Prestwood Ramblings!

Post Christmas

2012-01-09T21:07:00.000-06:00

After church on Christmas Sunday, we packed up and headed to Magee for Christmas lunch with Craig's family. We enjoyed our visit, gift exchange, and watching the kids play. Gracie and Brooke have a blast playing together, while Charlye and Tenley were having to learn to share. Next year, we're looking forward to having an additional girl, Maylee Kate, to throw in the mix - sure to be more fun, 5 girls! We also went to Craigs' grandmothers house to visit with his dad's family. Always a treat and entertainment!

Memaw and Pawpaw gave Brooke the horse and faux "Amearican Doll" she wanted. We say this is her trial American Doll, that if she takes care of it she can get one when she's 6! Tenely received the pink coup; although, they have both had fun playing with it.

Cousins in their Coups!

Our Growing Families

Singing Carols while Pawpaw plays.

The day after - playing house and dress up.

This is how Tenley set up the doll house. I missed a picture when she had all the Nativity people and animals in it.

Naughty or Nice

2012-01-06T17:31:00.000-06:00

We were low key this year on Christmas Eve. We went to our Church's Come and Go Communion (Tenleys first Communion - she liked the bread) and then spent the evening at my parents eating dinner, reading books, shooting fireworks, and visiting with family. Brooke received an email from Santa that showed that she had made the Nice List; we were a little worried! We headed home around 9 o'clock and Brooke was still running full speed ahead. She sang carols and looked at lights all the way home. She put out her reindeer food and then went to bed, but she could not go to sleep. Finally around 11:30, she was out. I put out the girls Christmas gifts from Santa, and then checked on the elf in the garage. It was not going good; pieces of the 2 room Garden Villa were scattered around the garage. And the elf said "These directions are awful, I need your help." Around 2 am, the not so friendly elves, packed up their tools and headed to bed, hoping the children would stay in their beds!

My clock went off at 6 am, still no kids stirring, so we tiptoed into Brooke's room, and she sat straight up in the bed and said "Did he come?" We told her she'd have to get Tenley up to go and see. Poor Tenley was startled by the commotion Brooke was making to get her up. After a quick diaper change, the girls headed in the Living room to find their gifts. They were so excited!

Brooke received a Barbie one shoulder dress and a doll house. Tenley received a fairy costume and the aforementioned Garden Villa. They both received almost maroon (more on the pink side) Video/Bean Bag Chairs for the bonus room. Craig received the two things he asked for - a tie pin and an electric knife, and I received a camera bag incert and digital picture frames. All in all I'd say we must have been pretty good this year!

We enjoyed breakfast and then played some more before getting dressed to head to church. The service at church was wonderful. Our pastors read different passages from the Christmas story and then preached in between the passages.And after church we headed to Magee for Craigs family get together... see the

Post-Christmas morning posting in the days to come!

I think this expression says it all!

Their loot from Santa!

The aftermath!

Pre Christmas

2012-01-06T16:31:00.000-06:00

Well, we have survived. Thanks to Juju and Papaw Larry, Craig and I de-Christmased the house for our New Years Eve celebration before heading to a New Years Party. We spent all day Saturday trying to get the house back in order. All Christmas decor is down, not put up mind you, but it has all been moved to the bonus room. Now, we are awaiting the organization fairy to arrive to get things put up. I do wish she would hurry!

Anyway, moving on... as Brooke said it "This has been the best Christmas EVER!" We did a ton of celebrating and naturally have a ton of pictures to share. So here's a start....

In the days leading up to Christmas were somewhat stressful, but for the most part - FUN! I had a solo in our church Christmas Cantata, and then spent a week before Christmas week inMemphis serving on a Contractor Selection Panel. Thank goodness I had finished most of my shopping, and I got to visit with family while I was there (Melissa - I can't believe we didn't take a picture!) I rushed home that Friday afternoon and helped prepare for the invasion of the Calloways! We had my brothers family and my parents over for lunch and gift exchange, and then opened the doors to approx. 40 of my closest family members for our traditional Dirty Santa gift exchange. This is the first year we have done it during daylight, which was fun and less rushed. We typically do it late in the evening when the kids have grown tired and everyone is wanting to get home. So this was a fun change in tradition. I ended up with a package of bubble bath (Beans in a Bottle - think about it) and Craig received a cheese platter with a lovely poinsettia. We headed to our second family party of the night for dinner, more gift exchange, and singing carols (Brookes' favorite part).

Lots of sillyness when the Calloways are together! Reindeer ears and noses courtesy of Papaw Larry!

The brooms and dustpans were the favorite gift for all the girls from Juju. Sure wish she had given them better lessons on how to use them. They are still the most played with gift the girls received!

Brooke also got a Karaoke machine which has kept us all entertained.

During the week before Christmas, my mom helped us out on Monday by taking Brooke to a birthday party at Chick-fil-a, and then she and Papaw went with us to Canton for the Victorian Christmas. The weather was perfect for the girls to run around and ride the rides. Unfortunately Papaw wasn't feeling well, so he slept in the car and Tenley was in an "I don't want my picture taken unless it's for someone other than my mom mood." She was posing in everyone's pictures but mine and she would not look at the camera. I took off Tuesday to celebrate a Christmas Lunch with Craig's office and to wrap up the last of our Christmas shopping and gift wrapping, and Brooke went to Magee to spend a few nights with Memaw and Pawpaw. We spent the rest of the week, visiting with friends and relaxing at the house. Our holiday season didn't seem as rushed or stressed as it has in the past, which was a blessing. I think having Craig down in the back forced us to stay home a little more than we would have normally.

Canton Victorian Christmas

Posing with strangers, but not our family! She was laid back and all!

Riding the rides!

Oh, and Emily hung around until Santa picked her up on Christmas Eve. She was quite mischevious! Craig said they found her riding the reindeer one morning, and Brooke fussed at her for being so close to the ground. She just knew Tenley would mess with her and she would lose her magic!

Hanging onto the front door looking out for the Calloways to arrive!

Hanging from the Fridge door after turning our milk GREEN!

Our little elves dressed as the elf on the shelf! Brooke insisted on wearing the skirts with their Pj's every night.

Saying Goodbye on Christmas Eve. Tenley had already gone to bed.

Happy New Year...

2011-12-31T12:00:00.001-06:00

Wishing all a Blessed New Year!

I'll share our Christmas Card as a heads up that our Christmas post are yet to come. I've only taken 465 pictures since the second week of December!

HO, HO, HO

2011-12-07T21:59:00.000-06:00

Well, guess where we went last night?

We tried really hard, but Tenley did not like it. After our children's program at church Sunday night, Tenley screamed and dug her fingernails in my shoulder when she saw Santa come in to visit the kids. She was fine for our family picture (see below), but when I stepped away, she lost it.

Brooke really tried to talk it up to her on the way. She was saying, how "the guy at church the other night was just Santa's helper kindof like an elf, but that we were going to the North Pole to see the REAL Santa." Brooke was a little dissappointed when we pulled up and she yelled "Wait, this is not the North Pole it's the Bass Pro Shop." She had asked me how long it takes to get to the "North Pole" when we left the daycare.

Again, no smile = not happy.

Brooke was excited to drop off her letter.

We went to dinner afterwards and Brooke asked if that was "The Real Santa" because she didn't think so. I asked why and she said "Did you see his shoes?"

And she has moved on from the Victoria Secret's profession. She wants to model for recreational vehicles!

Daddy - always teaching gun safety.

This is what the girls want for Christmas!

We welcome the Arrival of ...

2011-12-07T17:45:00.000-06:00

Elf Emily!!! You may remember Drake or Minnie, or Mark from years past! This year a girl arrived; skirt and all! She has been having fun and Brooke is loving it. Tonight, after visiting Santa, I heard her tell the elf that she had visited her boss tonight! Before you judge - we don't push the "The elf goes back to report to Santa every night." As you'll see we have a mischievous elf who gets in trouble too! It's actually more help in the morning. We make Brooke get dressed before she can go find her - our time out the door has improved!

Dec 1 - She arrived with new footed PJ's. (Brooke has been asking for these.)

See here there on the edge of the table. Please overlook the "art" behind her. This was Brooke and I's first attempt at Christmas art. The bow didn't work out just right.

my own personal elves in their Pj's- aren't they cute!

Dec 2 - Riding the camel at the Nativity.

Dec 3 - Hanging on the key rack/ waiting on the girls to get home.

Dec. 4 - Hanging from the "1970's MS Governors Mansion Chandelier" - Brooke came in our room at 5 am crying that she couldn't find her elf.

Dec. 5 - Emily is an artist! Brooke thought this was hilarious. The "elf" drew on a photo of the girls. A tatoo on Brooke's arm says "I heart SANTA".

Dec 6 - Snowball fight in the girls bathroom. Brooke was trying to clean it up before "I found" the mess! And telling her not to cause trouble.

Haul Out the Holly, Put Up the Tree...

2011-12-07T05:15:00.003-06:00

Before my spirits fall again!

This year was the first year I have had "help" to put up and decorate the tree. By help I mean, others in the house, under my feet, and such. With Craig being down in the back, I had to haul it downstairs, set it up all with the help of a 4 year old and an 18 month old on my hip. Yes I complained, and yes I am still complaining, but it turned out fine and fun. We got to talk about all the ornaments, where they came from, when we got them, and so on. Here are some during and after photos of some of our decorations.

During the decorating- my help. The other helper was laid up on the couch.
Check out my new tree skirt - made by yours truly during my Thanksgiving break. It only took about 4 hours. I saw one similar at Mistletoe Marketplace for $80. I spent a whopping $20 on my reproduction. Love it!

One of my favorite pics of this holiday season! (so far!)

The girls tree upstairs. So proud of this tree... it was passed down to me from my Grandmother and Aunt Deanna. Not sure this is how they would have decorated it!

We've been doing some Christmas art. I saw this on Pintrest! The hands were supposed to point up, but Brooke insisted on doing it the other way and adding ornaments.

Oh, and I forgot to share our Thankful Tree. A new tradition at the Prestwoods for Thanksgiving. It was a collaboration of some of the things we are thankful for. We did this the Sunday before Thanksgiving, but I'm hoping as the girls get older we can add a few throughout the month until it is full.

Fall Finale

2011-12-06T21:12:00.000-06:00

ok... before I can move on to Christmas (see post later tomorrow on our Elf's arrival and our visit to Santa). Here is the Fall Finale:

Bride and her Bridesmaid!

Hidden Picture - Can you find Brooke and Tenley? - at Juju and Papaws.

The Christmas Market on the Clinton Brick-streets.

I'm mad at myself for not getting many pictures at our tailgate's this year. I guess we were having too much fun! Here are the girls and Miss Katie with sweet Sutter! We also attended the first annual Fall Y'all here in Clinton for the Young Adult League it was basically a big tailgate party held at one of the parks. The kids got to play and the grown ups watched football.

hmmmm.... Sweet Sister?

Catching a Ride with Papaw

I can't believe I am posting this! - Super Girl, Super Man (Craig is too tall for the full Superman Costume, it stops about 4 inches down his chest, so he opted for the Clark Kent look.), and the Pirate Princess dressed for the Halloween Party. Oh, and that's Goose and Maverick our party hosts!

Trick or Treating!

Our pumpkin that was carved just in the nick of time. Craig and Brooke carved it at about 5:30 on Halloween night.

Juju was dressed as a "scary Auburn Fan"! She joined us to trick or treat and to witness the temper tantrum of an 17 month old peacock. Basically, Tenley wanted a sucker that I wouldn't give her. She laid out on one of the lawns and cried and screamed until she got it. (We were all having to hold back laughs seeing a Peacock rolling in the yard!) This was at our 3rd or 4th house of the night. By the end of the loop, she was covered in red sucker juice and was sticky from head to toe.

I attended the Fall Frolic at the daycare. I swear I get my monies worth for sure. The had 9 different stations, where they would learn a bible verse and then do different activities. Check out that jump!

The Magical World of Disney on Ice

2011-12-04T15:51:00.000-06:00

On the opening night of Disney on Ice, we met friends of ours and their little girl for a date night for just the big girls. The babies, Tenley and Abigale stayed at home. Maddi and Brooke had a blast. We started with dinner at Kiefers before the show.

Some of our favorites - Minnie and the Little Mermaid

The final part of the show was all Peter Pan. It was great. Flying, fireworks, and ice skating!

Of course, Tink was there too.

The smiles show it all - that had a blast and so did we. It wasn't as good as last years Princess on Ice, but still a really good show.

Thanksgiving

2011-12-03T15:23:00.006-06:00

Wow, we have officially made it to December, and I have yet to post since 2 November = bad blogger! It has been a crazy month. We've had a lot of fun, but have also had some not so fun times. Here are some pics from our Thanksgiving week of fun:

We started the week with a little hunting. Daddy/Daughter Hunting! They didn't see anything, but had a good time.

Thanksgiving Day we were honored with having both Craigs' parents and my parents up for lunch. Craig and Brooke worked on the turkey, I cooked my first Dressing, and Juju and Memaw brought other sides.... it was all delicious! Whitney's family came over to spend the afternoon and so the guys could hunt. We had a fun visit.

We spent almost the entire day Friday at the house in our PJ's. I did some online shopping before I went to bed on Thursday night, and wasn't about to attempt to go on early Friday morning. We got our Christmas tree up, relaxed and played outside.

On Saturday, we went to Mathiston for another good lunch and to visit with my family. We made it home just in time for the MSU Egg Bowl Victory!

Sporting our true and not so true maroon! Oh, and Tenley fell in love with one of the baby Beagles at Jeff's. They played together all afternoon. - Too Cute!

Now for the bad:

Craig is down in the back again. We went to Starkville the first weekend in November to tailgate and visit with friends. When he woke up that morning he said his back was bothering, but as the day drug on it got worse. By Sunday morning, he couldn't get out of bed without help. He was confined to the couch for a week, in a ton of pain. He went for an MRI and found out that he has a herniated disk between L3 and L4. Three years ago it was herniated between L4 and L5. He has an appointment on Dec 12 (the soonest appt. he could get) to determine what needs to be done. Please pray for him/us for a quick recovery; we're pretty sure that surgery is the best option.

Hence why I haven't been on the computer lately. I've been toting the kids back and forth to school, and working my normal schedule which makes for a 12+ hour day. By the time I get the girls to bed I have been exhausted. I've ended up crashing on the couch shortly afterwards.

Blessings

2011-11-02T21:49:00.005-05:00

Happy November!

For the month of November I hope to post a blessing that I have each day between now and Thanksgiving. I may not post every day, hence I'm already a day behind due to a stomach bug we picked up while trick or treating. However, I do plan to give a blessing for each.

What gave me this idea? Well, I saw this idea on several blogs/facebook posts last year, but the true reason is linked to this song.

It is called "Blessings" by Laura Story. I happened across this song about 2 weeks ago when a friend emailed it to me and asked me to keep this in mind to sing the next time I volunteer or am asked to sing in church. Craig was asleep and I barely had the music turned up, but I swear I must have listened to it 10+ times. The words just really touched me, and I feel like they describe what our blessing should be.

This life is our blessing, but it's not our home. "What if my greatest disappointments, Or the aching of this life, Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy, And what if trials of this life, The rain, the storms, the hardest nights, Are Your mercies in disguise" We know this is true, that our life here on earth is just a glimpse of what our eternity is, but how often do we forget. Therefore to start my month of blessings, I hold onto this song as a reminder of the things I need to be thankful for ... our life here on earth and everlasting life!

Here are the lyrics:

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know that pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home

'Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise

Halloween Preview

2011-10-27T21:56:00.007-05:00

Here is a sneak preview of our little monsters! They would not cooperate for a picture together, and trust me - We tried! We're going to try again on Saturday or Monday.

Peacock Tenley and Pirate Princess Brooke

Tenley won best costume overall at the Church costume contest. I was so proud of her. I would have bet $100 that those feathers would have been torn up in the first 5 mins, but she never messed with them!

And pirate princess was so pleased to have Tenley there - that meant she got extra loot! She would put some in her bucket and then some and Tenley's and say "You can't have these, but I can!"

Oh What Fun at the Fair!

2011-10-25T21:52:00.001-05:00

As promised to Brooke, we made a quick trip to the fair the day after the pumpkin patch visit. We went with several friends and met others there right after church and before choir that Sunday. Tenley stayed home with a friend, Abigale, too. I forgot to get their picture.

She loved it all. Ride after Ride.

Her first big kid ride alone (we cheated the height requirements) - the Pirate Ship - I think she was nervous at first, or at least I was for her.

With Friends - Maddy and Zach.

The things we do for our kids - I do not like heights!

We finally talked Craig into riding one with her. This one went frontwards and backwards. He lost his phone on this ride. Luckily the person that picked it up took it to lost and found. I swear it's like having 3 kids sometimes!

We had to go by the 4H building to milk the cow.

All the kids posing with Sutter - 2.5 months old - her first trip to the fair.

We plan to take Tenley next year, but wanted to let Brooke spend some time with just her friends for one more year.

Visit to the Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-24T22:03:00.000-05:00

The second weekend in October we traveled to Collins, MS to visit the Mitchell Farms Pumpkin Patch with Memaw and Aunt Whitney's family. This was our second year to visit the farm and we are excited to continue the tradition next year!

I'll let the photos do the talking!

A fun day spent with Cousins! (Still learning with Photoshop to get rid of that sun spot! And look at the face Tenley is making - she is trouble!)

Lots of Play time. They have a animals, swings, slides, a corn pit, mazes, and water troughs to race plastic ducks.

After a wagon ride through the sunflower fields we picked pumpkins.

A picture with Memaw

Oh yeah, we were there too.

One more post to catch up with our fall happenings, and then I'll be posting Halloween photos. Be on the lookout for a peacock and a pirate princess!

20 Questions - Brooke

2011-10-19T22:01:00.003-05:00

On our way to Mathiston last weekend, I asked Brooke 20+ Questions. I had forgotten to pack her some toys for the car so this seemed to work. She even asked me to ask more questions on the way home. We were touched and concerned by a few of her answers - check them out! For your reading pleasure:

How old is mommy? 60
(I was concerned and almost didn't want to ask any more questions)
How old is daddy? 15
How tall daddy? VERY Tall
How tall mommy? VERY Short
How much does mommy weigh? 6 lbs
(I almost skipped this series of questions, I'm glad I didn't)
How much does daddy weigh? 60 lbs
How much do you weigh? 150 lbs
If mommy becomes famous, what will it be for? Super Hero
If daddy becomes famous, what will it be for? Rock Star
If you could be famous, what will it be for? On the Disney Channel like Rocky and CeCe on Shake it Up
(we've had 2 or 3 people recommend that we take her to some Disney auditions here in Jackson, but the age limit is 5. I still may call and check on it!)
What is mommy not very good at? Wrestling in the floor
What is daddy not very good at? Listening to Mommy!
What does Mommy do for her job? Fights the River
What does Daddy do for his job? Makes Concrete and Asphalt
What do you do with Mommy? Go special places
What do you do with Daddy? Go to the deer camp
How are you and mommy/daddy the same? No one is the same - God made us all special and different. - So proud of this answer! Not really what I was anticipating though.
How are you and mommy different? She wouldn't give specifics, just that God made us all different and that is how we are special and we should all be thankful.
Where is mommy's favorite place? At home with her girls.
Where is daddy's favorite place? in the woods
What makes you happy? Helping someone when they get hurt.
What makes you sad? When someone won't give me love (a hug) or be my friend.
(She tries to give all the kids in her class love on the way out everyday, but some of the kids push her away.)
What are you really good at? Dancing
What are you not very good at? Being Good
(She had to stand in the corner 3 times in Davis Wade Stadium for not doing what she was told. She kept hanging her head, legs, and arms outside the railing on the ramps.)
Who is your favorite singer? Justin Beaver!
What is your favorite song? Never Say Never
(She knows all the words to all the songs on his CD and she has Beaver fever! )

MSU vs SC

2011-10-16T05:30:00.000-05:00

This weekend we packed up and headed to Starkville for the MSU game. We took off Friday afternoon to go to the East Webster game to watch my younger cousin Wesley play football. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see him play very much since they were playing so well. At halftime the score was 42-0 so the JV played most of the rest of the game.

We got up early Saturday morning for homemade biscuits (made by Brooke with Cousin Becky's help), and then headed Starkville to see the Bulldogs play. We tailgated at the Engineering tent nd then had the girls faces painted in the Junction, visited with Bully, and then made our way to our seats. The girls did really well at our seats, but with it being so hot, I took them up on the ramp so they could be in the shade and could run around. Tenley and I stayed through halftime and then went back to the car to nap and do a little shopping. Craig and Brooke stuck it out for the disappointing loss. Not sure what has happened to our bulldogs; we thought we were going to have a fantastic season.

Cutest Little Bulldog!

BULLY!

Face Painting - not a real good idea with a momma wearing a white shirt.

Not sure what was going on here!

One tired little bulldog.

CottonPatch Visit

2011-10-15T21:29:00.002-05:00

Brooke's class has been enjoying field trips the last few weeks. Luckily the weather has been beautiful. The end of September I was able to attend her Cotton Patch Field trip. We made a quick trip by the Gin in Bolton and then headed out to the fields to pick cotton. The 4 year olds filled lunch bags full of cotton and then wanted to go back to make t-shirts!

MSU vs Auburn

2011-09-21T14:39:00.007-05:00

For Craig's 31st birthday, we took a trip to Auburn to visit my brothers family and attend the MSU ballgame. We loaded up Friday morning and arrived at Auburn around 3. On our ride over, we only made two stops: 1) at Hardees in Dempolis, AL for lunch (highly NOT recommended), 2) at Prattville, AL for a bathroom break and icee (Tenley's new favorite drink!). Two stops on a 6
hour trip with a 4 year old and a 15 month old isn't too shabby.

We enjoyed our visit with Dale, Kay Dee, and cousin Carrington. Friday night we met Dale at the Football Stadium and visited the MSU locker room. The girls enjoyed running around, asking questions, and getting in the way. I thought Coach Felker and some of the other crew would run us off, but they didn't seem to mind. I wish we had been dressed for the occasion.

Saturday we took Brooke to the game. We witnessed an interesting fly over by the Eagle, and unfortunately a defeat for the Bulldogs. Brooke had a blast though. She got to sing God Blessed America (her words) and danced through the entire halftime performance. All the state fans in our section were cheering for her. She lasted in the stands until about 8 mins left in the 4th quarter and then wanted to get up and roam around. We went to the Auburn coaches family section to sit with Aunt Kay Dee. We finished the game right on the goal line to watch State lose by a few inches.

After the game, we attempted a photo shoot of the girls. We didn't have much success!

Uncle Dale came in and took the night off to visit with us. We went to Toomer's Corner to see the toilet papered tree (an Auburn Tradition), and had dinner at Mellow Mushroom. To quote Brooke "I sure hope this is clean toilet paper!" We got a lot of strange looks, being the only MSU fans playing in the toilet paper.

We enjoyed our visit, but I think Carrington was ready for us to leave. My girls had invaded her space long enough. As you can see, she doesn't like sharing her bath like my girls do!

Rocky Spring

2011-09-21T08:02:00.006-05:00

This past weekend Craig was working out of town, so, the girls and I picked up donuts and headed to Raymond to take Juju and Papaw Larry for a day trip to Rocky Springs. Now, this was my moms first and possibly only trip to Rocky Springs. Keep reading to the end to see why! As many times as my dad took my brother and I camping there when we were little, mom never went. I realize now - she was enjoying peace and quiet at home!

Beneath the "troll" bridge. No trolls here!

We walked the trails, played in the creek, and collected rocks. Tenley liked the big rocks best!

Crossing a fallen tree along the trail.

We visited the old town site and the Rocky Springs United Methodist Church. While there Brooke preached to us a little and then said "Okay, everyone please stand." She led us in a few songs, just like papaw Larry does. Tenley danced through most of it!

We also visited the waterfall, or lack there of.
It was barely flowing, but impressive at the same time.

Okay - why mom may never go back to Rocky Springs:

Look closely and you will see the copperhead that Brooke stepped over and mom almost put her hand on while getting into the creek. Thank goodness it was asleep and just sunning! Dad threw it into the woods with his walking stick, and then we told mom about it. She never saw it! I had nightmares about it on Saturday night.

First Day of 4K!

2011-08-15T21:42:00.004-05:00

Today was Brooke's first day of 4 year old kindergarten at Morrison Heights. We attended her Back to School Night last week. She will be in Ms. Joyce's room, and we are so excited. We've gotten to know Ms. Joyce over the summer since she has worked in the "Early Room". She is a retired Clinton schoolteacher.

Brooke asked both of us to drop her off this morning. She had to show us everything... where to hang her bag, put her nap mat, her color box (in which all the colors were pointing in the same direction), her glue, the home living and blocks area (only 3 kids at a time), the line leader board, the puzzle area, etc. We didn't think we'd be able to leave! I really wish I was as excited as she was to go to work today!

An attempt at a sibling picture. Tenley was ready to go!
(Tenley moved up to the 15 month room today too.)

Giving Love. So glad I caught this picture. Brooke gives Tenley love every morning before dropping her off, and she is the first in the room to pick her up in the afternoon to give her "Love".

Eight!

2011-08-09T05:25:00.000-05:00

Today Craig and I are celebrate our 8th year of marriage. Nothing fancy - just normal routine, but he has promised me a photo shoot this evening. We are planning to celebrate tonight at home with the girls by having a shrimp boil! My parents are keeping the girls Friday night and Saturday, so we'll probably find something fun to do. We debated about a quick trip to the beach, but will likely hold off on that until next month.

Here is a quick break down of some of our major accomplishments:
2003 - Married with 3 semesters of engineering school to complete
2004 - Graduated from MSU in Dec and bought our first home in Clinton.
2005 - Joined the real world of work/bills
2006 - Found out we were expecting Brooke!
2007 - Had our precious Brooke in June.
2008 - Bought our second home in Pocahontas.
2009 - Found out we were expecting Tenley.
2010 - Had our precious Tenley in May!
2011 - Both are officially Professional Engineers!

These are just some major accomplishments that we couldn't have done without each other. I could go on for days with not so major accomplishments, but I've probably bored you enough!

Bear Pictures!

2011-08-08T13:54:00.000-05:00

Way Overdue... Tenley's 12 month and Brooke's 4th year bear picture!

Click here to see them just 1 year ago! My how they have grown!

Run Brooke Run

2011-08-07T13:33:00.004-05:00

Ok, Still catching up.

On June 17th, we participated in our Church's 4 Miles for Mission run for the second year in a row. Now let me clarify, we all had planned to run, but Brooke ran, Craig herded children during the 1 Mile Fun run, I babysat on the sidelines, and Tenley cheered.

Brooke had so much fun (just like last year)! Craig started out with her, but got held up by some of the other kids wanting to walk/play during the race. At about 12 mins in, I saw a little runner coming up the road by herself - it was Brooke. She was smiling and running all by herself as the crowd cheered for her.

Overall church member winner for the 1 mile fun run. (Picture taken the morning after.)

Celebrating with Daddy!

With Mrs. Elizabeth and Dr. Josh after their race!

Sideline Cheerleader!

4th of July Recap on the 4th of August

2011-08-04T20:00:00.000-05:00

4 years and 1 year - 4th of July cuties!

Hey, better late than never right???

Ok, since the 4th fell on a weekend this year we had a really busy holiday! We are so p

We spent Saturday morning at the pool and then headed to Juju and Papaw Larrys to spend the afternoon and enjoy a late lunch/early dinner. After a short nap, Craig, Brooke, and I loaded up to head to the Clinton 4th of July Extravaganza at Traceway Park. This was the second year that my Adult committee from the church passed out Watermelons and Water to the community, and enjoyed friends, fellowship, music, and games.

On Sunday, I sweet talked some pictures out of the family, and then enjoyed a lazy day at the house.

Click here to see Brooke from last year! She no longer has the baby face!

This is the best we got... Tenley showing her sugar bowl, and Brooke laughing. Craig said it was too hot for pictures and refused to participate!

Monday - the 4th - we headed to Magee to visit with Craig's family. So, much fun to see all the little cousins together.

It's rare to have all 6 together (and only 1 boy)... soon to be 7 (and hopefully a boy) come February - Chris and Whit are expecting again!

We are family!

2011-08-03T21:25:00.008-05:00

Our family is big on reunions. We have our annual Calloway family reunion (post to follow - be patient I am catching up!) at Grenada Lake on Memorial Day weekend, and then every other year in July we have a Stringer reunion at my Aunt Minnie's where family comes from all over the US... Colorado, Louisiana, Tennessee, Nevada, Alabama, etc. This year I think at lunch alone we counted off 62, but there were others that were in and out all weekend long. We went over to visit on Friday night and enjoyed spaghetti, and then on Saturday my dads cousin Terry smokes chicken for everyone.

After lunch there are usually different activities going on. When I was younger we would all pack up and go to a waterpark. Oh, how we miss Rapids on the Reservoir and Waterland. A few years we went bowling, but with little ones, that can be difficult. This year one of the cousins, Melissa (check out her blog!), mom of 4 boys, rented a blow up slide. It was an excellent idea, especially after and while it rained. Everyone enjoyed the entertainment, whether they rode the slide or not!

Some children NEVER grow up. My dad (62) took Tenley up for a ride; he did fine until the bottom, and it is a bit difficult to get up!
I didn't get a good picture of my Aunt Minnie (in her 80's) on the slide, but she did it.

Silly girls! Cousin Abby is from Colorado, she is about 4 months younger than Brooke. They had a blast together.

Even some of the big kids joined in!

It rained after lunch. The girls were inside coloring, when someone suggested they go play in the rain. Next thing we knew they were stripped down to panties having a ball. - Welcome to Mississippi!

They ended the night making mud pies, but my pictures didn't turn out very good. My camera lens had fogged over!

Growing Up

2011-07-29T10:26:00.001-05:00

Brooke told me "I really don't need to eat my vegetables because they make me grow healthy. And you don't want me to grow up. Well do you?"

If she can reason like this at 4, at 16 we'll have our hands full! But she is right, I don't want her to grow up!

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4th Birthday Recap

2011-06-29T21:08:00.007-05:00

Ok... at least I got the birthday post up during her birthday month. Tonight I had a little free "me time". Brooke is at the Miss Mississippi Pageant with Ms. Rachel, Tenley went to bed around 7:30, and Craig is at a meeting at church. I hopped on the treadmill for about 30 mins and have decided to attempt to catch up!

If the pictures don't give a hint - we had a Princess Tea Party for Brooke's fourth birthday. She has been planning this since at least January, when she announced that she only wanted girls at her party. We were in "Targ" one day and found a bunch of princess party supplies on sale. I couldn't tell her no!

Princess Brooke's rule: NO BOYS ALLOWED, except big boys like daddy!

Decorations - I pretty much just used what we had. Lord knows we have plenty of Princess stuff at this house.

The princess's! So cute and precious. All dressed up, but I had a hard time getting them to wear the boas and tiaras.

We played Kiss the Frog Prince - like pin the tail on the donkey. Princess Carrissa won! We also played pass the magic present. Kindof like hot potato, but I think they were still too young to get it. We had fun though.

Our little princess in training. Brooke gave her this dress for her birthday, just to wear to the Princess Party!

Tenley was running fever the following morning, and Craig was at the Methodist Annual Conference so we ended up staying home the following morning. We had a blast playing with the new toys. She received a play dough baking set... move over cake boss! Note the apron, and new heels!

Oh, and this bothered me slightly. She received 2 Barbies with these directions. Their heads are interchangeable.... how weird is that. I mean, it was bad enough to keep up with clothes, now we have heads coming off too!

Birthday Girl

2011-06-12T13:29:00.001-05:00

We celebrated Brookes birthday on Saturday with a Princess Birthday Party. I still can't belive my baby is 4!

Her actual birthday is tommorow, but I'll be leaving for an Infrastructure conference in Atlanta. I promise to provide other birthday details later!

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How do you earn your keep?

2011-05-25T22:19:00.003-05:00

At our house, Brooke knows how to earn her keep. She is responsible for bringing the garbage can up the drive on garbage day. She loves it!

Typically, on our way in the neighborhood every Monday (garbage day) she gets all excited. (Our neighbors probably think we are the worst parents in the world. She'll sometimes get out to get it and then I follow her up the drive in the car.)

Well, 2 weeks ago, we forgot to get the garbage can in, and when Craig got home he called her out there to earn her keep. Tenley and I were watching out the window. When they got to the end of the driveway the garbage can was in the ditch (hence why we girls didn't see it on the way in) and the ditch was full of water.

So, how do you get the garbage can out of the wet ditch?

Oh, why is she wearing that dress to bring in the garbage? ... this is normal.
I mean, who doesn't bring in the garbage can wearing heels and a prom dress?
Who says MS girls are redneck... this one is high class!

LOL!!!

A Weekend of Firsts!

2011-05-22T21:50:00.011-05:00

Ok... so the promised photos (Easter, Olympics, Mother's Day, etc.) haven't been posted. This is a start, and really I hope to catch up soon.

This weekend was a weekend of firsts. We celebrated Tenley's first birthday on Saturday morning with lots of family and friends. So much fun!

The invite... my first photoshop attempt. I thought it turned out really well, and I'm currently working on Brooke's Princess Tea Party invite.

The decor + cup cakes!

The Cake!

Family with the naked baby!

Forget the singing - just give me the cake!

Loving some cake. The black icing wasn't such a great idea. It turned her teeth black and let's just say it stained her bottom the day after!

She had no interest in opening toys. She just roamed around the room having a good time. (One of the cons of having a baby walking on their first birthday!) Luckily, she had a wonderful big sister to do the unwrapping for her. She did enjoy playing with some toys after her nap!

We spent the remainder of the day visiting with my family. My brother and SIL were in town with their precious Carrington. She and I will be celebrating our birthdays this coming weekend. She will be 1 and I'll be just a tad older. (Let's just say, I'm looking into the face of a new decade!)

Saturday night we all had the pleasure of attending Brooke's first dance recital. I think Craig and Dale were dreading it, but I did see smiles on their faces during parts of it. And they got to enjoy some Chrechale's afterward!

Brooke has been taking dance every Tuesday since early Fall. Her school has a program called Kids For Christ that teaches jazz and ballet. We did this as a trial run to see if she would like it, and the pictures show the results. She LOVES it. She wakes up every Tuesday announcing it is dance day, and that she must wear her dance clothes. She dances every Monday night with Dancing with the Stars, and even changes her outfit between each dance. She was front and center in both routines, and smiled the entire time. We were so glad Uncle Dale and Aunt Kay Dee made it for her debut, and I really hope he got some good pictures. For some reason my camera is showing everything as grainy.

Baby Face - Leading the way.

Backstage with Friends!

Dancing to Brahm's Lullaby... so precious. (Ok. I know nothing about ballet, but I thought she did really well. She held her positions quite well.)

Just what a guy with back trouble needs to be doing!

Excited to get flowers.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-23T20:59:00.002-05:00

Hang In there...

2011-04-18T21:01:00.002-05:00

I promise I'll post soon... my camera is full of photos (some boring work related), and my home computer is acting crazy. My mouse has a mind of it's own these days...Each time I click once; it clicks twice for me! - It is driving me CRAZY!!!

Also, between the Craig's test earlier this month, the barge accident on the river, high water, a slide at Grenada Lake (not the playground kind), birthday parties, a trip to the zoo, egg hunts, weddings, bad weather, more bad weather, and the tornado, I've been a tad busy. Therefore, I have a lot of photos to share! I promise to share our April happening soon, and then there is May around the corner. Luckily my trip to Denver for the first week of May has been changed to a trip to San Fransisco in late July (not sure if that is a good thing or bad). We have really big things to plan for the months of May and June... first birthdays, a thirtieth birthday, a family reunion, and a fourth birthday!

So hang with me!!!!

Stinky kid in church!

2011-03-27T13:19:00.001-05:00

It's official, we have the stinky kid in church. During childrens moment, our preacher asked if all the kids had washed their hands this morning. All of them said yes, except for Brooke. She said, "i forgot." Of course everyone laughed.

Then, he asked if they had taken a bath last night or this morning. All the kids raised their hands except Brooke. And again, everyone laughed.

To our defense, she and Isabella had a good bath on Friday night and she had her hair washed and cut on Saturday morning.

She also informed me that she wasn't stinky in church because she hadn't tooted!

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New Recipes

2011-03-23T06:18:00.000-05:00

So, I've been trying to incorporate new recipes into our meal rotation at least once a week. We have a list of trusty stand bys (spaghetti, lasagna, anything grilled, green beans, potatoes, etc.) Here are some really good ones from the past two weeks. You'll also notice these are fairly quick and easy. Tuesday nights are our "taste testing nights" since they are typically the only night of the week we aren't running around or just worn out.

Enjoy!

Ranch Pork Roast (From Kevin and Amanda)

1 Pork Roast or Boston Butt
1 pkg of dry ranch dressing mix
1 can cream of chicken soup

Rinse meat and place in crock pot. Cover with ranch dressing mix and top with soup. Cook 8-10 hrs on low or 4-6 on high.

I served this over rice. Wished it had a little more gravy with it.

Roasted Green Bean Fries (From How Sweet it Is)

1 lb Fresh Green Beans
olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Drizzle Green Beans with small amoutn of olive oil (make sure they are coated well). Lay them out on a baking sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast on 425 degrees for about 30 mins flipping half way.

Brooke even said they taste like French Fries!

Shrimp Casserole (Southern Living)

2 cups brown rice
1.5 lbs of small cooked/peeled shrimp
1/4 cup butter
bell pepper/onion
2 cans cream mush soup
salt/fresh ground pepper
shredded cheese
1 cup breadcrumbs

Prepare rice according to package directions. Melt butter in a large skillet, then add bell pepper and onion. Cook until tender. Then add shrimp, cream of mushroom soup, salt and pepper. Cook for about 5 mins. Comibe shrimp mixture and rice. Pour into a 13x9 greased backing dish. Top with shredded cheese and breadcrumbs. Bake 25 mins at 350 degrees.

Birds Farm and Auburn

2011-03-21T17:40:00.002-05:00

I've been trying to plan short trips and things for us to do while Craig is taking a PE class each Saturday and Sunday from the end of February until the first of April. The first weekend in March, the girls, my parents, and myself traveled to Auburn to visit Uncle Dale, Aunt Kay Dee, and sweet cousin Carrington. We left on Friday morning and came home that Sunday evening.

On our way, we stopped between Eutaw and Demopolis, AL on HWY 43 in Forkland, AL at a place called "Birds Farm". My dad kept talking about this, but wasn't exactly sure where it was. We had just gotten out of Eutaw and he said "This can't be the right road, we've missed it, nothing looks familiar." He said he really wanted Brooke to see the animals; I was thinking like buffalo. Then, out of the blue, we started seeing strange things... an octopus coming out of a lake, a 30' tall tin man, a pirate ship, a helicopter, the see/hear/speak no evil monkeys, and so on. I'll let the pictures below explain it, but basically it's a guys farm where he uses hay bales to sculpt (i guess that's what you call it) things. When we pulled up (tress passing) a group of the Alabama cheerleaders were out their taking pictures as well. Apparently this is a popular spot; here is a link to some other photos and info. We didn't get to stop at everything. It was lunch time and Tenley was ready to eat! But check out the tin man at the top... Brooke is standing on it's left foot!

Needless to say... AL tops my redneck list, and I'm from Mississippi.

Now, for the rest of our visit. We had a great time visiting with my family; although, we missed Craig. We met my Cousin Joey and Carol for dinner on Friday night, and spent most of the weekend indoors due to the weather. The girls did great traveling, as long as we sang and kept them entertained. Poor Carrington kept a green nose while we were there and both babies were cutting teeth. We spent Saturday night dancing, cheering, and just acting silly. I'm glad we went and hope to return soon with Craig so the guys can play golf!

Cousins... one week apart! They are about the same height. Can tell which one is eating table food and which one is not?

Cheering for the Bulldogs with Blue and Orange Pompoms!

Running Fool

2011-03-20T20:39:00.000-05:00

Ok... for those who don't know, I have officially lost my mind!

Yesterday I ran in the St. Paddy's Day 5k... ok, not such a big deal, but I have only run two times in the last month. Let's just say, I finished! I did not have a great time (actually I still don't know my official time), but I wasn't the last "runner" (if you can call me that). I started out pretty good (for little training)... right at a 12 min first mile. Again, nothing to brag about but I was pleased. I admit, I think I walked most of the second mile, but did run a majority of the third. The last half was mostly up a slight hill, but I ran all of it. And I have every excuse if you want to hear it (been sick, no time, 2 kids at home, travel), but honestly, I just wasn't prepared and I didn't train like I had planned.

So, why did I do this? Well, it wasn't really my "New Years Resolution", but it has been a goal of mine for quite a while. Before getting pregnant with Tenley, I was doing good. I was running about 2 miles 3-4 times a week, but then I let the "Oh, I'm pregnant mode set in." After that, I just quit. I really wish I would have kept it up. After having Tenley in May, I started out really good while on maternity leave, but going back to work killed my good habits. After driving 1.5 hours each day and working 8+ hours, getting the girls fed and to bed, leaving in the morning in the dark and coming home after dark, I was beat. So, thanks to Day Light Savings time, I've been able to get on track somewhat. We'll see how it goes.

So, this was my eye opener a.k.a. motivation. I'm trying to register for a 5K at least every other month. Now I have a goal... I will beat my time from this one!

9 Months and Counting!

2011-02-28T20:05:00.006-06:00

Well, Since I failed on a 7 month update and an 8 month, here is the promised 9 month update. We spent the afternoon at the doctors office, and had a great report. She is just shy of 20 lbs and is 2' 3.5" tall. She still has some signs of RSV; mainly just the congested breathing and her "man cough" in the mornings.

Over the past few months she has become quite active. She really started crawling around Christmas (7 months) and then started pulling up the end of January (8 months). She has recently started cruising and getting into everything. Unfortunately, we never really baby proofed the house when we moved in. At the time, Brooke pretty much knew what she could and couldn't get into. So, we are slowly finding things that Tenley can and has gotten in to. However, she loves to get caught. You can scold her and tell her "no", but she just laughs and giggles.

She loves to "talk", and jibber jabbers all the time. I have made a habit of saying "HEY" really high pitched when I open the car door to get her out, and now when I open her door, she'll squeal "Hey" at me... too cute!

She also has waving and saying bye bye and is clapping some. She loves tub baths; especially with Brooke, but she likes to make a mess out of them! She constantly has a grin, unless momma leaves her. But for the most part she is Perfect!

Brooke has finally discovered that they can really play together. She loves dressing Tenley up, rolling on the floor, or chasing her. However, she doesn't like for Tenley to get into her stuff... she has alot to learn!

Eight months with her bear!

Oscar Recap

2011-02-28T12:15:00.004-06:00

Ok, We're not usually an Award Show watcher (other than the CMA's), but Brooke , Craig, and I had a good time watching the Academy Awards last night. It just kindof pulled us in, although we hadn't seen hardly any of the movies winning nominations or awards.

Brooke and I had a good time watching the Red Carpet arrivals. She tried to prolong her bed time to see more of the show by needing to blow her nose, go to the bathroom, give extra hugs and kisses. At one point, about 45 mins after going to bed, they played a little bit of the music from the Beauty and the Beast, and she came tiptowing down the hall to see what we were watching.

I wanted to see The Kings Speech when it was out at the movies, but never made it. It is definitely on the to watch list now.

So here are some of mine and Brooke's picks:"Look at her getting married dress momma!" - Brooke liked this one, but I didn't care for it as much. Sorry, Nicole, you could have done better!

Loved the Red on Anne (but it kindof made the "red" carpet look dingy)... Brooke liked it too. My Favorite!

"Oh my Goodness, her dress is sooooo cute." - Brooke

I worry about Brooke's future style sometimes... i think it's going to be over the top!

We pass a dress shop everyday on the way home from daycare. They typically change the dresses out about once a week, and Brooke always yells "Slow down so I can see the dresses." She has asked several times when we can go try some on.

So, if anyone would like to contribute to the future "Brooke dress collection" Please feel free to do so... Call me and I'll provide you with the Tax Id number!!!

Missing Home/ Missing Me

2011-02-24T20:22:00.001-06:00

Missing these two :(

I've been in Shreveport, LA this week at the RRVA (Red River Valley Association) 86th annual conference. It's been interesting and informative. A lot of funding discussion and a great presentation from US Rep Fleming, oh, and too much good food.

Now, Craig on the other hand has had it rough. He called me at 8 yesterday saying his truck had died 1.5 miles from town. He had a friend pick them (Craig and the girls) up. He had it towed, and a belt had broken. He had it fixed, made it to the daycare to get the girls and it died again. My mom picked them all up and got them home. Luckily, she spent the night, and got them to daycare and work. Fortunately, the battery just needed replacing.

I talked to Brooke tonight, she told me the "daddys truck had been sick." So, I'm sure Craig will be thrilled to have me home, just as much as i'll be glad to be home.

Also, this weekend Craig will start his weekend PE classes. Eight hours each Sat and Sun for 6 weeks. So, please keep us all in your prayers. ... Tenley is also cruising and starting to get into everything. Her 9 month post should be up next week after her appt.

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Happy Valentine's Day - a day late!

2011-02-15T21:50:00.003-06:00

We've been celebrating Valentines Day since last Wednesday. Brooke's class held their Valentine Music Open House. It was too cute. Her class sang about 10 songs during their regular music time. (Her school doesn't believe in putting kids up on stage in front of large audiences, so they have special music times during the year for parents.) When we walked in the room, all the kids had big "Conversation Hearts" hanging from their necks. Brooke's said "PERFECT." It cracked Craig and I up!

We dodged a big snow on Thursday, luckily. It caused an interesting ride home late Wednesday night, and then Brooke and I had a very interesting ride home from Walmart as well. We had about the same as Vicksburg had (approx. 2") at the house, but not much in Clinton. The schools and roads were open. We still had snow in the area through early Saturday morning, and then we've had the big warm up... 70 degrees today!

Brooke's class held their Valentine Party on Friday, and Craig and I celebrated on Sunday afternoon with a little shopping and dinner at PF Changs. Thanks to mom and dad for babysitting on their rare Sunday night off! This was much needed after I spent most of the week and weekend nursing Craig and myself back to good health. I've had another fight with ear infections, and we think the flu got Craig (he refused to go to the doctor).

Our Valentine Cuties... Outfits I made (pants left over from Christmas and new shirts.)

Getting their Valentine's yesterday.

So happy to have brought in the garbage can... crazy child!

Happy Girl the day after!

Again... Everyday should be Christmas Day!

2011-02-12T22:41:00.003-06:00

Christmas Morning Recap
We had an exciting Christmas morning. Brooke came in our room around 5:30, and didn't even notice Santa had arrived. She woke up around 6:30 and sat straight up and said "Did Santa come?" She was great about waiting and watching what everyone else was opening. Sometimes, she was more excited about our gifts than her own. She really enjoyed having and helping Tenley! Tenley just kindof hung out. We opened gifts, and had JuJu and Papaw over for lunch on Craig's new smoker, and then spent the rest of the afternoon packing. Luckily, Juju and Papaw hung around to play with the girls, watch movies, and supervise while I did most of our packing. I didn't even get started until after lunch Christmas Day and we left the next morning - very unlike me. To say the least, I was a tad stressed. However, most of the things we got for Christmas we planned to take on our trip. So, my packing served as the clean up too! No mess on the return home. - Gatlinburg Post to come soon!

Santa's Set Up - my first attempt at digital Scrapbooking with my new Photoshop. I've got some learning to do!

Excited about her Bike from Santa!

Princess Belle has arrive to replace Cinderella!

Checking out Tenley's loot from Santa ... Weebles Wobble but they don't fall down!

Cool shades... I think she gets a new pair for every holiday, and then loses them!

Helping Little Sister with her stocking!

Some necessities!

Belle with her Belle!

Craig's new pop up blind!

My new fleece from the girls!

Wrapping chaos... opening gifts with dad!

Craig's new jacket... he was surprised. He thought he new everything he was getting!

Playing with Papaw

More Chaos!

Brown Boots... Craig picked these and another pair of black boots out for me. They both fit great and I loved them. - I was impressed. I shopped for boots for a month and couldn't find what I liked. I'll share my big gift from him a little later!

Why Can't Everyday be Christmas!

2011-02-12T21:38:00.005-06:00

Christmas Eve Recap

We were blessed to have a very fun and busy Christmas (as usual). I'll let the pictures do the talking. They are pretty much in chronological order.

(Hang with me, Christmas morning and Gatlinburg post in the works.)

Our Tree before removing some gifts.

First Stop - Nana's ... the Girls Great Grandmothers.

Visiting with Chico... Nana would not let us take her picture with the girls. She wasn't quite dressed yet!

Girly Cousins

Craig did an excellent job of getting me in some photos this year!

Second Stop - Lunch Craig's Family

Tenley liked Pawpaws beard. I think it reminded her of Santa!

New Skates ... this is also my first Photoshop (one of my Christmas presents) try out... Believe it or not, Craig was standing behind her on the left in the original.

Both girls were in great moods all day, and very well behaved. No breakdowns or misbehaving. Tenley especially was in a great mood. This was about the only day for about 3 weeks in December that she would let anyone besides Craig or I hold her.

Third Stop - Mawmaw's for Dinner .... the girls other Great Grandmother's House!

Tenley getting some Mawmaw lovin, Brooke had "Had enough" by this point, she was curled up, ready to go "Jump in bed and cover up her head, because Santa Clause is coming tonight!"

Callie and Brooke... hard to believe they are only a week apart in age. Poor little Brooke has gotten her momma's height! Check them out in 2007... only 6 weeks old, my how they have changed!

These are just a few of the best photos. I'm trying to catch up!

Snow snow go away

2011-02-10T22:50:00.001-06:00

A view of the house on our way to work and school. Very pretty, but the roads were a mess. We slept in to let things thaw a little. If we can get over winter and being sick I will be one happy momma. I'm still fighting an ear infection, Brooke has had a streph relapse, and Craig has had a stomache bug this week. Luckily Tenley has been well, however, she is on the go now. Pulling up, crawling, waving bye-bye, and eating anything you put in front of her.

Still working on my Christmas post... Maybe I can get it up this weekend. Oh, then we'll have valentine's and a nine month update!

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Ballerinas

2011-01-29T09:24:00.001-06:00

Spending my day with these too right now. Soon to be headed to the park to pick up one more girly girl for a play date!

Loving this weather!

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MIA

2011-01-27T17:58:00.001-06:00

We're still here, but my computer is at the doctor. I have spent the last few weeks with either sick kids or working overtime to prepare for the conference I am finishing up today. Hence the MIA blog title!

I'm excited to be heading home from Memphis tomorrow. I have missed my girls this week. It's been pretty stressful; we've spent the last 3 days fighting for our program. And I am staying at an awesome mall, but have yet to get an chance to shop.

Oh well, hang with me... I'm still hoping to get that Christmas post together, buy blogging from my new smartphone isn't so easy.

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Another Stay at Home Day!

2011-01-10T20:43:00.001-06:00

Brooke calls Saturdays "Stay at Home Day", although, we rarely stay at home all day on Saturday. She calls Sunday "Church Day". When she got up this morning and we told her she didn't have school because of the "Winter Storm 2011" she kept shouting "Hooray, another Stay at Home Day!"

I was supposed to report to work at noon, but Craig had to go in at his usual time. Therefore, I choose to spend the day home to keep my my girls. We had a blast. I actually still have my pj's on from last night... and I'm not complaining. Craig and Brooke have gone to a friends to watch the Bachelor, and I'm taking a few minuets to myself. Now tomorrow, I'm headed to Arkansas to speak at a levee board meeting about future projects on the MS. I was supposed to go be in Greenville, MS today, but that will have to wait until Thursday.

Here are some pictures from today and this past weekend... I'm still sorting through Christmas pictures, and there is a chance I may have to rebuild my computer. It appears I have a nice little trojan virus that my computer can't seem to shake... Cough. Cough.

Helping sister crawl!

Ready for a shopping trip... yes, I let her wear this. We got a lot of intresting looks! Thinking - "I'm glad I'm staying home with dad, and I won't be seen in public with her!"

Brooke recieved a few duplicates in Christmas presents this year, that was okay, because we took a shopping trip to Targ for exchanges. Before leaving the house, she told me what she wanted, if they had it. She wanted a Wedding Dress, just like the one we gave Maddy for her birthday. I promise I looked for this everytime I was in the store over the holidays, but they didn't have it. The 15 min drive to Targ she talked about it, about how they must not have had it at the North Pole either... we were in luck! She loves it. (I'm filing these away for a special day!)

With the Bridesmaid!

How Craig left us on Stay at Home Ice Day!

Iced over Truck - Craig took my car today!

Doing her - "Hooray! Another Stay at Home Day" Dance!

Orange girl! She isn't taking her green veggies well, can you tell?

This is really the only way I could keep her happy today. No, not eating the table, but standing. She is pulling up a little here and there, but she'd rather just be propped up on anything to stand. She stayed this way a good 10 mins. Frozen State Flag

Icicles!

On her Honeymoon - a fishing trip!

Happy New Year!!!

2011-01-04T20:40:00.003-06:00

Lots to share, we spent the week after Christmas with friends in Gatlinburg... I would have never believed we would leave Jackson with it snowing and end up 13 hours later in Gatlinburg with 12-15" of snow. Here is a sneak peak.... (I took 847 pictures!)

Snow Angel A special day in Ashville, NC at the Biltmore (my Christmas dream)... it was 6 degrees when we headed out. Our view from our room.... AWESOME.

And to think, I tired to reason us out of going on this trip. Brooke and Tenley traveled great, even thought it was very slow going (due to snow) and coming home (due to tornados). Tenley may have cried a total of 30 mins of our travels. I am so glad we went!

Thanks Terry and Katie for inviting us.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T04:15:00.001-06:00

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

(This is a nativity in downtown Clinton, Brooke has asked to go see it several times. We haven't really gone to look at many lights (saving that for Gatlinburg).
May each of us remember the true meaning of Christmas!

Calloway Christmas!

2010-12-23T14:45:00.001-06:00

This past weekend we had a blast at the whirlwind Calloway Christmas. Uncle Dale, Aunt Kay Dee, and Cousin Carrington were in town to help celebrate! We didn't get to visit as long as we wanted too, but we had fun.

Stop #1 - 10 AM - JuJu and Papaw Larry's for our family Christmas!

Carrington got a Pink Wagon ... JuJu and Papaw gave Brooke our wagon on her first Christmas.Cousins - Brooke immediately stripped her Christmas clothes off to put on Dress Up clothes when we got there, hence the strange outfit. Carrington and Tenley's first Christmas gifts! Tenley's gift from JuJu and Papaw - a walker it appears she'll be using soon.

Tea Party - Brooke's gift from JuJu. She also got the much wanted Ladybug Pillow Pet, but I don't have a picture of it yet. You would have thought Brooke won the lottery when she got it.

Stop #2 - 3 PM - Wedding at our Church - Beautiful, until Brooke decided to flash everyone at the reception!

Stop #3 - 6 PM - Calloway Christmas Party #1

Getting ready for the gift pass out. I'd guess we had about 50 folks there.Papaw Larry read the Night Before Christmas and led the traditional singing of carols.

Getting Mommy Love!

Stop #4 - 9 PM - Calloway Immediate family Party Dirty Santa!This was Brooke's gift, however, I think the adults liked it more!

Dirty Santa - Hottest gift of the night - Head Massager

In the Christmas Spirit

2010-12-23T10:12:00.002-06:00

I'm off today with the girls (No more work for me until the New Year!) ... we've had a tea party, watched Cinderella while wrapping presents, made vanilla fudge, packed a little, and now Tenley is down for a nap. A trip to JuJu's is scheduled for the afternoon, and then a mommy and daddy date!

We have enjoyed a very busy Christmas season so far and now we're preparing for the rest. Here are some photos from home... a Calloway Christmas recap is to come!

Playing with the wreath Miss Katie made for me... I still haven't finished it. I had hope to put gold ornaments on it, but haven't found the time. It was a great photo prop though!

Another attempt at Christmas PJ pictures!Playing with Daddy! Princess Tea PartyFun around the house!

More mischief from Elf Mark... he had a snowball fight in Brooke's bathroom!

Disney on Ice... a dream come true!

2010-12-20T21:15:00.006-06:00

Since Elf Mark delivered a Cinderella Dress and matching shoes, I decided that we must go to Disney on Ice. I stayed up late late late one night and was able to get 14 tickets!

Princess Cinderella BrookeHighlights! - I was really impressed with the production. I mean anything from Disney is usually good, but this was great. Bubbles, Fire Spitting Dragons, fancy costumes, and flying fairies!

With Princess Cinderella Maddy! (Getting Dressed on the counter at Whataburger!)With Princess Gracieand Princess Olivia! We gave Olivia and her mom tickets to join us for her 4th Birthday.We ran into more Princess friends while waiting in line for the bathroom.We got to see Cinderella!The Whataburger Princess's... They took their picture to put in their monthly activities newsletter!

Elf Mark!!

2010-12-10T08:10:00.004-06:00

The day after Thanksgiving we had a little visitor arrive. If you've been a blog checker for a while you might remember that in 2008 Elf Drake arrived, and then in 2009 Elf Minnie arrived. This year we are hosting Elf Mark!

We've (ok, Brooke and I) been having a lot of fun with him. We were getting dressed to go to Mathiston for Thanksgiving when we heard the door bell ring. Brooke answered it and found Mark (no, not Cousin Mark) sitting at the door with a present. She was SO excited. He had brought an early Christmas gift from Santa... tickets to Disney Princess's on Ice, a Cinderella Dress, Silver shoes, and an Elmo remote control (for Tenley of course!).

The point is to use him more of a behavioral tool, but we're just making him a fun guest. Although, she does tell him that she has been good, or to please not tell Santa that she misbehaved, that she'll be better tomorrow.

I also overheard her tell Tenley "Stop that fussing, or Elf Mark will tell Santa you aren't being good!"

Since his arrival, each morning we've been finding him him all over the house, and sometime he's been a tad mischievous.

We found him one morning at the Nativity. Brooke said "He was being quiet because Baby Jesus was sleeping." Another morning, we found him in our new favorite snack box... he had eaten them all. Brooke was not happy! One Saturday morning, Brooke found him sitting on a roll of toilet paper. Brooke was fussing at him since he had used the bathroom, not flushed, and used too much toilet paper. She told him "Daddy says we only need 3 squares!"Trying on her Cinderella Dress and shoes.This is where we found him the morning after the Egg Bowl... he was happy about their win too!

Brookeisms

2010-12-09T05:20:00.000-06:00

A sneak peak at some conversations with Brooke:

After a trip to the Dentist, accompanied by her dad ... "Hey mom, even you know I was good at the Dentist. I got 2 tattoos."

In the car singing Christmas Carols:
Brooke: "Mom, I sure hope our neighbors appreciate us."
Me: "Why?"
Brooke: "Because we share our grass with them."
Me: "Oh yeah."
Brooke: "And Dad even lets them cut some of it!"

On the Christmas story"
Brooke: "Baby Jesus got to sleep on a water bed."
Me: "What?"
Brooke: "Yeah, that box they put water in, then hay on top, and then Jesus got to sleep on it - it was a water bed."
Who knew 1000's of years ago they had water beds?

"I sure bet that Donkey was tired, he carried Mary a long way."

"They wouldn't let Mary sleep in the inn, because she was pregnant. They didn't want to clean up the mess."

Overheard from Brooke talking to Tenley, after Tenley was being fussy one night.
"You better quit all that fussing, or Santa might not come to our house. We have to be good."

Ho, Ho, Ho

2010-12-08T21:51:00.005-06:00

I'm so excited, I just ordered my Christmas Cards... be on the look out towards the end of next week! I've attempted to get a photo for them several times over the last 2 weeks. Luckily, one trip to see Santa fixed that!

We've been busy, busy, busy... man if i had a dollar for each post I wrote that!

We had a great Thanksgiving... we spent time with Family in Magee and Mathiston, had some good food, too much really, went to see Tangled in 3D at the movies, put up the tree, and our elf, Mark arrived (check back for a future post on Mark!).

We have a fun weekend planned... Brooke and I are going to see Disney Princess's on Ice tomorrow night, and then meeting my parents at Carols by Candlelight on Friday night and our Sunday school party on Saturday night.

Okay - Does anyone really read this stuff??? on to the pictures!

Christmas Photo Shoot #3Shaden and Brooke at the Bass Pro Waiting on Santa... so glad we happened to run into the Brownlee's there! Tenley in a diaper bag.

Santa at the Clinton Light Parade.

Brooke teaching Tenley how to play!

Our little elf ... still fighting RSV, you can tell by her eyes.

Christmas Photo Shoot Try #1

Love the Hat in the Chilly Temps the weekend of Thanksgiving in Mathiston.

Mr. Todd paid Brooke $1 for saying Hotty Toddy, thank goodness we left at half time or she would have been rich.

A sink bath - always fun!

Brooke and Tenley playing the "Where are your socks game."

Little Indian Princess

My little elves... they spent more time in the tree box, than helping decorate!

6 month old Thanksgiving Cutie!

Not such a good picture of mommas, but look at those cute cousins!

Thanksgiving Day with MawMay

I am thankful for...

2010-11-24T22:08:00.005-06:00

I admit that I have been somewhat overwhelmed lately by hearing Christmas music blasted over intercoms and seeing decorations overflow shelves while running errands and shopping (since July). Also, I have great respect for Salvation Army bell ringers, but this year it seems like they were out at Halloween. For the past few weeks, I have been so focused on getting my Christmas Shopping done, planning for ]holiday events, and then I realized...this is the time to be Thankful.

Don't get me wrong... Christmas is one of my favorite holidays, but Thanksgiving is one that means so much more to me. Christmas is a rush, rush, rush holiday, while Thanksgiving is the sit back and soak it all in holiday - I love that much more! I am so blessed to have such a great extended family, that we get together for Thanksgiving... no, not just meet at a house and eat and then go our separate ways, but really get together. We talk, eat, play, laugh, hunt, watch football, and just enjoy the moments together. I have so many great memories of Thanksgiving... a black eye from a four wheeler wreck, a rotten turkey, a dead cat, the Thanksgiving auction, cooking with my Aunt Deanna, running to the Piggly Wiggly (in my pjs even), learning to play card games, and so on.

So what am I thankful for this year...there are always the regulars list of things... family/friends/home... but there are also big things like:

This guy...not only because he gave me two beautiful lovable daughters, but because he understands me. Even when I have bad days and I'm cranky he still loves me and tolerates me. Yeah, he gives me fits sometimes, but I still love him.

Photography... looking back at old pictures makes me smile and encourages me to be thankful for the past, present, and future.

My parents... who taught me to make wise decisions through which I now have great things and great people in life. They still amaze me and provide support to me and my family everyday whether through a phone call or babysitting. It seems they are only a phone call away!

Silliness... I have to be so serious all the time as a professional, that I really am thankful for the silly in my life. I love to get in the floor and play with my girls. Monday night Dancing with the Stars has become one of my favorite nights of the week. Watching Brooke dance lifts my spirits. I also get a thrill out of playing tricks on Craig every now and then!

Salvation ... our Loving Father in Heaven and his Son have provided us the greatest gift that can be given throughout our entire lives... its not just a birthday gift or a Christmas gift that we forget about after sometime.

Trials ... those that have made me stronger and wiser. Without these life would not be an adventure.

Oh yeah... last but certainly not least Disposable Diapers!

We are Fam-i-ly!

2010-11-24T14:05:00.000-06:00

It's a rare chance that all of my family gets together. Unfortunately the timing of this visit wasn't a pleasant one, but we made the most of it. After my aunts funeral, and a delicious lunch prepared by her church, we did our best to get a few family photos. Here are some of the best I have.Cousins! Carrington didn't really know what to think of Brooke.

Random!

2010-11-23T22:30:00.001-06:00

These are random shots from November:

Our Hippy - this was the day she came home with the Sacarlatina Rash... like sandpaper all over her chest, back, hands, feet, and un-mentionable areas. Dr. Josh came by and diagnosed her with strep throat, but she wouldn't let him lift her shirt! We had a girls night one Saturday night while Craig watched the State game. Brooke was supposed to be helping me decorate their tree... she did this instead. (Check out those rosey cheeks... 102 fever!)

Our new baby sitter! (The jumper, not Brooke)

Our little angel... she danced at the Clinton Holiday Market. Despite a nose bleed and the beginnings of strep throat. She did great!

Our little computer nerd! Sadly... this is how she sees me a lot when working at the house... computer in lap, glasses on, and paper/books spread all around! She's a mini me!Getting Daddy love! This is what my lap normally looks like.
Photos from a sick day at home... Brooke was playing teacher and had the kids down for nap time all over the house. Our entire living/dining/kitchen/hallway/guest bath were covered with blankets for nap time.

At the AR vs. MSU tailgate... so glad Bill was home to join us.

Birthday party #3 of the month... we have 2 to go! It was Maddi's 3rd birthday - princess/pirate style!

Brooke trying to read... this is one of my favorite books from when I was little, Andrew Henry's Meadow. (part of why I'm an engineer) It is out of print now. I've read it to her so many times, she tries her best to read it to herself, but ends up creating her own story. - Love That!

Hunting!

2010-11-23T14:19:00.003-06:00

Welcome hunting season! Sadly Craig hasn't gotten to do much of it. When the weather cooperates it seems we have other stuff going on. He went for the first time this past Sunday night and missed a doe. Better luck next time.

Craig and Brooke went to the deer camp on Halloween to check his camera and spend some time playing around... their day ended with a broke gate. Craig let Brooke drive his Cub Cadet (I have no idea what he was thinking.) He got out to open a gate and she hit the gas before he told her too. Luckily he moved out of the way fast enough, but she knocked the gate down... I was one unhappy momma, and he temporarily lost his dad of the year award!

Goofing off - shooting their guns!

Tenley in the overalls at 6 monthsBrooke in the overalls at 4 months (October 2007).

6 Months!!!

2010-11-23T13:30:00.000-06:00

I'm blogging today, since I took off for Tenley's 6 month check up... I'm also getting ready for our annual Sunday School Thanksgiving get together, which is tonight.

T is growing too fast... she is 16 lbs even (has lost a little since the middle of Oct.) She is 2' 2" and 50 percentile in everything.. the pictures show some of her milestones she has met. She also has her first tooth and the second coming in. She's been a bit fussy lately due to her sickness and teething, but still loveable and laid back when she isn't feeling bad.

6 month with her bear ... compare at 1 week and 1 month!

She started sitting up around 5 1/2 months at short spurts, but she has it down now. She hates to be laid on her back now, she up seeing the world.

3 guesses as to who she is laughing at... not me or dad.... Brooke!

Trying to crawl... getting close.

Ready for her 6 month check up... this was our families 6th visit to a doctors office in 2.5 weeks.

Getting mad because she can't get moving.

Still trying!

Let's see...

2010-11-23T13:01:00.002-06:00

Where to start. It has been several weeks since I have been able to post, and I have so much to share. I'm thankful my computer is up and running.

It's been a trying few weeks...
We've had sick girls at the Prestwood house - Tenley has RSV and we are giving her breathing treatments every morning and night, Brooke has had strep throat and the scarlatina rash that goes along with it in children, and I have had double ear infections.

We also sadly lost my Aunt Deanna this month. She passed away on Sunday November 7th. This was very unexpected. We loved her very much and will miss her especially during this time of year. All of my Thanksgiving memories contain a little bit of her. We're going to celebrate in her honor this year.

Work has been okay lately (well, when I've been there). I traveled to Memphis the first week of November and took Mom and Tenley with me. We had a good time, besides the weather being nasty and cold. We enjoyed dinner at Rendevous and Tenley enjoyed a dinner at the Peabody. We did get a little Christmas shopping done while we were there too. I also had to take Brooke to work with me one day... all I can say is that she was quite the entertainment!

We've been to ballgames at MSU and to many birthday parties. Watched Brooke dance at the Holiday Market and started a little Christmas decorating... enough of all this talk.

I'll update you through pictures... you don't want to read anything I have to say anyways. See the next few posts!

We're here!!!

2010-11-17T13:10:00.003-06:00

Hi All,

Thanks to those who have checked in on us. It's been a rough few weeks... my computer at home has a virus, and I don't like to blog from work. I hope it will be up and running soon!

Hang with me, I have lots to post about... and plenty of pictures!

30th Birthday @ the Circus

2010-10-14T21:43:00.000-05:00

For Craig's 30th Birthday, my parents took us all to the circus. I don't know who had more fun, us, my parents, or Brooke. We all had a blast. We got there an hour early, so we could go down and visit with the performers, but Brooke wouldn't go. She kept her ears covered for the first 30 mins or so, and then started dancing at our seats. She was scared of the clown. Every time it would come our way, she would cover her eyes and duck.
We thoroughly enjoyed it. - Thanks JuJu and Papaw Larry!

B-R-O-O-K-E...

2010-10-13T21:10:00.001-05:00

Who knew Brooke could write her name?
We were shocked, and she was so proud!

Beach Birthday Trip

2010-10-12T21:17:00.000-05:00

Ok... so I'm a month behind. I'll catch you up.

After our night in Starkville at the Auburn game, we got up early and had biscuits, sausage, and tomato Gravy with my Aunt Deanna before hitting the road. For a 5 hour drive, the girls did great - Tenley may have fussed for about 30 mins total of our whole trip to the beach. We spent 4 days in Gulf Shores, AL, to celebrate Craig's 30th birthday and relax a little. - Much needed.

We stayed at Crystal Towers and loved it. The condo was perfect. They even furnished the pack and play, beach toys, umbrellas, rafts, and such. We spent pretty much the whole time at the pool... very relaxing and fun. We spent the nights eating out and seeing the sights. We chose the perfect time to go. No crowds and it was a little cooler. Most of the people at the condo were families like us. Brooke made some friends at the pool and beach, and she was swimming on her own before we left.

At Lulu's for Craig's birthday dinner.

The birthday boy with his girl and his new hunting clothes.

Brooke actually enjoyed the sand. When we got there on Friday afternoon, she did a dive into and started rolling around... crazy! Brooke and I enjoyed the water a little. There was no oil, but the marine life was out. We saw a ton of blue crabs, some sting ray, and lots of fish. Craig wasn't about to get in the water, after someone told us they had seen tiger sharks out the week before. He nominated himself to keep Tenley in the shade while we played.

3 months old - sleeping poolside in her stroller! (This is how she spent most of her time.)My view on the last morning. The girls and Craig were still in bed. I enjoyed watching the sun come up, and didn't want to leave. View at the pool. The condo had a huge pool with a lazy river and shooting fountains.
Can't wait to go back next year.. I'm sure it won't be as relaxed with a 1 year old and a 4 year old.

Tenley's Baptism

2010-10-11T09:02:00.001-05:00

We had Tenley Baptised on October 10. We were honored to have grandparents, Aunts/Uncles, Cousins, and our church family there to take part. Bro. Mitchell did a wonderful job, and Tenley smiled most of the way through it. When Mitchell stated that Craig and I would answer some questions on her behalf, she smiled really big, as if to say "That's a great idea!"
After the service, everyone came back to the house for brunch - Breakfast casserole, biscuits, fruit, donuts, and cheese grits. We enjoyed afternoon naps and playtime for the rest of the afternoon. Then Craig and I took Brooke to the fair for a little while.
Yes, "Ten"ly was baptised on 10-10-10. This wasn't planned. We didn't realize it until we were getting ready for church.

Knock Knock.... It's Me!!!

2010-09-27T21:38:00.004-05:00

Hello All, especially John! ... yes, we're still here. It's only been 21 days since my last post! Forgive me, but I have been a tad busy... Craig turned 30, football season started, 4 days at the beach, a night at the circus, Dancing with the Stars, baby girl turning 4 months old, big girl turning from angel child to devil child, church events, teething, lots of crazy river work ... you know, life and such!

Hang with me... this is the first of many posts!
First, for Craig's 30th Birthday, we headed to Starkvegas for the MSU vs. Auburn game. This was also Brooke's first ballgame to attend. We have tailgated in the past, but never sat through a game. Wait, we (Brooke and I) still haven't sat through a game! She did really good. We drove up after lunch, dropped Tenley off with Cousin Becky (THANKS!), and headed to Starkville. We were in a rush so that we could visit with Uncle Dale for a few minuets. As soon as we got to the Auburn gate and saw him, Brooke broke through the barricade and went running towards him. Uncle Dale rescued her before the cops got her! Although they got some strange looks.
After visiting with Dale, we walked around the drill field and then through the Union. We saw Bully (aka Billy) at one time, Brooke covered her eyes and froze. After he went by, she made a B line in the opposite direction. We made our way to our seats a little before game time, and then Brooke rang and cheered her heart out between trips to the bathroom. If the crowd roared, she cheered, whether good or bad. If the poor man sitting in front of us got hit once with a cowbell or pompom he got hit a hundred times, but never complained. We tried to teach her to ring responsibly!

We only made 5 trips to the bathroom, which by the way is unairconditioned. If I ever make a donation to MSU, it's going to have a note in the memo line that says "For Davis Wade Stadium West Side Woman's Restroom Air Conditioner Only"!

Although State lost the game, we had a blast. Brooke was pumped the whole time (well, some candy from Aunt Deanna helped too.)

Pre Game Show!

BullyBinoculars Covering her ears while the Auburn band played. Smart Girl! Chapel of Memories

Hang with me for future posts as mentioned above!

MSU Family

2010-09-06T22:27:00.003-05:00

Brooke will be studying "family" this week at school. We have to send a family picture to school this week. Belive it or not, we don't have a single picture of the 4 of us! So, before watching the State game on Saturday, we had a photo shoot - this was the best I got!
We are so excited about taking Brooke to her first Ballgame this week. She was cheering through the whole thing on Saturday night - we're so glad they won! She kept yelling "Let's see Billy" (we think she meant Bully)

3 weeks In

2010-09-04T07:16:00.004-05:00

So, we're 3 weeks into Kindergarten, daycare, and work. We're slowly adjusting, but we are thankful for our holiday weekend!

It hasn't been as hard as I thought it would be... that is, as long as I get everything ready the night before. I've done really good in laying out all the girls clothes for the week on Sunday afternoons, and I have all of Tenley's bottles ready to go each night before bed.
3K is going great for Brooke... she is learning fast. By the end of the first week, she had completely learned her Pledge of Allegiance. I'm going to try to record her soon... it's too cute. Instead of United States, she says the United Steak of America! She is taking dance on Tuesday afternoons at school, but won't show us her moves. She says it's a secret.

Tenley has been perfect in the nursery. They say she is the happiest baby they have. She's really in the smiling/giggling stage right now. I'm having trouble nursing her at night, because she just wants to smile and giggle the whole time!
Okay... I know ya'll don't want to read stuff, so here are some pictures from the past few weeks.

MSU Baby!

She talked all the way home after we met Craig in town for dinner Friday night. I think she was trying to tell me to get that bow out of her face!

Wearing her 18 months jacket. She helped me sort through some old clothes.

Bed Time!

Playdate!

Napping Babies!

Napping girls - after church one Sunday - Brooke, Alexis Diamond Destiny, Brooke, and me!

First Haircut! She told Leslie, "Well, it won't be growing any more." Leslie told her that "it better, or I'll be out of a job!"

Doing her chore! She loves to pick up the garbage can on garbage day.

3K and Daycare!

2010-08-16T16:05:00.004-05:00

Today was a day of firsts!

Brooke: First Day of 3K!

This was not the outfit of choice. We had a blue jean skirt picked out, but it was too big. And she is proud of her new shoes!

Tenley: First Day at Daycare!

I couldn't get her to keep her eyes open and smile.

Brooke was very excited! I'm not sure which was more exciting, that she was starting 3K or that Tenley was going to school with her. We had everything out and ready to go last night, and both girls in bed and asleep before 8:30. After an afternoon of swimming, I think they were (well, we all were) worn out!

Brooke helped me haul all of Tenley's stuff to her room, and then I got Brooke to early room. I'm not even sure Tenley knew I left her, she fell asleep in the car on the way in, and was still snoozing when I left. This made it much easier on me.... yes, yes, I admit I cried a little, but I knew they were both in good hands.

After dropping them off, I made a quick run through Walmart (no one was there!), and then came home to relax and do a few things around the house. It has been very strange feeling being the only one home. It's been 13 weeks since I've been home alone. Every now and then, I keep thinking I hear a baby cry.

Off to work tomorrow... back to reality!

Random, but Cute!

2010-08-14T08:27:00.000-05:00

Just some random photos from the past week.Nap Time on Mommy's last day off work :(

Future Price Is Right Model!

A night at the Wildlife Extravaganza!

Fishing!

What do you do when the power goes out for 6 hours and it's 100 degrees outside???

We go to Dairy Queen for ice cream!

And have a photo shoot with mommy... she didn't like this pose!

Happy 7 year Anniversary!!!

2010-08-12T23:00:00.000-05:00

On Monday, August 9th, Craig and I celebrated 7 years of marriage! We both went to work, played and fed the girls, put them to bed, and then crashed on the couch. Aren't we romantic! (oh yeah, Craig attempted to cut some grass, but the rain stopped that.)
We did take time Saturday afternoon to celebrate. The girls stayed home with their MeMaw and PawPaw, while we did some shopping and enjoyed dinner at AJ's on the Lake. In my opinion our dinner was delicious. I enjoyed ribeye wrapped scallops. Craig wasn't overly impressed with his steak.

Our anniversary gifts - For our big anniversary gift this year, we gave each other new towels... again aren't we romantic. According to tradition, wool is the gift for the seventh anniversary, but we decided to stick with Cotton!

Tricycleing her Tricycle

2010-08-12T10:54:00.000-05:00

Brooke has finally grown into her Big Wheel my dad gave her at Christmas 2 years ago. She pulls it up to the top of our driveway, and then rides it down until she flips over in the grass. She calls this "tricycleing her tricycle". She has been having a blast. She will ride a little while in the late afternoon, and then enjoy a Popsicle before going in to fix dinner.

I only wish, I had my camera ready the time Craig decided to give it a try. He made it about 5 feet and then one of the back wheels popped off. Craig and I were laughing like crazy, and poor Brooke burst into tears. No fear... super mom stepped in and saved the day (as Brooke says, not me!). We were able to put the wheel back on!

Check out that smile!

The new heels Ms. Glenda gave her; help her reach the petals a little better!

Sisters!!

2010-08-10T10:40:00.000-05:00

Everyone asks how Brooke has been since adding Tenley to our family. Well, she loves it. We have had a time or two of jealous moments, but nothing major. We've made it a point over the summer to spend some time with just Brooke... going to the Lake, Chucky Cheese with Daddy, swimming with mommy, trips to the library, special treats and such.

I'm glad they get to have sisters. I had a "most of the time" wonderful brother (he knows what I mean!), and Craig had a sister. We both share precious memories with our siblings; I just hope our girls can have the same... and I pray they get along... they will have to share a bathroom!

Here are a few sister photos from the last few weeks:

Crazy Child

2010-08-08T10:23:00.000-05:00

Needless to say, there is never a dull moment at the Prestwood house. Brooke is always dressing up and entertaining us... gee remind you of anyone? (My mom says she is a replica of me. Mom has pictures of me imitating Martha Stewart in high school. Apparently I am more outgoing behind closed doors!)

I'm telling you this child is crazy!!!!

Exhibit 1:

2 skirts = an outfit. One for the top and another for the bottom.

Now, she is pulling "Little Sister" into her act! I was cooking dinner while B & T were playing one night, I came into the room to find this:

Tenley covered in stickers, smiling the whole time!

Exhibit 2:

Yes, she is carrying around a Christmas Reindeer that sings "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" (FYI... this reindeer is now on the missing reindeer list... high up in the top of our bonus room closet... it might be brought out for Christmas.) she is also wearing winter house shoes... with 100+ temps outside. I could not force her to wear these when it was snowing and 20 degrees outside!

Exhibit 3:

Bad Picture - but she is wearing at fleece lined rain coat again, with 100+ temps outside and no rain in sight!

Does This Flower Make My Butt Look Big???

2010-08-07T23:00:00.000-05:00

Tenley at 11 weeks... having Tummy Time and sporting her flower!

Water Fun!!!

2010-08-07T08:30:00.001-05:00

We've enjoyed our summer, but the heat has forced us to water!

Craig, Brooke, and I spent a Saturday at Lake Claiborne with the Townsend's and Wong's. It was fairly overcast, but we enjoyed a little time on the water and a great lunch! Brooke had her first try at knee boarding last year, but I was without the camera. This year, I was a better mommy with camera in hand. However, she spent most of the time jumping off the edge of the dock in her life jacket to one of us as we enjoyed a restful afternoon floating. She also was a great waitress by serving us cold drinks from the cooler.

Knee Boarding at 3!

Daddy skiing.

Crazy Child

Okay, no she didn't knee board alone. Miss Rachel was with her the whole time.

This past weekend, we finally full filled a promise to her. We set up her slip and slide on our hill. We had hope to have a friend of hers over to join us, but everyone was busy. We did get to have Aunt Whitney, Uncle Chris, and Cousin Charlye over for dinner, but Gracie was at her moms.
Have no fear, Dad played with her! Each time he'd go about 15 foot off the kiddie slip and slide. I thought he was going to hit the concrete.

I have no idea why they did this, but every time they got up from the slip and slide, Brooke insisted they get in the baby pool to clean off. I don't think there was room left for Tenley to fit if she wanted too!Aunt Whit with the girls watching the slip and slide fun.

Tenley - 2 month check up!

2010-08-06T12:00:00.000-05:00

Yes, Tenley will be 11 weeks today, and I'm just now posting her 2 month checkup. Forgive me, and look for a 3 month update soon!

We had her check up on July 21st. She weighed 10 lbs 2 oz, and was 22". She had gained 2 lbs in a month... that always makes a nursing mommy feel better. She is growing so fast! She learned to smile around 6 weeks, and has been smiling ever since!

Sunday ready for church!

She is still sleeping really good. Right at her 2 month check up she started sleeping from 9 till about 4. Now she is sleeping from 9 till 5... some days I have to wake her up to feed at 5.

Again she is growing fast. This is an outfit Brooke wore at 9 weeks on her first day of school (see below). It fit Brooke perfectly. This is Tenley at 8 weeks. Her legs stuck out about 2 inches. Tenley is only 1/2 lb heavier than Brooke was at 2 months, and supposedly they were both 22". I'm thinking the nurse measure one of them wrong! Also, Tenley wasn't in the picture taking mood that day.. I couldn't get the smile I got from Brooke.

Picture Post - Swimming!

2010-08-05T09:16:00.003-05:00

Okay, Okay... so I haven't posted since the 4th of July. So, what does that mean = we've been busy and having fun. Prepare for picture post for the next several days as I catch up. This is one of my last day's off work. I started back part time 2 weeks ago, and it seems on the days I've been off, Tenley and I have been busy.

Enjoy the month of July updates!

To start... the last week in June and the first week of July, Brooke took swimming lessons at the YMCA... (you can't just call it the Y, or she corrects you that it's the "YMCA"). She did "Ok", but had some trouble. She didn't want to sit on the steps like the teacher asked. She kept going under and playing around. However, she did learn a lot and is swimming really well now. She is WAY to brave around water. She'll want to jump in from the side, but doesn't want you to catch her. She'll sink to the bottom and then pop back up.

Her new move... she spent most of her time entertaining the parents at swim lessons.

Swimming!

"Glasses" - her Papaw Larry has been spoiling her. He has picked her up several times from daycare to take her swimming + chick-fil-a ice cream. She has been loving it!

Papaw Larry should also get the grandfather of the year award. One of the times he took her swimming she had an upset stomach. I think they spent most of their time back and forth from the pool to the bathroom. Then, she had a accident at chick-fil-a! We were proud he stuck it out, and has taken her again!

Happy Belated 4th of July!

2010-07-06T14:13:00.000-05:00

We hope you had a Happy 4th of July!

Prepare for Photo Overload!

I had every intention on posting this yesterday, but never found the time. Craig and I were busy doing things around the house, and we had swimming lessons last night. We had a great weekend, and are so thankful for our nations birthday and our freedom. Brooke still isn't sure who America is, but she sure enjoyed celebrating her birthday! We tried to explain that America is where we live, but she insisted that we live in Pocahontas.

(The rest of this post is out of order, but I didn't want to fight Blogger by moving things around.)

Sunday, we enjoyed church and Sunday School, and then stopped for a quick photo shoot at the Visitor Center (Tenley slept in the car.). Then, after a 2 hour nap for all of us, we headed to my Uncle Jerry's for dinner, fishing, and fireworks. Brooke caught her first fish, and out fished every one by catching another one. In everyone's defense, we only fished about 45 mins, since we were trying to get back to shoot fireworks, but Papaw Larry had promised he'd take her fishing for a little while. The fireworks were quite entertaining. Dad, Craig, Shannon, Charity, and Uncle Jerry put on the show by shooting at each other. Brooke laughed the whole time, and Tenley slept through the festivities.

Her first fish... just like her momma, she wouldn't touch it!

We started our celebration Friday afternoon with a visit from Craig's parents. We traveled up to Madison for dinner at Peppers and enjoyed play time in the fountain.Her new move, she does this all the time. She told me "God taught her how to do it!"Her outfit... she insisted on... button down shirt, dress up skirt, and swimsuit!

Saturday, we ran errands, and then napped before heading to Traceway Park for the Clinton 4th Celebration. Our church group passed out 17 watermelons and a little over 400 bottles of water. We enjoyed visiting with friends, dancing, wagon rides, and fireworks. Tenley slept through pretty much everything on Saturday (even 20 mins of fireworks), I think she is going through a growth spurt.Apparently, Ms. Mindy's lap was the best place to view fireworks!Dancing with Carter Our Watermelon Carvers, Terry & Gordon!Napping after errands, they both fell asleep in the car.

Watermelon, Watermelon ......

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I won't finish the rest of that.

For our fun Wednesday outing, Tenley and I met Craig for a delicious lunch at Jason's Deli, and then ran to Sam's for some watermelon shopping!

We bought 12 cases of water and 15 watermelons. Let's just say we got some strange looks. My car was loaded, and I couldn't stop laughing. Luckily I had my camera!
No daycare pick up for me... a watermelon in Brooke's seat.

Tenley loaded and ready to go amongst the melons!

Now that's a lot of water.

And why do we have all of this???

For community outreach! My young adult committee voted to pass out free water and watermelon at the Clinton 4th of July Event (on Saturday July 3rd) to represent our church.
Crossing Dixie will be the featured entertainment starting at 5 pm. Oh, and our former neighbor and current Clinton Junior Miss, Justine Ibale, will be singing the National Anthem. - We are excited to see her!

So, come out and enjoy free water and watermelon!

And a sidebar - please pray for my left foot! In the midst of taking pictures, Craig stepped on my broken toe (I broke it in the first few hours home from the hospital with Tenley), and he some how managed to rip up my toenail on my big toe. It's still hanging on, but hurts like crazy.