VBS

A couple weeks ago Zachary and I participated in our churches Vacation Bible School.  We had the BEST time!  Zachary was in his 3 year old class with all of his buddy's from church.  I taught with three of my girlfriends in one of the Kindergarten classes.  I have done VBS for years and I can honestly say this year was the most fun! Our church has VBS for 4 nights for two hours each night.  It ran so smoothly and was stress-free! Gotta love that!

The director of our class, Chrissy and good friend of mine made this barn for the classroom. She is a "retired" stay-at-home mommy that used to be a teacher, can you tell? The kids loved the classroom! Here is Zachary posing by the Kindergarteners barn. He loved it!

Bible story time by the campfire

Here is the Worship Rally in our sanctuary.  This is only half of the group!  The kids and adults loved coming together to worship.

Our wonderful class of cowboys with hats, horses, ands spurs.  What an amazing group of kiddos. 

I'm lucky I got this picture.  I was walking in the hall to get something from the resource room when Zachary's class walked by from outdoor recreation.  Can you tell it was "water relay night"?  I was told that Zachary did everything but jump in the water bucket during this night of recreation. He loved it.  I think he was the wettest kid at VBS.  The funny part was this Sunday when we were headed to church he said, "I sure hope it's water day." 

I wish I took more pics of Zachary & his teachers, friends, and classrooms. He had the best time. Every night he would come home and tell Kevin all about his lesson. It was priceless. I am so thankful that our church does VBS.  It's a great way for kids to learn more about Jesus.

After dinner concert

Zachary and his daddy have a nightly routine.  You might remember this post about Zachary and Kevin playing trains after dinner. Well, things have changed.  The new thing they like to do is "sneak" downstairs to play their guitars.  Mom is only allowed into Kevin's office to be the paparazzi and to hear the final song. 

I think this night the final song was the "Sea.same Street Theme Song".  Only because that is all Zachary's guitar plays. 

I also have to add....Zachary does have clothing.  I promise!  However he throws them off as soon as he gets to our house.  He is so hot natured that we let him wear his boxers or athletic shorts around.  Its funny because when I look back at the old blog post he is always in his boxers and never in his clothes.

Here I come to save the day!

Recently I came across a mega sale at the party store. $5 costumes!!!  I picked up a few and they are the biggest thing since sliced bread. Seriously,  I have gotten my moneys worth. Why didn't I think of this sooner?  Zachary has played in them all week. In fact I heard him in the hallway say, "Good work team....we saved the day."  I laughed out loud because it was too cute.  Yesterday my parents, along with my two nephews came out to our house for the afternoon.  The costumes were a huge hit.  Elliott & Zachary had a blast.  Jerrytt loved watching the big kids play too.

                                                Zachary as the Flash & Elliott as the Bumblebee
                                                     
 
    Of course Pops had to get in on the fun too.  Crack me up! I have the best dad in the world. He's a hoot!

Pops as the Flash

The boys played so well together.  They had the best time!

One more summer lovin' entry!

A couple days ago I posted a list of my favorite summer things.....I forgot the most important one.  Sleeping in with my baby big boy.  It seems like I always have something planned that I have to hurry and rush around and get out the door for (preschool, errands, meetings, etc.).  During the school year I always try to keep one day open with no appointments or committments so that Zachary and I can stay home. That's the day that I get laundry done, cleaning, phone calls, etc.  It seems like in the summer we are on the go every day.   We have swimming lessons, dental appointments, doctor appointments, etc.  For the past two weeks we have had ZERO commitments.  It has been glorious.  Zachary sleeps in his own bedroom but as soon as he hears Kevin turn on the shower he comes into our bedroom and crawls in bed with me.  We cuddle, go back to sleep, and then watch cartoons.  I. Love. It. I realize that my baby is growing up and one of these days he is not going to climb in bed with me. 


Please take note of the time on the clock!  8:37 a.m. This is two extra hours in bed.  Ignore the retainers and eye drops. But pay attention to the cute little boy in the striped shirt. That is my cousins, Jen & Jacks little man. HE IS ADORABLE. Jen I am sorry I have not written a thank you note yet but we love this picture so much.  Also thanks for all the gifts for Z. He is in love with his wallet with his name on it. You are too sweet!

Here is my little man a cuddled up in our bed. I think he slept until 9:30 am that morning.  He was worn out.  I love it!

Thank you God for moments like these!

Meeting new family!

A few weeks ago I FINALLY got to meet Kevin's Family from GA.  Aunt Patty, Uncle Okey, Lori, Rodney, and Miss Lilli came for a visit.  We all had a wonderful time together. It seemed like I have known them forever.  As you can see from the pictures, Zachary was showing off for Miss Lilli and not cooperating for the camera.

Aunt Patty is my father-in-laws sister. I could not believe how much Marvin & Patty sound a like. They also had a lot of the same characteristics. 

Costume Magazine

Zachary LOVES mail.  Recently he has received a costume magazine and a really neat toy magazine.  He could spend over an hour looking through each magazine...if I would let him. He circles his favorite toys & costumes.  It changes everyday on what he wants to be for Halloween or what he wants his birthday party theme to be.  Good thing his birthday is two months away and Halloween is three or else I would not know what to order.  Everything he talks about is costumes.

I was on the phone the other day.   When I am writing some information down during the call I see a monster truck slide through the kitchen floor.  As soon as I hang up the phone Zachary says, "you like it's costume?".  I look back at the monster truck and this is what I see....

He put shorts, a belt, and a necktie on his truck. He told me it was ready for Halloween. I often wonder what is going on in his little head. I never know what he is going to do or say next. He was so proud of himself. Needless to say we still don't know what his 4th birthday party theme is going to be or what he is going to dress up as for Halloween.

Summer Lovin'....Hil's favorite things!

Recently, I have discovered some new items, places, and food that I REALLY enjoy. I wanted to share with you my summer finds.

My husband's motto at home and his office is "Effective & Efficient". He wants things to work the best way possible, the safest way possible, and the quickest way.  Recently I have discovered a new laundry detergent that does just that.  Yes, I really am blogging about laundry detergent. But, I had to share because it is THAT good.  I usually purchase the HE laundry detergent that is on sale & I have a coupon for. My biggest complaint with my laundry detergent is that it is bulky AND I always tend to waste by spilling it over the cap and down the front of the bottle.  Lastly, it makes a mess in my washer.  However I found a new brand that is clean, slender, and safe for the environment. METHOD LAUNDRY detergent at Tar.get.  It is a tall, skinny bottle that does not take up an entire cabinet.  All you do is pump four pumps into the washer.  No opening the cap = no spillage. I wish I would have thought of this container.  I now have a full cabinet to put my other cleaning and laundry supplies and it last longer than a "normal" detergent.  I think I have gotten over 50 washes out of the bottle.  It runs about $12 but Tar.get always has it on sale or has coupons for it. I am hooked!  This bottle of detergent is "effective & efficient". 

2.  This summer I have also fallen in love with "Skinny Cow Mint Chocolate Ice Cream Sandwiches".  I found a coupon for these in my Weight Watcher magazine so I thought we would try them.  OH YUM!  They are great and low calorie!

 

Something else that I have discovered this summer is Charming Charlies. It's a jewelry/clothing boutique that has every color and style of jewelry, purses, & clothing for a very affordable price.  It's funny because my mom and sister went there before I did and called me telling me that I was going to LOVE it. They were right. 

 Another summer love is this salad dressing.  I swear my day revolves around food.

I found this Paul Newman's Lighten Up dressing at Tar.get too. It is fab!  For the calories and fat you can't find a better tasting dressing. I love to buy Paul's dressings because 100% of the proceeds goes towards charity.  LOVE IT!  Rasberry & Walnut is the best summer flave. I also enjoy the Ginger Asian flavor too.

On Tuesdays a local chocolate factory in our city makes cupcakes from scratch. Each week there is a specialty flavor and then their original chocolate cupcake with chocolate butter cream.  Last week, my mom, sister, & I (plus the boys) reserved five cupcakes. The specialty flavor was chocolate with orange butter cream.  Since we did not know if we were going to like them or not we just ordered five cupcakes....one for each of us.  I wish we would have reserved two dozen because they were the BEST cupcakes I have ever eaten.  Believe me I have had a ton of cupcakes.  I really do try to eat healthy and low calorie but when it comes to cupcakes or cookies my weight watcher counting is out the window.  Poor Kevin did not get to try one so I have to go back and get some more.  I have already checked and this upcoming Tuesday they are their original chocolate with chocolate butter cream AND  chocolate cupcake with salted caramel butter cream. YUM! 

My last summer love are these pajamas.  As soon as dinner is over I slip into these pjs.  I guess it's because of all the cupcakes I have eaten but these pjs are soft, light weight, and so comfortable.  Dill.ards Dept Store carries them year round. Let me tell you a secret.  At the end of each season they put them on sale for 70% off. As long as you don't mind last seasons colors they are awesome! They are called Jasmine & Ginger.

 

So there you have it....those are all my favorite things for the summer 2010.  Enjoy. Let me know if you have tried any or all of these items.

From FOUR eyes to TWO eyes!

Well, it's been twenty four hours and I am doing AMAZING!  I feel FREE!  I have had my 24 hour post-LASIK appointment and things look great.  I can see 20/15 with both of my eyes together.  My right eye can see 20/20 and my left eye (which was a -9.00 prescription) is 20/40.  I am so HAPPY!  Seriously, giddy at the results.  I know that side effects can arise but so far so good.  I am so thankful for my amazing eye surgeon, Dr. Shacar Tauber and his amazing team.  WOAH! They were awesome.  Yesterday during the LASIK I was given a 5mg Valium.  I felt  no effects of the valium during the right eye and then immediately it hit me like a ton of bricks. I got so sleepy. I felt like I could not keep my eyes open.  Dr. Tauber and his team were giving me a hard time today because I told them I was in Jamaica and that I was having a blast. I also told them that I could have done the entire procedure without the valium. HA!  Thank God for good drugs.  After the procedure I slept ALL DAY. My mom was my personal nurse...feeding me, doing the prescribed eye drops, etc.  She was great! 

The morning before my surgery!

During the procedure they let my mom watch my LASIK surgery.  Dr. Hood sat in with my mom and explained everything. I had told my doctors that I was a huge blogger/picture freak so they let my mom take pics.  I guess they normally do not allow this but they said it was ok.  YEAH! 

WARNING:  NEXT TWO PICS ARE GRAPHIC EYEBALL PICS

Here is where the "suction cup" Laser is cutting the flap. 

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  Not quite sure what is going on this picture...I am glad I did not see this until after it was over. I can't stand eyes.  YUCK!

Here I am after the surgery at home with my "superhero" eye shields. Kinda freaky, huh?

24 hour check up!  Dr. Tauber, Dr. Hood, and the wonderful team at St. John's Eye Clinic with me by the LASER. 

My donation pile for the Lion's Club Eye Bank.  I am so happy to share these glasses with someone else.  Goodbye FOUR EYES! 

Today is LASIK day!

Please say a pray for me and my eye surgeon!  Today is the day!  I in approx 48 hours with my status and hopefully clear vision.  I'm so excited and a little nervous.  Thanks to my mom for being my driver and nurse. Thanks to my SUPERWOMAN sister who is keeping Zachary, along with her two boys. 

Freddy's Father's Day present & Dad's Birthday

Our family got my "grandpa" Freddy Dugout seats to a local baseball game.  We did it last year and it always turns out to be a fun night of food, good memories, good laughs, and a great game. It's the perfect way to get all of us together.  We did have a night of food, good memories, good laughs, BUT no game.  It poured down rain and thunderstormed for at least a hour and a half before they called the game. It did not bother any of us though because we were on a covered deck in plush furniture.  We all had the best time even though there was no baseball game.  Fortunately, the still had the fireworks that were supposed to be after the game. They did them a little early but it was still magnificient. 

Here's Kev & Z lounging on the couches.

Zachary and Mommy....I took my glasses off for the pic....I am so sick of them!

Ruey (aka Rue Rue) and her Greats!  She calls her great-grandbabies...GREATS! 

It just so happened that the game was on my dad's actual birthday so the boys thought it was his personal party. Zachary thought the fireworks were specifically for Pops.  Therefore, Zachary now thinks that fireworks should be a part of every birthday party.  . 

Here is a pic of the beautiful rainbow that joined the fireworks. It was truly amazing. It was pouring rain, with fireworks, lightening, and a rainbow.

During the fireworks the Louis Armstrong song, "Wonderful World" came on. I was sitting by my dad and when that song came on he popped up immediately. He said, "Where's Rachel....this is our song."  He found her and started dancing with her right in the dugout. It was so sweet.  That was the song my dad & sis danced to at her wedding.  Oh yeah...Jerrytt danced too.

We all had a great night without a game. Funny thing is we all get to go back and do it again.  They gave us the dugout another night in August so that we can actually see a game.  YIPPEE!

Teacher Zachary

It was a super hot day out side and I had a ton of paperwork & things to do for Kevin's office.  So I set up shop on the kitchen table and told Zachary he had to play by himself.  Well, he did not like that idea. He told me he had no one to play with and that he did not have any friends.  If I remember right he stomped his food and told me he did not like playing by himself.  Knowing that I had a ton to do I quickly brainstormed back to what I like to do as a kid and thought Zachary could play school with his animals.  Genius!  He loved it.  No joke. He spent two hours reading to his animals, teaching them their colors. He literally showed him all of his toys and pointed out each color on each toy. I am sure the animals were BORED! But it kept Z busy and I got my work done.  Here he is reading one of his favorite books to them.

What I did not realize is "school" was going to last all day long and that we were going to have to move the animals into the kitchen for dinner prep.  Zachary taught the animals about all the veggies were going to eat and he taught them how to shuck corn.  Here is Zachary teaching them about corn and how it grows in the garden.

Here he is teaching them how to shuck the corn. Thankfully this took over 20 minutes so that I could get all the table set and dinner prepared. Why didn't I think of this sooner!

While Z was doing the demonstration he started belly laughing. I turn around and this is what I see.  Mr. Elephant had fallen off the chair and into the trash. Z thought it was an absolute hoot.  That he was trying to eat the trash.  Thank you God for a child that has such a sense of humor. He really does keep me on my toes and laughing all day long.

This last pic is of our dinner. We "had" to let Zachary's friends eat dinner with us.  Zachary wanted Little Pig to eat the left over corn cobs.  I am so thankful for days when we have nothing planned and it turns out to be so much fun. 

Pops & Aunt "Achel's" Birthday Party

My sister & dad have birthday's that are three days apart, so this year we celebrated their birthdays right in the middle.  Instead of going out to a local pizza place we decided to bring the pizza to our house.  That way we could have our own private party, no one had to cook in this hot summer heat, and the boys could play and be loud.  Okay that last one was the real reason we decided to stay at our house.  So that E & Z could be as loud as they want. HA!

Cupcake's for the boys

Table

The entertainment for the guys....it's a toy helicopter that you have to pick up a cargo box and then drop it off at the landing pad. I don't know what it is about this toy but guys LOVE it. They sat in our living room for at least an hour passing it back and forth to see who could do it the fastest. 

Kevin, Zachary, PaPaw & Pops

Singing Happy Birthday!

My sister's favorite dessert...my mom's famous Strawberry Shortcake. Isn't it pretty!  This is my sisters personal request each year. I made the cupcakes for the boys because Zachary insists that there MUST be some sort of cake with icing at every birthday party. The adults enjoyed this yummy dessert from my mom. It's the BEST!

Singing to Pops while he feeds his newest grandson.

The boys helping Aunt Achel open her presents!

Happy Birthday Rachel & Dad. We love you!

Aunt Stephs pool, Personal Pool Fun Attendant, & Jerrytt's first dip

Last week, we all enjoyed a day at "Aunt Steph's Pool".  That's what Zachary calls it.  Steph & Keran have a private pool in their neighborhood that no one uses.  So it basically is "Aunt" Stephs pool. Anyways it is always a fun time when we go there for the afternoon of swimming.  We had an added bonus because Lucas was home from Med School for a quick break.  Lucas was our personal fun attendant at the pool.  He provided all the water gun fun & kids games.  Zachary and Elliott were in heaven playing water games with Lucas.  They LOVE him. We all enjoyed a fun, "safe" afternoon. I say safe because last year when were in the pool, Elliott jumped in the deep end without his wings and Aunt Steph jumped in to safe him. Scared me to pieces. 

Group Shot minus mom...she's taking the pic. Please note I had my glasses on and then shades on my head.  The joys of getting Lasik in the summer.HA!

Jerrytt's first time in a pool.  He was mellow...like always.

Group shot with mom

My up & coming photographer son insisted on taking Lucas's mug shot. I thought he did pretty good. Lucas is such a good sport! 

Aunt Howie dipping Baby J in the pool.

What a fun, cool afternoon.  Gotta love summer!