Campfire time!

to the left, those are REALLY stars :)

We've been lucky enough to build a few fires since the air has gotten cooler...this morning eli begged wes to build one(at 6:30 am!) before he went to work! looks like he has the fever!

we all had fun:)

Welcome Fall! We've missed you!!!

eli was singing in this one!

So this weekend was filled with some good family moments...Saturday we loaded the kids up and headed out to the Hiwassee River...We wanted to get out of the house, since it was such a nice day (with hints of fall!) and let the kids play in the water and gather rocks and such...it took us A WHILE :) to find a spot...the river was up, so there weren't very many spots that would accommodate a four, three and one year old...we went to a place that mamaw and hanny frequent, but needless to say, there were several people there already...i guess we should have expected that on a saturday...we even drove to the ocoee(wes's idea) to see if we could find a little spot...but we had no luck, so we drove back to the hiwassee...i prefer the hiwassee atmosphere than the ocoee anyway...it's much more quaint and cozy...the ocoee is too hustling and bustling...to me...the spot that we went to first was then empty...ellie was fast asleep, so we left her in the car (with the windows down!) and let her rest...eli and addie loved it...eli was a little more adventurous, of course...when ellie finally woke up, she was ready to dive in to that freezing cold water! she's a wild woman! we had a really nice time...just being up there made me want to be there more! we regretted not throwing a tent in the car...that's the only thing that wasn't in there!the air smelled smokey...i just love that smell...i even love it the next day when you get a whiff of your clothes or hair...anyway, i'm so glad that fall is today! Happy Birthday, Fall! We sure do love that you are here!

I had a BEAUTIFUL birthday!

So yesterday i hit the big TWO-NINE...that's right...just one year from thirty...i'm not upset, though, because my life just keeps getting better and better! i have the most wonderful husband...and i am not just saying that...this is MY blog and everything in it is only what is dear to me...So, back to my honey...he is such a romantic...he always finds time to make me feel special...even though i am a worn out, frazzled, mommy...i love him more than anything...well, yesterday i started the day by entertaining my kid's every whim...not really, but that's sure what it felt like...they started out all smiles and "happy birthdays"...then after wes left for work (go figure) they were fist fighting, screaming, and making demands...so, i kept asking "don't ya'll remember that today is my birthday?!" after they all went to nap my day got way better...i had a nice little cup of coffee and looked at ETSY...when my honey got home, we got ready and left...josh and rachel helped us out BIG TIME by watching the kids for us! we went out to dinner and a movie...they were both perfect...wes gave me a beautiful necklace...i assumed that was all a girl could need on her 29th birthday...i was lucky to have such a fun night with my darlin...when we pulled in, josh and rachel and their kids were already in the car...i didn't think twice about it because they said the kids were tired...so, when we walk into the house, it was full of candles! the living room...the dining room...then i look at our dining room table and it is filled with mums! (MY FAVORITE!)Wes's lovely mom (my mama-in-law) got them for me...and helped make the house look SO beautiful! it was a wonderful night! i am so lucky to be so loved...

so today i'm feeling a little O.C.D

i have the organizing bug this week...i have been in the kid's rooms, rearranging...addie received a dora the explorer house for her birthday...and she got a growing family doll house for christmas...so since her birthday, i have not been able to sleep at night (maybe that's a little dramatic) because dora did not live next door to the growing family....so...a few days ago, i got in there and i rearranged! there is limited space when two gals share a room...i'm actually pretty good at getting rid of toys that are broken or that they just don't play with any more...i don't want them to be monsters...we buy them things for their birthdays and christmas...and then only occasionally throughout the year...but it surprises me at how much stuff they accumulate...we have been blessed with wonderful friends and family, so they rack up at their birthday parties...so, alot gets passed on...eli cracks me up because whenever he gets something he asks if it came from the thrift store! haha! he thinks that is the only place i shop! it works out good, though...i buy practically brand new things that some other kid got tired of...for dirt...and then when my kids get tired of it, i return it to the thrift store...viola! if you have never been to christ's chapel in ringgold, you must go...i bought addie a pair of tevas there for .50 cents! they have dress up stuff and toys and the price is everything you can stick in a bag for a dollar! i love that place! so, back to the dora/growing family house problem...i rearranged and now they are happily living as next door neighbors....ahhhhhh...now that feels better:) (of course i put all of the play food in the same basket...and all the dress up stuff in an under the bed container (that the kids haven't discovered yet !) and put all the baby doll stuff in a basket...of course they are all mixed up now...oh well...it was fun while it lasted!

Mommies and Showers

Why is it that when i take a shower, my kids ask where we are going? Am i not entitled to shower daily without leaving my home? Not that i shower daily....not by choice, of course...I would love to shower daily...When Wes showers, they don't ask where he's going...Just wondering?

Mighty Morphin Cavity Ranger

so most people don't care much about hearing of kids, other than their own...but today wes and i took eli to see kung fu panda at the 2.50 theatre and he said something that the world should know...so now, i will share it with you...brandon...i'm not really sure if i have other readers, but someday, future fans can read this in the archives...so on the way to the show, eli tells us that when he grows up he is going to be a dentist and a power ranger...so there you have it...not only does today's youth care about good dental hygiene, but justice as well...goodnight

My Bubba...

now, when i say BUBBA, i don't mean it in the redneck sort of way...you must say it with an indian accent...not native american indian...i mean, india indian...SHOUT OUT, ZUBIN! anyhow, i love my brother, so much...he just posted an awesome blog about childhood memories...it's hard to think about childhood, without thinking of brandon...we really had some good times as kids...and i can always count on brandon to bring the skeletons out of the closet...such as old pictures of my frizzy permed hair (daddy was dating "edie" the manager at regis hairstyle, at the time!) and extremely buck teeth...with a HUGE gap in them...as a matter of fact, i believe he has some pics on his myspace of when we were little...lets just get it all out in the open...thanks bubba...brandon and i have always had a dry, sarcastic sort of humor...i often wonder where it came from! we lived out in the country...with our grandparents...hmmmm? i'll be thinking about that one...we were just laughing, the other day, about how we used to fight....i mean, literally, fight...brandon threw rocks at me almost every day while we waited for the bus...(no car riding for us:) we were raised by our grandparents!) i hit him in the head with a hot wheel or something one time...and brought much blood...i was a scrapper, but brandon fought to kill...but luckily, I'm Still here!!! wooohooo! the funniest thing that i can remember that i did to get even with him, was to throw his beloved transformers over the fence...our neighbor bush hogged pretty often, so they were obliterated before too long...HAHA! i never realized that our poor dad was working seven days a week...and his hard earned money bought those transformers...oh well...anyway, we had some good times...love you bubba!