Jessie just came to me and told me that she is scared of bats that might be outside in the dark. We prayed for protection and that they go away. Well, that got it started because then we had to pray to be safe from spiders, sharks, turtles and alligators. Not sure on the turtles, but I just went with it.

After our nap today, I got up with a low-grade temp. No other real symptoms, but we still wanted to keep the kids away just in case. Jessie wanted to snuggled and Boyd told her that I had germs. She went off to play for about 10 minutes then climbed up and looked at me for a couple of minutes.

I noticed she kept looking at my stomach. I asked her what was wrong and she asked, "Mama, you have worms in your tummy?" We had a laugh and corrected that we had said germs, not worms. She was really concerned about me having worms.

She gets props for putting everything in perspective. At least I don't have worms!

Nine years ago tonight, we checked into the hospital to start the process of having Dalton. To say that time flies is one of the greatest understatements of life.

Why every family needs a dachshund. Most tolerant dog on the planet.

My 3-year-old is a salsa fan. Tried to offer her the cheese dip, but she said she wanted the red bowl back.

In car after church:

Boyd: Jessie Anne, no hitting your brother. Santa is watching. Do you think it makes Santa happy when you hit your brother?

Jessie: Ummmmm, yes!

Ninjabread men are here to save the day!

Just had one of those how-kids-are-different-these-days moments. Dalton and I were calling in to the local morning news show trying to win one of their holiday giveaways. After a few calls, he asked me why my phone kept beeping at me.

It was the busy signal. My almost 9 year old had never heard one before.

Jessie and I are watching The classic Rudolph cartoon. We are sharing our big green chair and she just leaned over, hugged me and told me that I'm her best friend.

I'm glad she can't understand that I would give her absolutely anything she asked for at this moment.

I have yet to ever see Jessie as excited and delighted as she was at our princess dinner at Akershus.














My favorite part (other than Jessie's endless giggles) was when she told Snow White that she likes her slippers. No idea where she even learned the word slippers, but she liked the glittery ones - Snow White said it was diamond dust.

Always have fun playing the drums at Epcot.

Just to clarify something with the Disney pictures. Jessie Anne totally wasn't feeling the masked character like Mickey & all his friends. She loved anyone with human faces like the princesses. She was quite giddy actually.

I understand this is quite common with the younger set, but it was a first for our family. She wanted to high five the masked characters, but nothing more.

Well, until the last day at breakfast when there was an amazing Donald Duck who managed to get this hug with her. He was quite pleased with himself when he learned what an accomplishment it was.

Character meals are the only way to do Disney. Totally worth the price to have the characters come around to you.

Before her first day in the Magic Kingdom.

I just transformed a Transformer without even thinking about it. I've been a mom for too long now.

Bugs Life is so much fun!

Something is very wrong here. Boyd just handed me the giblet packet to put on to boil, but instead it was a package of frozen gravy!

So not cool!

Maggie just told Jessie that she could help her with her belly button leak. We were all in the kitchen, so we were quietly checking this out when Dalton said, "Maggie, it's lint, not leak!"

Good thing because a belly button leak sounds pretty serious.

That pretty much sums it up.

I honestly don't think there is anything in this world quite as wonderful as when my 3-year-old asks me to dance.

Sorry for the absence! We have been on vacation, and I have lots of wonderful pictures to share, but my app is not wanting to upload my pictures right now, so I'm even more behind.

I will get you all caught up soon!

This is just so . . . Maggie.

She really does like tortillas. Plain. Will eat them alone for breakfast any morning we will let her.

Boyd and I are listening to a conversation in the next room between Dalton & Maggie. They are discussing whether Dora & Boots are boyfriend and girlfriend or just friends. Maggie insists they are just friends.

We are at the Louisiana Tech homecoming game. After half time, I was kind of talking to myself asking who had the ball. Maggie looked at me and said, "I'm pretty sure the coach has it."

We left a car at the dealership today for an oil change. They called to say it was done and Dalton was sitting between us. I looked at Dalton and told him that I needed him to ride up there with his dad and drive my van home.

He moved over directly in front of me, took me by the shoulder and said, "This might be hard for you to hear . . . but I'm just 8 . . . and I can't drive because I don't have a driving license."

I wanted to ask if the license was the only thing keeping him from doing it, but I let it go.

This is what happens when baby girls try to skip their nap.

One of the best traditions at Tech games. Five minutes after the game, the kids are allowed to play on the field. They always have a ball!

Cut my finger really bad a work today. I knew it was a good injury when Dalton came into the bathroom while I was changing the dressing and it gagged him.

I wouldn't say it was worth it, but it did help me laugh about the experience.

Dalton has loved sitting on these signs for as long as I can remember. I think we plopped him on one when he was a toddler, and he has taken every opportunity since. This one was near Texarkana.

Maggie Anne completely zonked out on us in the stands at Saturday's game.

Maggie Anne is convinced that the new girl in her class is copying her outfit every day. The fact that they wear uniforms is completely lost on her.

You know a Disney movie is old when you kids think you started it at the end because the credits are at the beginning. :-)

Maggie Anne's latest fun art project!

I was a bit more surprised when Dalton brought this one home. Art is not usually his thing, so I treasure what I get.

Introduced Dalton to Judy Blume books last night. Freckle Juice is what we are starting out with.

This makes me very happy. :-)

There are lots of fun things that make kids smile when they discover them, but there are some times when you see pure joy and delight that I just wish I could duplicate at will.

Last night Jessie found a small plastic container of marbles. Don't flip you lid, I didn't let the 2-year-old play with marbles. I did watch her shake the fire out of that container and make a racket that almost shook the house. Before she was done, both her brother and her daddy were hollering about what was going on.

The look of pure delight on her face was priceless!

Maggie's most recent masterpiece. Says it is Humpty Dumpty, and she would have had me text it to everyone in my contacts if I would have.

Another year of football parties got started this weekend. Jessie had a great time!

My son just asked me if there was a place like the library where you can get books and keep them forever. I said, "Like a bookstore?" He said he wanted to check that out. Guess it's been a while since we've been to Barnes & Noble.

In Maggie's own words, they are "on a boat going down the river bound (yes, she used that word) for California where we'll bring back more food."

Dalton and I were discussing some corrections on his homework in front of my mom who said it sounded technical. He quickly replied, "Of course it's technical. I'm in the third grade."

Note to self: Do NOT throw away a giggling doll in a trash can you are not going to take out immediately. This one got peed on so there was no choice, but every time something got dropped in the trash, it made the doll giggle and the girls would fall out all over again.

For the last rack of ribs from our freezer thaw, I was roasting them in the oven with a glaze similar to a homemade BBQ sauce. Maggie saw me putting them back in the oven and asked, "What's the matter? Do you not know how to cook on the grill?"

Guys had a great time at the game!

Only thing better would be to be at the game with my guys. But then again, they don't have my gumbo.


As a side note, this gumbo actually has rib meat in it. We had a freezer incident thaw 4 racks, and I threw one in my stock and put the meat back in. Not bad at all!

Maggie Anne colored the outside of this box, put her sleeping bag and special bear in it just to have it taken over by Jessie. She said that was not part of her plan.


She looks like she feels really bad for spoiling her sister's plans.

Ok, this was hysterical. Jessie's been going to the potty on her own because she only goes about once every 5 or 6 times. She just enjoys going in there for the celebration that she went.

Anyway, she was just in there on her own when I heard, "Oh yeah, we did it! Woohoo! We did it!" I had to listen close because it sounded so funny in her little voice.

Tonight is the first time that I am completely exasperated with this Common Core business. Just google a Tape Diagram and watch one of the videos that demonstrates how to take two minutes (for an adult, probably twice as long as a kid) to do the work that simply adding two numbers together would take you 10 seconds to do. 

By the time I had watched the video to learn what it was, Dalton was two questions down.

I feel like a National Geographic wildlife photographer trying not to be noticed while watching the toddler for signs of impending potty needs.

Maybe I should melt down more often. We finally had success with Jessie tonight!

Potty Training is Going to Kill Me

I swear that potty training my 2-year-old is going to kill me. It's not the way I pictured I would go, but the Pearly Gates seem like a pretty welcome sight in my 46th minute of sitting on the side of the bathtub waiting for the tiniest drop to hit the water so we can have the biggest, baddest celebration the world has ever known. But no. Not today. Probably not tomorrow. Heck, probably not next month.

Her wonderful preschool teachers swear that she only goes in the potty at school, but she has never once gone in ours over the last 6 months of running to the potty every time she wants.

Don't you dare ask her if she wants to go unless you are prepared for an eardrum rumbling series of toddler expletives - I can't understand her, so who knows what she's really saying. I probably don't want to know.

This is the child that woke up dry the other morning. I just knew this was my chance, but twenty minutes of sitting on a stool, straddling the front of the potty while hugging this tiny emotional powder keg and I've got nothin. Zip. Nada.

The other day she peed on the carport and quickly told her daddy with way to much optimism, "I not pee in your house!" See, that seems to be our motto these days - Don't pee in my house! Well, evidently she doesn't consider her booster seat, the living room floor, the bathroom floor, her brother's room, the kitchen floor, her bedroom floor or even my bed to be part of my house because she's peed in all of them.

I started this all extremely optimistic. I just knew that she would pick it right up and we would all live in bliss not having to buy diapers anymore. Right now all I know is that potty training is going to kill me, and I'm just about ready for it.

Doesn't everyone sit at the table like this?

Sittin' side saddle waiting for a miracle.


And no, there is nothing in that cup. She's just playing with it.

I thought it was tough when they clung to you and cried for you not to go, but it's so much worse when they take off and wave bye to you without a second thought.

Jessie Anne just watched me paint Maggie Anne's fingernails. When Maggie left, Jessie scooted over into her chair without saying a word and handed me the fingernail polish.

Even though it was against my better judgement, I went ahead and painted Jessie's fingernails telling her that she had to keep her fingers apart and not touch anything. Well, that was a half hour ago and she's still walking around the house with her fingers spread out not touching anything. I may be on to something!

There is something so, so, so wrong with this. She is NOT old enough for Kindergarten!

Had fun fishing with their grandparents!

Jessie Anne just crawled up into my lap and said, "I love you, mama!" I told her how sweet she was and to go tell her daddy meaning to tell him that she loved him, too. She ran over to Boyd and exclaimed, "I love my mama!"

Meeting her grandparents in Vicksburg.

Jessie Anne was arguing with me on the way home. I told her she was pretty and she would say, "Nooooooooo, Maggie Anne is pretty!" We went back and forth most of the way home.

Sugar-dazed at a friend's birthday party this weekend.