Roomies

My cousin Josh has been staying with us since the end of May and his dog Lola.  If anyone had to live with us for 5 months then I would choose Josh (probably no to the dog next time) but I am very happy he has found an apartment and roommate and has an awesome job at Jersey Mike's.  :)  And now I have a baby-sitter who owes me a few favors.  The boys will miss you Uncle Josh!

He played baseball in College, aka a REAL baseball player to my boys.

He has a HUGE tv that you can play games on...

And he know how to skateboard.  

Not pictured - he plays the guitar and likes to fish.  All things that I do not specialize it.  

Don't turn around...

I was downstairs getting Theo some milk for bed…

"Ohh gosshhh, noo Theo.  DAD! Uh oh, hahaha, oh no Theo… Dadddd!"

"Beks, you gotta come see this.  We need some back-up."

Halloween Prepping

We have been gearing up for Halloween over here!  After some serious push from Jackson, we stepped up our game and got some new outside decorations and finally hit up the pumpkin patch today.  We have already pulled out the costumes and had a few parades and parties.  This year we have Hulk Smash, Spiderman (the ever present) and maybe a dinosaur, but probably Superman.

Sophie and Farris joined us for our neighborhood parade / party!

They had lots and lots of cupcakes and Theo could reach the table and there was an older lady who thought he was super cute and was more than happy to give him anything he couldn't reach.  

Making Halloween cookies at Grandmama & Grandaddy's house.

Ganyard Hill Farms!  The photo didn't go as I had planned, but they have grown, check this out.  And dad went with us this year, sooo much easier when dad comes!

Children of the corn.  Chillin.

Checking out the corn maze, plotting our path.  

And the corn maze was no joke.  Sending out an SOS! And we were both pumped to find a dirty old paci in my pocket.  

The Fair!

I like to go to the fair and eat fried Oreos until they no longer even taste good.  You only get them once a year so this is very necessary.  This year was a success.  The big bros and I met my parents there this week, the weather was beautiful and it was not too crowded.  They did a few rides, played a few games and then finished with a walk through the candy tent.  We all left a little cracked out and happy.  Theo got to hang with our cousin/roomie Josh for the afternoon.  Maybe next year you lil maniac, maybe.

Fair Monkeys!

It took Nash a while to warm up to the rides and loud noises at the fair.  Just before we were about to leave he decided he was ready to ride-ride-ride.  

Jackson won a Samurai sword, just what we needed!

I do ride rides.   My boys usually want to ride with Tat or Will so I get to watch but every now and then I get asked for a super scary one.  I thought it was fun!

Winding down...

I got home from a meeting tonight and was looking forward to the kids already being asleep.  Or this.  The bedtime struggle is real.  

Weekend Fun

We had a super fun busy packed weekend.  I was a tiny bit glad when Monday rolled around.  I just can't hang anymore.  Highlights included…

Dinner at 411West with my favorite people before a 10 year Reunion at The Crunkleton and then Bob's because well, it only happens every 10 years…  Things I am thankful for - no Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. when I was in college.  

This guy awoke right when I got home.  We enjoyed some late night grub together and thankfully both passed out.

Rise and Shine, it's soccer time.  Go Fireflies.  It is looking like we have ourselves a good little defender.  And a snack loving goofball head, but we already knew that.  

'Welcome to Jersey Mike's sirrr, what would you like? Meatballs and Mountain Dew?'

It was beautiful on Saturday so after soccer we headed straight to the park in hopes of burning some energy and maybe taking a nap or two.  It didn't work.  

Saturday afternoon some dear friends had a tailgate / birthday party at their gorgeous house downtown.  It was complete with a Trolly Stop Hotdog Stand!  Yep, you read that right.  Glorious day I tell ya.

Hut, Hut, Hike!  These guys played football all afternoon and then headed home to snooze.  I was a tiny bit jealous but got to go to a Tarheel football butt whooping.  Go Heels!

After church on Sunday we headed to a Heels baseball scrimmage for a birthday party.  Another amazing fall day.

Pizza and cookie cake and baseball and sunshine.  The best.

We had to leave early to go to Chuckee-Cheese!  More birthday parties, more pizza and cake and games.  And Nash asked me to take a picture with him.  My weekend was made.

Great Wolfing...

It's October and you know what that means around here, GREAT WOLF LODGE.  Jackson and Nash headed to Great Wolf for grand-daddy's Judges conference.  Cousins Farris and Sophie went and it was 'soooo coooolll, you already know that mom!'  Yep, they had fun.

First stop, chic-fil-a!

Group shot!  Nash-a-roosky has come a long way!

8 years!

Yesterday Charlie and I celebrated 8 years of marriage.  How cliche can I be, but really every year somehow gets better and better.  We celebrated with a couples massage and an awesome dinner  at One Restaurant.  This place lives up to its fancy-shmancy hype.  Cheers to 8 years!

After 8 years he also looks better than when we got married, little punk.  

Field Trip

The Creekside Kindergarten classes went to the Pumpkin Patch today and I was lucky enough to be able to chaperone.  They went to Browns Farm, which was a haul, especially on a bus, but worth it.  They had the entire place to themselves to walk through the corn maze, feed the animals and take a hay ride.  J-man wasn't really as pumped as I thought he would be and when I took him home he said, thank-goodness that bus was just making me feel weird.  I think home-boy might get a little car sick, he comes by it honestly.  HERE is his first pre-school pumpkin patch.  A reminder to keep plugging along with this little blog.

Still my sweet boy.

weekends

There are only a few hours between late Friday night and early Saturday morning.  This is something I am getting a little better at remembering.  And Saturday morning pictures are a whole lot cuter!

The SECU Family House Gala.  Woody Durham photo bomb.  :)

Coach Nash in his ever present Superman shirt and new spider socks, tis the season!

Wickedly Handsome Theo, put me in coach!

Go Jackson go!  Got himself an assist and a goal this week. Finally stopped raining!

hair flow

Someone wasn't feeling the haircut yesterday.  I also liked his blonde mullet but the other dudes in the family said it had to go.  He now looks like a real little boy and I don't like that one bit either.

But I don't wanna cut my hair mom!!

Sure I'll eat this sucker but nope still don't like it.  

Theo Likes...

At almost 17 months Theo likes…

MOM - I have never seen a brighter smile when I walk in the room.  He loves to snuggle and rub my hair and give me super slobbery snotty sticky kisses.  He yells out 'MOM' with his arms wide open to be picked up most of the time.  He can also say Geta (Greta), Hot (and blow snot on his food), Cracker (all food), Lala (water), Bye-bye (with a pretty serious wave and slobbery kiss blow).

Books - He loves a good board book and will climb right up in your lap to read it.  You have to be quick, he is quite the page turner.

Climbing - On his toys, chairs, the kitchen table.  Yesterday I tried to go to the bathroom and heard the clinking of what I thought was the light above our tall kitchen table.  It was.  Talk about that bright smile when I walked in…

Breakfast - This dude usually wakes up first and has a waffle for breakfast and then he has an oatmeal breakfast with his brothers and then he eats the breakfast bar I am trying to eat for breakfast and then he makes eggs with daddy and eats them too.  I am not kidding.

Outside - Jumping in puddles, throwing balls, being chased, going to the park, pouring sand all over himself.

Brothers - He loves when his brothers come in and get him from his nap or when they get home from school.  He copies (yells) everything they say and mimics all that they do.  It is awesome and scary to watch.

These are just a few of the things that I don't want to forget.  We won't talk about the late night / early morning wake-ups or the throw your body on the floor tantrums.  I have learned they come with the territory.  All in all Theo is turning into such a handsome outgoing happy little rascal.

No naps, No problem.

Crazy Hair, Don't Care.

boys

They drive me insane.  Sometimes I want to scream at the top of my lungs, can everyone please stop talking and not touch me for 5 minutes!  That is the PG version.  Instead they remind me to take a deep breath and count to 4.  Nash says he likes to count to five, it works better. Thank you for this Daniel Tiger.  Thank you boys for loving me so good even when I am at my wits end.  Your mama loves you - more.

The Rain Gang. 

Sometimes they (me) have to get outside.  

October!

I love October and it crispness in the air, the smell of bomb fires, the sound of a high school football band, and the taste of a warm apple crisp.  And rain.  Oh nope, not the rain part, which is all we have gotten so far.  I mistakenly ventured to Pinterest today and looked up some 'what to do when you are stuck inside with your kids ideas.'  I don't think the people who come up with these ideas actually have kids or maybe they do but they don't have dirty wild fighting loud boys.

1st up - Shaving Cream Art…  Simple enough.  You put shaving cream on a baking pan and then you can put dots of food coloring to 'paint.' This helps with your child's sensory processing all while having fun.  Or you could just squirt shaving cream in their mouth and poor food coloring all over your clothes, really it is up to you.

Boom.  Take that Pinterest.  Shaving cream in the bath tub where is belongs.