Happy 7th Birthday, Abby!!!

Today Abby turned seven years old. I really wish that time would slow down so that I could enjoy moments with her like the ones today. She chose to have a very small party this year with just a couple of friends and then to visit the American Girl doll store in Atlanta in a couple of months. Her theme for her small party was a tea party and in Carmom style this is what we did to celebrate...
The party guests were treated to tea and pink lemonade along with tea cookies, fruit and cheese, finger sandwiches and cupcakes. They had a blast having tea and were such polite ladies during their tea luncheon. But before starting their tea they had Bubble Gum necklaces to make. And yes, they are really made out of real gum balls.


After the Bubble Gum necklaces the girls had hats to make. What is a tea party guest without a hat full of flowers to wear on her head.

The girls posing for a picture before sitting down to enjoy their tea.


Abby's little butterfly cupcakes were almost too small for all those candles. It made it almost look like she was turning 70 instead of 7. But she blew out all those candles and then the girls enjoyed their cupcakes.

Aunt Kim came up from Chattanooga to help celebrate Abby's birthday. It was so great that Abby's cousin could come as well. The girls had a great time together. Thank you so much Aunt Kim, you are A-W-E-S-O-M-E!!!

Snowmageddon January 2011

We've been out of school since Sunday. We found out Sunday night that we would not be having school on Monday. Monday morning we woke up to 5 inches of snow on the ground. It was an awesome snowfall for a Tennessee winter. The kids were so excited to see all that snow on the ground and being able to play in it was that much better.

Elizabeth had a whole lot of fun walking through the snow covered trees. Just look at that grin on her face.

Abby had a lot of fun sledding down the hill. I loved seeing the look of pure joy on her face.

Gabe had an awesome time sledding with a neighborhood friend.

Matt, Abby and I made a snowman together.

Elizabeth and Abby enjoyed helping Daddy shovel off the driveway. I was counting my lucky stars that we had lived in Indiana where it snows. We had the snow shovel and sleds that most people down here don't have. It was nice having everything and not having to search the stores for the few items they do stock. If only more places carried the snow pants and bibs.

Abby and Elizabeth were willing to pose for a few pictures for their Mama.

We've had fun in the snow. But at this point the kids and I are going a little stir crazy. We are going on our 4th snow day and I think we are all ready for school to start back. I wouldn't mind another snow storm this winter but I am ready for this one to be one of the past.

From Basketball to Soccer and Martial Arts

We are moving from basketball into soccer. Well, at least Abby is going to be playing soccer. Gabe didn't enjoy the sport when he played so we are signing him up for Martial Arts, just don't know which one yet. So before we get into the soccer and the Martial Arts thing I wanted to look back at our basketball season. Both Gabe and Abby had a great season and enjoyed it a lot.

Gabe started the season out very unsure often passing the ball as soon as he got his hands on it. After some practice and encouragement from us, his grandparents and the coach he started trying to dribble and shoot the ball more. In the last four games he scored at least one basket each time. In his final game he actually got fouled and shot a free throw. He didn't make it but at least he hit the rim and didn't air ball it. Gabe surprised us all with his hustling up and down the court. Looking at his face you could see the effort and determination that he would get the ball and guard his man. He loved playing and had been hoping that there was another session of basketball starting. Since there wasn't we will continue to practice on his ball handling and shooting skills and see where this new found love of basketball takes us.

Abby also had a great season. During her first game she was so unsure of what she was suppose to do that she stood around watching the action. With a little coaching though she came out of her shell and was all over the court. She was a hustler. She seemed to be all over the court rebounding the ball and trying to block shots. She made her first basket in the third game and boy was her brother jealous. From that point on she had at least one basket every game. And the smile on her face was priceless. She was often a little aggressive when it came to the ball though. There were times she was trying to take the ball from her own teammate! Which was pretty normal it seemed for the whole of that age group. But it did bother both Matt and I a little. So much for us teaching sharing!! There were several parents who commented on her ability and her energy and said that she is really good. But we will just have to wait to see if her interest remains on basketball or wonders off into another uncharted territory.

The season will be ending officially this weekend at the YMCA with a trophy ceremony. We still aren't sure if we are going or not since our Spring Break starts this weekend and we are trying to figure out something fun to do. So anywho that's it for basketball now onto our next adventures in sports. And for your viewing pleasure a few shots of the kids playing.

Happy 6th Birthday, Abby!!

Today was a day of celebration. Abby turned 6 today and we celebrated it in our traditional ways. Last night Matt and I stayed up to decorate the kitchen for the birthday girl. I think it so much fun for the kids to come down in the mornings and see all the decorations.
This is what Abby saw when she came downstairs this morning.
Because Abby is really into horses right now we got her some figurines to play with. Eventually her room will have a horse theme to it as well. But the bedding was back ordered so we opted for some other gifts for her. She also was able to open one gift this morning. Can you guess what was inside this pretty pink box?
Don't you just love the look of excitement over a couple more pink boxes? What was in those cute little pink boxes you ask? We small dangle earrings and a cross necklace, or what Abby calls a God necklace. Abby had been asking for dangle earrings and I happened across a perfect pair for my little princess.

And then this afternoon Elizabeth and I picked the birthday girl and her brother up from school in the party van.

After we got home we ordered Abby's choice of pizza and then had cake. We couldn't find a horse cake anywhere so we made due with this. I think it is pretty cute and Abby seemed to like it.
After cake we had presents to open. She loved both her brother's and sister's gifts to her. They both got her stuff to use with her American Girl doll. Angelina now has her own bed, chair, and pet. Abby will have lots of fun playing with all her new stuff tomorrow.

Tomorrow will be a continuation of today. Matt's parents are coming up for Abby's party and are bringing most of the cousins. All three of the kids are looking forward to the visit. There will be a lot of bouncing around tomorrow afternoon once we hit the bounce place.

Bad Parenting Moment

Matt and I are both feeling like we should get the bad parent award right now. Though we were doing it for a good reason it was so upsetting to hear Abby sobbing her little heart out. What were we doing that made our poor baby cry you ask? Well here's what is going on. Abby came home the other day saying her hands were hurting. Upon examining them we noticed that her hands were so dry that she had cracks running across her knuckles and tops of both her hands. Putting lotion on her hands burned too bad so I had the wonderful idea of applying some Vaseline to them and covering them with socks to help keep the moisture on her hands. What's the big deal with that? Well, Abby still sucks her thumb and was so upset because she couldn't suck her fingers. I let her cry for a while and then finally gave up when the other two started complaining that she was keeping them awake. I decided that in order to keep the peace and have everyone sleep peacefully I would take off one sock and let that hand heal and then start on the other after it was healed. I am not sure this was the right choice because I do want her to stop sucking her fingers but I wasn't doing this to make her stop that bad habit. But I was wanting her to have the time to get her hands better.

Basketball for Gabe and Abby

Gabe and Abby have both been playing basketball with the YMCA. Both are having a lot of fun at both the games and the practices. Gabe is more and more often found outside when the waether is nice playing basketball either by himself or with whom ever will play with him. I have enjoyed having a flat driveway for our basketball goal and for the kids to play on. Basketball only has a few weeks left. I have seen lots of improvement with both kids. They will both be enjoying other activities in a few weeks but for now it's all about the basketball. Here are a few pictures of all their fun and games.

Art Show 2009

We had a busy night on Thursday. Not only were we celebrating Abby's birthday the two girls had their Preschool Art Show. It is always so much fun to see all the art that the kids create during the school year. And they created some beautiful work. I just need to figure out how I'm going to display it all.