Family Read Night

Tuesday night at Colby's school they had something called Family Read Night. This week they are concentrating and really emphasizing reading. I think it also coincides with READ across America and Dr. Seuss' birthday. All this week they are having a raffle with kids who read books with their families each night. I think its great they are focused on the importance of reading. Colby is really progressing with his reading and I am so proud of him! I bought him some BOB books at the beginning of the year and he couldn't really read them without a lot of help and he would get frustrated...now he reads them easily and with confidence! Right now we are still on Level 1 but I hope to get him the Level 2 books soon!
Anyway so last night was Family Read Night. My parents came and kept Lindsay for this since it was 6-8 which is kind of late for her especially with church going that late on Wednesdays and I thought she really would be too young to "get it". A lot of other people had their younger kids but I guess that's b/c they don't have easy babysitters like we are blessed to have. First they served a taco dinner which was really yummy. Colby had a blast sitting with all his school friends and chatting. It was nice too to get to visit with some of the moms as well. It had been awhile since I had seen any of them so it was great to catch up. It was also nice to visit with the teachers.
After dinner we moved into the Worship Center and they had a time of just family reading. The kids were told to bring blankets and they could spread them out on the floor. It was fun just spending time with Colby this way. He also got to interact with several of his little friends during this time. They also went around and interviewed the kids and Colby piped up and answered a couple of times!
After about 20 min of this time the teachers and other staff performed a little skit! It was called Chicks and Salsa. It was the most adorable thing!! It was so cute and funny! I am so thankful for these women and men who are willing to be silly! The principal was even in it! This night was such a blessing! It was so neat to have the school together for such a fun, wonderful event! I can't say enough how much this year has blessed us! I am so thankful we chose Calvary for Colby! Its been a perfect fit!

Parades & Friends

This weekend has been very enjoyable so far! Friday was low key. Since Austin always works late on Friday nights the kids and I just enjoyed a relaxful night. Hot dogs & Mac n cheese and some Little Mermaid! I know we are exciting over here right?!? Anyway they love it!
Today (Saturday) has been more exciting. Well we had some good friends of ours in town visiting. If you remember from previous blogs when Colby was a lot younger our friends Brent and Kristie. They were here and wanted to hang out today. We had originally said a park but then I remembered it was the first big weekend of parades and traffic would be crazy all over the city. Plus Colby has been begging to attend a parade. This year sadly there was only 1 parade on the westbank but we thought it might be fun to go to that. I told them they could meet us at my parent's house for a quick lunch of po-boys and we would go up to the parade route. It was so neat seeing Colby and Cade pick up being friends! They got along so well and played together great! I hate they live so far away! We enjoyed our lunch then packed up and hit the parade. Colby had a really good time hanging with Cade and Mr. Brent. Lindsay enjoyed it but was pretty quiet through the whole thing. I think she liked it though. This was Colby's 5th year of parades and Lindsay's 2nd. I hate that we no longer have many WB parades to choose from though. I hope to maybe bring them uptown or to Metairie before the season is over!
Sunday we are enjoying a nice lazy, rainy family day. We went to early service this morning. Heard a wonderful message from Hebrews 7. So thankful for our church! The kids seemded to do well and enjoy their classes. When we got out of church it was POURING so that made picking everyone up and getting to the truck interesting! I was just glad Austin was there to help! Since its raining we decided against going to parades. Instead a lazy day and working inside is on the agenda. Its nice to have a laid back day! We have had a pretty busy month ever since getting home from Disney! It was the first Sunday in awhile we haven't had any plans after church either! It will be nice to stay in tonight and relax.
Austin is off tomorrow which I am looking forward to and then we will get back to another busy week of church activities and school stuff!

A little of This and That

So I thought I would do a quick catch up post from the week:
Last Wednesday we did go to church that night. I am so far really enjoying teaching the preschoolers. It is a more laid back atmosphere with the same kids mostly each week. So far we are really having fun!
I enjoyed having a long weekend with the kids. It was nice Friday to not be in quite as much of a rush as usual. We did have to get out and get Lindsay to school but we don't have to leave until 8:30 for that compared with our normal 8:00.
Saturday was a really nice day with the kids. I love not having to rush around and just take our time getting ready. I made the kids cheese grits and they watched a movie while I cleaned up the house and got ready. We headed to the park at 10. I love pretty days and park Saturdays. I love that my kids can stay entertained at a park for well over an hour. We had my parents meet us out there. Its always nice to have an extra hand with the kids and it gives them extra time to see them and love on them. A new friend also met us there. A little girl in Lindsay's class named Stella...her mom and her also came to play. It was good to get to know another mommy of one of her friends. We are losing/lost 2 of her best friends at church so I am anxious for her to have some little friends her age. This is about the age I would say Colby really started making friends and we would have them over. The rest of the Saturday was pretty quiet just hung out with the kids that afternoon.
Sunday Austin was originally supossed to be off but he got called in to work. I woke up with a really scratchy and hoarse sounding voice. I was supossed to teach in the preschool. I decided it would be best to stay home and rest my voice. I always hate missing church. It just feels so strange to stay home on Sundays. It ended up being quite a wonderful morning though! It was def a 1000 gifts kind of morning. The kids and I had pancakes for breakfast then just took our time getting ready for the day. They played and I cleaned. I then told them we were going to have church. I really want to do this anytime from now on when we miss. We sang a couple of praise songs then read a Bible story and prayed together. It was really a sweet sweet time. We then took a walk. Even though the day didn't turn out as we liked it was still a good day. That afternoon I had a meeting for the Children's dept. I really didn't feel like going but I made myself get up and go b/c they only have these meetings a couple times a year so I really felt like I needed to be there.

Valentine's Day

We are in the midst of celebrating Valentine's at our house! This has been a fun year so far! Like I've said before the kids are at perfect ages! This year there has been a lot of celebrating due to having 2 kids in school.
Colby had his party yesterday b/c he is out of school today. I baked cookies for his class to send home along with his Superhero Valentine's from Target...no pinterest goodies this year! He came home with a HUGE bag of goodies he seemed to have a good day and enjoyed his party!
Friday Colby was out of school so he was looking forward to a dady with mommy. Lindsay actually had school. Normally she doesn't go on Fridays but this week it worked out great b/c she had missed Monday. I really only see the need for her to go 2 days a week. Plus Friday was her Valentine's party and I was signed up so she kind of had to go! I was also looking forward to a little one on one time with Colby. I had asked him several days ago what he wanted to do and he chose going to Barnes and Noble to pick out a book. I am always obliged to pick out books for my kids that is one thing I have a hard time saying no to! Anyway we dropped Lindsay off and went to the bookstore. It was nice and peaceful. We sat down and looked at his book and I drank my coffee then we meandered through the store for a bit. We stumbled on a Duck Dynasty book for Austin. Afterwards it was time to head back to Lindsay's school. I think Colby enjoyed being back on his old turf but he started out being really shy. He hung out with me at first to help get everything set up for their little party. After we finished we went outside which is where Lindsay and her class were. It was fun watching them all play. The kids came in for the party. It was again fun watching them all eat and play. The other mom brought balloons for each kid so they LOVED that! Colby finally decided to go outside with the big kids. I think he had fun but things are quite the same to him I don't think...first most of all the kids that he knew went off to kindergarten at other schools. It was a nice morning for all of us. The rest of the day was pretty low key. We stayed in that evening and I cooked jambalaya for us. With Austin working and 2 little kids on a Friday night we weren't going to attempt going anywhere! We really don't make a huge deal out of Valentine's anymore. We exchange cards and that's it. We usually get the kids a couple of little toys and we call it a day. Its def a fun holiday with kids though!

Sick

So our time has come...honestly I have been waiting on when sickness would plague us again...we were healthy all of December and all of January so for that I am so thankful! Anyway Lindsay woke up from her nap Sunday running a 100-102 degree fever. We still aren't exactly sure what's going on with her. It could be teeth or she could have a little cold. She really doesn't "act sick" during the day. She isn't that congested and her nose really isn't running. She may have a sore throat? We aren't really sure. Since she acts fine and isn't running fever anymore I haven't taken her into the doc. Last night though she had a very rough night. She only slept a couple of hours. Yesterday my throat started hurting as well. My mom is also sick.
Well yesterday we ran a couple errands while Austin was off but mostly stayed in to rest and hope that everyone would be well for our busy week ahead.
Today we should have had Bible Study but due to the rough night and rough morning in our house (allie got sick in her kennel) we decided to skip. Not to mention that its a rainy, cold day. I hated to miss b/c I surely treasure that time. I didn't want Lindsay to get anyone else sick or for her to pick up any other germs. Tonight we have lifegroup but I don't think we will make that either. With my mom being sick I really don't want her to get sicker or for Colby to get anything since he has school. So we will stay in tonight and hope to re-coup for church tomorrow evening. I really miss going to my two adult Bible study times I know it will make a difference in my week too! But sometimes God tells us to stay home and rest so that's what we tried to do today!
Tonight I am feeling better but my throat is still a little sore. Lindsay seems fine I think it might be her teeth. We will see but hopefully tomorrow she will be back at school b/c I have to make cookies and get things ready for both their Valentine's parties and church tomorrow night!

Our Weekend

So far we are having a nice weekend around here. Colby spent Friday night with my parents so it was nice having a quiet evening. I missed my big boy and honestly he's not that much trouble its just now the 2 kids together they are loud and fight a lot! Lindsay, Austin, and I watched the Olympics together. Lindsay really got into it! I can tell she is going to love movies, shows, and plays!
Saturday us girls slept in! We enjoyed a quiet morning before heading out for coffee and picking big bro up! We got him and went to the park! I love no plan Saturdays that we can visit local parks and enjoy beautiful weather! Its been so cold and wet here lately I was anxious to get the kids out! We went to Confetti Park which is one of my kids favorites. I like it too b/c its fenced it and there are always several kiddos for my kids to play with! We stayed over an hour! It was nice just having that uninterrupted time with my kids. We got home and ate lunch then it was naptime. Colby stayed up and played and watched tv while Lindsay napped. That afternoon we got to take a walk...just trying to soak up this weather and get us moving! My goal is to get us moving more this year! Its hard for me to "workout" right now. I want to join a gym but right now with young kids and Austin's schedule I just don't know how much I would go. I want to get into running so we are slowly building up to that.
Sunday was church ofcourse. I was off this sunday so it was nice to actually go into church service. I only get to attend worship 1-2 times a month usually so its so refreshing. I feel like this week I have been feeling a little burnt out and tired. I am not sure if its hormones or just catching up from the trip. Not to mention my toddler has been extremely trying this week. We took her pacifier away a week ago and she's not really crying for it anymore but she's making it known she is old enough to express her feelings/opinions about every. little. thing! So I definitely needed the time to myself to get into the Word. The kids seemed to enjoy their classes as always. We are looking forward to a low key afternoon. I hate we are missing the Stewart's going away party but Lindsay is still asleep and she needs this nap before starting the week. We will just enjoy some downtime. We will probably play outside, maybe walk, watch the Olympics and work on some Valentine's before our busy week begins again tomorrow!

Getting back to Real Life

So we have been home from our Disney Vacation almost a week now! We hit the ground running when we got home! Spring semester means a lot of activities re-starting for our family! I will do a catch up post on what all has been going on since returning home.
Friday we got home mid-day...the kids were so excited to be home to their toys! I know they loved vacation but by Friday they were ready to be home especially after a long day of travel! It was nice to just settle in and unpack and catch up on things around the house!
Saturday was another laid back day. Lindsay and I got out that morning to grocery shop but the rest of the day we spent at home again just trying to get settled back in at home. Another day that the kids just enjoyed being home and playing!
Sunday it was time to re-start Life! We had church. Austin was still off so it was nice to go all together although I was teaching in the preschool. We had a great class though and it was good getting back to my little church friends! That night we had a SuperBowl Party with our Lifegroup. It was nice seeing all of our friends again and the kids had a blast playing. There are tons of kids in our new lifegroup so there are plenty of friends for our kids. There are two 1 year olds, two 2 year olds, one 3 year old, a 5 year old, a 7 year old, and two 9 year olds!
Monday the kids both had school. It was nice to get them back into that routine after missing a week. I think they were both glad to be back with their friends also. Austin and I enjoyed a quiet morning. We were able to take a walk with Allie which is always nice! I really want to get into a regular walking/jogging pattern but life is just so busy! I know excuse but seriously with 2 kids and a hubby who works crazy hours I feel like I rarely have the time but I am trying to make it happen! That afternoon I had a meeting with our children's ministry intern at church. I am going to be the preschool teacher on Wednesday nights this spring so she just wanted to meet with me to over the curriculum.
Tuesday was a really busy day for us! I took Colby to school then Lindsay and I picked up my mom and headed to Bible study. I am so excited that Bible study is beginning again. I can tell such a difference in my daily actions when I am constantly in His word. I am also trying to wake up 15-30 min earlier each day so I can work on my Bible study and have some quiet time before starting the day. This semester we are going to do Beth Moore's Breaking Free study. This is my 4th Beth Moore study I think and I have loved all of them! During the months of no Bible study I have been reading 1000 gifts though...such a great book! It has totally changed my outlook on life! I love counting my gifts as well! After Bible study Lindsay and I came home and got Austin and the 3 of us had lunch at Chili's. That evening we had lifegroup. It was good to get back! Although the week we were gone they didn't meet b/c of the snow/ice storm. Its a nice get-away on Tuesday nights. They had mexican night so we had a lot of yummy food. Its also night to get into the Word as a couple.
Wednesday both kids were at school so I had a little mommy time which was nice! My first time alone in quite awhile! I went to Target and got all the stuff for the kids for Valentine's. I got each 2 small toys and Lindsay a book and Colby a movie. Probably too much but I couldn't resist =) That evening we had church. Wednesdays will be long for us but it was good to get back! The kids love going! Colby always enjoys eating dinner with his friends! This semester I am teaching the preschoolers. I am actually excited about being in the classroom. It is a little hard with getting home late and a long day with kids but I love serving in that area and getting to know my little preschoolers even better then just on Sunday mornings. We only had 4 kids this past week but it was a nice number. They were all very well behaved. We had two 2 year olds and two 4 year olds. Lindsay was in there with me. She technically should go to the toddler room but since we only had 3 other kids and I am teaching she did great! I enjoyed having her in there! I am kind of ready for her to promote on sundays b/c she has really matured a lot lately. I think she is ready for a little more structure.
Thursday after bringing Colby to school Lindsay and I met the Stewart's at McDonald's for breakfast. It was nice to just visit with another mom while Lindsay played. We stayed for almost 2 hours! The weather has been so cold lately we haven't had much outdoor time. That night we had no where to be so we just enjoyed a low key quiet night at home!

Disney Day 5

This was our last day in Disney. We spent the day at Hollywood Studios. This is def one of my fav parks. We started the day with a ride on Aerosmith rollercoaster. Colby was so upset he wasn't tall enough to ride! Poor guy...I love that he was so brave on this trip! After the rollercoaster we stopped with the kids for a little snack/rest break before heading to do Tower of Terror. Colby was so pumped to do this! I think he was a little scared during it but he never cried or complained. He just held on to us for dear life =) After getting the thrill rides out of the way we went to do the Great Movie Ride. It was nice to do something that we could all enjoy. I thought the ride might scare Lindsay a little but she loved it! I think by now she understood it was all just for fun! After that ride we went over to the Little Mermaid Show which again Lindsay LOVED! I think Colby liked it too but Lindsay was just in awe I think! It was so sweet! We then stopped for lunch. Meal times are always a nice break from being on your feet and a time to kind of collect yourself before heading out again. We did the Toy Story ride right after lunch. I rode with Lindsay which she wasn't really sure at first but then loved it it was just hard for me to shoot at the objects with a squirming 2 year old on my lap but it was fun! After the toy story ride we wanted to go meet TowMater and Lightening McQueen for Colby! He was so excited. Well during our walk Miss Lindsay fell asleep. After meeting the CARS I let everyone go to the Muppet Show with Colby while Miss L and I found a bench. I just enjoyed the quiet time and people watching...guess I'm getting old?!? Well when they got out the show she woke up and Colby decided he wanted to go ride Tower of Terror again. This time we let all the adults take him and Austin and I hung back with Lindsay. We took her back into the Art of Animation to look at characters. We finally found ourselves in the Walt Museum. We stayed there for quite awhile...its really fascinating. Everyone else ended up meeting us in there and we watched the movie. I think both kids actually enjoyed the movie as well. By the time we finished in there it was time to head to the 50s Cafe for our dinner reservations. As always it was a fun and yummy dinner. After that it was the end of our night and we headed back to the hotel. I hated we missed all the shows/fireworks but we may be able to catch those next time when Lindsay will be 5 and Colby 8! Things will get easier then!
Gosh it was a great trip and I am sad to see it end! I love seeing Disney through my kids eyes especially at 2 and 5! They had a great time! I am not sure if Lindsay will remember but I think Colby will! I remember my first trip to Disney at 6. He's already asking to go back =)

Disney Day 4

On the 4th day at Disney we went to EPCOT. I have to say this was probabably one of my favorite visits there. I am not sure why I just enjoyed really soaking it all in and looking at the details that Disney puts in to make sure each park is special and realistic. The first thing we did when getting to the park was rode Soarin'. Again my parents took care of Lindsay and again I was so grateful for that. Colby really enjoyed Soarin'. I really wished we had had time to ride it again. Afterwards we did the The Land ride. This was something we could all do which was nice. Again I really enjoyed looking at the different plants. These rides are so much more fun as an adult then they were when I was a child =) After that we went on and did the big ball ride as Colby calls it. Again it was a ride we could all do and I think even Lindsay enjoyed it. By this time she wasn't scared of the "dark" rides anymore. We ate lunch after that ride. We then went to the Imagination Ride. We wanted to do Test Track with Colby but the ride shut down about the time we were going to ride it. We then went to the Character Area to meet all the main characters! We saw Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Goofy, Chip, and Dale. It was so cute to see Lindsay's reaction! She loved Pluto's whiskers and Minnie's nose! At the end Chip and Dale spent quite a long time playing with them as well which was really neat! During all this walking time Lindsay fell asleep so I stayed with her while everyone else took Colby to ride Imagination. After the ride we got some coffee and headed to the countries. I enjoyed this part more then I normally do. Lindsay was asleep at first. Colby got to meet the Mexican Donald Duck then we hit up the ride in Norway. Afterwards Lindsay woke up so we just strolled through the countries and took in the sights. We did stop in Germany to meet Snow White and see the train garden. By this time it was getting really cold and raining more so we quickly made our way around then headed to the Living Seas where we had dinner reservations at Coral Reef. During that walk Colby fell asleep. Austin and Randall and Elizabeth went to ride Test Track and my parents and the kids and I went and sat outside the restaurant. It was raining too hard to really do anything. That evening we really enjoyed Coral Reef though. It was our first experience there. We had a wonderful view right in front the aquarium which was awesome! The kids loved it! The food was really good too! Afterwards we bundled up and headed back to the hotel!

Disney Day 3

So our third day in Disney we went to Animal Kingdom. That morning though we started with our character breakfast at O'Hana. I think this is always a favorite of everyone. Its yummy food and its nice to have the characters come to your table and get their autographs while you sit and eat! Its the lazy way of seeing them HA! Lindsay started warming up to the characters here and really took a liking to Pluto. After breakfast we hopped on a bus and headed to Animal Kingdom. Our first order of business was the Safari Ride. This is always a favorite for everyone. It seemed this time too that the ride was longer and we saw more animals which was cool! After that we went to Mt. Everest. Once again Colby surprised us and decided to ride this! And he loved it! He went again right after getting off. During the second time I stayed with my parents and Lindsay. Afterwards we decided to go on into the Dino Land and find a place for lunch. The kids were getting tired and cranky and needed a break. It never seems like we get much done at Animal Kingdom but its so big and spread out it takes awhile to get from one activity to another. We enjoyed a liesurely lunch. Afterwards we wanted to do some of the Dino Land rides but Colby wasn't tall enough for one of the little coasters. We decided to let him go back on Mt. Everest. After this we were all ready to go. I hated to not see everything at this park but this was the one day we knew we could go back to the hotel and rest. It was getting warm and the park was crowded and the kids just needed that downtime I think. I really like Animal Kingdom but I think it will be more fun when the kids get a little older. There isn't much for little kids to do. We got back to the hotel around 2. We let the kids unwind with a snack and shows for about an hour and a half. It was nice to just get off our feet and relax for a bit. Afterwards Austin and I decided to bring the kids back to Magic Kingdom. It was nice to get out just as a family. We decided to ride the train since we missed that the day before. I think the kids enjoyed it and again it was a nice break. Afterwards we went to Fantasyland to grab a bite for dinner. We enjoyed just the family time of being us 4. We walked around a little there and then on Main Street before going back to the hotel. It was nice to get back early that night and get everyone to bed early. It was another great day!

Disney Day 2

So on our second day at Disney which was really our first full day we went back to Magic Kingdom. It was cool to go there first since that's what we knew the kids would really enjoy the most. That morning when we arrived there were several characters out in Main Street so we decided to stop and meet Pluto. The kids loved this! It was so neat to stop and enjoy the characters. Lindsay was a little fearful at first of the characters. After stopping to get pictures and autographs we made our way into Adventureland. We were trying to head to a place we hadn't been. Our first stop was Pirates of the Carribean. I am not sure how either kid felt about this ride. I think it scared them both? After that we went ahead to do Jungle Cruise since we were right there. I think they both enjoyed that ride a little more. Lindsay just didn't like the dark rides I guess? We then stopped at Its a Small World and both kids really loved that ride! It was a nice break from all the action! After that we went into Libery Square and did Haunted Mansion. Well I knew Lindsay would HATE that so she stayed out with my parents and we took Colby. He wasn't scared at all...he thought it was silly! After that everyone took took another turn doing Big Thunder Mountain. I stayed with Lindsay and let her play on the playground during this time. Afterwards we took a break for lunch. We ate at Pecos Bill Cafe. It was good but that place is always a nut house! It was crowded and the seating isn't really all that comfie but we managed. Afterwards we headed over to Tomorrowland for our Fast Pass on Space Mountain. We tried to check wait times in Fantasyland at rides like Ariel but they were too long. We went straight to Space Mountain. I wasn't sure if Colby would like it or not but he said he wanted to ride it so we went with it. He ended up LOVING it!! During that time Lindsay fell asleep so my parents found a bench with her. After the rollercoaster Colby saw the rocket ride and wanted to do that! I decided to sit that one out and rest with my parents and Lindsay. It was nice to take a break and get off my feet and just people watch. Lindsay took a nice long nap during all of this. Once they got off the rocket ride we went ahead to do the Toy Story Ride. Another ride Colby really enjoyed! After it was finally time for our Fast Pass at the racecar rides. This was one of his favories when we went when he was 2! He couldn't wait to do them again! Austin rode with Lindsay and I took Colby! He was a much better driver this time!! After the racecars we decided to make our way back into the front of the park. We ended up stopping for a parade. Lindsay loved it so much the first time we figured she would love it again and boy were we right! It was also a nice break for everyone at the time! After the parade we went back to Adventureland to do a few things we missed from that morning. We checked the times on seeing Tinker Bell but it was too long. Austin and Elizabeth took the kids instead to ride the Magic Carpets while Randall and I waited with the stroller. During this time my parents were getting tired so they found a bench close to our restaurant. After the Carpet ride Austin and Randall and Elizabeth took Colby up to the Swiss Family Tree House. I stayed at a bench with Lindsay. I wasn't really feeling doing any more unnecessary walking and I figured she didn't care either way. We enjoyed squirrel watching during that time. Finally it was dinner time. We tried the Liberty Inn Tavern this time. It was our first time there. The food was excellent! The meal was served family style which was really neat! I think this was def one of my favorite meals. We were able to visit and the kids really enjoyed the food as well. Again after dinner we headed back to the hotel. I hated we couldn't stay for fireworks but after a full day we just needed to get the kiddos back to the room for bed! It was another great day though!