The Yearbook Staff

Today was a great day even though it was a Monday. Since the weather was beautifu, I took the kids to the park after school today. They had a great time of course. When I got home, I found a great surprise in Faith's school binder. She has been chosen to work on this year's yearbook for Coles Ferry Elementary! I had no idea that third graders were part of the yearbook staff, (much less any kids) but she was one that picked. She told me that only about three other kids in her classroom got letters so she was really excited. She loves her yearbooks. Every once in a while, she will get them out and look through them and get sentimental about the days gone by. This is a great opportunity for her and I am glad that she gets to be a part of it.

My Gifted Children

I am bragging now. My children are gifted. It is true, they are gifted especially Faith because the school told us that she is gifted. Faith was tested last year to be in Coles Ferry Elementary's EXTEND program. EXTEND is their gifted program and last Friday, I got in the mail, the letter that she met the criteria to be in the program. I am so excited and happy about that. I have always know that she was smart so I don't need the school to tell me that but it is very exciting although, I don't think Faith really cares.

Well, John Derrick can't be put in a gifted program since he is only three (almost four!!) but I think he is fairly gifted. John Derrick has never been a talker. I was starting to get really worried that he would never start putting sentences together. It was when he turned three that he started to say more then mommy, daddy, and car. This summer he had officially started talking. He will say the funniest things like when he wakes up in the morning, he will tell me, "It's a boo-ti-full day mommy, it's a boo-to-ful day!" He doesn't get all his sound correct but that is what makes it so cute. If he wants me to open something, he says, "upen this mommmy, upen it 'leassssse" and marshmellows are "mar-moes" (and we all say mar-moes now)

Now if I could just get them to pick up after themselves.....

In Memory of Brutus 1996-2008

Brutus passed away last night. I had noticed that he had not been feeling well for a week. He was getting sick about once and day and wasn't eating that much. I had told Kevin that Brutus didn't look well and on Saturday, Brutus hardley moved at all. Sunday it was worse, he wouldn't eat and could barely walk. We took him to the vet on Monday morning and the vet told us that he was suffering from severe kidney failure and there was very little that could be done. Anything that could be done would just be putting a band aid on the the problem. We decided that it was Brutus's time but we took him home so Faith could say her goodbyes. We were going to take him back to the vet the next day to put him to sleep but Brutus passed during the night. He was at peace and at home.

Brutus was my dog. After we got married, Kevin thought I needed a dog even though I didn't really think so. He had seen Brutus first. He had for some reason gone to visit some old friends and there he saw Brutus and he fell in love with him. The breeder had asked if Kevin had wanted Brutus so Kevin asked me and I told him no, I wasn't ready for a dog. A few months passed and the breeder contacted Kevin and told him that they were moving and needed to find a home for Brutus. Kevin convinced me to go and see him and of course I feel in love with him also, so we went home that night with Brutus.

Brutus got his name from the breeder. He was the runt of the litter and had a problem with his leg. But at just a few months old, we were told that he had gone after a much larger dog just like he was the big dog. Since he was so brave for such a little dog, the breeder called him Brutus.

I had told Kevin that when Brutus came home with us, that dog was going to sleep in a crate or box and for no reason at all was he going to sleep in our bed. Well, Brutus was already spoiled. That first night, I put him in a box that had a nice soft blanket and we went upstairs to bed. We lived in an loft apartment. The apartment was basically one giant room. The second we turned out the light, Brutus started whining and his whining turned into barks. We tried everything to get him to be quiet but nothing worked except putting him to bed with us and that is how our dog started to sleep in our bed.

Brutus was a very good dog. As a puppy he loved to play and he was always so happy. He was very good with children. If you laid down on the floor, he would come and start licking you on the face and the ears. Kevin's nephew used to love that. He also liked other dogs as well. When Kevin's brother Lonnie got his Yorkie, Brutus and Gizmo would chase each other around the house and they would "fight" with each other until they both wore themselves out. And he still liked the big dogs also. When we lived in Marion, AR, he would go outside and "talk" to the big dogs on the other side of the fence.

Brutus was our baby till our kids were born. When I was pregnant with Faith, I was put on bedrest at the end. I would sit in our recliner during the day and Brutus was right there beside me the whole time. It was very comforting. When Faith was born, he wasn't jealous. He would just stay out to the way but would come and cuddle with her every once in a while.

Brutus liked me the best. He always came to me when he wanted something. There were things that he would do that would drive me crazy. Like when we lived in the apartment in Hermitage, he would always wet on the floor and if he pooped inside, it was always in Faith's room and then later on it was in John Derrick's room. He didn't always sleep in bed with us just when it was cold and he wanted down, he would wake me up whining and I would have to put him down on the floor. Sometimes he wouldn't leave you alone until till you gave him what you wanted and sometimes there was no telling what he wanted. He also learned how to escape out of our backyard and people from 1/2 a mile down the road would call and say that they found him, scratching on their front door. Those were the times that I thought he was trying to escape John Derrick and find a new home.

John Derrick never realized how old Brutus was. He would try to play with him and Brutus was too old to play. John Derrick sat on him and pulled his tail and would cover him with a blanket but Brutus never snapped at him even though he needed it. Brutus just found himself a hiding place in our closet and there he stayed most the day.

I am going to miss Brutus. He was a good dog and he was my dog. The house feels empty. I kept expecting to see him in our closet curled up asleep or hear him snoring on his blanket behind the recliner. I will hear a noise outside and think that I need to let him back inside but he is here anymore. I have washed his blankets and cleaned his bowls for the last time but I am glad that he died at home with the family that loved him.

A Desk for Faith

School starts this Monday, July 28. Faith will be in third grade at Coles Ferry Elementary. She will be in Mrs. Regina Wright's class. We found this out this past Monday when we went to school to register. I was glad because in the past we would have to wait till the weekend before school started when the teacher would call but this time they already had the class list ready so Faith got to meet Mrs. Wright. I think she will be a good teacher. Her space on the the Coles Ferry website was up and ready and full of information and I really like that.

We bought a desk for Faith this week. It's nothing fancy more like a table then a desk. We also bought her a chair for her desk. It is pink. She has been very excited about the desk. She sits in the chair to watch TV and she has been practicing her handwriting. She has been drawing pictures and cards. This year at school she is going to have more homework and I have been dreading this because last year getting her to do her homework was a pain mainly because she would get distracted by John Derrick. So this year, she can go to her room and shut and lock her door and do her homework in private without her little brother bothering her. So hopefully this will work and she will continue to make good grades.

I can't believe my little girl is going to third grade. I remember third grade. It was not my favorite year in elementary so I hope she enjoys her class and teacher.

I Survived!!!!

I survived last week!!! We had VBS at church Monday - Thursday and the kids had their first week of swim lessons in the evening AND we had a yard sale on Saturday.

First VBS, the kids had a lot of fun. John Derrick was even excited. I had to help decorate the Saturday before. I had volunteered to make a train out of cardboard boxes. Of course I put it off till the last minute but I made a "model" of the Music City Star. It turned out OK. It wasn't as big as I wanted it to be but I did my best.

Second, swim lessons. Faith is taking Level 3. She is learning different strokes. I have gotten to watch her and she is really good. I think if she keeps working at it, she might want to join a swim team one day. She loves to swim and I think she could spend the whole day at the pool if I would let her. John Derrick is taking Pre-school level 1 and 2. He likes to go to the pool and he isn't scared of the water but he won't completely relax to let himself float. It will probably take a couple of more years before he starts to really swim but I am glad he is getting this chance now to take lessons.

Our yard sale went well even though it was very hot. Having a yard sale was our neighbor's idea and since I had been thinking of having one this fall, I decided to go ahead and get rid of our stuff. We had A LOT of junk. Our neighbors were wondering where we kept all of it. But if you have been married 12 years and have 2 kids, you have a lot of things that you don't need anymore. I put out a bunch of baby stuff that did not sell which surprised me but most of the toys that I had sold and all the pots and pans that I had sold. We tried to sell Grandmother's antique couch. Several people said it was pretty but no one would take it. 99% of the stuff that didn't sell went straight to Goodwill and I think my house is happy that it is gone. Now we just have to keep from collecting more stuff we don't need.

Our Vacation

We went on a family vacation last week. We went to "the lake". It was one of the best vacations that we have ever taken as a family. Faith remembers going to the lake so she was very excited to go and her excitement rubbed off on John Derrick.

We got there Sunday afternoon and after we got settled we went fishing off the pier. The only kind of fish that you can catch are small brim but it was so much fun. John Derrick kept on getting in the way and trying to reel in the line when we were putting bait on the hook. Faith was in charge of getting the crickets and throwing the fish back in the water.

Monday we stayed at the cabin. We were planning on swimming but that morning, Faith and I saw a snake in the water and I was just not willing to get in.

Tuesday, we went to the mountains. Kevin thought it would be fun to go swimming in the mountain stream. So we put on our swimsuits and packed a picnic lunch and had the time of our lives. We stopped at the picnic area between Gatlinburg and Cades Cove and ate and swam there. The kids had a blast. Faith was like a mermaid in the water. She made some friends and played with them while John Derrick found a spot and threw rocks.

Kevin got out to get something once and when he got back in he looked down and there curled up in a log was a snake!!! Right where we were getting in and out so we moved downstream a little bit. We ended up the day going to Cades Cove and taking the scenic route home. It was a great day.

Wednesday we went to the Knoxville zoo. We have Nashville zoo membership so we were able to go to Knoxville for free. We went late in the afternoon and it was really neat because all the crowds had left and we felt like we had the zoo all to ourselves.

Thursday we stayed at the cabin. Kevin and the kids went swimming. I still did not want to get in the water after seeing that snake. John Derrick stayed in for about 30 minutes but Faith stayed in for 4 hours. Faith really likes swimming.

We came home Friday. I think there were two reason that this trip was so wonderful. First because of the kids. They were so sweet and well behaved. John Derrick is older not so "high maintenance". I didn't have to always know what he was doing. He either stayed with us or was inside playing with his cars. Faith just loves going places and trips like this just gives her more memories. Second, Kevin and I were able to talk and reconnect. With him traveling so much and me being a mommy, we loose touch sometimes. But we talked and shared feeling that we hadn't shared in a while and I think we became closer and we are going to work on becoming more loving and rekindle our love.

My Children's Eyes

My children have beautiful eyes. Their eyes comes from my side of the family. Kevin says that my eyes are the first thing that he noticed about me. My kids have my eyes, very large and very beautiful. They don't know this but their eyes are the reason they get their way so many times.

Last night, I got down Candy Land so Faith and I could teach John Derrick how to play. He did very well and we had fun. When we got done, I got down Hungry Hungry Hippos. Both of them had a lot of fun playing that game. When we got done with that game, John Derrick wanted to play Mousetrap. He would tell me "pleasssseee, Mousetrap game" Mousetrap has A LOT of pieces and I really didn't want to get all of that out. Well I was able to distract him with a bubble bath so we didn't play the game. This morning, he got up and ate breakfast and started with "Mousetrap game, pleasssseee. Mousetrap, pleassssee" I looked into his face and his eyes were shining and he kept on asking and saying please. But, because of his eyes, I got the game down and he and Faith played Mousetrap (after I put the whole Mousetrap together)

Last Tuesday, I planned on taking the kids to the library for the summer program. We could go at 10:00 in the morning or 1:00 in the afternoon. I was having a lazy morning and I didn't feel like getting dressed so I told Faith that we would go for the 1:00 program. So looked at me and gave me the most pathetic puppy dog eyes and said, "please, can we go this morning." Those eyes are the reason that I got up and took a shower and got dressed to go to the library at 10:00 that morning.

My children just have to get me to look into their eyes and they can get their way and I love every minute.