1st Dentist Trip

Thursday was our first dentist appointment. I love going to the dentist. Mom still has the paper from Kindergarten where I put my favorite thing to do was to go to the dentist. :) I know I'm weird. I like to think of it as unique. Travis was able to go to the same dentist that I have gone to my whole life. 

We had NO cavities and he let them clean his teeth. :) He was Sooo excited to get his goodie bag. He racked up with a free ice cream cone, toy car, tooth brush, toothpaste, and balloony.

Eating his ice cream from Dairy Queen!

Travis and Balloony (Travis said, "Look Mom,  Balloony only has one teeth.")

We have been struggling with doing everything we need to get done and with some of our behavior. I decided we would try a chart to help us. I browsed through Pinterest looking for ideas. I looked at several different posts. I can't remember exactly which ones I used. Anyways, Travis and Reese both have chore charts. We have morning and afternoon chores. We put up stars as we complete the tasks. So far, it has worked out wonderfully. The first day, they read the chart at least 10 times to make sure they finished everything. We also have a behavior chart that we fill out at night. They get a red star if they need to improve their actions, a silver star if it was an ok day, and a gold star if it was an outstanding day. Our goal obviously is to have all gold stars. I wanted to make sure this would work before I spent a ton of time in making a magnetic chart for them. Reese is a little young for all of it, but I didn't want her to fill left out. Travis and I just help her out with her chores. Travis is working VERY hard to earn gold stars. He mentions them several times a day.

I also made a Memorial Day/ 4th of July/ Veterans Day wreath. I saw the cutest wreath on Pinterest at A Night Owl's blog. I modified it of course. I used Navy ribbon instead of tulle and I added rhinestone stars. I absolutely love this! So far, Bama has resisted eating it. She eats everything she can get her paws on. We have already been through several buckets and tennis balls. 

 

Day 3: Operation Organize Red Roof + Stress!

Well, it seems like things always happen after I start a plan and am doing good to stay on top of things. Thursday we took time off because of dentist appointments. Travis' first trip to the dentist. I will put pictures up later since I forgot my camera card. 

Day 3: Organizing Cds

On Wednesday, I went through and organized all of the the cds and dvds. I separated everything in to piles. I went by the Dollar Tree after the dentist office to get some boxes to put everything in. I found these small lime green boxes. :) This morning, I was able to print labels and file everything into the boxes. I can officially say that the office desk is completely through!

I wanted to start on the kitchen pantry, but late last night James found out that our water pump was leaking. (We just replaced the silly thing!) Anyways, James stayed up forever last night trying to get it working again. We didn't have everything we needed to fix it. Isn't that how it always goes. I know it does for me. I am always forgetting to get something or don't have everything I need for a project. James woke up early this morning to make sure that everything was still good, but it wasn't. And again, we didn't have what we needed to fix it. Since James had to go to work, I called Daddy to see if he would come look at it. What we thought was just fixing the pipes turned into the switch not working. Dad worked on it all morning. He said he still isn't happy with it, but at least it works now. Needless to say, it has been an eventful couple of days. 

On another note: We played UNO with the family last night! It was SOO fun! I love playing board games. We used to play with several friends in NC once a week or so. I miss Shawn and Wendy!! :( Anyways, we had fun. Travis and Caleb had a hard time holding all their cards, so Stephanie and I made a card holder real quick. We saw it on Pinterest on Wednesday! I Love Pinterest! This is a horrible picture because I took it on my phone. Is this not the coolest thing ever??

Weekend Beach Run :)

It has been over two years since we were all able to go to the beach together as a family. We stayed at the coolest hotel. I have never stayed anywhere that made one of the towel animals. We had an elephant in the bathroom. I was so excited! I wouldn't let anyone mess with it until I went back down to the car to get my camera. The hand towels were made into fans and tissues were made into roses. 

Every night at 8:30 the hotel put on a water show. They play music and the water dances with the music. It was awesome!!

While we were watching the show the first night, Reese found a friend, Nicholas. She ran and played with him the whole time. They were a great show also. She walked right up and hugged him. 

Daddy and Reese danced together. Granny and Travis danced and played together, also. 

 We played in the Kid's Pool at the hotel. There was a boy who pushed Reese off of the turtle after it took her 30 minutes to figure out how to get on top. I was very upset. She fell totally submerged in the water. She ran up to me to hold her since she was crying. While I was holding her, she said, "Mommy, that mean boy pushed me in the water. That not nice!" I watched that boy like a hawk the rest of the time he was there. He was lucky I didn't come and get onto him.

Then we went to see Grandma at Aunt Polly's beach house. The "kids" were able to play in the sand. It was EXTREMELY hot!! We used a ton of sunscreen this trip.

 We ate at Makata. It is a Hibatchi restraunt. Travis loves the show. Reese likes everything but when they do the fire. The guy we had was great! He made a volcano and a train. He tossed the pans on top of his chef hat. It was pretty cool.

Silly Face!!

Everyone then went and watched the light show again. Nicholas wasn't there, so we all danced and played ring around the rosie.

One more trip to the pool before we head home. This time we were the only people at the pool.

Daddy took us shopping at Pier Park. And what shopping trip would be complete without a train ride. 

It was a wonderful weekend! We are going to have to go more often. I came home relaxed and ready for the last week of school. I am so thankful to have such a great family. They put up with all of my craziness with pictures. I wanted to get some family pictures taken, but we ran out of time. I guess we will just have to go back soon! :)

My children are important!

I recently read a blog by Hands Free Mama .  This is a very inspiring story about the hazards of modern day technology and spending time with your kids. It really hit home with me. The blog made me think about how involved I am in my children's lives. Am I constantly pushing them away? How much am I using my technology when I could be spending time with them? Do they feel like I am never there for them?

When I think back, I know there were plenty of times I should have been hanging out with them. I LOVE to read! I have to admit I am a hopeless romantic and mystery junkie. I love happy endings and trying to figure out what happens before I read about it. My downfall is that when I start a book I get so wrapped up in the story plot that I can't put it down. I used to buy several books at a time, but I could only hold them up for so long before my hand started hurting. When I got a nook for my birthday a few years ago, it made it so easy to read the next book in the series. Now, I can pick up where I left off on my cell phone. This is great when you are waiting by yourself at the doctors office! However, you can miss out on your kids lives if it is all you do. I'm not saying to totally spend every waking minute of every single day with your kids. I mean honestly we all need our space. It is up to us to show our kids what to do and how to act. If we are always on our computer, reading, or on our phones, how can we expect them to know we love and care about them. They will grow up thinking that whatever you are doing is more important than they are.

The blog reminded me of the song Cat's in the Cradle.

I have more to say but my sweet boy is going to read me a bedtime story now! :)