Day 30

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week at school and they are sending the teachers away for lunch one day this week. Well today was Jackson's teachers day and I got to spend about 2 1/2 hours with these little guys today!

I tell you what these little guys are a mess; they pulled all the tricks out of the bag. A few I heard... "we get to have ice cream at lunch everyday" "we can have seconds anytime we want to" "we can play anything we want to during computer" "Mrs. M lets us pick our math partner and the game we want, we don't have to follow the center chart"... I mean really did they think I was born yesterday??? UH NO! So after I squished a few "white lies" and assured them we would make it through these 2 1/2 hours even if I did not do everything just like Mrs. M we were good to go. Never a dull moment with 5 and 6 year olds... and we were even missing a few today too!

PS --- I survived the Photo Challange and so did Bre! I think we need a shirt? LOL!

Day 29

Tonight the kids had their "spring musical" at church. Jackson even had a speaking part and did AWESOME! He was the only one of the four that spoke clearly into the mircophone and the only one you could understand. We were very proud! They both sang and did the hand motions just like they were suppose too. Although the pictures are not very good... they both did a really good job!

Day 28

My Creation... I saw these super cute party hat balloon weights at this place last week and thought they were so cute but they were almost $10.00 a piece which I thought was a little ridiculous so I decided to make them myself. I have made 4 of them for less than $10.00 and have materials left over. I think they turned out pretty cute and will look as balloon weights on the table for Jackson's birthday party Saturday.

Day 27

Shelly and The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day!

In case you can't tell from the picture these are tickets... no not concert tickets or movie tickets but a speeding ticket and an expired proof of insurance ticket.... these are what i got today! UGH!!! I was having a little joy ride down 1 -65 toward Montgomery in my dad's little "sports car" not a care in the world and obviously not paying attention until I saw the "blue light special" as my Nannie calls them in my rear view mirror. The conversation went something like this "Ma'm do you know how fast you were going"... "Ahh No Sir"... "well I clocked you at 97"!

Oh really???so you can see there was no getting out of this one... not an excuse in the world would justify 97 in a 70. And no I did not know I was going this fast... I don't have a death wish!

So anyone have any friends at the **Chilton County Court House**... b/c I am in need of a favor?? j/k

It has kind of been a joke b/c my dad has gotten more speeding tickets than you can imagine and I told him his car was "snake bitten" or has a magnet in it for cops... b/c I never even saw this policeman until he was behind me. But it is no laughing matter at the amount of money I am going to have to pay for this "joy ride"!

It has been a long time since I have gotten a ticket b/c I did not know they were computer generated all the ones i remember were hand written. The cop said they have had them for about 3 years and I said see it has been that long since I have gotten a ticket... nope that did not help any either!

Day 26

Today I helped host a kitchen/recipe shower for Richard's cousin Amber (in white) who is getting married in July. It was a great shower and she got lots of great gift. I think she will make a beautiful bride!

Brylee went with me and enjoyed playing with her cousin Olivia!

Day 25

Today I missed Brylee's t-ball game today because i was working the clothes sale again today and this is the picture richard sent me so i could see what i was missing (LOL)... poor brylee is just not my ball player. She wanted to play but now she says every time she has practice or a game "I don't want to play t-ball". We are making her finish the season but we want be signing up again next year. She has no interest what so ever. She "enjoys" playing in the dirt, making chalk piles, she doesn't wear her hat b/c it messes her hair up, and today i heard she took her water bottle on the field with her, covered her face up with her glove, and sat down on the field. The above picture was what happen when daddy told her to put her helment on... ugh wrong way?

Day 24

Holy Clothes!!!! And these are pictures of just the girl clothes not even the whole other side that have all the boy clothes. This is from Kids Kloset Sale today that i worked from 7 to 7. It was fun but I am very glad I only do it twice a year and I am even more glad I don't have to have 2 kids and myself ready and gone by 6:50 in the am every morning... how did I use to do that???

This sale is AWESOME! And boy did the people come out today... it was crazy nuts at least until lunch time... the line was wrapped around the clothes and the wait was an hour at one point... there were clothes everywhere, necked babies everywhere, stroller, kids, goldfish, cookies, mommy's, grandmothers, and even a few dad's (good bless their soles)... and most of all some PASSIONATE people about clothes. Some folk are serious about their clothes and i must say there were a few times I had to pick my jaw up off the floor at the amount of cash some of these folks were spending on clothes... WOW! I would be in MAJOR trouble if I dropped that kind of cash... not just hundreds people... more than that! But it was fun... going back for more fun tomorrow!

And the best part about it was working with these sweet girl... many that I only see during the sale. It was a great time girls! (don't we look super cute in these aprons... we know you are jealous)

Day 23

Today was picture day at dance which now means I have absolutely NO patience left... none zip zero. We came home from school washed hair, dryed it (two of the things she hates most inlife... well beside dogs) always a struggle... then we put make up on. In case you are wondering I now know why 4 year olds don't wear make up every day... let see it is because they cry after mascara has been applied, they can't look up or down, the can't pucker their lips nor lick them without looking like a clown in the end, i could go on but i want. You get the point. Then we rolled her hair... you might have thought i was pulling every hair out one by one if you were anywhere in a 90 mile radius of our house but no just simply rolling it... and i did her make up before her hair b/c why??? So we re-do make-up. Take hair down and fix it... and now we are off to the studio... playing quite mouse all the way b/c my nerves were shot I needed a minute to regroup. We get to the studio with little necked girls running everywhere, getting dressed, waiting in line for pictures, running wild and "messing" everything their poor mommys worked hours on fixing, re-do, re-fix. When it was our turn camera dude pays brylee a quarter to smile pretty and not fake... it worked... then more waiting for group picture... for those of you who try to take picture of your 2 or 3 kids and loose your mind... try 15 little 4 year olds... not easy... now costume change, re-do, re-fix, more lines, more waiting, more running, more wildness, another quarter for a pretty smile... and we are done... shooo! Are you tired from reading this? But was is all worth it... absolutely!!! Her pictures were beautiful and you can actually view them on this website http://snapsbylinda.zenfolio.com/f745564575 Friday if you would like. Click on Thursday Dance South Class and scroll through until you see the most beautiful girl .

Day 22

My New Addiction (as if i needed another one).

JP got his DS for christmas but

the easter bunny brought him Super Mario Bros.

I have reverted back about 20 year to my childhood

and I am addicted to this game. I play it all the time.

I am better than he is... how sad.

I am on World 8 now and about hopefully

about to "save the princess".

I hope my next addiction is cleaning house and laundry! :)

Does anyone know how I can do those two things while

on the computer or playing DS???

Blog Award

Here are the rules... 1. When given the award, you list 7 things that you love. 2. Pass the award on to 7 bloggers that you love. Be sure to tag them and let them know they've won. (You can copy the picture of the award and paste it on your sideboard.) Things I love... ( i am doing the non-obvious things) 1. Sweet tea 2. Mexican Cheese Dip 3. Pedicures 4. Flip Flops 5. All things smocked & monogrammed 6. The beach or lake 7. Chocolate & Peanut Butter Now I give this award to 7 friends and bloggers (this means you get to put the cute little award on your blog so don't let me down by not participating and passing it on)! 1. Eiler & Company 2. Crosswhite Family 3. Daily Abrams 4. Postcards from Adulthood 5. Keeping up with the Jones 6. Welcome to our World 7. Miracle Babies (to get the award on your side, copy and save it as a picture, then go to customize, add a gadget, choose the picture gadget, click on the browse button to find your picture, double click your picture and then hit save and you have your award!)

Day 21

In one month from today we are headed to the most magical place on earth!!!!

I can't wait!!!!

I am waaayyyy more excited than the kids ever thought about being!!!!!

We have not been since the kids were 3 1/2 and 2!

They were such BABIES!

They are going to LOVE it and I can't wait to see their faces.

And i will not tell you that I have an excel spread sheet typed out with all the clothes the kids are wearing and what day they are wearing them.... nope not me!

Day 20

I scream,

you scream,

we all scream for icecream!

Son In Law came home with us after school

and these three had so much fun playing outside

and eating LOTS of popsicles.

Day 19

Once Upon A Time...

We went to see Cinderella today! It was so much fun!

Brylee was utterly amazed that she was there! Cinderella read and sang the book!

She put make up and glitter on the girls!

She danced with the girls to Bippity Boppity Boo!

It was AMAZING!

She was AMAZING and BEAUTIFUL as well.

Happy Birthday Sweet Carsyn!

We had a fabulous time with you and Cinderella!

Blog 18

date night with the hubby

fun times, good food and

the most beautiful house

i have ever seen

Day 17

Looking for something fun to do tomorrow??? Come out to the Mt. Laurel Spring Festival! It is a great family event with lots of things for the kids to do bounce houses, hay ride, Snow White (which are free) good food to eat, and lots of vendors too. Sherry and I will be there with our hair bows and BBTN will be there with lots of clothes too... sample tees, miscut shorts, over runs, and plain tees too. Come out tomorrow, enjoy a beautiful day and stop by and say hello to Sherry, myself, and the BBTN girls! You might even luck up and find a bow or outfit your little one just can't live without! :)

Blog 16

My new favorite shoes and "new toes" too!!!!

I got these shoes for my birthday and they are so comfortable... i love them. I actually stopped a girl who had some shoes on that i liked and she told me how much she loved them and that they were by the brand Sanuk. I lucked up on them at Rodgers and tried them on and loved them. I wanted some that did not have a big heel b/c i have several of those types already. But these were the ones "the girl" had one and i like them too http://www.zappos.com/product/7295751/color/6. I also treated myself to a pedicure today! I LOVE a pedicure... I could just sit there for days and days in those chairs and having them massage my feet and legs... AHHH! I also got my favorite color today too OPI Strawberry Margarita. I declared it was close enough to summer for "hot pink". I guess the only thing that would have made my pedicure better would be actually drinking a Strawberry Margarita while getting my toes done. Too bad they don't serve adult beverages at the nail place... I guess they know I would never leave then. :)

So what is your favorite shoe and nailpolish color?

Day 15

Well today was not just tax day in our household it was also the day i turned the BIG 3-1. I guess you could say I am "OK" with that... as my dad would say beats the alternative and he is right. We celebrated with birthday dinner at Kobe and my favroite part was watching the kids faces as they cooked. Brylee had never been before so her facial expressions were priceless... most of these were taken when they were making the fire. Jackson has been before and so he came in asking about the fire... that was his favorite part by far. We then went back to my parents house for cake, icecream, and presents.

Me and My Babies

In closing a "funny story" about my birth day. My dad had a friend that wanted him to name me Irene Rena' Stonicher so that my initals would be IRS... in honor of tax day. Thank goodness they did not take his advice... I just don't think I am an Irene! :)

Day 14

"Paw Paw Powers"

This is how Jackson falls asleep every night... in his Pottery Barn Chair that his Nonnie and Poppie gave him for his 3rd birthday!

We laugh that he is like a Paw Paw falling asleep in his chair. Then we move him to his bed (only because he can't be comfortable there all night long) much like a "granny" would do for a "paw paw".

He leans all the way back in his chair kicked back watching TV (i know terrible but he has watched TV to go to sleep since he was 18 mths old... i know even worse) and then off to sleep he goes.

Sweet baby I can't believe that he is going to be 6 years old in a few weeks and almost in first grade! Gezz! What happen to my baby boy! :)

Day 13

Yeah for Girls Night Out! It only took me 2 weeks to schedule a night that i could actually meet my dear friend Katy for dinner with all the craziness going on in my overly scheduled life.... but it was well worth it. We enjoyed some yummy mexican food and cheese dip :) and even better conversations and I even got an early birthday happy too! To my sweet friend Katy... I love you to pieces and cherrish our friendship so much. I have such wonderful memories through the years... from Bid Day, to countless nights spent at a frat houses and The Music Hall, to spring break, lake and beach trips, weddings, girls night out, date nights, "KT" being one of my baby girls first 5 words, and oh so much more. I am so glad God blessed me with such a dear friend and I can't wait to see what God has in store for you in the future. Here's to a great friendship and many more memories to come in the future! XOXO

Day 12... Hoppy Easter!

We had a busy day starting this morning with seeing what the Easter bunny brought, getting ready for church, running out of gas on the way to church (lovely), keeping the babies during the first service of church, going to church, eating at Richard's aunt and uncles house and having a massive easter egg hunt with about 20 great grandkids, eating dinner at my parents house, more egg hunting and easter surprises to be opened.... shooh... i am tired from just writing this.

But on a different note... what an awesome day to reflect on the reserection of our Lord and Savior... and as we sang today in church He's Alive, He's Alive, My Savior is Alive... one of my favorite "Easter" songs! And in the words of my precious almost 6 year old "God your son is so powerful"... which is what he said in his blessing tonight... you are so right buddy! :)

Here's to hoping you are yours had a wonderful Easter Sunday!

Day 11

Happy Birthday Jilly-Bean! Brylee's friend Jill had an Easter Birthday Party this afternoon. All the kids dyed Easter Eggs, hunted Easter Eggs, and ate hot dogs and cake. It was a fun time. The party and Jackson's baseball game were around the same time. So brylee and I went to the party and then we were going to have to leave early to go to Jackson's game but thanks to Mrs. Pandi and Mr. Mac (daughter coleigh pictures with brylee in the bottom right.... AOPi Pandi for all you UAB reader or stalkers.... j/k love you heather thanks for reading :)) who offered to watch Brylee and then bring her to the ball park when the party was over. Brylee's was beyond excited to be able to stay and not have to spend more time at the ball park. Fun Times!

Day 10

OK so technically I might be "cheating" at my own contest but i think i have a good reason and could not go without posting this funny story about these two precious "babies"! This picture was actually taken at Brylee's birthday party in October... so that's why I am "cheating" b/c it is not current... but then again I might not be "cheating" b/c the story that goes along with it is current... well yesterday! A little background first: This is Brylee's "boyfriend" or maybe I should say obsession Harper T. They are in school together and they go to church together and they are too cute together. Brylee is Harper T's second mommy... as if his first one doesn't do a wonderful job! :) Last week they went 2 days without seeing each other and when they saw each other they kissed on the cheek at church... Jackson was mortified... they on the other hand love it! Brylee talks about her and Harper getting married daily. (Christie and I are OK with that at least they would have good in laws :)) Anyway not at all part of the story... so here is the conversation from yesterday between brylee and i on the way to school. B: "Mommy when are Harper and I going to go on our honeymoon? M: "What?" (and she repeats... I wanted to make sure i heard it right.) Well you have to get married first and then you go on a honeymoon." B: "Oh, well do you and daddy get to go with us?" (she has a lot to learn about a honeymoon right?) M: "No, mommy and daddy don't get to go" B: "Well, do Mr. Ken and Mrs. Christie get to go" (still more learning to do...) M: "No they don't get to go either. A honeymoon is just for the bride and groom, the two people that are getting married" B: "Oh... (pause) well do we really have to go to the moon?" M: (dying laughing, tearing running down my face, and trying not to wreck the car) "No baby you don't go to the moon... it is like a vacation... you know like when we go to the beach... you would go on a trip." B: "Oh good because I did not want to go to the moon" I hope it is as funny written out as it was when she said it but it was too funny! Oh the innocence of a 4 year old! :) Happy Good Friday! May you and your family be blessed on this Easter Weekend and truly remember what Easter is about... not eggs, candy, bunnies, and baskets... but that our Savior Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose again all for our sins. May you remember and reflect on that this weekend. Blessings!

Day 9

One of the joys of having a girl... DANCE! Brylee got to bring her costumes home today. She looked so cute in them. The white one is her tap costume and she is doing a dance to "I'm A Little Eskimo" (to the tune of I'm a little teapot). It is so cute and her favorite. The multi-colored one is her ballet costume and she is doing a dance to " Dancing Tulips". She looks cute in this one as well. I will post pictures of her in them later on in the month... she has pictures in 2 weeks. Her recital is June 13th. I must say that dance is more her "thing" she loves dancing and actually has some rhythm we laugh that she must have gotten that from "the milk man" b/c she did not get it from her daddy or I. Enjoy!

Day 8

Easter in a Bag.... UGH!!! Ok i am warning you I am about to be a "whiny hiney" for a bit so I apologize in advance if you were looking for something great wonderful and encouraging b/c this is not your post. JP's teacher sent home a note telling us that the class would not be having an "easter party" but we would be doing Party in a Bag. For those of you that don't know what Party in A Bag is (b/c i did not) let me explain... the parents make a bag for their child including their favorite sweet snack, their favorite salty snack, a drink, a small toy (less than $5.00) and a book.You are to put it in a bag seal it up drop it off at the school and it is all a surprise! Sounds easy right??? Well think again! I have spent 2 days trying to do this bag. And I can't to drop it off and be done with "my project"... i thought i was done with school. HA! First the brownie deli ma, JP's favroite sweet is brownies... yes i could have made a whole pan of brownies and sent him one square but i live at the ball park and they don't have ovens there and i did not want to eat the rest of the brownies and look like the good year blimp for easter... so i go to buy one... easy right? WRONG!! I went to 4 place before i found something that would work... started at Wal Mart checked their bakery... no brownies, then Edgers a bakery has brownies right? WRONG well they do but they have cream cheese in them... they don't have plain brownies, then I went to McAllisters I knew they had them b/c i have had them before... go at lunch time wait in line... they are out of them today... UGH!!!! So then i go to Publix surely "Customer Service Central" has a brownie well they do but it was nut in them can't do that... so i am determained to find something at this place that would work... so i settle for a box of the 2 bit brownies and get the bakery to give me a small box so i can put them in there and not send 25 brownies so my child can be on a sugar high for the next 2 weeks. So know i have 1/2 a box left which is what i was trying to avoid in the first place... should have made brownies i guess?? Next on to the salty snack... BBQ chips... I had to go to 3 place for those. REALLY? Started at Wal-Mart they used to have all those snack size chips by the front well not any more all they have is the BIG bags sure i could have bought a big bag and put some in a zip lock but I just wanted a small bag... i really did not think that was too much to ask. Then i looked at Publix (while i was on the brownie search) but they too only have BIG bags... so I end up going to the gas station and get the snack size there. The toy was kind of hard b/c what kind of toy is not junk but cost less that $5.00 and appropriate to send to school, fit in a bag, and could be played with at that time. (side note i have the child that is into super hero's, cars, figures etc... he likes sports, movies, being outside, wii, and his DS). Well i finally found a hand held electronic game that i got him. I think i have the toy snob kid everything he wants is at least $20.00. I know that is not necessarily her (being the teacher) fault. :) No problems with the book or drink those were easy. The bag is a little girly i will agree but all the easter bags were... pink is a pretty popular easter color. So let me know what you think??? It is just me do i make things harder than they really should be or would you have a hard time doing this too???? For the record: I LOVE his teacher and have no complaints with her just want to complain about "my project". Thanks for listening... because I feel better! :)

Day 7

This my friends is a every day occurrence at our house and one that is always welcomed with a smile, hug, kiss and "how was your day". Every afternoon brylee and i come home watch a little TV and wait for Big Brother to come home on the bus. I love watching his cute little self run down the street to tell me all about his day. I am a BIG fan of the bus (there was a time in my life that i was not... but that is another post) and I am NOT a fan of the car rider line... especially these folks that HAVE to be the first ones and camp out in the car rider line starting at 1:30... really folk do you NOT have a life??? My little guy LOVES the bus he has a blast on the bus, and no one has beat him up for his "milk money"yet. He makes it home safe and sound everyday. To all my mommy friends who are registering their "babies" for kindergarten today or tomorrow or in the future... put your kids on the bus they will be just fine!!!!! On a more sensitive note.... i want you all to know that i was in your same position this time last year... registering my "baby boy" for kindergarten... i was going to send him to a place i knew nothing about and put them in charge of one of my most prized possessions... sure it was hard. And on top of all that my baby boy DID NOT want his mommy to take him to school the first day of school he wanted to ride the bus... i was crushed... I wanted to be there to see that he made it to his room, backpack in hand, snack packed, snapping pictures all along the way but what he wanted was different and so what do you do... but let him go. It was then I realized my baby boy was NOT a baby anymore and he really was a BIG BOY! So i don't want you all to think I was not equally as worried or sad or "not ready" for my little one going to school and riding the bus for that matter because i was... i remember that morning all too well. And as someone told me that very day... if he (being jackson) did not run into school (or on the bus in my case) wave good bye holding his head up high... then i had not done my job as a mom... and so i patted myself on the back, wiped away the tears and told myself... job well done! And you will do the same when you time comes.

Day 6

What is wrong with this picture??????

if you guessed.... a. it is chili weather outside b. it should NOT be cold enough in Apirl to eat chili or c. this my friends it was we are having for dinner tonight before i head to the ball park to freeze my "little tail" off watching brother bear play ball. This my friends feels like football weather NOT baseball weather and certainly not SPRING. Dear Mr. Winter, It is time for you to go away. We have seen enough of you for a long while. It is time for you to go enbark on a nice lllooonnggg nap. Sleep tight! Dear Miss Spring, We enjoyed seeing you for a few weeks. Where did you go? We want you to come back real soon. Please and tell your friend Mr. Summer he needs to start waking up soon too. We can't wait to see him either. See you soon Miss Spring!

Day 5

We had planned on going to an egg hunt today but due to the weather we had to change our plans... so we decided to dye easter eggs... we dyed some the "old fashion way" but i also found these q tip looking things that have dye in them that you can draw on the eggs with... they were a big hit.We also made cupcakes too... i don't know about your house but at my house if we make ycupcakes it doesn't matter if it is someone's birthday or not we have to sing "happy birthday have candles and blow them out just because.

Day 4

Brylee finally got to play her first tball game. She was too funny to watch. She did not like her hat so she opted not to wear that "it will mess up my bow". She hit the ball and ran all 3 times and played the field as well as expected too. She got the ball twice i think and threw it in. She did her fair share of playing in the dirt too. T-ball is alway very interesting. Son In Law celebrated his 4th birthday today with a Spiderman Party at Jumpin Jax. According to Brylee her and Harper are now "twins" b/c they are both four. Happy Birthday Harper T!

Brother also had a ball game. I absolutely LOVE watching him play. I get so into it cheering for all the kids. It is fun to actually watch them play when they get people out and have "close" plays getting people out or being safe. Jackson had a big play at the plate tonight running home and slid under the tag and was SAFE! Fun times at the ball park.

Day 3

sissy girl got her hair CHHHOOOPPPED today... i love it... i think it looks so cute! She had her hair cut like this when she was 3 and I was looking at pictures last night and forgot how cute it was when it was short... so i called today, got her an apt, and took her after school. I am so glad i did... i love it and she does too! we also had a special afternoon together... she has gone two whole weeks at school without pulling a card... aka getting in trouble... so we "celebrated / rewarded" her sucucess today... she got her nails and toes painted, picked out a prize (more art stuff of course), and got to rent the new dora movie. we also bought easter eggs to dye and confetti cupcakes to make too which we will do sometime this weekend. fun times ahead! :)

Day 2 of the Photo Challange!

Pretty and Pink..

Today when i went to work (aka my parents basement) i pulled up and saw these... they were beautiful... i love this time of year when all the flowers start to bloom, dogwoods are in full bloom, and purple wisteria is everywhere too... what a beautiful time of year to reflect on God's creation. I also like using my "big lens" on my camera and zooming in on the flower... the background is blurry and low and behold when i was there a bumble bee came to "eat lunch" and i got him too.

Photo Challange!!!

Who is up for a challange???

If so join me in my April Photo Challange!

I am going to "try" and post a picture a day for the whole month of April.

This is no April Fools Joke (LOL).

My plan is to post pictures from our day to day activities- one a day! So here we go with Day 1 picture(s)...

(a little confession too) I wanted Brylee to wear this outfit (pictured above) to school today but she did not want to wear it... she said she doesn't like t-shirts... sooo I am ashamed to say that I "bribed" her to wear it and told her if she put it on (with a happy heart) and wore it to school I would take her to the Dollar Tree and let her get 1 prize after school. So she wore it :) and she got a pack of construction paper from the dollar tree for being obediant... well maybe pleasing mommy... however you want to look at it. :)

Heres to the challange...lets see if i can do it????