Photos from our beach trip

Every summer we go to the beach. Just Cherry Grove (North Myrtle Beach), but we always have fun and as the girls get older we get to enjoy more and more things together. Mostly we hang out at the beach or the pool, but in the evening we usually try to enjoy some of the activities. We play putt-putt, ride the rides, go shopping, see a show, ride bikes. Its just great being together without the daily distractions.

Some recent ones of the girls

I have not really picked up my camera since we've moved. Just don't feel the inspiration. I don't know what is wrong. But a few days ago I did pull it out and snapped a few of the girls. I think they are so beautiful and am so thankful God has brought them into my life. I just realized that the only photo of Bailey was the one under "Pillow Talk".

Photos from the 4th...

We had a great July 4th day. As usual it takes me a bit to get my photos up, but better late than never. We spent the day with Aunt Jan and Uncle Mike, at their lake house. The girls had so much fun. We enjoyed boat rides, where each of the girls took a turn driving. They loved that. We swam in the lake, hoping that no fishies would nibble on us. We went fishing, a first for Peyton and Reagan. Bailey had gone once with her Papa, but she only remembers the photos taken. And we had great luck, with each girl catching a fish. Bailey really liked it and took it quite seriously. Papa would be so proud. In the late afternoon we cooked out, the traditional 4th meal, hot dogs and hamburgers. Played some croquet (is that how it's spelled), had a bonfire with s'mores or course. What else? I think that about covers it. We had such a fun time. We missed the fireworks on the lake, because we needed to head back home, but I don't think the girls cared one bit. They were too tired to care. Thanks Aunt Jan and Uncle Mike, you're the best!!!

Pillow Talk

I have never been big on letting my children sleep in the bed with me. Maybe that seems mean, but it is my only haven away from them and I feel I deserve some privacy. But this week, with John away, I have been letting each one of the girls sleep with me. So last night was Bailey's turn. I snuggled her into the bed and I jumped in ready to begin the new book I had just bought. But Bailey wanted to talk, and talk she did. It was so great. As much as I think that I talk with my kids and listen to them I realized last night that I do, but with Mommy ears (yes, I have mommy goggles and Mommy ears). I don't usually just sit and listen to them as an individual, letting them say what they want without fear of getting in trouble. But last night, Bailey shared her feelings about being a big sister and I listened, just listened. She said that earlier in the day she had read a note that she had written to me. In the note it said that she would try harder to be a better listener. She said when she read the letter she felt bad because she didn't always do what she should. She shared that it was hard sometimes to be the big sister, because she is expected to be the leader. And her little sisters make her so mad that she just really wants to hit them, even when she knows she is going to get in trouble. And I just put on my listening ears and really listened. It was the best and I could tell she enjoyed that special time with just me. I haven't done that in a while. I feel like such a bad Mommy sometimes, because I feel so stretched, and I don't give my girls the special attention they deserve. But I am only human and as I told Bailey lastnight (I can't keep my mommy mouth turned off forever!!), all we can do is ask God's forgiveness for the mistakes that we make today and help us to do better tomorrow. A good lesson for my girls and myself. Tonight is Reagan's turn. Wonder what I will learn tonight...

Take me out to the ball game...

Yesterday we decided to take the girls out to see our local baseball team, the Kannapolis Intimidators, play a game. We had never been to a game before, and figured it would be a fun family experience. After the game they were going to show "Shrek" on the field. So we loaded up and headed to the stadium for loads of family fun. Got our tickets, food (all the good stuff ~ hotdogs, fries, sodas) and sat down for the game. Not five minutes after sitting down, we noticed storm clouds rolling in. We were told they would not delay the game until it actually starting raining so we sat it out and watched the game. Next came the lightening, striking in the distance, but all around us. Then came the thunder, which totally freaked Reagan. But still we thought 'Noone else seems concerned, so we'll just keep an eye on it.' Then came the storm, I saw a huge flash of lightening and told John we needed to find shelter. The skies opened up, the wind started blowing and the rain came, no poured down. The rain, wasn't really the problem at first, it was the lightening striking all around the stadium and it was close now, crackling over the speaker system followed by a huge roar of thunder. Reagan was now sure we were going to die and latched onto me with her head buried deep. We all huddled under the main shelter, but soon were forced out of there because the wind was blowing the rain so hard in our direction that we were all getting soaked. So the crowd moved to the front of the building, trying to shield ourselves from the rain and wind. But it did not stop. It rained so hard that the water rose above our feet. We watched as people made a break for their cars and hoped it would let up soon so that Daddy could do the same for us. There was no convincing him to go out in the middle of the storm. While waiting, an older gentleman who worked at the stadium told us that we could keep out ticket stubs and come back for Saturday's game and they would let us in. There were even going to be fireworks afterwards. We asked the girls what they thought and they all answered in unison with an emphatic "No!!"
Finally after about 45 minutes, it did finally subside enough for John to get the car for us. While loading everyone up John said at least the rain would be good for the yard, which has suffered from the heat and little rain. But when we arrived home we noticed that it looked like it had rained very little. The storm had bypassed our house completely, a mere 15 minutes away from the stadium.
I don't know if we will try again on Saturday, we will have to watch the weather, but we will never forget our first baseball game.

We've Moved!!!

Finally, we are in our new home!!!! We still have boxes everywhere and I can't find anything, but I am so happy to be here. The girls love it too. Already they have met several "girl" friends, all within 1 block of our house. We have a fantastic pool, and they meet someone new each time we go. I think the dogs are having the biggest adjustment, since we don't have a fence yet. They can't just go out and roam around like they used to do, but they are getting some great walks, and I am getting some great exercise!!

Peyton scores a hat trick!!!

Soccer season in now over, but Peyton went out with a bang!!! In her last game of the season, she played her best game yet!! She was full of fire, running after every ball, going for the goal. And she was successful, scoring three goals!!! It was great to watch and I was so proud of her. I know I had my Mommy goggles on, but she did a great job. Before playing soccer, Peyton showed no interest in sports and I wondered if she would be an athlete. But she shows a lot of athletic ability. I hope she continues to play soccer, I had such a fun time watching her.

Looks like We have a Runner...

As you can tell I recently uploaded my photos and can finally add some to the blog. Last Saturday Bailey ran her second 5K race, this time with Daddy beside her. She improved her time by nearly three minutes, running it in just over 30 minutes. This was due mostly to her Dad not letting her walk more than 10 seconds at a time. He really pushed her and she did great. She won another medal for being first in her age group. She was the youngest runner with the next age being a 13 year old girl, who actually won the entire race for the women. Bailey has decided she wants to run more, so I better get my act together and start training a little better this time. Now even Peyton wants to run, but only the 1 mile for now. It is so great to see my children involved in athletics. I am a real proud Momma bear!

My Little Hero in Training

Playing some Candyland with my girl.

It seems like lately that I have been so caught up in my own stuff, that I have been putting my girls on the sideburner. I am ashamed to say it, but I haven't been spending any quality time with them. So, I am trying to stop, take a breather and spend a little one on one time with each of them. I know they will be gone in a second and I've got to stop and enjoy this moment now. So today Reagan and I played a game of Candyland. She beat me everytime, even when I thought I was sure to win. We had a blast, laughing and teasing. Man oh man, do I love her. She is so cute and witty. She can drive me crazy with her constant chatter, but she makes me smile and laugh on a daily basis too. She has such a zest for life, and can create a fairytale world with a few basics and whole of lot of wonderful imagination. I am so thankful that I have her for one more year before she heads off to kindergarten. She is my favorite Reagan.

I Did It!!!

I ran/walked my first 5k run. It was hard, mostly b/c I did a half**s job of training, but I made myself complete it. I am always preaching to the girls that you can't quit, well, aren't we supposed to lead by example??
It was one of my new year's resolutions and probably the only one I actually kept. It inspired me watching the other runners, most of them at least 15 years older than me. So I am going to try to train a little better and run (hopefully all of it next time) again.
But even better, Bailey, being all of eight years old (well actually seven and 3/4) ran the race as well and won a first place trophy for her age division. There were no other children under the age of 12 running, which says a lot for her in and of itself. Just before the 5k they had a fun run for the younger children, which was only a mile, and I tried to get Bailey to run, but she was determined to run the 'big one'. You gotta love that. I told her that we could run/walk together, but she wanted to run and ended up running with my friend, staying with her most of the run, falling behind only in the last mile, when she got tired, and slowed down. Since I was way behind those two ( yes, I pulled up the caboose), my friend told me that Bailey inspired her to keep running (my friend won as well) because Bailey would see the other runners ahead of her and wanted to catch up with them. Man am I proud of her. She has come such a long way in the past year with her confidence and I am just so excited to see her growth.
She was so pumped after the race she signed up for another 5k for next weekend. We'll see how it goes...

Ireland

Shannon and Michael you have beautiful children. My girls enjoyed playing with your gang tremenously. I hope we will see you more often now that the grandparents are down this way.

Easter

I have an Aunt and Uncle who were always my favorite growing up. We all have them. Mine were Aunt Jan and Uncle Mike, my dad's brother and wife. As a small child I remember spending many weekends either at their house or ours. We had a great time together. Eventually, they moved to another state and I missed them terribly, but we still saw them at least once a year on holidays. I have many fond memories of my childhood with them. Even with seeing them only once a year or so, I still considered them my favorite aunt and uncle. I just love them so much. Well, recently they moved back down to the Carolinas and are only a hop, skip and jump away now, and I am so very excited. After my Dad died, not only did I lose him,I felt like I lost his family, he was my lifeline to everyone. And as stupid as this may sound, now with Aunt Jan and Uncle Mike being closer, I feel like I get back a little piece of my Dad. When I see my Uncle Mike I see my Dad, and it makes me smile and cry at the same time.
Anyways, this Easter, they invited us to their house. My mom, my sister and her family came for a day, my cousin and his family were down and another aunt and uncle were also there. It was really nice visiting with everyone. And it was really great to see all our children playing together the way we used to when we were little. I have lots of photos to share from the weekend. I'll start with my sister's cute little munchkins.

Mommy's girls...

I love them so much.

We gotta pull that tooth!!

Well, yesterday Peyton went in for her check-up. All is good except that one of her permanent teeth has pushed through behind the baby tooth. Because the baby tooth hasn't come out it is causing the permanent tooth to become crooked. So the dentist told Peyton, that if she hadn't pulled the tooth by next week he was going to pull it! And do you know how much that costs?? $100. So I had a little sit down with Peyton and explained to her that we were going to pull that tooth out even if it meant me pulling it with a string. The tooth is loose and with some jiggling could come out quite easily, but unlike Bailey who will try to make her tooth loose, just to pull them out, Peyton will not touch the tooth. She has a low tolerance for pain and blood. She almost goes in to hysterics when she brushes her teeth and sees a little red in her spit! How am I going to get her to pull it out? Everyday for lunch I am giving her pears and apples to eat and I have to tell her to bite down with the front teeth. Poor thing! Let's just hope it comes out before next week rolls around.

It's Peyton's Turn

to show her stuff. After a year of stating that she wasn't going to play any sports, Peyton, came to me one day and said she wanted to play soccer. I explained to her that as happy as we were to hear that, we only wanted her to play if that was what she really wanted to do. John, of course, really wants at least one of his girls to play soccer, but they have to make that decision on their own. She said she really wanted to play. I was very happy to hear this, because with Peyton being the middle child I often worry about her getting lost in the crowd. Bailey often gets the attention before the others because she is the oldest, and we often, without thinking, put her out there to experience it. She is also the most competitive out of the three so she makes herself known. Reagan, being the baby, demands attention. She is truly our drama queen and is constantly talking or singing, or talking..... and Peyton is very giving to the other two. She bends for them. It is very hard and I hate to think that I might accomodate that, but that is a different post. So here is Peyton's chance to shine. I want to give her all the support I possibly can and even though it is a great experience to be playing, I secretly hopes she does really well. She deserves to shine, and she would eat up the praise from her Dad. Here are a few photos from practice. She does seem to be quite good, but then, I might be just a little bit biased. But just look at that strike.