Shocking, huh?

Did anyone NOT see this coming?

You say Potato, I say Potahto

This is going to be life changing.

The boy knows how to make me laugh...

Jeremy is off work today. Jackson was going to spend a few hours at school while Jeremy got some stuff done and then go pick him up after nap time. An hour or so ago I got a call from his school that he wasn't feeling well. Not to give TMI, apparently he has caught a 24 hour stomach bug. So Jeremy went to pick up some Gatorade and then got Jackson.

About 5 minutes ago our home number popped up on my caller ID at work and imagine my wonderful surprise when the first thing I hear is...

Jackson: "Hey Mama."
Me: "Hey Baby. How are you? Do you feel okay?"
Jackson: "I feel good. Daddy picked me up from school. Mommy didn't pick me up. Just Daddy."
Me: " Are you gonna be good for Daddy today?"
Jackson: "Yes. I have fun with my Daddy."
Me: What are you doing now?"
Jackson: "I'm with my Daddy. I ate some cereal."
Me: "Was it good?"
Jackson: "It was superb!"

It made me LOL. Jackson learned the word "superb" from his Papa, and it cracks me up every time he does it. I'm glad that even though he isn't 100% right now, he still is feeling good enough to have his sense of humor!

We The People Stimulus Package

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Hey y'all. We had what you might call a "toad-stangler" of a weekend here. It rained and rained and rained. My parents rain gauge had 5 1/2 inches of rain in two days! We were expecting some severe weather but luckily it passed over us without much more than hard rain, thunder and lighting. During a break in the rain on Saturday morning Jackson and I headed out to do our errands and on our way home we drove by a creek that is right down the street from our house. Usually it is about 6-7 feet across, but on Saturday morning it was more than doubled in size. I didn't have my camera, but we went back later that afternoon to take some pictures. I had dropped considerably by then, but I still took some pictures.

Gracie and Miranda came over for supper on Friday night. Jackson had a blast laughing with Gracie!

The entire island was submerged except about 6 feet.

The water was at least 1 foot higher than this.

All Jackson's throwing rocks were completely submerged.


Isn't he so cute!


He loves throwing rocks and sticks into the creek.

Spotting an airplane.

Another view.

This was all underwater.

Playing in the sand.

Autauga Creek was overflowing, even with the dam open.

Jackson and Tata check out the water.

I have never seen so much water rushing through Autauga Creek.

So much rain has fallen already, and we are expecting more rain this week. Let's pray it has time to move downstream without flooding. Have a great week!

Just when I thought he couldn't get any sweeter....

I had to take Jackson to the doctor yesterday afternoon. He has had a persistent cold/cough for over a week, and while I realize that there is nothing that can be done for a cold, the cough sounded bad. Well, his nose finally dried up, but the cough was still hanging around and then he said the words that make me stop dead in my tracks...

"Mama, my ear hurts."

Being that we are on our third set of tubes with him, those 4 words are enough to make my blood run cold.

So I called the pediatrician and made an appointment for yesterday afternoon. I picked Jackson up and took him in and we finally made it back to the room. I love it that our Dr.'s office has installed this super cool aquarium right inside the hallway to the examinati0n area, full of fish that include 2 clown fish (Nemo and Marlin) a Dori fish, and a big starfish. Jackson convinced the nurse to take him to go see the fish, and when he spotted the starfish he dragged me back into the hall way to go check it out.

This was right before he announced to everyone in ear shot, "I gotta get out of here." and took off into the waiting room running like a crazed little man into a playhouse where he proceeded to laugh his head off at making me look like an idiot chasing him around the waiting room.

I should earn hazard pay for solo trips to the doctor with a 2 year old.

We finally made it back into the room where I was told that there was nothing wrong with my child. He was fine. No ear infection, no strep. Nada. Don't get me wrong...I"m so glad he wasn't sick, but that was a lot of trouble for nothing, not to mention one more co-pay down the drain.

Moving on....

So I loaded him up and decided to drop by Jeremy's work for a few minutes since it was on the way home. Jeremy showed Jackson off to his coworkers and after awhile we loaded back into the car to head home. Jackson told Jeremy bye at least 4 times, and we hadn't more pulled out of the parking lot when Jackson started talking to me.

Jackson: "Thank you Mama."
Me: "For what?"
Jackson: "For taking me to go see my Daddy at work."
Me: "You're welcome!"
Jackson: "It makes me so happy!"

Y'all, that just melted my heart (and Jeremy's). Jackson is such a sweet little stinker!

Jackson's Great Big Monster Truck Book

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Pray for Stellan

You may know the story of Stellan, the youngest child of MckMama. Before he was born his parents were told that he had some very serious heart conditions and very likely would not make it to birth. The family prayed for God's blessings on them, and their little MckMuffin, and Stellan was healed and was born a healthy full-term baby with no heart problems. Since then he has battled RSV, and is now in critical condition with the same heart conditions that plagued him in utero. Please pray for this sweet little 4 month old boy and his family. They know that God's plan for Stellan is bigger than they could ever imagine, but my heart is breaking for them as they face such mounting obstacles for their child.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)

"…I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20)

"Bee-Attitude" Adjustment

Sunday afternoon was gorgeous and Jackson and I were having a great time playing outside. After awhile we started watching two giant bumblebee's fly around our yard. They would attempt to dive bomb the yard for a second and then they would fly off for awhile, only to return every few minutes or so. Jackson is all about bugs, so I had to give him a fair warning that he should not mess with the bumblebees because they would sting him and it would really hurt.

We kept playing and Jackson decided that he had been nice for long enough and started to act out a little bit. When he wants to, he can have a very sassy mouth, and he was just being very smart-mouthed. I got his attention about the time that one of the bumblebees was flying nearby and said, "Sshhhhhh. Do you hear that?" Jackson got really still and listened to the buzzing of the bee as it got closer to us. I asked Jackson if he heard what the bee said, and when he said no, I quickly told him that the bumblebee was telling him to "BBBBBBBBEEEEEEEE nice to your Mommy."

Jackson was amazed at what the bee told him, and y'all, it worked "bee-utifally" for the rest of the afternoon.

Spring has Sprung

Y'all, it was GORGEOUS this weekend. Clear skies, wonderful temps, amazingly perfect! I so wanted to plant new flowers and start my garden this weekend, but I know that we will more than likely have at least one more good cold snap before Easter. The last thing I need is new flowers and vegetables freezing to death. It is only the middle of March!

We had the good fortune that Jackson happened to sleep in until 8:00 Saturday morning, and then we were off in a hurry running errands. After a super busy morning, we sent Jackson off to Nana and Tata's house to spend the night and Jeremy and I went and watched Race to Witch Mountain and then had dinner at Olive Garden. I have to say that the movie was pretty good! Yesterday after church and nap time, we spent several hours just playing in the back yard where Jackson had a blast. It was such a nice weekend, and we all had a great time. I need more weekends like that! Enjoy the pictures from Jeremy's trip to Mississippi!

Jackson watching Uncle Ben fish with his cousins, Cole and Logan.

Jackson and Cole

I love this picture. He looks like a little man on a mission!

Jackson checking out Daddy's fish

Jackson riding a four-wheeler at Papa and Gigi's house

How's this thing work?

Just climb on up!

Push this little button, and GO!

(Shortly after this he ran into a tree!)

And we're off!

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TGIF

The boy and the hubbie are on their way home from Mississippi right now. They had a great time visiting his family. I can't wait to get my hands on Jackson. I've missed that little monkey so much! (I've also missed Jeremy!) Shockingly enough Jackson actually consented to talking with me on the phone while they were gone and had actually conversations with me. Usually he refuses to talk on the phone on command.

They've only been gone for 2 nights, but it was so strange not having any real responsibilities at home. I almost didn't know what to do with myself, and then I figured out that a long, hot, uninterrupted bath would work just fine for me. Then I ate Oreos in bed. With all that "responsibility" I had while they were gone, I hope Jeremy can overlook the fact that I forgot to unload the dishwasher while he was away:)

No real big plans for this weekend except to relax and enjoy the beautiful weather with the family. I hope y'all have a great weekend! I'll catch up with you on Monday. Bye!

I Can't Keep My Mouth Shut Any Longer

*Excuse me while I step onto my soapbox for a minute or so.*

I have kept my mouth shut regarding political drama for long enough. In fact, I don't even think I've mentioned politics since the inauguration. That must be a record for me. Now, I'm ready to go start throwing tea into the Boston harbor. Enough is enough!

Wanna know what has made my blood start boiling? It's three things actually.

First up....I firmly believe that the stimulus package was a $787 billion joke, only it's not funny. It was nothing more than a load of pork. You want to stimulate the economy? How about giving tax-paying citizens a break and lower their taxes. If you lower my taxes, that means that I have a larger paycheck, hence the ability to go out and stimulate the economy by spending my own hard earned money. Quit spending my tax money on people that don't even have a job. Let me clarify that I'm referring to people who have never earned an honest dime in their life, have no intention of ever working to make themselves better, and then expect me to rescue them from their bad choices. We work hard enough without having more burden piled on our shoulders. I know these are extremely hard economic times, but I don't want to pay for people's foolish decisions.

Now we find out that AIG, who has now qualified for $115 billion dollars in federal tax dollars to keep their company afloat, is now giving their executives $165 million in bonuses. 75 employees got $1 million dollar bonuses, and this comes straight on the heels of AIG reporting record losses for the company. Excuse me? These executives run a company into the ground, and you reward their incompetence with $165 million in bonuses? Who's running this party?

Then we find that both President Obama and Senator Dodd had huge financial donations from AIG made to their campaigns this past year. Interesting, dontcha think?

Then there is this which is absolutely infuriating. President Obama, the Commander in Chief of our Armed Forces, wants to start charging private insurance companies for medical care that soldiers receive from service-related disabilities and injuries. This is outrageous!!! These soldiers have sacrificed their safety for our freedoms, doing what they are told to do, and you expect their private insurance company to pay for injuries received while serving our country. The insurance company doesn't send anyone to war. The President does that. We have a moral and ethical obligation to take care of people who are willing to die for our country. Does President Obama realize that private insurance includes high deductibles, and worse than that, an entire family can be capped at how much treatment they can receive in a year? A soldier could get horribly injured serving our country, and we can't even have the respect for his service that we would take care of whatever his/her injuries might be. I can't believe that our President has such a lack of respect and honor for the soldiers that serve under him. He should be ashamed to call himself their leader.

I have two questions for you: What do you think about our fearless leader and do you have any tea to spare?

*Now I'm officially stepping off my soapbox for the time being. Pardon the interruption as I go along my happy little way.*

I Love Spring

We had an absolutely gorgeous Friday afternoon before the rain set in, and Jackson and I had a great time playing in the backyard. It was wonderful outside!

Isn't he a cutie!

Running around like crazy!

Flash of brillance: Old paintbrush and a bucket of water and I let him "paint" our house.

He had such a good time painting!

Soon after this he started trying to paint Jeremy and I. It was hilarious!

Such a sweetie!

Jackson at his cousin Gage's 3rd birthday party.

He loved the slides!

I love my little monkey!

Jeremy and Jackson are heading to Mississippi tomorrow to visit with Gigi and Papa. Please pray that they have a safe trip and a wonderful time with his family. Have a great Tuesday!

We've Come Full Circle

I want to thank everyone for their prayers for my family in the death of my grandmother. We are doing good, but I know that we will have hard times ahead when dealing with milestones that we have to reach. Thanks for your support!

In other news, my parenting Jackson has come full circle. We made the oh, so unfortunate decision to let Jackson watch Dr. Doolittle a few months back and have been regretting it ever since. I had forgotten that Dr. Doolittle has a sassy mouth and Jackson learned the word "shut up" from the movie. We have tried and tried to get him to stop saying it, but he just won't let it go. Now, if he says it, he will follow it with, "We don't say shut up" or "Dr. Doodle says shut-up." For time-outs he usually gets a minute of timeout per year of life, so that means 2 1/2 minutes of timeout. We finally had to officially put the DVD in permanent timeout to try to keep Jackson's attention away from it.

Yesterday I got my parental comeuppance.

I have really been struggling with a sinus infection lately. I woke up with a terrible headache, sinus pain, and I was just miserable. Macy had gone outside and was barking like crazy at absolutely nothing. So what did I do? I opened the back door and yelled at her to "Shut up, Macy." I turned around and Jackson was standing there watching me. Jackson looked at me and immediately said, "We don't say shut up, Mommy."

I quickly apologized to him (and Macy per his request) and said that he was right, and that Mommy shouldn't have said that because it wasn't nice at all. I asked him if I needed to go to timeout and after considering it for a second he decided that I didn't need to go.

Shucks. I could have used 28 1/2 minutes in timeout!

I guess it goes to show that those little eyes are always watching, and even more important, those little ears are always listening, even when you think they're not.

You can bet I've learned my "shut-up" lesson.

Bless his Heart

Last night as I was helping Jackson pray before bedtime, he decided to pitch in with his prayer.

Me: "Say Dear, God."
Jackson: "Dear, God."
Me: "Thank you for today. Thank you for letting me have a good day."
Jackson: "Thankyoufortodayforhavingagoodday."
Me: "Help me sleep good tonight."
Jackson: "But I don't want to go to sleep."
Me (ignoring previous comment): "Help me sleep good tonight."
Jackson: "Sleep good tonight."
Me: "Jackson, who should we pray for?"
Jackson: "Ummm. Papa and Gigi and Tanner (in-law's dog!), and Uncle Ben and Mimi and Adam and Albe (Mimi's dog!).
Me: "Good. Who else should we pray for?"
Jackson: "Ummm. Nana and Tata and Shadow (Nana's dog!) and KK and Uncle Jason. And Crystal. And Mommy and Daddy and Macy."
Me: "Anybody else?"
Jackson: "Ummm. David and Colleen and Kaitlynn and Gracie (all school friends) and Ms. Mantha (Ms. Samantha) and Ms. Taco (no clue here!).
Me: "That all?"
Jackson: "Ummm. Yes. Amen!"

Bless his little heart, I could just eat him up!

I think he's "getting" it....

We have really been working with Jackson to help him learn how to be a polite child. Jackson is really doing well with "please," "thank you" and "you're welcome", but living in the South, we also are really big on saying, "yes, ma'am," "no, ma'am," "yes, sir," and "no, sir." These are pretty much just non-negotiable phrases here. My Mom and I have been gently giving him reminders, and for the most part, after a prompting of, "Yes..." he will fill it in with "sir" or "ma'am" and he occasionally says it with no reminders at all.

So the other day I asked him to sing me a song and this is what he said....

Jesus loves me! This I know, for the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong; They are weak, but He is strong.

Yes ma'am, Jesus loves me!
Yes ma'am, Jesus loves me!
Yes ma'am, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Yes ma'am, I think he's on to something here....

My Grandmother

My last living grandparent, my beloved Nannie, passed away early this morning. She had been having a really rough time for about a month, since she broke both her legs, and had been re-admitted to the hospital last Tuesday with a severe urinary tract infection. I think deep down we all knew the end was close, but it doesn't make it any easier to deal with such a loss.

Of all my grandparents, Nannie was the spit-fire. You never knew quite what she was going to say, or how she was going to say it, but she knew how to light up a room, and she could always how to make me laugh with her antics. Her favorite colors in the world were purple and red, and the brighter the pattern the more she loved it. She was fun, bright, and just a "character." She will be missed more than words could ever describe. I will cherish my memories of being around her, and the wonderful grandmother that she was.

Please be in prayer for my family as we begin to walk this journey without her. It's not going to be easy, but we have faith that we have that we will see her again one day.

They really should tell you these things....

I'm beginning to get the crud. The timing of this is not good at all because I'm scheduled to head out of town tomorrow for a work-related conference, where I actually have to work. Me + cough/cold medicine = drowsy, grumpy mess.

So to try to keep the sickness away, we stopped by Wal-Mart where I picked up some Chloraseptic spray and some cough drops. My biggest complaint as of last night was a sore, scratchy throat and I thought that although I hate the idea of using any kind of spray desperate times call for desperate measures.

We got home and I proceeded to begin the horribly process of Chloraseptic spray. I read the directions and it said to spray 5 times into the back of your throat, wait 15 seconds, and then spit everything out. So I did exactly that. Oh y'all, the nastiness cannot be described. It was awful! I gagged over and over to the point of almost throwing up.

And then I noticed something funny. Have you ever smelled something and it instantly takes you back to a particular moment in time? For instance, if I smell bacon frying, I think of my great-grandmother. If I smell sunscreen, I think of the beach.

The smell of the Chloraseptic spray took me all the way back to the spring of 1997.

Anatomy and Physiology class lab day.

Also known as the day I dissected a cat.

I started sniffing thinking that maybe it was just in my head, so I asked Jeremy if he smelled something unusual. He got a funny look on his face and grabbed the bottle of Chloraseptic spray and started reading the back.

That's when I discovered that the active ingredient in Chloraseptic spray is Phenol.

Phenol, a disinfectant and antiseptic, is occasionally used during embalming process, and smells exactly like formaldehyde, the major chemical used in embalming, as my funeral director husband so kindly shared with me.

Thus, the smell that reminded me of dissection day.

Not being someone to ever overreact to things, I immediately went and washed down the little bit of chemicals left in my mouth out with some sweet tea and then proceeded to brush the fire out of my teeth. However, I'm not convinced that I didn't swallow at least a little bit of a hazardous chemical.

So just in case something happens to me, as least I have the satisfaction of knowing that my teeth and esophagus should be preserved forever, as long as the chemicals didn't burn a hole in them.

Little man and his "little strawberry"

Jackson was born with a small strawberry on his left side right at his waist. When I was pregnant I literally ate a pound of strawberries every.single.day and one of my co-workers told me that Jackson was going to be born with a strawberry. Sure enough he was.

Jackson will show people his strawberry and he finally let me get a picture of him showing it off. If you ask him about it he will tell you that "it's just a little strawberry" and "it's going away."

Jackson showing off his little strawberry.

Cracking up laughing at Daddy when he was going to "eat that little strawberry."

I know these type of birthmarks won't last forever, but I'm gonna miss it when it's gone. It's been such a cute little trademark of his, and when it's gone that means that he really is growing up. I know it's bound to happen sooner or later, but I sure want to enjoy every second....

Tuesday Fun

I'm sorry to report this to y'all today, but I'm much too much upset about what happened on the Bachelor last night to give you anything good today. Dirty, rotten Jason Mesnick.....He had me. I had gone all season thinking he was such a classy guy (if you overlook the rampant hot tub scenes with lots of women), and then he goes and pulls the wool over my eyes and breaks Melissa's heart on national television. How dare he? I'm so done with him.

So instead I'm giving you a few surveys to take. They are fun because after last nights "most shocking after the rose ceremony ever" I can't take too much today. I still think my blood pressure is up, and quite frankly I'm surprised that I didn't throw my tv out the front door.

And Melissa, if you ever stumble onto my blog please know that I along with millions of other American woman have your back. Stupid Jason Mesnick....let Molly have him. You can do so.much.better.

17

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This one is harder than it looks!

Thanks for the advice!

Jackson has kept me rolling with some of the funny stuff he has come up with lately. I thought y'all would get a kick out of him!

Yesterday Jackson and I were driving (in the snow!) to church when we had the following conversation:

Jackson: "Whatcha doing Mommy?"
Me: "Driving to church."
Jackson: "Okay. It's snowing outside!"
Me: "I know! I'm trying to be careful driving in the snow."
Jackson: "Mommy, you be careful and try not to crash."
Me (laughing): "I'll do my best!"

Then, after supper last night Jackson was playing and tripped and fell nose first on to our kitchen floor. I heard the crying and as I went running Jeremy had already scooped him up and was making sure that his nose wasn't broken. After we got him calmed down we realized that his nose was fine, but that he would probably have a little bruise. As I was giving him his bath later, I tried to look his nose over a little more.

Me: "Jackson, please let me look at your nose for a second. I'm gonna wiggle it for just a second. Does it hurt?"
Jackson: "Ummmm.........No. It's okay. I only broked it a little bit."

I love the stuff he comes up with!

Only in the South

Thursday it was 75 degrees, and Sunday it was snowing. In March. Yesterday we woke up to the Southern version of a winter wonderland. We got a total of about 2 inches in our yard. It didn't quite compare with the infamous Blizzard of '93, but it was a nice treat. It is such a rare thing when it snows in the south, and we don't quite know what to do with it. Anyone not from the South doesn't understand how our life comes to a screeching halt as soon as the "s" word is predicted. We don't know how to drive in it, grocery stores immediately sell out of milk and bread, and goodness knows we don't have clothes warm enough for it. Life as we know it is over until it melts in a few hours. Heaven knows you probably can't find a snow plow south of the Mason-Dixon line. We're just not cut out for snow! It snowed yesterday off and on for about 6 hours, and it was completely gone by at 3:00 in the afternoon. We enjoyed it until then, but I'm glad that I don't have to deal with it very often!

Jackson and Macy checking the snow out.

Jackson loved it!

It was so cold outside!

Jackson making a snowball!

Jackson, Jason, and KK outside before church.

Jackson and I

Unlike the snow in Denver, this was a very wet snow, and would soak you in a matter of minutes.

Nana, Jackson, and Tata before church.

Are we cold yet?

I hope you enjoyed the pictures. Have a great Monday!