Spring Break 2014

Well as it goes every year, Sam always ends up having meetings the same week as spring break, hence the reason we had a travel-around-the-world dining stay-cation last year! So this year was no different but we decided to go to him..well almost! He was in Knoxville and we stayed in Chattanooga for a couple of nights. He was able to play with us for most of the time. 

We had a blast going to the Tennessee Aquarium, Ruby Falls, Chattanooga Choo Choo, Rock City. It was a great quick trip for the family with plenty for everyone to enjoy! Sam took Anna and Kirby to the Creative Discovery Center while I drove a sickly Mary Mac home...gotta love a sick child in a hotel...bright side was that we had 2 vehicles and could finish the fun with the other kiddos after drawing straws over who was going home with "THE SICK ONE!"

Oh but wasn't the week away from homework and activities such a wonderful thing? {as I'm sitting here like a drill sargent trying to get everyone to finish it before after school activities}

Oh and I almost forgot that THE SICK ONE was well and able enough to show in her first official show of the year... 2 2nd place, 2 3rd place, 4th place, and 7th place. I cannot tell you how miserably rainy, muddy, windy, cold it was but she muttled through it! I think she got her nerves out of the way and she's ready for the next one! 

All in all it was a great week as a family...SICK ONE and all! Love my crazy life and my crazy kids!

Happy Birthday Anna!

I seriously cannot believe that this wacky, spunky, funny, silly, girly, giant-hearted little girl is 7 today! Where has the time gone? She might drive me crazy (only because she's just like me), but at the end of the day I can always count on her sweet hugs at bedtime. Even if I'm exhausted from the crazy day of working, volunteering at the school, running them around to activities, cooking dinner, cleaning the kitchen, getting everyone ready for bed, she never let's me get away without the biggest hug ever! And most of the time I have to tickle her to let go...I pray that she'll always love me this much because I know I surely will always love her that much! 

Now if we can just get that wacky looking tooth to fall out...does the tooth fairy deliver on a birthday? That seems like double dipping in my opinion! 

Happiest of Birthdays to my sweetest Anna Boo! Love, mommy

Another Right of Passage

OH MY GOODNESS!!! All I can say is that I'm not ready for another child to reach this milestone! There's just something super sentimental to me about my babies losing their top front teeth. The first teeth (lower) has not bothered me but I guess it's just the beginning of their sweet baby faces turning into the faces that I'll forever see (after many years of orthodontist bills I'm afraid) in my dreams. And the awkwardness that I know is on the horizon...I mean, that's a given for everyone! Hopefully this time around we won't lose 1 tooth per week for a whole month like Mary Mac did - the tooth fairy was scrounging for money by that last one I'm sure!

I was totally caught off guard on this one too. Obviously I knew it was loose, but after being gone for work for 8 days, it had not even crossed my mind!!!!

Yesterday was the famed Book Character Parade in honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday - serious business at our school - so much so that we've been planning our character for over a month. So after school, Anna (who's our overly dramatic one) casually informs me that her tooth (gums) is bleeding...clue #1! So I tell her to just work on wiggling it...knowing from her past tooth pulling history would NOT happen (very traumatic and ended in our family dentist pulling it). This momma thinks nothing of it, that is, until this morning after brushing her teeth she tells me it's "REALLY bleeding"! Low and behold, it was and she actually let me wiggle it (which she never does) and WOW it just dropped right out of her mouth! And thus begins the right of passage and the beginning of the awkward phase...

So the few pictures I took at the book character parade are the last that we'll have of our baby girl with her top baby teeth...sniff sniff! 

I guess I'll have to forever hold on to these pictures (even though you can't really see her teeth). And she did make a precious little mouse if I must say!

Winter Wonderland...NOT!

So since my last post, I think I can honestly say that my kids have had more weather (snow) days than I EVER had growing up! As much as I love a good snow day, I'm over it now! Thank The Lord we don't live any further north! 

In the meantime, Sam and I were able to take a sort-of last minute trip ALONE to Gatlinburg up in a mountain cabin. After all of his traveling, Christmas holidays, snow days with everyone at home...this mommy demanded a kid-free weekend and the hubs pulled through and booked us a long weekend cabin...aaahhh! Now, yes, we left town with still plenty of snow on the ground and headed to more snow but it was exactly what we needed! Just a few days to reconnect, relax, go to nice dinners, shop, etc. AND, because they had more snowfall than in years, we took advantage and took a ski lesson and spent the day "skiing". I'm not sure either one of us could say that we "ski'd" but it was a little like riding a bike for me (last time I ski'd I was Mary Mac's age-9) and I picked it up again fairly quickly. As for Sam, bow-legs and all, it was tiny bit more challenging and that's all I'll say about that! I still can't get over the fact that his family grew up vacationing in Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area but never went skiing! What??? It was fun either way! 

I finally felt comfortable enough to leave him still working on it and went up to the real slopes! It was such a fun day doing something new together...and we have the bruised shins to prove it! 

All in all, it was the best weekend Sam and I have had in a very long time and it was completely worth it! Nothing fancy and just us! We all need that time to reconnect and unwind as a couple. I know I came home refreshed and ready to tackle the kids and work...

Or at least I THOUGHT I was ready. So back to reality, more snow days, sick kids (we've all been fighting a nasty cold), and more work piling up than I can handle. Just for the sake of saying this...I am SO glad I don't work from home...I get very little done at home, but that could have more to do with having 3 stir-crazy kids running around - call me crazy! 

So this week is also Valentine's Day! While Sam and I usually do not celebrate this occasion (I hate fixed price menus - never as good and the ridiculous crowds), I do like for him to give our girls a little special treatment. I mean, what girl doesn't like a little pampering? So tonight he is taking Anna on a dinner date to her favorite restaurant (and ours too). 

And tomorrow night, he and Mary Mac have dinner plans with some other friends of hers and their daddy's and then a Sweetheart Father/Daughter dance at school. She is beyond excited and I cannot wait to see the pictures and hear the stories. Sam has already been telling her that he was getting "warmed up" to dance so she better be ready! Oh Lord, I can only imagine! I'll be sure to post pictures for sure! I've ordered them a boutineer and corsage! I absolutely LOVE that Sam finds it as important as I do to have these "dates" with the girls. You know "they" say that your girls will marry someone just like their Daddy, and they would be OH SO LUCKY to marry someone just as special as their Daddy! I know I certainly did! 

Finding Their Passion

Never say never...isn't that the old adage? Well it's popped up again in our mission to try and find Anna's passion. Mary Mac's passion has always been known...horses, not a cheap passion, but plain and simple.

 In a struggle to not let Anna fall through the cracks of being a middle child, I've made it our mission to try and find her passion...whatever that may be and wherever it takes us. 

And that brings us back to Never Say Never. Today I find myself sitting watching her at her first cheer practice. Oh the many, many hours I spent on a cheer floor endlessly counting 8 counts, breaking ribs, constant soreness, but a love for cheering that no one could break. Now cheering has morphed into a completely almost unrecognizable sport but it's basically the same thing I did, only at a much younger age and much more competitive than I ever imagined. 

As I write this I am watching her smiling ear-to-ear and already loving every minute and soaking it all in. I get the feeling that we just may have found her passion...or at least this a passion I have never seen from her. It makes my heart swell to see this side of her. And maybe just a tiny bit excited that she and I may have this special connection that none of the other 2 kids have. 

So why not let her find her passion especially when it might possibly be the same passion I had? I loved this world of cheer and made some great friends had it paid for my college education...Never Say Never, right? I'm slowly learning that the things we don't want our kids doing are usually the ones they have a passion for. I think it's just a little bit of His humor in life...5,6,7,8 Yea!

First Horse Show In The Books

After a busy week back to school, Alabama gymnastics meet Friday night, birthday parties and basketball game Saturday, Mary Mac was super pumped about her first horse show in several years and on HER pony! It's just a local barn schooling show...good practice for sure!

Thankfully it ended up being a gorgeous day to spend at the barn. Mary Mac did EXCELLENT! She was a tad bit nervous but overcame the nerves and received a Champion ribbon overall in the walk trot division. Her trainer wanted to push her a little too and convinced her to enter the cross pole class. Her first past was great and she placed 2nd but on her 2nd pass she fell off! She was fine but I think my heart stopped for sure! She got back on her and finished her course. 

Ah the quiet house

After canceling the first day of school after Christmas and delaying starting Wednesday, all the kiddos are finally back in school. Don't get me wrong...I love these 3 stinkers more than life, but this has felt like the longest Christmas break EVER! If only they felt this long when I was a kid hmm. Between the girls fighting most of the break and trying to potty train Kirby...this momma was ready for school routine again! Now maybe I can get back to my regular routine of crossfit, tennis, and working. IT'S BEEN 3 MONTHS!

So now that the holidays are over, who else is ready for spring and warm weather? ME! 

FBF (that's what I'm calling Facebook free time) 1 WEEK IN THE BOOKS!!! So I asked my BFF if I had missed anything on Facebook since last week and her only comment (totally in jest) was that someone had learned to do a back bend...exactly my point in giving it up. Is this really what I was wasting hours each day reading about? The best part of this is that I've changed from wasting time on Facebook to using that time to be God's Word and reading more scripture, as well as "hearing" my kids instead of just nodding my head saying "Yea, uh-huh!" because I was too busy reading my News Feed. So no offense to any Friends of mine on Facebook, but I'm super happy with my change and super proud of myself! 

Speaking of saddles...

Other than the usual things that all kids do over several years, you know, grow...the biggest addition in the past several weeks has been the addition of a family member of the 4 legged kind. Yes, we are now proud owners of a pony. Yes, I said a pony! A real live pony named Rosie, or Ring Around The Rosie as she's known in the show circles.  I guess you could say that this was something we've been trying to put off for years and we finally took the plunge.  The best part was being able to surprise 
the kids on Christmas morning.  I mean what little girl DIDN'T dream of getting a pony as a kid? I know I did and I didn't even really like large animals! 

On another note, we are currently in the potty training process with Kirby...ugh! Isn't that all that needs to be said about that? I think so.  I actually had no intentions of even starting the process until the spring when we can just go naked...yes, I said that too! But Kirby had higher aspirations and decided to start training himself so we figured we better jump on the boat or else we would regret it later. And who can't blame us for looking forward to a diaper free house and a little raise? "They" say that boys are harder to train than girls but so far Kirby is proving us wrong, or else he was just ready before mommy and daddy! Didn't I say that nothing needed to be said about potty training...oops! 

FACEBOOK FREE DAY 3 IN THE BOOKS! I can honestly say that not being on Facebook has been a little bit of a relief. I'm not going to lie and say that it's been super easy because it was obviously an addiction of sorts, but I really haven't missed anything...or at least I don't think I've missed anything! 

Enough for tonight. It's time for bed and to get bundled up for this cold front coming through tonight and over the next couple of days.  I am soooo ready for school to start back but with the bad weather coming through it looks like we will have a delayed start, if not longer, on Tuesday.  And here's just a couple of fun pictures from our trip to the beach in the fall.

Back In The Saddle...

Happy 2014!!!! I cannot believe it is 2014!!!! And my last post was in July 2011...where in the world has all of this time gone? All of a sudden we have a 9 year old, a 6 year old, and an almost 3 year old!!!

Well I feel like I'm a blogger beginner all over again, but I am determined to get back to blogging.

Sadly and/or honestly, I'm not sure which, I admit that the social networking world has totally taken me over and in an attempt to pull back from it, I have landed back in the blogging world. I've been wanting to scale back my time on Facebook, but the honest truth is that Facebook had become my "scrapbook" for the kids...the only reason I could see of staying "in" it. No more.

New Years Resolution 2014...no more Facebook (except to post blog updates - that's my only connection I will allow right now) and MORE blogging! The whole reason I started blogging to begin with was to create a virtual scrapbook for my family! So I'm back...

While I will attempt to catch us up to where I left off (if that's possible after 2 years), my main focus is to spend more time "hearing and seeing" my kids instead of  reading news feeds of people that I otherwise wouldn't hear from. I would also love to start adding some of my favorite recipes so who knows where we go from here...

Changes...

Before I start updating the blog, I want to take a minute to say I am such a slacker! Well, not really, but in the blogging world I am! I have not even updated my pictures or headers or anything since the arrival of Kirby! Actually, the pictures on our header are sooo old too! I am not apologizing anymore for lack of posts, but just excusing it with the simple statement that I am now a mom of 3 kiddos and I work (well, officially I go back to work August 1)! Enough said!

Now on to the good stuff, but I promise not to bore anyone. In a quick summation of what has been going on in our world since the arrival of Kirby, I will do a quick list because it's too much to detail:

1)school got out and I stayed home (for the most part) with the kids for the summer - what was I thinking? I have learned that I am definitely NOT a stay-at-home mom! The girls have driven each other and me crazy!

2)signed the girls up for all kinds of camps and activities for the first part of the summer while I tried to get adjusted to life with 3 - little did I realize that when I scheduled all of these activities, I would be running around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to drop off and pick up and keep Kirby on some sort of schedule. The poor baby had many a bottle in the car and many a nap in his car seat!

3)spent some awesome quality family time at the lake house - and got a few good, full nights sleep while my parents got up with Kirby at night!

4)took a last minute trip to the beach for 5 days - it was a much needed/deserved break from the monotony of staying at home!

5)started Crossfit (and eventually the Paleo diet) to get this body back in shape once and for all after having babies! Man, I didn't realize how out of shape I really was until I started Crossfit. Back in the cheering days, I was used to doing hundreds of crunches/sit-ups a day - it was a HUGE blow to my ego when I could hardly do 10 sit-ups those first couple of weeks! Yes, I realize that I was just 6 weeks out from my 3rd C-section, but still...UGH!

6)now we are all sooooo ready for school to start back. I've decided that this is the true reason for summer break - the kids (and parents) are so excited to not have to be up and out the door on a schedule for a little while and then we all get bored and tired of each other and tired of all things summer (the heat mostly) AND then that's when it's time to get back in the groove of school days again! It's a welcome relief! Mary Mac starts 1st grade in a couple of weeks, Anna starts her first day of her last year in preschool on August 1, and Kirby starts his first day ever of preschool on August 1!

All of that being said, and I know it sounds like I've not enjoyed my summer with my kids, it has been a GREAT summer with lots of great memories and times! The girls have gotten so big and mature and Kirby is growing leaps and bounds! For him to have been so sick in those first couple of days of his life, he has just progressed and grown so much so fast! And he LOVES his big sisters! They make him laugh already all the time! We have been most surprised at how good and involved Mary Mac has been with him. She has never been much of a baby-lover, but she wants to do everything with him AND she's very good with him! I'll post pictures later, but for now, I'm out!

Welcome to the World, Kirby

Well, let's just go ahead a proclaim that my body is just not meant to carry babies to full term and in a "routine" manner - they call it the curse of the nurse, even though I haven't practiced in years! So this past Saturday, after a birthday party and an Easter Egg Hunt, I was exhausted and laid down with Anna to take a nap. About an hour later, I woke up and had a major contraction that was the most painful one I'd ever had then had another one right after that and was really hurting. I called Sam (who was out at the lake) and called my doctor who told me to go ahead and come on in and he would check me out. As soon as they put me on the monitor, it was obvious that I was contracting about every 1-2 minutes and the baby was also having some heart decelerations when I contracted. My doctor was not excited about what he saw on the monitor but couldn't figure out what had changed since my weekly check-up on Tuesday (I was having to go in for weekly non-stress tests on the monitor due to my history). After watching this go on for several hours, he made the decision that even though I was only 35 weeks along, it was going to be better for the baby to be born than to continue to be put under the stress of the contractions. My parents had the girls with them and they were so excited about possibly meeting their new baby brother, that they had not gone to sleep yet and it was 10:30pm so I told them to just go ahead and all come to the hospital to await his arrival. These first couple of pictures were from the waiting on his arrival (yes, they are in their PJ's). They took me back to the OR and Samuel "Kirby" Collins was born on April 16, 2011 at 11:43 pm weighing 5lbs 13 oz. As they delivered him, my doctor found why he was struggling so much and why I was hurting so much - my placenta had started to abrupt (separate) and was only halfway functioning, but it was in a place that had not allowed for any of the blood (the cardinal sign of an abruption) to escape. He came out screaming and was looking great, until they got him back to the nursery. They ended up having to admit him into the NICU and eventually put him on a ventilator. He had a rough first night and next day and gave us all a little scare, but it looks like he's turned the corner for now. As we know all too well, the adventures in the NICU is usually never a smooth ride - there are almost always bumps along the way, so we are praying that we are over that bumpy road and on the road to coming home very soon. He is so sweet and we cannot wait to be able to hold him and cuddle him. The girls are so proud of their baby brother and have been very brave little girls when going to see him with all of the tubes and wires connected to him. We are hoping to have him weaned off the ventilator within the next 24 hours! I should get to go home tomorrow, but we don't really know when he will be able to come home yet.

Waiting patiently with Daddy

Watching through the cracks in the nursery

Happy Belated Ash Wednesday!

While we did not make it to our church's Ash Wednesday service this year (they only held one at 6:15 this year for some reason), I would like to wish everyone a Happy Ash Wednesday, a day later. Are you giving something up or taking on something new? This year, I've decided to give up all thing iPhone-app-related!!! I know that sounds crazy, but Sam has declared that I am officially addicted, and I think he may be right to some extent. So, this includes Facebook and I'm hoping that, at least for the next 40 days, I can devote the time I've spent on Facebook to our blog to document these last weeks before we move from a family of 4 to a family of 5! I'm actually kind of looking forward to not being directly connected to my phone for a little while - it may be refreshing, which is what would be a nice change in our hectic lives these days!

As for Samuel Kirby Collins, we are doing great and moving right along on target for a May delivery - fingers crossed! He is measuring much larger than both of the girls, so I am anxious to see how big he is at birth. Right now, the earliest my doctor would schedule my C-section is for Friday, May 13!!!!! Yikes! He said he would consider taking a tiny bit earlier, but we would have to wait and see! I guess, in one way, all of our kids would have a unique birthday - Mary Mac shares her day with Sam's dad and Anna is an April Fool's baby, so why not have Friday the 13th baby!!! Sam highly disagrees! Last night, while at the dinner table, Sam told the girls that we really needed to settle on what we are going to call this little man. And as it's been for a while now, we were still a house divided. So, Sam suggested we let the dog make the final decision - crazy, I agree! And the dog chose Kirby (YEA!), but only time will tell if this sticks or if Sam goes back on his word and says that the dog shouldn't be the deciding factor - which would totally be MY argument if Kirby had NOT won the vote!!!! We are about 95% ready for the baby already - clothes washed and hung up, room almost ready, bottles washed, new car seat ready, etc. Oh, and next week we get to have our 4D ultrasound while the girls are out of school for Spring Break! I will be sure to post pictures!

Mary Mac is playing her first team sport this year and believe it or not she's playing SOCCER! Sam nor I know NOTHING about soccer, but she is pumped and so excited, especially since she is on the same team as 2 of her best little friends! Her first game was supposed to Tuesday night, but got rained out so tonight is the makeup night. And, it would only be right that she picked out the #7 jersey to wear! She is actually really good at soccer in practice, but we'll know tonight how she is during a game! I will have my camera ready!

And last, but not least, Mary Mac's school celebrated Dr. Suess's birthday last week with a Book Character Parade. It was so cute to see all of the kids all dressed in full costume of their favorite book character. And of course, Mary Mac's favorite book is Every Cowgirls Needs A Horse, so luckily we already had a costume for that character and we made a big poster for her to carry. She also took a horse, but said she didn't have enough hands to carry the poster and the horse in the parade. Here are some pictures from the parade. The principal and the librarian even got in on the fun dressed as Cat In The Hat and their were 2 kids (twins no less) that dressed up as Thing 1 and Thing 2! Sorry the pictures aren't great - they were moving pretty fast through the halls!

More Fall Pictures

Our Little Cinderella

My Little Pony - of course!

School Birthday Party - her teacher makes their Birthday such a Big Deal! And the cookie cake is a unicorn!

The real Party!





Silly Girls!

Our "famous" pumpkins!

Our Little Indian Performer - Thanksgiving Program. She obeyed our instructions of making sure she was front and center!

Ahaha! I'm out from the behind the camera for a change! After the program.