December has finally arrived! We (especially the kids) have been anxiously awaiting this day. Sam came running into our room at (gasp!) 5:30ish this morning telling us that today was the day he could start getting chocolates from his advent calendar. Every year my Mom gets him one and he loves getting a piece of chocolate (usually first thing in the morning) and counting down the days to Christmas. Sam was very concerned about Abby not having her own this morning, but since she doesn't eat chocolate, Mom didn't get her one this year. Once Abby assured him it was fine, he opened up his first window this morning. I think it's sweet he was looking out for his little sister. Or maybe, knowing she doesn't touch the stuff, he was hoping he could get hers! Anyway, the countdown has begun!

I wanted to find a way to really get them into the spirit of Christmas this year. Something simple they can do every day to remind them of Christ. I came up with the idea of 25 Days of Service. There was a great story in the Friend magazine this month about a boy who fills a little manger with hay for each act of service he did. This was the perfect story to introduce my idea. Instead of a manger with hay, we're going to make a paper chain and each link will represent an act of service. I hope to have a very long paper chain. Sam and Abby were both very excited about it and our chain already has 5 links! They were pretty funny about it. Sam would drop a chip on the floor and say, "Oh no! I dropped my chip!" And Abby would pick it up like it was some huge act and they'd tell me they needed a link. I appreciate their enthusiasm and I hope it continues.

Come what may and love it.

I taught YW today and I used a talk by Elder Worthlin, "Come what may and love it". I think this was more for me than the girls. Funny how often that is the case. I've been trying super hard lately to be more patient with my children. Really, I've just been trying not to yell as much. This really helped to put things into perspective and I'm really going to try to make this my new thing. We can't control what happens, but we can control how we react to what happens. This is also good since we've really been trying to reinforce this concept for Sam.

I've thought on this a lot the last few weeks. I'm no longer teaching pre-school. They called me one day and said they didn't need me anymore. I've never been let go from a job, so this was a little hard for me to come to terms with. It was because I had done anything, I just became a victim of "restructuring". I've gotten used to having more free time and am trying to use it for good things. Oddly enough, I got a call last week from the bank where I used to work with an offer to work a little through the holidays. What a blessing and I can truly see God's hand in this. It's much more money than I would have made at pre-school and had a been working there still, I would not have been available for it. And, I'm getting used to slowing down a bit and having more time for myself. It was very weird the first day Sam and Abby were both gone, but I am quickly getting used to it!

Anyway, on to our recent activities. We were so fortunate to be able to spend a weekend in Johnson City, TN over Halloween weekend to attend a reception for my cousin, Matt who recently married a really sweet girl from that area. It was a beautiful drive up there through the mountains with all the fall colors. We stayed in Johnson City at the Carnegie Hotel. This was our first time in a hotel with our children. They did well except for waking up at the crack of dawn. Sam, in fact, cried when we got home because he missed the hotel and wished we lived there! It was a really pretty area. Most of our time was spent in Jonesborough. It was such a cute little town. They had the little main street all decorated for fall with huge pots of mums, hay bales, and scarecrows lining the streets. The reception was lovely with a delicious dinner and dancing. Most of all we had a great time visiting with family we haven't seen in a while. My aunt & uncle and cousins as well as my brother and his wife. Sam and Abby thoroughly enjoyed their time with Uncle Caleb and Aunt Taylee. All in all a very fun weekend.

We also took a trip to Charleston in October to spend the weekend with Mike's mom while he went to some Phish concerts with his buddies. We went to Boone Hall Plantation to pick out pumpkins and then spent some time on the Battery in Charleston and had lunch at Hymans. We even took a quick ride over to The Citadel to show the kids where Mike went to college. It was so nice to spend a day together as a family.

We also hosted our first ever Halloween party. Since we weren't home for Halloween & trick or treating, I told Sam and Abby we would have a party at the house so they could wear their costumes. They each got to invite a few friends and we had the party in the back yard. We had two pinatas, mummy dogs for dinner, a giant spider web cookie, eyeball donuts, and fun games like pin the nose on the pumpkin and mummy wrap, where you wrap yourself like a mummy with toilet paper. Of course, the pinatas were the highlight. And also very hard to break. So much so, that Mike finally had to pick it up and toss it in the air and hit with the bat like you would a baseball. That finally did the trick. I think the kids all had a fun time. Maybe we'll do it again next year. Maybe. :)

Yesterday we spent the day cooking a pig. One of Mike's customers was kind enough to shoot a pig last weekend and gave it to us! It was almost like having a 3rd child this week! Since we didn't have the freezer or fridge space for such a huge amount of meat, we had to keep it in a cooler on ice all week. We borrowed one of those gigantic barrel grill cooker things and Mike spent the day cooking it. We invited several of our neighbors and some family and had a big ol' tasty pig pickin'. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun, and we managed to get rid of most of it.

The highlight of the day was, of course, South Carolina's win over the Florida Gators to win the SEC East. Two things which the Gamecocks hadn't ever done. As you can imagine, we are most excited about this and Mike is working to get tickets to the SEC Championship game in Atlanta. Go Gamecocks!

Bring on Fall!!

Well, we are now into the school routine (I think!). Sam is really enjoying kindergarten. I am so pleased he is making friends, although not fast enough for his taste based on our conversation this morning. He apparently feels like he should already be great friends with everyone in his class. I assured him that as each week goes by, he will get to know all the kids better. I love that he has that attitude - that he wants to be friends with everyone. That's just how he is - such a sweetie!

He started his first karate class today. They offer it as an after school program at his school one day a week. I was able to watch for the last 10 minutes and it was cute to see him. He definitely has a lot of room to improve, but he loved it and is enthusiastic! Abby even enjoyed watching and was doing the different poses right along with the class. Too cute!

Abby and I start back to preschool tomorrow, so life will really be crazy! She is going to be in the 3 year old class and I will be teaching the "older babies". We have 4 kids who will be turning 1 within the first few months of school starting.

I'm really looking forward to the school year, but a bit sad about losing some of my free time. I've really enjoyed being able to go the Y this summer to work out. That will be a bit more difficult now, but I feel like I'll be able to get in 1 or 2 Zumba classes and hopefully some weightlifting still. It will just take more planning.

Football season is in full swing. The Gamecocks played their first game last week, so our Saturdays will be occupied for the next few months with football and we'll see even less of Mike than we normally do! :)

And we're just hoping the cool fall weather will come have a nice long visit with us. I am so over this hot & humid summer weather. Bring on Fall!

Back to School

Sam started kindergarten last week. He was a little nervous in the days leading up to the 19th, but when he woke up that morning, he was ready to go! I think I was more nervous than he was.

The day before the first day, I took the kids to McDonalds for an ice cream cone and play time. We met some friends who have a daughter who was also starting kindergarten. Sam and Abby enjoyed their ice cream and had a great time on the playground. (thank goodness for the coolness of the playroom on a hot day!)

That night for dinner we had pizza and did a little back to school party for Sam. It wasn't anything fancy - I just tried to make the table a little more festive than normal. I think he liked it because when he came to the table, he had a big smile on his face and said, "I can't believe this is all for me!" I think we'll have to make this a family tradition.

The morning of the first day went really smoothly. We had my Mom come over to stay with Abby so we'd be able to focus on Sam at school. I was feeling pretty good and even thinking I might get through the morning without crying. We got to the school and were walking in and one of the administrators welcomed Sam and he said so proudly and excitedly, "I'm going to Kindergarten!" That's when my tears started. I was just so proud of him! My little guy was going to school and he was ready and excited. It was what we had been preparing him for. I pulled myself together and got him settled in his classroom. He walked right in and made himself at home. I think he would have been just fine without a good-bye kiss and hug from us. Thankfully, they were having a Boo Hoo Breakfast in the media center for the kindergarten parents. We stopped there so I could wipe my tears.

That first day was pretty tough. I had no idea what the routine for his day was or when he had lunch or anything! I found myself thinking about him wondering what he was doing and then I'd start missing him, so then I'd try not to think about him and would then feel guilty for not thinking about him! It was a tormented day for me! I was about to crawl out of my skin while waiting in the line of cars that afternoon. I don't remember ever being so anxious to see him!

Then I got worried that he wouldn't want to tell me about his day. I was so happy when he jumped in the car and was talking a mile a minute sharing his day with us!

So today, we finished up day 4 and he seems to be adjusting really well. I'm so proud of him and so happy that he loves school and his teacher.

Happy Anniversary

Mike and I celebrated our 11th anniversary on August 5th. Well, we didn't actually celebrate that day, but that's the date anyway. The 5th happened to be the night of Sam's kindergarten orientation meeting, so that took priority. To celebrate, we took the kids to my Mom & Dad's for the weekend. We pretty much do this every year on our anniversary. It's fun for us and fun for them.

This year we decided to head up to Charlotte. We took in a movie here Friday night. Mike chose Dinner for Schmucks. It was funny at times, but the overall story line was kind of dumb. Definitely not worth the $20 it cost to get in. Come to think of it, not many movies are worth the price of admission anymore!

Anyway, we got up Saturday morning around 8 (which is sleeping in for us - the kids are usually up at 6) and left for Charlotte around 10:30. We stopped at a Ruby Tuesday for lunch in Rock Hill on our way up and headed for Concord Mills Outlet Mall. Mike's not usually much of a shopper, but I think he had a good time. We found some good deals and he got 2 new pairs of shoes, couple pants, and 4 shirts from Polo. He did pretty well!

We headed back to the hotel around 4. Our crazy GPS took us what had to have been the long way, but we did get to see a lot of Charlotte and about every red light on the way! The hotel was nice and we rested for a bit and then got ready for dinner. Every couple of years Mike likes to splurge and go out to a really nice dinner. We debated over which restaurant to go to and decided on Sullivans. We went to one in Denver with his parents once and it was really good, so we thought we'd try it again and we were not disappointed! Our server was so friendly and down to earth, not stiff and uppity like you often get in nice restaurants. We had an amazing fried calamari appetizer - the BEST I've ever had, steaks, au gratin potatoes, asparagus, and a slice of key lime pie for dessert. They even comped the dessert when they found out it was our anniversary. As you can imagine we were stuffed when we walked out and had enough leftovers for lunch the next day!

It was so nice to sleep in again on Sunday. Overall, it was just fun to reconnect with Mike. We often get so busy in our daily lives, that we don't get to just hang out and have an uninterrupted conversation. I can't believe it's been 11 years! Time sure does fly, especially since having children. I love him more now than I did then and look forward to spending forever with him!

Happy Anniversary Babe!

Growing Up

Ok, I know - it has been just about 2 months since my last posting. That tells you what a busy summer we've had! I am working on a post that will recap our entire summer.

This morning I took Sam to his elementary school for his kindergarten screening. He was a little nervous (or so he said), but sure didn't show it! He walked right in and made himself at home. I wish, wish, wish I could have been a fly on the wall! I can't get him to really tell me what she asked him, but I think its general stuff like does he know his name, address, birthdate, the alphabet, numbers, etc. I was sure he'd do fine and he did!

It just has me thinking today, how did the little baby I once held in my arms, suddenly get to be old enough to go to Kindergarten? When did this happen? As I looked at him in the mirror this morning while we were brushing his teeth, I suddeny saw him in a whole new light. He is no longer a baby, toddler, or even preschooler. He looks like a kindergartener!

I love both of my children equally. My whole heart belongs to each of them, I just love them differently. Sam is such a good, sweet, smart and fun loving boy. We are so blessed to have him in our family. I thank my Heavenly Father every day for the gift that he is to me. I really feel so unworthy to be the Mom of one of His sweetest little spirits. We often hear from people that Sam is a joy or a delight. Just yesterday someone told me he was a treat. I love that other people can see his enthusiasm for life. And I hope beyond hope, that his is always the case.

I think Abby and I will be sending a piece of our hearts to school with him each day. I hope he knows how much we love him and how proud we are of him!