The Happy Dance

Joshua is now a little over 21 months old. Can you believe it? When I began this blog, I believe he was just about two months old. He is very different than his big brother.

Let's see, how can I describe Joshy? When I think of Joshua, the first word that comes to me is...daredevil.

He has absolutely no fear! The other day, he climbed up on his little chair, started doing some crazy movements, throwing himself off, landing on the floor, again laughing the whole way and then doing it again. I actually felt my heart skip a beat when he did that for the first time. Now, it's no big deal for us, but it is kind of funny to watch the reactions of others when he does it in front of them. And energy?!?!?!? He has more energy than anyone I have ever met. At 10pm when he should be asleep, he is like Hulk Hogan (or one of them,) body slamming Shawn and I, laughing the whole way.

But the one thing, that both Joshua and Tyler have in common, is their sweetness. Joshua can snuggle like the best of them. When he sits with me, he always keeps his hands on my face, and his new phrase, which is my favorite, is I yuv u.

Lately, hotwheels, Elmo and Happy Feet (pronounced Emmo and Hop Pee Fee) are things that Joshua likes the most. Happy Feet truly takes the cake though. Literally, he has been asking to watch the movie at least four times a day (of course we don't let him.) The amazing thing is, when we allow him to watch it, he will sit through the whole move. It is so funny! He loves that little penguin.

Yesterday, when Shawn and I went to Wally World, they had a stuffed Mumbo (the penguin of in the movie.) When you press its foot, it actually does the tap dancing noise, and when it does, Joshua begins dancing. He loves that thing. It is the first thing that he has actually received that made his eyes truly light up. In fact, today he brought it to school with him.

I love this age. I really believe it's my favorite. It's the age of discovery and it is a time that we, as adults, can truly look at things through innocent eyes.

For Sale By Owner

Do you know anyone who would be interested?

Inside Out and Backwards

It amazes me.

I haven't been out of work for more than two weeks and my schedule is completely inside out and backwards.

Me, who could barely stay awake to watch a show that would end at 11pm, now can't even go to sleep until the clock says 1:00am. and, ask me what day it is.... my answer is, "dunno, let me find a calendar."

I have to thank God though. He knows what he is doing....The boys tend to sleep in a little more in the morning as well. No more 6 am's. It's more like 9. Not bad.

I guess I better start doing something and go back to work, before I get to used to this schedule.

My Lady Cadee

I'd like to introduce you to someone special. She was an unexpected blessing to our family.

I never could have dreamed anything better.

Welcome, Lady Cadence Yancey...aka "Cadee."

Cadee was my Mother's Day gift from my family. Our registered Golden Retriever, which has always been my dream dog, was born March 31, 2007. Her demeanor is amazing! Not too hyper, pretty laid back in fact, and the best part...HOUSEBROKEN!!!!

The normal price of Retriever's, especially champion bloodline, is usually pretty high, but fortunately for us, the Daddy Dog was spreading the love around so much, that the owner had 33 puppies (from 3 different Mamas) and just wanted to find good homes for a reasonable price.

In the month or so since she has been a part of our family, she has picked up quickly on some great tricks. She sits on command, lies down, shakes and plays fetch. I have never experienced anything like it.

She really is the perfect dog for our family, especially with Joshua. He can play rough, and when Cadee has had enough, she just plops her paw over him, where he can't move. It's GREAT.

Since all of the craziness with my job and other things, Cadee really has been a blessing for me. I have never attached to an animal like I have with Cadee. She has really become "Woman's Best Friend."

Welcome, my Lady Cadee....

Vacation Bible School

It is that time of year again!

It is VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL.

Actually, this is the 2nd time for Tyler this year. The first time was through his dayschool for the summer, but this time it is at our church, and I am actually helping with it.

I have to say, I am a little nervous. I would rather be in a room full of adults than a room filled with children. Those little people intimidate me.

Now, I know what you are thinking..."but you're a mom."

That's true and all, but helping children, in large groups, have always made me uncomfortable. I think it is because as an educator of some sort, you truly can lead children in the wrong direction, if not careful. The thought of that scares me to pieces.

But this year, I am stepping way out of my comfort zone and taking a giant leap.

So when you read my blog this time. Say a little prayer for the children (as well as all their teachers) this week at VBS.

Too Much Time, With a Party to Plan

Ok, I have too much time on my hands right now.

For those of you who I haven't told personally, the job I took, didn't pan out the way I thought it would, so now I am at home. It is not necessarily a bad thing. I truly believe things happen the way they are supposed to.

I have begun getting my house back in some sort of order, as well as planning a party for Tyler's 7th birthday, which is in a couple of weeks. It is going to be a Spongebob Squarepants theme. Though I am not a fan, I understand Tyler's reasoning for wanting this theme, so I am going to do what I can to make it work.

We have already sent out the invitations for the party and I and have gotten some of the supplies for it as well. Planning an event for fifteen 7 year olds, is very exciting, not to mention a little nerve wracking. I have to be very careful to make the party exciting enough to keep their attention, but not too baby"ish" or too old.

Here is some of the food ideas I have come up with (with a little help from Coolestkidpartyideas) :

Squidward Hotdogs - cut the hot dogs almost in half and then keep cutting into additional sections allowing the "legs" to curl up when boiled, looking like an octopus

Sandy Cheeks shells - Thanks to Velveeta mac and cheese

Plankton Pizza - Mini-bagel bites

Spongebob Fruit Salad - Hollow out a pineapple and cutting up a variety of melons and grapes and refilling back up.

and my favorite...

Ocean Sea Punch - Blue punch with gummy fish and sharks swimming in it...

Do any of you out there have any other ideas that I can borrow?

2nd Child Syndrome

For all you families that have two or more children, I have to ask, does this happen everywhere or am I just a slacker?

When Tyler, my almost 7 year old, was born, we had his picture taken at the photography studio ALL the time. 1week, 1 month, 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 1 year and 18 months. We have more photos of Tyler than we know what to do with.

Joshua, on the other hand, was not so....photographed. We had his formal picture taken at one week and then, well, I hate to admit this, but again at 18 months. I don't know why. There is no excuse really. I even paid a fee at his 1 week pictures, to be a part of the "Smile Club," giving me all sorts of discounts for photos during the next 2 years, to which, I've never used. Though I will say, we have a million snapshots that are fantastic of Joshy that we have taken. Most of which are framed.

Well, fortunately for me, his daycare has his picture taken last month and I am going to post it for the world to see. So to Joshy, I am sorry for not having more pictures taken of you (but then again, they do a GREAT job at school.)

My Husband...The Deal Maker

Have you ever met one of those people, who will buy almost anything, as long as they get it for a bargain? I have, and I live with him everyday and I am talking about Shawn, my husband.

I can remember when he was a delivery driver for a milk company, he would come home with all sorts of things (i.e. a five foot blue m&m guy - which is now a clothes hamper) because one of the stores he delivered to was throwing it away. I used to call him, lovingly of course, my dumpster diver (oh, what pet names we give.)

Well this morning, after Josh woke us up at 6am, we decided to go to some yard sales. Actually, Shawn decided to.

We arrived at our first yard sale at 7:18am (12 minutes before it officially opened for business.) As we were scoping things out, I could see the excitement building in all of us, kids included.

We had hit the jackpot! There was stuff for each one of us and we all ran in our own directions.

Below are the deals we got (hehe)...

Panasonic 36" HDTV -two years old (retailed at $1249.00) - $200
16" Dell Flat Screen monitor for our desktop - $40
A new beautiful 6 piece patio furniture set - $90
Walkie Talkies (why we need them you ask? I ask the same) $15
Remote Control Hummer (the big one - that around Christmas time sells for $100) $15
Paint sprayer - $5.00
Kids card table and two folding chairs $4.00
Electronic Dart board - $1.00

Each item listed above, was carefully negotiated with the original owners by Shawn, in order to give us the best deal possible.

We returned home at 7:55am, not even an hour after we had begun our adventure, broke, but nonetheless, excited over our treasures we had gotten and more excited about the money we saved.

Fam Pics at the Beach

I wanted to share some great pics of our getaway at the beach a few weeks ago. For those who don't know, my brother, sister-in-law and neice came down from Syracuse, NY over Easter week. My dad rented a beach house where we celebrated both Christmas and Easter.
It was probably one of the best weeks I have had in my life.
Enjoy!!!

The Current State

My blog is usually somewhat light. I try not to get too deep into the "heavy subjects," unless something has a significant impact...one that I feel will change me as a person for the rest of my life.

This last couple of weeks have been some of the most emotional weeks that I have encountered. The strange part for me, is that I have cried many tears over numerous people I do not even know. The Virginia Tech students, a young television anchor in my community who lost her battle to cancer, leaving behind a husband and her two month old baby and right now the children that are being highlighted on Idol Gives Back, here at home and over in Africa.

I cannot comprehend how these children have to live in the conditions they do. Here, we(I) tend to take for granted all the luxuries that we (I) have, and yet these babies are dying of Malaria in Africa because they can't afford the treatment or mosquito nets for protection. Or how about closer to home...those who have suffered from Hurricane Katrina, are still suffering, living in unhealthy conditions. I don't understand.

How has this world come to this? There has got to be something we, as society, can do? I don't know what to do. I want to do something. How do we start to make a change?

My prayers, truly are with those who need it most. Those who are without.

Out of the Mouth of Babes

Joshua is really starting to try to mimick words that he hears.

He says:

Mama
Daddy
Ty Ty
Uh oh
ball ball
Goggie (doggie)
No (very clearly)

and my very favorite...BobBob (aka Spongebob- thanks Ty Ty.)

It's Soccer Season!

This is Tyler's first year playing soccer and he is doing so well. At first he was a bit hesitant, but with some encouragement and a bribe of a Frosty, he has gotten in the game and had fun.

Quick little funny. Tyler's nickname is Ty Ty.

Tyler plays for the team, "Dr. Goody Thomas," which is a mouthful if your cheering them on. So, as you can see by their shirts, they are tie dye. Everyone cheers, "let's go tie dye!"

Tyler came of the field the first time of playing and he said, "Wow mom, their sure are a lot of people rooting for me."

It was sooooooooooo cute.

A Funny For You...

(A funny from my dad...)

A married couple went to the hospital to have their baby delivered.

Upon their arrival, the doctor said that the hospital was testing an amazing new high-tech machine that would transfer a portion of the mother's labor pain to the baby's father. He asked if they were willing to try it out.

Both said they were very much in favor of it.

The doctor set the pain transfer to 10 percent for starters, explaining that even 10 percent was probably more pain than the father had ever experienced before. But as the labor progressed, the husband felt fine and asked the doctor to go ahead and kick it up a notch.

The doctor then adjusted the machine to 20 percent pain transfer. The husband was still feeling fine. The doctor then checked the husband's blood pressure and was amazed at how well he was doing.

At this point they decided to try for 50 percent. The husband continued to feel quite well. Since the pain transfer was obviously helping the wife considerably, the husband encouraged the doctor to transfer ALL the pain to him.

The wife delivered a healthy baby with virtually no pain, and the husband had experienced none. She and her husband were ecstatic.
BUT,
>
>
>
When they got home they found the UPS man dead on the porch.

It's Snowing Pollen

Forecasters say that a high pollen count for our area is usually around 140. Where we live, currently, the pollen count is at 7,000.

YES, I said 7,000.

That is CRAZY to me. I can't even comprehend a count so high. But, in fact, it does explain all of the sniffly noses and stuffy heads that people are dealing with.

I actually took Tyler and Joshua to the doctors Friday, because they were having those symptoms and with what we have been through this past winter with the two of them (not to mention we're going to the Beach next week and don't want to take sickness with us,) I wanted to get ahead of the problem instead of reacting when it had really gotten bad.

I have to tell all of you that the boys both have been diagnosed with varied extremes of Asthma.
Joshua's is much worse than Ty's, but nonetheless, the pollen has exasperated the situation and thus we now are doing nebulizer treatments three times a day with Joshy and Ty is on an inhaler.

For most people, that diagnosis might be hard to take. I have had a friend of mine say, "Oh, you don't want that for your child." No, she's right, I don't, but at least we know what the problem is and can treat it. This explains why we had such issues of bronchitis all winter long. I am so relieved that Asthma is ALL that it is. I was beginning to get worried and started thinking of worse things that it could be.

Weather forecast for today is scattered thundershowers and then rain tonight. I hope it rains hard enough to get rid of this nasty pollen.

Tyler Yancey - Terrific Kid ---March 2007

Tyler was chosen as March 2007, Terrific Kid. This is what the principal read about him (written by Tyler's 1st Grade Teacher.)

Tyler Yancey has been selected as our March Terrific Kid. Tyler is a great student who loves to draw, do math, go to recess and centers and read AR books!

Tyler is outgoing and happy and always has a grin. I love his energy and enthusiasm.

Tyler is also very kindhearted and considerate. He doesn't mind stopping his own work to help a friend who may be having difficulty with their work.

We are so glad to have Tyler in our class and I am so proud to be his teacher!

What a Terrific Kid!!!

Student of the Month

Only have a minute....

Will update later....

Running to a ceremony...

Tyler is STUDENT OF THE MONTH (out of the whooooooooooole school.)

I am such a proud Mommy.

Ok, I'm back

You can always tell when I am completely overwhelmed by work....I stop blogging.

So I am going to do a quick catch up...

1. Joshua is walking! (finally, at 17 months)

2. We found a new church (our old pastor has been called to this church and it has been wonderful.)

3. Tyler has started soccer (WOO HOO!!!!)

4. We're planning a Myrtle Beach family (bros and sisters included) vacation.

5. In November, we're going to Disney (YEAH!!!)

Other than that, everything else has been work and normal home lives.

Will be back blogging regularly. I really do have lots to share.

Update

They released Savannah last night from the hospital. Believing she had a more intense seizure, they have increased her medication and she will be making a visit to her neuorologist on Monday.

Thank you to all of you who have kept her in your thoughts and prayers.

Savannah Marie

(tyler, joshua and savannah)

I ask for all of your prayers for my niece Savannah.

For those of you who don't know, my 4 year old niece Savannah, is the most beautiful, wonderful lovable little girl I know. Unfortunately, when she was born, there were complications, and she now suffers from the effects of those complications. She is almost blind in one eye and is on medication to prevent her from having seizures. With the exception of her somewhat delayed speech, you would never know that this child has had these issues, as she acts like your normal four year old.

I give 100% credit of her progress, to the love she receives from my brother and sister-in-law. God really knew what he was doing, when he gave Savannah the parents she has, because they give her such unconditional love that I truly believe she will overcome these obstacles.

Today, though, they have had a set back. After increasing her medication, due to more activity of seizures, from what I understand, Savannah lost use of her left side. My brother and his wife called 911 and they are now at the hospital. Hopefully soon we will know something.

It's hard being so far away from my family when things like this are going on. I want to jump on the next airplane to Syracuse and help them through this, but I know the best thing is not to overreact and wait until we find out what is going on and be strong.

So I ask all of you again, please keep Savannah in your thoughts and prayers.

Strange Day

Today, so far, has been a strange day...

Weird things were happening all over the place...

Clocks are showing different times everywhere. My computer, cell phone, home clock and tv are all showing different times...and I am not the only one. During a conference call, it seemed to be general consensus that from state to state we were all having time issues. Very interesting.

Tyler had pajama day at school today. It is very weird for me, to send my child to school in pajama bottoms and a t-shirt. Why would you want to wear pajamas to school any way? Actually, this morning, he was really upset that he had to change out of his pjs that he wore to bed last night, into new pj's that he would wear to school for the day. He couldn't understand, then again, neither could I.

Lastly, as I was watching the today show, there was an interesting story broadcast on a girl who has had hiccups for three weeks. Check it out.

Thank goodness it is Friday.

This Is Why I Moved to the South

Here is the weather forcast for Syracuse, NY (where I am originally from.)

A HEAVY SNOW WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM EST THIS EVENING.
SNOW...HEAVY AT TIMES WILL CONTINUE INTO THE EARLY EVENING HOURS. THE HEAVIEST SNOW WILL OCCUR THIS AFTERNOON. BANDS OF INTENSE SNOWFALL COULD PRODUCE ACCUMULATION RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR. ADDITIONAL SNOWFALL THIS AFTERNOON WILL RANGE FROM 6 TO 12 INCHES.

BY THE TIME THE STEADIER SNOW TAPERS OFF LATER THIS EVENING... AFTER ABOUT 10 PM...STORM TOTALS OF 15 TO 25 INCHES ARE EXPECTED.

...and people wonder why I moved to the south.?!?!

10 Good Things About The Flu

10. No one wants to come near you.

9. You can legally take sedatives.

8. You realize guests on daytime talk shows have worse lives than you do.

7. You get away with being rude, obnoxious and surly.

6. You can smell like a baboon's butt and nobody complains.

5. You can shlep about the house unwashed and in your housecoat all day.

4. No matter how bad you feel, it's still better than how you felt after last month's tequila 'n' gin party.

3. Brady Bunch re-runs.

2. Your dog is allowed on the bed.

1. You get to pass the virus on to those you really dislike.

The Flu, pt 2

If you remember, back at Christmas time, the flu hit our home. Tyler had been diagnosed three days before the Christmas and the rest of us were put on Tamiflu. Who would have thought that it would hit our household again? I guess, with our luck lately, I should have, but this time it was like a curve ball being thrown at me.

Well, Friday night, Joshua and I went to bed at 7:30pm (yes, I said 7:30pm,) but were woken up due to his extremely high temp (almost 104.) The rest of the night I tried to keep him comfortable as he kept hitting his head (I can only guess it was a headache,) while praying that we could get his temp down. Realizing I couldn't get his temperature below 102.3 degrees, I decided to take him in to the doctors on Saturday. Sure enough, flu test came back positive.

The rest of the day, Joshua would not leave me for anything. He had to lay on my chest as we all want our mommies when we don't feel good. By last night, he started to perk up.

After a semi-restful night of sleep, I have awoken with an extreme headache, and hope that I am not getting ready to experience the flu.

SNOW DAY!!!

Today, we were able to enjoy some actual winter weather. It wasn't like what we had a few weeks ago with icy conditions. This was big white snowflakes, snow ball fighting, snowman making, snow angel making conditions. By 9 am we had somewhere between 3-4 inches. I know that may not seem like a lot to some of you, but after living in the south for close to 10 years, this was a pretty good accumulation.


We knew first thing this morning that Tyler's school and Joshua's daycare would be closed, and I have to admit, I secretly (well maybe not so secretly) hoped that even my office would close due to the inclement weather. I felt like a 10 year old waiting to find out if I needed to get ready to go into the office. It brought back the memories and excitement of when I was a kid growing up in Upstate New York watching all of the school delays scroll on the television. If you live in an area that is prone to snow, you will understand what it is like to wake up early to see if you can go back to sleep. In the end our offices all across NC (and parts of SC) were closed which meant SNOW DAY for the whole family.

I will say as I reflect on the day with everyone home, staying in jammies most of the day, having muffins for breakfast, toasted cheese with tomato soup for lunch and hot chocolate just because, it was a great SNOW DAY.

It's My Party

Happy Birthday to ME!!!!

Yesterday I celebrated my thirty-something birthday. It was absolutely perfect. I couldn't have asked for any better.

It is amazing at how much my needs or wants for my birthday have changed over the years. I went from that child who wished for a favorite toy, to a teen who just wanted clothes and probably to be left alone, to a twenty-something girl who hung out at the bars with my friends toasting my special day, to who I am now, a thirty something mom and wife.

This year, there was nothing more that I could have wished for...

My parents, brother and sister-in-law all serenaded me with their own renditions of Happy Birthday. None of them live close to me, so I was very excited to know they were thinking of me.

I was given a cool purse from a close friend, a few hours at a salon and day spa from Shawn and tips for my nails (to be done this weekend, - without any children present) from my mother-in-law.

But the absolute best gifts, I saved for last... a beautiful card from Shawn (which showed he spent time looking for it), a surprisingly, wonderful tasting cake made by Tyler which was beautifully frosted (as you can imagine from a 6 year old) a homemade card from Joshua who's teacher (for only 1 week in daycare) really made the effort to make it extremely special and a fantastic family dinner.

With birthdays like this who minds to get older?

Ok. I have been looking to change the template of my blog. Do any of you expert bloggers have any suggestions on where to go?

Four Little Monkeys Jumpin' on the Bed

I just have a few minutes before we get ready for church, but I had to share...

Last night, I was in the best place in the world. Joshua was sleeping in his own crib (and that is a VERY big deal) and Tyler had asked Daddy to camp out in his room and watch movies, which meant I had our bed all to myself! I just new I was going to have a good night sleep. But first, I read a magazine, with the light on, while watching TV at the same time (for those of you that know Shawn, that's a big no no. He says it keeps him up all night.)

It was great. And then...

Shawn came back, saying Ty's bed was uncomfortable, Joshua woke up screaming so loud that it truly scared me to pieces and then Tyler wandered in saying he was cold. Each of them falling asleep in the bed I had all to myself just a few hours earlier. Tossing, turning, hitting me, kicking me and anything else you can do while you are sleeping.

Needless to say, I am exhausted.

Joshy Walks!!!!!

Well, with less than a week until Joshua celebrates 15 months, he has finally decided to walk. Now, I didn't try to rush it as I did with Tyler...especially with his demeanor. Let's see..how can I describe Joshua?

He is the sweetest, most loving child. In fact he always has to touch either Shawn's or my face as some sort of security. He is the best hugger in the world and his laugh is very contagious. And then, out of the blue, crazy Joshy comes out to play!

Where he would lovingly touch our face, he will then try to rip it off. His hugs become attempts for biting and my sweet little boy becomes my destructive force of nature, knocking down and destroying everything in sight...especially if his brother is doing something.

With all that said and done, I do have to share our excitement that he has finally decided to walk. Even with all the times he destroys Tyler's stuff, Tyler was who he decided he wanted to walk to. We were all clapping and praising and I don't know who was happier...Joshua for walking or Tyler for being chosen to walk to.

One more milestone reached.

Back to School

Today Ty goes back to school....and I am bummed out! We have had such a great time during the past two weeks, and bonded so well as a family, I really am not ready for it to end. Who would have figured?

Well, off to school we go...