I'll Always Remember Third Grade.....

I'll always remember third grade. Not the time I was in third grade, (although that was the year I had one of my all time favorite teachers), but the year that K&A were third graders. Yes, I am talking about this year. And yes, it is still only like the second week of school. Not the point people, let's focus.

I'll always remember that this is the year that they convinced their grandmother to buy them their first bras. I say the word "bras" plural for a reason. This is how they refer to one bra. In plural form. Want to know why? Well, in their words: (in response to me correcting them and telling them the word was "bra") "nuh-uh, it's BRAS, cause there's two of them Mom!" **holding both hands up and pointing towards their chest** I had to hold my breath to keep from laughing. And ya can't argue with 'em....there are "two of  'em", so in our house, we use the plural form.

I'll always remember third grade becuase it's the first year that they started to come into my room every morning and ask me "will you iron my hair please mom?". No, they don't mean like my mom did back in 1892, I mean the 70s or whenever, when she actually ironed her hair....they mean they want me to straighten it. Ahem, their hair would NEVER do anyting but straighten on it's own, but using the flat iron obviously makes them look/feel much cuter. With this being said, I would like to add that I am sure all of my coworkers will remember this year as well, the year that I stopped having time to flatiron my own hair because I was busy "ironing" theirs. Thank goodness for ponytail holders......

I will always remember third grade as the year that they started testing each other. They will ask each other spelling and vocabulary words on the car ride home and only about 7 out of 10 times does this turn into an argument. But hey, those 3 other times are extremely helpful to me.

I'll always remember third grade as the year that BOYS ARE EVERYWHERE. Or better yet, K&A discovered that they can smell one within a 10 mile radius. We can't go anywhere without spotting cute boys. I do not remember being that boy crazy when I was their age.....I mean yes, probably starting around 5th grade until about say a year or two ago. But not in 3rd grade. I did love the conversation that we had last night at the dinner table. Kate has informed me that her new boyfriend is in the 4th grade. She thinks this is funny. Alex thinks it's funny because the boy doesn't even know he is her boyfriend. (Details, details) I informed Kate that when I was in the 3rd grade, FH was in the 6th grade. Their jaws dropped.

I'll always remember third grade as the year that Alex improved her vocabulary. For instance,  last night as Alex stepped out of the shower, I noticed that she had a big tattoo across her stomach. I looked at her as if she had lost her mind. She looked at me completely innocent and said "What? No one can see it so it's not inappropriate." She also likes to use the word "literally". For instance, while waiting on dinner "I am starving to death, Mom. Like literally."

There are so many ways that I will always remember third grade and I know that it has just begun. What I want to know is that after 3rd grade, it's still 4th grade, right? Cause it sure does feel like they are skipping right to Junior High...... Pin It Now!

What I'm NOT Loving THIS Wednesday

I'm a pretty positive person. In fact, my friends will tell you that I can find the silver lining in just about any situation that you put me in. My Mom's famous words when I was growing up ("it's never as bad as it seems") have stuck with me, I guess. Either way, I'm never really grumpy.......never, meaning not usually, meaning only sometimes, meaning today/this week. So, in keeping with my grumpy mood, here is what I am NOT loving on THIS Wednesday.

I am not loving crutches. Not because I am walking on them. I'm actually not. (Please don't tell my mom or my doctor.) The doctor put me on them for a week, to rest my leg. What the doctor wasn't aware of is that I have 8 year old twins, I live on the second floor, and I get up from my desk at least 300 times a day. They slow me down. And if you know me, you know that I don't do anything at a slow pace. No, the real reason that I am not loving the crutches is that my children LOVE to play on them. And when I say children, I mean all 3 of my children.........see below pic where FH discovered that they double as machine guns. (I almost showed him how they can also double as hitting sticks.) the pics are blurry but you can see how much fun he was having......

I am also not loving the fact that I can't do bootcamp. Just when I find something that I LOVE doing.....but I hope to start again soon.

I am not loving my 9 hour work schedule. It was great during the summer when the girls had no homework so it didn't matter how late we got home. Now it seems like by the time we get home, eat dinner, clean up, homework, and baths, it's time to start all over again. We are working on adjusting to our new schedule, and I know we will make it work.....if we don't the girls and I will start looking like Zombies with black under our eyes from lack of sleep!! I am also not really loving 3rd grade too much. Man, they have a lot of homework. Spread that out between two kids and it's exhausting. We go over their (pretty hard) spelling words so many times that I begin to doubt myself and if I am spelling them right!

I am also not loving that I haven't had time to go to the movies lately. I want to see The Help and so many others....guess I'll just have to wait on Redbox! I am not loving that summer isn't over yet, but my tan sure has ran away as if it's already winter!!

And just so no one thinks I am Oscar the Grouch today, I will tell you what I am loving.....I'm LOVING that me and 2 of my girlfriends are going to a jewelry/purse show this weekend. Be prepared for me to be loving new items next week after shopping with them! And of course, I am loving these silly people.......(and I love Alex too even though she wouldn't let me take her picture!!

PS I'm really not that grumpy at all! I never could be.......nobody likes to see a grumpy face!

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What I'm Loving Wednesday

Here we go again.....What I'm loving this Wednesday is.....

I'm loving taco soup!!! I made this for dinner and we all four loved it! It tasted great, and I love that it cooked in the crockpot so I wasn't slaving over dinner for hours. FH loved it because it had meat in it and he loves his protein. Plus he loved having the leftovers.

I'm also loving the girls' new tennis shoes. Since this summer they have been telling us that they want "Z shoes". It didn't take me too long to figure out that they meant New Balance tennis shoes. haha. Yes, they know the difference between and N and a Z, but every time they requested them it made me giggle! Kate HAD to have some shoes with orange in them, to go along with her TN Vols obsession. And Alex, of course, needed sparkly shoes. In keeping with their shopping tradition, they both picked out the most expensive ones in the store, that is kind of the norm for them. But they get good use out of tennis shoes so I wasn't complaining (too much, anyways).

Another thing that I am loving right now is my new ice pack and my bottle of Aleve. Bootcamp has finally caught up with me and I have been diagnosed with posterior shin splints. The pain is awful, and I can't run. Sitting on the couch with an ice pack while FH waits on me is actually awesome though. I could get use to it. I am going to see the doctor though and I am hoping he doesn't tell me to lay off the bootcamp......fingers crossed!

I am loving the "hole in our kitchen". Whenever we look at houses, we all four are fond of having an opening in the kitchen so you can see out. Now that we actually have one, we know it is a must in our new house. The girls sit at the "hole" on their bar stools to do homework, eat a snack, tell me about their day, all without getting in my way in the kitchen. (Please note, this is the reason that we like the "hole", it has nothing to do with the fact that I can do dishes and watch Big Brother at the same time. Just so we are clear.) Here's a pic of the girls eating breakfast in their spots.

I am loving that K&A are getting really good at reading. They now will sit in their rooms and read books to themselves. This makes me happy because if you don't know that I love to read, well then, ya don't really know me. I can spend an entire day reading, and I have always hoped they would enjoy it as much as I do.

I am loving that it is almost football season. (And that FH can watch TN football with Kate so that I don't have to......only kidding. kind of.) I am loving that we got these UofM tattoos for when we go to a game this year. It was very unfortunate that they were out of TN tattoos.......

I am loving these wedding colors. And FH approves of them too. Yes, I really am admitting this in the blog world, that I have picked out colors....don't judge me people! You know you would do it too, I'm just the girl that is not afraid to admit it!!

***Please note, as you can see, it's not my fault. Pinterest made me do it.

And of course, as always, I am loving these three!!

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And the award goes to.....

Kate LOVES to make silly faces. It's not unusual for me to look into my rear view mirror to find her checking out what kind of faces she can make in the mirror. Most of them are hilarious. I recently took a pic of her while she was eating breakfast.....this is what I got:



As you can see, the funny face award of the day goes to Kate!!



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What I'm Loving Wednesday

I've seen a lot of people doing this so I thought I would join the fun......

I'm loving my new Toms!! I got these from my future Mother-in-Law for my birthday and I LOVE them!

I know that's a tiny pic.....

I'm loving that The Help comes out in theaters today.....loved reading this book.

I am absolutely positively obsessively loving the next two: Pinterest and Bootcamp!!

 I am loving that today, after waiting as long as I could, I am getting cable!! Enough is enough!

I'm loving that Kate put this note in my lunchbox this morning, it really made my day! and it's now on display at my desk.

I'm loving this bumper sticker on this truck.....I'm pretty sure that I'm gonna go ahead and buy FH one!! (for future use)





Oh, and of course, I am ALWAYS loving on these three......



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Mysterious ways....

I've learned a lot in my 29 years....one of the main things I've learned is that God works in mysterious ways. He hears our prayers even when we might think He doesn't. He answers them, just not always in the way you expect Him to.
As a single mom, I've struggled with balancing everything in my life. I think the hardest thing for me is homework time. Kate and Alex don't need a lot of help with their homework, for this I know I'll forever be grateful. But when they do need help, it's a constant battle. They want my attention at the exact same time and I struggle to keep up with them. I'd be lying if I said homework time wasn't dreaded by me as much as it is by them. I've prayed for patience during homework time. I've prayed that I could figure out how to help them both and juggle everything else. With 3rd grade starting, I've wondered how the new school year would be. I've dreaded it for awhile. Tonight during homework time, I realized that God has been listening and has answered my prayers without me even realizing it! No, I didn't wake up one day and have amazing patience. No, he didn't use His power to tell their teachers to stop giving them homework (although, I'll keep secretly praying for that....). What did He do? Well, He gave me help in the form of a handsome man that is my husband to be.



FH has the patience of a saint. Homework is now what he takes care of. I always knew he was a God-send.....I just didn't know he was sent to me to help with homework time! So, go ahead teachers, bring on the homework! We now have a game plan and can handle it all!


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Watch Out Third Grade....

.....here we come!!!! Kate's tummy is hurting this morning because she's nervous and Alex was not in the mood to take pictures!

















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Back to Reality

School supplies have been purchased, backpacks have been packed, uniforms picked out, and the girls are all tucked in for the night. Tomorrow is the first day of 3rd grade. I'm pretty sure I'm growing a few gray hairs just thinking about it. I can remember the day those little 4 lb babies first came into the world, how I was so anxious for them to start talking and walking, now I pray for time to slow down. It seems like just yesterday I had to do everything for them and now they are way too independent for their own good. 8 going on 18 is what FH says, and he's so right! I thank God for my beautiful, hilarious daughters. They make me laugh til I cry sometimes, and after finally getting them back today after lots of days without them this summer, I've realized how much I've missed them. After running around getting school stuff ready tonight like a chicken with its' head cut off, I told FH that it was back to reality. Back to rushing from work straight to pick them up at school, rushing home to cook dinner, do baths, and help with homework. Gone are the nights of staying up late and going out of town and having freedom every afternoon. Back to school equals back to reality. But what I've realized tonight is that my reality is a dream come true. I couldn't ask for a better life, nor could I ask for better kids or a more amazing man to be my partner in life. I'll forever have a smile on my face as long as FH is beside me and K&A are calling me Momma. Now I better hurry up and get some sleep or my reality is gonna be late for school in the morning!


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Summer Pictures

Not a lot of words, just a bunch of photos to show off......

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Summer at Dad's House

The girls are big time Daddy's girls. They loving going to hang out with him, and they have had a blast staying at his house so much this summer. I miss them more than anything when they are away, but it gives me a chance to relax, and they get to catch up on quality time with their Dad. Here are some pics from this summer. They even went to the beach with him for a wedding....I can't help but think that if FH and I are going to get married on the beach, then we need to hurry up and do it before they grow out of these super cute white dresses that they wore.....(no pressure! haha) Tim's sister-in-law takes great pics just in case you are wondering why the girls look like they are having a photo shoot on the beach, that's why.

The question of the summer was: "Mom, can we get highlights in our hair??" Being the mean mom that I am, my answer was a constant NO. Pink, purple, "blondie" (as they call it), they didn't care. They just wanted color. Tim's friend the hairdresser came up with a compromise that worked for all four of us: feathers. They loved them. I am so grateful that they were able to get what they wanted for the most part, but I dont have to worry about a high maintenance 8 year with roots in a month or two. Not to mention, Alex took hers out within a day or two. Not sure she was aware that you can't just take highlights out, so this worked out great.

Now summer 2011 is drawing to an end, I'm sad for many many reasons. I am not sure that I am ready to have two 3rd graders. It seems as if each time I go a few days without seeing these girls, they have grown a foot. They grow up way too fast, and I know that one day I am going to open my eyes and they will be asking me if they can borrow my car or can they move their curfew back a little. Slow down time, I wanna keep my babies young forever!!



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Fourth of July

It's no secret that the Fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays.....and of course, this has nothing to do with the fact that my birthday is four days after this holiday! This year was extra special because we went to a cookout at my friend Erin's Mom's house. I grew up with Erin, but she recently (seems like forever ago) moved out of the state so I don't ever get to see her anymore. It was great seeing Erin and her family, and to introduce them to FH. I spent many many days at this house all throughout my life, so it was great to hang out there again. The kids had a blast, and by kids, I obviously mean FH too. Swimming, eating, and even a watermelon seed spitting contest completed the day. Oh, and you won't believe the pic that J got of FH. I have to give props to her picturing taking skills, and also to FH for doing a flip off the diving board that I never thought he had in him. I'm pretty sure that if he ever says he is getting old, I'm gonna bust out this pic and remind him that he can tuck into a tiny little ball so he can do anything! He also thought I was kidding when I told him that we were all coordinating in red, white, and blue. He now knows I was serious......

As I said before, excuse the quality of some of the pics. Most of these are J's pics that I just copied on my phone. Of course, getting her to email me would be the smartest thing to do....but patience is not my strongest quality. It is what it is.

Just spitting watermelon seeds....you know, like good ole country people do.

And finally, the funniest pic of the day. I am pretty sure that JH learned a lesson: Never say to an 8 year old: "I don't mind if you get me wet." Lesson. Learned.

Happy Fourth!!! (even though this post didn't make it up until August.....)

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