Day One

Today was our first official day of vacation - if you don't count yesterday's traveling. We left Arkansas early ... 7am, and after a loooooooong layover in St. Louis, we arrived in Orlando at about 3:30pm. We went straight to the Floridays Resort to check in. Megan showed up with Maddie & Colin by about 4:30 and we all went for a swim. It was an early night because we knew we had a big day coming up.

Today, we headed to Discovery Cove early. We got all settled and headed straight for the pool. The water was warm, and the kids got some time to get used to the mask and snorkel that we all received upon arrival. A favorite spot was the Tropical River, where we just floated with the soft currents as they took us around the park. It was a great time to just giggle at each other and talk about water animals and the beautiful scenery.

Another incredible experience was when we waded in the pool with a whole bunch of sting rays. If we stood still enough, they would come right up to us and brush their slippery fin right up against us. They had their barbs removed (as painlessly as clipping fingernails) so that no one could get hurt. The animals were slippery, or even slimy, as Sydney liked to say. And some were quite friendly, coming right up to an outstretched hand and hanging there for a little visit.

Then we went into the Coral Reef pool and snorkeled with lots of tropical fish and more sting rays. We bought underwater cameras, and soon all 4 ... yes FOUR! ... cameras were emptied of their pictures. I did bring my camera, but with sand and water all around, I thought it best to keep it bundled up and safe from a potential disaster. I decided to just live the day instead of watching it from behind the small window of my camera. I'm glad there were a bunch of photographers around the park that took many pictures for us.

But the highlight of the day was getting to swim with the dolphins. It was an experience we won't soon forget. We spent 30 full minutes patting, watching, and learning about a dolphin named Coral. She is a 7 year old female that was the first dolphin to be born right there at Discovery Cove. She even gave each of us a ride on her fin, we just held on and she pulled us in. I think Colin had it right when he said that "dolphins are his new favorite animal." Of course I will put together a whole webpage devoted to this vacation. But in the meantime, here is just two pictures of the best time EVER!

Until tomorrow...

Another Visit from the Tooth Fairy

Sydney has been bragging about a loose tooth for a few weeks now. Last night, Mommy (Jess) couldn't take it anymore. She just pulled that tooth out!

Sydney could hardly wait to see what the Tooth Fairy would bring this time. She put her tooth fairy box under her pillow and went to bed without a single complaint. She woke way too early this morning to find enough "dollars" to buy a giant coloring book (just like the one she got as a graduation gift).

Admiring her new smile.

Graduation

On Thursday, my little baby girl graduation from Kindergarten. How did THAT happen? The children were dressed in caps and gowns, lined up, and two by two were handed the small piece of paper tied with a red ribbon. Each child beamed with outstretched arm as they received their diploma.

After commencement, the girls performed the Maypole Dance - a tradition for the Kindergarten girls at Sydney's school. And then they all participated in the End-of-the-Year Program.

The whole night left me rather speechless, so I'll let the pictures do the talking.

In the courtyard of the graduation location.




Not wanting to cover up her pretty dress with her graduation gown.


Mommy zipping her up.


After convincing her everyone else would have theirs on too.


Family shot!


The diploma!


Receiving the diploma.


Finally finding where we were sitting.


Beautiful graduate!


The traditional Maypole Dance.


With the ribbons.


Pretty hair pieces.


All the pretty girls lined up to wave to the crowd.


On to the Program


I just love this picture. It shows how much fun the kids were having.


I know it's blurry, but it's still kinda cool.


The end of the show.


Ice cream cake for the graduate!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to my Mom!

And to my sisters, Mary, Melissa, and Megan who are all mothers, too.

And a big Happy Mother's Day to the mother of my children, Jess!

Sydney made each of us something for our special day. It was a project at school, so her teacher helped her make two gifts. Can you tell which one is for me and which one is for Jess?

The poem attached to the outside of the bag read:

Breakfast in Bed
Since it is your day,
I have something to say!
Don't lift your head,
Have breakfast in bed!
Just take a look...
You don't have to cook!
I don't like to brag,
But it's breakfast in a bag!

Inside was a granola bar, a tea bag, and a napkin. Perfect, right?

Happy Mother's day to all you moms out there!

She's a Southerner

Ya know, I never really considered my daughter - the talking one - a southerner. Sure, she was born right here in Arkansas and she's lived her whole life right here in this state. Yes, of course, she's a southerner. Heck, her northern aunties and cousins say she's got a southern accent. I guess I just hear it on everyone else so I don't hear it from her.

Or hell, maybe I'm just in denial. I'm a native northerner. I lived the first 30 years of my life in the northeast. From the first day I became a resident of the south, I've been saying, I'll know I've arrived when I start saying things like ya'll, doggone, and reckon.

In the eight years we've been here, I've never used any of those words. But just today, on the way home from picking her up from school, Sydney said to me, "I knew you were fixin' to say that." I don't really remember what it was that I said to her before she said that, nor do I remember what I said after. I was just so stunned that my child, who grew and exited from my northern body, would say a word that simply epitomizes the southern accent.

fixin'

fixin'

fixin'

I still can't bring myself to say the word in a sentence. So although I can't really say "I've arrived," my daughter's been here all along.

Birthday Cake

My grandmother used to have rules about calories. There are no calories in your birthday cake. That's a good thing because my MIL came over tonight with my favorite cake from Cold Stone Creamery, peanut butter cup. And if that rule wasn't great enough, she always said that there were no calories in the corner of the cake. You know, the cake sits on the counter, and every time you walk in the room, you grab a fork and eat only a corner bite. No calories there! So you know what that means, right? I get to snack on my birthday cake until it's gone, provided I only eat one corner at a time. I love my Gram!

Yep, today is my birthday. I'm 39 today. But so is my sister. Melissa is my twin - my wombmate. Not one of my birthdays go by that I don't think of Melissa.

Happy Birthday Melissa!

Save the Earth

Earth Day was Tuesday, April 22, but around here it was more like Earth Week, so we attended a couple local celebrations. Last Saturday, Sydney's Daisy Troop went to the zoo where they had lots of eco-friendly information for both children and adults. And of course, we got to see all of the animals too. We got there right when it opened at 9am and 9 (of 15) Daisies showed up. We walked around, all nine families for a while. Somewhere around 11:45, the first family departed. Then every so often, another family would say goodbye. Finally at about 2pm, with only two families left - us and one other, we said goodbye. We had a great time and learned a lot about Earth Day and saving our planet (and the girls earned a Fun Patch to go along with the Green Petal symbolizing "using resources wisely").

And today, we attended the Earth Day celebration on the lawn of the Clinton Library. Again, we collected lots of useful information about helping keep our planet green. Of course, all Sydney cared about was getting her face painted. But the girl *is* very concerned with litter and wants to pick up every scrap of paper she sees on the ground.

She also likes to recycle. It's something that's been ingrained in her since the day she was born. As with a lot of other "green" philosophies. In addition to recycling (we have more in our recycling bins than we do in our city issued trash container), some of the other ways that we are green: we use cloth napkins instead of paper, we use knitted dish cloths (thanks Mom!) instead of sponges, we eat organic food, use organic earth friendly products, we make our own cleaning products, use cloth diapers instead of disposables, bring reusable bags to the grocery store, and a few more things that are slipping my mind. There is a lot more that we can do, but we started out little and have worked our way to where we are now. I suspect that in a few more years, we'll be a lot further along than we are right now.

There are a few books that help you achieve a higher level of green. I love Deidre Imus' Green This, which is all about reducing the amount of chemicals in your home. The Green Book by Elizabeth Rogers and Thomas Kostigen. This book gives simple steps on greening your life from home to entertainment to travel to technology to schools, and so on and so on and so on. I love this book. I just heard of another one called Gorgeously Green by Sophie Uliano. I haven't had a chance to read it yet, but I know I'm going to love it. If you want to go green, pick up one of these books.

How green are you?

Busy

Busy (from m-w.com) \ˈbi-zē\ adjective 1 a: engaged in action : occupied b: being in use [found the telephone busy] 2: full of activity : bustling [a busy seaport]

I dislike hearing "I've been so busy." But I dislike even more - detest actually - saying those words. I never wanted to be that person who says that all the time. But the fact of the matter is that I *am* that person. I'm a stay-at-home-mom, but it seems I'm always on the move. There's always something to do, and I'm not talking about chores around the house. And if you read Jess' blog a few days ago, you know I have one high maintenance child at home with me all day. I'm not complaining. I've always wanted to be a SAHM, and now that I am, I love it. I definitely do NOT want to go back to working outside the home.

The word 'busy', to me, has a negative connotation. I know that the word isn't conventionally a negative word. But to me, it means I'm missing out on something. When someone says to me "I've been so busy," it means they don't have time for me. And when I say it, it means I don't have time for them.

Was it John Lennon that said Life is what happens when you're busy making plans? This saying is the reason I hate using the word 'busy'. We do have a busy life, but the things we are doing are ... well ... life - our life. I love bringing the girls to swimming lessons, watching Sydney play soccer, and running after Layne during Gymboree classes. I enjoy being the leader of Sydney's Daisy troop, and toting Layne around for morning errands. This is my life and I love it.

So on the days that I don't have a chance to call family and friends, post on my blog, or check in with cyber peeps, I'm not going to say "I've been so busy." From now on, I'm going to say "We've been active." I think that better describes our time spent ... our life. I'm not too busy to keep in touch, we're just out living life.

Happy Birthday Jess

Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you'
Happy Birthday dear Jess!!!
Happy Birthday to you!

I'm sorry it wasn't so grand, I'm sorry it was such a weird weekend. But I'm glad that the girls and I could spend most of it with you. The big 30 should be special, but things just didn't work out that way. We'll find a way to celebrate - maybe on our vacation next month.

Happy Birthday!
I love you!

Conversation Wednesday

Sydney had a playdate with her friend yesterday. I overheard a conversation between the two and I couldn't help but join in.

Sydney: "Momma, can we go outside when we get home?"
Me: "Sure, but you have to stay out of Philip's way. He's still working on the yard." [Philip is our yard-guy and is re-doing both front and back yards.]
Sydney (to Ana Grace): "I like Philip. He's a boy, but he's a grown-up."
Me: "You just like Philip because of what he's going to do to your back yard."
Sydney: "No, Momma! I like Philip because I like the way his face looks."


And later on, when we were telling Momma about it, she whispered to me "He's cute!". I think Sydney has a little crush!

Speaking of the yard-guy... just look at what he's done to our yard

He's taken over our driveway, and dumped all kinds of stuff on the front lawn.








Finally, all his work is starting to take form - a patio extension.




And ground ready for sod.

The tree that fell down a few weeks ago left a big hole right in the middle of the front yard. So yard-guy is going to fill it in and then sod the whole front yard. I can't wait until it's done. We'll finally have a nice yard. But Sydney might be a little disappointed because Philip won't be coming around as much anymore.

Teaser

Well, I've been slowing chipping away at uploading the pictures from our trip to Massachusetts. But here is a little teaser.

Easter morning, awaiting the annual Egg Hunt.


All the kids, girls in their matching dresses ... all FIVE of them. LOL!


Sydney and Paige with their big cousin Stephanie.


The reason for our trip. My brand new niece Kylie Cecile. Isn't she beautiful?!


I caught this precious moment between Sydney and Kylie.


Michael watching his favorite movie, Star Wars. It's more than just his favorite movie. It is his obsession - he loves ALL THINGS Star Wars.


After a swim lesson, the girls had some fun - syncronized pencil jumps.


We spent a day at the Boston Children's Museum.


Laynie, finally acknowledging her new cousin.


At Michael's birthday party - he insisted on a tennis party. Kids had a blast.


A night out for the grown-ups at a delicious seafood restaurant. [*I* don't like steamers, but several others do. No thank you ... ick!]

I'm hoping to have that link, over there on the side bar, active within the next few days. So keep watching for it.

This is Not a Drill

Just about 48 hours after we touched down in Little Rock, a tornado also touched down in Little Rock. For a tornado to actually travel through the city is unusual. Being a city, it certainly doesn't resemble the flatlands in which tornadoes usually thrive. But this time it was different. Many residential neighborhoods were devastated in the tornado's wake. We were lucky ... very lucky. The tornado hit not a mile - as the crow flies which is incidentally, how a tornado travels - from our house.

We decided to go to bed a little early on Thursday night because of everything that had happened the days preceding. Just about 9:30pm, we were awaken by the tornado sirens. I knew it immediately because every Wednesday at noon, the sirens sound as a drill and to ensure they are working properly. It scared me to hear it in my sleep, because that meant only one thing ... this is not a drill. A tornado is coming. I reached over and shook Jess, "those are the tornado sirens" I said to her. We both jumped out of bed, hurried into the living room, and turned on the television to see what the news was saying.

Yes, there were strong storms causing rotations that were headed directly into Little Rock. They posted the projection of the twister. Jess asked if we should get in the closet. I don't know why, but I just felt like it wasn't time yet. About 10 minutes later, they posted another updated projection - "if you are in [such and such] part of Little Rock, take cover now!" I said, I think it's time. We stood up. And the lights went out. Somehow, in the complete darkness, Jess found Sydney and I found Layne, both sleeping, unaware of the complete terror their moms were feeling. We didn't have a flashlight, candle, or even a cell phone to light our way. We just booked it into the closet at the back of our house. In between the sirens, it was so quiet it was surreal. We prayed, held hands, and sat for what seemed like hours. Right in the middle of a particularly quiet moment, Layne decided she needed something and she started to stir in her sleep. Next thing we heard was her tiny voice saying "ner ner?" As far as she was concerned, the world could go to hell in a handbasket. But as long as she had her nursies, she was all set! She nursed a little and fell back asleep.

In reality, we'd only been sitting there for about 15 minutes. I had calculated that against the projections they had posted on the news and felt like it was okay for me to get out of the closet long enough to grab a cell phone. When I returned to the closet, Jess called her mother and asked what they were saying on the news. She gave us a brief rundown. We stayed a little longer. And this is where my iPhone came in quite handy. I was able to look at the doppler radar right there in the pitch black darkness of the closet. Even though our electricity was out, hence our wireless internet also out, I was able to get online and keep watch.

About five minutes later, we decided it was safe to come out of the closet. [Insert witty remark here - I can't think of one. ] Still no electricity, but I was able to find batteries to run our beloved white noise machine. At least we could try to get a good night's sleep. We slept with our cell phones next to our ears ... just in case.

Morning came and revealed that nothing happened to our neighborhood. It was quite a scare. We definitely consider ourselves lucky. But look at this neighborhood ... the one that's not even a mile from our house.

Nightmare!

We had a wonderful trip. I love my sister and her family. It warms my heart that Sydney and her cousin Paige were practically attached at the hip for the entire trip. And I was delighted beyond words to finally meet my brand new niece, Kylie. But by the time we reached the airport, I felt like Dorothy every time I thought "There's no place like home." Too bad I don't have a pair of ruby slippers because I would have taken my chances with those shiny pair of shoes over the nightmare we lived Monday night.

It all started innocent enough when Melissa dropped us off at the airport. We boarded our flight and traveled, without incident, to Charlotte, North Carolina, where we were scheduled to make a connecting flight. We heard earlier in the day that there was poor weather conditions in the southern part of the country. And I suppose just hoping it would clear up wasn't enough. Layne had become increasingly difficult on the first flight, but eventually fell asleep when Jess got up with her and walked the isles. By the time we reached the gate for our connecting flight, she was miserable and in complete temper tantrum mode. Even a little ice cream didn't help. We knew we were in for a horrible time.

Earlier, we stopped to have some dinner and shortly thereafter learned that our flight had been postponed about an hour and a half. Okay, we'll deal. And believe me, I TRIED to clack my heels together and chant "there's no place like home ... there's no place like home." If for no other reason than to keep my spirits out of the trash bin. The attendant asked for passengers, with flexible travel plans to give up their seats in order to book those on standby. They offered, get this - a round trip ticket to anywhere in the contiguous US (travel for anytime and transferable to anyone), plus a paid-for night in a hotel, PLUS vouchers for dinner and breakfast. And they would be out on the earliest flight to Little Rock in the morning. Tempting offer to say the least. But Jess had to work and Sydney had to return to school, and add to that a toddler who was DONE! with traveling, and it quickly became a non-option to us.

Well, we should have taken it because not 15 minutes later, we were told the flight was canceled! This was the last flight of the evening which meant that we had to stay the night in Charlotte. So, of course, there was a mad dash to the airline counter to re-book on another flight. Fortunately, or not - however the hell you want to look at it - we were given an 800 number to call which would get us the same results as waiting in the line that had now grown to at least a mile (if not longer). Now unfortunately, the next flight out wasn't until 8:10 PM. Not, that's NOT a typo - that would be 8:10 in the EVENING! That meant that we had to spend the day in Charlotte, North Carolina. Talk about one bad turn after another.

We book a room a hotel room, checked in, and got settled in our overnight abode. [If this was a movie, you would hear that record screeching - eeeeerrrreeeeeeechhhhh!!!! - immediately following the end of that sentence.] Yeah right, it certainly wasn't that easy OR uneventful. As soon as Sydney learned we weren't actually going HOME, she started crying. Not just a whiny, I-just-want-to-go-home cry. It was a full-out bawl. She really DID just want to go home. Poor girl was inconsolable. Nothing made her feel better. So among the sobbing 5-year old, the tantruming toddler, and the snippy comments thrown between Jess and I, we had to figure out a way to get to the hotel and get these miserable girls to bed. We had no choice ... even though I literally felt like throwing myself down on the floor for a fit of my own.

Phone call after phone call, we made our plans. We located our luggage, hailed a skycap, loaded everything up (at least God has a limit to his joke, all of our luggage made it to Charlotte unlike our arrival into Boston when one of our carseats didn't make it), caught the airport shuttle to the hotel, checked in, got the girls in pjs, and settled in.

And as if that wasn't a feat in and of itself under the circumstances, when we all laid down to go to bed, Layne decided she wanted to throw a fit. Screaming at the top of her lungs (sorry hotel neighbor), and thrashing around the bed. I told Jess I'd had enough, walked out of the room, and made her deal with the tantrum. [As an aside, as soon as I walked out of the room, I was disappointed in myself in being unable to cope. My reserves had been depleted.] Jess got her to sleep and quickly deposited her in bed next to me. Morning came too soon.

And now we had to find something to do in the up-until-now unknown city of Charlotte. A few minutes online revealed that there is a Discovery Museum not far from where we were. And with our membership to the Little Rock Discovery Museum, our admission fee was free! And add to that, a dinosaur movie playing at the IMAX, it seemed that things were looking up. The museum was great and the movie awesome (and consequently, Layne slept through the whole movie, making that much more enjoyable for all of us dino lovers). After a quick stop in the gift shop, we were off to lunch. Pasta with red sauce isn't really the best thing but it kept the girls happy. Jess and I enjoyed some shrimp & scallop fettuccine.

A walk around the block rounded out our afternoon, and we hailed a cab to the airport. The flight was delayed only a little and we arrived home, safe and sound, just before 10pm. Blah, blah, blah ... we had the best night's sleep ever!

Life went back to normal today, even though I thought it was Monday all day. I have to keep reminding myself that the week is half over.

I have a ton of pictures to resize and post. So give me a day or so to unpack, run those post-vacation errands, and get us back into our routine. I have a lot to blog about!

Can't Blog

As much as I want to, I can't post pictures. We're at my sister's house and they are having major computer issues - not with the Internet but with computers. So I'm forced to blog from my iPhone which, of course, isn't quite as easy as on a conventional keyboard. But alas, I'm going through withdrawals, so here I am. I may try to sneak onto a neighbor's wireless. However, until that happens, I'm stuck with few words and no pictures.

We're having a great time. So as soon as I can I'll post some pictures.

And Just Like That

As if getting a family of four packed and ready for a 10 day vacation wasn't enough...

Oh wait, let me back up just a touch. Jess has been doing moonlighting shifts at an ER that's about 90 minutes away from home. Every so often, depending on her schedule, we all go up there together. And by we all, I mean the whole family - Jess, me, Sydney, and Layne. It's a 12-hour overnight shift, so we spend most of the time sleeping. And we stay in the physician's private room. Don't let that swanky word fool you. The physician's private room is nothing but a shoe box with a twin size bed in it. We actually bring an inflatable mattress - Sydney and Jess on the twin, Layne and I on the air mattress. We arrive in time for Jess' 7pm shift, watch a little tv - I knit while Sydney colors and Layne pretends to color.

Jess comes and goes during the night as patients arrive in the ER. In the morning, I drive, Jess sleeps, Sydney watches a movie, and Layne squawks until sleep overcomes her. I drop Jess off at her "real" job (she still has about 4 months of residency remaining), drop Sydney off at school, and get Layne home so that we can start our day.

Yesterday was a little different. The day started late because the doctor relieving Jess showed up late. By the time I got both my girls off to their respective locations, it was much later than normal. I pulled into my driveway and found this:

And just like that, the tree where Sydney's horse swing is tied, the tree on which we put our Halloween witch, and the tree that is surrounded by all my daffodils, fell to the ground. I suppose I should say was now because none of that is true anymore. Sometime during the night/early morning, the combination of rain-soaked soil, shallow roots, and a top-heavy tree caused the ol' feller to topple into the neighbor's driveway.

I spent the morning on the phone trying to figure out what to do about our tree in the neighbor's yard. Hell, they couldn't even get their cars out of the garage to get to work. I was feeling terrible despite the fact that that a) it wasn't our fault in the least and b) there was no way we could have prevented it. As the morning progressed, and I spent my time leaving messages, returning phone calls, and keeping Jess abreast of the situation instead of spending my time running errands for our vacation and for Sydney's Daisy meeting this afternoon.

All things came together when I heard the chainsaw. Funny thing, really. I ran out there asking who they worked for (mostly because I didn't want to get hosed and be charged an unbelievable amount of money before I got more estimates). They gave me a name, but I misunderstood and tried to locate the number of who I thought they were. In the meantime, one of the tree service companies I had left a message with returned my phone call. Turns out his guys were the ones with the chainsaws in my front yard. Apparently, our neighbor called them to get the ball rolling - I suppose he wanted to be able to get his car out of the garage this morning.

It only took a couple hours to demolish the tree ... poor tree.

All that remains is a stump. The stump guy is taking that away next week sometime. And our lawn guy is going to make it look like the tree and the bed that laid at its feet never existed.

And just like that, the tree is gone. Bye bye tree, bye bye daffodils, you will be missed.