Got Our Money's Worth!

So he DOES have a little bit of perfectionist in him - see the airplanes all lined up? Josiah used to do that ALL the time when he was 2 and 3!

Do they look like they are up to no good, or what!
I thought I'd start Callie training on the obstacle course now so she can go on the show "Wipeout"!
All 3 of the kids loved the animal center - SO much fun!

Doctor Schrodt - looks good, doesn't it!

Callie did this slide probably 100 times each time we went! LOVED it!


My sweet Jacob - in his own little building world!
Callie would walk around all the centers with her hands full of these animals!

Remember how I said last Thursday, several of us girls went to Birdie's(http://www.birdiesfun.com/) to have a playdate while Beth & her kids were in town? Well, it was the same price to pay for the day that morning or get a "trial membership for the week", so of course that's what I did. And boy did we get our money's worth! We went back on Monday morning - and lucked out, they were doing a craft that morning - and then went again tonight while David had band practice for our last night on the free membership. The kids all so enjoyed themselves each time. They have all these different centers of play in one room, and then the "running" room has an inflatable and a jungle gym. Anyways, we had a ball. There was something for all of them and I loved watching each of them and their personalities!

Katy & Beth

David took this picture of Beth & I before she left to go back to NC on Sunday afternoon. We always take tons of pictures of our kids, but never have many of us! (That's always the way it is with us moms, right?) I know I posted about our week before, but I had SUCH a great visit with her this week! God has blessed me with a few very dear friends in my life that I've had the privilege of "doing life together" with, and Beth is one of them! So very grateful!

YES - it was WONDERFUL!!!

After a CRAZY day (complete with 1 girl taking a much SHORTER nap than she should have and two boys with no naps at all), I REFUSED to let it change our plans! We headed out to Cheesecake Factory for our practically free cheesecake anyways! We got there at 6:30 pm - and yes, there was a line out the door just to put your name in!!! But our wait was only 25 minutes, and the kids played in the nearby fountains and were quite happy! (Well, except for Josiah at times who didn't understand why he couldn't KEEP the money he kept scooping out of the fountains).
Here are my VERY happy boys! Josiah and Jacob thought it was the COOLEST that they could pick ANY kind they wanted and have their VERY own! Josiah picked Brownie Sundae Cheesecake, because he wanted nuts and chocolate, and Jacob had Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake because he wanted JUST chocolate. David's was Lemon Raspberry - yum-o! (Mine was Caramel Pecan Turtle - VERY yummy! Oh, and Callie's was Oreo, but we got hers to go...)
Here's Callie saying "Aaaaahhhh" - although she didn't like it one bit! Spit it right out! Go figure!
And here's our receipt - you can't beat it!! $8.29 for 5 slices of cheesecake! (Okay, so I know that my cheesecake from scratch only costs about $6 to make the whole thing, but still! Certainly couldn't make the fancy flavors!!!) It was great!!! And now I can sit and relax on the couch. Poor David - he had to go run his 4 miles. Glad I did mine this morning!! And PS - this is ONE reason why I do go run at 4:30 AM - so I can enjoy a WHOLE slice of cheesecake without ANY guilt!! LOVE it!!!

It's CHEESECAKE Day!!!

Don't forget everyone - it's $1.50 a slice day at The Cheesecake Factory today!!!! :) The only downer is that you have to dine-in...can't get it to go. But still - VERY worth it! :) We'll be there tonight for dessert!!!

http://www.thecheesecakefactory.com/

Pool Toys and Socks from the dryer...

...apparently all end up in the same place - MISSING!!! Yesterday afternoon, we headed to Target and bought some new "torpedo" diving sticks for the boys to swim with. They were all very excited, and for as much time as we spend at the pool, I thought a new swim toy would be a fun treat. Well, an hour and a half later, one of the 5 was lost. I was SO annoyed. I was very VOCAL about being very annoyed that we had already lost one. I shouldn't put so much blame on my kids. It's VERY possible that another kid just took it. But we had JUST bought them! As I'm driving home, I'm telling myself that it's just not that big of a deal - the pack of 5 was $8 I think. So it's only $1.25 or so. But still - it's the principle of the matter! The kids were very tired when we got home that night, and dinner was a bit later because David was in Williamsburg for a seminar. It was one of those nights that I could not get them in bed soon enough! Callie was climbing on everything - it's her latest trick - being Spidergirl I guess. She climbs up (fully) on the high chair - last night it came toppling over on her. She also tries to climb up the stove to see what's going on (HELLO - SLIGHT safety issue here!), so the discipline is in full force! Hoping for a better day today - yesterday we had lots and lots of fun, but it sort of ended with a big SPLAT! I was up at 4:30 AM to do my long run (8 miles) for the week, so I should have lots of energy to face the day, right? :)

The Last T-Ball Game of the Season

I love this boy!
Coach Scott and the Diamondbacks!
The lineup - complete with Callie...who THINKS she's playing too!
Josiah and Callie during a water break
The parents tunnel - a favorite for everyone!
Getting his trophy and silly string!
Josiah's FIRST trophy - he has only gotten "medals" before, so this was VERY exciting!
The silly string was a BIG hit! Josiah's first experience with it and boy was it hilarious!

The PERFECT beach day!

This picture doesn't even do it justice. When we first got to the beach, there were probably 15-20 dolphins swimming and jumping right next to the shore! They were SO close and SO active!! It was amazing - I'd never seen them so close to the sand before and the kids absolutely loved it!
Addison in her shaded paradise!
Does this girl love the beach or what!!! She was absolutely perfect - she looked around at everything for a while and had a great waketime, slept nice and soundly during naptime - she was perfect!
All the BIG kids playing in the water.
Beth & Katy
Callie was always wanting to see what Addison was up to. Poor Beth!
Josiah and Jacob were hunting for shells. Even Carter was trying to get in on the action!

On Friday, Beth & I took all the kids (7) to the beach for the morning. We could not have asked for more beautiful weather! We went early to try and avoid the hottest part of the afternoon, and were treated to a fabulous dolphin show when we first arrived. The weather was absolutely gorgeous - low to mid 80s probably, with a slight breeze. Perfect for the new baby!! The kids had a ball in the water, digging in the sand, collecting shells, and just being boys together!! Addison was perfect - she LOVES the beach! We enjoyed our lunch together there, and even saw a few crabs and a jellyfish! THIS was our time that Beth and I could sit in the chairs and catch up - and boy did we enjoy that! We agreed that it was so refreshing for both of us - even knowing the mess and the work that going HOME from the beach is, those 3 hours of pure refreshment are SO worth it!

A Visit with the Williams' Family

The boys had fudge pops (Harrison said "You mean it's like frozen chocolate milk?") on the patio.
Jackson "feeding" Shamu - you can always tell which kids have moms who are breastfeeding younger siblings! :) I have a picture of me doing this same thing when I was 2!!!
Jackson and Jacob giving Baby Addison some love. They are cut from the same cloth - very hands-on, very affectionate, and have to be reminded of how to love "gently"! :) But both VERY good big brothers!
As always, Callie just LOVED Addison. Just thought she was the greatest thing!

Beth and her kids drove up from NC this week to spend a few days visiting with family and friends. Harrison starts 1st grade (HOW is that possible!) on Monday, so this was the last hoorah before summer vacation is over for him! We missed their visit at July 4th since we were in DC, so we were SO excited to get to see them again! On Wednesday, we spent the morning at the pool. Sorry - no pictures. Too many kids that I was holding on to. The kids had a ball, and Beth & I lamented on the fact that although we didn't get to sit and talk for hours (again, too many kids we were holding on to!), ONE day we'd be able to sit in lounge chairs at the pool and read magazines and chat while ALL of kids just swam and played! :) It was fun though!

Thursday morning, we had a playgroup for Beth at Birdie's. It's an indoor play area with all kinds of different play centers set up for kids ages 6 and under. They also have a jungle gym and inflatable for the kids to climb on. It was a wonderful place - all of the kids had so much fun! From our 5 and 6 year olds down to the babies toddling around - there was something for everyone! And it was air conditioned, indoors, and contained - so the mommies could sit and catch up without running around after kids! It was a great morning. Afterwards, Beth & the kids came over for lunch and to play for a few hours. It's always so good to have them all back together. We all had SO much fun!!!

A White Snack...

As we were eating breakfast this morning, I told the boys that we were going to get to go to the movies this morning! It was our first free movie out at Regal for the summer - either we've been out of town, or something else on our plate, or the movie selection wasn't great. Anyways, we were going to go this morning to see Clifford. The boys were VERY excited and Josiah asked if they were going to have popcorn. I told them I was going to bring snacks for them (Jacob is ANTI-popcorn...go figure) and that it was a different snack that was white. They both blurted out their guesses at the same time. Jacob's guess? Marshmallows. Josiah's guess? Snow!!! I wonder which one was right! :) We had fun!

Meanwhile, I'm on pins and needles waiting for THE phone call. My dear friend Courtney is in the hospital in labor with her 4th baby!! VERY exciting! Come on baby!!!

Where Did MY Little Baby Go?

Perhaps it's because I know that Josiah is starting kindergarten in the fall. Perhaps it's because Jacob is almost 4! Perhaps because Callie has a larger-than-life personality that no one can get enough of. Perhaps it's because practically all of my dear friends have had brand new babies in the last few months. But Callie is looking bigger and bigger to me - she is growing up so fast! I checked on her the other night and found her all sprawled out and she looked so BIG in her crib!

Dinner Dates

We hardly even SAW the boys - they stole Ryan almost as soon as he walked in the door and they were GONE! They had so much fun together!
Emily taught Callie how to RIDE in the baby stroller - and Callie thought that was fantastic! Emily is about 5 months older than Callie, so it's very fun to watch her at the next stage too - hearing all her words and seeing her mannerisms. I tell Jamie all the time how Emily is such a little lady!!!

We invited Jamie and the kids to come over for dinner last night since their daddy has been gone on a business trip all week long. The kids had a great time playing together and we enjoyed getting to spend some time with our friends!

6 Under 5

Alayna, Carter, and Callie. Poor Carter - he was cornered between two very vocal little ladies!
Here's what 6 kids under 5 look like! The three big boys were pretending to take a nap on the floor - they were being so silly!
Callie went from laughing to crying in a split second in this picture. I was trying so hard to get a picture of the two girls together because they look alike to me. Both blond, tan and the wispy blond hair (Alayna obviously has so much more than Callie!) Oh well - it was an attempt!

There was one day last week that I had 6 kids under the age of 5 for the day. And it was so fun! Yes, it was busy and yes it was loud, but it was GREAT! I scored the extra kid when I got to have Alayna for the day while the rest of her family were at a water park for the day. It was great fun having her because she's at the next "level" as compared to Callie. She's talking up a storm and has an opinion about almost everything! She was an absolute delight! And Jacob is QUITE taken with her, I've discovered!

Just the Girls!

Just got home from a wonderful and relaxing few hours at the pool...with only one child!!! After Josiah's t-ball game this morning, Callie and I headed to the pool. Jacob and Josiah went with daddy for a boys' day out. David took each of them on a "date" with him individually about a month ago, which both of them LOVED! They started asking at the beginning of the week when they got to have another "daddy" day. David decided to take them both today for a Boys Day - and they were so excited! I'm sure he forgot the camera, so I won't have any splendid pictures, but their hearts will be full and smiles big, I'm sure! I so enjoyed some time alone with Callie - I forgot how EASY it is with only one child (I hope that doesn't offend anyone....I don't mean it to sound mean...) Callie LOVED having the freedom to walk and swim anywhere she wanted - because I only had to watch her! It was great! I enjoyed just watching her - really watching her. They had a musician playing at the pool today and she'd stop playing and just dance a little bit. Such a sweet girl. I like having some girl time! :)

CHEESECAKE!!!

Jamie M., I owe you BIG for finding out about THIS one!!! GIRLS - on July 30, you can get a slice of cheesecake (any variety) from the Cheesecake Factory for $1.50!!! It's their 30th anniversary celebration. TOTALLY going to be taking advantage of this one! We should make a reservation for 30 of us and all go for dessert!! Can you imagine???

http://www.cheesecakefactory.com/aboutus.htm

So Much for Wife of the Year!!

You all know how much I love finding out about free stuff! Well, this latest one would have brought me the "wife of the year" title for sure!! There's a new restaurant that opened today at lunchtime - it's practically around the corner from our house. They had a sign out that said "Free Wings for a Year for the first 100 guests". It would have been great - can you imagine how much MORE David would have loved me if I had gotten that for him? Oh well. Last night when I started seeing people set up TENTS in front of the restaurant, I knew it was not going to happen. Aside from the fact that I had 5 kids here today! Oh well. Guess he'll just have to love me for me!!! :)

On a happier note, you can get a free southern-style chicken sandwich today at McDonald's if you buy a medium or large drink!! :) It's not chick-fil-a (although they are trying to copy them), but it's still a freebie!!!

Deep Thoughts from Josiah and Jacob

I so love my job on mornings like this. I am so thankful to God (and to my husband) for providing a way for me to be able to stay home with my children. It's these little conversations that I love "overhearing" from my boys that make all the other "hard stuff" worth it!!! On the way home from the gym this morning, this is what I overheard in the backseat:

Jacob: God can pick up these buildings, Josiah.

Josiah: Yeah. He can do anything. He can do anything He wants to.

Jacob: Yeah. And he doesn't have a body. He lives in heaven, right Josiah?

Josiah: Right. And Jesus can too. He can pick up anything. Anything on earth - He is stronger than that.

Jacob: Yeah.

Josiah: He died on the cross. For real. Do you know why Jacob?

Jacob: Why?

Josiah: Because it hurt him so much. Remember all that mean stuff the bad soldiers did to him? If Jesus didn't do it, then we would have had to. And it would have hurt us so much. So Jesus did it so we didn't have to.

Jacob: Yeah. Look at that motorcycle out your window.

Josiah: Yeah, that's cool. But Jesus didn't stay dead, right Jacob? He came back to life! And we won't stay dead either.

Jacob: Yeah - we'll come back alive in heaven! But the bad guys made a bad choice and are going to go to hell.

Josiah: We don't say hell Jacob.

Jacob: But they are because they don't have Jesus in their heart.

Josiah: Yeah, but we asked Jesus in our heart, so we get to live in heaven.

Jacob: Yeah, and if there are sheep and lions in heaven, the lions will be nice to the sheep.

Josiah: Yeah!

Jacob: But if there were bunnies in heaven, we couldn't get them. Right Josiah?

Josiah: Yeah. They are so fast. But we could ask God! He could make them slower! Right Jacob?

Jacob: Right!

Josiah: And one day we will get baptized. I'll get baptized when I'm 30!

Jacob: Yeah.

Okay, so we're going to have to revisit that part of the theology lesson. I think he must have heard the story about when John the Baptist baptized Jesus...when he was about 30 years old...I guess!

How I love these little boys. How I love how inseparable they are MOST of the time. How I love how rough and tumble they are with David. How I love that they are so sensitive to the Lord and love Him with all that they are. I love that it is SO real for them. I think grown-ups make it too difficult sometimes. That idea of "faith like a child" - it's so HUGE! I love that they are growing up with these truths in their heart! My prayer is for them to continue to deepen and strengthen as they grow older!

Small Group Beach Day!

I won't even try to name everyone in this picture....it was just SO fun!!!
Natalie (on the right) chatting with Mindy (on the left)...Mindy's 3rd baby is due next month, and she looked GREAT!
Some of the daddies dug a big hole and put a tarp over it. David was filling it up with water in this picture - it was a big hit!
Josiah and Jacob playing baseball with Anderson...
Jen and Heather on the "Mommy Boat Ride"
Jamie and I - laughing our heads off because Heather (who was taking the picture) about fell off the boat WITH my camera!
Natalie & Tiffany in the back, Dave & Sue in the middle. Jen, Jamie, Heather & I were in the front.
Back seat - Jamie, Sue, Jen
Front seat - Katy, Natalie, Tiffany, Heather
What a GREAT idea to do a Mommy Boat Ride!


Here are the dolphins that we saw - they were so close! And now we all know that Jen is the official dolphin caller! :)

The three heads in the water is my family and I jetted off with the girls on a quick boat ride! David was holding Callie (see the white hat?), then Josiah was in the middle), and Jacob on the right.
Here was our "camp" as we returned from the Mommies Boat Ride! The daddies did a GREAT job holding down the fort. I was NEVER worried!
Dave took one last ride out with Mark & Anderson Judd, and my boys with David. They LOVED it!
Mr. Mann caught (or found?) a crab in the ocean - the boys all came running to check it out!
While the boys were all standing around the baby pool looking at, Callie came marching over, got in the pool, and picked it right up to get a closer look!!! Sue about DIED!!! That's our girl!

We had our 2nd annual small group beach day on Saturday. The weather was beautiful, and the fellowship even better! We invited the Maggiore small group to join us, and so the more, the merrier! We had a great lunch together and just enjoyed relaxing by the water and seeing all the kids play. Dave indulged us all with boat rides, and we even were able to see several dolphins jumping right by the boat! David and I were talking on the way home about what a difference a year makes - last year, Callie was only 3 months old and it was a MUCH different day. Still enjoyable, but we had to leave after a couple hours to get home for naps, etc. The kids all had such a fun time this year - were really able to swim around in the bay, - it was just a wonderfully, enjoyable day. How grateful we are - TRULY - for our friendships...not only for David and me, but for our KIDS to have too!