Meat in the freezer

  Life gets "real" when you play single parent during the week.  It gets real loud, long, lonely, frustrating, exhausting,... I mean you get the drift.  For most of my almost 8 years of parenting I have had a strict and Nazi like schedule of a 7:00 bedtime.  This occurs for reasons such as: the mom needs some sanity at the end of the day, the kids are tired, and I think they need 11-12 hours of good rest a night.  Well, while Fancy is in Jackson we eat and bathe before 6:00 and hop in that bed by or before 7:00 PM.  It's magical.  Then again, I need some adult interaction, brief moments away from the bundles of joy, and some worship.  I have deviated from the 7:00 bedtime schedule on Wednesdays.  We are going to go to church and getting in bed after 7:00.  GASP!!!!  

John Brantley, my weird child who does NOT like change more than his momma, flipped his lid when I said we were going to church on Wednesday night.  It was on the level of Santa Claus isn't coming to see you this year.  Crying, grabbing, snotting, flailing around, just showing off!!!! I calmly explained that we go there all the time, he knows all the children, and the adults.  It didn't matter.  He was going to show his displeasure no matter what.  In true Jill fashion, I didn't want to hear it and said to suck it up buttercup....we are going.  We went.  It was great.  And he wants to go back 100 times!  They even painted his face.

Thursday the Bubbas got haircuts and after Ford climbed down Annie quickly crawled up in that chair.  Rachel sprayed and combed her hair and gave her pigtails.  She loved them!!!!  Ford, on the other hand, did not love them.  He likes normalcy and said he wanted her hair back like I always fix it.  He was concerned the curls would be gone...they weren't.  No cutting allowed...just impromptu makeovers!

THE CRUSHERS dominated Saturday morning at 8:00 on the courts.  Must be that good coaching, I mean crowd control, I've got going on!  Ford scored 30 something points.

Saturday afternoon Ken's  crew came down to spend the night.  Anna Greer babysat all 6 kids and we headed to the Como Steak house for supper.  There were two wedding receptions going on and one little fella kindly gave us some sparklers when we walked by.

#Merica

Sunday morning the girls all dressed alike for church.  Fear not, I didn't let Annie wear those boots to church.

After church we ate Mexican and celebrate Jack turning 6.

Bitty LOVES to go across the street and help check cows, ride on tractors, feed horses, etc.  He's there now!

Sunday night Trey took the boys hunting and Ford killed his first deer.  To say he was excited would be an understatement.  However, he wasn't thrilled that the scope cut his nose though!

Meat in the freezer!

Almost two

This little ray of sunshine is in her last month as a one year old.  It's a hard pill to swallow to think on February 23, my baby, my last child, this big surprise will be TWO!  

Last week I had to take Bitty to the doctor and I got them to weigh her.... 28 pounds.  She's wearing a 24m-2t clothes, size 4 diapers, and a 5 shoes.  She's down to one nap a day.  She honestly quit taking two naps at the end of November.

Annie jabbers.... a lot.  She can say a lot of words...too many to name.  She hasn't started putting lots of words together at a time though.  She will say, "Bess eww Momma" (or someone else's name)   That would be bless you for when you sneeze or cough.  Wuuu Wuuu is love you.  She's got Nooooo Bit Bit down to a T.  HUSH is a big word she screams at her brothers a lot too.  She's the boss, we just live here.

I still give Annie a bottle when she wakes up, before her nap, and at bedtime.  I "plan" to take this away next month when she turns two.  I am not imagining it will go well.  She loves her bottle.  Speaking of things she loves: Mickey Mouse, the shower, gum, suckers, popsicles, kisses, the bath tub, juice, cows, horses, dogs, babies, being held, other people's shoes, goldfish, dinosaur chicken nuggets, ketchup, golf cart rides, outside, etc.

She can be cranky when she first wakes up, and you better not cross her path.  Annie is a momma's girl.  Sometimes I joke that we need to break up because she is too attached to me.  I think 2k preschool will be great for her next year.  She loves other kids and will be fascinated with them at school.

We plan to enjoy this last month as a one year old!!!!!!

Band-aids on the nose

Ahhhhh blogging seems to have taken a back seat here lately and I hate it.  I have slacked on my picture taking and my time to blog.  I think part of this might be because Annie doesn't nap in the mornings anymore, therefore it's harder for me to get stuff done with a baby on my hip.  Nevertheless, I love to blog and plan to step my game back up.

The legislative session is back in FULL swing.  Fancy is in Jackson and we are keeping it real in Mayberry.  It's not easy taking on 3 kids by myself, but we have become a well oiled machine.  Around 5:00 we eat and then follow immediately with a bath.  So by 6:00 everyone is fed and clean.  Then we play and it's bedtime by or before 7:00.  This is year #6 so I pretty much got this gig under control.

Friday was "snow day" at school.  However, it was 70 degrees here so they opted for some shaving cream fun.

With hot weather comes a lot of outside play.  Friday I had mandatory outside time from 3:00-5:00.

I love that this kid calls a restaurant a rest-er-not.

 Those ears.... I believe the hat was down a little too far.

I'm pretty sure I don't owe Ford a big present for making all 100's.  He's back on the careless train again.  Last week's folder had a 95.  There was a -5 for no name.  Then on a reading page he was answering a discussion question and spelled two words wrong and got a 92.  He told me that no one makes all 100's.  I told Ford I was proud no matter what, but his mistakes were all careless and I wanted him to slow down and check his work.

She might wear ruffles and bows, but this diva can hang with the boys!!!!  I'm just pleased that on this day she has on her own shoes and not Bitty's.

I was sitting outside watching the kids play and talking to Anna Greer, our babysitter, who was sitting beside me.  Annie tried to make "Greer" get up.  I reminded her that she got a pink chair for Christmas.

Then she needed her phone in the cup holder like us!

Beauty products are my favorite.  I could spend a fortune on different things in the store.  Yesterday after my shower I decided I wanted to do a Biore' nose strip.  Annie quickly grew concerned saying, "bo bo".  I assured her I was okay, and then she decided she needed one too.

She got a band-aid instead!

This!!!!!!!!!...........  This word.... "mines" drives me insane.  When I taught school I would have children say it, and I just couldn't handle it.  One of Trey's friends saw these cupcakes at a local grocery store and sent him a picture.  All I could do was shake my head in utter disbelief.

Church league basketball has started back up.  This is Ford's second year to play.  The child loves the sport and is quite good at it too.  I'm actually helping coach his team.  Desperate times call for desperate measures.  Let's just say they were desperate for coaches.  I'm more crowd control! 

 His team

She cleaned up after me

  It's back to single mom life during the week for me.  The legislature is in full swing and it's me against three a lot of the time now.  I literally need prayers because my patience runs THIN by the end of the day.  Those children don't mind, talk too much, fight, touch each other, scream, refuse to eat, etc.  Lord give me Grace!!!

  My little ball loving child reminds me so much of my brother.  Ken used to dress and act a lot like Ford.  Ford thinks he's so cool!

My cousin and one of her sons came to stay last weekend.  Sister and I did some cooking on Friday.  Well, maybe I should say that I did some cooking and she cleaned up after me!

And I can't cook apparently!!!!!!

Our neighbors across the street love my children dearly.  They have all things farm at their house and my two little ones, Ford sometimes too, literally eat it up.

But when Bitty realizes that Annie went to see the horses and cows while he was still at school it doesn't go over well.

It's basketball season!!!!!!  We love Upward.  Guess who is a coach...????....ME!!!!!!!  Laugh away....but I take it serious out on the court.

When you sit on a bar stool for 10 minutes watching your breakfast cook.

Sunday Annie woke up with a fever and needed her momma.  I am serious.... someone is always sick around here.  Today it's me.  I think it's seasonal junk, but still.

Bitty loaded his hay bales up and we needed to send Daddy a picture.  Notice all the tractors on my rug.

Before bed snuggles

Melt my heart!!!!  Oh how they love this child.

And Bitty got his turn at the farm to ride a cow.