Friday, March 5, 2010

a little Josh-er (pun intended)

Well, well, well. We have a little JOSHer... just like his Daddy!




Jax was getting ready to take a bath, and I walked into the bathroom and saw this! I had to look twice! Here, you need to look a little closer, too:
That little stinker! At 4, already a purdy gud prankster!
It is so true: the apple don't fall far from the tree!

Thursday, March 4, 2010

lil' Popeye

Jax has become interested in "healthy" eating, thanks to a change in the daily menu at preschool. It's amazing that his teachers can get him to eat things that he wouldn't dare touch at home! I won't say much about that because I can very specifically remember doing the same thing when I was a child. But, I still admire his teacher's ability to get him to try some of the things on their "new and improved" lunch menu because many of the items I would never touch in a million years myself, regardless of how many stickers, praises, treats, and prizes are offered!
So, now that Jax is a "health nut", a grocery shopping trip is EVEN MORE interesting with him tagging along. Just this week, he pitched a fit as I was loading a 5lb. bag of sugar into the buggy. He was screaming, "MOOOOMMMA! SUGAR IS NOT GOOD FOR YOU!" All of the other shoppers just strolled by, as I attempted to explain that some sugar is okay. He just got louder.

A few aisles over, he found the canned Spinach. Yuck. I tried to ignore his suggestions that we buy some. How was I, the totally-non-healthy-eater, going to tell him that I wasn't going to buy it? He told me all the reasons it is healthy - it is green, it is a bedge-able {vegetable}, AND- it is what Popeye eats, and HE is really strong and healthy.... Ok, yes, you got that right - we are now the owners of this:
So, I held my breath as I unloaded the groceries and put them away at home that evening; I hoped he would forget that we bought the stuff. And, he did. For now, anyway.

So here's the dilemma: What in the world am I going to do with this stuff??? I have NO IDEA how to prepare it (or are you even supposed to do that?)!!!! SUGGESTIONS? Please! How do you cook this?!!! help!!!!

Monday, March 1, 2010

raising a big heart

This year, Jax and Joy BOTH are participating in the Trike-A-Thon at school, to raise money for St. Jude's Childrens Hospital. It is such an educational experience, even for the little ones like Joy. This will be Jax's third year to participate and he is already looking forward to raising money "for the sick kids" and riding his bicycle in the event on campus. With each year, he is understanding more and more about helping others. Plus, our little friend Felder and his experience with leukemia has helped Jax to understand even more that he/we are very blessed. I love these teachable moments! (p.s. - if any of my faithful blog readers would like to help them with their efforts to raise money "for the sick kids", you know how to contact me! I'd love to come by to pick up your donations! :-) )

As we have begun preparing for our Trike-A-Thon fundraising efforts, I began to think about the last cause that we supported - the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society with the Light the Night walk, back in September! It was a family event for us - yes, even Josh walked! The festivities and service were great, and although they didn't understand everything that was going on, both of the kiddos had a blast!

I turned my back for just one moment, and Jax got a tattoo!

And, Joy, well, she continued her teething activities, using any prop that she could get her tiny little hands on.... doesn't this look like a billboard ad? LOL
Actually, this "fan" that she is chewing on was passed out as we entered the Braves stadium, where the LLS walk was held. I had actually joined the efforts to "donate life" by becoming a member of the MS Organ donation registry just about a week before.

They had many balloons for the service that took place that night. They were winners with the kids, of course! Jax continued to play with his, even after we got home. The things these kids can come up with -- and to think we have "wasted" so much money on trendy toys!


We are looking forward to "helping" more people through the upcoming Trike-A-Thon... it's a different cause, but we hope to foster the same giving spirit with this opportunity. I hope our efforts will help not only the "sick kids" but also my own kids... I want them to see the many daily blessings that have been bestowed upon them... not by their Daddy and I... but by their Father above! I hope to post some more updates on our St. Jude Trike-A-Thon fundraising efforts as the big day draws near (March 11!). Yay!

Joy at Mountain Joy

I just realized I forgot to post a photo of my sweet girl in my last update, "Dreaming of Spring". She was asleep when we toured through Cade's Cove, but we had a slight photo session back in the cabin later on, just after her bath - she loved the furry rug!

Dreaming of Spring

Lately, it's been really cold and wet, followed by teasers of semi-warm, only to be followed by more rain, cold, and SNOW... and, not necessarily in that order.

Typical.

Mississippians know that the Mississippi weather forecasts should be taken with a grain of salt, because its... well... it's Mississippi Weather! You didn't realize "Mississippi" can be used as an adjective, did you?

Well, all of this cold, wet, rain and snow has just made me realize one thing more: I'm ready for Spring, no, make that SUMMER!

So, in the back of mind, I've been contemplating summer routines, vacation, VBS, warmth & sun, among other things "summer".

And, then I begin to feel overwhelmed. OMG, where will be our 2010 summer vacation destination?? I have GOT to get on this!!! I'm late getting around to research, research, research and that could ultimately cost us, and you all know how thrifty I am, ha ha. Sooooo.... what are your suggestions for a summer vacation destination? We are interested in places that are not over-the-top, over-priced, or overly-crowded. In other words, KID-friendly. Suggestions, everyone!! :-)

Meanwhile, I'll continue to dream of SUMMER and I'll let you know if it helps to speed the process any. Here's some photos from our wonderful summer vacation last summer (Aug '09) in Townsend, TN - the Great Smokey Mountains. It was fabulous... my only complaint is that we didn't have more time to stay.

Our cabin, "Mountain Joy":




View from the front porch of the cabin:


We enjoyed seeing the wildlife, and even got a few photos of some creatures... the bear, unfortunately, was much too swift for this photographer as it ran across the road in front of us and off into the woods. So, our photo memories shall consist of the lovely deer, and this woodpecker, who apparently wants to be a model in his next life.





Jax and Joy both enjoyed the "shows" in Pigeon Forge, much to my surprise. The Comedy Barn was a favorite of the whole family.


No Smokey Mountain vacation is complete without a trip to Cade's Cove. Love it. It's serene, it's beautiful, and it's free! Most of the wildlife that we saw were inhabitants of Cade's Cove. We also like the history - I love the old cemeteries and churches, and we even helped ourselves into an old house too. I sorta felt like Goldilocks, sneaking in while the 3 bears were gone. But there was no porridge; not that I would partake had we found some there, ha. Well, whoever lived there left a great place for photos of the kids... too bad mine weren't exactly in the mood for an impromptu photo session! Just my luck. Anyway, we also enjoyed the gift shops, which had some great educational items, and some, well, unique items. Jax purchased his very first compass there, with his own money, and Josh found the funniest book there, although we didn't feel the need to purchase it this time (we already knew the answer, ha)



And, I think we'll end this post on that note.

How do we top the '09 laid-back, yet fun-filled vacation? Don't forget to send me your suggestions!