Fall!

Well, I guess Fall is officially here. Leaves everywhere, and that crispy chill in the air. Every season I think "This is my favorite" I love the snow in winter. I love the new life in spring. I love the promise that a summer holds. And fall reminds me that the holidays are coming, and we get to start all over again.

We went to a corn maze/pumpkin patch a few weeks ago. None of us had ever been. It was fun to watch the kids pick out their pumpkins and wander around in the corn.

Aunt Nancy, the girls and I took off for a few days at the beach last weekend. We left on Thursday night, intending to drive about 4 hours and find a hotel. When we stopped 10 hours later, we were at our hotel in Destin. We just kept going! The kids were asleep, and we were awake, so it just seemed the thing to do. We had so much fun. We went to the state park on Friday morning. It's so funny to watch my little "I can't swim" girl (Elizabeth) smash into those waves and let them carry her back to shore. Can't swim, my foot. ;) Amy was more cautious, she got in some, but enjoyed the sand more...and the fact that Aunt Nancy was there. After a nap for everyone at the hotel, we went back to play in the sand on Friday afternoon. On Saturday, it was too chilly to get in the water (Amers was a bit under the weather, still is...think the flu mist gave her a touch of the flu), so we drove over to Laguna Beach and Panama City Beach. We had never been to either of them. They were both nice, but Destin is much nicer. Amy kept saying "I playing in the snow" b/c the sand was so white. After we got back, we went to Build A Bear and Wally World. We were planning a picnic on the beach, but the wind was so fierce we opted for dinner in the room and some time in the hotel pool instead. We drove back home on Sunday. We had such a good time...I expect we will go again soon.

Yesterday, we headed to Martin to take some fall pics on the campus. I got some good ones, but was disappointed when I got home b/c the very best on that I had of the two girl was blurred. The trees behind them were in perfect focus though!!! Grrr!!! We piddled around up there for a while before having dinner at Applebee's (ours closed) and then heading back home. Today we had church, and a long lazy afternoon...the best kind.

I'm going to put up some pics...hopefully tomorrow. They are on my laptop, and the battery is almost dead. I certainly wouldn't want to plug it up!!! HAHAHAH!

Hope you are enjoying your fall!!!

A month?

Has is really been a month? Sorry!
Well, the should-have-been-$30 paint job-turned-$1000 paint job is finished. The room looks fine. It has rained about 12 feet in the last two weeks and no leaks, so I guess we are ok for now.
The girls are doing well. E had a flu shot last week, and A got the mist on Monday. (E can't have the mist b/c of breathing issues, and A wasn't old enough to get the shot at Wally World with E). they are both fine from it, E's arm is sore, and A is a little puny, but I'm sure that this too shall pass.
We had PT conference yesterday. E is doing great! she got 100, 100, 98, and 98 on her report card. We also saw her TCAP results. She tested in the second grade level last spring. So I guess that'll do. (2.5 in math. Wonder where she gets that? ;) ) I'm not a fan of standardized testing AT ALL, but I still like to see those high scores. ;)
I got to have my bi-annual consignment weekend last weekend. That is the only time that I can go shopping and buy WHATEVER I want. I am proud to say that my girls will be very well dressed this fall/winter. You just can't beat a Strassburg Christmas Dress for $6!!!! I also had some things in the sale, I should be getting a check in the next day or so for them.
We are planning to go to UTM's homecoming tomorrow. Should be fun. I have not been since I was in college. On Sunday, we are supposed to go to a corn maze. We are also going to let the girls pick our pumpkins.
We (Nancy, the girls, and I) are headed out for a few days next week. The girls have no idea where we are going yet. (Hint--there will be saltwater involved). Pics will follow. :)

Oh, the DRAMA!!!!

So, I decide to paint the living room...there is a little spot on the wall. Of course, I pick at it. There's mold. Ok, no big deal, we'll KILZ it. Then, the wall fell in....then all H-E-L-L broke loose. (this is above my fireplace--which I HATE---on the front of my house)

Mr. Slug, inside my wall.

View from OUTSIDE. Note Amy Hope in living room.

Daddy and Jason working. In the end, there was water damage from the roof to the foundaiton. And no, insurance did NOT cover it.

My living room floor.

Ceiling.

Daddy took off the siding so we could see all the damage and fix it. We learned that our house was originally covered in ugly grey ashpalt-y siding, and that the chimney was an add on. That was never attached to the house. YEAH!!! So, basically, for the past 25-30 years, water has been pooling on the roof (dont' know why they didn't fix this when they put on the roof a few years ago) and draining down through the wall. It looked like there was mulch in my wall.

This is after Johnny had been working for a few days.

View from the front while under construciton.

the wall back together. We have not painted it yet, really want to wait until it rains. We have the roof patched, but who knows. I've handled this well until now, but I think if it rains and water comes through my wall, you may well have to visit me in the nut house. ;)

Quick update...

So, I’ve been incognito for a while. I’d like to say nothing has gone on, but quite a bit has. E had a birthday and started school. That’s going quite well. She got a bike for her birthday, and she is really enjoying it. We had a little party, and she was thrilled.

We went to Mud Island in Memphis one afternoon. It was a LOT of fun, and the only thing we had to pay for was parking ($5). We didn’t realize that there was a swimming area, but we improvised.

Amy got her first “Big Girl” haircut. It’s at her shoulders, and I don’t think it could be any cuter. She even let Christina blow it dry and curl it a little bit.

We have been busy bees, ready for fall. Elizabeth is set to go spend a few days with Aunt Nancy this weekend, and then we will all meet up in Clarksville on Monday. Hope you have a great day!

This too shall pass....

This morning, I fought tooth and nail with Elizabeth to get her to swallow a gas pill about the size of a large pinhead.

Tonight, Amy Hope swallowed a googly eye a little bigger than a quarter. Could these children be any less alike? HAAHA

Jason came and asked me about it. All I could think was "This too shall pass"... hehehehehe

Vacation 2009!

We left on Saturday, July 18. We were headed to Knoxville. We had a good drive over, stopping at Toys R Us in Bellevue to walk around for little while. Of course, you can’t go to TRU without a little something coming home with you. They had a deal where you bought a back pack and you got a lunch box for free, so Amy got a back pack and Elizabeth got a lunch box. I also picked up a couple of little coloring books for the road. We grabbed lunch at McDonalds somewhere. There are a few between here and there, you know. We introduced Elizabeth and Amy to counting the Caney Fork Rivers, AH HA HA, as we drove. We got to the Smith’s house mid afternoon, and ordered LOTS of pizza for dinner. We had 6 Smiths, 3 Gaitskills, and 4 Wiles in the house until Monday! Thankfully, Adam and Jannette have a big house and were nice enough to share it with us. On Sunday, we went to the zoo in Knoxville. It was nice. We all enjoyed being together. Elizabeth had a major nosebleed, but that’s nothing unusual for her. She and Rachel were big buds—but they have always played well together. I think if we lived closer they would be really good friends. Elizabeth slept on the floor in Helen and Rachel’s room and Amy and I slept in the spare bedroom. Jason slept on the floor in the playroom. Clay and Laurie were kind enough to give me the spare room b/c of the whole kitty allergy thing. Thankfully, I didn’t have a problem with my allergies. Maybe they’re getting better in my old age.

Amy LOVED the cats. The cats did NOT love Amy. Even after two of them let her know it, she still wanted to pack them around. I had made a no holding, only petting rule. At one point, I heard Amy on the stairs yelling, “Maaaaaaaaaaamaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa…….” I walked around the corner to find her on the stairs holding a kitten. Then she said, “Mama, I got a kitty…..” Needless to say, the no holding rule didn’t work very well.

We headed out to Gatlinburg early afternoon on Monday, after Laurie and I went to McDonalds for us all. We made three trips out of McDonald’s with food. LOTS of Happy Meals. We made good time until we got off the interstate, then it slowed down a bit. Still, it could have been much worse. When we got into town, we checked into the condo. It was quite nice!!! 5 bedrooms, 4 baths, living room, big kitchen, and table big enough for all of us, a rec room with a pool table (which E called the pogo table), decks upstairs and downstairs, and a hot tub. We took a room upstairs, as did the Gaitskills, and gave Sarah and E the other upstairs room. Jon and Joy took a room downstairs, and Hannah and Matthew took the other. It was really a good setup for us. Monday night, we went to Bennet’s for dinner, and then walked down the strip a bit. E’s nose bled again, so we just stood on the side of the strip and smiled at people.

When we got up the next morning, it was evident we had had a visitor. The trash can had to lid ripped off, and there were big claw marks on it. Excitement! We didn’t see the bear, but he was evidentially there.

Tuesday morning, Amy and I went to Pigeon Forge to Kroger. Then, we went to the pool. It was quite chilly! We were very thankful for the nice weather, but it did not make for a fun pool day! They had a nice kiddie pool that the kids LOVED. It had an umbrella sprinkler thing in it. It was fun. We decided to pack it up when other people started commenting on Amy’s blue lips. HAHAHA The Smith’s were supposed to come and hang out with us, but they decided to wait and come the next day. After the kids went to nap, the guys went to Pigeon Forge to ride go carts. Laurie, Joy, and I stayed with the kids. We talked and cut up the whole time the guys were gone. We had a large time. That evening, we made spaghetti for supper. It was quite good. Becky came down to see us. Then, we went to Ober to hang out and ride the Alpine Slide. I ended up taking Amy, Matty, and Elizabeth to see the bears while everyone else rode the slide. It actually worked out well, as I didn’t want to ride the slide, and did want to see the bears, and the little ones were too small for the slide, and I was worried about E freaking out once she got up there. After that, we hung out for a while. Amy and Hannah rode a quarter horse (like you put a quarter in it) and then we went to the arcade. Gotta have some skeeball, you know!!! The girls won some Hawaiian bracelets, and there were four of them and four girls, so everyone got a bracelet.

On Wednesday, we met up with Becky and the Smiths again and went to the aquarium. It’s no big secret that I LOVE aquariums. So, needless to say, we had a good time. Then we went to Wendy’s for lunch. Afterwards, I suggested we walk around the mall. I have given Jason full permission to slap me silly should I ever again suggest walking around a mall with 9 tired children. On a lighter note, Jon decided to try some hot sauce in the hot sauce store. He went numb. He cried. It was pretty funny.

After we got home, Becky, Laurie, Joy and me went shopping. We had a GREAT time. We only went a few places, but we were gone forever. While we were out, Jason called and asked us to bring an onion. As luck would have it, Becky’s hubby Brandon was also coming to meet up with us at the cabin, so he got the onion for us, as well as a tomato. We had so much fun with that. Since Brandon didn’t know where he was going, or who he was looking for once he got there (he was going to beat us back) we decided that we should have dressed him up in a bear costume and have him walk up and say “Roar! I’m a bear! With a tomato and an onion!” It was hilarious at the time. Guess you had to be there. We bought Jason, Jon and Clay shirts that said “This is what awesome looks like”. Then, we decided that they all needed cigars, and we could take their pictures in the hot tub. So, we stopped at a gas station and Joy and I ran in and bought the biggest cigars we could find. The results were quite funny. The Smith’s had dinner with us as well, and we all had a great time.

Later that evening, we decided to try out the hot tub. By the end, we had five people in the not so hot hot tub. It was actually rather chilly. But, we had a large time. Jon dropped his cigar ashes in the tub, and that was an adventure.

On Thursday, we had to leave. We got packed up and headed out around 1045. We checked out, and then we stopped at the little river and took some pics of the girls. Note---it is much easier to get to the river on the side going into Gatlinburg that on the side going out of Gatlinburg. WE stopped at a pancake house to eat before officially hitting the road. Becky was kind enough to show us a shortcut out of town, so the trip was a bit quicker. We stopped in Knoxville and dropped off the playpen, and then we drove and drove and drove. It is a very long stretch from Knoxville to Nashville!!! We stopped at the Russell Stover outlet, and were going to stop at the Lebanon outlets, but the kids were asleep, so we skipped it.

We stayed at the Drury in East Nashville. We had both stayed there before, but never together. We got a suite, and it was well worth the extra $20. The girls got stayed on the couch bed, and Jason and I had our own room. When we got her, we went swimming for a bit. Then, we got cleaned up and went to eat. We went to a place called Fat Mo’s. It was owned by the Nashville Chapter of the Muslim Mafia, who are evidentially kin to the Martin Chapter that owns E&A. The food was GREAT, and CHEAP! We were the only people there. Well, besides the mafia…. We then decided to go to the Opryland hotel for a while. The girls and I had never been. It was beautiful!!! We walked around for a while, and then it got dark. It was inside, but since the ceiling are glass, we couldn’t see!

The next morning, after a great breakfast at the hotel, we headed out again. We went back to the Opryland hotel, cause I wanted to take more pictures. It’s just so pretty!

Afterwards, we met up with Jon, Joy and the kids at Opry Mills. We wandered for a while and had lunch together. We had a good time.

Then, we headed home. Amy slept the entire way, and then passed out at bedtime. I think they are still tire.

We had a great time, but it is nice to be home. Not saying I wouldn’t jump at the chance to go back! I think the best thing about the trip (besides being with our friends, of course) was the fact that we had no time table. We didn’t have to hurry. That was so nice. I hope that we will all be together again very soon.

July 4th!!!

Hi! Just a quick update. We had a good 4th, went to Clarksville on Friday night and then spent Saturday Morning with my family. We had a really good time. It has been so long since we have been able to do anything together as a family. Saturday night, we had some people over and cooked out and blew stuff up. We also had a pretty bad thunder storm that resulted in a 1.5 hour power outage and blew up our computer! After it was over, we finished our festivities.

Warning—TMI alert!!!! E has really been having a time with her allergies lately. She had five, yes, FIVE nosebleeds on Saturday. Thankfully, she is so good about them, but they really took a toll on her. She was a little spacey Saturday night, and then we couldn’t get her to wake up for church on Sunday. So, I stayed home from church with her. She slept until noon!!! I guess all the blood loss really wore her out. I know you dont' loose much blood with a nose bleed, be when you think of five of them at appx five minutes each, that's a good bit of blood loss for a six year old!!! I have been slacking about her allergy meds, so we are really going to focus on that this week, and if she is not better by next Monday, we are going to the doctor. I mean, Jason and I both have nosebleeds, but five in one day!!! I was really worried about her. But, thankfully, we had none yesterday. Last night at church someone gave me some more natural suggestions to try, so we are going to do those as well. I don’t consider myself “crunchy” by any means, but I would much rather give my kids something natural than pump them full of drugs and chemicals!!!!

Amy has been full of cute phrases lately. While we were getting ready yesterday morning, I asked her if she wanted to wear shorts or a dress. “Dwess” she said. I asked her “Blue or green?” “Gween, because Amy likes gween.” She also came into the room and announced “It’s ok! Me is here!” This morning, Jason had to shave off his goatee b/c he is back at Terminex today (YEAH!!!!). She said “Your face is empty, Daddy!” One more—last night at church she over heard someone say “I’m from Lexington”. She fired right back, “Me, too. Amy is from Lexington.”

Well, that’s all for now. Hope you all have a GREAT day!!!