Bedtime

Bedtime is always a source of stress for me. Getting the boys bathed, dressed, read to, and calmed down is quite a chore. Now with the sun staying out longer it is even harder to drag them inside for bedtime.

We made a decision to have the boys share a bedroom. We bought bunk beds that are two double beds so they have plenty of room to grow into their beds. Do they use all of this room? Well, yes and no. Both boys either sleep in the bottom bunk or the top bunk...together. After tucking them in I turn off the light and walk down the hallway. I can hear little giggles and lots of shuffling. They are changing beds. This happens several times each night. The boys will start off in the bottom bunk then shift to the top bunk. One of them will have to go potty so then they will move on down to the bottom bunk. It goes on like this for a while. We also hear lots of "Stop it's! and Get off me's!, but mostly it is giggling.

Some nights it is frustrating to get them to settle down with several trips to their room to quiet them down. I keep reminding myself that these noises are good. They like each other. They are sharing with each other. They want to spend time together. I just need to remind myself of this at 10pm when they are still awake giggling!!!

Wilson Creek

Over the weekend we went to my parents house to celebrate my Mother's birthday. We had a wonderful weekend. Tod actually broke the son-in-law rule and beat my Dad at golf. Big no-no! After all was forgiven we continued to celebrate with a juicy steak and great wine.

On Sunday we headed up into the mountains to a place called Wilson Creek. On the way up we actually saw a beat up pickup truck with a bumper sticker that said, "I'd Rather Be At Wilson Creek!" Hmmm..must be an interesting place! Well, it was an amazing place. As we headed off the paved road and creeped along the creekside dirt road the scenery changed. A wild area of rapids, waterfalls, and big boulders jutting out over the creek. A perfect place for little boys to climb and mothers to worry!

Jacob and Brady loved climbing on the rocks and throwing sticks into the creek. My Dad took lots of pictures.

A group of four kayakers unloaded their gear and launched into the creek from where we were sitting. My Mom chatted with them and found out they were from Canada and just came down to kayak down Wilson Creek! The boys were fascinated. One man allowed Jacob and Brady to sit in his boat. As you can tell by the look on their faces...they loved it.

The kayakers went down the first little waterfall and chatted with the boys. Made them feel like a part of their adventure.

And...drumroll please... here is a very rare family photo!! Brady wasn't too happy because he wasn't quite finished with his sandwich and it was starting to rain.

Snow Bunnies!

Well, it's been about eight years since I have been skiing. It's about time! My very dear friend, Tracy and I decided to take a trip into the North Carolina mountains and see if we could conquer the slopes. Neither of us had skied in a very long time so there were no expectations of "swooshing" down the mountain.

Tracy failed to inform me that she is a MUCH better skier than me! The first run was pretty easy. We stayed on the easiest slope for a while. Then we ventured to the midway point. I tumbled down the mountain until we reached the easy slope. Then it was smooth sailing.

Here we are on the ski lift.


You can't tell, but it was really crowded. What a beautiful day!



After about two hours of skiing we were so hot! We went back to our locker and took off most of our layers. On the way out we passed the bar and had to have a little liquid courage to go to the top of the mountain!!



We skied for the rest of the afternoon and had such a good time. Tracy gracefully skiing down the mountain and me creating the snowball effect behind her! It has been three days since our trip and I am still sore with a huge bruise on my knee. Whenever I feel the soreness I just remember how much fun it was to spend the day with my friend!

Such Posers!

I promised my Mother-in-law that I would post some pictures of the boys. Here are a couple of pics of them totally posing for the camera. Ususally they make silly faces or stick their tounges out!! Enjoy, Connie!

What do you want to be?

I always ask the boys what they want to be when they grow up. Brady is pretty consistant. He just figured out what he wants to be. I do wonder if it will change like Jacob's has. It seems like each year Jacob's dream job changes.

Brady (Age 4) - I want to be a Garbage Truck Driver!

Jacob (Age 4) - A Superhero!

Jacob (Age 5) -A Pet Store Owner!

Jacob (Age 6) -A Rock Star!

Jacob (Age 7) - A Banker! Like Dad.

Negative Nelly

We all have that person in our life. We have that Negative Nelly or Negative Nelson that keeps our feet firmly planted on the ground. It seems like when I want to try something new or accomplish something for myself I receive lots of "Really?"'s and "Are you sure you can do that?"'s from this person. It gets very frustrating. I would much rather hear, "Great!", "I know you can do it", or even a "Wow! You will do great with that!"

When you hear something negative does it discourage you or let it fuel your fire? Do you stop and say, "they are right, I can't do it." or do you have that "Ha! In your face!" moment. I wish I could be that "in your face!" person. Even if I do prove someone wrong I don't rub it in. I just take a moment and sit and bask in my own private glory.

I have to admit having this Negative Nelly friend sure makes me a better friend. I know what it feels like to be shot down and want to make sure I don't make others feel the same way. It is easy to be discouraging, but it is hard to break someones SPIRIT!

Climbing Mountains

After accomplishing one achievement, my brother-in-law, Jim, decided to award himself with yet another achievement. In December Jim completed his MBA! After three years of going to school in the evenings, class trips to Costa Rica and China to help understand their business models, and many papers, exams and sleepless nights, he certainly deserved an award. Jim, who is not a sit-still kind of guy, didn't want a party. Didn't want to just sit back and relax. He hopped on a plane the day after Christmas and headed to Africa. The goal....to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. I cannot wait to hear all about his adventure. As you can see by the picture he made it to the top! We are all so proud of you, Jim! It's obvious...there is no limit to what you can do!