See Ya Later, Fall! Welcome, Winter!

Can you believe that it's already the end of fall? The older I get the faster the months seem to pass. Slow down just a little, life!

McLain is continuing to love the third grade. He is very much turning into a miniature version of his father. His gift of sarcasm and for messes that make me just a little crazy are undeniable Clay Brooks' traits.

Keaton is still my little wild man. This week he cut my sheets with scissors and happily admitted to doing so. At least, he is a honest little deviant.

Having happily stuffed ourselves with too much Halloween candy that was quickly followed by Thanksgiving's turkey and dressing, we are all looking forward to Christmas and all that it brings. McLain and I can't wait to sip our cups of hot chocolate as we drive around our town looking for the best houses with Christmas lights. I can't wait to see how Keaton reacts to sitting on Santa's lap this year. I can just envision him trying to scale Santa's sleigh and escaping with a reindeer or two. I'll keep the camera near by. :)

We Are Rockin' the New School Year

I can't believe we have just finished the forth week of the new school year. Wow, has it flown by! McLain is now in third grade, which I think was a little harder on me than on him. I know that third is the first grown up grade and that he is finished with the primary part of his education forever. :( Despite his mother's sadness, McLain loves third grade and adores his teacher. I have to hunt him up every day and drag him out of her class, so we can go home. I think she may be his first crush.

Two weeks after McLain and I went back to school, Keaton began his second year at McEachern UM's MMO. I can't tell you how excited I was at sneak-a-peek to learn that his teacher from last year was going to be his teacher again. Keaton loves his Mrs. Maria! He has not shed a tear once at drop off, which is really comforting. When he was leaving MMO this past Thursday, Keaton even insisted on kissing both his teachers goodbye. I know he's a happy boy if he's sharing his kisses!

I have once again been blessed with a great class, even though I know I'm past due for a crazy one! My class consists of 16 kiddos that keep me smiling and laughing all day long. I can't imagine having a better job than being a second grade teacher. Hopefully, I'll still feel this way 25 years from now. :)

I Don't

Here is a game that a friend of mine got from Grammy Girlfriend. It is a list of my top ten I don'ts.

10. I DON'T like waking up in the morning to find a messy living room or kitchen. It is a bad start to a potentially great day.

9. I DON'T like thinking about how fast my kids are growing up. It's makes me sad and nuts all at the same time.

8. I DON'T like to sing in front of adults. I would gladly sing in front of kids all day, but I'll send grown ups out of the room if I'm about to break into song.

7. I DON'T like people who pretend that their lives are perfect, their spouses are perfect, their kids are perfect, etc. Just join the rest of us who acknowledge that life's not perfect, but it could be a lot worse.

6. I DON'T like honey mustard, and I think I'm the only person on the planet who doesn't. Give me ketchup any day.

5. I DON'T like grocery shopping. I could find so many fun things to fill that hour every week, like with sleeping or sitting on my behind.

4. I DON'T like being told what to do. I like to be in charge. All the time. :)

3. I DON'T like math that involves letters. Give me math problems filled with numbers, and we can do business. Throw some letters in a problem, and I want to pull my hair out.

2. I DON'T like to exercise. Ever. I don't understand how people think sweating and pain are fun. I do it, but I despise every annoying minute.

1. I DON'T like the smell of tuna, and I can detect the odor hours after its consumption in my house. Just ask my husband who has learned not to eat it anymore.

Summer Days

We have been nice and busy this summer, but we've really enjoyed ourselves. As planned, we've spent a lot of mornings at White Water. McLain is very proud of himself for going on The Tornado, which he rode with his daddy. Mommy gladly volunteered to stay in the kiddie section with Keaton instead of joining in that madness. These days Keaton has fallen in love with the toddler slides at White Water. Last week, he convinced me to ride down his favorite one with him ten times in a row.

We've had a lot of play dates with Mommy's work friends and their kids. It's nice to realize that I like my coworkers not only at work but also outside of teaching as well. The boys and I have had play dates at Chuck E. Cheese, Kangazoom, White Water, and of course the pool. We've spent many, many afternoons at Mrs. Grainger's pool, and Keaton and McKenna are best buddies.

If you ask McLain, the best part of our summer was when his mommy relented and allowed him to get a puppy. The newest member of our family is Bowser, who is a two and half pound ball of furry trouble. Bowser loves to snuggle, and some days seems more like a cat than a dog. Keaton loves to walk him around the kitchen, saying "Mone dog! Mone, dog!" That's "Come on, dog" in Keaton speak. :) Bowser is definitely the new baby in the family. How do Clay and I know this for certain? Just like McLain and Keaton when they were babies, he sleeps in our bed right right between Clay and me. Spolied little puppy...

Keaton's Chaos

Keaton has been busy making mischief this summer, even though our summer has only consisted of a few days thus far. Yesterday, he managed to steal my Maybeline colossal volume express WATERPROOF mascara and painted himself and my bedroom carpet with it. While I know this will be a hilarious story to tell his future wife, I didn't find the situation humorous when I discovered the mess or when I was shelling out $75 to Carpet Savers to remove the mascara from my carpet. Later in the day after my blood pressure had returned to normal, McLain and I discussed his brother's latest destruction, and we decided that we should write a book together. It would be titled Keaton's Chaos, and each chapter would be about a different mess Keaton has got himself into. Until the book is written and hits the best seller list, here is my visual inspiration for my book.

School's Out for the Summer!

I am so thankful that school is out for the summer! I say this now at the beginning of June. In a few weeks, I'll be completely ready to go back to work, so that I can interact with adults and not just my eight and two year old.

We started our summer vacation with our favorite field trip: White Water. We went this past Friday and had a great time. McLain talked me into going Friday when our plan for weeks had been to go tomorrow. He didn't have to twist my arm too much to change my mind. McLain loves the wave pool and would jump over waves all day if I let him. Keaton was excited to go down the kiddie slides over and over, but remained cautious about the wave pool and the lazy river. It's odd to see him timid or fearful of anything, not that I'm complaining.

We are looking forward to more mornings spent at White Water and lazy afternoon's at Mammy's pool. McLain and I are also planning on spending time reading many chapter books while Keaton takes his nap every day. I am intrigued at the thought of doing not much of anything, including not setting my alarm again until August. God bless summer vacation. :)

My Little Man Turned Eight!

On Friday, McLain turned eight. It's amazing how fast he has grown up and how much he has changed in eight very short years. While he is still my cautious, mostly quiet, and very cuddly child, he has developed into a little man with a sense of humor much like his father's. Just like his Daddy, McLain loves to gross me out and make me squeal. He also loves to write me little love notes that make me just a bit sad because I know they'll stop coming one day soon. He adores Keaton and plays with him all the time, wrestling and dueling with light sabers. Currently, he is reading the Harry Potter series, which amazes me because he is only a second grader. Recently, McLain started playing soccer and loves it, especially because Clay is coaching. I think his baseball days may be over for good. My little man has definitely grown up a lot this year. Perhaps, I should invest in that brick to put on his head before I find myself with a teenager. :)

Favorite Photo Friday :)

Hmmmm...So I think I'm going to jump on this band wagon because I think it's cute, being a huge picture fanatic and all. Apparently, I need a theme for this week. I think I'll go with "Sleeping Boys." I love these kinds of pictures because my boys look so sweet, innocent, and QUIET. Let me know which one you think is the best!

Birthdays

These last couple of weeks have certainly made me feel like time is flying by. I turned 31 at the end of January, and Keaton turned two a week later. Where has the time gone? It seems like yesterday that Clay gave me the green light to start working on the addition to our family, and now that little new comer is a very loud and crazy two year old. Did I blink? Happy birthday, Keaty Peaty! Don't have any of those terrible twos, ok? :)

Happy New Year!!!

So long 2008, and welcome 2009! It's crazy how fast time flies, especially when you have children. This past year was filled with a lot of silly laughter, big smooches, and bear hugs. We survived our hectic schedules and the general craziness that is created by a house filled with boys. I'm sure 2009 will be just as wild and fun filled. Happy 2009!

I have made a slide show that includes many pictures from 2008. As I have yet figured out how to get it to post on my blog, I am posting the link. Please view and enjoy!

http://www.slide.com/r/kEZrJnVKzT9M-6_ruM1CUaoYgbUbMbDF?previous_view=lt_embedded_url