To quote my mother.......

The day she was born.....almost 11 years ago.....
              
                   "I can see her now.  A little letter jacket with "Riah" written on the back. 
                                        Gonna be a cheerleader some day!"

Such a short summer.....

I don't know who I hate it for worse, me or the kids. I think this was the shortest summer on record. We go back in 2 weeks! But, alas, the kids have had a blast. Gone a zillion miles an hour, and are just now slowing down enough to see the sun in front of them. I'm pretty sure I didn't even get finished posting about the end of school last year....what's up with that? Oh well. Here's a little of what we did this summer.

We ate outside a lot.....

We got a cool new slide/pool.

We took in a few Braves Games......

(7 rows up....yeah...that makes for a MUCH better ball game!)

We played at the church for 4th of July....

And we ate icee's...

And then we went to Pigeon Forge for a couple of Days and played at Dollywood......

We took our time getting there....and stopped for ice cream at a truck stop. 

We stopped at the top of the Smoky Mountains.....

And the kids stood in two places at once.....

And they all grew up.....Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyy.......

too........

fast.  :o(

Give me an "S"!!

And the last year of elementary school begins all over again.  With my baby girl.  We finished 4th grade high on the hog!  All "A" honor roll, awards you can't imagine and a teacher who taught both of us so much.  She finished gymnastics almost perfecting her round-off back handspring by herself, and in 3 short weeks, she's off to cheer camp!  We can't wait.  She'll be cheering for the same park Tanner plays baseball at....our intent is to buy stock and become rich and famous with it some day!  I love being a ball park mom.  I think I've waited all my life for this.

Riah supporting T at the Soap Box Derby race.  We got awesome matching

sunburns on our left shoulders that day.

Awards, awards, awards!!!

Riah getting her awards from her awesome teacher, Mr. H.

Mr. H. and Riah

and the awesomeness that begins in 3 weeks.....

That's actually a pic from last year....she'll be there next! 
Watch for that letter jacket that just says
"Riah"

5th Grade...here we come!!!

more T.....

Ok, so like I said, T finished up 2nd grade.  Seems a little odd...since I think he acts way older than a 2nd grader.  He had a stellar year.  He impresses me like non other.  He is kind and aware, but not a pushover nor a sissy.  He is honest and he is a best friend....to so many.  I have an amazing son, that I know will make an amazing man, husband and father....in like 47 years.

Ok, end of year pictures.  At the end of the year, his class put on a skit about The Wizard of Oz.  Tanner chose to be the Tin Man.  Mom of course, chose to go over the top.  I actually felt awesome a little bad when the other little Tin Men came into the room, and the one little boy looked at T's costume and his jaw hit the floor.  I really did feel bad when that same kid said to his mom "Tanner has a real oil can, not this dumb watering bucket".  Yikes.  Overachievers can make life suck sometimes. 

Aunt Kathy did the awesome job of finding the oil can (yeah Aunt Kathy!) and then to find the right auto parts store that clearly loved kids enough to care about ordering the proper tin funnel for his hat.  Amazing.

Eric and I spent all of Memorial Day weekend running countless errands to find all the silver/gray clothes, paint, dryer hose, blah, blah, blah.  Eric spray painted EVERYTHING, and then saw a whole new side of me when I said, "Just trust me....the OCD in this instance is a good thing!!!"

And here is the awesome Tin Man:

Such a performer, isn't he?  "Let me stare at the back wall while I do this acting thing!"

Off to enjoy a VERY short summer and then back to the grind in 3rd Grade.

My "baby" is in 3rd Grade.  Vomitosis.

Not so sure where to start....

So, let's start with a list so I don't forget:  And in order of appearance........

Madeline-Wrapped up her last day in elementary school.  I, the lively 30-something girl of 3, now has a middle schooler.  Is that even possible?  I remember the day I took her to kindergarten.  There is NO WAY that was 6 years ago.

Sariah-Wrapped up her last day of 4th grade and is now on top of the world.  Starting her final year in elementary school (OMG....really??  This is not still happening!) and the first year without her big sis there to boss her around, show her the ropes.

Tanner-Wrapped up 2nd grade, is well on his way to having a perfect elementary school report card (yeah, all A's for 6 years....only 1 kid in Maddie's whole grade pulled that one off!) and is on a break for only 2 short months from baseball.  How odd....I miss the chaos.  I could really use a practice to race home and get to!

Now....On with the show!!

Tanner Andrew....2nd Grade: Cont'd.

Soap Box Race!  Need no explanation.  Pictures are so much more fun!!!

My fave part....us "screaming" as if us saying "Go T" would actually make him go faster.  Pretty sure we are used to being on the ball field. 
That was fun!

Tanner Andrew....2nd Grade

I think we should back up a little bit and give you a rundown of how life has been for a busy 8 year old.  We finished up his baseball season just as the heat was plaguing Georgia.  We made it to the playoffs and got very excited for a few days of non stop ball playing.  Long story short, they played like pro's and lost in their 3rd game, but to a team who was on their 1st game of the day, and us on our 2nd....in the middle of the day....in 95 degree heat.  I think every Mom and Dad at the field said multiple times "I don't know whether to pray for them to win or pray for them to lose!"  Tanner played so hard, and during the second game on the final day, got to play 3rd base.  I have to say, for a mom who LOOOOOOVES her son playing catcher, I loved him at 3rd.  He moves so quick and he let's no one by him.  He took out 1 player by tagging him with a clothesline!  Let's just say if some kid had tagged T like he did....I'd have been on the field.  Um....yeah, dem's the breaks!   And now for some pics......

He did his very best hitting of the season at the tournaments....it's no secret he responds well to bribery.  :o)  We love baseball.  Next season=kid pitch.

He can't wait! 

T-Dogger/B-McCann

Baseball season is dang near over, and I must admit....that saddens me a bit. 

We have the best time at the ball fields with T, and love like heck to watch him play.  He is my superstar.  I love being a baseball mom!!!

I said to T the other day that we'd be visiting the Braves soon, and I'd be working hard at getting some autographs.  I asked if he'd like me to get Brian McCann's "John Hancock" (braves Catcher...same position T plays) and he promptly said "How about Chipper Jones?"

At least he has good taste in baseball players.

Here he is batting....



And here he is making an awesome effort at 2nd base....




That's my T. I can't wait until we have box seats for the Braves!!

Sariah/Sharpay!!

Let us start with the one who never gets to start first.

Ms. Sariah!!!!

During the final chorus performance of her 4th grade year, they had to dress up like specific characters.
She not so surprisingly chose Sharpay Evans.....the beautiful blonde with the amazing voice....you know, the one Sariah looks just like???  She sang and danced.....it was so fun!!!  And we even found a cute pink dress to boot!!!

Such a Diva!!!

No explanation needed.....

Favorite type of Sunday mornings......

T is back there.  All he said was "Mom's taking a picture....duck for cover!!"  Dork.

To my amazing family.....

do you remember the Fullingim's across the street when we lived in the tiny house down the street from the Allred's??????   One of my BFF's Kristina?????  She has a blog!  Did I tell you this already?  I don't care.  I read her blog and her little "K", ok, not really, her little "G" is the cutest thing since my kids!!!!  Just wanted to let you know I've added her link down near the bottom.  Go check her cuteness out.  The memories come flooding back when I see Gianna. 

Love you, K!!!!

Calling all vocal coaches.....

Never did I think we'd see the day that our child, (who has a grandmother who is a vocal coach), would be searching for one!!!!!  My Maddie needs a vocal coach....and no fly by night coach either.  She'll be picking up piano as well....so the all in one package would really be optimal.  And don't think you'll just slide in and say "yeah...I can teach".  Her Daddy plays and her Mom and Daddy both sing.....so you'll be doing an audition all your own.  Be prepared.  Anybody got suggestions??? 

Home Depot, Home, Home Depot, Home.....

In that order.  Do not pass go.  Do not collect $200.....in fact...

you'll need to spend what FEELS like that much
in order to do what I did.

I had this brilliant idea to paint the kitchen.  The idea, was to make the house flow....
make the kitchen more approachable, more inviting.
We accomplished that.  In fact, so inviting, that the sun moved in.  See below.

Sariah and Maddie helped scrape the old boarder off the green paint.....wallpaper should die!!!

And below is what we got after the 1st round.....

This color, my friends, is Burnt Amber.  

Like hell it is.

I said to Eric on Saturday night,

"honey...it's bad.  Like REAL bad.  But maybe I can deal with it....we'll see in the morning."

I got up on Sunday morning and my retinas were permanently scarred. 

Therefore, we went back to Home Depot.

We retaped, put out more drop cloth, and washed a few more paint brushes....and got right back to work.

Wait, did I say "WE"?????  What, is there a mouse in my pocket????  

Noooooooooooooo.  

Saturday evening the girls were ALL about helping.  

Sunday, after we painted half the kitchen and mom said, to heck with this!, they gave up.  

Sunday, I was alone.  But with so much company......watching TV behind me.  :o) 

Can you feel the love all the way out here in Georgia??? 

This time, I painted it the way I wanted to paint it....not the way the paper said to paint it..

not the way Martha said to paint it....the way Sarah said to paint it.....and look how it turned out......

L.O.V.E. LOVE it!!!!

I told Mom after I was done that I swore there were

5 more feet between the sink and the stove.  

So....lesson learned.  

Now on to the bedroom!!!

Scariest Place On Earth.....

and just 9 short years ago I thought it was pretty cool!!!

On our way back from Helen, we stopped at the Cabbage Patch Hospital.  (this explains it all.....)
The old hospital, which as a "real" hospital, was no longer the site of Babyland General Hospital.  They had to move.  So they built their own new building, but it's not nearly as cool as the old one.  It's just a big building now.  None the less....the CPK's are still born here....and still sold here.  My girls got their last experience. 

See below....

The new CPK Hospital.....
This is the old one....

A little extravagant.....

The sign.....

Maddie having a blast.....she thinks.....

Yep....creepiest place on earth.....

Where some of the babies live.....in a tree.....

OMG..."mom.....this place is so weird!!!!"

Where the babies come after they are born.....

I still don't like having my picture taken!!

$100 later.....3 happy kids.....
See below to watch the video of a CPK being born.......



So the video says it all.  Fun place....for little people.  My people aren't so little anymore.  But I love the memories.