Starting School

This morning, before school, when Cory was walking out to the car with Elise, she said, "You know, Daddy, I was a little nervous about starting school before, but now I'm just excited. You gave me a Father's blessing and the Spirit touched my heart and now I'm not nervous anymore. How does Heavenly Father do that?" It opened the door for a sweet discussion about prayer and the Spirit and how our Heavenly Father blesses us.

She is such a sweet girl. I can't believe how fast she is growing up.

Two Things That Touched Me

This past week my brothers, Adam & Logan, came down for a visit. It was so nice to have a few days just to hang out with them. We did a few fun things, like going to the lake and the beach, watching some TV, eating some good food, and just being together. But the following two experiences will always be the highlights for me.

Saturday night, Adam had gone out with Cory to pick up a few things, including some Mountain Dew (and not the caffeine free kind.) His reasoning was that he would need it to help him stay awake on the ride back home on Sunday. It was setting out, and of course the kids saw it and wanted some. (Canned drinks are always cooler than any other kind.) We had to explain that it had caffeine in it and that we don't drink caffeine. Elise, having more experience with this kind of thing, accepted it and was done. Ian, however, wasn't as easily convinced, and he didn't understand why his uncles could drink it and he couldn't. After some discussion, Adam came over and talked to Ian and said, "Ian, it's really not good and I shouldn't be drinking it either. You know what we need to do with this? Throw it away!" So Ian & Adam threw away the cans of Mountain Dew. I was so grateful for Adam stepping in and teaching this lesson in a way that was more meaningful than what I could have done. I was even more touched when Adam said, "Mountain Dew--$2.25. Teaching your nephew about the Word of Wisdom--Priceless." Amen.

Not long after that, I was making a strawberry sonker for us to eat. After getting all the ingredients in the pan, I overestimated my own strength when putting the heavy, glass, 9"x13" pan in the oven. As I tried to slide it in, my arm sagged, sending splashes of strawberries and sonker batter all over the oven, the floor and everywhere in between. It dripped out of the oven into the under the oven drawer, it seeped underneath the oven...it was a huge mess. After we had a sort-of-laugh, Logan walked right over without even being asked and got paper towels to start cleaning up. Logan, for all his sleeping in until noon, playing 'insane aquarium', and all the other typical teenage stuff, picked up on my moment of desperation and pitched right in to help. I'm sure he doesn't know how much that meant to me.

So even though we made a lot of memories this week, these two incidents will be what I think of when I remember their visit. I sure have great brothers!

Why do I buy my kids toys?

Good Southern Food Everyone Should Try

There are some things that are just native to the south, that no matter where you live, you should try. Feel free to add to the list, in case I missed something. :)

1. Grits--Made the way grits were intended to be made, with salt and (real) butter. Even better if you have them with bacon or sausage, eggs and biscuits.

2. Red hot dogs--Wikipedia has this to say about NC hot dogs. (Scroll down the page to find the NC part.) They are definitely the best.

3. Collards--Part of the thing about collards is they have to be cooked the right way...usually with a ham hock or some fatback. (I know, I know--what an unhealthy thing to do to a vegetable. But I don't want to hear about it. It's delicious!)

4. Chicken and Pastry--This is a lot like chicken and dumplings only instead of dumplings there is something that resembles a lasagna noodle, only tastier.

5. Sonkers--This is very much like a cobbler. The name sonker is only found in a small area of the foothills, but means much the same thing. Basically you add the fruit last and let the cakey part rise around the fruit. Strawberry is delicious, although I like the tartness from a blackberry or raspberry one.

6. BBQ--There is eastern and western style BBQ and they are extremely different, but both are wonderful and famous in their own right. Eastern style is more vinegary, for Western style try Lexington, NC for a sample.

7. Sweet Potato Pie--If you don't like this, you probably just didn't get the right recipe. Made the "right" way, nothing beats it, especially in the fall.

This is just a small sampling of NC and Southern cuisine. To me its the best thing in the world!!!

Future Photographers

The kids were taking some pictures with my camera today. This was one taken by Elise. I have to say (no prejudice, I'm sure) that she did a great job. And a what a cute shot!!!
This is Merry Grace in the middle of one of her "mmmmwwwwaaaa" kisses. What a cutie!!!
MG, up close and personal.
Ian--He loves to pose for the camera.
This is my sweet girl. Gotta love the lips!!! :)

More sleepover fun

These two girls are the bestest of best friends. They, along with Kyleigh & Marleigh, not only spent their time watching HSM2, but also sang along to some of their favorite songs. They're going to be rock stars, you know. They even have their own band. :)
Merry Grace had a blast with all the girls. She has yet to realize that she's little bitty. But the bigger girls are so good to include her. They all treat her like their little baby.

Ian & Marleigh are best friends as well...now that they've decided they can never marry. Well, they pretended to get married at Camp Singletary a couple of years ago, but since then....well, they've realized it can never be. They are fiercely loyal to one another and cute as can be. Here they are sharing homemade cookies.

We had such a good time at the HSM2 party. Now we're all anxiously awaiting HSM3, or something just as good. What a fun excuse to hang out with friends.

Par-tay

I don't know if you were aware of this fact, but High School Musical 2 came out last weekend. That was a big deal, at least around our house. That day Elise kept asking if it were "8/7 central" yet. She invited her cousins over to watch it with her and have a sleepover. They were so cute. Even Cory and Merry Grace got in on the fun.
After pizza and chips Marleigh & Kyleigh settled into the little couch for a little Troy and Gabriella.
Emmy and Elise didn't miss a beat, either. They were all pretty excited and thought the show lived up to all their expectations. After the fun of seeing Gabriella and Troy make it work, they were thrilled to get the news that their "favorite Aunt Kristie" was engaged. Nothing like a little real-life romance to keep the excitement going. :)

Don't we all want it that way?

The other night we were straightening things up around the house before baths and the bedtime routine. In an effort to encourage the kids, Cory said to Elise, "Sweetie, if you'll work really hard with us to get things cleaned up, then afterward I'll watch one of your favorite shows with you before bedtime." Elise, without missing a beat says, "How about we do that backwards." That's my girl! :) In the now-famous words of Grandma Jarrell, "I know we have to do housework, but do we have to do it every day?"

My new loves

Okay, here are a few of the new things I love.

1. Butter. Yeah, okay, so that one has been around for while. But *cringing with embarrassment* I just discovered it. We've always bought margarine and even spray butter. Those things certainly have their place. But recently I bought some real butter. A few mornings ago I made grits and toast for breakfast, and spread real butter on my toast for the first time. OH. MY. GOODNESS. I fell in love and I fell hard. I've been dying for an excuse to eat more. I'm even beginning to think Grandma Delia might have been onto something with her peanut butter and butter sandwich.

2. The Closer: This is a show that comes on TNT, I think on Monday nights. I just started watching them before we moved and now I'm hooked. Again, this is a show that's been out for a while (I'm never on the cutting edge of television or movies), but it is wonderful. It's got enough of that suspense, criminal investigation, and "i didn't see that coming" moments to make it really great. But Kyra Sedgewick who plays Chief Brenda Johnson is fabulous. She's tough and great as a police officer and investigator. But she' s a little clumsy sometimes and still quite girly. She's just adorable and likeable and she MAKES the show, although I like the whole cast.

3. German Heirloom Tomatoes: I bought one of these at a local produce stand the other day, only because it had a really different name than the "Big Boys" and "Beefy Boys" that I'm used to seeing. And it had a slightly different color--more pink tints than orange. It just sounded cool. So I ate it yesterday for lunch and it was fabulous!!!! Granted, I only bought one, so maybe I just got the best one there was. But when I sliced into it, it was rich and bright and fresh and the taste was golden. I only wish I'd gotten more. Todays lunch will likely not compare.

What My Son has Been up to

Ian has been a busy little rascal lately, which you already know if you've been reading this blog at all. I gave Ian a haircut about a week ago. We got out the clippers and gave him the usual buzz cut. A couple of days ago I noticed this chunk out of his hair. At first I thought it was the light, but a closer inspection revealed a definite gouge out of his hair. My first reaction was, "Did I do that?" Quickly, however, I realized that this was not my work. So I began, "Ian....did something happen to your hair?" His quick, mischevious smile gave me the answer I already suspected. "What happened?", I asked. And the story of him getting Cory's trimmer and trying it out on his hair unfolded. So, below are pictures of his work. I actually think we got off pretty well, considering.




Obviously, these pictures prove he isn't as devastated over this mishap as he should be. But sometimes we just have to take our lumps.

It's a Conspiracy

Some days I'm convinced of that. This afternoon I came into the kitchen after the kids had eaten apples for snack, only to feel the urge to blow a gasket. It looked like a bushel of apples had exploded all over the floor, the table, and every other open surface. Apparently they finished the apples I'd given them and had gotten more. Since they love apples but don't like the peeling, they had to do something. So they (mainly Ian) bit the peel off the apples and spit it around the kitchen. Just staring at the freshly mopped floor now covered in sticky sweet granny smith peelings was enough to do me in. I called Ian up and together we cleaned up the mess. By the time he was finished he said, "I'm never gonna make that mess again." Unfortunately, I've heard those words before. I know they're well-intentioned, but sometimes the draw of destruction is just too much for a little boy.

In other kid-related events, while unpacking boxes today we came across some pictures of when Ian was a baby. He began looking through them and in utter surprise exclaimed, "Mommy, I was a white baby." Once again, there I stood in stunned silence. I have no idea what kind of baby he thought he was, but today, apparently, he made a discovery. :)

Conversations with the kids

Elise: Did you like to sing when you were a kid?
Me: Yes
Elise: Did you sing a lot?
Me: Yes. I remember singing for my mom and dad. And singing along with the radio.
Elise: Well....then why are you not a rock star right now?
Me: *stunned silence*


Not long ago we had ordered Chinese take-out, and the kids and I went to pick it up. Since you can park right in front of the store, I left the car running, locked the doors and ran inside to pick up the food. I had to wait a little longer than usual, so when I went back out to the car this is the conversation that took place:

Ian: Mommy, you took for a long time!
Me: I know, I had to wait on them this time.
Ian: Mommy, when you took for a long time, we thought you were dead!
Me: *Stunned Silence*

Happy Anniversary

Cory & I celebrated our 8th anniversary this week. It was a fun day to reminisce about where we started, what we've been through, and the road ahead of us.

Cory & I met at EFY when I had just turned 16 and Cory was almost 19. It was my first EFY and his last, before his mission. I met Cory at the first dance, on Monday night. My best friend, Sherri and I were in different groups and it just happened that Cory was in the Scooby-do Company with Sherri. So when Sherri and I took a break from dancing to go get some water, there was Cory, doing the same. He and Sherri said "Hello", and then Sherri introduced the two of us. Cory shook my hand and said, "Save me a dance." And that is what started it all. Cory, weeks away from leaving on his mission, was quite intent on having girls write him while he was away. I, being 16, and finally old enough to date, was quite intent on meeting guys at EFY. We hit it off that week and promised to write after we got home. And we did--even through the two years while he served his mission in Washington. We started actually dating when he came home in the summer of 1998, and got married the next summer.

Looking back, I realize that when we got married I was just a baby, barely 19 and had never lived away from home before. Cory was a newly returned missionary, just starting to make his way in the world. We started out with a lot of blessings, a lot of love, and not much else. Here we are, 8 years, three kids and 5 moves later--still with a lot of blessings and a lot of love. It reminds me of the song that was sung at our receptions, "It's been a long road, a happy road, with detours on the way. Love has brought us to this one perfect day." I feel so fortunate to have had 8 magical years with this fun, crazy, wonderful man and hope that we'll have at least 88 more!

Merry Grace calls Papa on the phone

Merry Grace loves talking on the telephone. Here she's calling Papa. That's a pretty good indication that we're missing you guys. :)

By way of updating

I'm well overdue an update on the ol' blog, here. There has just been so much going on that it's been hard to find a free minute. So here it goes. Almost immediately after the company left a few weeks ago, we decided to move ahead with things and make the move to our new house. Within about 2-3 weeks, we had the entire upstairs painted, (which included stripping wallpaper in some places), new carpet was laid in two rooms and hardwoods refinished in three others. There has been much cleaning, updating/remodling, and of course the unpacking to do. (In addition to our already busy lives...) But fortunately we have really great families who, when we say, "Come! We're going to work your fingers to the bone this weekend, and by the end of things you'll be exhausted and sore. Oh, and you won't get paid for this. Just do it out of the goodness of your heart!", they answer with a resounding, "We'll be there!" How lucky are we? We couldn't have done it without all their help. We've just had so many folks who were willing to pitch in and help make this move much smoother and easier.



And we're finally feeling settled in. We all really love it here. It's an older home with lots of character to it and more space than we had before. The backyard is fenced in and there are lots of trees and greenery around that make it seem really homey. We have really nice neighbors, so all in all we're pleased as punch to be settled in and can start making this a home.



We also had a new addition to the big bunch of us: our niece, Ally, was born on July 20th. What a cutie is she?

Of course the kids have been up to their usual antics throughout the move. When you have kids, I think its just the way of the world, that if you are cleaning up one thing, they will be making a mess somewhere else. During one cleaning episode I came into the living room to find two rolls of paper towels and one roll of toilet paper completely undone and covering a large portion of the living room floor. To my question of "What in the world is this?", Elise responded, "Because the floor was hot lava and we couldn't walk on it." How can you argue with that logic? There have been a few other incidents, such as the time they were helping clean the bathroom. It went well for a little bit, they were cleaning their little hearts out and being entertained all at the same time, until eventually they moved on to the non-traditional cleaning products like hair gel, lotion, and vaseline. And then there was the time I heard Cory, somewhat loudly, asking who had painted the basement floor. He was not happy and I had no idea what had happened. It turns out the kids had decided to paint a piece of pegboard they found, not realizing that the paint was dripping down through the holes. An honest mistake, for sure.

And then there's the part where I lost the diamond out of my engagement ring. I was pretty devastated about it. I'm a very sentimental gal, so I took it pretty hard. I just looked down at my hand during the day and their was my ring--minus the diamond--with the prongs all jutting out in wierd ways. I don't remember doing that. There's no telling what happened and where on earth that diamond is. The whole ring would have been much easier to find, but just the diamond? I just get overwhelmed with the different possibilities of where it could have fallen. Cory was very understanding and sweet about it, but I still hate it--especially with our anniversary coming up this week. Somehow that makes it seem more sad.

So that's our week, in a nutshell. It's been an extremely busy few weeks, but we're still here, still happy, and that's about all you can ask for. :)