Yay! Cousins again!

Addyson and Cassidy "babysitting". Believe it or not, Claire started crying shortly after this picture was taken...

I'm the baby!

I love this picture. She was so sleepy and content. Isn't she delicious?

She is so squeezable.

Emma and Addyson. Emma was trying to be maternal...unfortunately for her that means bossy, So nobody really wants Emma to mother them!

I think this is probably the first time Emma got to hold Claire

Emma spent way more time looking at the TV than she did trying to make Claire happy. (If you notice, Claire was ticked off) I think Emma was probably trying to stick the paci up her nose or something! Doesn't Emma look smug, like "I'm am such an adult".

Goodbye kisses! It's so cute, they love each other!

Courtney

Emma asks me all the time, "Why did you have to name me Emma?" I give her the usual answers:
-you were named after your great-great grandma Emma...
-your dad and I liked the name...
-JUST BECAUSE, Dang it, its your name and you cant change it!

Anyways, the other night we are driving home and Emma starts in about her name again. Only this time she is ready, she says "From now on I will only answer to Courtney" I say, "I'm sorry Emma, you CANNOT change your name" which leads to "yes I can and call me COURTNEY!" I try to explain that it takes more than answering to another name and writing your new name on school papers to change a name. She just doesn't get it!

So the next day, I posted something on facebook about Emma/Courtney. Her teacher sees this and comes up with a plan to ask her about it in class. After school she comes up to me and tells me that she tried to call on someone named Courtney. Emma pipes up and says, "There is someone in High School named Courtney but no one in this class, Mrs. Rusk" So Emily, seeing that Emma wasn't going to fall into a trap that way, asks her later what name she would pick if she could change her name. Emma at first is confused, "What do you mean". Emily tries again, "If you could pick one name that you wanted to change your name to, what would you pick?"

Emma says, "Courtney!" So Emily asks her why. Emma's answer...

"I get so bored being Emma...Courtney would never be bored!"

More Randomness

I was going through my phone and found these lost pictures...

Cassidy thought Brody should drink out of the bottle too. She couldn't get it through her head that Baby Ava was sleeping and would not be wanting to drink out of her bottle. I figured she would try to drink out of it but she didn't.

Wow! What more can I say. Rayne did Emma's hair...can you tell?

This is a picture of the peppers we picked out of Cindy's garden. I just thought it made a cool picture.

Emma's T-Ball team at her pizza party with their "trophies". Emma was the only girl! (Scary, I know!)

25 revelations about myself

25. I have come to the realization that I am a sad, sad, little person


(and just when I thought that I was on my way to normal...the phone conversation with my sister just proved this right again! But we are definitely not going into that...)

Random

Highlight the ones you've done....for fun!

1. Started your own blog.2. Slept under the stars.3. Played in a band.4. Visited Hawaii.5. Watched a meteor shower.6. Given more than you can afford to charity.7. Been to Disneyworld.8. Climbed a mountain.9. Held a praying mantis.10. Sang a solo.11. Bungee jumped.12. Visited Paris.13. Watched a lightning storm at sea.14. Taught yourself an art from scratch.15. Adopted a child.16. Had food poisoning.17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty.18. Grown your own vegetables.19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France.20. Slept on an overnight train.21. Had a pillow fight.22. Hitch hiked.23. Taken a sick day when you're not sick.24. Built a snow fort.25. Held a lamb.26. Gone skinny dipping. 27. Run a marathon.28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice.29. Seen a total eclipse.30. Watched a sunrise or sunset.31. Hit a home run. 32. Been on a cruise.33. Seen Niagara Falls in person.34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors.35. Seen an Amish community.36. Taught your self a new language.37. Had enough money to truly be satisfied.38. Seen the leaning tower of Pisa in person.39. Gone rock climbing.40. Seen Michelangelo's David.41. Sung karaoke.42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt.43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant.44. Visited Africa.45. Walked on a beach by moonlight.46. Been transported in an ambulance.47. Had your portrait painted.48. Gone deep sea fishing.49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person.50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris.51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling.52. Kissed in the rain.53. Played in the mud.54. Gone to a drive-in theater.55. Been in a movie.56. Visited the Great Wall of China.57. Started a business.58. Taken a martial arts class. 59. Visited Russia.60. Served in a soup kitchen.61. Sold Girl Scout cookies.62. Gone whale watching.63. Gotten flowers for no reason.64. Donated blood, platelets, or plasma.65. Gone sky diving.66. Visited a Nazi concentration camp.67. Bounced a check. 68. Flown in a helicopter.69. Saved a favorite childhood toy.70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial.71. Eaten caviar.72. Pieced a quilt.73. Stood in Times Square.74. Toured the Everglades.75. Been fired from a job.76. Seen the changing of the guards in London.77. Broken a bone.78. Been on a speeding motorcycle.79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person.80. Published a book.81. Been to the Vatican.82. Bought a brand new car.83. Walked in Jerusalem.84. Had your picture in the paper.85. Read the entire Bible.86. Visited the White House.87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating.88. Had the chickenpox.89. Saved someone's life.90. Sat on a jury.91. Met someone famous.92. Joined a book club.93. Lost a loved one.94. Had a baby.95. Seen the Alamo in person.96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake.97. Been involved in a lawsuit.98. Owned a cell phone.99. Been stung by a bee.100. Read an entire book in one day.

25 revelations about myself

24. Some days I don’t give a crap and some times I care a lot.

Yes, its true...I'm sorry. You have no idea how difficult it is to be contradictory with yourself!


(on the bright side...you will only have to read one more of these...)

Trick or Treat!

The Ballerina and the Bee


Cassidy was more interested in taking candy OUT of the bag than she was in putting it IN the bag.

It took a little convincing to make Emma believe that ballerina's do not HAVE to wear tiara's. We compromised with tons of glitter spray.


A few other costumes we seen on Halloween!

Cowboy and Cowgirl...aren't they cute together!

My personal favorite.

Freddie Kruger

Cassidy was absolutely, positively, terrified of this thing! She couldn't even be in the same room as the mask...or the hands! Even if they were laying down somewhere.

A close 2nd favorite of the night!

Uncle Eddie

(believe me, it takes work to be able to walk and be decent at the same time when you are wearing shorts that short!)

Scarecrow

For some reason my pictures from the shed turned out very blurry. Could be because I was taking them on my phone...

Cousins

Pictures from this weekend. They are always so happy to see each other!

Cassidy and Addyson. They are 5 months apart and actually play really well together. I was a little nervous because Cassidy has never actually played with anyone close to her age.

Baby Claire. We got to see her for the first time! Isn't she squeezable!

Cassidy loved Claire. And amazingly enough she was relatively gentle!

She would put the pacifier in, and then take it out...in and then out...Poor Claire was losing patience fast! Isn't Boog cute with her though?

An updated picture of the big kids on the tractor. It's tradition!

All the kids

Another group picture. In order of age, Sydney, Emma, Peyton, Addyson, Cassidy, and Claire.

Cheese!

Cassidy and Addy destroying flowers.

Just think, next year this picture will be a little bigger. So exciting!

Good bye kisses...

25 revelations about myself

23. I do like to be around people but not a whole bunch at one time, I like to be able to carry on a conversation or listen in with all the people I am around.

I'm sure people probably think I'm grouchy or unsociable sometimes, but really, I'm not. I would just rather be sitting and talking with a couple close friends than be at a party with 50 people who have to scream small talk at each other.


Changing the subject....

Last Night, Emma and I were reading her book from school. When she finished I was asking her what words rhymed with Tap, Cat, Am, etc

Me: Whats words rhyme with Am?
Emma: "Jam, Mam, Pam, lamb, Ham, Da...." and she throws her hand over her mouth!

This is also the kid who sings, "Toes in the water, BUTT in the sand, Not a worry in the world, COLD SODA in my hand!"

I can't even make her cuss! You would never know that this is the kid who once told my dad to "Shut the door or I'll kick your A**!"

25 revelations about myself

22. Most days I feel like a fraud pretending to be a mature, responsible, maternal adult. Sometimes I don’t but usually I feel like the world views me as though I should be a welfare single mom who lets my kids run around in dirty diapers and drive around my beat-up paneled station wagon even though I’m not *and I repeat, I’m not*

See look, I bathe my children!

And I read them bedtime stories. Granted sometimes I make sure there are about 3 words on a page.

And then I tuck them in at night...doesnt she look sleepy! And then I go in there and tuck them in again. And then again. And then I think about what the wise mom told me one time...something about Benadryl. (jk...)

little Rocky

We went to Wal-Mart last night and of course the girls thought that meant to automatically start acting like hoodlums. They definitely had their moments! We were walking through the little girls clothes just looking at things and next thing we know Emma and Rayne are running through the racks of coats. So Ellen goes over there and thunks them on the head. You know, the discreet little thumps on the head that are appropriate for public places. Emma immediately starts crying and holding her eye. Ellen is insistent that she did not hit her eye but Emma starts in with, "Oh My Gosh, Now I'm gonna have a black eye! I cant believe you hit my eye! I'm gonna have a black eye!" Very dramatic.

So on the way home, Emma is sitting there quietly and suddenly she says, "Don't tell Daddy that Ellen hit me in the eye! Just tell him I got into a fight with another kid!"

...Your guess is as good as mine!

Them Crazy Kids of Mine

Misc. Pictures from this weekend:

Emma and Cassidy on the wagon ride at the pumpkin patch in Lawrenceville.

This is how Cassidy bowls! Strike every time, if you can believe that!

Emma doing the slingshot!

Cassidy brushing her teeth. This kid should never have cavities, she LOVES to brush her teeth. Any time someone mentions the word teeth, you can hear Cassidy running as fast as she can to the bathroom where she grabs a toothbrush out of the drawer! She says, "Teef".

Here is Cassidy and Emma right before bed last night. Cassidy thought she should help Emma by brushing her teeth too!

Little Daredevil that she is, Cassidy actually JUMPS off my Mom and Dad's fireplace! You would think that, being the 5-star parent that I am, I would be running to get her down before she cracks her head open! Not taking pictures and laughing!

25 revelations about myself

21. I want 4 kids. (If for no other reason other than #20.) Myles says he wants 3 but will at least go until he has a boy. For this reason I hope #3 is a girl too.

***MOST days this is true, There are some days where I think that 2 is the perfect number. You know why? Because there are two bedrooms in my house and contemplate locking one in each room! Two kids...two bedrooms...Coincidence....I think not! No, just kidding of course, they actually are both great kids. However, I do wonder how people that have kids very close together manage! Mine are 4 years apart, I think I would like the next one a little less apart than that. But then again, once they are 4, they are pretty self-sufficient!

Cassidy and the "ssseeee"s

Cassidy loves to play outside. She especially likes to go see the "ssseeee". (Which are Horse's in her world)

She walks up to the fence and talks to them for awhile.

Then she walks over to the gate and leans through hollering at the top of her lungs at them. Seriously, I should have taken a video!

First baby Apache comes over, he is definitely not intimidating! Him and Cassidy have words. Cassidy started pulling grass and giving it to him.

By now, Jake has seen the grass and ran little Apache off. Now I'm not sure, because she didn't say, but I'm thinking that Cassidy is trying to figure out whether she is gonna lose a finger if she feeds him grass!

I guess she thought he would be safe! She is so not afraid of them. You really have to watch her because there is a gap in the gate where the dogs run through and I caught her trying to squeeze through there. Luckily she is never unsupervised out there!

The next day, Jon, Ellen, and I went to Orscheln's and we let Cassidy play with the little animals for awhile. (I apologize if you are in retail, I'm sure this is very annoying to have to straighten back up!) Anyways, we look down and Cassidy was taking EVERY horse off the shelf and setting them down beside her. She had her own little herd going!

She loves her "sssseeee"s!

25 revelations about myself

20. I am an extremely unorganized person but find that with each child I improve a little bit.



No really, I am horrible! But I am somewhat improving! For Example:

1. Emma's school papers are all in one spot. Granted that is in a stack on top of our filing cabinet inside our closet. Hey at least they are in one spot and out of site!


2. My kids have a "regular" bedtime routine. I use the "s because regular for us means that it is just an improvement on our previous habits. Such as Emma actually has a general bedtime now. She used to just go to bed whenever we did. And Cassidy has to go to sleep in her own bed, or I should say, Emma's bed.
   
3. My clean socks are now in one general basket instead of scattered throughout the rest of the clean laundry that is waiting to be folded (or worn, whichever comes first).

Ahh...Its the little things that make me feel structured!

25 revelations about myself

19. I love to cook and bake but hate to clean up the mess. I will eat or at least try any kind of food…and it shows!

Just a tiny little tidbit...it's kind of a blah day.

On a happier note, Little Brother is 20 today.



(hehe...Jon wanted me to delete the cowboy hat picture a loonnnng time ago...hehe)

25 revelations about myself

18. I do not usually wear frilly clothes, jewelry, or shoes, do my hair or wear makeup because I do not like to draw unnecessary attention to myself. I feel like an impostor if I dress up. I have not always been like this either.

Well, ....that and being low-maintenance allows me to get me, Emma and Cassidy ready and out the door in 50 minutes or less! Yep, don't have to worry about me taking 3 hours to get ready! Although I do confess, I do try to fix my hair at least 3 days a week.

(besides when it's curly, it looks better in a ponytail) :)

25 revelations about myself

17. I love my husband but my wedding day was the most miserable, exhausting, irritating and uncomfortable day of my life. I bit Myles’ finger HARD when he was doing the cake thing because he started to shove it in my face but then again I was pregnant and bitchy too!

Myles and I. September 13, 2003
I loved my flowers, they were beautiful!

One little piece of advice that I like to pass on to engaged couples....Go to the Courthouse! My mom gets a little defensive when I mention how much I hated my wedding (Understandable, after all she did foot the bill.) However, it wasn't so much the wedding I hated; that was pretty, loved the cake and the flowers, the outdoor set-up, etc. It was more like, the awful uncomfortable dress, being in front of all those people, making small talk, smiling all the dang time, etc.

The Cake.
It was amazing. Frannie made it, so of course it tasted good. And the flowers were awesome, when I envisioned the cake with all the roses I had this picture in my mind. It turned out completely different and so much better than I ever imaged!

The Kiss.
I have always hated pictures of people kissing. Not sure why, just one of my little quirks. I guess it just seems intrusive to me. I put this picture on here to show the gazebo and the flowers. I did like that, it was simple but still pretty.

The Wedding Party.
It's a little blurry, I couldn't seem to find a good one.

** A funny story from my wedding: (see there was a bright spot!) I remember standing in the room getting dressed and I could see the groomsmen out behind the house, hiding and sneaking whiskey. Clayton ran off to go pee, and then they stand there awhile longer and he goes off to pee again, then again! I could see him pulling at his tie and sweating...then he says, "Man, I don't know why but I am nervous!" To this day I associate being nervous with peeing because of Clay.
Also, Bologna was riding horses with Myles and the groomsmen that day. He had his old horse, Kim, and her baby with him. They had been drinking all day and Bologna was trashed. In fact, he never got off his horse even during the ceremony. I'm not sure he could've gotten back on. Anyways, I remember looking out there and seeing my mom's dad walking across the yard to go talk "horse" with Bologna, and cringing because here was my prim and proper grandpa with good intentions going out to talk to the drunk guy who wouldn't get off his horse! Such a conflicting pair!