Saturday

On Friday night, these cuties, Gracie and Brylie, came to spend the night with us to get ready for our big Saturday.

They were all smiles at 5:30 in the morning as we got up and left for Nashville to watch

this awesome cheerleader and her squad compete and win the FIRST PLACE trophy

performing this routine

and doing these stunts & MORE ....and she is only 7! While I was spending an exciting day with the Coles,

this was happening back in Paris! Lee scored his first soccer goal of the season and earned Player of the Game!

Then Lee and Daddy carved 5 out of our 7 pumpkins and had a fun "man-day" without Mommy!

For Shelby

My Shelby LOVES to play games. When she was younger, she would ask us play games at the dinner table. One of her favorites was "What is your favorite....?" We would go around the table and give her our answer. One question that always stumped me was "What is your favorite color?" It sounds simple enough, but I love many colors for many reasons. I could never choose just one. Well, Shelby, now I have a very favorite color. No other color makes me as happy as the color of the sky in the above picture. I love, love, love this color blue.

Eloise at 17 weeks

Eloise is 17 weeks and is 5 1/2 inches long and weighs 5 ounces or about the size of a baked potato.

This is a big week where Eloise's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to hard bone. She is also getting sweat glands and is able to move joints. She is learning to suck and swallow and is startled by loud noises. (I'm sure she is appreciating all the sneezing I've been doing this week!) We are anxiously awaiting our ultra sound being scheduled. I think that will happen after our appointment next week. I'm ready to decorate and SHOP!

Halloween Entertainment

I love this little song Lee learned at preschool. I especially love the way he says tiptoe like "tipthtoe" and the way he sings "Halloween is soon." Last night when he was singing it, I was mouthing the words and doing the motions too. He politely said, "Mommy, please wait your turn to do the commotions."

Fun at Holt Family Farms

On Friday after we picked the kids up from Preschool, Subo, Katherine and I took the kids to Holt Family Farms for an afternoon of fun.
Paul and Lee wanted to take this giant pumpkin home.

Hope was just having fun running free.

She was such a sweet little poser, while the boys were off playing hide and seek.

This was the best group picture I got. The kids were ready to get to the fun!

The boys were playing hide and seek, and they strangely disappeared every time I asked them for a picture.

more hiding...

Then it was time to take a hayride to the pumpkin patch. The pumpkins looked beautiful from where we were at the barn.

Our precious friends, the Butlers, were there too!

Paul and Lee LOVED the hayride. They sat at the front and watched the tractor the whole time. I think they could have ridden on there all day.

Then they were set free in the pumpkin patch to find their perfect pumpkins.

Lee found one right away.

He was SO proud of it!

Then, back at the barn, it was time to play on the hay. Guess who was first!

Sweet little daredevil! You can't tell in this picture, but she had climbed up a couple of bales of hay here. It was impressive.

These two loved playing on the hay. We had to drag them off to do other things.

There was a cool hay maze that the kids loved going through again and again.

Then it was on to the petting zoo. These goats were enjoying all the attention.

When Lee and Paul came back with food, the goats became very aggressive. It was a little scary, and I was glad when the food was gone.

The boys weren't scared at all.

Then Lee enjoyed chasing the chickens.

He wanted to go back to the hay one more time before leaving. I did manage to get a couple of cute pictures between all the jumping.

If we had these at our house, we would never get him inside. He had the best time.

Even with the cool temperatures and impending rain, we had a wonderful afternoon. If you get the chance to visit Holt Family Farms, you should go this week. The leaves are beautiful, and there are so much fun activities for the kids.

Vaccine update

Lee and I just got home from getting our H1N1 shots. Lee had to get the shot instead of the mist, due to the mist containing the live virus. He was such a brave boy and barely flinched when he got the shot. Then he offered to hold my hand while I got mine. It was pretty precious. Both nurses "awwwwed."

I ran into a friend while waiting, who is also pregnant, and she and her little boy were getting their shots. She no longer lives in Paris, but she contacted Dr. Kimberlin to seek advice on the vaccine. She left a message for his nurse to call back, and he called her back himself. (I think I love that man more every day. What a treasure to have him here!) Anyway, he told her that she must get the vaccine, and then he told her that one of his patients got the H1N1 flu and was transferred to Jackson yesterday. Because she was so sick, she was forced to deliver early and is in very critical condition. My friend said that he sounded very upset. She had been praying over her decision, and talking to Dr. K was hopefully going to convince her one way or the other. She realized she didn't have a choice after hearing about his patient. We don't know who the woman or baby is, but please pray that she and the baby will pull through and pray for Dr. K, who cares so much for his patients.

5 Little Pumpkins

Eloise at 16 weeks

Eloise weighs about 3 ounces and is about 4.5 inches long this week, or the size of an avocado. During this week, it has strengthened its facial muscles and can make facial expressions. Its eyesight is strengthening, and eyelashes are forming.

For those of you who have asked and have been concerned, we are on the list to get our H1N1 vaccines tomorrow. We have been so fortunate not to have it at our house. When we saw Dr. Whitby on Monday, he said his clinic has seen over 500 cases so far. I am so thankful that we have not had to go through that! I will rest a LOT easier tomorrow night knowing my family is a little safer.

Wiggle Worm

Lee has had an ear ache for 3 days, so we went to the doctor today. Luckily, he didn't have an ear infection. He had some drainage that probably just irritated his ear. We got a decongestant that cautioned on the label that it could cause drowsiness. I was hopeful, since Lee had been going full force since he woke up this morning. In the afternoons, I don't always make him take a nap, but he must have an hour of rest time. He usually chooses to watch a movie and isn't allowed to play during this time. Today, he came and got me after about 15 minutes and said, "Mommy, I tried to rest, but my body just wanted to wiggle." I told him to try again, and this time I watched him. He really was trying to be still, but he had the wiggles. I guess instead of causing drowsiness, the medicine caused him to have the jitters. Oh boy!! We have 10 days of it too!

Great day

Do you ever have those days where everything goes right, your child's behavior is near perfect, and you just don't want the day to end? We had one of those days Saturday. Lee woke up in a great mood and was ready for school. He was pretty disappointed when I told him that it was Saturday, and that he was going to play soccer instead of going to school. He quickly made the transition and got ready for his game. I warned him that it would be really, really cold, and he didn't seem to mind. It was around 45 degrees at game time. All of Lee's fans were bundled up and shivering, and we could barely keep a jacket on Lee when he wasn't playing. He didn't seem to notice the temperature change at all.

He got into the game and really played hard.
He has gotten better at becoming aggressive and fighting for the ball.

Then he posed for a picture with Tucker, who is the son of one of Matt's best friends, Brad. Matt and Brad have been friends since they were in high school, and they lived together all through college.

After lunch and a quick rest time at home, we went to a birthday party for Lee's cousin. The party was at Ben's church, and they had these ride on toys that Lee loved. It took him awhile to master it, but then it was hard to get him off of it.

He and Paul laughed the whole time! Lee's legs are so bruised today from running and jumping on these things. By the end of the party, Lee even learned how to spin his.

Paul had to take a bathroom break, so Lee held his for him. Such a sweet cousin.

Then, it was time to eat. Lee sat at a table with the other kids and ate his supper. When he was finished, he got up and cleaned up his mess and threw away his plate and drink without being asked.

Pinata time was next, and when Lee was told that he would be toward the back of the line (based on height), he had a great attitude and waited patiently for his turn.

Then he had a turn. He wasn't the one who broke the pinata, but he was ready when it happened.

He joined the rest of the kids in picking up the candy.

Then, without any prompting, he went and told Ben's mother thank you for the candy! I was so proud of his behavior and could tell he was proud too, when Matt and I bragged on him. We had a wonderful day together and were not ready for it to end!

Question

What do you get when you mix a 4 year old boy with a runny nose, who LOVES tissues, with a Daddy who gives him a brand new box of tissues to use while watching a movie?

A big, huge, snotty pile of used tissues and one very happy little boy!!

And according to that same Daddy, one wacko mommy who poses the little boy by the pile of tissues all for a blog post!

Our Silly Boy

If someone who doesn't know us came into our house at Lee's bedtime, they would think we had absolutely lost our minds. It truly is an event, beginning with bathtime. Tonight, as Lee was "relaxing" in the tub, he asked me to give him a few minutes before washing to "just enjoy the moment." Every night after I dress him, he wants to brush his own hair. I'm fine with that, but he normally sends me to the living room to wait with my eyes closed until he says, "Ta-Da!" Then I can look at his hair creation and giggle and help him sneak up on his Daddy. Tonight, I could hear him crawling down the hall, and since I was working on some pictures I had taken today, I had my camera in my lap. As soon as he said the magic words, I was ready for a picture. He was even funnier than what I was picturing in my head while I waited with closed eyes.

I don't know why he combed his hair and then chose a headband for bedtime, but it was hilarious. He kept telling me to quit laughing so he could "sneak up on Daddy." Mind you, Matt was sitting 3 feet away on the other couch trying not to look or giggle.

Then, Lee crawled as fast as he could and "hid" under the arm of the couch until he could surprise Matt. I don't know why this routine is so funny to him or us, but it just is. As if this routine isn't goofy enough, there's more. Each night, Matt and I have a pretend argument over who is putting Lee to bed. Lee thinks it is so funny that we each beg him for it to be our turn to read to him and cuddle with him. Matt's argument tonight was that I would need to blog, so it should be his turn. Lee gave me the meanest look and said, "Mommy, you don't really have to bwog tonight, do ya?" As soon as I started laughing, he tagged me to be the cuddler. In order to keep things fair, he let Matt read him a book and let me read the Bible story. He can be a good little negotiator during these "arguments." That's still not the end of our bedtime madness. Once we get to the bed, Lee has more commands. Tonight, he told me when I heard him say, "I'm tickled pink" that was my cue to rub his back. So, I would rub until I got tired and would take a break. He would wiggle that little bottom and say, "I'm tickled pink." If I didn't respond fast enough, he would wiggle faster and say, "Mommy, I said I'm tickled PINK!" It got to be too funny, and I had to stop. We both got the giggles, and I knew he would never go to sleep. On nights when we have plenty of time to be silly, our bedtime routine is hilarious and my favorite time of day. When we're late getting home or late getting to bed, it's not quite such an adventure!

We have never had Lee say a memorized prayer or blessing. He has always just gotten to say what he wants. It has varied from being very serious to thanking God for gum, etc. Since he has been at Holy Cross, he has learned several new prayers and blessings. Since they have learned several, he often gets them mixed up. He is still very sincere, but it's often hard for Matt and me not to laugh. The other night at supper, he was getting a little confused, and I could tell that he just wanted to end it. So he said, "And God, you and Jesus, well, you're the best guys. Amen."