Cactus Canyon...VBS 2008

We just finished our last night of VBS tonight. Last Saturday was the Cactus Canyon Kickoff. That was registration day. You can see we had a lot going on in our little bitty parking lot. There was a pony, bobbing for apples, sack race, cake walk, face painting, popcorn, watermelon, western photos, hotdogs, lemonade, and lots of other games. I think it turned out well...and it was sweltering out there. Ron brought Kady for a little while, but it was too hot to stay for long. See her denim dress and cute little pink cowgirl hat? Wish I'd had some boots for her to wear...but it was too hot for shoes anyway.

I decided to TRY and teach the Pre-K class. Easy right?...Yeah right. My brain must have been on vacation when I agreed to that job...I had as many as 9 of those little boogers from ages 3-5. Next year my butt's going back in the kitchen and helping with crafts. If Karen hadn't been in the room with me I might have ended up curled in a little ball by the end of the first night. There aren't many activities you can do with that age group and have everyone participate.

If you've been to our church you know how small it is. There are only a handful of kids under 6th grade who are members. About 2/3 of our kids this week were visitors. That means I was a total stranger to most of them. I had one who was just mean as a snake. He didn't care who he hit with a stick or kicked in the leg...girls included...He never sat still. His parents are divorced and I think a lot of his aggressive behavior may have come from no male influence in the home. His grandparents are members of our church and were bringing him. I hope he was able to grasp the concepts I was trying to teach them this week. I just kept telling myself "Jesus loves him too...yes even him"... Another little boy was sweet...but very energetic. We would be playing a game as a group and he'd be running around us (and through us and under us) in circles. He never stopped. Wore me out trying to catch him from running to who-knows-where all the time. Seems like I never could find anything they all liked and would actually participate in except coloring pages and food.

For example, one of the suggested activities in the teacher's book was to make "bible clothes" out of a man's white undershirt and a tie (for the sash). I bought the shirts and got some scrap material (instead of a tie) and wrapped it around their waists. They loved it...until one of the boys said, "This is just like what I wear to karate!"....Then suddenly the "Jesus clothes" became "Ninja clothes". About the time we're walking into music class that mean little booger I mentioned earlier decides to try and karate kick the 4 year old girl in front of him. I thought her 5 year old brother (who was also in the class) was going to beat the crap out of him. Great. Now I have to break up a fight and poor Mrs. Diane has 6 other crazy ninjas saying "Hi-ya!" instead of "Yeehaw!"

This Sunday night is commencement night. Hope I can keep my sanity long enough to get through it. Pray for us! Maybe no one will get karate chopped....*sigh*

Kady/Daddy Time

Kady likes to talk to the baby in the mirror. If she gets fussy, it's a quick way to distract her. She likes that the baby always smiles back but has a hard time understanding why her kisses feel cold and slimy. Ron and I will put her in front of the mirror sometimes just to see what she'll do. She usually coos and blabs for a few minutes and then loses interest...but this time she just went on and on and on. It was so cute. She really needs a buddy. I sure wish her cousins lived closer.

The night after the mirror conversation, Ron came home and decided Kady needed another bath. She'd spit up a little as usual I guess. Karen has been giving her baths on the days she keeps her because we've had VBS this week. We've been getting home at almost 9PM and that is way past her bedtime...not time for more stimulation and playtime. He used to tell me he couldn't bathe her because he didn't know how, but I think he might have just been afraid he was going to drop her or something. You can see how comfy she is in her Bumbo chair. She just kinda slouches over and rescues her duckies from the water below...before she talks them to death and tries to eat them. That Bumbo is a life saver (thanks Beth!). Makes feeding and bathing hands free. I just stand her up at the end to wash her bottom. She LOVES her bath.

Baby Dedication

Last week we had our baby dedication at church. There was only one other baby besides Kady. Todd is 18 months old and kept pointing and saying "Who's dat? Who's dat?" Kim, his mother, and I had set up a picture table outside people saw as they walked in. The ceremony was short and sweet since there were only two of us. Right after the dedication, Karen, the wonderful friend who babysits Kady, sang a song and then Ron played his guitar and sang "Cinderella" (by Steven Curtis Chapman). I sat on the front pew holding a hard and fast asleep Kady while he serenaded her - yep...slept through the WHOLE THING! The dedication was wonderful, the songs were fabulous and almost my whole family was there. This was only the fourth Sunday Bro. Mickey has been back to preaching. As you can see in the picture, his head is shaved. He has a scar going over his scalp where his brain surgeon performed his tumor surgery a few months ago. He is recovering well since the tumor is now shrinking on its own.

Anyway, we went to Marino's to eat afterward. That's Daddy playing with Kady at the table after they both finished eating and I was trying to scarf down the awesome food. Poor Ron had just gotten off a 36 hour shift from the ambulance and was exhausted so he fell asleep on the couch as soon as we all got back home. Wish you all could've been there. It was so great having so many of my family members at church for this special occasion.

Sitting up, Cuddling, Reflux, Playtime

Kady is trying to sit up. She's so petite she doesn't really have any fatrolls to balance her so it's taking her a while to catch on. Karen - her fabulous sitter and my good friend - has been working with her a lot on the floor. Here is one attempt we got on camera when Mama was visiting.

I also got a really good picture of Kady with her Aunt Ashlie this weekend. I had just rocked her to sleep and was taking her to the crib. Ashlie asked if she could hold her "while she's quiet"...hehehe. Kady loves to cuddle and never woke up for the entire 1/2 hour she laid there.

Mama has her in hand right after Kady ate her dinner. Which is why there's a TOWEL instead of just a burp cloth on her shoulder. Poor Kady has reflux. We've tried everything. Nothing helps. She just projectile pukes most days. Sometimes we have no problems for a few days and then boom...our laundry piles up from having to change her clothes and ours several times a day.

The last pic is after we came home from our weekend at Nana's house. I put her in her exersaucer. She was so happy to be out of the carseat she didn't care where I left her.

Kady's Trip to Landrum's Country

Mama came to visit on Tuesday and Wednesday of last week. I was off work on Tuesday so we met Rebecca Taylor (Jeff stopped by for a few minutes) for lunch. It was so good seeing them Mama and Rebecca just picked up where they left off last time they saw each other. Rebecca had a gift for Kady. It was a cute pink stuffed poodle. It's a Webkinz pet so we'll have to "register" it online soon. Afterwards, I took Mama and Kady to Landrum's Country.

It's a tourist attraction in Laurel. First you walk into a gift store. They have some gorgeous furniture and household decor for sale in there. Then you pay an admission to go into "the homestead". The owners have moved several old homes and historical places to this site and rebuilt them using the original materials. Then they stocked them up with authentic, antique furniture that has been donated by locals. That bed was handmade out of birch and was absolutely incredible, as was the handmade quilt. There's even a chapel that can be rented for weddings, receptions, etc. It was locked so we couldn't go in there. They have a general store, a working windmill that generates energy for a well that supplies water for some of the landscaping, gristmill, gem mine, smokehouse, schoolhouse (bottom picture), jailhouse and forest service cabin...just to name a few. There was also a tame goat (second picture), some turkeys and a couple of very loud, obnoxious peacocks roaming around. Every time Kady would doze off one of those things would cackle. Make you think about having roasted peacock for supper. The little goat was penned that day, but I think he would've gone home with us if he could have just because we scratched him behind the ears a little.

You may notice in the pictures that Kady and her Nana are dressed alike. Mama showed up in a white shirt and green gingham capris. Kady had a similar outfit so I changed her into that before we left. As you can see in the first picture, Kady has started holding her own bottle too. She's ok with a small, light weight bottle but has a little trouble with the big ones. It has made traveling with her a little easier. You can see her green gingham capris in that picture.