Spring Break - Day #4

Mary:

She talked and talked and talked.
She sang. And sang. And sang. Really high - like she could break glass.
She took a bath.
She played in the dirt.
She picked flowers.
She threw rocks.
She climbed hills.
She played tag.
She ate watermelon.
She blew bubbles.

Alex:

He played PS2.
He helped carry in the groceries.
He took a bath.
He played with action figures.
He played ball with his friend.
He threw rocks with another friend.
He ate watermelon.
He wore a new shirt.
He hugged me.

Olivia:

She spent the night at Mimi's.
She came home way early from Mimi's.
She faked being homesick.
She played at the playground.
She read.
She played Guitar Hero.
She played with Becca.
She ate Icee Pops.
She talked on the phone.

Today was a relatively quiet day. We stayed at home except for a brief trip to Chick-fil-A to get lunch. We had a picnic down at the playground w/ the Tanzosch family. It was a beautiful day - a slight breeze, some sun but not too much. It was nice. I had a long list of household things I wanted to do but guess what? Didn't do any of them. Not a one! Jay said that it was okay because I was on Spring Break too. I'll take that explanation!

We went to the new Kroger in Loganville tonight. Not sure why I thought it was going to be an event but it was just a stressful trip to the grocery store. Mary was absolutely crazy and I just wanted to get out of there. Sometimes I just don't know what to do with her. I'd like to wring her neck but the authorities may frown upon that! When we got home, the kids went to the playground with Amy, Nathan and Becca. It was a nice relaxing way to end the day.

I hope that I get around to doing a few of the things on my to-do list tomorrow! But if not, well, there's always Saturday!

Spring Break - Day #3

Today was our day with Vegas Mimi.

We met Mary Ann at Target this morning at 10:30 for some marathon shopping. Each kid got a boat load of clothes! I am so grateful to Mimi for everything she does for our kids. She always blesses them with clothes, shoes, and whatever else they need or just ask for. After the shopping spree we had lunch at Steak and Shake - always a treat I must say! The waiter was awesome and got us in and out in just enough time for the movie. We saw Horton Hears a Who. Loved it! Jay was cracking up during the entire film. The kids were laughing too. I enjoyed it - not laughing out loud enjoyed it but I still liked it a lot. Everyone loves Dr. Seuss! It was a great day. When we got home, Mary had to put on her new bikini - pink polk dots! I should have taken a picture but I didn't. Somehow, I think I'll have another opportunity tomorrow. The other Mimi - Alpaca Mimi - came by to pick Olivia up for a couple of days. They went to her house to spend some quality time sewing. Livi has a knack for sewing and Mimi has been wanting to show her all her tricks.

Jay took Alex out for a bit, Mary was at McKennah's house...I was home all alone. What did I do? I started reading the dozens of People magazines that Mary Ann gave me! Heaven! After a while, I went to pick Mary up and ended up bring McKennah home with me. This was the first time that she came over to our house since her heart surgery. I was so excited! When it was time for us to go to dinner, McKennah asked if she could come too. What? Seriously? So we took her with us!

She behaved very well, much better than Mary did! Mary looks sad in this picture because 1)she was grumpy because we wouldn't let her watch the Power Ranger movie before we left the house and 2) because her menu got wet from her drink. Whatever. McKennah was very sweet and ate all her dinner. What a pleasure! I hope she will want to come and spend more time with us very soon...like maybe tomorrow!

Spring Break - Day #2

Day #2 was a success! Jay and I slept late and then we went to the gym together. He rode the bike (again!) and I used the treadmill - 3 miles and I even started to jog a little! Yeah me! We saw Tara and Natalie there working the cardio circuit. After we got cleaned up, we went to pick the kids up from my dad's. They are so lucky - he dotes on them and always shows them a good time. He took us to lunch - we went to Melton's not far from where he lives. We dropped him off at home and the rest of us headed downtown to the Imagine It! Children's Museum. The kids were excited about going, and I was too because we had never been there and also because it was free today. Yes, free. It's normally $11 a person so we saved $55 today! And I am so glad. It's not that I was disappointed by the museum, but I guess if I had had to pay $55, it so would not have been worth it. The kids had a good time - see the slideshow below - and enjoyed each activity at the museum. Honestly, Liv was a little old for it, it's mostly geared to younger kids. They all three really loved the moon sand exhibit and stayed there the longest.

It was a beautiful day - not hot, not cold. It was sunny which was wonderful after so many days of rain! I didn't realize the Children's Museum is right across the street from the Coke Museum and the Georgia Aquarium. And right across the street from Centennial Olympic Park. Afterwards, we took the kids across the street so they could play on the playground at the Park. I think the kids had a really good time.

We stopped at Fellini's for dinner. It has been years since we have eaten there and it brought back a lot of memories. Of course Alex loved having pizza. And their pizza is soooo good! We came home exhausted but happy. The kids went to bed without a peep. After all, we must rest for our big Day #3!

Spring Break Day #1

My dad invited the kids to come and spend the night with him tonight. What was that? A night alone with my husband? Could it be? Oh my! Somehow this always happens...our night alone turns into a big night out with all of our friends! But that's okay because that is always fun too. We went out to dinner with Tara and Phil, Natalie and Allen, Julie and Joe. It was SO good to see Julie and Joe because I haven't been out with them in forever. Their kids are in Florida so they were able to comply with the only rule of the night - NO KIDS ALLOWED!!! The rest of the week is about them, Jay has even taken two days off this week to do fun things with the kids, so I didn't feel bad at all.

I had to go next door and take care of the animals today. I took Mary with me and I am so glad that I did. She knew exactly what I was supposed to do and where everything was. Thanks Mary! The kids packed their bags and we headed into town to Papi's house. I checked out some movies to see if maybe he would feel like taking the kids. Luckily I found Nim's Island playing very close to his house. After lunch, I left them and headed to Lynnette's house to pick her up. Today was her birthday and I had not seen her in months - literally like eight months! So since I had to drive down to the airport, I asked her if she wanted to come along. It was a fun way to pass the time on the road! Thanks Lynnette! I got to hear all about her new boyfriend and all the news with her family. I picked Melinda up from the airport (she was on her way back from Mexico) and I took her home. By that time it was almost 5:00 and I had just enough time to call Jay to let him know about our plans.

We went to Longhorn's - and I didn't eat chicken! It was all good! Thank God for good friends and being able to spend time with them!

some pictures...

Friday....

There were some fabulous views out front that Liv pointed out to me as we headed out to the bus stop the other day. The bushes were wet from the rain and it just looked amazing. I am still trying to figure out the settings on my camera...some turned out much better than others. I knew I should have gotten the Nikon when I had the chance. Although that would have been even more complicated. Oh well, there's always Mother's Day, right?

This is Alex's handprint. It is in the front flower bed by the front door. I say flower bed but there aren't any flowers! Just bushes and pine straw.

The nandina bush out front.

Why did this focus on the pine straw in the background?

Much better.

Okay! Enough already!

My kids

As I was logging in to update this blog, I took a long look at the header picture. Those are some cute kids! I remember what fun we had that day. I look at their sweet faces and I immediately think of a million ways that they are different, yet somehow, as their arms are intertwined with each other, I am reminded of their very special sibling bond. I am grateful that there are three of them. Each will have two siblings to count on, each will share a distinct but special relationship with the other. How amazing is that? I can only pray that they will continue to be as close, even closer, in the future and that they will always realize that above all else, they are family and nothing is more special.

Okay - on with the blogging!

What a treat to be able to sleep in this morning! It rained all night long. As I was stirring awake this morning, I heard the soft sound of a light drizzle. Ahhhhh...it lulled me right back to sleep. I heard movement downstairs, no voices but I did hear the tv. I looked over at Jay - still snoozing away. Perfect. I knew the kids would be hungry soon so I went downstairs to make some pancakes (an absolute cinch with my handy dandy family sized griddle!). Breakfast was ready in no time. It was uncharacteristically quiet at the breakfast table. Hmmmm.... And then it hit me...Mary was still asleep! The little dynamo was still resting so she would have all her energy to drive us crazy for yet another day! Bless her!

Jay took Alex and Mary to see his dad at the hospital. It was their first time meeting their grandfather. Jay says it went well and that they had a nice visit. He took them to the Varsity afterwards for lunch. This left me and Liv home alone. We decided to out for our own special lunch together. It was very nice! I don't often get to spend time alone with her but we did today and it was wonderful. She is a great kid. I took her to her friend's birthday party after lunch. I got my instructions to pick her up in two hours and I was off to get a mani/pedi. Bliss. My toes are so thankful! They look ready to wear those cute new sandals I bought weeks ago when I thought spring had sprung. Who knew that we would continue to have winter like weather? Maybe tomorrow....I hope!

I have lots of plans for Spring Break - I hope I get to do half of them. It's beginning to look like the one week off isn't nearly enough! I don't know when I'll find the time to go to the gym next week since everyone will be home. I'll have to make the time and just force the troops to go with me. Yeah right...easier said than done.

Rain, rain, go away...

What a miserable day! It rained just about the entire day. And it was a cold rain. The kind where you should just stay home and sleep. But, Friday is my favorite day, remember? So, I got the big kids off to school - after pumping Liv full of random Social Studies facts - and then had to go out to get flowers for Mary's teachers. Teacher Appreciation Week. We were late - of course. But then I was off to work! Dozens of little preschoolers were anxiously awaiting my arrival to learn a bit of Spanish. Los tres chivos van de vacation. Tienen diez libros en el tren. Gradios! Whatever. Thankfully, it went fairly fast today. I made a quick stop at JoAnne's - love that store! I went looking for hair ribbon for Mary and just had a wonderful time browsing through each aisle. I got two craft projects and some sewing stuff. I just hated that I had to leave so soon! But, poor little Mary - she was waiting to be picked up.

Joel called soon after we got home. His mom has taken a turn for the worse and he and Lisa decided to leave for Charlotte today. He said his mom was unresponsive. A difficult situation had gotten that much worse. My heart just broke for him. I have walked this path before, I know exactly how he feels. My mother became unresponsive just two days before she passed. I didn't understand the lack of urgency in getting on the road as soon as possible but I can't know how he is handling his grief. At this point in her journey, there is nothing left to do but rely on faith and hope. We have put our hope in the living God (1 Timothy 4:10). So, we are looking after their dog, cats and fish for the duration. *sigh* I will pray for their continued peace as they witness their mom/mother-in-law/grandmother pass into eternity. I know these days are hard but the days to come will be so much harder. {{Joel and Lisa}}

We went to visit Jay's dad yesterday. He was supposed to be moved to a private room so we were expecting to be able to see him. When we got there, he was still waiting for a room. Jay snuck Liv back there for a few minutes but the other two couldn't go back. We were able to visit with Carol, though. It was the first time that either kid saw her. Brother Joe showed up later and the kids had a great time playing with him. Jay wants to go back tomorrow to try again - this time we know he is in his own room. And he is supposed to be discharged on Sunday. Once he gets back to Jasper, we may seriously never see him again. Mary's game has already been cancelled because of the heavy rains today so we actually have the entire day free. We are going to try to make it to the Dogwood Festival - it's just down the street from the hospital so that will work out fine. I hope the Festival isn't rained out like it was today!