My son the stripper

Let me just tell you about the funny things Andrew does at night. Andrew wears two kinds of jammies; feetsie jammies and non feetsie jammies (don’t you all wish you could wear feetsie jammies and still be so darn cute) When wearing the non feetsie jammies we always put socks on him. Well every time I go check on him before I go to bed he has not only taken his socks off and thrown them over the side of his crib but he also always takes his pillowcase off and throws it over. Drives me batty. I put the socks back on and the pillowcase back on, only to find the pillowcase and the socks off again come morning time. Well, he has recently started something else when wearing feetsie jammies. He thinks he’s Elvis! He will unsnap his jammies and unzip them down to his bellybutton. I guess he’s going for the sexy baby look, I don’t know. So on feetsie jammie nights I zip and snap him back up AND put the pillowcase back on, again only to find him sexy baby in the morning and the Elmo pillowcase on the floor. Spring is not far around the corner so no more feetsie jammies and socks, but there will always be the pillowcase.

Open house, interviews, testing oh my!

Wow, it sure does involve a lot to get your little girl into Kindergarten. Today we went to the open house at DCA was very happy to get to peek into all the classes. Marty and I are very excited about Abby going there in the Fall (I guess school doesn’t really start in the Fall anymore since they start in August now) Everyone was very friendly and we even got to speak to and ask questions to 2 kindergarten teachers, the headmaster, the elementary principal, the PE teacher, the art teacher and the librarian. We were also taken to the chapel, which they will have every Wednesday morning. We loved hearing that they will have PE 3 times a week but go outside (or some other form of recess) every day, art once a week, music once a week, Spanish once a week and computer once a week. They also visit the library once or twice a week. Yeah, all these great classes!!
Abby will be dropped off and picked up right at the Elementary School doors and will be escorted to her class. There is also a separate cafeteria for the Kindergartners; they understand that it is a scary time for our babies. If Abby chooses to eat the school lunch, the lunch will be fixed for her and brought to her at the table. No worries about trying to serve herself and get it to the table alone.
Abby did so well, proud mommy moment. She wasn’t shy at all and talked to everyone, she even wrote her own name on her name tag. She was most excited about the playground, but what 4 year old wouldn’t be. She did tell us that she will miss Ms. Gayle but she’s sure she will like her new teacher too. I think she will be ready.
Marty and I have an interview next Thursday. I didn’t know we were trying to get into the school? We were able to speak with Becky (the interviewer) today and I am more comfortable with it now. I will let you know if we pass or not. Abby then has to go for testing on March 3rd, again not sure what to expect but we are learning as we go. At least we will be pros when it’s time for Andrew to start Kindergarten (which by the way isn’t for a long long time)
We are very excited and know it will be a good fit!

Sunday Night = Family Night

Marty and I made the decision last night to make Sunday night Family night. Sunday night seemed like the best choice for many reasons, one being that we go to church in the morning and everyone is in good spirits and another being that no one has to work on Sunday's. We are going to do something simple for dinner like ordering pizza or cooking something in the crock pot so that way no one has to really cook or do the dishes. The TV is going to be turned off and we will enjoy each other. I foresee many nights of dress up, go fish and hide and go seek. But that's ok. It hit us last night that one day Abby and Andrew won't want to snuggle anymore or won't want bedtime stories or won't come to us and say "up peez". We don't want to miss these times and say I wish we hadn't been so busy. They are only little for such a short time and we are going to take it all in. So from here on out Sunday is Walters' Family night.

Marty's so good

So as I told you yesterday, since the kids didn't have school Marty was going to take them to the mall for some play time. Well, that's not all they did. Marty called me before lunch and said that they had gone into The Children's Place and he had found the kids' Easter clothes (ok, so we're both planners) Great I said, told him to get what he liked. I trust his opinion, he always buys great clothes for them. Well, after lunch he said he can't decide and then tells me that we need to come back after dinner so I can help him decide. It seemed a little odd because he was so set when I talked to him earlier, well whatever. When I get home Marty tells me that they have a surprise for me but I won't get it until we get to the mall. I tried everything to get it out of Abby. He promised a special treat, I promised two. Nothing worked!! She loves surprises, so much so that she doesn't want us to tell her where we're going half the time because she wants to be surprised. We get to the mall and I figure out what my surprise was, Marty had taken them to get their picture taken. Aren't they adorable? From what I'm gathering, it took nothing less than a few baloon animals, a promise of a cookie, and a silly daddy to get Andrew to cooperate. I love my surprise!! We did end up getting the Easter outfits also, the ones that Marty had origionally picked out. He later admitted that it wasn't the clothes he couldn't decide on, it was the picture. There were too many good ones to choose from.

Snowed In

Ok, so tell me from looking at this picture how school could be cancelled? This is all the snow we got and on my drive into work this morning, it looks like we got more (could that be possible) than anyone else. I thought I was hearing things this morning when I heard that school had been cancelled. Amazing!!

Needless to say, Marty was not pleased because this is his only day that he gets to himself because both kids have school on Thursdays. They will be taking a trip to the mall for lunch and a little play time.

Plan B

DCA desires that students love the Lord with all their heart; love their friends as their own self; become like Christ in their conduct, thoughts and decisions; and discover their strengths and talents in service for the Lord.

We have talked and prayed over where to send Abby for Kindergarten and we have finally made a decision, in fact I just sent the application off today. She will be going to Donelson Christian Academy starting in August. The above quote is taken directly from DCA’s website and who wouldn’t want that for their child, it sounds wonderful in fact. We were looking at 2 schools, one being a Baptist school and then DCA. We decided on DCA because it is more well rounded (there’s that word again). DCA is a kindergarten through 12 grade school that has almost 900 students that not only produces some of the highest test scores in Tennessee but also offers fine arts programs such as drama (Marty’s happy) and band along with a great athletic program which includes all the major sports and some others such as tennis and golf (again, right up Marty’s alley). DCA is on my way to work, so I will be able to take Abby myself and pick her up in the afternoons. That way we can keep Andrew’s current nap schedule just the way it is. Now we just have to break the news to her that she won’t be riding the big yellow school bus that she has longed to ride for so long. I love that the student teacher ratio is 10 students to one teacher. I feel like Abby will get the one on one attention that she deserves and she will have a more personal relationship with her teachers and her peers. We are very excited. I would have loved for her to go to the Montessori school but this is a pretty great Plan B.
We feel that in the long run it will be money well spent; now I can’t wait to see her in her school uniform. Pictures to come later.

Well Rounded

I don’t feel like I brag or even write about Andrew nearly enough, maybe it’s because Abby is so vocal and much easier to write about. Andrew is coming around though and it is so sweet hearing his little voice and seeing the “light bulb” go off when he figures something out. I do have to brag because he no longer cries when we drop him off for church or school. He not only doesn’t cry but he will put his lunch bag up and walk in like the little man that he is. It is such a piece of mind knowing that he is happy when we leave him.
I picked him up on Wednesday night from his class and his teachers gave him the most wonderful compliment. They told me that he is so well rounded. At first I didn’t think much about it but when you think about it; well rounded is the absolute best compliment. He not only is sweet but he is also funny. He’s not only out going but he’s also sensitive. Not only adorable but also thoughtful. I was so proud of my little man. Yes, it was also a good feeling for me too. It feels really good when your peers compliment your child which in a round about way compliments you and your parenting ability.

Snow Day

Ok, so on the day that we were least expecting it, we got snow. The kids have had a blast playing in it, although they wish it wasn't so cold. Right now they are having a snowball fight, too fun!! Here are the only pictures I have of my star children so far. Enjoy!!

Good news Mommy

This morning Abby came running down the stairs and into our room with a huge smile on her face. She said to me “Mommy do you want to hear the good news? I looked out the window and there’s snow on the roof” She then goes on to ask Marty and I if we want to go outside and make snow angles and build a snowman. One small problem, there was only snow on the roof, no where else. For days now we have been hearing that we were going to get 1-2 inches of snow overnight. So last night before Abby went to bed we told her that she might not go to school today because it might snow. I guess she remembered because she looked out her window first thing and was so excited to see the dusting of snow on the roof.
Ok, so I will admit it. I was pretty excited about the thought of snow; I want to build snowmen too. So what did I do first thing this morning, look out the window. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get as excited about the dusting as Abby was. Only to be young and innocent again.