Yea Mason!

Mason took an interest in the potty a few months ago. He always has to "potty" before getting in the bathtub. Until last week, "potty" meant just sitting there (no results). But last Saturday evening when he said he needed to "potty" he actually went pee pee! I know it was being in the right place at the right time, but it was exciting. He really thought he had done something big. Anna didn't take an interest in the potty at this age. But I think he wants to do it because he sees Anna doing it. It helps to have an older sibling and try to do everything they do. He has learned so much just by watching Anna and mimicking her.

Poor Kevin has been working alone trying to fence our pasture for a few months. It is hard work, especially for one person. I told him that I would ask my mom to watch the kids sometime so I could help. Well yesterday was the day. Grammy came and played with Anna & Mason so I could help Kevin. Did I pick the hottest day of the year so far or did it just seem that way???? We didn't get started until about 10:30 or 11:00. We worked hard and got two post finished (hole dug, post in and leveled, half the dirt back in, Quikcrete mixed and poured) before stopping for lunch. When we returned after lunch, we started on the next post. At that point Kevin realized that the two post we put in before lunch weren't in the right spot!! We then had to pull them up with the tractor (thank goodness the Quikcrete hadn't totally hardened). So all the work done before lunch was a waste!! It felt like 100 degrees out in the blazing sun but we started all over again. By the end of the day we had completed 7 post but only had 5 to show for our hard work since we had to pull two of them up. Let me tell you, this girl was exhausted! I'm not used to physical labor or the heat anymore. Yesterday really made me appreciate all that Kevin does to keep the outside of our home looking good!

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day weekend was rainy, rainy, rainy! Did I mention it rained? Saturday turned out to be the best day but the kids and I spent most of it shopping. Did anyone go to Old Navy for the $1 flip flop sale? It was crazy! We went around 10:30 and the checkout line was wrapped from the front of the store to the back, across the store and back to the front. I had went in without a stroller and wasn't about to attempt standing in that line with Mason and Anna. So we did some other shopping and went back around 3:00. That time the line was only halfway to the back of the store. Of course all the flip flops were picked over. I finally found a few pair for Anna and myself.

Sunday was a very rainy day. Our rain gauge showed that we got 5 inches of rain on Sunday. That would explain why are gravel road was under water in three places. Even some of the local highways were under water. Not long after we made it home from church on Sunday night, we learned that Hwy 358 had been closed near our friends' home. Kevin called to check on them and they informed us that the tile under the highway near their home had washed out from under the road. The only thing left was the pavement which would have fallen through under the weight of a car. We drove over that spot on our way home! Thankfully, to my knowledge, the road was closed before anyone drove across after the tile came out. I told Kevin the next time it rains so much that we will have to stop and check the tile before we cross. I had never thought of that happening...scary!!

Monday, Memorial Day, was another not so beautiful day. Although it wasn't as bad as Sunday. We actually found a dry enough period to load up on Kevin's 4-wheeler and ride for about an hour and half. We went all over our county roads. At one time we made it to Hwy 141. When we got back Kevin estimated that we had ridden about 30 miles!! We saw all kinds of places, homes, animals, etc. We did encounter one BIG dog but Kevin didn't mess with me on it. It was a pit bull and after he sped past it he said "that's not the kind of dog I want to mess with on you." Thank goodness!! ;o)

Anna's Pre-K Graduation

Wednesday evening was Pre-K graduation at the Fowler Center. Daddy, Momma, Mason, Papaw, Grammy and Mimi were there to see our favorite graduate. The show began with the children dressed in their DI t-shirts and sunglasses. They sang songs about the ABC's and 1,2,3's. They even counted to 100! They were showing off all the things they have learned in Pre-K! Some of the kids had speaking parts in the show. Anna's line was "We really had a great time." She did such a wonderful job saying her line. We were so proud of her.

Anna is in the middle of the front row in a light pink t-shirt. (8th from the right)

After the singing, the audience watched a slideshow while the children got dressed in their cap and gowns. The the music started and the kids marched around the area where everyone was seated and across the stage. Then the diplomas were handed out one by one. After receiving their diploma, the children took their place on the risers. Once everyone had their diplomas and Mr. Jay announced the DI Class of 2009, all the kids held their diplomas in the air. It was such a cute and special event.

Afterward there were lots of pictures to be taken with friends and family. It was a great evening and we are so proud of Anna and all she has learned before starting "real school". She has really increased her reading knowledge in the past few weeks. She has been doing such a great job of reading the reading sheets and booklets that she brings home from school. We know that she is prepared for Kindergarten!

Anna just received her diploma from her teacher, Ms. Hilary.

DI Class of 2009

Our sweet graduate!

A very proud Daddy and Momma!

Best Friends!

(It will be neat to compare this photo to the one that will be taken when they graduate high school. Not that I'm even ready to think about that day!)

Anna & Brianna

It will soon be time for Anna to move on to the next phase in her life. She will meet new people, make new friends and learn more textbook knowledge and life knowledge. We older and wiser people know that it won't always be an easy road. She will face challenges and obstacles just like we have done (and continue to do). But with the love and support of her family, extended family, friends and God, we know that she will make us all proud! Anna, we love you and are so proud of you!!

A Week of Activities

Wow, what a week! Kevin left last Sunday morning for banking school in Memphis and that was the start of a busy week. Monday morning I had to be at work really early for the largest new hire orientation of the year. Since I needed to leave the house really early, I hated to wake both kids up so early and get both of them dressed and to daycare. So Anna spent the night with Mimi. That helped so much. Monday morning all I had to do was wake Mason, change his diaper and head to Mimi's house to drop him off. Then Mimi fed, dressed and took both kids to daycare. This week at daycare/Pre-K was Spirit Week to celebrate graduation for the oldest building. Each day the kids dressed up. It was lots of fun!

Monday was Hat & Shades Day for Anna and PJ Day for Mason. Since I wasn't there to dress the kids, I didn't get a picture on Monday. But Anna was precious in her pink Princess cap and pink sunglasses. Mason was cute in his "Cars" jammies. (I wish I could wear pj's to work some days!) Anna fell on the concrete at school on Monday and scraped her chin which shows in the week's pictures.

Tuesday was Crazy Day for Anna & Crazy Hair Day for Mason. We had fun with this one!
Anna wore polka-dotted pants, a striped shirt, mismatched flip flops, a purple hat with balls and dog ears in her hair. Her class won the Spirit Stick this day for being the best dressed.

Mason's hair did look crazy standing up.

Heading to daycare/Pre-K in their wacky looks!

Wednesday was 50's Day for Anna & Sports Day for Mason.
Anna doesn't have a poodle skirt so we didn't have much to work with for 50's attire. We put her hair in a ponytail and tied a sheer belt around it, put her shirt in a ponytail holder and she wore some sunglasses that have a 50's look to them.

Mason wore a baseball shirt and cap. (Yes, he is pushing one of Anna's baby doll strollers.)

Wednesday night was Pre-K graduation. Kevin was able to make it home for the graduation. It was wonderful and I will do another post just for it.

Thursday was PJ Day for Anna and Mix & Match Day for Mason.
Anna wore her Hannah Montana pjs and her hair in dog ears.

Mason wore plaid navy & grey shorts, a red shirt and one red sock and one navy sock.

Friday was DI Day. The kids wore their DI shirts.
Friday was also May Day for the older kids and their parents. The kids played games outside and then we had a picnic. It was hot but lots of fun!

Anna & several friends that she has made throughout her 3 years at DI.

Anna and Brianna at popsicle break. These girls are such great friends! They are going to miss each other when they head to different Kindergartens.

Anna during the Hot Wheels race. She did great! You can't even see her competitor because they are still on the right side of the cones.

Anna & Katelyn during the picnic lunch. At least these two girls will head to Kindergarten together!

I enjoyed getting to talk to some of the mothers that I have gotten to know over the past three years. We talked about where each of our children will be attending Kindergarten and how the kids are going to miss each other. But plans are already being made to have get-togethers for them.

Thankfully Kevin made it home safely Friday night. We were all happy to see him. Anna updated him on everything that happened this week including losing another tooth, scraping her chin at school, and so many other things.

I would not have made it through this week without my mom! She spent Monday, Tuesday and Thursday nights with us. She was so helpful. She entertained the kids, helped with baths and getting everyone into bed and even made dinner Thursday evening. Thank you Grammy!!

Now we are enjoying our Memorial Day weekend and hoping for a calmer, less busy week next week!

We'll Have Fun, Fun, Fun...

...until Daddy goes away (on a business trip).

My last post was about Mother's Day, and I have to add how the day ended. My parents were able to stop at our church service that evening and after worship service we took my parents out to eat. So I ended up getting to celebrate Mother's Day with my mom too. What a great day!

Thursday was Mason's one year check up at the ophthalmologist in Memphis. Everything went well. Dr. Kerr said his optic nerves look fine (the cyst isn't putting pressure on the optic nerve). She did ask during the examination if anyone in our family was nearsighted. (I was severly nearsighted until my Lasik surgery.) She said she could tell that Mason will be nearsighted too. He doesn't need glasses now but most likely will in the future. It amazes me that she can tell that at this stage. Mason will follow up with her in one year. She said that next year we should be able to get more of a vision exam (not just looking in the back of his eye).

Of course the whole trip to Memphis turned into an ordeal like only our family can experience! Mason's appointment wasn't until 2:20 so we decided to go over to Memphis early and eat at Red Lobster. Kevin googled Red Lobsters in Memphis and printed off the addresses. We found the one closest to Mason's doctor and headed to Memphis. The area we were headed to was not a familiar section of Memphis for us. We made it to the area the restaurant was supposed to be located but couldn't find the place. We had the street number and drove back and forth three times looking for it. We finally decided Google was wrong and that particular Red Lobster does not exist.

We were running short of time and flew in to eat at Applebee's. They were so slow. By the time our food arrived we had to gobble it down and head to the appointment. Our 2:20 appointment lasted until about 5:10! Needless to say Mason was unhappy. Between trying to keep him entertained for almost 3 hours in a doctor's office, to having 6 drops placed into his eyes to dilate them on top of no nap, he was ready to go home. Of course being dilated the sun was really rough on him. I had forgotten his sunglasses (not that he would have kept them on) and had to put a blanket up on his window to keep the sun from hitting him directly in the face. I was sitting in the back seat feeding him chicken on the way home. Between Marked Tree & Trumann Kevin said "What is that??!!" About that time the strip around my windshield blew partially off and was flapping in the wind. Kevin had to pull over and try to put it back in place. He got back in and made the statement "that won't stay for long". He was correct...before we got up to speed limit it had come undone again. It wasn't something that we could just leave undone because the strip that was flapping was long enough to hit another car if it came up beside us. He finally cracked the window and pulled the strip through it and rolled the window up to hold it in place. So the rest of the drive home we listened to the sound of wind through a cracked window. It was lovely. When we got home Kevin taped it into place and it was repaired on Friday.

Friday afternoon started a two-day family fun event (because Kevin is going out of town some this week). That evening all four of us loaded up on Kevin's 4-wheeler and went riding around the country roads. There are some huge, mean dogs that live a ways down our road. Anna loves to ride by them and see them barking and chasing us. It's not so much fun for me since I'm the one on the very back and Kevin likes to slow down and let them get close before he speeds up. (See what I go through!) After riding 4-wheelers we had a picnic in our shop. Kevin had stopped and bought BBQ pork steaks with all the trimmings that afternoon. It was such a nice evening that we decided eating outside would be fun.

Our picnic.

Once we came inside and everyone had their baths, Anna and Mason got on the couch to watch the ending of one of Anna's favorite tv shows, America's Funniest Videos.

Saturday morning the kids played around while Kevin and I did laundry and he started packing for his business trip. All of a sudden Mason comes up wearing a Hannah Montana wig...
Isn't he cute & funny?

Saturday afternoon we dropped Mason off at Timmy & Debby's house so we could attend a wedding in Tyronza. It was a nice, short ceremony and then we went to the reception. Of course there was wedding cake and a grooms cake. I asked Anna which one she wanted and she said "both". My kind of girl! She also found a new snack that she likes- wedding mints. I think she ate her weight in mints!

After picking up Mason we decided to go to Chuck E Cheeses for dinner. Although Mason had apparently stuffed himself with a hamburger at Dairy Queen with Tim & Debby, he still ate a piece of pizza. Then we played games until our tokens ran out. I told Kevin we need to start eating somewhere else and then go to CEC's and just play games because it's not the food that attracts us there. To be honest, Kevin & I enjoy some of the games too. We take turns watching the little kids so us big kids can play too.

This morning Kevin had to leave on his trip after preaching was over. We will really miss him this week. But at least he will get to come home midweek for Anna's Pre-K graduation. Plus my mom is coming to stay with us and help me out. I'm very lucky to have her! Since Kevin wasn't around for lunch we ate at Taco Rio. Anna loves Taco Rio but Kevin isn't a fan of it. She was telling people as we left church "we are eating at Taco Rio because Daddy isn't here". I asked her Friday afternoon if she realized Daddy would be gone this week (expecting more of a "I'll miss you" to Kevin). She said "no" and without missing a beat turned to her Daddy and asked "will you try to get me a surprise??!!!" Oh, the honesty of a young child!! ;o)

Anna just yelled for me and when I got to her room she was beaming because she just lost her 2nd tooth. Guess I know who will be visiting our house tonight. Good thing it came out because she had several people at church this morning threaten to pull it for her.

Happy Mother's Day

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers that read my blog. Hope you have a wonderful Mother's Day!

Our past week was good. Anna spent the night with Mimi on Friday night. That makes two Friday nights in a row that she has stayed somewhere else. Any takers for this coming Friday? (Just kidding!) Kevin, Mason and I went 4-wheeler riding Friday evening and enjoyed being in the outdoors. We rode until Mason could hardly stay awake. Saturday Mimi took Anna to the mall and got her a Pre-K graduation gift. I think it was a hard decision for her but she finally chose Hello Kitty from Build-A-Bear and some rainbow colored shoes for her new stuffed friend.

Mother's Day has been good so far. Mimi came and went to church with us and then out to eat. My parents went to my brother's church and I wasn't able to go since I'm currently teaching Bible Class. So we will do something with my mom at a later time. The kids are both taking naps and I'm enjoying some quiet time. Anna & Mason brought home lots of goodies on Friday for me. They had made cards, Anna made paper flowers, and Mason's teacher had made flower petals out of Mason's fingertips in clay and painted it. Then yesterday the kids gave me pink roses. Then this morning I received a gift card to one of my favorite stores. When I opened it and looked at the amount I had to ask Kevin how much it was for because this is what the store clerk had written "$50600". $50,600!!!! That would buy a LOT of clothes!!" Kevin told me how much it should have said but told me to feel free to use the $50,600 if it would let me...he's so generous! ;o)

Gifts or no gifts, Mother's Day would be fabulous just because I have the two best kids in the world and a wonderful mother and mother-in-law. What else could a person want? I thank God for blessing me with an awesome family! Being a mother is one of the greatest blessings in the world!

The Show Goes On...

...the Taylor Swift show that is...only this time performed by Anna! Since last Friday nights Taylor Swift concert, Anna has listened to her Taylor CD, sang, danced, played the guitar and whirled her hair around just like Taylor. She even puts on a pink sundress and cowboy boots to be dressed in Taylor's favorite style. Monday morning we were talking about Taylor's schedule (she was in St. Louis on Saturday night) and all the places that she will be singing. Anna said "why don't we go to one of the other concerts to see her? We've already got tickets!"

Friday night Anna spent the night with Katelyn for the first time. I don't know if Holly was brave or insane! (Just kidding, Holly!!) Anna talked like she had a really good time at Katelyn's house. It sounded like they played dress up a lot. I have a feeling that these girls will have a lot more sleepovers in the coming years.

Saturday was such a rainy day that we decided to go to the movies. We saw "Monsters vs Aliens". It was a cute movie. We didn't realize that it was a 3D movie until we got there. We had to pay $2 extra per person to rent the 3D glasses. Of course Mason couldn't and didn't wear them. Anna only wore hers briefly. Only Mason & Anna had eaten lunch before we went so we bought the big tub of yummy popcorn & buttered it up good. Although Mason had already eaten lunch, he still ate a ton of popcorn. He was still eating on it when the movie ended. He drank all his juice during the movie and we had to give him some Dr. Pepper. I think I ate so much butter that I actually felt nauseated after the movie. Next time we'll need to slow it down a little bit!

Anna may be moving on from the concert, just a bit, because I bought her the soundtrack for "Hannah Montana The Movie". I gave it to her Saturday evening and she has listened to it over & over. She really liked the movie. Before we went in the theater for "Monsters vs Aliens" she made the comment "we could go see Hannah Montana again". I reminded her that we had already seen it but her reply was "well Daddy hasn't and he'd really like it." Actually, I do think he would enjoy it.
Here Anna is playing the guitar and singing to her new CD. Please excuse the mess in the floor...I have a two year old!