See you at Seaside- July 2011

A few weeks ago, we set out on our journey to Seaside.  This picture accurately describes how Cason felt about being in the car for 12 solid hours:

 Both of the boys did SO good, though, really.  Cason slept a lot.  They also watched a lot of movies.  And, of course, we stopped for breaks when needed.

We went through the tunnel in Alabama. 

 Lucas thought it was really cool.

 Cason, well, he didn't really care.  He was ALMOST asleep.

 And, when we came out of the tunnel, we saw (from afar) the USS Alabama battleship.  I took many a trip here as a child on our way to Seaside.  We decided that as the boys get older, we will make visits too!

The following needs no words. I've found some property on the market. I am ready to move here and open up a cupcake/photography/studio/event planning service and live permanently in this as-close-to-perfect-as-it-gets little haven. Can you tell why?

 If you're a college football fan, you have probably heard of Coach Bobby Bowden.  The tan house is his. Beside it, one of his sons is building. 

 The chairs with the yellow and blue umbrellas were ours.  The canopy was ours too.

 One day while Heath and I ran to the store, someone STOLE my camera and took some terribly obscene photographs:

 Who would have thought that these two would pull something like that??

 And, in closing, Uncle Mike perfected his version of the Chili's El Presidente Margarita.  Yes, it deserves all caps.  Yes, it was PERFECTION in a glass.

Many more pictures to come at a later date! (Including our family photo shoot on the beach!)

Discipline Mistakes

Last night, as I wrapped up some work (ok, so I was playing around editing pictures), I came across an article listing the 7 Discipline Mistakes ALL Moms Make.

Given two different situations that happened around here this week, I quickly clicked on the link and began reading.

The list was simple.

In short, Moms . . .

•are too negative.
•expect too much from our kids.
•model behavior we don’t want to see.
•intervene when our kids simply annoy us.
•are all talk and no action.
•use time-out ineffectively.
•assume what works for one kid will work for another.

But, the list should have included an 8th discipline mistake — the one both Hubby and I have made time and time (and time) again.

Moms (and dads) can’t keep a straight face while attempting to discipline a child.

Somewhere along the line, I missed out on the ability to keep my sense of humor at bay whilst trying to teach my children right from wrong … trying to show them how to behave … and trying to impart life lessons like why “even plastic bats are not good disciplinary weapons against annoying little brothers.”

There are just times when my “Mom Face” leaves me — stranded — with comedic lights dancing in my eyes and my entire body shaking with mirth.

In those moments, the kidlets know. They know they’ve “won.” They made Mommy (and or Daddy) laugh . . . nothing bad is going to happen.

(sigh)

There were two situations recently that left me weak — ducking to hide my head on the off-chance I could camouflage my laughter.

First, Cason learned a valuable “get out of doing X, Y, or Z” tool.

•Don’t want to do something Mommy is telling you to do? Fake sleep.
That’s right; my 18 month old smartie-pants decided the best way to keep from having to help pick up toys was to lie down on the floor and fake sleep. He even faked snoring.

The moment I heard that snore — a semi-convincing one at best — I was done. And, when he heard my giggles, one little eye peeped open … and then he grinned triumphantly.

(oy)

Second, Lucas learned to use “magic tricks.”

•Don’t want to get caught with an item you’re not supposed to have? Play the old “Is It In This Hand or That Hand” trick and then stuff the item in your underwear.
Kid. You. Not. This child, after getting caught climbing up a cabinet to get bb's for the bb gun, declared he was going to do a “magic trick” and hid his hands behind his back, showing his hands one at a time when asked. Of course, each time, the displayed hand was empty.

But, I KNEW he had the things and ordered him to show both hands. The Little gentleman obeyed and put both hands out in front of him.

The box of bb's was gone. Had I been mistaken? Had he NOT gotten to them? Was my Mommy-Radar failing me too?

Flustered, I sent him to eat his dinner. As he walked to his chair, his hands folded properly behind his back, I heard it. The sound of the stolen box of bb's falling to the floor.

He quickly looked at me, guilt all over his face, and — when asked where he had put that box — answered meekly, “In my undies.”

And . . . I never saw him do it. No idea when he made that switch.

But he saw Mommy have to walk OUT of the room because of my laughter.

He saw his Daddy have to dive onto the couch to stifle his guffaws.

He saw that, like his fake-snoring brother, he had won the battle.

(sigh)

They’re only 5 and not even 2; we have many, many, many more years of naughty escapades ahead of us.

Ye gads. Two smart kidlets against two parents who laugh too much.

This may not end well.

a little of this and a little of that...(and some iPhone pics)

Wow, I certainly didn't realize it had been so long since I last blogged! You people need an update.  We are in recovery mode from our week long Seaside, Florida vacation.  More on that in my next post and plenty of pictures too!  The break from everything was very much needed and appreciated.  Since returning, we hit the ground running full force with a weekend-long tournament and then dove back into work and the "normal" routine.  I haven't had the opportunity to upload pictures, or share any vacation stories yet, but rest assured... they are coming! 

 Lucas' team is still going strong.  They have been getting an enormous amount of coverage from our local paper.

They play this coming Saturday to fight for the title of Regional Champions and advance to the state tournament.  We are really rooting for our boys (and gal) to go all the way.  It is such an exciting and fun time watching these kids want something and go after it like they have. Lucas has such a competitive edge.. but so do Heath and I.  I love watching Lucas get so intense about baseball.  It is so neat to see your child be so passionate about something he loves! Now, if only he would get as excited about cleaning his room!

Cason is the classic little brother.  He is such a trooper. He loves the ball park and probably wondered why we didn't go for a week when we were in Florida! Sometimes, though, especially on days like Saturday when we played THREE games pretty much back to back.... he has just had enough baseball. 

He has started chattering so much.  He has always called Lucas, "bubba", but just this week he has started saying , "Dudas" or "Dute-dey" (Lukey).  Too adorable! He loves to say, "CHEEEEEESE" when the camera turns his way, and sometimes says, "MILE!" (smile).  He is definitely quickly becoming less of a baby and more of a little boy with each passing day. This makes me sad and happy all at the same time.  I can't wait to watch his personality develop into little boyhood, but I am already missing those quiet, cuddly times when I would rock him to sleep!

Well, break time is about over, so back to work I go.  I have over 300 pictures taken while we were beach bumming, so I am slowly weeding through them and creating a post. I want to post every single picture, but of course that just isn't possible. 

Ketchup

I went a whole week without posting?  I know you can't possibly imagine what I've been doing other than blogging, so I will fill you in:

This past weekend we(Lucas) played in a baseball tournament in Tarkington.  Some of the things we did over the course of the three day tournament were:

1. Travelled in a caravan to Tarkington with all our team families (some trucks and cars were decorated):

 2. Sized up the other teams once we got to the ball park:

3. Rested in the shade, and ate lunch before we had to hit the field:

 4. Hung out in the dugout before the game started (Bun, Lucas and Cooper):

 5. Got really coool signs made:

 6. Batted:

 7. Stole a few bases:

 8. Ran home:

 9. Supported our favorite Hornet:

 10. Thought about baseball a little:

11. Played in the dirt:

 12. Played in the water:

 13.  Got some outs:

 14. Hung out with Papaw:

 15. Played in the water some more, and flirted with the girls:

 16. Re-grouped:

 17. Posed:

 18. More dirt play:

 19. And more flirting:

 20. Sang the National Anthem:

21. Posed for a few pictures:

 22. Cooled off:

 23. WON THE TOURNAMENT! PROUD LITTLE BOYS:

 24. AND a PROUD Daddy:

 Lucas and Bun, new found best buddies, wanted a picture together.  Aren't they cute?  Bun is an amazing athlete, and such a sweet boy!

 But of course, Cason had to be in the picture too! Can't leave him out.

My posts this coming week will be few and far between.  We will be layed out on the beach in Florida with my Aunt, Uncle and Cousin.  But first, we have another baseball tournament on Saturday, here in Huntsville. The winner will hold the District title and advance to the Regional tournament!