Catch-Up Blog

Wow have I been a bad blogger lately!!! I was afraid this would happen when I started blogging. I know myself so well! In an attempt to catch up, I will do one big blog with several things from the last couple months.
Back in January or February (I can't remember which) we actually got some snow. Unfortunately, I don't have great snow clothes for the boys, so Ethan wore a pair of my boots (they are a little small on me and big on him, but they somehow worked!) and a pair of rainboots for Carter. Donnie worked the night before, so he was home with them when school was canceled to play out in the snow! Yay!! I'm not a fan of the cold!















We celebrated Pittsburgh's trip to the Superbowl by just getting some wings and having a little party with the four of us at home. My mom and dad got us all shirts and Ethan decorated.














Long story short, Ethan wanted to be Abraham Lincoln (or as he used to say, Hammerton Lincoln).














We went to a birthday party where Ethan and Carter were able to take pony rides. They loved it!!



















Some action shots of Ethan playing basketball. And I use the term 'action' loosely!




















For Valentine's Day, Ethan wanted a Mario Kart for his box to hold his cards. Fortunately for me I have some creative friends and family since I don't have a creative bone in my body. They gave me some ideas, and this is how it turned out. I also hot glued some matchbox cars on the bottom so that it really rolls and he could play with it at home.
















If you have been a faithful blog follower (and have a really good memory) you might recall a poster contest Ethan entered about not talking to strangers. He called his poster "Stranger Danger" and drew a picture of a stranger offering him candy and him running away and yelling. Well, I got a call informing me that he got 5th place for his poster and would receive an award at the next PTA meeting. Here is a picture of all 5 of the winners with their winning ribbons. Way to go Efie!!

Surprise!!

My dad turned 60 on Jan. 18 and I wanted to do something special for him. After talking to my sister, we thought it would be really fun if I could fly home and surprise him on his birthday. My brother and sister were going to drive home, but there was no big party planned and my dad said he just wanted to spend the weekend with his family. The weekend fell on MLK day, so it was a perfect weekend to plan something. Donnie said he would watch the boys over the weekend and would also take Monday off. So my sister and brother-in-law told my mom and dad the were going to go to Ikea Saturday morning, but instead they picked me up at the airport. When we got home, I went around back, and waited for Chrisi to come down and let me in the basement. I then hid in a lawn and leaf garbage bag and they told my dad to play 'Hot, Cold' to search for his present. When he got to the bag, they said "hot" and he touched my head but had no idea what was going on. Then I pulled the bag off me and I wish I had a picture of his face, because he was completely and totally surprised. He just kept hugging me and asked how I got there!! I believe he even got a little teary eyed!! I am so glad we were able to pull it off and I'm so thankful I was able to make that trip happen!

101st Day of School

For Ethan's 100th day of school, I got to go into his class and help with some really cute activities to help celebrate the day. Then the next day the kids were asked to dress as dalmations to help celebrate the 101st day of school. My sister made him his cute little dalmation outfit to wear to school. He was a little reluctant b/c he didn't want to be embarassed, but as soon as his teacher saw him, she told him how cute she thought he looked and I think he started to feel better. He was the most decked out in his class and had a really fun day (especially watching the movie!)

Carter is FOUR!!

Carter turned four on Jan. 26. He is so proud to be 4 and whenever he does something good, he says it's because he's 4. We celebrated his birthday with a bowling party. He had such a fun time and even got an actual bowling pin as a souvenir with all his friends' signatures on it. Of course he had a Wall-E cake, but the bowling alley provided all the paper products and he went with Spongebob. He practiced for his party weeks in advance by bowling on the Wii! I cannot believe my baby is 4!! Happy birthday, Carter! We are so proud of you and love you very much!!

Future Michael Jordan

Ethan signed up for basketball this season and had his first game a couple of weeks ago. Each period is 6 minutes long and the final score was 7-5 (Ethan's team won!) There are some kids on his team with some natural talent, he just doesn't happen to be one of them! He does anything the coach tells him, but he's not quite sure why he's doing it. For example, when the other team has the ball, the coach tells them to put their hands up. Ethan does this, but just stands in one place with his hands straight up in the air. On the way to the game I was telling him how he really has to go after the ball and steal it away from the other team. But he told me he didn't want to do that because stealing is bad! Despite all this, I was so very proud of him for going out there and giving it his all!!

New Year's Eve

We rang in the New Year at my brother's house. I'm not sure who came up with this fun game, but I don't recommend it to others. My brother had all the little ones line up and take turns jumping on his stomach. They were all so excited about this and could never wait for their turn. Then my two older nephews got in on the fun, and Chase (who is almost 12) was the springboard for Hunter (who is 14). They would stand on Chase and then jump on Hunter!! After they were finished with that, they all took animal rides on my brother. Since Carter's birthday is at the end of this month, we also celebrated his birthday since we probably won't get to see everyone again for a while. We played lots of games, watched TV, and had a great time ringing in 2009 with each other!!

Carter with my brother's cat. He absolutely loves cats and wants one so bad, but Donnie and I unfortunately do not share his love!

Carter getting an animal ride on my brother

Ethan jumping on my brother

Theron jumping on his 2 older brothers

Carter celebrating his birthday

A family picture

Just the kiddos

Chrisi is reading all the kids a story before bedtime.

Our Christmas Vacation

We had originally planned on leaving for our trip the day after Christmas (which was a Friday). Donnie was going to work a few hours in the morning, and then when he got home we were going to head to Louisville. Well, on Christmas Day he decided that he didn't need to go in on Friday and suggested that since we didn't have anything holding us here, we could leave Christmas Day. So, I hurried to pack for me and the boys, tried to straighten up what I could, take care of a few things (like pay some bills and stop the mail) since we would be gone for almost 2 weeks. We got dressed and loaded up the van and were off.

Our first stop was Louisville, KY to visit Donnie's family. It is about a 5&1/2 hour drive. We stayed there until Saturday, and then drove to my mom and dad's in Washington, PA. From Louisville that is a 6 hour drive. We stayed there until Tuesday, and then went to my sister's house in Columbus, OH. We only stayed there one night and went to my brother's house in Cincinnati, OH for New Year's Eve. New Year's Day we went to Lexington, KY to visit Donnie's brother. We stayed there one night and then went back to Louisville on Friday to see his mom and step-dad again. And that is where we stayed until Sunday when we finally came back home to Memphis.

It was a lot of traveling, but so great to spend that much time with family. My sister (and her 3 boys) were at my mom and dad's the whole time we were there, and went to my brother's for New Year's Eve with us, too. My boys love to spend time with their cousins!! They also got to spend a lot of time with their cousins in KY! I was so impressed at how well Ethan and Carter held up considering how many different beds they had to sleep in and all that driving. My mother-in-law got them each a Leapster 2 for Christmas, so that really helped to keep them occupied in the car!!

In Louisville with Grandma and Grandpa Darell

Theron and Ethan with my mom at her house

Theron, Ethan, and Carter playing dress-up at my sister Chrisi's house