Quick Catch Up Post!

We have been busy.... here is what we have been up to this past week!

Dinner with the Williams family and Kennedy crew!  Chick-Fil-A is always a winner with our group!  

We had Kindergarten Registration at my school for our rising kindergartners.  My sweet niece will be starting kindergarten at our school in the fall.  I am so excited to have another one of my favorite little people with me each day!

I grabbed dinner out with some of my favorite ladies.... there is never a dull moment with this group!

Uncle Chris was ordained as a minister yesterday.  We were able to be at this special service and grabbed a quick picture of our boys matching. ;)

After the service, we grabbed lunch at Red Robin!  I think I lost my mind since I let both boys get a root beer float when they asked! haha  They loved it!

We also had Wild West Night at AWANA last night.  Maddox constantly makes me smile with his antics!  We took Burke for a quick walk before heading to church.  Maddox kept running until his hat would fall off (over and over again)!  haha

To My Little Valentines

 Z & M, 

I cannot believe another year has passed and we are celebrating Valentine's Day again! I feel like I just wrote the February 2021 blog post and now here we are with you at the ages of 8 and 6!  I am LOVING having both of you with me every day at our school.  I have the best memories from my own third grade year when my little sister joined me for elementary school.  It has been so wonderful to get to see you in your classes from time to time and have the same schedule.  It is hard for me to believe that in less than 2.5 years, we will have to establish a new routine when Z heads to middle school, let's not think about that just yet! ;) You both are doing an awesome job in school, getting good grades, modeling good behavior and continuing to excel in making new friends.  Zander, you are in the AG class this year since your test scores in 2nd grade identified you for academically gifted services in reading and math.  You continue to impress me with your ability to solve any math problem in your head and your quick memorization of all of your multiplication facts!  You are a good reader as well, although I do wish you would slow down from time to time to really process what you are working on rather than trying to finish first to move on to the next task! haha  Maddox, you are reading books now too, blending letters together like crazy to make words and sentences!  Just last night you told me that 6 +3 = 9 and didn't appear to use your fingers or anything to add those two numbers together!  Z & M, I love your optimistic personalities.  Your faces light up when you are telling a story and your voice level increases by a few decibels too as you strive to convey your thoughts.  You both love to go swimming in the wintertime at the YMCA.  You are loving basketball during the winter months after trying and enjoying soccer in the fall.  We are going to have another spring season of baseball before you both decide what you might want to focus on, although Z, you are already saying you want to do soccer instead of baseball so I guess we will stay tuned on that one!  You both have great speed when running which helps for each sport you are involved in.  I love how both of you have worked so hard to memorize verses in AWANA.  You both have finished your books for the year and have started into the extra credit books, not wanting to let a week go by without going after the added challenge!  Life with you is far from boring.  You keep me on my toes and are constantly moving from one thing to the next.  I hope you both know how much I love you and how thankful I am that I get to be your mommy!  Zander, you have decided to have a little girl in your class as your valentine this year.  Maddox, you proudly said I am your valentine.  I will take it as long as I can! ;)  Always remember how much your daddy and I love you!  Not just on Valentine's Day, but every day, we are thankful for the family we have and the love we are blessed to share.  

With all my love,

Mommy

We stopped for Chick-fil-a chicken minis for breakfast this morning, complete with a heart shaped tray!  I made tacos for dinner and I think the day overall was a success especially when you factor in all the sweet treats that were sprinkled in throughout the day! ;)  Grammy made us all feel special again this year with hearts on our doors for all the reasons she loves us!  The first door is Zander's, then Maddox's and finally ours!

The boys worked on their valentines one night while I was cooking dinner.  Maddox gave each of his classmates slime and Zander gave each of his classmates pop-it bracelets!

We celebrated the 100th day at school last week! I cannot believe that Maddox has already been in kindergarten for 100 days and we are over halfway through the school year!  Zander, being in third grade now, didn't really want to dress up.  He opted for sweatpants and a sweatshirt, the typical attire of Great Grandpa Bobby! ;)

Maddox and his BFF, Mollie, looked too cute in their 100th day attire!

This is what happens when I try to work after school and Maddox grabs my phone! He loves taking selfies!

Linds and I fit in our first 10 mile run of 2022.  We have a half marathon the first weekend in April so we had to up the mileage with consideration of the basketball schedule!

The boys had another great Saturday on the basketball court!  I love watching them play any sport (although I think football is off limits)! ;)

On Saturday night, we went with the Kennedys and Williams family to see a hockey game!  We had never been to a hockey game before, so it was quite an experience!  The boys loved when our team got a goal and Zander loved getting to throw a puck on the rink during one of the intermissions!

Burke got a new bed and so far he loves it!  We are hoping he will sleep more at night if he is a little more comfortable.  Stay tuned.....

We watched the Super Bowl at Grammy and Grandpa's on Sunday evening after AWANA.  The Rams won the game and we were all winners with the yummy food we got to eat! :)

What a week!

 So..... we made it to February!  It has been a hard week.  Monday started out with a vet appointment for Burke to check and see what is going on with him.  He had an abdominal ultrasound done and a urine sample to figure out why his water intake is greater than the typical consumption along with his constant restlessness during the nights.  The vet is thinking it might be Cushing's syndrome.  We still haven't heard the results from the ultrasound but his urine sample came back normal.  They had to shave his belly area for the ultrasound.  Needless to say, he needed (and deserved) extra cuddles on Monday night. ;)

I got to see my littlest love on Wednesday night for dinner, and he appropriately rocked a shirt that Zander, Maddox and Henry have all worn in their earlier years.  I enjoyed the extra time with my sister and her kids that evening.  It is always fun to see the cousins together.  It is always a lot of work too with these four busy kiddos!  Linds and I wonder when the day will come that we can just sit and enjoy a conversation while the kids play without requiring maternal interventions! haha

Friday was Career Day at school.  We had a lawyer, a vet and a missionary for the day! I always love when the boys pick something that can be easily represented with the clothing in their closets! haha

Friday was a hard day.  One of my sister's closest friends since childhood passed away unexpectedly last week of a heart condition.  At the age of 35, her three young children and husband are grieving the absence of a mother and wife.  It has been incredibly hard to comprehend how this could happen to someone so young and someone that means so much to so many.  She was always a constant friend to my sister, and I have many fond memories with her at wedding and baby showers, girls' nights at our house growing up and at sporting events where my sister and her friends would gather.  I offered to drive Linds to the funeral back home on Friday afternoon.  While it was such a difficult day, I enjoyed the time I had with my sister and was thankful to show my support to Katie's family.  If you are reading this, please pray for their family.  Pray for the upcoming days, weeks, months and years as they will undoubtedly notice her absence as nothing can replace the love and presence of a mother.  In true "sweaty sister" fashion, we went for a run when we got back into town (dad, it was in Linds' neighborhood, I promise).  It was a way to put all our emotions on the pavement after a very tough day.  I am so thankful for my friendship with my sister and our ability to grab a run when needed and share a drink afterwards (even if that beverage is an iced cold water)!

Considering the events of the past few weeks with the death of our two neighbors and now the sudden death of one of Lindsey's friends, it's made me want to soak up the time with my boys even more.  I took the opportunity to cuddle with my youngest during rest time yesterday.  He has the most kissable cheeks and has an optimism that is second to none! God, I pray you protect my babies.  I pray that you provide them a long life filled with positive memories of their childhood with the presence of their extended family members at all important milestones.  

This weekend, we also fit in our second week of basketball games of the season.  While the season started a month ago, due to winter weather, this was only the second time that the boys were able to play actual games against opponents.  Grannie came to visit for the games.  The boys also had Grandpa and Grammy in the stands cheering them on!  It is equally entertaining to watch Coach Boomer with Zack as his assistant coach wrangle the five and six year olds up and down the court!

Finally, this past weekend, I was able to head back home for one whole afternoon and evening to see one of my best friends, Liz.  I don't believe we have been able to spend time together just the two of us without our children and husbands included since we became moms!  We were able to see "Redeeming Love" in the theaters (based off the book we read in college).  We ate a yummy dinner and went back to her mom's house for an evening of catching up into the wee hours of the morning!  While I might be tired this week, it was so good to talk to someone that has known you for half your life and understands exactly what you are going through since we have hit many milestones (engagements, weddings, births) at the same time!  We are already planning to make this happen more than once a decade! haha!

Working our Way Through Winter!

 I will be honest.  The month of January is not typically my favorite month of the year.  It gets dark so early in the evenings and it is so cold outside, making it hard for our boys to enjoy the outdoor activities that help get their endless energy out!  We have had snow the last three weekends.  The first snowy weekend, we were able to enjoy the winter weather while up in the mountains.  The last two weekends, the snow has been just enough to cancel basketball games and other plans that require commutes.  So, we just continue to work at school Monday through Friday, enjoy some family time on Saturdays and then spend time at our church on Sundays at our morning and evening services.  The weeks have gone smoothly enough.  It's just my summer-loving personality and my Florida roots make the winters hard to enjoy! haha  So here is what we have been up to in the last couple weeks!

Burke got a bath which is a normal occurrence.  However, I feel that each time we bathe him, he enjoys it less and less, giving me the saddest eyes while we attempt to get him clean! haha  Prayers are appreciated for him tomorrow.  He will have an abdominal ultrasound to determine what is keeping him up at night, drinking a lot of water throughout the day and causing him to have dropped some weight in the last couple years.

We had the 90th day of school and we dressed from the 90s!  I have to say I LOVED this decade growing up!  Who wouldn't love and cherish the decade where you were still living at home with your parents, enjoying the teenage years and all the fun that high school has to offer!?

Zack and I had a date night to celebrate our 17th dating anniversary.... I am at the point where I will find any excuse to get a date night in! haha  Ironically, our first date was on a Saturday and we got snow.  This year was no different!  Snow came again on this significant date in our lives. 

Linds and I fit in our weekly 8 mile run on a Friday afternoon due to the snow predictions that were coming Friday evening.  We could not have planned it more perfectly!! It started to rain (sleet?) as we finished up the last mile!  It took a lot of planning to execute this Friday afternoon run:  getting off work as soon as possible, Grammy and Grandpa watching all the grandkids and having enough daylight to make it happen before the winter weather arrived!  It takes a village and I continue to be thankful for mine!!

I took the boys out for dinner a couple nights last week.  Mommy was on the struggle bus after having a week off of school due to snow the week before.  Now we were back into the daily school routine which meant early mornings and rushing around until our heads hit the pillow at night.  I enjoyed these dinners with my boys as daddy had to work late.  Maddox continues to make me smile, saying the most exciting place he has gone is Disney World, asking if he could go back for his next birthday! haha

We also fit in haircuts!  They have class pictures in the next week or so which meant we were opportunistic one day to get their hair looking good for the upcoming pictures. ;)  Somehow Maddox got cut by the razor while the barber was cutting his hair.  The barber swears M didn't move a bit and of course M was a champ about the whole thing!  

A Weekend Away!

Back in August (a couple weeks after my grandma died), I had the idea to go away for the Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend and rent a tiny house in the NC mountains.  I was missing my grandma terribly and continued to think of all the memories we shared camping together and taking trips in general.  I knew it would be a fun weekend for my family of four (five including Burke) so I enthusiastically booked the cabin and counted down until the weekend arrived.  Little did I know that it would be the perfectly planned trip for us.  On Friday, our dear next-door neighbor, someone that has been like a grandma to our boys, died due to complications from Covid and other health issues.  Judy has been such a special part of our lives, letting us swim in her pool in the summers, getting the boys treats like popsicles and ice cream bars and ensuring they always had the large size candy bars at Halloween.  We have been so sad about her sudden death, and I can't tell you what a relief it was to take my boys away from our house for a couple days, so we didn't look next door and miss her even more.  Here is a picture of our neighbors a few years ago on Halloween.   Her husband, Doug (dressed as a lady here), is still in the ICU and we continue to pray for his recovery.  

Not only was this weekend perfectly planned because of the unexpected loss mentioned above, but the meteorologists were predicting a big snow for the area we were planning to visit!  This made the boys incredibly happy!  So here are some pictures from our mountain adventure in a tiny house where we got snowed in for two days!

It really did feel like camping with my family when I was a little girl.  The accommodations were a little bigger than the camper we would stay in, but I enjoyed planning and preparing each meal for my boys!

We played board games, enjoyed the nice warmth of our cozy home and even ventured to the yurt at the top of the hill for the boys to get a little exercise (a.k.a. get a little energy out)!

The main attraction was the SNOW!!  We enjoyed hiking on the trails on the property, sledding down our driveway and the boys even enjoyed a swim in our hot tub that was connected to the house!

Here are some comparison shots from before the snow came and after the snow arrived!

I love these two pictures below... showing the trail we went on prior to the snow and after the snowfall.  It was the perfect weekend, and I loved every minute of spending time with my boys!

This past week, Zander was recognized with a PACE award for showing perseverance and academics!

Maddox got 2nd place for our verse-a-thon at church... he memorized 18 verses which he recited on our first Sunday night after the Christmas break!

I love getting pictures of my boys while they are at school.  Their teachers love them so much and they are learning a great deal!  I can't believe how fast they are growing!