Happy Halloween!

'twas the night before Halloween, and all through the house...

A little Halloween preview for Hannah. Holidays this year, so far, have been so much fun with her. She is finally old enough to enjoy them and it is fun to see them through her eyes.

We started our Halloween weekend with Trunk or Treat at Chick-Fil-A. Hannah was a ballet princess. She was supposed to be a cheerleader, but in true Stone fashion...we lost it. So the beloved tutu from Grandma sufficed just fine!

And Charlotte got a makeshift costume, as an excuse for Sarah to go trunk or treating and get some candy!
At dinner, we finally captured the smile on film! Isn't she a cutie?

The only two in our family that can still fit through the door. I can remember when we first started going as a family, all three of them (only three at the time!) would go through the little door!

Back home for pumpkin carving.

Happy Halloween from the Stone girls!

Grease is the word....

At the beginning of the year, Maddy was taking Study Hall for her elective. Her music teacher (because she wanted more chorus students) and I (because I wanted her to study at home, and I fondly remember study hall) convinced her to switch to chorus. I am so glad that she did, and I think she is too. She loves to sing and loves to dance. And while usually, there is little dancing involved in chorus, this time, there was. At the Dessert Theater this week, the middle school chorus performed "We Go Together" from my all time favorite movie, Grease.

Is she not the cutest 50's girl you have ever seen? When I found out she needed a poodle skirt, I called my mom and she told me an easy (HAHAHAHA!) way to make a poodle skirt. Well, given my ability to sew, we opted for the Walmart version. Below, is a picture of Maddy and her friends (two of whom had home made poodle skirts, sigh). These girls have been together since first grade and they cheered together for years. This year, Maddy was the only one to opt for cheering. All of her friends chose volleyball instead. I was glad to see the crew back together!

Mid song. Cute. Cute. Cute.

She just looks like she was having such fun...they all did actually!

Anyone who knows me knows that no matter how tired, sad, mad, grouchy, sleep deprived I am, the movie Grease can always make me happy. And this performance at the end of a very very long day (full of baby shots and physical therapy and crying preschoolers and chatty first graders) put a smile on my face.

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What doesn't put a smile on my face--

*Baby shots. Three shots and one oral med. for Charlotte on Tuesday. Broke my heart to hear her scream, and...to hear Hannah cry. As soon as Charlotte started crying, Hannah clasped her hands over her ears and started sobbing. She really does not like to hear her sister cry. Good thing for her, Charlotte doesn't cry much!

*Sleepy grouchy three year olds. Hannah has gotten way too little sleep this week and thrown some whopper fits. One of which was in the physical therapy office after I had to wake her up and take her in.

*My stupid blood pressure. Up again...with the medication. So it was to the doctor to me today and a higher dose of meds. My own fault, I know. Too much diet coke, not enough water, horrendous eating habits, no exercise, too much baby weight left after baby. Also, I have a sneaky feeling that it might also be because I am old. I just want my body to be normal again--as in five years ago--before "Kids, Part 2". Wouldn't trade them for the world, though!

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Things (or thing) That Brings a HUGE Smile to My Face
Nothing (do you hear me? NOTHING!!) to do!!! No cheer competition. No football game. No parties, practices, meets, or things to do. And I plan to take full advantage of it. Lots of laundry. Lots of cleaning. And the best part, lots of time with my kiddos that doesn't take place in the car!!! God has been so good to me, and blessed me with five beautiful, smart, funny, kind, compassionate children. And all last week, I bemoaned my busy schedule, my lack of time at home, my messy chaotic life. And then today, when I was seeing spots and sitting in the doctor's office thinking I was going to stroke out and leave them motherless(yes, a bit melodramatic, I know...but once again...this is ME we are talking about...), I realized that I have spent way too much time focusing on the negative of my hectic life and not appeciating the blessings that make it so. Here's to a weekend of appreciating...and even embracing the chaos.

Sunday

The best part of today? All of us together. At least for a while. Other highlights?

Sweet baby girls with headbands...

And rhumba tights
A trip to the pumpkin patch, where everyone becomes a little kid again...

and Hannah LOVES the this pumpkin (for about three minutes, after which she would throw it to the ground and go to claim another)

scarecrows and farmers

handsome boys

and silly daddys

All my kiddos willingly posing for pictures

pretty pretty girls

catching that shot before she started to slide

pretty, so pretty, in pink

"I don't want to go home!"

And little boys who grow up to be awesome men. Here's Josh before leaving for his one year anniversary date with Maranda. So handsome!

Cheer, Cheer, and More Cheer

As promised, a very busy Saturday. Still not totally out of my funk, but a good cry in a nasty football field bathroom does wonders to clear your head and heart. But more about that later.

Here is my sweet pumpkin one day after her two month birthday.She looks so like a boy, but I couldn't resist. Plus, I thought it was going to be warmer than it turned out to be, so I thought short sleeves would be the way to go.

Love this picture...all my girls before we left for the day. Love them, love them, love them.

Maddy giving me the classic cheerleader pose at the game.

And in her stunt with Sierra. The girl's legs are just about as tall as Maddy, but Maddy is so strong, she ends up being the base.

This is how Charlotte spent the game...wrapped up in a blanket, because man, was it cold!

And Hannah made a new friend. She seems to just lose all inhibitions lately around other children, and all of the sudden, she has a new "best friend." She scooted next to this little girl at the game and they spent the second half under the bleachers playing. Yes, I know it's nasty under the bleachers, but I do believe it's a southern child's rite of passage to play in the dirt at your sibling's football game.

Looks like fun, huh? Well...what these pictures didn't capture was how incredibly cold it was when the wind was blowing...and the wind was pretty much always blowing. Or how it took me ten minutes to get the stroller open and Charlotte all tucked in and how this baby who really never cries screamed every time I put her in it. Or how Hannah had to go to the bathroom/concession stand/to wash her hands three times. Or how her french fried actually flew away in the wind, causing her to knock over my water and her sprite. Or how, when walking to the bathroom, I twisted my ankle and fell, holding Charlotte, on the concrete. Or how, after said fall, the old lady that had to help me up said 'sweetly', "Honey, you have no business having this baby out in this weather anyways. Let me wrap her up properly."

So, being the emotional misfit that I often am, I held it together until we made it to the bathroom (where Hannah locked herself in the stall and gave me and every other person in the bathroom a play by play) and then cried hysterically, deciding that I had just about hit my breaking point.

I got over it by the time the game was over, but to tell you how very hard it was, how very consuming it was, I spent the whole game thinking we were the visitors, and had won. We were the home team, and we lost. Big time.

Then it was off to the cheerleading competition. Sarah still isn't cheering, but still goes to all of the competitions. Here's my pretty girl all made up and "cheery."

And if you look really closely in this picture, you can see her sitting in her seat in the cheering section, immobilizer and all! They won first place again...so it was a nice end to a very looooonnnng day!

Did your mother....

ever tell you, "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all?"















Heeding her advice.

I never thought I would say it...

but I am tired of not cooking. I want to cook. I want to have my family...all of my family...around our table for dinner. I am tired of fast food. And gee...only 5 more days of it.

Our schedule this week...

Monday: work and school, physical therapy for Sarah, pick up little girls, Spivey for Sarah. Gone from home 6:45 am to 6:00 pm
Tuesday: work and school, help class for me, go pick up little girls, come back and get big girls from cheer practice, cross country meet (that we didn't get to go to because he ended up running before I could get all the girls and get over there) Gone from home 6:45am to 6:00 pm
Wednesday: work, faculty meeting, physical therapy for Sarah, pick up little girls, AWANA's will leave at 6:45 am, will return home 8:30 pm
Thursday: work and school, help class, grade level meeting, pick up little girls, football game for Maddy will leave at 6:45 am and return 8:00 ish pm
Friday: work and school, cheer practice, planning meeting, Charlotte's 2 month appointment/shots, football game hopefully will get home at 5:30.
Saturday: cheer competition for Sarah, football game for Maddy, end of the year celebration for Maddy Gone all day and most of the evening.
Sunday: church, play practice, choir practice, church, packing and preparing for the girls' week at Kay's--this took about an hour and a half last week. It meant putting together approximately 15 outfits for Charlotte and 10 outfits for Hannah to take to Kay's, not easy considering that they each have limited winter wardrobe. Then, it was at least one outfit per day to wear at home (because if they don't come in clothes, she will change them immediately anyways--just one of many eccentricities, but we love her)

Repeat every week. Add in the work at home waiting for me...laundry (which I am trying to keep caught up on...psht), dishes (even though we aren't ever home, we seem to generate a lot of these), packing the diaper bag for the next day, getting the little girls dressed in the morning, trying to find something to fit my frustratingly still fat body in the closet that has two huge storage bins worth of Hannah's old clothes in it, something that will keep my warm, yet look stylish (yeah...I don't know why I care, but I do), yet allow me to survive the oven that my room is most every day.

THEN...add in Daryl working every afternoon/evening, and you have my life. Don't get me wrong. I am so grateful, so thankful, that he has the work. God has provided when we needed it. And Lord knows we need it. But I miss my husband. I miss my best friend. I miss having help with it. I already did this single mother thing...and let me tell you...not fun.

So long story short---I am tired of french fries. Tired of chicken sandwiches. Actually tired of Chick Fil A. I want to cook. Miracles do happen.

It's Fall, Y'all!

Our week in pictures

I keep thinking that one day I'm going to get in the swing of things and actually post every day...ya know...like the title suggests. But very obviously it is not going to be this week.

Our week started with Homecoming services at church. Good food, old friends and new, and a new dress. OK, so not actually new, but new to us. Consignment find--$5.50 and too cute.

But cuter still were these shoes/socks. They are actually socks that look like shoes! They are made by Trumpette and they have so many cute styles. However, at $26.50 a pair,

this will most likely be the only pair she ever has (and yes...they were a gift!)
Here's Hannah being a turtle. She actually thought of this all by herself! Gotta love this "smile"--her new pose for pictures.

And yes, another cheerleader bites the dust. While practicing her back handspring on the wet grass at church (Taking all my self control not to say "I told you so!"), she injured her finger. Said she heard a "pop," but we don't think it is broken, but she is definitely not doing back handsprings any time soon!

Hannah doing her "rate,"--pronounced rah-tee. When I picked the girls up from Kay's tonight, she was excited to show me her moves. She really is quite good and intense about it all.

And a little bit of baby sweetness. She has started smiling occasionally, tho Kay swears she smiles at her all day (putting my fingers in my ears and chanting, "I'm not listening to you!") Tried to get the elusive, but oh so sweet, smile on camera, but this is as good as it got. Not quite a smile, but so darn cute!

And introducing Mr. ELCA himself, my sweet baby boy in ...yes, you got it, PINK. He and Maranda were voted Mr. and Ms. ELCA in the senior superlatives for the yearbook. They have to get their picture taken tomorrow, and so she took him shopping today. He looks so handsome and so very very grown.
Didn't help this momma's heart when he said, "Don't I look like a college student?"

Hopefully I will get some more pictures posted this weekend, tho there is nary a place in my house where the background of the pictures would not show the sheer disorder, chaos, and mess!

OK, so it's not Monday...

But I find myself childless right now (as in there are no children in my lap or needing me to do anything...they are mostly home) and thought I would post to make up for my total and complete lack of motivation to do so during the week!

So here is just a bit of what I did today. I have already filled up the table once and then put it away. AND this is just towels, mine and Daryl's, the little girl's, and what was on the bathroom floors. Tomorrow I will utter the words that strike terror and dread in my heart--"Bring down your dirty clothes."

Why do my little girls need so many clothes? you may ask. Good question! Their beloved Kay Kay, their eccentric but wonderful babysitter, gives them a bath and changes their clothes every time they poop. For Hannah, no big deal. Two outfits due to that and then another two or so due to potty training jealousy related regression and being a sweatball due to the fact that it is October and STILL 90 here. For Charlotte, who poops every time she eats...and eats every 2-3 hours...OK, do you get it? Add to that the sleeper that she wears to bed and the one I have to change her into before she goes to Kay Kay's because she dribbles when she drinks and then she smells bad. And while I may have good intentions of washing every night, the truth is that I will stick it all in the washing machine and then forget about it until days later when it stinks. It's so much easier to just wash it all, pack it all for the sitter and repeat every weekend.

Anyways...a lot of verbage about my least favorite subject in the world. On to more pleasant things....like my sweet big girl, Hannah, who started Cubbies this week. Cubbies is the program our church has for the preschool children on Wednesday nights. She will learn Bible truths, hear stories, do crafts, eat snacks. Oh! And have a cute little red vest and cubby bag. This week she learned "God is love." And ate chips (because she didn't like the cookies, and so they dug up something else for her)

Here she is with her friend, Wilberta, all ready for opening ceremonies! Look how happy!!!

And here she is once it started--notice that other kids are here now...which "scared" her. It was Janice to the rescue...the lady that has watched her in the nursery every Wednesday and Sunday night for 2 years...and is moving up to Cubbies with her! Momma bear in me wanted to just scoop her up in my arms and tell her she didn't really have to go, that she and Janice could go play in the nursery just like they always did, but I didn't.
And here she is saying the pledges, sitting on Janice's lap.

And here is Charlotte, at her first Wednesday night AWANA's. I also wanted to scoop her up in my arms and hold her all evening, but realized I probably couldn't be a real effective leader that way, and besides, Ms. Angie had come especially to watch her. Big news this week was that she smiled!!! Like for real...at me..on purpose, not because she was about to toot! And she did it Sunday night, for me, before she had a chance to do it for Kay Kay. I haven't managed to catch it on film yet, but trust me...it will melt your heart!!

And here is my sweet Sarah, in the wheel chair she uses at school. Trekking(sp?) across the school 5 times a day was not easy, so she uses it just at school. She actually has been able to take baby steps without the crutches this weekend, so hopefully, she will be walking with the immobilizer on soon!

Besides the feeling of accomplishment of doing 8 loads of laundry today and the smiley Charlotte, the highlight of my week happened today. Sarah went with the cheer squad to their competition and then I went to pick her up when it was over. She called me when they had finished competing (she says I told her to do so, I think not) and told me to head that way. So I did, and had to sit in the parking lot for about an hour and READ. It felt so good just to relax, forget everything, and lose myself in a book. I must try to do that more often!

Off to bed now. I am tired, have a cold, and it is my night to get up with Charlotte.

Night all.