Critter Love

I love seeing the world through my sweeties eyes. Everything is so fresh and new, even the tiniest ant or the nastiest slug. I hope they will always keep that keen curiosity and love for animals. Jessie really enjoyed poking our little ant friend and they both found the slimy slug quite intriguing. Eww.

Send Me A Man!

I can't believe Jackson only has 2 more days of preschool left before he begins his adventure into Kindergarten. It honestly feels like a few months ago when I "tried" to drop him off at a mom's morning out for 2 hours and he cried his eyes dry...now he can't wait to go to school "till the moon comes up he" he says.

Anywho...today was his farewell party at school including loads of fun songs, hilarious skits and yummy goodies. Jackson's highlight came when he starred as the Biblical character, Goliath. I have been hearing him say the words, "Send me a man!" for what seems like months, and I'm so glad I got to actually see these words in practice. He was an awesome and frightening giant.

I will miss his teachers and the inspiration they bring to the classroom. I can only hope his new teacher(s) is just as creative and fun. Here is a quick recap from our fun farewell day.

DrumRoll Please!

Family Day at the Eno

One of our favorite tromping grounds is the West Point on the Eno River off Roxboro Rd in Durham. Ever since Jackson was a wee lad I would take him here to hike the trails and enjoy the sounds of the river. As Jackson grew up and developed his mighty throwing arm, he fell in love with throwing rocks in the river bed.

This past Sunday we introduced Jessie to the river for the first time and she, like her brother, loved it. We all took some time to just get our feet wet and practice skipping rocks. Afterward we enjoyed a hike in the woods and a peek into the teepee that has been standing there for as long as I can remember.

Rock Skipping Fun

Treking Jessie

Peeking through the top of the teepee

Every little Indian needs a snack break

Jackson's eagle eyes spotted this well camouflaged baby frog! Cutie.


Goof

The Girls Day Out

I rarely get time with just one of my children, but when it happens, I truly eat it up! Don't get me wrong, I love having the dynamic duo together but often they feed off each other and compete for my attention. This sibling rivalry can turn into some nasty yelling matches and stuff that makes you want to run far away.

When I get just one of my sweeties to myself it really is something special. The atmosphere is much more relaxed, we can chat, we connect better....I simply love it. So today was me and Jessie day while Brad took Jackson to the batting cages. Jessie and I decided to hit the Museum of Life and Science. I'm so happy that she's finally getting old enough to really enjoy things like museums. At every new museum site, Jessie's new phrase "Whooooaaaaa" is heard. She absolutely loved the animals all except the incredibly loud, seemingly unhappy cow. The butterfly house was a hit as was the toddler room.

A few shots of her favorite things. Looking forward to some mommy/son time next!

Phantastic Phalanges

Jessie discovered a rather unique way to eat her strawberries.

She was quite proud of her discovery.

Birthday Bowling Bash

Yesterday was Jackson's birthday bash finale at Palace Pointe Bowling in Roxboro, NC. So far this past week we've celebrated 4 separate times this kids 5th birthday. Sheesh! Granted the first 2 times constituted small cupcakes with his class and baseball team for about 5 minutes total, but still a celebration none the less.

Jackson has BEGGED me to go bowling for quite some time and I'm glad we were able to swing a party for him this year at Palace Pointe. He and his little friends had a blast and Jack actually WON the game!

I think pictures are worth much more than words in this case....so here goes!

A very excited (super cute) Jackson on his way to his 5th birthday party.

At Jackson's request...a baseball birthday cake.

Thinking of a wish with Papa Jerry wishing he'd hurry up so he could eat the cake.


Enjoying Yummy Cake!


Cheesin'


Papa Jerry giving Jackson a lesson


The winner in action!

Happy Boy!

Jessie Girl and her Mema watching the ball Sloooowly go down the lane. :)


Jackson's buddy Josh


Jackson's buddy Dante (Diego's Brother)



The Final Score!

Happy Birthday Jackson!

My sweet little boy has turned five. Saying I have a 5 year old makes me feel really old, I wonder how 13 will feel. Hrm.

We had a great day today...we're finishing up part 2 of the birthday celebrations and will close with the finale on Sunday. Part 1 included a small celebration after his little league game yesterday with cupcakes for the team. Part 2 included more cupcakes for his preschool class and a trip to Chuck E. Cheese with mom, dad and sis. He also got to open his presents today from us and I'm happy to say, I did good! I think his favorite is this weird air ball popper thing that lets him bat without having a pitcher. He also LOVES his flame shoes. yeah!


Chuck E. Cheese was fun, but I always leave that place feeling supremely grimy. Jack particularly loves the torpedo game and Jessie was quite fond of the play telephone. Chuck E. Cheese in Durham has gotten so much better with time. It's much cleaner than it used to be and the games are all fairly new and as clean as their going to be with a bunch of grimy hands touching them all day long.

Jack's Favorite Game Torpedo

Calling Chuck-E!

Rockin' with the Band (making sure not to get too close)

Our finale comes on Sunday with his "real" birthday party at the bowling alleys at Palace Point in Roxboro. We've invited his class and his cousins so it should be a rip roaring time with about 15 five year old bouncing heavy balls off the bumpers and devouring mass amounts of sugar. Can't wait!

At the end of it all, I'm sure we'll all be feeling the way Jessie looks below...zzzzz.... or in her words, "Nigh, nigh".

Pretty Toes

Short post...I'm exhausted after a long, great Mothers Day. It started out with a bright and early breakfast of cinnamon rolls, sausage and eggs and the all important cup of java. My sweet son gave me my mother's day present which was a very cute necklace that he made with his daddy. I asked that they save their money and spend it on our mini-vacation to the beach next week.
After breakfast I was given a much needed nap with Jessie. I can't remember the last time I got to take a nap in the middle of the day...I really miss that! We ended the day with a combo mother's day bbq and my nephew's 4th birthday party at Mema's house. It was fun but tiring...a 1 year old, 4 year old, 5 year old, 7 year old and 10 year old make for some interesting conversation, fights, and mucho drama.

So why name my post pretty toes?? One small gift to myself (and my husband) was to pamper my sad little feet with my new Ped Egg. I LOVE this thing. I have tried the pumice stone, the files, the lotions...etc. etc., but this really does work wonders. My toesies and heelies were much happier for mothers day. I am no longer embarrassed to wear my strappy shoes in public. I'll spare you the details of how this thing works.. I think the picture does it full justice...especially the trash can pic...EWW! Thank you Ped Egg!!

My Dog, Murphy

About a year ago, we haphazardly acquired our pug, Murphy. My Mother in Law purchased Murphy and unfortunately, her dog (our previous dog) Tate-Dog did not approve. So we agreed to take Murphy and make him our own.

I seriously have never had a dog that I have had trouble bonding with....well no longer. Murphy has a very quirky, subdued personality, very few brains, and does seem really annoying things. After having him fixed, we thankfully curbed his appetite to piss on every piece of furniture, shoes, children..etc. However, Murphy still takes it upon himself to christen our furniture every now and then . Murphy refuses to do #2 unless he is walked. This may not seem a problem for some, but I grew up with dogs in our back yard which was often acres large, which just took care of themselves in that department. I can get over the walking bit, I actually enjoy the quiet walks in the evening....HOWEVER, I cannot get over the fact that Murphy literally throws himself under cars as they pass by. Just a few weeks ago, we almost lost Murphy to our neighbors large truck. Murphy pulled himself away from my husband holding the leash and ran directly underneath the truck between the tires. He was a VERY lucky dog and came out ok. I have been walking Murphy before and he has attempted to pull his retractable leash to it's limits and dash underneath the nearest moving vehicle. It's awful...I'm really worried one days his leash will be juuuust long enough to have a bad accident.

So let's see....he urinates freely, he tries to kill himself...oh yeah, he barks incessantly at the crows overhead. It seems he has trouble seeing directly in front of him and often knocks into doors and walls, however, he can zoom in on black, soaring crows 50 feet up. Hm..makes sense to me. He barks viciously at other dogs, he snores loudly, he eats like a slob. You may ask...WHY do we keep him??

Our children love him. He's incredibly sweet to our babies. He's good for a laugh. He's quite popular in our neighborhood. He's a good snuggler. As annoying as he can be, he's edged into my heart just enough to keep me from deporting him to his Asian homeland.

Feelin' the Itch

With the warmer weather lately, I am SO ready for the coast or any large body of water for that matter. I don't know what it is about being near water to help me fully relax, but it works every time. My dad recently had an extremely sporadic spending venture and purchased a rather large boat which now resides at our home and Brad says is "his" (that's a whole other post...), but I'm super excited to take this lovely vessel out on the water. Jackson is looking forward to catching sharks and very large sea monters, he says, and I'm hoping Jessie will allow herself to ride without a screaming fit.

We usually head down near Topsail Island, but I think we'll have to try something closer for our first jaunt. I believe we'll hit Falls Lake first and hopefully get our sea legs before we try Topsail Sound.

I can't wait!!