Meet at the Pole...

I took my 2 year old preschool class to the pole last week for "Meet at the Pole". It was such a precious sight I couldn't resit sharing it! I wanted to exercise our freedom as Americans to pray anywhere anytime! I strongly believe that bringing prayer back into public schools would change the world greatly and have such a positive impact on so many families! As we circled the poll and prayed a sense of peace and contentment surrounded us. It was a special moment! Some day I hope these little angels will look back and see this image and be reminded how powerful prayer is! God Bless!

Keep on Keepin on.....

This was a busy busy month for our family. (As I know it was for everyone!) Everyone keeps sharing with me that it only gets busier. WOW! (Actually when I look at the calendar for next month it doesn't seem to slow down to much.) So far this month we have attended 9 birthday parties, a baby shower and co hosted a baby shower, Paxson's first hair cut, Parker's monthly haircut, a scentsy party, a football game (gathered for many more watch parties), Parker's 4 year old check up, our 9th wedding anniversary, my brother's 18th birthday, and school started! Here are a few images to recap our month! Let's see if you can keep up. (LOL :) )

Paxson and Mary Clare. They are in the same class at school. Mary Clare was precious on the trampoline. She laughed hysterically. Mary Clare's older sister Kate is Parker's age. Parker and Kate have known one another since they were a year old. So we are ALL great friends. I love being close with the families of Parker's and Paxson's friends. Now, Kate and Mary Clare's mommy is amazing. She always knows what is going on and is always on the go! One hoppin momma!

Paxson has no fear............Truely......................Okay well maybe a little fear when he jumps off the bed ....................... (I know jumps of the bed?????)



































Paxson getting his first hair cut. He doesn't mind the "pink jeep". Sometimes we have to wait a bit if the blue jeep is occupied but it doesn't seem to bother Paxson. Notice the independence in his shoe selection. ..................And NO I am NOT saying goodbye to those precious curls yet!!!!!!!


















Notice how well he followed instructions :)


























A group picture. The shower I co-hosted was for our very dear friends Sarah. Her husband received orders and they moved to California this summer. She is pregnant with their first child. So while she was home for a visit with her family in Fort Worth we threw a baby shower for her. We miss her so much!


















(Like the diaper cake...it was my first, I can't believe I forgot to take a close up...)


















I had to include a picture from every one's favorite baby shower game....The Dirty Diaper Game
(Bonnie is in the turquoise blue sweater and Courtney is in the purple shirt (she is also pregnant) Paxson's teachers this year.)




















Jacob's mommy and Sarah discussing the large piece of cake Sarah cut.






















And I think we are just about finished with this month! :)

Missing Pictures...

Dandy and the boys!

Look at their hair......

Look out he's getting ready for the real stuff...

An evening outside without rain

Mr. Cool

Slipping and sliding in the rain.

Making Sunday breakfast. As you can see Paxson's egg didn't quite make it into the bowl.

Snake Eyes

Paxson is explaining to me that he wants to continue watching the Backyardagins.....He is trying hard to ensure that I understand.

Proud Mama...

Okay, so I have a few little stories to share.....just bare with me........I am a Proud Parent just like all of you! We are all so lucky!!!


Shoes:
Paxson has hit a shoe phase. He insists on having socks and shoes on at all times. So he is generally nakey running around the house with socks and shoes on. I am sure you can picture it. He is very expressive about which shoes he wants to wear. His tastes change from day to day. The last few days he has been selecting one Deigo croc and one Mickey Mouse croc. One of his teachers came up to me earlier this morning and asked if I realized that he had been wearing two different shoes. She knows me all to well!!!!! She wasn't going to call me out with it just happening one time, but two days in row.......... I explained and of course she laughed and understood completely.


Temptations:
Well no Mama likes to hear about her child being hit, but it's a fact of life and what matters is.. are they okay, will they survive, and how did they respond. The other day at the small park at school a child hit Paxson on the head with a plastic shovel. Immediate reaction...go over and check on him. One of his teachers checked on him and talked with the children and explained that hitting hurts..... you know the rest. Then about ten minutes later Paxson picked up shovel and headed straight for that same child that hit him. He walked over to the child looked at him raised the shovel, looked around, looked back at the shovel and ..................................................... walked away without hitting the child. He wanted to, he thought about it, he resisted! Can you believe a little 19 month dare devil showed such self restraint. Pretty cool! Now, I'm not saying that I don't want him to "take care of himself". I'm also not saying that he doesn't hit, I am simply sharing the "sweetness" of this particular incident. Most of you know my boys very well and know they are not completely innocent! :)
....... Okay so how many of you thought I was going to say he hit the child back?


Simple and Precious:
The other day Daddy and the boys went to visit Meme and Dandy while I went shopping. (I will share some of my great finds later in the post.) Well, when they got home Casey handed me a gallon size baggy of diapers. I looked at him and smiled. He told me that Parker packed a to go bag for Paxson. Casey said that Parker told him that they needed to take a to go bag for Paxson. Casey didn't understand really so he just told Parker "ok pack one". I later asked Parker about the to go bag and complemented him for thinking about that. (Good thing he did because Daddy sure didn't' think to take anything. :)) Parker explained that we always take a diaper and wipes when we go somewhere. He also shared that first he tried using a regular baggy (sandwich bag) but it was to small, so he tried another baggy (cheapy kind that you use a twist tie with) but it was also to small, so he got a really big baggy and used that. He said it worked "perfectly". I sat in amazement at my little man! So so aware and thoughtful!



Lunch Time Happenings:
When we get home from school Paxson is usually pretty exhausted and goes down for his nap fairly quickly. Parker has been "fixing" our lunch lately. Today we had strawberries, cantaloupe, orange slices, grapes, blueberries, yogurt, and a croissant and egg sandwich, and a stick of butter (I slide the stick of butter back into the fridge.) We went outside to eat lunch and once we sat down I realized that I left my yogurt inside. I was talking to myself and said, oh man I left my yogurt. Parker jumped up and ran inside and came back out with my yogurt. Asking if I already had a spoon before sitting back down to eat. Now you may be thinking big deal. But for a four year old little boy to be so considerate and always be so aware all on his own. It is a big deal I am continually amazed by his thoughtfulness. He is constantly thinking about making life easier on others. Now of course he is also all boy so you never know when a ball, GI Joe, transformer, or plane is going to be flying towards your head or when you are about to be "tackled down". I am not saying he is a little porcelain doll who never gets wild.......that is certainly far from the truth. But his ability to listen and help others truly touches my heart.



Weapons at Church:
Duh.....I hate to admit it but I didn't even think about it. Parker took his new Snake Eyes costume to school for Show and Tell (sword included). I asked him about Show and Tell and he explained that he couldn't show the sword...I asked why? "Because it's a weapon mom" oh yes it is! The thought didn't even cross my mind. We are so used to fighting evil at the Allen house I didn't even think about. A few of my fellow teachers had to give me a hard time.



A few savings:
Walgreens: (I know I protested Walgreens because of the mean manager but I just couldn't pass op these deals, they were at a different Walgreens, not SW pky.)

1 Therma care heat wrap
1 can Aussie hairspray
1 bottle of All free and clear detergent 42 loads
1 Venus Razor
1 box of Tylenol Several allergy
1 box Tylenol cold multi symptom
1 bottle Roots of Nature ..organic shampoo
1 bottle Roots of Nature conditioning balm...organic
4 Air Wick Fresh Ultra Automatic air fresheners
2 bags of cough drops

Total before coupons: $85.50
Total after coupons: $$10.09
Total Savings: $75.41

**Now this was a really good trip for me, it isn't always this great but I generally save more than I spend. Usually, at least $20 during any normal shopping trip.


CVS:
2 boxes of 100 Lipton tea bags
1 tube crest pro health toothpaste
1 Colgate toothbrush

Total before savings: $10.06
Total after coupons: $4.81
Total Savings: $5.25 (I still saved more than I spent)


Target:
2 Air Wick Oil Air Fresher plug ins
2 Glade Soy Candles
1 box (12 count) pop tarts
1 can Rosaritas refried beans
2 BIC SOLEIL Razors (these are great if you haven't tried them)
Total before coupons:$37.78
Total after coupons:$ 8.79
Total Savings: $28.99


Honestly it does feel empowering to save money like this....but it does take A LOT or organization and time. But totally worth it! I suppose I should stop sharing my finds....then some of you will discover your Christmas presents. :)

Actually I am going through withdraws because I can't print coupons since my computer issues ........and I keep finding all these great coupons I want to print! So much free stuff out there. LOL :)

Still no computer...

Again I am sorry for the lack of posts. I PROMISE that once the computer issues are resolved regular postings will occur. I am extremely grateful for the loaned computer....but things tend to move quite slowly and it gets a little frustrating. We were planning to buy a new computer last month. But after the costly ticket prices for the OSU game we have postponed that purchase. It is crazy how much the tickets were for the OSU/Georgia game. You couldn't buy single tickets. You had to be a season ticket holder or have a student ticket and pay the upgrade fee (if you're not a current student). Which with season tickets prices being around $1400 per ticket (and yes we have to pay for Parker's ticket also...crazy huh) we opted to buy student tickets for the games we can attend and simply pay the upgrade fees. Well, the upgrade fee is usually $45-$65 but for that game it was $100 per ticket. Love my school but man that's a lot especially during these "times". Ticket prices ..absolutely crazy........the look on Parker's face when they scored a touchdown, when Pistol Pete came out, or during the the fly over, shaking of the keys..... Absolutely priceless!!!

24 to 10 Yeah Baby........Go Pokes

A sea of ORANGE!!!

Walking to the game from Aunt Kasi's house.

What a great way to start the season. We packed our bags, loaded the Suburban, buckled in the boys, turned on a movie and headed to Oklahoma for the first football game of the season. Friday evening the boys stayed at Gigi's and Casey and I visited with my sister and her roommate and many other old friends. We reminisced about "college days" (it wold have been just like the old days if Stoney, Cody, or Jason had been playing). Everyone had a story to tell. We truly enjoyed seeing old friends and catching up. It is funny how our conversations now tend to be slightly different. Now we discuss children, food, economy, politics, movies, work, etc. Where as 9 years ago ...well we didn't really do that much talking, mostly studying, singing and celebrating. I was fortunate enough to have the pleasure of running into a very dear friend that I haven't seen in 9 years. Great times for all!

Then on Saturday we picked up Parker (Paxson stayed and played with Gigi and Gammer) and headed to T.Boone Pickens Stadium. Parker really got into tailgating. He loved walking around visiting with people, throwing the football around with other kids, eating yummy hot dogs, and playing jokes on daddy's friends. (Lot's of Buck Snorts). We enjoyed visiting with many dear friends and introducing our oldest Pride and Joy. He is always very entertaining and keeps everyone laughing. We also enjoyed seeing the Heisman Trophy and getting a picture. Sports Illustrated had a special tent set up for viewing and taking photographs. Of Course we relished in some good old football food as well. I have to say a BIG highlight for Parker was the fly over before the game. What a great game. We didn't quite make it all the way through the entire game. It was so hot, so crowded, and Parker was very very tired. Afternoon games are hard, especially after getting to spend the night with Gigi. We all had a wonderful time and enjoyed cheering on our Cowboys.

A worn out little guy waiting in line for a corn dog. :)

Parker's Actual Birthday

It is so hard to believe that four years has pasted since our Amazing Parker Gene came into this Earthly World... August 30, 2005.. I remember every little detail of that day. We had been in Oklahoma the day before for my baby shower. I didn't feel 100% that morning, but when do you feel 100% when you are pregnant. We packed the Tahoe and headed to Perkins early Sunday morning. I told mom that I wasn't feeling great and she said she could certainly tell. She also said she was going to get her classroom ready for a sub after the shower. She said she just and a feeling. Well, I slept on the way home which is very unusual for me. Woke up Monday morning, still not great, but certainly not bad enough to stay home. Had a little back pain, just didn't feel great. But it was 5 weeks before my due date. However, premature births are very common in my family. As the day progressed I felt worse. My fellow teachers kept telling me to call my doctor, but I knew what she would say. So I didn't. Then after school I laid on the couch and rested. Which is a completely normal desire after teaching 22 little 4 & 5 year olds all day while being 35 weeks pregnant. Casey came home asked why I was laying down, I shared that I didn't feel well. He "pampered" me and tried to get me to eat. Then he went outside and mowed. When he came back in I was still lying down. He asked if I had called the doctor. I replied no, because I knew what the doctor would say. As the evening progressed, we ate a lite dinner and laid in bed watch tv and he could tell I was getting pretty uncomfortable. I just kept saying I DO NOT want to walk around the hospital or be sent home. They thoroughly explain the consequences of going to the hospital early in all the prenatal/child birth classes. I was NOT going in early. Then I started timing my contractions. After they got to be about 10 minuets apart I told Casey. He very anxiously told me to call the doctor, again I didn't. Then he told me to call my mom. I explained that I already had and he asked what she said. I told him that she said to call the doctor. In a very demanding voice he said call your doctor or I will! I called and she said to go ahead and go to the hospital and get checked out. Well, long story short (weep weep) Precious Parker Gene was born 3 1/2 hours later. COMPLETELY AMAZING!!!! And he is now turning 4! Thank you dear Lord for this astounding miracle! I promise to always cherish him!




We started the day with family breakfast. Parker and I made pancakes for everyone. Then we met Dandy and Meme at Chucky Cheese to continue the celebration of our Parker Gene Allen!
After a few hours of games and delicious (hehe) pizza we returned to the house for cake and presents. The cake was much simpler this time. He transformed into Optimist Prime before making a wish and blowing out his candles. Priceless! Oh and yes that is a pocket knife. Daddy got him a pocket knife. hmmmmmmm ........ We spent the rest of the afternoon swimming and reflecting on our remarkable Creation. How could anyone possibly say God doesn't exist? Pure craziness!!! Thank you dear Father!