Melina's Baptism

Melina was baptized this past Saturday.  She was so excited...it was really cute.  She was definately expecting a big turn out for the big day.  Thankfully she had a lot of friends and family there to support her.  She had the biggest smile all day long.  We are really proud of her, she is such a good little girl!

Beach Trip

The kids and I went to the beach with my mom and some of my sisters and their kids for about 4 days...we had 5 adults and 10 kids...which may not sound like bad odds but let's just say that around the 3rd day we all decided that next year we would be bringing the husbands to help out with the kids!

Here's my kiddos with their sunburned faces...curse you mom and dad for our pale skin!

Here's Granny taking a stroll with the grandkids...the lighting was perfect that evening and we got a lot of great shots.

Even the birds were cooperating with my photo shoot!

I think Leah was telling off the lazy boys...go girl!

Here's the 3 oldest cousins...they think they are so cool.

Here's me (left) with a few of my sisters...Mary (who was 9 months pregnant and had her baby 2 days later...Brody! Brody!)...then Adrienne, a.k.a. Aunt Agie, and lastly Annette, a.k.a. Aunt Nettie. By the way, I'm glad someone was watching the kids in the background...we were too worried about looking good for the pics! The waves were actually pretty big for the east coast...there was that tropical storm out there somewhere so we got quite a few big waves.

I will miss this walk...not much better in life than going to the beach.

Here's me with my little beach boy...he loved the beach and wanted to be out there nonstop.

Annette and I are trying to pull off a good pic for the photo albums...we opted for the sitting down pose versus the standing pose which doesn't leave much room for hiding areas we may still be working on after having a baby...

We couldn't keep these 5 out of the water!

First Word..."Mama"

Surprise surprise...her first word was "mama", I wonder how that came about. She says it all the time now and it is, of course, so cute. She is also starting to scoot across the floor. Gone are the easy days of sitting her in the middle of the living room floor with a few toys and going about my business. Now I have to actually watch her all the time.

Skating Rink

Yesterday my sister Adrienne and I took my kids to the skating rink. Neil is getting better...he actually rolls some now instead of just taking baby steps. Check out the carpet at the skating rink...I believe it glows in the dark...oh, the memories of going to the skating rink in middle school. My girls are pretty good at it. I manage to get around the rink without looking too clumsy. Although, look at how big my roller blades look in this picture...wow, I've never been so aware of how large my size 9 feet look!

Little helpers in the kitchen

I was making homemade chicken noodle soup last night and Neil came in wanting to "help" me make dinner. He asked so sweetly I couldn't resist. So, he pulled a chair up and began dumping things into the pot and stirring it around for me. I thought he would last about 5 minutes and then get bored and run off and play...not so. He stuck it out till the bitter end. (Nice Batman tatoos huh?...He thinks he is pretty cool with those on his arm (thanks aunt nettie). He keeps going around without his shirt on to show them off) ...Oh, looking closer at the pic I notice his face is dirty...and I don't think I made him wash those grimy little boy hands before he started helping, nice.

He wasn't the only "helper" I had in the kitchen...Savannah was close by invading the 'I don't have a place for it anywhere else' drawer, don't worry I was watching her...most of the time. And she was in heaven with all the clinking and noise that stuff was making as she tried to grab anything those little fingers could reach. Unfortunately she dropped and broke the only ladle I own so dishing out the soup became a little more challenging.

Look at that proud face! He even built up a good sweat in the kitchen. Maybe he will be a little cook...his future wife will be so grateful to me. I would have been thrilled if Rick had been taught to cook (no offense Lynda...or Rick). Not that I mind cooking...just would have been nice... :)

First Tooth!!

I knew something had to be going on because my perfect little baby had been a little fussy for the past few days...runny nose...wanting to nurse more than normal, etc. I kept checking for a new tooth but nothing...and then finally yesterday I saw that tiny little white tooth poking through. I was just glad my suspicions were confirmed and that she wasn't turning into a fussy clingy baby.

Okay, I know this picture looks totally ghetto but I thought it was so cute. Before I comment on why she was in the box I must explain that my house does not look like this normally. This is the girls' room and we were going through ALL their clothes to get rid of stuff they didn't like and things they have outgrown...hence all the trash bags and boxes full of clothes. Anyway, I left the room for a few minutes and when I returned I found Savannah like this...happy as can be...playing in the box with Neil's "claw" toy he got for his birthday. The girls stuck her in the box and thought it was cute and funny and of course she loved it...she goes along with whatever they want to do to her and she does it with a smile (see what I mean about the perfect baby?...she's still trying to make up for the torturous pregnancy she put me through!).

Glad that's over with...

Neil turned 4 last week. I naively thought I could get away with an easy party with a few of Neil's little friends. He wanted to have it at his grandparents house and for that I was grateful. They have much more room and they have a pool for the kids to swim in...so I wouldn't have to come up with any games either, nice.

A few friends quickly turned into about 10 or 11 little boys...even that would have been okay except that all those boys have siblings and in the end we had about 17 kids there, 20 if you count the babies. My stress level was rising every minute during the party. I was worried about my in-laws nice home with all those wet little bodies and not to mention the chocolate icing and ice cream. I just tried to keep everyone outside and thankfully everything was fine. The pic above is Neil sword fighting some of his friends...his favorite thing to do in the whole wide world.

Here is Neil on Rick's shoulders about to do his famous belly flop. He was acting pretty wild during his party...definately not my shy little boy anymore. He loved all his toys and even added a few swords to his already large sword collection (obsessed!).

Running Update

So, I'm glad to say that I am still running...even if it's only been a week. I called Rick my "fellow runner" the other day to which he quickly informed me that my running 3 times does not make me a "runner"....he takes his running very serious. I'm over the being sore part and I am realizing I just need to make sure and get out the door before 9am because this Florida sun heats things up pretty early. I ran Monday and Tuesday this week and now I'm off today and will run Thursday and Friday....so far so good.

What did I get myself into??

For those who don't know, Rick is a runner. He has done 3 full marathons and is planning on running a 1/2 marathon with my brother this Thanksgiving and one of my sisters is on board now. Even the girls have run a few small races (we were so proud of them!). The pic I posted is of them in Nashville last year. Rick has always wanted me to get into running also..."come on, it can be something we do together"...to which I always reply, "WHY would I do that to myself????"...it looks like torture and requires WAY too much time commitment. And I have to say that I have NEVER been a runner. I have always played sports and like to do Yoga and classes at the gym but I have always hated to run (not that I really even tried it). Anyway, I really admire his determination. When he is training he is a man on a mission...nothing gets in the way of his training...he runs in the rain...at all hours of the day (I hate when he runs long runs late at night...he thinks it's funny that I worry about him like he can't protect himself but I still stay up until he gets home). He posts his running schedule on the fridge and marks off each day. Again, I really admire the motivation he has and what he has accomplished. I hate that I don't have the same drive when it comes to exercise. I want to want to run...but I don't want to run...you know what I mean??? Well, I have been fed up with my own excuses and I have been pumping myself up for weeks now to start running...I didn't say run marathons, I just said running. I waited until I was motivated enough to do it and then 2 days ago I just got up early and got ready to go run and Rick about had a heart attack when he came in the room and saw me ready to go. I could tell he was trying to play it cool and not act too excited. So, I went running. I ran a little more than a mile at a good pace. I used Rick's shuffle to listen to music, which helped a lot. I actually enjoyed the run. So, this morning I got up and went again (I think Rick was even more surprised than the first day). This time I ran a mile and a half in about 13 minutes...not bad. I was only planning on one mile but then kept pushing myself and made it all the way around the loop in our neighborhood. I have to say that I was very proud of myself (Rick is bursting at the seems). I am also so sore that it hurts to walk, and even worse when I squat to sit down...ouch. I've decided it is probably something I could learn to love, or at least like.

Happy 12th Anniversary to us!!!

WOW...12 years. I can't believe it. Time has gone by so quick. My in-laws watched the kids for us so we could go to dinner and a movie....thanks Ken and Lynda! I can honestly say that Rick and I get along better now than we ever have. Thankfully we have always had a great relationship and have a lot of the same interests. I won't go on and on about what a wonderful husband he is, but he really is such a blessing in my life. I'm so grateful for Rick and for our children.

So Cute!

I love how 3 year olds draw people...adorable. I love how the legs come straight out of the head. This is a picture Neil drew for his favorite buddies from preschool, Jake and Brodie. He even labeled the people in the picture. The person to the far right is "Grandma Carol", Jake and Brodie's Grandma who watches them during the day and has Neil over to play all the time...I'm sure she will be flattered by his portrayal of her. She will see it soon enough, I'm putting it in the mail today. He signed his name down in the bottom right corner...so cute!

"...my worst enemy!!"

Neil, who is almost 4 years old, gets soooo mad when we won't give him his way....which I don't get because he definately does not get his way all the time. His new thing is to sprint out of the room and burst into his bedroom and start crying or shouting whenever we tell him he can't have or do something or when the girls won't give him what he wants. It's very annoying but also kinda funny at the same time...but don't you dare let him see you laughing at him.

The other day Rick dared to tell him he could not start a movie at 9:30pm and Neil ran away, of course, and was fuming mad in his room. I went in to talk to him and he told me, "Daddy is my worst enemy!!".

Sunday Stations

Sundays are a little crazy for us. Rick is in church meetings all morning so it's just me and the kiddos until we go to church at one o'clock. I've been determined to get to church on time every week and we have been doing quite well if I say so myself....you'd think 4-5 hours would be plenty of time to get myself and 4 kids ready however, we manage to still be rushing out the door so we can get to church a few minutes early.

Now, the biggest headache for me is trying to keep Sunday a special day and help the kids to focus a little more on the gospel this day. Growing up my Dad was very strict about Sundays...we could hardly do anything (right guys??)....sorry Dad but it's true. I didn't want to be too crazy about it but I do want them to know that Sundays are special. Anyway, we had a Family Home Evening lesson on "Sunday Stations", I think Auburn was reading the lesson from an article in the Friend (church magazine). It was a story about a family that had Sunday Stations. The Mom would set up different stations for the kids like writing in your journal, reading an uplifting story, writing letters to family members, etc. Each station would last 10 minutes or 15 minutes and then all the kids switch to the next station. Well, my kids thought this was a brilliant idea and we started doing it. They loved it the first few weeks. We still do it but they aren't quite so enthusiastic....too bad, they have to do it anyway. I even let my girls set up their own blogs to be their journals, they were very excited about that. Sundays are a little easier now in the mornings and I feel better that they are doing some constructive churchy stuff on Sundays.

Our Little Gymnast

Melina (7 years old) begged for about a year for us to let her take gymnastics. We kept putting her off until we finally decided to sign her up. She is so naturally flexible and is actually really good. She was more excited about that than getting glasses (whole other story....I wrote a blog entry about that in 2008 titled "way to go mom"). Anyway, she started classes and she loved it and after 2 months they wanted her to start taking the competitive class...which we really debated about doing but in the end decided to give it a trial run over the summer. Well, we quickly found out, as did Melina, that this class wasn't for sissies. The owners of the gym are Russian (Sasha and Olga) and they are all business there. They have her doing all kinds of strength training (push ups, sit ups, pull ups, ab work, hand stands...timed, etc.). I'm a little jealous they aren't my personal trainers. My mom went to watch Melina one day while she was in town and sent me a text from the gym asking about the 'Russian concentration camp' we were sending our daughter to. In a way I'm concerned about how hard they push her but at the same time she could use the discipline and she loves it...even though she comes home sweaty and worn out. She does complain a little about how hard it is but always follows that with "...but I love it".

July 4th

Our good friends the McRae's invited us out to their lakehouse for the 4th of July. We went down on the 3rd and spent the night along with some other friends. Our kids get so excited to go to the McRaes. They get to ride the jet ski and boat and swim all day long. The Burtons and the Lowerys came out on the 4th and so our kids had other small kids to play with....and I had plenty of adults to help hold Savannah! We really have great friends and enjoy spending time with them.

The kids got to kneeboard around the lake, even Neil. Thankfully Rick stayed pretty calm this year and didn't try killing himself on the wakeboard! All the women went on the big tube and Blair was determined to throw us all off. Amanda and I went for a pretty fast ride and eventually he succeeded in throwing us off. Surprisingly I'm not sore today.

On the 4th they do a parade on the lake. Everyone decorates their boats and rides around the lake as everyone else sits on their dock and claps and waves. The kids love it and helped decorate the boat.

...correction, I was very sore the next day in my shoulders and arms from the tubing...I should have known I just didn't wait long enough before I said something!