Ramsey Five

Maddie and the Summer of Bravery

2010-06-07T20:10:00.003-05:00

It's really happening.

A little background....

My sweet Mads was fearless! ....... up until last summer. Then she did a 180 and became afraid of everything and all things. That is not an exaggeration. (although it may be redundant)

Exhibit A:
Swim lessons - this is non-negotiable in our household. The adults are outnumbered. It's a safety issue. Which means they have to go to class. Which means Maddie screamed for an hour straight for 4 days in a row.

Exhibit B:
Ballet camp - she didn't even last 5 min. in the ballet room (I know this for a fact, I timed it). This is not a safety issue, so we cut our losses and took our cute tutu home for the dress up box.

Exhibit C:
VBS - different song, same tune.

This doesn't include the numerous parties where she wouldn't get out of my lap, the play-dates where she wouldn't get out of my lap, and the countless phobias (bugs, animals, getting left behind ...) that seemed to plague her daily.

Now, here we are, summertime once again.

Jeff and I sat her down and told her that this summer is the Summer of Bravery.
Lo and behold, Mads took this seriously. It almost makes me feel guilty because we made it up and she took it to be gospel truth. Almost.

So, this summer she has learned to slip-n-slide the correct way (not the tip-toe , scoot on your knees way), and started sticking her face in the bathwater for a brief second.

It's a start. We've signed up for swimming again and she says she is pumped.

I have to say, so am I.

We might even get that tutu back out! (fingers crossed, oh please, oh please)

A whole pile of lake

2010-05-29T20:38:00.004-05:00

Thanks to Beverly Tripp for the photo!

Reasons today was the best ever (according to the wee three):

we got to fish in the pouring rain (true story)

we peed in some rocks! (no bathrooms)

we almost got hit by an airplane (cropduster)

we got stopped by a train and got to see the WHOLE THING pass by (we're talking engine to caboose)

We saw an entire rainbow (another true story and a pretty awesome one)

We went to a fishing derby tonight! Super fun.

Girls of course wore their tutus. Sophie wore her gladiator jellies.

Someday we will have a lesson on dressing for the occasion.

We caught two (actually 3, but the line broke as we were dragging it onto the land and well ....).

When Sophie caught the second one, all three girls screamed at the top of their lungs. I felt like apologizing to all the old folks who got the heart palpitations over that one.

We scream. That's just how we does it. At least it was the "happy scream".

One last quote:

"mom, come over here where nobody else is. We can catch ALL the fish in this whole pile of lake."

Jesus is coming soon

2010-05-24T20:52:00.003-05:00

Gonna try this blog thing for the summer.

So.... what's new?

Started potty training Miss Eliza Belle today.

She went 5 for 11. Not too bad for her first day.

If this were the major leagues, they'd be offering her a multimillion dollar contract for those stats.

And she went 2 for 2 when it came to number 2.

a hem.

Did I just discuss bowel movements on this blog?

Is this the dark side?

Moving on .......

Sophie turned 6 (with Eva Grace) and graduated kindergarten. Yep, she's been busy. Soooooo ready for the big school. Or, in her very own words, "ready to make all the friends at the big school". She's come a long way this year.

Maddie is playing t-ball for the first time. Doing really well for a 4 yr old, I think. (But, really, I'm her mom. Can't exactly be objective on this subject. And, no photos. Will work on it.)

And, one last story before I close:

Tonight, we were on our way home and turned the corner. In front of us were some beautiful sunbeams shining through the clouds .......

Sophie shrieks, "IT'S JESUS!!!! HE'S COMING DOWN!!!"

Overheard ...

2010-01-26T21:43:00.001-06:00

Maddie, yelling from the bathroom - "MOM-MY, I WENT POT-TY! I'm wenting potty cause I needed to go potty."

I really have no idea what she is trying to tell me.

time capsule - Mads turns 4

2010-01-25T19:44:00.003-06:00

Madeline Claire Ramsey, Age 4

loves to watch: Dora, Super Why, and Barbie movies

could eat every day: hot dogs, cheeto puffs, apple cinnamon cheerios, and salad with ranch dressing

besties: Lauren Box, her sisters, and John Mark's mommy (random, but that's what she says)

interested in: Littlest Pet Shop, boots, doing flips, and all kinds of rain-gear

can usually be found: wearing dress up clothes

Maddie at 4 ... is a little fragile. She is sooooooo emotional! Is that normal for a 3-4 yr old? I was spoiled by my eldest because she is the most matter-of-fact child .... not too much drama when you are like that.

Mads' reasoning is that things scare her and that she'd just rather be with me.

*Big smile*

Not trying to raise a timid, co-dependent child but ....... when they say sweet things like that, I guess I'll let it slide for another year.

5 going on 15

2010-01-22T22:12:00.004-06:00

So, Sophie has spent the entire day referring to Eliza as "the two year old".

As in, the two year old smells poopy or the two year old needs to go take a nap or the two year old just wrote all over her face with a pen ...

Well, 5 year olds are mighty superior. We all know that.

It is getting a little, um, obnoxious. Maybe.

It reminds me of that movie Zathura, where the little boy can't really read but insists that he can. That's what our life is like.

She can read all. She can do all. She knows all. Awesome.

In all fairness to my little girl, she did actually cook supper for us Thursday night.

After gymnastics we were debating what to eat.

Sophie said, "Sweetie, (she was referring to me) why don't I make you some bear paws."

I said, "why don't you?"

and so she did.

They were yummy.

recipe:

take two refrigerated biscuits. divide one biscuit into five pieces and roll into balls. attach to other biscuit in a paw formation. bake and serve with honey.

For Sharon

2010-01-10T19:28:00.005-06:00

Been a while. Not such the consistent blogger these days. Intentions are there, so are the distractions .... 3 distractions in fact.

Sooooooo, hmm, what's new ......

Maddie is trying to potty train Eliza by herself. Every time Mads needs to go, she says, "C'mon, Eliza! Time to potty!" and she takes her into the bathroom. Maddie pulls down E's pants and Eliza sits on her little pink potty.

Still wearing her diaper.

Last night WAY after they were in bed, Maddie needed to go and woke Eliza up to go with her. And so she did with no fuss whatsoever.

Of course, this is an unconventional way of potty training since Eliza has yet to actually potty on the potty. But, Mads is convinced it's working, so whatevs.

Along those same lines ...

Sophie uses the phrase "awesome, dude" a lot. She got it from Mr. Kevin. Eliza has now taken to using the phrase, too.

However, she says, "awesome, Pude".

And, yes, we think it's hysterical.

We Ramseys are nothing if not mature.

it's the little things

2009-11-18T21:42:00.002-06:00

Someone asked Eliza her name today and she answered, "popcorn".
and she was not eating at the time.

Sunday, Sophie was looking for E and trying to describe her to an adult ... it went something like this:
Adult - who are you looking for?
Sophie - My baby Eliza. Um, she's kind of like a heavy brick.

and one more thing I want to remember about this week ...

Maddie had her first big girl play-date (that means no big sisters around) with Lauren today. I lost count of how many times they would stop what they were doing, giggle, and say, "we're best friends". Pretty cute stuff.

I want to m-m-m-m-marry you

2009-11-06T22:18:00.002-06:00

B-Ba b-ba Bobbie Sue (written by Heather Eaton.)

Some thoughts on my beloved Oak Ridge Boys (or ORB, as they like to be called).

This was NOT a get out of your seat and boogie concert. Totally okay with that, I am an accomplished chair-boogier. And, I chair-boogied quite a bit. Love that my husband accepts this about me. It's possible that I look ridiculous.

The ORB is getting old. They are aging well, except for the bass singer who doesn't want to admit it. Hair doesn't get darker after 40, dude. Also, lose the perm. No offense. Great voice.

Experiencing "Elvira" in concert is very very close to congregational singing.

There was one woman who stood up after every song. We called her "ovation lady". She was impressive.

I was the youngest person at the ORB concert, tonight. The very cool thing was, I bet the crowd was at least 25% veterans. It was kinda like Branson.

Loved it so much.

p.s. I have a cheek-ache from all the smiling.

p.p.s. I have a crush on Joe Bonsall. Jeff knows and is surprisingly cool about it.

the Oak Ridge Boys (and 9 other things to be thankful for)

2009-11-04T21:06:00.005-06:00

Things I am thankful for this week:

Craighead Forest Rotary Park. And the fact that for the first time ever, I did not have to hold a baby or keep a toddler from running toward the lake. My youngest played just as hard as the big kids! Go Miss Eliza Pants!

I get to see the Oak Ridge Boys in two days. Sing it with me now, "El-vi-ra! a oom boppa mow mow..."

I am slowly making my way through the Christmas shopping list. This is good because I usually do not begin until after Thanksgiving. That's much harder on the old budget, you know.

Talked to an old classmate today!!!!!!! I love her.

The kids were really good during puppets tonight at church. Love little kid enthusiasm.

FRIED CHICKEN for supper tonight, folks.

Friends who are full of encouragement.

A wonderful quick weight-loss plan for my upcoming reunion : starving myself! just kidding

be-yoo-ti-ful weather!!!!!!

Halloween is over, dudes!

The Punkies

2009-10-30T22:12:00.002-05:00

aka: The Punkin Funkies

Evidently, that's what you call it when you clean out a pumpkin.

Highlight for the girls - sticking their fingers through the nose hole picking Pumpkin Boogies...

Which led me to ...

start singing "Pumpkin Boogies!" (to the tune of Jungle Boogie, obvs.) ...

Which quickly deteriorated into ...

Pumpkin Bootie as my girls marched off to their bath.

Pumpkin nose picking, songs about booties ....

having all girls sure is precious, I tell ya. :)

a 5 yr old's take on marriage

2009-10-26T21:36:00.004-05:00

Going through my "nice" (read: almost never worn) jewelry today, Sophie holds up my anniversary ring and asks -

"How many times did you get married?"

me, distracted-like, "uh, one"

"But you have 3 kids."

"yes"

"Daddy only loved you ONCE?"

finally paying attention, "no, Daddy loves me every day."

S. walking away, "yeah, but he only gave you one married ..."

to Jeff later, "how many times have you been married?

Jeff (Mr. Hilarious) says "5"

"WHOA! YOU HAVE 5 MOMS?!?!?!?!"

remember: can't joke with Sophie, can't joke with Sophie, can't joke with Sophie, ........

Miss Eliza Belle turns 2

2009-10-24T20:26:00.003-05:00

Okay, so last year when my baby turned one, I wrote about her - calling it a love song for Eliza.

This year if I were to write her a little song, it would definitely be something you could dance to.

Two weeks ago, someone remarked that it was cool that God gave us two little girls ... and a Tasmanian Devil.

She thinks she is a kitty. Did you know that? And she's much more obedient when she's being "Kitty Kitty". Kitty Kitty will go get her diaper when you ask her to. Eliza will probably not.

Although she can say the "m" sound, she thinks it's funny to call Maddie - Daddy. She calls Sophie - Sophie Jane or sometimes just Jane. When she's upset with me, she calls me Mommy BELLE.

She likes baby dolls. I never did, and my older two didn't either. This is something of her very own and boy, do we indulge it.

Her favorite song is "I love you a bushel and a peck".

She is my little breath of fresh air. :)

Here I go again

2009-10-21T21:47:00.003-05:00

Confessing.

I "over-cheese" when I'm cooking.

I have become re-obsessed with Hayseed Dixie. Especially the bluegrass version of Walk This Way.

Secretly, I'm glad our GNO discussion last night did not revolve around our kids' bowel movements. Like last time.

I suffer from Judgy Mom Syndrome when I am out late getting groceries and see tons of little kids running around. One of these days I am going to blurt out, "PUT THOSE KIDS TO BED!" or something equally harsh and judgmental.

I .... do not enjoy fall festivals, anymore. What do you call a halloween-scrooge, I wonder?

you have to do it

2009-10-19T20:50:00.003-05:00

Ah... October ...

We woke up with no plans on Saturday! So we donned our best pumpkin-picking duds (which, to my older girls means a splash of orange to go along with their usual princess/clown mash-up) , loaded up the family roadster and headed out to that Great Pumpkin Patch, that Mecca for all serious pumpkin pickers ....

the Wal-mart on Highland.

Seriously, dudes, the pumpkins elsewhere were expensive this year.

Anyhoo, we brought them back and then used them as leverage to get the girls to take a nap.

After this, we painted. Guess what colors they chose? Sparkly pink (obvs.), turquoise, purple, and ... orange. Great choices, really. Only, uh, they turned out looking a little ... what's the word ... .........

moldy.

At least Sophie's was in a moldy "pattern" this year. It was a moldy rainbow. We are very, very, very into rainbows.

Maddie's was moldy blobs. I think she might be into blobs.

Eliza preferred painting with a popsicle stick. And she ate some.

It was non-toxic. This is not a scary story.

brave

2009-10-17T22:16:00.002-05:00

Today was the Race for the Cure.

I've lost count how many people have asked me why I did not go.

Seriously? Like I would boycott something as wonderful as that?

I always forget when it is. And it's more fun to go with a group. But the main reason was that I've never done it before, and the first time I go I want to go with my Mom.

People find it shocking that we don't "think pink" every waking minute. For a long time, I pretended like I never thought about the fact my mom has cancer. When we got so much bad news all the time, it was so much less complicated to say, "she's okay!" and change the subject.

This would actually be the first year that the race would seem like the celebration it's supposed to be, and not a huge reminder of what we're facing.

Yeah, so we weren't in Little Rock this weekend.

But, every day she gets up and goes to work, stays out late at my sisters' ballgames, teaches Sunday school ... all after a round of chemo, I promise you she's racing.

More dinner chats, this time about babies

2009-10-16T21:26:00.002-05:00

Tonight we were eating tacos for supper.

Sophie picked hers up and a little piece fell out in her hand.

She says (sincerely), "Ooooooooh, a little hamburger baby! Look, Mommy, my taco had a little baby."

Maddie, with a mouth full of taco, says, "So .... what? It just popped out?"

Sophie turns and says, "Mads, you need to learn that babies don't pop out. This sweet baby was born."

And then she ate it.

Costume idea

2009-10-15T22:19:00.003-05:00

There must be a special chemical in Eliza's skin.

Food sticks to it like glue.

Tonight we were eating chili, looked up ...

and she had a frito stuck to her lip.

Right above her lip, actually. Like a little frito mustache.

She... was oblivious.

Stinking broken camera. :(

It's sad, really.

2009-10-14T21:53:00.004-05:00

So, there I was at the Wal-mart ...

I'd put the kids to bed, grabbed my grocery list, and now there I was.

Lookin' at the toothpaste.

And then ...

my pupils dilated

my body went numb

and I found myself on the Christmas aisle.

Didn't seem to matter that what they had out was hideous and tacky. (no offense Wal-mart Christmas decoration designers)

It just sucks me in. Can't explain it.

I was this close to buying a Disney princess commemorative ornament.

If I were a muppet, I'd be Miss Soggy ...

2009-10-13T20:16:00.004-05:00

Rain makes me feel heavy. And not in a good way.

Supposedly, we have gotten 22 more inches than normal.

Duh.

One of these days ... sigh ... I will have a free hand to hold an umbrella and not stay completely soaked at all times.

Today, Eliza ran and leapt into a puddle.

I've never seen her leap before. Interesting. Two foot landing.

Recent photo:

The Full Effect

2009-08-19T21:45:00.004-05:00

Here is my dear, dear child formerly known as my baby.

Now, let's get the full effect:

Notice anything?

Here's a hint - it WAS NOT raining in Jonesboro this morning.

Can our footwear ever be normal, I ask you?

Happy first day of school!

Thankful Wednesday

2009-06-03T09:58:00.002-05:00

10 Things I am so thankful for

Our Sunday School Class. It was announced that we would be doing service projects during class time this past Sunday, and instead of everyone using that as an excuse to sleep in an extra hour, we were filled to overflowing. And BUSY! It was very encouraging. :)
Bath time after the girls go to bed. Current favorite thing: black rasberry vanilla bubble bath.
Last night Sophie got teary when she thought she might not get to have her t-ball game (rain). I am thankful for her commitment to things.
Inflatable swimming pools
How Jeff proudly wears his "#4's Dad" shirt to all of S's games.
Speaking of Jeff, I'm thankful that we are such good friends.
Spray sun-screen.
Maddie's hair is so easy to comb the tangles out of!
Eliza put herself in time-out, today.
Play-dough. (I love the smell of it, too!)

This might make you a little jealous

2009-05-31T16:16:00.004-05:00

You'll never guess what Mother's Day brought me this year!

I mean it. You'll never guess.

2 BOXES OF MACARONI AND CHEESE!

It gets better.

One box had High School Musical 3 shapes.

And one had Hannah Montanas!

Of course, not to be super-cheesy (ooh, a pun!), but nothing will ever top these gifts:

Unless, of course they come out with some Twilight shapes ...

hold me closer, Tony Danza

2009-05-30T09:48:00.002-05:00

Here's my little ballerina girl after her first and last ballet recital. (why no pictures of her during the performance, you ask? Because I ALWAYS forget my camera, that's why.)

We got her progress report, and I pored over it like it was a real report card - all 5's, I was so proud of her.

Okay, it was almost all 5's.

The first thing I noticed about her report was that it was COVERED in writing. Front and back.

uh-oh.

It doesn't take front and back to say, "good job!"

She got almost all 5's. One little problem. According to the report, she's not flexible at all. And her teeny little hips rotate in, not out. Evidently very important stuff in ballerina-ville.

I was so sad for her! Nobody wants to be told that their child can't do something!

But, what can you do? So, I built a bridge and got over it.

Okay, so I built a bridge and am now standing at one side looking at all the mature people on the other side.

It's a start.

Fortunately, Sophie informed me the week of her recital that she didn't want to do ballet anymore. She wants to do tap.

The shoes "make more sound."

Oh. Okay.

I wonder how flexible your hips have to be ...

Works for me Thursday

2009-05-28T06:54:00.003-05:00

Joint birthday parties.

Yes, it's the best invention of all time.

This year Sophie and Eva Grace Barrett held their "friend party" together.

Here's what made it great (oooh, I feel a list coming on!):

shared expenses. It's ridiculous how much b-days cost. (Birthdays? More like broke-days. heh heh)

shared duties. Sometimes it's not how much you are spending, but how much you have to do that's overwhelming. (check out these awesome party gifts Barrett made!)

Someone to reign you in. For example, in the beginning stages of the party we were going to take all the girls to get mani-pedis and then meet up with the boys out at the park. Yes, we were seriously planning a "2 location party" for a bunch of 4 and5 year olds. D-U-M-B.

Someone to reign your child in. Anybody else have a child who changes their mind about their party every other day leading up to it? Now you have an excuse to stick to a plan.

And of course, the memories. Sharing an event with someone helps you remember it.

Of course, I did forget my camera and the candles (so they just kind of blew on the cake) but, really, that was to be expected.

Daddies grilled, kids played, mommies chatted. Super fun.

Eliza, workin' those heels

2009-05-27T10:11:00.004-05:00

She's got my eyes and she's got my thighs ~ Granddad (Dan Stokes)

She's going to kill me for this some day ~ Danna Ramsey

ketchup

2009-04-18T22:13:00.004-05:00

A few things I've forgotten to post this week:

Easter photos. (I feel compelled to point out that these were taken after church due to a dead camera battery. It was windy and rainy. And they were hungry. Okay, okay, enough excuses.)

In other news:

Mads insisted on calling Eliza - "Diego" for a few days. I guess that's better than when they play house, because then they always make her be the "Mom".

Wednesday morning we were almost completely without food, so for breakfast I spread jelly on buns. The girls ate two a piece. Sophie called them "jelly burgers". I called them "gross", but whatever.

I, unfortunately, have gotten sucked into the whole "Twilight" thing this week. Yes, I know it's soooooo 2008 to be into Twilight. I've always been a late bloomer.

Sophie can tie her shoes. Up next: washing her own hair! (just kidding)

I no longer think I look like Suri Cruise. Tonight we decided I look like "Boof". You get a special prize if you know who that is!

I'm a little teapot ...

2009-04-17T18:51:00.005-05:00

Let's see...

Sophie in her new pink accessories? check

Mads in her cowgirl boots? check

Eliza with a mouthful of dirt? check!

Well, I guess it must be T-ball season!! (or as Maddie calls it, "teapot" season)

Scenes from our very first practice, ever:

Sophie wore this goofy grin the entire time... even when I was cheering for her nice and loud, which usually makes her incredibly embarrassed. (already embarrassed by me at age almost 5. Man, the teen years are going to be awesome.)

She did it!

2009-04-12T21:21:00.004-05:00

Now, I have talked before about how I feel some milestones are more important and relevant than others.

Admittedly, I celebrated Sophie's first sneeze, her first splinter, her first spit bubble, etc....

I was being ridiculous.

As each of my children have learned new things, I have realized that some really are worth celebrating.

Such as: holding their own bottle, eating finger foods, being potty-trained.

See a pattern?

All of these things make my life a little easier!

(Some of you may be saying to yourself, "she's so selfish."

And I say to you, "Oh, stars. I don't have time to be selfish.")

So, guess what!

Mads hit one of my favorite milestones yesterday!

She learned to "pump her legs".

Again, some are saying, "whaaaaa?????"

But, I have a feeling that a lot of you are giving me high fives. You know the number of hours we spend listening to these words - MOM, PUSH ME! And when you have more than one and you are doing the "pushing juggle", standing between the two swings and trying to push each with one hand. That never really makes anyone happy.

So, there you go. Yesterday was a really good day. Maddie can swing by herself.

Two down, one to go.

10 Things Wednesday

2009-04-08T09:32:00.004-05:00

It's been a while!

10 things I am thankful for over the past couple of weeks:

Our anniversary weekend. We hung out and did home improvements while the girls went to Nana and Papa's. I laughed until I cried at least 15 times a day. Some handiwork: (All furniture built by Jeff, bedding and fabric by Danna. we're slightly Amish.)

The girls' music program this year was it's typical cuteness. Even better, didn't have to sew any costumes!

Speaking of sewing, I am thankful that I have finished all Easter orders! Everyone I sewed for was absolutely fantastic. Such pleasures to work with! Now to work on my own children's dresses ...

I am thankful for Dave Ramsey and FPU. We are turning a corner in responsibility.

Fridays, because that's when my People magazine is delivered.

My children are finally all healthy. I feel like I have only gone to church every other Sunday for the past two months.

I am soooooo pumped about Sophie's upcoming birthday party!

My eyebrows have been tamed. Man, they can get bushy.

My new haircut! I have suspicions that I look like Suri Cruise, but really, don't care. It takes me less than 2 min. in the morning. 5 if I actually want to fix it. (which.... I don't.)

Our baby chickies. They have given us a lot of joy.

On a sad note, we couldn't find them last night. They were at the back door, chirping to come in (they are like dogs, I tell ya), and I didn't put them in the garage right away. When I went back to get them, they were gone. Jeff and I were both out there in our pajamas with flashlights searching and calling them. No luck. I am a little devastated. surprisingly so.

One last photo. Eliza, starring in The Great Jello Massacre. I do not know how she always gets food on her forehead.

I love today!

2009-03-23T15:12:00.001-05:00

I have happily been known as "Jeff's wife" for 7 years. Woo woo!

It's official. I'm a woman.

2009-03-12T22:51:00.002-05:00

Guess what I got to do today?

It's something special for just us ladies.

I got my boobies squished.

My mother is going to love that I just said that.

Yep, I got my first mammogram today.
When I walked in they handed me a list of things for me to check yes or no on.

Has anyone in your family had cancer? yes
Was it BREAST cancer? yes
WAS IT YOUR MOTHER?!?!?! ack! yes! I get it, I'm high risk! Stop shouting at me stupid questionaire!

So, there I was, high-risk patient, 32 years old, getting my first mammogram.

It wasn't bad at all.

But I did celebrate when it was over.

Cheetos were involved.

photo op. I'm thrilled. really.

2009-03-09T20:29:00.004-05:00

The Ramsey family was ambushed and forced into getting their picture made Sunday night. (for the church directory.)

First, the girls.

1,2,3...squish Eliza! Sophie was tickling her. These shots are edited because E kept hiking her dress up to show off her Luvs. My fave. Just look at them! They could be triplets. *cough,cough*

The lovely group shot:

Some things I'd like to point out:

This was after the banquet. I'd already eaten my lipstick off.
Mads is covered in Wal-mart stickers. She wears them like some kind of redneck badge of honor.
I'd let them pick out whatever they wanted to wear, so Sophie is wearing a way-to-short sundress with a pair of Maddie's pants on underneath and some sandals that were 2 sizes too small. Maddie of course chose purple shoes to complete her outfit.
None of this seemed to matter, because all the people standing around could say was, "Man, are you sure that baby is yours?"

To do list

2009-03-06T19:56:00.004-06:00

Things I needed to accomplish / things I accomplished:

fix a nutritious breakfast to start our day off right! / allow my older two to binge on nutrigrain bars while I try to sleep in until at least 6:45.

settle any and all disputes calmly and impartially / get sucked into a debate on who is more "Belle" than the other

feel great that I am within single digits of my goal weight / wallow in guilt and misery for eating half a box of donuts yesterday in celebration

spend 15 minutes unloading and loading the dishwasher / spend 15 minutes convincing my children that last years bathing suit is not appropriate wear for playgroup up at church

sweep the floor 1 time / check facebook 100 times

do at least one load of laundry / accumulate at least two loads of dirty clothes

grill out in this nice weather / give in to my children's wishes and fix chili on the warmest day of the year so far

love every second of being a stay at home mom / wish Jeff got off at noon every day

2009-02-27T14:26:00.003-06:00

We were sitting together on the couch ...

Sophie - Do you think Mella yella looks like me?

Me - uh... what?

Sophie - you know, Mella yella. I think she looks like me.

Me - who's Mella yella?

Sophie - pause .... roll eyes ... Mom, Troy and Mella yella?

Just a little High School Musical reference for you. We are sooo hip around here.

And don't you dare tell my kids there are 2 more of those movies out there.

I AM A RUNNER AGAIN.

2009-02-23T20:35:00.003-06:00

Women Can Run started tonight!!!!!!

I love the first night of anything, because I am an unapologetic people-watcher.

There are always certain people I like to look for. It's kind of like a check list.

The lady in bike shorts with panty-hose underneath. Check!
The elderly lady who is always going the opposite direction than the rest of the group during stretches. Check!
The ones who show up in full make up and bling-y jewelry. Check!
And the ones who come to work out in street clothes. (and by street clothes, I mean jeans and khakis. Not hooker ensembles.) Check! Check! Check!

It's good to know some things never change.

Know what this is?

2009-02-22T19:26:00.004-06:00

It's Eliza's first tangle!!!!!!!

We knew it was only a matter of time. Actually.... we were wondering what was taking it so long.

Tonight, while we were doing the nightly after-bath comb out, Maddie turns to me, puts her hand on the comb, and says, "I'm okay with the tingles. Go comb Sophie's hair."

Sigh.... glad somebody's okay with those tingles.

Completely unrelated - why is it that kids like to dress so very weather-inappropriate?

Last summer, Sophie and I battled almost daily over a brown sweater that I had forgotten to put away. It makes me sweat a little just to think about it.

Today, it was in the 30's, and so of course, this is what she picks out to wear:

Not only are they summer clothes, but they are Eliza's. And yes those are Eliza's little legs there in the back. She took advantage of "Mommy holding the camera in front of her face" to sneak up the steps.

Sigh again ...

One last photo. Sophie was invited to a Pump it Up Party for her friend Peyton a week ago. As is always the case, Maddie thought it was a party for her. I do believe that she and Lauren had the best time of anyone there!

Oh, and before I forget, guess what movie I watched today!!!!!

I'll give you a hint:

"I want a C..O,O...L! R..I..D..E..R!"

It was awesome.

10 Things Tuesday

2009-02-10T18:13:00.003-06:00

Here we are again, folks!

Today I am thankful for:

Caffeine free Mountain Dew. It's not as good as regular, so I think it's weaning me off my dependency.

These two girls:

And, this one...

That my parents finally have a generator out at the farm!

Jeff's new work schedule - off an hour early! Woo woo! An extra hour of togetherness... I hope we can survive it. :)

Ladies class and Beth Moore. (even though I have a friend who thinks Beth shouts at her. which I think is pretty funny)

There are no holes in our roof from the ice storm. (It's been raining for two days)

Little Debbies.

Finally bought the fabric for the girls' Easter dresses.

I'm convinced that my friends are the cutest, funniest, sweetest ladies in all of Jonesburr.

Near-death experience. okay, not really.

2009-02-04T14:04:00.003-06:00

So...

Today I am out in the f-ree-zing cold pumping some gas.

First, I thought I was going to pass out from the pain in my fingers (no gloves).

Then, I realized that I was getting sleepy... "oh, no!" I thought.

They say when you get sleepy, you are freezing to death and are near the end.

I turned and mouthed my goodbyes to the 3 oblivious little girls in the van, tears streaming down my cheeks, so much I want to say ...

And then the pump clicked and I was finished.

I slide back in the seat, keenly aware that I had just cheated death.

And, I may have exaggerated the tears part.

10 Things Tuesday

2009-02-03T19:23:00.003-06:00

Oh, baby!

Today I am thankful for ...

Electricity, e-lec-tricty... (anybody else been singing the School House Rock song all week?)

One Mrs. Jenny Box and her mad cupcake skilz

Heat... and light... and cable... and internet. Pioneer woman, I am not. :)

All the quality time I've gotten to spend with my parents and sister this week. Now, if only we can get my brother up here ...

M & M's. Can I get a woowoo?

Yummy smelling candles. We may not have had all those things on #3, but our house smelled good!

My hubs grilled steak tonight. I ate so much I might vomit. In a good way.

Laundry that is semi-caught up. (that's as close as it ever gets.)

No holes in our roof!

The girls are back in school!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And that's the night that the lights went out in Jonesboro...

2009-01-30T21:00:00.002-06:00

I've been reading all these "what an adventure we had!" blogs tonight and I am so greatful that all my buddies have had a wonderful week.

But...

Since this is like my on-line journal, I need to write down how I have felt this week.
In one word - emotional.

After an hour or so of off and on black-outs, we lost power for good around 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan 27.
We have water and we have a gas fireplace, so my mom and sister came to stay with us. My dad stayed back at the farm, to watch the pipes and to keep the fire in their furnace going (because if it goes out...something bad happens, I don't know.)

Being cold and in the dark for a couple of days does weird things to a person. When our power finally came back on... I cried a little. I only admit that because there were witnesses.

So, we've had our power back on today, and I don't take it for granted. Tonight my dad came over, ate supper, watched a movie, and then headed back out to the farm with no water and very little heat to spend the night by himself in complete darkness. The whole idea of this makes me want to cry some more.

Sorry if this is a downer, but these are my thoughts right now.

The big one

2009-01-25T19:11:00.003-06:00

Mads turned three, today.

Three is a big deal in our family. It's the first actual birthday party with friends. Which, in turn, has made it a magical age.

Maddie had been planning her party for a long time. She knew exactly what she wanted: pancakes and pajamas.

So........ here I go, wracking my brain trying to come up with the perfect "First Party". I had a theme, "Not Quite Spend the Night". I had decoration ideas using sheets for the tablecloths and cute little happy birthdays spelled out on pillowcases. I had games. I had crafts, people!!!!

And I scrapped it all.

Because remember what Maddie said she wanted? Pancakes and pajamas. She couldn't give two hoots about crafts or decorations. And really, did I honestly think I was capable of organizing 10 or so little ones for a game? I can barely get through one round of Candy Land with my girls.

Therefore, we went up to church, ate pancakes, and played in the gym in our jammies. No meltdowns, no mess, ....... pure bliss. :)

And Maddie was happy.

The crew at the end of the night. Notice the smiley faces! (except for Eliza...)

2 1/2 hours is a LONG time ...

2009-01-19T13:20:00.004-06:00

So, yesterday morning we wake up to two sick girls.

Well, one sick girl and one tired,cranky girl.

I decide to take Sophie (the sick one) to urgent care. The cranky one starts coming down with all kinds of symptoms, so I agree to take her, too. She had been coughing the last two nights (see:tired,cranky).

It is literally standing room only at the Urgent Care.

Two and a half hours later ... we are finally called back.

Scenes from a waiting room...

Maddie is coloring. She asks me, "what does this crayon say?" "Fuschia", I say. "POO-SHA? I'm coloring POO-SHA?!?!?!?!"
Maddie, to the elderly lady sitting next to us, "Why are you sticking your tongue out at me? I'm Maddie Claire."
After about an hour and a half plus two potty breaks, Maddie announces, "Mommy! I just pee-peed on my leg!" Mommy is horrified. Then she says, "Just kidding." Now, Mommy is even more horrified - she realizes Maddie has inherited her daddy's sense of humor.

All of this with a shaking, whimpering, feverish 4 year old in my lap.

Long day.

2009-01-16T12:42:00.003-06:00

Quick question:

If, hypothetically, your mommy caught you with a few (open) bottles of nail polish, what would you do?

If you answered "immediately wipe your hands on the carpet", you and my dear Maddie think alike.

2009-01-12T21:06:00.003-06:00

It's Monday...

Even the Barbies are feeling it.

I want to thank everyone for the kind words and clear up some misconceptions.

I am not grappling with my self-worth. My husband thinks I am cute. My family and my in-laws think I am cute. My three little girls think I look like a princess. (well, at least right now they do...) Personally, that's all I care about. The rest of the world can think I'm a Plain Jane. It really doesn't matter, it's not like I'm trying to make a living as a super model. :)

Still, the sweet words of my girlfriends out there were so awesome! I wanted to print them out and put them in a little file (decorated with glittery stickers).

Then I got tickled thinking about Jeff having a little file with notes saying "Jeff, I think you are as handsome inside as you are outside. XOXO, Jason"

*Sigh* It's good to be a girl.

Body Issues

2009-01-11T15:58:00.005-06:00

So, this morning we were getting ready for church in our usual calm manner. (cough)

As in most households, mommy still does the majority of the work when getting the girls ready.

(Jeff has learned a lot during the last few years, though. He will say things like, " where's your bow?" and "no, let's not wear the black sparkly tights with our sundress". God bless him.)

Oh, and does anyone else get dressed and put their shoes on before anything else? It's a habit for me. See, if we were in a hurry warm feet are more important than dry hair and a made up face.

I'm speaking from experience on that one.

Like my feet are really the first thing people notice. *sigh*

Now where was I?

Ah, here's what I am getting to in this ramble ... when I finally start to get ready (in the remaining five minutes before we leave), instead of multi-tasking and beautifying I start homing in on the flaws. Today's winner? My top lip is smaller than my bottom lip. I feel like they are out of proportion. Seriously.

Last week these gems popped into my head at various times: my eyes are tiny... my forehead is huge... my hair isn't straight enough ... my fingers are too bony ...and so on and so forth.

Honestly! Why do we do this?!?! We are created in God's image. And think about it, we all think our children are so adorable. Just imagine how cute God thinks we all are! He looks at us and sees beauty, we look at ourselves and see double chins.

And then today, I was all set to blog about my visit with an old friend last week. And I can't bring myself to post a picture of us. Sorry, Bill! They just don't look good.

Here is a lovely picture of our children, though! (for those HU grads, these are Aaron Brister's daughters. For all the rest, they belong to Billie Jean)

Now, 90% of the time I don't give it much thought, so don't go thinking I am all depressed or something. I just don't look in mirrors unless I have to get ready. And I don't have my picture taken, either.

Irrelevant

2009-01-04T18:19:00.003-06:00

Hmmm... I'm sitting here completely full of hash brown casserole and thinking, "that's weird. I'm never completely full. Especially off hash brown casserole."

Sophie came up with an awesome game during worship this morning. She called it Money Chin. It's so cool, get this, you take your offering money... and wait! You put it on your chin! She sure thought it was fun. I'm sure the people around us thought she was a fruit loop.

Am I the only one who (inadvertently) color-codes their children? I usually get Sophie pink stuff, Maddie purple stuff, and Eliza green or blue or greenish-blue. This is ponderous ...

New resolution (do-better) : Stop referring to my husband as "Jeffreen".

2009-01-02T21:14:00.003-06:00

Ah resolution time. I love it.

You know why?

I like examining my life and seeing what is going well and what is just not working.

Also, and maybe more importantly, it gives me a chance to make lists.

So, lets not call these resolutions. Let's call these do-betters.

This year I'd like to do a better job of:

letting my kids get messy

reading the Bible, not just "Bible studies"

maintaining a hair-cut. Any hair-cut.

changing out of my pajamas to take the girls to school.

drinking water (I wish water tasted like coffee...)

being as enthusiastic about my faith as I am about Facebook

buying good shoes (except Old Navy flip-flops because I love them)

Alright, surely at least a couple of these I can accomplish. Sigh... we'll see!

Ahhhh... Wordless Wednesday

2008-12-31T19:13:00.002-06:00

10 Things Tuesday

2008-12-30T18:10:00.005-06:00

Today, I am thankful for:

Cousins. My cousins, my kids' cousins, my cousin's kids, and so on, and so forth.

Staying home with the young 'uns. Do I pinch pennies? Yes. Do I fuss that they drive me bananas? Um...yes. Do I go too long between hair-cuts and wear sweatpants way too often? Affirmative. Don't really care, I'm still happier than ever. :)

That I was missed while we were gone. C'mon, doesn't it feel so good when someone says they missed you? It's like a hug.

Our dryer works again.

My husband's predictability. I knew he was going to say, "so when are we taking the tree down?" right after we opened the presents. He says it every year. It's comforting to me.

Those little ramen cup-o-soups. The girls love them; I love them.

My new planner from Anne. I am now praying for the wisdom to use the thing.

Speaking of my sister-in-law, I am thankful for her. She blesses me.

School and Mother's day out start next week! :)

I got MAMMA MIA for Christmas!!!!!!!!!

Hello

2008-12-29T20:48:00.003-06:00

And lo, it came to pass...

Danna remembered that she had a blog.

Christmas was great, as is the usual for Christmases.

The girls got a dollhouse, scooters, and a life-size Barbie that scares the bejeebers out of my husband.

Jeff got a new t.v. and ...oooh ...surround sound! (yeah, I don't see why it's such a big deal, either)

Danna got a new camera since my old one totally pooped out. (My first comment - "Oh, take my picture holding my new camera!" She's a smart one, that Danna.)

I also got comfort and joy and all that.

The coolest thing, though, was actually meeting a blog friend.

Most of the blogs on my blog-roll are people I know well or knew once. There are a few,however, that I never met but feel like I know. Sorta like a pen-pal. I got to meet one of them Sunday.

It was awesome. I so prefer flesh and blood (side note: that's a gross phrase) friendships over just pen-pals. I tend to like people more than paper.

Now, here are some photos. Enjoy.

Nothing says "It's Christmas morning!" like super bed-head.Maddie danced and danced with this barbie (aka: Daddy's Worst Nightmare)Eliza, just a-lovin' on her sister.

Jace was liking the ladies. He kept giving them the eye and thought Sophie's tights were irrisistable.

And now, a few new classics:

Deck the holly with balls of toys...fa la la la la

Eliza Baby (this was a favorite, sung all day, every day)

And my favorite - We wish you a pinky toe.

I don't ask, because I'm afraid to know.

Tradition!

2008-12-05T07:16:00.003-06:00

Yesterday, as I was lying there in the dentist's chair getting high off goofy gas and trying not to giggle at everything the hygienist was saying, I started thinking about traditions.

Now, you know I've said before that I don't like change. Well, the flip side of that is that I LOVE traditions!

We had a million, bazillion (roughly) growing up, especially around the holidays. My favorite, though, was the Christmas sing-a-long on the way to the grandparents house on Christmas day.

More specifically, the 12 days of Christmas sing-a-long.

There were four of us and we would each take a verse. Of course, I wanted to be 5 golden rings each year, so I could bust out my best Miss Piggy impression. Danny and I would inevitably whisper the word "dancing" to tease my mom and eventually he would just start singing the entire song like Beaker from the Muppets.

It is still one of my favorite memories from Christmas, because it repeated year after year.

My favorite new tradition that we have started with the girls is the opening of a present everyday. The presents are actually all the holiday movies, books, and cds that we own. We get them out of their big tub and wrap them in special paper (this year it was Tinkerbell).

Each morning the girls go open one of them. If it's a movie, they know we'll all watch it together with popcorn or hot chocolate (okay, both) and if it's music we'll dance, and if it's a book we'll have extra time to sit down and read during the day.

It's sort of like the Ramsey version of Advent.

Now, I want to know about your traditions! We are always looking for new things to try.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-12-03T21:08:00.002-06:00

10 Things Tuesday

2008-12-02T20:52:00.002-06:00

Today I am thankful for...

My husband. He stayed up all night last Wednesday, just a bleachin' and a scrubbin'.

I lost 6 pounds last week. hee hee

Hot chocolate

My girls love of the Christmas movies. We have already watched Elf and the Polar Express at least half a dozen times this year. Christmas movies are just about the only movies I truly enjoy!

Ink pens that actually work

ponytail holders

hand lotion from Bath and Body works. Right now I'm using some vanilla something-or-other, but what I really want is to use peppermint. Alas, I'm out!

The Dave Ramsey Plan. Jeff and I are thinking about doing the 7 baby steps. Woo woo!

Christmasy clothes on little kids. Can't get enough!

fingernail polish remover

It sure is Monday.

2008-12-01T19:56:00.003-06:00

I'm a little embarrassed about the pity party I threw last week.

I thought about deleting that post, but just because I'm ashamed that I fussed, doesn't mean that I can pretend I didn't do it. Also, like my friend Crystal mentioned, I'll want to remember this particular Thanksgiving so I can laugh at it.

Anyhoots, as the lovely Janet Parkey has been known to say, "build a bridge and get over it!" And so I have.

Today, we were bored so we did mani/pedis. Sophie did the mani, Mads did the pedi.

Then, I let the girls have a bubble bath in the middle of the day.

They were having a "tea party" and I was reading Family Fun magazine. (Why yes, I am Nerd of the Year. Thanks for asking.)

All of a sudden Sophie squeals.

"Mads! Let's make mop water!"

Yes, we Ramseys sure know how to have a good time.

thanksgiving?

2008-11-28T20:48:00.002-06:00

I find it ironic that Thanksgiving Day was the day I found it the hardest to be thankful.

Let me back up.

We are all packed and ready to go to Mountain View as soon as Jeff gets home from work on Wed. About 30 seconds before he walks in the door, Maddie hurls. And hurls some more. She has fever, so Jeff takes her to urgent care.

Turns out, she has an ear infection and we decide to drive to Mtn. View early in the morning.

Jeff leaves to get her medicine and about 30 seconds before he arrives home, Sophie hurls. Big time. Uh oh.

We get them settled in bed and an hour later we are changing the sheets. Put Mads in our bed and end up changing those sheets. Then we change their sheets again. Are you keeping up?

About 4:00, Sophie starts again, only now it's my turn. Now I am the sick one. There will be no trip to Mtn. View this Thanksgiving. And because we thought we would be traveling, there is no food in our house either. Thanksgiving dinner was chicken noodle soup and/or applesauce. Boo.

I feel like "The Woman Who Ruined Thanksgiving". Look for it on Lifetime sometime next year.

10 Things Tuesday

2008-11-25T21:44:00.003-06:00

It's another thankful list!!! Tired of these, yet? Too bad! :)

Mad's awesome teachers this year. They are just so good to my little girl it chokes me up.
I get to see my Abby and Jude tomorrow!!!!! I miss those babies.
And, I get to finally hold my youngest nephew, Gabriel. (formerly known as Ike. Long story.)
The Wal-Mart wasn't all that busy tonight.
We live close enough to our family that we can drive to visit them. I've got to stop taking this for granted!
Hot chocolate. Ahhhhhhh........
Barrett's funny little e-mail today. I needed it.
Mom's health is improving! I'm so glad because she loves her some holidays and I was going to be super sad if she didn't feel good.
Pull-ups at night time. You know, just in case.
Black Friday is coming!!!!!!!

10 things Monday

2008-11-24T22:27:00.002-06:00

Today, I am thankful for:

Ballet is over until January! It's fun! It's cute! It makes me have to get dressed on Mondays, which was previously known as stay-in-your-jammies-and-catch-up-on-laundry-all-day day. Woo woo, I get my Mondays back. Until January.
Finished my alterations ahead of schedule. Now I can sew for ... you guessed it - funsies!
This bowl of maple and brown sugar oatmeal that I am eating at 10:30 p.m. I felt like I was starving. (notice, Mom, I didn't say I was starving. My mom told me never to say that, folks.)
My sweet husband who is snuggling a little girl with an earache on the couch right now. She looks content for the first time in about an hour.
We had chicken tortilla soup (Jenny B's recipe) for supper tonight. There are never any leftovers!
I don't have to pack lunches tomorrow. It's Thanksgiving feast day at the girls' school. (probably from Chik-fil-a. They love some chik-fil-a at the First Presbyterian Pre-School)
Fuzzy socks.
My kitchen is nice and clean. Even the floor is mopped!
Clean sheets. It's clean sheets day. No bugs in there today!
Jeff has a short work week. Hooray for him! One of these days, I'll have one of those ...

Free at last!

2008-11-23T21:48:00.006-06:00

Alright, dudes, this is the week that the nation is thankful, therefore I will be making 10 things lists every day until we leave for the big Mountain View (former home of Grandpa Jones).

Today, I am thankful for:

My parents got to come to church with us this morning! They never get to because they are always teaching at the old Center Hill C of C (and refuse to ask people to fill in for them).
I finished my last dress for 2008! From here on out I will only be smocking and sewing for funsies!!! Okay, at least through the holidays. And after I finish a couple of alterations. But then it's sewing for funsies!

My girls all had on matching dresses at church this morning. This makes me so happy! Do boy moms do this?

Speaking of boys, Maddie calls penguins - "bird-boys". Why is this on my thankful list, you ask? Hmmm... let me think ...well, she did say to Sophie, "hey, go stand by the bird-boy and I'll take your picture" and we laughed and laughed because a) we understood every word she said and b) she didn't have a camera. So, the answer is we laughed.

We have our Christmas tree up! We didn't do a whole lot of decorating, because we don't have any entertaining to do at home this year. However, Eliza is loving what we have. She walks up to the tree and stops and just cracks up. It's hilarious to her parents. And probably her grandparents, too, if they saw it. The rest of you would probably think it was wierd.

For the first time ever, we have Christmas lawn decorations! We finally put Lucy the scarecrow away and now have Lucy the penguin and Lucy the snowman. Currently they are sitting on our dining room table which makes it look very festive.

We sang some great songs at church this morning. That's always my favorite part of worship. Sorry, Brother Jimmy.

I ate an ENORMOUS waffle for lunch courtesy of Holiday Inn.

I had a pretty good hair day from the front! So it was kind of lumpy in the back, who cares. :)

I have a new Christmas c.d. - Chris Isaak. Fantastic.

Did you know...

2008-11-21T20:53:00.004-06:00

that the chick who wrote the Twilight books was a stay-at-home mother of three?

Jeff has had an odd look in his eye ever since we heard that little bit of trivia on the news tonight.

I'm fairly certain I'll be getting paper and a pencil for Christmas this year.

Dinner

2008-11-17T19:47:00.003-06:00

Me: Maddie, eat your peas.

Maddie: They taste like poop.

Me: They do not taste like poop. Eat your peas.

Maddie: They taste like chalk.

Me: They don't taste like chalk. Eat your peas.

Maddie: They are in my sleeve.

Me: They are not in your... oh, so they are.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-11-12T20:16:00.002-06:00

10 Things Thursday

2008-11-06T20:59:00.002-06:00

Things to be thankful for today!

My brother passed the bar!!!!!!!!! Way to go, Little Nekkid Danny!
Courtney kept Eliza and they had a great time. (So I was told ...)
I am now the proud owner of a fake tooth. hee hee (it will be Halloween every day from now on!)
The leaves are gorgeous, finally. The girls have had the best time playing in them. They even dragged their old nap mats outside and tried to take their nap out there. (no pictures because they also decided that they were too hot and, um, stripped. Sigh, one day we really need to teach them some modesty.)
We are going to see Nana and Papa and Uncle Greg tomorrow.
I had time to blowdry my hair today! And then I put it into a ponytail.
Talked to Jeff a lot during the day. We pretty much do this every day, and I am very thankful for this. It makes me happy. :)
The election is over.
The Holidays are here.
There is chocolate in my house.

Stuff we think is cool ... Nov. '08

2008-11-03T15:03:00.007-06:00

Currently, we are obsessed with ...

Spookley the Square Pumpkin. I'd never even heard of "square pumpkin" before this year, but let me tell you - he is it on a stick around here.

All things Tinkerbell, of course.

Our Christmas Countdown on the computer! Sophie and I love us some Christmas Cheer and spent almost an hour on-line yesterday, looking at lawn decorations. We think we have it narrowed down to a sparkly snowman (my fave) or a penguin. Because nothing says "Christmas Cheer" like a penguin in your yard.

Trying out new potato soup recipes. I found one that uses cream cheese instead of milk and it's our new favorite. Still not quite as good as Colton's, though!

Making funny faces.

Dum Dum suckers. Um, I do not share this obsession with my children.

"Spicy" candles

Eliza's new obsession - chocolate!

These songs: Alien in My Nose, Pop Fly, Jump Up, Pollywog in a Bog, and... the Dora theme song. You can't beat the classics.

Shout out to Mrs. Harr. Can you tell what these are? Thanks for the little bit of joy you sent us!

And, finally, am I the only one glad that Halloween is over? We had way too many festivals and such this year! Jeff and I dressed up. He went as "Handsome Daddy of 3" and I went as "Mommy in Need of a Haircut". (which is an improvement over last year's "Puffy Lady Who Just Had a Baby")

One last photo. This was a non-Halloween-related fall activity. (and I say, "hallelujah" to that.)

Our Sunday School Class did a Hayride. It reminded me of the old function days, although instead of holding hands under a quilt, I was holding little girls who weren't so sure about this whole hayride business. Of course, they ended up LOVING IT. Really, who doesn't?

51 Days til Christmas!!!!!!!

Love Song for Eliza

2008-10-27T18:30:00.005-05:00

Well, we celebrated/mourned Eliza's first birthday/passing of her babyhood.

Yes, I know the previous statement is odd, a little sad and depressing. Sorry.

Sigh ... the thing is ... here's the thing: In the past, when we celebrate a "first birthday", we are also celebrating (sometimes secretly!) a new Ramsey on the way. It's been a constant cycle. One baby literally walking away from babyhood, one baby on the way. I guess it just makes me a little blue to see a chapter of our lives come to an end. I'm so so so not good with change.

Sigh...

Oh, but folks, what a wonderful, wonderful blessing she is.

When we were telling people that we were having a third daughter, the most hurtful thing people would say was, "Huh. Are you going to try for a boy?" As if, write this one off and try, try again.

If only they knew how AWESOME it is to raise one gender. Sure they may all be girls, but they are three totally different people with totally different personalities. I love how individual they are and I also love when I see something they all have in common.

Eliza is our most snuggly little girl by far, she thinks she is hilarious, she is a sweet little buddha-belly. She'd be an asset to any family, but I am so grateful that God placed her in ours.

10 Things Wednesday

2008-10-22T23:12:00.006-05:00

What/who I am thankful for today ...

My friendly friend Heather, who lent me some equipment this past weekend. I especially appreciate it since she did all of this from her death bed .....

Chris and Polly Harrell, who graciously changed our small group from 4:30 to 7 so that we Ramseys and the Winters could attend.

I actually marked off all of the things on my work to-do list for the day. Woo hoo!

Visiting with J. Box today. It's just never boring. :)

Eliza has a bad case of diaper rash, but she didn't scream in the bath tub.

My new sweet cinnamon pumpkin hand soap.

I finally got my fall/winter clothes down from the attic. Okay, so I still wore jeans and a t-shirt today, but at least now I have options.

Dora's halloween dvd, so I could cook supper in relative peace.

We are having beans and corn bread for supper tomorrow night. And fried potatoes.

All the encouragement I have received the last few days. May God bless you all as you have blessed me!

3 Busy Days, 2 Tinkerbells, and a Sheep named Larry...

2008-10-20T21:10:00.003-05:00

What a busy weekend!

Friday we did the playgroup thang ... one of these days I will actually take a picture of this. These gals and their kids are so much fun and it's just chat, chat, chat, chat, chat, chat until time to go home. That night we went to set up my dreaded booth (that's right I said we. I have the awesomest husband on the planet.) Not the easiest thing to do with 3 little girls. I didn't take a picture because folks, it wasn't picture-worthy. It didn't really matter, though. I'll get to that part in a minute!

Saturday:

Get up at 5:30 to be at church by 6:30. I'm on the board for the Better Life Counseling Center and we had our fundraiser/bike ride. Register all the riders then it's off to ...

Stop, Shop, and Stroll by 8:30! Time flew by. I mean FLEW. All said and done, I did very well. Don't want to talk about it too much, because that's bad manners. But, I will say this - Seeing people decide that something I made from scratch was worth paying for ... gave me a strange feeling. I'm pretty sure it was pride, and being prideful is a sin, so I'm still working this whole thing out. Best-seller? This minky dress:

Then my little bro and his college roommate Greg Kendall-Ball came over. I have raved over Greg's photography forever and a day, so for an early Christmas present Danny asked Greg to take some photos of the girls. They were in rare form (read: devil spawn), but he somehow managed to get some amazing photos. I'll definitely share them as soon as I get them!

Sunday: Church, then Nana and Papa and Uncle Greg come over from the View to celebrate Eliza's birthday (a little early). Great visit and we even went shopping! The girls picked out some toys for Miss Poops and have spent the majority of the last 24 hours playing with the toys themselves. The 2 year old (I won't mention her name) even got frustrated when Eliza tried to play with them herself. Ah... Christmas ought to be fun this year ...

Then the fall festival at the girls' school. Sophie and Maddie were Tinkerbell squared and Eliza was a ladybug. Eliza was completely enchanted by the light-up pumpkin.I don't know what it is, but kids in costumes are just the cutest things. This is the best one with Maddie in it. The camera has been placed in time-out and promises to behave at the church fall festival.

After the fall festival, we ran home, ate a sandwich, and the kids got in their jammies. Then we went to small group! We attempted to do our Bible study while the kids watched a movie and ate popcorn in the playroom. And by kids, I mean all of the kids. I've been finding the aftermath in Eliza's diaper all day. (ooh, Danna, don't talk about such gross things!)

Oh, at Bath and Body Works they were handing out little fuzzy sheep if you spent X amount. Nana and I each spent X, so we got 2 sheep. Sophie named hers Angelina Ballerina. Annnnndddd.... Maddie named hers... Larry.

Need help

2008-10-15T22:19:00.003-05:00

This Saturday is Stop, Shop, and Stroll. I am a little stressed and ever-so-slightly behind with the dress-making, but that's cool. This ain't life or death, man.

Here is my delimma - I have a booth. Which means .... I have to set up said booth. Those of you who know me, know that this is my greatest nightmare. I have NO INNER VISION. Never give me a blank canvas, people.
Here is what I have to work with:
a table
some tall things that look like the sides of crates (courtesy of Mrs. A. Barrett)
Aaaaannnnnnnndddd ....... that's it.

Help! What should I do? IF this were you, how would you set it up? I have about 15-20 dresses to show, and I need to display my book of work and take orders.

IF this sounds like so much fun to you, we can have a date! Meet me at Highland Drive Baptist Church on Friday at 5:30, and we can knock this out and then I will pay for your supper. WOOO HOOO!

I'm a little desperate, folks.

Oh, and sorry for saying "ain't", Mom!

10 Things Tuesday

2008-10-14T19:18:00.003-05:00

10 Things I'm thankful for!

New friend (Cara) who watched my littlest one today.

I have now completed phase 2 of Danna's Teeth Make-over.

The lipstick that Maddie smeared all over her face this morning came off easily. (did I mention it was picture day?)

Running with Ashleigh. It is quite possible that we do more chatting than anything else, but fortunately - she is one of the most interesting people I know. And she talks more than I do. :)

Finding super-cute shoes that Eliza will wear.

Sophie wasn't feeling her best this morning, but still begged to go to school.

I'm going to bed early tonight!

Stop, Shop, and Stroll is this weekend!

Eliza's love of spaghetti. Look! It's the great pumpkin!
This election madness is almost over! Can I get an amen?

You want me to touch what?

2008-10-10T13:18:00.006-05:00

Sophie's Itinerary for a trip to the petting zoo:

Whack the backside of a sheep. ..........Check.

Snarl in the class picture. ......................Check.

Throw a bunny. .........................Okay, it was more of a toss, but - check.

Well done, Sophie! Sure, I wish you had petted the sheep, smiled in the picture, cuddled the bunny, but ...it's not easy checking off everything on a to-do list. Proud of you, girl! Glad you had fun! Maybe next year we won't scream and run away from the chickens ...

Oh yeah, you DID touch a sleeping pig!

Eliza had fun, too!

She's part goat, I think

2008-10-08T18:50:00.002-05:00

Did you hear the one about the 11 month old who ate the roll of toilet paper?

We'll let you know how it all comes out.

Probably goes real nice with that bath water she's so fond of drinking ...

10 Things Tuesday

2008-10-07T19:39:00.004-05:00

These aren't really 10 things I am thankful for, but really just a list of things that I love.

I love it when people say nice things about others when they aren't around.

I love footprints. It's weird. Don't care.

I love Eliza's new habit of backing up to Jeff and I and sitting on our feet.

I love the dollar aisle at the Target.

I love the ladies in our ladies' Bible study!

I love it that some of my girlfriends can look like a million bucks just rolling out of bed. (but I still roll my eyes at them.)

I love donuts for breakfast.

I love Maddie's new enthusiasm for krunk (sp?) dancing. She has got some rad moves. :)

I love it when my husband has the day off.

I love new shampoo.

October is for Pumpkins

2008-10-04T19:12:00.003-05:00

Today was Pick A Pumpkin Day!

First, the girls picked out the perfect Pumpkin picking outfits. (Hmmm... I wonder who Maddie's influence was ...)

Then we went to the Bennett's to look around.

Sophie got a tall skinny one.

Maddie got a short, really wide, "Cinderella" one.

They each got a baby one, for Eliza, they said.

Maddie informed me her pumpkin's name was Orange.

Sophie informed me pumpkins don't have names.

It was a good day.

7 Random Things

2008-10-02T20:21:00.003-05:00

I've been tagged.

Again.

And you know I love it, folks. Just one more reason to make a list!

7 Random Danna Factoids:

First thing I wrote on my to do list today was, "write to-do list".

I base the success of my runs on how stinky I am when I get home.

I love cream cheese so much, I have been known to lick the excess off the knife.

I have a phobia about bugs in the sheets.

After dropping off the girls today, I was buckling Baby Eliza into her seat and thinking about how we would turn her seat around soon .... and started crying. Right there in the First Pres. parking lot.

I wish ... I had a fancy sewing machine.

The pregnancies made me belly get poochy and my rear-end disappear.

Now I tag all you bloggers who say you have bloggers' block!

Some photos:

Dancing with the Poops "What exactly are you doing there, girls?" says Eliza.

Playing their new favorite game - "sleepover".

2 Things

2008-10-01T22:12:00.003-05:00

Alright, I have a couple of fun things to share today, kids.

Firstly (hmmm....is "firstly" a word? Maybe I should say first off or just a simple first. Why must I be so word-fancy? Now, where was I ....)

I was nominated for an award! I was nominated for an "I love your Blog Award" by my friend Julie. She's a dollface and so sweet for nominating me.

Now, I get to nominate four more! (This is sort of like a big "compliment tag".) It's difficult to just pick four, because I read every single one of the blogs on my blogroll when I get the time. Even though... I am a terrible commenter these days. Sorry, friends!

First blog I read a lot was Sandi. Her blog is a lot of things - sometimes funny, sometimes informative ... I've even shed a tear reading it. (And I hate to cry!) It's just a pleasant little blog.
Second one I'd like to nominate is Chandra. Our lives are totally different : she is the mother of one son - I have 3 girls; she lives right by NYC - I live in podunkville; she has good hair - you get the idea. But, despite all that, I think we might share a brain. (or at least a personality!)
Third is my friend Andria. She posts just about every day. Sometimes it's really goofy stuff and sometimes it's calm and reflective. Just like she is. :)
And fourth is Miss Kim. Just to read her "story" alone is worth a look at her blog. It's a good one, trust me!

And speaking of Miss Kim, mother of 3 Harrs, I won a fun game on her blog recently. It's the Pay It Forward game! The first 3 commenters on this post will receive something fun in the mail from me. Then, they will need to Pay It Forward themselves by posting and rewarding the first 3 commenters on their blogs! See, isn't that a fun little game?

Have a great day!

10 things Tuesday

2008-09-30T12:51:00.003-05:00

10 Things I am thankful for about living in Jonesboro:

I grew up near here, so every now and then I get a "blast from the past" when people come home to visit their families. That's always fun.
Cost of living is awesomely low. (Yet, still I fuss over finances. Don't worry, I'm turning that over to God. :) )
We live 5 minutes (or less) from a state park.
We are a part of an incredible church family.
Close to both sets of grandparents in case of emergencies!
Friends we can depend on to watch our babies in a pinch (like for haircuts, dr. appts., etc.)
We live less than a minute from THE SONIC, kids.
If we just have to have some city-life, Memphis is less than an hour away. However, the need for city-life is getting less and less each year.
Nobody makes fun of you for driving a minivan, because they've probably got one, too.
I may joke about our extra long summer, but pretty soon the leaves will be amazing, we might get some snow, and in the spring the flowers will take your breath away.

I've got some more fun blogging things to share with you, but it will have to wait until tomorrow!

A rant

2008-09-26T13:03:00.004-05:00

We all have mottos that we live our lives by that have nothing to do with our nationality or personal faith. Some I hope to pass on to my children such as "be kind to everyone" and "ALWAYS step out of the shower to pee".

Others seem to live their lives by this creed - "always put shoes on your baby".

Then, they like to push their constant-shoe philosophy onto me. Everywhere I go.

Granted, with each child I have gotten more lax about shoe-ing them. Now, folks, I am not anti-shoe. We have 2 big reasons why Eliza doesn't wear them more often:

Her foot keeps growing. We received some cute pink ones at the end of August that were too small. I took her in, fit her in the shoes, and exchanged them for the new pair. One month later the new ones are too small. I can't afford to keep buying her new shoes every month.

And, uh, she hates shoes.

Now there are small reasons like the hot weather, but really - what's the point? Most of the time she's on my hip in public. If I know she will be getting down, I'll put some shoes on her. (of course, then she just plops down on her booty and looks at me.) I just don't believe barefoot baby = negligent parent.

Just needed to get that off my chest. Stepping down from the soap-box . . .

Aunt Dusty Rocks

2008-09-24T20:05:00.002-05:00

My little sister, whom I have referred to on more than one occasion as my "practice baby", turned 16 today.

I love her very much and can't believe how awesome she is turning out. :)

Can't say much more than that, because I don't want my blog to cry.

10 Things Tuesday

2008-09-23T21:06:00.002-05:00

Alright, peeps, I'm feeling wordy. . . Today I am thankful for:

The dress I got for Maddie came in and it is twice as cute in person! Mads hardly ever gets new clothes, because a) she has cute hand-me-downs and I am way practical and b) she doesn't really care. But the mommy in me wants to make sure she gets something new every now and then. And, let's face it, I'm a sucker for chenille.
Girls' Night Out. Needed it.
A husband who encourages me to go to girls night out, before I strangle one of our fifty kids.
I didn't cancel my dental appointment. I usually do (and always want to.)
The girls are spending the night with my parents this weekend! It's called DATE NIGHT, folks.
Got lots of errands run today.
Sophie's new friends in her class. Today they met her at the door and grabbed her little hands and said, "c'mon, Sophie!" I don't really know why that made me feel so good. A mother worries, I guess.
I asked Mad who she played with today and she said," I played with Paula!" It's good to know that she loves her teacher... but, um ... okay, I should be thankful that she had someone to play with and stop stressing about it.
Finished two different Christmas dresses.
All this sunshine has been beautiful. Wish it was cooler, but I live in the south. We have about 2 days of spring, 7-8 months of mosquitoes and then the bitter cold rain (otherwise known as the muddy jean-cuff season). Evidently we are still in summer, no matter what the calendar says.

Oh me.

2008-09-17T11:00:00.001-05:00

Raise your hand if ...

You have ever washed a dirty diaper in a load of clothes and didn't realize it until you were unloading them from the dryer.

Please, please, please raise your hand so I won't feel like such a dumdum.

10 Things Tuesday

2008-09-16T19:32:00.003-05:00

Perfect running weather this morning. It was 56 degrees at 5:30 a.m. Perfect.
Ladies class this morning!
Met some new people at ladies' class.
Eliza only cried for about 10 minutes when I dropped her off during ladies class today.
And, my favorite thing, the prayer swap. This week I will be praying for Brooks; Sonya will be praying for me. Love it.
Jeff took the girls out for a while so I could get the kitchen floor scrubbed. I would choose scrubbing the floor, you ask? As long as I can get some time alone, I don't care what I am doing. :)
Found out a friend is expecting!
Found some pants that actually fit Sophie at the Target. Bought 4 pairs.
Ate fast food for lunch. And the fries were HOT. yum. Sorry if that is gross to anyone.
I think I have made a decision who to vote for. Now I just have to register ...

Overheard from the back seat:

Eliza - "ba ba aaa dada"

Maddie - "I already know that, Eliza!"

I must confess ...

2008-09-14T12:41:00.003-05:00

I still really love the song, "Hold My Hand" by Hootie and the Blowfish. Never got tired of it.

My handwriting is atrocious. If this was handwritten, you couldn't read it.

None of my tupperware lids match my tupperware containers.

I LOVE Christmas! Not the whole present thing, but the decorating and the songs and the movies and the food and the atmosphere ... We put up our tree before Thanksgiving last year.

I think Mariah Carey is over-rated.

I don't really have road rage, mine is more parking lot rage.

I honestly hated SEVENTH GRADE. Pretty much every day of SEVENTH GRADE.

I cannot pull off trends.

Some weeks, I go to the Wal-mart everyday.

I don't understand football at all. BUT, I like to go to games.

And now...

Scary Bow-Head!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This will probably be our Halloween costume.

Whoa -oh, here she comes

2008-09-10T19:33:00.005-05:00

she's a man-eater...

Yesterday, while picking up the girls, I stopped and talked to a friend of mine.

Sophie, my innocent angel, took this opportunity to say, "Carson, if you want to come over to my van, you can give me a kiss." I'm pretty sure her eyelashes were batting.

Obviously, I said, "atta girl!" and patted her on the back.

Are you CRAZY?! That is NOT what I did!

I hid my head in shame and vowed no more Hannah Montana.

In other news, these teething fevers have made Eliza lose her mind.

And here's a photo of her walking for out of town family. Ignore the mess. She loves pulling things off shelves these days.

That is all. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go put scarlet letters on all of Sophie's clothing.

10 Things Tuesday

2008-09-09T19:51:00.004-05:00

What I am thankful for today:

Maddie's teacher told me that she has been very good at school so far (3 days). Any parent of a 2 yr old understands the significance of this.

After living in a college town our entire married life, Jeff and I have finally decided to embrace ASU and become loyal fans. Go Red Wolves!!!

Tailgating was super fun this past weekend. I think we cooked almost 100 hamburgers and hot dogs! (I say we, but I didn't do any cooking, I just chased kids.)

Baby ibuprofen. Eliza has run a "teething fever" off and on for 2 days.

I heard two good dance songs while I was driving today: "shake your groove thing" and "vogue". And yes ... I was striking a pose at every stop light. I am that cool.

I also heard a song by the cranberries ! I loved the cranberries back in the '90's when I was still hip and relevant. ( wait... was listening to the cranberries ever hip?)

Ladies Bible study began today! I didn't get to go (see #4) but plan on being there next week!

I was invited to join MOPS (mothers of pre-schoolers) today. They meet during Sophie's ballet class so I won't make it, but it always feels so good to be invited to something. :)

The Cubs are beating the Cardinals right now. (that's for you, B. J.)

The girls already picked out their clothes for tomorrow and hung them on their door knobs ready to go. They don't .... match exactly, but still - time saved.

Sophie's Theology

2008-09-08T09:48:00.002-05:00

Me - "what do you think you'll learn in ballet today?" Sophie - "Well, probably nothing. It's not church."
Her cousin Abby - "Jesus lives in my heart." Sophie - " Um, I think Jesus is up there chasing cats, Abby."
Chasing Mads all over the house brandishing her wand. She finally catches her and whacks her with the wand saying. "You are in Christ!" Ah, one of my favorite Bible characters - the Salvation Fairy.

Pimp my lunchbox

2008-09-03T22:25:00.003-05:00

Remember when I said the girls picked out the cheapest lunch boxes at the Target?

They were also the ugliest.

Check it:

I pimped them!

Thank you Barrett for the monogramming. When did I become so cutesy-pootsy?

10 Things Tuesday

2008-09-02T19:18:00.005-05:00

Her are 10 things I am thankful for today!!!!

No tears when I dropped the girls off this morning. After watching Sophie all last year, Mads knew just what to do.

Seeing the other moms. Sometimes I think pre-school is just as good for me as it is for my kiddos.

Today, I got 2 pairs of Robeez for 15 bucks!

I haven't broken any needles on my pleater today. (of course, I haven't pleated anything...)

Mad pottied 3 times yesterday, with no accidents while we were home.

Our morning went really smoothly. (However, I was up at 5. The girls were up at 6. We might need to work on that part.) Here they are last year:and this year:

Both girls made new friends at school.

We are tailgaiting this weekend!!!!!!!! I LOVE tailgaiting!!!!!!

General Foods International Coffee - Cafe Vienna

My visit with my niece and nephew (and Nana!). What great memories we made.

I SURVIVED COUSIN CAMP - 2008!

2008-08-30T20:21:00.003-05:00

Do I get a t-shirt?

Actually, it wasn't bad.

What it was...

Busy
Exhausting (see: busy)
hilarious. My nephew has a future as a prop comic.
Educational. My niece informed my that the green stuff inside fried okra is actually celery. The brown stuff is the "okra". Did not know that.
A huge blessing to us and the kids. How often do you get to spend a whole week with your nieces and nephews?

Of course, Nana was here to help me. It kept everyone sane and tempers under control. NO ONE wants to lose it in front of Nana. :)

We had a million snuggles, read a million books, and sang "Come the Fountain*" at least a million times. Know what? I wouldn't trade it for a million dollars.

*Read: Come the Fount of Every Blessing. This is their highly unusual bed-time song. It is now a favorite with our girls as well!

Wordless Wednesday - Cousin Camp

2008-08-27T21:37:00.002-05:00

10 Things Tuesday

2008-08-26T20:08:00.005-05:00

I have been the world's worst blogger, lately. It's not like stuff hasn't happened daily (sometimes hourly!) that I want to write down. It's just finding the few minutes it takes to do it! I mourn all those funny and precious little moments that I have already forgotten. Got to do better!

Eliza turned 10 months yesterday so my thankful list is about her today!

I am thankful for :

Her buddha-ness (buddha-ocity?). It never fails, everywhere we go, people point it out.

she's doing some walking. Friday she walked all the way across the room. Since then she's had a case of the "jelly-legs". Our kids may not speak until 18 months, but they sure can move.

She goes with the flow.

She's become a much better traveler. Hip hip hooray!

She has 3 little ol' teeth.

She's not afraid of water.

She's still got a little separation anxiety. It's annoying and sweet all at the same time.

she cracks herself up. A bit like her momma in that regard ...

she will eat anything. This means veggies AND fruit! (and puzzle pieces and crayons and grass and paper and lint...)

Hair still blond, eyes still blue.

10 Things Tuesday

2008-08-20T22:01:00.003-05:00

What I am thankful for today!!!!

My recent reconnection with Julie Swaim. She is EXACTLY what God calls mothers to be. Fantastic example.
That funky orange dust on cheetos. Made it super easy to figure out who had fed them to Eliza. (it was Mads)
My parents' cattle farm. I actually had to buy ground beef today. I am thankful that I haven't had to do that in a really long time. I was spoiled when my freezer was full.
My niece and nephew are coming to stay with us!!!!!!!!
Marilyn Carter. Every now and then she sends me sweet cards in the mail. Nothing turns a bad day into a good day like cards in the mail!
Supper club last night. We had a great visit with the Holders and the Shumates, and I LOVE having company!
A clean house.
A full pantry.
Healthy children.
My hubs.

Bonus: I truly love the parents of my children's friends! I am so very thankful for this and hope that this is always the case!

First day of ballet

2008-08-18T22:00:00.004-05:00

Today was our first day of ballet. I say our because this was the closest I've ever come to ballet lessons. I learned a lot.
I learned that ballet shoes must be pink.
I learned that French is the language of the ballet (which meant that I didn't understand a word of what they said Sophie would be learning. Sandi, where are you when I need you?!?!)
I learned that it's very difficult to get my daughter's hair into a bun, so we settled on a wad.
I learned that wearing your ballet uniform to Chik-fil-a will earn you plenty of smiles and compliments. I'm pretty sure today was a success based on the Chik-fil-a experience alone.

In other news, I ate about a hundred funyuns today. Oh me, I love a funyun.

Overheard:
"Mommy can you get me a city, please?"
Me - Why do you need a city?

Wait for it...

"For my city player."

Get it? City (c.d.) player?

Ah, some jokes never get old. :)

Snippets ...

2008-08-17T23:24:00.005-05:00

Life has been something around here lately. Here are the things I want to remember:

Early Friday morning, I am awakened to the sound of Maddie yelling, "IT'S PARTY TIME!" (don't ask me why) I walk in to see her and this is what I find: The picture really doesn't do it justice, because it's cropped. Because the hat was the only thing she was wearing. That's right folks, evidently "party time" means wearing a princess hat and going starkers everywhere else. Must have been some party ...

Uncle Danny was here!!!!! They stopped by en route to London. The girls LOVE IT when they get to see Uncle Danny. I love to see him, too, but he's kind of a goober.

We drove by our beloved Optimist Park today and it was gone! The trees were gone and all of the old, scary, someone's-going-to-get-tetanus-or-worse playground equipment had disappeared! In it's place was a bunch of tilled up dirt. Sophie says, "oh good. Now they are going to plant some seeds and grow some good playgrounds." Let's hope so.

Speaking of Sophie pants, she had her big debut singing "Tomorrow" with the Horizon alumni kids. (Each year they do an alumni concert to benefit a CRA family dealing with grief or illness. It began 3 years ago when my mom was diagnosed. It's always big fun, like a reunion, only better because it's more than one class that comes back.) She did good! Of course I didn't get any photos of this because my camera was being pre-menstrual. Maybe someone else did and I can get one of those.

Got to see Andria! I just love her.

As has become the norm...

2008-08-14T07:12:00.004-05:00

Here I am thankful and it's not even Tuesday!!!!!

Things I am thankful for today:

I get to see my old (and I mean old, snicker, snicker) friend Andria tonight!!!!! I think I only had one kid the last time I saw her.

Sophie's burgeoning nurturing side. The other day all the girls were in the playroom and I was in the living room folding clothes. I hear Eliza start fussing, and before I can turn to walk in there, Sophie says, "c'mere shug. You're okay." Eliza quieted right down. She's really starting to take this oldest sister thing seriously.

Little Einsteins on t.v. so I can sit and write this.

Leftovers that Jeff can eat while the girls and I are gone this evening.

The girls picked the least expensive lunch boxes at the Target, yesterday! Whaat?!?!

My far-sightedness. I haven't worn prescription glasses since college. It's nice getting by with just those little reading glasses.

I get to see my little brother tomorrow before he heads to Europe! (wish I was going to Europe...)

Sophie is registered for school. They'd just misplaced her open-house letter earlier this week. (and I only had a minor panic attack )

Donuts for breakfast!!!!!!!!!

Olympics, baby! They've kept me up way past my bedtime each night, but I just can't seem to get enough of those awesome swimming wins in the last second or those little underage Chinese gymnasts. (who, evidently, are ripped away from their families at age 3... another topic)

We're raising gold medalists.

2008-08-09T19:43:00.003-05:00

Well, we Ramseys are doing the very same thing that every other person in the world is doing right now: watching the olympics and deciding which sport to push each of our children into so we can bask in all the glory. And get free tickets.

Eliza - her one talent seems to be her ability to reach things that are at least 30 feet away. Hmmm... maybe rowing? They need long arms, I think. And there are SO MANY opportunities for rowing here in Jonesboro (cough, cough). Maybe by the time she's old enough there will be an olympic sport where they shove inappropriate things in their mouth. She's awesome at that.

Maddie - we asked her what she wanted to do at the olympics (because we are not pushy parents) and she said, "okay", which we translated to mean she wanted to do lots of events so it's track and field for her!!! This will be her uniform:

Sophie - she wants to be a dancing Chinese girl/mermaid. Not exactly politically correct, but hey! someone is developing an imagination!!!!! We're pumped!

Here is Soph doing some Chinese acrobatics:

Remember tickle deodorant?

2008-08-07T22:00:00.005-05:00

Okay, I realized there is a huge generational divide between myself and my children today. They were playing with their pretend phones and were running around going, "say cheese, chair!", "say cheese, wall!"

Now of course, they had a major case of the sillies, so just ignore that.

But, could you have imagined as a child taking pictures with your phone? OR even having a phone that had no cord? That could fit in your pocket? I remember the first time we got a phone that was touch tone (ooh) not that dial thing-a-ma-bob.

Play phones were those pink plastic ones that the cords would get all stretched out and not make a pretty little spiral anymore. That is if the phone doubled as a microphone (as all aspiring Debbie Gibsons knew that it could) ...

Other things that doubled as microphones: Tickle deodorant, hairbrush, thumbs, one of the poles on my canopy bed, eating utensils, writing utensils... I'm pretty sure I never had a real fake microphone. My girls have two, and I expect Eliza to be asking for her very own any day now.

Fake camera phones? fake microphones? I am spoiling them rotten.

Maddie and Eliza under the dining room table where they spend the majority of their time. If you can't tell, they are posing for Sophie's phone. Not the best photo, but I don't like my blogs to be naked.

10 Things

2008-08-06T20:34:00.002-05:00

Today I am thankful for:

The girls are going to spend the night at Grammy and Granddad's Friday night.
ALL THREE OF THEM!!!!
I'm thankful that mom feels good enough to handle them.
Even though I am still figuring it out, I'm thankful for a computer that works like it should.
Ice makers, air conditioning, shorts (alright, I hate shorts, but ...), shade, popsicles, breeze
Our Sunday school class
My hubs working really hard doing something he dislikes (teaching class) to help bring about something he cares a lot about (getting people plugged in and involved at church)
Flip flops
Sophie's cartwheels, Maddie's drawings, Eliza's funny noises (things that made me smile today)
Indoor playgroup!!!!

102 degrees

2008-08-04T21:26:00.003-05:00

Boo to you, Arkansas August! From inside the house you look so pretty. Blue skies, fluffy clouds, shimmering sun. Poems are written about this very thing.

Walk outside and then you remember, ugh, it's all a ruse. It's not fantastic, it's oppressive. I swear I gain at least 5-10 pounds just from the humidity.

Guess how long we made it outside today! 10 minutes! And popsicle time took up probably 8 of those minutes.

In my book, it's crazy having cabin fever when the sun is shining. Fuss, fuss, fuss!

I did take some cute pictures of Eliza eating her first popsicle (like an old pro!) but blogger and this new computer are not getting along very well, and I can't seem to put any pictures on here. Maybe I'll figure that out soon. In the meantime, you can picture this: chubby little nekkid baby, devouring her intire popsicle and then attacking her sister's popsicle. Very funny. Should have known she would react that way. We Ramseys love us some popsicle.

*Update* Jeff figured out the picture thing!!!!

Excuses

2008-08-03T21:38:00.004-05:00

Ah, me. Remember the days when I could blog everyday?
My first excuse is that now that my pleater is in, I have been playing major catch-up on sewing and smocking.
My second excuse is that we got a new computer (finally!) and it's been a booger for me to learn how to use.
It's a laptop and for some reason, I can't seem to be able to use that little touch pad/mouse thingie. Jeff, out of devotion (and okay, probably a little bit out of frustration), went to the Wal-mart and got a wireless keyboard and normal mouse for me to use. Woo hoo! I don't like keeping up with the times. I was sad to see our big old monitor go, but I was really attached to the old school mouse.

We went to the Alyssa Edens/Randall Baber wedding last night. I love weddings! (side note: Sophie thinks weddings are shows about a princess named Mary. Even though she knows Alyssa, she called her Mary all night.) Got me to reminiscing again. Here we go ...

Stuff I remember about my wedding:

shut my veil in the car door and got grease all over it. Meta Winters miraculously got it out. Bothered everyone but me.
Had my hair "done", came home and brushed it all out. I just felt silly with fixed hair.
Don't remember much about the wedding. I thought I remembered Jeff tearing up, but then one day about 6 months into marriage he informed me that he didn't cry at all. Of course, I immediately start bawling and refuse to talk to him for a few hours (or days, who knows). He now says that he cried through the whole thing. :)
All we had packed were "Jamaica clothes", so after we left the wedding , we went to the Wal-mart and got sweatshirts to wear to the airport. Our one matching experience and we wasted it on gray sweatshirts...
I'd left my shoes at Ashleigh's house, so in most of the wedding pictures, I'm wearing my mom's shoes.
Dreaded the "you may now kiss the bride" part. Jeff and I both loathe pda.

I'm sure there's lots more important things that happened that day, but I only seem to remember goofy stuff. :)

10 Things Tuesday

2008-07-30T13:22:00.003-05:00

We had a visit from Nana, yesterday, so here are 10 things we are thankful for about her!

She had the quilt-tops that I made last year made into actual quilts. We LOVE them!

She reads books with us and asks questions. (Sophie)

She plays outside with us. (Sophie)

She laughs a lot. (Maddie, paraphrased)

She tells it like it is.

Her big heart. She takes on the roll of "Nana" to many, not just her biological grandchildren.

Her tolerance. The girls were in rare form yesterday (read: acting ugly). She did not berate me for my poor parenting.

My birthday presents yesterday. I know she wanted me to pick something a little more glamorous than a candle and a book, but those are things I never buy for myself. I love those big old candles from Bath and Body works and the book was Sew What Skirts. (Side note: I am now obsessed with those cute little skirts that the moms wear in Kelly's Kids that coordinate with their children. I know matchy-matchy is dorky-dorky, but I can't help it. I want to BE a cool Kelly's Kids mom...)

She thinks that I am smaller than I am. :)

She's always been so wonderful to me and has a great relationship with her son (Jeff). We love her so much!