Playing Catch Up

I have spent my entire evening catching up on 5 months worth of blogs. I made it through two and am starting to feel my eyes cross. I want to apologize to all of you who write them for not being more involved in your daily happenings. In my months long blah blogging attitude, I have neglected you all, and in doing that, have missed out on your lives. I am sorry and look forward to continuing my game of catch up and hopefully in the process, keeping you more involved in my life as well.


P.S. Here is a random video of the boys just so that I can post something.

The addition that I didn't think would happen...

Well, we did it. I didn't think we would and outright said no at one point, but here we are. Meet the new addition to the family, Buckeye.

Buckeye is a chocolate lab and is going to be a monster. He is six weeks old and as cute as anything you have ever seen. Unfortunately, having a puppy is a ton of work, and the world is his toilet. Thankfully, he spends a lot of time outside with Sophie (who I think would rather not have a little ankle biter after her, but is coming around and will eventually love having him here) and seems to enjoy being out there more than inside. I am happy that the boys have a dog to grow up with them. God put this dog in our laps, so he must really belong with us! If we can get past the not sleeping, pee on the floor, whining, and nibbling, I think this will be a great thing! Pray that this all comes together quickly so that I don't totally lose my mind!!!

PS. I think it is funny that Christopher can't quite say his name, yet, and lovingly refers to him as Buttguy. Hahahahahahahaha!!!!

My latest endeavor...

I did it! I finished the Virginia Beach Rock 'N Roll Half Marathon. My official time was 2:29, but according to my friend and training partner Carole's Garmin watch, it was actually 2:23. Her watch stopped when we stopped, so it's actually more accurate. At least that is what I am telling myself! It was a great accomplishment for me and I am very excited. I am already signed up for my second one at the end of the month in Myrtle Beach--I must be crazy, considering that my recovery took me so long and I walked around like a very old lady with terrible arthritis for at least a week! Oh well, I will rest someday!!!!

I also raised almost $500 for T.A.P.S (Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors) which takes care of fallen soldiers' families. I was honored to be a part of that. I ran in honor of Sgt. Jason Schumann, who was with my brother in Iraq and was killed. I am including a picture of my brother, who also ran the race (much faster than me) and is the reason I know about T.A.P.S in the first place. It's a great organization and if you want more information, you can go to http://www.taps.org/.

Here is a picture of Sgt. Jason Schumann.

Colin's and Christopher's first days of school...

And they're off...

Colin's first day of Kindergarten was August 16th. It is quite a bit early around here, but no one seems to mind it in the great state of South Carolina that they cut off a month of summer. Oh well, I guess he got an early start on learning how to speak hillbilly...just kidding. Well, sort of.

His first day went well. He came home telling me how much he loved his teacher and all about it. The next day and the days that followed (for the first 3 weeks) were not so hot. He cried every morning, told me it was boring at school and that he missed me when he was at school (blatant lie because he would proceed to do nothing but give me a hard time when he got home and often told me he wished that I wasn't his mommy anymore), and even claimed to not feel well a couple of mornings. Eventually, he came around and now goes in happily and comes home with lots to tell me. Mostly he tells me about who was on yellow or red, what kind of backpacks and shirts the kids have, or everyone's name and carpet number. I think he is fine and doesn't miss me anymore. I am anxious to go to the conference this month to find out how he is doing academically, because he won't (or can't) tell me too much about what he does in school. We'll see if I will have to bring up all of the teacher's spelling errors or not...

Christopher started preschool on September 1st. He did great except on the playground. What kid doesn't love the playground? Mrs. BethAnn said that he was happy until she told them they were going out and he burst into tears and cried the whole time! He did that for a few days and then she learned that bribery works. She told him (and the rest of the class) that they could have a gummy if there were no tears on the playground. Apparently that was all he needed to hear because he has been great since. Also, he changes his superhero identity daily so they never know who he is going to be on the playground that day. If he starts to tear up or get weepy, they just ask him to show them who he is. He gladly obliges and forgets about whatever it was that was making him sad! By far, his favorite part of school is his new backpack, and he proudly shows it to everyone he sees. I love that he is so happy about it!

All in all, the start of school has been a smooth transition and we are enjoying it. I will let you know when the redneck accents start appearing and I have to fix their pronunciation of things. That might end up a blog all its own!