It's A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

God blessed us with an absolutely gorgeous day today!!!  The temperature was around 71 degrees.  The sun was shining.  There were a few clouds in the sky and there was a slight breeze.  After basketball games this morning, I made the kids go outside to play.  The last time they did that was when it snowed on January 10.  That day, we built a snowman and had a couple of snowball fights.  We all needed to be back outside again.  (All three kids were sick with a stomach virus for almost two weeks.  We really needed this!)  Mike and I opened all the windows in the house to air it out.  The kids rode their bikes in the backyard, painted, played on the playgym and clubhouse, played horseshoes and badminton, practiced getting baskets for their next basketball game, and leaf fished (fishing without a hook).  Quite a few times I had to deal with them not wanting to stay outside but after a while, they forgot about watching television and playing inside.

After playing for a while, Mike and Will started raking the leaves in the backyard.  All three kids had fun jumping in the huge pile of leaves then picked them up and putting them in bags.  Only a quarter of the backyard was done and we filled three 55-gallon yard bags and most of a 30-gallon yard bag.  This is after Mike raked up leaves this fall.

It is suppose to rain tomorrow and everyday through Wednesday.  The high tomorrow is supposed to be 55 degrees.  Mike said a chance of snow is predicted for Wednesday.  Only in the South can you have snow one weekend, sunshine and warm weather the next weekend, and snow predicted again the week after.  Gotta love it!!!

Snowmaggedon

At least, that is what this round of winter weather is being called.  It is predicted that our area of the South will get 2-8 inches of snow, with maybe some freezing rain/sleet.  As of 10:30 p.m. tonight (1/9), the snow measured three inches on my patio table and it was still snowing.  The weather forecasters have been predicting this storm system for about a week.  A round of icy weather has been predicted and everyone is afraid of the power lines going down, causing blackouts all over. 

 The kids are excited and can't wait to get out in it.  School has been cancelled for Monday.  We will find out tomorrow if they will miss any other days.

Here are some pictures I took of the snow around 10:30 p.m. 

The snow measured three inches on my patio table at 10:30 p.m.

This in the garden next to my van.

 

This is the garden along the front of the house.

Another picture of the front garden.
Can you see the snow on top of the lights?

Snow on the back patio.

A look at the lake behind our house.  

I had to lighten this picture three times.

This is the same picture as above lightened four times.

The light post at the front of the house.  I had to lighten this picture twice.  

This picture reminds me of the light post in "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe."

This picture was lightened three times.   Isn't it beautiful?

Thanksgiving Celebration and Fun

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of year.  Mike and I load up the kids and drive for two days to visit Mike's aunts, uncles and cousins.  We always have a great time and hate to see it end.  Every year after we eat Thanksgiving Dinner, the guys like to play in the Turkey Bowl.  It is a touch football game that gets more serious every year.  This year, a couple of the guys went and lined the field and set up cones to mark the end zones and the sides of the field.  I even found t-shirts at Old Navy that were perfect for the game.  Later that evening, Mike's cousin Andrew took a picture of the whole family on the staircase and a video that he is going to send in to Good Morning America for their "Three Words" segment.  We hope it will be picked.  If it is, I will try to post something here.

Here are some pictures from the weekend of the Turkey Bowl and a few of the kids.

Isn't this a handsome group of men?

Hannah and Ashtyn were the cheerleaders

 Andrew and Will playing in the sand

 

Some action shots

Mike has the ball!

Hannah and Ashtyn enjoying their time together

Aren't these some beautiful ladies?

Will being silly

The Grissom, Frazier, Edenfield, Jinnette, Chitwood, Hoyle and Nowiski  Families

Mike and Andrew were on their way back from the restroom when this picture was taken. (LaNell, Will, and Isabelle were looking at them.) I think another one was taken with them in it but I do not have a copy.  They were in the video which was done next.

I just love this family!!!

The Saga Continues

In my last post, I mentioned all the things that have occurred in the last two weeks.  The story is not over yet.  Thursday, after picking up the kids, the lights on the van's dashboard came on and wouldn't go off.  After dropping the kids off Friday morning, I took the van to Meineke to have the oil changed, the tires rotated and to see if they could figure out why the lights came on.  Five hundred dollars later, the oil was changed, tires rotated, two belts were replaced (the old ones were cracked), fuel injectors were cleaned and the O2 sensor was changed.  I noticed a whine from the engine area when I left that I had not noticed before.  A few hours later, while I was waiting in the car line to pick Will up from school, the van died completely.  No lights, no radio, no air conditioner, no power for the windows, NO NOTHING!!  Andrew had just fallen asleep and Hannah was in the back.  Did I mention the temperature outside was about 101 degrees and the car line was out to the street?  Yea.  When I called Mike at work, I broke down crying and went into hysterics.  It was not a pretty sight.  After a few minutes (and a few honks) the cars were able to get around me.  Will's teacher was working the car line and told us to take refuge from the heat inside the building.  Mom picked up the kids and took them to her house while I waited for Mike.  We talked to my dad, Dick (Mike's dad) and the Meineke guy and they all came to the same conclusion: the alternator needs to be replaced. 

When I got home from Meineke, I noticed the thermostat was reading 86 degrees in the house.  Come to find out, the capacitor on the outside unit went out and had to be replaced.  God blessed us by having the air conditioner repair man headed home when I called.  We were on his way so he came by and replaced the part immediately. 

Dick came in last night from Dothan to be here for Hannah's baptism.  Daphne stayed in Dothan to help take care of her mom, who recently had knee replacement surgery and lost her husband (and Daphne's dad) last Tuesday.  Mike and Dick are going to replace the alternator in the van today.  I hope they don't have any problems.

Well, enough of my whining for now.  I hope everyone has a great week.  Remember, God loves you and is with you every step of the way.

It's Been A While

I can't believe my last post was on July 16th.  We've been busy around here and I thought I had posted some of our happenings, but I guess I hadn't. 

Oh, where to begin? I will give a brief synopsis now and, hopefully, a more indepth look at a later date.

*  Hannah got her ears pierced on July 17th.  She is so excited and can't wait until she can start wearing other earrings.
*  I had the mole on the side of my nose removed on July 19th.  I've had it for about 25 years and I'm glad to finally have it gone.  The biopsy showed there was nothing to be concerned about (standard procedure).  YEAH!
*  Registered the kids for school.
*  Vacation with Mike, Hannah, Andrew, Will, Melanie and Nathan to Pigeon Forge.  This subject deserves a completely separate post when I have time.
*  I got to visit with a friend I graduated with.  She moved away right after graduation and I hadn't seen her since until I found her on Facebook.  Turns out, she lives in Pigeon Forge!!

The next bit all occurred after we returned from vacation on Monday:
Tuesday:
*  Dad had knee replacement surgery.
*  Our air conditioner decided to stop working sometime while we were out of town.
*  Washing machine wouldn't fill up and would just run.
*  Needed to make cookies for a football team our church sponsored. (Remember, our air is out)
*  While I am cooking dinner on the grill, we run out of gas.
*  Remembering Mom's knee replacement surgery and the nightmare that followed.  Not fun!

Wednesday:
*  Air still out.  Temperatures inside reached 87 degrees in our hallway (the coolest part of the house).
*  Washing machine is still messed up.
*  Kids put dish soap in the dishwasher; soap and water get all over the floor.
*  Bug man is suppose to come out and spray for ants.  Thanks to the good Lord above, he came early.
*  Worried about my dad and his surgery (it went fine but I wasn't able to see him due to everything going on at the house).
*  Remembered it was a year ago Gracy passed away.  Still get really sad when I think about it.
*  Get into a fight over my dad.
*  Find out the air conditioner has a slow freon leak.  Air conditioner man recharged it but said we will probably need a new unit (and a new furnace) before long.   GREAT!

Thursday was MUCH better.  Went to the Pink Palace with my friend Tracy and her kids then saw my dad at the hospital.

The kids started school today.  Yes, I know it is early.  The temperatures this week and the end of last week have been in the 100s with the heat index between 112 and 125.  It is a good thing school started because the kids are busy with school work and not watching t.v. or playing on the computer all day because it is too hot to go outside.

Hannah is getting baptized Sunday.  She is excited and a little nervous.  We were paying the storage unit note and Hannah told the clerk she was being baptized Sunday.  They talked about it for a bit afterwards.  It is neat to see her interested and excited about this.  It is a really big step.

Sorry this post is all over the place.  Mike will be playing his online game with some of his friends in a few minutes so I only have a short time to write. 

Pictures

Here are some pictures we've taken over the last few weeks. 

If you look closely, you can see the Canada geese walking on the frozen lake.  This picture was taken on January 30, the day after we got sleet and ice.  The lake froze over and the geese and ducks were able to walk across.

Baron and the leftover sleet we received

On February 5, while Hannah was at school, Mike and I put up Hannah's new bed and rearranged her room.  Click here to read the details about the changes that were made.

Hannah and Andrew enjoying Hannah's new bed

Hannah and Andrew playing

Mama, Hannah, Andrew and Will

The rest of the pictures are of today's surprise snowfall. 

The first few pictures were taken of our backyard through our dining room windows.

The next two pictures are of our front yard and the small courtyard garden.  Look at the snow on our fountain.  It looks like a wedding cake.

After much talking in too (I was surprised), the kids finally went outside to play.

Andrew, Baron, Hannah and Will having a snowball fight.

Andrew and Hannah with Crystal, our snowwoman.

Another picture of Andrew, Crystal and Hannah

Crystal

SNOW!!!!

While we were eating lunch, the t.v. at the restaurant had the local news on. It said the highs were suppose to be in the low 40s, the lows were suppose to be below freezing and it was suppose to rain most of the week. I was in shock when I woke up this morning and saw snow on the ground!!!! It was a good kind of shock!!  There is about six inches of snow that was unexpected.  The weather forecasters were expecting it to hit way farther north.  YEAH!!!  I took lots of pictures of it untouched and plan to take more when we go outside to play. 

YEAH!!!  IT'S SNOWING!!!!

Busy and Interesting Weekend

The weather man predicted our area would get between 1-4 inches of snow along with some ice on Friday and Saturday.  Instead, we got sleet and freezing rain on Friday.  After the freezing rain, it started raining really hard and continued until late Friday night.  Thank goodness, Mike stayed home and worked from home using his laptop.  The water and sleet froze and everything was covered in ice. It was soo pretty.  Quite a few people in Tennessee and North Mississippi lost power but we were blessed not to.  Saturday we stayed home.  The kids played the Wii most of the day while I nursed a sinus headache and pressure. 

Sunday, we went to church and enjoyed the beautiful scenery as we drove.  The trees, bushes, grass and power lines were covered in ice.  The sun made everything shine, like they were covered in diamonds.  It was stunning!!  Ernie's message was wonderful as was Marty's Sunday school lesson on the first part of Revelation 7.  After church, we went to lunch at Back Yard Burger.  Towards the end of our meal, the power went out.  It looked like maybe a transformer went down because we could see nearby traffic lights were also out.  As we were leaving, the traffic lights started working again.

Once we got home, Hannah and I got to work going through some boxes we had in the attic.  Most of them were toys that had been relegated to the attic about three or four years ago.  (Hannah loss the use of her toys when she got into trouble; now, I don't remember the exact reason why.)  Mike found a box of books for Hannah to read that I had as a child.  They include Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, The Dana Girls, and Bobbsey Twins.  There were even some of my Little House books!!  I can't wait to read them again.  While Hannah and I were busy, Mike reswept the kitchen and mopped it. Busy, busy, busy!!

SNOW!!

Today we had some snow!!!  Granted, it was not the 1-4 inches the weather forecasters were predicting at the first of the week (in all actuality, it is probably about 1/4 inch) but it's snow.  School was closed today due to the road conditions in some of the rural areas.  Hannah, Nathan, Will and Andrew went out about 9 this morning and made a small snowman and had a snowball fight.  They were getting snow from wherever they could find it: on top of the trampoline deck, trampoline cover, play set, slides, patio table and the deck to name a few.  They had a blast.  The sun is out now and quite a bit of the dusting we received is gone. 

Listening to those who grew up in areas that receive a lot of snow, they are amazed that schools are cancelled and that we get excited over a little bit.  But, coming from someone who grew up here, ANY amount of snow we get is treasured.  Sure, it is silly that just about everything comes to a halt.  But, since we don't get enough snow each year to practice driving on, can you blame us?  The only opportunity we get to have snow is usually accompanied with ice, something NO ONE likes to contend with, much less drive on.  So, those of you who get way more than your fair share of the white stuff, please let us enjoy the little bit we get.  To some of us, it's like Christmas morning all over again.  Especially me!!!

I took some pictures and hope to get them downloaded off my camera today.  The last set of pictures I downloaded off my camera was just after Halloween.  I have 335 pictures to take off or delete.  About one hundred of them have already been put on the computer; I just never deleted them off my camera.  After I get them fixed up, I plan to post them here on my blog.  We'll see!!

As a side note, my friend Susan just started a blog called "That's Whack!"  Go by and check it out!

Extra Long Soccer Day and Rainfall Totals

Yesterday was a great day for soccer.  Good thing, because we had four games yesterday.  Yes, FOUR!!  Will and Hannah each had two games to get caught up on some of the ones missed due to the rain.  We arrived at the field around 9:15 a.m. and didn't leave until almost 2 p.m.  Will had games at 9:30 and 11:30 while Hannah had games at 10:30 and 12:30.  Both kids did great.  Will blocked a bunch of goals and Hannah got a goal.  After we were finished, Mike, I and the kids went through the Chick-fil-a drive-through and at lunch at home.  At 5:15 p.m., we had to leave the house again to head back for the Upwards Soccer Celebration.  It ended around 7:30 then we ate dinner at Subway.  The kids were exhausted and slept until 7:30 a.m.  (Since the time change, everyone is usually up just before 7 a.m.)  Hannah and I got sunburned on our faces; I also was sunburned on my neck, behind my ear and on my ear.  You can see where my earrings and glasses were because they are white instead of red.  After all the rain we had in October, it never occurred to me to get out the sunscreen.  I hope I remember it this Saturday.  We have four games again at the same times.

Speaking of rain, the weather forecaster on the local news said that the rainfall totals in October broke records.  I didn't hear the total amount but we had at least 1-2 inches every time it rained, some days we got 4-6 inches.  This area is also 11-12 inches over the annual amount of rainfall.  According to one of the local weather blogs, Memphis received 10.56 inches of rain in October.  Normal rainfall totals are 3.31 inches.  The old record was 10.13 inches set in 1919.

Happenings Around Here and Rants

It has been raining A LOT around here. The weatherman last night said the total rainfall for September was 8.55 inches, six inches ABOVE NORMAL!!!! Soccer practices were cancelled last week and this week. The kids' soccer games were cancelled last Saturday and it looks like they may be cancelled this week too. The ground is just way to wet. There may be some relief in sight - Sunday is suppose to be sunny!! The rest of next week is forecasted to be sunny up until Thursday or Friday, but then only partly cloudy. As much as I love the rain, I am ready for the kids to be able to go outside and play. They've been couped up inside here at home and at school (they can't go out on the playground when it's wet) for too long.

This week I started back working out at the Y. They have a new incentive program called "America On The Move." The goal to to "walk" to all the local YMCAs. The total distance is 106 miles. If I do one mile on the elliptical, it counts as two. If I do a Spin class (cycling), I earn four miles for my efforts. Right now, I have gone nine miles total. I have three more to go to get to the first Y. Once you have completed the trip, you get a t-shirt. I have until November 22 or so to complete my "trip." Today, I went 1.5 miles in 51 minutes on the elliptical. I've been going one mile in about 34-36 minutes but decided to push it a little. Afterwards, I felt great and think next time I may try 2 miles. We'll see.

The members of Congress and other members of the US are aggravating me quite a bit. While working out today, I was watching Fox News. It was mentioned that the US is thinking about cutting almost 400 border patrol guards on the US/Mexican border. ALMOST 400!!!! What in the world are the people in charge thinking?!?!?! Why can't the people in power remember WHO it is they represent? Most Americans want the US/Mexico border patrols beefed up (along with the Canadian border, too). We don't mind people entering the United States, as long as they do it legally. I'm all for people to have a chance at a better life. That's the reason my ancestors came to the States. Just do it through the right channels.

Then, with all the talk of health care and the plan Congress wants to pass, it just makes my blood boil. I know the healthcare system here needs help. It's extremely sad when someone has a preexisting condition and are denied coverage because of it. But, tacking on all the PORK that has NOTHING to do with healthcare to the healthcare bill is a total waste of money that could be used for research or to cover the cost of patients. I have heard that Congress wants to design a healthcare system like the ones in England and Canada. What they aren't looking at is all the Canadians and British nationals that come to the US because they either can't get the care they need or it takes WAY TOO LONG to get help.

Situations like these two make me feel helpless, like my hands are tied. I have written my congressmen more in the last few months than I have in the entire time I've been able to vote. My prayers for this country feel like they are hitting the ceiling when I see what is happening (and not happening) in the nation's capitol. I plead with God help us and to show me (and the country) what we need to do but feel helpless. But, I AM NOT GIVING UP! I am still going to vote and make my voice heard. I plan to take advantage of this freedom guaranteed to me when possible. Most of all, I plan to keep praying and seeking God's direction and wisdom for myself and my country. GOD, not man, is the one who sets the rulers in place and can change their hearts to move the way He wants.

Memphis in July and the Water Park

Normally in the month of July, the temperatures are hovering in the high 90's - low 100's with the heat index around 110-115. It is hot, sticky, and miserable to be anywhere outdoors, even in the water. Well, today the high is 82 degrees. Yes, you read that right. 82 degrees. A cold front is moving through and making it absolutely perfect outside. The kids and I picked up lunch at Chick-fil-a and took it to the park. With the wind blowing, it actually got a little chilly. I didn't mind a bit!! The temperatures last week and this week have been great. A couple of cold fronts have moved through the area, bring rain and the cooler temperatures. It did get up in the mid-90s last week but, for the most part, the temps have stayed in the mid-80s to low 90s. Wonderful!!!

Yesterday, my friend Tracy and I took all of the kids to the Henderson Aquatics Center in Tunica. She has three kids (one girl and two boys) and I had my three and Nathan. We arrived when they opened at 11 and left around 2:30. The kids had a blast. Hannah played with Kara; Will played with Will; and Andrew played with Seth. Nathan played with all of them until his friend Billy showed up. The Aquatics Center has three areas: a kiddie area with water fountains, sprinklers, and buckets that fill up and turn over. The water here is warm and is between two and three foot deep in the deepest part. The second area is a lap pool that you can also play in. The temperature is cold and is about 5'6" deep. The third is the diving pool with two springboards and three platform diving boards. We started out in the kiddie pool and played for about an hour. After eating lunch, we went to the diving pool where the older kids jumped off the diving boards, having a blast. When we moved to the lap pool, Andrew and Seth found a basketball game and played to their little hearts content. While the little boys were playing with the basketball, they would open one of the nearby lockers, put the ball inside and close the door. After a few seconds, Andrew and Seth would open the door, get the ball out, shut the door, and stand there so proud of themselves. Andrew got in the water with me for a little bit, even though it was very cold. Tracy and I moved the gang back to the warmer pool to play a while before leaving.

Seth does not like water and it takes him a long time to get acclimated to change. So, while we were all playing in the pool, he sat in a chair and could not be coaxed in or played ball with Andrew. When we moved back to the warmer pool, Seth just stood by the edge but wouldn't come in. Andrew saw him standing there and somehow coaxed him in, little by little. They started out playing in the round sprinklers then worked their way slowly to the island in the middle. They were standing in the middle of some fountains, laughing and giggling. Andrew was encouraging him all the way to venture out a little more each time. It was neat watching them together.

Yo-Yo Kind of Weather

Two weeks ago we had about six inches of snow on the ground here, twelve or more where Daddy lives. This past weekend, the temperatures were in the 70's and earlier this week, they were about 80. Today, the temperatures have dropped and it is about 43 outside now. The weather forecasters are predicting a Winter Storm Watch, which means there is a chance that we might get freezing rain, sleet or snow. Whoopee!! NOT!! Mike and I slept with our windows open most of the weekend and the first of this week. Now we have to get our winter coats out again.

Because of the crazy temperatures, Andrew is starting to get a cold. I am hoping no one else gets sick. It's nuts!!

Updates

Here are a few updates I wanted to fill everyone in about.

Snow
The total snowfall for here was abut 6 inches. There was snow and some ice on the ground until Wednesday. The warmer temperatures we are having now helped it melt. Dad said they got about 11 1/2 inches. Snow on their roof slid off and blocked their carport. Joan had a friend come over and help clear the snow from in front of the carport and off the driveway. I told Daddy that he now knows what it is like in Ohio in the winter. HEHEE

Cabin
I haven't posted any updates on the cabin because we are still waiting to hear from the mortgage company. About two or three weeks ago, they came back and said they needed more paperwork and two bank statements. We faxed everything to them on President's Day. At the end of that week, Mike called to check on the status. He was told they did not receive part of it so we had to refax it again. From what I understand, now that everything is in, the investors and underwriters have to look over the offer and paperwork and make the decision whether or not to accept it. We have been working on this since Christmas Eve. The buyer's offer expired January 31st and we're hoping he won't back out because of all the delays. Please pray that the mortgage company will accept this offer and that the buyer's offer will still be good. I'll post more when we hear more.

Snow!!

IT SNOWED!!! Right now, we have about 2 inches on the ground. The weatherman said that it may snow more overnight and tomorrow, even though the temperature is suppose to be around 39 degrees tomorrow. The weatherman also said that Ripley (where my dad and Joan live) got about 10 inches of snow with more expected. They are only 1 1/2 hours north of us.

Mike, the kids and I went to Donna and Thad's house today. They have four kids with the last two being Hannah and Will's ages. We were suppose to have a Sunday School Girls Day Out at Donna's and eat. But, due to some extenuating circumstances, only one other lady from our class was able to come besides me. So, since Donna had a lot of food already prepared, she invited my bunch over to share. Mike and Thad had fun watching the Memphis Tigers play Southern Miss and talking. The kids had a blast playing together. Donna, Linda and I had fun talking and eating. Looking out the window a few hours later, we noticed that it was sleeting/snowing. The weather along the route from Germantown to home varied. It was snowing pretty good close to Germantown but Olive Branch was hardly getting anything. As we got closer to the house, our visibility decreased dramatically and the snowflakes were getting bigger and heavier. Once home, the whole family went in the backyard and played. I got the brunt of the snowballs (I had to come inside and change my scarf because of all the snow on it) but I got some good licks in, too. Poor Will's pants were soaked. Andrew did not want to go inside but his little nose was red. Hopefully the snow will stick around a little longer so the kids can get back out again tomorrow and play in it.

Will's basketball season ended on Tuesday. His team did really good, even though the Upward league doesn't keep score. The kids really got out there and hustled during each game. Mike was one of the coaches for Will's team.

We've signed both Hannah and Will up for softball/baseball again this year. Mike has also committed to coaching our church's men's softball team this spring. All it takes is someone to make sure there are enough players on the roster and to make sure they have enough players for each game. His games will be on Monday nights at either 6:30, 7:30 or 8:30. I hope they have quite a few early games, like they did in the fall. Due to the kids' school, we won't be able to make any of Mike's games until the first of June. Will's coach told Mike that they will play their games on either Tuesday or Thursday. They will practice on the Tuesday or Thursday they don't have a game. (Will's coach will be the same one from last year.) We won't hear from Hannah's coach until after evaluations on March 9th. I am going to be busy shuttling kids to practice and games, but I know it will be fun. It was last year.

Catching Up

I've fallen behind on acknowledging birthdays and posting our "going ons." Things have been really busy, as usual in the Jinnette household. We have two birthdays today that I need to mention. They are my Aunt Sandy and my friend Wanda's daughter Sienna. Sunday was Christopher Daniel's first birthday. He is Sienna's little brother. Happy birthday everyone!!! You are always in our thoughts and prayers.

The temperatures around here have been really warm, at least for February. The high has been in the mid to high 60s. The weather has great: a few clouds but mostly sunshine. The storm system that hit Oklahoma moved through here Wednesday. We got a little rain and a lot of wind; the gusts were as high as 59 mph in some places. There were tree limbs everywhere. When I left the church after bible study, I had to drive around limbs in the middle of Reynolds Road and some on Center Hill. Some areas in Memphis lost power due to downed power lines because of trees and limbs being blown around.

Today was the end of an era: Hannah flipped a card at school. (Hannah was the only student in her class that had not flipped a card since the start of school this year.) For those who are not familiar with the flipping of cards, it means she got into trouble. Mrs. Herring, the Student Teacher in Hannah's class, was going over the answers to a test. While she was talking, Hannah started flipping through her Science book. Because Hannah's attention was divided between the teacher and the book, she had to flip her card. She was soooo upset when I picked her up today. We discussed it and she understands that she needs to pay attention to the teacher when she is talking and that it could be distracting to the students around her when she is playing with her books.

Saturday night from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., the church is having "Kids' Night Out" to raise money for the family Guatemala Missions trip coming up this summer. All three groups will have dinner and drinks provided. Will and Andrew's groups will be doing crafts, playing, and having loads of fun. Hannah's group of girls will have a "Pamper Parlour" where they can have their nails painted and have some one put make-up on them. The girls part is advertised as being a sleep over without spending the night. Hannah was really excited when I told her what they were going to be doing. Mike and I are going to try to go to Carrabba's for dinner but we will have to see what the wait is like. We are looking forward to having a date night!!

Lots to Post

Now, there was the post about the 24 birthdays for December and January. Can you believe I have two more and they are relatives?! Actually they are babies, one born to my niece Jessie and the other born to my cousin Tim's wife Adrianne.

My niece Jessie had her son, James Riley, on Tuesday, January 27. He was born at 8:02 p.m., weighed 8 lbs 2 ozs and was 20 1/2 inches long. Mom and baby are doing great. It was a God-thing Riley was born when he was. The next day, Wednesday, it snowed and the roads were Jessie and Bryan live were pretty icy. Jessie got to spend the worst of it in the hospital getting waited on. (For those who don't know, Jessie is Jeff's daughter. Jeff is my step-brother.) Joan took a bunch of pictures and is going to have Daddy send me some. When I get them, I will try to post them here on my blog. I am hoping to drive to Jackson one day this week or next to see them.

Tim's wife, Adrianne, had her baby, Connor Seaway Jackson, on Friday, January 30th. Connor was over 9 lbs. Aunt Carol said the baby was huge. Momma and baby are doing great. Tim is beside himself to have a son.

As I mentioned before, we got about an inch of snow here on Wednesday. The schools were closed because the roads were a little icy that morning. By the time Mike left for work (around 8:30 or 9) the road were clearing up. I even took the kids to Chick-fil-a and met Mike for lunch. The kids enjoyed getting to play in the snow and having a day out of school.

Thursday, I took Andrew in for his 2 year check-up. He weighs 30.4 lbs and is 36 1/4 inches tall. The doctor said he was in the 90-95 percentile range for both his head circumference and his height. His weight was in the 75 percentile range. I knew he was a big boy and now I have the evidence to prove it. :-) After his appointment, I took him to school. They were learning the letter P and everything revolved around it. They had pretzels for snack; painted pigs with pudding (to make them look like they had rolled in the mud); they got to wear their pajamas; and had pizza bagels for lunch. When we got to school, his class was playing in the inside play area. Andrew went running in and found his friend Seth. They both ran across the play area to the "tree," climbed up the shallow steps and slid down the other side. Then, Andrew and Seth ran over to one of the flowers and climbed up. They were so cute!!! Andrew had on his red Thomas the Train two piece pajamas while Seth had on his red Superman sleeper. They have gotten to be such good friends and I am glad. Tracy and I were hoping they would be friends as their birthdays are four days apart.

On a sad note, Tracy's father-in-law passed away suddenly in the night Friday night. Mr. Gallagher lived around Anniston, AL. Joel, Tracy and the kids drove down that weekend for the funeral.

Will was picked to be the Star Student this week in his class. There is a list of things the parents can do to make it special. On Monday, we send in a poster that has pictures of Will, his family and things he likes to do. Tuesday, Mike and I are suppose to turn in a letter and say how special our "Star Student" is. The teacher will read the letter to the class. On Wednesday, we send in an "Estimation Jar" with healthy treats. The kids in class will estimate how many items are in the jar then they get to enjoy the snack. On Thursday, Will gets to bring home "Traveling Bear" named Bernie. We are suppose to write about our adventures with Bernie Thursday night and bring him back Friday to share his adventure with the class. (We also did this for Hannah when she was in Kindergarten. I found the letter on my computer. It was really cute.) Friday, the Star Student gets to have their parent(s) come in and read the child's favorite book. If we can't come, we can send in a book for the teacher to read. I won't be able to make it because the story time is right in the middle of Andrew's nap time but I plan to send in a special book.

This weekend, Hannah had her birthday party: a sleepover. She only wanted to invite three friends, so I didn't object. [The last time we had a sleepover, there were about seven or nine girls, two boys (Will and Jonas) and Andrew. The last of the girls were still up at 2 a.m. It was rough because Andrew was only seven months old and still getting up in the night to eat.] Brittney wasn't able to come this time because she was sick. Gracie came, along with Layne and her brother Jonas. Will was excited because he and Jonas are friends and love to play together. The kids played, ate pizza and cake, decorated door hangers, watched a movie and ate popcorn and then tried to get settled into bed. Gracie ended up going home about 9:45 p.m. but Layne and Jonas stayed. The kids finally settled down about 10 p.m. (after I separated the boys) and were up around 7 a.m. The next morning all seven of us went to church and actually got there about 9:45 a.m. I was amazed.

Well, it is late and I am tired. I think I am going to bed. Tomorrow I am thinking about going back to the Spin class at the Y so I need to get my rest. I went last week and my thighs killed me up until Thursday or Friday. I've been working out on the Elliptical for about 35 minutes and thought it was time to add something extra. We will see how it goes. Check back later for pictures. I am too tired to post them now but have LOTS!!

Brush with Fame and Other Updates

Lisa Whelchel came to our church in the middle of September to speak at a Women's Event. During her Tuesday session, she had a book signing and took pictures. I got her to sign a book for me and had my picture taken. Thought you might want to see it too. Lisa is really down-to-earth and not afraid to let you know she has made the same mistakes as you and me.

My brief brush with fame!!

On a different note, my MOPS group had a playdate at a local park this morning. The weather and temperature was great. About four moms and their kids came. The kids had fun playing on the slide, fort and swings while the moms talked. We had a great time!!!

Hannah has gotten grounded again. This time for disobeying a direct command (DO NOT CLIMB THE TREE!) and for lying about it. She ripped a hole in the seat of a pair of jeans and got a cut on her arm while climbing the tree because of Gracie's dare. She and Gracie (the friend of Hannah's I keep in the afternoons) have been told to stay out of the cedar tree for numerous reasons: the branches aren't very big; there is a HUGE squirrel's nest in the next tree; and a bird's nest with eggs in the next tree; etc. Since they decided not to listen to me, they both have been grounded. Hannah has to stay in her room for a week. While Gracie is here, she cannot go outside or watch television. (I can't remember her punishment for her house.) Today while shopping at Sam's, they decided not to listen to me again. (Before we even got out of the car, I told all four of them what they could not do so there would be no confusion on their parts.) So, because they disobeyed me again Hannah lost her evening snack privileges. I am still debating on having the girls pay me because of what they did but how much and if I will do it is still being determined.

Me and My Big Mouth

You would think I would learn to keep my big mouth shut. But, unfortunately, it just won't stay that way. If you remember from the last post, I mentioned that the weather has been close to perfect: not too hot with the humidity actually being tolerable. Great weather for this time of year in this part of the South. Well, not anymore. The temperature today was between 94 and 96 with lots of humidity. Tomorrow, I think the weather man said it would be around 96 degrees outside and feel like it was well over 100. The dog days of summer are here. I should have never opened my mouth. Does anyone know where I can get a lock? Maybe if I put a lock on my mouth, I can keep it shut and not jinx anything. Duct tape doesn't work...I can get it off.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to everyone!! I hope you have had a good one. Mine was wonderful. Mike and the kids made me breakfast in bed. Cereal and milk is what I usually get. Not today. This time I got scrambled eggs, sausage, toast and juice. It was really good. (I guess the hints I dropped before I went to bed last night helped.) Mike also got me a bottle of my favorite perfume, Coco Chanel. After church, Mom, Melanie and Nathan came over and we made Taco Salads for lunch. The kids had fun playing together and we had fun visiting. I even got to take a nap for a little bit. Boy, that was nice!!!

Last night, we were hit by that bad bunch of storms that came through. The winds were about 90 miles an hour at times with constant lightning and thunder. At one time, while it was raining extremely hard, hail was mixed in and hitting the windows. I was trying to rock Andrew to sleep and had to move away from the windows (he was enjoying the light show and the noise from the hail). Mike said the water was so deep and coming down so hard that water covered our carport up to the top of the step into the house. The WHOLE BACK YARD was covered in about an inch of water. If you know how big our backyard is, that is pretty incredible. Mike said all you could see was a lake of water and the trampoline sticking up. He tried to take some pictures. I am going to download them later and see how they turned out. If they are good, I'll post them here.