Who's BAD?!

Oh yes, he did!

He did go bustin' in to Knightsville Elementary School just like this!!

As I mentioned before, it was Red Ribbon spirit week at school last week. Thursday was "A Drug Free Life Rocks". Dress as your favorite rock star. I bought the whole MJ kit thinking that he would only want the glove. Boy was I wrong! My son is just like his momma...it's all or nothing with him :-)!! I have to admit, Frank and I were both a little nervous about him getting picked on....but he was excited and ready to strut his stuff!!!! Come to find out, he was the hit of the school. He said his teacher took him for a walk to show him to everyone...wish I could have been a fly on the wall, ha! ha! I can only imagine him 10 years from now in high school!! That child is a character, and I love every ounce of him :-)

Cousin Kylee chose to dress as Taylor Swift. She was too cute about it. She said she only had to wake up and get dressed because she already had the same kind of hair as Taylor. :-) When we picked them up after school I couldn't help but crack up. There was Brayton standing decked out in Michael Jackson and Kylee looked sooooooo embarrassed standing next to him. She is so serious, it's funny!

And while Brayton was having his MJ debut, Brinlee and I had some fun ourselves! Aunt Tiff had a Halloween party for all her munchkins, so we went over to crash the party! She hid candy like an egg hunt and the kids loved it! We're so happy she stays home now, we have lots of fun doing things with the kids!

My little cowgirl. She is missing her bandana and would NOT

keep that hat on....still adorable, though!

Little Bunny Fu Fu...isn't this the CUTEST?!?
Cousin Haven



I can't believe and I didn't get a single picture of me and Brinlee together. I was too worried about getting a good one of her...that always happens! Oh well, I was dressed as a witch...I'll get around to posting pictures from Halloween night soon!

Creepy Critter

this little guy kept the kids entertained for some time today after school. We were surprised to see that he was still alive (sad to say he was neglected while we were on vacation)....and as an added bonus- he moved over to a bigger shell that we purchased for him :-) Oh, the little things in life!!!

Brinlee was right in the middle of it all!!

The "scary man" that Brayton made has made his way to our front lawn....NICE! He is now sportin' a plastic knife in his chest. The kids are lovin' him, too! HA!

In other news, Brayton has a new principal that we are very excited about. He also got his report card today and it was excellent! It's Red Ribbon Spirit Week at school and each day has a theme. We've had fun with that....tomorrow is going to be extra special, so check back to see what my boy looks like :-) It's guaranteed to make you laugh!!

Brinlee has started something new. It goes along with her dirty looks. She'll look at you and point that little finger and say "stop". It's cute and funny now, but not so much when she gets a little older. She has also found her nose holes, and well...her fingers seems to stay in them. Let's hope this is just something new for her that will soon pass :-)

Pumpkin Patch

I took the kids to the pumpkin patch yesterday after I picked Brayton up from school. We go to the Methodist Church down the road, it's a tradition that we've been doing since Brayton was 2. His class went there on a field trip and as part of their "Ho Down" on Friday, but we were in Tennessee, so we missed it! Tennessee was much better, I think Brayton will agree! I'll do a separate post for that later. I let them each pick out a pumpkin, then they came home and decorated them with stickers...Brinlee even enjoyed doing this!

Fall Happenings

I love fall and all that comes with it! I especially have been loving this COLD weather! I'm ready for the fair, Halloween and all the festivities!

The scarecrows are out...so we went for a visit. Brayton was ready to get out of the house and fever free for 3 days, so why not? Ge Ge and Pa Pa met us there!

this is supposed to be Micheal Jackson...you know this was one of Brayton's favorites :-)

I also LOOOOOOOOVE decorating for fall. It's almost as bad as Christmas decorating, almost! I love gourds, pumpkins, scarecrows, mums and all the colors fall brings. I've had my stuff out since the end of September, but Brayton felt the need to add his touch to things.

This is my style.....

And on our front porch I have mums, some pumpkins, and a little scarecrow sitting in my rocking chair.

Brayton thought we needed some of this.....

complete with play dough eyes and snakes coming from his mouth!



and he just HAD to have a tomb stone...and just HAD to add those skeleton hands to it!

YIKES! Not a fan of the "scary" stuff, but boy did this make his day! Nana came over today and helped us put this little guy together. He scares poor little Brinlee to death. Trick or Treating should be interesting with her this year!

Next up, the pumpkin' patch and corn maze...after our Tennessee trip and cabin stay, of course :-)

The FLU!

That nasty flu bug has been visiting our house! We took Brayton in to Doctors Care Thursday night because he was running a fever and not acting himself. We pretty much knew to be on the look out because cousin Chase had it, and well....you know how it is when the family gets together :-) We thought little Chase just had an ear infection, but...we were wrong!

We were surprised, however, when the doctor came in and told us Brayton was the "first case of positive H1N1 AND seasonal flu, and first case of seasonal flu this season." I think she scared him to death, bless his heart, he just started crying when she said that! And Frank tried to be a smart butt by asking, "are we gonna be on the news?!" I can't bring him anywhere! (He was only KIDDING, by the way!)

Anyway, Brayton is doing much better. He just doesn't have much of an appetite. That Tamiflu is a miracle drug! We were told to keep him out of school all week, so I am enjoying him being home with me. I'm giving him all kinds of love and attention. I really miss him being home all day with us...I could get a little sad about it (until he starts driving me crazy and being super hyper, then I'm ready to send him back to school, ha! ha). On Friday, I had Frank and Brayton home all day!

We also had our parent/teacher conference on Friday. I won't go into all the details, but I will say....we couldn't be PROUDER! She told us Brayton was her model student. They are keeping him challenged, but in a nut shell...he already knows what he needs to know for Kindergarten! There is a new test that they just came out with (BenchMark?) and he will hopefully be tested in December for that. He is all in to writing his own books right now. It's too cute. He wrote a book and brought it in to show his teacher and she ended up reading it to the class. I've been saving all this stuff, but I tell you...it gets out of control after a while!

Brinlee is as funny and adorable as ever. She is talking more and more everyday. She is obsessed with "dogs" and "babies". When she's ready to go night-night she starts waving to her Daddy and Bubby. Her little appetite is really picking up, too. She's been picking up where Brayton has left off. She luckily, did NOT have the flu. At least, as far as we know. She wasn't showing any symptoms and I didn't have her tested. They did give us all Tamiflu, so if she had it, we didn't know....thankfully! Her hair is really growing fast, too! I'm wondering when I should cut it. Seems like once you get their hair cut they really lose the baby look. I want to keep the baby look!

And, one more thing....HAPPY BIRTHDAY, HAVEN ANN! Today my precious little niece is 2 years old. I witnessed her birth and it was the most AMAZING thing ever. I can't believe it has been 2 years! I feel so sad that we missed her "Dora" party, but we didn't want to get anyone else sick!

OK, this post was supposed to be short and sweet...that NEVER happens. I always have too much to say :-)

Fire Station Field Trip and a Birthday!

Brayton was lucky to have a field trip scheduled on his birthday! What a special day it was...

Frank and I both chaperoned. All the kids WALKED to the fire station. I was a little nervous at first, but it is basically right across the street. They had a fire truck actually block the road when it was time to cross. The kids thought this was so cool because they had on their sirens and all!

We brought Brayton his favorite for lunch...Sub Way! We then headed down to the fire station for the little field trip. After that, they came back into the class room and sang "Happy Birthday" to Brayton. It was a cute little song that actually brought tears to my eyes. I feel so blessed to have been there for it all. I made cupcakes for the class, so after they finished those we signed him out early.

He wanted Wisabi, even though he had already eaten earlier (of course Frank and I did NOT argue about that). We considered it an early dinner anyway :-) We were literally the ONLY people in the restaurant, so we got special treatment!! They made a big deal out of this birthday, and he loved it!

Once we got our bellies full we headed to his favorite place ever, Frankies Fun Park! We rode go carts, played games and just had a great time. They gave him a cute little birthday hat, he was feeling really special! We couldn't have asked for a better day, and it was beautiful outside!

These are the moments I want to engrave into my brain, I hope I NEVER forget them. I feel so blessed to be able to experience these little things with the kids. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed with happiness and feel like I have so more than I deserve. I have the BEST husband in the world and the most WONDERFUL kids, too! Life is great, but I know it can all change in a heart beat! Thank you, Jesus for it all :D!!!

(This is the banner I made for him on his FIRST birthday....I make sure to hang it up for him every year! Brinlee has one, too! )

those faces....

Brinlee has started something new...giving dirty looks. She has always been known for her silly faces, but the looks she's been giving lately have been down right dirty!!! She has got it down, too. She cuts those little eyes and wrinkles her forehead, it's so funny! She's especially good at it when you tell her "no". And you know we all laugh at her, she cracks us up!

I've tried over and over to capture it on camera, but I can't. Every time she see's the camera she grins and says "cheeeeeeeeeeeese". You'd have to see it in person to appreciate it anyway.
I did get to catch some other silly faces....

She got her 2nd flu shot today and happened to cut the nurse one of those looks. And can you believe she didn't even cry?!? Luckily, Brayton was able to get the flu mist, he was so relieved and happy :-D

ps- Tiffany and I took the girls to IOP on Sunday for a little photo session, they had a blast running around and getting dirty! It was really too cloudy and windy for pictures, but at least they had fun!

Happy Birthday, Brayton Cade!!

(It was actually yesterday,but like with everything else...I am LATE :-) )

My baby boy is now 6 years old. I just can't believe it. Seems like yesterday I held him in my arms for the first time and fell completely in love. My life, my purpose, everything changed that day...and I am so glad it did. I never knew that my heart was capable of holding so much love. He changes everyday and continues to amaze me. He still has my heart, and those big brown eyes still work wonders!! He is the total package...I mean, I know he's MY child, but seriously!!! He is handsome, sweet, smart, funny, athletic...but most importantly, he has a heart of gold and holds Jesus in his heart. He has such a deep understanding and love for Christ for such a young age. I could not ask for more. I am super blessed and super thankful that God chose me to be his mommy....

I love you, Brayton Cade...Happy Birthday!