Not Today

Every day is a struggle to get Will dressed. He waits until the last possible second before we leave to get dressed and this includes a mad dash to find one of the two outfits that he will wear (michigan shorts or baseball pants and probably red boots). Today as usual I was trying to get him dressed so that we could make it on time to a class at the Y.

Me - "Will please get dressed so that we can go."

Will, with a precious little smile and wink, "Not today sweetie pie."

Guess we're going naked to the gym.

Will's Graduation from Preschool

I didn't think that I would be sad this day. I have been waiting forever for Will to be old enough to go to kindergarten, but today I actually felt pretty nostalgic about Will (and Cooper's) years at the old Pleasant Plains Baptist Church preschool. In the car coming home from the graduation I told the boys that I was so sad that they are getting big and growing up. Will said, "don't worry mom, I'm not going to grow up." He has been saying for several months now that he doesn't want to get older, doesn't want to be 5-years-old. I sometimes wish I could still be 4-years-old again. Mom made nice dinners, I didn't have to clean the house that much and just got to play outside all the time. Those were the days! I love you Will! Thanks for making me smile!

Prince Caspian

We have been planning to go to the new Chronicles of Narnia movie, Prince Caspian, all week. And Will has been planning out his outfit for the movie all week. And he did indeed wear the following outfit to the movie. He loved it. But I thought it was funny that he dresses like this all the time but when I stopped at CVS before the movie to get some candy he didn't want to go in because he was worried about people seeing him.

This is Will's "King Peter" outfit and pose.

Complete with the shield and a great shot of his adorable booty!

Our new family baker

Cooper is the greatest snickerdoodle baker I have ever seen! And, he doesn't stick to the 1 inch ball size. His balls of dough are more like an ice cream scoop size so they turn out huge and really good. Plus, he also follows the rule of thumb that there is no replacement for real butter in the recipe. Now if I can just get him to feel as passionate about cooking dinner and mopping the floor for me!

Strawberry Patch

One of the things that I love about North Carolina is the long growing season. I have different things growing in my garden most all of the year. Right now it is strawberry season! The kids and I had a great time picking strawberries at the strawberry patch. All week we have enjoyed fresh strawberries on our cereal, strawberry shortcake and strawberries with whipped cream. Yum!

The Destroyer

Don't let this innocent face fool you! On Monday Paris managed to slobber all over my phone and short it out somehow so I had to get a new one. She also pushed some buttons on the computer and deleted a few important things. But she does have a sweet smile!

Honda Pilot

Yesterday I went to get an estimate at a body shop to fix a few minor scrapes on the bumper of our fairly new Honda Pilot. These occured when an old lady and I backed into each other slowly in a parking lot. Will and Paris were in the car with me. When I told them what we were doing Will said,

"But Mommy, how will we know which Honda is ours without the scratches on the back?"

Let the mocking and scorning of my driving record and skills begin.

Paris' 1st Birthday (which was actually a week ago - April 28)

Her first candle - which her brothers "helped" her blow out.

She was not about to touch this thing - who knew where it came from? And she didn't eat a bit, just shook her head no back and forth like crazy.

All ready to party! And no, these are not my legs.

Princess for the day!

Paris' flower cakes - my first foray into fondant.

Paris with Austin but probably reaching for my mom, who she loves more than either of us.

Nonni, Emmy and Paris

We love having you in our family, Paris! We have big dreams for you to be a sweet girl who quietly folds her hands and colors in the corner for hours, a calming influence on your big brothers and someone who begs to be able to clean the bathroom for mom!

When Mommy is Away The Kids Will Play!

Austin had a great time with the kids while I was gone. Even looks like Paris got dressed and was fed! And even learned the correct stance for a pitcher! Will created an amazing race car using a box. Of course his goggles are a very important part of the driving experience.

I appreciate Austin so much for watching the kids and giving me a wonderful break. It was well needed and I am back home with a smile!

A Blissful Weekend in Myrtle Beach

I just returned from an amazing three days at Myrtle Beach with some girlfriends. It was so much fun to spend time with some girls that I haven't seen for awhile. We talked, slept in - today until 10 a.m.- shopped, ate out, and slapped ourselves down on the beach for hours at a time. Thanks so much for inviting me girls! Loved every minute!

March of Dimes March for Babies

Cooper has been raising money all week for the March of Dimes March for Babies. I have to admit some of his motivation was for winning the prize for the person who raised the most money (in Austin's group at work). The prize is a Wii! It's Cooper's big chance. So he sent out emails and went door to door all week and raised nearly $500. Well, he actually did end up winning the Wii - he is so excited! But I want to talk about the March.

First of all, Cooper had a baseball game yesterday at the same time as the March for Babies was happening, so I assumed that he would just turn in his money and forget the 5 mile walk. But he said to me, "Mom, I am going to do the March. What is more important - marching for babies to have safe deliveries or just playing baseball for fun?" I was impressed with this maturity. So we decided to do the March as a family, even though secretly Austin was disappointed that Cooper would miss a game.

We even completed the whole walk. You could stop after 2.5 miles or complete the entire 5. We did the entire 5. It was such a great experience. There were hundreds of people walking together for a great cause. I loved the energy of that large of a group together. Maybe we will make this our first annual March for Babies and do the same thing next year! Thank you to all the people who donated and helped Cooper's dreams come true!

One of the Sweetest Things Cooper has Ever Done

A much-needed lift from Cooper.

Little Caesars

I am also blogging to bear my testimony about Little Caesars Hot n Ready pizzas (some of you might have seen Michelle's blog). Today was a looong day with the kids. Austin was at the Masters in Augusta, GA so it was me against the kids. So tonight was definitely a no-cooking night. I rolled up to the takeout window (this is the greatest thing about it, you don't even have to get out!) and asked for one large cheese pizza. Two seconds later I had a pizza in my car and had only paid $5.34. It really was the highlight of my day today and we will be visiting again soon.

Will

Will was an absolute gem today during conference. Austin and I honestly couldn't recognize him. He was quietly playing with blocks on the floor or coloring and we just enoyed some wonderful time listening to the prophets. Here are some pictures my dad took of his creations.

The greatest workout in the world

I have been a member of one gym or another for the last four years and have been an avid exerciser for the last 15 years and I have now found the most fun workout ever! It is Zumba which "fuses hypnotic musical rhythms and tantalizing moves to create a dynamic workout system designed to be FUN and EASY TO DO." It is also supposed to be a party! And it totally is! From the first few seconds of the warmup I felt free and young again. I got chills and just couldn't stop smiling. I love to dance! I miss the clubs and dances from college and high school and don't get a chance to do this much anymore. By the way, I'm not saying that I am good at dancing, just that I love to hear the music and do the moves. That is the great thing about this class - there are teenagers to grandmas in that class and everyone is having so much fun. You don't even worry about how you look because you are just trying so hard to follow along and so is everyone else. Everyone in there is sweating to death and has a huge smile on their faces.

Pee-Wee Cup

Cooper is playing in a serious baseball league where at the ripe old age of seven, he is required to wear a cup. So Austin took him to the sports store to pick out a cup. Luckily he found the pee-wee Pro cup which advertises "the world's smallest cup." Poor Cooper. Nuf' said.

OK -- THIS IS AUSTIN -- I must clarify some misinformation. Someone has got to protect Cooper's manhood. The image she grabbed is not his actual purchased equipment. His actual equipment, which I purchased, because some boy according to Cooper was "squeezing my weiner during practice saying he was doing a cup check " was for boys 7 / 8 years of age. He just turned 7 a week ago. I noticed the image Shanda got off the internet said ages 4 / 5. Come on Mom -- a little respect please.

Paris got her ears pierced!

Yesterday Paris and I went on a girl shopping trip to Southpark with our friend Brandi. We had lunch at the Cheescake Factory, went to Anthropologie and decided a great finish to the day would be getting Paris' ears pierced! I think she looks so adorable, though it is hard to see in these pictures.

Austin and Paris

Wii

Cooper's biggest goal in life right now is how to get a Wii. He has been "checking on Craig's list for a cheap Wii" - he thought he saw one for $3.15 and got really excited until he realized that it was $315. He has also thought that he could probably go to Toys R Us and buy a $600 gift card with his $10 in cash and then buy a Wii. Also just begging me daily to write him a check is one of his other ways he thinks to finagle a Wii.

I think the Wii looks AWESOME and fun for the whole family, but unfortunately it will probably never happen.

Thanks to a weirdo on Austin's floor his freshman year at BYU.

This guy was a "national video game champion" of some sort and would go around flexing his thumb muscles for all to see. It basically soured Austin on any sort of video games. So for now Cooper is stuck playing Webkinz and all the Candystand.com and other free games online he can find.

Happy Birthday to Cooper (and Aunt Shawnie)

Cooper is finally the big 7! His birthday celebrations seemed to last all week. Birthday dinner at Planet Hollywood in Orlando, getting to choose the day's activities (Universal Studios). Presents on his birthday and "be nice to me because it's my birthday" and other such comments on the drive home. Then a family birthday party the day after his birthday. Now we will be into spending his birthday money and gift cards that came rolling in from family far away.

Happy Birthday Cooper! You are getting to be one big guy!