A Whole Lot of 1sts...and one 11th!

Life is just crazy. I think that statement can pretty much sum up how we've been lately. I'm beginning to figure out that around the middle of October things gear up and they stay at warp speed until after Christmas. We've had so many things go on at our house lately, I couldn't let more time go by without getting them written down. So, drum roll please...

1. Halloween fell on a Saturday this year. In the past, we've always gone to our church's fall festival in lieu of trick-or-treating. This year, the church decided to have the festival during the day which allowed for BOTH! Oh my goodness, this was so exciting. I feel a little guilty that Karson turned 6 and had never been trick-or-treating before. We had so much fun. Campbell was fascinated with the candy, and Karson wanted to hit EVERY house in the neighborhood.

The trick-or-treaters in action

Karson as "Hannah Montana" and Campbell as "A Pacified Strawberry" :)

2. Karson's best friend, Addi's birthday is just 2 days before hers. Now that they go to different schools and don't take dance together, they only see each other at church. For Addi's birthday, her parents planned a pajama party. All of the girls came in their pajamas and watched movies, etc. The BIG highlight of the party was that when everyone else went home, Karson got to spend the night (she's never done this except with cousins). Now, I was never a good "spend the nighter". I usually made it until about 11:30, and then I was ready to go home. In light of this, I waited by the phone all evening waiting for the call to come pick her up. That girl always surprises me. She made it just fine and had a WONDERFUL time!

3. Kars has had a wiggly tooth for weeks. We've tried to convince her to let us pull it out, but amidst MUCH drama, she has refused. Well wouldn't you know that while she was at Addi's party, the silly tooth fell out! I must admit that I was a little sad that I missed it, but she was so excited that all the girls got to see it, so I had to get over myself! Rusty's cousin, Georgann, gave Karson a tooth fairy pillow when she was a newborn. It came with all of these cute poems and ideas for the tooth fairy. I was so excited to use it, so the next night the tooth fairy went into action. She left a sweet poem about how important the 1st tooth is, $5, and she even cooled her wings in the glass of water by Karson's bed and made the water turn purple! Karson was thrilled to wake up to all of this on Sunday morning!

Showing off the "gap"!

!

4. Campbell had an excited "1st" on Monday. Her sweet little friend, Landrie, (who lives down the street and goes to church with us) got to come over for the day. Her regular baby sitter's daughter was having a baby, so we got to have her over! Oh my goodness, the precious moments I got to witness all day long are too many to list. They were so darn cute! They played with their babies and loved on each other...oh, I could eat them up!

Two peas in a pod! (I caught Landrie in a strange moment)

They were sharing babies and loving the fact that they had the same bunny!

5. Last, but certainly not least, the 11th! Rus and I will celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary on Saturday. It's a true testimony to how life is right now that I will be busy all day at a dance competition, but we've made plans to celebrate on another day. We've been through a lot of changes in the past year, but I wouldn't choose to do life with anyone else. He is the love of my life and I am forever grateful that God led us together. Happy Anniversary, Rus. I love you more than ever.

This is one of our pictures from the beach this summer. It's a little glarey, but I love the sunset!

And there you have it. A whole bunch of life in a short little list. We'll keep trucking along. 'Til next time...

A Six Year Old...wow

Karson Elaine,

Today, at 1:03 pm, you will turn 6. I'm not sure how I feel about that. It seems like the time is just flying by. I know I say that every year, but it's so true. I've always been a "keep them little as long as possible" kind of girl, but I know that getting bigger is the natural order of life and with growth comes so many blessings. While I LOVED your baby, toddler, and preschool years, I am so enjoying the fact that you are now old enough to do so many things that you couldn't do before. You have such a funny sense of humor, and I love joking around with you. You still love to snuggle and read books together, so I still get to baby you just a bit! You are also starting to become a little clothes horse, so we have a great time shopping together (watch out, Daddy).

Here are some of the things you like right now...

Food
You've become a bit of a picky eater...but most of the time you're willing to try new things at least once. These are your favorites:

1. Bread (any kind - usually with butter)

2. Noodles (plain with salt)

3. Spaghetti

4. Baked Potatoes

5. Chicken

6. Dessert of any kind (ice cream sandwiches, no-bake cookies, and cake balls are your top picks)

Clothes

You still let me pick out what you're going to wear, but you usually have an opinion to express about it. You've slimmed down a ton (not that you were chubby before) and now most of your pants are too big in the waist.

1. Soft t-shirts from the Gap

2. Anything "bedazzled or sparkly" (Mommy is not a big fan of this, but we go with it)

3. "Cozy clothes" - you love to be comfortable

4. Boots (you have some with a wedge heel that are your favorites)

5. Headbands (you have all but started REFUSING to wear bows - gasp!)

Toys/Games

You got a DS for your birthday, and you are LOVING it!

1. Barbies
2. Anything craft related

3. Guess Who

4. Basketball (you start your practices the last week in November)

5. Dress up clothes - I love that you still like to do this.

We had your parent/teacher conference a few weeks ago. Daddy and I were so thrilled to hear all of the wonderful things Mrs. Plum had to say about you. You have already started reading and we see growth in so many areas. Kindergarten has proven to be a very happy place for you and we are so thankful.

I think the sweetest thing you wanted for your birthday was a Bible. Daddy and I found a pink one with a carrying case. It made my heart swell with emotion to see you have the desire for God's word. You've been asking lots of questions about what it means to ask Jesus into your heart. We've talked a lot about it and I think you're getting closer and closer to making this big decision.

My precious girl, the last 6 years have been filled with so many special memories. I'm so grateful to be your mommy, and I'm so privileged to get to witness all the changes and events in your life. I could NEVER begin to put into words how proud I am of you. I hope you know how much you are loved and cherished. I have loved you long before I ever saw your sweet face, and my love continues to grow each year. Thank you for blessing me every day with your sweet spirit. May this next year of your life be full of so many adventures, tons of fun memories, and more joy than you could imagine.

I love you, Mommy

Here are a few pictures from the big girl's birthday party at the pumpkin patch...(and Blogger is being quite annoying and won't let me move my pictures where I want them. Grrrrr. They are out of order.)

We played some really cute relay games with the pumpkins. Run, Karson, Run!

Blowing out the candles!

Everyone made a spider pumpkin! Very cute!

Posing by the "cake". She wanted to have cake balls...so we did!

A Very Sad Day Indeed

If you know my girls at all, you know that they are EXTREMELY attached to their "bedtime friends". Many people call these sweet items, "Lovies". When Karson was learning to talk, all of her "l"s sounded like "y"s and her "v"s sounded like "b"s, so her "lovies" were "yubbies". Oh my goodness, Yubby is VERY special. She was given "White Yubby" when she was just 3 weeks old. It looked like a small white kitty cat face attached to a tiny floral blanket (about 1 square foot). We quickly realized how attached she had become and began to worry about losing "White Yubby". We set out in search of another yubby, and found one that was the same brand. It was a brown teddy bear head attached to a small blanket. Creative as we are, it became known as, "Brown Yubby".

Now, Brown Yubby was acceptable for taking to preschool and in the car, but it was definitely a second class citizen to the original, White Yubby. As time progressed and Karson was no longer taking naps at preschool or needing to take a yubby with her in the car, Brown Yubby found itself in the drawer and was no longer used at all. White Yubby was a prized possession and came out each night to help Kars go to sleep. She would take one of the ears between her first 2 fingers and rub it gently until she drifted off. It was truly precious to catch her in the act! By now, White Yubby has several holes and is extremely faded due to being washed so many times. We say it looks "well loved".

Before Campbell was born, we set out on a search for a Yubby. Nana found her a precious giraffe that we knew would be perfect. She was also given a super cute princess by my friend Lauren. Both of these yubbies were the same brand as Karson's and were attached to small silky blankets. Campbell attached herself instantly! We made sure to change them out frequently so that she wouldn't prefer one over the other (we had learned our lesson with Kars). It was so sweet to see Campbell with her yubbies! We even overheard Karson trying to teach her how to rub the ears properly! :)

Needless to say, yubbies are VERY special at our house.

For the past month, my parents have been adding on at their house. The latest in the project was that the floors were being sanded and stained, and so they had to spend several nights at a hotel. This past Friday night, I took the girls to stay with them at the hotel and go swimming (yes, we are "those people" - don't judge). Later in the evening, as we were winding down, I got out the girl's yubbies and handed them to them. They both drifted off to sleep and all was well. Around 1 AM, Rus arrived at the hotel (he had been in Stillwater for the Union game) to take the girls home. I was staying the night because I had to get up early and drive to Arkansas. forshadowing...

Saturday morning I called to check in on them, and Rus informed me that Karson had left White Yubby at the hotel. I quickly called Mom and Dad to let them know. I wanted to make sure they grabbed it before the cleaning ladies came in. I had a fear that it would get tangled up in the sheets/towels and taken to the laundry. more forshadowing...

On my way home from Arkansas, I called Mom and found out that Yubby was no where to be found. They had searched all over the room and all over the hotel. They had the entire hotel staff looking for it, and no one had seen it. Apparently during the transfer from the room to the car, Yubby was dropped and LOST. shudder. I quickly called Rus to see how Kars was taking the news. He said she wasn't handling it too well, and that quite a few tears had been shed.

After I arrived home, we talked about what had happened, and got Brown Yubby out of the drawer. Mr "Second Class Citizen" has now become her new best friend and is filling a much needed void. She still says his ears aren't good for rubbing, but that it's okay. We haven't had any tears at bedtime, so I guess that's a good sign.

I think my heart may be as broken as Karson's. This was a special item that symbolized her childhood. It was one of those that I hoped to keep forever and be able to give to her when she had a baby of her own. Ugh. It's been a sad few days here at the Zumwalt house, but I guess life goes on. It's all about perspective!

Here are a few pics of Yubby...

I took this picture last summer. I was going to write a post about Yubby (ironic, isn't it). That's White Yubby all tucked in by her chin. I laid Brown Yubby out beside her.

This picture of Campbell makes me laugh! I wonder what she was dreaming about? These are her 2 yubbies! Pink Yubby goes to school and church with her, while her White Yubby stays at home in her bed.

Thoughts from the Sick Bed

Karson has been sick for the past couple of days. She's finally fever free today, but I took her to the doctor just to make sure we were in the clear. There has been some nasty stuff circulating around Owasso. They did a flu test and a strep test. Thankfully both came back negative. If all goes well tonight, she should be able to go back to school tomorrow.

After we got home from the doctor's office, this is what she told me...

"Mama (in a very pitiful voice), can we go to a yummy roll place for dinner? That would make my cough feel lots better."

I told her that I would call Daddy and check, to which she replied...

"I love yummy rolls. Bread is my favorite thing to eat. Besides noodles. Oh, and butter. I love butter. And eggs. Bread, noodles, butter, and eggs. Yeah, those are my favorites."

As you can see, we're all about the food pyramid over here at the Zumwalt house. The perfect picture of healthy eating.

First Day of School...Round 2

Today was the first day of school for King's Kids, so Campbell and I were "back in action"! Did I take a single picture? NO! I'm the worst mother ever, and my poor second child is completely neglected...judge me.

The day went fairly well overall. We had a "few" criers, and I had to call 2 mommies to come pick up kiddos that just couldn't get themselves together, but for the most part it went as smoothly as first days can go. It always takes a few days to get back in the swing of things and for the kids to adjust to the routine. Hopefully in a few weeks everyone will be in the groove.

Campbell did GREAT! She didn't cry when I dropped her off, she played on the playground, ate her lunch, and TOOK HER NAP!!!! I was so proud of her. She has the same teachers that she had last year, and she was delighted to see them this morning. She adores them, and they are so sweet to her! It made the transition very easy.

I think we're all glad to be back in a routine. The past week and a half has been really strange with Karson going to school and Campbell and I staying at home. She has been a little confused about "where Sissy is", and she's been searching for her all over the house...

Is she under here???????

Nope. I don't know where she is...

When I'm feeling low from missing Sissy, Mom fixes spaghetti and everything is a-okay!

We found her! She was at Steven's wedding...performing her flower girl duties!!! (Like how I fit that in? But doesn't she look beautiful?! )

So there you have it...ALL of the Zumwalts have officially begun school year 2009-2010. Our prayer is that we follow wherever God leads! It's gonna be great!

The First Day of Kindergarten!!!

This morning was a little different. Karson ate breakfast a little earlier than usual.

Then she put on her new outfit, put her new clip in her hair, and grabbed her new backpack.

She hugged Campbell and posed for a few pictures.
We got in the car and drove to her new school. She held my hand as we made our way to the front door.
We found her class, and she showed Daddy where her locker was.

Then she walked right in, got her name tag on, and began her year as a KINDERGARTENER!!!!

There were no tears or looks of desperation. Just a thumbs up and a smile!

My house seems VERY quiet (especially while Campbell is napping). 3:10 seems like forever away. I miss her. I can't wait to see how her first day of school was.

Preparing

I feel as if I have spent much of the summer preparing for the fact that my child will be starting kindergarten. I started the summer worrying about the school where she will be going. Is it the right school? Will she have any friends? What will her teacher be like? I applied for an intra-district transfer to another elementary that would be closer to the church. I thought that would make it better on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday while I'm working and she would be so much closer to me. My transfer was denied. I called her school to request a certain teacher. I was told they don't take requests.

I was trying to do everything I could to make things the way I thought would be best. God had other plans.

I've spent much of the last few weeks praying for Karson's new teacher. Praying that I would let Him be in control. Praying for peace about the whole situation. I don't know why I was surprised when I began to feel better. I don't know why I was surprised that His way was better than what I was trying to work out. I don't know why I'm ever surprised that He always has a plan, and that "plan is good" (Jer. 29:11).

This past week we continued our preparation.

We bought new tennis shoes for school. When I asked Kars if they made her run fast, she informed me that it is the person wearing the shoes that makes you fast or not, not the shoes themselves. Wow. She did, however, pose to show me how fast she was going to be! :)

We also purchased a new flower clip to go with our first day of school outfit.

We then headed to Wal-Mart to purchase our school supplies. Oh my goodness, I think everyone else was there buying school supplies at the same time.

After all of our shopping, we headed to the nail salon to have our very first Mother/Daughter pedicure. Oh my goodness...this was fun! Kars loved it! She picked hot pink polish and had them add white polka dots to it. Too cute!

One of our final preparations was tonight. We got to go to the school for "Meet the Teacher". It was very crowded in the hallways, and we had to wander around to find the kindergarten rooms. We finally found them and entered Mrs. Plum's room. On our way to the school, Karson and I had discussed what we thought Mrs. Plum would look like. Karson was delighted to see that she had pictured her perfectly except for her hair color! We dropped off her school supplies and looked around the room a bit. We then made our way back through the crowded halls. We walked back to the front door and then retraced our steps back to the room so that Karson would feel comfortable finding it.

As we were walking to the car, I could tell Kars was getting quieter by the second and I asked her what was wrong. She took my hand and looked up at me with a trembling lip and tears in her eyes. She said, "How am I going to be able to find that room all by myself?"

With these words, my heart broke into a million pieces.

I guess with all of the preparation I was doing as far as worrying about the right school, the right teacher, the right outfit...I totally forgot to prepare myself for the fact that my baby girl is going to have to walk into that big school and find her room "all by herself". Ouch. That hurts my heart.

I assured her that I would be able to walk her in the first day or so and that there would be plenty of people there to help her, but it's the symbolism of it all. It's the letting go. It's the "all by herself".

God has it under control. I know that in my head. My heart is trying to catch up.

Wednesday is the first day of school. I'm planning to have precious pictures to post and a happy story to tell. It's all going to work out. His plans are good...the Bible tells me so.

Bathtub Talk

I'm not even going to comment on the fact that it's been over a month since I've blogged or that I still haven't blogged about our trip to the beach.

I guess by saying that, I did in fact comment on it. Ahem.

Karson has been running fever for the past 2 days, so it's been pretty low key around here. Today was a pajama day, which hasn't happened in way too long. I don't think she moved from the couch for more than a few minutes. Sweet Campbell was busy trying to make her feel better by giving her lots of pats and bringing her toys. Oh my goodness, the love between those two just makes me want to smother them with kisses...but I know that would not end on a positive note, so I try to restrain myself.

Last weekend, 6 of my preschool teachers and I went to OKC to the Church Weekday Education conference. We had a really good time and learned some great stuff. I'm now excited to begin the year and put some of our learning into practice! One of the break-out sessions was called "Sex Education Begins in the Bathtub". I did not attend this session but two of our teachers did. After the session was over both of them came out with eyes as wide as saucers. They were informed that "if you haven't talked to your child about sex before they enter kindergarten, then it's too late. They're going to hear it from someone else". ARE YOU KIDDING ME???? Sorry, but I'm not talking to my FIVE year old daughter about this yet. Especially when she hasn't even begun to ask me questions about it. There was one thing they came away with that I did feel like I needed to take care of: calling all body parts by their anatomically correct names...so, I forged ahead and tried to take care of that tonight in, you guessed it, the bathtub. WARNING!!!! If this kind of thing makes you uncomfortable, stop reading now. I'm simply recording this, because this was a biggie for me, and I want to have it written down!

Mommy - Hey Kars, did you know that boys and girls are different?

Karson - (implied, duh) Yes.

Mommy - Well, you know we have different parts on our bottoms (internal cringing in agony). We all have a bottom, but the front parts are different. Do you know what they're called?

Karson - No, what?

Mommy - Well a girl has a ________. Have you ever heard that word?

Karson - No, it's kind of a funny word. I know what a boy has, but I'm not saying it. (She has lots of boy cousins, and has heard what my sister's children call theirs).

Mommy - Yes, sometimes boys call it that, but the real name is a ________.

Karson - A ________! (giggle, giggle)

Mommy - Mommy just wants you to know these words in case you ever hear someone say them. That way you'll know what that is. Okay? Now, can you tell me what we call a girl's?

Karson - A venus?

Maybe that's why they said I should talk to her about this before kindergarten.

The quickest way to do this is with a list...

We leave for the beach in less than 48 hours, and I can hardly stand it. I am so excited!!!! We've been planning this trip for over a year, Karson has been counting down the days FOREVER, and it's finally here! I will be sure to take tons of pictures and post them when I get back.

In the meantime...here's what's been going on since May...

1. We said good-bye to some precious friends. The Ingrams moved to Virginia and we were so sad to see them go. They will be missed TREMENDOUSLY! We had a fun filled night with just grown-ups to say good-bye.

L-R: Dave, Kelli, Kendra, Mitch, Melissa, Pat, Rus, Jennifer - these are some of the most precious people on Earth! Thank you, God for friends!!!

2. Karson had her last day of Pre-K. How did she already finish 1 year of school? Oh my goodness, it's like I can physically see her growing right before my eyes. She had an AWESOME year. Her teachers were amazing and she grew so much socially and academically. We couldn't be more proud of her. God truly took control and put her exactly where she needed to be for her Pre-K year. Praise Him! Her last week was full of lots of fun activities including a birthday party for everyone! We took donuts that were super cute!

So yummy!!!

Karson's last day of school. That's Mrs. Pearson on the left and Mrs. Kendall on the right.

3. Karson and Rus took their first fishing trip of the summer. They came home tired and happy. Karson informed us that it's only fun to fish when you catch something. I couldn't agree more!

A self-portrait!

4. I went to Dallas (Rockwall) to teach officer camp. So great to see old friends and work with such fun people. We got to stay at a gorgeous Hilton on the lake. It was an exhausting 3 days, but such fun. I'm so thankful I am able to do this! The girls got to enjoy spending time with Nana and Ma, who were so precious to keep them while Rus was working! We couldn't make it without the best grandmothers EVER!

5. Karson had her 1st official dance recital. (This really should have it's own post, but if I don't do it here, I'm afraid I won't do it at all) Oh my goodness! As we walked into the PAC that Saturday morning for her rehearsal, I had one of my most special mommy moments. I was getting to help my little girl get ready for her dance recital. It is something I have pictured doing forever, and I finally got to do it!!!! I was speechless and on the edge of my seat the whole time she performed. I couldn't have been more proud - nor could the 11 other guests that came to watch her! Is this girl loved or what?! It was so worth getting in an argument with a very rude lady who wanted to take some of the seats I was saving before the show...GRRRRRR!!!

Rehearsal - look at that concentration!

Here's the star!

Two peas in a pod! Addi and Karson - are they not the cutest?

I could not have been more proud!

This was after the show...what a blessed little girl to have all 4 granparents there to see her!

6. This week has been the week for VBS at the church. I have been in Campbell's class, and Kars has been with all of her pals (this is her last year on the preschool side). It's been a great, but very tiring week. I've been amazed at how much Karson has been learning during her Bible story time. She has been able to tell me so much about the life of Peter and how Jesus changed him - amazing! Campbell has been a bit possessive of her mama. She's not so crazy about me picking up the other babies in her class, but it hasn't been too bad. Today, we were taking the babies on a wagon ride around the church. They LOVE to do this! As we were passing the 1st and 2nd grade rooms, we came upon a little boy on his knees praying with one of his teachers. I had to choke back tears as I realized that we were watching someone's life being changed forever. At that moment, as we were wheeling a wagon full of 7 babies down that hallway, angels were rejoicing in Heaven because of a new little brother in Christ! Praise GOD - this is what it's all about!!! It truly made my day. My week. My year!


Okay, that about wraps it up. It doesn't seem like much, but I feel like we've been going warp speed lately. Beach, here we come!

How is it already June 14th?

We have been super busy over the past few weeks. I have MUCH to blog about, but no time to do it!

This week we have VBS, and we leave on Friday for the beach. I'm hoping to get a post up about the end of the school year/beginning of summer stuff before we leave. We'll see if that happens. Hope everyone is enjoying life! It's supposed to be in the 90s all week...ummmmm...hello hot!

I'll at least leave you with a few picturs! These were taken on Memorial Day at "Lawn Chairs and Lemondade"!

So Thankful...

It's Wednesday night, and I am just now sitting down to post about Mother's Day. Does that tell you anything about our week?

We had a really special day. The celebration started on Saturday evening when the girls (and Rus) gave me 2 new crosses to add to my collection. I already have them hung on the wall and I LOVE them! Rus gave me a pedicure and tanning minutes so that I can start preparing for our BEACH VACATION that we will be taking in 5 1/2 weeks!!! I am beyond excited and so ready to be there.



Sunday morning we had to get up very early because we had to be at church by 8:15. Why? The girls and I were part of a special Mother/Daughter dance performance in both services. We practiced quite a bit over the weeks leading up to Sunday. The scheduling of the practices added some stress to our already packed days, and my nerves seemed to grow in increasing number as we got closer and closer to Sunday morning. Well, the big day finally came, and all I have to say is that I am beyond blessed for this experience. I will never again get to dance with my 5 year old and 15 month old daughter (probably never again, period). Looking into their sweet faces as we were praising the God that gave them to me...wow...Thank you, Lord, for these precious miracles. Karson was so brave and did such an amazing job, and Campbell brought tears to everyone's eyes when she toddled out on the stage.The song we danced to was called, "Find Your Wings". The chorus is so perfect for how I feel about my girls.



"I pray that God will fill your heart with dreams
And that faith gives you the courage to dare to do great things.
I'm here for you whatever this life brings
So let my love give you roots and help you find your wings."



After we performed in the second service, I took the girls with me into the bathroom so we could change our clothes. I was busy getting Karson dressed, changing my own clothes, and telling Campbell not to touch anything, when all of a sudden I heard a splashing sound. I turned ar0und to find my precious baby girl splashing in the toilet water. GROSS!!!!! I quickly finished up and took her to the sink to SCRUB her hands and arms. Oh my word. This child is definitely different from her sister.



I was very sad that I did not get to see my own mom on Mother's Day. She got sick in the night on Saturday night and was unable to come watch our performance. I think she might be sadder than I was. I've told her many times since Karson was born that I am only now able to understand how much she loves me. She is so special to me and I am so grateful to have such an incredible Christ-like role model to follow. She is my mentor, my closest ally, my most trusted adviser, and my best friend. Thank you, Mom, for being such a blessing in my life.



After we got home on Sunday, Rus went out to mow the yard which was approximately 4 feet tall due to all the rain we've been getting. The girls and I took a delightful nap. After our nap, we were playing in the living room. Campbell kept going into the kitchen, opening the cabinet, and bringing "snacks" for me to open. After about the 4th time I took back whatever box/bag she had brought me, I heard her in the kitchen again. This time, I heard a bag being opened and something being spilled all over the kitchen floor. I went into the kitchen to see what was going on, and this is what I found...

Girlfriend is gonna get her snack one way or the other. Sis is helping out too! :)

Bless you, sweet child. You indeed keep me on my toes. Even on days when you splash in the potty and spill stuff on the kitchen floor...I'm so thankful to be your mommy (and Karson's too).

Breakdown on Aisle 9

Yesterday was a day of many fits for Campbell. The fits started in the morning, and continued throughout the afternoon. Campbell's fits consist of her not getting her way about something, and then throwing herself backwards while screaming at the top of her lungs. It is joy. Pure joy. I wish.

After we dropped Karson off at school, we had to go to Wal-Mart. I should have seen it coming by the fact that the 1st fit was thrown as I was putting her chubby legs through the holes in the basket. Naively optimistic however, I proceeded with my shopping. As we made our way through the store...

Side note: If you live in Owasso, then you know that Wal-Mart is the most frustrating place in the world right now due to the remodel. I cannot find ANYTHING because NOTHING is where it used to be. This makes for the world's most irritating shopping experience.

Ahem. As we made our way through the store, more fits occurred. Loud fits. Crying fits. Fits that make people stare at you with the look on their face that says, "Take your baby out of here. No one wants to listen to that screaming." I just kept walking and gritting my teeth and sweetly saying, "Cams, that's enough."

As we walked into the check out line, fit number 55 began. (Okay, maybe that's a slight exaggeration) The lady in front of me was just finishing getting her groceries onto the conveyor belt, so I knew I had a few minutes to get the screaming baby out of the cart and calm her down a bit. That's when it happened.

Am I the only one that gets stressed in the check out line? I feel this tremendous pressure to get my groceries out as fast as possible so that I can get to the other end and get the bags off the twirly thing and into my cart. Never mind the added stress of trying to put your heavy things on first so that they go in the cart first. Or trying to keep all of your cold items together. And you can forget worrying about keeping your eggs and bread for last so that they can go on top. What happened to those nice young kids that used to help my mom get her grocery bags into the cart and even out to the car? Where has service gone????

I digress.... So, I'm holding Campbell (aka "Fit-thrower), trying to get my groceries on the belt (in order and QUICKLY), the checker is asking me if I have any heavy items I would like for her to scan, and the woman behind me is giving me "the look". I wanted to throw my own fit at that point, but I managed to hold it together. By the time we left, I was sweating and worn out.

I'm telling you. Wal-Mart ain't for sissies.

Closet Cleanout '09 - continued...

Okay, Miss Jennifer, you are right. What is so great about cleaning out closets? NOTHING! I have officially taken that word out of the title!

Today's project was Karson's closet. I had intended on getting started shortly after breakfast, but we had a change of plans. Rus called and said we needed to take something over to a friend's house, so we decided to walk it over! They don't live far, and the girls and I had a DELIGHTFUL walk! The weather was beautiful, the birds were chirping, and we got some fresh air! When we returned to the house, we played outside for a few more minutes. Such a fun way to start the day...we should do this more often.

Once we came inside, it was time for Campbell to take her nap and time for Mommy to tackle the closet... Karson's closet is a bit tricky. It goes way back on either side, so you have to crawl back there to put things on the shelves or hang things up...good times!

Before I show you the pictures, you must know that all of the clothes hanging in the girl's closets in the "before" pictures, are NOT the same clothes hanging up in the "after" pictures. I just want to paint a clear picture of how much work this was. Heaven forbid anyone think that I didn't do enough work! :)

BEFORE...

AFTER!!!

The Great Closet Clean-Out of '09

The closets in my house are beyond messy. They are disastrous! Embarrassingly so. I decided that this week I would tackle getting them all changed over to spring clothing and CLEANED OUT! I started this morning. In an effort to stay focused, motivated, and dedicated to the end, I decided to take before and after pictures.

Campbell's closet was the "closet of the day"! In only a little under 2 hours...the project was complete. Now, don't even ask how her room looks because of the clean closet. That's a post for another day!

Feel free to leave me a comment about how awesome I am and how proud you are of my accomplishment! Yes, I know, I'm completely shameless and prideful. Forgive me, Lord.

BEFORE...

AFTER!!!

Easter...almost a week later!

We had a fabulous Easter. How can you not? Celebrating the Risen Lord???? What isn't exciting about that? I truly intended to post about this long before now, but somehow it is already Thursday night, and it hasn't gotten accomplished...oh life, it does fly by...

Karson was VERY sick last week. We ended up in the doctor's office getting IV fluids on Friday. She was still a little weak on Sunday, but she was able to go to church! You'll notice in the pictures that she's a bit pale! We're just glad she's better!

I'm mad that I didn't take any pictures of the girls looking in their Easter baskets. All we did was video. They were quite excited to find yummy snacks, cute Summer flip flops/crocks, new bathing suits, and books. Karson thinks it's very neat that the Easter Bunny can make flip flops from the Gap...hmmmmm, am I warping my child??????

Here are the girls before church! Campbell WILL NOT stand still for a picture. She got so mad that she finally just sat down. I asked Karson to bend down by her...and this is the best we got. Oh well, we have many years of the traditional, "stand in front of the fireplace" pose!

After church, we met my parents and my sister's family for lunch at Charleston's. We then headed over to Nana's for the afternoon! Here are the cousins in their Easter outfits. Are those boys not PRECIOUS??? Can you tell that Kars is about to choke Cams? I'm telling you, the girl will NOT be still!

Here's the fam! Can you tell our color theme for the year? We were so proud of Rus...he even picked out his own pink tie to coordinate with us! He's such a great "girl" daddy!

"Miss Thang" sporting her bunny ears from Nana!

It was a yucky, rainy day, so we had to do the egg hunt inside. Kars was a bit irritated with the Easter Bunny for hiding the eggs too high for her!

Here, There, and Everywhere

Prepare yourself for some random thoughts...

***Tonight, when I got out of the shower, I found Karson playing with my bra. She was wearing it (upside down, mind you), and talking about how "they" were sooooo big. This promptly made me crack up, because, if you know me at all, you know that there is no way that a bra of mine could make anything "sooooo big". She saw me laughing and started laughing with me. I then asked her if she would like for me to take her picture. She responded, "NO. Do not put this on the blog."

Wow. How was she able to read my mind? That was exactly what I was planning to do. Scary. I didn't even realize she knew what a blog was.

***In unrelated news, Campbell is officially off the bottle. She gave up her last one on Tuesday night. I'm sad. I wasn't ready for that. I quite enjoyed the fact that she would sit and snuggle in my lap for a solid 10 minutes and drink her bottle right before bed. It was the ONLY time of the day that she would sit still for that long. It also makes me sad because it's just one more step away from being a baby. Somebody stop the clock!

***In other random news, tonight was the last episode of ER. I watched to pre-show and cried. I am waiting on Rus to get home so we can watch the show together. I started watching this show my freshman year of college. Wow, it's been on a long time. I'm very sad it's over...it's one of my favorites.

We Interrupt this Spring...

Many people would find it bizarre that my last post was all about nice Spring weather, and this post is about snow. Nope. Not bizarre, just Oklahoma!

Yesterday morning we woke up to a rain/sleet mixture that quickly turned to snow. It snowed for 8 straight hours at our house...and we're not talking about a few measly flakes here and there, we're talking blizzard-like conditions. It was beautiful, and so much fun to watch. Because the weather had been so Spring-like prior to this, the ground was still very warm. We were shocked that it stuck like it did. I guess when it snows that much, that fast, it has nowhere else to go!

This winter has been full of cold temperatures and wintry precipitation, but it has all fallen in the form of ice. We were so excited to finally get something we could play in...and this was PERFECT snow for making snowmen!

After our photo shoot, Daddy and Karson stayed out for over an hour. They built a "really cool" fort and a snowman. Daddy also pulled her around on a make-shift sled. So Fun!!!

Mommy and Campbell only got to stay out for a few minutes. Baby Girl WOULD NOT leave her mittens on, so I was worried her hands were going to get frost bitten!

Our 2 favorite snow bunnies! It was hard to see because the snow kept falling in your face...thus the squinty eyes!!! (Look at our street...this was around 1:00...the snow had been falling for about 4 hours by this time...picture 4 more hours of this!)

In Karson's 5 years of life, she has either been too young, sick, or recovering from surgery every single time we've had a snow fall. Needless to say, she was DELIGHTED to be able to play in the white fluff covering our yard. Today it was back up to 58 degrees. Most of the snow is gone. What a fun, quick, and unexpected little gift on an otherwise boring Saturday!