Long lost blog!

I haven't blogged in a very long time. After my last post, a whirlwind of family tragedies struck our lives and I just couldn't seem to bring myself to update my blog. On the day that I last posted, our family cat of 16 years passed away. Baby Kitty was mine before my husband was mine! He thought that he was human and "talked" to me often. He actually had different sounding meows in response to questions! He loved to sleep with his head on the pillow and under the covers. Once we had children, he took a LONG time to warm up the them but during the last couple of years of his life, he found a place in his heart for them! They still pray for Baby Kitty during our evening prayers!

Two weeks later, my first cousin, Trey, died in a tragic motorbike accident. He was the first young person to die in my family! He was only 32 and lead a wonderful and Godly life. He left behind a beautiful wife and two young children. He is greatly missed. He had a wonderful and infectious smile.

About a month later, on May 5, 2008, my mother in law (Bonnie) passed away. She was a part of our daily lives and up until a few weeks before her death was our babysitter too! She and Joel watched the kids several afternoons a week while I worked. We knew she was ill but were not prepared for her massive heart attack. She had been admitted to the hospital to have test run and coded during the night. She hung on long enough for her brother and sister to travel from NY and SC to say their goodbyes.


The months after her passing were very hard, especially for Leigh. I spent a lot of my energy just trying to take care of everyone and praying for the pain of grieving to pass quickly. I loved her very much. It was truly one of the hardest times our family has endured. I feel blessed that she trusted me to be her medical power of attorney and that if needed, I would (and was able to) make the right (and very hard) decisions. I thank God for allowing me to be there with her when she left this world for a better place!

Then in August, Leigh maternal grandmother passed away. That's right, Bonnie's mom died. I really thought it wasn't going to stop! I prayed for God's wisdom and guidance in helping me to explain to the kids (again) in a way that wasn't scary to them. I have to admit, that it broke my heart when Layton questioned me all about how hearts work and why they stop working right. He was really worried that Leigh or I would have a heart attact and die. It's tricky to reassure a child that his parents probably won't die of a heart attack. I wanted to tell him that it would never happen, believe me! Thankfully, my sister (who has worked in hospice and has provided bereavement counseling) gave me information which helped tremedously.

Time has passed, we are healing and definitely doing much better! Life has been very busy and hectic but in a good way. God is so good and merciful! I work now at Valdosta State University as a clinical supervisor and teach undergraduate students in the Communication Disorders and Sciences Department (Speech language pathology). Leigh is doing well with his job! Chloe is dancing and singing her way through life! That girl can remember the words to a song after hearing it one time! (Quick story... She heard the words to "Hey Mickey" one afternoon on the radio in the car and a few weeks later was singing it word for word in the bathtub!). Layton is doing great in kindergarten and is playing baseball this spring! They both just recently celebrated birthdays!

I will post more and pics next time and I PROMISE that it won't be so long before I post again! There... I finally blogged about all of it. I really was avoiding it! Now my blog updates can be fun again!!!!

So... on this Easter Sunday- I wish you a wonderful Easter filled with God's promises and His love! Amy

Finally! An update....

Life has been so busy, but that's really no excuse for not updating this blog for 6 months (exactly!). So rather than start from last September/October, I will start from today and will add older pics as I can get to them! So I will just start by adding some fun pics...

Chloe fingerpainting at school and obviously having fun. She was so sweet because she kept begging me to "Help make a bootful picture, mama."

I made Layton and Chloe some lightsabers from an old pool noodle. I cut it in half and wrapped ducttape around one end and used a Sharpie to draw some lightsaber looking decorationson the ducttape. Layton totally got into it! It is apparent that Jedi training is some serious business. This little quickie toy took 5 minutes to make and has provided hours of fun! (The funniest part about it all is that he has 4 "real" lightsabers and this one is now his favorite!)

Soccer, oh those uniforms!!

By now you have seen the pics... what were they thinking in assigning bright hot pink to a team full of four and five year old boys?!? (ok, there are two girls and they just love love love the jerseys!!) The battle that we had on our hands. Layton was so excited about soccer. We had been to two practices before we got their uniforms and he did a 180! I could almost hear the needle screeching off the record when he realized that he was going to have to wear THAT shirt!!

So for three days, we had to hear him moan and groan, whine and complain about not wanting to play soccer anymore. Leigh and I gave him every pep talk we could come up: having team spirit, taking one for the team, oh it's not really that pink- it looks for red, everyone else will be wearing it, etc, but he wasn't buying it.

Initially, he already knew that not wanting to play b/c of the color would not be a good enough excuse. Here is his rationale for wanting to quit: "When I play soccer, I get really hot and sweaty and when I get hot and sweaty, I get really thirsty and have to drink lots and lots of water and when I drink so much water, it makes me sick, so I can't play soccer anymore because it makes me sick." All I can say is wow!

Well, we managed to get him to the soccer game, much to his dismay. Note the picture of him in the spiderman t-shirt and also the fact that his jersey is on the back of the chair. Finally, I told him I wouldn't mention it again but we had to stay to cheer his team. Sometime during the last 10 minutes of the game, one of the coaches came over and talked to him. Whew... he finally agreed to put on the jersey and I do believe that he enjoyed himself despite the fact that he was wearing "a girl color."

So... he has played in two games now and still isn't happy with the uniform but his attitude is great again! He is really enjoying himself.

I wish that Chloe could go to the games, but the field is a giant fire antbed! So she will have to be happy with going to practice for now, which is at a different location!

Oh, did I mention the team name? The Dirt Devils!! One of the players suggested the name!

First day of school

To remain with longstanding family traditions... first day of school pictures are a must! This is the first year that they are both going to preschool. Chloe is in the 2 1/2 year old class with Mrs. Jen as her teacher. She goes three mornings a week. Layton is in the 4 year old class with Mrs. Helen as his teacher and attends five mornings a week.

They were both very excited, as well as, I was excited too. It will be nice to resume a "normal" schedule again. I should note that I let them pick out their own clothes to wear. Layton has fallen in love with his camo shorts and I have to pry them off of him! Chloe picked this outfit out at the store and told me when we bought it that she wanted to wear it to "camp."

Let's go bowling!!

Yes, I took Chloe and Layton bowling! They had a blast! The event turned into an end of summer bash with about 20 of their closest friends. Culminating with a wild party at Chick-fil-a, crashing the play area before everyone headed home for naps. After we all woke up, Chloe says to me (in her sweet minnie mouse voice) "umm, huh, me got a good dear (idea), lets go bowlming." For the full effect you have to say bowling with the m!!

I love the picture of Layton posing... He told me that was his "Twinkle Toes move." Where do they come up with this stuff! I didn't get many pictures of Chloe b/c I had to help her carry the ball to the ramp.

By the way... Layton bowled a 63 and Chloe bowled a 77. Thank goodness for bumber guards and the ramp! But I should give Layton credit for not using the ramp- boy was his bowling ball slowwwww to roll down the lane. I think is average speed was 2.19 miles/hours.

What a fun time we had!

Finally...

Layton and Chloe will pose for pictures together! I am so happy, actually ecstatic! However, as you may have noted by the pictures posted... they seem to be willing to pose together when they are messy, dressed crazy, or just in plain old silly moods! Not the kind of pictures you would want to use for the annual Christmas card. *sigh* The best example is "The Beautiful Life" picture, Chloe had just gotten caught "using" my mascara! Yes, that is mascara all over her face, not bruises from sibling altercations! (on a side comment, I was actually impressed that she was able to get mascara on her eyelashes correctly! The girl pays attention!)

They are really playing together well now and it is fun to see them in action. It seems that my house will truly NEVER be orderly again, though. At least once a day, they use all the couch cushions to build the best secret fort, ever!

I love the picture of them standing together. It makes me so joyful to seem them developing such a unique and sweet (at times) relationship. On a funny note, look at layton. He is wearing headphones that you can plug into the cordless phone so you can talk handsfree. He wore them for two whole days. He even wore them the entire time we went bowling, to Chickfila, and running errands. He claimed that he couldn't hear or breathe without it on. And would go through the theatrics of wheezing if I made him take it off. I am planning to post pics and comments on the bowling excursion the next time I blog.

I talked to a dear friend of mine tonight, Kristen. I am so very blessed to have wonderful friends, true friends. It blesses me to know that neither time, nor distance changes the real connections that God places in our lives. She is doing so well and working hard in nursing school. Please add her to your prayers because she has chosen a vocation that takes a special kind of person. A person like her!!!

Well, I guess that's all I am doing tonight. Suddenly it is after midnight and I spent way too much time browsing my pictures trying to choose which ones to post... so bowling will definitely wait till next time.

Chloe's babies

Chloe just loves playing "mommy" and she is rarely seen these days without a doll in her arms or just dragging one around by her hair. The other day she piled them all into her grocery buggy and literally demanded that I take a picture of her "shillen" (aka children). Nancy, her most beloved baby, was a gift from Mama Claire. I cannot get over how much Nancy looks like Chloe! You can really see it in one of the pictures.

The funny things kids say...

I have been thinking about some of the funny things that Layton and Chloe say or how they completely annihilate words. Chloe cannot say band-aid correctly, and everytime she asks for one in public, I cringe. "Mommy, me need hello kitty dam-baids!!!! Those DAM-BAIDS!!!", she was screaming in Walmart the other day. And yes, it garnered a few of "those" looks. Do I really need to explain to complete strangers that she isn't cursing?

She also says "gaboon" for balloon. We were riding in the car and I could hear her talking to Nancy, her favorite doll. "Nancy, yook (look) a boo gaboon. Anover (another) boo gaboon. Yots (lots) of boo gaboons." It wasn't until the next day, that I realized she was pointing out all the blue balloons at a car dealership.

Tonight we were at a friends house and Chloe kept getting juice boxes without asking. I kept telling her that she needed to ask for permission. Finally I asked, "Did you ask for that (5th) juice box?" She replied, "yep, me ask for it." I then asked, "Who did you ask?" After a couple of seconds, she pointed to herself and responded, "ME!!"

On the other hand, Layton has started writing a letter "L" on the palm of his hand. He has done this for 3 days now and if it get washed off, he rewrites it. Leigh asked him why he was doing this and Layton replied that if he gets lost then people can read his name and address and send him home.

He doesn't really mess up pronouncing words so much anymore, however utilizing words in context can be challenging for him sometimes. We were playing Hi Ho Cheerio and he suddenly proclaims with much authority, "We're having such a popular time." Where did he even hear such a word- popular. I wonder what he thought it meant. I would have asked but Chloe pulled one of her typical stunts- grabbing some cherries, taunting us with "can't cat me" and running for her life.

Why oh why does Layton insist that he is going to be Spiderman when he grows up or at least when he is a teenager? At least five times a day, I receive an urgent beacon for help and have to retrieve him from the top of the door frame. It seems it is his mission in life to learn how to really crawl up the walls, which is evident by the fingerprints and shoe scuffs four feet up on my walls. Will he outgrow this or am I set for a life of swinging from trees, jumping from furniture and who know what else? He is such a precocious and creative child!

This stage in life- having a two year old and four year old- is incredibly fun (and funny), tiring, sweet, cranky, messy, busy, sticky, huggy, and most of all full of love and wonderment that God creates us so beautifully and completely. I feel blessed to have this opportunity to experience the fullness of family life with these two kiddos. God is so good.

Vacation in Bryson City, NC

As we packed to travel to the mountains, the kids were so excited as you can tell by the picture of them in the suitcase! We got up and left at 5 am on Sunday. It definitely made the trip seem faster because we arrived around 1 pm and still had plenty of time to play that day. The Smoky Mountains are beautiful and the weather was so nice all week. Even though it rained some, the temps were lovely! In the upper 70's and low 80's were the highs!! What a nice change from the South Georgia sauna!!

Some of the highlights of the week:

Layton went fishing with Leigh, Papa Charles and his cousin, Casey. Layton caught the biggest fish- a 4 pound rainbow trout! They caught 5 fish totaling over 14 lbs... we had plenty to eat and then some!

Leigh, John (Toli's husband), Chris (Papa Charles' brother/my uncle), and I went tubing down Deep Creek. Daddy followed us on the path as we went downstream. He spent some of that time looking to strike it rich! He found mostly fools gold, but I think he found a flake or two of the real stuff! Even though the water was low, it was fun. I am definitely hooked on tubing now! Just in front of the campsite, the kids and I went tubing on the last day. Chloe was cute b/c she sat in my lap and kept saying, "Not too past, Not too past" (past= fast).

Leigh and I went to the casino in Cherokee. Papa Charles and Mama Claire kept the kids for the night. It was the first time that we left them overnight. It was a long night for Mama Claire and Chloe. She woke up at 3 am and basically refused to go back to bed!!! Leigh and I had a great time. After 4 hours at Harrah's casino, we realized that we only "lost" 4 dollars. On our way back to Bryson City, we stopped to pick up a surprize for the kids. After looking at all the junky 'made in a foreign country' imitation indian toys, we choose a teepee. Only after we got in the car, did we realize that it is over 6 feet tall and 5 feet wide!

Chloe was content to play with her favorite baby doll, Nancy. For some strange reason, Nancy was put in timeout several times for not obeying Chloe. It was sweet to see her "discipline" her baby and do it in a loving way. It gives me hope that Chloe might make it through the terrible twos and order will be restored in our house!!! When that girl makes up her mind, there ain't no changing it! She also had a grand time playing in our room in the cabin. She was constantly in and out, closing that door behind her. It was her own little playhouse for her dolls.

Other highlights included taking the kids to Cherokee, riding up to the "road to nowhere", taking the kids to the nicest public park and pool to play one afternoon, roasting marshmallows, and visiting with our family! The week went by too fast and I am so thankful that we were able to make these special memories.

my first posting

It's late at night and I should be sleeping. One of my dearest friends has started her blog and it has inspired me to journal about our family. We have been busy these two weeks with swimming lessons on top of the day to day crazy schedules. Layton is doing incredibly well. Today he was diving into the pool! And to think that several weeks ago he would barely get his head wet. When he taught himself how to swim on July 4th, I knew he was ready for lessons! Now about Chloe- last week she cried through every session! She kept screaming, "I want my towel!" This week, she is laughing, floating, kicking, trying everything that is taught. It's been big fun for her this week, but when we started I really thought that it was going to be a loooonnnggg two weeks.

We are leaving for vacation on Sunday. I cannot wait to get to the mountains! Tonight when I was putting Chloe to bed, she asked me if we were going to the "mowmans" tomorrow. I said not tomorrow. She then informed that the "mowmans are next to the church" How cute was that?!

I guess that posting pictures is next... we'll see what I can get on here before we leave!