Atlanta for the day...

B, Jennifer, Melissa and I spent the day in Atlanta yesterday. We started at Ikea and finished up at the Atlantic Station Mall. I had a great time and am so thankful that I have a family I enjoying spending time with...

Meanwhile the men and kids were having fun in Birmingham. The zip line was put to use and Pops got some good exercise stopping the kids before they ran in to the tree.

snoozing...

we all woke up sick today with fevers and coughs. i've been sick for more than 2 weeks. ron's been sick for a few days. the kids just keep going back and forth with good and bad days. but this morning, laney woke up with an awful cough. her sweet little babbles had turned in to the sounds a 70 year old smoker makes when trying to clear their throat. can you imagine it? so we stayed home from church and rested. we did get out for lunch and some cough syrup. laney only slept for one hour this afternoon. she wanted out of her room, but was still sleepy. she ended up lying on the couch with ron for a while. and let me just say, this photo is not staged. ron was out like a light. he's not faking for the picture. he woke up when i put laney in his arms, but was back asleep within about 30 seconds.

B and I met Jennifer at Dreamcakes on Friday. The cupcakes were good and the company was even better.

drab to fab

while the mini-chandelier in our entryway was very pretty, it wasn't my taste. the previous owners had more of an old-world or traditional style to their decorating. although ron leans toward the traditional, i like the contemporary or retro modern look. so we get to have fun blending our styles together.

our new flush-mount chandelier was discovered while flipping through the pages of "this old house" the magazine. (i love this magazine, by the way.) my MIL saw the chandelier and showed it to me insisting it looked like me. she was right. within 48 hours i had it ordered and it was on its way. it's square shape and shiny chrome finish brings in my tastes, while the crystals add a touch of tradition. i hung it up, all by myself, wiring and all. i guess i can add amateur electrician to my list of things i do in my spare time.
but there's more to the story. i bought this light on overstock. while i was looking through their lights, i found a chandelier for our dining room too. it's also chrome and crystal, so it blends ron's preferences along with mine. it should be here tomorrow, so look for a before and after picture of it soon...

our new rosie's...

The Iguana Grill

we're okay

if you drove by my house yesterday you would have surely thought i was under attack. but i'm okay. although it sounded like fierce gunfire, it was something much simpler. the little philleys discovered how much fun bubble wrap is as a threesome. and i discovered how easily a 1, 2, and 4 year old can give me a headache.

down-to-earth granola

i've learned that good friends are rare.

i've learned that moving away from good friends is hard.

i've learned that shallow friendships can turn in to great friendships.

i've learned that great friendships can fade away, no matter how hard you try to save them.

now i need to figure out what God is teaching me through all these discoveries...

maybe i'll figure it out over a diet coke and some home-made granola...

our weekend...

We had a nice time in Clinton, MS with Ron's parents this weekend. The best part was that it only took 3 1/2 hours to get there. We're used to a 6 hour trip since we always had to stop for a meal coming from Huntsville.

Saturday was quiet. Aunt Debo and Baba Dee came to visit for the day, while the men went golfing. Then Christine and I took the kids out for Mexican food before meeting the guys back at the house in time for a little football. I forgot to take pictures. I could kick myself for it...

This morning I attempted to get a picture of the kids. Laney wouldn't take her eyes off the TV!

I asked Luke to get close to Laney and be real sweet so I could take a picture. Neither one of them wanted to take their eyes off the TV!! But that's okay, because it made for an adorable picture.

Before it got too hot this morning Christine and I took the boys on a nature walk. She gave them each a bag to fill with whatever they could find.

We walked on a worn sidewalk that felt like it told a story all on its own.

When we got back to the house the boys showed their daddy all that they found. Good times...

playset update: IT'S UP!!

Ronzo finished the playset a few days ago and we had some happy kiddos. Sam, Luke, Laney, Ian and Cannon (our neighbors) have played on it every day since then.

First day back at MDO

Luke and Laney went back to MDO this morning. After a little over 3 months away from it, I welcomed it with open arms. We went to see my mom at her office before checking them in. Laney didn't want to smile.

Her teachers are Mrs. Kaki and Mrs. Shelley. They said she did great all morning. They want the one year olds picked up early for the first two weeks, to give them time to adjust. So after only 2 hours, I was back in the car to go get her. She was balling! She was the last one there and must have assumed I wasn't coming. It was pitiful. I scooped her up as fast as I could.

I didn't get a good picture of Luke and his teachers before class because he was crying way too much. Instead, I got one with his teacher Mrs. Erika when I went to pick him up. They said he only cried 5 minutes and had fun the rest of the morning.

helping daddy

luke pulled out some tools and got busy helping ron put together our new patio set. thanks to the wal mart clearance aisle, we are the proud owners of a table where we can eat and enjoy the great outdoors.

wildlife

i saw this hawk in our backyard a couple of days ago. it was beautiful. my dad would have loved it! he always loved counting hawks on long trips to pass the time.and a caught a hummingbird feeding. maybe next time i'll get a better shot...

CHEESE!

Laney can say cheese now... she says it when I pull out a camera and when I pull cheese out of the refrigerator. She has also started saying "Sam" and "gum" in the last few days. Pick up a bottle of Orbit gum, shake it around a bit, and she'll come running yelling "gum!" over and over again.

coach young

sam loves his p.e. coach, jeff young. coach young was also my p.e. coach when i was a little girl at briarwood. how often does that happen? he's probably been there for 40 years or more... every day coach young is out at the carpool line, waving to the moms, dads, and youngsters. and sam likes to get right up at the window and wave back. for all the years i've known him, he's always called the kids "brother" or "sister", or "man of God" and "woman of God". it's music to my ears to hear him say it to sam.
i also ran in to my teacher from 3rd grade today. mrs. rooks was at the information desk, and i clued her in to a story my mom tells often. it starts with the fact that i was a talker. a serious talker. i got in trouble often. one day i came home from school and my mom asked me what i had done that day. i said "mom, i had the best day ever. my teacher put my desk in the hallway and i sat there all day. i got to say hey to all of stannon's friends." i didn't even know i was in trouble! when i reminded her of the story, she said with much sarcasm "imagine you, getting in trouble for talking..."

fork finger

laney has decided to use her finger as a fork. she can successfully stab and eat mini-wheel pastas, blueberries, fried eggs and more...

Since we have a lake in the neighborhood, we get to look out our back porch and see these guys a lot...

We also get to see the presents they leave us in the driveway. Geese are fun, but I wish they'd poo on someone else's property. ☺

Kole and Luke had some good cousin time one morning last week. Their imaginations led them to a camp-out in the middle of the hallway.

In the mornings Luke and I have a little alone time while Laney's sleeping and Sam is at school. We were sitting at the bar reading the new ESPN magazine.

After I took a picture of us, Luke wanted to have a try at the camera. Good job, Luke...

First day of 4K

Although carpool makes life very easy, I walked Sam in the first couple of days of school. He was sweet enough to hold Luke's hand and help him up the many stairs.

Sam sits at Table #2.

Marrison is the little girl sitting to his left. Coincidentally, she lives 3 doors down.

I took a picture of him coming to my car while I waited in the carpool lane. Carpool has been an adjustment, but he's doing great. He was so proud of himself for getting up the first time his carpool number was called. He got in the car and said "Mommy, I love my new school".

Chuck E Cheese

Mama B took all the grandkids to Chuck E Cheese for one last hoorah before school started. What fun! Sam and Luke had only been one time before, and it was a few weeks before Laney was born. So it was time to go again...

Laney wasn't crazy about the rides.

Luke seemed to enjoy himself.

And Sam had lots of fun on the roller coaster ride.

Thanks for the treat, B. We sure had fun...