So tonight, I bring the laptop with me to Matt’s football practice. Just out of curiosity, since we are at the elementary school, I check to see if there might be wireless internet access (it is 2006 after all) and what do you know? I have internet access! Football practice won’t seem so long now that I have something to do.

I’ve been watching him tonight tackle and block the other boys. He’s been doing a great job and of course, Sam’s been showing me her cheers. I know all the words now. I could be a Titan’s cheer leader!

But just to show you how cute of a cheer leader she is….

That pic was taken last Wednesday before the last day of Cheer Camp (gag) but her team won the Spirit Stick and I did some research…there WAS a Spirit Stick before the Movie Bring It On.

That’s about all from here for now. We’ve uploaded quite a few picture in the last month…you can see them all in the gallery.
The most recent ones are on page 4 and 5 of the album.

Until next time..

Heather

PS. Oh…teacher assignments came today along with SOL results. Matthew has Ms. Lewis and Samara has Ms. Nixon and Matthew scored really well on his SOLs. 400 is passing, 500 is the benchmark and over 500 is, I can’t remember what they call it, but it’s above the normal and REALLY good…he got 586 in history and social science, 536 in Reading, 5 something in math and 498 in science….no one better call my kid dumb…he’s just unmotivated…

I was all ready to post about the debacle of a trip…how I forgot the blanket and the memory card for the camera…how I had to make a $100 trip to Wal-Mart the night that we got to the campground and all the improvisations (is that a word?) that we made throughout the weekend…like using unfolded hotdog buns for hamburger buns, etc…but I can’t get past the kids growing up…

This is the third year that we’ve visited this campground for the 4th of July…so that means that the first trip, Matthew was 7, Sam was 4 and Regan 3….

Wel…Matthew now just takes off on his bike…helping out where he can and just playing hard (and helping when he can…) this year, Matt and Tim went to the dirt track races…after they left the girls took off to go on (another) hay ride…and there I sat…just me and the dogs…and I began to think just all that had happened the 2 days that we were there…

the training wheels had come off both Regan and Sam’s bikes…they aren’t hanging around bugging us anymore…they are making their own friends and we never see them…they are going down the slide at the pool without me waiting at the bottom to catch them…Samara without floaties…she’s swimming underwater without holding her nose…and then Matthew…well, like I said…we didn’t see him all weekend…

so I could tell you all the stuff that went wrong, but right now…with the kids just leaving 2 hours ago with my parents, I won’t…I’ll just tell you that I feel like I blinked once and overnight, they grew up…

i wonder how many more summers we can get away with camping trips that EVERYONE wants to go on? My guess is not many…but that’s okay too…we have the memories of these (Which are currently being developed at WalGreen’s one hour photo lab…can I tell you how long it’s been since I’ve taken ACTAUL pictures on film and had to get them developed???????)

Until next time…

Heather

PS…everyone had some sort of BIG news this weekend…while the girls ditched their training wheels, and Matthew ditched the girls, I started a campfire all by myself and Tim won the 50/50 at the dirt track races….$924….

Samara is me. There’s just no doubt about it.

It’s summer break…started yesterday. Yesterday, Matthew woke her up, and because, like me, she’s not a morning person, she was a real pistol in the morning.

So last night, I told Matthew just to let her sleep. Here it is…9:30am and she’s still in bed!

Matthew and I have been up and moving since 7:30 (well, he was up earlier than me, but I don’t know for how long!)

I have a feeling that mornings are going to be nice around here. Makes me want to get up earlier!

Until next time…

Heather

Tim’s really booking….

Here’s my second big window. It’s really that dark. It was the middle of the day…the storms were coming.

Another view of my big window! Now there are 2 and I’ll have LIGHT!!!

He got the glass in and then the sun came out….

A view of both windows….

I’m wondering where Tim learned to wire things…I KNOW that can’t be safe!

This is the picture of the floor that I’ve picked out…no, I’m kidding…it’s what was under the carpet…isn’t it pretty?

It’s all insulated….

and a few of the kids….

Here’s Matthew on the phone with Nana…

More pictures later….

Until next time…

Heather

Oy….

Matthew comes home with a butterfly that has a broken wing. Samara wants to let it out of the box to fly around so it won’t be cooped up while the dogs are outside.

Matthew tries to explain to her that it can’t fly; that it has a broken wing. She’s not happy with this answer…she screams “I WANT A NEW BROTHER!”

So he returns fire “I WANT A NEW SISTER” and I have a war over a broken winged butterfly. Who knew?

The butterfly’s name is Lucky. Lucky needs a new home so says Matthew. Samara wants to take an old pail and have Tim drills holes in it. Matthew thinks that’s stupid and wants to get a jar. Why the bug box that Lucky is currently in isn’t suitable, I don’t know. I spent enough money on it.

But Lucky has caused a war at our house…I keep trying to explain that Lucky isn’t really “lucky” and that eventually he’s (she’s?) going to die…and that neither one of them can have a new brother or sister. I don’t think they understand any of it.

I want a new head…a sane life…i’m not going to have either and I’m dealing with it…why can’t they?

Until next time…
H

Ok, so more people are overly interested in what’s going on in our lives than I thought….

So here goes….a long over due update on what’s been going on with us….

Tim:

Well Tim’s pretty much been gone every weekend. He’s either been in West Virginia helping Scott with his house (you can see some pics here at the blog that Tim installed for him www.outpost19b.com) or he’s been in North Carolina visiting Regan since she’s had soccer games. Which means I’ve been left to my own devices way more than I should be! But he’s been busy.

He’s also been working on the house here and there as time permits and last weekend he replanted my sunflowers and my tomatoes outside.

Let’s see…oh! in March, he bought an ‘02 Dodge Durango. He’s in love with it and I will admit, it’s a nice ride…I got to take it to Tennessee the last 2 weekends. But it’s nice. Now we can take all of us (and the dogs) camping in one vehicle. It’s sweet…gotta DVD player and everything in it! Much fancier than I’m used to!

Me

Well, I’ve been busy. Work, work, and more work! But I have taken some time out for myself. I’ve been to get a manicure and pedicure, and I’ve gone out with the girls and with Tim.

Last week, I joined the gym. I don’t know why. I did. It seemed like the thing to do at that time. I’m enjoying it though. I have a little routine, kinda. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday is Jazzercise. That’s the only class that I really like that I’m not dying when it’s over and I’m bummed when it ends. I like it. There are other jazzercise classes but not ones that I can get to. So I’ll have to stick with them. Sondra joined too and so we’ve gone together. I went to the step class on Friday night by myself and I thought I would DIE by the time it was over.

I think that they should post a warning outside the step class that alerts people who lack coordination that they should proceed with caution. I don’t think that I could keep up because I didn’t know where that step thing was when I was jumping all around. Either that or I was tripping over my own two feet!

But that’s the gym. The kids like going as well. They have a pretty nifty set up for the kids and each of them are in their own room and have some space, so that’s good.

What else have I been up to?

Um….I think that’s about it. Work, work and more work, but now that it’s summer (or at least getting a little warmer) I’m starting to scale back a bit. There’s just no point in sitting inside when it’s so nice outside. In fact, 3 times in the last month, we’ve gone to the park to eat. Twice we picked up a bucket of chicken and then this past Sunday, we took the kids and grilled out…and that was very nice. I have Tim to thank for this. he’s the one who’s very into being outside. I like it. Maybe when I get older, I’ll like it too…

Matthew

Matthew participated in his first Destination Imagination competition the end of March and I think he did really well, but he’s my kid. They didn’t win anything, but they had a good time and I think he’s going to participate again next year.

He spent a week with Mamaw, Nana, and Papaw over Easter Spring Break and he’s come home a “man” complete with a belt, hankerchief, and knows what all the pockets of his jeans should hold. He’s also decided that he’s going to play football this fall and is rather excited about it. And since I’ve joined the gym, he’s very excited about losing some of his gut as well.

He’s taking his first communion at church sometime soon. He’s shooting for Pentacost and he has his books and his notebook to jot down the questions and he’s excited about that as well. He’s also goingto be an acolyte starting in June. He’ll start out as a torch bearer and then work his wa up. I just hope he doesn’t get wax in his hair like I did when I was a torch bearer.

He’s been having some trouble with spelling but we’re working on that now. Of course, I’ve threatened him within an inch of his life to get the grade up and he wants to go to Camp Bethel this summer. He wants to go for at least a week, maybe two…so we’ll see.

I think that’s all that Matthew’s been up to!

Samara

Sam is still Sam. She also participated in Destination Imagination this year and wants to do it again next year. She also started cheerleading but between being sick for 7 days, getting in trouble, and then spring break, she’s not been in 3 weeks. We’ll try again this week…

She was sick for 7 days and missed 5 days of school. She just had a fever that wouldn’t go away and now she’s fighting allergies…poor kid. We just went and stocked up on the Claritin for her. It seems to help and not make her as hyper as the Benedryl.

She’s going to cheer for Hidden Valley this fall and shes excited about that, but in all honesty, Sam’s still Sam. Still doing the same stuff. She did get enough money at Easter to pay for 1/2 of her ticket to see Kenny Chesney this summer. Now she says she just needs $5 more so that she can buy a key chain….

Regan

We haven’t seen a whole lot of Regan since she’s had soccer and Tim’s been going to NC. She was here last week for spring break but stayed with her grandma. She spent Thursday with me and we had a great day at the mall and she helped me pick out 2 new pairs of flip flops…she’s doing well in school and seems to like it. We’re looking forward to getting back to normal with the kid schedule… I’ve missed her!

I think that’s about it…to catch you up over the past 6 weeks…I’ve got some pictures that I will put up soon and I promise (Julie) that I will try to post a little more often!!!

Until next time…

Heather

We all had mops on our heads so we went Friday to get our hair cut…

Samara was the bravest of them all and chopped about 4 inches off her head… (I was cringing as she wanted to go shorter….) but it’s sassy and cute…

Matt looks hip with his new do…

And I’m quite pleased with mine as well…

Take note of the wall behind us…In the next post, I’ll show you what it looks like now!

Until next time…

Heather

Poor Sam was tired I guess….

I guess the dogs were too but I woke Rhoda up when I snapped the pic…

This is about 30 minutes after she got home from school….ROFL….

Until next time…

Heather

Remember that commercial for Shake ‘n Bake? The one with the little girl who had a REALLY cheesy smile and the REAL strong southern accent?

Well, we like Shake ‘n Bake and the other night, Samara was making it and so I made her say it…

ROFL!!!!

See for yourself…

The sad part about it is she just thinks it’s dumb, while I’ve seen the commercial…so I guess if you haven’t seen the commercial, you’d think it’s dumb too…lol

Until next time…

Shake ‘n Bakin’ Heather

What a day! The kids went back to school today and Tim enjoyed the day together before they got home and he needed to take Regan home. While Matthew was at Destination Imagination, the phone rang and when I answered it was Julia looking for Matthew. A girl calling? He’s barely 9!

Julia’s a household name though…they’ve been in the same class for the past 2 years and she’s been the topic of conversation many times. My only smile came when he was too busy doing homework and planting his chia pet to call her back. (I know he likes her…I think he was afraid of getting teased!)

After Tim left I was working and Samara decided that she was going to mop the floors. We had the bucket of water sitting out all day because it was raining and the dogs made a mess when they came in from outside, so I guess that’s what gave her the idea. I happened to walk into the bathroom and was swimming in soap suds. There was water and suds EVERYWHERE.

I asked her what kind of soap she used and she held up the Dawn and said this. I do know that the bottle was 75% full when I finished the dishes this morning…and when I looked it was 1/2 full. That and she was using the wring mop which is too heavy for her to wring.

So I went to the kitchen to get the dirty towels to help mop up the water and encountered the same issue in the kitchen! That’s my little helper!!!

Until next time…

Heather

The audio service that I subscribe to has a Video Beta test out so I thought I would try it out. Here are Sam’s cheer leading videos from October.

Until next time…

Heather

Today is Pajama Day at Green Valley. It’s also the last day of school and the beginning of Christmas break. One would think that today would be the easiest day of the year to get children dressed…but you know, you have to have the *perfect* pj’s to wear to school. Well, if you’re Samara you do…

Don’t know what I’ll do with them home for so long. They’ve never spent Christmas break at home…they’ve got a chore list (I’ve needed someone to match all the socks in the odd sock pile…) and they’ll play with their friends and then I guess after Sunday, they’ll play with all the new goodies that Santa left under the tree.

Until next time…

Heather

My mom made the girls Christmas dresses so they posed for pictures this afternoon…

You can see more December pictures in the gallery…

Thanks Mom!!!

Until next time…

Heather

I was worried about Samara and Napolean because she’s not a big dog fan…I’m thinking I don’t really have to worry anymore…

Until next time…
Heather

Tonight was the final class for the Stars, Samara’s cheerleading squad and they put on a program for the parents.

There are 2 movies I took.

Chant and Cheer

Dance

Receiving her award

It was great! I’ve got pics in her uniform that I will post in a bit!

Until next time..

Heather

Every year Green Valley Elementary puts on a phenomenal show honoring our Veterans and this year was no different.

Although I had technical difficulties with the camera, I did manage to record a portion of one of my favorite songs they do called “We Are Proud of Our Veterans”.

View the movie here.

There is also a wall of Veteran’s at the school and I snapped a pic of everyone’s name in our family.

Happy Veterans’ Day!

Until next time…

Heather

I think she’s seen me working too much…

Today she asked to call Scout (her best friend) and when I turned around, this is what I saw…I just kept taking pictures…I couldn’t believe it! (you can also see her hair since she cut 3 inches off of it!)

And then I snapped a pic of my new desk….

And then a few of Matthew and Rhoda so they didn’t feel left out…

Until next time…

Heather

Yes, Samara is cheerleading! She’s very good and she’s a natural. The class started out as 46 5 and 6 year olds and one coach and it’s now been divided into 2 classes. She practices…over and over again. Her poms poms are a prized possession…which is good. They were $20 and I’m NOT buying another pair!

The class is 8 weeks and if she makes all 8 classes she gets a medal and there will be a show for the parents at the end of the sessions. I’m very excited to see that! I have some time to figure out how to upload video before then…:)

Here are a few pics that I snapped the first class…

Until next time…

Heather

It was fund raiser night at Chuck E. Cheese last Monday for Green Valley so the kids and I headed over there. Despite all the kids and the noise, we had a pretty good time.

Samara wanted to get our sketch done — for just one token, this is what we got:

Pretty cool eh?

The kids walked out with a lot of JUNK, but I managed to win enough tickets to get 3 Winnie the Pooh magnets and I was just tickled!

Until next time…

Heather

My baby turned 6 years old. She donned the family Party Animal hat and we had a nice little party for her!She was in her glory!!!

She took this picture of herself…

I took this one of her…

Matthew…full of birthday joy…

Opening her Cinderella card…it had sparkles…

Her coloring card from Nana…

The Dairy Queen food that is now scattered all over the house…

Her “gymnasitc stick” from Nana…

Opening more…

She’s telling Matt to be quiet…

Opening her Polly Pocket Jewelry maker that Matt got here…the beads are now everywhere too…

Matt showing her all it will do…

She’s showing us how old she is…

Blowing out the candles…

Eating the cake!

Until next time…

Heather