- The way Ella calls dried apricots “apple-cots”.
- The smile on Aleck’s face as he slides across the gymnasium floor on his knees while wearing his Karate Gi.
- The way Aleck hugs his “baby sister, Ella” goodbye when we drop him off at preschool.
- The way Aleck exclaims, “Yeah!” when I tell him it’s Saturday and he gets to stay home and play with Daddy today.
- The way Aleck loves his daddy. Tom was sick this week. Ella and I were going to work in the garden at Joni’s house. Aleck LOVES Joni, but he initially said he was going to stay home because “I’m worried about Daddy and I want to stay home with him.”
- The fact that the kids slept late this morning.
- The fact that when I woke up, Tom had already been to Starbucks and Busy B’s for cinnamon rolls. Yummy!
- Grilling in the evening while the kids played in the back yard.
- Rocking a very tired Ella to sleep tonight. It has probably been more than six months since she has settled down and fallen asleep in my arms. I cherish each time she does, knowing that it could very well be the last time that she lets me rock her to sleep. I want to etch in my brain the shape of her rosebud lips, the way her hair smells, the way she snuggles into my side.
- Life!
About Me
- Brenda
- Welcome to my blog. I'm a Mississippi country girl transplanted to Grapevine, TX. I have been blessed with a great husband, and my kiddos, Aleck and Ella. When I'm not eating bon bons on the couch, I am my kid's room mom, PTA member, Sunday School teacher, taxi driver, amateur photographer and personal chef. When I'm not doing those things, I'm running a small jewelry business, 2nd Amendment Jewelry (www.2ndamendmentjewelry.com), that I started with my twin sister, Glenda. It's a crazy and busy life, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in this world. I am so thankful for all the blessings in my life!
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Sweet Things
Friday, April 27, 2012
Karate
Aleck started karate lessons last month through a program called Americas Youth Outreach Programs. He has lessons once a week in the school gymnasium. Since the lessons are at St. Vincent’s, we get a student discount, which I love.
He loves it! He really pays attention and does his best to do what the instructor asks of him. He already has two stripes on his belt, one for following instructions and one for learning his kicks. I’m so proud of my little Karate Kid.
“You want a piece of me?”
Friday, April 20, 2012
Number Two Update
For the second day in a row, the number two seems to be a reoccurring theme
- number of kids that crawled in my bed last night
- number of hours I slept uninterrupted last night
- number of kids who have thrown up on me in less than 24 hours
- number of times I have pulled out the carpet shampooer in the last 24 hours
- number of kids who refuse to drink strawberry Pedialyte, even though they love strawberries AND juice
- number of different movies that my kids want to watch on the same television at the exact same time
- number of half- digested grapes that I cleaned out of Aleck’s ear after he threw up
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Number Two
- how many kids I have at home sick with strep throat
- how many times I went to the pharmacy today
- how many times Ella threw up on me today
- how many hundred times I apologized to the nurse in the doctor’s office after Ella threw up on her
- how many times I had to wash Ella’s only “favuwit bwanket”
- how many million times Ella asked for her “favuwit bwanket” while it was in the washing machine
- how many times my sweet friend, Joni, went to the grocery store so I didn’t have to drag crying kids along
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Ascension and Pixie Dust
I have been co-teaching Aleck’s Sunday school class since Mrs. Cook moved in December. During the lesson today, we talked about how Jesus stayed on earth for forty days and then ascended into the clouds to join his Father. During the forty days, Jesus told his disciples to spread his message, starting in Jerusalem and moving out from there. We talked about some of the names of the disciples: James, Paul and Peter.
I love asking questions and getting those wheels turning in those little minds. When I asked the kids how they thought Jesus ascended into the clouds, I got some interesting answers. One kid thought there were ropes involved. My favorite answer came from a little girl that thought it could be pixie dust, “like what Tinkerbell uses to fly”. Since we had mentioned Peter earlier, the conversation quickly turned to Peter Pan, Tinkerbell and pixie dust. It took some effort to redirect the kids from talking about Peter Pan to Jesus’ ascension, but I finally got them back on topic.
I can see it now. The kids are riding home from church with their parents. One kids yells from his carseat, “Hey, Mom. Did you know that Jesus used Tinkerbell’s pixie dust to go up into the clouds?”
Friday, April 13, 2012
Donuts for Dad
Aleck made an invitation to invite Tom to Donuts for Dad.
He was so excited this morning that Daddy was going to be going to chapel with him after donuts. I tried to snap a picture, but Ella started having a meltdown because she knew today was a school day for her and she didn’t understand why Aleck rode with Daddy instead of us. She knew she was missing something, but wasn’t sure what it was.
I dropped Ella off for school and then hid in the bushes and watched the kids walk to chapel with their dads. The sweet look on the faces was absolutely priceless. I love these little traditions!
We traced one of Tom’s shoes earlier in the week and sent it back to school. When I picked Aleck up from school, he had this poem and his footprint inside Tom’s shoe tracing. Love it, love it, love it!
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Happily Ever After
This little girl loves “happily ever after.” Her two favorite movies are Tangled and Enchanted.
This is the sweet look on her face when Giselle and Robert are sharing a romantic dance at the end of the movie Enchanted. She smiles like that every time she watches the movie.
Is there any wonder that she always wants to dress like a “pincess”?
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
He can read!!!
Aleck has been working on sight words at school and at home for the last couple of months. He has been bringing home little books that they made at school. Today, for the first time, he was able to read the entire book by himself. I only had to help with three or four words. I’m so proud of my little reader!
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Booger Eating Etiquette
Ella wants to be a Princess Guy when she grows up. We talk about princesses all the time. Here is an excerpt from a princess conversation.
Ella: “I eat a booger!!!!”
Me: “Ella, do princesses eat boogers?”
Ella: “I wearing my pajamas.”
Me: “Is it OK to eat boogers in your pajamas?”
Ella: “Yes.”
Me: “Is it OK to eat boogers when you wear you princess dress?”
Ella: “No!”
There you have it. Booger eating etiquette from my little princess.