

Around 8:00 Ethan woke up and complained about his eyes hurting. I knew his fever was back up so I took his temp- 102.8 and then gave him a dose of Motrin. Usually the Motrin works quickly, but this time it didn't even touch his fever. The fever continued to rise, up to 103.3, even after a cool bath and cold compresses. When Jess got home at 10:00, I scooped Ethan up and took him to the ER. Poor Baby!

We were there until after 1:00. After a strep test that was negative, the ER doctor diagnosed him with viral tonsillitis. He said that the virus would have to just run its course.

It was a very long day!!

I did get a tag done while Ethan was resting. This is my third tag inspired by Tim's "The 12 tags of Christmas".

December Daily- Day 2

December 2nd: Christmas Snacks



Tonight after the boys bath I got out some Christmas platters and served the boys a bedtime snack. Carter was very excited to see two of his Christmas favorites: Little Debbie Christmas cakes and Hot (more warm than hot) Chocolate. Ethan on the other hand, who had been VERY grouchy all evening, was not interested in either. The Hot Chocolate was too hot for him and he said he didn't like those cookies...even though he had eaten one the night before...Little Scrooge! He did come back later after I had eaten his Christmas cake and asked for one of his own.

Jess is responsible for us enjoying Christmas trees cakes. He loves the things! It is one of the very few Little Debbie's he will eat. He has no interest in the Zebra Cakes that you can buy year round, which in my opinion taste the same. He swears that they are nothing alike. As soon as the Christmas tree cakes hit the store shelves we scoop up boxes of them. It is kind of overwhelming to open the pantry and see boxes and boxes of Christmas tree cakes. But since they are only available for a short time we hoard and enjoy them. I can't make fun of Jess for doing this because I tend to do the same thing with Easter Peeps. I am fully aware that they make Peeps for other holidays, but I only like Easter Bunny and Chick Peeps. This is just more proof that Jess and I are perfect for one another. No one else would understand or endure our strange idiocies!

Hot Chocolate is my contribution to our family. In the winter I could live on the stuff. Combine hot chocolate with Chai Tea Lattes and Apple Cider, then throw in a little milk and water on the side and you basically have a list of all the drinks I drink during cold weather. The boys really like hot chocolate as long as it isn't HOT and only if there are marshmallows involved. Carter got his first Starbucks drink last Saturday when he and I were out shopping. His drink of choice was hot chocolate and he loved it. I imagine that next time we pass Starbucks he will ask for another one. I love that I am passing on my love of Starbucks to him. Jess of course will probably just roll his eyes and complain that we are spending way too much on a drink, but I'm o.k. with that.



Here is my tag based on Tim's tag for his "12 Tags of Christmas" Day 2.



I'll post again tomorrow!
See you then~

Olivia

December Daily 2009- Day 1

Thanks to Ali I am inspired to complete a December Daily album this year. I usually try to get the Album completed before December, but that just didn't happen this year. Wayyyy to busy to even get started on it. So I have decided to post each day here and then once I have time, I will put it into my scrapbook. I'll post completed pictures of that here too. My December Daily is just a special place to keep up with what we do during the month of December. So without further ado.. I give you:

December 1st : Carter Reading

Today I got the opportunity to sit in on Carter's kindergarten class as they were being observed by the other kindergarten teachers. With all the other teachers there I wasn't as much of a distraction to the kids. I was very excited to see what Carter is working on in Literacy, to see him interact with his peers and teachers, and see how much he is learning. Sitting in his class I was able to see a different side of Carter. Seeing him sit with his classmates, answering questions, and participating in the learning made me realize just how big he is getting. I am very proud of how hard he is working and I am glad that he enjoys learning. I also was able to see that as confident and hard headed as he is most of the time, he still lacks some confidence in his ability to read and write on his own. He is easily frustrated when he thinks that he may make a mistake, so therefore sometimes he lacks the confidence to try to read words he is unsure of or to write words he thinks he can't spell. This is something we are working on and I am hopeful that he will work his way out of it and be more confident in himself.

Couple of other things...just because:

Ethan came into the kitchen this evening and announced that he wiped his own hiney! This is a great day!! Considering that we try to get him to do this EVERYDAY we are finally seeing progress! Wiping our own hiney prompted a dance by the whole family and lots of whooping and hollering and high fives. Hopefully all the hiney-wiping hoop-la will encourage him to do it more often. Fingers crossed...here's hoping!

Besides the Daily December album, I am also inspired by Tim Holtz and his "12 Tags of Christmas". So here is my take on his tag for today.

Check back tomorrow for another tag and to see my next post for my Daily December album.

Hugs!! Olivia

World Card Making Day Blog Hop

In honor of World Card Making Day, http://www.cocoadaisy.com/ is having a blog hop. I have four cards to share. This first one is a card made using patterned paper scraps from one of the Christine's project kits for Cocoa Daisy. She comes up with amazing projects. The butterfly is a Hero Arts stamp, stamped in Tim Holtz's Walnut Distress Ink and then painted green with Twinkling H2O's. The brads and photo turn body were stamped and heat embossed to match the green of the butterfly. The "dreams" sticker is from 7 gypsies. I finished it with a little red stitching.

These two little cards are also made from scraps. Both use Kraft card stock, Hero Arts stamps and Distress Ink. The flower on the first card is a 2 inch scallop punch that I cut and shaped to make into a flower.

This final card is made with Hero Arts stamps using a masking technique for the frog and lily pads. I love this little frog!

If you have never checked out Cocoa Daisy I hope you will stop by and take time to check them out. Tricia puts out the most amazing kits and her Design Team is wonderful. The gallery is full of beautiful and inspiring projects and the message board is fun and encouraging.

I will now send you on your way to the next blog. This blog belongs to Caryl. Check her card out at http://carylhope.wordpress.com/

Have a great day!

Carterisms

Yesterday morning Carter woke up full of "Carterisms" as we like to call them. He said all three of these in an hours time and had me laughing and crying at the same time. I love when he tells it just like it is!

Carterism 1:

I got up early and took a shower and washed my hair before anyone else got up. When I went in to wake Carter up my hair was still wet. I laid down on the bed and was talking to him and this exchange happened.

Carter: "Mom you are beautiful, but your hair stinks."

Me: "Carter, I just washed it."

Carter: "Yeah, but it stinks."

Me: "It think it smells a little like flowers." (as I sniff my wet hair)

Carter: "Mom don't you know that boys dislike the smell of flowers."

What six year old uses the word dislike?? Good Grief!

Carterism 2:

Later on when I was helping him get ready, I got all sentimental on him, which usually drives him crazy. But this morning our conversation was really sweet and it made me tear up.

Me: "Carter, you are getting so big. Can you believe that you are going to be in kindergarten?"

Carter: "I know." (said excited and happy, rather than being put out that we were having this discussion again.)

Me: " You used to be my little boy, what happened?" (This is me getting all sentimental on him)

Carter: "Mom, even when I get big, I'll always be your little boy." (said as very sweetly)

Me: "I know Carter." (Right before he walked out and I began to cry)

Carterism 3:

Jess and I both had a workshop yesterday, so the boys were headed to play with a teenager from our church for the day. Carter thinks Colton is the coolest guy and has been so excited all week that he was getting to go to his house.
While I was trying to get Ethan's hair combed out Carter was standing at the bathroom door. Ethan was complaining about the me fixing his hair (this is a daily battle, if it weren't for the cute curls I would have his head shaved so I wouldn't have to deal with all the drama). This morning he was complaining that he didn't want a moohawk. Carter replied by saying this:

Carter: "Ethan we are going to someones house who is cool, you might want to wear the moohawk."

Ethan of course didn't buy it, but continued to complain until I had combed his hair "flat" as he likes to call it and had seen himself in the mirror to check to make sure I hadn't snuck a moohawk in on top of his head.

I added a few recent pictures of Carter to this post. Because I refuse a post without pictures!

The first picture I tool of him just a few days ago as we left kindergarten registration. He is getting so big!

The second is of him and I after a shopping trip for a few school clothes. I won't make a big school clothes shopping trip until mid-October or maybe even late October. We live in Arkansas and it doesn't get cold here till October/Novemberish.

The last picture is from May, during T-ball season. As I was working on this post this a.m. Carter came through and requested that I use a baseball picture. So I did and he approved.

Not a new picture necessarily, but it keeps the boy happy! Score one for Mom!

Bentley

This is the other man in my life...Bentley our Manx cat. You can find him laying around the house just like this most days. Unless of course there are small children running around...especially if one of the small children is three, curly headed, and holding an object he plans to use on the cat. This object may be any number of things such as a ball, plastic golf club, or even a blanket. I have learned by watching Ethan interact with Bentley that any object can be used to taunt Mr Bentley Bobtail.

Because of Ethan, Bentley prefers to be upstairs only when the children are distracted or asleep. Otherwise he is hiding under a piece of furniture waiting patiently for them to JUST GO AWAY! He is very tolerable of the boys to a point, then he runs for the hills, especially if he is being poked and gouged by golf clubs from the front and back of the couch. You will only see his underbelly when there is no one around who he thinks might eviscerate him on the spot. Such a rough life for a 15lb fur ball.

Completely Random/Scrappiness

Sorry this is going to be a complete random post. I have lots of things running around in my brain and I need a place to get them down, so that I have a place that reminds me. And noooo a notepad isn't good enough. FYI: I get this way every year as summer vacation winds down and I get ready to go back to work. I always feel I didn't do enough during the summer and the last few weeks I kill myself trying to get it all done.

Couple of things I am thinking about for the house:

1. GARAGE SALE!!!- I have too much stuff cluttering up the place

2. Valances- I have material and patterns, just no desire...got get that sewing mojo going

3. Outdoor weeding

4. General pick up and put things away and dust, mop, yada yada yada.....

Couple of things I wanna get done scrappy:

1. December Daily from 2008- Yeah don't ask...I didn't do it daily.. life happened instead

2. Project 365- Catch up

3. Smoky Mountain Vacation album

4. Spain Vacation album- FROM 2006 Sheesh!!

5. Order pictures

Things I have to do:

1. Finish course work for grad class- not stressing on this one. I am caught up and even a little

ahead.

2. Register for Fall grad classes

3. Work in my classroom

4. Make a do-able schedule for us (me) to get on for fall. After Christmas I will redo this, because

it gets really nuts after Christmas.

All this needs to be done prior to August 19th. I am optimistic, but realistic also....

So now I have a little list going on and some goals set...we'll see what happens. The biggest thing for me is to feel like I can go back to school relaxed and happy. Plus enjoy the time I have left with my guys.

I'll leave you with a few Project 365 photos .

Last night I went shopping and when I came home the boys were in the pool. They love to swim in the dark...strange, but enjoyable.

I bought them some gummies at Candy Craze. So today after lunch Carter snagged a worm for dessert. They love gummies and they make for great bribery. So everyone wins when there are gummies in the house!

Hope you are having a great weekend!

Apple Spin

This conversation happened while we were eating lunch today. FYI: We were having peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, chips and apples. Pretty sure that my family alone keeps the peanut butter factories up and going. Anywho...



Ethan: "Here mommy" (handing over a partly eaten apple slice)

Me: "Are you done with your apple?"

Ethan: "Yes, I not like the spin." (this was said in a very quiet voice)

Me: "What?"

Ethan: "I can't tell" (this is his classic response when he knows he is mispronouncing a word)

Me: "What did you say?"

Ethan: " The spin....I not like the spin." (exasperated of course!)

Me: "Oh, OK you don't have to eat the spin."



Spin is supposed to be skin. He won't eat it because it is tough.



Ethan is quite a little character and my dad calls him "Wreck" because he is always tearing stuff up. Look up boy in the dictionary and his picture will be there.



Thought I would post today's picture of the day. This firetruck has driven many a mile across the floor of our house here and also in De Queen. We bought this firetruck for Carter on his first birthday and I'm pretty sure it is on it's last leg now. Ethan rides it constantly and usually has something hooked and dragging behind it or is carrying a big load while driving it. Today's choice was his night night blanket and my flashlight. He came flying through and said, "Look mommy I'm driving with one hand."

New Hair

Did it...cut it short and I love it!

Contemplating a new hair style...

Not this blonde...but maybe this short...Just something I'm thinking about.

Why...

People ask me why I take time to scrapbook? My response is that I want to capture the emotions and feelings behind the pictures I take. There are a million stories out there to tell and a million more that I have already forgotten. Moments and memories happen everyday...every hour. They make us who we are. It is my goal to collect and write down the simple daily things so that my children can go back a re-experience them as they get older.


One of my projects for 2009 is called Project 365 where you take a daily photo and journal about it. I have done a pretty good job keeping up with it so far. Here is today's photo. I haven't written the journaling yet... but it is a shot of Carter riding his bike this morning. I walked along with him and we spent time looking for Killdeer. We were able to see fish in the creek and a SNAKE...ugh, and these really flitty birds that dive bomb us when we walk by. We think we may have spotted a nesting site for the Killdeer and we formulated a plan for our next walk to check it out.

Since school is out...hopefully I can start posting a daily picture here. They aren't anything that are photographically spectacular, but just simple snapshots of daily life. Love that!

Scrapbooking also give me a chance to be creative. I have always love to cut, paste and color..This hobby just takes that to a new level.

Here are some of my latest creative endeavors that I have posted here and also at http://www.cocoadaisy.com/ a kit company that I just love!! They are super inspiring and put out fantastic kits each month.

Onto Bigger Things...

Today was the last day of preschool for Carter. Such a bittersweet day for me. I am so proud of the big guy he is becoming, but I miss the little boy that he used to be. It is amazing that six years has passed so quickly.

He turned six May 10th..we had held him out of kindergarten last year because he wasn't mature enough..he calls it being "red shirted"...his daddy is a coach what else can you expect? I am so hopeful that we made the best decision for him. He has matured alot this year and he is so ready to go to school.

At six he is very impatient, he got that from me. He is also very competitive, from Jess of course. He loves sports of any kind and took a big interest in Jess' ball team this year. I got tickled at ballgames when he would complain about the refs missing calls. Nine times out of ten he was right..LOL.

He is also very sensitive. It is not unusual to see him tear up during the sad part of a movie. He also is starting to show more responsibility for Ethan and he is being more patient with him. I love watching them play together and see Carter teaching Ethan new things...some not so good, like burping, and some that are really great like playing ball and building things.

He is growing up to be one fantastic kid and I am lucky to be his Mama. Because the best thing about Carter is that he is 100% a Mama's boy.

Gearing Up for SUMMER

I am so looking forward to summer. Just a few days left till FREEDOM!! I'm already behind on some summer stuff (thanks to all the rain the pool is still covered) but I'm making a big effort to get a jump on other things....happy to report that the house is pretty clean and the only dirty laundry we have is still on our bodies. I'll start another load of laundry tonight to take care of it. :)

We are beginning to see our favorite summer creatures popping up also. We have a plethora of tree frogs, Anole lizards, and toads. Carter and I love checking them out...Ethan...not so much. He will look at them from a distance, but if they happen to get within arms reach he is completely freaking out. I mean screaming like a little-girl-who-is-being-eaten-alive freaking out.

Luckily we have also spotted at least one pair of Killdeers. Hoping that they build a nest and lay eggs soon. Ethan is all about the birds and we all enjoy watching the parents sit on the nest. The eggs are just gorgeous.

So in honor of our Summer Explorations and Discoveries I created a little mini to record all of our finds. Here are a few pics..the cover and the one of the interior pages. My plan is to take pictures of our finds and adhere them to the cardboard pages and then record the information on the tags, which are double sided with the explore & discover info. The whole album was made using recycled materials and materials & scraps from within my stash. I can't wait to get started filling this album up.

Weekend Fun...

I'm spending my weekend scrapbooking with my friends online at http://www.cocoadaisy.com/ . Here are a few things I've created. Love this sight, Tricia, and the Design Team.

Three

Been a while...sorry...life happened, it does that occasionally. So how about an update chocked full of pictures.

First Ethan turned 3 on the 15th of March..WOW he is getting so big. Check out his Birthday pics. Let me give you a little background so you won't think the cake is as weird as it looks. This kid loves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. He asks for one daily. We even went through a phase where he would bring me a spoon and the peanut butter jar and expect me to open the jar and give him a big scoop.

So when I asked him what he wanted for his birthday he said..Peanut Butter and Jelly, so peanut butter and jelly is what he got in the form of this cake:

We had Spring Break last week and I took a few photos of my mom, grandma, and I went to Forest Hills,Louisiana to get plants for our yards. One of the nurseries is so HUGE that we were there for over three hours..You name it and they had it. Such a great trip.. I love taking trips with the two of them.. we always make great memories.

Grandma picked up

these knock out roses

and I picked up a few

ferns to plant in the shade of one of our

decks around the house.

I also picked up some

azaleas, tomato plants, and cucumber plants

so that Carter could have a vegetable garden.

I hope to get all the plants in the ground this weekend, we'll see.

Everyone was home by Wednesday night and the four of us spent a lot of time together hanging out. We ended up at Books A Million twice.. the boys love to play with the train set there, even though we have one that is almost identical to it at home. Jess reads books and I mainly look at stamping, scrapping, crafting, and home decorating magazines.

We really had a great break. It was very restful. Now if I can only get through the next two weeks. Our state testing begins next week for k-2 and the following week for 3-4. The whole building is a little on edge and of course the kids are all loopy because of the nice weather. Hopefully my fourth graders will pull it together by the 13th when our testing begins. I hate all this testing..too much stress.

On a little lighter note, I am almost done with my first semester of grad school and it has taken me till now to get school, work, extra curricular activities and home life coordinated to where I don't feel so stressed and the house doesn't look like a bomb went off. I finish up the remainder of my grad assignments the 20th and then finals are the first week of May. Looking forward to a little break from it. I will start back the first of July taking three hours. Everything I'm doing right now is offered online, but there is still alot of work that goes into it. I am hopeful I can complete the program in about 2 1/2 years...We'll see.

I'm off to bed. We have 10 am soccer in the morning. Then I have plans to clean house a little, scrapbook, and work on a little grad work.

Love to you all!

O

Liar, liar...pants on fire-ra

This morning the boys found and put on pieces of their Halloween costumes from 2007. It was all fun and games for about 15 minutes, until the first argument broke out from behind Ethan's bedroom door. Evidently the pirates were playing with the train set....or a better description might be Carter was lining up and attaching all the trains and all the other elements along the tracks and Ethan was trying to actually move the trains along the track. A little OCD vs search and destroy...this happens often around our house.

Both boys ended up in the living room pleading their cases and arguing about what truly happened. Carter got too close to Ethan and a small irritating shove was issued from Carter. Too which Ethan shoved back a little harder..Then the tears and complaints began. Really... the shoves were not bad enough to cause such drama. Jess and I each took a child, trying to diffuse what was happening and trying to explain to each that we don't push one another.

Mr. Drama (Carter) began dramatically retelling the train story to which Ethan piped in saying "Carter you a liar liar pants on fire-ra". Hence the name calling and accusations flew. We diffused the argument, we thought, and the boys happily went back to playing in the living room.

I stepped into the kitchen to get a drink and Jess went back to his paper, when we heard Ethan say very plainly and very aggitatedly, "Carter you want me bite you?" Which was surprising to hear, but also very funny. He was definetly warning the instigator to back off. Jess got Ethan and talked to him about threatening his brother and also about biting people. To which Ethan replied, "I keep my teeth myself and in my mouth. Then he ran off to play with Carter.

The whole confrotation/argument lasted all of 5 or 6 minutes and is not uncommon around here. We try to let them settle many of those sibling issues by themselves and intervene when physicality occurs. They do get in trouble when they need it, but in this case the whole thing was minor and actually quite comical.

The boys are great friends and play well together, until Mr. Drama OCD big brother becomes too OCD or too bossy &/or when Master of Destruction little brother destroys what they are playing with. It is always a loud, busy, circus around here.

Here are a couple more picture of the pirates. By the way, I believe little pirates should always go shirtless or maybe just be in their underwear. Such cute little stinkers.

Saturday Morning Soccer

So we decided we just weren't busy enough....thus we added another round of soccer to our schedule. Carter played fall soccer and when he found out that he could play again in the spring he was all over it. He is already a sports playing fanatic and fiercely competitive. He only wants to play if there are other "good" players playing and he has little patience for those players who are "flower pickers" or kids who are out there because their parents want them to play and in all actuality have no interest in playing. This has been the case when he played t-ball, basketball, and now soccer. He is so serious about playing hard and playing well.

Today was our first game of the spring season, which lasts six Saturdays. He got to practice on Tuesday, but with temperatures in the mid-40s, it was a short one. This morning he got out there ready to go and he remembered a lot of what he had learned back in the fall. It was evident to Jess and I that he has grown quite a bit and his hand eye coordination is better than it was in the fall. It's amazing how much kids grow in just a few months time.

After the game, he informed us that his team won (they don't keep score in this league) and that he had scored 4 goals. He did actually score four, but as the day wore on and people asked him about how many he scored the number of scores began to go up...6, 7... It was quite funny.

It was such a nice day today and after naps, Jess and the boys went outside to play and do a little yard work. I on the other hand was chained to this computer completing grad course projects. I completed one today and submitted it, but I still have two to complete before Monday the 16th. I am bound and determined to get them done by next Thursday. So I will be chained to this computer again tomorrow, while everyone else is out playing and having a good time...Rats!

I have plants to plant, exercise I need to do, and creative ideas running amok in my head and not enough energy or time to do them. And now the time change is going to suck another hour out of today/tomorrow. Aww the irony!

Scrappy Magnet Project

Hi... I have been meaning to post something scrappy here for a while, but it just hasn't happened until today. I created these scrappy magnets using those magnets you get in the mail from credit card companies. We have gotten a slew of them and I finally ended up keeping a few, thinking I would do something creative with them. They were ugly just stuck to the fridge. So I took some of them and sanded them down a little so the adhesive would stick. Here is the before picture.

Then I took some scraps of pattern paper and covered the magnets completely. I used a glue stick to adhere the paper to the sanded magnet. The paper I chose is similar to the colors I have in my kitchen--apple green, red, and yellow-y gold.

Then I sanded the edges of the paper and then inked the edges with Tim Holtz's Walnut Distress Ink. Some magnets got left as rectangles, while others got cut (with a Creative Memories Circle Cutter) into different size circles. I decorated the magnets with different circles and some of my favorite pictures of the boys. I also used some older Making Memories Metal pieces, metal letters and rub ons. I am very pleased with the result. The magnets really brighten up the fridge, they are personalized, and best of all I used up some of my stash and recycled those magnets, something I would have otherwise trashed. Here's the finished product. Thanks for looking.

Have a great weekend. Hope you spend at least part of it doing something creative.

Olivia

Worn Out

We spent the last week in District Tournament at DeQueen. Winning the first game, beating DQ by one if overtime. That win put us into Regionals that begin this Wed.



After that win we went downhill losing the next two games which puts us into the 4th seed position for Regionals. It also puts us playing the 1st seed from another district--Star City. Not where we want to be. It will be a David playing Goliath type game-- we play 5 girls the whole game, whereas Star City has 12 girls that sub in and out about every three or four minutes. We will make another trip to DQ Wednesday to watch and support the team and our favorite coach, Daddy. I am so hopeful that we can pull off a win. It would truly be an upset since Star City is ranked very high in the State.




So that is where we have been and what we've been up to and we are worn out. Ethan and I took a nap... a long nap today. Jess and Carter have gone to Oaklawn to watch the horses.




I hope to post a layout and a few cards from my February http://www.blogger.com/www.cocoadaisy.com kit later today or sometime this week.


Right now I am headed to do a little research for my masters work.





Later,
Olivia

Monday Randomness

Happy Monday! It's been a while since I posted...it's a busy, crazy world around here. We finished up Boys and Girls Club basketball last Tuesday, so there is one less thing on our busy weekly schedule. Soccer should start up again soon, so this is just a short break from sports for Carter.

The picture here is from our trip home this weekend to watch Jess' basketball team play Friday night and then spend the night with my parents. It was strange to be in my hometown and not be sporting the hometeam black and gold. It has taken a while to adjust to being a black and orange Leopard, rather than a black and gold one. At least we didn't change mascots. Anyway Jess' girls lost by one point, which was a heartbreaker, because he is hoping to get a good seed in the district tournament. He has two games left and those are important games that they need to win.

Jess had to ride back on the bus after the game, but the boys and I stayed at my parents house. I love coming home to stay with my parents, have I mentioned that my mama is the best cook in the world? My mama is my best friend and I love getting to visit with her face to face rather than on the phone each night. For the boys the best part of visiting the grandparents is that they get to see their cousins "B" and Ashlee. "B" is a year older than Carter and Ashlee is 6 months older than Ethan. "B" and Ashlee also have a little brother named Beau (1 year) and right now there isn't anyone for him to play with...poor guy. Hopefully Jess and I will add one more little one to our family so Beau Beau will have someone to play with.

Saturday morning we got up and ate homemade biscuits and gravy...Yum (thanks Mama)! Then Mama and I took all four big kiddos out for a nature walk, (Daddy had to go to work, it's tax season and he's a CPA, so this is his busy time of year). Carter and "B" were gungho for the nature walk, Ethan and Ashlee, not so much, actually Ethan, not so much. He kept saying, "But I no like the woods". We finally got him into the woods and he didn't complain much and I didn't have to carry him. SUCCESS!

I got a lot of cute shots of the kids on one of the hay meadows and these two pictures are two of my favorites. Ethan is wearing his "Eggo" glasses (Diego), because he thought it was too sunny to be out without them. He also needed his water bottle in case he got hot. He's such a mess.

Well... A mother's intuition is usually right

In the last post I commented that I thought Ethan would be my little fashion guy and Carter would be the guy who scooped and sniffed clothes before wearing them.

Tonight I got proof that I was at least half right. Carter walked in carrying a pair of shorts that he had just taken off after his basketball game this evening. He walked up to me and said, "Mama smell these.... I don't think that they are dirty." I just shook my head and said, "They ARE dirty.... go put them in the dirty clothes, now!" He attempted to argue his point (he's at the arguing age), but I just kept shaking my head and he finally got the point.

I think we have now entered the gross stage of raising boys....you know what I mean... the constant stink and the weird, gross things they do (like using the bathtub as a toilet--I'll tell you that one later). What a glorious world I live in. Can someone tell me when they out grow this???

Meet the "Moohawk" Man (Project 365 photo # 31)

Yes, you read the title correctly. It says Moo-hawk, not Mohawk. Ethan loves to wear his curly, blond hair in a moohawk. If you try to correct him and tell him it is a mohawk, it usually ends up as an argument between the adult and the two 1/2 year old and really this is one argument I am willing to let go of. The moohawk is a daily fix at our house. I have a feeling Mr. Ethan will be my "fashion guy" and Carter will be the guy who scoops his clothes off the dresser or the floor and sniffs to make sure they are clean before putting them on.

Ethan will turn 3 in March and when you ask him what he wants for his birthday he says, "Peanut Butter, Pancakes, and Chicken Nuggets. Peanut Butter in understandable because it is his favorite food. He could honestly eat it for every meal, if he were allowed to. Pancakes are also a big hit with him. He asks for them every Saturday morning. The chicken nuggets??... well I really have no idea. We do eat chicken nuggets from Mickey D's on rare occasions, but not often enough for him to just love them.

Ethan,

At nearly three here are a few of your favorite things.

- Your favorite books: I Love It When You Smile and anything Clifford, the big red dog

- Your favorite toys: Fisher Price Little People, the wooden train set, any game that includes a

ball and your older brother.

- Your favorite people: Carter, and cousins Ashlee and "B"

- Your favorite food: Peanut Butter (this has become a tiring daily request)

- Your best friend: I think it is Carter, but when I ask you, you always say,"Kitty's my best

friend"

And here are some things we love about you:

- The added vowels you use on your verbs-eg. "Mama, picka me up, please" and "Mama, fixa

my moohawk, please"

- Watching you "dance"- It's more of a hop and maybe a little shuffle, not so much of an actual

dance.

- The moohawk....everyone loves the curly, blonde, moohawk. You're quite the lady killer.

- That when we hear you making that sucking noise, that tells us that you are sucking and eating

snot and then we ask you to go get toilet paper so we can blow your nose, you bring us either 2

meager squares or you come trailing in with half the roll following you. There is no in-

between, either way too little or WAY too much.

- The need for you to have every stuffed animal you own, plus your blanket, plus two or three

or seven books, plus as many toys as you can sneak in bed with you EVERY night. Then you

will stay awake for HOURS in the bed. It's like you sleep in a mine field. Completely crazy and

frustrating. We do remove as many toys and things as possible on our many trips to put you

back into the bed, but they always make their way back in before morning.

- Your cute little smile. It helps you get away with things on occasion.

- The way you reply to our, "I Love You's" with a sweet, "I Love You Most" and the cute smile.

- I also love that you tease everyone around. Either with the sweet smile and big eyes, or when

you start a silly argument with Carter to get him riled up, or when you call one of us a Wascal,

or a Turkey-bird, just to get us to argue back. You do this best with Papaw Richey. You call

him a knuckie-head and then a silly argument about who the actually knuckie-head is ensues

complete with idle threats and lots of laughs and giggles. Papaw loves it as much as you do.

Ethan you are such a funny, silly, loving little boy and we love you the most.

Love,

Mommy