Today was a pretty good day considering.....
See I hate to go into Charlotte and I usually try and plan it so that Steve can go with me but today was not one of those days!!! Steve had to be in Greenville today and Landon had an appointment with the nephrologist which just happens to be in "town." Well I started off by calling the office to get directions--the person they gave me was not the most helpful but I ventured out any way--what else was I going to do?!! Well being blonde, I didn't write down the physical street address but hey, I had the PO box number!!! So again, I call the doctor to get the address this time. Next, I call Steve and ask him about some of the streets. Well God is so good to me. See, I knew I could get on one particular street and get to the hospital and I knew that this office was near the hospital so felt some amount of hope that I was going to be able to find the office. Well that one street changes names 3 times and guess what---it was the street I needed to be on!!! (sunshine #1) I was so happy to realize that--you just don't know.
As many of you know, Casey doesn't like the doctor and cries even if they are not "seeing" her. Today was no different. This is a cool doctor though. While they had Landon and I in the hall weighing him (oh he was 14 pounds 3 ounces!!) they asked if the kids could have a snack. I said okay and they brought them cookies and juice!!! (sunshine #2) Plus this office has games and personal DVD players and movies!!! (sunshine #3) Casey was actually doing pretty well watching Barney and eating her "nak" until the doctor went to get a nurse to get the urine bag off of Landon. When Casey saw that nurse walk in and put on gloves it was all over for her!!! Well after a fairly long visit (over an hour) we got ready to leave. When I opened the exam room door to walk out Casey said "bye here" (sunshine #4). Everybody that could hear her started to laugh. She didn't know exactly where she was but she was going to be nice and say bye!!! Then on the way home, Shelby wanted to know how many floors the "vampire" state building has!!! (sunshine #5). I couldn't help but laugh at that one!!!
Drew's been at Mimi's all week and boy have we missed him. I know he's had fun but....
Well he did his Christmas shopping while they were out the other day. He got some very thoughtful gifts for his siblings and he was telling me about them on the phone today!! (sunshine #6)
So even though the sun was shining outside, it was shinning brighter in my life!!!
Only 11 shopping days left!!!
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Baby Dedication
Sunday was a wonderful day for our family. We had the opportunity to dedicate Landon and Casey during our church's baby dedication. The weather was so wonderful and warm--not your normal December weather. Casey and Landon were so cute in their outfits. I couldn't find shoes for Casey--okay I didn't look to hard but I did try to borrow some but nobody had any white shoes in her size. But you know what, it didn't really matter. She was beautiful in her frilly, white socks. She didn't need shoes anyway because she wouldn't get out of my arms--not even for Daddy to hold her.
As we stood out in the vestibule of the church waiting to go in, Casey was crying that she wanted to go bye bye. She had been sick all week and was not feeling like herself at all. Landon was doing pretty well at that point.
Well after all 6 families got on stage, it started going down hill. Several of the families had their older children with them so it was pretty crowded on our small stage area. It was also HOT. It didn't take long for all but 2 of the babies to start crying and believe it or not, Casey wasn't one of the criers!!! She was to busy pulling my hair up and saying "hair". She was also busy looking/asking for Drew, Shelby, Mimi and Kokopat and telling me that the babies were crying. Steve lucked up. Landon spit his pacci out about 7 times and each time it landed on his chest. I assure you that if it had hit the floor, Steve would have been looking for it!!!!
It was so loud on stage that the parents couldn't even hear the pastor so that we would know when we were to respond. Later that afternoon, when we were watching a video that KP made, Steve noticed that during the closing prayer, the pastor started slowing down. We decided that it was because he was about to start laughing at all the chaos on stage!!! I'm not even real sure that most of the congregation could hear anything but crying. All in all it was a beautiful day!!!
Here we all are after lunch!!! And yes, Casey had her baby during the dedication!!!
Thursday, December 6, 2007
A new addition
Yea, Landon has a buddy. Angela and Lonnie had their baby boy last night. His name is Trevor and I'm sure he's a cutie. I haven't seen any pictures yet but it's just 8:30 the morning after. I know that Kayla and Kristen are so excited and I know Angela is glad to have this pregnancy in the past.
Congratulations guys. We love you!!!
Congratulations guys. We love you!!!
Monday, December 3, 2007
A few of Casey's favorite things.....
This is Casey and Mimi and Shelby feeding the "Bock, Bocks"
In case you've wondered what a "bock, bock" looks like.....
You have got to click on the left picture so you can get the full "view" of this one's hair!!! And what about the one on the right? That's some neck. There are "normal" looking chickens in this pen also but these are my favorites!!!
You've got to see this...
Okay, we took off for a few days and went to visit my parents and my grandparents. These are usually quick trips and this was no exception. We got to "little swamp" late on Thursday night and left late Saturday afternoon.
Now what do you do in a place that is remote? And by remote I mean you have one bar of cell signal and one of the local restaurants is the House of Pizza--which usually has specials like roast beef or seafood!!! We've never eaten there but we almost always check to see the daily special.
Now back to what to do....well you can play tennis--yes on real courts, or go for a walk in the woods--Steve saw 5 white tail this weekend or you can ride the "gof got"(that Casey for golf cart) to go see the "bock, bock" (Csasey for chickens)or the cows or you can try and help occupy Granny or visit with Granddaddy or play at Aunt Mary's (who always has a new toy or so for you).
There are a few things you don't do....
You don't run out of anything important because it's a long way to the store!!! You also don't make the cows moo because that scares Casey.
Shelby loves being there because Kokopat makes movies and takes pictures and guess who the star is? Yep Shelby!!!
Well Friday night on the way to dinner--at Granny and Granddaddy's--Kokopat was giving his "tour" (we ride in the gof got or the back of the Jimmy to dinner--it's not that far but it is DARK). Well when we passed a pen where my uncle is fattening up 2 bulls, KP said "On your left is the nativity. The cows showed up early this year." Shelby and Drew thought that was great and it gave Shelby an idea. We needed to do our own manger scene. So we planned to do it before we left on Saturday.
Saturday was a difficult day as Granny was not having a good day and when she is having a bad day it affects everyone. Well when she saw us "dressing" up she thought we were crazy but getting her outside with all of us decked out seemed to help her out. We should have done this earlier in the day. Sowith out further ado I give you the
Little Swamp Manger Scene
Landon as Baby Jesus
Casey as the angel
Shelby as a shepherd
Drew as a shepherd
Steve as Joseph
Tracie as Mary
Cows as cows
Now what do you do in a place that is remote? And by remote I mean you have one bar of cell signal and one of the local restaurants is the House of Pizza--which usually has specials like roast beef or seafood!!! We've never eaten there but we almost always check to see the daily special.
Now back to what to do....well you can play tennis--yes on real courts, or go for a walk in the woods--Steve saw 5 white tail this weekend or you can ride the "gof got"(that Casey for golf cart) to go see the "bock, bock" (Csasey for chickens)or the cows or you can try and help occupy Granny or visit with Granddaddy or play at Aunt Mary's (who always has a new toy or so for you).
There are a few things you don't do....
You don't run out of anything important because it's a long way to the store!!! You also don't make the cows moo because that scares Casey.
Shelby loves being there because Kokopat makes movies and takes pictures and guess who the star is? Yep Shelby!!!
Well Friday night on the way to dinner--at Granny and Granddaddy's--Kokopat was giving his "tour" (we ride in the gof got or the back of the Jimmy to dinner--it's not that far but it is DARK). Well when we passed a pen where my uncle is fattening up 2 bulls, KP said "On your left is the nativity. The cows showed up early this year." Shelby and Drew thought that was great and it gave Shelby an idea. We needed to do our own manger scene. So we planned to do it before we left on Saturday.
Saturday was a difficult day as Granny was not having a good day and when she is having a bad day it affects everyone. Well when she saw us "dressing" up she thought we were crazy but getting her outside with all of us decked out seemed to help her out. We should have done this earlier in the day. Sowith out further ado I give you the
Little Swamp Manger Scene
Landon as Baby Jesus
Casey as the angel
Shelby as a shepherd
Drew as a shepherd
Steve as Joseph
Tracie as Mary
Cows as cows
Okay you can stop laughing now. We really didn't do to bad with only a few minutes to come up with something for costumes!!! Drew was pretty creative with the "gold coin" belt that he used for a beard.
Right?!Sunday, November 25, 2007
Let the fun begin.....
Well, I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We had a great week!!! The kids worked hard making books about the history of Thanksgiving. We ALL learned a lot. Did you know the Pilgrims were not the first group of people to have a "Thanksgiving" in what is now America? I'll try and get pictures of the kids with their projects on here tomorrow. We are getting ready to kick off our Christmas Around the World study this week.
We had a very nice Thanksgiving day with Steve's parents and his younger sister, Laura. We all went to Ryan's for lunch. That was nice. We didn't have to cook or clean up and the kids did a great job!!! I am so proud of how well they behaved at lunch--especially considering that we got them out of bed and pretty much into the car and then to lunch. The big kids (that would be Drew, Shelby, Casey and Steve) had fun outside with some foam airplanes that Grandma had purchased. I think she enjoyed watching all of the fun. Casey didn't really play with the airplanes as much as she played with a table and chair set on the porch. She did finally make her way to the bird bath. I'm sooooo glad that I had extra clothes for her because she really needed dry ones after exploring that bird bath!!!! Grandpa, Landon and I watched part of the movie, A Brief Encounter. Landon decided that he really didn't care for the movie that much and so he took a nap. From what I saw of the movie, it was pretty good. Grandpa told me what the music playing was--it was classical so I really needed the input on that one. I watched maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of the movie before I just couldn't stay awake any longer. I finally just had to tell Grandpa the truth---that I had not been this still and quiet for 3 months and that if I didn't get up and walk around that I would be asleep and he would have to watch the movie alone. He was gracious and said okay. I got his movie out of the VCR for him and went for a walk outside.
After we left Grandma and Grandpa (who Casey calls "boo-pa"), we went to dinner at Denny's!!! I know, wow what a classy Thanksgiving we had. Hey laugh if you want, we wont have turkey at every meal for the next 2 weeks!!!!
As we were going to dinner, God gave us an amazing look at His awesome creation. We watched the edge of the weather front moving through. The sky was just the most amazing colors!!! It was overwhelmingly beautiful.
After dinner we stopped by to see Vonda, Chris and Jessica. We had not seen them in several months. It was nice to spend some time with them. They have a new puppy named Abby. Abby really liked Casey and thought that she was a walking toy. Casey had a long day and did not care to be a play toy for a puppy. She kept saying, "NO!! NO!! Woof Woof" at which point Abby would sit down and bark at Casey. Then Casey would bark back at her. We didn't stay to long because when you have a tired toddler that is asking to go home and you don't go, they make life less than enjoyable. Casey was asleep even before we got out of the drive way.
Friday, our friends from Greenwood came for a visit. Jennifer and I cooked a huge dinner for Friday night and we just ate on that for most of the weekend. We did fix finger foods for dinner on Saturday night for the USC/Clemson game. Congratulations to all the "other" fans that read this blog!!! Maybe next year will be better for football. Jennifer and I went out shopping on Saturday. To me it wasn't much different crowd wise than most weekends except for one store. I don't know what was going on at Garden Ridge but WOW!!! Their check out line was as long as the store. There had to be 100 people in line. Jennifer and I looked at that and decided that we didn't need anything from there!!!!
Today we had a quiet morning as they got ready to go home. The kids had a great time--ours did anyway and we hope Nate, Will and Josie had fun also. When we got ready to eat dinner tonight, Casey went around calling 3 extra kids to come and eat. She will ask about Nate all day tomorrow. She also learned to say Jen so now we just have to work on Lance.
Well, it's been a long and great holiday weekend. I feel so very blessed!!! Over the past few weeks/moths, I have been following the blogs of 2 young boys and their families and daily these 2 families remind me how much I have to be thankful for and how blessed I am. If you will, please take some time and pray for these 2 families. Hinton is 1 and lives in NC. In Aug. he suffered a severe brain injury due to abuse from his sitter. He got to come home from the hospital the middle of Nov. but his recovery road is long. I'm sure that his parents would appreciate prayers on his behalf and for their strength. The other little guy, Noah is also 1 and he is from Greenwood. He is a very sick little boy. The doctors don't know what exactly is wrong with him. They think he might have a mitochondrial defect but they are not totally sure. They just know what he does not have. Anyway, he is not doing well at all right now. He is back in the hospital and is very sick. I know that his family would also love your prayers. These 2 families have displayed great faith and courage and faith in God as they have gone and are going through these trials. Both of these families give God all the glory for the joy and for their strength. I know how sometimes I let piddly things get the better of me and I complain about things that are so trivial. I know you guys are shocked by this revelation!!! Haa Haa, I'm sure. Anyway, I'm going to do my best to follow the example I see in these two families. I AM very thankful that God has blessed me with a wonderful family and health for my family. So if you guys will just take a moment and pray for these two families, I would appreciate it.
It's getting late and we have a busy week (as I think most of them will be from now till January) so I'm going to close but first a few things I'm thankful that God has blessed me with:
*family--I have the BEST husband in the world and 4 wonderful kids!!! I also have the best parents and sibling(s)!!!
*friends--I have friends all over the place who put up with our moving and making them drive farther for visits and who now write our phone and address in pencil--just in case it changes!!!
*our military--I'm thankful for those past, Granddaddy, and those present (Eric-my cousin, Tom-Debbie's husband, Trip--Jen's brother) who are put their life on the line so that I can sit here and write this blog.
So what are some of the things you are thankful for?
Love
Tracie and Crew
We had a very nice Thanksgiving day with Steve's parents and his younger sister, Laura. We all went to Ryan's for lunch. That was nice. We didn't have to cook or clean up and the kids did a great job!!! I am so proud of how well they behaved at lunch--especially considering that we got them out of bed and pretty much into the car and then to lunch. The big kids (that would be Drew, Shelby, Casey and Steve) had fun outside with some foam airplanes that Grandma had purchased. I think she enjoyed watching all of the fun. Casey didn't really play with the airplanes as much as she played with a table and chair set on the porch. She did finally make her way to the bird bath. I'm sooooo glad that I had extra clothes for her because she really needed dry ones after exploring that bird bath!!!! Grandpa, Landon and I watched part of the movie, A Brief Encounter. Landon decided that he really didn't care for the movie that much and so he took a nap. From what I saw of the movie, it was pretty good. Grandpa told me what the music playing was--it was classical so I really needed the input on that one. I watched maybe 1/3 to 1/2 of the movie before I just couldn't stay awake any longer. I finally just had to tell Grandpa the truth---that I had not been this still and quiet for 3 months and that if I didn't get up and walk around that I would be asleep and he would have to watch the movie alone. He was gracious and said okay. I got his movie out of the VCR for him and went for a walk outside.
After we left Grandma and Grandpa (who Casey calls "boo-pa"), we went to dinner at Denny's!!! I know, wow what a classy Thanksgiving we had. Hey laugh if you want, we wont have turkey at every meal for the next 2 weeks!!!!
As we were going to dinner, God gave us an amazing look at His awesome creation. We watched the edge of the weather front moving through. The sky was just the most amazing colors!!! It was overwhelmingly beautiful.
After dinner we stopped by to see Vonda, Chris and Jessica. We had not seen them in several months. It was nice to spend some time with them. They have a new puppy named Abby. Abby really liked Casey and thought that she was a walking toy. Casey had a long day and did not care to be a play toy for a puppy. She kept saying, "NO!! NO!! Woof Woof" at which point Abby would sit down and bark at Casey. Then Casey would bark back at her. We didn't stay to long because when you have a tired toddler that is asking to go home and you don't go, they make life less than enjoyable. Casey was asleep even before we got out of the drive way.
Friday, our friends from Greenwood came for a visit. Jennifer and I cooked a huge dinner for Friday night and we just ate on that for most of the weekend. We did fix finger foods for dinner on Saturday night for the USC/Clemson game. Congratulations to all the "other" fans that read this blog!!! Maybe next year will be better for football. Jennifer and I went out shopping on Saturday. To me it wasn't much different crowd wise than most weekends except for one store. I don't know what was going on at Garden Ridge but WOW!!! Their check out line was as long as the store. There had to be 100 people in line. Jennifer and I looked at that and decided that we didn't need anything from there!!!!
Today we had a quiet morning as they got ready to go home. The kids had a great time--ours did anyway and we hope Nate, Will and Josie had fun also. When we got ready to eat dinner tonight, Casey went around calling 3 extra kids to come and eat. She will ask about Nate all day tomorrow. She also learned to say Jen so now we just have to work on Lance.
Well, it's been a long and great holiday weekend. I feel so very blessed!!! Over the past few weeks/moths, I have been following the blogs of 2 young boys and their families and daily these 2 families remind me how much I have to be thankful for and how blessed I am. If you will, please take some time and pray for these 2 families. Hinton is 1 and lives in NC. In Aug. he suffered a severe brain injury due to abuse from his sitter. He got to come home from the hospital the middle of Nov. but his recovery road is long. I'm sure that his parents would appreciate prayers on his behalf and for their strength. The other little guy, Noah is also 1 and he is from Greenwood. He is a very sick little boy. The doctors don't know what exactly is wrong with him. They think he might have a mitochondrial defect but they are not totally sure. They just know what he does not have. Anyway, he is not doing well at all right now. He is back in the hospital and is very sick. I know that his family would also love your prayers. These 2 families have displayed great faith and courage and faith in God as they have gone and are going through these trials. Both of these families give God all the glory for the joy and for their strength. I know how sometimes I let piddly things get the better of me and I complain about things that are so trivial. I know you guys are shocked by this revelation!!! Haa Haa, I'm sure. Anyway, I'm going to do my best to follow the example I see in these two families. I AM very thankful that God has blessed me with a wonderful family and health for my family. So if you guys will just take a moment and pray for these two families, I would appreciate it.
It's getting late and we have a busy week (as I think most of them will be from now till January) so I'm going to close but first a few things I'm thankful that God has blessed me with:
*family--I have the BEST husband in the world and 4 wonderful kids!!! I also have the best parents and sibling(s)!!!
*friends--I have friends all over the place who put up with our moving and making them drive farther for visits and who now write our phone and address in pencil--just in case it changes!!!
*our military--I'm thankful for those past, Granddaddy, and those present (Eric-my cousin, Tom-Debbie's husband, Trip--Jen's brother) who are put their life on the line so that I can sit here and write this blog.
So what are some of the things you are thankful for?
Love
Tracie and Crew
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