5 Days Til Walt Disney World!

Any last minute advice on what to take, what not to take, what to buy in the park, rides not to miss, and rides to avoid? We’re so excited!!!!

I have to start packing this weekend, so keep those tips coming!

RIP Alvin

On Sunday, August 26, 2012, our beloved fish Alvin met his Heavenly father. It was a very unexpected end to his life; He was swimming around, well, swimmingly at 4 in the afternoon, and at 8 in the evening he was, well, not swimming anymore.

He was given a proper burial at sea by Jeremy, the best funeral director we know, and after saying some nice words about Alvin, ala The Cosby Show episode where Rudy’s pet fish died, we sent him on his merry way.

In lieu of flowers, Jackson is requesting donations for his upcoming Disney trip.

Let The Homework Begin

Jackson had his first homework assignment last night, and if last night was any indication, it's going to be a long and drawn out school career for the next 16 years. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth, and that was just Jeremy and I. Jackson was a whole nother ball game.

It wasn't a hard assignment by any stretch; he had to read a story (which went great) and then copy his ten spelling words out twice. He started off great, for the first 2 words, and then it was procrastination central. The whole assignment should have taken 10 minutes max, but someone, ahem Jackson, insisted on carrying on an impressive drama king routine and dragged the whole shindig out for an ungodly 45 minutes for 10 simple spelling words.

Right now my Mom is probably sitting here reading this and thinking to herself, "Payback sweetie!" for all the years I did the exact same thing to her.

To Mom and Dad, I need to give you a public apology from the bottom of my heart. I had no idea that homework really was as terrible to you as it was to me. Trust me, I get it now....

The best part? When he was finally done, Jackson said, "That wasn't so bad!"

If  he only knew...

His First Harley Ride

Sunday night we had dinner with one of Jeremy’s “families” from work. They invited us over and we had smoked chicken, corn on the cob, broccoli salad, baked potatoes and watermelon. The food was delicious, and the company was super nice. It turned out that I graduated from high school with this couple’s son, and we had such a nice, easy-going, conversation.

After dinner Mike offered to take Jackson on his first Harley ride. He suited Jackson up in a silver helmet with orange flames and Jackson was grinning from ear to ear. We got Jackson settled on the back of the Harley, and I swear, I couldn’t have wiped that grin off his face if I had tried.

Jackson absolutely loved his ride on the Harley, and quickly announced when they got back that he was ready to go again! 

With the line of work Jeremy is in, I hate it when Jeremy  has “new” clients, but I was glad that we had the chance to meet some new friends. Definitely not a bad way to end a summer weekend!

Post Turtle

Jeremy got this in an email and forwarded it to me. After reading it, I had to share. There was so much truth in it...

While suturing a cut on the hand of a 75 year old rancher whose hand was caught in the squeeze gate while working cattle, the doctor struck up a conversation with the old man. Eventually the topic got around to Obama and his role as our president.

The old rancher said, 'Well, ya know, Obama is a 'Post Turtle''.

Not being familiar with the term, the doctor asked him, what a 'post turtle' was.

The old rancher said, 'When you're driving down a country road and you come across a fence post with a turtle balanced on top, that's a 'post turtle'.

The old rancher saw the puzzled look on the doctor's face so he continued to explain. "You know he didn't get up there by himself, he doesn't belong up there, he doesn't know what to do while he's up there, he's elevated beyond his ability to function, and you just wonder what kind of dumb a** put him up there to begin with."

Best explanation I've heard yet of Obama.

First Day Success!

Jackson had a great first day of first grade! Thanks for all the prayers and well wishes for our big man. He loved his teacher, Mrs. Hicks, and he made lots of friends today. When I dropped him off this morning he did fine, and I got a big old lump in my throat when it was time to go! It was not quite as hard leaving him as it was for kindergarten, but it was still hard. He was like, "Bye, Mom." So much for being missed! We are so excited about this year, and look forward to an amazing school year. Enjoy the pics!

First Day Of First Grade

Jackson starts first grade today, and we are so excited. It’s kinda bittersweet for me, but he’s going to do amazing, and we absolutely love his teacher. I decided to interview Jackson, and at the end of the year I’ll ask him the same questions and see how he changes over the year.
What is your favorite subject in school? PE.
What is your favorite thing to eat for school lunch? Ham and cheese sandwich.
What did you like about Mrs. Hick’s classroom? She has cool desks for us.
What is going to be the best thing about first grade? You get to play.
What do you think about having homework? It’s gonna be hard.
What is your favorite color? Red.
Are you nervous about school? Yes, a little bit.
What are you nervous about? Going into my classroom and meeting new people.
How many friends do you think you will have? A lot.
How many girlfriends? (Insert blank stare.) ZERO.
I can’t wait to hear about his first day!!! I’m so nervous for him, but he will do wonderful. Wish him luck!

More Magical Advice Needed

We are 20 days away from our trip and I’m beginning to get into obsessive mode about planning. I have the meal reservations nailed down, touring plans app downloaded, and lots of Disney “souvenirs” to surprise Jackson with in our room. Here’s where I’m out of my element, and I would gladly welcome any advice y’all can share with me…

Backpacks: What to pack in it? Is it worth it carrying it around all day?

Autographs: What do you get autographed? I’ve thought of the autograph books, a pillow case, or a photo mat to frame a picture from our trip when we get home.

Strollers: Should we get one for Jackson just so he doesn’t have to walk so much?

Transportation: What is the best way to get from Epcot to Magic Kingdom?

Hotel: Do we go back to the hotel during the day to rest?

Water rides: Do your shoes get soaked and then you have to walk around in wet shoes all day which sounds like a major recipe for blisters? Do you take a pair of flip flops? Does your backpack get soaked?

Tower of Terror: Will this ride traumatize Jackson for the rest of his life?

Thanks for any advice y’all can share!!!

Dear Jackson,

Happy 6th Birthday, Jackson! You have been waiting for this day for close to 6 months, and you can now finally say you are six! Whoo-hoo! At six years old, you are one of the most delightful, polite and well behaved children I have ever met. I know I'm biased, but your sweet spirit and kind heart shine through and through. When kindergarten was over last year, you got the award for being the most kind in your classroom, and I wasn't surprised by that at all, because that is who you are all the time. You love your family so much, and your brother thinks you are the greatest person to walk this green Earth!

Your big birthday present from Daddy and I was a trip to Disney World. You are so excited about your trip, and we can't wait to spend some amazing one-on-one time with you in a few weeks. It's going to be such a special time with you, and I can't wait for the memories!

Jackson you start 1st grade on Monday, and I know that you are going to do such a good job.  You are smart beyond belief, and it's going to be so much fun to see what you learn this year. Although you aren't ready to summer to end, you are so excited about being in Mrs. Hick's class, and I know that you will grow leaps and bounds in the next year.

Thank you, Jackson, for being such a wonderful kiddo. You have blessed our lives beyond belief, and I'm so proud to be your Mama. Love you always!!!

Love,

Mom

Our Family Is Growing!

We've thought long and hard about whether or not we were ready to add to our family again. We've gotten into such a good routine with Jackson and Anderson, and have had some long conversations about our family dynamics, and if we wanted to shake things up and add more to the Wade household. With both of us working full time, with 2 kids and a B-A-D dog, life can sometimes be a zoo. We've wondered for months now about whether we could juggle more in our life, and still have some sense of sanity. Knowing that such decisions can't be made lightly, we've really being weighing the pros and cons of making any changes for some time now.

This weekend, we made it official, and the Wade household grew by two fins. We are proud to introduce Jackson's fish, Alvin. It was a birthday gift from Papa and Gigi, and he's just the right kind of addition to our family for the time being! Jackson loves him, and has done a really good job of taking care of him. He's a really pretty fish, and we're super excited that Jackson can have a pet of his own. Thanks Papa and Gigi for Alvin! He's pretty cool!!!



Call Me Maybe, Olympics Style!

Weekly Confessions

• I tried, y'all, I really did, to not watch any of the new TLC show, "Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo." I failed. The TV kept steering itself back to the channel during Olympic commercial breaks until I had to see how it ended. Y'all, it ended badly. That show is a train wreck, and that family makes other redneck families look like the most civilized and cultured people to ever walk this planet.
• Anderson has taken to lifting the hem of my shirt up about an inch or two, and he just stares at my fat rolls. As if he doesn't know that he and his brother helped those along.
• Jackson's birthday party is tomorrow and I have done nothing other than buy a tablecloth and plates. I have miles to go before I sleep.
• Jeremy has been gone since Tuesday and got home late Thursday evening. I have never been so ready to clock out of parental duties for a few minutes as I was when he got home. It's been a LONG week, and I think I capped off my Mother-Of-The Year award with the dinner I made last night of scrambled eggs, blueberry yogurt and Mandarin oranges with graham crackers for dessert. I'm nothing if not intent on balanced meals.
• I'm hooked on Words with Friends, but I always lose to Jeremy. It drives me nuts. I end up with nothing but vowels and he comes up with words like "quilt" on triple word tiles. I'm not a quitter by nature, but I've contemplated never accepting a game invite from him again, not that I'm a sore loser or anything.

Anything y'all need to confess?

Have a great weekend!

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Jackson's early birthday present from Nana and Tata.

He looks like Frog Man with this getup on, but can swim like a fish!

Keeping It Real: Grammar Style

Here is the post in which I admit I judge people (adults) that make grammar mistakes. I know I shouldn't judge, but I figure by the time people born and raised in the United States reach the age of 10, they should no longer be writing things as though they are taking English as a second language. The sad thing is, I see many people on FB that are highly educated people, and I really don't think that they know they are killing me with their grammar issues. Let's face it folks, your status update should not make you seem less educated than you actually are.

I know that many people update their facebook status by text message, but for the love of all things right and good in the world, please folks, remember your 8th grade English class and try to remind yourselves of basic spelling and grammar rules before you submit your life changing status update.

With school starting back in just a few weeks, these are my top 5 grammar pet peeves:

You're/Your
You're driving me crazy when you can't remember that "your" isn't the same thing as "you're."

There/Their/They're
They're going over there to pick up their copy of their English book which was obviously never opened.

Accept/Except
Except for people who have learning disabilities, I just cannot accept people who can't remember this rule.

Its/It's
It's not hard folks; It's is a hyphenated word for "it is." "Its" is used for possession. Get it straight.

Who's/Whose
Who's going to be so anal retentive that they would write a whole blog post about people constantly making these grammar mistakes? Oh wait...I am. I can't be the only person whose English teacher would flip out over these mistakes.

Oh, and while I'm at it: loose and lose are different words. I would hate to have to lose it and write another post about this.

The end.

Our Little Jokester

Jackson: "Mama, why did the banana not wear sunscreen?"
Me: "I don't know, why?"
Jackson: "Because he was going to peel anyways!"

Wordless Wednesday