Proud Sister Moment

That's exactly what I had when we headed south Saturday to watch Anna Grace in her school's beauty pageant.  I'll be honest.  I wasn't quite prepared for what a nervous wreck I'd be.  I've been on that same stage (granted it was fifteen years ago) and I'm sure of one thing...it's much harder sitting in the audience!
I love the whole process of getting ready for something like this.  It's safe to say my children do, too.  They were in awe watching her get her make up and hair done which quickly prompted Towns to tell me she wanted to be in a beauty pageant.  All that I could think about was the many episodes we've watched of Toddlers and Tiaras!

When Sister took the stage to my favorite Rihanna song, it took all I could do not to scream and yell and make a fool of myself...

I was so proud of her!  Towns and Cate could hardly contain themselves.  It was pretty funny..

When it came time for the results, we were absolutely elated that she was in the top seven.  But then when they called her name out as a belle, we nearly lost it...

She got a crown and all!

The four belles from her grade...

 

Then came the flood of family pictures.

You know, because we all were dying for our turn at a picture with her.  Max got to her first...

 

 

She definitely does not get her good looks from her sister...

This is where it gets good.  I went backstage with her to help her gather her things when we ran into cute little Christian whose mother asked me to take a picture of the two of them...

 

He stood in the middle of the stage right by himself to entertain the audience, only armed with his guitar, and sang three songs that sounded better than the musicians who really sing them.  The kid can sing.  My children thought they were in the presence of none other than Justin Bieber. He was pretty impressive.  And when he put his arm around AG, it was clear that she's beyond smitten!

Somehow in all the madness the girls didn't get a picture with Anna Grace.  So we took care of that when we got home...

 

And for the rest of the night Cate wore a headband as a crown...

 

 That was her attempt to be just like her Aunt Anna Grace.

Congrats, Sister...we were so happy to be there for your big night!

After such a full weekend, blondie landed herself a mini staycation at home thanks to bronchitis and pneumonia (Cate calls it "the ammonia").  That's bad enough on its own, but couple that with the fact that the class play she's been looking forward to for a solid month was this morning and she was fit to be tied.  She's been fretting over the possibility of missing it which has all but sent her over the edge.  Her doctor said that she could go to school long enough to do her part in the play as long as she had been fever free for 24 hours.  You can look at this picture and tell that she was hardly acting like she was sick yesterday morning when she and her sister (in fake glasses) were in the kitchen making up dances...

 

She'd play for a little while and then be wiped out on the couch.  She's definitely had her moments, bless her heart.  But this morning she was raring to go and fever free.  Praise the Lord!

Post on Bubba the Cowboy Prince up next...

Ban on Ruffles

My children have formed an alliance, and I've been outnumbered.  They're a united front.  I knew the day would come. For several weeks Cate has moaned and groaned, "ruffles again?" every time she sees what I have laid out for her to wear in the mornings.  She's gone along with it, but definitely hasn't been too thrilled.  I tell her she'll never be too old for ruffles as several things I've worn lately have been ruffly (if that's even a word).  Sunday afternoon we were on our way home from our friend Mallary's birthday party when Towns announced that she'd made an important decision.  I was thinking she was going to say she knew what she wanted to be when she grew up or something profound like that.  Instead she proceeded with, "I've decided that when I'm a mom I will never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever make my kid wear ruffles."  We'll just see about that.  I'll remind her of that very conversation one day when her children are giving her down the road about the way she makes them dress.  

Give in on ruffles and bows and ribbons, and that's when you'll roll through the carpool line to pick up your daughter only to find her looking like this...

 

I asked her if her hair had been like that all day, and she said yes.  The beauty of it is that she couldn't care less!  I love that little blondie like crazy.  Messy hair and all.

In stark contrast, we can't leave the house without our baby dolls wearing bows bigger than their heads...

And they think their children will live a bow and ruffle free existence.

I hate to say I told you so, but...

Ben Davis Got Talent

My, oh my, how Townsy has waited for February 16th to roll around.  Since the very beginning of school she's known about Ben Davis Got Talent which has been in the forefront of her mind constantly.  A talent show?  At school?!  It just doesn't get better than that, people.  She has schemed and planned and planned and schemed for months.  It was finally decided that she would do a dance with Mary Bibb and Emma.  Much to their dismay, we didn't have time to pull together a dance of the hip hop variety and had to settle for a modified version of a dance I'd used in a recital before.  So "Kickin' It Country" was then the name of the game.  Emma happened to have a dance class she couldn't miss during the talent show, but she got there just in time.  These two monkeys were ready get the show on the road and were the first ones there...

 

They were just that excited.  We had to be there 45 minutes early!

They practiced their little hearts out and were pretty serious about this thing. 

They had the ultimate fan club, that's for sure...

Before it was their turn on the stage, Towns played "Mary Had a Little Lamb" on the piano...

 

I was a bit nervous for her as she's never taken piano lessons.  All she knows is what her mama has taught her...and teaching piano is definitely not my forte!  I had to put a smiley face sticker on the key she was supposed to begin on as a little reminder.  That was for her peace of mind, and mine too!

I love a lot of things about Ben Davis, but one thing I really love is how the kids are so encouraging to each other.  Let me be clear here...it takes A LOT of nerve for a 1st or 2nd grader to get on stage in front of a huge audience and sing a solo, do a dance, or what have you.  I was blown away at the confidence those kids had.  I would have never done this at their age!  Sitting in the floor in front of the stage were students who clapped, sang along, and waved their arms in the air to make the performers feel at ease.  It was just plain sweet...

And don't even think that all the teachers weren't dancing along to Katy Perry and Taio Cruz.  Priceless!

When it came time for the girls to do their dance I was a nervous wreck.  Why? I don't know.  Guess it's a mom thing!

They nailed it and even if they hadn't, it would have been perfect anyway.  It was all for fun! The video is horrible quality, and you can barely tell who is who.  Towns is on the left, Mary Bibb is in the middle, and Emma is on the right...

They were the cutest cowgirls I ever did see...

Plans are already in the works for BDGT 2013.  Heaven help us...

A Happy Heart Day

Well, Valentine's Day has come and gone and we've consumed enough sugar to last a lifetime.  Going into it I always say I'm not going to let it happen, but inevitably it always does!  At 9:00 Tuesday night, J and I were ready to put an infinite ban on sugar in our house because these two just wouldn't give it up...

I suppose that's just the way it goes on Valentine's Day!  Bethany got her basket full of goodies before school along with Towns and Cate, but she refused to get in the picture.  Should have known better than to ask that early in the morning. Ha!
Overboard is usually my middle name, but I promised myself I would keep it simple this year...

And simple it was!  They'd had their eye on those sweet pink dogs at the Hallmark store since the first of January.  I told them that might be the perfect Valentine's treat.  When Cate saw hers she told me she was so happy I "kept my promise".  If that's all it takes to make her happy we'll have it made!

It was party central in Mrs. Propst's class that day.  As in a party at 10 and a party at 1.  They were partied out before it was all over with...so was I! They had a blast and were pretty cute while they were at it...

Cate doesn't stray too far from Towns.  She's usually right in the middle of whatever is going on...

They ate (and ate some more) and then had a Hershey Kiss relay race...

The object of the game is to put on a pair of mittens, unwrap and eat a Hershey Kiss, take the mittens off and then pass it to the next person in line before the other team is finished.  It was absolutely hilarious!

I couldn't let the day get away from me without this one...

We ducked out of school a little early only to come home to find some really fun treats Stephanie left for the three girls...

Thank you Mrs. Stephanie!!  You're SO sweet!

This has week has been a busy one at our house.  Between Valentine's Day, a school talent show, a field trip and three birthday parties, well, let's just say this mama will be ready to crash!

I'll be honest, caffeine is my best friend these days...

Lesson Learned!

Yesterday provided a very teachable moment.  Especially for two little girls who love, I repeat love, baking sweet treats and all that comes with it.  The kitchen happens to be where we spend most of our time.  And it's all the more fun when what we're doing in the kitchen is baking something sweet.  It's always a meticulous process that Towns and Cate enjoy from start to finish.  Particularly the "finish" part, even though taking turns adding ingredients with such care is still high on the list.  We southerners are guilty of "licking the bowl" after it's all said and done.  It's part of our genetic make up or something.  One of my favorite things to do growing up was to eat the batter from the beaters after my mother or grandmother made a cream cheese pound cake.  Give my girls a beater, a spatula, a spoon or the bowl itself after the necessary batter has been used and they couldn't be happier.  I've taught them well, trust me.  So yesterday as we were making something along these lines for Cate's Valentine's party...

I turned my back for two seconds to grab a couple of eggs and noticed some of the cake mix had made its way to the counter from the bowl.  Hmmm.  Here's how the conversation went:

Me: Did y'all just eat some of the cake mix?

Towns: Noooo. We didn't do that.

Cate: Nope.

Towns: Actually, Cate did.

Me: So Cate did, but you didn't?

(Mind you they both have chocolate all over their mouths.)

Towns: No ma'am.

Me: So both of you feel good about telling me that you didn't eat any of the chocolate?  Because I'm thinking that's not the truth.  Why do I see your little faces covered in it?

Both of them: Wellllll....

Here's where the teachable moment comes in.  For a solid ten minutes they had to sit on their stools at the counter and watch me finish adding all the ingredients (this killed them), mix it with the hand mixer (borderline agony), drop the cookies onto the baking sheet (they're almost inconsolable), and then watch me eat the rest of the batter while making sure they knew just how good it was (pure torture).  And that, my friends, was the hardest thing I've had to do in a while, but it had to be done.  They've never been sorrier in their entire lives.  They told me over and over and over again.

I hope they'll think twice before trying to pull one over on ol' Mom again.  Highly unlikely, but...

J was out of town most of the weekend.  That, coupled with the fact that it barely reached 35 degrees means we spent lots of time at home watching movies, making friendship bracelets, playing babies, and crafting like crazy.  We stayed indoors as much as humanly possible.  I don't do cold weather.  I'm sure you're just as ready for Spring as I am after hearing me talk about it so much.

Towns had to take a decorated box to take school this morning in preparation for her Valentine's celebration tomorrow.  There's only one place to go to gather supplies for that.  Hobby Lobby, of course...

If it sparkled, glittered, had zebra stripes, polka dots, or was even remotely red or pink we had to have it.  Towns was in heaven.  I'm pretty sure it would be a toss up between Hobby Lobby or Disney World if the choice presented itself.

She worked so hard making sure everything was just so...

It's as gaudy and tacky in real life as it is in this picture in case you were wondering...and little blondie couldn't love it more.  Me either.  When we took it into school this morning Mrs. Propst and I sort of gave each other a look and she said, "well it's exactly what it's supposed to be."  It screams Valentine's, that's for sure!

We're gearing up for a fun day tomorrow...

A day centered around pink, red, candy and love is right up our alley!

No News

We must lead extremely boring lives.  There's really nothing new and exciting to blog about.  Other than the fact that Cate's dream came true the other day.  She got a lap full of sweetness to love on when the Pylant girls were over...

 

Annie is the sweetest, most precious thing and Buggy truly thinks she's babysitting her whenever she's around.  She's totally and completely smitten...

 

The baby talk was beginning to die down a little.  Until the last week or so when Cate and Annie have lots of snuggle time.  Now it's back to wanting to know why God hasn't given us a baby!

Even Towns is into the idea...

 

She and her little sister had their babies in carriers and were ready to roll before school this morning.  And I'm not going to pretend I didn't let them buckle them in the car and all.  Some things are worth fighting and some things aren't.  This was one of those that wasn't!

Did you know that today marks exactly one month and ten days until the first day of Spring?  It's true.

We're excited about that...

 

 Winter is for the birds!

All That Glitters

Is gold...isn't that how it goes?  Either way, Bethany was totally rocking it Saturday night at the JUG winter formal!  She'd had her eye on a sparkly gold number for months.  I know this because she sent her mom and me an email with a link to the dress and casually mentioned how cute it would be for formal.  Hint, hint.  Little did she know, Grandmommy and Pop had it wrapped up underneath their Christmas tree for her.  Talk about a fun surprise!  She's one to look at a piece of clothing and instantly plan an outfit from head to toe.  That's what she did with these really cool heels and necklace that tied it all together...

  

 And an up close because I think she's pretty...

 

Saturday was a soaker, so sadly there were no pictures taken outside.  We had to settle for the corner of the dining room once her date William arrived...

 

Beautiful!!

They had dinner at her friend Madison's house, and then we all convened for lead out.  All that preparation and it's over just like that...
But it was totally worth it!  She told me the next morning that the band party was a snooze fest because it was nothing but Michael Jackson cover songs.  I couldn't tell her that my friends and I would have been all over that.  And thus, you can tell my age.  There was some talk a few weeks ago of her wanting to be social chair.  Now she's moved on because she doesn't want the responsibility, but I couldn't end that conversation without telling her I once lived with the best social chair on the face of the earth.  Fun times, right roommate?

While we were doing it up right for formal, all my sweet friends were showering Tara and Baby Carter with lots of love and girly gifts in Atlanta.  I know it was fabulous, but I sure did miss seeing everyone!

It's always fun to have a packed weekend, but now it's back to the daily grind and all that comes with it.  Like spelling words.  Spelling words might be the death of me yet.  Sometimes Towns is all about schoolwork and sometimes she's not.  Friday afternoon she wasn't, so I had to spice it up a little...

She says I'd win the award for craziest mom. I won't disagree.  Can't remember who said this, but I like it...

"Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius, and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring."

Amen!

Here's to an absolutely ridiculous Monday...

Hot to Trot

The other day Bethany strolled in from school looking like she'd been to game day on the Plains.  Hence the title of this one.  My heart sort of skipped a beat.  She'd left in such a hurry that morning that I didn't see her dressed and ready to go.  She was so stinking cute.  Naturally, I had to break out the camera...

 

 I couldn't get over her cuteness.  However, she could totally get over me and my camera.  Really quick!  That's her "what in the world are you doing" face.  Love her!

That same day blondie soared through a check up at the dentist and afterwards decided she wanted to try to build her own basketball goal.  Don't ask...no idea where that came from.  The good news?  No cavity bugs...ever!  So proud of her.  Especially since brownies, cookies, candy, etc. are her favorite foods.  You name it, she loves it.  And I love her...

I must be in a lovey dovey mood today?!  I think it's the sunshine.  We haven't seen it in a while!

Cate and I hung around Towns' class this morning to see if we could catch a certain bookworm's report on sea horses.  She worked diligently trying to prepare for it last night.  Right down to the numbered note cards, I might add.  I did my part and made her a shirt to go along with her theme...

Look at those sleepy eyes!  When I tried to wake her up this morning she wasn't really going for it.  But when I reminded her that it was book report day those eyes popped open and she was out of the bed in a flash.

J says she's such a nerd.  We're not complaining, though!

She makes me laugh...

I printed out a picture from when we went to the Georgia Aquarium back in September for her to use as a visual.  She read through her facts about sea horses and took questions from the class...

Have I mentioned how much we adore Mrs. Propst?  Let me say it a few more times.

Adore, adore, adore her!

This is the new background on my phone from our girls-only date to Zen Beri...

 

Blurry, yes.  Could they get any sweeter?  Nope!