The Tackett's

The Children's Museum

2010-12-14T18:08:00.000-08:00

We had a doctor's appointment in Memphis, so we decided to take Carter to the Children's Museum. We had so much fun. He was amazed at all the neat things there. His very favorite was the mini grocery store. He pushed his buggy around and picked out his items and check himself out. He loved that buggy so much that I think Santa may be bringing him one.

He loved the police car....he pushed every single button!

The fire truck was a big success....

Daddy's favorite the airplane cockpit.....

It was a great trip for us and I must say I think he was a little glad his Sissy wasn't there so he could be the center of attention.

Carter's Birthday

2010-11-25T19:32:00.000-08:00

We had Carter's birthday party at North Greenwood's playground. It was a big sucess and he had a blast. These pictures went in reverse order so I will tell you about it backwards. This is Carter playing with his toys when we got home that night.

Eating his smash cake....

First taste of smash cake.....

Being cute....

Playing....

Cutie pie...

Sliding...

Grace and John Robert....

The cake....

The front table....

The kids played on the playground for a while. Then they came in and rode all kinds of riding toys in the gym and played basketball, and ate and ate. We had so much fun and most of all Carter had a blast. His birthday isn't untill December 1 but I wanted him to be able to play outside before it gets too cold. This caused a lot of confusion for Grace because she is still saying, "but I was born first!" Anyway, the day was a sucess and we are looking forward to Grace's party!

Halloween Costumes

2010-11-25T17:48:00.001-08:00

So, this year we were a bumble bee and a blue monster. The kids looked adorable and we had so much fun on the hay ride with friends and trick or treating. Enjoy the pics!

Cousin William's B-day Party

2010-11-22T19:23:00.000-08:00

We went to William's birthday party and the kids had a blast. Carter had so much fun playing onthe playground that I decided that is what I would do for his party. The kids played and had a great time. Here are some of the pictures...I just picked a few because I don't think ya'll want to go through all three thousand of them!

Carter on the slide....

Carter in the tunnel.....

Grace swing in the tunnel.....

Grace on the riding toy....

And this is just a random picture of Grace and John Robert who is her very best friend. They aren't apart too much and have each other's picture on their bedside table. They are too sweet!

Cowboy/Cowgirl Day

2010-09-19T12:27:00.000-07:00

It was cowboy/cowgirl day at First Pres. again. Grace looks forward to this every single year. She looked so cute and had a blast. Next year Carter will get to participate. I can't wait for that. Enjoy the pics....

First Day of School

2010-09-07T10:42:00.000-07:00

So, today was the first day of school. Carter had no idea what was going on. All he knew was he loved wearing a backpack like his big sister. Grace had no problems and walked into school like it had never ended. Carter was very nervous and cried a little bit at first, but then he did pretty good. Mrs. Caroline said he did great until 11:00 and then he started crying. He was just hungry and tired I think. So, the first day was a sucess and I was home alone for the first time in a really long time. Enjoy the pics!

First Day of Dancing

2010-08-23T12:11:00.000-07:00

Today is Grace's first day of dancing. I took a few pics before we left. This first one is of me bribing her to be still for one second so I can snap a few pictures.

She got this pose from her mama!!!!

I will let ya'll know how it goes today!

Flower Girl

2010-08-08T17:14:00.000-07:00

So, about five seconds before I was about to put Grace in her beautiful flower girl dress for Ashely's wedding she came running to me saying she had an accident. Keep in mind that we have to be out of the door now in order to get there on time. The accident was that she had colored ALL over herself with a permanent magic marker. I was flippin out!!! I mean a flower girl can't walk down the aisle with black sharpie covering her body. You just never know what you are gonna get with this girl. Needless to say, I scrubbed and scrubbed, and used alcohol, and used magic erasers, and whatever else Mae Mae and I could come up with. Finally we got most of it off, but her poor little skin was missing a few layers and had a bad rash. Besides the sharpie, she did great in the wedding and was absolutely gorgeous!

Sunday Cuteness!

2010-07-04T17:33:00.000-07:00

Today was just a normal Sunday, with the exception that my two babies were lookin super cute! Enjoy the pics.....

Dance Camp

2010-06-27T17:03:00.000-07:00

Last week Grace had dance camp. She was very excited about "shaking her bootie"! Anyway, they learned 4 dances and then on Friday they preformed them. My personal favorite was the dance they did to Beyonce's "Single Ladies". It was sooooo funny. Anyway, she had a blast and all summer long she has some activity to do each week. This week is swimming lessons! Here are her dance camp pics from the first day!

This is her in her "jazz pants" they were required to wear!

Princess Camp/Manners Camp

2010-06-21T08:22:00.000-07:00

Last week Grace attended Manners Camp. Each day they learned different things about manners and had some fun too. For example, Wednesday was make a royal mess day where they played with shaving cream in a swimming pool etc... Friday was there ceremony that parents attended to see all they had learned. They had to wear there princess and prince outfits. She had a blast! She must have learned something because this morning she said, "mom i wouldn't care for any strawberries please!" So, it was well worth it. Here are some pics in her princess costume.

Swimming

2010-06-06T09:53:00.000-07:00

So, since I have been stuck inside for a while I told Brad to go get us a little pool for the back yard. Grace and Carter both love it. They think they are at the beach....hey, whatever works! They both get in the pool and play and play. Then they go to the sand box and play and play. After a afternoon of this I don't have to much trouble getting these two to sleep. This is Grace dancing in the pool....
Playing ball in the pool....

A whole lot of cuteness in this one....

Summer has been pretty good so far!!!

Red Lips

2010-06-03T16:53:00.000-07:00

So, I am just about asleep when I hear Grace screaming, "Mama"!!!! I get upstairs to her room and this took me by surprise.... (see below)!

Keep in mind that it is 10:30 at night and this could be my 100th time up the stairs. I asked her where she got the lip stick from and she told me she found it. She couldn't quite come up with where she found it though.

Take a look at that finger...she is trying her best to get this story straight. You just gotta love her!!!!!!!

Pretty Weather...Pretty Yard!

2010-04-13T12:42:00.000-07:00

This beautiful weather inspired me to get out in the yard. My yard is looking pretty good I must admit! Take a look.....

If you saw the jungle in Sunflower you would know I have come a loooooooonnnnnnnngggggg way in yard work!!!! LOL!

First Buddy Ball Game

2010-04-13T12:20:00.000-07:00

Buddy Ball has begun, and needless to say I will be living at the baseball field. The only plus is I will definitely have a great tan. Our first game was last week. Grace absolutely loves playing. They only problem we are having is if she doesn't get the ball every single time she cries big ole' crocodile tears. She did really good though. We had a double header and by the end of the second game she was by second base making a really good sand castle. So here are the pics of her before the game.....

This is Grace before a play date at the park....

Grace and good ole' Taylor!

Spring Time!!!

2010-04-04T18:00:00.000-07:00

We had a great Easter and the kids got some yummy candy from the Easter bunny. Carter mostly loved his cotton candy. I mostly loved his sweet little outfit!!!

His little fat rolls hung over his knee socks...I loved it!

Grace was up bright and early to see what the bunny had brought her. Her favorite thing in her basket was her "lip gloss" as she calls it. When I put on my lip stick she always says she need to put on her lip gloss.

She was really excited about the chocolate bunnys....

Grace's school had a egg hunt. This is Grace before she left for the egg hunt in her cute outfit. She loves to pose for the camera.

With this pretty weather we have been going to the park. Living in town is so much better than the snake and frog infested country with no park.

Carter mainly loves the tires at the park. Look at this hair-do. I can't do a thing with it and I just don't want to cut it. He has had one tiny little hair cut already but now he is getting confused as a girl sometimes so I may need to consider it.

This is Grace and her best friend John Robert at Lilly Grace's birthday party. You cannot separate these two. They both have this picture framed on their bedside tables.

Here is my pretty girl before the birthday party!

Church Time

2010-02-15T15:13:00.000-08:00

We visited St. John's for the first time and I got some cute pictures of my little munchkins! Grace was being so sweet to her brother...

Here are some of Grace by herself....too cute, huh?!

Here is her traditional Grace pose....

Church was good, except that Carter cried the entire hour in the nursery. When I got back to him he could barely breathe he was so upset. Needless to say he looked cute doing it! A little update...we have been sick since December and so far things aren't much better. We went back to the doctor today and both of them have pneumonia again. We have had everything from stomach viruses to strep to bronchitis to flu to pneumonia, etc.... That list could go on and on, so pray that these "bug flus" as Grace calls them get out of our house. I am worn out!!!!!!!

Yummy!

2009-12-30T19:06:00.000-08:00

I took a few pics of the kids loving eating.... Grace loves an Oreo!

Oreo teeth....

Carter loves homemade cream potoatoes...

Yummy!

Christmas Day

2009-12-27T13:00:00.001-08:00

We celebrated our first Christmas in our new house. It was a hit! Santa came and brought the kids all sorts of goodies. We ate a huge breakfast and an even bigger lunch. Yummy! Then we spent most of the day hanging out and watching the kids play with all their new toys. Here is Carter seeing one of his toys Santa brought him....

Grace opening a gift...
Grace seeing what Santa put in her stocking....

Grace talking on her phone that came with her new kitchen....

Grace loving her kitchen....

Needless to say we had a wonderful Christmas! Merry Christmas everyone!!

Christmas at PaPa and SuSu's

2009-12-27T12:50:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve we headed to PaPa and SuSu's house for Christmas. We had a great time! Here is Carter and PaPa opening gifts....

Grace and Aunt Katie...

Carter soaking it all in...

Allie and Grace...

Here is Grace hugging her cousin William....

Brad and I....

PaPa and Grace playing the piano...

Carter taking it all in....

Some more piano playing....

Merry Christmas everyone....!

Grace's Christmas Play

2009-12-20T17:35:00.000-08:00

We had Grace's annual Christmas program at school. Brad and I were there on the front row looking like nerds with our huge cameras and camcorders...needless to say we were ready and waiting. She did great! She sang some songs and jingled some bells and had a blast. Here is a cute pic with Papa and Susu!

Here is a great close up of her with her proud face look...

And here she is jingled her bells...

We are looking forward to next year b/c she will have a speaking part....I am nervous already!!

Happy B-day Carter

2009-12-02T18:42:00.001-08:00

December 1, 2008 my sweet boy was born. Whew, I was never so glad to have a baby, considering I was on bed rest for most of my pregnancy. He was well worth it though. Since we are still getting settled and every single person in our house is sick, Brad and I just got a little cake and gave him his gifts. In all the pictures you will notice his mouth is open with his tongue out...it's because he has the croup and the little guy is having trouble breathing. Needless to say, it didn't stop him from enjoying his low key birthday at home. Here he is getting one of his toys...
Here is his dump truck Grace picked out for him...

His ball thingy...

Of course the cell phone that every kid has to have...

His little Carmel cake from Ms Gift...

Blowing out the candle...

And some good ole' cake...

Happy Birthday to one of the most precious gifts God has given to Brad and I. May we have many more to come.

When Mama Gets Sick....

2009-11-29T17:07:00.000-08:00

kids get put in the mudroom sink for bath time. Hey, whatever works...right?!

Thanksgiving at the Tackett's House

2009-11-26T17:17:00.000-08:00

This is how Thanksgiving was spent at our house this year. Grace is still very sick and we spent most of the day back at the ER. By the time I got home with her Carter had started running a 101 temp. So, here is what Thanksgiving looks like with a house full of sickness. Needless to say, I am so very thankful for my wonderful family! Thank you Lord for all our blessings.

Play Date w/ Friends and Sever Sickness

2009-11-24T18:58:00.000-08:00

Today Grace had a play date with all her friends from school. We went to this big warehouse that has a huge gym inside it. It was huge and the kids had a blast. Well, all these pictures are in a backwards order so I will be starting from behind and working my way forward. Yesterday she had started coughing really bad and her nose was running. This morning I took her to the play date b/c I knew how much fun she would have. She tried soooo hard to play but she just wasn't feeling her best. This first picture is at supper. We had been at the doctor from 11:30-5:15. After shots, more shots, blood work, etc... I told her she could eat whatever she wanted for supper, so her pick was Chitos. She loved it and ate every one of them. Long story short, we found out that she has sever broncitis in both lungs and phnemonia is starting to set in so we may or may not be in the hospital a few days. Bless this baby's heart. She tried to hang all day but she just was too sick. Anybody that knows Grace knows she is wide open all day until she falls out in bed for the night. Well, today all I have done is hold the poor baby and rock her all day. I will keep you all updated on her condition. Anyway, enjoy the pics....

This is the picture of her after trying to play on the play gym with her friends. As you can tell she was not feeling so good....

Here is another one where she is looking so pitiful!

The next one if just of her playing...

This is Grace with her big buddy Strain...so cute!

This is Grace with her big buddy John Robert. Should I be worried yet that all her big buddies are boys???

This is Allie...a friend in her class that every single morning they play baby dolls together. She is a cutie pie!

Grace sliding down the slide and loving it!

Slide pic....

Another Pary

2009-11-23T10:29:00.000-08:00

Grace had another small get together last night at Papa and SuSu's house. Susie cooked us a wonderful supper, Grace and William played, and everyone seemed to have a great time. Here is a pic of Grace with her Tinkerbell cake...

Gift opening.... She got this play pony that she loves....

More gift opening.....

Another pic of the cake...

Grace and William playing with the birthday balloons....

We had a great night and Grace loved her play Pony she got!!!

Happy Birthday Grace!!!!!

2009-11-22T11:49:00.000-08:00

November 20th we celebrated Grace's third birthday with a quiet night at home. We recently moved to Greenwood so everything is out of whack at the moment. So, we just got a little caramel cake for her and ate supper and let her open a couple of gifts. Here is a pic of her favorite gift...a big girl bike as she would say. She loved it!

She took off through the house right away....

Here she is covering her eyes waiting on her next gift......

This MagnaDoodle was a hit...she takes it everywhere with her....

Here is Carter saying, "hold up...where are my toys?"....

Blowing out the candles....

She got the cake a bit wet trying to blow them out....

Such a sweet and happy smile....

Her birthday hat pics...she has worn this hat every year and I hope to get a picture of her in it on each of her birthdays....

We plan on having both kids a party in December. We hope to be unpacked and settled by then. I pray that God blesses us with many more happy birthdays for everyone in our family!

My Little Hunk

2009-11-22T11:01:00.000-08:00

This is the look on Carter's face when he got "busted" for going through the cabinets. Now how in the world are you suppose to say "no, no" to this face. It is just waaaayyyy too much cuteness for me.

I guess all kids love the little Rubbermaid containers. He sure does!!!

And here is my little hunk goin' shirtless while eating. I always keep the camera handy for moments like this. He is still such a happy little boy and I can't believe he will be one in two weeks. Whew...time flys!

This is probably one of my favorite pics of him.... I could just eat him up here!

Fire Station

2009-10-05T10:29:00.000-07:00

Grace's class took a field trip to the fire station this past Tuesday. I was really excited because I missed most of her school stuff last year because I was on bed rest with Carter. Anyway, Brad and I loaded her up and headed out. Before we left we watched them say the Pledge...

After the pledge we had to line up to get ready to get in our wagons. Here is Grace with her very good buddy Grahm.

Allie and Grace rode together in the wagon...

Here one of Grace and Brad...

Grace on the fire truck...

Grace and friends....

Grace is really loving school this year and Brad and I both love being a part of her school experience.

Cowgirl/Cowboy Day

2009-09-16T18:28:00.001-07:00

Last Friday was cowboy/cowgirl day at Grace's school. So, I found the perfect little outfit and she was the best looking cowgirl you have ever seen. The kids had so much fun and Grace had a blast. Here are the pics:

First Day of School and Other Stuff

2009-09-03T18:56:00.000-07:00

Okay...so school at First Pres. has started again. Grace was really excited about a new year starting. She did great and there were no tears. She threw her backpack right down and went straight to playing. The only thing she is struggling with is not being to understand why Mrs. Caroline isn't her teacher this year and where her other friends are (they divided the two year old class up this year). Last night she kept asking me about it over and over saying that Mrs. Caroline was her friend and where is she. Anyway, here are some of the pics I took that morning.

And here are some of Carter's 9 month old pics I took... By the way, we have all been sick around here for about a week and a half. During this time Carter has actually started crying. I am in shock. If I turn the corner and he even thinks we are going in his room he starts crying. If I go to put him in his bouncer he spreads his legs so I can't get him in there and crys. I am really hoping that the tears quit once he is better. Here are his pics...

Big Ole' Boy

2009-08-21T17:43:00.000-07:00

Brad and Carter have "man time" where they sit on the couch together and watch Trucks and the History Channel. I decided I needed to get a picture of it....

I wanted to share with everyone some recent pictures of Carter. He will be 9 months old September 1. He is growing up waaayyy too fast!

He is the sweetest boy in the world and thus far hasn't caused us a bit of trouble. If they were all like him I think I could have a house full!

Take A Look...

2009-07-24T15:46:00.000-07:00

Take a look at these pictures...

First let me tell you that one of my favorite looks for kids is right when they wake up. I always have the camera ready for the "bed head" picture. I have Grace's 7 month old bed head picture in my bathroom and now I can add Carter's 7 month old one. Here they are...don't they look alike.

Grace 7 months old

Carter 7 months old

And here is one more of Grace that I thought looked so much like Carter...

The Beach

2009-07-17T18:59:00.000-07:00

We headed out to Orange Beach for our first family vacation. We had been counting down the days, so Grace was really excited. I was pretty nervous because we have never really traveled a long distance in the car, and Grace still doesn't sleep any where but home (if I can even get her to sleep then). They say it only takes 5 1/2 hours to get there, but for us it took like 8 1/2. Grace decided on the way there that she wanted to tt in the potty and not her diaper. So, we made a zillion stops for that. Then Carter pooped from head to toe in the car followed by Grace with a poop. We had to make lots of stops for diaper changes and bottles, etc... My dad said this trip was a test to see if we would do it again and I quickly let him know that I already knew we would fail the test. Traveling with children is very difficult...it should be a sport. Anyway, we finally made it to Orange Beach and the fun began.
Here is Grace and Papaw on the beach...

Grace and Gran building sand castles...

Here is Carter resting in his blow up bath tub that was a life saver...

Carter in his towel....

Carter in his bath tub seat...

We had so much fun, but I must say vacation was exhausting. Loading up all those toys and all that equipment to the beach was a work out in itself. Grace didn't sleep any, and Carter got spoiled rotten. Since we have been home he cries if he even sees his bed. Anyway, we all had a blast on this trip and we can't wait to do it again next year!

Happy 4th of July!!!

2009-07-05T17:20:00.000-07:00

We had a great 4th! I had bought Grace a pool with a little slide at Wal-Mart at the beginning of the week just for the 4th. She had been looking at it in the box all week long. So, when she got up that morning the first words out of her mouth were "wanna go fimming"...so, thus began our day. Brad had also finished her new swing set, so we were all set for a wonderful day, and I had promised her she didn't have to take a nap that day which made it all soooo much better to her. Anyway, here is her new swing set...

I must say so myself that it is quite impressive. I wish I would have had one when I was little. If you can't tell by the picture it is three stories high with three swings, two slides, and a sandbox. A broken bone is sure to happen at some point. Here she is before she goes down the slide...

And she made it...

She absolutely loves the sand box...I think I have finally found something to wear her out so getting her to bed will not be such a nightmare...

Before swimming we took a break for lunch to eat some good ole' hot dogs...

And here she is swimming with Carter. He was like a big ole' white cloud out in the sun...

The swimming really wore him out too!!!

The fourth was really fun. Brad and Chris went to Mr. Taylor's to get fireworks and they only almost killed us all one time....Brad and Chris and fire just don't go together all that well! Anyway, hope ya'll all had a great fourth!

6 1/2 Months

2009-06-14T17:36:00.000-07:00

Carter is now 6 1/2 months old and he is doing better than ever. Brad took him to the doctor in Memphis last week and he got a good report. His head is measuring a bit better, so let's all pray it keeps growing. All his stitches are out and his hair is finally starting to fill in where they had to shave his head. His favorite thing to do right now is to bounce in his bouncer. He never gets tired of it and he actually will get air born. He and Grace are getting along better too. She hasn't tried to kill in in about a month now. He is eating some baby food now which he absolutely loves. Just when I think he can't get any bigger he gains another pound. Anyway, just wanted to fill everyone in on my sweet "big juicy" boy!!!!!

Doesn't he look like me!?! LOL!

Summer Swimming

2009-06-02T14:35:00.000-07:00

It is finally hot and the pool is open!!! Grace and I have been hitting the pool and loving it. Here are some pictures of her on the way out the door...

She loves the water and so far hasn't been scared yet. She is starting swimming lessons this month with the kids in her class at school. I can't wait to see how she does. There is one great advantage to swimming...it makes nap time and night time a whole lot easier!!!

2009-05-09T17:11:00.000-07:00

Well, this past Thursday was Grace's last day of school so she said she wanted to look "so adorable" and get her hair "turled" (curled)...so that is just what we did. They had there party at school and she had a blast. Nap time was a bit of a struggle with all that sugar, but we finally got her down around 2:00.

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Here are my sweet boy's five month pictures. I can't believe it's already been five months. He has rolled over finally. Dr. B said he needed to roll over before he was five months and he did one day before he turned five months. I don't think he is going to be in too big of a hurry to do anything. Anyway, at night now we have started having some of a #1 jar of baby food, and needless to say my litte pig loves it.

And here is one pic of Grace and Brad...they are BFFs now because he will get in bed with her at night after I have finally gotten her down and he will read books to her until I have to come in there and make him leave.

I have such a wonderful family and if everyone could...please pray for my little boy to be okay. We have a rough road ahead of us.

Elmo

2009-05-04T18:43:00.001-07:00

Here is the bad guy that Grace is always seeing doing things like dumping all her diapers out across her room, or putting blanket on Carter's face, or eating candy....you get the drift. She says he really needs some time in "time-out"!!! BAD ELMO!!!

Catch Up

2009-04-19T12:07:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a while so this one will be a lot so I can catch up.

Grace pretends like she is "mommy" now, but the only time she really does this is when she sits at the table. I wonder if I have been eating too much or something. Anyway here she is pretending to be me. I just think it's funny because she just sits there talking to herself acting like a mom.
And no...she isn't doing what it may look like she is doing!!!

Okay, here are some of the Easter pictures. The Easter bunny came to visit and Grace will tell you she saw him jump in her window and then he jumped up soooo high out of her window. I sure would have liked to have seen that. Anyway, he brought her some goodies like Disney movies, puzzels, and of course some candy.

I tried to get a good picture of her in her dress, but you know how that goes. This was the best I could do. She made it all the way to church without getting anything on this dress and then as soon as we got there somebody have her a sucker and WHAM it got all over the dress. There needs to be a memo that is put out for us poor moms. We work so hard to get them there without any poop, urine, throw up, etc... and then its all over because of candy. Well, she sure loved the sucker and I am only joking...well, maybe half joking!

Carter is better than ever. At his 4 month checkup he was almost 17 pounds (yes that is huge). In person he is such a whopper. People are always asking me how old is he and then when they realize he is just 4 months old they always seem so shocked. I personally don't think he is that big, but who knows...I do see him every day. He has started getting cereal twice a day which gets more on me than in his mouth and he has started getting juice once a day. Hopefully soon he will get the hang of it better.
Here is Carter's first taste of apple juice...

And here is my big boy holding his own bottle...

Next is me doing whatever it takes to get some supper cooked. My mom and dad always say there is always so much confusion at our house. I don't call it confusion I just call it having kids. Brad and I can eat a meal or cook a meal inbetween screaming, crying, Taylor and Grace fighting, Grace trying to beat up Carter, or anything else. He is one of my techniques to get supper cooked without Carter losing an arm or leg to his big sister. Carter didn't mind at all and he sure looked cute while I cooked.

And here is the family Easter pic....

Does This Look Like Nap Time To You?

2009-04-12T16:06:00.000-07:00

Me either!!! She was suppose to be sleeping but things were a little too quiet for me and this is what I found. Diapers everywhere!!!

I have learned that if it is too quiet there is usually something going on! And if you ask her who did it you'll get the same answer every time...ELMO!

4 Months Old...

2009-04-10T16:37:00.000-07:00

and cuter than ever!! Carter is four months old now and he is weighing in at almost 17 pounds. He had his first taste of cereal the other night and seemed to really like it. He is still the sweetest baby in the world....never crys, is laid back, and is always smiling. What a blessing he is!!!!

Different Kid and Different Shirts....

2009-03-31T09:46:00.000-07:00

but I still think they look alike!

Ring Pop

2009-03-28T14:26:00.000-07:00

As ya'll know, Grace hasn't had the easiest adjustment with having a little brother. I reward her on some days when she has been a particularly sweet big sister. Here she is enjoying her reward... The Ring Pop! You would have thought I had just given the kid a million dollars.

Here is Carter sleeping on the guest bed. I thought he looked so sweet on this big ole' bed. I don't know how he sleeps through all the noise and confusion around here, but he doesn't seem to have a bit of a problem.

Here is Grace on her way to school to go play with all the babies as she says...

Toy Time

2009-03-23T18:39:00.001-07:00

Okay, it's time to get all the toys back out. Carter is finally getting interested in toys and he is so proud to show off what he can do...

And here is my sweet boy smiling...isn't he too cute?! He reminds me of a real sweet old man or something. See the resemblance?

2 Pony Tails

2009-03-22T12:22:00.000-07:00

Grace is loving "2 pony tails" as she calls it!

She thought she was something else in her dress...

This is her saying, "Mom, no more pictures!"

"Big Girl" Room

2009-03-21T11:56:00.000-07:00

Grace now has a "big girl" room as she calls it. She absolutely loves her bed and we had no problems with the transition. In the mornings she will watch some cartoons in her bed and she will say, "Mommy, Grace Tackett's big girl room is so adorable!" She is too cute!!!

3 Months Old

2009-03-01T08:45:00.000-08:00

Carter is three months old! His hair is finally starting to grow back and right now his favorite thing to do is talk to you. He makes the loudest and funniest noises and is so proud that he can play with his hands and stick his tongue out. Time sure is flying by!

Here is a picture of Grace at three months old in her pink chair. I took one of Carter in the pink chair today so I could see if they looked anything alike. What do ya'll think?

I think they look a lot alike...just a different hair-do!!!

Here is one more...

Some Funny Stuff

2009-02-24T14:02:00.000-08:00

Here is some stuff Grace has said lately that I think is pretty funny...

She is sick right now and is sneezing all the time. When she does she says, "Whew...God bless Grace Tackett."

I asked her if I needed to wipe her nose and she said, "No Mommy, the booger man didn't come see Grace Tackett." Sure enough he didn't come. Her nose was all clear.

I had made her a sippy cup which had gotten old and was a little bit warm. She took a drink and said, "Mommy, Grace Tackett's water is old." I said, "no it isn't" because I didn't want to make another one for some reason. She said this three times so finally I made her another one and she took a drink and said, "I told you so Mommy!"

That girl is a mess!!!!! I am working hard on getting her to not refer to herself as Grace Tackett but I seem to be getting no where with it. One more thing...we have started learning phone numbers so beware...your phone may be ringing soon!!!

Two Month Shots

2009-02-18T17:25:00.000-08:00

Today Carter went back to the doctor to get his two month shots. He was too sick last time to get them, so we headed back to our second home, The Children's Clinic. Anyway, he was 13 pounds 3 ounces and 23 1/4" long. Yes, we are going to have another tall child. Carter was smiling right up until the big poke and then he cried real tears. It broke my heart because these were the first big crocodile tears he has cried. Here are his war wounds...

Here is Grace counting them...

Grace and Carter are getting along a little bit better. She hasn't punched him or stepped on him in a couple of days so we are making improvements. I am not so sure how well time-out is working. Grace will do something to him and then turn and tell me, "Mommy, Grace Tackett go to time out now." I have my hands full with this one. She is going to give Brad and I a run for our money when she is 17.
And here are some pics of Grace jumping in her bed...

A Smile On Camera

2009-02-09T18:28:00.000-08:00

I was finally able to catch Carter smiling while I had my camera handy. Isn't he too cute?

We had another doctor's appointment and are still trying new medications to get this little man well. He seems to be doing a little bit better with this round of medicines. He was a whopping 12 lbs. 1 oz. last week at his appointment. Dr. B said it looks like his tonsils and adenoids are going to have to be removed because they are preventing him from being able to breathe properly. Other than that Carter is doing great. He is the perfect little baby....no crying, no fussing, and is just as content as can be.

This is a pic of Brad and Grace before bedtime. She looks so old in these pictures. I want to slow her down... :(

And here is a picture of Grace giving Carter "night shugs!"

Bumbo Time

2009-02-01T09:29:00.001-08:00

I went through some of Grace's old stuff and found her Bumbo, so I thought I would try Carter in it to see how he liked it. He didn't mind it at all and he sure looked cute in it!!! Is my little man still looking like his daddy?

And here is a picture of Grace telling me she loves Beef-o-roni this much.....

Chunky Monkey

2009-01-29T14:16:00.000-08:00

My little chunky monkey, Carter, went to the doctor today and he weighs an even 10 lbs. He is getting so big! He is also starting to make all those cute little baby noises and is laughing all the time. The doctor has him trying a new medication. Let's hope this might be the one that works. This poor boy has been sick his entire eight weeks of life. We go back to the doctor on Wed. of next week so I will keep everyone updated.

Potty Time

2009-01-29T09:11:00.000-08:00

We have made some big improvements on the potty. Grace has actually done number one and number two in her Elmo potty. She only accidentally does it sometimes, but hey I figure we are definitely making improvements in getting potty trained. When she just sits on the potty she gets two M's (M&M) and if she uses it she gets four M's.

Grace hasn't been able to go to school all week long because she is sick so we have been doing whatever it takes around here to keep her entertained. My shoes did the trick for just about an entire afternoon. Who knew mom's shoes could be so fun?

These are some pics of her eating supper with daddy's hat on. She is such a little show out for the camera!!!

Quick Update

2009-01-13T11:40:00.000-08:00

A quick update on things at our house... Grace is having an extremely hard time with Carter being here. She has broken some stuff around the house, ate some paper, learned to scream at a pitch so high you think your ears are bleeding, tried to drap Carter out of his playpen by his leg, tried to sit on him in his swing, and tried to flip him out of his swing. This is just a few of the things. I am reading books on how to deal with all this so hopefully I can get things back to normal soon before I have a nervous breakdown. Anyway, she is still doing really well at school and still loves it!!! She has started calling Brad "Superdad" which I think is too funny. I bet when people hear her calling him Superdad they think he beats her or something. He loves it neadless to say. Every night we say our prayers and when we get to the "God bless..." part she starts naming off everybody. Here are some of the new additions to her prayers- pp, poo poo, new shoes, apple juice, and Elmo.

Carter is still sick if you can even believe that. Things have gotten a little bit better so maybe in another two weeks or so he will be better. He is eating like a pig and I think he gets bigger everyday. He has started smiling at me which just melts my heart.
Brad and I have the two very best kids!!!!

Chunky Man

2009-01-06T16:48:00.000-08:00

Carter went to the doctor yesterday for another visit for his upper respitory infection that we can't seem to shake. When they weighed him I thought the scales had messed up or something. My little chunky man weighed 9 lbs. 6 oz.! Doctor B said that he thinks we are going to have a pretty big boy on our hands...he'll need it to take up for himself when Grace is beating him up. Anyway, here is my chunky man... Grace is still struggling with having a baby brother, but things will get easier for her soon I hope.

Merry Christmas

2008-12-28T11:31:00.000-08:00

This was the best Christmas! It was sooooo much fun seeing Grace get all her gifts. That girl loves opening presents. She was really excited this year about Santa comming, but I think she was more excited about getting her "prizes". We have explained to her all about Jesus, Mary, and Joseph and she knows who they are, but for now it's all about the gifts...she is just two!!!
Here is Grace before she left for Maw Maw and Paw Paw's...

Remember "Where's Waldo"...well, where is Grace? All you can see is her pink house shoes.

She had a blast opening her gifts. Here are a few of those pics...
Her drum (I love hearing this at six in the morning!)

Another Elmo...just what she needed.

Here is her cleaning cart. It has everything she needs to clean on it...mop, broom, vacuum, spray bottles, etc... Now she can clean with me!!! She loves this thing...

And finally...her Barbie 4-wheeler. This is a hazard to my furniture...

Carter had a good Christmas too despite the fact that he is sick.

Santa brought Carter a pack of teepees for his pp so moma will not get sprayed anymore...

We had lots of fun at Papa and SuSu's house too! Here is the whole family...

Grace tried to open everyone's gifts for them...

Cousin William

Papa and SuSu got Grace this tunnel for her climb all around in. She loved it and bossed Papa into going through it too.

We had a great Christmas and Brad and I are so thankful for our precious children. God has blessed us and we are thankful!!!

Garbage Can Fun

2008-12-17T12:55:00.000-08:00

Grace was being entirely too quiet so I walked into the office and this is what I found...

Grace's Christmas Play

2008-12-16T17:12:00.000-08:00

This morning Brad and I went to Grace's first play...granted we almost didn't make it there considering there is a new addition to the family and I am not at all use to trying to get this many people out of the door. I thought getting one ready was tough...whew! I guess until they are about 13 getting out of the door will always be like a tornadoe running its course through my house. I just pause sometimes to collect myself and to remind myself that I will survive this. If Kate from John and Kate Plus Eight can do it I know I can. Anyway, back to the play. I had my big mom camera and Brad had is dad camcorder...I just had to laugh at us. Grace did wonderful and of course I think she was the cutest one on the stage. She sang We Wish You A Merry Christmas and Jingle Bells. It was so much fun and I can't wait until the next one!!!
She was a bit shocked when she first walked out...

Her friends...

My cutie pie...

She has really loved learning all about Christmas. I am in the office on the computer and I can hear her in her bed from here singing Silent Night and O Holy Night. What a sweet sound to hear!

Where Did All This Come From???

2008-12-10T14:08:00.000-08:00

I told Grace to let me get a picture of her pig tails. This is the result...she put on a show for me and thanks to my great camera I was able to get each of her faces. Where did she get all this personality from? She is a hoot!!!

My Sweet Little Man

2008-12-09T19:25:00.000-08:00

Look at my sweet little man.... He is too cute!!!

Christmas Card Attempts

2008-12-09T19:18:00.000-08:00

Tonight Brad and I dressed the kids in their Christmas cloths to make an attempt at the picture we would use for the Christmas card. Things didn't go the way I had hoped they would. Carter is just too little. Grace can't hold him by herself, so I had to settle with taking seperate picture of them. I just wanted to share with ya'll some of the attempted pictures (I can't show the good ones...it would spoil the card).
Grace being silly...

Carter and his floppy little head...

And look who took the best picture...Taylor

So I will have to wait until next year to get them both together for the Christmas card!!!

New Camera

2008-12-06T12:06:00.000-08:00

Along with a new baby I also got a new camera...a Cannon Rebel. I love it, and now I am going to go picture crazy!!! Here are some of the pictures I have taken...
My sweet baby boy

Grace patting Carter to sleep

The look on Grace's face when asked if she loves her brother

Sleeping Carter

Well, better run because Brad is telling me to go take a nap. Since I got my new camera I have been getting in trouble for being on the computer messing with pictures instead of sleeping when the baby sleeps. Whoops!!!

Carter Is Here!!!!

2008-12-05T17:44:00.000-08:00

My sweet baby boy was born December 1 at 10:48am. He weighed 5 lbs. 11 oz. and was 19" long. They started my pitocin at 7:30 and I had him at 10:48. With all the trouble I had during my pregnancy I was ready to have this baby and I did it in three hours. We are home now and are doing great. Grace loves her brother and Taylor isn't sure what he is yet. Here are some pics and I will post more when I get a chance...gotta' go feed!

The Christmas Parade

2008-12-05T17:41:00.000-08:00

Grace and Daddy went to the Christmas parade in Greenwood with Uncle Jonathan, Aunt Katie, and her cousin William. The kids had a blast. When Grace came home she told me all about the dancers, drums, Santa, Frosty, and Rudolph.

Grace and William

The First of Many Cupcakes

2008-11-19T17:05:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is Grace's birthday which means at school she has her birthday party. So, I have done my first of many cupcakes and party favors. The cupcakes turned out great and I think the kids will love their party favors. I got little buckets and painted their names on the outside of them. On the inside I put a coloring book, 4 pack of colors, bubbles, suckers, silly shaped straws for them to drink out of, and sunglasses shaped as stars. I must say I am proud of myself. Anyway, this is my first birthday party at school and I am really feeling like a granny. There will lots more parties in my future so I better get use to this!

A Good Saturday

2008-11-16T14:56:00.000-08:00

We had a really good Saturday today. We did some Christmas decorating and even went ahead and put up our tree because I have a feeling Carter is going to be here soon. Grace loves the tree so much. Before she leaves the room she always tells it bye and gives it a big ole sugar.

Brad and I got her all suited up to go on the Ranger which is one of her new favorite things to do besides ride in the truck around the farm with Brad. She doesn't have to sit in her car seat for both of these things so she gets to do big girl stuff with Daddy.

Here is something funny she did today... We have been working on opposites now that we have counting to five and the abc down pat. Well, we have been doing big and small. She put two and two together and is now calling Brad "Big Daddy"! I love it... I laughed so hard. Kids are too funny!

Ferocious Mice Killers

2008-11-13T11:35:00.000-08:00

Our Ferocious Mice Killers...

Jingle

Bells

Brad and I decided that it might be a good idea to get a cat to help with mice since it is getting cooler outside. Well, somehow we ended up getting two cats. We let Grace name them...she picked Jingle and Bells, although she just says Jingle Bells like both cats just have the same name. She picked this because we have been working on learning the song Jingle Bells and we haven't made it past "jingle bells, jingle bells," but she loves the song! LOL!

Our hope is that these terrifying mice killers will help us out...we actually had a mouse in our washing machine the other night so we need all the help we can get.

Moving right along...Grace was really excited about wearing her new boots to school today. Look how cute she looks in them...

She really thinks she is something with her tights on and her boots... I am not sure what this pose is, but it made me laugh...

My little girl is growing up too fast!

Carter Update

2008-11-11T18:41:00.000-08:00

I had a doctor's appointment today, and it is the first one I have had in a while where I didn't have to go straight to labor and delivery. So, I thought I would give ya'll an update on Carter... since it is finally some good news. He now weights about 4 lbs. and 10 oz. He is most likely going to be a little guy just like Grace. She was 5 lbs. and 11 oz. Anyway, the doctor said she doesn't think I will make it but about two more weeks, but she feels like he will be okay if he is born this early. So, I will keep ya'll updated. I have another appointment next week.

Happy Birthday Grace

2008-11-02T13:38:00.000-08:00

Grace's birthday isn't actually until November 20, but we aren't sure when her little brother is going to arrive so this year we had her party early. The picture of Grace above tells you exactly how the party went...it was a huge success and she had a blast!

She had the cutest Elmo cake! The little cake sitting on her Elmo cake was her smash cake...

Here she is playing with her cousin William...

Opening gifts...

This was her pound puppy (aka Beagle Bill) that she loves so much...I don't think she has put it down yet.

Her first basketball goal...you know who gave her that...thanks Papaw! We are getting started early on the sports...

Singing Happy Birthday and blowing out her candle...

Before the smash cake...

After the smash cake...

Grace and her identical twin Daddy...

We had a great day and Grace loved all her gifts. I am glad Carter stayed in the oven for one more day so we could have her party. Time is going too fast and I must say I am glad to have another little one on the way because I don't want any of this to pass. I love my family so much and may God bless us with many many more happy birthdays!

Happy Halloween

2008-11-02T12:12:00.000-08:00

This year Grace was a bumble bee for Halloween. I must say she was the cutest bee I have ever seen! Friday at school was their Halloween party. Of course I couldn't go, so Brad took her. Needless to say he was the only daddy there, so he got brownie points from all the other moms for bringing her. They pulled the one year old class in wagons downtown to collect all their candy and afterward was their party in their classroom. Grace had lots of candy and cupcakes...I mean lots.

That night we went to Papa and SuSu's house to visit them. When we arrived, Papa was in full vampire costume just like Brad and I thought he would be, having more fun than all the kids! Once he took off his mask, Grace decided things were alright and I got the really cute picture of the three of them above.

Papa has this rat that would scare most kids but this is the second year that Grace has visited this rat and for some reason they are good friends. She isn't scared of him at all.

Once we got home Gran, Papaw, Nini, Bubba, Papa, Kakki, and Wes (Laura's youngest son) came over for a visit. I told Grace that day Wes was going to come play with her and she was really excited. Can't you tell how excited Wes was in the picture.

Wes was a super cute sad cowboy, but once we got in Grace's room with all the toys he and Grace had fun!!! Like I said earlier Grace had had lots of candy this day. When we were playing in her room she was spinning around and around and around in circles on her hands and knees just yelling. Going to bed that night wasn't easy, but I guess all that is important is that she had a Happy Halloween.

The sweet goodbye hug!!!

Daddy Got A Ranger

2008-10-24T12:27:00.000-07:00

Brad bought a Ranger, or as I call it just a really big 4-wheeler, and today he and Grace have been riding it all day. She has had sooo much fun on this thing. I put on one of her winter hats that I think are so cute since it is 55 outside (yippie...cool weather) and her cute grey zippy and actually got some really cute pics.

She is too cute in this hat!!!

On the Ranger with Daddy...

Grace driving...

Grace & Lilli

2008-10-21T19:14:00.000-07:00

Grace and Lilli Dawson got a chance to play together last night...thanks to Betsy bringing us taco soup for supper since I am out of commission. (The soup was great too!!!) The girls were too cute. They did a lot of hand holding and starring at each other. They are growing up too fast! Betsy and I have grown up together...we were in the same preschool class with Mrs. Clanton and now we have girls about the same age. Time is flying by. Next thing I know I will need an electric wheelchair because I will be so old I will not be able to walk. Things need to slow down...I do my best to soak up every moment because who knows what tomorrow will bring!

Some sweet hand holding....

Grace showing Lilli her ABC puzzel...

This was Grace showing out on her horse...I love this pic!

No More Strep

2008-10-21T05:50:00.000-07:00

After three weeks of being sick and four shots later...Grace finally doesn't have strep anymore and was able to go to school today. She was really excited and couldn't wait to leave. She kept saying, "No Dr. B... school"...reminding me that we were not to make a stop by Dr. Boldon's office...keep right on going to the school. I got up and got her fed, dressed, and ready to go, but I must say I was so sad that I couldn't take her. This bedrest stuff just isn't for me. I am at week 32 so Carter and I are still hanging in there. Keep us in your prayers!

Tag: I AM IT

2008-10-14T09:42:00.000-07:00

Okay...Mrs. D.K. tagged me so I am it. I am suppose to share some weird things about myself with everyone. The funny part is that there are so many weird things about me that I am really going to have to think about which ones I should share. Here it goes:

1. I think my poodle Taylor can understand everything that I say. I really think she may be human. I think she is the cutest thing I have ever seen next to Grace. She is one of my very best friends and most people don't like her because as Brad says, "she has issues". I am the only one that thinks her breathe doesn't smell that bad...ha ha! I guess it's like your children's poop and vomit...it just doesn't bother you that much.

2. My house is always in order. There are never dishes in the sink. I always put them in the dishwasher, and I wash the dishes in there even if it isn't full every single night. Very seldom do I go to bed with dirty cloths in the hamper. I wash every day to make sure of this. Long story short...every room in the house is in order before I go to bed so I can start the next day fresh. Yep...I am crazy!!!!

3. I am EXTREMELY shy. People who really know me can't believe this is true, but it is. I don't do well around new people and have a hard time saying much of anything in new situation. People probably think I am a snob, but it is really that I am so shy.

4. I have hives at random times. When I say hives I mean I get red and splotchy on my whole body. This happens any time I feel any emotion...happy, sad, scared, excited, etc... Up until this pregnancy I didn't really understand why in the world this happened and I hated it. Then when I developed my heart condition and went to the cardiologist, he diagnosed it, and it is related to the heart condition that I have. So, now I will not hate my hives as much.

5. School was one of the worst experiences of my life. I hated school with a passion and it is a God given miracle that I finally finished my degree at DSU.

6. My best friends and the people I count on most or that I know I can always depend on in my life beside Brad are all over 40...Mom, Gale, and D.K.!!!

BETSY...you are it!

Banana Time

2008-10-13T16:58:00.001-07:00

We are loving some bananas right now, and heaven forbid you dare cut one up because big girls can eat them like this...

Update

2008-10-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

I haven't been able to talk to everyone with all the craziness that has been going on around here, so I thought I thought I would update ya'll. Well, I got out of the hospital in Indianola and then Grace got sick. She finally got better and then I soon checked back into the hospital in Jackson in labor. Long story short...they have my labor managable for now and I am on bedrest and will be going to the doctor every single week for now. When I got home from the hospital Grace got sick again and she now has strep throat. Ugh!!! So, things are completely nuts at the Tackett house. Keep us in your prayers. Dr. Meck is hoping that I can make it to 35 weeks so I will let everyone know how each appointment goes. Let's keep our fingers crossed he will stay in a bit longer.

Big Girl Table

2008-10-02T08:17:00.000-07:00

Instead of her high chair, Grace is now wanting to eat at her big girl table. What is next...wanting to go out on a date?

She is growing up so fast. At school Mrs. Nancy waits at the front door to help you in the building. Everyday so far Grace has wanted me to walk her into her class. Today she went straight to Mrs. Nancy and I said, "Grace do you want mommy to walk you to class?" She flat out said "no" and leaned towards the direction of the door like get to walking lady...there are kids in there that need to be bossed. Neadless to say it broke my heart which I have a feeling is going to start happening a lot since she is wanting to be a big girl now.

p.s. Thanks Aunt Katie for the cute outfit!

Don't You Wish...

2008-10-01T16:33:00.000-07:00

Don't you wish you could eat like this sometimes...

Happy Anniversary!!!

2008-10-01T13:42:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary to Brad and I!!! We have been married four years now. Time seems to have flown by. Here is a picture of us our first year of marriage.... We were so happy then and even happier now. I love you Brad!!! p.s. Happy Birthday Kakki!

So Big...

2008-09-30T07:11:00.000-07:00

This morning after getting Grace ready for school I couldn't help but notice how big she is getting. It seems like I just had her, but her second birthday is creeping up on me. She looks like such a big girl now.

Carter's 4-D Ultrasound

2008-09-28T11:30:00.000-07:00

Last week I got Carter's 4-D ultrasound done so I thought I would share some of the pictures with you...

This is his face and you can already see all his hair. The ultrasound tech said his hair is already sticking out in every direction just like Grace's was. I think Brad and I are the only ones who loved Grace's hair. We can't wait to see our little man's hair poking out everywhere.

His sweet feet...

Here is his little body all bawled up...

This is his hands...it looks like he is praying...

Coloring

2008-09-28T11:21:00.000-07:00

Grace has recently started coloring and she loves it. Before she starts she tells me who she will be making a picture for. Here she is coloring Daddy a picture...

Kakki (Mrs. D.K.) bought Grace an Elmo bucket for her to put her Halloween candy in this year. For the time being we are using it to keep all of our colors in it. She loves absolutely loves this thing and even had to take her nap with it.

School and Some Updates

2008-09-18T17:46:00.000-07:00

There has been a lot going on lately, so first I will update ya'll on Grace going to school at First Pres. in Greenwood. Things have been going great and Grace absolutely loves school. Here are two pictures of her this morning with her new Elmo backpack we got her for school...she even wears it like a big girl!

Mrs. Caroline says that she has no problems out of Grace and that she is the little mama of the class. So, school has been a wonderful addition to Grace's life and she is learning to play with other children and to share.
In other news ya'll keep us in your thoughts and prayers because I have gone into premature labor for some unknown reason. We had to rush to Jackson this week due to contractions and some other issues, and so far Carter in still inside me where I hope to keep him until at least 36 weeks...don't know if I can, but that is my goal. Dr. Meck has put me on some medication to try to stop my labor and I pray that it works because as of right now Carter is only 2 pounds and 3 ounces. I can't really do much of anything now which is going to be really hard for me, but whatever it takes I guess. So, I will keep everyone updated on the pregnancy. For some reason it seems like nothing has gone smoothly with this pregnancy and I am trying not to get too discouraged, but it is really starting to get difficult. So, ya'll keep us in your prayers. The nursery is comming along and I will post some pictures soon.

They Don't Forget Anything

2008-09-08T12:37:00.000-07:00

My mom and dad told Grace on the phone that they would come over when she got up from her nap. Well, by the time she was up mom and dad had decided that the 20 min drive was just way too much and they weren't comming...(sometimes I think they think we live in Canada or something). Anyway, I relayed the message to Grace and she lost it. She went to the door and screamed and cried...it was a fit that I haven't seen yet. She was snorting and had snot rockets and would fall out in the floor. I put her in her high chair thinking that a sucker would cure the problem...it didn't. So, here is a pic I took of her upset:

The lesson here that mom and dad learned is... They don't forget anything...be careful what you tell them!!!!!

When Daddy Babysits

2008-09-03T08:24:00.000-07:00

Here is what happens when daddy babysits:

They bring a huge box in your house, cut holes all in it, get cardboard everywhere, and then the box turns into a "house" for Grace and Pinkie. They had a blast though... She told Daddy thank you with a big ole kiss!

1st Day of School

2008-09-02T10:32:00.001-07:00

Today was Grace's first day of school. She started in a 1 year old class that meets two days a week for three hours. I can usually tell how a day is going to go by the way Grace wakes up in the mornings. Here she is this morning:

As you can see she was in a great mood. I was thinking that it would change really quick the second we arrived at school...but anyway.... We got up really early, ate a good breakfast, and got dressed. She helped pick out her outfit, and I must say I think she picked a cute one for the first day.

Long story short... Brad and I both walked in her class with her and stayed for about ten min. That is all it took. She started playing with the other kids and we told her we were about to leave thinking that the screaming and tears would start, but instead she waved to us and said "bye bye". Brad and I were in shock because when we leave her at the church nursery we get worried they will hear her screaming in the sanctuary. So, with Brad and I both wiping away our tears, we left. When we picked her up Mrs. Caroline said that she was a wonderful angel and didn't cry one single time. She said that Grace was a little mama to all the kids...patting their backs and making sure they had juice. I am so glad this was such a great day for her. It sure makes me feel better knowing I am dropping her off somewhere that she enjoys. Brad and I are both sad though because this was just one of the big "first times" she will be having in her life. She is growing up too fast. Next thing I know she will be getting her drivers license. Oh yeah, one more thing, she will tell you who was in her class (the kids names that she can say) and you'll never guess who was there with Gram, Lilly, and Sarah... Buddy and Beagle Bill!

Boots

2008-08-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

My mom bought Grace a new pair of boots like Daddy wears and we haven't taken them off yet. She absolutely loves these boots! She starts school on Tuesday and I bet she is going to pitch a little fit to wear them.

Naked Baby

2008-08-29T18:59:00.000-07:00

I am running into a big problem...Grace keeps taking her cloths off and her diaper. I am currently on day three of having a naked baby at random times when she is left alone. Last night when I went into her room to make sure she was covered up, here is what I found:

Today I went to Wal-Mart to get some Pull Ups thinking that she couldn't undo them...I will let ya'll know how this goes. My plan is just to use those when she naps or goes to bed at night. I stood at the diaper section for almost 15 min in confusion. I never knew there were so many dang types of Pull Ups. I mean they have a Pull Up for every occasion. Apparently I need someone to give me the course on Pull Ups... My final decision was something with Cinderella and Nighttime. So, ya'll wish me luck with my naked baby problem.

A Fun Playdate

2008-08-01T12:31:00.000-07:00

William Henson was in Inverness for a week and he and Grace had a fun playdate. For those of you that don't know, William is Laura Baria Henson's son. Laura and I were best friends growing up. Anyway, Grace was pushing William around in this tricycle thing and he was doing the stearing....which I will say he did a great job because he didn't break anything and Grace was going pretty fast. While they were doing this I couldn't help but think about the time Laura was pulling me on rollerblades behind a bike...it was a real genius plan....a bike, me on rollerblades, and a rope that had me tied to the bike. Well, the only difference between our kids playing their game and Laura and I playing ours was that William didn't get flung into the bayou. I will never forget that...Laura flying around on that bike and me going straight into the bayou. So, here are some pics of the kids playing their version of our game...but notice William isn't wet! Ha!

Here are some other cute pics of Grace giving William two handers (hugs) and some sugar...well actually she gave him lots of sugar!!!

And here they are doing some hand holding...

They had a blast and I know Grace will be excited the next time he comes for a visit.

Don't We Look Alike?

2008-07-21T13:18:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of Grace and I before we went to church Sunday. Don't we look alike? I am just kidding. My sweet baby couldn't look any more like her daddy. I can't help but wonder if Carter will look like Grace did when she was born or if he will get some of the genes on my side of the family. Either way makes no difference, but the anticipation is killing me!!!

I Survived

2008-07-14T16:49:00.000-07:00

I survived my first hospital stay with Grace. Oh my gosh...I hope we never have to experience that again. Grace had a virus and a little pneumonia and was dehydrated so we were in the Greenwood hospital for a couple of days. It was no fun...by the end of the second day Grace had it with staying in the bed, BUT Brad and I did survive. I don't have too much news to share so I will just share some recent pics.

This is Grace getting caught in a cabinet she knows she isn't suppose to get in. I love the look on her face in this one.

Here she is again getting into trouble.

These are her eating some cream potatoes that she loves.

This is her on her way to church in one of her favorite dresses! She is too cute!

Big Girl Bed

2008-06-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

Two nights ago I was brave enough to change Grace's bed from a crib to her big girl bed. Once Brad finally got finished I started crying. He asked what was wrong and I told him that I am crying out of sadness and fear. I was so sad that our little miss muss-a-fuss was getting so big and crying out of fear of what the nights would entail for me. Anyway, this is a picture of her...she would fall out of her bed and never wake up. We would find her in different positions and in this one she is holding her stuffed animal. We thought it was so cute. She has really done great with this transition, although she isn't sleeping as good as she was when she was in her crib. This morning at 4:45 she was saying, "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy" and I would go in there to make sure she was okay and then she would point and say, "book, book, book". Gran got her a little flashlight to keep in her bed with her in case she gets scared. I will walk by her room to sneak a peak and she will be playing with her flashlight and reading a book. It's too cute, but my mornings have been starting a lot earlier and anyone who knows me knows I need my sleep. I am hoping this problem will work itself out. My little baby is getting too big too quick. :(

IT'S A BOY!!!!!!!

2008-06-22T17:03:00.000-07:00

Mom and I went to eat at the Crown last week and one of our old ultrasound friends happened to be in there. With a little bribe of a box of catfish she agreed to sneak us in the back door of the clinic and do a really quick ultrasound to tell us what the baby is. He is all BOY!!!!! We are so excited! We think his name will be Bradley Carter and we will call him Carter. So, I just wanted to share with everyone our wonderful news. I thank God for all his blessings!

Swimming

2008-06-08T17:01:00.000-07:00

Now that it is blazing hot, we can go swimming. Usually in the afternoons we go out and swim in our $8 Fred's swimming pool. Grace loves it! She has this strange attachment to one of Brad's duck decoys, so he usually swims with us. Until next time....

Laundry and Milk Shakes

2008-04-29T17:22:00.000-07:00

Going from one end of this house to the other end all day long carrying Grace or either her trying to follow me started wearing on us both. She would get tired of all the walking and I would get tired of all the carrying. So, here is what we came up with...

I tied a blanket on the end of the cloths basket and I pull it along and Grace rides. She loves it, and I must say that the basket slides great on the brick floors and the carpet.

Mom made the mistake of one day going by Sonic and letting Grace have a milk shake. Well, she is hooked.

You better hide your Sonic cups when you are around her because she assumes they are all milk shakes. You will know what happened now if your drink goes missing!!!

Self Feeding

2008-04-26T18:22:00.000-07:00

Finally, Grace has mastered getting a little bit of food on her fork and actually making it to her mouth without the food falling off. She is really proud of herself. I tried to get a picture of her clapping for herself but they were all blurry. Anyway, it takes a lot longer to feed her now, but that is okay when you see this smile.

Here she is feeding herself...

Look at this big mess....

Oh yeah...here is Grace saying the blessing. It took me a while to get her to actually put her hands together. She is always so busy getting her to do little stuff like this is a big deal. We just say thank you God...it's a short, to the point kind of blessing. With a busy baby it is whatever works...

So, that is about all going on at our house right now. Brad is still in the field and I managed to get the yard looking pretty good before this morning sickness starting kicking my butt. Man, I forgot about this part of pregnancy. It is all worth it though!!!

New Cloths/Warm Weather/New Baby

2008-04-13T18:37:00.001-07:00

Well, it has finally started warming up and Grace is loving it. We have been going outside everyday riding in our wagon, swinging, looking at the horses, and touching every flower we see. By 6:30 I can't keep her up any longer and she is out for the night...which I am not complaining about. So, since the weather is warming up we got out our warmer cloths and this little purple outfit from the Gap cracks me up. It is terry cloth and it reminds me of somebody from the 80's working out at a gym that wears a big sweatband. There's an idea...maybe I should add a sweatband to this outfit. LOL! Anyway, Grace will be 17 months on the 20th. I wish I could make time stand still for just a bit. It seems to be slipping away from me. She is really starting to look like a toddler and not a baby anymore. :(

Oh yeah, Grace is going to be a big sister. We are so excited and I have already started talking to her about the baby so she will not scratch his eyes out...Ha! The new baby is going to be here in December so by New Years Brad and I will be whooped from Grace's b-day, labor and delivery, and Christmas.
A little update on Brad and I: Brad is in the field 24/7 planting and I am really missing him. This time of year I really try to keep myself busy because if I don't I get sad because I miss him so much. Thank goodness I am close to home...I don't know what I would do without Mom and Dad. By winter they will be sick of me. :) Grace and I visited the North Greenwood Babtist Church today and we really liked it. It was the first time she has ever been in a nursery and it went pretty well. I think it was a lot worse for me than it was for her. We are really getting excited about this church and I can't wait for Brad to be able to go with us. There are tons of people our age with children and we can't wait to get to know everyone. In between morning sickness I have been working in this yard...it is soooo big and man I wish I had Juan, but I am learning and things are actually looking pretty good. I guess that is pretty much it for know. I am thankful to God for all the blessings in my life. Until next time.....

Easter

2008-03-29T17:53:00.000-07:00

This was Grace's second Easter and boy was she excited that the Easter bunny came to see her. She got some fun toys/dvds and had a blast playing with them all day.

Her favorite thing the bunny brought her were her bunny ears. She didn't want to take them off all day!

So, we had a great Easter and I am thankful that I got to spend another wonderful holiday with my family. May we have many more!!!

The Backwards Booty Peeker

2008-03-23T14:56:00.000-07:00

Grace has a new thing that I call "The Backwards Booty Peeker". It is pretty self explanatory once you look at the picture. She thinks it is funny every single time she does it. She will just walk up to you and do it and then fall out laughing. I know people probably think my child has serious problems...but hey, whatever keeps them happy...right?

We are really loving bath time lately. I think she would play in there until her skin wrinkles all the way up to her head. When it is finally time to get out she crawls to the back of the tub where I can't reach her. She hasn't master the concept yet that I can go the other other side and open the door.

These next pictures are the best part of each and every day. There isn't anything in this world that brings me any more joy than getting some loving from my sweetie pie...and I get that same joy seeing her give Brad some loving too. I thank God everyday for blessing my life with such a wonderful husband and child. God is so good!!