Our trip to Nick Hotel-

We decided to take one last weekend trip away before school and football/cheerleading starts, so we took the kids to the Nickelodeon Hotel. This is going to be a post of mainly pictures that will simply tell it all...

Here was our hotel:



This was the water park by the pool area...

which is where this little guy spent most of his time:

Her...not so much.

This is where Ellie liked to spend most of her time...

going down the slide and...

and getting soaked by the bucket waterfall:



Here's Jacob shooting a few basketballs:

and then to their favorite time of the day.

This big bucket just under Sponge Bob was filled to the rim with slime and then the countdown began...10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1....

and then it was .....SLIME TIME!!!

By the time I got to them through the crowd, most of the slime had already slithered off their slick bodies, but in these pictures, you can still see a little bit of the slime on them.

I was really there...here's the proof:

Ellie in Blue Clue's thinking chair:

Ellie with Dora, whom she had to high-five every time she walked by:



Jacob and Ellie in front of the Rugrats:

Then we met the Aunt's/Uncle and had a nice dinner out at...

RUN FORREST RUN.....

The Bubba Gump Shrimp giving Jacob the bunny-ears:

After dinner, we went to play putt-putt and watched some of the other visitors feed/tease the gators in the pond...

A picture of the best two golfers around....

and lastly, a picture of Ellie with the ladybug she caught on her hand. I just thought it was a cute picture and wanted to share (you'll have to double-click the picture to get a good look).

That's about it for now. It was definitely too quick and we were back to the work/school grind before we knew it.

Happy Monday!

Is it already here...really?

The summer flew by and today came much too quick, but they're off and today marks the official start of the 2009-2010 school year. So, to keep up with yearly tradition, here are the first shots of our 6th grader (do I really have a kid going into middle-school?) and our 1st grader....

Any different from last year? They are certainly growing up... I will upload more pictures later, but I'm at work and these are the only two pictures I got on my phone, so they'll have to work for now.

Although both seem rather excited, we have many new beginnings this school year....new schools, new teachers, new nurses, changing of classes, bus rides, etc... Admittingly, Mommy was actually a little nervous for my two favorite people this year, although I would never tell them that.

With a year full of many new "first," we had one that was a tad more nervous than the other, and I'm sure you can only guess who. I really think our Bubbe was more nervous about the bus ride than anything else. There was a lot of..."what if I miss the bus?" - "what if I forget what building to go to?" - "what if I don't know to get off at the right school?" Yep, he even asked that. Granted, his bus is stopping at Northport too, but my dear son, I think you will know the difference. Sigh...

Todd said he had a mini-breakdown on his way to the bus-stop, but I'm sure it's just all nerves. Jacob's bus # is 2629 and the first bus that pulled up at his stop was 2926. Thankfully, Todd was there with him and discovered that Mommy didn't write the numbers down incorrectly, it simply wasn't the right bus. Way to go, Transportation Dept., and confuse a kid who is already a nervous wreck. Couldn't they of picked a bus with numbers that weren't so much alike? Geez...

As far as the little girl, she told me she was "a teeny nervous, but not like Bubbe." I didn't even have to walk her to her room. We went through the drop-off line and she walked up to the school on her own like a very BIG girl.

Well, I'm sure there will be lots more to tell a little later this evening. For the time being, I guess I will watch the clock and anxiously await for my day to end.

I love you, Jacob and Ellie. Mommy is SOOOO proud of both of you and I can't wait to hear about your day!

The things kids say~

So, it's a hot, summer morning and Ellie's outside running around and playing with her little friend, McKenzie. The next thing I know she comes storming in the door all hot and sweaty asking me if she can have one of the diet grape sodas that her Daddy bought for her yesterday. I check the soda and it contains 0 caffeine, 0 carbs and 0 sugars, so I say, "sure." A couple of minutes later I go out to the laundry room and see both Ellie and her little friend sipping on one of the sodas. Because of Ellie's circumstances, I've learned that it's always important to ask before giving food/drinks to other little ones....you just never know if it's something they can't have. So I asked Ellie if McKenzie's Grandma said it was okay for her to have the soda and, although I didn't know why at the time, they both stood there with the deer-in-the-headlight frightened looks on their faces. I'm sure Ellie's frightened look was because she knew she didn't ask, but McKenzie quickly puts the soda down on the shelf and says, "I can't have it if it's got diabetes in it." All I could do was chuckle....how do you respond to that?

We are leaving soon for our last weekend get-away before school and football starts. I'm looking forward to spending a weekend away with my two littles at the Nickelodeon Hotel watching them get slimed...ha!

Happy weekend to all!

A few weeks ago, I talked about...

a little beach time;
relaxing in the sun;
getting a little tan;
listening to and playing in the waves; and
wiggling my toes in the warm beach sand.

Well, now that we got a LITTLE break from all the baseball craziness, we finally got to do that today! Here are my toes doing the wiggly in the warm beach sand...



It was a beautiful day at the beach, so we soaked in the sun, played in the sand and waves, relaxed and enjoyed the day. Here are a few pictures to share:

The kids building a little castle...







Ellie was catching a lot of these snails and giving them all names. I think this was Eddie, or wait... maybe this was Fred?



Ellie made me a sign in the sand. I know it's hard to see, but it says Mommy above the little heart :)



Jacob, or is that Ellie, picking his/her head up off the ground.



And the boys taking action on their plan to soak me with a pail of water. Daddy, who I'm sure was the master-mind behind it all, was taking the picture while sending Jacob off to do the dirty work:



One of me and my favorite girl:



A cute one of Ellie...



and one of Bubbe showing off his physique while doing a little flexing for his Dad.



Definitely not a bad way to spend the day with the ones you love....



Hope your day was as good as ours!

XOXO

A man on a mission -- which has now become our mission!

Nick Jonas from the Jonas Brothers was in Capitol Hill yesterday to testify at a hearing on government funding for diabetes research. The singer, who was diagnosed with diabetes at 13, shared his story and read lyrics from his song "A Little Bit Longer," which he wrote about dealing with the disease. I just wanted to share some of the lyrics...

Got the news today
Doctor said I had to stay
A little bit longer and I’ll be fine

When I thought it’d all be done
When I thought it’d all been said
A little bit longer and I’ll be fine

But you don’t know what you got ‘til it’s gone
And you don’t know what it’s like to feel so low
And every time you smile you laugh you glow
You don’t even know
You just don’t even know

All this time goes by
Still no reason why
A little bit longer and I’ll be fine.

Waitin’ on the cure
But none of them are sure
A little bit longer and I’ll be fine

So I’ll wait ‘til kingdom come
All the highs and lows are gone
A little bit longer and I’ll be fine
I’ll be....fine.

I don't know if I've ever heard the song, but now I'm intrigued and will have to find it on ITunes and listen to it.

It actually made me a little teary-eyed...makes me want to fight even harder and hope, truly hope, that one day I will be saying that my daughter HAD diabetes.

XOXO

I've been such a slacker..

at blogging. I barely have time to keep up with my everyday home chores, let alone blogging. But, it’s Thursday and I’m sooo ready for the weekend to get here. I'm at home, sitting on the couch doing absolutely nothing, in complete silence. That's right....no TV, no screaming kids, no barking dogs, no ruckus in the kitchen....complete silence. The only noise I currently hear is the AC blowing through the air vents. I know, and didn't I just say I had no time to blog?

I didn't think the work day would ever end today. For the last hour I sat there, daydreaming, thinking about life these last few months and hoping that...

life...would........slow...................down.

It seems like these last few months have zoomed by and consisted of two things...

Ellie's new life and
getting familiar with diabetes,
testing sugars,
counting carbs,
testing more sugars,
giving insulin shots, and
just trying our best to figure out the science of it all.

And....

baseball,
baseball, and
more baseball.

Let me first say that the change in my life is in no way even close to comparing to the change my sweet, preciouse daughter has had to endure. Bless her heart....she's a fighter and a trooper!

And, I absolutely LOVE watching my son play his heart out and become the fabulous baseball player he has become, but it seems baseball has taken over and I simply think it's time for a break!

It's time for...

these never-ending, hours long, every day, heat-enduring, constant baseball practices to end
and....
summer to begin!

Well, I’m not really ready for the heat that summer brings, but just the down-time that summer is suppose to bring, such as....

a little beach time;
relaxing in the sun;
getting a little tan;
listening to and playing in the waves;
wiggling my toes in the warm beach sand; and
simply relaxing...
watching my kids enjoy the ocean life that so many people would only dream of.

I feel like life these last few months has just been passing us by with all the craziness and we haven't been able to stop, take a deep breath and simply enjoy the little and important things in life.

So, with that being said, I'm going to stop my pity party, put this computer aside, go out by the pool and watch my daughter take a swim as we enjoy this beautiful evening together.

Happy Thursday, All....the weekend is almost here!

A quick follow up to my last post-

Tonya reminded me of another trait I forgot about my little man. He actually has a little humor to that personality of his...something he got from his Daddy.

I think he knows every "fat Momma" joke known to man.

So, I'll share 2 of my favorites...

Your Momma is so fat that they have to grease up the doorway and put a twinkie on the other side to get her through.

and....

Your Momma is so fat that when she's swimming in the ocean the whales start singing..."We are family....even though you're fatter then me."

Okay, so "Fat Momma" jokes probably aren't very nice, but...

they make me laugh;
he makes me laugh; and
I love him!

My #1

This post is in reference to my #1...my #1 child who is #1 to me in many, many ways.

Sometimes I know I might sound like a broken record, but he's such a special little man.

He's so very kind;
and caring;
and sweet;
and friendly;
and loving;
and smart;
and athletic;

just a good, good soul...

But one new thing I did learn today is...

intelligent + caring + kind+ athletic + loving + friendly + sweet =

CITIZEN OF THE YEAR!!!!

He walked into class this morning and noticed a piece of blank paper sitting on his desk. As he approached his desk to sit down, he flipped the paper over and it was the teachers note letting him know that she had chosen him as her "Citizen of the Year." Jacob's only response, spoken quietly to himself, was "YES!" And, the quiet, shy and humble boy never said a word...he just simply stuffed the paper away in his backpack.

However, it was very clear to see that he was also very proud. As I picked the kids up from school today, Jacob jumped in the car with a smile from ear to ear and said, "I have some very good news." As he told me the wonderful news and we discussed his nomination, he kept saying, "are you happy, Mommy?" And I'm thinking to myself, little guy...you just have no idea how proud I really am! As I tried to keep the tears from rolling out from under my sunglasses, I told my son...over and over....how SO very proud I am of him and the many, many reasons why.

I didn't hear a peep from the other little backseat rider most of the way home. I think she was taking it all in and listening to the conversation Jacob and I were having. As we pull into the driveway, she finally says, "Mommy, are you proud of me?" Yes, little girl.....I'm very proud of you, too! She also made a point to tell me that her teacher has yet to appoint their Citizen of the Year, and I could just hear that little glimmer of hope in her voice that maybe, just maybe it will be her. Although I think they will be some hard shoes to follow, I think she is determined to do everything she can do follow her brother's footsteps, and I have no doubts she can do it!

It's simple...

I have two smart little kids that I'm SUPER proud of!

(I'm sure most of you will have to double-click the pictures to see the actual grades)

I'm so lucky...

A weekend full of eggs & candy!

We started our Easter weekend with a little egg coloring.





However, it was short-lived. As soon as the neighborhood kids arrived and the doorbell rang, the kids bolted and Mommy was left finishing the eggs alone.



Unfortunately, Todd had to work this Easter...one of the few holidays I think he actually has to work this year. It's just never the same when Daddy isn't here. Since we all know what a good cook I am, my Mommy elected to take us out for an Easter lunch instead. Good thinking, Mom!

We ended our Easter weekend with a few surprises from the Easter Bunny, church, a visit to the fire station to see Daddy and a little Easter egg hunt with friends.



Jacob was the "Golden Egg" winner, and although it's a little hard to see, he's flashing his money around in this picture. Needless to say, he's like his Dad and as soon as that money was in his little hands, he already had visions of what he was going to do with it. Thankfully, someone is like me and Ellie's a little saver like her Mommy.



XOXO

UPDATE, UPDATE....read all about it!

Hello, blogger friends! I know it's been a while, and as most of you know, there has been A LOT going on at White Oak Lane that has kept me from being an ever so faithful blogger. Okay, well maybe my bloggingless (is that really a word?) started long before then, but that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. In any event, we've had some big changes and have been quite busy keeping up with our old world, and adjusting to our new one.

First and foremost, we had a major, life changing, altering experience that threw a curve ball at our peaceful world and sent us in shock, awe, dismay and havoic. I, along with everyone else, went through a whirlwind of emotions from being scared, mad, sad and finally, a little acceptance..initially. We have certainly taken that little acceptance and ran with it, so it's not so "little" anymore. As most of you know, our precious, little (to little for such a dramatic life change), amazing girl was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. Here is a picture of the first glimpse of that new world and our very scary experience...

Picture 1...sitting in bed awaiting the news and our next move:

That was our first, of many, hospital beds and one scared little girl. But, boy, oh boy, did that little girl have big surprises in store for her Mommy and Daddy on what a brave...BRAVE... soul she really is.

Picture 2...one we took to show her big brother, and one big brother who isn't so "big" when it comes to sickness. Thank the guy above for not torturing me and throwing this life changing experience at Jacob as we would all probably be institutionalized by now....really! This was also one of my first signs of "wow, this is one brave little girl."

Here's another shot that brought out a little of Ellie's humor...anything to lighten the mood on that scary day.

Then we took an ambulance ride and ended up at Palms West. After a day or two when Ellie started feeling better, we made many trips to the play room to....

make sand art;



or play Guitar Hero (this was another picture just for big brother):

She got LOTS of goodies delievered to her...many new stuffed friends and flowers. Sorry, can't post them all, so here's a few:

This is a cute shot that I took of her reading her diabetes book to her new friends and teaching them all about it:

Finally, and although I've said it before, I'll say it again....I can't thank all of you enough for being so kind and opening your hearts and wallets to a cause that we recently found so near and dear to our hearts. Thanks to all of you, we alone raised close to $1,500 for our diabetes walk. THANK YOU...THANK YOU...THANK YOU! I truly hope, and strongly believe, that my precious angel will see a cure in her lifetime. An extra thanks to Mom, Tonya, Bill, Jody, Jimbo, Drew, Riley and Magda for taking part and joining us in our walk. It just made it that more special to know we have your support and that you are standing right behind us in this new adventure. Here's a picture of Ellie and her best friend, Riley, at the walk.



I've been telling myself that He won't give us more then we can handle and there is some reason, although I'm still figuring that part out, on why this "curve ball" was thrown at us. However, I have to say that we've all adjusted and ran with the punches and, proudly, I think we've all handled it pretty darn well. Granted, that little girl is the one that has adjusted the best overall and has no earthly idea how much easier she has made this on her Mommy and Daddy. But one day, as she gets a little older to fully understand the meaning, I will proudly fill her in.

On a final note, Ellie had a follow-up appointment yesterday with her endocrinologist who told us that we are doing a wonderful job with our new world. She also said something that really touched my heart and made me realize that, despite this "curve ball", we are truly blessed. She told us that we "have that perfect little family".....who wouldn't be proud of that?

I have a lot more to update everyone on, but it's time to run off to a baseball game. More to follow, barring any more life changing experiences (I know, I know...still just an excuse).

XOXO

Today was....

our Citizen of the Month award ceremony at school. Ellie got the award for her class....

and Jacob got his for PE. He was EXTREMELY embarrassed that I took this picture. His poor little face got beet red. Before he went on stage to receive his award he was begging me not to get up from my seat and take a picture. My initial plan was to take one secretly from my chair, but then Ms. Scurry (the Asst Principal) saw me and made Jacob stop, so I got one anyways. You'll have to double click on the picture to zoom in and get a good look...

Just for proof, I took one of Ellie too, but I couldn't get it quick enough and it turned out blurry.

and then I took a few quick shots of the monthly bulletin board....

We were the only proud Mommy and Daddy in that cafeteria sitting next to not only one, but two Citizens of the Month. How lucky are we?