Merry Christmas!

Kids all dressed up for Church

decorating cookies

Nativity Pagent, Christmas morning and Christmas Eve

an afternoon with Jared

The other day I found myself with an afternoon with Jared. To say I was happy is an understatement. One of my greatest pleasures in life right now is one-on-one time with a child of mine. And Jared does not disappoint. We started out the time in the kitchen...a place I have never loved, but when Jared is with me, it's good. Real good. We made a chex mix for Christmas. Then he helped me clean up the kitchen and put the dishes away. The great thing about Jared is that he likes to work(I will post more on this later). So after actually enjoying cleaning up the kitchen, we decided to watch the last DVD of Planet Earth together. Jared is VERY into animals right now. As we went into the home theater and I was turning on the projector and putting the DVD in, I notice my sweet boy getting pillows and blankets all arranged on the couch not just for him but for me too. This did not surprise me but it touched me and the memory of this simple gesture will stay with me. I have said many times that Jared will be a wonderful husband...he thinks of others constantly, he always says thank you and usually with a hug, I already mentioned how he likes to work and he is the best cuddler on the planet. And that is the reason I wanted to watch the DVD with him, to cuddle with my growing up too fast boy. As I sat down next to him, he lifted up the blanket and put it over my legs and fixed it just so. And as we cuddled and watched he shared all the facts he knew about the animals we were watching. When the show was over, we wrapped a few Christmas gifts together and then the rest of our family was home. I felt rejuvenated like I had just come from the spa. Thanks Jared.

hard work and play

Thanksgiving weekend Carter and Jared decided to make a big pile of leaves. Allen said that would be fine as long as they blew the leaves to the horse farm behind our house when they were done (Allen's job). So, the hours of fun began. They blew and racked leaves and loved every minute. And then they played in them like all children should do many times in their lives. I was able to take some action shots to document this moment of their childhood.

competition

Competition. Carter loves it. Carter likes to come in first. Carter likes to win. Carter likes to do his best...first. Carter loves to play board games. And win. He is very confident that he will win any board game, even though he doesn't always. The best part is when he doesn't win, he is ok. He congratulates the winner and asks if they want to play again, because he knows he will win this time.

This competition is found in school and sports also. He sees no reason to play if you are not trying with all you have to win. And you better follow the rules-rules are everything to Carter. Both of his teachers commented on his report card that he is competitive at school and this is one of the reasons he excels in school. He is always giving his all. He wants everything to be perfect. They say that he doesn't care about the beating others, just about being the best, being first, and winning for himself. And again, when on occasion when he is not, that's ok...because Carter knows that next time, he will be.

When I showed him the teachers comments he said they probably said that because he and a buddy are 20 pages ahead of the class in Math (with the teacher's ok). When I asked why he wanted to be so far ahead, he gave me the look he gives me, his uncompetitive mom, alot and said, "why wouldn't I want to be ahead? It's fun".

I love this trait of Carter's. He will go far in life with this kind of drive. I hope and believe that it will stay at the "wanting to be the best" and not go to the "I want to beat YOU". Carter is too sweet for that kind of thinking.

the forgotten quarter

Carter has a bit of an obsession with those quarter machines you find at stores and restaurants that you can get a whole half a child's handful of candy for a quarter. Knowing that I, 1. rarely have a quarter on me and 2. will more than likely will tell him it is a waste of money when we have candy at home, Carter has for about the past 6 months(maybe longer) kept a quarter in the car for such an occasion. Do you know how many times he has actually used the quarter? Zero. It's gone from funny to sad to hear him exclaim as we walk into the mall, "oh man, I forgot my quarter, and I know they have those machines here!" Poor guy, if I hadn't given in a few times these past months and given him a quarter, he may have gone mad. Especially when he sees it's a gum ball machine.

car rides

I spend a lot of time in my car. I drive my kids to school every day(2 different schools)...so that is 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes in the afternoon. Then there is scouts, soccer, piano lessons, basketball, dance class, swimming, play dates...and I am only mentioning the things that involve my kids.

Now some of that time I am alone, once the kids are dropped off or before I pick up. What do I do with that time in the car? I listen to talk radio...this in my way of staying connected with the outside world and hear some news because I don't have time to read a newspaper.

When the kids are with me in the car we listen to CDs of music that we all like. At a young age, we got our kids into our music and life has been good every since. But over the music, we talk...alot. I find myself constantly saying, "in the car today, Carter(or Jared or Claire) said..." I have some of the greatest conversations with my kids in the car. We talk about music, friends, family, religion, politics, holidays, favorites, vacations, school (a little), and much more. I get a lot of "why" questions in the car. Sometimes I can answer them, sometimes I say, "ask dad about that one" and sometimes I let them know there is no way to know why. We just went through about a month of a game that consisted of saying "beetle bug (insert color)" for points when we spotted one. When a song is on that we all like, we sing together or at each other, which make Jared laugh when I turn around and sing a love song to him. Claire will always say, "mom, you sing the boy part and I'll sing the girl part" She loves to sing and knows all the songs.

But the best thing is when it is just me and one child in the car and we can really talk. It is now time for me to ask the questions. And with their answers I find out so much about them. Carter loves to talk and will move up from his seat in the back to the closest one to me (he can't wait till he can sit in the front seat) so we can hear each other better.

So, do I like to spend half my day in the car? No. But would I want it any other way? No way.

curly claire

I bought some sponge rollers to try and see if I could get Claire's hair to curl. I have fond memories as a little girl sleeping in these magical rollers to awake the next day to wonderful curls that my straight hair could never imagine. Claire was equally excited to experience the magic.

round one:

I used the smallest rollers thinking that her hair is so straight it might not take and wanted to have the best chance possible. Boy did her hair curl! A little too much! but she loved it and proudly bounced around all day. When she first saw the curls she said she was so happy to finally have curly hair. I had to break the news that these curls were not permanent.

round two:

I used the two largest rollers and we came out with a much better result. Her nickname changed from Claire Bear to Curly Claire for the day. This day was a school day and she was in heaven showing them off to everyone at school.

my baby is five

Claire turned five. All day long she told everyone that it was her birthday and that she was five. She had her first friend party...it was a princess party of course. And she loved it so much I don't think she needed anyone else to be there, just her and all the princess stuff and she would be happy.

So, my baby is five. How do I feel about that? Pretty good. A small part of me can't believe that my last child is that old. What does that make me? Old. But, I'm ok with that. I am enjoying these baby free years too much and I am not sad that the baby years are gone...I have wonderful memories of them. I have few regrets of my baby rearing years...they were good to me. I love being a mom to these kids.

liar, liar, pants on fire

Claire has officially entered the lying stage. I remember well when the boys went through this stage and I am much more prepared this time around for the flat out lies and don't take them so personally. But it still shocks me that she doesn't realize I know what she is doing.

Exhibit A:

Last night as I am tucking Claire to bed I ask her if she stayed in her bed last night after I left. "yes". Then why did you have your slippers and a crown on your head when I checked on you? Blank stare.

She has gotten into a habit of playing in her room after she "goes to bed". The rule is she can not get out of bed, but is welcome to sing in bed (which she loves to do).

Exhibit B:

This morning I ask Claire if she followed the rule and stayed in bed last night. "yes". Claire, are you lying to me? "no" I checked on you last night and you again had your slippers on and had toys on your bed. Blank stare. Claire, you lied to me and you broke a rule. Tears.

You would think she would figure out that she at least needs to clean up the evidence. Needless to say, Claire has not been able to enjoy much Halloween candy this week.

happy halloween!

After a night of trunk or treating and a night of trick or treating, I think we finally have enough candy. Both nights we kept calling Claire our "little angel" ...and Carter our "little mad hatter"...and Jared our "little skeleton pirate..thing, wait, what are you again Jared?"

the boys and the cure

For the second year, Carter and Allen ran in the Susan G. Comen 5k race for the cure. This year Allen recruited Jared to run with him, so he wouldn't have to try and keep up with Carter. I think he got a little embarrassed last year when Carter kept looking/running backwards saying "come on dad!" Carter ran with a friend from his CC team and they finished in 24 minutes. Jared surprised us and never stopped running even though according to Allen he had a few hard moments. He and Allen ran in 31 minutes. Claire and I went to cheer them on and to collect Carter when he finished. We saw many people there-Carter's whole CC team, the Sextons, the Kahs, Kacey Jackson, and Allen's best friend from high school whose wife is a breast cancer survivor. It was a fun morning. I was very proud of all my boys. Especially Allen who HATES running but endures it to do something with his sons. He is a good dad.

good hair day?

Carter came downstairs one day looking like this and saying that this was the look he liked for himself. First, the hair. Carter has a long history with his infatuation with hair...see pix at bottom of post. Second, the shirt, I have already mentioned my feelings about sleeveless shirts here. And last but not least is the necklace. What can I say, he got it at Mimi's garage sale and loves it. I know from past experience that it will lose it's charm soon, so I let it go. When I told him I wanted to take a picture of him, he didn't want to smile for the camera, but instead did the "cool" look, but I finally got a cute Carter smile. When Allen said that we should pole the girls at school to see if they think Carter looks the cutest this way, Carter turned red and ran back upstairs.

funny kids

Some funny things that my kids have said lately that need to be documented before I forget....

Jared can have some deep thoughts while driving in our car and looking out the window. Like, "I wish we had our own air...not the air outside... where people smoke". Hmm.

As our family walked into a sporting goods store, Claire grabbed my hand and said, "let's go find the girl things mom".

After setting up his wii-fit, Carter runs out of the bonus room declaring, "I need to gain 4 pounds!" More like 14 pounds, but whatever.

halloween blues

Jared has the Halloween blues. Not because he doesn't like the holiday, but because he likes it so much and I,his mom, doesn't like to decorate the house in the same fashion as he does. He did not appreciate my "fall decorations" of pewter pumpkins. In years past, he and Carter were satisfied with the ghosts I gave them for their rooms. But this year that wasn't enough for Jared. And so he took it upon himself to rummage up anything halloweeny he could find to decorate our front porch. He even made a little ghost and taped it onto the brick. It was so cute and so sad at the same time. These are the sad pictures at the beginning of the post. I was so proud of his initiative and realized how desperately he wanted this, that I gave in and let me pick out just a few decorations. And so Jared's blues are gone. Happy Halloween!

mango salsa minus the mango

Today Claire and I made some mango salsa. She is following in Jared's foot steps in enjoying being my helper in the kitchen. I have been studying a lot this week and this was such a nice break. I found this recipe this summer online ( I think on a blog). It is very yummy. Claire of course ate as we went, but how can I say no to eating fruit? The sad thing is she doesn't like the end result. I think it is the vinegar that gets her. Well, as I was chopping and chopping, I realized I forgot to buy the Mango for the MANGO salsa. I swear this NEVER happens to me. It's still good, but Claire and I will stop by the store on the way to pick up the boys and buy one mango. I just love to go to the store for just one thing.

Here is the recipe, try it out, Yummy!

1-2 c. cantaloupe diced

1 c. pineapple diced

1 mango diced

1 cucumber diced

1/3 c. green onions

1 garlic clove diced

10 springs of cilantro

1 tsp. lime juice

1/2 c. sugar

1/4 c. rice vinegar (It calls for 1/2 c., but 1/4 was plenty for me, also I used the white wine vinegar I had on hand and it works)

museums, memorials, and monuments

Allen had a meeting in DC and so we made a family trip of it. We had not been there since we were kids. Carter and Jared had been asking to go for awhile. We had a great time. There is a lot of walking involved in seeing everything in DC in a long weekend, but the kids did great. Claire especially surprised me with how good she was when most things were not geared to her. It is nice to know we are at the phase of life that we can take our kids anywhere and have a great time. As we were walking around the last day, Allen and I commented how we were glad we didn't come by ourselves, it was more fun with the kids. Allen used his iphone to give us little bits of information as we went to each sight. It was fun to learn with our kids. Like the soldiers at the tomb of the unknown solider--they work 24 hours and then are off 24. They get a hair cut every other day and shave 2 times during the 24 hours they work. Since they started guarding the tomb, it has always had someone on guard, 24/7. This was a great way to talk about respect to our kids.

Our favorites:

Allen: holocaust museum

Julie: holocaust museum, Arlington cemetery

Carter: holocaust museum

Jared: museum of natural history

Claire: swimming at the hotel pool

Some memories of the trip:

-Carter wanted to find his name on the wall at the Vietnam memorial.

-Jared saying that he thought the animals at the museum of natural history were going to be alive. Jared also informing me that he likes animals, but not to hunt and kill them, but to see and watch them.

-After hearing the record of six minutes to run up the stairs at the Washington monument, Carter in all seriousness, while staring at the monument, said,"I can beat that, someone time me" (Carter is the ultimate competitor)

-At the museum of air and space, a Chinese woman who didn't speak great english asked me to take a picture of HER with OUR kids with her camera. She grabbed Claire and put her on her lap and hugged the boys close. I must say that is the strangest thing that has happened to us associated with Claire being adopted from China.

best buy ever

These princesses were the best $20 I ever spent. Claire loves them, Claire plays with them all the time, they are small, they are easy to take with us (only 2 at a time though), and there are no small parts to get lost. Claire calls them her "hard princesses" because they are made of plastic. She will say, "I'm going to go to my room to play with my hard princesses". I have to explain to guests what she means. I have to thank a friend for turning me on to these wonderful gals. And of course the wonderful people of Disney.

Carter's first game

This past weekend Carter attended his first UT football game with his dad, Allen (notice the label, Allen). Carter had a great time despite the heat. It was in the 90's and felt like 100. But the boys stuck it out and cheered on the Vols to a nice victory over what I am told was a really easy team and so "the Vols better not get too cocky because we have Florida coming up this weekend", or some rant like that. Anyway, my baby is growing up. Go Vols!

Oh, by the way, the photo was taken by Allen's iphone and emailed to me. He was very proud.

my favorite rocks

When Jared was four...three and a half?...four and a half?...ok my memory is bad and that's why I am doing this blog/journal thing. Jared picked out this "beautiful" frame all by himself for Christmas one year and the Love rock for my gift. And so it sits on my desk. But it's the other two rocks that are among my favorite possessions. These two rocks were also given to me by Jared and they were taken from his prized rock collection. He told me they were his favorite and he wanted me to have them to go along with the love rock, because he loved me. So, when I am at my desk, I love to look at the tacky, I mean beautiful framed picture of Jared and all his love rocks. And my day is then brighter.

Label envy

The other night Allen spruced up my blog and added some gadgets on the sidebar. As he was adding the "label" bar, he noticed he only had one label. I tried to reassure him that this was mainly for my memories about the kids, but he still looked envious.

So, here is a memory of Allen. Last Saturday he spent 3 hours helping me with a yucky statistics class I am taking. He is a very good teacher and helped me get the big picture. I am grateful for this wonderful husband. He also has listened to me talk about other classes I've taken, like Psychology of Gender. A subject that I find very interesting and he has no interest at all. But he sat there and listen to me tell him "interesting"things I was learning. Things like, Female patients are more likely to have tests ordered for them by female doctors than by male doctors. Isn't that interesting? And because of these great qualities of Allen, it is easier for me to look past the growing pile of dirty clothes on the bedroom floor or the sweaty basketball clothes over the tub that are still sitting there 3 days later. Balance is the name of the game I guess.

Do you feel better now Allen? I hope so.

more divaness

OK, I just have to keep documenting the girlyness (is that a word?) of Claire. She loves all things girl. She gets me to put on her makeup and then goes around to every member of our family and tell them to look at her pretty face. This is after looking at herself in the mirror and admiring the colors of choice for that day. She is so funny. Is this normal for girls? I don't know; she is my one and only girl and I think I'll have my hands full with just her.

bye-bye summer, bye-bye boat

As the summer ends and we are in the throngs of school, soccer and cross country, it's almost time to say good-bye to our boat. We still have about a month left of good boating weather, but because of said activities, our time on it has been less and less. Because of Allen's job, we don't travel a lot in the summer. And so we spend a lot of time on the boat. We have made some of the best memories on our boat. And so I am posting some favorite pictures and telling some favorite times: Jared's big grin when he got up and stayed up on the wake board. Allen's grin as he improved his jumps this year. Claire on the knee board as Jared held it steady behind her, the kids on the tubes-they love to do "tricks" when it is going slow enough. And Carter loves to do a "crazy ride" where he and his tube will be perpendicular to the water and he still holds on. (He is the daredevil of the family) Swimming around with my family in our not so pretty lake. Watching beautiful sunsets. It was a great summer...I can't wait until next year.

Carter's birthday

Carter turned 10!! I have a child in double digits! This is very unsettling to me and Allen.We have asked our children on multiple occasions to please stop aging-we like them the way they are and even more important, they like us the way they are now. But, they keep getting older. And so Carter turned 10. He got a wii fit from us, which made his day. I let him wear a sleeveless shirt for his party/pictures. (I HATE sleeveless shirts on little boys, but Carter loves them-I don't know why I hate them, maybe for the same reason that I hate camouflage on little boys, which Jared loves. So Carter gets to wear them to bed, in our house, for sports practice and on his b-day. It's all about compromise. Oh, Jared's lunch box and extra blanket are camouflage-compromise) His friend party was on our boat and they had a blast. It was a great night. The actual day of his birthday I had put up a few streamers and homemade signs for when he got home from school. I don't always do this and have never done the homemade signs before, but I had for Jared's and decided I better for Carter's. Well, when he saw the kitchen he smiled and ran up stairs (I figured to check his room-I had done signs in Jared's room-a first) and he ran back down and gave me a big hug and said thanks. Wow, what a mommy moment. I truly didn't think they would care that much about the signs. Thanks Carter.

mornings

I am not a morning person. I don't like to talk a lot in the morning. Few things make me smile in the morning. But this sight does-Jared eating 3 bowls of cereal every morning. Each morning I stumble into the kitchen and see Jared at the table with his bowl, spoon, milk and cereal box always in the same place. I don't know why it makes me happy, but it does. And I want to remember this years from now, so I am posting about it. He is just so cute and growing up so fast.