Sam is 9!

Sam celebrated his birthday on Friday with his teammates after football practice. We brought pizza, cupcakes, and drinks to share...and share we did! There were kids swarming the table that we have never seen before and probably won't ever again. Siblings of teammates, kids with mouths full of pizza hollering for another slice, or a drink for their uncle (who was sitting in a car somewhere) or kids wanting a second cupcake. So we shared until the bounty ran out. And then they were gone. The quickest party on the planet started at 6:27 and was done by 6:38. Now, that's my kind of kid party! After they ate the boys ran around and played for awhile, so we called it a success. Sam's birthday weekend is in full swing as I post this because he is sitting at the NASCAR race in Atlanta. More pics to come when they return!

Wild One Year-Old

And lest you think we weren't wrestling a wild one year-old at the football field for 4 hours, I assure you we were.

And not just any one year-old..a climber with no fear who has abandoned her toys for greater enlightenment, such as taking on the law of gravity. And losing mostly.

A one year-old, who has also abandoned baby food recently in search of the perfect big-person food...the Cheeto.

But if you have to wrestle one year-olds, you may as well have the cutest one like we do!

It's Football Time In Tennessee!

Big Sam getting ready to take the field.

On defensive end..he's the one in the middle with his hand on the ground.

On offense he played Center. That's him in the red circle. He got to touch the ball in this position! He also got to use his super big mouth and yell, "Huddle Up!"

Coming off the field.

Winners! 27 to 0

My baby loves football!

Go, Fight, Win!

Claire made her debut as a cheerleader today. It was rather warm and very bright which really hurt her eyes. But she suffered through, and cheered on the Pee Wee Eagles to victory.

Claire is 6!

We (and by "we" I mean my friend Rhonda...who, without her, I would have never made it to the end of this wild party) started the Puppy Party by dressing everyone up with dog collars with their names, dog ears, and painted faces.

Claire and her BFF Lauren posed in the dog house Daddy built for the party.

I made these bone decorations that covered the door.

Our group of puppy friends practicing their "sit and stays" before the barking contest. Yes, that's ELEVEN girls. We also had 2 others plus Sam and several siblings that stayed. I think the grand total was 18!

We played musical puppies, fetch relay, and find the bones.

Claire got a "Fancy Nancy" doll from us and lots of other great gifts.

Her Dalmation cake that I made.

Papa brought Sam home from football practice and said his hellos to the birthday girl.

The kids all received a puppy to stuff, dress, name, and adopt.

The celebration continued the next day. Lauren had spent the night, and when her mom picked her up we decided to go to the zoo. Claire was enjoying a snack during a zoo break.

Will this weekend never end?? The next day we had church, a football game, and then another birthday party for a friend where Claire enjoyed their pool...maybe the last swim of the summer? Great birthday, great kid, tired Mama!

Busy Days

What have we been doing lately, you ask?

Here's a small sample of our ongoing, non-stop activities. We've been: Crawling around

Keeping Cool

Learning about our insides

Pretending in an ambulance

Posing by an ambulance

Washing cars for a football fundraiser

Floating on our backs

Getting splashed

Being extraordinarily cute

Cheer practice posing

Looking the part.

Yeah, We're Still Here

We have been SO busy with football, going swimming and to Chuck E. Cheese's before school started, going back to school, preparing for Claire's birthday party, packing for a weekend trip, taking a field trip to the EMS and hospital, cheerleading practice, visiting relatives, hanging out with friends, going to church, having computer problems, and did I mention FOOTBALL?? It has taken over our lives. So, when all this settles down I'll get back to my blog. And I promise to have pictures of all of these events as well!