Mom of 3 and Loving It

2011-11-22T14:50:00.001-05:00

A,B,C,D,E,F,G. . .I AM THANKFUL for all of these:

A...America and all the service men that spend holidays and countless days away from their families so that i can spend holidays with my family.
B...Beaches, these are my therapy. Salt, sun, and sand can heal anything!
C...Camden, truly the icing on my cake!
D...Dinners around my kitchen table
E...Embroidery, the craft i learned on my own and truly a southern delicacy.
F...Faith, Family, & Friends
G...Griffin, he's so me it's not even funny. My humor, my sarcasm, my wit, and a huge chunk of my heart walking and talking every day!
H...Home, Happiness, and Health
I...Ice, because seriously, what's a diet coke without it?
J...Jeff, Best. Husband. Ever. 'Nuff said.
K...Khaki, Papa, Mimi - Best grandparents God created.
L...my Laptop computer
M...Molly, the daughter i prayed and prayed for and a mini-me if ever there was one.
N...Nana, she's 95 and my kids know her and adore her! She's amazing!
O...Outside, our family loves being outdoors, but mostly when it's fall temperatures!
P...Parenting, though i'm not always great at it, i do love it. Best. Gift. Ever.
Q...Quality time with friends and family
R...Restaurants, for those days that i just can't put a meal on the table.
S...Showers, really i can't imagine starting any day without one. Some people need coffee, i need my shower.
T...Talents, God has blessed me with many. I hope I'm using them as He would want.
U...Umbrellas and rain boots
V...Voices, i love to talk (not shocked are you?) and i love the gift of conversation.
W...Wendley, our sponsored child in Haiti that reminds me every time i think of him to take none of this for granted.
X...Xrays, our family has had many
Y...YOU! If you're reading this, you must be my friend - cyber or personal!
Z...Zany friends that make me laugh.

Pierced Ears!

2011-06-03T16:58:00.003-04:00

Summer has started with a bang. . . literally, in our house. We have talked to Molly for sometime about piercing her ears, and apparently, she decided today was the day! She had been adamantly saying no to piercing the ears. Then today, while bathing suit shopping, out of the blue, said, "I think i might want to get my ears pierced!" Me: "TODAY????" Mol: "Can I???"Off we went to the jewelry store and picked out a pair of precious pearls. And when i say "we," i mean "SHE" picked them out. First choice was a pair of minnie mouse earrings that when i discovered the price to be over $50 i banned from the choices and put a cap on the cost. So, her 2nd choice was pearls! I believe that to prove without a doubt, the girl is truly southern by blood and birth! All great southern girls must wear pearls, right?

So, here are the photos. . .

BEFORE:

And AFTER:

She didn't shed a single tear. I swear she is the most determined little girl i know. Strong, brave, courageous, and FUN! Love her to pieces!

Cutest Valentine EVER!

2011-02-12T15:20:00.003-05:00

This arrived in the mail today and isn't it the cutest valentine card ever? Camden was SO proud of his creation!

How funny is that? It TOTALLY fits his personality too!

Follow Up and Realization!

2011-02-06T14:12:00.003-05:00

Well, after so much excitement yesterday, i had an epiphany! I know that the Lord works in me every day. I know even when i'm not listening, He is still there watching over me and guiding me. Well, i realized late last night, while dwelling on the fact that every. inch. of. my. house. had been seen yesterday by the law enforcement officers that entered it, that i am SO glad that i listened to that little bug in my ear over Christmas break.

Jeff and i moved into the house we're in almost 4 years ago. We had never owned a home with a basement before that time. We bought this home in order to have a place to expand our home business and work. Two years ago we moved the "workroom" from one space in the basement to another. And for the almost 4 years we've been living here, i have been quite the "collector" and have not been good at getting rid of things. Now - don't freak out - my house is NOT like any of that weird stuff you see on Hoarders. THAT freaks me out. But, i will admit, that up until Christmas, my basement was disorganized, cluttered, and had too much stuff in it. Outgrown clothes, boxed up and piled in one room. Holiday decorations - two different rooms. Business stuff - - not even organized - in three different rooms. Kids toys --- ALL OVER THE PLACE. Well, Christmas break changed all that. I honestly, couldn't stand going to the basement, so we worked tirelessly and cleaned out the whole thing. Every bit of holiday decor is organized and boxed and labeled in a room. The toy room is cleaned out and organized (or at least it was over Christmas break), workroom stuff is now much more "central" and not spread between old and new workrooms. One room is a large pile of garage sale stuff. One room is for all the lawn and garden stuff we have.Two car-fulls went to goodwill. One truckload went to the dump. (Yes, I might add - that sounds like a lot of rooms - our basement is as large as the upper part of our home.)

SO, here's my epiphany!!!! WHAT WOULD I HAVE DONE YESTERDAY IF THAT BASEMENT HADN'T BEEN CLEANED OUT OVER CHRISTMAS???? WHAT IF I HADN'T OF LISTENED TO THAT LITTLE VOICE IN MY HEAD TELLING ME TO JUST TACKLE THE PROBLEM AND THEN IT WON'T BE A PROBLEM ANYMORE!!!??? Well, here's what i think. You know, the Lord is the only being that knows exactly how your life is going to play out. . . even before things happen. And you might think it's petty that i bring the Lord into this, but he MUST have been watching out for me. He MUST have known that those officers were going to enter my house. If that basement hadn't of been cleaned out, i swear i would have had Jeff drop me on the side of the road - with the children - and leave me there! If i was worried about the piles of clean laundry not being folded in my bedroom, i can't imagine my worries about that basement had it not been cleaned out. I know, i know - we're talking safety of my family, cops making sure no one has broken into our home, and here i am worried about the what-if's of clutter . . . serious, not something to worry about. But when you realize that someone who doesn't have unconditional love for you, has just seen every. inch. of. your. home. . . . those things do pop into mind - at least my crazy little mind.

Now that i got that out on the table - let me give you something to laugh about. Our church is on the corner of a somewhat busy road. Therefore, every Sunday morning, there is a police officer stationed at the corner to help with traffic flow. Every now and then when adults and/or older children in my house see a police officer, we refer to them as the "popo!" I'm sure i'm not the only one in the world that does this. For example, when the kids are being super poorly behaved in the car, i have passed a police officer before and used that little leverage to help me. . . "Kids, do you see the 'Popo' over there? If he sees you behaving like this, he's likely to arrest all of us!" I joke a LOT in our house, and when we see cops, i will often say, "Be good, there's the POPO!" I really mean no disrespect, it's just a term of endearment in our home, but when i think about it, i realize the police themselves probably wouldn't be so 'endeared' to it! Well, today as we left church, not a soul had mentioned anything about the police officer, nor the laymen directing traffic. But lo and behold, the precious, barely 3 year old in my car says, with as much gusto as one can imagine, "HEY!!! SEE THE POPO OVER THERE???" And then just roars laughing because he knows he is funny! I'm sure it's a had-to-be-there-moment, but if you know our C, you know how animated he can be. Now, it's time for me to realize, that every word that escapes my mouth WILL BE repeated, and typically, in context! Better mind my P's and Q's from here forward! The POPO are watching!

Put 'Em Up!!!!

2011-02-05T22:30:00.007-05:00

What a day! It started out as your regular, any old, it's almost spring, kind of Saturday. Jeff left before 9am to do field prep for softball tryouts. Kids and i had a lazy morning around the house. We had to be at the fields at 1pm for tryouts, so as we left, i piled into the car with umpteen coats and sets of gloves or mittens and hats. Realizing Griffin had been out the front door twice, i asked if he had locked it and he assured me he had (do you see a little foreshadowing here?)! We set the alarm, loaded the car, and off we went to the park.

After freezing our tails at the ballpark while waiting in line for tryouts, the kids and i headed back to the car. Since tryouts were nearly over, we decided to wait for Jeff and head out for a late lunch. We ate at a restaurant close to the mall and just as Jeff was signing the receipt, his cell phone rang. Not recognizing the number, he decided he better answer, and immediately, i knew something wasn't quite right. "Yes, since we're not there, I think you better dispatch the police to the house!" Those were the words i actually caught and understood Jeff saying! Quickly, i decided to blow the joint and load up the car! We bolted out of the restaurant, and headed straight for home --- albeit we were a good 20 minutes from the house. Jeff and i talked the whole way home about what could be going on. . . sure all the while that our home had been broken into. Well, then Griffin mentioned the whole "did you lock the door" conversation again and in tears, admitted that he wasn't quite positive that he had locked it, he just THOUGHT he had locked it. We assured him that if the door just blew open, it would be just fine. He was so scared . . . still not sure of what. . . but he was about to throw up the whole way home. He was scared that he was in big big trouble if he hadn't locked the door, but i think he was more scared thinking of the possibility of someone actually breaking into the house. I think at this point he honestly didn't know if he had locked the door back - a mistake i myself have made more than once.

Low and behold, 25 minutes after leaving the restaurant, we pulled into the neighborhood just in front of the police officer. Now, trust me when i say, i have the utmost respect for the police and the job they do, and i know they get a LOT of false alarms to houses, but seriously 25 minutes? We were in the driveway and Jeff was out of the car before the officer ever made it to our address. (And might i mention he looked to be about 115 pounds and maybe 21 years old???) Anyhow, after the officer confirmed Jeff was the owner of the residence, he directed us to stay at the car while he looked in the front. He said if all the doors were "in tact" he would have to wait for a backup officer to arrive because he couldn't enter the premises without backup! Well, he checked the front doors and all were closed and sealed tightly, (although he didn't try to actually turn knobs and open them), so, we had to wait. . . and when i say wait, i mean ANOTHER 25 minutes for the "backup officer" to arrive.

Well, during this 25 minutes, Jeff gets a call from the neighbor that lives down the road. (A little background - we had tried to call him on our way to the house - thinking he would be a lot closer and could do a little investigating to see if the front door had just blown open - and give us a little piece of mind while we drove home. BUT, according to his 7 year old, he was in the shower and his mom wasn't home. ) Back to the current timeframe -- We're waiting for the 2nd officer to arrive and our neighbor calls Jeff and low and behold, he and the 7 year old had run by the house to drop off a sweatshirt that Griffin had left at their house. Well, the son, had walked up to the front porch and when no one came to the door, he just opened the door and threw the sweatshirt inside, ran back to his car, and off they went. Hence, this is when the alarm was triggered.

Well, the officer was TOO KIND and as we explained to him the conversation Jeff had just had, he said things like this happen all the time, but since we know the neighbor's kid had walked in, there was no way of knowing who else could have just walked in and they would have to "secure the premises" before we would be allowed to enter our own house! Safety first, i am thankful for that.

So, officer #2 finally arrives, and i kid you not, it was just like an episode of Law and Order. After a quick briefing of the events that had transpired, they slowly approached the front entrance. One officer stood to each side of the doorway. And what do i see, but THEY DRAW THEIR GUNS AS THEY PUSH OPEN THE (unlocked) FRONT DOOR. Backs pressed to the outside walls of the house, arms with guns in front leading the way, they enter the house, step by step. Now, mind you, we are standing at the end of the driveway, so i can't see too much, but i can see them as they "sweep" my house with guns in hand, arms outstretched leading into the great room and turning to the master bedroom. Now, i wish more than anything, that i could have been a bug on the wall, to see their faces, when they entered my room and saw the PILES of clean laundry in hampers at the foot of my bed waiting to be folded. . . i'm sure they probably snuck a little cellphone picture of the "craziest shit police officers see in houses they must enter" and will post it to whatever secretive blog they have out there to laugh at all of us, not so good with laundry, mothers. We could see them walk back down to the other end of the hallway, guns leading the way, to check the rest of the house. The amount of time it took them, they either 1)secured the premises quite well; or 2) took a lot of freakin' pictures to share on the internet to show what a bad housekeeper i am!!!

But, after a good 5-8 minutes of waiting, they came back out of the house - might i add with smiles on their faces - and assured us that as we suspected, it must have been the neighbor, because everything looked secure and it didn't "look" as though things were missing. (In my little mind i couldn't help but think, "What officer? - Do you think that my booby-trap of 248 matchbox cars in the foyer would have killed anyone who actually entered? Do you mean that the 2 laptops, one silhouette craft cutter, 2 boxes of crafting supplies, paper cutter, and a bazillion small piles of crafty trash sitting on the dining room table was still there? You mean the pile of dirty dishes is still in the sink, the boogie man didn't clean those up while he was inside? And the laundry is all still piled at the foot of my bed? Or, are you honestly talking about the tv is still mounted on the wall, and the drawers have not been pilfered through and the jewelry box is still there?")

Sure enough, all is well in our house! The kids got a great kick out of watching the officers enter our house. Camden thought is was WAY COOL to see a real police officer within arms reach and even cooler to see his car parked at our mailbox. I'm sure the neighbors are all brewing rumors about the "domestic dispute" or child abuse or something even more grand that happened at our house today. And yes, i will add here that three different neighbors drove by my house while there was a cop car parked in front of it and 5 family members standing in the driveway and not a one of them stopped to ask if we were okay or if we needed anything!!!!!! Is that alarming to anyone else??? Hey neighbors, what about helping each other out??? Guess i know who DOESN'T have my back!!

All in all, it was a great day. Quite the excitement, and for those of you that ever doubt that the McCreary house isn't ALWAYS doing something fun, here is proof. Your run of the mill Saturday for most families, yet we have the police entering our house, GUNS DRAWN!!! But the saddest part of it all . . . I. didn't. take. a. single. picture. Not of the guns, not of the police cars, not of Griffin about to wet his pants in anxiety! DANG!

Really, It's February?

2011-02-02T10:48:00.004-05:00

Where Oh Where did January go?
We had lots of fun in January, including an entire week with no school, unexpectedly, and now we're battling through what feels like really long weeks, although we are just really back in a "normal" schedule. A few pics from our snow days and fun times last month!

Camden and his best friend, Gracie!
SNOW cones. . . Literally:
Just so we remember how big they were in Jan. 2011 when we had 6 inches of snow!
And of course, to remember how beautiful everything looked. I love a snow covered yard and house! Now, the driveway . . . that was another story. Took days for it to be truly serviceable again!
We had a great week! We ventured out, slowly, a couple of times; watched lots of movies; burned enough firewood that now we need to restock, and had a great week just together as a family!

As Promised!

2011-01-06T23:32:00.005-05:00

I told you i would show you the final product of this:

So here it is:

22 jars of cinnamon honey butter, for 22 of our favorite staff and teachers at our elementary school! Happy New Year!

Whoopie Pies!

2011-01-06T13:37:00.005-05:00

Baking project of the Day: Whoopie Pies!

A Christmas gift from one of my sweetest preschoolers! YUM! And a great treat for my kids and their friends when they get home from school!

I had a helper for the baking process!

And the final product - A platter full of Peppermint Whoopie Pies!

Cat in the Hat!

2011-01-05T16:44:00.005-05:00

My kids NEEDED to get outside and play today, but the weather tells us otherwise. So, with a fire in the fireplace, we were adoring pictures from old preschool scrapbooks and came across a picture of Griffin on Read Across America Day - he was painted and wearing a hat so he looked like Cat in the Hat.

Camden thought this was the funniest of all the pictures, and begged to paint himself. So, now there are three cats purring and crawling around our house, and we've found something to keep us entertained!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-04T21:38:00.005-05:00

Amazing isn't it?

What's amazing, you ask?

I think it's truly AMAZING that i remember how to even log in to this thing i call a blog! I

haven't been here since September! -------3 1/2 months ago --------!

I don't make new year's resolutions, but if i were to make one, i'd say working on the blog would be important to me :-)

At the least, i'm going to put pictures of all the things i bake and cook and create this year, because i am hopeful that this will at least, if nothing else, be a creative year for me!

So here is post number 1 for 2011:

We focused our Christmas gift efforts on Griffin and Molly's classroom teachers this year. Usually i do a little something for their favorites - PE teacher, math teacher and ALWAYS something for the principal. But, not this year. I did NOTHING. How tacky is that? I did the 12 days of Christmas for their 3 lead teachers, and for 12 days sent each one of them something special, and i hope, sincere. But that was it for my gift giving this year. So, i resolved that we would send a small something to all the sweet staff up there that love my children one or two times each week when they see them, and make sure they know they are special to the McCreary's as well.

It's still a work in progress - not being delivered until Thurday when i don't have to work. I will post the final product tomorrow night when i "pretty them up." But, in the meantime, here's a little preview. I found a recipe over the holidays that i just said, "Yummmmmm!" and i also said "EASSSSSSSY!" when i read it. So this is what we're creating, because seriously, who doesn't love something yummy to eat?

I hope they enjoy the little tidbit they will receive from my kids. I know i enjoyed making it!

They know me all too well . . .

2010-09-09T16:05:00.003-04:00

This is an email i received today in my inbox. . . a seminar perhaps i should attend. . . well, at least if i ever plan to be the PTA president again! NOT because of the women i worked with, but because of some of the people i encountered!

And the next sentence under the precious picture:

Never again fall victim to those who love to make life miserable for the rest of us ...

I will NEVER name names, but i do know a few people like this!!

July 18, 2010

2010-07-18T21:20:00.003-04:00

Keep reading below - but be sure to read the headers. I've just spent well over an hour trying to catch up on 6 months of blogging. I had barely posted all the fun we've had and how busy we've stayed, so i wanted to make sure i updated, albeit very briefly! Month by month from January on. You might even want to scroll down, start with January and work your way back up so you are "in order."

We've got 3 weeks of summer vacation left and it is going by far too quickly for my liking! We had a staycation this week and it was so great to get all our bedrooms cleaned out and organized (including closets) and also take two fantastic day-trips!

It is unbelievable to me how quickly my days with my "little" kids are passing! They are growing up way too fast for me to really like! We've had sleepovers and trips to the lake with friends, many days of swimming, and lots of playdates this summer. But most of all, we've just enjoyed being together --- that is if you forget all the sibling bickering that goes on constantly! THAT i won't miss when school is back in session!

Anyhow, enjoy "catching up" with us. Blessings to each of you taking time to read this!

June 2010

2010-07-18T20:55:00.008-04:00

We kicked off June with lots of fun. Jeff had the camera, so i have no pictures of Molly and myself, but Griffin and Jeff went to Auburn for two games of the College World Series. They saw Auburn vs. Jacksonville State and Clemson vs. Southern Miss. Griffin got two autographs of guys that signed with the major leagues the week after the world series! Camden stayed with Khaki and Papa and Molly and I went to the cabin - thanks to the Brauns! Jeff and Griffin picked up Camden and met us at the cabin when they were done with their overnight in Auburn. .. when Griffin naps, you know he MUST be tired!
Taking the field:

(Griff and Jeff had purchased tickets to both games, but did a little spiritwear shopping when they arrived in Auburn). While at J&M Bookstore, the girl working the register asked if they had tickets to which Jeff replied yes. She then told them that was too bad because the owner had been given tickets, but also had a tee time he didn't want to miss, so he had 2nd row seats to Clemson game! She was kind enough to "exchange" their tickets for the better seats and what a thrill that was to sit right the Clemson dugout!
Camden is just like the rest of the men in this family and L-O-V-E-S ribs! TASTY!
BIG BITE!
As i mentioned in a previous post . . . we love spring/summer fruit! Taking a bite out of our first watermelon of the season!
Camden has already learned how to enjoy every last DROP!
Jeff has to travel just a few times each year, so we kept busy while he was in Seattle for business. We visited the new Babyland General and met some new friends:

The doll in the blue and white dress sitting next to Molly is my doll that i "adopted" in 1981! I was only 5 years old. She is one of the "original" dolls. If you visit, check out the cases in the lobby of "originals" and you'll see why Molly is not allowed to play with Pauline very often!
Griffin despised having to visit with all those babydolls, but he found a special place "all his own" so we had to stop for a photo-op!After Babyland and a little further in the car, we made it to Unicoi State Park! We have a favorite swimming hole and picnic area that we try to visit a few times each year and we always take pictures so we can see how the kids grow! Doesn't matter what time of year it is, or how old they are, they (we) still love the creek! Lots of memories are held in this small section of the creek! Birthday celebrations, father's days, and just trips just for fun!!!
Shew, doesn't matter if it's winter or the dead of summer - the water is still C-O-L-D!
Skipping rocks!
As of these pictures, we felt like summer had just started, but now that it's the middle of July, i can't believe summer is so close to being over! Makes me so very sad! We WILL make the most of these last three weeks!

May 2010

2010-07-18T20:37:00.005-04:00

Completely out of order (I am so frustrated with how blogger is loading pictures), but at least you'll be able to see what happened in May.

May 25th: LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!! YAY! We can't wait for summer to start - can't you tell by Griffin's face?

I hosted a few luncheons, picnics, receptions, etc in the month of may. This is a pic of all the supplies i purchased (and thankfully was reimbursed for) during the month of May! A hot dog lunch for 100+ 4 and 5 year olds, a school-wide picnic for 240 children and their families, a retirement reception, and a team party/cookout (oh yea, wasn't reimbursed for that one though), and supplies for a graduation for 100+ 4 and 5 year olds!

Griffin accepting his trophy from "the coach" after a great spring baseball season! This is our back deck!
Batting during a travel-ball game! No trophies involved here, just F-U-N!
After the pool was kind-of finished:
Jeff enjoying the fruits of his labor:
A dance recital and two precious friends (visit this one here) enjoying their rewards for a great performance!
WHY was spongebob squarepants the theme song for Molly's recital dance? My LEAST favorite cartoon of just about anything on TV! And yellow - not her best color!
Teacher appreciation/Mother's Day gifts! Bird feeders that we made out of bowls, saucers, and spoons. They must be "covered" or refilled after rain or else, but darn, aren't they cute?
Just a little taste of one of the many construction issues we faced during pool construction! And as i post all these pictures, i will say, we were told and promised that our pool would be FINISHED by May 27th - "at the latest" and it is July 18th and it is still not finished! Can you say FRUSTRATED???

April 2010

2010-07-18T20:00:00.005-04:00

It's April which means FRESH FRUIT! We love spring and summer in our house for all the yummy things it brings to our table! We avoid vegetables at all costs if we can get our 5 with fruit only! Washington Farms is a short drive from here, so we visited them on several occasions and picked our own strawberries! They are absolutely the best in the world to go straight from the vine to our mouths. There's even a few animals to visit when you're done picking!

A baby cow that tried her best to lick Camden some kisses!: Camden broke all rules (as usual) and ate as many strawberries as he picked! The fields are huge and it wasn't crowded anytime we went, so he'd tromp up and down the rows and just snack away!
Hidden by vines! Gotta love that toe-head!
Evidence of the crime:
A little trip to American Girl to spend some money she had saved since Christmas! A Just Like Me Doll was the selection of the day! (Sorry the pics are out of order. Drives me crazy, but the loading process isn't cooperating so great tonight!)

Griffin and his loot! He thoroughly enjoyed this!
Molly and her prize pick! She loved the long stem!
Concentrating hard on which one is just-ripe!
"Whadya think mom?"

March 2010

2010-07-18T19:57:00.002-04:00

March brought a huge snow! A school-cancelling kind of snow! Snowballs, sledding, friends, and lots of hot cocoa were all part of the fun! And lots of boot and mitten-drying too! Camden (and all the kids - big and little alike)loved it!

February 2010

2010-07-18T19:49:00.002-04:00

February Fun!!! We had an action packed February! You would think with being out of baseball season, we would slow down, but no such luck in this house!

A father-daughter dance at the school! What a special night that included corsages and dancing, and well. . . yes, even dad being left on the sidelines while Molly hung out with friends!
VALENTINE'S FOR EVERYONE: I think we made a total of 58 of valentine's, plus a special valentine for lots of special teachers. I forgot to take a picture of the teacher valentine's, but i bet they upped our total to at least 70! That was a fun couple of days of crafting!

Molly's:
Camden's:
Griffin's:
Even a snowfall, that required TASTING:

January 2010

2010-07-18T19:41:00.006-04:00

After a busy Christmas season, January was kind of quiet! We celebrated a 2nd birthday -- choo-choo style!
And visited the aquarium with our annual passes -- always a favorite for the TWO year old!! He loves trains and fish!

A Big Event!

2010-07-09T09:28:00.003-04:00

Look what happened in our house last night!

At barely 2 1/2 this makes his "mom" (as she is already called) a little sad! Where is the "mommy," the crib, the itty-bitty-ness? He did however, still require his "bee banbeck" (bee blanket) and paci to go to sleep, and that makes his MOMMY a lot happy! He's the last, so he better stay little a bit longer! He earned a cookie monster tattoo for his success and i'd say sleeping until 9am is success when you're only 2 1/2!

I'm Baaa-ack!

2010-06-08T15:37:00.004-04:00

Yet again, i've taken a hiatus from the blogging world. But after spending an hour yesterday reading other blogs and stealing ideas for Molly's birthday party (not to be held until August), i'm motivated to start documenting life again! Really, truth-be-told, i just had NO time the last 2 months of school/work/PTA to sit down and type/load pictures, etc. PTA and work really about exhausted me the last 2 months! So, i'm glad that it's over for a bit. I still have a notebook to organize to pass on to next year's president, but i'm not doing that yet. Instead, i've been helping her in another way - and when you click on that link above, you'll see just what that is :-) LOVE me some boat-building!

So, you ask, what have i been up to? Well, since spring break, i have been a team mom and fulfilled those duties (although thankfully to the coach they were minimal this year), attended too many baseball games to count, been a taxi driver to practice, dance, therapy, preschool, playdates, etc., have been the "construction manager" of watching the still-not-finished pool be built and was the landscape assistant, poured 30,000 gallons of water into my backyard cement pit, embroidered far too many items to count, fed close to 500 people at a picnic, helped plan and host a retirement party for one of gwinnett's most noted principals (and might i add, spoke at this event as well - public speaking: not my love), helped host a teacher luncheon, helped host a staff luncheon, appreciated and thanked a large number of teachers, hosted a baseball party, attended a dance recital, hosted a pta meeting/luncheon in my backyard, had too many kids to count over to swim in my pond, attended 2 graduations and one end-of-year program, signed way too many pta checks, most notable: read 2 books - this is 2 more than i've finished in the past two years while serving as president, and now, see above - built a boat!

As i type, i feel i am beginning my summer . . . see picture below of what i see as i type! Have to make sure i repetitiously count 5 bobbing heads in the water!

But, my next post, i plan to share a bunch of fun photos of the past few months that were never documented! Now that summer is here, i plan to post more regularly - more like the days of past! My term as Pres is over, and although there are parts of that job that i will miss, i sure won't miss the time it will take from my family! They are #1 this summer! Hospitality will be my niche next year. I plan to shower the teachers at our school with lots of love and attention - and oh yea, don't forget the food! Definitely right up my alley!

Hope you're all enjoying your summers as well! We plan to have a blast of a summer!

Cesar Chavez

2010-05-06T17:21:00.002-04:00

Griffin is studying historical American figures and today's topic of discussion is Cesar Chavez. If you don't know him, he fasted for 35 days in order to alert the public to the dangers of pesticides. So, tonight's conversation after studying is as follows:

M: Mom, what's for dinner tonight?
G: Yes, what ARE we having tonight?
Me: We're fasting, so we can truly see what it feels like to be Cesar Chavez!
M & G: Mommmmmmmmmmmmm, seriously?? Mommmm, that's not funny!
Me: Well, it really would be the best way to learn about how it really felt to be Cesar!
G: No, i think we're fine just to read about him.

Say Cheese!

2010-04-29T00:44:00.004-04:00

We finally had new pictures of the kids taken tonight! Check out Studio Holly B to get a sneak preview! As soon as they are all edited and retouched, i'll share a few more! Holly is gifted and my kids loved her! And, I'm glad to know my house will be getting new decor . . . of my precious babies . . . this summer!

Problem of the Day - SOLVED!

2010-04-24T17:30:00.002-04:00

My laptop charger has a short in the cord. I need a new charger. . . but really can't see paying $100+!!! What a pain! We have so many old computers and chargers . . . testing them all and . . . apparently a Gateway charger fits a Toshiba computer!!! AMAZING! YAY! That's a 100 bucks we just saved!

There's a New Gal In Town!

2010-04-15T22:21:00.005-04:00

Molly has a dear friend that recently donated her hair to Locks of Love. Molly loved her fresh new-do so much, that she couldn't wait until summer to get herself a fresh new hairdo. I love Molly's hair long, but quite honestly, it was too long. So, chop it off! She cut at least 5 inches today. . . smiling the WHOLE time! She was so excited! We'll see how it holds up these next few weeks. For the first time EVER it is all one length instead of many layers, AND it's shorter than it's been in a long time! But, what's important is that she loves it! See for yourself:
Here's the during . . .check out the length. Too bad it curls so much, it hardly looked this long when dry!

Don't be fooled, this straight hair is fresh from the salon with lots of tugging with a paddle brush! It won't last long. If you go back to the face close-up, you can see as we were leaving the salon, there were already curls forming around her face! With it this short, i even saw some ringlets (Which i haven't seen in YEARS) after her bath tonight!

A New Blog . . .

2010-03-13T08:31:00.003-05:00

For all my hardwork, and to show you what i'm up to when i'm not at preschool, big school, the ball field, in the car, cleaning house, doing laundry, or actually sleeping:

We've started a webpage and a group on facebook!

Join us on facebook at Molly Mac's

Visit our new blog to see my fun creations:

http://www.mollymacs.blogspot.com/

Could It Be a Sign?

2010-03-12T09:23:00.003-05:00

I get daily emails from "Everyday Health" with tips and advice. Today's title: "Could It Be Bipolar Disorder?"
Now, the background here you should know. . . Camden is taking steroids because of an upper respiratory infection and his airways tightening. If you've never had a 2 year old on oral steroids, you should know that this email was directed towards his behavior!! It's been a long 2 days and we've still got 2 more days of meds! I deleted the article without reading it, but might have to go find it in my delete folder and see if it gives any advice on dealing with those with the disorder!

Griffin Overheard

2010-03-10T19:27:00.002-05:00

Griffin LOVES to play on our cell phones. He loves all the many apps that Jeff has on his phone. One such app, that tends to be a favorite is a movie trailer app that you can view upcoming trailers for movies that are coming out soon. Well, apparently there is new trailer for a movie that starts months from now, called "Resident Evil."
G: Dad, did you see this new movie called Resident Evil?
J: Nope, haven't seen it.
G: Can I watch the preview?
J: No, you don't need to watch that.
G: I bet it's a movie about Barack Obama!
J: ---uncontrollable laughter---
We have decided that Grif is either one of two things: brainwashed or really intelligent!

Our NEW backyard!

2010-03-04T22:51:00.006-05:00

Summer time can't get here soon enough in the McCreary household! After much debate and lots of number crunching, here's what's going on OUTSIDE our house!

Back yard at 9am today!

Then, Jeff and i spent an hour or so with our friend, Pete and a can of spray paint. And shortly after that - the backhoe getting started:

C is the official construction supervisor! He didn't even nap today (not that these days that's a surprise), so he wouldn't miss a minute of the fun!

After school snack time - while supervising:

Grif was the chosen one and was allowed IN the backhoe and he was taught how to operate it! He took his job VERY seriously and did great work! He turned the backhoe, scooped with it, moved the dirt to the "overage" pile, and more! And although the operator was in there with him, he let Griffin do the work alone after about 2 minutes of guided instruction! How cool! Every boy's dream . . . to operate construction equipment! He can check that one off his bucket list! Wish i had been invited to try it!

A close-up check to make sure Molly thinks it looks deep enough!

More supervising!

The deep end almost finished!

And these friends even joined us in the fun of watching! Do you think the construction fellas felt like fish in a fish bowl with all of us staring at them while they worked? It was a truly enjoyable day!

We've been told 4-8 weeks and we should be able to swim. It might be finished before the snow even stops falling!! But we sure are looking forward to our summer!

Bagging School?

2010-02-19T13:31:00.003-05:00

Dear Kroger Bag Boy,
Although i am very grateful for your services when you actually come to my checkout lane, today i am very disappointed in your service. You clearly see that i have a barely 2 year old, happily (and this is big if he's still happy in the checkout lane) strapped into my buggy. WHY OH WHY do you feel it necessary to put ALL my groceries into a different cart? So naive me, i think you will escort me to my car and be a gentleman since i now have TWO buggies - one for kid and one for groceries. But, damn if you just turn around and don't say a word; don't even offer to take the groceries out. So i proceed to move my 2 year old to the packed buggy while you remain with your back to me. A very polite, lovely 50-something man obviously notices, and offers to push the now-empty-buggy to the cart area. I have a two year old who doesn't want to get into the full buggy because he was content in the OTHER buggy!
Now, skip ahead 2 minutes, and as i load my groceries - BY MYSELF MIND YOU - into the back of my car. . . i notice that you have been so kind as to put 5 boxes of macaroni and cheese in the bag ON TOP OF my bread. Then i notice that you have been even sweeter and put TWO cantaloupes in the bag with my green grapes!!!
Seriously, it doesn't take a genius bag boy! So, i will happily pay $100 for you to attend bag-boy school if they offer it, or better yet, next time, DON'T TRY TO HELP ME! Thanks but no thanks for your services today!

Sincerely,
One Angry Shopper!

Happy Half Birthday, Griffin!

2010-02-14T18:11:00.004-05:00

Griffin is never in school for his real birthday, so in 1st grade we started celebrating his 1/2 birthday at school. Cupcakes in 1st grade, cookie cake in 2nd grade, and this year he requested cookie cake again, but due to a lack of time to order a cake, we agreed on double doozies . . .made by mom! Check out these YUMMY treats that are going to school with Griffin tomorrow:

Chocolate, white chocolate chip doozies!

Life With Griffin!

2010-02-13T17:55:00.003-05:00

Since i made a post just for our Molly, now it's Griffin's turn. He and a friend are in the keeping room playing Guitar Hero World Tour. I hate video games. I LOVE this video game. Every song - i love, from years ago . . . all captured right here, while i'm cooking i can sing, sing, sing! Here's the conversation i hear as the two boys start dueling with a new song:

G: Man, Dude, We're at a maternity party!

Me: A WHAT?? A maternity party??? What are you talking about?

G: You know, whatever that thing Daddy was in . . . ??

Me: You mean, "FRATERNITY!!!!!"

LOL!

Life With Molly

2010-02-10T19:31:00.002-05:00

In a nutshell, this is what it's like to live with Molly:
Preparing dinner, Molly is having salad, and she knows this, as this is the "vegetable" she requested.
Jeff: What kind of dressing to you want?
Molly: SALAD dressing!
Me: Molly!!!!!!! Seriously??? Ranch, Honey Mustard, caesar. . . ?????
No joking. She was serious as serious is. LOVE her, but oh, she is so literal.

2010-02-01T16:21:00.002-05:00

So i hear the question often, lately . . . I know, i know, no posts, no updates! I'm not sure what happened during the months of December and January, but life kept me away from the blogging world. Disney pictures STILL aren't on here; no Christmas, no Jeff's birthday, no New Year's Eve at the cabin. Where's all our fun??? I'm supposed to be doing this, since i don't keep up with scrapbooking. And now, even this isn't happening! I'm trying to get back to it. I'm still planning to put the past two months, in pictures, up on this thing. BUT, in the meantime, here's what's happened most recently.

Wednesday was C's birthday! SECOND birthday, might i add. And although some say it is the "terrible twos," this is an age i L-O-V-E! Instead of being a baby (which i do love that time, just no the sleep deprivation), now my Little C is a little human being, with thoughts of his own, things he prefers, and, don't forget, DOESN'T prefer. A mind that does the thinking on it's own. I do love the "terrible twos," but i'd rather think of them as the "terrific twos."

Anyhow, my poor little guy was sick on Wednesday for his big day, but it really didn't matter. Jeff was out of town, i had one of the busiest days of the year at work, and by golly, it was just a crazy, not-so-fun week. So, we've delayed the celebration (or truth be told, i just haven't planned it yet, so we're saying it's "delayed"). And another good thing about being 2, he has NO idea that we haven't had a "party" yet and he doesn't care!

Today was C's day to celebrate at school, so i made him cookies to share with his friends and this very special shirt, that i'm pretty sure, he'll wear more often, than not:

Don't you want one for yourself?

For you, Andrea!

2010-01-10T22:30:00.003-05:00

Yes, Andrea, i'm still planning to blog. But, seeing as how it's January 9th and all my decorations aren't even in the basement yet, this has been put on hold! I had tooooo much fun in your cabin to take time to blog when i got home! But, i will. I'm thinking of sub-contracting it to you, Andrea!! Whatcha think?
And, to boot, two with a stomach bug, i'm a set of hands down. . . No time to sit and blog. See? It's 10:30 at night and i'm exhausted and still have to get clothes ready for tomorrow! Promise, though, i'm not giving up the blog. Next year when I'm not the PTA president, perhaps I'll have more blog posts than you :-)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

2009-12-31T22:23:00.004-05:00

Hope you're all having a wonderful New Year's Eve! We're at the cabin, thanks to dear friends! We've shopped, and groceried, and cooked, and eaten, and played, and played some more! Now to find some dessert and ring in the new year together! Poor Camden is already sleepin', but the Bigs are rarin' to go!
Happy New Year Everyone!

Happy Birthday, Jeff!

2009-12-27T16:07:00.003-05:00

Today, Jeff turns 35! We are so blessed to have him as the husband and daddy in our house! He's by far, the BEST man we know! We love you and hope you have a VERY Happy Birthday, Jeff!

Molly and I made this very special cake for him. . .

Mississippi Mud Cake! Don't you wish you were part of the family that gets to enjoy this? It's still warm and i'm VERY tempted to cut it right now to make sure it's edible. . . this is a first-time recipe.

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-24T22:19:00.003-05:00

What a wonderful week it has been leading up to Christmas! A night at the cabin with great friends, a LOT of shopping, a movie with more great friends, a playdate, a sleepover, LOTS of cooking and baking, some burning, lots of wrapping, more shopping, more wrapping. Dinner with family, church (except for the little bit that refused to nap today), and a little bit of UNwrapping. Off to bed they go, and i will get busy preparing for tomorrow's excitement. Merry Christmas to all of YOU!

Almost Christmas Outing

2009-12-23T16:21:00.005-05:00

After ENDLESS hours of last minute shopping (because yes, i was nowhere near done getting the things i need) these past two days, i took a break and had a fun time at the movies. The girls that attended our cookie swap (post to come soon) all met at the theater (with a couple brothers) and saw The Princess and the Frog!Other than a little "darkness," thanks to some voodoo magic, the movie was wonderful! The soundtrack is bound to be awesome! The kids sat in the row in front of the moms, and it was fun to see them bopping in the seats as the music was playing!

Now, off to baking land and cleaning up and wrapping for tomorrow's influx of family! Let the festivities begin!

Speech Therapy

2009-12-18T19:59:00.002-05:00

So, Camden is 22 months old and we're still working on building his vocabulary. He definitely has a delay, but he's #3, so we're sure with our prior experience of speech therapy times 2, we can help him along for a few more months.

So tonight at dinner, Griffin (who is completely exhausted) is fussing and just plain whiny at the dinner table. So i say, "Camden, when Griffin is fussing, say waaa, waaaa, waaaa!" Camden looks him square in the eye after the next word out of Griffin's mouth and says, clear as day, "Waaaaaaa, waaaaaaa, waaaaaaa!"

Griffin couldn't help but cheer up!

Camden's sweetheart!

2009-12-15T13:38:00.003-05:00

Camden's bestie is sweet little Gracie down the street! They spend every Monday and Wednesday afternoon together and Tuesday all day! Here they are! Is she not the cutest best friend a guy could have? Maybe there will be prom dates in their future together! Looks to me like they're thinking about holding hands, but decided they might be too young for that!

Story of the Night!

2009-12-14T19:38:00.002-05:00

Camden is obsessed with gagging noises. He thinks it's so funny to pretend to burp. But, in his 2 years (almost) of living, he has never thrown up - except for his reflux issues as a baby. He has no idea what a stomach virus feels like. Tonight after dinner, we gave him a small bowl of ice cream and when he was finished, he was sitting so nicely entertaining himself with the bowl and spoon. Then, it progressed to gagging himself with the end of the spoon (he does this game regularly - in the car, in the stroller, etc - sticks his finger down his throat until he gags). He thought it was terribly funny, until . . . .
You guessed it, he threw up! All over his lap. And obviously, it didn't taste so good. Then he cried for himself, because no one else, namely Jeff and I, felt sorry for him. And then it moved to being grossed out. And repeating over and over, in his precious way, "eeeewwww, eeeeewwww, eeeeewwwww!" All the while scrunching his nose and pursing his lips!
He's in the tub now, getting cleaned up! Hoping he learned his lesson on the gag reflex thing! Perhaps he'll find a new way to be funny from now on!

A Minute of the Mouse

2009-12-13T23:43:00.005-05:00

I don't have much time to blog, but didn't want to leave you hanging all week! I WILL get caught up on blogging soon, i HAVE to! But, here is a little minute of the mouse . . . and his friends.

Camden LOVED Donald Duck. Funny to me, because Griffin always loved Mickey and Pluto, Molly has always been partial to Minnie and the Princesses, and now Camden loves someone entirely different. He LOVED him. Wanted to touch and just look at him. Was amazed! Truly the "magic" in the most magical place on earth. Camden was the perfect age for this! He loved every minute and was a delight the WHOLE week! I mean a delight. Slept when we would enter a dark theater for a show and snacked when he was too small to ride a ride, and happy as a lark the rest of the time. What a blessing he is to our family!

These are the "magic" lights at Epcot. They are fiber optics in the sidewalk. They appear then disappear and reappear. Camden was intrigued. I think he would have spent half his time there, and been just as happy. Every time they would disappear, he would raise his arms in question and say, "where go where go??" in his own little language that he has! Not sure what strange child those legs next to him belong to. Not a McCreary!

Yes, 18 days before Christmas and here we are, at the Magic Kingdom. The funny story about this day was the kids watching a child eat popcorn off the sidewalk! Yes, from the sidewalk! We were waiting in line to see Santa. The child in front of us stood in front of this marker and proceeded to spill half a bucket of popcorn (might i add approximately $3 worth of popcorn)! About 5 minutes later and two families behind us, the mom wasn't paying a lick of attention to the girl with her, and my kids were freaking out as Molly reported watching the little girl EAT FROM THE SIDEWALK!! I had been showering them in antibacterial handgel from morning to night, so to watch a child eat FROM THE SIDEWALK must have been a freak show to them. When the mother finally saw the child, she barely cared! Molly and Griffin were amazed how relaxed the mother was, guess they could only imagine what my reaction might have been if it were one of mine. . . both suggested i might have induced vomiting or worse, but we won't go there!

Sorry for the sideways picture . . . haven't cropped and resaved and flipped and such yet. Didn't realize it until this was already loaded, but turn your head sideways and note how Camden is looking up at Donald. I believe his eyes were blinking, but he was so interested in looking at him, he would get frustrated if we would put him NEXT to any of the characters for a picture and move back immediately. Not scared, just wanted to be able to look at them and inspect every inch!

Goofy was the master of friendliness and managed to coerce Camden into closeness for a picture. This isn't the best, but it was the first one i clicked on.

It snowed on Main Street at Magic Kingdom and it snowed at Hollywood studios. . . all part of the magic. Again, sorry we're not flipped, but this shows Camden's amazement with this too! He had no idea what it was! It was very real too. Amazing!
And in tradition with saving the best for last . . . this is Camden after his first ride on Dumbo. He was MAD AS A HORNET that he had to get off. Cried and cried. . . well, not really cried, although there were tears, he was just mad! He wanted so badly to stay on the ride. Yes, Jeff is really flinching as there were punches being thrown. Then, he was even more mad that the camera was in his face! It was hilarious at the same time. However, please know that as soon as we told him we were going to ride the carousel, he managed to get it together. The people all around us thought this fit was as precious as we did!

And, to lessen the pain, i think we rode Dumbo 3 more times over the duration of the trip. Its a Small World at least 3 times, and the Carousel (which turned out to be even better than Dumbo) he rode one night about 5 times in a row. . . the cast member didn't even make him get off in between rides!

We had a wonderful time together, are so thankful that Khaki and Papa were with us to share all the fun and memories, and are now freaking out over how much we have to do before Christmas arrives in not even two weeks!

We are having FUN!

2009-12-09T07:56:00.004-05:00

So sorry for no posts about Disney, but we left the card reader for the digital camera at home, so we can't dump the SD card every night! But, Papa took this picture yesterday. . .

If this doesn't say it all, i'm not sure what would! We went to Animal Kingdom yesterday. As our last ride, we told the kids, we could ride Kali River Rapids before we left (since we knew we'd be soaked). Camden is too little to ride, so he received the consolation prize of Mickey ice cream while the grandparents took turns riding/staying with him. As you can see, he was not disappointed in the prize!

We are having a wonderful time! All my guilt of missing school and work is now gone as this is worth every bit of it! The kids have been so good, have been very agreeable, and truly are enjoying themselves. Camden has yet to fuss, except for the 5 minute fit he pitched when Dumbo ended and he had to get off of the ride! It was hilarious and if i can figure out how to load videos from my camcorder when we get home, i will post it here!

Hope everyone reading is having a great week. Ours is quite "Magical!"

At the Mouse's House!

2009-12-05T22:17:00.002-05:00

We are about to hit the hay to rest up for a busy day at Epcot tomorrow! My feet ache already thinking about how tired we're going to be on this "vacation." But, so excited that we're going to have a super fun week! Hope you all have a great week! I'll post when i'm not too terribly tired. And will upload pics to facebook on the spot.

More Creativity!!

2009-12-04T01:00:00.004-05:00

Once again, it's 1am and i've just finished the creative project du jour! Special thanks to Andrea for the fabric. . . i truly did not have time to go to Hobby Lobby today and stand in line for approximately 10 inches of fabric. So Andrea let me raid her stash of fabric scraps instead! You're a lifesaver, and quite honestly, have almost as much fabric as Hobby Lobby!

Here is what i created - a whole set of mickey and minnie shirts. From the littlest peep, all the way to the big dude!

For CLM:

For MGM:

For GMM:

And a closeup of Minnie. . .

Sorry for the blurry pictures. . .it's late and i wanted to post these before we leave. The boys' shirts are red with black mickey. MGM's shirt is black with checked minnie and red bow! I'll take good ones the day they wear them!

From the Mouths of Babes

2009-12-03T09:10:00.002-05:00

Today, Jeff is attending a memorial service for a dear lady he knew grewing up and has also worked with in recent years. When Griffin and Molly woke up, he was already in suit pants (side note: if you don't see us daily, Jeff is business casual at the office, never more than khakis and a button down). So as Griffin watched Jeff put on a dress shirt and tie, this is the conversation that ensued. . .
Grif: "Dad, WHY are you wearing THAT?"
Jeff: "Grif, Do you remember me talking about Ann Allen? She passed away and I'm going to her funeral. I worked with her at Bellsouth and she is the nice lady that made the curtains in the keeping room for us."
Grif: "Why would she invite you to her funeral?"
Jeff: "ummmmmm. . . ."

Needless to say, our children have not yet experienced death and the process of funerals and events that follow the death of a person near and dear to them. Guess we'll have THAT conversation tonight or in the near future. Invitations to funerals. . . that could be something new.

Late Night Creativity!

2009-12-03T01:08:00.004-05:00

This is my latest late night creativity party creation . . .

I've fallen in love with appliques, and found they are so easy to do. I'm going to surprise Molly in the morning with this one! I'm sure she will love it. We'll be doing a couple days at Disney and i'm sure she'll beg to wear this one as soon as the sun goes down each afternoon! Should i embroider on the back. . . "Ask my mom how you can own this sweatshirt too?" Or maybe i should just take a bag full of them with me and sell them for cash only. Could be a quick way to make some spending money. You know the cheapest sweatshirt down there would cost at least $25 in the gift stores. . . i could sell mine for $19.95 and make a killin'! Too bad i don't have time to make a bunch before we leave. Tomorrow night's late-night party will be to make Camden a Mickey one!
Here's the close-up. And again . . .My kids will only be able to wear them for so long, i'll be passing them on in a year!

Tomboy or Tomgirl?

2009-11-29T19:39:00.001-05:00

Our dinner conversation was about whether or not Molly (and a few friends) were tomboys. They like the great outdoors and playing and getting dirty, yet they also love dressup and makeup and girly things.
SO, as Camden carries a pink purse around the family room Molly asks, "Mom, do you think Camden is a tomgirl?"

Gobble, Gobble!

2009-11-26T00:23:00.002-05:00

Once again, a little bit of time off from work and school, and i'm feeling creative again! I have been busting trying to find the time to learn/teach myself how to applique. So, tonight was the night. And, just in time for tomorrow morning! I logged on, purchased a design, and off i went to the workroom to try it out. This is my first shot. . . a little rough around the edges, but good enough for a one-day t-shirt!
Dear little Gracie, will get all of Camden's holiday hand-me-downs now! I'll take it to Florida on Dec 4th for Gracie to wear the next 2 years maybe!

So Thankful!

2009-11-25T14:41:00.005-05:00

Griffin has been trying his best to grow his hair out to a long "shag" type of cut that is so popular. If you know Griffin, you know he has one of the largest heads imaginable for a child (was born in the 90th percentile and has always stayed there). When he was 3 years old and begged for a cowboy hat, none of the "toy" hats fit and we had to spend 30bucks at the horse and tack store for a hat that would fit. And, to add fury to the fire, he has VERY thick, GOOD hair. However, thick/good hair isn't always the best for every style.

Anyhow, he's been very patient (as have I) in letting his hair get longer and longer. It was so bushy, Jeff scheduled an appointment to let our dear friend Tina, the magic hair stylist, work some of her magic to make it look, at the least, a little better. On the way out the door Griffin announced he was cutting it short! You say, "Big Deal!" Well, this is a HUGE deal as every time we have mentioned a hair cut, he has pleaded not to go, pleaded to let him grow it out, no way was he even going to trim it.

And here we are, the day before Thanksgiving, the week before our big Disney trip (where i'm sure no fewer than a thousand pictures will be taken) and just before the holidays, and low and behold, he is cutting it SHORT!!! SHORT I SAY!! Can you hear me??? SO THANKFUL! I love my Gip with short hair! I did not encourage this. In fact, i think i DIScouraged it just a little because he was halfway to long, and it's never fun to start over. I fear he will just want to start over! He did this all on his own. Now, Jeff drove him to the hair appointment, so perhaps there are secret money exchanges i will never know about; for example, "Hey Grif, if you cut your hair short, i will give you a 20 dollar bill, but you can't tell mom!" But, i'm hoping that's not the case. I do in fact, strongly support bribery of children, when necessary, but this wasn't necessary. It wasn't my favorite, but it wasn't too bad. Anyhow, he did it, here's the proof. . .

A few "in process" pictures!

I think i even see a little bit of a grin on his face as those clippers work. It looks like shearing a sheep there is so much coming off!

Almost done . . .

And here's the final product. . . That's my boy! I think it looks drastically short, simply because it started out so long! (And side note. . . i think that is my least favorite shirt ever). But, i love my Grif! He's cute long haired or short! And has a great personality and sense of sarcasm (that i really appreciate)!

Tater Tots!

2009-11-16T19:06:00.003-05:00

A true delicacy in the McCreary household. . . i put some tater tots on a plate for two of my children to "share." And, because i know my children so well, i drew a line down the middle so each would know which tater tots were his/hers and avoid all fighting and bickering about "she ate more than i ate." "NO, he did!" Can you guess which side of the plate belongs to which child?

Daddy Daycare

2009-11-13T16:48:00.004-05:00

I had to work today (not a typical workday for me) and Khaki was busy with Garden Club and Ms. Gina had to work her "real" job. SO, Jeff said he was perfectly able to juggle working from home and Camden. I reassured him there were friends i could call and trade favors, but he assured me he would manage it.

This is the picture he sent me mid-day. . .

Ummm, not sure i'll be available to work any more Fridays this year!

Enjoy the glorious weekend! Camden has already started enjoying his!

Funny Feet!

2009-11-03T22:50:00.004-05:00

Well, for those of you that love freaky pictures, i've finally taken some of my lovely injured foot/ankle! It is almost 11pm, and i worked today, and was at the ballpark all night tonight for Molly's game. So, i was probably on my leg a bit too much today and not icing it like i have been every other day. Here's what it looks like:

This picture really doesn't do the swelling justice, but if you look closely, you can see part of it. My right foot is truly "marshmallow man" quality swollen.
I admit, i've always had "wide" not pretty feet, but THIS is extreme! When one foot is twice as big as the other foot, you know something is wrong! I go back to the doctor on Friday! I can walk on my toes and the ball of my foot as of today. Still "tingling" when i put pressure on my heel. And quite frankly, there is a weird "itching" sensation right on that bone that pokes out on my ankle. You know that feeling when a "booboo" is scabbing over and the new skin is forming. . . THAT is what this feels like. But there is no broken skin, no booboo (on the outside). So, i'm not sure WHY it itches?? Could it be from the air cast and socks that rub against it all day? If so, why is it just that one single spot? Never anywhere else? Weird.
Anyhow, Jeff is hanging in there playing dad AND mr. mom! I can tell he's stressed and as if home isn't enough, work is hell this week. So he's trying his best to be patient and pick up as much slack as possible. I do admit, i have a lady that cleans my house, usually every 2 weeks, and today was her day to come over. THANK GOD, for Ms. Patty today! I NEEDED a little sparkle around the house!
Off to bed i go. Going to leave the ice on the ankle until i fall asleep and/or can't take it any longer. Still medicating with the anti-inflammatory rx too!

Please Leave Comments . . .

2009-10-29T20:34:00.002-04:00

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE go to
www.sosassyandcute.blogspot.com
and leave some comment LOVE!! Molly is trying so hard to be a good "blogger" and she needs to feel the love! You will MAKE HER DAY if you leave her a "compliment" as she calls the comment section. No matter how many times i show her the word "comment" she continues to say "compliment!"

Pumpkin #2

2009-10-29T20:24:00.003-04:00

So, pumpkin #1 was a custom designed, painted pumpkin by mom (see below for post). Tonight, we CARVED pumpkin #2! Molly designed this one all by herself. Scooped the "guts" as she likes to call it, and helped Jeff with the drawing and carving. She is very pleased with the end result!

Tomorrow night we'll do Griffin's design. Be sure to check back to see it!

Ouch!

2009-10-27T17:05:00.005-04:00

This is what happens when you have your arms full, trying to hurry out of the house, wearing high heeled boots, and think you're at the bottom of the flight of steps and you're really not . . . A grade 2 sprain, air cast, crutches, icing 20 on, 20 off, anti-inflammatory meds, and doing N-O-T-H-I-N-G!! For those of you that know me, i'm NOT good at doing nothing! Notice that nothing starts with NOT!!! UGH! One day down. Instructions were to use the crutches for at least 2 days while the swelling goes down. By the end of the week, i should be able to start easing into putting pressure back on it.

Notice the large lump on the right side!! OUCH! As the nurse showed me how to put the air cast on we were chatting and i said, "I'm just glad it's not broken." Nurse replied, "Sometimes it's much easier if it is!" Ummmm, was that supposed to make me feel better? Because it didn't! At least it's not black and blue. . . wondering if that is yet to be seen, or if it will feel worse than it looks!? Need a pedicure . . . please don't comment about how ugly my toes are right now. I was so embarassed at the doctor this morning when i had to take off my sock!

Oh well, will trudge along with my crutches and sitting a LOT. We're so thankful it's JUST an ankle. I hit the garage floor pretty hard, have a cut on my knee and elbow, but nothing else even hurts. Could have been much worse. I think the Lord was just telling me to slow down for a little bit!

A Day of Fun!

2009-10-23T18:54:00.005-04:00

I have 101 things to do. . . no about 475,649,837 things to do, BUT, i decided today to do something i WANTED to do, instead of something i NEEDED to do! SO, for months and months i've been talking about making a dress for Molly. I've also wanted to do something fun for Halloween, so I got crafty with a pumpkin! And, boy oh boy, it feels good to have done something for myself. I left work, laundry, house, volunteer stuff, etc., all undone, just so i could accomplish a couple fun things. See below for what i did today (of course, after i spent 1.75 hours at the kids' school doing PTA work)! Can you imagine what i'll be capable of this time next year when i'm NOT the PTA President any longer?

Project #1:

Project #2:

Yes! I MADE the dress! From the bolt of fabric at the store, all the way to this final product! It's been months and months since i've sewn anything fun! I still want to add a monogram or something at the top, but at least you can see the dress!

Project #3:

No, i didn't make this, but my friend Gina did borrow it from her friend for me, which means I have ALL THREE KIDS costumes for Halloween and halloween is still a week away! This is BIG for queen procrastinator!!!

Have a great weekend!

To - Do - List

2009-10-13T22:01:00.005-04:00

So, we all know that i am the PTA president at my kids' school. I know, C-R-A-Z-Y. And what's double crazy, is that this is my 2nd, yes, SECOND year doing it! WHY, you ask? I don't know. I really, really, really, really enjoy my local PTA friends and moms. The benefits are great when you know just about everything going on at the school, you are friends with the principal, you know most of the staff, the staff members know your kids (which can also be a negative), and well, the list goes on. There are drawbacks. . . i won't go into many of those in this post. What i will focus on is the many emails i get from State PTA wanting me to find someone to go to RANDOM meetings/workshops/etc that they are hosting. I will pose a question here: Do these people have nothing better to do on a Saturday????????

The Latest that i am just pondering. . .
Saturday, from 9:30 to noon, the State PTA office is hosting a "Parliamentarian Workshop." If you are interested, you can also take the "Parliamentarian Exam" while you are there!!!!! Seriously, WHO DOES THIS???? What does it mean to pass the parliamentarian exam??? Can you think of nothing better to put on your resume????? SO, my TO-DO LIST for today, is 20 things i could do in my house or with my family INSTEAD of attending the State PTA Parliamentarian Workshop on Saturday.

1 - Have breakfast with my kids.
2 - SERVE breakfast to someone else.
3 - Clean out the basement that was supposed to get cleaned out before this school year got underway.
4 - Go to the park with my family.
5 - Watch a little league game.
6 - COACH a little league game.
7 - Read to a kid.
8 - Bake with a kid.
9 - Take time to wax my eyebrows, instead of plucking them over and over, day after day, awaiting the time when i can actually get to the salon for an overhaul. Do something for yourself for once.
10 - Watch Saturday morning cartoons - seriously can't remember the last time i actually did this one.
11 - Clean the floors that haven't cleaned themselves while I've been sending about 300 emails all related to PTA.
12 - Clean the toilets, sinks, carpets, etc. . . .see #11.
13 - Vacuum out my car. OKAY - it will take a little more than vaccuming to get it presentable, but we can at least start with vaccuming if we're avoiding a parliamentarian workshop.
14 - Buy a celebrity gossip magazine and enjoy reading it and wishing your life could be so "trivial."
15 - Work the dugout at a little league game - seriously i do have to do this on Saturday . . .maybe the workshop would be a better option than this one.
16 - Grocery shop.
17 - Dig up weeds, that used to be flowers, that used to look nice around my mailbox.
18 - Finish unpacking the halloween decoration boxes that were brought upstairs 1.5 weeks ago now.
19 - Plan meals for a week so we can avoid eating out on the days that i spend all afternoon doing PTA volunteer work instead of fixing something for dinner.
20 - Be a parliamentarian in my own home . . . don't siblings fight enough that we should all have to pass the parliamentarian exam just to be parents?? Oh, who am i kidding, it's much better to be a dictator in your own home than a parliamentarian!

Hope you enjoy your Saturday! I know how i WON'T be spending mine! What do you plan on doing?

Molly's Teeth (or lack there of):

2009-10-05T07:16:00.003-04:00

Molly has been wiggling teeth for about a year now! Two trips to the dentist, and each time we've heard, "Oh my goodness, almost all of these front teeth are loose!" The last time, the hygenist was suprised when she started "counting" teeth and found that EVERY tooth along Molly's front line was wiggly!

Well, the moment i've been dreading, has finally happened. Griffin never lost teeth this fast! He would lose one, wait for it to get halfway in, then lose another. Molly, not so much! She loses one it seems like every two weeks! Could be her determination to wiggle them all and lose them so fast, maybe?

But now there are basically only two left. . . say what you will. . .

Made My Day!!!

2009-09-29T16:08:00.003-04:00

I have had a really crappy day! A good day at work, but for whatever reason, maybe even multiple reasons and stress, i am foul-mood-Fred today! I am grumpy and not a happy camper. Well. . . wash my worries away! I just picked the bigs up from school and Griffin was eager for me to read his "reflections entry." FYI - Reflections is a national literary competition sponsored by PTA. Every school is encouraged to have students participate with literature entries, composition, art, music, etc, etc. Well, Griffin's class had a substitute teacher yesterday and one of their assignments was to write something for the Reflections 2009 theme. This year's theme is: BEAUTY IS . . .
Here is what Griffin wrote (and because i love him despite his lack of spelling ability, i am going to include HIS spelling of words, not mine):

"BUDDEY (Beauty) IS. . . .

If you are looking for something buddiful, look at my mom. She is buddey at any time. She is buddey when she talks and when she sleeps. She is so cute. If you see her you will fall in love with her. That's how my dad fell in love with her. If you wanted to get her, two bad so sad. She has one. She prble (probably) is to hot for you. Get your oney (own)!"

HOW LOVELY IS THIS??? I can't quit smiling now! I know you all wish you were as BEAUTIFUL as ME!!!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

2009-09-24T12:35:00.002-04:00

Thankfully, the rain is gone for now. If you haven't been watching the news, you wouldn't know, but Atlanta has been under water for several days now! Gwinnett County (and several surrounding counties) schools were cancelled Monday and Tuesday. The bus yards were flooded and buses were overturned. Roads were impassable due to flooding. The southern part of our county was much harder hit. Here, in "Hog Mountain" we were just really soaked for several days!

If you haven't caught us on the news, here are a few pictures to put it in perspective. . .

A house around Atlanta somewhere. . .

This is one of the Six Flags roller coasters. . . Six Flags made a statement today saying they hope to re-open on this weekend. Anybody interested in riding this? No thanks!

If you're interested in more photos of the area, go to www.11alive.com or www.wsbtv.com. They both have unbelievable photos of the areas surrounding us! It is so sad to watch on the news. Families have lost everything. These homes were no where near sources of water, most of them, so few people had a need for flood insurance. Total loss.

Thanks to Kroger for offering the "rounding up" for victims campaing. They are allowing shoppers to "round up" their grocery bill and donating the proceeds to the families that have been affected.

Exciting Things are Happening!

2009-09-21T08:08:00.004-04:00

8:30am update - School is CANCELLED, not delayed.
So many exciting things in the McCreary house. . .
*Griffin has the flu!
*Camden climbed out of bed last night and then was scared to death so he started screaming!
*School is delayed for 90 minutes today due to all the RAIN that has fallen in the last 24 hours! Streets are flooded, I-85 is shut down, schools are closed. How does this drought-ridden state now have flood watches? Funny, i guess. Just heard that one county south of us received 10 inches of rain overnight. That makes the 4 inches that Gwinnett received seem so pitiful!
Have a great day! I think it's going to be a wet one if you're nearby!

Cookies!!!!

2009-09-16T16:51:00.003-04:00

Yum yum. Even though my house is messy and i have dirty dishes galore and a to-do list for work very long, i decided that making some homemade cookies to greet my kids when they got off the bus, was more important! Wish you could smell the kitchen right now! Better yet, wish you were here to share one!

Camden with the Days!

2009-09-15T17:14:00.005-04:00

Camden is loved by my friend Gina and her girls on the days that i work at the preschool! Gina graciously agreed to pick him up on his school days and take him home for a couple hours, and also watches him on Tuesdays when i'm at work. The one thing i fear when he is there, is that he might become a big UGA fan!! Yikes!

Clara and Gracie (Gina's girls) are the sweetest little girls around and Camden LOVES to spend his days with them. (Any mention of their 3 names and Camden starts blowing kisses any which-a-way!) Here is a picture of all of them, sitting on a bench, sharing a drink together! If they could talk, i wonder what the two littlest would say?

PS - Don't tell Jeff, but notice the BRACELET on Camden's arm!!! HA - do you think he'll be any worse for the wear by spending his days with two girls? I love it! This would make Molly proud!

Whatcha Think?

2009-09-13T23:55:00.001-04:00

Okay - Messed around for an hour now, just to "customize" my blog. Let me know what you think with some comment love!

All for Baby Gracie!

2009-09-04T20:37:00.001-04:00

First Day of School. . . for Camden!

2009-08-31T15:45:00.004-04:00

Today was the first day of Mother's Morning Out for Camden. Of course he cried when i left him, but it didn't last long! I peeked in his room twice and once he had a mouth stuffed with a paci and the 2nd time he was happy as a lark just flitting around being an 19 month old! Here are a few of the mandatory "first day of school" pictures. . . I think he might have known it was a big deal . . . check out the grin on his face!

I will add a sidenote: He was HAULING down the hallway one time, ahead of the rest of his class, and i heard one of my preschool teachers holler to Ms. Dana (his teacher) - "Hey, you better grab him, he knows exactly where he's going!" He was headed straight to my office to find me!

Khaki was kind enough to pick him up and when i finally arrived to pick him up from her house, he was thrilled to see me. Nothing quite like that baby face running to you at the end of a day! True love!

. . . Really??? Again!

2009-08-27T23:16:00.009-04:00

Check this out . . .GATOR GAB . . .and our government is PAYING this woman!
Gator fans everywhere should be ashamed!

. . . .Really???

2009-08-27T23:07:00.002-04:00

I have so much to blog about, but no time to blog. My one comment for today is this - as ESPN in on the television that is in front of me. Jeff was watching the little league world series, left the room and left the tv on when it was over. . . Now who is on??? Michael Vick!
What a crock of crap! I called it how many years ago??? Two?? Barely? I said, the day he was found guilty and sentenced, that he WOULD play ball again. I was disgusted at the THOUGHT then, but today, i am more disgusted. He is being interviewed right now. Not sure why it even caught my attention, but i happened to look up and saw his name across the bottom of the screen. I will say, i like sports, i love college football, i love major league baseball, but really, this is a crock of crap!!! That the NFL would allow this man to be paid to play this sport after what he did . . . a crock! DISGUSTING!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOLLY!!

2009-08-24T14:58:00.003-04:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our Molly girl!! I can't believe that she is 6 today!! This picture was taken 3 years ago when she was enjoying birthday cake and ice cream for khaki's birthday!! Boy how time flies! But what a treat it is to have a daughter, and especially one as sweet at Molly. In her bookbag on Friday, there was a note from her teacher . . . "Molly is a model student!" What a nice compliment to hear!
Molly - you are a true gift from God. A little bit of sprinkles on the cake that we've been given in life! You are beautiful, talented, and most of all, filled with kindness and love for others! You are a true delight and we love you very, very much! I hope today is a very special day for you and that each year gets better and better the older you get!

UGH, Meetings!

2009-08-18T22:53:00.003-04:00

Have you ever been to one of those meetings that it is so off base, you just can't help but to laugh through the whole thing. Tonight was the night. I won't go into too much detail as i don't want to get called-out for complaining, but i HATE, and yes, that is a strong word, HATE meetings that stray so far off the course they were supposed to be on, that it becomes totally irrelevant to the others in attendance.
Am i rambling enough for you? I attended a TWO HOUR meeting tonight, that when it was all said and done, should have been a maximum of 30 minutes! UGH!
I had to have a beer when it was all over because i was just so frustrated of having spent TWO HOURS accomplishing nothing!! TWO HOURS!! Does no one know how important two hours is this time of the year?
I attended with Amy, Andrea, and Tamara, and i'm so glad i did, because they were great company to be in. Thanks for a fun night, girls! NOT! I enjoyed my time with y'all, but next time, let's just go have dinner!!

Are You a "Pray-er?

2009-08-17T21:27:00.004-04:00

I have so many wonderful things happening in my own life, but yet i am silenced and hushed by things going on around me!

I have found out that 3 people that are dear to my heart and so special to me, have all been diagnosed with cancer . . . all within two weeks of each other! My heart is filled with pain for them and what they are going through.

Two of the three are fellow "moms" that i know and admire, both diagnosed with breast cancer, both in their 30's. They are both showing strength and fierce bravery to fight the fight! But to know that they are only in their 30's. It truly makes you realize that this can happen to any of us!

The third is a dear friend of our family! He might as well be family as we spent many times together around the holidays! He has cancer of the stomach.

So i ask you to pray. . . For each of these people. Pray for them, for their families, for their doctors and for healing. I know that we can offer meals to those nearby, and to help with their kids, and to clean houses, and whatever else needs to be "done", but really prayer is the force that will carry these 3 through these next few months. And go get a mammogram!! Or at least let your doctor check your boobies for you!

Thanks for praying with me!

First Day of School '09!!

2009-08-10T14:12:00.003-04:00

Today was the Bigs' first day of school . . . Molly is in 1st grade, Griffin is in 3rd! HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?? When did they get so big?? Check out these pictures and you'll see what i mean. . .

Molly up close, looking SO pretty in her first-day-of-school outfit. (It has practically killed her not to wear this outfit until now. . . we've had it since early July):
Griffin . . . note the collared shirt, because he probably won't wear it again this year, unless it's a Sunday church day! Also, please note the new tennis shoes. . . he INSISTED on getting Under Armour tennis shoes (i know, that's what's COOL, but have you seen the price??) Boy is quite the business man. . . talked Dad and i into giving him the money we would have spent on your "average" pair of tennis shoes and he paid for the rest himself! That's how bad he wanted them! Aren't they dapper??
Molly again . . . probably one of the prettiest pictures i have of her -

Griffin, up close . . .again, a pretty good picture. . . it's a REAL smile -
Feeling the sibling love??
And then there's sweet Camden that seemingly, looks excited that the other two are finally going back to school . . . (notice the mismatched pj's . . .half Christmas pj's, half old preschool t-shirt . . .it really stinks to be a 3rd child)!!!

But really? Apparently no one wanted to have their picture taken with Mom. . . look at the painful looks on their faces!! Maybe we'll skip this shot next year!
They should be home in about an hour and a half! I'm hoping they both had great days, because i've already informed you that they both have AWESOME teachers!

Welcome To the World!

2009-08-09T17:13:00.002-04:00

Welcome to the World, Baby Gracie! The McCreary's are so excited to meet you, but we love you already! We're so glad you're finally here! You are loved by so many already! May your life be blessed with happiness, health, and LOTS of fun!

BABY GRACIE is on her way!

2009-08-05T22:19:00.002-04:00

My cousin is at the hospital!! She went to the hospital around 8:30 when her water broke! We are eagerly awaiting the news of baby Gracie's arrival. Aunt Sue has strict instructions to call whenever. . . WHENever she makes her appearance!!
We are so excited in our house. Hopefully i'll have a picture to post by tomorrow at this time! The family has orders to send a picture!!!
Please pray for an easy delivery and a healthy baby Girl!

New Teachers!!!

2009-08-01T21:16:00.002-04:00

We are so excited in the McCreary house because last night we found out who our teachers for the 2009-2010 school year will be! Griffin will be in third grade and his teacher is Mrs. Phillips. Molly will be in first grade in Mrs. Barr's class! They are both WONDERFUL teachers from what we hear! Mrs. Phillips even has her very own website. . . click HERE to see it! How cool must a teacher be that has her own website?
We are dreading the end of summer, but looking forward to a great school year! Both kids know several friends in their class so that will make the first day so much easier! Griffin's best buddy from last year - Coleman - is in his class. Molly has a couple of special little girls in her class, and several little boys that are sweet as pie!
We are looking forward to a great year!

We're Baaaaack!

2009-07-29T14:07:00.003-04:00

We're finally home! Home sweet home! As much as we love the beach, it is good to be home. A GOOD shower that has water pressure, a comfy bed, and toys for kids to play with . . . all a good reason to be home.
I promise to post lots of pictures and exciting adventures from the last 10 days, but tons of work to do right now. Will save this for night time! It's naptime now and i have to work while kids are resting/sleeping!
Glad to be home!

Overheard!

2009-07-17T16:58:00.003-04:00

Griffin and Jeff are delivering the dogs to doggie day camp and they have a conversation about the beach - skim boards, boogie boards, etc. Here's a little of the conversation:

G: "Hey Dad, do you think you can still do the skim board?"
J: "Maybe."
G: "Mmmm, I wonder if the old man still has his tricks?"

HA HA HA! Where does the boy get these things? Nothing quite like going bald AND having your kid call you "old man."
We love you, Jeffrey!! Good luck on the skim board. I know you can still do it. . . just watch out for the knee, the gout, and for goodness sake, please don't knock a kidney stone loose!

For you frequent readers . . . if he does do it, i'll be sure to post a picture or maybe even a video link here!

Happy Birthday, KHAKI!

2009-07-16T00:35:00.002-04:00

Our dearest Khaki! We hope you had a wonderful day today and were just able to relax and kick back! We enjoyed our dinner together and just spending time together, as usual! You are the best Khaki ("grandma" to those of you not in our tight-knit group that aren't sure what a khaki is) anyone could ever wish for!

We love you and are so grateful you're OUR Khaki!

Happy Birthday!!

Can't wait to have our week at the beach together!

Love - ALL OF US!

Take-Off THURSDAY!

2009-07-09T17:36:00.004-04:00

We met our dear friends at Monkey Joe's in Roswell today for a morning of jumping fun and lunch at Chick-fil-A together! "Aunt Lou" is my dearest friend from my college years; the BEST roommate ever!!! Her two girls, Sara and Rachel, are as sweet as they come and love having pretend big siblings when we are around! Sara is a hoot to be around and definitely has a mind of her own . . . Amy - where do you think she got that?? And just so everyone knows, she and Molly will NEVER be allowed to stay home alone together. If they were to meander 10 feet from the house, neither one could find their way home. But darn, aren't they both so cute??
Thanks Lou for a great day! Next time, let's pay a sitter to take the kids to monkey joe's and you and i will go have lunch in a QUIET restaurant!

All Star Pictures!

2009-07-08T14:57:00.005-04:00

Griffin has played his heart out these last two years of baseball! He has debated choosing another sport to play, but just can't seem to bear the thought of missing a season of baseball. Last year, when selected to play allstars we were so hopeful and excited. Our bubble was busted when it turned out to be a less-than-fair and less-than-fun experience. When Griffin was nominated this year, we honestly had to talk him into accepting the nomination and playing again. We promised that the experience (and coaching) would be different, and thankfully, it was MUCH different. Coach Jay was absolutely the best for Griffin, as well as the other 3 coaches. It was nice for Jeff to get to watch games, instead of coach games! And although we spent our life savings paying the babysitter so we wouldn't have to chase Camden around the ballfield, it was worth every penny to be able to enjoy Griffin in his prime!

I have more pictures, but here's just two to show you the boy enjoying every minute. He is a catcher, just like his dad and granddads, and enjoys it to the fullest! Because of the heatwave in Atlanta, he and the other catcher rotated out every inning and it made Griffin mad that he wasn't allowed to play EVERY inning! I truly believe he could have/would have done it, despite the heat, but it just wasn't a good choice for an 8 year old. Look at all the gear (don't miss the helmet that's been thrown to the ground to make the catch) . . .can you imagine all that, plus the regular uniform when it is 97 degrees and humidity of about 80% everyday??? How he does it, i'll never know, because on any given day he will complain about just playing outside when it is hot! I suppose it's the LOVE FOR THE GAME!

First Haircut!

2009-07-08T14:47:00.003-04:00

This post should have been made over a month ago, but i never posted it, and these pictures are too good not to share! Camden went for his first haircut in late May or early June. His hair was soooo long and curly; but when he would sleep, it would just get fuzzy!
Hanging waaaay past the ears:

This is what it looked like after rubbing the blankets and sheets while sleeping:

During the cut with Ms. Tina: (It's amazing how still a little boy will sit if given a HUGE lollipop to eat while getting his haircut):

This is the back after the cut - MUCH better:

This is the HAPPY face after the cut! Not sure if he was more excited about his new cut or the lollipop?

It was hard for me to face the first haircut of the last baby in the McCreary house. But i admit now that it's over, he really does look better and cuter with a little shorter hair!

Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

2009-07-06T15:11:00.004-04:00

Today is a special day for Grandpa McCreary! Hope you have a terrific day! We had a great time last night swimming and eating those yummy ribs! Happy 58th!

Happy 4th!

2009-07-02T11:53:00.003-04:00

Hope you all have a great 4th of July! We will be swimming and cooking out with friends and family, two days in a row!

Swimming Hole . . .

2009-06-26T13:22:00.013-04:00

We had to skip Take Off Tuesday this week as we had a painter coming on Wednesday and i needed to shop for groceries and go buy paint and a few other things instead. So, we shopped on Tuesday and did "Wild Away from Home Wednesday!" The Brauns joined us for a day trip to a park at Lake Lanier. We picnic'd and swam and had a wonderful time with friends. Camden LOVES playing at the water's edge, never once fussing, but did later enjoy the water once i was hot enough to take him in.

The gaggle of geese that wanted to share Molly's picnic until Christian was kind enough to scare them away for her . . .

A boy and his bucket . . . and notice the cherry juice from the picnic dripping down his chin . . .

Is it funny to anyone else, or just me, that the "big" boys are doing the SAME thing as the LITTLE boy??? Some things we just don't outgrow. . .

I always wanted a big sister and this is why . . . she would have been just as sweet as Molly and sat at the water's edge and kept me and my bucket company. . .

Nothing like sharing a noodle and tube with a friend!

More beach/sand fun . . .

Thanks to the Brauns for a great day with friends. We decided that we had so much fun with the Brauns, we went back on Thursday night for a family picnic!

Anniversary Celebration!

2009-06-26T13:14:00.005-04:00

If you know us really well, you know that Jeff and i are quite simple. We don't need fancy dinners to enjoy our anniversary, and we sure don't need long trips (at least not yet). So, instead of fancy-ness, we spent a day at the mall, seeing movies. We went to see The Proposal - with Sandra Bullock. A GREAT movie! I would recommend it highly!! And speaking of fancy trips, since seeing the movie and the scenery there, we'll be planning a trip to Alaska before. . . okay, honestly, once we retire, but i'd love to think it would happen sooner.
We also went to see The Hangover. Totally different theme from the first movie, but hilarious. I was asked before we went, if we liked "crude humor." You definitely have to like crude humor to enjoy this movie, but it was hilarious . . . and disgusting wrapped up into one!
After a day at the theater, we went to Third Coast Grille; Enjoyed some crab legs and fish! Then, we headed to Chateau Elan for the night! And, can i say here? If Chateau Elan ever decides to sell the beds they have in their hotel rooms, i will line up the night before to make sure i get one! That was the BEST night's sleep!! What a relaxing night! Thanks to Jeff for planning the whole thing!

Where Has the Time Gone?

2009-06-26T13:09:00.002-04:00

I can't believe it's Friday! It's been a week and a half since i posted and we've done SO much!

With baseball ending, we had so much free time. . . and so many crazy ideas. The kids have been to the free movie, Jeff and i celebrated our anniversary, taught sunday school, been to the lake with friends, been to the lake with family, been to the lake for a picnic, had spend the nights, had friends over to play, done a little work, cleaned out a PTA room, organized a TON of PTA stuff that had been sitting in the corner piling up for a year, filled a pool out back and played, and are going bowling tonight! Shew! WHAT FUN!! OH YEA, and most importantly, we had the house painted!! The inside!! How exciting. I will leave several posts, each individually, so this is not a run-on post!!

Hope summer is treating you all as well as it's treating us!

Take Me Out to the Ballgame!

2009-06-16T12:00:00.002-04:00

Last night was our :-( last all-star game. Our boys fought and fought! But they just couldn't pull it out in the end! We were down 6-1 in the 2nd inning and we, positive thinking parents, thought for sure, we were done. But in the middle of the 5th inning we were down 9-3. Somehow our boys rallied and came back to tie it up. Background info for peewee ball . . . we are only supposed to play 5 innings. However, you cannot have a tie ballgame when you are in tournament play. We fought and fought and held them off in the 6th inning, but the 7th inning got us. They scored 4 runs, and we just couldn't catch them. It was 8:30pm and our ballgame had started at 6pm. I think that is long enough for 8 year old boys to have to focus on a single activity, huh?
Who here, feels bad for the team that had to play AFTER our game? We should have been done around 7:45. At 8:45 we came off the field and the umpires still are required to take a 15 minute break between games! Poor kids were lucky to get out of the ballfield at 11pm last night!
We had a great time playing allstars. Griffin is finally "there" with his enjoyment and understanding of the game. I would have never told you when we started Griffin playing this game that it could possibly be so serious at the age of 8! But, really, it is. . . serious!
Great job, Griffin, for just making the team! We are so proud of you!!! And thanks for some very fun nights (and nail biter nights) of watching you play!

A Creative Gift

2009-06-13T23:34:00.002-04:00

Because Jeff is always as creative as he can be . . .

THIS was my anniversary gift! (Along with a night away from everyone in a week or so, for a lake-night getaway). Do you know why he gave me this book for our anniversary???

11th anniversary is the "steel" anniversary. Much better to get a book by Danielle Steel than to get a steel statue or something :-) And with my memory, i can read this over and over (because i never remember what books are about), so it will be the gift that will keep on giving!

I love you too, Jeff! Thanks for always being creative and fun and a great husband! I love you MORE!

All Star Update!

2009-06-13T20:19:00.003-04:00

The state officials ruled that WE WON!!! We play game 2 Sunday at 3:30.

Qualifying Games. . . to be continued. . .

2009-06-13T16:12:00.005-04:00

All Star Game one of the state qualifying tournament took place this morning at 11:45. Our team (Mill Creek Southern) against Auburn. At the beginning of game time, the umpires specified game time would be one hour forty-five minutes. First inning closed out 1-2, Auburn. Second inning . . . Griffin batted, hit a nice RBI, scored a run, and the whole team looked great. Score was 6-5 to close the 2nd inning. 3rd inning was a wash for both teams - no runs. 4th inning, Grif up again, scored another run, we were up 11-5 at the mid-way point. Let me give a little background info here - Peewee rules have always held a 5 run limit in innings 1-4. SO, no matter what, Auburn could only get to 10 runs. They had scored three, and had 2 guys on base, batter up - hit an over the fence homerun. The 2 runners on the bases scored the 4th and 5th runs of that inning - to bring it up to 11-10 Mill Creek. SIDENOTE: Jeff saw that the 2nd runner never touched the bag, but before he could notify our coaches, the umpires called the game for time. The boy that hit the homer, his run didn't count because they had scored their 5 runs for the inning. We won 11-10.

JUST KIDDING!!!

The Auburn coaches questioned the umpire saying- if the last batter hits a homerun, his run DOES score. In all the years Griffin has been playing ball, we've NEVER heard this. It has ALWAYS been a 5 run limit in innings 1 through 4. BUT, because this is a STATE QUALIFYING TOURNAMENT, the umpire checked with the officials at the park. They said game time was 1:45 and the game was over with the homerun batter NOT scoring. Mill Creek wins 11-10. Our coaches did not call attention to the fact that their 2nd runner never tagged the bag.

As we were sitting at lunch, Jeff got an email and it said, long story short, that the other team has escalated their questioning of the game really being over, to the STATE level.

IF the state says we should have played the 5th inning, there is NO time limit, we have to go to the ballpark at 1:30 tomorrow to play that inning. Who would think that 8 YEAR OLD BASEBALL could be so intense??? Our game ended at 1:35 and it is now 4:25 and we are still waiting to hear the ruling. We are wondering what this will mean for the OTHER games that occured today. If ALL the umpires were calling games at an hour forty-five, shouldn't ALL those games have to be finished out?

Either way, win or lose, we are suppose to have game 2 of the tournament tomorrow. Based on our current status of winning, we play at 3:30. IF we have to play the 5th inning at 1:30 and lose, our "losers bracket" game will begin as soon as the 5th inning from today's game is over. And let me say . . . it is HOT out there.

We don't often ask for prayer for baseball, but it sure would be nice if they could call this game our way . . . the way we've ALWAYS played . . . time limit on the game. There's no reason for us to play a 5th inning tomorrow. . . we played for an hour forty-five today and won fair and square! Go Hawks!

June 13, 2009

2009-06-13T09:34:00.005-04:00

June 13, 1998

Oh, the things i was doing this time 11 years ago! Hairdo's, fingernails, NOT talking to Jeff. I remember the excitement so clearly! It was a HOT June day. But beautiful! I'm still not sure why i planned a wedding for the month of June?? Ummm, maybe it was because i was such a conscientious employee (teacher at the time) and i wanted to not miss work...I think i vaguely remember that.

I do remember that i was sooooo excited to be marrying Jeff! And to this day, i am STILL excited that i DID marry him! What a wonderful gift to have him as a husband!

I love you, Jeff! HAPPY 11th ANNIVERSARY!

PS - Sure wish we had a trip to Grand Cayman planned, flying out tomorrow. You haven't planned any surprises have you?

A McCreary First. . .

2009-06-10T09:47:00.008-04:00

Following in the footsteps of our friends, we have taken our inaugural "Take-Off Tuesday!" Each Tuesday that we are not in school, the goal is to go somewhere. . . do something fun - field trip style. Now, we still have a one year old toddler in our house, so take-off Tuesday might have to be Field Trip Friday every now and then . . . or Way Cool Wednesday. . . but we plan to go and do more. . . regardless of if it's always Tuesday.

Our first Take-Off Tuesday was to the Georgia Aquarium. We visited with friends over Memorial Day weekend and bought a membership. . . so we decided to make the first Take-Off a very fun one, even for Camden. Our Memorial Day visit was a debaucle (oh, did i say that?. . . i meant -so much fun), because we spent it with approximately 9 billion of our closest friends! What a riot. Take-Off Tuesday was MUCH different. We saw and did IT ALL - with no one in the way!

Our visit was brief because the kids had been at VBS all morning, so we grabbed lunch on the road and headed downtown, with a goal of leaving downtown before 3:55 so we wouldn't get stuck in too much traffic.

Here's a recap of our day!

Camden's enjoyment. . .

All 3 upon entering. Camden loves this because he is truly obsessed with fish. . .

The big rock . . . amazing!

Everyone enjoying the beluga whales. . .

Molly LOVED just watching. . .

Griffin loved the touch tanks
And the touch tanks. . .
And more touch tank time . . .
I really think Griffin would have spent the entire trip at the touch tanks. Molly wouldn't touch a thing. Admittedly, i was a little frustrated. I wanted her to TRY it. She finally confessed under pressure - "I don't like the SMELL of the tanks!!"

So she just watched some more! That's my little observer. She's a LOT like i was at that age . . .

With the HAMMERHEAD overhead!

And. . . the whale shark that "the aquarium" makes such a big ta-do about. . . We had a great visit and a terrific first adventure for Take-Off Tuesday! Thanks to the Braun's for always sharing their great ideas. We plan to steal a few take-off Tuesday ideas from them to keep us busy this summer!

Games 2 and 3 - Not so good!

2009-06-08T18:54:00.002-04:00

Well, Grif's team played games 2 and 3 of our tournament on Sunday. Not so pretty. We found out AFTER we played the game 2 team, that they were a travel ball team that had been playing together for 3 years. Kind of an unfair advantage. They won 15 - 2. We were impressed that it wasn't a shut out.
Game 3 was not quite so bad, but our team had a hard time holding on to the ball. I give Griffin credit, the innings he played catcher, he caught and did great! The rest of the infielders had about 200000 errors. . . okay slight exageration. . . but close enough. We lost 7-3 I think was the score.
I have a few pictures . . .
On to the qualifier tournament . . . games start Saturday at 11:45. Lots of practices between now and then.

All Stars - Game One!

2009-06-06T18:07:00.004-04:00

UPDATE @ 10:10pm: We won the first game. 7-5. 1 win, 0 loses. No good pictures. Will take some tomorrow.
From 5pm:
Off to the ball field for the "official" game one of the all star season. We've had practice after practice after practice. Griffin has been looking GREAT! He's hitting like a champ and playing catcher to his fullest potential! Say a little prayer that he can hold it together "under the pressure!" We think "he's there!" He's in competition mode. I'll post pictures later.

Camden Loves the Game!

2009-06-04T17:47:00.002-04:00

For anyone who believes 16 month olds don't take in their surroundings more than anyone else . . .get this. . . these pictures were taken at 10:15 last night. Thankfully, Camden had taken a good nap. The bigs were spending the night with Khaki and Papa and Camden sat down to "play ball" at approximately 10:04. OR, at least that's when Jeff asked me "Hey, how long do you think we've been doing this? About 3 minutes?" I said, "Oh yea, at least 3 or 4 minutes." So, we all 3 played and played for the longest time. Amazingly, Camden has a pretty good arm. We joke with Griffin all the time that after watching all these hundreds of ballgames that Griffin plays, Camden will be the one to go to the major leagues because he's learned so much from Grif. And sure 'nuff. . . his arm is that of a 3 year old. Pretty precise throws, right to us. Jeff was thrilled. And you ask, how long did this go on? We timed it at about 24 minutes!! Yep, i'd say the boy can "attend to a task." Check that one off the developmental checklist. He would shag the balls he overthrew and sit right back down at "his place" and start throwing again. It was so much fun, and the only reason we quit, was because he was spending as much time rubbing his sleepy eyes as he was throwing the ball by about 10:22!

NOT FOR KIDS . . .

2009-06-02T00:34:00.003-04:00

A while back, we were on the other side of Hwy 316 from our house and we were driving behind a minivan. I noticed a bumper sticker that was actually on the back window of the car. I was in such disbelief, i made jeff drive up real close to the car and i whipped the camera out of my purse and took this picture . . .i can honestly say, i didn't know people put such rude and ugly things on their cars these days! Call me naive, but really?????

From the Principal . . .

2009-06-01T14:24:00.005-04:00

Few people get to know the principal at their elementary school as well as the PTA president. We, at Duncan Creek, are very lucky that our principal is very gracious to us and a lot of fun (although she tries to persuade people into thinking she is "an old school marme"). She is alot of fun!

Here's the proof. . .

I had a meeting with her this morning to plan the fall fundraiser promotions. She whipped out a "thingy" from the "Boosterthon guy" sack of prizes from 2 years ago when the school did this same fundraiser. She made several funny comments, that i won't share here, because i would totally blow her cover as a serious old school marme. But, when the meeting was over, she very graciously told me to bring this home to Griffin . . . she OBVIOUSLY knows what the kid enjoys!!

Note please . . .this thing is STRETCHY. Looks like a little squishy ball when it's not over a child's head. NOTE: ALL 3 of my children have heads that measure in the 90th percentile for size . . . that means they are HUGE and Molly has approximately 10 pounds of hair on that head too!!! NOTE: It is a pain in the butt to get this thing stretched over their big noggins!! But tons of fun to see them running around with it on! :-)

Overheard . . .

2009-05-29T16:52:00.003-04:00

The bigs were playing out back today and Jeff called them in for naptime.
(Sidenote: They don't usually nap, but Jeff & I are going to a movie tonight and they want to stay up until we get home, so they had to take a nap)
Well, coming in from playing was NOT what Molly had in mind. Here's how the conversation went.
Jeff: Come on in you guys! It's time to lay down.
Molly: No, i don't want to!!!!!!!
Jeff: You can nap now or when Mommy gets home! (sidenote: i was getting my hair cut and colored)
Molly: RAAAAARAAAAAAARAAAAAA I HATE YOU I HATE YOU YOU ARE A MEAN DADDY I HATE YOU!!!
Jeff: Let's go Molly . . . upstairs. (Molly stomped all the way up)
(She climbed up in her bed and looked over at jeff).
Molly: HEY! Get over here daddy! I need some hugs and kisses for naptime!
Jeff: I thought you hated me?
Molly: I do, but i STILL need hugs and kisses so i can go to sleep!

Report Cards!!!

2009-05-29T16:32:00.002-04:00

I can't believe i forgot to write about this . . . . SO PROUD!!!

On the last day of school, Griffin and Molly brought home two BEAUTIFUL report cards! Griffin earned ALL A's!! Molly earned all E's and S's!! And, now, if you've stayed in my home for any period of time, you'll be a pleased as pudding too - - - - they BOTH received E's in conduct ALL YEAR!! Yes, ALL YEAR!

Honestly, i am a firm believer in good grades and doing whatever it takes to make those good grades. Thankfully, thus far, grades have come easy to my kids. I know it will get harder. BUT, more importantly than grades, is my expectation for my kids to BEHAVE! LONG AGO, when i was pregnant with Griffin, i made the mistake during prayer one day to say, "Lord, i don't care what he's like at home, please just make him behave and be polite in public!" Well, it is a mistake in a lot of ways, as i protected everyone else but myself from harm haha! But, it has paid off. My kids aren't the MOST polite, but they are polite and they most often behave. Not sure if they are fearful of the principal's office (because every so often i mention how horrible coming home would be if they ever went there for behavior) or if they just are GOOD!! Regardless, i'm grateful to have 2 well behaved kids. Time will tell if Camden is even able to make S's in conduct. . . he's quite the ham already!

But for summer kick-off, we were PLEASED AS PIE to see all those A's and E's on our report cards this 9 weeks! Way to go Griffin and Molly! You make being a mom so easy!