Just wanted to do a little post on my kids. I got one of those compliments that you love to hear as a mom. We had stopped in to a teacher store here in Mt. Juliet and the lady who owns it knows us real well. I was looking around and the kids headed to the "play spot". She and I talked for little bit and she headed back up front. I wandered through the store and made my way upfront only to find her contently watching my kids with this little smile on her face. She couldn't get over the fact of not only how well they played together but how much older they acted. I was also amazed seeing as how we have been exceedingly hyper since the weather has been much too cold to venture outside for long to burn the excess energy off. There were little kitchen sets with tables that they played house with and then they were mail carriers with the letter boxes, next came the hot dog cook off on the grill and so on. It was so wonderful to watch my kids playing and having a wonderful time together. Any way we chatted as the kids played and laughed at the stories she recounted of kids playing gone bad in her store. Can I just say I was so glad they didn't tear anything to shreds!

The boys get along amazingly well about 90% of the time. The other 10% is them nagging each other and annoying the tar out of Riley. But they do have a protective streak in them when it comes to her. At times if only one is picking on her the other will come to her rescue and defend her (usually solely with Jedi skills). And she in turn will come to their aid if needed. Only she does a TON of screaming!! But I love that they love each other. I can only imagine how it will be as they grow older. I am sure that there will be many more fights and slamming doors, but hopefully there will be a ton of laughter and connecting moments between them.

Forgot to mention..

At the end of this month Caleb will be getting his second round of tubes in his ears and is adenoids taken out. We started noticing that he was asking for things to be repeated or he just wouldn't hear us, so a hearing test was set up. Basically they found out that there was unequal pressure on the inside of the ear so we need to get it balanced. Hopefully the removal of the adenoids will help as well. So please keep him in your prayers- that nothing happens before the surgery to hinder his hearing any more than it is now.

A lot to blog about (aka- long post ahead)

Just a warning- there are many pictures that follow. They are all in an odd order- not sure how that happened, so you will have to bear with me. I will try to put what is going on under each picture since they are not grouped well. I couldn't find the cable to my camera, but luckily the PS3 my husband got after Christmas came with a mini USB so I was able to use that to get all the pictures downloaded.

I'll start with Caleb's 5th Birthday. We had a great time with our neighbors and family. Caleb got some pretty cool stuff and he had a great time. I cannot believe that he is 5. Time really goes by when you are having fun. Could be that o the next few updates shouldn't be as long, but will keep everyone informed on the going on's of the kiddos. I have 3 too! :) After Caleb's birthday came Christmas. We spent the first part of our break with The Clement side. We had a great time and enjoyed getting to see everyone. We opened up our presents the day we left to come home. The kids had fun and loved their time up in Indiana. We spent Christmas at home this year. It was our first in a while. I think we will be doing more of that. The kids are getting more to that age that we really want to start our traditions. They don't mind traveling, but I know they like being home. After our time at home, we went to my parents. Matt hunted and the kids and I just hung out. I don't have many pictures from Mom and Dad's, just cause I forgot to take them! :) The kids stayed with my parents while Matt and I headed back to work. I had in-service days and it helped not having to pay the daily rate for the preschool. We have somewhat gotten Riley's room done. I am still deciding what color to paint the walls, but she is LOVING her big girl bed. Next step that I tackle with her will be potty training. She refused to go over Christmas, but has begun asking to go again. I'll let you check out the pictures and will update on the kids and a few more things after you get what you all are waiting for!



There were none of them all smiling!
Riley experimenting with my makeup!
Pajama day at preschool
Caleb got money for his birthday and he got Riley this doll set- Riley had a blast with her daddy playing with it! Way to go daddy!
Some of Caleb's friends at his 5th birthday
The one gift he REALLY wanted for Christmas- a tool bench
Ian's one gift her really wanted: A really big gun (technically a star wars gun!)
A cradle for all of her babies
Opening presents with the family at Grandma and Pawpaw's house
All the cousins (minus the one in Heather's tummy) on Matt's side
Riley's new big girl bed
Playing Cootie
Yes- shooting the monsters with bananas
Playing Candy land



The kids are growing like weeds! I cannot believe that Ian will be 4 soon. It is crazy how fast time is flying by. We have been trying to play more games with the kids on the weekends and evenings. They are getting the concepts of loosing and such. We had a few melt downs when certain people didn't win, but one day we will get there. Today we took the kids to see "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything" and they really enjoyed it.

In an effort to update more, I am mainly going to keep this blog about the kids. Here lately I have posted some of my thoughts, but I have begun to realize that most people check this blog for updates on the kids and not Matt and I. I am contemplating starting another blog that I can just have about things with work or my thoughts, but I haven't decided. My goal is to update 2 times a week. That way people won't think we all got swiped of the face of this beautiful earth, and no one said anything.

Biggest Looser

Sorry I haven't gotten the pictures up yet. Look for them this weekend. I have been crazy busy with the first week back. I have a 3 hour IEP (Individualized Education Plan - used for each student I have) meeting for twin girls from Moldova that I got on Monday. Then I have had more meetings all this week and have 3 tomorrow. SO I have been bogged down with paperwork and trying to get my student used to being back in the classroom. I went to the doctor today and was surprised that my blood pressure was normal. I thought it would be a little higher. I have also been really (I mean really) sore. I started my work out program last night and I was good till about 11 am today. Then my body started aching. But I pushed through and even added the cardio 2 work out tonight. I'm pretty sure I will hurt again. But if I can get my self in a routine I will start feeling better in the long run. I sure have been sleeping better. I have started the Biggest Looser Cardio Max DVD. It is really good and keeps you moving. After I get this one down I will switch it up to see if I can "maximize my results". I have to admit that I am pretty proud of my self for really kicking this one in high gear. I have always struggled with this goal and hopefully I can beat it this time. How are your goals coming along?

Resolutions

As most people do, I decided to make a few "New Year's Resolutions". While at work today I tried to decide what to choose. I am notorious for choosing my items and then never getting the time to follow through or I get bogged down at the "bigness" of them. So I took it easy and simple this year.

* I plan to read more. Not just fiction, classics or work related things, but I plan to read through the Bible and read more to my kids. I usually start reading through the Bible and get bogged down in the "____ beget____" parts. I have a small yet simple plan to keep me going. I read to my kids everyday, but I want to do more. I want to install the love of reading to them, make it fun and interesting.
* I truly plan to loose the weight that I have yet to loose each year! (Gulp- yes I put that in writing!!)
At work they have started the Biggest Looser contest and I joined in. I want it more for a lifestyle change. I eat healthy, yet sometime still take to large of a portion. I just want to be healthy no matter what weight that is at.
*I plan to pray more and spend more time in constant communication with God. I have actually gotten better with this one over the years (Thanks to Laura!)
* I plan to keep in touch with friends more. I let myself get bogged down in the everyday things and I let time slip away. Since we have moved, I have thrown myself into my family and work, leaving almost no time to tend to my friendships that I so dearly cherish. I will do better in making the time for each and everyone of you.



This last year was a turning point for me. We have now been living in TN for a year and a half. We are still struggling with finding a church home, but I have a peace that the end will soon come. Matt and I have both made friends at work and are working on growing those relationships. I have grown spiritually and God continues to teach me amazing things through my struggles since moving here. Tennessee now feels like home. I know my way around, and can usually give directions to a stranger and feel confidant. I know a lot of the back roads to get places. You know you are settled when you know 3 different ways to get to one place. :) The transition back to work actually went better than I thought and I truly enjoy working. Yes, there are days I miss staying at home with my children. But them seeing them having so much fun with their friends at school, and hearing 10 times EVERY night "are we going to school tomorrow- (yes you are now lay down and go to sleep)- YEA!! SCHOOL!!" gives me a sense of contentment. The students I work with are hard, yet I feel so at home there and have gotten back into the teacher mode, that every day no matter how bad it gets, is a wonderful day. Eating Lunch with my co-workers today just helped remind me how truly blessed I am. I have an amazing Husband who lovingly guides and encourages me to be a better woman, daughter of God, wife and mother. I have 3 amazing kids who keep me on my toes, put huge smiles on my face (some grimaces too) and remind me just how much I love them. I have wonderful friends (near and far) who can brighten my day with a smile or email (even if all it says is Hi). No matter the surprises that come this way in 2008, I can tell it will be a good year. The Lord has given me a place of contentment and even if he nudges me out, He will be guiding my every step.

Coming Soon

I will be updating and adding pictures this weekend. I hopefully will get started on re-arranging our blog and giving it a fresh look. I started back to work and had high hopes of getting some of it done while at school. Alas, the school system pretty much has everything I need to get on blocked. So I will try to get it done by Sunday.

We had a really good time with all of our families over Christmas. The kids had a blast and Matt and I enjoyed the time with our parents. We had a really good Christmas present that appeared at our door step last night. The Noels stopped by on their way home and spent the night. Our kids were still at my parents so the kids didn't get to see each other, but Claire is happy that we will be back in AR for Spring Sing. I was so happy to see these close friends of ours. It was a little touch of home. We miss them so much and it was so wonderful to catch up and just sit and enjoy each others company. Noel family- thanks for making my week! You all are so very special to us and I am so glad that we can still keep up with each other across the miles and that we are able to see each other every now and then.

IT"S A BOY!!!!!

Nope- not us! You might recall that I leaked the news that my SIL, Heather was due in April. Well they found out earlier this week that is will be a boy! They are really excited and so am I. They have a name in mind, but Scott's brother and his wife are expecting and might use the name that Heather and Scott were thinking of, so they are in name limbo till after Feb. They are looking at all the "manly" boy things and trying to decide what to go with. As always keep Heather and "the boy" in your prayers.

5 NEW POSTS!!

keep reading down- I made a few posts today! There will be a few more tomorrow and then hopefully I will do better about keeping up on updating. Enjoy!

Thanksgiving '07

We spent Thanksgiving at my Parent's this year. It was relaxing and fun. Matt hunted quite a bit and got a spike on Friday. He saw a few more but decided that he would wait till next time to bag a few more. The day before Thanksgiving, Papa and the boys peeled and sliced the apples for my grandmas famous Apple Squares. The boys had a blast turning the peeler/slicer. They each got to do 6 apples. Then they helped separate the apples into a bowl and coat them with sugar and spices. I think they ate more apples than they actually got in the bowl, but I'll let dad be the judge of that. While the boys helped Papa, Riley was having some playtime of her own. Mom had brought a cradle and highchair from the preschool for her to play with. She had a ton of food that she got and Riley had so much fun! We could barely get her away from those toys!






This isn't a great picture of Caleb, but we had fun putting a Haunted House together. My Aunt Judy in FL had sent the kit to mom, but this was the first we had been there since Halloween. The kids had fun helping me get the icing everywhere and then putting the candies on it. I saw one the other day for Christmas, so I think I may get one of those for us to do together. Then we ate the house with ice cream for desert one day after dinner.

It's the first time my youngest has turned 2

Can you believe it? Crazy, I know! But it is true. I have always had another baby by the time my boys turned 2. I was a little sad- no more babies, but with Heather having one in April, I will get my fill. We had a really good party for her. Several of Matt's co- workers came by and my good friend Marcie and her husband (Matt) and daughter (Halen) were there along with our families.We even had our neighbor, Anniston, over for cake and ice cream. Matt and I got her some shirts and a little kitchen set. The grandparents covered the pots and pans and food. She also got a baby stroller and grocery cart. She had a blast with her friends.

Just a few things about Riley. There are times I think she is all boy instead of girl. But then she will love to play in dresses or snuggle and I just smile at her feminine side. She is beautiful. She really is. Her hair is so long and she has the prettiest eyes. I love it when she gets serious- she places her hands on your cheeks and looks into your eyes and talks oh so very slowly. She loves to help me cook, clean or anything that I am doing. She loves school and is never ready when I come get them all. She is full of surprises- you never know what will happen with her!

The day after these party pictures, she got tubes in her ears. She did amazingly well. We went to Vandy's Children's Hospital. It was quite entertaining when they gave her the meds to make her calm before they fully sedated her. She would just laugh at anything and nothing. When I came back to the recovery room, she snuggled up against me and drank like a gallon of juice. The nurses thought she was so funny. I kind of expected her to sleep most of the day, but yet again I was surprised. She only napped her normal time and never acted like she had surgery at all.

Lot's to blog about and such little time....

Here is is December 1st. I think I am officially the last person to post a picture from Halloween. The kids had a blast this year. It ended up being a tad cooler than I thought it would be so we had to modify the kids costumes a little. Caleb was Batman, Ian was Bobafett, and Riley was a witch. We walked all over our neighborhood and there were some really decorated houses. Everyone was so nice though. There were 2 areas that the kids got a little spooked. One house had this huge fake snake (Marti would have had a heart attack!) by the candy and Riley was a little freaked by it, plus they had spooky music playing and that got all the kids. Then there was a culdisac that was blocked off and they had all these areas of torture, but when they saw we had little ones, the teens left their areas and just hung out so the kids would freak. They boys were looking at the costumes and looking a little leery, so the teens either took their masks off so the boys could see them or they pretended to be scared of "Batman" or "Bobafett". The boys thought it was so funny to see the big kids running from them. We ended up dipping into the kids candy since we are a drop off neighborhood so we ran out fast!



At the beginning of November, Matt broke his finger playing flag football. We iced it through the evening, hoping the swelling would go down. Somewhere around 3 am, I heard Matt downstairs and went to see what was going on. His finger had swollen so bad that his wedding ring was cutting the circulation off, so out came the dremmel tool and off came the ring. It took a good amount of time to saw it off since it got hot real fast. Now, his finger has healed mostly. There is still an issue with his knuckle, but hopefully that will end soon. Here is the "end" of our early morning adventure.

No More Passy's

It is official! We no longer have passy's in the house!!!! Such a big accomplishment. I don't think we have been passy free in 4 1/2 years. Riley is still adjusting, of course. She still asks for it occasionally, but we are done. Hopefully the nights will get a little easier.

There will be a bunch of posting over the next 2 days, as I am WAY behind. I still have to post Halloween pictures! ACK- how bad am I? But at this moment, you will have to wait. I am enjoying some serious play time with 2 of my favorite boys, and that just can't wait!!! Check back soon!

Thought and Rambles

Tonight as I was typing up an IEP (yes, I brought work home with me- but I did it after the kiddos were in bed and Matt was watching the Dallas/Eagles game- no one got jipped!) I started thinking that I hadn't blogged in a while, so here I go. (by the way- I don't recommend thinking about blogging while you are working on a document that is evaluated by the state. It took me a lot longer to finish since I had to re-check things to make sure I had them right and didn't type about blog thoughts!!)

It as been a busy week for me. I had several "explosions" in my room at the enc of the previous week that carried over into this week which made for a few Advil days. We also had Halloween this week- which as you know we didn't get anything done that day or the next due to the sugar rush and upset tummies- and we had a field trip on Friday. We took our students to the Zoo and I think it went real well. I paired up my students with my EL's (exceptional learners- seniors that take a course in my class to help with peer tutoring, and learning how to work with students that have disabilities) and they really liked that because: a) they weren't with a teacher all day and b) they blended in with the "crowd". Then at the pep rally that afternoon, I along with 19 other teachers did a faculty pep squad routine. It was BLAST!!! I really hope to post it on here soon. Several people recorded it, so maybe I can get a copy. The students went crazy. Coming from a school that didn't have sports I have really had fun at the pep rally's! Matt laughs at me, but I really enjoy them and get into the whole clapping and cheering thing! :)

On other news we have been visiting a new church. It is a small community church that is meeting in the school that our kids go to. We really like the preachers messages, but are not sure that we will continue to go there. They are about a year old and seem to still be struggling a little. We visited a nearby church of Christ and enjoyed it. They are in a transition time (looking for a new preacher and working on heading in a new direction) but the people were all friendly. I guess we are still struggling with the whole "do we go with a more conservative church where we know we will have the "fellowship" that we crave or do we try to step out a little and just try and make it." I struggle with it daily. It is an inner battle that I cannot seem to shake. We will visit a place for a while and enjoy the worship and messages but never feel "at home". I loved Levy's way of bringing people in and making them feel welcome. I really miss that, the potlucks, the closeness. We haven't seen that here- well coming from the visitors side. I'm sure if we could just crack into a "clique" we would find that, but there in lies the issue- Breaking through.
Perseverance- I keep telling myself that God will lead us to the place he wants us to be, but I am beginning to waver in that stance. It has been a year since we have moved into our home, and we are still church "homeless". It is just hard not to have people over on a regular basis who have a love for Christ. I mean Matt and I both work with people that we get along with and have become friends with. I have several at my work that are Christians, but due to distance, don't hang out with them as much as I would like. We would really like to stay close to our community, so we can work in our community, but it seems that we may have to go outside our area. Please continue to keep us (me) in your prayers in this area. I never realized how big of a struggle this would be. I know that there is a Master plan at work, but I am struggling to hang in there are have the faith that moves mountains. I am sure there is a lesson that I am supposed to learn, and I really hope I do and that I learn it well. Thanks for letting me rant to you all reading. I figured it was typing or crying my eyes out! :) Typing is more therapeutic!

I am going to get the kids pictures posted in their Halloween costumes up soon. We had a blast, and the kids really enjoyed it. I'll blog about that later.

Funny thing just happened on the way to....

a clean diaper. Riley was slightly stinky, so she laid down for me to change her. Imagine my surprise as I open her pull-up to find.......Chick-fil-a mint wrappers stuffed down there!!! I started laughing so hard. Earlier that morning she and Caleb had found the mints that were left over from our "we just got home and I am not cooking" meal last night. Caleb was stuffing them in his pocket, and apparently since Riley didn't have any shorts on and there are no pockets on her pull-ups she thought this spot would work. I love my daughter!

Just got back

Hello all! We just got back from our week in FL. I will try to get some pictures up today, but it might be later in the week as I have to get ready for work and get a few things done. We had a good time. The Red Tide was there while we were so that limited our time in the water, but we got some good shell hunting done and had fun with rainy day activities. Tell you all more about it later!

Please excuse....

the sideways photographs on my recent updates. The program we use flips them when you view them, but doesn't keep them turned. I'm not sure how to fix them by using blogger, so hopefully tonight Matt can sit down with me and teach me how to do it. So for now, you will have to turn your head to the side- sorry! :)

Here is my new niece/nephew-

I love photography! Am I great at it? no, but I think I am pretty good. And the best thing about our digital camera, is that I can delete the not so great photos. While I was in Indiana, I decided to take some pictures of Heather and my new niece. Yes I got some of Miss. Kait too, but I wanted to get these up here. I'll post more of Kait and Riley soon. Oh, and she tried to tell me she wasn't showing! :)

Every October, Vanderbilt has employee appreciation month. They always have neat activities for the employees and for their families. One evening, Matt came home and told us about the Hot air balloon rides. So we gobbled up dinner and went downtown to see if we could ride. The boys had a blast. Riley- not so much. I couldn't even get close. She had a heart attack. So Daddy and the boys went on the ride. They got to go up and down a few times. They could barely see over the basket, but they had so much fun.

My Classroom

Well here are the after shots of my room. I didn't get any before shots, so if you close your eyes I will give you a mental picture. Think of peach colored wallpaper, with little brown "><" on it, then picture large flowered border at the ceiling, mid way down and the bottom and you have my room. I went with a cool yet energetic blue and we all really like it. I finally got some posters on the wall and still have some decorating to do. It is small, but a good size for my 12 students. I just attended a work based program training, so here with in the next 3 months I will start using the wooden work bench in the back of the room. My kids are tough some days, but with the backgrounds they come from, I expect that. One day I will get their pictures up here so you can see them.

We decided to take the kids to the Wilson County Fair this year. It was a lot of fun but really HOT! So we didn't stay too long. Hopefully next year it won't be so hot, that way we can stay longer and ride more rides.

Showing off their swords from their big win
Purity Ice Cream is always a good choice
Why don't they have hair?
He can't get out right?
What Riley did while the boys and Daddy rode
Way up high in the sky!
Waiting patiently....
How awesome are we????
They loved this ride!

Behind the Camera

Usually I am the one behind the camera, but since I have started work I have gotten a few pictures of me with the kids. I thought I would post my 2 favorites. I love Riley's smile in the first one. For a few days every time I got the camera out that is the smile she would give me. This picture cannot do it justice! The last picture, was on a Friday night while we were watching a movie. Mommy had a rough day and needed some lovin'. This is what I got- perfect huh?

The Battery is Charging

As I wait for the battery to charge so I can download all the pictures, I thought I would do a small update since in my effort to be a better blogger, it has been one week since I wrote something. But hey at least it was only one week right? This last week has been one of doctor appointments, getting "car things" done, a quick trip to Louisville, and spending time with the kiddos. After 2 days of running all over Nashville, I now have my car tags correct and current though, so it was all worth it. Riley had her ears evaluated by the hearing specialist (audiologist) and by the ENT. It was determined that she was unable to hear certain decibels due to the fluid on her ears, and since she was other wise healthy we get to have tubes placed. What little girl does not know is that the day after her 2nd birthday, she goes in for surgery. But hopefully we will get it all resolved with one shot. I will be taking Caleb in to the same ENT and Audiologist in a few months to have his hearing checked. We have noticed he is always asking us to repeat what we have said. The audiologist did a quick fluid check on him and he does have fluid in both ears, so we may have to go the tubes route again with him.

This last weekend I went to the St. James art show in Louisville with my MIL and SIL. We had a blast. It was a little rough since it was so hot, but especially on Heather since she is now in her second trimester -YES SHE IS PREGNATE AGAIN!!!!!! I can now tell the world since she is past the first trimester. So far she is doing well, a little more tired than last time (expected with a 1 year old). While there, I took some really good pictures of Heather. So as soon as I get them on the computer I will get them up here.

This week we are getting hair cuts (pictures to follow since this will be the "first" in a salon), dentist appointments and errands for our FL trip. I feel slightly guilty since I will be missing a week of school to go to FL. Matt's whole family is heading to Mexico Beach for a week. We knew when I started work that the dates didn't work out for when I was on my break. I know my students can handle me being gone, but I am still and dealing with guilt. Anyway, I'll head in tomorrow to get all the stuff ready for the sub and to get a note on the board to the kids so they know what is going on.

Well during nap today I will get some pictures up here and try to get as many as possible throughout the rest of the week. Thanks for being patient, I'm sure no one checks the blog much anymore, but maybe they will come back after I get some things on here.