Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Soccer Season Has Begun

Ok, so these pictures are only slightly out of order. Starting with Emma and the team having cupcakes to celebrate a birthday...after the game. Maybe they should have eaten these first and the outcome might have been better. We lost......BAD. But they had fun and all the parents got to enjoy a chuckle or 2.
I think she may be praying over her cupcake.

This picture of her on the bench just totally cracks me up. Shoulders slumped, pouty face. I love it.





Serious soccer action with the tongue out.








"Ok Coach, I'll just follow you."



Or maybe Kyle.







Just put me wherever you need me Coach.


So the strategy is to look cute, right.


As hard as it is for me to believe, 3 years ago we were in China waiting to get Emma. WOW! What a difference 3 years can make. This girl has changed so much and has filled our lives with so much joy. I never could have known just how much I could love her when she was placed in my arms. I am thankful that God knew and that he chose this girl to be ours.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

It Takes One to Know One

Our new friend has decided that he or she really likes hanging out on the porch and Emma took advantage of it to take a few pictures. She kept telling the squirrel "cheese". He kept looking at her and she kept looking at him. It was pretty funny to watch.













Thursday, August 18, 2011

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

mamamamamamamamamamama

Yes, that is what I have heard for the last couple of days. She has changed the way she calls for me and has started running it all together Without Taking a Breath!! If it were not so annoying, it might be cute!


Today was her first day back at school and on top of the nonstop mamamamamama, I have also heard "school, backpack, school, backpack". Needless to say she was very excited to go to school, but was confused when some of the kids from last year were not there.


She said backpack so many times yesterday that I finally had to sssshhh her and then she proceeded to whisper the word backpack to me.


Pooping on the potty is going well. She is very proud of herself and tells me "poo poo potty" when she needs to do it and then about 5 gazillion times after that.


Okay, so let's talk about Brady. My dear, sweet eldest child who I fear may live in our basement for all of eternity, God Bless him. (Remember, in the south you can say anything you want to about some as long as you God Bless them). He and I had a rather heated exchange the first morning back to school. Not to bore you with the details, but I was attempting to get his lunch together and apparently I was not quick enough and so I had to explain to him in a very ugly way that he could fix his on lunch. I think the veil was lifted, because he changed his tune the next morning. Of course, he forgot his lunchbox after fixing his lunch. Do you see a trend here? The lunchbox that he forgot was an old one that is about too small for his middle of the day feast and therefore I had bought him a new lunchbox a few weeks ago before band camp. After band camp, I have not seen the lunch box and apparently neither had he which really made me made because I spend $12 on that stupid thing and then he lost it.



I came home yesterday after soccer practice and Brady's truck was parked close to the house with the tailgate down and the aforementioned lunch box laying on it, open. Never a good sign. As I approached it I was certain that he had killed someone and the body was in the bed of the truck because the smell was bad. I have been a nurse for 20 years and I know bad smells, trust me on this. I came into the house and he came to tell me the story behind the stinky lunchbox. Apparently, in an effort to teach Brady a lesson about being so forgetful, his drum teacher hid the lunchbox (after Brady had left it at school) in the instrument trailer and it has been there for the last 2 weeks. It had contained a bowl that had salad and chicken in it, along with dressing. Are you holding your nose?


When I asked Brady if he had learned his lesson he told me "apparently not, I forgot my backpack this afternoon and left it at school." Do you see why I am concerned about this kid going to college? I suspect it might be the best thing that ever happens to him, but Lord help him.


Along the same lines, Brady asked me to help him send a letter last night. No problem. Then he tells me that he tried to send it 3 times already but his friend in Basic training has not gotten it. Then he asks me if a letter needs to have a stamp on it. When I tell him, why yes it does, he figures out why the letters have not been received. Dear Lord, again I say, help this child. When I asked him how he got to be a Senior and not know how to send a letter, because I remember us studying that and taking a walking tour of the post office, he told me "Mom, we don't send letters anymore, we just text." That is the soceity that we are living in my friends.


So when I finally fell into a slumber last night, I thanked God for my kids and all their antics. I also determined that I will not throw away the stinky lunchbox and will somehome figure out how to get the dead body stinch out it before the cops show up at my house.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Emma and Her Tummy Ache

Emma had a tummy ache yesterday afternoon and kept pointing to her left side and whining. I asked her "does your tummy hurt" and she quickly went to get the flashlight and wanted me to check her mouth. I'm sure she was thinking that I should be able to figure it out if I could just look in her mouth. It was a very cute moment.


The tummy ache quickly subsided and she was back to her wild self pretty soon.

Doing her Madagascar Dance


Thursday, August 11, 2011

Another Milestone....Let's All Say Praise The Lord

It is with great delight and relief that I can finally say, Emma POOPED IN THE POTTY! Can I get a Hallelujah and an Amen.



I decided a few days ago to start getting her up during the night and letting her use the potty so that we can get up dry in the mornings and get rid of Pullups. So I have set my alarm and gotten up with her every couple of hours and let her pee and go right back to bed. She has done amazing, except it really messes with her poop schedule, which is waiting until she goes to bed at night and using a Pullup. Let's just say, you can only hold it for so long, espescially when Miralax is involved, so I knew she would have to go sometime. That sometime was yesterday evening when I was cooking dinner and she gave me that sad look and told me she needed a diaper to poo poo. I told her no and off to the potty we went. WARNING....this may be to graphic for some readers..unless you are a mom and nothing bothers you.



She managed to poop just a little bit and told me she was all done. Obviously she wasn't. After screaming, crying, begging and pleading to get off the potty (her..not me), I convinced her that all she had to do was relax and it would happen. TOUCHDOWN! She finally managed to have the poops of all poops and was very proud of herself but quick to flush the potty. She had to call daddy right away and tell him the news and for that she was rewarded with M&M's and a ride on the 4-wheeler.



So today is a new day and we will see where we are headed. I will have to say that it is a pain getting up with her during the night, but she is so sweet in that sleepy state of mind when she always tells me she loves me and has to give me a kiss. Those moments are the ones that melt my heart and make me thank God for sending this girl into our lives.



At long last, school is about to start back. Can I get another Amen! The boys go back tomorrow and Emma goes back next week. She is so excited and has been talking about "Miss Nay" on a regular basis. I think that I may let her stay for nap/rest time this year. She really wanted to last year and I just couldn't do it. I'm not sure that I can now either. I'm just not ready to let her be gone that long, even though it's really only another hour. It just seems too soon. She has grown up too fast and I'm not ready.



Speaking of....Brady being a Senior is another weird emotional thing for me. Granted, there have been occasions when I didn't think I would live to see this day get here and we are not out of the woods yet. A Senior....Didn't I just give birth to him and sit in the floor for hours and play dinosaurs and watch Barney? How did this happen? You can see why I might have a hard time letting Emma stay all day at school. I am on an emotional roller coaster here!



These pictures are not that great. Number one, they were taken with my point and shoot and number 2, taking any picture of Emma is not an easy task.


Look at her crazy hair. We are about to cut a couple of inches off..I think.
Waiting on gymnastics to start and looking rather sassy I might say.


Just hanging with her brother at another basketball tournament.




Well, today we are headed to speech, or the beach as Emma likes to tell me. The boys are going to tag along and we are planning on having lunch and running a few last minute errands before heading back to school tomorrow morning. So it's back to the grind here. I must say that I might be ready for that. Just looking ahead to the next few weeks, football games start and Brady will be marching, Ashton will start basketball soon (did he ever get a break), Emma is having soccer practice twice a week and starting her games soon....Then it will be Halloween and Thanksgiving and Christmas.......Where does time go?








On that light note, I will say have a good day.






Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Tuesday

Just when AAU basketball is almost over, soccer is starting back up.



Emma has her first practice this evening (in the 98 degree weather) and she is so excited. She wore her uniform at naptime and woke up saying "soccer".


She also managed to get a rather large knot on her forehead today after jumping in her bed and hitting the head board. Poor thing.


We have started going to another speech therapist and Emma is proving to be very "determined". But I think she has met her match with Miss Sara who is also determined and isn't falling for Emma's charm:) If there has every been a stubborn girl, this girl of ours is one.



Brady is surviving a very hot week of band camp. He is putting in some long days, starting at 9 a.m. and ending at 8 p.m. I know that athletes put in a lot of time training, but these band kids work equally hard if not harder.



So, I am off to get ready for work and soccer practice. I am hoping that she actually kicks the ball this season!