The Girls

I just wanted to show you my two favorite girls playing tea set together. The tea set? Circa 1983... It belonged to Ivy and me when we were little girls. :-)

Rush's Big Day!

We are starting to feel like the kiddos need some individual time to be with each of us. Rush got to have his day by himself with me last weekend. Rush is my child that is OK with being by himself and often wants to play on his own, but I always want him to feel special even though he doesn't demand as much attention as someone else I know. :-) So, we told SF a little white lie. She thought we were going to the grocery store. We did go to a store, but that was to buy Rush a new toy. She got a little something new, too. But she has no idea that Rush and I also enjoyed breakfast at Chick-fil-a and then a trip to the park. Rush had THE BEST TIME!! I couldn't have planned it better if I had tried. When we got to Chick-fil-a for breakfast, we were pretty much the only people in the place. The employees showered Rush with attention telling him how handsome he is and how much they loved his blue eyes. He just grinned and looked at everyone. Then, he got to choose any color balloon that he wanted. I have to be honest, sometimes we forgo balloons and things like that because it is just too much to have TWO of them flying around in the back seat on the way home. Then, someone's balloon pops... there is crying...attempts to get the other's balloon.. you get the picture. So, since Rush is a twin, he probably has not reached his balloon-getting quota for kids. Balloons are pretty exciting. :-) We tied his giant green balloon on the chair as we had breakfast and talked about all of the photographs they had decorating the walls. After that, we went to Target to purchase a new set of cars. Nine new ones in all! They were on sale and were in a Cars (the movie) package that Rush just couldn't resist. He kept telling me it was his "spesha {special} day". We ended our morning at the park. Rush climbed and played. We even went down the "big twisty" slide together. I wasn't even sure he remembered it all or that it made an impression on him, but Sue Sue, our day care provider, told me that he gave her all the details one day when he was the first one awake after nap. I was so happy to know that it was something he remembered! Here are some pictures of our day:



P.S. A sweet little girl is standing beside me watching me post this saying:
"Dat's Rush. Where's me? Where I'm is? Mama, where's me? Why I not in dat picture? Where I'm is?" See what I mean?

Loving the weekend

We had a fun Saturday! We went to our local city festival this morning.The weather was absolutely beautiful today. I found tons of super cute things for Syd. She got new bows, clips, and a new dress. Poor Rush left with nothing new, but he would have looked funny with a new flower hair clip or hot pink bow. And the pillow case dress? Not his style... They didn't know I was buying things anyway, they were just along for the ride, so I don't think he will be jealous of her new bows. :-) As Rush would say, "Dat's for guhls {girls}, Mama." We also did another of my favorite things at the festival... EAT. I couldn't resist the polish sausages with onions and peppers. Or the funnel cake. Or the sweet tea. So, I had them all. And so did the kids.. along with some homemade chocolate chip cookies and all of Papa's strawberry ice cream to finish out the morning. Yep, I said morning. All of that was before 11 am. It was fun and delicious. Plus, there was a country band that caused us all to dance and clap a little bit. Fun stuff! Then, we we came home for a nap and some afternoon sprinkler time. No one told me it was still entirely too cold to have my children outside in the sprinkler. Last year, they were scared of the sprinkler, but they LOVED it today. Unfortunately, after about 15 minutes, poor Rush was literally shaking from head to toe. His skin felt cold when we touched it. I think it might have been the slight breeze that was blowing that made him get cold quickly. {In my defense, he gets cold very easily anyway. SF wasn't shaking.} So, we dried off and headed inside for a warm bath and some juice. Over all, it was a good day.







I hope most of you have realized that there is more to our life than what I post on this blog. But, when I started the blog, I decided that the focus would be on my children. It is a way to document the events in their lives. So, I usually steer clear of current events or news, etc. {I am very opinionated and might lose some readers if I really started to tell you what I think about things. :-)} I am going to make an exception this time, though. Last week, the state of Alabama was ravaged by several deadly tornadoes. I couldn't help but think about those that lost their lives and the areas {very near our home} that were demolished by those horrible storms as I sat with my family in a park today. The beautiful, sunny day we spent at a festival was in sharp contrast to what others were doing with their Saturday. The clean up efforts are massive. The families are picking up the pieces of their lives, and some of them are doing that after losing a family member or a friend. I am thankful today that my family and friends scattered across our state are safe. I pray for those that lost everything. People from across the state (and beyond) are traveling short and long distances to help. People are sending supplies and man-power. Trucks are being loaded with donations that are traveling to help. It makes me proud to be from Alabama. Sweet home...

Easter 2011

We had a very busy weekend!! We were on the go! Starting Saturday morning, we went to our neighborhood egg hunt. The kids had lots of fun there. Our HOA does a great job of organzing that for us every year. There was a visit from the Easter Bunny. Rush was a huge fan as you will see below. SF? That is a big, fat NO! She was more than happy to wave "bye-bye" to the oversized, furry guy. {I don't really blame her...} After we left, she told us, "He is a nice bunny. Maybe next year." I think she is trying to convince herself more than anyone that she might one day be willing to accept Santa and the Easter Bunny into her life. On Sunday, we were greeted by backets full of goodies that the Easter Bunny left behind. Syd was more than happy to accept her surprises and treats in E. Bunny's absence. Then we headed over to Gigi and Papa's house for some egg hunting and a delicious lunch. After that, we were back home to see Gram and Granddaddy and Uncle Chris. It was a full day of fun!! (There was a fun birthday party tucked in there on Saturday, but I will save it for another post.)

Happy Birthday, Papa!!

See these little feet? They were made by Rush and Sydney's Papa many years ago. I took this picture at my grandmother's house a few months back. Today, is the birthday of the man that made these footprints all those years ago. :-)

WE LOVE YOU, Papa and Daddy!!!!

Sibling Love

I heard the twins counting out loud together with their "Numbers" book yesterday, so I tried to catch the cuteness on video. Well... you can see how that went below. :-)


P.S. We had our first experience using a public potty last week. If you were ever a Seinfeld fan, my experience could have easily been incorporated into an episode. The twins also went to their first non-family birthday party, so I have a post coming, but I just need to find the time!

When Mama's Away...

the Daddy will break open the "saved" toys.

I went shopping today to buy the twins their "Spring/Summer Wardrobe". While I was gone this afternoon, Phil popped open some of the new toys that that we had put away for the kids to enjoy. Between Christmas and their birthday, they get so many toys that it is fun to put some away to "open" on a day when they need a little extra entertainment. Sydney Frances recieved her brand new Snow White dress-up set...complete with a tiara and some wobbly high heels. We had been talking about getting this out for her for a little while because we didn't want her to outgrow the costume. When Rush saw that she was getting to open something new, the "she got this for Christmas, so it isn't really a new present" excuse DID NOT work, so he also got to open his Percy train and tracks which we had been saving for him. He spent the rest of the evening by the track playing with new train, so it was a good move on Phil's part. He loved the train. Loved it. There are plans for a giant track with several engines and cars attached. Rush has the Thomas and Percy engines that were given as gifts, and our neighbor gave us all of their boys' trains and tracks, as well. The trains are battery powered, so he can hook them together, attach some cargo and send them on their way. He can also throw down the track brake and derail them all in a blink. Super fun!