An Apple a Day.....

Nate had his 5 year check-up yesterday at the doctor and everything went great! He is right on track with his stats: 40 lbs and 43" tall.

 

He was a champ and didn't even cry at the 3 shots....I was shocked! But of course. he has been dialing up the dramatics ever since then. In fact this morning he asked me to "carry" his arm. This is his pitiful face, I swear, he is such an actor....

 

Abby was good at the doctor's office too, as long as she had the Kindle near her. And she insisted upon holding Nate's hand as he got shots. Sweet girl.

 

They both had flu shots as well, but luckily, they were the sniff-up-your-nose kind, rather than I-have-a-huge-needle-and-you're-gonna-cry kind. I'm really surprised, but this was a pretty uneventful doctor's visit! Just glad my big boy is healthy & doing well.

No Cavity Club

Abby had her first visit to the dentist yesterday! She had been before - with Nate - but this was her first time as an actual patient. Of course, "Bruba" hopped in the chair for his appointment first, in order to show Abby the ropes. He did awesome as usual, even when the hygenist gave him flouride trays at the end. Big bonus: we had a private room AND an "upside-down TV!" He even got to pick the show he wanted to watch. (Maybe all pediatric dentists' offices have this, but I thought having a TV on the ceiling for the kids to watch while they were reclined in the chair was pure genius.)

 

Next up, Miss Priss! She loved the purple "bib".....

but wasn't so sure of the hygenist poking around in her mouth at first.....

Can you say: DEATH LOOK!?

 She finally got the hang of it and her favorite part was the suction straw that Mommy held to rinse out her mouth every 5 seconds. 

I survived!

 "Bruba, be quiet, I'm watching Dora!"

Both kids were part of the "No Cavity Club," and got a special token from the dentist to redeem a prize.

Is it just me, or is it ironic that the kids get a coupon for free ice cream after visiting the dentist!?

Super excited about her Princess toothbrush....

 Both kids owe their "no cavity club" membership to Greg; he religiously scrubs their teeth at night. Thanks Daddy-o!!

The First of Many....

Yesterday, we went to the first tailgate of the season! It was the first of many, and it's always a favorite day for the whole family. We played Western Kentucky, and headed over to campus around lunchtime since the game was at 2:30 pm.

 

 Action shot of the kids saying "ROLL TIDE!!"

 As usual, we went to the College of Business tailgate party, where we had a yummy meal from Full Moon BBQ: ribs, catfish, mac-n-cheese, slaw, baked beans, and these little goodies as well....

 After eating lunch, we headed through campus and over the quad. This was our first time not bringing the double stroller, so there was a lot of this:

 Thanks to short lines, the kids got to go on lots of bouncy houses, obstacle courses, etc.

 Slidin' in style....

 Our two munchkins, in a sea of red....

We look forward to many more tailgates (and Alabama victories!) this season, and feel grateful to be part of this community!!

 

(And no, we haven't been to a game yet, but hopefully we will soon - well, at least Greg and me. I know it might seem weird that we just participate in the tailgates, but to us, that's the best part! Not to mention MUCH more fun than dragging two preschoolers to a 3-hour long football game!)

Boosterthon Fun Run

One thing I love about Nate's school is that they have ONE and only one fundraiser all year, called the Boosterthon! (I remember being a kid and hating that I had to go door to door to sell candy bars, wrapping paper, etc during all different times of year. And I'm sure my parents weren't big fans either!) And this is such a great fundraiser because it's really fun for the kids and focuses on teamwork, character building, and fitness.

 

The Boosterthon centers around a "fun run" (that was held today), and Nate has been harassing our families (!) all week long for pledges. People could pledge either a flat donation, or a dollar amount per lap that they thought Nate would be able to complete. Every time Nate got a new pledge, he got a new prize from the Boosterthon staff at school. These ranged from boomerangs and hoop sets to watches and wristbands, and were the highlight of his day. He has counting down the days till the "finale," which was the Fun Run today. He was able to complete all 35 laps, and had such a blast.

 

When I dropped him off at school this morning, I told him I'd see him on the football field soon for the race. He said "Look for me. I'll be the guy with a red band on." And that he was..... see if you can spot him.....

He got a sweatband & wristband as one of his prizes, and insisted on wearing them last night to bed as well as to the race, b/c "the big helper guys wear them too." :)

 

Here's his class, taking a warm-up lap....

 And, he's off! Let the Fun Run begin!!

 After each lap, a teacher or volunteer would mark off a space on the back of his shirt. This way, you knew when each kid had completed 35 laps.

 The jury's still out as to whether Nate is going to an athlete or a mathlete, but either way, this guy is Nate's biggest fan!!

 I did it, Mom!!

Click here to watch a quick snippet of the fun run. It was pretty much organized chaos at it's finest!

 

(And a big thank you to our families - Nate was able to raise over $300 for his school!!)

Labor Day & Family Time

Last weekend, we took advantage of the holiday & turned our visit to Knoxville into a mini-family reunion! My cousin, Betsy, along with her 2 boys and parents (my Uncle Tom & Aunt Melissa), came from Cincinnati to Becky's house for the long weekend.

My parents were there as well, and the only one missing was Lora. (We missed you, Bones!)

 

We got to Knoxville around 3 pm on Saturday and I could not wait to get my hands on my favorite nephew. Oh those sweet cheeks and beautiful lips.....I could not get enough of him!

 Betsy's two boys are close to our kids in age. Ollie will be 4 in December (though he's as tall as Nate!) and sweet Henry is turning 2 this week. So each kid had a playmate, and they hit it off immediately. We put some toys in Bec's office/sunroom, and let the kids have at it. They played, jumped, danced, colored, played hide-n-seek, had races with Nanny outside on the driveway, and (below) threw acorns off the back porch.

 Anderson had a minor crush on Betsy and was very smiley around her!!

 My brother-in-law, Mike slaved away and smoked some pork (Boston Butt??) for 12 hours. It was DELICIOUS, and even the kids thought so. He  & Bec put together quite the feast for dinner, and the kids loved having their own table.

 I think Nate's favorite part was dessert...thanks to Poppy, the kids got ice cream sundaes with chocolate chip waffle bowls! And then poor Anderson didn't even get a chance to digest.....he was subjected to his first helicopter ride from his Uncle Greg. Even I got dizzy watching!

 Thanks to Aunt Melissa for trying to calm the kids down before bed. Abby & Henry both loooove books and suckered Melis into reading this one.

 Abby offered to give Poppy a head massage, and for some reason, she thought using her elbows would be the best approach...

Our little family went to a hotel to stay the night, as well the Briner family. We thought it'd be best to spread out all the kids in order to get a good night's sleep! Nate & Abby did great at the hotel and loved sharing beds with us. I slept with Nate, and after he kicked me about 10x in the butt in the middle of the night, I decided I would be switching partners the next night. Everyone slept well though, and we all met back up at Aunt Bebe's house Sunday morning for a big breakfast.

 

 We lucked out and the rain held off for most of Sunday. We were the first ones/only ones at the pool for most of the morning. I thought the water was a little chilly, but thankfully I was the only wimp and everyone had fun swimming & jumping & playing at the pool.

 Uncle Tom & Ollie having some serious discussions through the noodle-phone....

 We brought a picnic lunch and Abby was NOT happy that I made her sit in the shade. She wanted to be in the sun with everyone else, but that was just not going to happen for my little white princess. She let it be known that she was mad at me:

 My sis is the best little mommy!! She just simply adores Anderson, and clearly, the feeling is mutual. I love watching her from afar...

 Mr. Fancy Pants

 Worn out from all the sun & swimming. Sweet baby boy!

 Miss Hollywood, showing off her best moves...

 Uncle Mike splurged and let the kids pick out some ice cream at the snack bar. Nate had a death grip on his, but Abby walked around and offered bites of her crunch bar to everyone.

 After long naps back at Becky's house, the kids woke up refreshed & ready to play. Well, play the Leapster at least...

 Cousin love! (Minus Lora!)

 The kids were anxious to wake up Anderson to "play" (or rather, be manhandled....)

 I know this is a weird picture since Abby's feet are randomly in the air - she is upside down on Greg's lap - but I think it's a really good one of me & Greg, so I had to post! :)

 After a yummy pizza dinner, we headed outside to blow bubbles and use some leftover poppers from Fourth of July (thanks Poppy). The little ones stuck to the bubbles...

 I think this is my favorite picture of the whole weekend. It just sums us all up: smiles, alcohol, and kids! :) (Don't hate me for posting this, guys!!)

 Some of the gang, throwing poppers on Bebe & Mike's driveway. Please notice poor Abby - she HATES loud noises and covers her ears at every one of them.

 These two goofballs became BFF fast! I loved playing with Betsy as a kid, and I'm so glad Nate has a fun cousin too!!

 Aunt Bebe tried to sneak Anderson away for a bath before bedtime, but Mommy Abby just had to "help"....

 I didn't really realize how much Abby was on the Leapster until I looked at all of these pictures! I swear she did other things other than playing on that thing all weekend, ha!

 Sunday night was another good night in the hotel with the kids, once the (random) Labor Day fireworks show at UT was over. Poor Abby sat in bed with me for close to an hour with her hands over her ears, waiting for them to stop.

 

Monday we all met up one last time at Bec's house to eat breakfast and get in a few last cousins' pictures....

It warms my heart to see my kids playing with these amazing cousins, and hopefully we are going to make this reunion over Labor Day an annual thing. We owe it to our kids!! In the meantime, I guess Nate & Ollie could be pen pals....

 

Bec & Mike, thanks for letting us invade Knoxville for 3 days! We had so much fun and appreciate all the hospitality & yummy food. Briner clan - we love you guys and can't wait till Asheville 2013!