Kid's Say the Funniest Things...

This morning Emma had to be at school at 7:30 for chorus practice. Around 8:30 the phone rings and I had just walked into the bathroom. I yelled at Leah to answer the phone.

Leah: Hello!

Mrs. Hilburn (Emma's teacher): Hey Leah! May I speak to your mom or dad?

Leah: My dad is at work and my mom is on the POT!!!!

Mrs. Hilburn: OK, just have your mom call me back!! (I bet she was dying inside!!)

Lesson learned for Mama: Let the phone ring!!!!!

I guess it is time to teach Leah some phone manners!!

Elvis Love!!!

I thought I would share a couple of pictures with you!! This was one of the MANY conversations (or songs) Leah has with Elvis on a daily basis. I thought Leah would love Elvis, but I didn't know how much. Elvis is HER baby!! She doesn't play with her dolls as much anymore!! She has Elvis to love (worry the mess out of) each and every day. Elvis also loves Leah. A lot of mornings when I go in to wake Leah up, Elvis jumps on her bed and gives her kisses!! And she replies with a giggle, and a "Good Morning Elvis." It is really sweet, this relationship that they have. Emma doesn't want to mess with Elvis too much. She does care about him, and wants him to be safe, and not run away, and things like that, but she doesn't get in the floor and roll all around with the dog, sing to Elvis, and have conversations with him, and check his teeth to make sure that everything is ok in there, and rub his belly, and tell him that he is the best dog ever, and tell him that he is her best friend in the whole world, and that she is never going to let anything happen to him!! Not that kind of LOVE!!!

Trust me, he was enjoying this conversation!!!!!

Halloween

This Halloween Leah decided to be an Angel, and Emma a pink and white Kitty Cat!! They were mighty sweet in there costumes, and we had a great time trick or treating. We had a Halloween party at our house and invited all the families from church that had kids!! Whew, it was crazy, but a lot of fun too!! It was fun getting everyone together and seeing all the kids in there costumes. Here is a picture of the girls right before we went trick or treating, and also a picture of something we did to the bonus room window!! It turned out so cute. I had seen this in a magazine, and Todd and I actually pulled it off!! Hopefully I can keep it in one piece for next year!! Hope you got more treats than tricks this Halloween!! I know I did!!!!

This picture is a little blurry, but you get the idea!!

Happy Fall Y'all

I am loving my embroidery machine, and I can't seem to step away from it the last few days. With fall here I want to make everyone one of these. Aren't they adorable? I have been really busy lately on my machine. Put your girls in something cute that you made and everyone wants you to make one for them!! That is fine with me, I am going to start saving all the money that I get paid for a bigger machine with a bigger embroidery area!! Can't wait, I already have someone that wants to buy my machine when I upgrade!! WIN-WIN!!! Anyhow, I thought I would share these cute dish towels with you. I need to get back on my machine, there are ghost & spiders to be done today!! Hope everyone is having a wonderful start to the fall. I LOVE this weather!!

Military Ball!!

Last night Todd and I were able to go to our first Military Ball. We had so much fun. It was nice to get to meet the people that Todd works with everyday, and their wives. We laughed a lot. It was fun dressing up and leaving the kids behind to go out for the evening. It was also nice to see everyone else dressed so nice. The men had to wear their Class A's with a white shirt and a bow tie. The women a formal dress. I must say that my man was the nicest looking man in the place. It is hard to beat a man in uniform, especially when it is your man!!

New Hat!!

On Monday Leah has to dress up for school like she is going camping. They have to bring flashlights, sleeping bags, and wear hats, the whole nine yards!! Well, Todd found this hat that he thought Leah could wear. It looks so cute on her. Well, we decided to go get Mexican for dinner last night, and Leah decided she would wear the hat!!

Another Birthday!!!!

Emma turned 8 years old last Saturday!! She wanted to open her gifts as soon as she got up!! That is why she is in her pj's in this picture. I think her favorite gift was a mp3 player. I am actually a little jealous. She has been like a kid at Christmas with the thing, it is the first thing she does when she gets up in the morning. We uploaded the soundtrack from the new Hannah Montana movie on it. She is in heaven!! She also received the movie. I think we have seen it about 5 times already!! I have to admit it is a really cute movie. I can't believe Emma is 8 years old. She can finally ride with out a car seat, and she is very excited about it! It seems like yesterday that we brought her home from the hospital and our lives changed in a wonderful way. She continues to be a sweet, caring, and thoughtful little girl, who always tries to do the right thing. She is really starting to look older to me. Emma is so easy to love and we love having her in our family!! I can't wait to see what this new year brings about for Emma. We love you so much Emma!!

BIRTHDAY GIRL!!! & PRE-K

I can't believe my baby is 5 years old today!! We had a talk last night and I thought I had her talked into staying 4, but this morning she told me she was 5 already! Where in the world does time go?? It seems like yesterday we were going to the hospital to deliver her, and this world hasn't been the same since her birth. Leah is a spit fire!! She loves to be the center of attention. She will do anything for a laugh. She keeps us in stitches all the time. It is so fun to have her around. At least she still lets me hold her. Every Sunday in church she crawls up in my lap and takes a nap. She still thinks she is a baby sometimes, and I am ok with that most of the time. She loves to play with her babies, and also loves to color, cut, and glue anything, even things she isn't suppose too!! She has had a big growth spurt this past year not only in size, but in academics as well. We have loved having Leah in our family. This time next year she will be in Kindergarten, and I will be a wreck!! We love you Leah, and can't imagine our family with out you!!!



Today was a big day for Leah, not only is it her birthday, but she started her Pre-K class today!! She was so excited. We took cupcakes, and capri suns, and princess napkins to school today. She told Emma that she was going to get to stand in a chair and everyone was going to sing Happy Birthday to her!! She couldn't wait to get there!! She jumped right out of bed and was ready to get going with her day!! Normally she is very hard to get up in the mornings. She couldn't wait to put her birthday shirt on and get to school. We "met" the teacher yesterday. I say "met," because Leah and I already knew them, me from teaching music there and Leah had been over to their classroom for special occasions. I think Leah is going to have a great year, her teachers Mrs. Shannon, and Mrs. Angela are great and I know Leah will learn tons this year!!! She didn't have one bit of trouble going in and getting settled. She gave me and big kiss, and a big hug, and I was on my way. It makes things so much easier when they are happy about the next step in their life and not upset!! I can't wait to pick her up and see how her day went!!

First day of Pre-K

Walking in!!

Checking out who is here!!

Putting away her book bag and lunch box!!

Mom getting compliments for the cute shirt!!!

"signing in"

Family Time!!

Todd and I took the girls bowling. We have a wii, and Emma is REALLY good at the bowling game on there. In fact she is the only one in the house that is PRO!! Yes, you read right!! Emma is a PRO at bowling on the wii. She is the only on with a pretty sparkling ball. Well, let me tell you something... bowling in real live with these two girl was a lesson in patience for Todd and I. It took forever for the ball to reach the pins, and the balls were so heavy Todd had to help them get there balls down the lanes. The balls they gave the kids to use were 6 pounds!! Whatever, they couldn't even hold them right!! They had to do grandma shots(you know the ones between their legs!!)It took forever for Todd and I to have a REAL turn. The girls really enjoyed it. I am so glads they had the gutter guards up. We may not have had any points on the screen!!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!!!

Last weekend before school started back the girls and I had pedicures!! Oh, did we have fun. It was the first time that the girls had ever done anything like that. Leah scared me. She didn't understand why we were only getting our toes done. She also wanted to get her fingernails done, and wanted a design put on all of her toes and fingers. Can we say $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. She just didn't get it. I kept telling her that I had to pay for all of that. She didn't care and wanted to do it anyway!! We each did get a little design painted on our big toes!! It was pretty neat. They do that free handed. Some people have so much talent. She walked around to all the other people getting things done and was very interested!! She was soaking it all in!! I think we have more manicures and pedicures in our future.

Back To School!!!

School bells are ringing again!! I can't believe it is time to start another year of school!! Emma is going into the 3rd grade this morning, and it just doesn't seem right. In fact each year we make a sign for her to hold up with her teachers name, grade, etc. Last night when we were making the sign I actually wrote 2nd grade and Emma had to correct me. We had to make a new sign!!! See she SHOULD be 2nd grade, or even better lets go back to Kindergarten, that seems more real in my mind!! Anyhow, Emma has been saying for about a week that she didn't want to go. We have had a wonderful summer, and it is hard to get back into the swing of things. Once she got up this morning, she sure seemed excited!! I asked her if she was and she said "a little". She looked so sweet in her new outfit, and I just can't wait to see what all she learns this time around. She continues to amaze me!! When we were in the van on the way, she was singing, " and I stand, I stand in all of you." See if she doesn't learn anything else, but we can teach her to serve God, we have done our job. Emma has a wonderful heart, and I hope she can be a good example to her classmates this year!! Good Luck Emma!! We love you more than you know!!!

While The Cats Away Mice Will Play!!

Todd has been away in New Jersey for the past 3 weeks (one more week to go) and we have been doing lots of fun things. Usually when he has to go out of town Emma is in school. Well since he was going to be away during the summer, we decided to make a few trips around North Carolina spending time with some of our relatives. Here are some pictures from the Children's Museum in Greensboro. We went there with MeMe, and had a great time. My favorite part was the huge bubble that the girls were able to pull up around them. I actually wanted to try this myself, but other kids kept jumping up there. Wait a minute!!, I paid my money too!! The girls were postal workers, firemen, race car & train drivers, dental hygienist, police officers, grocery workers, rock climbers, meteorologist, made crafts, and played house. I am sure I am leaving something out because there was a ton of stuff for them to do, and they really enjoyed themselves.Nanny, have you ever been this excited after leaving the dentist!!

We Have A Swimmer!!!!

We just got back from a week at the beach. There was a great pool in the back yard. Emma has always been pretty "reserved" in the water. We go to the pool each week and she will play in the water all day and never get her hair wet. I amazes me each time. Well, we passed a bunch of mile stones this week. First of all, Emma went under the water. This is huge right by it's self. After I forced her to go under, I think she realized that nothing was going to happen to her. Then she started swimming a little across the pool, only where her feet could touch. But then she decided that she could swim all over the pool. I was totally shocked, she was like a fish all the sudden. She would even jump off the deep end (with her life jacket on), which is crazy.

Leah has always been a little more comfortable in the water. Her favorite thing was to do belly flops and cannon balls in the water. My nephew would shout CANNON BALL and jump in, so then each time Leah would jump in the water, she would scream CANNON BALL and try to soak everyone in the pool. We had so much fun spending time in the pool. The girls really soaked up a lot of sun!!!

Harvest Time!!!

Last night we picked tons of stuff out of the garden. We were so excited to see everything that was ready. We ate our cantaloupe today, it was pretty good. We also got 90 tomatoes and 3 bags of corn, bunches of peppers, and several butternut squash. I guess we will be eating some yummy stuff this week.

Santa Claus is Watching You!!!

After Emma got out of school for the summer, we decided to go to Wilmington for a couple of days. On the way to the beach Leah started asking about the song that talks about Santa knowing when you are sleeping, he knows when you're awake. She wanted to sing this song, so we did. The whole time Emma is saying it is NOT Christmas time. Anyway... When we got down to the beach, look who showed up.........................

I think I may use this for a Christmas card this year. Emma was a little concerned that Santa didn't have his thick furry suit on. He told them he was there on vacation trying to catch a fish. I told Emma it was to hot to be wearing that big furry suit.

Kid's Say the Funniest Things...

Last night I was asked to sub Emma's bible class. It was very last minute, and I had no clue what we would do. I did manage to make it through with the help of google. I was able to find a crossword puzzle and a trusty old coloring sheet that went right along with what they were talking about. Anyhow, one of the girls in the class out of the blue told us that her Daddy told her that Jesus talkes to her in her heart. Well, she wanted to clarify that with me. She didn't understand how that was possible. I told her that if we read the bible we will know what God wants us to do, and that is how he speaks to us. She again insisted that her Daddy told her it was in her heart she would hear Jesus talking to her, and then she said, and I AM NOT HEARING A THING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. I thought I would die laughing inside myself. I did try to keep it to myself.

A few minutes later, she asked if we would go to hell if we didn't remember Jesus. (we were talking about the Lord's Supper). I told her that Jesus wanted us to remember him, he said so in the bible. She then said. Well, I forget about him all through the week, I only think about him on Sundays!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What Next!!

My child is going to do me in!! Leah of course!! I was on the computer and she walks into the room with this look on her face. I immediately knew something was up!! I said, "What did you do?" She said,"nothing". I said "what have you done?" She said again, "nothing." I am glad I pressed her!! I told her to show me what was going on, and then she says "I axadently put a bead up my nose!!!!! What!!!! accidentally!!! LEAH, YOU ARE GOING TO SEND ME TO THE NUT HOUSE!!! So I had to get out my ol' trusty tweezers. They have had two other shots at the nose before. Rolled up toilet paper, and other beads in both nostrils. Todd called right after I got the bead out and when I told him he said, "Oh my!! I thought those days were over!! Guess not, she always keeps us on our toes!! I did take a second and grab my camera so I could share it with you all!!

God Is So GOOD!!!

Look what we have in our back yard!!

We are so excited!! This is the second year we have grown a garden, and it looks like the Lord is going to be providing us with lots of fresh veggies again this summer. I love seeing all the plants grow and get bigger each day, but I really love it when you can see the food coming forth!! GOD IS SO GOOD!!! I can't even imagine how much money this is saving, but I know it is a lot. Our friends Jimmy & Jana are helping again this year, and Rachel & Randy jumped on board as well. We expanded our garden this year, and it spreads from one side of the yard to the other. Double what it was last year!! Oh, I can't wait to eat those veggies!! If everything grows and produces, we should have yellow squash, zucchini, maybe a few carrots (the jury is still out on those), cauliflower, butternut squash, cucumbers, cantaloupes, tomatoes, corn, bell peppers (three different colors), black eyed peas, crowder peas & green beans. A little later this summer we will be planting more beans, broccoli, spinach, and eggplant. I think that is it, I may have forgotten something, but we should have food of some sort!! This is a great opportunity for me to teach the girls about how God provides for us. He takes those tiny (some extremely tiny) seeds and turns them into some of the best food I have ever eaten!!

School's Out!!

Leah and Mrs. Laura

Leah finished up her 4 year old preschool class last week. She has had a great year, begged to go everyday, even on Monday and Friday, which are not her days to go. She has learned so much it is unbelievable, and she loved her teacher Mrs. Laura. Next year she will be in a Pre K class. She will be going to school Monday - Thursday 9:00-1:00, and hopefully she will be really ready for Kindergarten. Although her teacher says she is ready to go now, but the calender says she has to wait. She missed the cut off by only 9 days. I think she will love her teachers next year. They are super and a lot of fun. Watch out Mrs. Shannon and Mrs. Angela---here comes Leah, and she has quite the personality!!

He's A Keeper!!

If Elvis can put up with Leah pestering him non-stop, he must be a good dog. He has been so easy going. Doesn't try to jump on the girls. Doesn't bother anyone. Just minds his own business and puts up with Leah dragging him from room to room. Leah may be laying down the babies, she has something real now!!

Too Funny!!

O.K. So we were going to leave Elvis out on Sunday morning while we were gone to church. Leah was so upset because she thought he would be lonely out there all by himself!! I don't know why she thought it would be any different if he was inside all by himself in a crate!! This is how the conversation went.
Leah: Mama I don't want Elvis outside all by himself. (crying)
Mom: Why not honey?

Leah: Because he will be lonely out there all by himself, with out anybody.(crying)

Todd: Leah he won't be by himself, God knows he is out there, he won't be all alone.

Leah: nuhuh He died......................................so we could live!!

So there take it from a 4 year old. You can't get anything over on them. They do pay attention!!

Are We Ready??

Meet Elvis!!

One of our friends is moving to TN and needs to get rid of her dog!! Todd and I have been looking for a medium sized dog for a while now. So when I received the email we decided give him a try. That's right, we are trying him out!! I am picking him up from church tonight, and we are going to keep him for a few days and see if he is a good fit for our family. Actually we are going to see if the girls pay him any attention. I know they will be a little apprehensive at first, but Leah has been begging for a dog for sometime. There is another family in line for him if he doesn't work out for us, but time will tell. I figure he is already 4 years old, and potty trained. Half the battle is already won, isn't it? I will keep you posted!!

Back to Reality!!

Well vacation is over, and it is so hard getting back into the swing of things. We had a GREAT time. The kids were real troopers. We were all exausted each night, but it was so worth it. Next time I would like stay a couple of extra days so that we have time to enjoy the resort. We actually only got to swim once, and that was at night. The kids got alot of hugs from their favorite characters and we got to ride some really fun rides. Leah's highlight of the trip was meeting Ariel, and Emma's favorite part was meeting Cinderella. The characters do such a great job with the kids. Ariel asked Emma where she was from. She said North Carolina, Ariel said, "my what a big swim, is it your first time?" She was so sweet. Leah asked Belle where Beast was. Belle told her that he was back at the castle playing hide & seek with teacup. She also told Leah a secret about the Beast, but I better not tell, it was a secret!! Hopefully I can get some pictures up here soon. I will have to seriously narrow down my picks!! I can't wait to go back. I now see why people go every year. I think seeing it through the kids eyes was the best!!

Sugar Overload!!

MiMi brought the girls a little (actually BIG) treat to the recital on Friday night. Leah broke into hers today!! She looked so sweet I had to take a picture. She actually didn't eat to much, I am sure she got tired of licking over and over again so she is saving the rest of it!! Thanks MiMi for the suckers, and Emma has been playing with her new Webkinz too. She has been earning all sorts of things for it online. That is the kind of dog we need, pretend!!!

What a Surprise!!!

This weekend we went to Wilmington for my cousins 40th birthday party. We had a great time. After lunch on Sunday we decided to take the kids to Greenfield Lake and feed the ducks. We really fed more seagulls than any thing else, but as we were standing there feeding the ducks, and birds, someone spoted this thing in the water. We had been standing there at least 10-15 minutes and never saw it. It was right in front of us, just sun bathing I guess!! It decided that it would like some bread to. It actually came up to the bank and nibbled on some bread. Most of the kids were screaming every time it would make a move. I have to admit, I wondered how fast I was going to be able to run if that thing decided to make a run for one of my kids!!! I think I could have taken it on!!! (I had decided in my mind that I would just hold my kids up in the air and let the thing have my legs!!) After that the kids just wanted to go play on the playground. They had a great time on the tire swing. I was surprised that they were letting me spin them around in circles.

Emma's Recital

Friday night Emma had a recital. She has been playing the piano since last summer. I put her in a summer piano camp to see if it was something she might be interested in. She really likes it, and I am tickled to death that she enjoys it. She played Ode to Joy. She was suppose to go slow, but I think her nerves got to her, and man she went really fast. I am glad I had my camera ready. Todd leaned over to me after it was done (which was about 10 seconds) and said "she was ready to get out of there!!!" Hope you enjoy the SHORT video.

GREAT JOB EMMA!! YOU ARE DOING A FANTASTIC JOB!! KEEP PRACTICING!! WE LOVE YOU BUNCHES!!!

WHO'S READY FOR DISNEY???

I have been super busy on my embroidery machine the last few weeks!! Trying to make everyone look cute for our Disney trip!! The days are counting down fast. We can't wait!! I still have two shirts to make. Granddaddy and Grandma Tee should have shirts by tomorrow. Hope everyone enjoys their shirts!! Mickey and Minnie, we are ready for you!!!

Leah's World!!

This is Leah's life. Day in......... day out!! This is her job. Take care of those babies!! There are quite a few. She is going to be a good mama!! She is already got one thing down. Sleeping with a baby on her!!! Now if we could just put a brick on the baby so she would really know what if feels like, and have the baby cry everytime she drifted back off to sleep. That would be good practice!!

Little Miss Emma

Emma has a new look. She is really starting to act older, attitude and all!! I guess this just happens all the sudden. She has been trying to let her bangs grow out, so I decided to get her hair cut pretty short, and blend those bangs in a little more. It turned out really cute. Every time I cut her hair shorter I like it better. Speaking of acting older, we were in Target a couple of weeks ago, and I reached out to hold her hand. She snatched her hand back. She promptly said, “I don’t have to hold your hand in Target!!” It really hurt my feelings, but I tried not to let her know it. I knew this day would come, but I must admit, I wasn’t ready for it on that day in Target. One more act of growing up, we were getting ready for a yard sale a week or so ago, and she brought me a pair of Dora sunglasses that she has been wearing without complaint, and said “sell these.” I said, “you may need those in Disney”. “I don’t want you to get a headache from the sun”(knowing that I had already bought her a new pair of Hannah Montana glasses for the trip). She said, “I am NOT wearing those sunglasses in Disney, I am not 2 years old”. “SELL THEM, I don’t care if I get a headache.” I guess you have to draw the line somewhere!! Might I add that I am pretty tired of seeing Dora myself. I was happy to sell the glasses. She got her new sunglasses on report card day. Straight S’s. We are so proud of Emma and how hard she works at school. She had to work hard for those S’s and she deserved a special surprise!!

Mrs. Frugality

You all know how frugal we can be over here. Here was my latest attempt. The girls had a few pair of jeans that I hated to get rid of. They were still in really good condition, they were just getting to short. Well, I decided to make capris out of them. I didn’t want them to look like I had just cut them off and sewed them up, so I came up with this idea. I must say they don’t look like a professional did them, but the kids move around so much, no one will know the difference. I was right proud of myself, and the girls LOVE them. Some of my friends want me to do their kids pants. NO THANK YOU!! Don’t have enough time for that, and honestly, those pants legs are so small they are hard to get the ribbon on straight, and the machine to do just right!! Wonder what I will come up with next?

Happy Easter!!

We hope you all had a great Easter. We are still on a sugar high over here!! That Easter Bunny should think more before he brings all that candy. Here are a few pictures of the girls and their baskets, and a couple of them ready to go to church. The pictures of them going through their baskets aren't the greatest. I was doing an exercise video when taking the pictures. Emma & Leah are on spring break this week, so we will be hanging out together and having a good week.