Park

Mackenzie playing in the car.
Josiah on the slide. Note the banged up chin and lips--poor kid!
Laura Capps at the park.

I am still figuring out how to upload more pics at one time, so I just divided the "park" into these two posts in order to upload all the pics I wanted to display!

Park with Capps!

Laura Capps and Mackenzie Watson "driving" at the park today. (I was unable to get both girls looking AND smiling for the picture, so I settled for both IN the picture!) :)
Josiah leading the way up the slide at the park today. Incidentally, he came down head first later on and it was not a pretty sight. I am thankful he is okay! We thoroughly enjoyed getting to see Kara and Laura, even though it was a distracted visit, at best! We are thankful for friendship and a fun day.

Question of the Day

"Mommy, when am I going to die?"
--Mackenzie, Age 3 1/2 years old

Who's Still Standing?

Mackenzie was talkative upon being picked up from school today. The first story she told me about her day left me a bit speechless, at least for a moment...

Me: "So, what did you do today?"
Mackenzie: "I made a Birthday cake at recess."
Me:"That sounds like fun. What did you make it out of?"
Mackenzie: "Mulch, but this other little girl came over to me and my friends and knocked my cake down. She is bigger than me, Momma. She's in the 4's class. But I pushed her away and said, "No, No," and made sure she did not do that again."
Me: "Oh. Did you get in trouble for pushing?"
Mackenzie: "Oh, No, Momma! I made sure the teacher did not see me."
Me: "Do you mean you just moved her over a little and used your words to ask her not to bother your cake again?"
Mackenzie: "No. I pushed her to the ground and she cried. But the teacher checked on her and asked her if she was okay. She is, Momma. She left my cake and my friends alone after that."
Me: "I guess she did!"

And then came the part where we had a long discussion about how to use our words rather than hitting or pushing...and the part where I explained that if you hit or push someone at school more than twice, you are not allowed back into the school at all! That hit home with Mackenzie as she LOVES school.

Of course, David and I had a moment of "I can't believe our child did that," followed by a moment of laughing about the incident as the other girl had to be bigger than our almost 30 pound Mackenzie. At least we don't have to worry about anyone bulldozing over her! She can most definitely stand up for herself. Now we just hope and pray that she is a bit more selective about WHEN and HOW to stand up for herself--Ha. :)

7 Random Things About Me

Dallas & Nikki tagged me to list 7 random things about myself. I think this is the first time I have ever been "tagged," so here it goes:

1. David and I love to travel. We have been to 4 of 7 continents. We dream of going to the other 3 continents at some point in our lifetime. We can dream, right?! We have been to North America (umm, obviously), Europe, Asia, and Africa.

2. I am not a morning person. One of my biggest pet peeves is a beeping alarm clock. If I know there is a beeping alarm clock set, I will wake up before the crazy thing goes off in order to turn it off before it starts its beeping! That is how much I do not like them. I am very thankful that David uses a CD with nice, soft music as his alarm clock! I actually don't even here his in the mornings, which is a blessing since he gets up at 5:30am to get ready for work.

3. I love to get a good deal, especially on my kids clothes. I enjoy shopping clearance racks in the "off" season. I like to spend less than consignment prices for brand new items. I occasionally find a good deal at a consignment sale, but it has to beat the off season price in order for me to buy it!

4. Song lyrics seem to imprint permanently on my brain. I retain them, both good and bad, for a very long time after hearing a song only once. My latest favorite is Trace Adkins "You're Gonna Miss This." I actually cried when I heard it the other day! What a powerful message...treasure each phase, especially the one you are in!

5. My favorite vacation spot is definitely the beach with nice sand and pretty water!

6. We got married on the beach in Cancun, Mexico on December 12, 2000. Well, technically we got married in the Faculty Library of the McInteer Bible Building at Harding University by Joe Brumfield on December 12, 2000. Our "wedding" (you know, white dress, tux, horse drawn carriage, gazebo on the beach, etc.) was in Cancun on December 14, 2000! We celebrate on the 12th for those of you who were wondering.

7. Twelve is my favorite number. My Birthday is June 12th. David's Birthday is September 12th. We were married on December 12th. Mackenzie was born on August 24th. Josiah was born on May 24th. Appropriate, right? Since two 12's equals 24, he,he. :)

Well, that's 7 VERY random things about me. I am suppose to keep the game going...so here are the rules:

--Link to the person who tagged you.
--Post the rules in your blog entry.
--Share 7 random, or weird, facts about yourself.
--Tag 7 random people at the end of the post, linking to them.
--Leave a comment on their blog so that they know they’ve been tagged.

I am tagging:
Sara
Cindy
Ginger
Kara
Hannah
Holly
Amanda

Toddler Bed

My proud little man!
Cheesin' for the camera while holding his chocolate milk in his toddler bed!

Alright, Everyone, I'm tired now. This bed is just right for me.

Sigh. This could be a very emotional post, but I am tired tonight, so it will be short instead! During what was supposed to be his nap time, Josiah began yelling from his crib, "Momma, Come 'ere!" over and over. Typically, I do not check on him when he yells during nap time. I just let him have some time to decide to take his nap. This usually happens within a few minutes, sometimes longer...today he had been in his crib for about 30 minutes when he started yelling for me to "come 'ere." For whatever reason, I decided to go check on him. Now I have to tell you, I believe children really do have angels watching over them, and today just adds to that belief! Josiah, at 22 months old, was perched on TOP of the crib railing in the corner of his crib. He had one hand and one foot on the headboard, and the other hand and foot on the side railing. Notice the word "ON." I do mean ON TOP OF the railing. His entire being was on top of the crib rails! Only his angels could have kept him from crashing down right into the corner of the wooden toy box that sits below. I am one thankful Momma that my little boy was not hurt! I retrieved him first, then immediately called David to share the crazy event with him. Needless to say, David put the toddler bed up and took down the crib tonight. My "baby" just graduated from a crib to a toddler bed. Whoa. Where has the time gone? It was time, though. Josiah adores Mackenzie's twin "big girl" bed. He, too, was ready for a big kid bed. Thanks to Papa & Lili for the toddler bed that Mackenzie has outgrown and Josiah is now enjoying!

A Real Bath!

Bathtime is just more fun with two!

Mackenzie and Josiah attempting to smile for the camera!

After the "Mud Bath" in our backyard earlier today, the kids headed straight to the Real Bath! They obviously enjoyed both baths; though, I have to say, while the mud one was the most fun to watch, the end result of the real one was quite nice! Our two clean kids are tucked into their beds for the night...nice and clean for church tomorrow!

Mud Bath!

David has been digging a "barbeque pit" in the backyard for our grill. FYI: vinyl siding melts and warps if you use a grill up against a house! No, we did not learn that ourselves...that tidbit is courtesy of the people who owned the house before us! He, he. Thanks to our home inspector, the warped siding was replaced at no cost to us! So, David is digging a pit...and it rained last night. The kids were delighted with the "mud pool!" I could not resist grabbing the camera, though snapshots do not even begin to do justice to the fun they had together in the mud pool today. Watching them play took me back to my own childhood. I loved playing in the mud! My parents were very good to allow us (my brother, Evan, and me) to play in the mud and enjoy being a kid. Of course, growing up on a farm provided many opportunities to enjoy the mud!!!

What are some fun memories from your own childhood?

Our Comodian

Privacy does not yet exist in our house. Going to the bathroom is a group event. Typically, when Mackenzie goes to the bathroom, Josiah stands nearby to assist with the toilet paper process. Last night he decided to spice up our routine a bit. Yes, that is a toilet seat he is wearing around his neck! He was successful in his attempt to entertain us, and proud to get a rise of laughter out of Mackenzie.
Until suddenly..."I'm stuck, Momma!" Josiah began to holler. He escalated quickly as the panic set in; Mackenzie continued to laugh! I put the camera down to rescue the poor little fellow. I can't help but to wonder what he will be like in a classroom setting. I've never imagined myself as the parent of a class entertainer, but Josiah has me wondering....??? His little personality really is a good fit in our family of firstborns! We needed the balance he brings to our family. We are glad we had you, Josiah! You are a blessing.

Growing

Mackenzie and Josiah spent some time this afternoon just playing in the bushes in our front flower bed. They were pretty funny, pretending to be "growing" out of the bush. They also played Hide-and-Seek in the bushes. Oh, the joys of childhood! I love their enthusiasm for everyday life.

I also love this warm, sunny weather! It was so nice to have a day to really enjoy being outside together. I hope everyone else had a good day, too! :)

Duck, Duck, Goose!

The Duck-Duck-Goose Consignment sale starts tomorrow. Just thought I'd let you all know! Here is the link to their website. http://www.dkdkgoose.com/main.html It gives further information, in case you are wondering.

The Aquarium!

We sure had a fun day today at Gatlinburg's Aquarium of the Smokies. It was yet another rainy day, so we headed to the mountains for some fun! We were definitely not the only ones who had this same idea, but the aquarium was not over-crowded. The kids LOVED the outing! We all enjoyed seeing the funny fish, big fish, small fish, colorful fish, sharks, sea horses, octopus, jelly fish, sting rays, etc. The kids really like watching the sting rays as they were very active today. They are graceful as they glide through the water. My favorite is the sea horse. Those little creatures are just too cute! Josiah was brave and touched a horse shoe crab; Mackenzie had asked to touch one and changed her mind at the last minute. :)

We enjoyed some shopping after we were finished playing in the interactive part of the aquarium. Thanks to David for entertaining the kids while I ran in and out of several stores! Stride Rite had a buy one get one half off sale, so both kids have new shoes that only cost $14.99 per pair! We are home now and exhausted from a fun day!

Bounce House!

Josiah and I had just come down the really tall (24 ft?) slide. He LOVED it!
Mackenzie went down the same really tall slide all by herself! That was brave.
Josiah is our climber. He is big enough and brave enough to climb to the top and slide by himself! (Though one of us climbed up right behind him...just in case!)

Today was a rainy day, so we headed to the Bounce House to play. All four of us went, which made for some fun family time. The kids were on the move which made it difficult to get any good pics of them. The ones we snapped at least tells the story, so-to-speak! We had fun. I highly recommend the bounce house types of places as a great way to channel energy!

Mall Rides

Tuesday afternoon I took the kids to the mall to pick up some pictures and just have some fun. They love the rides; we set dollar bills aside from grandparents in order for them to enjoy a few rides almost every time we go. Tuesday was no exception! They each rode two rides, and as you see, they rode the pink motorcycle together. Fun times. Made for a nice diversion during the day.

Traffic Violation!

Oh, yes, you did read the title of this post correctly: Traffic Violation! In my defense, this is the first time I have EVER received a citation for a traffic violation. I surely do hope this is the last time, too!

So, I go to the mailbox today. I am excited, as I LOVE checking the mail. Who doesn't? It is so wonderful to get mail...usually. Today it was not. As I flipped through our miniature pile of mail, one envelope caught my attention. I opened it. To my dismay I found two sheets of paper from the police! Wow. They even included pictures. (Can you hear my sarcasm?) Three pictures, to be exact. Of me, (yes, the driver was definitely me based on the date, time, and location they so kindly included) running a red light! They even gave me the link to the website so I could watch the video of myself running a red light. How EMBARRASSING! What's worse, I did not even see the red light. I did not know I ran it. I did not try to stop. I just did not know the light was there: SCARY!!!

After I got over my initial shock, I called David to tell him about the violation and the nice $50 fee we owe as a result of my stupidity. He laughed! Ok, so that DID make me feel a little better.

Later in the day it hit me: I am thankful. I am thankful (not for the fee we have to pay as a result of the whole ordeal) but thankful for my life! Though the video shows there were no other cars near me, running a red light can be a very dangerous thing. I could have, theoretically, been putting my life, as well as the lives of others, at stake. I am so very thankful the Lord saw fit to keep us all safe as I unknowingly ran that red light. (Side note: the kids were not with me at the time, which is unusual, but a blessing!)