The Smith Family Matters

New SHOES and HAT

2011-06-14T07:07:00.000-07:00

Monday was Carter's first day of Basketball camp and I totally forget that he didn't have any decent shoes to wear. We had an old pair that Blake wore last year and then left them outside forever, so they were really crappy but he wore them because it was to close to basketball starting to go get new ones. I promised him that we would go that afternoon and find him some new shoes.
Who knew that a boys size 6 and 6.5 were so hard to find. OMG, since that size is right in between boys and mens, either a lot of kids need that size or the shoe companies don't make near enough. We went to 4 different stores, including academy and the shoe carnival, then on one last ditch effort before going home, we stopped at Kohl's just to see what they had. They happened to have 1 pair of Nike's in that size and those are the ones we got! They look good and Carter was so happy to have them!

Blake bought a new hat with his chore allowance from last week because he needed one for tennis. He looks so cute in a hat! My baby boy is looking so grown up :( ::sigh::
They have been having a great summer so far.

Tennis Friday

2011-06-10T16:19:00.000-07:00

Today was Tennis Friday. Blake and Carter went to a free summer tennis camp through the city of Tyler. Blake has been going with a friend every day this week but today Carter wanted to try, so we all went. Carter liked it, but got bored because he was with younger kids. I told him to go over with Blake, but by that time he was DONE! I did make him finish the day, because he is bad about wanting to quit when things don't go his way. He finished with a good attitude, but it just wasn't for him.

Blake on the other hand, loved it and he and all of his buddies moved up to the intermediate level.

Lazy Summer Day

2011-06-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

Today was a fairly lazy day around our house. This morning Blake went to a tennis camp with a friend of his and while he was gone I took Dawson to the dentist because the tooth he chipped a few months back, that we had fixed, was hurting and very sensitive. It ended up being nothing, just another grown up tooth was pushing up beside it and was crowding the roots a little bit.
This afternoon we went to the local library, which was a little disappointing. We hadn't been in a few years and it looks like the book selection has drastically declined since then. We didn't find anything we couldn't live without, to check out, but we did find a few books, to buy for a really good price, on the way out.When we got home the boys wanted to go swimming and I finally got some good swimming pictures of them!

Carter Reading Big Nate

2011-06-09T06:55:00.000-07:00

Carter loves Big Nate Books. I need to buy him the next couple of books. He is really embracing his reading time this summer, so much so, that I normally find him reading even when it is not designated reading time! He is really motivated by the prize chart and that makes me really happy! This is how I found him this morning!

Brothers

2011-06-03T06:17:00.000-07:00

This is just a quick post to show you the most wonderful sight! My two oldest boys acting like they really do love each other after all! They are getting big and won't be able to share the chair for too much longer. They have been playing together nicely everyday of the summer so far! This picture just makes me heart happy!

Summer 2011

2011-06-01T20:12:00.000-07:00

I am going to attempt to make a new blog post every few days this summer with some pictures of the sweet baby boys!

The boys got out of school at 1:00 last Thursday and we have been enjoying the summer to the fullest since then.

The first thing on my agenda was to clean out their bedrooms and get some things cleaned out to take to good will. We got all the boys' rooms done in 1 day and they were actually great helpers. You can imagine that most of the time, with an almost teenager and a moody 8 year old, the complaints I normally get. But NOT today! Yay for me!

I do this for 2 reasons. The first and most important reason is because summer chores are starting and it is so much easier for them to get their chores done if everything starts off clean and they know where I expect things to be put and the second reason is that they have grown a lot this year and Dawson still has some size 5T shirts and about 6 pairs of shoes that don't fit in his closet that desperately need to find a new home.
After we were done cleaning, we still have half the day left, so we took a trip to the lake and the boys had a blast swimming for about 2 hours. They were exhausted and slept well their first full day of summer.

Since then, our days have been filled with a lot of guitar hero and other video games. They don't get to play video games during the school week, so they always look forward to summer and any other break from school. We have also had a few boys from the neighborhood over almost everyday to play.
While they have been playing hard, I have been working equally as hard getting the pool ready to swim in. It takes some work but we have been diligent for over a week and we finally had our first swim and cookout tonight!

I will be sure to take lots of pictures while I am borrowing my brothers camera! This is the only one I got today. My camera has an error message and no longer wants to take pictures, so while it is hopefully getting fixed, my brother was nice enough to let me use his.

New Pictures of Dawson

2011-03-15T14:47:00.000-07:00

This blog is mainly for my cousin, Amanda! She has been telling me that I need to start blogging again and I guess if that will make her happy, I will gladly do it! Dawson is my baby boy and he will turn 8 years old on Sunday. I know, CRAZY, right? Where did the time go? Here are a few recent pictures of him.

What a handsome guy?!?!

Dresses are taking over!

2010-09-01T18:50:00.000-07:00

I have been feeling crafty lately and I have found that I really like to sew. Seeing as I only have boys and once they get a certain age they don't really want Mom to making them anything, I have been sewing for my niece. I don't want to over fill her closet with dresses that all look the same, so I decided today, that I would open an etsy shop and see how I can do selling some dresses. http://www.etsy.com/shop/windysmith

First Week Of School

2010-08-31T07:52:00.000-07:00

Well, the first week of school has come and gone. The boys have all adjusted well and like their teachers and classes. Blake started 6th grade and is loving it. He is playing in the band this year and his instrument is the saxophone. He is very lucky to have a Papa John who is always ready to help with things they want to do because saxophones are EXPENSIVE. Carter is in 4th grade and has a great set of teachers. The discipline tool they have come up with suits him wonderfully. While he is not one to get in much trouble, he is one who needs encouragement. So instead of only moving colors when they do something wrong, they also move colors when they do something good. I think that is great! He is upset about the monkey bars on the playground being to low this year..=)(he is focused on the most important aspects of school!) Dawson is in 2nd grade and will do great! He is there for the social aspect of school and tends to TALK way too much, good thing he is cute!
I am taking 2 internet courses at TJC. My plans to go to UT Tyler were put on hold because of the times the classes were offered and they didn't really have to specific degree I was wanting. While taking these 2 classes, I will also be researching other schools that offer online degrees. I hope I can find something that will be a better fit for me.

Note for Kathryn and Liz: I am really going to try and keep up with this blog better, so keep checking back.

Special Effect for school

2010-03-31T06:36:00.001-07:00

I loved this picture of Carter and now I love it even more. I really wanted to use it for another assignment for school but it came down to the last minute and I didn't have a chance to take the picture that I wanted for special effect so this will have to do. I really think it turned out great! I just learned how to do a few things in my photoshop class yesterday to I applied them here. I color balanced the photo by number and then added a spotlight on his face to brighten it up and added catch lights in his eyes and then I added a textural background! I think his face really looks good.

Me and My girl

2010-03-29T06:34:00.000-07:00

I just love my niece and she normally loves me and doesn't want anyone else when I am around but this weekend at Dawson's party she only wanted Gran Gran. =( I think she must have been tired or a little sick or something, at least that was my excuse! I think this is the only time she even let me near her on Saturday but at least she smiled like she still loves me! She didn't want anyone to come around her that she thought might even have the slightest chance of taking her Gran away from her.

Happy Birthday BABY boy!

2010-03-20T13:14:00.000-07:00

Today Dawson turned 7 years old! After the soccer games got rained out, we went shopping for a new bike. Papa John came to visit and went shopping with us and we all ate at Double Dave's for lunch. Despite the rain, he had a great day and came home with a new bike and an ice cream cone from Braum's. Here are a few pictures of my baby boy over the past 7 years!

Light writing

2010-03-20T05:50:00.001-07:00

Bubba came out tonight to help me with my night scene assignment for school. I wrote each letter separately with a flashlight while BUbba held the shutter open on the camera and then placed them together using layer masks in Photoshop!

Dawson's Glasses

2010-03-10T08:30:00.000-08:00

I knew that Dawson was working on something in his room this morning because he kept coming out and asking me for glue. After a little while, he came out with his new glasses on! He even made 2 different styles in different colors!

Geocaching! Who knew?

2010-02-28T16:09:00.001-08:00

I discovered this awesome fun thing called Geocaching from one of my cousins. It has been around for a while but we just found it. You can join for free at www.geocaching.com. You have to have some sort of GPS device to play and there are free iphone apps for it. It is like a nationwide hide and seek. It is super fun and some of the ones we found today were very clever in the way they were hidden and the you just signed your name and date it and then we found some that were more kiddie and had prize exchanges(little things like cars and other small trinkets) you take something and replace it with something you brought. There are several locations at Faulkner Park but be ready to go into the woods. We had a great day and we will definitely be geocaching regularly. We might even plan a geocaching vacation this summer. It is great fun for all ages. Would be great for a youth group at a church or anyone.

Visit with my girl!

2010-02-28T16:07:00.000-08:00

My brother and I decided that we should get together once every 4-6 weeks and spend the day with our families together! It was their time to come here and we had a good time. We ate chicken fajitas and played outside. Jonathan brought Carter a brand new baseball bat, so he was really excited about that and of course they had to try it out. My girl and I went back and forth from the swing to the trampoline! Isn't she just a beauty!?!

Green Feet

2010-02-08T17:15:00.001-08:00

Oh the site of this just made me giggle a little bit! Carter hasn't dressed up in a while. It is getting fewer and further between. He loves his Indiana Jones stuff he got for Christmas but even still it is just not as often anymore that I get to see his alter ego. It has been a super long time since he has been any kind of super hero. I really miss those days because it has been such a big part of him for such a long time. I hate to see it go. I got a glimpse tonight of my sweet boy and his alter ego. Tonight it was ROBIN! I know that because of the green feet. I didn't get to see the rest of the costume because Carter always puts real clothes on top of his costumes so he can hide his true identity! Oh how I wish they could just stay little!

Hangers Oh Hangers!

2010-02-08T07:01:00.003-08:00

Hangers OH hangers where do you go? I have bought 60 hangers for the boys in the last 3 weeks. A few weeks ago when I was doing laundry I had to go get hangers because there weren't enough to finish hanging their clothes up and again today, I bought 30 more. I haven't used them all yet from today but it will be close when I get finished with all their clothes. I have no idea what is happening because they haven't gotten any new clothes since Christmas. I have had all the laundry done every week and just recently has this started to happen. I mean I can understand a few get broken here or there but really, 60??? I am sure this happens to everyone, along with the elusive missing socks? I can't blame hangers on the drier eating them though! It is just mind boggling to have that many missing or broken, maybe the clothes are multiplying in the wash! Whatever it is maybe 60 will cover it!

6 months later....

2010-02-03T18:03:00.001-08:00

SIX months ago, we went furniture shopping. We were overwhelmed by the cost of the stuff we liked and didn't have a clue how we were ever going to be able to afford it but luckily my husband is a master researcher. He found that Lack's furniture in Tyler has a 6 month, same as cash layaway plan. So we went and found something we liked and stared making our payments. I have been so busy over the past 6 months I haven't even thought about it much. Yesterday, when he got home from work, he had a big yellow receipt in his hand and it had a ZERO balance! We had to wait to pick it up until today because they close at 6:00 and we had to have time to hook the trailer up and get there. It looks so nice! Now I just need to find a big rug!

Bows for my Favorite girl in the world!

2010-01-15T16:53:00.000-08:00

I have been making bows for Makayla for a few weeks now. I am going to see her tomorrow and I can't wait until she sees all of her bows! She really loves them and she loves her Aunt Windy and I love her! Some of her new bows look like butterflies and lady bugs!

SCHOOL

2010-01-14T12:15:00.001-08:00

This week was my official first week back to school. I am excited to be going back because at the end of this semester I will have an Associates Degree! Yay ME! I do plan on going on to a 4 year university but first I have to find which ones offer what I want to take and if those classes are offered online if that college happens to be out of the area. UT Tyler doesn't offer anything in the Graphics area, I don't believe but I just need to do some checking around. Although, I do want to obtain a Bachelors degree in the future, I am so super excited about this Associates degree! Small steps, right?!! Some people don't need to get a 2 year degree to make themselves feel accomplished, but I DO! I have waited for so long to go back to school, that I just need something in my hand to prove to myself that I CAN DO IT! I have a full load this semester, 18 hours. This is my biggest semester yet, but I will be fine and my goal is to have a 4.0 this semester and that will raise my overall GPA to about 3.25 or so! That is a big accomplishment and personal goal of mine. You see, I started college right after high school and at the same time was a newly wed and a few years later had a baby and again and again, SO as you can tell I had way BETTER(or so I thought) things to do with my time and school was NOT one of them. Now I am kicking myself for that, but oh well, live and learn. With all that said, I was also not very smart about keeping up with my grades at the time and dropping classes that I should have dropped to save my GPA. I really didn't understand what a GPA was or how bad grades effected it or how it would effect me in the long run. NOW I KNOW! No scholarships...No CUM LAUDE...No anything other than working your BUTT off to redeem yourself! So that is what I have done and I am very happy to say I am almost there!

My THREE boys!

2010-01-13T15:17:00.000-08:00

I took to boys outside to play today since we had some nice (not so cold) weather. They played and rode bikes and made ramps. I told them I needed a new one of all three of them! They cooperated pretty well this time!

Monopoly and Cupcakes

2010-01-07T13:54:00.000-08:00

Well, I know it is a little early for Valentine's Day but I saw this cake mix and icing with confetti, and cupcake cups at the dollar store and couldn't leave without them! I thought the boys would really enjoy them. I haven't made cupcakes in a while and it is those little things that make them feel special, and for 3.00 it is well worth it to see their smiling faces! And SMILE, they did when they walked through the front door. They didn't even have to see them, they SMELLED them! After eating a cupcake it was time for a board game before homework.

Blake got this game for Christmas. They got quite a few games this year. They are finally all old enough to play together and take a little better care of the games. This one is still a little hard for Dawson with all the money exchange and everything but it is a good learning experience for him and a practice at patience and not QUITTING! Normally if he is not winning something, he just wants to quit, but in this game people can't just quit without messing up everyone else's game, so if he starts then he has to finish. Man, who knew Monopoly would teach such valuable life lessons!

FUn in the Rain

2009-08-19T06:16:00.000-07:00

The boys played in the rain this afternoon since there was no thunder or lightening! We were already outside play and mowing. I was mowing and they were playing. I was trying to beat the rain. I barely made it, and about the time it started pouting rain the lawn mower ran out of gas! I just went and got myself an umbrella and sat out in the rain and watch the boys play! I think it was the highlight of their week. I wouldn't be surprised if they ask me when it is going to rain again? All the pictures were taken after the rain. I didn't want to risk getting my camera wet.

Almost time for school to start

2009-08-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

This blog won't have any pictures but I will post another picture post soon with the rest of our summer pictures. This post is just to vent some motherly or parental frustrations. So, as I am sure many of you with children are experiencing, I am experiencing great frustration with my boys constantly bickering, fighting, back talking and pretty much bad attitudes and tattle tailing all the way around and back! Oh and RUDENESS! I get back talk or attitude for just about everything I ask them to do. Since this is the last week of summer before school starts I am trying really hard to get them back in shape(probably waited to long) so we can enjoy our last week together and so I don't get calls from the principals office in the first week of school for my unruly children. Whew! I feel better since I got all of that out. So back to what I was saying about getting them back in shape. What I mean by this is that I am trying to get them back in order so I don't feel uneasy about how they will act when they are in public and away from me. This week we started swats for tattle tailing( that way they have to make sure it is really something serious before they tell because the person telling gets 1 swat for tattling) It has worked so far today. Now I have never really been a fan of washing a kids mouth out with soap(don't know why) just not something I have ever done. But back when our grandparents went to school( barefooted in the snow) they got licks and the teacher would wash theirs mouths out with soap on a daily basis so I guess it is not that bad. My first victim of the mouth washing was Blake. He has been talking back a lot lately, adding his 2 cents about everything, and having a bad attitude. He was shocked that I made him do that and I have to say he had and much CLEANER mouth for the rest of the day and doesn't want that to happen again! I guess it was worth it. I have also gone back to carrying my cute little snow man rubber spatula in the car with me at all times so the snowman can smile at them while he is swatting their butts. He got a work out this morning in the Sam's parking lot and man did I have a quiet ride home. And I know some of you may be asking yourselves, why in the world didn't I do this all summer?. Well I did, and have tried various different things also, while I have probably not been the most consistent with the punishments this summer, I have not let them just run wild either. Others of you might be thinking, "Man those are some pretty harsh punishments". All I can say is 3 boys(very energetic and all boy, boys) in the same house... Enough said. I think all kids sense that school is about to start and for some reason that triggers something in them to test their parents one last time..... OK I think that is it for now.

Summer FUN

2009-07-17T13:42:00.001-07:00

Our Summer Update

Well we started to summer off doing baseball about 6 days a week. So glad that is finally over! We went on our first real vacation to San Antonio to Sea World and stopped in Austin to see the capital along the way. Dawson lost his first tooth! Carter turned 8! We saw a magician at the library and made 4th of July shirts! We have played with our best friends and had our cousins over for a whole week! We had a blast! Here are some pictures to help tell the story of our summer! (SO FAR)

Charlie

2009-04-11T16:26:00.000-07:00

Today was a sad day at the Smith house. Our dog Charlie died last night at about 11:45 pm. Bubba and I stayed up late catching up on some tv so we were up late. At about 11:30 I got up and let the dogs out like I always do before I go to bed and when I went back to let them back in, I saw Jessie but not Charlie, which is a little odd. I called and called and she never came and I knew something was wrong because that never happens. I got a flash light and searched for her and found her on the Hwy. by our lot. She was dead when I found her. Bubba and I had a pretty hard night because we have had her since Carter was born, so she was about 8 and she was a great dog. We buried her under a tree and the boys were sad but seem ok.

Serious About Rocks

2009-03-05T06:25:00.001-08:00

Well when we got home today the boys wanted to play outside like usual on a nice day. So we dropped our stuff on the walkway and played. I decided I would take advantage of the nice weather and the well behaved boys, so I cleaned out my car! That was long over due! While I was doing that, the boys were very busy digging for "good" rocks! Carter was even cleaning them with his tooth-brush. Yes I said his tooth-brush! I guess I will have to go get a new one of those tonight!

Dawson and his best friend, Sean!

2009-02-27T19:13:00.001-08:00

Neon Carter

2009-02-27T19:08:00.000-08:00

Carter in his new soccer uniform! He is very proud of the fact the it almost glows in the dark! His team name is the Striking Tigers! RAWR

Today's Photos

2009-02-06T17:29:00.001-08:00

Boys

2009-02-06T11:16:00.000-08:00

I just took a few pictures of Blake and Carter that I thought turned on great and I thought I would share.

I didn't forget Dawson but I took some of him with my film camera and he was long gone when I got the digital one out

Positivity Test

2009-01-22T15:32:00.001-08:00

I have been thinking a lot lately about how I could challenge myself to be a better mother. I have just been feeling like I have been saying the boys' names over and over lately and no one is listening, so obviously I am going about something all wrong. I feel like this comes in stages and I know it goes through stages with the kids too. I am going to try really hard for the next week, to only say positive things to all of the boys and see if that works. Please keep me and the boys in your prayers and help me to be a more positive Mommy!(at least for a week) =)

Camping at the Party Barn 2009

2009-01-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

My Mamaw and Papaw live in Carthage and have a big farm. I loved going there when I was growing up and I spent a lot of time there as a child and I still love to go and do go as much as possible. Several years ago they built a new barn that is opened on both ends and since then has become the party barn! My cousin has had many birthday parties there and it is equipped with a fort and fireman's pole under the barn and a big playground outside. There is a concession stand and an outhouse! In the past year they decided to add on a living area and get it plumbed and run more electricity down there. Now it has bunk beds and 2 other beds. It has 2 big bedrooms and a bathroom with a shower and a big dining room with 2 tables and a working kitchen. I mean someone could really live there. My Mamaw is 78 years old and she asked my if I would bring the boys to spend the night with her at the Party Barn before they went back to school. So of course I said Yes! I could never tell her no. We had the best time. First we got on the Mule(not the horse type animal) it is a motorized vehicle! Mamaw wanted to show the boys the "Big Pond" because the beavers were cutting down trees and she thought they might like to see that! Then we had to find some old dead wood that would be good for our fire. When we got back we started a fire and got busy cooking weiners for hotdogs. Then after we ate, we sat around the fire and told stories! It brought back a lot of childhood memories for me because she used to do these things with me too only minus the Party Barn. The boys had a great time and Mamaw did too!

8 Things and An Update

2008-12-20T19:40:00.000-08:00

I was tagged by my cousin to fill this out. It is really fun!

8 Favorite Restaurants
1. Texas Roadhouse
2. Pappadeaux
3. Casa Ole
4. Jucy's
5. El Lugar
6. Chick-fil-a
7. Chilli's
8. Olive Garden

8 Things That Happened Today
1. I washed all the dishes
2. I put away all the dishes
3. Went to Lowe's for sheet rock
4. Played with my kids outside
5. Ate at Texas Pizza
6. Watched the kids play at Texas Pizza
7. Watched Ernest Saves Christmas for family movie night
8. Did a Craft with the kids

8 Things I look Forward To
1. Finishing school
2. Going to Mamaw's for Christmas tomorrow
3. Going to School
4. Christmas morning
5. My Mommy staying with us for a few days
6. Having Christmas at our house this year
7. Spring Break so I can finally see Caci
8. Taking the kids to Holiday in the park

8 Things I'm Scared Of
1. Finishing school and using my degree
2. losing someone I love
3. Never being done with our house
4. Something happening to my husband
5. being home alone at night
6. how to get the kids out of the house in case of a fire
7. hurting someone's feelings
8. not meeting other expectations of me

8 Things I Wish For
1. my kids to keep their rooms clean
2. my kids to listen better
3. To be finished with school
4. to get paid for what I do
5. a little girl
6. always being close with my kids
7. my boys to grow into good men
8. a vacation

8 Things I Watch On TV
1. Biggest Loser
2. Survivor
3. 90210
4. Privileged
5. Chuck
6. Little People, Big World
7. Heroes
8. One Tree Hill

Update: I have finally gotten my house clean! That is a HUGE undertaking! Those of you that have been to my house and know me best, know exactly what I am talking about!

Caci: I even cleaned and organized my closet and my mom gave me a shoe cubby! It looks so YOU!

Now I tag: Liz, LeeAnn, Melissa, Amy(if you see this)

I Asked Santa

2008-12-11T10:46:00.000-08:00

I know that all of my stories lately have been about Carter but he just says so many funny things. A few days ago he came to me and whispered in my ear that he wanted me and him to go to the store and get Daddy some tools for Christmas and it would be our special surprise for him. I thought well of course we will do that! It was just the sweetest thing! Then last night he came up to me again and I am thinking he is going to tell me the same thing, just to make sure I haven't forgotten and that I knew that he was serious about doing that. NOPE, I was wrong. This time he told me that we don't need to go to the store anymore because he asked Santa to bring Daddy and Blake some tools because they both like them. He also asked Santa to bring Dawson some new toys and himself some Batman toys! Then he looked at me and said, "Mom, I almost forgot, I asked Santa to bring you some cleaning supplies so you can clean the house"! How thoughtful of him!

My Best Friend and her family

2008-12-09T06:37:00.001-08:00

Family Pictures After 9 1/2 years

2008-12-07T18:13:00.001-08:00

I have been wanting to take family Christmas pictures for years and just never have for one reason or the other. This year I decided we were doing them no matter what! I have been taking some pictures of many of my friends families and I figured I should do my own too. These are a few of my favorites. We were just at our house and there weren't to many great places to take photos but we got them and that is what counts this year!

The Razor blade just slipped.....

2008-12-05T06:19:00.000-08:00

Carter has yet again decided that Mom needed another story to blog about! I just love him! Even though he is very impulsive and just doesn't think things through, EVER...he just can't help himself and I love that about him. Well, a few days ago we were doing our normal bedtime bath routine and it was Carter's turn. So he asked to run new water like always because he likes his water very warm and his brothers don't, so instead of just jumping in their water, he always drains it and re-runs it warmer! Smart kid, he doesn't want to sit in previously used bath water and what kind of mom am I, to think that I would be ok in the first place? Anyways, back to the story...Carter is 7, so I trust him to take his own bath and have done so since he was about 5. Some people might say that is to young but whatever! I feel that if a kid can survive all day at public school then they can surely bathe themselves! Which, in hind sight that might not be the smartest thing when you have a kid named Carter, so all of you out there that might have a Carter you might rethink how much unsupervised freedoms they have! =) Anyways, I assumed bath time was going along smoothly as always and then he came walking in the living room. He had the towel wrapped around his legs, and maybe that should have been a sign that something was going on but with Carter it was just a normal site. He could have been seeing how long he could walk that way without tripping! Then he pulled the towel off his legs and reveals a trail of blood. I don't freak out at this either because, again Carter! Ok, I think everyone gets that anything he does at this point doesn't frighten or really phase me in the least! I just simply ask him why his leg is bleeding? He says (with that cute, guilty Carter face), "well the razor blade just slipped and cut my leg". So I ask him, "are you sure it just slipped on its own or do you think maybe it had some help"? Then he just grins, that grin and says YEP, I'm sure! After a little more prying on my part, he tells me all about how much it bled in the bathtub and stung when he washed that leg with soap, none of which made him call for help or make a sound. I think he was hoping it would heal itself before he got out of the tub and had to come tell me. I am normally good about making sure I put all of my stuff up(shampoo, conditioner, razors, liquid bath soap, ...)before they even get home from school, because it is sure to get ruined or poured out or made into some sort of concoction. Needless to say, he was trying to shave his legs when the razor blade just slipped and cut him. We put a band-aid on it and told him boys don't shave their legs and all was well.

The next day at school, he went to the nurse for something and he showed her his cut and she gave him a new band-aid...I just wonder what story he told her about what happened to his leg?

Gran-Gran and her Babies

2008-11-25T20:45:00.000-08:00

What a Pretty Family

2008-11-15T20:03:00.000-08:00

Maddie's Christmas Photo shot

2008-11-13T17:03:00.000-08:00

Here are a few of my favorites from today!

Tweezers and Makeup? You decide....

2008-11-09T06:04:00.001-08:00

Well I have just been posting pictures lately and Carter felt like he needed to give me reason to post a good story! For those of you that might need a refresher course in all things Carter, let me start by saying this, he is the epitome of the typical middle child, then add some wonderful bells and whistles, with a heart made of gold and a curiosity of all things living or not, then you have my precious Carter! I often wonder what goes through that sweet head of his when he is coming up with his next, "Boggle Mom" scenario.

I few nights ago we had one of those "Nobody wants to stay in bed" kind of nights. Bubba and I had a movie prepped and ready to go and we were patiently, or not, waiting for the kids to fall asleep before starting. This is really a very rare occurrence at our house, the boys normally fall asleep pretty quickly and don't get up much, but they make up for it when they decide, they are hungry, thirsty to the point of death, and just plain ol' not tired yet. We were up and down a few times with the paddle in hand and thought we had them all convinced it would behoove them to get tired really quickly!

Carter is smart.....He waits patiently and quietly until we have started the movie, sure that we can't hear his little mouse feet, and then he begins his "Master Plan", that he probably doesn't even know the details of until that one special thing catches those big, beautiful, curious blue eyes of his. This night that "special thing" just so happened to be my make-up, ALL OF IT!

You see, I sold Mary Kay for a short time and so did my cousin many years back. She had a few big organizing things that she gave me when I started. So instead of narrowing down my make-up collection to just the few colors that I actually use, I leave them all in one of these organizing things. I guess I just like to have the option of wearing hot pink eye shadow and maroon blush, just in case I wake up with wild hair someday!

Thanks to Carter that will never have the chance to happen, because he sneaked back to my room during the movie and broke every color of make-up into dust with the TWEEZERS!

Here is a picture of his masterpiece: Do Tweezers and Makeup go together? You decide......

Baby Boy

2008-11-07T17:48:00.000-08:00

I wanted to test out my black drop cloth material, so I called Dawson over. He just got a fresh
haircut and he just looked so cute! This is my baby boy!

Boys on White Backdrop

2008-11-02T12:24:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to use this white backdrop, so I called the boys over while they were playing outside and got a few cute playful pictures.

Beautiful Maddie Photo Shoot

2008-11-01T13:07:00.000-07:00

I took some pictures of Maddie this morning! I think I got a few good ones! These are a few that I thought were good.

Dawson Pictures from the Photo Shoot

2008-10-27T12:55:00.000-07:00

Here are some really great pictures of Dawson from the Photo Shoot! He was the only one half way cooperating that day!

My First Real Photo Shoot

2008-10-26T16:47:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favorite pictures I took today of Jonathan and his family and our family! Some of the ones of Makayla are really good! The boys were being uncooperative, so that was frustrating but it turned out to be a great Photo Shoot for Makayla!

Dawson and Wags

2008-10-24T06:07:00.000-07:00

Dawson's kindergarten class has a pet dog named Wags! Dawson got to bring Wags home for the second time yesterday. He was very excited about it and loves to pretend Wags is real and talk to him. Yesterday Dawson went on his first field trip(a practice one) to the fire station and the park near his school. At the fire station they got to make fire chief hats for themselves, so naturally when Dawson got home he immediately went to work on making one for Wags! He is very creative. He worked all afternoon to get it just right and then before bedtime I helped him fit it on Wags' head and glue the ends together! I just thought it was so cute, so I took some pictures of him and Wags this morning before school to share with everyone!Today Dawson is going on his first "real" field trip to the Tyler Zoo! It is real because they get to ride the bus and wear their class shirts! Yesterday they just walked to the fire station and park because it is so close to his school!

Quick Photo Shoot with the Kids today!

2008-10-23T14:34:00.000-07:00

I took these pictures of the boys this summer. We went to a really pretty park in Tyler I needed some new ones. Even though we didn't have our good camera. I thought some of them turned out pretty good. It really wasn't the best day for pictures because it was really hot and the sun was pretty much in our eyes in every direction but I made them suffer through it anyways. In some of the pictures you can really tell what the boys thought about taking pictures that day! I think if they would have been brave enough to tell me what they thought, it probably wouldn't have been very nice. I guess it is a good thing we have instilled "the fear" in them! =) I hope you enjoy!

Tent Sleeping

2008-09-07T18:33:00.000-07:00

Dawson slept in his tent all last week and this is starting the second week of tent sleeping!
You would think he would be uncomfortable after that long and want to sleep in his bed but he doesn't. He loves doing this and I guess I will let him as long as he wants as long as he is sleeping well. I just thought I would share. My boys have always slept well and slept in their own beds but for those of you whose kids demand to sleep in your bed and you don't really want them to. Maybe try a tent! It seems to be wonderful for a kid!

School Is In Full Swing!

2008-08-26T15:16:00.000-07:00

Ok, well there is a lot to tell so I will start with Monday.

Monday came way too early but all the boys were up and excited to go(even Carter,which has Not been excited up until then)so all was well, until we got in the car and tried to actually get them to school. The traffic was horrendous, not to mention the fact that there is not even half as much parking as needed at the actual school. But we finally got them there and settled and they had a great day!

Dawson came home telling all the News! He is very expressive and funny! He told me that there was 200 or 20 hundred people in the cafeteria and he felt like PUKING! =) He was telling me about the kids that got in trouble and had to change their color to yellow, "which is not a good place to be" he said. Blake switches classes 4 times this year and he is very excited about that! He loves school, so every day is a good day but he makes sure that when we walk in the school to take Dawson to his class that he stays way in front of us so no one says him with his Mom and Dad...I think it is a 4th grade BOY ThING! Carter had a good day as well and was telling us all about the fake money they can earn and spend at the store in their class of donated items!(very cool idea) All in all Day 1 was a success!

The boys all had Great First weeks at school! Even Carter's attitude was converted from not wanting to go to school, and weighing whether or not he could live with me going to jail if he didn't go, To loving every minute of it and wishing this was not a 3 day weekend because he didn't want to miss a day! He goes from one extreme to another, there is no middle ground with him! He has that all or nothing attitude!

My classes are going to be Great! Ofcourse we haven't really done anything yet. I have taken maybe 1 page of notes in each class but it will come soon enough so I am not complaining! I am looking forward to the semester! For those of you who don't know my Major, it is Graphic Design/Photography..But the Degree will be in Graphic Design and I will just get a certificate in Photography...

A few fun Photos of Carter and Dawson

2008-08-25T12:31:00.000-07:00

This is just a picture Blog. No real significance, just playing. Blake wasn't cooperating so he didn't get pictured this time. I will post the first day of school later or tomorrow

Summer Update

2008-08-08T12:33:00.000-07:00

Well I haven't posted anything in quite a while and I have been getting some pressure from some people to post something, so I figured I better not let them down!
We started our summer off playing baseball and Carter made All-stars! They won 1 game and lost 1 game! He had a good time and it was very exciting for him. He is a very good player.
After baseball was over the boys filled their summer with lots of swimming, going to Fab Fridays at the library, where they saw jugglers and exotic animals, and spending time at VBS. They loved VBS so much, that Dawson said he wanted to go all the days. Unfortunately for him they only last 5 days. I actually think he thought that was school, since he will be starting kindergarten this fall I guess he thought it was time for school to start already. I am glad he is so excited about going but it is taking me a little more time to get used to the idea of my baby boy going to school. He is definitely ready for sure but I guess it is just that milestone for me and knowing I don't have a baby anymore. We have spent a lot of time playing with friends and usually there is water involved in some way, whether it be at a spray ground or a swimming pool, it seems that we are drawn to water! That is great for me because I really enjoy swimming and watching them swim. Dawson learned how to swim with NO floaties this summer and now he is probably the strongest swimmer out of all three boys. He is a regular fish! They have also enjoyed visiting grandparents and doing some fun and exciting new things with them. Gran- Gran came and spent the night at our house with them and went swimming with them in our pool. They really thought that was cool and then they had a sleep over in the living room with Gran-Gran, and Bubba and I went to see a late movie, so we didn't interrupt their time together. =) They spent several weekends with Grammy and Grampy in Carthage where they always get to do fun things and eat ice cream every night! They just got back from Papa John and Gigi's house, where they got to swim in the lake and hold alligators and feed other animals, then they went to a movie and shopping for school clothes and shoes!
They also went to a second VBS that was a different theme than the first and it was a night! They really loved it too. I think the second one was their favorite one because it was smaller and they probably got more attention and they fed them supper every night! We are now winding down at the end of the summer, trying to get everything ready to start school. We are almost there! We have one more trip planned to go swimming at our favorite pool with some friends and then Bubba is taking off the week right before school starts so maybe we will have a surprise trip for them or something...who knows what is up Daddy's sleeve?
A few weeks ago we got to go out to eat with the Newton's, who we miss very much. The kids have all grown up together and we miss them but it is always nice to see them and catch up when we can..We are going to try to travel to CO this Christmas and see them at their house! Jacob is planning some snow boarding for us!
We also had our summer trip to Deadwood to visit MawMaw and Papa. This time we also took 5 generation pictures with Grandma Bott.
Jonathan and Makayla came, so anytime I get to see my niece and my brother I am happy!
I think that should catch everyone us on the Smith's. Blake will start 4th grade, Carter 2nd grade, and Dawson Kindergarten!

Sand Box

2008-03-26T18:01:00.001-07:00

Well Dawson just turned five and we were trying to think of something to get him that could be used outside. He loves to play in the sand so we decided we would build him a sand box. here are some pictures of the sand box and the boys all playing in it.

Playing outside in the nice weather!

2008-02-11T15:35:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to post a few pictures of the boys playing outside today! I was also playing with the colors on my camera so some of them look funny but we had fun and that is what counts. There is one of our new little dog too.

My Super Smart and Talented Son

2008-01-07T17:56:00.000-08:00

Blake likes to build things all the time. He builds with Lego's, Kynex, or whatever he gets. He loves it and he has always been very good at it. He does it all by himself with no help from anyone. This is one of his latest builds that he built after school today. He builds something new almost everyday! This is so cool because he put a motor in it that turns the propeller!

Tree Climbing Boys

2007-10-25T14:19:00.000-07:00

At my house I believe that boys should be boys. So this is what boys think is fun, safe entertainment! They like to climb trees, just to find a weak limb that they can swing and bounce on enough that it breaks out from under them and they fall to the ground along with the limb. Then they get up laughing and proud of themselves for their great accomplishment. And if one of them is not enough to get that stubborn limb down then we will just try it with both at the same time. Miraculously we have never had any broken bones or any other major injuries, YET! But I really do think that if you let kids play and do things and they aren't scared then you are less likely to get hurt. I think that some injuries happen when parents are to over protective and then kids sneak and do it with out supervision. Here are some pictures of my dare devils at work.

Oh and just a funny side note. Carter is wearing the Superman shirt and everyday when he gets home he puts his Spider-man costume on under his clothes. So that way at any moment he can find his secret place to hide and become a Super Hero that saves people. He says that is just want Super heroes do. If you look really close at the picture of both of them hanging together, you can see the black Spider-Man suit wear Carter's pants are falling off! I just think this is so cute and funny and I love the way he uses his imagination and plays.

Dawson

2007-10-22T10:39:00.000-07:00

Dawson went to his best girlfriends party this past weekend. It was a John Deere Party! They had bicycle races and Macy got a John Deere Gator(hence the party) and then they rode it all over the park! It was a blast and I got some really good pictures of them. The other two girls are twins and they are our other best friends too.. Macy's mom decorates her cakes and I am always very impressed by them so here is a picture for you to see. Yes, Michael, Dawson does have friends that are boys, they just didn't happen to be at the party but we played with one that afternoon! But don't you think he has good taste in girls! Enjoy!

The Way Carter's Brain Works!

2007-10-01T11:39:00.000-07:00

Well I was going through the boys rooms this morning like I do most mornings and get dirty clothes to wash and just check on things and this is what I found in Carter's room this morning...Well he must have been up later than we thought last night working on a way for us not to be able to close his door all the way! Those of you that know Carter know that bedtime is not his favorite time and it takes him twice as long as everyone else to fall asleep....So we are ready for this every night. Normally we are really calm with him and give him some extra time to get settled and we do this by making them go to bed a little early or just being prepared for him getting up and down a few times..But you know our patience wears out after a certain time at night and we end up shutting his door and telling him if we hear it come open again then he needs to have his butt prepared for a spanking! Well last night we didn't have to much trouble...that we knew of anyways....

Here is what he was doing to get himself prepared for us to come close his door just incase it came to that as it usually does!

How smart is this!!

Oh and yes that is a big hole behind his door and most doors in our house because boys don't know how to just open a door they only know how to SLING and the noise of the door crashing through the wall lets them know that "YES" it is open with out a doubt!

3 Dare Devils

2007-10-01T08:38:00.001-07:00

This is what my boys like to do. They like to see how high they swing and then jump out at the top of the incline so they can have the maximum time to do tricks before landing.. Blake will climb and jump from the top of most anything as long as there is just a slight chance he might break his arms or legs! He likes to live on a little edge! Carter doesn't go quite that far but he likes to land in a roll..It is more fun that way..Landing on his feet wouldn't be as fun or have quite the same effect. Dawson on the other hand is a little more cautious and doesn't really know about jumping from a swing going high so he would rather almost be stopped and then just fall out! He did get a little brave at the end a jumped a little bit but nothing like Blake and Carter! Enjoy the pictures of my little Dare Devils

Boys

2007-09-28T14:53:00.000-07:00

The boys are all super excited about going to their first football game of the season tonight so ofcourse I had to that their picture in their shirts. Dawson has gotten to go to two pep-rallies at the highschool since I have a friend that works there. He loves to go! These pictures are taken in Dawson's room and they are all playing in a new tent that Dawson and I found today at a garage sale! That is what we do on Friday's! It is our special time together and we love it. We haven't been one week without finding something that we can't live without! We have found some really good deals on some great toys and that is good since I made them clean out their rooms about 2 months ago and they didn't have much left to play with so we are restocking with more age appropriate toys in a fun and inexpensive way!

All kids Beware the BOOGIE MAN is here!

2007-09-26T12:11:00.000-07:00

Just thought I would share come pictures of Caci in her finest hour!

Summer Fun

2007-08-09T18:43:00.000-07:00

Well I haven't posted all summer so let me catch y'all up. The boys and I have been super busy this summer. We have play dates every Monday with our girlfriends. Then later in the week on most weeks we play with some other friends. We went to the Library on Fab Fridays and learned how to make things with string and went to a Harry Potter party were we made fun hats and things. We have been swimming and going to Fun Forest. We play at the park and play outside in the yard. Carter and Dawson have both learned how to ride their bikes with out training wheels this summer and Carter is learning to swim with out floaties. I have really enjoyed my time with them this summer but I am also ready for school to start again so the older boys can get back on a better routine and back talk someone else for a change. Can I get an AMEN!! The boys have gotten to do some new things this summer. They all got to go to Gran-Gran's house individually and do fun things with just her. Blake got to go to the lake while he was there and go exploring the 3 acres for birds nests and other cool things in nature and he a Gran-Gran caught a Gopher! He thoroughly enjoyed his alone time. Dawson helped her dig up some bricks and helped work in the yard. He loves to be outside but he misses his brothers so he didn't stay as long. Carter tested out Gran's pitching arm on the freshly mowed baseball field she prepared in the yard just for him. I think that is pretty much all he wanted to do, so that is what they did. Baseball, Baseball, and more Baseball!! Also they all got to go to Mamaw's house with Papa John and go fishing!! They all caught a bunch of fish and some pretty big ones. They helped Papa clean the fish and then they fried them and ate them! They have also gone to Grammy and Grampy's house and swam and helped mow the yard and help with yard sales and all sorts of other fun things. They have had a wonderful summer. The only thing we have left to do hopefully before school starts is we are going to try to take them to Splash Kingdom, the new water park in Canton.

3.0

2007-05-11T20:19:00.000-07:00

3.0, Yes that's right! I got a 3.0 this semester. I took 4 classes and worked full time and have 3 boys and went through sicknesses and baseball practice this semester and still ended up with a 3.0. I am very excited about this. I have worked so hard this semester to try and keep up and it has finally paid off. Ofcourse, I still have plenty more semesters to go but hopefully this is the start of a trend..This is 2 semesters in a row with a 3.0. Yay!!!

Out Smithed by a Jones

2007-04-21T13:16:00.000-07:00

Well, It seems that I have been out done again with all of these blogs that are being done almost daily. Well, I can't say that I can commit myself to that rigorous schedule but I guess I should try to stay more up to date.

Let's see I guess I will just start with today....First of all I was looking forward to sleeping in this morning since it is Saturday and all, but to my dismay I was awakened at 6am by the sound of screaming that the tv had a blue screen and he couldn't see the cartoons..yes, it was Carter, for those of you who know me you will know that this is a normal routine at our house only we normally make sure that the tv is NOT on the BLUE screen!! So I very grouchily got my pillow and blanket and went to the couch and fixed the tv and I just figured I would stay there so I would be closer for the next request. Then about 30 min. later ofcourse he is hungry, but I threatened him with an inch of his life that if he asked me for anything else before 7:30 he would be starving all day long..I know I am mean but I was tired.. So about 7:30 Dawson woke up and I had to make some jelly toast...I was already up since 6am so I decided I would go ahead and take a bath and get ready for the day. We left the house about 8:30 and hit a community garage sale about a mile down the rode. That was fun and then at 10:00 Dawson had soccer..finally a warm day of soccer..After that we went to Target to get the last things for Blake's Birthday Party tomorrow. Then we went to the Life Way Christian Store where I picked out a new Bible for Blake for his present from us. Carter and Dawson loved it there because they have a kids section where they can sit and watch Veggie Tales while parents are shopping. That is the best thing anyone could have thought of in my opinion. It was a quick and painless trip. We have one more stop later at Walmart to get some decorating tube of icing so I can decorate Blake's cake like a rocket ship. At 5:30 we have a birthday party to go to and then I guess that will end our day.
Oh, and I really need to clean out my car to make room for the party stuff.

Tomorrow is Blake's Party...I will post pictures with that.

SNOW in April

2007-04-08T05:54:00.000-07:00

It started snowing yesterday at about 10:00. It snowed for a long time. Several hours. The boys were so excited to see snow. Blake and Carter have played in the snow once before but were probably to young to remember. Dawson has never seen snow and he was so excited. At one point it was really coming down and they said that is looked like a snow globe outside! It has been a while since my last posted but I will try to do better. Dawson is playing soccer and t-ball. Carter is playing t-ball and Blake is playing baseball. I will posted some pictures of them when we get their uniforms.

Please Help

2007-02-21T19:15:00.000-08:00

Well, I figured if everyone is so willing to help Peyton with her homework then it would only be fair if you helped me with mine too. Well I have this project due in about a month for my government class. I have to find 10 political cartoons that are recent(No later than January) And I have to know what that mean and what the symbolism is and junk like that. If you find anything that you understand and can explain to me fairly easily then please email them to me at windy.smith1@gmail.com

They can come from anywhere.

Thanks in advance for your help

Derby Race Winner

2007-02-02T20:39:00.000-08:00

Blake had his first Pinewood Derby Race tonight at Boy scouts and he won first place in all 8 races. Then they raced all the first place winners from each age ground and he won 1st place in the best of 4 races. Blake's car is the back one in the middle row. It has magnetic balls going down the middle. He was very excited and now he will get to go on and compete in the regional race in Tyler next month. Here are a few pictures of our night.

Little Hands everywhere

2007-01-19T20:13:00.000-08:00

Well, this post is just a fun one to show how you can find your children's hand prints almost anywhere you look. Sometimes in the funniest places. Well, my house is always under some sort of never ending construction. My kids have written and drawn on every wall in our house but this one is special. I put powder on after I take a bath and some always ends up on the floor and sometimes I don't remember the clean it up right then. Well, just the other day I was going into the boys bathroom and I found this hand print in the powder on the floor. That just made my day! Sometimes we take the little things for granted when we should enjoy them. I hope this makes you smile. Children are wonderful aren't they.

Neon

2006-12-19T10:21:00.000-08:00

Just a Fun Picture!

Christmas

2006-12-19T09:59:00.000-08:00

We had Christmas in Longview on Sunday. First we went to Mom's. We had a really good time visiting! The boys had a great time and they have a new favorite person, Beau!(Bo)?? We can call him Beau Bo for now!!haha
They had a great time playing with him!!! We opened presents and ate and watched the boys playing with their new toys. Dawson got a guitar(gi-bar)! He was serenading us with Christmas songs for hours!(Thank You Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Erin) Blake got 5 or 7 Bionicles and he put everyone of them together in NO time and then it was time for war! Carter got a Power Ranger Training kit so he was kicking it everywhere!
They all had a great time.

Then we went to Dad's and ofcourse right when we walked through the door, the boys went right to the tree and started passsing out presents. There was no need to wait, right? They were old pro's at this by now!
They all had about 1000 presents so their eyes were very big. Dawson said he got to much presents! I told him I would remember that one for later in life!! After the ripping and tearing we ate Dad's famous cheesy chicken spagetti. It was wonderful!! We couldn't have asked for a better day!

Enjoy some pictures!!

Just Right

2006-12-12T09:39:00.000-08:00

On Sunday after church we went searching for the perfect tree.

Yes I know we are a litte late this year but we had some things to finish on the house before the tree would fit.
We went to our favorite tree farm and took a short hayride to the field of trees. Carter wanted the not so safe task of holding the saw. Ofcourse trying to cut down everything in site.
We finally found the one we wanted and all the boys got to try to cut the tree down.
It was fun and when we got home we decorated it.
I let the boys hang every ornament other that a select few collectables and I didn't move a single one that they put up there. My mom should learn a thing or two from me!!! The tree looks gorgeous.

Amanda's Shower

2006-12-12T09:33:00.000-08:00

Well this past weekend Caci, Brin, and I gave Amanda a wedding shower. It was at Aunt Joi's house and it turned out great. She got a lot of things that she hadn't gotten any of yet. She was very excited about that. She got her dishes and some towels and some other much needed household items. Over all it was a hit.

Nascar

2006-11-09T08:23:00.000-08:00

We went with Blake on November 4th to the Nascar race with his Cub Scout Pack. We ofcourse rode alone and we got there about an hour ahead of the rest of the Pack. We we walked up and down all the vendors trailors of all the racers and got lots of free stuff. It was really fun and Blake really enjoyed racking up on all that LOOT!! He was very encouraging of Bubba and I to sign up for everything we could so he could get the stuff. We did this for about 3 hours....
It went by fast and we only covered one side of vendors..there were that many more on the other side of the raceway. Blake got his picture taken with some of the Cars Characters. It was great fun until about midway through the race that is...

We went to our seats about 30 minutes before race time and we got to see all the racers get escorted to their cars. We had really good seats, we where about 3 rows from the track and straight across from the pit crews. I know this sounds ok so far but just give me a few more lines to break it down.

The race started and the cars were really loud and when they came by us in a group it made the seats vibrate and our hair blow. That was also infact really cool. Now the next 80 laps or so were the down fall to this great outing. Well there were 4 wrecks about back to back and that slows the race down and that is when to smokers let loose. I mean we were surrounded by smokers lighting up one after another for atleast an hour....It was getting ridiculous. Neither Bubba nor I can stand that for to long and the time had come for us to go and get some fresh air. We went to the bathroom and BLake decided he wanted to go ahead and go because Bubba had told him earlier that we would go down town by all the sky scrapers and show Blake which ones he works in when he comes to Dallas. Blake thought that was really cool and we went to eat at Chuy's downtown(the best mexican food around by far) and that finished off a great day.

We all had a blast spending time together. We haven't done anything with just Blake for a really long time. Blake had such a great time. We really need to spend more special time with all the kids individually when we can. So all in all Nascar was a hit!!

Halloween 2006

2006-11-01T16:06:00.000-08:00

We went to our Daycare Church Fall Festival for Halloween this year. Carter has been a little sick so we knew we wouldn't be able to stay out for long so we figured that would be the best idea. They had a great time playing all the games and they got lots of "Good" candy and they did the blow up obsticle course and then we went home. Short and Sweet and to the point. They had a great time and Carter didn't get any worse from our outing so everyone was happy!

What can the boy do?

2006-10-24T18:12:00.000-07:00

Has anyone asked themselves what powers does the boy have? What boy you might ask? Nikki(Frikki)'s son. On the previews for next week the father comes back and he is going through the wall. So if both parents have some sort of special powers then the boy must too, right? He keeps saying that his dad didn't do anything. Well I agree with him, I think that Frikki killed all those people that he went to jail for killing and I also think that he is escaping from prison to try to save them from something. Or I guess he could just be using his powers just because he has them. Since the Cheerleaders father has that black man that can erase everyone's memory and block powers from other special people it still makes me think that all of this is some sort of government experiment that he is incharge of or something. The mention of Sylar hasn't come up lately but I am just assuming that he is the one chasing the cheerleader in the pictures that Isaac painted.

I still think that the congressman is shady and I haven't quite figured him out yet but he did look really shocked when Nikki said that they were blackmailing him just like they did her. Who knows maybe he is just really a jerk.

I am really wondering how Hiro's character is going to evolve in the next episode as far as what he will do with the information he gets from Peter when Peter called him.

I am just chomping at the bits until next week. I really hope they reveal a little more of the story to help put some things together.

Breakdown and back UP again

2006-10-18T12:57:00.000-07:00

Well I recently read that Melissa had her Great Meltdown of 2006 but she didn't let us know the details. Well I recently had my second breakdown of the year. I am only sharing this so Mel knows that we all have them and it is normal, I think! Well my first one was several months ago in August after having a family dinner for my birthday with my dad's side of the family. Nothing happened out of the ordinary but I just lost it on the way home. Who knows why? My parents have been divorced for about 7 1/2 years now but about once a year I have a major breakdown over this. I was feeling like my life wasn't fair and that I was being mistreated. I got really mad about some things but I am over it now. It usually takes me a few days and then it passes until the next year.

Now for my second one, this is on a totally different subject but just a painful. I also have one of these about 1-2 times a year. I was feeling down and out because I feel very overweight and I feel like it is hopeless for me to even try to lose any because I have so much to lose. I am like all the rest of our family and I have the need for instant results. Most of the time I am ok with how I look. I don't think about it much really. I guess I just save it up for one big breakdown. I was feeling like why did I get picked to be the fat one in the family and really distructive things like that but I am over that now too. I would like to lose weight but I know that won't make me a better person. I guess it just all caught up with me. I have been stressed lately with work and school and the boys and house work that seems to never stay caught up. I sometimes feel like there is not enough time in the day to get it all done. Well there it is in a nutshell.

Just my yearly Breakdowns. I had them and now it is time to get on with my LIFE!!!!

Update

2006-09-29T13:07:00.000-07:00

Well I am glad that Michael seems to have a lot of time on his hands to make sure his family is up to date on all the current tv shows and things in his life. As for me, I can't seem to find the time to breath much less keep anyone updated on anything but I just can't sit back and let him really out do me anymore. So I am back! I have been going to school and working and school is going great, work is work, I am just really getting burned out at the daycare. One person can only do so much, you know? Any how, Blake is doing boys scouts and he absolutely loves it. It is just the type of thing he really enjoys to do. It has been fun for all of us. We are going to Camp Tyler tonight for a family cook-out and bike riding for the kids. It will be great fun for them I am sure. I could go on and on about what has been going on but I will have to come back to that tomorrow. Got to go get kids from school.

Work and School

2006-08-16T19:14:00.000-07:00

Well, I am proud to say that my Mary Kay Debut last weekend was a big HIT!!! I made much more money than I ever expected in one day. It was a great feeling. Now I just hope I can keep it up. The boys start school tomorrow so we will be off to an early start. We have to walk both of them to their classes for the first few days of school so they can find their way by themselves on Monday. I am excited for them to go because they are getting really bored now. Carter is starting Kindergarten and Blake is starting Second grade. Charlie is starting to use her leg now without having the surgery so hopefully we won't have to do that. She wouldn't be using her leg if it were out of place but I am a little worried about it staying in place but maybe it just took her extra time since she got so sick and lost a lot of muscle in that leg. Thank you so much for your prayers because I don't know if we could afford to pay much more for her leg. So this is an answer to our prayers for sure. Oh, I start school next week so please pray for me as I take on yet another journey. That is about it, just a little update.

Updates

2006-08-08T16:11:00.000-07:00

Charlie..... She is back to her old self thank goodness. We took her to the vet yesterday and she has a severe bacterial infection and they pumped her full of steriods and antibiotics and sent some home for like 3 weeks but she is much...much better even after one day.

Mary Kay....My website is www.marykay.com/windy
I also go set up to take credit cards just incase you are interested.

2006-08-06T19:41:00.000-07:00

Charlie

2006-08-06T19:21:00.000-07:00

Charlie is our 5 year old Jack Russell Terrier and we have had her since she was a puppy. We love her and she is a big part of our family. She got hit by a car about 3-4 weeks ago and it must have just knicked her because it didn't brake any bones but it knocked her left back hip out of place. She has had a split on her leg for the past 3 weeks and it had to be taken off last Thursday because it was cutting into the bend of her leg and if it hadn't done its job by now then it wasn't going to. So it didn't do what we were hoping it would so now we are looking at an FHO surgery, which in a nutshell, cuts off the ball of the hip so it can't pop out of place anymore and the muscles and scar tissue fill in the area where the ball was and in about 3 months they are usually back to normal with a possible slight limp. Easy enough, Right? Well, now within the past few days of this weekend she had started losing her hair on her nose, ears, legs, and has welps all over her body. Her muscle in her hurt leg that was in a splint for so long is severly atrophied and she won't hardly eat or drink anything. So now before we even think about doing the surgery we will have to get her feeling better. I am just really worried about her she seems really depressed and won't hardly get off the couch. She doesn't go outside unless we carry her out there. This is just not normal behavior at all for a Jack Russell. Please just pray that she gets better soon and it will be fairly inexpensive because we have already spent a small fortune on her and the surgery is another small fortune and we are running out of extra fortunes. Here is a pretty picture of her before she got sick.

MARY KAY GOT ME HOOKED

2006-08-05T15:52:00.000-07:00

Well, Some of you already know my new news! I am officially a Mary Kay Sales Woman! I have my first party booked for August 12 at my MOM's. It is my official DEBUT!! I am very excited about this opportunity to make some extra money to help me pay off my student loans I will be getting to go to college. I am hoping that I will do well enough saling this that I can pay those off before I finish college so I start my Dental Hygiene carreer without any DEBT! I would also really like to quit my job at the Daycare and just go to school even though I love working at the daycare I where I am now I just feel like this is my chance to go to school and I should try to give myself the best opportunity I can to succeed. So if anyone who lives in, OH, I don't know Colorado or Dallas and would like to buy some Mary Kay makeup then you know who to call. I will also have a website within the next week so you can order your own stuff anytime you want too. Isn't that COOL! If you want to call me and order something My number is 903-245-9737. Leave me a message if you call before 2:00 because I will be at work until that time. Thanks ahead of time for you SUPPORT!! hint hint =) hehe

Jersey all grown up

2006-07-16T05:47:00.000-07:00

Well, my little Jersey Girl, is now big. She is about 5 months old now and is still very pretty but she is just a little to much for us to handle. She is a great dog but she needs to live outside. Unfortunately, our fence is not finished and she can't stay outside at our house. We have tried to make her an inside dog but she just isn't. She doesn't really tear anything up but she just has to much energy for us to spend enough time with her since we are both gone all day at work. We are going to try to find a new home for her soon and I would like to offer her to anyone in our family that wants her first because I know that she would be taken care of. So if you are interested or know someone who might be let me know. Here are some recent pictures.

The Cake

2006-07-03T11:53:00.000-07:00

Well here is the picture of the cake after the crevace had done its misfortune. This is actually a good picture, I think someone must have pushed it back together a little for this picture because the devestation was much greater than it appears in this picture.

Carter's 5th Birthday Party

2006-07-02T13:57:00.000-07:00

Carter's 5th Birthday Party has come and gone. We celebrated on Saturday, July 1 at Fun Forest! There were lots of kids there and we all had lots of fun. They ran and ate and ran and played in the water for 2 hours. We had a Superman cake that I very carefully decorated freehand and it was awesome. Then on the ride there it started getting a very big crevace right down the center of the cake and it just kept on getting wider and wider. My perfect work of art was ruined.
By the time we actually got to the cake part it looked like we let a 2 year old have his way cutting his own cake. Yes it was pretty bad looking by that time. Oh well I guess it tasted pretty good though because the kids devoured it and there was only a small piece left.
That is always a plus for me not to have to take cake home. I guess the hard work wasn't for nothing after all. Carter got all kinds of cool Superman items from Backpacks to a blowup muscle shirt(which is his favorite)and a fishing pole that he just had to have. I would say it was a HIT!! Here are a few pictures, enjoy!

Disney World

2006-06-22T13:11:00.000-07:00

We have been home from Disney World for about 2 weeks now and I am just now getting around to posting some pictures. We have a wonderful time. We were there for 5 days. You have to stay for atleast the long to be able to go to all the different parks. I wish we would have stayed for about 2 more days because there were some things that I would have liked to go back and do but there is just so much you can't hardly fit it all in. It was extremely hot during the day until about 4:30-5:00 when the sun started going down and then the nights were really nice. Blake has a great time riding all the rides. Carter had most fun at the water parks.
Dawson has the most fun seeing all the Characters and the water parks. There is fun for all ages. Just make sure you have strollers for young ones because we didn't and ended up having to buy 2 umbrella stollers while we were there because it is just to much walking for those little legs. I really enjoyed all of it. They have some awesome rides but they also have good shows and some indoor rides in the a/c which it great. I think my favorite part of the trip was the firework and light shows at night at each different park. The fireworks at Magic Kingdom were Awesome. Here at just a few pictures of our trip. We didn't take as many pictures as we should have but no one wanted to hold the camera all day long.. We also went to the beach on the way there and on the way back but the is another post....

Crazy Clippers

2006-05-28T18:15:00.000-07:00

Well, we decided we would give the boys haircuts today at home for the first time. I was just going to buzz Blake since he wears his hair short anyways. I didn't really realize how short it was going to be, but after a few hours I am used to it now and I really like it. Ofcourse, when Carter saw Blake's hair he wanted his cut just like it which surprised me a little bit because he likes to comb his hair like Superman. I refused to do Carter's so Bubba did his. Then Dawson climbed up on the bathroom counter when Carter was done and said now it is my turn. So they all got buzzed. They look cute and it is a good Summer look.

The love of Baseball

2006-05-21T07:11:00.000-07:00

Dawson is 3 years old and he LOVES baseball. I wish he could have played this year. Blake and Carter like to play but I think both of them would be ok if they didn't have anymore games!
Dawson on the other hand would be heart broken if they didn't have anymore games. It is his absolute favorite thing in the world. He loves to go to the baseball field and watch the games. Everyday when we get home from school he runs to his room and puts on his baseball pants and baseball shoes. We don't have any extra baseball jersey's but he has several football jerseys and he wears them. He doesn't know the difference!!
He practices at home everyday until bedtime unless we are at the baseball field watching a game. He can hit and throw almost as good as his brothers! He will hit the ball however many times you throw it to him and he will chase his own balls. He doesn't care as long as he gets to play. When I am tired of pitching to him he will just go and hit of the Tee. He never gets tired of hitting or chasing all of his balls. He is for sure the athelete of the bunch. Dawson has a friend named Kyle that he plays with at every game.

They are the same age and they just love eachother!!
I can't wait until next year when Dawson can play!! As for the other two I don't know what they will decide to do.
I am sure once they see Dawson outdoing them they will step up their game. As for now, Carter's favorite position is sitting on the bench and just being BATTER!!
He really does like it, last game he sat out the first few innings and when his coach told him the news, Carter said "YES, I get to sit on the bench and be Batter!!" I have never seen a kid be so happy to sit the bench!!!

Carter's Graduation

2006-05-21T06:06:00.000-07:00

Carter graduated from Pre-School on Friday.
He has had a great year! His teacher is Ms. Keri, she has been great for Carter, she has 3 boys of her own so she knows just how boys are. That is a blessing for us because Carter is ALL BOY! He is the sweetest and most polite boy you will meet but he still does boy things constantly. We are so glad Ms. Keri was a part of Carter's life and she has done a great job getting him ready for Kindergarten!!! The question is, Are they ready for him?? We shall see!! He did great in the ceremony.
They sang about 5-6 songs and he sang all of them..that may not seem like much to some of you but the child doesn't really like to sing so this was MAJOR at our house!!! They have 3 Pre-K classes at his school so after the kids sang each teacher said something about each child. It was nice. Then afterwards we had cookies and lemonade. Then off we went to Baseball. After the baseball game all the kids went home with Grammy...WHEW...now I can relax for a minute.

Don't be THAT Parent!!!

2006-05-11T20:35:00.002-07:00

Tonight the boys had baseball ofcourse. Blake and Carter played at the same time but in different places this time. Bubba went with Carter and Dawson and I went to Blake's game. Blake played in left field the whole game except one inning in the middle of the game. The last inning he and another little boy were out in the outfield throwing thier hats in the air and not paying attention. There were NO balls hit to the outfield the entire game so they were getting a little bored after 1 hour and 45 min. Anyways ofcourse one of the dads that helps the coach said something to them about paying attention and that was fine until after the game...Another dad was talking to them after the game and BUbba and I think that he must have played baseball somewhere college level or so but anyways..He is telling them that he is proud of them and that they have potential to be a good team and all the normal AFTER THE GAME TALK..And then out of his mouth comes... Some of you guys had a great game but some of you need to pay more attention or we aren't going to be able to win. I was thinking to myself if he is talking about my son that was playing in the outfield where no ball was hit all night or any night for that matter HE MUST BE OUT OF HIS MIND!!!! I don't need my 7 year old to have a COMPLEX..They already have him scared to swing the bat because they say don't swing unless it is a STRIKE...well DID you tell them what a STRIKE was??? My whole theory on that subject for a 7 year old is go down swinging, if you think it even looks close SWING...you will never hit it just standing there...RIGHT??? Can I get an AMEN??? Now here is the really funny part, the dad that was saying that, was obviously not talking to his own son right? Because they would never be caught not paying attention, but little does he know, I have a picture of his son picking grass in the outfield of the last game. So would I be right in saying that it would have been his fault if we would have lost the last game???? That is what I am going to tell him next time he makes a comment like that.. I guess I will print the picture and have it with me at all times just waiting for the right time to use it!!! He just doesn't know who he is MESSING with!!

I am just waiting for the vast array of comments for this one since I know that sports and children get our family all riled up and this covers both!!!!

The Rowdy Boy

2006-05-10T16:17:00.000-07:00

This is Blake's 3rd game. His team is the Rowdy Boys, which fits them perfectly! They lost thier first game and have won the past 2 games. His team has improved by leaps and bounds. I was really wondering how the season was going to go after the first game but since then they have really done a great job. Blake plays in the outfield, not always the same position. He is just now getting the hang of things, but this is his first time. He has got the skills part down pretty good, he is just now really understanding the game. He really likes to play and he has had a really good time so far. I think his favorite part is when the game is over and he gets a SNACK. Hey, what can I say the boy is always hungry and every event is better with food, right?

Carter Baseball

2006-05-10T16:11:00.000-07:00

This is Carter at his 2nd baseball game. We finally got a new memory chip for our camera. He looks just like a little baseball player. They did great in thier game. You can really see improvement with every game. He plays t-ball so most times both teams bat until thye score 7 runs and then they switch. He got to hit 4 or 5 times and got on base everytime and scored a run!! This was very exciting because it was his first time to cross home plate because the other times he got up to bat he knocked in the 7th run and then they had to go back out on the field. He is on the Red Raiders. He is just loving baseball. I really think he likes his uniform more than anything because he can dress-up like a baseball player!!! He loves to dress-up! I just thought I would share some pictures with you of Carter's baseball experience!!

Spotlessly Clean

2006-05-08T13:55:00.000-07:00

This weekend Caci,Ben, Bubba and I went out to the Movies and out to eat all alone!! This is very rare especially for Caci and Ben so you can imagine wanting to take every minute we can to enjoy this prized commodity. We went to see Mission Impossible 3, which is great by the way. Then we went to eat at The Texas Roadhouse, Ben's favorite choice. I like it to, but I really just wanted cheese fries for some reason, and NO I am not pregnant. We all know that The Outback has the best cheese fries in the Know World, so my fries weren't as good as they could have been but all in all the meal was great! I think we would have liked the food anywhere since we actually got to eat and have adult conversation without having to stop every few minutes to spank a child or take them to the bathroom. We did this on Saturday and then on Sunday we invited them to church with us because we have found a church that we really like and we just wanted them to come with us and check it out. So they did and they brought some brisket for lunch and Caci and I cooked baked beans. It was a great energy meal to get us ready for Spring, Winter, Summer, and Fall cleaning. Yes it has been THAT LONG since I have cleaned. SO needless to say this was a great undertaking but we got it done. Thanks to Caci ofcourse!!!! We got all the big major rooms done while she was here and I have finished the rest except my room but I am getting there. Don't Worry Caci, It is still CLEAN!!! It was so nice today to come home to a clean house. I could actually just sit down and work on my blog.. I just thought I would share this story with everyone because I would just be lost without my BEST FRIEND CACI...and my house would still be DIRTY!!!! I love you Caci!!!

Twisting of ARMS and LEGS

2006-05-04T13:43:00.000-07:00

Well, I have been getting all kinds of FLACK for having a busy life, I guess. I haven't posted anything for about a week or more and I get calls and posts about me HIDING!!!
Believe me at times I would have rather been hiding but no such LUCK... It is called BOYS and Baseball. They have both only had one game and that was on Monday night and I am already ready for this season to be over. I guess I just wasn't ready for something to rule my life...as if I have time for something else anyways. Anyways I guess I should get everyone caught up since it seems that I have some people concerned. Lets start with this past weekend. Well, I have told you about my laundry problem and how it is much WORSE than any of yours. On Sunday after church Bubba decides it would be a NOVEL idea that we get all of the clothes out of the whole house that are dirty(which is 95% of everything we own) and bring them to to living room and sort them and then wash them. Well come to find out we had a lot more than we even thought possible. So being the semi-smart person that I am I decide there is "NO WAY IN H$##" That I am going to do all that LAUNDRY because by the time I am finished it will all be dirty again, hince the vicious cycle. So I load it up and take it to the Laundry Mat.
I think I did about 30 loads of laundry and I got it all done in one day!!! So that was an accomplishment. But it was Bitter Sweet because on my last trip to go dry the final loads I got a speeding ticket on the way there.
THAT WAS A LOW BLOW!! Now comes Monday, I get up to go to work like always, but guess what is different about this morning, I have clothes to wear!!!! Go to work, then come home and realize, OH CRAP, Blake and Carter both have games tonight and Carter needs a helmet and Blake needs socks, belt, and white pants. So off we go to the store..Walmart had the socks and the helmet but not the pants or belt so now we have to make the trip to Tyler. On a normal day the 15 to 20 minute drive is No Problem but today time is of the essence and I hate to be rushed. So we get home with all of our LOOT and get changed for baseball speedy fast and jump right back in the car and go to baseball for 2 hours. We get back home and take baths and go to bed and ofcourse they are hungry again but TO BAD tonight! I already fed them supper and they both had a snack after thier games and that was just the best I could do for them. Tuesday, Blake stayed home for school for the first time this year I think because his ears hurt and his right ear was draining. But he felt ok that afternoon and he had a musical performance at his school at 7:00 and didn't want to miss it so we packed up and went. He did great and I am glad he went. Wednesday, Blake goes back to school but his ears still hurt, so after school we went to the doctor, and he has Swimmers Ear is both ears. We went straight from the doctors office to the park for our play date that we have every Wednesday with some friends. We left there at 5:00 to come home and eat supper SUPER FAST because YOU GUESSED IT, Baseball Practice....Tonight is Thursday and Blake has a game at 8:00, which I am really hoping gets rained out.. Then tomorrow Grammy(Kathy) is coming to take them away for the weekend...Can You Say HALLELUJAH!!!!

I hope this satisfies my POSSE!!!!

PIG STY

2006-04-26T14:12:00.000-07:00

I am just ashamed of myself. I normally wouldn't share a story like this but I think I just need too. I have been at home alone for the past 2 days while Bubba has been in Georgetown working. I know that most of you haven't been to my house but there are several that have. Boy do I feel sorry for the few that have. Our house is 4 bedrooms and 2 baths. Just a typical sized house..RIGHT??? It should be easy enough to keep clean...RIGHT??? NOPE, not for me. I just don't understand how I can have such a lack of respect for myself and my family that I could ever let our house get to the point that it is now. AND IT STAYS LIKE THIS MOST OF THE TIME!!! You could say it is because I work and have 3 boys....SURE that could be it....but I just don't buy that one anymore. I can't stand for our house to be this dirty but it just seems that I have NO CONTROL. I am totally embarassed every time someone comes over. Especially if it is a surprise visit, that includes any visit that I don't know about atleast 24 hours in advance. In 24 hours atleast I can atempt to clean a little and HIDE the rest!!! I know that some people talk about having a laundry problem...It probably pales in comparison to mine..
I promise.. come over here and you will no longer feel yours is that bad... You would probably RUN back to yours with open arms!!! I feel like a have lost the battle. AND if this isn't bad enough we are SLOWLY remodeling our house...VERY SLOWLY...so even when it is clean it doesn't really look clean. OH I JUST HATE IT!!! I have officially LOST IT!!! In the past 2 days while Bubba has been gone I have thought about cleaning hundreds of times but just haven't done it yet and here it is 2 HOURS before his return home that I am once again just thinking about it and BLOGGING instead.
I really am going to do it.. I started taking out the TRASH..but NOW where do I go....Oh the choices are limitless..I just don't think 2 hours is enough time to get the job done..I really need a MAID but they would just LAUGH in my face or turn a RUN..LOTTERY HERE I COME...Just build a new house, That is my solution!!!!

MOM, What's for SNACK???

2006-04-25T16:18:00.000-07:00

MOM, What's for SNACK???
This is what I hear from the time we get home from school until we go to bed. When will it ever END??? I gave them fruit snacks for a snack when we got home, but NO, that just wasn't good enough for the little monsters....guess what the complaining got them....NOTHING!!!! We had mini corn dogs and french fries for supper and ofcourse after they all clean thier plates...I hear it coming........Yep there it is, the sound of MOM, what can I have for snack??? Well, being the MOM, they are looking to for an answer, I tell them, let me think about it for a minute and I will see what we have....Hoping this answer will hold them over until bedtime and then when they ask me I can just say, OH SORRY, It is too late, it is bedtime. Maybe tomorrow!!! NOPE not working tonight, they all must have a tape worm that conveniently places itself in thier little bodies on the nights that MOM just wants to be lazy and not clean anymore dishes. Well I gave into the pressure because I just can't listen to anymore whine today!!
I remember that I bought some frozen yogurt at the store last night. OOOH, wait I have an idea. I also have strawberries and bananas.
YES!!! I have a snack and it is HEALTHY!!! LOOK AT ME GO!!!! I push a button and in literally seconds we have SMOOTHIES!!!! YEAH, The crowd goes WiLd!!! Now we are happy and ready for bed!!

Two down and One to go!!!!

2006-04-24T14:38:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Blake's Birthday at Kids Depot on Saturday. It was 2 1/2 hours of solid running around for the kids. As for the parents, we all felt like we had just finished a triathalon after the first thirty minutes because it was so hot in there. They obviously forget to mention in your party plan package that you have to get numerous people to go complain before the manager will turn the air on. Turn ON, not down to get it cooler, that SORRY SUCKER didn't even have it turned on. It was absolutely ridiculous!!! So, if that wasn't enough, one of the parents just dropped thier kid off at the party which would have been fine with me if they would have told me. I mean they didn't show back up until the party was officially over. I just thought that was a little over board for a 7 year old. Well actually it bothered Bubba a lot more than it bothered me but it was still a little CRAZY!!! Well the most important thing it that "Another one bites the dust"!!!(OH yeah and the kids had fun too)

Birthday Party Nightmares!!!

2006-04-18T06:34:00.000-07:00

I know that some of our family members love to plan parties! Can you say CRAZY??? haha Well I am not that way at all. Don't get me wrong I love to attend a well thought out party just as long as I am not the planner. Our boys have Birthdays in March, April, and July. The March and April birthdays are both on the 20th of the month so you can imagine how difficult it is to even have time to get invitations out for one before it is time for the next one.

For Dawson's Birthday we went to Discovery Science Place and got the Birthday Party Package were everything was included, even an art project they got to take home.

That was great because all we had to do was show up and give them an ARM or LEG to pay for this luxury!!

Well now it is Blake's turn and he will be 7 so he has his own ideas of where his party should be and who all should be invited(like his whole first grade class at the skating rink)NOT GONNA HAPPEN!!! So I get to researching to find a place that offers something great where I don't have to do much planning. It is amazing all the places you can find to do this for the LOW, LOW price of about 250.00(I already gave one ARM for Dawson's party, I would like to keep that other one) So I finally found Kid's Depot, they have party plans that include everything except the cake and you just pay per child which is great because I can set a limit and Blake can pick out his own cake!!! Whew almost done!! One more in July and the Birthdays will be done for the year!!! Carter is the last one and he is by far the easiest because his is in the summer and his favorite place is Fun Forrest and that is where we had it last year too. It is a Mini Spray ground and the kids love it. That is where we were in some of the pictures I have posted on my other blogs of Caci's kids. Anyways, this is such a great place because you can rent to whole place out for 3-4 hours for the great price of 25.00, but we do have to bring everything but I can handle just one that way. I guess the MIDDLE CHILD has won on this one!!!! VICTORY FOR MIDDLE CHILD!!!