The Mommy Diaries

Our Love Story

2012-02-14T11:09:00.001-08:00

I saw this on another blog and thought it was cute. Happy Valentines Day to all my bloggy friends!

1. How long have you & your significant other been together?
We have been together 8 years....December 3rd, 2003 to be exact.

2. How did you meet? {What's your love story?}
We met while I was in hair school. At night, I would work at William-Sonoma. Jason's brother and one of his friends worked there. They thought that we would be perfect together so they told him about me. Jason came up to meet me one night while I was working and they forgot to tell me that Jason and his brother were twins. Everyone that was working that night thought that I was going out with Jeff.

3. If married, how long have you been married?
5 years 9 months

4. If you are married, where did you get married? Big or small wedding?
We got married at our church, Kirby Woods Baptist. It was a small-ish wedding with maybe about 125-150 people.

5. Do you have any nick-names that you call one another?
I call him "J" but that's it for pet names. We aren't "Honey" and "Baby" kind of people.

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.

1. He is a great Daddy. Our boys adore him.

2. He is hard-working. He works super hard to provide for us.

3. We have so much fun together. The couple who laughs together, stay together!

7. Tell us how he proposed?
October 14, 2005- We decided to take a Friday off of work together and do some fun things around town. We went to the Pink Palace Crafts Fair and then went to eat lunch. We drove around looking at houses, dreaming. Dreaming of being a family, owning a home...you know, the American Dream. Ha! Jason got the bright idea to go downtown and walk around. (I was a smidge suspicious since we NEVER go downtown. As he was driving, I may have looked at his pockets to see if he had anything "ring box" shaped in his pocket. When he didn't I lost all hope that it was going to happen. Jason being the smart cookie that he is, took the ring out of the box and just stuck it in his pocket.) We shopped and ate some more and then finished the evening at the top of the Peabody. It was starting to get cold, and I was starting to be a brat. I wanted to head home because I was tired but he kept standing in one spot. I didn't realize that he was waiting for everyone to leave and for us to be the only ones on the roof of the Peabody. He said something sweet, got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife. I then got down on my knees too, said YES! and may or may not have screamed.

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day or strawberries, champagne, & rose petals?
Nope, that's just not our style. He will leave me a sweet note on my steering wheel or get me something small. Neither one of us is real big into Valentines Day.

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop in a movie and relax on the couch?
Oh, the way to get my heart is 3 little words...Redbox, Take-out, couch! That really gets me.

10. Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant other one day. If you could do anything or go anywhere?
Go anywhere...ALONE! Even if just for a weekend. I won't be picky. Anywhere, with J and no kids.

11. Tell us what you plan on doing this Valentine's Day.
Taking the dog to the vet, making chicken fajitas, and watching Big Bang Theory. Super romantic, right?

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's Day?
Nope.

13. Give us one piece of advice for keeping a relationship strong & full of love.
Worship together. Spend time together. Have fun!

14. Show us a picture of what love means to you...

Our first picture as a family of 4. This just makes me smile.

Nesting?

2012-02-06T16:13:00.000-08:00

We have been cleaning our house like maniacs trying to get ready for our new puppy. Today, I called Jason and joked that I am in nesting mode. This morning, I changed out a light bulb which led to me cleaning out all the light fixtures globes/covers.

Don't all dogs care if there are dead bugs/ dust on the light fixtures?

My next project for today has been to organize our laundry room. (Again, doesn't every dog care if your laundry room is in order?) Last year, we had a major plumbing issue. When we would do laundry, our laundry room would always flood. Our insurance ended up fixing the plumbing problem and also redoing our laundry room. New sheet rock, new cabinets, new paint, redoing all the hardwood floors in the back of our house...New, all new!

This is what it looked like last year. The bad part of about our neighborhood is that laundry rooms are almost non-existent. We are lucky to actually have a laundry room, but what we have is SO SMALL!!!!

The laundry room was where we put everything that did not have a home. Well today, all that changed! Everything has a home.

Here is what it looks like today... Nice, tidy, clean!

I wanted to pass this trick along. I have a picture frame/corkboard that I wanted to hang. I hate trying to figure out where to put the nails so it hangs just right. I put a dab of toothpaste where I wanted the nails. I held it up to the wall and when I had it exactly where I wanted it, just tap it on the wall. Put your nails where the toothpaste is, then wipe the toothpaste off the wall and picture frame and hang. Seriously, what usually takes me FOREVER, took me 2 minutes today!

I love it!

This is what my shelves look like now. Neat and organized...

...Even "Pete" has a spot.

We have been keeping all our left-over paint in our laundry room. We had a ton of nearly empty paint cans. I had some baby food jars that I put "samples" in. (Just in case we need to touch up an area). I also wrote down the colors and formulas for every room. I wrote them on labels and put on one piece of paper. This alleviated a ton of space!

I also love that we have Puppy food all ready to go. I am so ready to get this little guy home with us.

Great Day and a +1 for the Haynes!

2012-02-05T06:00:00.000-08:00

So far we have had a wonderful weekend! Yesterday morning was one of the boys favorite things to do...the kids workshop at Home Depot! And I love it too because it is totally free. What I don't like about it is after the workshop we always end up walking through Home Depot and buy something we "have to have" (Very smart Home Depot, appeal to the kids and the parents will come and buy things.) Anyway, yesterday the project was a valentine box.

I appreciated that all it took was wood glue. I am not the best with a hammer and a nail and since I am in charge of helping one kid, wood glue makes me happy!

Hudson loves it too. He is finally old enough to really participate.

They worked so hard on their boxes. They turned out to be masterpieces! (Aren't they cute in their little Home Depot aprons?)

When we got done. Jason and I found out we are going to be parents again.

We adopted a dog! (I had ya there for a second didn't I!...No more kids for right now.) We went to the animal shelter Friday to look but we forgot to check their hours. They were closed. So we went as soon as they opened Saturday. The whole experience of picking an animal from an animal shelter is overwhelming! You walk through and all of them are dying for your attention. I started tearing up at first. I wanted to take all of them home. There were two brothers in a cage that I saw immediately. They stuck with me the whole time and they are the ones we decided to look at. It was so hard to choose between the two. The one we chose was not scared of the boys, would play some but really wanted to be held and cuddled (and it was the one who licked my face...you win!)

Here is our little precious man!

I stole this off the animal shelters face book page.

As of right now, he is nameless. His name at the shelter was Pete. We wanted to name him Sheldon (since I love Big Bang Theory) but I'm not sure he looks like a Sheldon. Jackson thinks he should be named Silly, Nathan, Iron Man, R2D2, Darth Vader or Captain America. (Hmmm, not sure about those either) In the running for us is Barkley, Pete, Sheldon, Tiger, Bandit, Jude, and Ace. (Feel free to help us out with this and add any more suggestions in the comments!)

Of course we had to go buy puppy stuff last night. We let each boy pick out one toy for little "no name".

Jackson chose a rope... (Out of all the toys there and he got him a rope)

...and Huds got a squirrel with a squeaker. He calls it "puppy lovey". Huds loves his lovey so it is only appropriate for him to get the puppy a lovey.

Today, we are getting our house in order for the puppy to come home. Once he is neutered we will go pick him up. I'm thinking that will be on Tuesday or Wednesday. I'm so ready to have him home with his family!

Random

2012-01-31T15:49:00.000-08:00

Here are a few random things for your Tuesday...

*I am totally obsessed with Big Bang Theory. It is quite ridiculous! (It makes me feel smarter for watching it.) I started watching it recently now that they show re-runs on TBS almost every night of the week! Sheldon makes me smile...Bazinga!

*I'm afraid that my snowman I made for our front door is going to be the only snow wee see this year. It has been in the upper 60s the past few days. We have had some fun getting out and playing at the park though!

*Jackson is doing SO WELL in school. He started a little later in the year than all the other kids so he has been a bit behind from the start. Today his teacher told me how well he has done just in the last week. He even read a few words to me tonight! This is MAJOR progress for him! I couldn't be prouder of my big boy!

*I am in a "Pinterest Challenge" on my friend Allison's blog. Go here to check it out...and of course feel free to vote for me! Just leave a comment on my post. And also check out her blog. She is a pretty awesome girl.

That is all for your Tuesday evening. What am I doing tonight? Watching Big Bang Theory of course. =)

Burlap Door Decoration

2012-01-28T10:55:00.000-08:00

For Christmas, I made all the girls in our families snowman burlap door decorations (that is 6 snowmen). I have had several people ask me on Facebook how I made them, so I thought I would give a step-by-step instructions.

I have seen several people selling them around town and on etsy for $20-$40. They are super cute and super easy-trust me, I am not artistic at all! Give it a whirl, you and your front door will be glad you did.

First, cut out your template. I used a large popcorn bowl to make the face and then I free-handed the carrot nose and the hat.

Fold your burlap over. Trace the template on one side of the burlap with a sharpie. Since you folded the burlap, you cut the 2 shapes out at the same time. This will assure that both shapes are mirror images of each other. Remember when you cut them, flip them to where the sides you want to be "outside" are the ones that will be painted on.

I painted the front and the back with white paint as kind of a primer-I used acrylic craft paint. (Please excuse the piece of cardboard that I paint on. I don't have a craft room so I paint on the floor while the boys play. My next home will have a craft area!) The primer makes painting faces, etc. much easier!

Time to make your burlap come to life. I painted another coat of white for the face and then painted the hat.

I don't sew so I hot glued him together. I took the back panel, flipped it over so the painted side was facing out, and glued a little loop of ribbon so he can be hung. Take the top panel and lay it on top of the bottom and start glueing his edges together (only glue the edges!).

Once you get half-way done, start stuffing with plastic grocery bags to give him a little shape. I am somewhat of a plastic bag hoarder. I never seem to be at a loss for them (does anyone else hoard grocery bags?) Continue the glueing until you get a small opening and stuff a few more bags in. Finish glueing him together.

And there you have it. I super-easy (and inexpensive) DIY door hanger. Isn't he cute?

Hudson- 2 Year Update

2012-01-23T08:18:00.000-08:00

I know Hudson has been 2 since November but I need to update on what he is doing!

Height: 36 inches (90th percentile)-Super excited about how tall he is now. Our Dr. said he may be about 6 ft tall when he is done growing! That is wonderful considering Jason and I are both 5'6.
Weight: 32 lbs. (90th percentile)
Nicknames: HudsonBoo, Hunky, Huds

What are you up to now?:
*If I say "What is your name?" You always answer "I name Hunky Haynes."So, that is what we call you now. I have a feeling we will be calling you this when you are a teenager. Also, if I say "Hudson are you scared?" or "Hudson, are you a big boy?" you always reply "No, I Hunky Haynes." Hilarious!

*You are talking up a storm. I would be here all day is I had to type all the things you say. You say them in your own sweet little way too.You pronounce things wrong and it is precious. Daddy is "Gaddy"...stop it is "gop it"...firetruck is "giregruck". All the consonants are mixed up. Some of your favorite phrases are: "Why?" (to everything) and "Yuuup!" (just like Dave Hester from Storage Wars).

*You can count to 12 and sing your ABC's. You know all your body parts and what every animal says. Other songs you love to sing are "Jingle Bells" and "You Are Holy".

*You started going to Jackson's new school last week and you have adjusted SO well!

*You are now in a big boy bed and sleep so much better than you were in your crib. (more on his room when it is finished.)

*You have officially hit the terrible 2s. Lord, help us the sassiness is sometimes too much to take!

*You love to smile and make others smile.

*You are usually a pretty good eater. You love to eat french fries, fruit, cheese, and most vegetables. The last thing you usually eat on your plate is meat though.

Hudson,
You are one precious little boy. You add so much joy and excitement to our family. I can't wait to see what the future hold for you little boy!

2011: In Pictures

2012-01-12T06:18:00.000-08:00

January:

We had our first snow of the year (There were several snows last year. Totally not normal for Memphis weather!)

Hudson also got his first "big boy" haircut. No more looking like Chris Farley!

*This month Hudson also learned how to walk! I can't find a picture of him but I do have a video HERE

February:

We went to our first 3d movie. We loved Gnomeo and Juliet.

We also took advantage of some unseasonably warm weather and played outside.

March:

We wore our blue and gray to support our favorite team during March Madness. T-I-G-E-R-S...Tigers!

We also wore our best green and yellow to John Deere Day.

April:

We played at the new Shelby Farms Playground.

Both boys love it.

We also celebrated Easter.

May:

Jackson caught his first fish ever!

We also spent as much time as we could at the zoo!

June:
This is the month of water play...

...the sprinkler...

...the sprinkler park...

...and swimming were our favorite ways to beat the heat this month.

July:

Jackson turned 4 and had a superhero birthday party. Seriously, how is that possible, 4?

We also had fun on our "Staycation" downtown where Jackson learned to swim by himself!

August:

Jackson competed in his first triathlon. He did GREAT!

September:

Jackson played in his first soccer game. 4 year old soccer has to be the greatest thing in the world to watch!

I also celebrated my last birthday. =) Can I stay 29 forever?

October:

Hudson wore his sunglasses EVERYWHERE!

And Jackson spent Halloween as an inpatient at LeBonheur.

Thor and Hulk had as much fun as they could trick-or-treating at the hospital.

November:

Hudson turned 2! The cutest 2 year old in the world!

We also celebrated Thanksgiving-our first holiday that wasn't spent in the hospital! =)

December:

I ran in my first half-marathon.

Jackson wrote letters to Santa...

He also sang in his first Christmas program at church.

And we celebrated the birth of our Savior.

I can't believe that 2011 is gone. I look at these pictures and am blown away by how much my boys have grown up. I am so excited about 2012. I can't wait to see what the Lord is going to do!

Christmas Day

2011-12-31T14:07:00.000-08:00

(Finally getting to Christmas Day just in time for 2012!)

Christmas day was so busy yet so fun! The boys slept in to 7:00. (and yes, sadly that is sleeping in for them!) They were DYING to see what Santa brought them.

Down the hall they went. I have to say this was the best Christmas morning we have had yet. Jackson was SO excited about everything. I think he followed everything with "I have wanted this my whole life." whether it was his light saber or the pack of underwear he got.

Hudson really enjoyed the wrapping paper.

After playing with our toys and eating breakfast, it was time to get ready for church. We had our own Christmas miracle happen when all 4 of us where able to get ready for church in under an hour-and that includes all 4 of us taking showers/baths!

How handsome are they in their Christmas church clothes?

We quickly came home, changed clothes, and hit the road to see Jason's parents in Brownsville.

We ate a yummy lunch and opened more presents. (Our boys are def. spoiled!) Hudson got a light saber from Mamaw and Papaw just like Jackson's

The weather was so gorgeous that we played outside for a long time with our new presents....had to get a little Jedi practice in.

There may have been some accidents, but all Jedis have to learn how to use the force.

We watched movies, played Wii and enjoyed visiting with each other.

I looked down and realized Hudson CRASHED. He slept in the floor for over an hour. We left and headed back to Memphis, exhausted but so full of joy. We had one of the best Christmas weekends ever!

Christmas Eve

2011-12-31T06:21:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve, we went to my parent's house. I'm telling ya, I love those 3 boys so much!

My family (minus my grandparents): my parents and my sister and her husband. We got there early so the boys could "open" their gift from my grandparents. They were so excited to see that Nanny and Gaga gave them...

a TRAMPOLINE!!! (and I am excited about this too. Nothing is more fun than jumping on a trampoline)

They jumped and jumped and jumped...

...til Shawn and I kicked them off so we could jump. =)

We came inside and ate dinner-lasagna and Olive Garden salad. Then it was time for the boys favorite thing, opening presents.

The boys got so many wonderful things. (Thanks for spoiling them) =) Here they are opening their new Wii! We watched some Christmas movies, made gingerbread houses and then it was time for us to leave. We had to get home before Santa got there. I love holidays cause that means I get to spend time with our families.

A New Tradition

2011-12-29T06:57:00.000-08:00

I am all about Christmas. I love jam-packing everything I can into the month of December. The Friday before Christmas, we decided to go look at Christmas lights when Jason got home.

Everyone got comfy in their pjs and I made us all hot chocolate (and chocolate milk for Hudson) and a little baggie of Christmas cookies for snacking on.

Even Jason wore his pjs. =)

We got in the car, cranked up the Christmas tunes (and the heat) and off we went.

Jackson had a blast pointing at EVERY SINGLE house with lights.

I love this cove near our house. Everybody goes all out. Apparently Clark Grisswold lives here. We had so much fun and really enjoyed each others company. This will now be added to our family list of Christmas traditions.

Silly Little Guest

2011-12-26T06:49:00.000-08:00

(I have several posts to do to get caught up.)

The month of December, we add an extra member to our household. He is cute and small and an elf. Our elf Max comes to watch the boys and report their behavior to Santa. This year Max was very mischievous!

He got into our frozen treats. I think he missed the cold of the North Pole.

And turned our milk green!

He even put Jackson's underwear on the fan.

The day before Christmas we found him sitting by the boys nativity. I think he was letting the boys know that Santa and elves are fun and all but the birth of Jesus is what Christmas is really about.

Christmas eve we had to say goodbye to our little friend. We will miss the little guy, but can't wait to see him again next year!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T20:20:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from the Haynes family!

Christmas Q and A

2011-12-22T07:25:00.000-08:00

I have seen several blogs do fun little Q & As this year. So here is a little bit about me and the way we celebrate Christmas.

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate mixed in with coffee. It is so yum! Egg nog makes me gag!
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? He sets most of them under the tree and a few are wrapped.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? Right now we have white. I do like colored though...maybe next year.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? No...I don't need mistletoe. (ha!)
5. When do you put your decorations up? After Thanksgiving...but they stay up forever. After Christmas, I am so lazy and just "can't seem to find the time to put them up". I honestly think my house looks better decorated for Christmas so I don't want it to go back to normal.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish? All of them =) Ok, so I have to narrow it down to one? If so, then I guess turkey. I love it and for some reason never make it other than at holidays.
7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? I don't know if it is my favorite but it is one of the most memorable (and the one we laugh about the most now!). When I was in elementary school-probably 2nd grade-my sister and I both asked for Guinea Pigs for Christmas. On Christmas morning, my parents would always go downstairs before us and make sure that Santa had come. My Dad went to check and with a little panic in his voice called up to my Mom, "Sheila, please come in here." My sister and I freaked out. We thought "That's it. Santa didn't come. We were just bad enough for him to forget about us." Turns out the pet guinea pigs that Santa had gotten us had died under the tree and they were trying to figure out what to do with them. The Pet store at the mall sold "Santa" guinea pigs that were not ready. The next day, my dad may or may not have had some words with the pet store manager. When the pet store manager refused to do anything for him, he also may or may not have pulled the dead guinea pigs out of the box for the whole store to see. Gotta love my Dad!
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I can't remember.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Well, kinda. We go to my parent's house and have Christmas with them, so yes we open gifts there. Santa and our family presents are saved for Christmas morning.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? I LOVE our tree. It has those big white bulb lights on it and is decorated with the boys homemade ornaments! It's perfect.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it if I don’t have to drive in it and can stay home with my boys and play all day.

12. Can you ice skate? I can barely walk without tripping on something. What makes you think I can ice skate?
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? Probably an old school Nintendo! Loved Tetris, Duck Hunt and the original Super Mario Bros.

14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Spending special time with my family is great but the most important thing is the birth of my Savior.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? I LOVE all desserts, I don't discriminate!

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? I love all the new traditions we are staring with our boys. Setting out their Little People nativity and talking about the Christmas story, going to Alpine Village, going out and looking at Christmas lights at night, and of course our silly elf Max that comes stay with us for a month.
17. What tops your tree? I switch every year. Last year was gold "ting-ting" but this year is an angel.

18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving? I love giving. This year I am making a lot of my presents and I am so excited to give them, I have worked so hard on them!

19. Candy Canes: Yuck or Yum? Not really a fan. I would much rather have a chocolate bar.

20. Favorite Christmas show? Movie? How much time do you have? I have so many favorites. This year we have watched a lot of Elf and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. When the kids go to bed, Jason and I watch Christmas Vacation!
21. Saddest Christmas Song? I find the sad songs annoying and turn the channel. I think Christmas Shoes is the worst....SO annoying!

22. What is your favorite Christmas song? I love Oh Holy Night and anything by Mariah Carey. I'm not a Mariah fan for her normal music but her Christmas songs are awesome!

Christmas Fun

2011-12-15T10:35:00.000-08:00

December has always been busy, but for some reason I feel like this has been a busier December than most. I feel like every day brings a Christmas party or something that is due for a Christmas party/ performance. (Note to self: Must get organized!) This weekend was a busy one-but we had a blast!

Saturday morning was a treat. Jackson has been BEGGING for pancakes. So I decided to break out the handy dandy Bisquick and we had reindeer pancakes. (Thank you pintrest for the idea!!! You made 2 boys super happy with these bad boys.)

Saturday night, we had family date night. We went to Alpine Village. This is quickly becoming my boys favorite thing to do at Christmas time. Jackson has been asking for months if we were going to go this year. If you are in the Memphis area, next year please look into this event. It is so much fun, and completely free!

Jackson has his ticket and is ready to go!

No trip to Alpine Village is complete without pictures in the Snowman. Here is Hudson the Snowman...

...and Jackson the Snowman.

Our first thing to do at Alpine Village was Santa (of course) I have to say this is the best picture we have ever gotten! Please feel free to check out the last few years...2008 & 2009 and 2010. (I think 2008 and 2009 are my favorite-they are hilarious!)

We made our magical reindeer food

And played in the snow.

Hudson was hilarious. If someone threw snow on him, he would stand there for a few minutes cleaning himself off. It never failed, that as soon as he got clean someone would throw snow all over him and he would have to start cleaning himself off again. He was SO frustrated (Check out the face in the picture...you can see the frustration written all over him!)

We met a shepherd and he told the boys how worshipped Jesus on the first Christmas. They listened so closely to every word that he said.

We also met the 3 wise men. They showed the boys the gifts they brought to Jesus. (I love hands-on learning!)

Sunday morning we went to church, ate lunch and then home to take naps. We had to be well rested because Jackson had his first Christmas program. The preschool choir at our church sang in the evening service. I have never heard anything sweeter...those precious voices singing praises to our Lord.

Jackson did so well. I could tell he was a little uncomfortable but he sang and even smiled!

Monday was a normal day around the house complete with running several errands to get things for Jackson's school Christmas program. That night we had Grinch quesadillas (idea from Kitchen Fun with my 3 Sons). I may begin to make faces on all their food because they ate every bite! We are enjoying the holiday season-trying to soak in every bit of it since it is so cram packed with busy-ness!

St Jude Half Marathon

2011-12-04T11:41:00.000-08:00

In January, I got the bright idea that I was going to run a half-marathon. Hilarious, right? I mean this was coming from the girl that could not run around the block one time. (I'm dead serious about this!) I started training in March and yesterday I did it-I completed the St. Jude Memphis Half-Marathon! It wasn't pretty by any means but I set my mind to complete it and I did! (I am also the girl who has no belief in myself and quits something when things get tough...and this training has definitely been tough!)

Friday, my sister and I went to the expo to pick up our packets and bags. Oh my word, this is when reality set in. This was really happening.

Saturday morning, I woke up at 3 am unable to sleep. My stomach was in my throat, my hands were shaky. I laid in bed staring at the ceiling scared to death! My alarm went off, I got ready and before I knew it Shawn and her husband were outside my house to pick me up.

We parked and hung out in the Peabody Hotel lobby to stay warm. (This helped keep my mind off what was about to happen, have mentioned how nervous I was?) We did some people watching, met some of my friends from work, and actually got to hang out with Elvis and Priscilla. Uh-oh, time to head to our corrals...

We saw some friends at the start and got to visit with them....

...but we kept moving closer to the starting line the whole time we were talking. When I got close enough to read the sign I got a little choked up. It said "Get set...to run for their lives". It hit me then why I was running...for those sweet little kids of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. My eyes welled up but there was no time to cry, we were running. My first 6 miles, I was doing really well. I was running faster than I was used to training (rookie mistake!)

(video of running through St. Jude. Sorry it's so shake...I was running!)

We ran by the river, through Beale St., by the pyramid and then through the St. Jude campus. I loved running through St. Jude. There was so much energy-so many people there cheering us on! I gave so many high fives my hand hurt. There was also parents outside holding pictures of their sick children (be still my heart). And get this, they were calling me their hero! I am anything but a hero. They are the heroes!

At mile 6, we took our Gu Chomps (little energy fruit chews) and I could feel myself hitting the wall. I had never taken Gu before and it did not settle well with my stomach. I got sick feeling and then realized that my entire body was in pain. I kept going but could feel myself slowing down. By mile 9, I was full out walking. I got another burst of energy around mile 11.5, and started running again.

My sweet husband and boys were waiting for me near the finish line. I was SO looking forward to seeing this sweet face.

When I saw them, I got a little emotional! It was so good to see them and my parents there cheering for me and supporting me on something that I have worked so hard for.

I did it. I FINISHED! My time was terrible, but I don't care. I did something that 6 months ago seemed to be impossible!

I am so thankful for my sister who pushed me when I thought that I would just sit on the curb and let Jason pick me up (oh yes, those words came out of my mouth). Ha!

My sweet husband Jason and me!

Jackson made me the best sign. He worked so hard on it! He even drew me complete with a ponytail. He also made my day, when we got home he kept telling me "Mommy, I am so proud of you!".

So there you go, I did it! What I learned through all of this:

1. That I am stronger than I think I am and can do way more than I give myself credit for!

2. That if I can do it...anyone can.

3. And next time, I will train MUCH harder! (and yes, I just said next time. I'm not quite ready to hang up my running shoes!)

Christmas Cards

2011-12-02T06:06:00.000-08:00

Ok guys, it's Christmas time again which means time to send out Christmas cards! I love picking out cards. This year I was looking through different website and found these AMAZING Christmas cards. The designs they have are unique, bright and fun!!!

Here are a few of my favorites:

Love the colors in this card. Super cute! (found here)

This one is adorable too. (found here)

But I think my favorite is this one! (found here) This looks exactly like something our family would chose.

So go now...check out Tiny Prints. You won't regret it. The cards have great designs and most are printed on heavy duty card stock.

And if you are a blogger, check this out and sign up for your Christmas cards!

1st Day of School in November?

2011-12-01T08:58:00.000-08:00

Jackson had his first day of Jr. Kindergarten Tuesday. Yes, I realize it is November and school has been in session for 3 months. Jason and I had been discussing lately-public school or private? We have been going back and forth. If we go to public school, we need to sell our house and move to a little bit better school district and if we go private, can we afford it? We had been praying about it and found what I feel like is the perfect school for our family (and it is a private school if you were wondering) however it was VERY hard to get into. We have been on a waiting list for 3.5 months (Hudson is still on the waiting list for his class). Finally, while Jackson was in the hospital, we got the call we have been waiting on. A spot opened up in their Jr. K class! YEA!!!

This weekend we went to get all his supplies and his super cool, new camo backpack. Tuesday, was the day...the BIG day! The first day at his new school. He was so nervous (and so was his Mommy!).

Jason took the boys to separate schools for the first time ever. Jason said that he was really shy when he dropped him off. (Knowing Jackson's personality he will probably be shy for at least 2 weeks and then he will be his normal self-he takes a while to warm up to new situations.)

When I picked him up, I took him to get yogurt by himself! It gave us a chance to talk about his day just the two of us-this was such a BIG deal to Jackson. He leaned over once and rubbed my face and told me he was having a great "first date" with me. (Where does he come up with this stuff?) I am praying he had a wonderful day today so that I can stop worrying the whole time he is gone. I get so nervous for him!

Gobble Til Ya Wobble

2011-11-30T12:46:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving (...a week ago!) We had a wonderful Turkey day. I definitely Gobbled Til I Wobbled with all the yumminess that I ate!

Thanksgiving day, we went to my parents house. My little Turkeys loved snuggling with their favorite guy "Chief Buddy".

Here I am with my own turkey. I love what a good sport Jason is. (Thank you Target dollar-spot for providing my family with so much joy in the form of these crazy turkey hats.)

We ate, and when I say ate, I mean feasted!, on turkey, dressing, green bean bundles, lima beans, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, and rolls. Just thinking about all that food makes my mouth water and my stomach hurt all at the same time!

Friday, I had to work (blech! No Black Friday for this girl). We went to see Jason's family after I got off. When we got there, we played a little Wii bowling.

Jackson's first time...

...and he bowled a strike! We ate dinner (bar-b-que and all the fixins. Yum!)

We played and hung out with Mamaw and Papaw and then left with full bellies and exhausted. It was a great Turkey day and it made me realize I had SO much to be thankful for.

Hudson's Birthday- Part 2 (The Party Edition)

2011-11-23T10:59:00.000-08:00

Ok, so birthday party planning is my weakness! I take a theme and run with it! If you follow me on pinterest, you know I have been going crazy with the Dr. Seuss ideas. (Can I take this moment to thank the inventors of Pinterest. You helped me greatly while I was planning this party!)

My Mom's cute chalkboard over her stove top.

Dr. Suess hats for all the kids

Where Hudson opened his presents.

I always make a wreath for the boy's birthdays. This is my creation for Hud's party. (I love how it turned out)

When everyone got there, we asked them to write a message to Hudson in his birthday book. Even Jackson wrote a sweet note!

"It's time to party!"

I still can't get over the fact that I have a 4 year old and a 2 year old. Who gave them permission to grow up?

Once all the kids got there, it was craft time. I found these cute "Seussy" looking wood ornaments at Hobby Lobby. They loved painting "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" ornaments.

These are the finished ornaments. Aren't they adorable? I can't wait to hang the boys on our Christmas tree.

We ate some food... We had "One fish, Two fish, Red fish, Blue fish" (colored goldfish), Crack dip, "3 decker sour craut and toad stool sandwiches with arsenic sauce" (ham sandwiches) and grapes and fruit dip.

Had some cupcakes...

...and sang "Happy Birthday" to the birthday boy!

Hudson ate another WHOLE cupcake!

And then we opened presents.

He passed out on the way home. Thats what happens when you party too hard! Happy Birthday sweet Hudson.

Hudson's Birthday-Part 1

2011-11-21T15:42:00.000-08:00

Saturday, my sweet little Hudson Boo turned 2. I am still baffled that he is two. I decided to split his birthday up into two seperate posts (there are just WAY too many pictures from his party to put in this one!)

Friday afternoon, we celebrated Hudson's birthday at his school with his cute little friends. I brought cupcakes and had fun hanging out with the birthday boy.

All his friends liked to just lick the icing...but not Hudson. Oh no, he inhaled his cupcake...and then asked for another! His teacher informed me that he is the only one in the class that she can count on the always eat his food. She said that that day, he ate 3 bowls of cereal for breakfast, 2 plates of lunch, and 2 bowls of yogurt for snack (and then a cupcake...geez Louise! I am afraid he will be my teenager that will eat me out of house and home!

Huds and his sweet teacher Ms. Christine.

Saturday morning, Hudson woke up so happy. It was like he knew it was his day!

I made him birthday cinnamon rolls...

...and the 3 of us sang "Happy Birthday" to him. He blew out his candles and made a wish.

We enjoyed the rest of the morning hanging out and getting ready for his birthday party.

Operation Christmas Child 2011

2011-11-14T13:33:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year again...Time for Operation Christmas Child. Jackson has been looking forward to this for months. He still remembers buying a present for "his boy" last year and has been so excited to get another boy a present this year. After church yesterday, we headed out to buy our goodies for our little boy.

Hudson was such a big helper...

...And Jackson took finding the perfect present very seriously!

There were a few things that we told him we couldn't get our little boy...

...like this package of roaches (I almost had a panic attack holding a package of fake roaches!)....

...and frozen pancakes.

This morning, we went to my parent's house and we all packed up our boxes.

Jackson was so very excited for his "little boy" and all the neat things he will get.

So many goodies for him. Band-aids, tooth brush and tooth paste, hairbrush and comb, a watch, a football, several cars, lots of candy, a monkey, frisbee, a coloring book and markers.

Between our 2 families we had 4 boxes...2 for girls and 2 for boys.

I was able to pay our postage online and we will be able to track our box and find out what country it goes to. We will be praying for our box and the little boy that will receive it.

We dropped them off at my parent's church.

My boys were SO proud of their packages.

If you would like to get involved in Operation Christmas Child, check out the video below. I promise it will bless your heart!

My Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Week!

2011-11-07T04:30:00.000-08:00

Are you ready to hear about my "incredible" week? Well then buckle up, buttercup! In true Haynes family tradition we had another holiday flop. If you remember, last Thanksgiving was spent in the hospital with Hudson due to a siezure. Jackson didn't want to be left out, so he decided that Halloween would work for him as far as going to the hospital.

Saturday, Jackson came down with a little cold. Nothing to be alarmed about-no fever, clear runny nose, and a tiny little cough. By Sunday, his little cold turned into something very serious. Over the last year, anytime Jackson gets sick he always ends up needing breathing treatments. I was prepared that this would be the case. He had 3 treatments Sunday afternoon and seemed to be feeling better. Sunday night he slept with me so I could keep an eye on him. At midnight, I noticed him having a VERY hard time breathing. Jason and I had the hardest time figuring out what to do. Did we go to the ER or wait until the Dr.'s office opens in a few hours. Does anyone else have that problem? We gave him one more breathing treatment which didn't help at all. That made a very easy decision for us...time to go to the ER. We got go Lebonheur at 1:00 am on Monday (Halloween).They took us right back and did a heavy duty breathing treatment (3x the albuterol).

That didn't work (his breathing was SO labored) so they quickly did another one and put in an IV to start fluids. That didn't work either. At this point I am freaking out! After a few hours, his Dr. decided to admit him and do breathing treatments all through the day and night. At this point Jackson was SUPER bummed about not being able to go to his party at church that night. Never fear though, Lebonheur took care of their patients.

They were giving costumes away to all their patients (I mean, how cool is that?). Jackson told us he still wanted to be Thor, so Jason ran home and packed a bag for me and Jackson and got his costume. He even put Hudson in his costume so they could celebrate Halloween together.Here are Thor and Hulk doing a little hospital bed playing.

After lunch, the Halloween festivities started. They did what they call "reverse Trick-or-Treating". All the different areas of the hospital came to the patients rooms and brought them candy.

Incredible Hulk had fun exploring Jackson's room. Hudson even got to "Trick or Treat" with Jackson which he LOVED!

Jackson had fun but he was SO worn out and was still not feeling well. This is one of the few smiles I saw while we were there.

One fun thing that happened is Hudson told Jason he needed to go potty and he went! Yea Hulk!

Jason and Hudson went home and Jackson ordered dinner. He finally fell asleep after almost 24 hours awake-that albuterol will really mess you up. When his food came, he couldn't stay awake. He would fall asleep after every bite of food he took. Poor guy! He got a good nights sleep and woke up the next morning feeling MUCH better.

We took a little walk around the hospital...

...and went to art class where we made this "Thankful wreath". (I love that he said he was thankful for green beans. I wasn't aware that he liked green beans.)

Tuesday night, we were discharged and headed home. These 2 boys were so glad to be reunited.

Wednesday, we went back to our pediatrician. They decided to put Jackson on an inhaled steroid everyday in attempts to not ever be in the hospital again. I am praying it works.

Thursday, Hudson woke up with the stomach virus. Luckily his didn't last too long. Friday, he was feeling a little better- we decided to lay low at home and Clorox everything! Saturday, we went to a birthday party and came home to have family movie night. In the middle of our movie, Jackson then got the stomach virus. He was sick ALL. NIGHT. LONG! So, there is our week. Oh, I forgot to say that during this whole week of "fun", I have had an upper respiratory infection. I am exhausted and really looking forward to going back to work tomorrow after an unexpected week off. I am ready for life to be back to normal! Praying that this week is uneventful.

Another Post of Jackson-isms

2011-10-23T09:33:00.000-07:00

Jackson has been KILLING me lately. Nothing he says is "right" but I wouldn't have it any other way. Here are 2 funnies that he has said this weekend...

His last soccer game was Thursday night and geez Louise was it cold. Jackson, bless his heart, has been cursed with my sensitive skin. A one hour game in the cold temps and he came home with chapped skin. (He will keep this until about March just like me when I was a little girl.) His little cheeks and around his mouth was SO red. When we walked in the door, the heat from the house hit his face and must have started burning...
Jackson: (starting to whimper) "Mommy my face is hurting."
Mommy: "Let me see. Oh, your skin is chapped."
Jackson: "I need my Auto Zone."
Mommy: "You what?"
Jackson: "It's in my bathroom, I'll be right back."
While he was gone, Jason and I were wracking our brain to figure out what Auto Zone was. He comes back with a tube of...Cortisone. We rubbed on a little Cortisone and Aquaphor and all was right with the world.

Last night, we went and ate at Jason's parents house. One of our sides was creamed corn. (One of my favorite foods!) Jackson kept complaining that he didn't like his corn. His cousin Reed needed him to know that it wasn't just corn...
Jackson: "I don't want to eat my corn...It's nasty."
Mommy: "No, it's good eat it up."
Reed: "Jackson it's not corn. It's corn on the cob."
Jackson: "Uh-uh it's not corn on the cob, Reed. It's corn on the plate!"

Oh this boy kills me!

I WANT that!

2011-10-19T10:44:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, driving home in the way cold and rainy weather, got me thinking to Christmas. I wanted to go straight home, put on my warm comfy pants, turn on some Christmas music and drink some hot chocolate. (I had to keep reminding myself that it was October and not December.)

With all my thoughts going to Christmas (and my blooming addiction to Pinterest), let me share with you want is on my wish list this year....

First, I want this rug from Target. I would like the "runner" size for my Kitchen....thanks.

Second, I would love this outfit...

...or this one! Something about the gray and turquoise really does it for me....also, Jason would probably appreciate seeing me in "real clothes" I tend to wear running shorts and "comfy pants" WAY too much.

Finally, I want this girl's hair. =)

So there you have it...my Christmas list for 2011. Feel free to get started-thats why I am giving it to early. Haha!

I"m still here!

2011-10-14T09:29:00.000-07:00

I am still here guys! We have been SO busy.

We have been doing alot of this...

...alot of playing around (Does anyone else's kids LOVE to run around after their bath? And can I say how much I love those towels.)....

...And our bedroom happens to look like this! I hope to update on our new bathroom as soon as it gets done!

Weekend Wrap-Up

2011-10-03T15:09:00.000-07:00

What a fun weekend we had. It all started Thursday with Jackson's soccer game.

"Too Cool for School" Hudson made his appearance.

Jackson and his friend Logan were paying more attention to something in the grass than the game that was going on. Wonder what they were looking at?...

A nasty cricket. Gag! Once I looked over and Jackson was holding the cricket and Logan was squirting it with water. I guess they thought he needed a drink. (I'm pretty sure the poor cricket was drowned).

Friday, we had "Family Date Night". We got take-out and watched "Thor". Oh my word, have you seen that movie? It was SO good. It also doesn't hurt that Chris Helmsworth is SUPER attractive!

Saturday morning, I hit the streets before anyone was awake. (I need to work on my self-picture taking. I have along way to go before I am as good as Skinny Runner.) I did 6.3 miles. I am getting closer every week to my goal of 13.1!

That afternoon we went to our cousin William's birthday party. All the kids painted and decorated pumpkins.

Jackson working hard on his painting.

The finished product. They look so cute on my mantel if I do say so myself.

Sunday was church, lunch, and wallpaper removal. (Stay tuned to a big room change!) Can we somehow get a weekend to recooperate from the weekend?

Phone Unload...Hudson Edition

2011-09-27T10:55:00.000-07:00

I'm going to do it again, I'm going to post a couple of videos from my phone. (I always said I would not be "that mom" that documented my kids on my phone, but I am definitely turning into her!) Hudson has really started showing his personality lately. I think these videos capture my little HudsonBoo just as he is...silly and sweet!

This weekend, Hudson got his first "driving lesson". As you can tell, he has quite a ways to go til I am letting him drive me anywhere!

Jackson thought it was SO funny watching Hudson run into things!

We were in Target the other day and Hudson loved this Halloween bowl. It didn't matter how many times he put his hand in the bowl, it still surprised him. Silly little boy.

29 and Soccer Time

2011-09-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

Thursday, I turned 29. (That was the last birthday I will celebrate. I will now have anniversaries. Next year will be the 1st anniversary of my 29th birthday. Ha!) The day started out at work. My co-workers were so sweet. They knew that I was trying to watch what I eat, so they got me Skinny Cow ice cream bars instead of cake-I love those girls!

That night we went to Jackson's first soccer game. (The first game was last week but he was sick)

Ok, 4 year-old soccer is about the funnest thing in the world to watch. Here they are at the beginning of the game listening to every word that Coach Daniel said.

After the game got on, the attention seemed to wane a little. Here is Jackson with his finger in his mouth....

And here is Chloe making faces at her teammate. Hilarious!

Before the game was over, both coaches decided to throw all the kids out on the field and let them duke it out. (We don't have refs and we don't keep score....but I did, and we won!) It was mass chaos!

Shawn and Hudson hung out and he did his favorite thing in the world, hang out with his Aunt and talk on her phone.

After the game everyone got oranges. Isn't that what everyone has to eat after soccer?

The birthday girl and her soccer boy.

The fam.

After the game, we went and ate with my parents and my sis. When we got home, Jason and the boys had one more birthday surprise for me. They got me an armband for my phone and earbuds so that I can listen to music when I run. He knows me too well. I don't need anything expensive. Just a little happy. I had the best day...I am one lucky girl!

Memphis Women Run/ Walk 5k

2011-09-19T07:12:00.000-07:00

I did it again. I completed my second 5k this weekend. I participated in the Women's Run/Walk training program this summer. It is a training program that meets during the summer for group runs. (If you are in the Memphis area, you should look into this program. It was great!)

Bright and early Saturday morning, I met my friend Katie at the race. We were both SO nervous!

We ran the course and then met up with our other friend from work, Traci, for pictures after the race.

My time was a minute and a half better than I did last week, which I was really proud of. I am still "pretending" to be a runner but I'm still training. I will (hopefully soon) one day be able to call myself a runner! =)

Cotton Pickin 5k

2011-09-13T10:15:00.000-07:00

Saturday was my first 5k in a LONG time. My Mom, Jackson and I did the Cotton Pickin 5k in Somerville. Yes, Jackson did his first 5k. This little boy is turning into quite the athlete.

Pre-race, pre-sweat pictures!

On your mark, get set, go!

There go Mimi and Jackson!

Here I come ~~hobbling across the finish line~~ "sprinting to the finish".

Jackson and Mimi about to cross the finish line. Jackson started off very strong. On the last mile, He told Mimi he needed to rest. Mom held his hand and pulled him the rest of the way. (Thank you Mom!)

Post-race pic! We did it!

Post-race high-fives

Jackson giving me a thumbs up AND the #1 sign. Apparently Jackson was VERY excited to have done and finished the race!

Jackson also got a medal for participating. He is becoming quite the fan of trophies and medals!

Small Fry Tri

2011-09-07T08:13:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, Jackson was in his first race. The Bartlett Small Fry Triathlon-run, bike and "swim" (you'll see what I mean in just a bit).

We got there bright and early and checked in. Pinned on his number, got his bike tires aired up with "fast air" and we headed to the starting line.

Look at all those kids lined up ready to go...Jackson looks like he is praying.

And they're off. Each kid was aloud one "personal trainer" on the course, so I got to run Jackson's first race with him.

After the run, we headed to the bike transition area.

That is Jackson's look of determination!

Then it was off to the "swim" which was a 100 m dash through the coolest sprinklers I have ever see!

Crossing the finish line

High-Fives from the Fam.

They had the sweetest little awards ceremony where each kid went on stage and was presented a medal for doing such a great job.

Jackson was SO proud of his medal. He has worn it almost everyday since his race.

And what outing with these 2 boys is not complete without a bounce house. Jackson loved it...

Hudson was unsure. He couldn't stand up with all the big kids around him.

We had the best day!

Jackson, I am so proud of you! You did such a great job in your first race!

And for your viewing pleasure...feel free to watch the whole race. My favorite is at the end he asks if he can do it again. So cute!

Long Time...

2011-08-24T10:38:00.000-07:00

...No talk! Man, have we been busy this summer. My blog has fallen by the wayside. I thought I should get us caught up. So much going on...

1. I am still running but let me tell you, this heat is KILLING ME! Last week, 2 of my morning runs were in the low 70's and this girl got spoiled! This week, I feel like my body is rebelling! I start my trusty Hal Higdon training next week, so I am praying that we get a cold front and quick. =)

2. We have decided to bite the bullet and begin doing some updates around our house. What's to come this year? New roof, fence, and 2 new bathrooms. (Demolition and remodeling makes me SUPER nervous! Anyone else have that problem?) We aren't quite ready to bust the bathrooms out yet, so this weekend we started painting the boys bathroom. We wanted to enjoy it as much as we can until we are able to redo everything exactly how we want to. Stay tuned for pictures of their updated new bathroom (still with pink tile).

3. Jackson has started soccer! He had his first practice last week and can I just tell you have cute/funny it was. I'm not sure who had more fun-him or me! I was so excited for him.

He surprised me with how well he did. He said his favorite part was "dribbling" the ball and practicing making goals.

The mass chaos that is 4 year old soccer. Hilarious!

Hudson decided to be the water boy. (Although he didn't like when his brother took the water from him to drink. I need to fill him in on the fact that water boys give their water away. Note to self: Bring 2 water bottle next time!)

4. Hudson has discovered the world of accessorizing. You will frequently find him sporting either a hat, silly band, sunglasses, or all three.

Hudson has also grown to love his hand-me-down boots from Jackson. As soon as we get home from school, those boots go on! Here he is doing his best impersonation of the naked cowboy. Someone get that boy a guitar!

He is also showing his personality big time lately. He is definitely taking after Jackson in that he is hilarious! If he makes you laugh once, then he will continue doing whatever made you laugh. I will leave you with a video. The other day he asked to sit on the potty where he proceded to "push". He tried so hard to get something to happen. Enjoy! (Speaking of pink tile...Don't you love it?)

Sunday School for 4 Year Olds

2011-08-07T16:54:00.000-07:00

Today as we were leaving church, I asked Jackson what he learned in Sunday School. Usually this is followed by a "Nothing." or "I dunno.". Today he told me he learned about tornadoes. (Huh?) Puzzled, I continued to question him.
Mommy: "What do you mean tornadoes?"
Jackson: "See Jesus was in a boat and he was taking a nap and it was a terrible storm and maybe there was a tornado." (Told with only the dramatic voice that Jackson could tell a story with.)
Mommy: "And did Jesus tell that storm to stop?"
Jackson: "No. Jesus told that water to 'Be quiet.' and it did."
Mommy: "Why do you think that the storm stopped?"
Jackson: "Cause he's Jesus. He can do anything."

And there you have it...Sunday School from a 4 year old!

To Pin Or Not to Pin...That is the Question!

2011-08-06T15:00:00.000-07:00

Ok so lately...my time has been consumed by Pinterest. (I am probably one of the last bloggers on the face of the planet to discover this little gem!) OH MY WORD...It is so fun and a little obsessive. I have found all kinds of great ideas for my home decorating, DIY ideas, and of course my favorite thing in the world-birthday party plans! Do you pinterest? If you don't come join the darkside...click HERE and see what you are missing.

(Attention Mom...I am going to need you to join. I promise you will thank me!)

Walking In Memphis- "Stay"cation 2011

2011-07-28T12:49:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, we were planning a family vacation to St. Louis. At the last minute, we cancelled our plans and stayed in Memphis for a "stay"cation. (Beware, this is a long post with a TON of pictures!) I have to say, this was one of the "funnest" weekends I have had in a long time!

Monday, we started our day in the best way possible....breakfast at our favorite doughnut shop. This little gem is a red velvet cake doughnut. Can we stand in awe of this amazing creation (and the numerous calories that it held!) I am still having dreams about this crazy good doughnut!

Hudson ate his weight in doughnut holes! After he was all good and sugared up we headed downtown.

Our first stop was the Peabody hotel to see the ducks. I remember as a little girl, I loved to see the ducks come out of the elevator, walk down their red carpet and plop into the fountain where they would swim the day away. I was so excited to experience this with my boys.

After we saw the ducks, we headed to the Peabody roof to take pictures.

The family!

Jackson insisted on getting a little too close to the edge. He made his Mommy a nervous wreck while we were up there!

Next, we rode the trolley. As you can tell, Hudson was super excited. =)

I don't think Jackson wiped that grin off his face the whole time we were on the trolley. He was in little boy heaven!

Another family shot, this time in front of our trolley.

We hopped off the trolley and headed to lunch at The Arcade. I have never been here but I think I have seen it in every movie ever filmed in Memphis. Super yummy food, next time we are in downtown Memphis this is definitely where I want to eat again!

Jackson had a cheeseburger (that he ate 3 bites of and then was "So full!")

And Hudson ate 1 french fry and was done with his lunch. He did grab my hand and decide to lay his precious little head on it....How sweet is he?

We hit up Beale Street and then headed back to our hotel. (When we were having insurance fix our floors in October, they put us in a hotel for a month. Jason signed us up for the Hilton rewards so we earned a free night stay at any Hilton.) We stayed at the Hampton Inn on Beale Street and I can not say enough good things about them. This was such a nice hotel.

We took advantage of their swimming pool and hot tub. I think we swam 3 or 4 times in 24 hour span. We swam so much that Jackson learned how to do this...

...That's right. My 4 year old that was TERRIFIED of the water at the beginning of the summer decided he wanted to swim by himself. As a former swimming lesson teacher, I could not be prouder of him!

When we got out of the pool, I made the boys rest. I don't know how many times I heard Jackson say "I'm not tired, I don't want to sleep." But 5 minutes later, I looked over and saw...

...both boys passed out. That night we hung out, swam and ordered pizza from a local downtown pizzeria.

Tuesday, we woke up and decided to go to the zoo for a few hours. (A few HOT hours!)

We fed the birds....Hudson thought he was so big holding his own bird feeder.

Jackson loved trying to "catch" a bird.

I think this picture sums up how I felt the whole time I was trying to ~~stay away from the birds~~ feed the birds. I was feeling ok about the 1 little birds that was on my bird feeder but at the same time Jason clicked the picture a new bird came and dive-bombed me. That is the face of terror my friends! (and yes, this is serious...I am not playing. I thought everyone could use a good laugh. That's why I am putting this embarrassing picture up)

As we were heading out, Jackson needed to take a rest on the "Memphis Tiger" chair. We wore that little boy out! I am so glad that we stayed in town and had a little adventure. I hope it will be a weekend that our boys will remember...I know I will!

Phone Pic Post

2011-07-22T16:20:00.000-07:00

Lost of my bloggy friends have done posts using their cell phone pics. Well, since we finally have decent phones, I thought I would catch us up using my phone pics from the past week.

The boys school called me last week and told me Huds had a fever. When we got home, this was his sad little face. We went to the weekend clinic the next day with a fever of 102.8. (yikes!) They couldn't find any infection so they believe he had a fever virus. Needless to say, this little boy got lots of snuggles!

Jason and Jackson went to Super Hero Saturday at the mall. It wasn't quite what they advertised, but Jackson didn't care. He had a blast spending the day with his Daddy all by himself!

He made this cool mask and played some games. His favorite part of the day was seeing the Chik-fil-a cow!

While the boys were at the mall, me and the sicky watched some SpongeBob and took a long much needed nap.

And why am I wearing glasses? Oh, It's because I have pink eye! It's super attractive!

Sunday night, Hudson was feeling MUCH better. The boys have gotten to be great friends lately. They love to play together and nighttime couch snuggles are their favorite!

Gotta love phone apps. Jackson loves Fatbooth. It has provided lots of laughs for the two of us! (We both

have the same simple sense of humor!)

And last but not least, someone has learned to take his clothes off! Lord help me.

Super Jackson's 4th Birthday

2011-07-13T10:45:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, what a fun weekend we had! We celebrated Jackson's 4th birthday with family and friends. Anyone who has read my blog for a while knows that I LOVE to throw birthday parties (...I have been planning this since right after he turned 3!) We had his party at Crossfire Commandos and let me tell you that place is AWESOME!

We went with a superhero theme which meant the whole family had to dress the part (of course...and while I am at it, can I get a round of applause for Jason. He never questions me when I make him dress up. Yay for a good sport!). Hudson and Jason came as Captain America, I was SuperMom (thanks Old Navy for having super hero shirts) and I got Jackson's shirt from etsy.

When the kids got there, they sat down and their coaches went over their "secret missions" for the day.

Their first "secret mission" was jumping into the foam pit.

Jackson loved this.

Their second mission of the day was the trampoline.

Their final mission was the zipline. This was by far all the kids favorite thing. They went flying! (I have to say, I was a little jealous that I couldn't participate in this!)

Then all the kids jumped back in the foam pit ~~to terrorize each other~~ throw foam at each other.

The look on his face says it all...Total happiness!

The party moved on the the birthday room. I made the cupcake toppers of all of Jackson's favorite characters (Hulk, Ironman, Spiderman, Captain America, and SuperJackson)

My Mom made the kids these great masks.

Jackson and William chowing down on cake and ice cream.

We opened presents and drove home...

...and CRASHED!

His 4th birthday party was a success. And I feel the need to say it again....How do I have a 4 year old?

4 Years Ago...

2011-07-06T11:56:00.000-07:00

4 years ago today (at 4:24 pm to be exact) I became a new Mom. I was discovering a love like I had never known before. I was embarking on a new journey and couldn't wait to see where it would take me!

3 years ago, I had been a Mom for a year and it had been the best year of my life! I had a precious little boy who I was so very proud of. My love grew more everyday. And I heard the sweetest voice call me my new name "Mommy".

2 years ago, I learned that being a Mom is filled with both joy and heartache. I also watched my son grow from a baby to a little boy and my heart swelled with pride.

Last year, I began learning things about little boys. Things I never thought I needed to know: Like the difference between a tractor and a harvester and that Ironman's super power is his repulsor blaster and his arc light. (Yes, Jackson taught me those important things!) I also watched him learn so many things...how to spell his name, letters and numbers, his address and my phone number, the pledge and 5 Bible verses.

And today, this little boy who captured my heart 4 years ago is growing bigger by the second. I am so thankful that God gave me the responsibility to be his Mommy.

Jackson,

You sweet, sweet boy! I can't believe that you are 4 today. How can that be? Aren't you still supposed to be my little baby?

I have loved watching you grow up into the independent, strong-willed little boy you are today. You have a personality that is bigger than life and a zeal for life that I long for. I pray that you can keep that zeal with you always.

Jax, I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for you. I know you will do big things.

I love you Stinkpot...

Mommy

An All-American Weekend

2011-07-05T13:56:00.000-07:00

(Get ready for me to unload some photos...I took like 200 this weekend!)

I LOVE the 4th of July. I love everything that comes along with it: cookouts, family, swimming, fireworks. We did all of that except the fireworks (we were just too worn out at night to go see fireworks...oh well!).

Sunday, we headed to see Jason's family. I turned around and saw Jackson had put on his goggles. Can you say excited?

We has so much fun swimming! Jackson actually got comfortable in the water.

Hudson loved going off the diving board.

Once Jackson saw Hudson do it, then he needed to.

We went and ate dinner and Jason's mom (Mamaw) put candles in Jackson's favorite dessert.

Monday, we met my family at the movies and saw Cars 2. (which happens to be super cute!) We then headed to my parent's house to eat dinner.

While we were there, my grandparents let Jackson open his birthday present early. They made him find it on a scavenger hunt.

The last clue told Jackson to look under the quilt in the extra bedroom. Captain Obvious wasn't quite so obvious today. He decided not to look under the quilt in the middle of the room but to look under the quilt on the bed. He finally discovered that hidden in the middle of the room was a brand new bike!!! I don't think Jackson could have been happier.

He went outside and rode his bike for like an hour!

On our way home last night, Jason and I were talking. We both agreed that this was one of the greatest weekends we had had in a long time! I was sad to see that it was over. We had so much fun-we didn't need fireworks!

Lately...

2011-07-04T07:40:00.000-07:00

I have done a terrible job of blogging this summer. Let me show you what we have been up to lately!

We have done our best to stay as cool as possible with all this heat. That means trips to the sprinkler park, swimming, and dragging out the sprinkler at our house. Last week we went to the sprinkler park with some friends. Jackson was the only "older" boy there. He was such a trouper with all the girls playing princess.

I have been trying to run as much as possible. It's hard with all this heat. Yesterday morning, I was really proud of myself. I ran for 20 minutes without stopping. That is the longest I have run without stopping to walk. I know it may not sound like much. This is coming from the girl who 2 months ago couldn't run for 30 seconds without feeling ~~like I was going to die!~~ a little winded! I am still pretending to be a runner, but maybe one day it will be true! Ha!

And last but not least, I am working hard on getting everything ready for Jackson's birthday party. I will let you take a guess as to what the theme is. Yes, it's Superhero of course! We got the invitations from Shutterfly and I think they are perfect (they were also free which helps them be even cuter...I am all about saving $80 on invitations!) And these are his cupcake toppers that I am making. (Ironman, Spiderman, Incredible Hulk, and a Super Jackson.) He just told me that he also wants Capt. America so I guess I will be working on that this week too. I love how everything is turning out. Can't wait to celebrate his birthday next weekend. (And on a side note...how is my baby turning 4?)

So there you have it...Just a little glimpse in what we have been up to. I am going to try my best to be a better blogger (to the whole 4 people that actually read my blog!)

Not My First Rodeo...

2011-07-02T13:52:00.000-07:00

...Well that's not true. It was our first rodeo...Our first fishing rodeo. Today, we took Jackson to the Bartlett Fishing Rodeo and we had a blast! The rodeo started at 6 am! (SO EARLY!!!) We hit up Chik-fil-a for breakfast and then went to the lake to put our competitive faces on and catch some fish.

This is how Jackson likes to fish...He lets Daddy do the fishing while he munches on some Chik-fil-a!

Hudson made sure to stay hydrated since it was hot!

Jackson's "fishing license"

Mom and Dad (or Mimi and Buddy) came to cheer Jackson on!

Jackson lost interest in fishing after about an hour. He decided to check out his fishing "comic book" that he got in his goodie bag. (At least he thought it was a comic book)

And what did we catch you ask? Well, this.......

I have no clue what it is. We had several nibbles but this is all we caught! Needless to say, we did not get a trophy.

After a couple hours of fishing, we headed over to the Family Fun Fest to get our fun on. First we got sno cones from the coolest sno cone truck. We got to choose our flavor and put it on ourselves. I saw so many kids putting every flavor imaginable on. (gross!) They were good but they were no Jerry's!

Then we did some Arts and Crafts. Jackson painted a fish. I was very impressed with the amount of time that he took on it (and the amount of glitter that he put on it!). He stayed in the lines so well.

Then he added the finishing touch-about 100 stickers!

Hudson decided he would rather eat some markers than color his picture. That boy had marker EVERYWHERE! Ha!

Of course Jackson's favorite thing was the bouncy house!

He played until I was afraid he was going to pass out from heat exhaustion. I made him chug a bottle of water and then it was time to go home for some lunch and naps! (Yay for naps!)

Don't be looking for us on your next episode of Bass Masters. =)

"Daddy's Mother's Day" 2011

2011-06-28T07:51:00.000-07:00

We had such a great "Daddy's Mother's Day". We got to hang out with some of my favorite guys!

Saturday, we went swimming with Jason's family. Jackson was ready...until he got in the water. Then he wasn't such a fan anymore. (I love these goggles! )

Hudson on the other hand LOVED swimming. He was a natural. He would put his face in and kick his legs.

We didn't end up staying in very long. The water was freezing.

Jackson prefered staying on the side, and shooting whoever was in the pool with his watergun.

After he was good and dry, he decided to get back in and swim alone with Jason. He finally started warming up to the water and trying to swim without his floaties. We ate dinner with Jason's family and then went home and crashed. We were exhausted. (I hate that we didn't get any pictures with Jason's Dad. He was working and then we were too busy stuffing our faces. I promise I will do better next year!)

The next day, we went to my parent's house to spend time with my family. My sister and I love our Daddy. (We also love the Duggars since they are on the tv behind us...haha!)

The boys got some good quality time with their Daddy.

And they also got to spend some time with their great-granddads, Pop...

...and Gaga.

We hung out with them and gave them our special cards that Jackson made. We made the cutest cards from Shutterfly. I let Jackson chose the Top 5 reasons he loves these men. Here are some highlights from these cards...

*You fix good cars and you cut grass real good. (Jason)

*You give me Cheetos and you play Legos with me (Gaga, my grandfather)

*You let me drive your tractor and you pick up sticks real good. (Buddy, my Dad).

*You're real tall and you don't kick me. (Pop, my grandfather

*You swim with us and I like your tractor. (Papaw, Jason's Dad)

It's the little things in life that are important to Jackson. =)

We are so blessed to have some amazing Godly Daddys in our life!

Blog Funk!

2011-06-23T08:56:00.000-07:00

I have been in such a blog slump lately. I feel like I have nothing to say. I promise I will try my best to get out of it soon! =)

The Dog Days of Summer

2011-06-16T08:18:00.000-07:00

The dog days of summer are upon us and we have been trying to stay cool any way we can.

We have washed the car...

...and broken out the sprinkler.

We even made a trip to the sprinkler park. The boys loved it and took great naps when we got home. (...note to self-must do that again!)

Hudson even found a sprinkler that was his speed.

Too busy playing to take a picture

So far this summer has been great!

A Year and a Half

2011-06-11T06:50:00.000-07:00

Hudson has 1 more week to be considered 18 months old so I thought I needed to update his stats.

Height: 34 in (80th percentile)
Weight: 29.1 lb (90th percentile)
Head Circumference: 48.5 cm (75th percentile)

Hudson, what are you up to now?:

* You are EVERYWHERE! You have learned to open door knobs and climb on anything. Once again, the life we once knew has momentarily changed. We are having to remember to make a better effort of putting things where you can't reach them (like drinks...We have had a few cokes that have ended up on the floor.)

*My one time good eater has gotten a little picky. You are not a fan of sandwiches. (I'm like Joey on Friends...Sandwiches are my favorite food!) Which is hard because that is what lunch is alot of time. At dinner, you always eat your fruit or veggies first. We are always struggling to get you to eat your meat. I know this is a phase, but it is frustrating.

*My one time quite guy is now talking All. The. Time! What are you saying?
Hey, Hi, Bye, Mommy, Dada, Bubba (for Jackson), Mimi, Dink (drink), Tank ooo (Thank you), Nini (night night), All did (all done), Amy (amen), Biiee (bite), Uh-Oh, Bob (paci), Unkey (monkey lovey), Peas (please), and the most important word in our house BungeBob (SpongeBob).

This video reminds me of Hudson. Every day when he gets in the car, this is what I hear. "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, MommyDaddy, MommyDaddy, MommyDaddy...." It is so funny!

*Your favorite toy is our old house phone. You will carry it with you all day long-It is so funny. You also love to put all your toys in my empty bag and carry it around the house. You are very easily amused.

*You LOVE to give hugs and wet slobbery kisses.

*You are still SO clumsy! You constantly have skinned knees. Bless your little heart.

We took you to the Dr. this month and we think we have the answer to why you are so clumsy. After an x-ray on your legs, They told us you have bow legs and Internal Tibial Torsion. They hope that you will grow out of it.

*You love to be silly. You love to make people laugh and have so much joy in your life. Your smile lights up a room!

Hudson,
My sweet little silly boy! You have quite a personality and I can't wait to see where it takes you in the future. You will do great things little boy.
Love, Mommy

He Kills Me!

2011-06-07T05:28:00.000-07:00

This little boy has me cracking up All. The. Time! He has such a funny sense of humor and LOVES to make people laugh. I thought it was time for some more Jackson-isms!

1. Every night at dinnertime, Jackson really enjoys saying our blessing. Hudson has started "participating" by bowing his head, holding his hands and giving his best Southern Baptist "Amen" (which sounds just like Ahme or Amy).
Setting the scene: Jackson had just completed his prayer which is quickly followed by Huds "Ahme".
Jackson: grunting to himself, shrugging his sholders and shaking his head.
Mommy: "What's wrong?"
Jackson: "Hudson is always talking about Amy. I don't even know who that is. "

2. Flipping through the channels, we see that Pirates of the Carribean is on.
Jackson: "Yes...Pirates of the Para Legal!" (I didn't know Jackson knew about para legals!)

3.The night of the American Idol final we had some bad storms, so Jackson decided that he needed to snuggle with me in my bed until the storms passes. Lady Gaga comes on to perform. She is looking crazy and standing on this mountain thing.
Jackson: "Mommy, is she an angel?"
Mommy: "ABSOLUTELY NO!"

That's not quite how I picture angels. When she started "dancing" (and I use that term loosely) with a guy, we quickly changed the channel and we found some cartoon to watch.

4. After helping Jackson get ready for bed, I gave him a hug and a kiss. He grabbed my face...
Jackson: "Mommy, when you kiss me you need to turn your head like this." (and then turns his head like the best soap opera kiss you have ever seen)
Mommy: "Jackson, Mommies don't kiss like that. We just give pecks, Eskimo kisses or butterfly kisses. How did you learn about that?"
Jackson: "That's the way Shrek dos it."

And things I hear on a daily basis:
"Mommy, your my best girl."
"Mommy, your my best friend."
"Mommy, I didn't kiss Lindsey today at school."

This boy has me laughing all day long!

Memorial Day 2011

2011-06-04T16:21:00.000-07:00

(I know that I am a week behind...I'm trying to get caught up!)

We had an AWESOME (and exhausting) Memorial Day weekend. Saturday was Jason's 33rd birthday. We stayed home and did some things around the house. That night, we decided to join the technology age and get smart phones. (Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas, and Happy Anniversary presents all in one...those things aren't cheap!)

We sat on the couch that night and tried to learn how to work these new fangled contraptions! I took several pictures of my feet while trying to learn the camera.

Sunday, we went to my parent's house and celebrated Christmas with our family from Nashville. (Yes, Christmas! We had lots of things happen when we were supposed to get together. This was the first time that everyone was available.)

How many kids get to open Christmas presents in May?

And how many kids get to swim at Christmas time?

The boys then talked Buddy into playing in the tent with them...

...and riding them on the tractor.

Monday, we loaded up a lunch and headed to the zoo.

We ate our lunch

Jackson colored an awesome picture...

...And Hudson took a 2 hour nap. He slept through everything: the snakes, playground, polar bear, elephants and sea lion show...he missed it all. (Jackson gave Hudson is picture that he colored. Hudson held it his whole nap.That is what is in the bottom corner of the picture.)

Hudson (and his crazy nap hair) woke up just in time to play in the fountain.

Jackson was so sweet and protected Huds from the bigger kids.

We headed out from the zoo, hit up a little Sonic Happy Hour, grilled some hot dogs and hit the sack early! We were so tired and are still recovering from last weekend.

Lose It Girl Challenge

2011-05-21T07:59:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks I have forgotten to post my weight loss.So this week, I made it a point to do this post.

Exercise: This week I ran 3 times and 2 days I did Jillian 30 Day Shred. I still enjoy running and feel really good afterwards, but I am sure everyone at the park thinks I am dying. Like I said in the previous post, I have 6.5 months to become a runner for my first half-marathon. Sounds like a long time, but it really isn't! I'm just taking it one day at a time.

So, what everyone wants to know...how much did I lose? I have lost 14.8 lbs. That is right at 7.5%. I am pretty proud of that. I'm not done with this journey yet. I'm just beginning. (Wow, that sounded SO cheesy!) See ya next week...

Just a Couple Things All Thrown Into 1 Post

2011-05-19T07:10:00.000-07:00

I am so far behind on blogging so I decided to throw everything into one post and hopefully that will get me up to date.

1. We went to the Redbirds game on Sunday. To say we had fun would be an understatement. Jackson enjoyed the game (and the cotton candy). Hudson was just happy to be skipping his naptime!

After the game, we got to run the bases. Jackson made me run with him the first time. The second time around, he went all by himself. He attempted to go around a third time but we stopped him.

We may have a baseball player on our hands.

2. I have been attempting to be a runner lately. (I even went yesterday to get a couple "running outfits" in an effort to make me feel more legit!) I am sure the people that see me out running, feel the need to make sure I am not dying. Ha! I better get my toosh in gear though, cause I am signed up for...

Yes, I will be participating in the St. Jude half-marathon in December. That's 6.5 months to magically become a runner. I hope that I make it across the finish line in less that 5 or 6 hours!

3. Jackson has been killing me lately with the things he says. Stay on the lookout for a Jackson-ism post in the very near future.

That's it. Just a few things that I wanted to throw out there but didn't think needed a post of it's own. I am now caught up.

Can I Have One, Please?

2011-05-14T15:14:00.000-07:00

One of our family friends, Betsy, has some new little ones at her house. A few weeks ago, they came home and found a dog in their backyard. The gate was locked so they are not sure how she got there. They took her to the vet and found out that she was pregnant. Monday, Honey had her babies. She invited us over to come see them. Jackson was so excited, he couldn't wait.

Since today was cooler, they set up a tent for the puppies and Honey. (Honey is one lucky puppy to have found her way to that backyard!)

Jackson was so very gentle. I think he was as smitten with them as I was. He talked about them the whole way home.

This is the one that I am DYING to have. Check out that face. Isn't that too much!

Can I PLEASE have her? I have been so good. I promise to take care of it and feed it. I will take it on walks and clean up after it. Please Jason. (If you would like to help me on my quest to add a new member to the Haynes family, feel free to leave me a comment. I will pass it along to Jason.) For the next few weeks, this will be my quest...to talk Jason into having a puppy.

5 Years!

2011-05-13T16:13:00.000-07:00

Jason and I have been married for 5 years! I seems like just yesterday we were married and have been through so much! Apartment living, buying our first home, having Jackson, all Jackson's health issues (surgery, stomach scopes), Surprise...Hudson's on the way, a "high risk" pregnancy, raising 2 crazy kiddos...etc.
My blog friend Emily did a fun post for her Anniversary, so of course I had to ~~steal~~ borrow her idea. So take a look at our wedding day from A to Z.

Attending- Since we got married on Mother's Day weekend (and alot of my friends were graduating from college) we had a smaller wedding. We had probably around 100 to 125 people who came. It was so sweet though, it was all our family and close friends.

Bridesmaids- I had 5 bridesmaids. I chose all family since I am so close with my cousins and my sister-in-law. My sister was my Maid of Honor.

Catering- I decided not to get a caterer in an attempt to save my parents some money. We made all the food except for the cake. It was SOOOO yummy but such a hassle. Needless to say, my sister's wedding was catered. My Mom was not about to make all that food all over again.

Dress- I loved my dress. I got it at Low's in Brinkley, Arkansas. I wanted something pretty simple, I am not a glitz and glam girl. The bodice had a lace overlay and some bead work and the skirt part just had an organza layer. My favorite part was the sash with that broach and my jewelry.

Engagement-We got engaged on October 7, 2005. A 7 month engagement can make things pretty frantic but we somehow got everything done.

Flowers- My flowers were one of my favorite parts of my wedding. I told my florist that I wanted my bouquet to look like spring. We decided to have pink peonies, green hydrangea, green berries, and pink ivory, and cream roses.

Groomsmen- Jason had 5 groomsmen and 2 ushers. His groomsmen were his brothers, cousins and friends. His ushers were a friend of his and my cousin.

Honeymoon- We went on a cruise...SO FUN! You can read all about it HERE.

Invitations- My Aunt made our invitations. We bought invitation kits at Michael's. I loved the wording on them.

Justice of the Peace- No way. I wanted the real deal!

Keepsake- We had our wedding party and family sign our engagement picture at our rehearsal dinner. It is now hanging in our hallway.

Ladies Night-I had a lingerie shower with my bridesmaids and my close friends.

Music- During the ceremony, we had a string trio playing hymns. My old youth minister and his wife sang a song that they wrote during the unity candle. It was so sweet.

Newlyweds- (I'm not really sure what this question is asking, so I'm going to skip it!)

Old, New, Borrowed, Blue: Old= A penny that my grandmother gave me with my birth year on it. I wore it in my shoe. New= all my jewelry. Borrowed= a handkerchief that I carried. Blue=my University of Memphis garter.

Photography- We used Zanone Photography. We really liked them and I feel like they captured exactly what I wanted. (Feel free to click the link and see all our wedding photos.)

Question popping- Jason and I took a day off work to hang out together. We went to the Pink Palace Crafts Fair and then we went downtown to go shopping. We went to the top of the Peabody and he asked me while we were up there. It was low key and perfect!

Reception- We had our reception in our fellowship hall after the wedding. It was pretty layed back and quick. We didn't want to stay too long.

Shoes- I went for comfort over fashion cause lets face it...no one really sees your shoes. Jason is just barely taller than me so I wore ballet slippers so I wouldn't tower over him.

Trash the Dress?- I hate to say that I "think" my dress is at my parent's house. (not really sure) It is not preserved but might be in the bag that it came in. I'm not sure.

Unique- Our wedding was pretty traditional. Our cake was a little different. The wedding cake was 5 tiers. Each layer was different and SO YUMMY!!! Jason didn't have a chocolate grooms cake. He decided to have pecan pie since it is his favorite!

Vows- Super traditional. "Will you?" "I will." Yadda, Yadda.

Wedding Woes- If there were any, I don't know about them. As far as I'm concerned, our wedding went off without a hitch.

X-rated- No wardrobe malfunctions for me! Praise the Lord.

Young Kids- We had a flower girl and then we each had a ring bearer. We actually let them hold our rings. They did a great job and our rings were safe.

Zzzz- After the wedding, we had to drive to Little Rock so we could catch a plane early the next morning. We were exhausted. We tore into the picnic basket that my Mom packed us...we ate like we hadn't eaten in year.

So there you have it. Our wedding from A to Z. I have had so much fun reminiscing our wedding.

Live In The Now

2011-05-11T16:20:00.000-07:00

I ran across this essay on a blog and I wanted to share it. (I have to admit that as I read it, tears were streaming down my face.) I'll be the first to admit that I have felt like the biggest failure of a mother at times in the journey of motherhood but after reading this I felt better, almost free. I looked at Jackson and Hudson today and realized how quick they are growing up. So much of my day is spent at work and the rest of it is trying to cram in a small amount of quality time before dinner, baths, and bed. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did...I will definitely begin enjoying the small things and trust myself more.

All my babies are gone now. I say this not in sorrow but in disbelief. I take great satisfaction in what I have today: three almost-adults, two taller than I am, one closing in fast. Three people who read the same books I do and have learned not to be afraid of disagreeing with me in their opinion of them, who sometimes tell vulgar jokes that make me laugh until I choke and cry, who need razor blades and shower gel and privacy, who want to keep their doors closed more than I like. Who, miraculously, go to the bathroom, zip up their jackets and move food from plate to mouth all by themselves. Like the trick soap I bought for the bathroom with a rubber ducky at its center, the baby is buried deep within each, barely discernible except through the unreliable haze of the past.
Everything in all the books I once poured over is finished for me now. Penelope Leach., T. Berry Brazelton., Dr. Spock. The ones on sibling rivalry and sleeping through the night and early-childhood education, have all grown obsolete. Along with Goodnight Moon and Where the Wild Things Are, they are battered, spotted, well used. But I suspect that if you flipped the pages dust would rise like memories. What those books taught me, finally, and what the women on the playground taught me, and the well-meaning relations --what they taught me, was that they couldn't really teach me very much at all.

Raising children is presented at first as a true-false test, then becomes multiple choice, until finally, far along, you realize that it is an endless essay. No one knows anything. One child responds well to positive reinforcement, another can be managed only with a stern voice and a timeout. One child is toilet trained at 3, his sibling at 2.

When my first child was born, parents were told to put baby to bed on his belly so that he would not choke on his own spit-up. By the time my last arrived, babies were put down on their backs because of research on sudden infant death syndrome. To a new parent this ever-shifting certainty is terrifying, and then soothing. Eventually you must learn to trust yourself. Eventually the research will follow. I remember 15 years ago poring over one of Dr. Brazelton's wonderful books on child development, in which he describes three different sorts of infants: average, quiet, and active. I was looking for a sub-quiet codicil for an 18-month old who did not walk. Was there some thing wrong with his fat little legs? Was there something wrong with his tiny little mind? Was he developmentally delayed, physically challenged? Was I insane? Last year he went to China . Next year he goes to college. He can talk just fine. He can walk, too.

Every part of raising children is humbling, too. Believe me, mistakes were made. They have all been enshrined in the, 'Remember-When- Mom-Did Hall of Fame.' The outbursts, the temper tantrums, the bad language, mine, not theirs. The times the baby fell off the bed. The times I arrived late for preschool pick up. The nightmare sleepover. The horrible summer camp. The day when the youngest came barreling out of the classroom with a 98 on her geography test, and I responded, 'What did you get wrong?'. (She insisted I include that.) The time I ordered food at the McDonald's drive-through speaker and then drove away without picking it up from the window. (They all insisted I include that.) I did not allow them to watch the Simpsons for the first two seasons. What was I thinking?

But the biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this. I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three of them, sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages 6, 4 and 1. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night. I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get onto the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.

Even today I'm not sure what worked and what didn't, what was me and what was simply life. When they were very small, I suppose I thought someday they would become who they were because of what I'd done. Now I suspect they simply grew into their true selves because they demanded in a thousand ways that I back off and let them be. The books said to be relaxed and I was often tense, matter-of-fact and I was sometimes over the top. And look how it all turned out. I wound up with the three people I like best in the world, who have done more than anyone to excavate my essential humanity. That's what the books never told me. I was bound and determined to learn from the experts. It just took me a while to figure out who the experts were.

Anna Marie Quindlen (born July 8, 1953) is an American author, journalist, and opinion columnist whose New York Times column, Public and Private, won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary in 1992.

Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-10T11:05:00.000-07:00

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day! I know I did....It was busy but it was so much fun.

Saturday, we went to Brownsville to celebrate with Jason's family. This is Mamaw (Jason's Mom) posing with all her grandsons.

Jackson and his cousin Reed played outside the entire afternoon. They really enjoyed rolling in the grass. Just looking at this picture makes me all itchy.

Jackson and Reed...

...Hudson did not want anything to do with taking pictures.

Sunday morning, I was feeling terrible so we slept in. When I woke up, Jason and the boys brought me presents. They gave me the sweetest card and a gift card for a massage (do those boys know me or what?) and then Jason went and got us some breakfast. That afternoon, we went to my parent's house to see my family. The boys played outside for a long time and then we decided to go fishing.

Jackson got a fishing pole for Easter and he has been DYING to go fishing. He got his bread in hand ready to go. (This was an inpromtu fishing trip so we used dough balls...We had to use what we had.)

Jason, Jackson and my Dad had fun fishing...

...while my Mom

...and I corraled Hudson. He was not happy that he didn't get to get near the water like Jackson. (Several tantrums were thrown...I am seeing terrible 2's in the very near future!)

After fishing 5 minutes, Jackson caught his very first fish. He was SO excited but he didn't want to get anywhere near that fish.

He was hesitant when my Dad took it off the hook. He took off running. After the excitement of catching his fish, he totally lost interest in fishing. (I am just glad he made it 5 minutes before he was done.)

Jackson played on the playground...

...And Huds did a little swinging with Mimi.

I am so thankful to have some amazing Mothers in my life. Women that are great examples of how to be a Godly Mother. I am also blessed with 2 incredible boys that gave me the name Mommy and a wonderfully supportive husband. My cup was overflowing all weekend long.

Lose It Girl...Week 4 and a Recipe

2011-04-30T09:26:00.000-07:00

Another week down....and 2 lbs down! I just knew with Easter and all the junk I consumed and not being able to exercise at the beginning of the week (because we were stuck in closets because of tornadoes...) that I was going to have a big gain. I stepped it up at the end of the week and worked out 4 times but I was still surprised that I lost 2 lbs.

Exercise: I did 1 Zumba class, 1 day of cardio and weights and 2 runs. I can't believe what I am about to type...but I actually like running. Anyone who knows me, go ahead and pick yourself off the ground! Yes, I just said that and no, I haven't lost my mind! I started out on my run last night and realized how fun it was to get out there by myself and just clear my head. I had so much "fun" that I ran again this morning. Now, I still huff and puff like crazy but I am actually beginning to like it.

I also have a recipe to share. I am on Weight Watchers and I am trying to tweak my recipes to make them lower points. We LOVE us some Mexican food so I wanted to post what we eat at least once every other week. Jason and the boys love it!

Chicken Fajitas:

2 or 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 bag of frozen 3 color peppers and onions (feel free to use fresh produce but as a full time working mom, this saves me some time by not having to cut everything up.)

reduced sodium taco seasoning

whole wheat tortilla wraps

fat-free refried beans

toppings: reduced fat cheese and sour cream, tomatoes, black beans...whatever you like

Cut your chicken into strips and throw them in a hot pan or wok. Toss those around and when they are cooked through, throw in the onions and peppers. Cook for 5 minutes and put in a little water and your taco seasoning. Cook until thickened and make your fajitas however you would like.

They are SOOOO yum! I eat mine with a big side salad and spray Balsamic salad dressing.

Hudson even agrees that they are good...

...make that finger-licking good.

*If you are on Weight Watchers, the whole dinner is about 10 points. Not too bad and VERY filling!

That is all for week 4. 6.8 lbs down on this challenge and 10.8 total. Next week, I hope to have a BIG announcement.

Easter-Part 2

2011-04-28T15:02:00.000-07:00

(*I hate that this post is so late. We have had our computer unplugged with all the bad storms we have had and then last night when I was about to write this post our power went out. How do you like that. 3 days of storms and our power goes off AFTER the storms...I digress.)

This year, Easter was so fun. When the boys got up on Easter morning, we had to rush to the dining room to see what the Easter Bunny left them...

Hudson's basket.

And Jackson's basket

Jackson was super pumped about the new underwear that he got. (Seriously...that is what he wanted in his Easter basket!)

And Hudson got some super cute sunglasses. Don't they look like Ray Bans?

After eating ~~M&Ms~~ breakfast, we quickly got ready for church and managed to make it to Sunday School at 8:15 (which is a miracle in itself!) After church, we headed to eat lunch at my parents house. On the way there Jackson told us all about Easter and Jesus dying on the cross.

The Easter story as told my Jackson Haynes:

"Mommy, Jesus' hands were bloody. Some men put nails in his hands. He died on the cross and then he was alive. And Mary was there. Did you know that? He died for me." (Music to my ears to hear my little boy tell me Bible stories.)

At my parent's, we took family pictures and ate lunch then it was on to the 2nd annual Haynes/ Whitworth/ Ware Easter egg hunt

Family Easter picture

My 2 cute boys (I love Hudson's smocked outfit with skinned knees.)

We take our Easter egg hunting pretty seriously. You see, there is money in those eggs. There may or may not have been some fighting. Don't worry, no one was hurt!

(Funny Jackson story: We went to a birthday party at the beginning of the month that had an egg hunt. We mentioned it to Jackson and he said "Is there going to be cash money in those eggs?" We had to tell him that not all egg hunts have money in them. I thought it was funny that he remembered last year and the money that he got. That boy loves him some money!)

My Dad helped Hudson find some eggs. (I couldn't help him, I had to find my own money. Ha!)

Jackson has a basket full of eggs!

When all the eggs had been found, we came in and counted all our "cash money"...

...and then the boys did a little swimming. It was the perfect day spent with our family and our church family!

Easter-Part 1

2011-04-23T17:55:00.000-07:00

What a busy day we have had! We started out the day with a little guest...

Our elf, Max, came for a visit. With the economy being so poor, he now has a part-time job working for the Easter bunny. He came to us dressed up for Easter and he brought the boys a sweet little note.

Jackson was very surprised when he got up this morning.

While I went to Weight Watchers, the boys had powered doughnuts. (The only way I could have will power to not inhale those doughnuts was to leave the house...ha!)

Then we went to Lowe's to do a little shopping and to let Jackson build a birdhouse. I love taking advantage of all the free children's clinics out there. Jackson thinks they are the greatest thing in the whole wide world.

This video cracks me up. It shows his "concentration face" (mouth wide open) and then at the end watch how he hammers those nails in. All I can say is that Jason is VERY brave for getting his hands anywhere near Jackson when he is hammering!

Jackson with his building buddy, Daddy!

So proud of his bird house!

Then tonight, we have been getting ready for tomorrow morning. (Is Sunday morning the most hectic part of the week to anyone else?) All 3 of my boys needed haircuts, so had to brush the cobwebs off my hair stuff.

The boys watching the Griz game sporting their new handsome haircuts. (Yes, I realize that Jackson is wearing Christmas PJs. He dressed himself for bed...ha!) Looking forward to tomorrow-ready to worship my Risen Savior with our church family.

Lose It Girl...Week 3

2011-04-23T17:18:00.000-07:00

This week, I'm still truckin along. I lost 1.8 lbs. (4.8 lbs on this challenge and 9.8 lbs overall) I have to say, I was a little bit let down by this amount of weight. I just felt "skinny". I exercised 5 times this week (1 night Zumba, 1 day on the eliptical and 3 days running.) I'm just going to stick with it. So there is my update for this week.
(*Sorry this is so short...I am getting ready for Easter tomorrow. Happy Easter friends.)

Best $2 Ever!

2011-04-21T15:56:00.000-07:00

Today, I ran into the Dollar Tree to finish a job for a certain bunny that is going to be coming to our house this weekend (...if you catch my drift). As I was checking out, I decided to get 2 balloons since the boys have been so good lately. Little did I know the joy that would immediately fill their lives!

Jackson got a Spider-man balloon.

And Hudson got SpongeBob.

The squeals that were coming from my car were just too much. Hudson could barely contain himself. He kept pointing to his balloon and saying "BungBah" (which in Hudson's language translates to SpongeBob) and then laughing the funniest laugh I have ever heard.

When we got home, he decided to do a little jumping in the kitchen (-jumping for joy that their Mom got them the coolest surprise on the planet!). Both boys have been carrying their balloons since we got home.

Attention Grandparents and Family that read this blog: If you are looking for something special to get them...apparently a balloon is the way to go!

Worn Out

2011-04-18T15:56:00.000-07:00

Today has been SO fun. We spent the morning at Shelby Farms. We walked around the lake and then went to the new playground.

Hudson loved being able to run free.

And Jackson liked pretending to be Spider-man.

He thought he was really big when he climbed up to the tree house. (Then Shawn had to go rescue him cause he couldn't figure out how to get down.)

Hudson still running free.

The slide area of this park is so cool.

Shawn and I commented that we don't remember cool parks like this when we were growing up.

After slides, we went to the sand part of the park.

This is Hudson's favorite part. And this is where the pictures end. Hudson gets caked with wet sand (I mean it is EVERYWHERE...eyelashes, armpits, diaper area...) and we had to go to the bathroom and clean him up in the sink.

After the boys 4 HOUR NAP! Yea, they were worn out! Jackson and I colored Easter eggs.

I think he liked coloring the eggs, but I think he liked getting some alone time with Mommy the most.

I know this picture is blurry but I still love it.

Time for dinner, baths and early bedtimes. This Momma is super sleepy!

What I Am Loving Today

2011-04-17T19:18:00.000-07:00

*I love Sunday morning SpongeBob.

*I love sweet brotherly love

*I love springtime grilling and yummy burgers!

*I love playing outside.

*I love how Hudson LOVES balls. He even learned to shoot a basketball tonight.

*I love ending the night with a round of Superhero Chutes and Ladders.

I am going to bed with my heart full. I love my family!

Lose It Girl...Week 2

2011-04-17T05:30:00.000-07:00

Week 2 of this weight loss challenge went really well. Since I started the challenge last Thursday, I have had 2 weigh-ins (since I weigh in on Saturday mornings). Last Saturday, I lost 1.6 lbs and this week, I lost 1.4 lbs. That's 3 lbs (8 lbs. total since starting on March 12).

Exercise: Saturday and Sunday we walked ALL. DAY. LONG. at the zoo (and I might add pushed a heavy stroller loaded down with things-not an easy feat). Tuesday and Thursday, I did an hour of Zumba. This week, I am planning on stepping up the work outs.

Eating: I did pretty good with eating. I am actually enjoying eating vegetables and trying new things. (Who thought I would like spaghetti squash and broccoli?)

I am 3 lbs. closer to my 8 week goal of 12 lbs!

More Jackson-isms

2011-04-13T04:12:00.000-07:00

*Each night at dinner we do a little Bible time which consists of a verse and story out a little devotional book and then we say the blessing. Jackson's favorite blessings are the tried and true "God is great, God is good..." and one that says: "Our hands we fold, our heads we bow and for our food we thank God now." Well last night, that prayer turned into "I hold my hands, I bow my head. Thank you God for shaving my head. Amen." As soon as the word "shaving" came out of his mouth, Jason and I lost it.

*Last week on the way home from school, I wanted to see if Jackson knew any nursery rhymes. I stared out with Jack and Jill.
Mommy: Jackson, I want you to finish up my sentences. Jack and Jill went up the...
Jackson: Hill. (Thinking to myself "Nice. He must have already learned this.")
Mommy: To fetch a pail of...
Jackson: Dirt. ("Umm...not so much.")
Mommy: Jack fell down and broke...
Jackson: His head. ("gross.")
Mommy: And Jill came...
Jackson: Across the little bridge.

*This weekend when we were at the zoo, we went to the farm area. We were trying to teach Hudson what all the animals say. (On a side note, Hudson wants NOTHING to do with anything educational. He doesn't care to learn anything!!!) We went to the chickens and cows. Jackson was being so sweet to try to help his little brother. Well, then we got to the donkeys....
Mommy: "Hey Jackson, tell Hudson what that donkey says."
Jackson (using his best Eddie Murphy voice): "Donkey says "You need a tic tac or something cause your breath stinks."
Ok, that little boy watches too much Shrek!

Lets Go Play

2011-04-11T15:56:00.000-07:00

One word to sum up our weekend...Gorgeous! High 80s= gotta get out of the house and go play. Friday when I picked the boys up from school we headed to the new Shelby Farms playground.

Awesome does not even begin to describe this park. They had a mini rope course, hammocks that were swings, tons of slides but my boys favorite part was the sand area that had a water table. We had fun and the boys were FILTHY which means they had fun too. (Note to self- Next time, bring a change of clothes and a towel for the boys and me)

Saturday, We decided to spend the morning at the zoo. I had Weight Watchers that morning (down a total of 6.6 lbs...what! what!) and Jason had to go to the eye Dr. so we decided to just spend a few hours outside before nap time.

The weather was perfect and maybe almost a smidge hot but I am not going to complain. We were able to break out the flip-flops and shorts.

We packed a picnic which Jackson loves

And we checked out the new bunny pen in the farm area.

No trip to the zoo is complete without a visit to the fountain. Today, Hudson got to play. He didn't get in the water but he loved being able to run free out of his stroller for a bit.

Sunday, we went back to the zoo with Shawn and Darris. After church, we came home and packed our lunches and out the door we went.

Hudson loved riding up high on Daddy's shoulders.

Jason's sunglasses didn't stand a chance, Hudson grabbed them as soon as he could.

Jackson took a break with Shawn and Darris. He absolutely loves them

Before we left, it was fountain time. Hudson was so brave this time and hung with the big kids.

Jackson gave this weekend a big thumbs up!

Lose It Girl!

2011-04-08T08:56:00.000-07:00

One of my resolutions this year was to lose weight. (Who's isn't though, right?) A few weeks ago, I joined Weight Watchers and so far through that I have lost 5.6 lbs. I saw this challenge on a few blogs and thought "What the heck, lets do this!" Now, I will NEVER put my starting weight on here. (Maybe in December when I am all hot and svelte, I will drop that number on you, but not right now.) I will tell the percentage of weight that I lost that week.

Over these 8 weeks of this challenge, I am setting a goal of 12 lbs-just 1.5 lbs. a week. How am I going to do this?

*Working out Mon, Tues, Wed, and Sat. My church has started a Zumba class 2 nights a week and it is actually pretty fun. I also do the elliptical on Wed. and do some sort of cardio on Saturday.

*Eating...We are eating a TON of chicken. Also, we are loading up on fruits and veggies. I am keeping up with my weight watcher points as well.

So, here I go...pray for me! =)

April Showers

2011-04-07T15:51:00.000-07:00

I am always off with the boys on Monday. To say that this Monday was interesting would be an understatement.

The day started off like any other day. The boys driving each other crazy...

Jackson found one of Hudson's teethers in the refrigerator.

Then Hudson decided that he needed it! (Hudson is really excelling at throwing tantrums!)

So they decided to share it.

As we were eating lunch, the weathermen busted in on Young and the Restless (Yes, I know not the most quality show. It's what we watch at work during lunch and on my days off I still watch it. I had to find out what was going to happen with Sharon and her murder trail. Ha!) I knew they had been predicting rain but had no idea what we were in for. Hail, winds, tornadoes...it was bad. As they were telling us where the tornado was headed, our power went out. I was trying to round up our flashlights when I heard a loud bam. Hudson had wandered off and because it was so dark he ran into the wall. Bless his heart. We gathered our pillows and flashlights and went to hang out in the hallway.

Having an adventure in the hallway.

Hudson was not phased by the storm at all (except for running into the wall!). He just thought it was neat to play with his flashlight.

Jackson on the other hand was TERRIFIED!

He needed to make a little phone call to Daddy to make sure everything was going to be ok.

After everything was over, Jackson and I went outside to access the damage. We had several big limbs that fell from our tree but that was it-we were lucky!

Several of our neighbors were not that lucky. Huge oak trees were down all over the place. I do not want to go through one of those storms again. I'm ready for those "May flowers"!

Weekend Warriors

2011-04-03T08:52:00.000-07:00

What is it about spring that makes you want to deep clean, get things organized and do some house projects? (Please tell me I'm not alone in my quest to "make things better".) So Saturday in all it's 72 degree glory, we headed to Home Depot to get what we needed to finish a few things around the house.

They had their Kids Workshop going on so Jackson was super excited.

The lady even gave Hudson a project. I tried my hardest to get him excited but all he wanted to do was hold this hammer and walk around in the lumber section. (Which meant I got to chase him all over the lumber section!)

Jackson worked so hard on his project and was even sweet enough to finish Hudson's for him.

The finished product...an awesome planter. We will be getting some plants in the next couple of weeks for Jackson to take care of.

He is in his element at Home Depot.

After Home Depot, it was time for some sno cones so we went to good ole Jerry's . This is our favorite place to go on Saturdays once it gets warmer.

Jackson got a Spider-man sno cone and it was super yummy! Jason and I stuck with the tried and true Strawberry Supreme (strawberry sno cone with vanilla soft serve...Can you say yum?)

Hudson didn't get to really enjoy Jerry's last year...

...but he LOVED it yesterday! He smiled this big everytime he took a bite.

Jackson talked about Jerry's all day long. He was loving his sno-cone. (Please excuse my appearance. I'm just keeping it real. This is how I look when it is a Home Depot Saturday!)

Spider-man sno cone (blue bubble gum and strawberry) makes you have a black tongue.

And this is what we are working on today. We got 2 cabinets to finish up our laundry room. I will post some before and afters once we have it done.

"Jackson's Disney World"

2011-03-29T11:08:00.000-07:00

Saturday, has to be one of Jackson's most favorite days of the year....it was John Deere Day at the John Deere dealership in Somerville. We went last year and Jackson had a blast so I knew it was a must for us to do again.

We dressed the boys in their best John Deere green and we were ready to have some fun.

Since it was raining so hard, they had to move everything in their workshop. The boys didn't seem to mind at all. The first stop was to play in the corn. Who would have ever known that kids could have that much fun playing in a trough of corn.

I had to stand guard with Hudson because he kept trying to eat that nasty corn.

Then it was on to Jackson's favorite thing...the slide. (I am definitely thinking this is must for his next birthday party!)

I think he could have stayed on that slide the whole time we were there...

You can tell Hudson is not a fan of not being able to slide. He thinks he can hang with the "big boys" and was a little upset that he couldn't go with big brother. A little undivided attention from Buddy made everything better.

After we had done a few things, we decided it was time to eat. As I was eating lunch, I looked at Hudson and saw him doing this...

Seriously?!? Totally gross.

Next on the agenda was tattoos. You would have thought Hudson was getting a real one the way he cried.

Jackson liked his tattoo!

As you can tell, Hudson...

...and Jackson enjoyed themselves!

When we got in the car, Jackson asked if we were going to be coming back the next day. He was bummed when I told him that he would have to wait until next year. My boys love them some John Deere!

Did I Hear You Right?

2011-03-22T11:35:00.000-07:00

Jackson has become quite the superhero fan. To refresh your memory, check out my posts HERE and HERE. Sunday, we noticed that Ironman was on TV. Now let me say, Jackson has watched Ironman many times and loved it everytime. The last time it was on, we let him stay up late and watch until the end. We decided to turn it on and just wait to see his expression when he realized what he was watching. We sat through the commercial and we just watched him. He took him a second to realize what was on TV and then his face changed.

Jackson: "Mommy, is this Ironman?"

Me: "Yes Jax. Aren't you excited?"

Jackson: "Will you turn on Food Network?"

Food network? Yes, I watch alot of Food Network but Jackson has never shown an interest in watching any cooking shows. I asked him why he wanted to watch Food Network and he told me that Ironman scared him. (Go ahead and give me the Mother of the Year award!) He said he just didn't like the end of the movie. We should have never let him stay up that night and watch the end of the show. You live and learn, right?

Gorgeous Weekend!

2011-03-21T06:47:00.000-07:00

We had the best weekend. When the weather is in the high 70's, you can't go wrong. Saturday, we hung out all day. ~~The boys~~ Hudson took the best nap. When he woke up, we decided that we were going to have family date night. I can count on one hand the times that our family of 4 has gone out to eat. (We usually meet my family to eat or we just get take out and eat at home.) Isn't that sad. We got dressed up and headed to O'Charley's to enjoy a little family time. On the way out, Jackson looked at me and said "I had a great date with you Mommy." I think we will be doing family date night at least once a month now!

Sunday, we went to church and then came home to eat lunch. It was WAY too pretty to take naps, so we decided to walk to the park down the street from our house.

Hudson was ready to go!

We decided to walk the 1 mile track before we went to the playground. We stopped at the obstacle course so Jackson could do the balance beam.

Hudson's favorite thing is being outside!

Hudson really thought he was something! He loved trying to keep up with the big kids.

Jackson told me "I'm so glad that we came to my favorite park today. Thanks guys!" He is so easy to please.

Hudson has to learn that you don't climb up the slides, you slide down them.

So happy to play outside

Our goal for the afternoon was to wear these boys out...Hudson kept taking breaks on the slide.

And Jackson kept saying he needed water and that he was tired. I think we accomplished our goal.

On the way home, Jackson kept asking if we could get the sprinkler out. I tried to explain to him how windy it was but he said he didn't care. We went with it...don't judge. =)

Hudson was not super excited about the sprinkler. He just liked running around in the front yard. (Are you loving the back rolls....So cute!)

Jackson on the other hand had a blast. He didn't care how cold the water was. After 5 minutes of sprinkler time, it was nap time! Both boys crashed. We even had to wake Hudson up after a 3 hour nap. It was 5:30 p.m and I was afraid he would keep on sleeping if we let him.I am so excited about warmer weather and more time to play outside,

It Needs a Little Something

2011-03-19T05:43:00.000-07:00

I have been loving some design shows lately. This is a very dangerous thing. You see when I watch these, I get motivated to change everything in this very old house. I want to gut this, and bust this up. When you are living on a pretty tight budget, doing a lot of renovations is just not possible. A few mini changes are coming in the very near future for this house (like painting some rooms and changing up some decorations). My first "room" to tackle was our hallway. (Is a hallway a room?)

This is our hallway. It's small, boring and in need of a little love!

The only thing hanging on the walls is our engagement picture.

Lets have a moment of silence for that small, cute, young girl in the picture. That was 5 years and 2 kids ago....Please come back real soon and stay for a while! Ok, moving on.

This side of the hallway always stumped me. Should I do family pictures, or a little shelf with some nick knacks? I know what I'll do. I'll make a silhouette of my kiddos. Cute, and something a little different.

*First step, take a mugshot of your subject.

Jackson was easy. He would stand there and let me pose him just how I needed. Hudson was another story...

We tried...

...and tried...

...and eventually we got a decent shot!

*Next step, trace the photo on to plain paper.

I pulled the photo that I was going to use and made it bigger in the computer and then traced it straight off my computer screen. If you do this, use a LIGHT touch. You don't want to mess up your screen! After it was traced out, I added a few touches like eyelashes to enhance the final product.

*Now, cut out what you did on the plain paper and trace it on to your final paper. I used black to keep it traditional but you could use anything. Cut it out being very careful, then glue it to whatever background you like. Again, I went with white cardstock since I was staying traditional. Then you are done!

This is Jackson's finished silhouette. I love how his hair sticks up in the back! That is SO Jackson.

And here is Hudson's finished silhouette. I love his little button nose and his chubby little chin! That is SO Hudson.

We are going to hang them this afternoon and I know it will transform our hallway.

Total cost for this project $25.00 (2 mats 2.99- 50% off at Hobby Lobby and 2 hanging frames $22.00- 40% off coupon from Hobby Lobby). Not bad for 2 framed and matted pictures!

We're Going Dancing!

2011-03-12T11:02:00.000-08:00

I keep telling Jason that he is going to need to call an ambulance. Why you ask? Because this year's Memphis team is going to kill me! I can't count how many games they have won at the buzzer-the most important one being 5 minutes ago when they won the C-USA tournament!

Yesterday, Jackson asked if he could wear his jersey to school since Memphis was playing that night. So my little boy went to school supporting his school.

Such a proud Memphis fan!

We also dressed Hudson up in his Memphis best...Start them young, raise them right!

Since I was taking pictures of them, I decided to try and get one of them together.

Out of 50 shots, this is the best I got! Oh well, we are just happy to be going to the tournament!

They Come In 3's, Right?

2011-03-09T15:27:00.000-08:00

Getting an idea of what my night is going to intail ...lots of breathing treatments and holding a sick little boy.

Tomorrow will be the 3rd time in 3 weeks that I will be off work due to illness (2 days with Hudson's stomach virus, 2 days last week because I had Bronchitis and then tomorrow because Hudson has RSV.) I'm getting a little worried I might lose my job! We get to do breathing treatments tonight and go back to the Dr. tomorrow to make sure his little lungs are clearing up. If they don't, we may be heading to the hospital. They say bad things come in 3s right? Can we agree that this is #3 and we will be good for a while?