Gabrielle's Kindergarten Pumpkin Patch Trip

today, Gabby's kindergarten class took a field trip to the pumpkin patch! unfortunately, i couldn't go (darn job!), but my mom was able to go instead....we've actually been to this pumpkin patch before, but it looks like they've added some new fun stuff...

the teachers hooked the kids up with these cool shirts - so they can tell who is in who's class

too cute!giant hay spider!

she's such an animal lover!

they roll inside these down a small hill - super fun!corn box - we don't need no stinkin' sand in the country! ~lol~Gabby & her BFF Kaitlyn inside the castle

class shot! :0)

looks like they had a great time - sux i missed it! :0(

but thx so much ma! i'm glad that if i can't make it to things like this, i have u as a back-up.....and i know Gab was psyched u could go too! :0) oh, and it's a BIG plus that i get my picture taking obsession from u! ;0) thx for the shots!!!

the wounds are healing...

i tell u what - i've never been so beat up in my entire life!

and if we ever move "just next door" again, i won't look at it like "oh, it's just next door...we don't really need any help...we can just do a little here & there...we can manage on our own"

NOT!

since Curtis & i moved most everything on our own (he did enlist a friend to help with the super heavy stuff like our deep freezer & his weights, etc.), i suffered quite a few injuries....my legs haven't been so bruised, since i was a cheerleader in high school - besides injuries from the stunts themselves, my little brother would kick my shins when he got mad at me - he knew i HATED having bruised legs while cheering! ~lol~ yeah cj, i can laugh at this now!

(please excuse my goosebumps - it's COLD in here today! ~lol~)

but besides the bruises, i also took a huge chunk outta my right thigh during the move (i'll spare u from that pic).....there's steps leading up to our mud porch...the screen door was propped open so that we could move stuff in there....and when i stepped up on the stairs once, my thigh caught the bottom corner of that screen door & tore a huge hole....the weirdest part was that it barely hurt....it was almost numb - i put iodine all in the wound & could barely feel it!

my back was also super sore - but it's getting better.....and i've been recuperating from a stiff neck (which of course triggers my headaches/migraines)

thank goodness i have an awesome hubby, that for whatever weirdo reason, actually enjoys giving his wife full body massages - i know, u hate me, don't ya? ~lol~ between that & all the BC powders i've been popping, i think i'll survive! ;0)

Jiu-Jitsu progress...

i took some video of jaden at his jiu-jitsu training last night....u can definitely see the progress he's made since i posted this video back in august!

i don't normally take jaden to his training, but curtis had to work late last evening....so i bussed the kiddos straight from corinn's tap class, to jaden's jiu-jitsu (and threw dinner in the car & homework on the sidewalk in there too! ~lol~)

it's neat to see him doing it with another student now....this little girl started just a week or so after jaden & celebrated her 8th birthday yesterday....so she's about 3 months younger than jaden - i know, u'd never know it looking at them! ;0) her mom also trains with the sensei - it's nice being able to chat with her while we wait - i get to find out more about what the kiddos are actually doing

the sensei is very nice, but expects hard work out of the kids while they're training.....i love all the praise he does give them when they do well!



here they are doing it alone....it's funny at the end of this video, when the sensei starts clapping to speed them up - that gets jaden every time - he can't help but giggle! ~teehee~



(sorry for the poor quality - i was taking the video while standing in the waiting area, thru the glass.....so u see the reflection of outside & my girls playing with balloons that the guy at the photography place next door gave them)

ok, i lied...

i lied - i just realized that there were pics & videos on my camera! they're from last week - a few from when mom & i went to the school to have lunch with the girls, and a few videos of Jaden amidst our move...

Corinn & Gabby have lunch at school at about the same time - and since mom & i work together, it works out well for us to ride to the school together & split up to have lunch with the girls....this time, Nana went with Gab, and i went with Corinn

here's Nana & Gabby headed to lunch - with hands behind their backs & bubbles in their mouths (teacher's trick to get them to walk quietly & keep their hands to themselves).....wait Nana, where's ur bubble? ~teehee~



Corinn's class was working on their letter for the week (f) when i arrived....i discovered that Mrs. Hinkle preK class has a cool new toy.....it's a touch board on the wall - there's a computer program that projects the picture onto the board & the kids can come up and touch the screen - it's interactive! too cool!

then they sang a song together - look at my girl really getting into it!

after lunch, it was share time - and it just so happened that it was Corinn's share day (they only do a few kids each day)....she had brought in a book to share & got to "read" it to the class ;0)

then one day, in the middle of our move....Jaden was keeping occupied with his LeapPad....i caught these videos to demonstrate his fascination with different sounds & music....he will repeat things over & over - committing them to memory.....sometimes i'm amazed at how well he retains certain sounds & tunes.....just last evening, he asked our neighbor if he could hear the "jungle music" on his cell phone - chris said "wow, i haven't had the phone with that ringer for months!" then jaden started singing it for him! :0) a lot of times, this repetitive play drives me crazy! but i'm getting better at tuning it out, or asking jaden to take it somewhere where we can't hear it as well.....he also does this with movies - he'll pause a certain part & replay it over & over, sometimes in slow motion, so that he can learn the words/sounds/music/facial expressions......he'll detect high/faint sounds in certain songs that we don't normally notice - these will usually be his fav songs.....and he loves anything with a good beat! i have a feeling that he'd do well at playing an instrument if he would have the patience for it.....i might have to look into this.....both Curtis & i are music freaks, so it doesn't surprise me that Jaden has a love for it too :0)

Dawn's diagnosis

my aunt Dawn got the results back from her spinal tap....and she has MS

she has to go to Duke University now to find out what type/degree & to start a plan of action for her treatment

she's looking on the bright side of things - especially because at her neurologist appointment, there was a 25 year old lady with a 5 year old child, in the waiting room, in a wheelchair because she was numb from the waist down.....Dawn has experienced minimal symptoms so far

thank u all for ur prayers - please keep em coming! Dawn is married with one daughter that just turned 18 - beautiful Sarah.....they're the sweetest little family & Dawn is the most caring, sweet, funny lady ever - she pinches Curtis' butt every time we see her! ;0) i think her upbeat, bubbly personality will definitely help her fight this disabling disease.....she's a fighter!

love ya Dawn!!! ♥

i HAD to call the cops...

i forgot to mention one interesting event that happened yesterday in my weekend recap...

like i said, the kiddos were with my aunt yesterday & curtis & i were working at the old place....we were outside in the backyard, cleaning out Socks' tank & the guy that lives downstairs & one of curtis' friends was there with us.....we heard the new neighbors fighting (they just moved in a couple weeks ago - on the other side of our old place)....we had heard the same thing friday night - they were standing behind their place, screaming & cussing at each other & i remember thinking that i was glad my kiddos were inside & not witnessing the drama

well, yesterday they were upstairs, inside their building - but loud enough that we could hear them very well (or maybe they had a window cracked somewhere - not sure).....at first, it was just cussing & arguing again....and i heard her screaming things like "why can't u just love me?!".....but then, she started screaming violently & it really sounded like she was getting slammed around.....curtis immediately headed for their door - fists clenched....he despises men who mistreat women!

it's another 100+ year old building & it used to be a store/antique car shop.....we couldn't figure out what door they use - there's the main store front, a side fire escape & a back door that's dead bolted.....i got nervous - not knowing if the guy inside had a gun....and not really wanting curtis to get involved.....but of course, i was scared the girl was in trouble - plus i know they have 2 small kiddos & i didn't know if they were there or not!!!

so i grab my cell & dial 911 (my first time calling ever)......i explain to the lady what's going on & how to get there.....she asks for a million details - names, race, hair, age, kids' ages, etc.....and i give her what i can

curtis is screaming up at the windows - telling the dude to come outside if he wants to take his aggression out on someone - his hands are shaking & he's breathing hard.....he's doing whatever he can to get the guy's attention & to get him to lay off the girl (we can't actually see anyone, we could only hear them)

i think at this point, they saw/heard us getting involved & chilled.....cause it got quiet.....what felt like an hour later, the cops show up & we pointed them in the right direction......the 1st cop pounded on all the doors & couldn't get in - no one is answering & he too can't figure out which door is the entrance.....then a 2nd cop shows up & they both somehow get inside.....then later a 3rd cop comes

we go about our biz, figuring that the cops will now take care of whatever needs to be done.....then a little while later, we see the cops escorting HER out in cuffs?! what?!

sure enough, the kiddos were there - the little girl walks out behind them & says "bye mommy" - makes me tear up....i'm still not sure what went down - but i'm glad that one of them was taken away, now that i know the kids were there

i swear it sounded like the girl was the one getting hurt tho - and it still baffles me.....do u think i was just hearing him defend himself against her? do u think she's taking the rap to protect him? maybe she already had a warrant out for her arrest? i have no idea.....i pray that this couple is able to work things out (together & within themselves) & that they do what's best for those kiddos - whether it's staying together or not.....i hate violence between couples, but especially when there's kids around that have to witness it!

weekend recap...

whew - did we just have a weekend?! cause it sure didn't feel like it!!!

saturday, i was up at 4:30am for our yard sale (after staying up until 1:30am to finish sorting through all the clothes in our house - getting rid of anything that couldn't be worn again).....i think we got up a tad too early, forgetting that the sun comes up later now.....the sky was full of stars as mom & i unloaded her full storage sheds (where we've been piling all our junk for the sale)......the grass was soaking wet & by the time we were all the way set up, my shoes were squishing out water - HATE that feeling! luckily, by the time they were really starting to bother me & my toes were pickling, it was warm enough to ditch em & go barefoot - my preference anyway!

my mom had to bounce around 9am until around 1pm to go gather eggs on the farm....but my sis came by with her kids to keep me company....curtis brought our kiddos by for a sec too - but just as i suspected, they started questioning all the toys that were for sale that they didn't know were going to get sold! i explained to them (again) that since they don't play with them, there are other kids that would like to.....and i gave in a little & let them each pick out 1 thing they wanted to keep.....and luckily they all stayed small - jaden chose a little toy shark, gabby chose a set of handcuffs & corinn chose a purse (like she doesn't already have enough!)

it was a GORGEOUS day! sunny, but not hot....not a cloud in the sky! in fact, i even got a sunburn cause i didn't realize how much sun i was getting - it was that nice & cool!

we finished up around 2:30pm.....my mom made around $75 & i made $179!!! (plus i have $50 more coming for corinn's crib that i saved back for an interested friend)......got rid of the treadmill, the kids' tables, and TONS of toys & kids clothes! i think for my very first yard sale ever, i did pretty darn well! the key was keeping prices low.....i didn't worry about getting the most money i could out of an item, i just wanted to get rid of it all! it was a LOT of work, but definitely worth it!

we still donated 6 big bags of clothes, my sister's old crib & a lot of housewares to the salvation army, but they weren't accepting any toys! can u believe that?! none of the thrift shops in the area have room for toys right now - are there not needy kids out there? i just REALLY hated throwing stuff away!

immediately following the sale, i headed to get us a storage unit.....now that we're in a smaller house & don't have any attic storage space like we used to, we had to get a small storage unit to house next season's clothes, holiday decorations, a few pieces of furniture we don't have room for but don't want to get rid of, etc.

then we went out to celebrate! i went home to shower & then we took the kids to Cici's Pizza for the buffet - oh yeah, we're fancy folks! ~lol~ i was starving & the kids were happy to get out of the moving madness.....and they always love messing around in the arcade section after we eat

that's the ONLY pic i have from this weekend.....and it was snapped with my cell......i'm sorry, the camera has stayed in it's case for like a week now - i hope it's not angry with me! ;0)

after Cici's, we bused the kids back to my aunt's house in WVa.....they LOVE having sleepovers with great aunt tracy! she offered to keep them all day sunday so that curtis & i could finally finish up at the old place & maybe start getting settled in the new place.....well, we got the first one accomplished - there's still some cleaning i want to do at the old place & curtis' friend is coming to help patch a hole in our ceiling from when he was helping curt in the attic once & put his foot through the floor/ceiling! ~lol~ luckily, our old landlord has been really patient with us & made sure we knew to take our time clearing out - he doesn't have a new renter yet, so isn't in any hurry.....but OMG - i swear i had no idea how much crap we had stored in that place! so many boxes in the attic, so many clothes & toys! it really does feel good to start fresh & clear the clutter!

and i did get my kitchen somewhat set up at the new place.....the kids' rooms have been pretty much done (still have toys & stuff to organize - but i need to buys some plastic drawers & shelves first).....but the kitchen & mud porch had been the catch-all throughout this move.....i finally got the boxes cleared out of my kitchen & have started deciding what will go in what cabinet.....been arranging & rearranging my counters.....went to the grocery store & started stocking the pantry....we're getting there

but evidentilly, we're not moving fast enough.....here's a note that corinn's teacher sent me this morning...

"Corinn was talking to her friends at the table while eating snack....
'My mommy and daddy made a mess at our new house. They put stuff all over the floor.'
Very cute.....I had to share with you...Hope you have a great day!"

~lol~ what a goober! :0)

and that's it.....nothing exciting to report this monday......i'm looking forward to getting back to normal next weekend.....unfortunately, i do have quite a few cakes scheduled, but hopefully we can get in some decent family time too.....i miss my kiddos - even tho they've been around (and VERY patient & well-behaved) throughout this whole move, we haven't had time for much family quality time in a while......they did have a blast friday night at the old place tho - curtis had the genius idea of letting them ride their scooters inside while we cleaned....the old wood floors are perfect for scooter riding - and with everything cleared out, there was tons of room for them to ride around & keep busy, without getting in our way :0)

i hope u all had a fabulous weekend! happy monday!

just 1 cake!

luckily this weekend, i only had 1 cake on my schedule....and i delivered it this morning! so i get to concentrate on our yard sale tomorrow & trying to get settled into our new home this weekend!

this one was done using a picture that Nicole (a co-worker) found online....she chose this funny pic as the image for her nephew's 13th birthday cake (Clay is a big hunter!)....yellow cake, iced & decorated in butter cream icing

for sale

jennifer reminded me to let u local folks know about our yard sale tomorrow! i've mentioned it before, but wanted to officially invite u all to come buy our junk....er, i mean treasure! ~lol~

seriously, we're going to have a LOT of toys & kids' clothes....i'm selling the treadmill cause i would rather walk/run outside than in my house where the kids can bother me....i've got not 1 - but 3 toddler beds to get rid of (1 is my sister's kids') - all 3 in great shape....dishes, books & bookshelves, cake pans (duh!), 2 little table & chair sets for kids, games, rugs....the list goes on & on.....my mom just moved, so she has a ton of stuff to sell too!

so if u're local, and u're interested in stopping by - shoot me an email & i'll tell u where we'll b! :0)

i really hate hearing things like that! ;0)

i got this note from Corinn's teacher this morning.....she's taught all 3 kiddos now - Jaden for summer school one year, and now both girls for preK....

"Hi! Corinn has been very excited about the move. The highlight was being able to sleep beside Gabby instead of the bunkbeds. :) Corinn is doing so well in school. She has been helping another little boy in our class who struggles with some of the activities that we do. She is so sweet! You have raised some AWESOME kids..."

i really hate hearing things like that! ;0)

weekend recap - moving edition

the weekend began with a rainy day parade....friday eve, we rushed home to beat the heritage day parade in our town - since we live downtown, if we don't beat it home, we can't get home until the parade is over....it was really just drizzling, but very dark & gloomy....which i guess is why this parade had to have been the shortest parade EVER!

waiting patiently for the parade to begin....again, check out gabby's outfit - she's so into creating her own style these days - can't say i was too thrilled with her tights being totally ruined at school that day! but oh well, they're just tights

is that really the end mama?!

i guess the parade was a clue as to how most of the weekend would go...

saturday, my sister was to watch the kids most of the day because curtis had to work.....they were planning on jumping on her trampoline for hours on end & just playing there instead of being under my feet.....well, i woke up to rain (see pic above) & immediately thought "great, my sister will be stuck inside with the kids all day!"......then she calls to say that she woke up with a fever & her cough was way worse.....she went to the doctor & found out she had viral pneumonia - GREAT!

so the kids stayed home with me & they did pretty well - although, it was difficult finding things to keep them busy AND out of my way - especially when it's raining outside.....but my mom finally relieved me just in time for curtis to get home & we were able to bust butt until the kids' bedtime when we went to go pick them up....then i stayed up late to bust out cakes

then sunday, the kiddos went to my brother & sister-in-law's house for the first half of the day, came home to nap, then went to my sister's (the doc put her on an anti & steroid & she was no longer contagious after 24 hours & was feeling better too) until dinner time......again, curtis & i were able to get a lot done that day

monday & tuesday, i was off work - the kids were in school & curtis worked - so i got a lot done on my own.....when the evening rolled around, the kiddos went to my sister's or mom's for dinner & a few hours of play/tv.....thank all 3 of u ladies for your help - thank u, thank u, thank u!!! u don't know how much easier u made things for curtis & i!!!

the thing with this move was....we essentially packed up & moved EVERYTHING in those 4 days! with as busy as i've been with cakes & just life in general since we found out we were moving just a little over a month ago....i hadn't had time to do any pre-packing.....i was able to sort through some of the kids stuff & get rid of things here & there as we were leading up to the move....but no real packing got done

oh, and i forgot to mention - i had my top wisdom teeth removed friday morning, went to work, then home for the parade....so they were bothering me through this whole move too!

i probably bit off way more than i could chew, but hey - that's life.....it actually worked well, except for the fact that we were moving 4 years of our life from this HUGE apartment into a much smaller space, with waaaaaaaay less storage!

we didn't exactly finish either - Socks is still living in the old place until curtis cleans/moves his 50 gallon tank, the attic at the old house still has lots to be cleared out & my cake decorating stuff still needs to find a home.....and i need to clean the entire apartment.....but it'll get done......luckily for us, there's no new renter to move into our old place yet (they did come by last night to look tho & will most likely b moving in in about a month).....i arranged for the electric & water in the old place to stay on through the weekend & our old landlord is cool with us finishing up this week.....we should have every bit of our stuff out & the entire place clean by the end of the day saturday - wish us luck!

and of course, our new place is still unsettled.....we have most everything there, but only the kids' rooms are looking somewhat complete......i still have a lot of cleaning to do before i can put everything in it's place (the renters before us did clean pretty well, but they had animals - and i HATE pet hair! why is that stuff so hard to get rid of?!).....and we have the fun job of figuring out where to put what.....how to make our lives run smoothly in this new space.....it'll take some time, but it'll be worth it in the end

we had this little lady there to welcome us in yesterday

sorry for the poor pic quality - i only had my cell on me.....she was hanging upside down on our fence & she has to be prego - look at that belly! jaden LOVES praying mantis', so he was thrilled when i showed him this pic

it felt nice sleeping in the new place last night too.....curtis & i both took showers & hit the bed at about 1:30am (no biggie for me, but curt was DRAGGING).....the kids went to bed super late too - mom & dad dropped them off around 9pm, but by the time we got homework done, their beds made up in clean sheets & got them washed up & ready for bed, it was 11pm! i hope their butts rn't dragging too much in school today!

here they are, waiting for me to finish making up their beds

just in case u're wondering - that IS our sectional! BUT, it wouldn't fit into our new living room! so we had to take out the middle curvy section & piece the rest together like a regular sofa.....we're adjusting ;0)

sorry i don't have pics of our move - but hey, my camera is the LAST thing i was thinking about over these last 4 days! ~lol~ i'll snap some of the empty place when we finish up there & i'm sure i'll be taking some as we get the rooms settled in our new home

our yard sale is saturday....i'm hoping that it doesn't rain & we make tons of loot! ;0)

i'm calling around to rent a storage unit today.....our out building isn't big enough or safe enough (from critters) to store all our stuff.....say a prayer for us as we finish up at the old place this week & begin our lives in this new space.....it'll take a little while for us to get used to our new digs - but we're really liking it already! :0)

weekend cakes...

on top of our move, i had 3 cakes this past weekend...

this Marine cake for Tyreeq (who's had the goal of joining the Marines for 2 years now)....his mom had me slant the top tier, to show off the Marine Corp. emblem.....all fudge chip cake, iced in butter cream - i made the emblem from fondant & dusted it with edible gold dust

next came this woodpecker....this was ordered by "the cake sister" - she requested it for a co-worker who's having trouble with woodpeckers bothering the new addition onto her home....originally, the cake request was MUCH more creative....months ago, when Jennifer requested the cake - the idea was to have Sharon & her husband, created out of fondant, armed with bats & a BB-gun, killing the birds ~lol~....but since that original request, i found out i was moving & Jennifer was sooooo sweet & came up with this alternative idea - thx again Jenn, for making my weekend a whole lot easier!!!! ;0) all yellow cake, iced & decorated in butter cream

and last, i had this Camp Rock cake....all yellow cake, the guitar is covered in dark chocolate fondant....the pink is butter cream.....the Camp Rock sign is not edible

thx for looking!
sharon

MIA till October

i may be missing in action for a little while - but just until October

i'll be busy emptying almost 4 years of STUFF from our current home,
& loading a LOT LESS of it, into our new home

one room i'm particularly looking forward to filling...
{side entrance is to the right of the stove}{side entrance is to the left - this is the other side of the kitchen}

ohhhhhhhhh - look at all those cabinets!
probably more than double what i'm used to....plus there's a big pantry not even in these pics!
it gives me goose bumps just thinking about it! ~giggle~


i'll also be decorating 2 cakes this weekend (knocked one out last night) & curtis works tomorrow - so this should be fun!

don't look for much from me until October - but i might b popping in to say hi! :0)

everyone have a FAB weekend!

hello fall - goodbye house!

hello fall!

we've patiently awaited your arrival ;0)and we are already enjoying the many fun new things you bring with you - like gathering acorns

we can't wait to jump in your leaves again!and for the special holidays you bring along

goodbye house!

we'll miss your big front porch
and your big back yard
all of your wonderful flowers that we've enjoyed throughout the years (see how the morning glory grew up & around not only the neighbor's spigot, but also the girls' jump rope?)

your random/uneven/dead-end sidewalks that my kiddos have enjoyed for hours & hours upon end!

your cherry trees & blackberry bushes
the many campfires we've enjoyed under your big walnut trees
your 100+ year old character - your wide/open rooms & hallways
i will NOT miss your tiny kitchen....but i will miss the memories we made in it
you're the only home that my girls remember
(we moved in when Corinn was just about to turn one & Gabby was 26 months old)
shoot, jaden was only 4 1/2!

we're leaving you this weekend.....and we'll miss you!

but we look forward the many more memories we'll be making in our new home - and hey, we'll only be right over the fence ;0)

sweet Wednesday

a sweet treat that i brought in for a co-worker that works remotely from new jersey, but is in the office this week.....something sweet to help her pass the hours in her hotel room ;0)
the one on the left is white cake with a strawberry/blueberry combo....and the one on the right is fudge chip cake with both my chocolate & regular butter cream

want to read some reviews? here's what autumn, danielle & shanna had to say about the cupcakes in a jar i sent them - here, here, here & here - love u guys!

*note - again, this was not my original idea - read this post for more info on the original creator