Promise finally kept

I have been promising my Mom and Dad that I'd be posting pictures and videos of the kids for the last couple of weeks....and well...have never gotten around to it. So...here is a deluge of videos and pictures. Enjoy!!

On Thursday the 22nd, Kendall had surgery on her left thumb for trigger finger/thumb. She did great!!! She didn't even cry or get sick coming out of anesthesia. And the cast she is now wearing (at least until Monday when it comes off) hasn't slowed her down one bit... Here are some pics and a video.


Kendall with "Puck" (her new blue bear she got at the surgery center on the day of her surgery) and Bippo (on the pillow).


Daddy and his little girl...

Daddy and his little girl...who is beginning to get a bit loopy...as the video below shows... They give the little ones a combination of Motrin and Veristat (much like Valium) about 20 minutes before they bring them back to the operating room. The combination helps "calm" them down and makes it so that they can give them the anesthesia to knock them out completely once they are back in the o.r.


On Saturday night, the 24th we took Mom out for dinner at Ruth's Chris for her 60th birthday. It was great!!! Here are some pictures after we all stuffed ourselves silly...

Jeff and I after dinner for Mom's birthday.

My (goofy) Dad and Mom.

Todd and Aunt Nita.

My big sis, Denise, and I.

On Sunday the 25th, Mom and Dad came with us to the circus which was in Jacksonville. We had a ball!!! The kids were fascinated...as was I...about all the stuff going on! I haven't been to a circus in YEARS and I truly enjoyed myself!!!

Kendall waiting for the circus to begin.

Daddy and Carson (who smiled as soon as the picture was taken of course...)

Mommy (looking like the clown she is...) and Carson.

Daddy and his little ones.

Daddy and Carson...the back of my head and Kendall

Carson was being a goof ball...trying to "feed" Jeff popcorn...as seen in the following video:

One of my favorite things at the circus was the elephants. Dad got this video...it was amazing!!! As Jeff said to me...we can't even get Rally to sit and look what they can do with elephants!!!

And last but not least...here are a few videos from Kendall's gymnastics and ballet classes. She is starting to really enjoy herself!!! :)

Oh...and as to my weight loss update - as of Monday night I had lost a total of 7.2 pounds!!! I'm officially under 180! Only .2 pounds under 180 - but I'll take it!!! :)

Weight Loss Update

Even after the two servings of breakfast & 2 chicken soft tacos for lunch on Saturday at Epcot...and the two hot dogs with McDonald's french fries for lunch and waffle ice cream sundae before we left Magic Kingdom on Sunday - I still managed to lose weight this week!!! So...my total weight loss so far is 4.4 pounds!!! Woo Hoo!!! Only 2.7 more pounds and I'm officially under 180 again!!! Lets hope this week is a big one!!! haha

On a negative note...we had to say goodbye to a member of our family today...

This beautiful Grandfather clock that we bought just a few months before we were married was knocked over and destroyed by our two loving...playfull...and amazingly still alive dogs. The glass on the front was completely shattered...and the entire frame of the "box" is cracked and jarred. As far as my uneducated eyes can see...there is no hope of fixing it... Now we just need to determine if it is worth filing a claim with our home owner's insurance or not... Unfortunately - we cannot entirely blame the dogs...because Jeff and I never anchored the clock to the wall...so it is partially our fault as well...that must be why there is still skin attached to the backs of the dogs right now...

Weekend in Orlando

I'm exhausted. Isn't vacation supposed to be relaxing and rejuvenating? I guess that walking and standing for almost 8 hours straight for 2 days in a row, lugging children and all their stuff, fighting crowds like I've never seen before would do that... Ahhh...Orlando! Ahhh...the sunshine and warm weather (except on Saturday - when the high only got to around 60 something - so the in morning it was only around 40 something). Ahhh...the throngs of people that had the same bright idea as we did and went to a Walt Disney World theme park...

Saturday we went to Epcot. The kids have never been there before, and Jeff and I haven't been for like 16 years. We had reservations in Norway for breakfast with the princesses...so we were literally walking into the theme park as they were opening the gates at 9am. Then...there were crowds of people all in Tomorrowland being held back by a rope. We told some Disney employees that we had reservations for breakfast and they let us through. It was so weird...it was like we owned the park. For about 5 minutes we were seemingly the only family in the entire theme park...until they finally took down the rope and let everyone through. Anyway - here are some pictures from our day at Epcot.

Kendall and Carson looking at a waterfall as we waited our turn to go into breakfast.

Kendall meeting Belle (from Beauty and the Beast) when we first walked into the restaurant.

Carson taking a big-boy sip from Daddy's water glass.

Kendall looking for the princesses as they were making their way through the dining room.

Kendall and Mulan.

Carson & Mulan.

Mulan made a lasting impression with Carson...just look at his cheek. :)

The kids and Jasmine (from Aladdin).

The kids and Aurora (from Sleeping Beauty).

Kendall and Snow White (although Jeff and I think that the girl that played Snow White was by far the prettiest of the princesses...she was also the most aloof...she gave Kendall a hug after this...but it seemed she didn't want to get as close to all the kids as the other princesses).

Kendall standing by a pillar in Italy.

Carson in one of his rare "free" moments (not being strapped into the stroller).

And this is why it was a rare free moment... (no...he didn't make it in the fountain...)

Kendall and her "pirate" hat.

Daddy found a hat he liked too...

While Daddy was riding the Mission Earth ride, I let the kids run around a bit on a little grassy hill.

Overall - Saturday at Epcot was fantastic. It was a little cool in the morning when we got there, and in the evening as we were leaving - but it was beautiful blue skies and there was hardly any crowd there at all. As I was getting Kendall into her pj's that night - she said to me "Mommy, I had a lot of fun today." I said "You did?" She said "Yes. Can we do it again tomorrow?" So cute!!!

So...Sunday we went to Magic Kingdom. It was a little warmer...okay...a LOT warmer that day. The high got into the mid seventies I think. And...the crowd was a LOT bigger!!! There was hardly any room to move it seemed... The lines to ride the rides were a minimum of 30 minutes all the way up to an hour or more! There was even a line to change diapers in the bathrooms!!! And as amazing as it was...we even ran into some friends we knew. With all the thousands and thousands of people that were there on Sunday...we ran into Matt and Kristin D. and their two girls (I didn't even think about taking a picture...which I now regret...). Anyway - here are some pictures from Sunday.

Daddy and Carson on the train.

Mommy and Kendall.

Daddy and Kendall standing in line to ride the tea cups.

Daddy and Kendall in the tea cup getting ready for the ride.

Kendall being unusually still for a moment at an area in Disney for the kids to play on slides, etc.

Carson on Daddy's shoulder's as we waiting in line (do you detect a theme here...) for the carousel.

Kendall waiting in line...

Daddy and Kendall taking a much needed break on a bench. No...that isn't coffee Kendall is drinking...it is milk in a coffee cup.

As exhausted as we all were on Sunday as we were leaving...the kids still managed to show more energy than I would have though they had left on the ferry boat back to the parking area.

If there was any question that we had fun...these videos will show that if nothing else...Kendall had a ton of fun. :)

It took almost the entire walk back to the car to convince her that we had to go home. What finally did it...was telling her that if we stayed at Disney she couldn't play with her train set or play kitchen she got for Christmas. Then...it was okay to go home... What a cutie!!!

Gymnastics & Ballet for Kendall

Last week Kendall finally began gymnastics and ballet classes. I've been dying to get her into something like that for a long time...but because her birthday is at the end of the year, she had to wait until January to start. Anyway - the first two videos are of her in gymnastics "stretching".... And the last two are of her in her ballet class. She is SOOO cute in her little leotard!!! Each of the videos was filmed outside of a door or window...so you won't hear much that is important...just me talking to Carson or other kids in the hallway where I was.

Confessions, Part 2

A while back I confessed that I am a chronic nail biter...that still hasn't changed. However - I now have acrylic nails that inhibit me from doing any damage. I still occasionally nibble on my fingers/cuticles...but really only when it is time for me to get my nails fixed. BUT...I know that unfortunately - it will take a much longer time for me to get to the point that I will stop biting...

So...now for confessions Part 2. I'm going to be very honest here...which I might end up regretting in the future...but if I can't be 100% honest about this...then I'm obviously not ready for what lies ahead...

I LOVE food. I always have. Thankfully, for years I've been blessed with a good metabolism, and haven't had to worry too much about what I ate. That is until about 10 years ago...and then it started really catching up with me. When I left my ex-husband 8 1/2 years ago, I was approx. 175 pounds (only 10 pounds more than when I had graduated college 4 years earlier). When Jeff and I started dating, about 6 1/2 years ago, I was still approximately the same weight (but I had been taking a kick-boxing class for about 3 or 4 months before we met). About 2 years after Jeff and I met, we got married...and I was then about 185. When I got pregnant with Kendall (about a year later), I was 195. Just before I got pregnant with Carson, Jeff and I went on a diet and I got all the way down to about 165. I felt GREAT!!! My clothes felt good...I was wearing sizes I hadn't worn since college...it was wonderful! Well...I've been a bit lazy since Carson was born...and I am now 187. Not TOO bad, I'll admit, seeing as I'm 5'10"...but it is getting to the point that a lot of my size 14's are pretty tight, that I have "muffin tops" hanging out over my pants, and that a lot of my shirts always seem to be a bit snug (and I REFUSE to go out and buy any size 16s). Now that I am making cakes all the time (if things continue to go well), I just know I will end up eating more and getting bigger. So...my friend, Kelly, and I went to our very first Weight Watchers meeting on Monday night (and no...this isn't a "resolution"...just each of us are fed up with what we look like in the mirror). Today was my first official day on the diet. It was hard...I won't lie. What is especially hard is figuring out dinners... Jeff and I have a lot of processed foods around (Hamburger Helper, Taco dinner kits, Stuffed chicken entrees, etc.) and I go to those a lot on those nights when I can't hardly breathe due to the energy of the kids. Well...I can't really do that anymore. They encourage small goals...that way they are easy to reach. So...my first goal is 170, which is about 10% weight loss. My FINAL goal...is going to be around 155-160...I'll decide when I get there...all I know is that I want to be completely in size 10s, with a few size 8s even fitting. Anyway - I'll document my journey along the way...and hopefully by 2010 I can say I met my goal! Personally...I just hope that by my sister's wedding I'll be to the 170 mark...6 months and 17 pounds - only 3 pounds a month...that should be doable right?!?!

So...if you are ordering a pizza anytime soon...have a few slices for me! :)

Happy New Year!!!

As I was sitting down at my computer this morning, I immediately reached for the calendar I have been using for the past 12 months to see what was ahead for the rest of this week. That is when I realized...I can officially close 2008 and officially open 2009. Wow. Anyone who reads our blog knows what a year 2008 was for our family. Needless to say - Jeff and I were very happy to see an end to 2008. Not only personally, but professionally for Jeff - as with the market being down so far where it is - it makes his work extremely stressful.



I've never been one for resolutions...in fact...I did make some "goals" at the beginning of last year - and I think I can honestly say that I didn't fulfill one of them. But isn't that what life is like...we can make as many plans as we want, but then God laughs and says "Nope. That isn't my plan for your life. Try this one on for size." And of course, He is always good and knows what is best for us, even if we think the path we have gone down is not the right one for us...God knows that it is.



So as I open my calendar for 2009, I see where I've filled in details for the days. Kendall's gymnastics and ballet classes, the kids pre-school, doctor's appointments, trips out of town, Junior League meetings and commitments, holidays. And I also see where apparently one of my children got a hold of my calendar and managed to scribble in black ink over a quarter of 10 of the 12 months...and it makes me laugh and think back to what I said above. No matter how orderly and organized I've tried to be with my new calendar...God, in his infinite wisdom, always throws you a curve ball and says "Try this one on for size."

So - here's to having an eventful, happy, and filled with love 2009. Happy New Year from our family to yours!