Visit from Grannie and Pops

On Saturday Grannie and Pops came to visit us for the day. They brought Connor some more Easter goodies and 2 Easter baskets from Uncle Benny and Aunt Kim! My camera died again for the second time when I was trying to take pictures of Easter baskets. I didnt get a picture of the other one, but they both had Connor's name embroidered on them. He got lots of candy, some books, a basketball goal and ball, and a miniature golf set. Grannie and Pops got him a duck that quacks as well as some new clothes for those warm days ahead. Oh, AND some more money for his Sammy Savers account. Connor already has over $400 in the bank and he isnt even 2 yet. He is much richer than his Mommy and Daddy, that is for sure. Thanks to all for your sweet gifts, Connor loved them all!

B-A-L-L

Thank you to Aunt Kim for Connors basketball goal and ball! It is perfect for him. He was struggling to throw it in his big boy goal. This one we suctioned to our TV stand and it is just perfect for those slam dunks!

Black...what a great color!

I like black because it is a slimming color and can hide all of those bulges that we like to cover up. I like black because it is a classic color to wear and for touches in the home. Some of the most prestigious interior designers say you should have a touch of black in every room. Black is a great color for everyone no matter what color your hair and skin is.

I am so glad to say that I have now earned the right to wear a black belt when I train for Taekwondo because I PASSED! Yahoo! It was a huge sigh of relief when I left the testing on Saturday to know that after 3 years and 6 months I am there! The best of the best in this martial art will tell you that when you earn your black belt, that it is only just the beginning. I think they are right, there is still so much to learn and improve upon. I am so excited to keep up my training until I have to take another hiatus again (dont worry not any time soon), but I know that this is something that I will continue for many years to come because I love it! I cant wait until Connor is old enough to go so that I can introduce him to this. It is such great discipline for the kids, and they really feel a sense of accomplishment. I had to witness some very exciting and sad things during the juniors testing. During board breaks there were a few that couldnt break their boards and they would start crying. Some of them were as young as 6 years old. It broke my heart but the instructor told me that they were a lot tougher than you might think. I know this is probably true and I also believe in children feeling disappointment and sadness because without that they would not get to feel the great joy it is to succeed. For the ones who passed, it was written all over their faces and it was awesome to see them so excited. There were also a few adults in my rank who didnt make it and that was sad also, but they will get another chance eventually. I was just so glad that I made it over the hurdle because it would have been a long time before I would have the opportunity to test. The part that I was most concerned about (my form) was actually the one thing that I did perfectly. I sparred my two rounds and thought, Ok now all I have to do now is break boards and it is over. Then they had an odd number for testing and I was called back out to spar AGAIN! I was pretty worn out by the time that was over. My board breaks were a little scary too. I did a sliding side kick and a elbow smash. My side kick broke on my first attempt, but my elbow smash technique wasnt as successful. I dont like to say this since I am a woman myself, but most people know that the best board holders are men. My first board was held my the men, but the second was being held by two older ladies in my class. The boards were the re breakable kind (which in my opinion is harder than actual wood) AND they were brand new, which is even tougher. My second attempt also fell short of breaking. I couldnt understand what the problem was, I have never had to try 3 times to break. I switched board holders (hopefully the ladies didnt get offended) and it broke like a champ! Whew! It was pretty close. You only get 3 attempts to break.

Brad and Connor went with me to watch, but I am pretty sure that Brad missed everything that I did because every time I would walk out to the floor, Connor would spot me and start to walk out there. He is such a Momma's boy! Brad spent most of the time walking the halls with Connor outside the gymnasium of the school where testing was held. Connor was a champ though because testing lasted 2 1/2 hours.

Below is not a picture of myself, I actually dont have my belt yet. I will get it sometime when I return to class. I wont be able to make it to the awards ceremony because Brad will be out of town. Also, I am a probationary 1st degree black belt, so my belt will have a white stripe down the middle until I pass my decided 1st degree test. Then I will get my embroidered belt! 4 more months to go...

Basketball, Taekwondo, and a tired boy!

I am sitting here watching the Tennessee vs. Louisville game and it isnt pretty so far. I am sitting alone on the couch because guess where Brad is? Charlotte..at the game. I sure hope that things get better because he drove all day to get there and will drive all night after the game to come back! I told him I thought he was nuts. This just shows you how nuts he is over Tennessee basketball. He even asked me to tape the game. Umm, I dont really understand but I didnt ask questions. If things dont get better, I am not sure he will want to watch this again though.

Tonight was a crazy one! I have been busting it every chance that I can to get my classes in to be able to test this weekend. Last night got me to my minimum requirement to be able to test for my black belt. Needless to say since Brad wasnt here, I didnt have any other option than to take Connor along. I didnt arrange for a sitter and I have been wanting to try this for a while to see how Connor would do. I knew things didnt look good when I came home from Ms. Betty's and Connor was already acting tired. I think he is fighting something off right now or going through a growth spurt because he has been sleeping A LOT the past few days. I thought I would try and take the Pack n Play, but knew it was a huge waste of time and energy because Connor hates being pinned in anywhere. When we got there I sat him down in the floor with two other kids, whose parents I know that take class. Riley who is 9 was going to watch him for me. He started playing and I got out of there without him noticing, but it didnt take long before he was looking all over for me. He cried and cried and I thought, "Oh brother, what do I do now?" Thanks a million to Kendra Rennel who picked him up and held him the entire time! I felt so bad because she was there to take class but she insisted that she knew her form and was fine for testing. She knew I needed the class and it was so sweet of her! Connor cried for the first 5 minutes of class which was a little embarrassing because it is very quiet during class times. I thought about leaving to attend to him but I knew if I did, it would only make it worse when I left again. Sure enough he stopped and the next thing I know he was asleep on her shoulder! It was so sweet! The funny thing is that Robert (Kendra's husband who also takes class with me) told me that she has been wanting another baby! Robert said, "Thanks a lot, Tara!" Ha! Oops sorry! I was watching Kendra and she was stroking Connors hair as she was rocking him making the sweetest faces at Robert! I had to laugh!

Please pray for me that I can pull through the testing on Saturday. It is early in the morning which is another challenge because of my lack of flexibility at that time. The only thing that I am nervous about is my form. I am a senior red belt and am supposed to have it perfected by now, but because I left for a 19 month hiatus after I earned the rank I had to learn it all over again. I will have to break boards, and spar, along with my form. The boards are also a little tricky because if you dont set them right, they wont break. Like I said, please pray that I pass! I would have waited to test but the next one is the day of Bretts wedding. Needless to say that option was out. If I pass I will have a minimum of 4 months before I can test again for my decided 1st degree. Well see what happens! Stay tuned...

Easter Day

Oooohh, a football!
Yummy! Gummy fruit treats, my favorite!

I'm ready to help with Mommy's flowers now!Easter basket #2!Not another picture... Hanging with the guys to watch Smokey on TV.
My first PEEP, Daddys favorite! My Easter Bunny cake, it is really a carrot cake but I added coconut to make fur. It actually tasted really good with the carrot cake, if I do say so myself. Glad I took this picture early because Dad ripped the eyeballs right off the poor creature! Black licorice jelly beans are his favorite, as well as mine!

What a great day it was! Connor really got into it this year, I couldnt believe it. I sat the Easter basket down and before I could get my camera out, he had already torn into half of it! He loved everything that the Easter Bunny brought him this year: an Elmo Springtime Fun DVD, Elmo musical toy, an egg with spinning lights, Noahs Arc book, bath toys, baseball bat and ball, football, garden tools, baby chick that chirps, Backyardigans bubbles, and some eggs with treats inside! He found the treats pretty quickly, I was quite surprised.

We spent the day in Gallatin at Aunt Linda and Uncle Ron's house. My grandmother has been in town for a week now and it was great to get to spend a holiday with her, since that doesnt happen very often. She will go back to NY this Friday and we will be sad to see her and Ed leave, but we will see them again in just 2 short months for Bretts wedding! I cant believe it but I dont have one single picture of her and Connor together!! I havent been very good about taking pictures on her visit, but I promise to do better next time.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and spent time reflecting on why we really celebrate this wonderful day!

Spring has sprung!

Spring is here! Yahoo!!! Unfortunately with it came some chilly weather. I hope that it will get warmer soon. These pictures were taken last week at Nonna and Grandy's house. UT pulled through for us again! GO VOLS! Connor was so excited for his pal Smokey, that he wanted to go outside and run off some of that energy!

15 months already!

Tonight is a quiet night at our house, Brad is flying to Indiana as we speak and Connor is upstairs asleep. Even though it is kind of lonely, it is nice to have the quiet for a little while. I remember my Mom saying over and over growing up, at the end of the night that she hadnt sat down all day. Well, I have been thinking this more and more these days. It seems that there is always something to be done and I never have a chance to just sit down and enjoy doing something that I well...enjoy. Dont get me wrong, I very much enjoy being with Connor, but I am talking about something that I do for me. When you become a Mom it seems like most of what you spend your day doing is for others, mostly your children and husband. That is what it means to mother. However, it is nice to sometimes step out of that role just for a moment and have some time to yourself. I worked today and spent most of the night packing some things so that I can go to my parents house tomorrow and spend the night after work. Connor's great Grandma (Gigi) is visiting from NY and we are going to spend the day with her on Friday and have a dinner that night at my brothers house. I have a busy day planned at work tomorrow and baked some cookies and brownies to take, plus washed dishes and folded clothes... Aaagghh, did I mention it is good to sit down. Ha!

Ok, this is really what I wanted to update you all on- Connor! He went for his 15 month checkup yesterday. It went very well and Connor is right on target with all of the developmental things for his age. I wont lie, I was very nervous about this visit. Mostly because of the vaccinations that he was supposed to receive this time. I have done a lot of research on the MMR and was a little hesitant about letting Connor get it. I am totally for vaccinations and think they are very important, but with all of the talk about the link between the MMR vaccine and autism I thought why take the risk. Then a few weeks before the appointment there was a new study that came out and after talking to a couple of people in the medical profession it put my mind at ease. Connor did get all of his shots but it was awful to watch, that is for sure. I could have done without the warnings from the doctor and others that the shots were more painful than most. I would rather not have known. Connor did great though, he was happy for the rest of the day (after the shots!). He has decided that he does not like the doctor now. He screamed when she tried to check his ears and by the end of the appointment I had to hold him and he wouldnt even look at her! It was so funny! He still has a yucky nose and she confirmed that he did have a sinus infection. He is on medicine now to get rid of it, hopefully soon! His weight is still a little lower than what it should be, but it is hard to gain weight when you cant eat any bread, are allergic to most things, and are always on the move! He is 21 lbs 8 oz (15th percentile), and 31 1/4 " tall (50th percentile), and 49 1/4 cm for head (95th percentile!!!) What a brain he has!

I have included some pictures of Connors haircut this weekend. I cant believe that Connor is only 15 months old and this is his 3rd haircut already! Give him a sucker and he tolerates is well. I know I am a little biased, but isnt he just the cutest with his little blue mouth?!

I know I say this all the time, but Connor is at the most fun stage so far! He is talking all the time, learning so much, and is getting quite the personality! He is going to be a little ham for sure! He loves to dance, especially while watching American Idol and Dancing with the Stars. He is still a good sleeper and napper and I am so thankful! He LOVES his Daddy and misses him when he goes away. Kisses are a favorite of his, as well as chasing Cooper and playing and saying "ball". I know that things are only going to get more fun with every month that goes by but I am trying to enjoy him while he is still little, yet getting more independent by the day!

Oh my, its the Easter bunny!

Oh No, my egg broke!There he goes, hopping up the stairs...



Ok, so tonight we took a very short trip to the mall. We decided that since we didnt have Connor's Easter pictures made this year we would get him dressed to visit the Easter bunny at the mall. I didnt know if he would cooperate or not because he is scared of everything these days. Lets just say that he didnt like the bunny too much and I hated the picture that I got, but it was the best one to choose from. I didnt notice it on the screen when I veiwed and approved it to be printed, but when it was printed out Connors eyes looked funny. He looked like he was drunk or something. I decided to take some of my own pictures when I got home. Although they weren't professionally done for sure, I thought they turned out pretty cute! I cant believe he kept his ears on the whole time!

What a beautiful week!

We have had a wonderful week of beautiful weather! I am so excited about the official arrival of Spring! It has been great to just let Connor wander around the yard and play. He has definitely been getting cabin fever lately. He will cry when it is time to come inside because he loves it so much. Here are some pictures of Connor from this week. He LOVES to try to play basketball! He found this basketball in the neighbors yard and decided that he needed to have it. I decided that it was time to get ours out and Brad lowered the goal for him to make a few baskets. He definitely understands the concept. As you can see Connor also loves to play in the rocks. The good thing is that he doesnt try to eat them any more. We are looking forward to many more warm sunny days ahead!

Getting ready for easter

I wonder if I could throw this in there?!

I have now decided that I need to do a little organizing this spring, by looking at this picture of my hall closet!

Here are a few pictures of us getting out the Easter decorations. Connor found his bunny basket from last year, pulled it out and walked around banging the eggs together for at least an hour. I am sure you have noticed that I dont get many good frontal pictures of Connor anymore. Since he is on the move, I rarely have time to snap any before he is walking somewhere else. I must say that he is wearing me out these days! I love seeing him explore, but I have to be on my toes. I feel like I never get a chance to just sit down without being "on edge". Ha! I know many of you are thinking to yourself that it is just beginning. He isnt even running yet. I cant imagine!



Connor is also learning so many new things these days. He can now give a high five. Last night he started oinking like a pig, when I was reading him his story. (It features a pig) I started making the noise in his ear and he started copying me. He thought it was so funny! He also heard Cooper out in the hall the other morning before leaving to go to Ms.Betty's. He didnt see him, but only heard his collar jingle. He looked at me and said "Pooopper". His version of Cooper! It was so cute! He also loves to gives kisses now. But be ready because it is "open mouth". Ha! We are definitely loving this time with him.

Snow day!

What is this stuff?
I think he looks like Randy from The Christmas Story movie, in this picture!

This is the only picture I could get of the two of them together. Cooper was too busy running around playing to sit still for a picture.

Well, the snow is almost all gone now, Connor is napping and it is quiet! Aaaagghhh... I wish I could say that we have enjoyed the snow by laying around but we have actually been quite busy. We finished painting the halls and stairway yesterday and we have now started on the downstairs bathroom. We started with the hardest part of the house to paint and decided we would paint something easy now. We should finish it tomorrow and I will feel a great sense of accomplishment! Yaaahhh! We still have a long, long way to go but it is progress nonetheless.

Back to the snow! It started coming down last night, and with the way they were talking on the news we thought we had better head out to get some more paint and grab some grub for fear of being snowed in for a week! As we were sitting down to eat, we looked out the windows and it was so beautiful! It was coming down so hard that I am not sure you could have seen if you were driving in it. Brad referred to it as a "white out". I had never heard this term before, but he said that is what they used to call it in Rockwood when it snowed and you couldnt see anything in front of you. Since it is a very rural area, there arent many street lights so I guess I could understand this. I proceeded to tell him that he hadnt seen a true "white out" until he had driven in a blizzard somewhere in Ohio headed to Niagara Falls. He just rolls his eyes as he has heard this story more than a dozen times from my family! Short explanation...when I was young we went to visit my Mom's side of the family in NY for Christmas and got stuck in a real blizzard. You know it is bad when the tractor trailers are pulled off of the road. My Dad kept on trucking it to the nearest exit where we spent the night in a McDonald's. I think Brett and I thought it was an adventure! Mom and Dad assure us that it wasnt and we seriously came very close to driving off of the road because Dad couldnt see anything. I am not sure this was very smart, but we survived! Ok, sorry that wasnt very short. (Brad I am sure you are rolling your eyes once again. Ha!) Anyway, after dinner we were planning on going to Home Depot but due to another bad experience at our Cracker Barrell we didnt make it. However we did get a free meal! I guess it was worth it. As we drove home we got to see why Southerners dont like to get out in the snow if they can possibly help it. We just cant seem to figure out how to drive in the stuff! We made it just fine in my 4wd, but there were some trucks and cars that were really struggling. Now seriously if you dont have the adequate transportation why would get out? Oh well, we have to live up to our reputation I guess. We watched it fall more and more when we got home and went to bed dreaming of a white yard to play in by morning. Sure enough when we awoke it was so pretty! Now most of you know I am not a big fan of snow, but I have to say it is so enjoyable to hear all of the kids having such a good time in it. We were excited to take Connor out for his first real snow, however I think he takes after me. He didnt seem to enjoy it much. The only sort of laugh or smile we could get out of him was when Brad and I were throwing snowballs at each other and he thought that was hilarious. We played with Cooper in the backyard, man does he ever LOVE the snow! We had a great time with him, Connor just say there and watched being a party pooper. Ha! By the way- check out the vintage snow suit! It was actually Brads when he was a wee little lad. It was way too big for Connor but we managed to roll up the legs and arms and it worked perfectly! I think it is too sweet. Thanks Grannie, I am sure you didnt think we would be using it so soon!

I am also glad to say that I am feeling much better now. I am still a little congested but nothing major. Connor still has a runny nose and is coughing a little. If he isnt better by this week I will probably take him to the doctor. He has had this for over 3 weeks now. Well that is a summary of our weekend so far. Tomorrow is supposed to be much warmer and I am very excited about that. It is supposed to be in the 60's again this week! Yahoo! Bye for now!

Feeling under the weather

Well, I guess I can say I am pretty proud that I have made it this far without getting sick all winter. Brad and Connor have come down with colds, but I always manage to stay well. I like to think it is that Mama immunity. No longer... Connor and I are both sneezing and congested in our chests and head. Every time Connor sneezes I have to be right there with a tissue FAST! It is amazing how much snot he can blow out! (Sorry it is a little graphic, but for a Mom I am used to much worse) I guess I can be thankful that I didnt come down with the yucky flu this year since it was so bad. The bummer is that I had so much planned for today. My house is a WRECK (seriously it hasnt been this bad in a while) not to mention dirty. The floors need to be mopped and I dread this like the plague! And I wanted to start painting a second coat on the wall while Connor napped today. AND I need to go to the grocery store! Yuck! The rain isnt making things look any more enticing, as I just want to lay here and sleep. Brad wont be home until late tonight, so that means I dont even get to relax tonight... Ok, enough complaining!! I guess I should go to the doctor this week and get on a round of antibiotics, because it will inevitably turn into a sinusitis. I dont have time for this!

More and more fun every day!

What a ham!

Connors new kicks! I love babies first walking shoes! Are they just precious? Uh, Oh- he is coming at me with a wooden spoon!

On a mission...Which sport will it be? Golf?Football?

Basketball?Slam Dunk!The key goes here!Connor's truck (just like Pops)

So, where have I been this week? It has been a busy week and not much time for blogging. Just to give you a run down, I worked all week except for Friday and I started painting that day. I worked at Mom's tea room on Tuesday and had a blast! It was very different than anything I have ever done and I enjoyed the change. I look forward to being able to help out more in the future! Sorry, I intended on taking my camera but I forgot it so there are no pics. Back to the painting- Brad and I have decided to take on the HUGE project of painting the entire house. All of the walls need to be painted, because they still have the contractor grade flat paint on them from the construction of the house. Needless to say, it doesnt hold up well with a toddler around. We decided to bite the bullet and get started before the weather gets really nice because we know we will want to be outside. Little did we know how wonderful the weather was going to be this weekend!! Mid 70's on Saturday and Sunday! Woohoo! I got really excited about an early spring and then I saw that we are supposed to get snow on Tuesday (with significant accumulation). I am so ready for spring!!! The painting is going pretty good, but slow! We are starting with the hallway first and it is pretty tricky because there are stairs involved and some very high ceilings with tricky angles. We had better like the color because it wont be getting painted again any time soon! We did take some time out for some playtime outside with Connor since the weather was so beautiful. I am going to have so much fun this summer watching Connor explore the outdoors. He loves it! Well, I am pooped. Have a good week everyone!!!