See you Monday...Maybe.

I am off. Off to Charlotte to help my little sister prepare for her wedding. I can hardly believe it. I am so excited for all of the festivities and want to thank all of those who are helping out with the kids (mainly Justin) while I spend time with Blaire. It means a lot to me. The dresses are pressed, the tuxes rented and the shoes shined. See you all when we get back.

Pirates' Season Ends in Heartbreaker

Our little Pirate's season has ended. They made it all the way to the Championship in the tournament. All the way to the final inning after tying it up and the Braves scored that one run before the Pirates could get three outs. The boys had so much fun and I think the dads were sadder to see the season end than the boys! After the game, they were given their trophies which is all Brice could talk about. And then Saturday night they had a bowling party with cookie cake. How fun is that?Receiving his first "golden trophy". This is what he calls it and I think it is so cute. He ended up getting one from the league for placing 2nd and then one from the team. They are now sitting on his bed shelf so he can admire them every night!

I love this picture, it brings tears to my eyes, my two boys with their arms around each other after playing baseball.
Go Pirates!!!

Not Fancy Enough

Apparently, the plain white sandals were just Not Fancy Enough for our little diva. I found these in her dresser drawer on loan from our good friend Eve who was kind enough to give us a huge bin of clothes and shoes from her girls. I pulled these out complete with mermaid on the bottom and starfish and guess who wanted them on her feet? Right away, in fact. I thought that maybe we had moved passed whatever it was but then when I tried to put the white sandals back on, I got a big "No, thank you"!She walks around the house in these and looks down at her feet the entire time, it's hilarious. Sooner or later she's going to run into something. These are a little small for her but she doesn't seem to mind and I am thankful that I won't have to dress her in socks and shoes every time we go to the pool!

The Trip...Finally!

How long have I been back from vacation? Since Sunday. But I will admit that today is the first day that I have felt back in the swing of things. And, schools over for the year. That is my excuse for not blogging about the trip yet! We arrived home Sunday and we have been on the go since. Monday, I had to do the grocery thing and even got brave and went to the new Publix. Super nice, Anna was tired though and ready to go mid-way through. Tuesday was Brice's graduation which I already posted pics on but might have to go into further detail about...
Wednesday was "water day" at school and "runyourlastminuteerrandsbecauseschoolisoutandyouwon'thaveanytimetoyourself" for Anna and I. This makes me sad too because no more Anna/Mommy time for a while. And then today I cleaned this house.

What's that? You don't care what I've been up to? You just want to see pictures and hear about the trip? Well, then, here goes.
Arrived in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic on Wednesday around lunch time. Took the bus to the resort. Not a bad ride, only about 15 minutes. Got off the bus and was greeted with a fruity drink! Yum. Then we got our villa assignment...

Justin took this picture the first morning we were there as the sun was rising, so pretty.The bathroom which was open to air as you can see the plants through the blinds.
Separate beds? Okay. We had the same thing in Puerto Rico, no biggie. Turns out this was awesome because we were so hot every day that the last thing we were going to do was lay next to each other. Not to mention, Justin is like a freakin' furnace!
And then we see this...NO COMPLAINTS HERE!!!! We headed back to the lobby area where some of Justin's coworkers were not happy that they would give separate beds to a "married couple" or that they couldn't see the beach or that their toilet didn't work. Okay, so I do see their point. But, Justin and I were NOT complaining as this trip was paid for and we were literally six feet from sand!

The group at dinner one night. One of the restaurants opened a special tiki hut looking thing for us for two nights to have a private dinner. This was also the night that the "bosses" talked about my wonderful hard working husband and all that he has accomplished this past year.
In the picture below, he is holding the award for the year, which Justin packed in his carry-on so that it wouldn't break forgetting that it had liquid in it. So, yes, we were held up at the airport in Punta Cana as well as getting back INTO Atlanta. That is another story for another time but there needs to be some major re-evaluating of the security at Hartsfield-Jackson. Anyway, I am so proud of Justin and hope he is proud of himself as well. He deserved this trip, BIG time, and needed it as well. We did relax and Justin received two massages while I did one massage/one facial. Glorious!!!!!!
And, it wouldn't be vacation without some hottie in a Speedo, right?! Larry, I feel a song coming on, how about you???
This was one of the restaurants at the resort where we had breakfast each morning. It was great! Lots of different kinds of foods and most importantly, donuts, for Justin. The resort that we stayed at has some management issues right now as they were just bought out. The staff there was awesome, always wanting to help and serve and just make it wonderful for us. There was some language barriers but it wasn't too bad. I was told that the staff has to take two days of English classes per week. We think the phrase they were perfecting last week was, "my pleasure". They said this every time we said, "Thank You" or "Gracias".
Speaking of thank you's-HUGE thank you's to the grandparents for holding down the fort while we were gone including carpooling to school, a birthday party, two baseball games, the driving range and dealing with little Anna who fought her baths every time. We appreciate it so much and hope that they enjoyed spending time with their grandchildren as much as we enjoyed being away. It was bittersweet though as Brice hit his first homerun when we were gone. Oh, and he hit a golf ball 120 yards! The kid was on fire when we were gone, no pressure from us, I guess. The following picture is from up high at the "castle" portion of the resort where they had rooms with private pools and the spa was also located here.
This stretch of beach was not yet built upon. They had a sign up of the new resort that was going to be built. It was nice to be able to walk down the beach even if it was so humid and hot! Seriously, we sweated, a lot. The air conditioning was never really cold and not a lot of ice was in the drinks. I feared my hair was going to look like Monica's from Friends and that some braids would be in order but I did okay.
We saw this sting ray in the ocean and walked along side of it for about half a mile. Well, I walked, Justin was practically chasing it.
Okay, one more shot to make you jealous of what our view was from our room. Sorry, had to do it.
The ceiling in the lobby area which was open to air, no A/C, just hoping for a good breeze!

And this is what I did most of the time, with a few naps, few drinks, and meals in between!

More From Graduation

He Did It!!!

Yea, Brice! Celebrating after the ceremony at lunch.

We have a graduate! Brice has successfully completed preschool and we are so proud of him. He has done so well this year and hope that it continues throughout his school days. I promise to eventually put up some pictures from our trip. I have just been trying to get back into "work" mode! Also, Brice got a great report at the dentist this afternoon, in case any of you were interested in his pearly whites.

Three Words

Hola! From Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. We are having a VERY relaxing time here and I am typing these words from our deck which is six feet from the beach. Waiting to go to a lobster fest tonight! It is gorgeous here and I am going to keep you waiting on pictures until I get back!

Three Words to know...margarita, banos, and grassy ass!!!

True Gifts

For Mother's Day, which we celebrated on Saturday since I worked yesterday, I got this......and this...
...and this...
...as well as two hard working boys in the yard...

And then we all went out to a yummy dinner and had such a nice time. Brice also made me a card with a "Love" stamp and wrote out I love you Mommy. I felt very loved all day. Then on Sunday at work I took care of a heartbreaking case and it's just been on my mind all day today as well. It made me realize that a clean kitchen and fancy coffee are so nice to have but they are not the True Gifts. These two healthy sweet children are...

A Tribute to My Mom: (alternately titled) The Sandal Incident

Oh Anna. She is teaching me so much about little girls and just how I was as a little one. Brice, was so easy. Aside from his delivery, he has always wanted to please me, only putting up a fight when he was really opposed to something. He taught me a new kind of love, how to play and how to teach a person who is so eager to learn. Anna, she is teaching me patience and a different way to go about motherhood. Which is why I love her, of course. And, I think every mother could agree with me that each child that she has teaches her something different. I have never asked my mom this question but I do wonder what Blaire and I taught her.

And so, it was many years ago when my mom came to carpool to pick me up from St. Luke's preschool. Ms. Carr was my teacher's name, she had dark hair if I recall correctly. My mom was not only picking me up but a few little friends as well. She got us all into the car (not sure that she was even required to buckle us all into car seats...) and then I'm not sure if my sandal came off or unbuckled or what but...one tired little girl went into hysterics. The type where my mom couldn't help me but then I wanted help but if she got near me then I just got madder and I was pulling on the buckle/strap and screaming and thrashing with tears running down my face and red cheeks I'm sure. My mom recalls that all the friends in the car were looking at me as if I had lost my box of crayons for sure! And so, my mom who loved me even at that moment, closed the door, got in the car and drove us all home. And, I'm pretty sure once the car got above 35 mph, I was passed out cold. My mom probably went through many emotions in that five to ten minute episode: embarrassment, frustration, love, and then relief that I was asleep. And isn't that what motherhood is about? Many different emotions spread throughout the day. So many emotions that it makes your heart want to burst most times.

Thank you, Mom, for putting up with me that day and all the other bad days that I've had. Thank you for teaching me all that you have about being a mom myself. For listening and caring and just being there even though there were times I'm sure you wanted to walk out the door and go have a stiff drink! Thank you for doing all the mundane stuff like laundry, dishes, cooking, driving, and fixing stupid toys that you knew in a month you would just throw away. Thank you for taking care of us when we were "sick", physically or emotionally. Thank you for teaching us how to be ladies (not walking with our knees bent when wearing high heels; inside joke for Blaire), and how to step it up and not depend on a man for everything. There are so many more things that I am missing but my point is thank you!!! This motherhood thing is hard but so worth it in so many ways. I love you, Mom. HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Below are pictures of my own Sandal Incident 26 years later...
I am not sure what the deal is but the girl does not like sandals. She wants her socks and tennis shoes on. I don't get it, but I know she is teaching me something...

Sprite

This little girl has been somewhat like Sprite this week. A little lemon, a little lime. I don't know if she has a touch of something or if her teeth are bothering her or what. She has been super attached to her pacifier and my hip. Which I can't say that I mind. I like having a baby on my hip. :) Some people prefer Coke but me, I like Sprite!

Muffins with Mom

Today was Muffin with Mom. It was nice. Brice had a gift for me at his seat when we got there and wanted me to open it right away. A frame with his picture with puzzle pieces glued on the sides that said, "I love you to pieces", some potpourri for my closet and a card with his hand print. Then the class sang to us a song about Mommy's to the Oscar Meyer theme song. So they actually all know now how to spell Mommy and I. love. you. And then of course, the muffins which were minis. I ate one, Anna ate one and then Brice had to have two because he was "starving and I told you I needed a big breakfast, Mom". I wouldn't make biscuits at home but just gave him a bowl of cereal since I knew we would be eating more at school. Apparently I could've taken him to IHOP for the Rudy Tooty Fresh 'N Fruity!

That was it. I am becoming a little sad at the thought of only having days left of driving him to school. This morning when the school bus drove away, the thought crossed my mind that in a few short months, he will be on that bus and gone for the whole day. It is just weird to me. My first born, that I have taken to a preschool for four years of his life, will just be getting on the Big Cheese. Hopefully, he will still say "cheese" for moments like below...

May 3rd

So, as mentioned in the previous post, we had something to do today. First we (B, A, and I) went to Sam's for a few things. Brice was awesome and loaded everything except the diapers into my cart and then did his famous "push the cart, Mom, and I'll run and jump on like a garbage man" thing throughout the store. Anna was oblivious and just sat there eating her yogurt raisins and making sure beloved Carly got lots of kisses.

Then, we returned home to quickly throw the frozen foods into the freezer, eat a quick lunch and then be off to Brice's Parent/Teacher Conference. As most of you who know Brice well can imagine, he received lots of great comments. He wasn't present for the conference (they had child care there for us) but might as well have been because Ms. Lori had nothing negative to say!!! She said things like "model student", "teacher's dream", "exceptional student", "has never broken a school rule", "plays with ALL of the children very well", "listens", "was the only one in his class to recognize by sight all of his number 1-20", "recognized 8 out of 10 colors by looking at the word" and "VERY ready for kindergarten"!!! This makes Justin and I so proud. Children, after all, are a reflection of their parents and how they are being raised and this really makes me feel like Justin and I know what we are doing even though Brice is our first. If he continues on this path, little Anna will have a tough act to follow. Although something tells me that things like that are NOT going to bother her and her spunky little self in the least!

We received our invitation for "Graduation" from preschool today and I loved the Bible verse they included on it. I will share it with you and must now address my pile of paperwork sitting next to me.

"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."~Proverbs 22:6

MAY...we just take this month one day at a time!

(this picture has nothing to do with this post but it makes me laugh!)

Our month of May is super busy this year! We of course have been anticipating the wedding for almost a year now and here we are! I am so excited for the end of May because of Blaire and Josh but have so much going on before hand. And I changed the blog background to daisies, the flower for May.

First, the birthdays!
May 2nd-Grandma, today! She is 82 and doing so well. I miss her everyday and wish it was possible that we lived in the same state. Although, I am a terrible granddaughter and will be sending her a belated card. In the words of my good friend Rachel, "it's hard when people have birthdays at the beginning of the month because you don't realize it until you flip the calendar". This was her excuse one year because she forgot to send my card which is also on the 2nd of the month! Anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!

May 13th- The Uncles, Bud and Greg. Uncle Greg is a father this year and Uncle Bud has a big birthday as well! Can you guess? He will be 90 this year! I think that is so cool. I know that people always say, "let's stop counting" or "I don't want to celebrate" but come on! This is awesome to me so I say, "Enjoy your day!".

May 20th-Aunt Kelly! And can we just say that Kelly should get mother of the year this year for Mother's Day and her birthday. She has been through it with Jack and is doing a great job. I loved the first birthday I had being a mom and hope Kelly does too!

May 29th-Jonathan! Also the wedding day. What better way to celebrate than a wedding?!!! Happy Birthday to the Godfather!

If I forgot someone's birthday, I apologize. I used to NEVER forget someone's birthday. But after two kids, my brain is disintegrating.

Second, we have just stuff going on this month: Parent/teacher end of the year conferences, Muffins with Mom, Mother's Day, Graduation, the last day of school party, T-ball tournament, dentist appointments...

Third, Justin and I are going to the Dominican Republic for a few days (12th -15th) for his rewards trip for work. I guess that is what you call it. I have a feeling all the men are going to be working there since no one will be home and working. So, I feel like it defeats the purpose. Not to mention, Justin is already planning to return early because of the T-ball tournament. I can't get that man to leave the computer and blackberry for one minute, which of course is why we are able to go on the trip but still...
I am not sure what to expect but am imagining Puerto Rico only in French. I also am wondering if there are going to be a lot of the Haiti earthquake victims there. I will post pics when time allows!

And then on the 26th I leave for Charlotte to help Blaire and Mom with last minute details. And also, to primp. A girl's gotta do whatta girl's gotta do! I am so excited for this month but also a little stressed. Therefore, I will just keep the mindset One Day At A Time!