Mims' Memories

Rest & Relaxation

2010-11-20T15:23:00.001-08:00

Last week, my family traveled down to Florida for some much needed R & R! We spent 4 days doing a whole lot of nothing, and it was so nice! Friday was beach day! The temperature reached an awesome high of 74 with bright, sunny blue skies and the water was crystal clear, but very cold! That did not keep my boys out of the waves, though! Avery wasn't quite as brave, luckily a little girl came shortly after us, and they made fast friends. They played in the sand and searched for seashells. We packed a lunch and spent the most part of the day there! If you like nice deserted beaches, go in November! Hopefully, you will be just as lucky as we were! Saturday, I shopped at the outlets ALL day, mostly alone! I got a huge start to my Christmas shopping! Of course, Target was visited twice, could have gone a third time, but didn't push my luck! Saturday night Kelly boiled a delicious stock pot full of shrimp, potatoes and corn on the cob! Yummy! Kelly, did his 21 mile run early Sunday morning before church! I did my short 4 mile run Sunday afternoon and got lost. Scared me to death, and I had a few moments of panic. Thankfully, with the direction of a really nice man, I found my way back! That's about it.... eating, sleeping, eating, relaxing, eating, shopping, did I mention eating! That was our short, mini and much needed get-away! Facing the hustle and bustle of the holidays will be much easier now, with a renewed spirit!

Life Without Limits Half-Marathon

2010-10-31T12:50:00.000-07:00

Kelly & me

Yesterday morning, Kelly and I got up at 4:00 to drive to Florence, AL, to run a half-marathon. I know, we're crazy! We picked up a sweet friend who rode over with us. This was my third half and am sad to say my worst! My time was better than St. Jude last December, but the experience was worse! The temperature was freezing at start but felt great after about a mile. The course was beautiful, and I really enjoyed looking out on the water, seeing the fisherman on their boats in the morning fog, running the trails through the woods with the changing colors of the fall leaves. What I didn't like were the hills and the 1 1/2 mile long caged bridge! I have to say that the first 9 miles were awesome! I felt super, running a good steady pace right under a 10 minute mile, but then my knee started hurting! It locked and stiffened up on me really out of nowhere. I have had no trouble at all, except for the occasional aches during long runs. It was really difficult to run through it, and I had to completely stop and stretch it a few times. I honestly wanted to cry several times, and almost did between mile 12-to the finish. That was the longest stretch of time, and I didn't think it was ever going to end! I did push through and finished, but the clock said 2:16, I had missed my goal by a minute! I was so upset and hurting so bad, I just went over to the curb and sat. Kelly found me, checked on me, got me an ice pack and water. I am so proud of Kelly! His time was 2:07, not a PR, but under the circumstances of his week, it was an awesome time! I am amazed by his strength, stamina, and endurance. Not only has he been working incredibly hard on his campaign, he is training for his first full marathon! He is physically exhausted! As a matter of fact, he left the race to go to 3 events yesterday afternoon! After resting and icing my knee for about 20 minutes, I went and found Jimmy, Roan and Esther, who all ran an amazing race! Roan met her goal and all 3 had a PR time! I am so happy for them! We enjoyed some post-race snacks, checked out the official posted results, and to my surprise I actually met my goal! Yeah! My official time was 2:15: 45! I did feel some better! We went to the award ceremony, where Esther won female masters! We all enjoyed the ride home with some good conversations!

Esther, Roan & me before the race

These two ladies amaze me!

St. Jude is only 5 weeks out! Run, run, run!!!!

Holly Farms

2010-10-28T20:57:00.000-07:00

This morning Lesley and I took the children to the pumpkin patch. Unfortunately, we were minus Jared, who was at school. Thankfully, his class traveled to the Blue Mountain patch last week. This year we decided we would try out Holly Farms. We were not disappointed! The weather was gorgeous, and the kids had a great time! There was lots to do there to keep the kids busy!

John Ashford

Carson

Avery

John Parker

This old truck with the 30 foot super, rumble slide was a hit with all the children! They loved it!
They slid backwards, forwards, upside down and any other way they could come up with!

Very innovative way to "recycle!"

Their next favorite was the huge rope swing! They would swing back and forth from the huge hay bales!

There was also a corn maze, corn crib, barrel train, play ground, country store, a great concessions area, and most importantly the wagon ride to the pumpkin patch!

All the kids on the train!

Carson swimming in the corn crib!

Lesley, John Ashford & Ella Joan getting ready for the wagon ride

Our guide on the way down to the patch stopped to give us a little history lesson!

He did a wonderful job!

Look at those faces! Poor Ella is just saying somebody save me please!

We all had a great time! After working up an appetite we went to Chick-Fil-A for a yummy lunch!

Easter

2010-04-10T20:02:00.000-07:00

I love Easter!!! Easter is a reminder of new beginnings, blessings, and beauty! God has blessed us in so many ways, and I am so thankful!!!!

A cute sidewalk chalk drawing of the Easter Bunny!

Saturday morning we dyed our eggs. It was somewhat organized, or at least it started that way! Then it turned into organized chaos! But still lots of fun!

John Parker's first masterpiece!

Avery, John Ashford and Jared deciding what color to use

Carson in concentration mode

Jared all smiles!

John Ashford

Ellla Joan, my Ella Bean!!!

After dying our eggs, we went to the Johnson's for their annual egg hunt.

We always have a great time and appreciate so much them hosting this each year for the children!

The children trying to get Oscar to pose for a picture on Easter morning!

Okay, now that's more like it!

Everyone look and say cheese!

Posing in the tree house, which is under construction for some minor updates!

After services at church, everyone came over for lunch and an egg hunt. Some of the children thought they were too old to hunt eggs! After reading Megan's post on her egg hunt, I have some ideas for next year and possibly some new traditions to get them involved again! Such a fun family and a great example of never being too old for whatever it may be!!

John Ashford on the hunt

Emma spotted one

Carter's 2nd Easter! Last year he was only a week old!

He just had his first birthday! He is so adorable!

Avery and Maddi discussing the prize egg!

Love this picture!

Aunt Sheryl, Christy, Bailey, Emma, Carter, Lesley, John Ashford, Ella Joan, my mama, John Parker, Carson, and Ana

Wished I had all the children and myself in it!

Avery, Jared, and Maddi were still on the hunt for more eggs!

Lesley and Ella Joan with her first Easter basket!

So precious!

It was a beautiful day celebrating and spending time with our family!

Mushy Mama!

2010-04-05T20:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning I wore my new Easter frock, a cute little cap sleeved wrap dress. My sweet Carson was snuggled up close to me with his arm wrapped around my arm and he says, " Mama you are so mushy!" Several of the ladies sitting close by heard him and we all got tickled! Nothing like being reminded by our sweet children the reality of our flaws! That's okay though, because he loves me and all my mushiness! Ha!

Pontotoc Ridge Run 5K

2010-03-29T07:19:00.000-07:00

Me and the children after the race

Saturday morning the children and I went to Pontotoc to run in our first 5K of the season! Unfortunately, Kelly was in Birmingham at drill and not able to run with us! I was terribly nervous about this race, especially since it was the first one for me since my IT band issues, also because the memories came flooding back of the HILLS and my heart was heavy for the sweet Johnson family. The weather was nice, a little chilly and windy, but it felt good after we actually started running. I felt pretty good for most of the run, but the hills were tough. I think I had to walk at least 2-3 times! My time was decent, better than last years but not as good as the Bodock which is the same course, I am okay with that. The Spartans showed up in their sea of green once again, spunky and ready to run! They all did a great job! This is a good course to start with because they will really kick up some dust on the next one! I am so proud of my boys! They have come such a long way since last year! John Parker had an awesome time of 28:08, I finished in 31:08 and Carson close behind at 31:53! Carson placed 3rd in his age division, I placed 2nd in mine, Parker didn't place even though he did better than both Carson and me. I gave him my medal for his hard work! Oh I almost forgot, I won a 30 minute massage as a door prize! I am going to give it to Kelly, I think he needs it worse than me! It was fun to be back racing and seeing and experiencing the Spartans excitement! Looking forward to a fun season with them!

Everyone eagerly awaiting the awards to be presented!

Carson & John Parker

Avery

Carson, Avery, John Parker & Jared looking a bit chilly

Letting Go

2010-03-26T13:02:00.000-07:00

I just sat down for a minute to unwind from our school day and regroup for getting through the remainder of my day. Honestly, feeling very stressed that my house is in disarray, the laundry is piled up AGAIN, the dog needs a bath AGAIN (just had one less than 24 hours ago!), and the thing that bugs me the most is.......... my floors are dirty! I know, I know that sounds ridiculous and petty to most, wished I wasn't that way! I logged on the computer to read up on my blogs and the first one I go to is I'm an Organizing Junkie and her post today is just what I needed!

She says so often we complicate matters and make matters so much more difficult on ourselves than they need to be! Yep, that's me, she's talking to me! I know this, I really do, but what I don't know is, how to relax and let it go! That is what I need help with! HELP ME!!!

She goes on to list 10 important things to remember. The two that struck me the most were:

#4 "When your kids grow up and leave home, they won't remember if the towels were folded in perfect 16-inch squares in the linen closet; they will remember if your home was a good place to be and if Mom was a fun person."

#9 "There is no such thing as perfection. Giving up trying to make your home perfect is the first step toward making it a good place to be."

Good rules to live by, and I really want to!

So back to the dirty floors, I'm letting them go, at least for today! Letting the children come in any door they want and not reminding them to take off their shoes, I know I sound like a broken record to them!

What will they remember?

What do I want them to remember?

Here's to Letting Go........

Coming out of Hibernation!

2010-03-18T17:43:00.000-07:00

I have somehow managed to skip an entire season of blogging! Not only have I not blogged, I haven't been getting my daily dose of reading other blogs! I guess I've been like an old, grumpy bear in hibernation for winter. HA!! While sleeping, I missed so much! Both Carson and John Parker celebrated a birthday, we have been on a short vacation to Florida, I have been battling a running injury with 6 weeks of no running and 2 days of physical therapy per week, Kelly has started training to run a full marathon in December (not me, I will be sticking with 1/2's!), I am finally able to run again - YEAH, the boys' XC spring training has started, and the biggest news for our family is that Kelly has qualified to run for for the Court of Appeals! WHEW...... is that a list or what, and I am positive that I have left lots of stuff out!!! Once again, I have good intentions of posting more often, but I am not making any promises! Goodbye winter, Hello spring!!!! Here's to new beginnings!!! Ha!

Christmas

2009-12-26T12:17:00.000-08:00

Our day started with the opening of the first gifts of Christmas! I don't know about everyone else and your children, but mine have been asking everyday since Thanksgiving how many more days till Christmas?! When can we open a present? The answer was always the same, not until Christmas! They were thrilled to finally tear some paper!

Avery with her new doll, Julie

Jared's first big boy Lego set

Carson with his Medieval Village

John Parker and his DS

The children were thrilled with their gifts, and it kept them busy all day while I prepared for my family to come over for dinner. For the past several years, we have hosted Christmas Eve for my side of the family, there are about 23 of us altogether. We all pitch in with the cooking so this helps out tremendously! We always have more delicious food than a small army could eat!

Avery with her new, cute apron ready to help in the kitchen

Looking quite exhausted

Lesley looks nice and refreshed!

All the children in one picture- not an easy task!

Stephen & John Ashford discussing the new Lego set

Boys building Legos

Carter (9 months)

Ella Joan's (4 months) 1st Christmas!

Stephen was super excited about his own Keurig!

The traditional opening of the Christmas Pjs!

Avery modeling hers, notice the cute, little tutu!

All the kids snuggled with Kelly listening to The Night Before Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a goodnite..............

The children woke up to another blessed Christmas!

It always takes them awhile to wake-up, they come downstairs and look at and analysis their gifts and then decide what to play or do first! Once awake, they're awake -full speed ahead!! We enjoyed a yummy breakfast of monkey bread, sausage/egg casserole and my favorite, mocha punch. We spent the whole day in our jammies just relaxing, playing and enjoying our family!

Still asleep

Oscar, so cute!

Checking out their stockings

The aftermath.........

Clean-up and time to welcome a New Year!

Christmas Fun!

2009-12-25T22:10:00.000-08:00

I can't believe that Christmas has come and gone yet another year!!! I am going to make an attempt to somewhat catch up on our Christmas happenings. The entire month of December is busy, busy, busy!!!! It seems like we are hopping from one place to the next and constantly making those list and checking them once, twice, three times........ you get the picture!

Jared, Oscar, Carson, Avery and John Parker excited to be opening an early gift!

They got the movie "Up!" Such a sweet movie!!!!

John Ashford and Ella Joan posing for their Christmas card pictures!

That was fun!!!! I think I took around 50 pictures! John Ashford doesn't sit still long enough to have his picture made! This is one of my favorites!

Here they are again with Santa!
John Ashford told him that he just wanted "twains" (trains)!

Avery, Carson & John Parker with Santa!
Jared was visiting with his brother in Jackson.

Avery, Anna Kate, Lilly Grace and Haley Brooke at the cookie party!
This is the 2nd annual party, and the girls love it! Leigh and her mom did a wonderful job hosting! Leigh's mom made these adorable aprons for them! Super cute!

Happy to be here!

Concentrating on getting those sprinkles just right!

Ready to do more baking with mama! She loves to help in the kitchen!

The kids and I made some treats for friends at church.

We made homemade hot cocoa, dipped pretzels, chocolate oatmeal cookies, and Hershey Kiss cookies!

Finished, packaged and ready for delivery!

Ladies' Christmas Brunch

2009-12-12T14:18:00.000-08:00

This morning I attended our annual Christmas brunch and ornament swap. The ladies at our church always look forward to it. Each of us brings a dish, which always turns out to be way too much food, but it is all so wonderful! After eating, we play Dirty Santa! Some of us take the game pretty seriously, planning out our strategy to getting the ornament that we want, while others can be quite reserved!!! No matter what ornament everyone ends up with, there are always lots of laughs while playing!

Lesley (my sister), my mama and me

Heather, Shelia, Season & Roan

Leigh, Lesley & Season

Look at that spread!

Tammy & Heather

Becky, Amanda & Beth

Karen, Lesa & Shelly

Mrs. Dunk & Ella Joan

Getting ready to play!!

My ornament! Love it!

Roan & me

Thanks Shelia for hosting this year in your beautiful home! We had a great time!
We need to have a Christmas in July brunch, too!!!

St. Jude 1/2 Marathon

2009-12-07T19:53:00.000-08:00

If I had to sum up the weekend in one word, that word would be AWESOME!!!! All the weeks of training were so worth it! What an incredible experience!

After dropping off the children at their destinations, Kelly and I started our fun-filled weekend! We picked up sushi to eat on the way, so yummy, but not a good choice for driving!!! We made a very quick stop at Target to pick up a few items to help keep us warm on our run. After arriving at our hotel and checking in, we headed over to the Expo, which was conveniently located right across the street. At the Expo, we picked up our race numbers, timing chips and t-shirts. I found Roan searching through hundreds of these cute little head bands called Bondi-Bands. She had already picked out a few for me to choose from. They are so cute! Who says you can't be cute while running! HA! We walked through the entire Expo and looked at all the neat running gear and apparel! I spent quite awhile looking at the One More Mile booth at all their quirky, fun little sayings on their t-shirts, hats, bumper stickers and more. I ended up buying one that said, "Running is a mental sport, and we are all insane!" There were so many to choose from! We were soon joined by Emily and Mark. Roan and I helped Emily pick a Bondi-Band, too! She against her own judgement, went with a very cute, colorful one! She also choose a black one in case she chickened out!

Just to let you know, all of the pictures will be ones that I swiped from either Roan or Megan's blogs! Jimmy and Megan thankfully took lots of pictures! I don't think I took one the entire time! So it's not Deja Vu, you probably have seen them all before!

Russ, (Megan on the phone!) Mark, Emily, Me, Kelly, Roan and Jimmy

This was in the lobby outside of the Expo!

Look who we ran into!
Thanks Santa for taking time out of your BUSY schedule to take a picture with us!

Roan, Me and Emily

After the Expo, we headed out to eat at the Spaghetti Warehouse for our pre-race meal! It is such a great feeling to load up on all those carbs and not have a guilty conscience while doing it! We enjoyed good food and lots of laughs! We had so much left over, that we made a to-go plate for Stephen, who had to work and got a late start heading out. He actually came in right as we were leaving! He came back to our hotel and we all hung out in the lobby while he ate! We had the best time! I really can't remember when I have laughed so much and so hard! We decided we should head up to our rooms, get everything ready for the morning and try to get some rest! I personally didn't rest much at all!!! We should have just stayed in the lobby and laughed some more!!! Ha!

We all met back in the lobby at 6:00. We were joined by Russ, Megan, Stephen, Julie and Yonea. We enjoyed coffee and M&M's for our breakfast!

Me, Roan & Emily

We are all wearing the new Bondi-Bands that we bought at the Expo. You can tell from this picture that I didn't sleep much the night before!

Stephen & Kelly enjoying muffins before their run

Kelly & Me

Megan and Russ

(Hope she decides to run next year!)

Jimmy & Roan

Okay, game on, it's time to get serious!!!! As if four layers on top, two on bottom, and two pairs of gloves weren't enough, some of us also added a cath lab gown! Jimmy was kind enough to bring some to suit up in for our 1 mile walk to the race start! We may have looked goofy, but they really did help keep us warm! It was a freezing temperature of 26 degrees! Brrrrrrrrrr...... I am thinking this is totally nuts, but so much fun!

This is complicated!

Russ, Yonea, Julie, Roan, Jimmy and me all suited up and ready to brave the cold!

Julie and Yonea had on new headbands, too! Julie's said, "Start off slow, then back off!" Yonea's said, "Running is cheaper than therapy!" Super cute!

After a few more pictures, we all headed out to face the cold for the mile warm-up walk to the stadium. After checking our bags, we walked together to the corrals where almost everyone went to different ones. Emily, Yonea and I all started in corral 9. The official time started at 8:00, and by the time our corral started, which seemed like no time at all, it was 8:15! We threw our cath gowns over to the side and it was time to RUN!!!! Wow, all the talking, discussing, planning and anticipation and it was finally here! I was so excited, I mean really excited!!! It didn't take long to warm up! I ditched one pair of my gloves at about mile one! That was the only thing I shed the entire race. I did get hot and wanted to take off my outer layer, but my race bib was pinned to it! I loved this race! There were supporters and entertainment along the entire course! The most inspirational and emotional part of the race was running through the St. Jude campus. There were family members and a couple of patients outside holding up signs and shouting encouraging words to all the runners! Very humbling experience, my prayers go up for these families!

I enjoyed almost every mile of this race! The first 10 miles were awesome, the last 3 were hard! My legs tightened up pretty bad, but I pushed through! I finished a couple of minutes short of my goal at 2:17. At race start, my Garmin GPS didn't work, so I only saw my time, not my pace or average pace, which I am sure is the reason I finished a little short! I am totally okay with my time, I had a super race! Right after crossing the finish line, I was handed a thermal blanket and crossed over onto the field to join Kelly, Stephen, Yonea, and Roan to cheer the others in! I was so excited to be finished that I forgot to get my finishers medal! I went back and got one, I worked hard for it! Ha! Kelly did awesome with a time of 2:09 and Stephen rocked at 1:51!

When we finished our race, we enjoyed some delicious, hot soup and cocoa! When our bodies started cooling off, it was sooooo cold! Oh my, I have never in my life been that cold and three days later, I think I am still thawing!!!!! We all found a seat either in the stadium or on the field at the full marathon finish line to cheer Jimmy in! He came in looking strong with a finishing time of 3:46! Way to go Jimmy!

Jimmy, Stephen & Russ outside the stadium

This was Russ's first half, too and he did awesome finishing under 2 hours!!!

All of the runners after the race!

This whole weekend was a wonderful experience! I am so thankful for everyone who encouraged me to do this, to my training buddy, Emily, to my family and friends who helped care for my children while Kelly and I enjoyed our time together stress free! Congratulations to all my friends who accomplished their goals!

Happy Running!

Pumpkin Patch Farm

2009-10-25T19:59:00.001-07:00

Last week some of the Spartan moms took the children to Pumpkin Patch Farms in Blue Mountain. The weather was absolutely gorgeous, the perfect fall day with clear skies and lots of warm sunshine! The children enjoyed browsing around in the old, country store, jumping on the bouncers, playing on the playground, petting some farm animals, exploring the hay maze, and choosing the perfect pumpkin! This is my favorite pumpkin patch to visit! The owners do a wonderful job taking care of their properly and are so friendly! After spending a few hours at the farm, we headed over to New Albany for XC practice.

John Parker, Jared, Carson, Avery & Chance (puppy)

Jared

Avery & John Ashford

John Parker teaching Chance to walk on a leash

Ella Joan's first field trip!

The boys waiting on the wagon ride out to the patch

Lesley & John Ashford

John Ashford loving on the horsie

Carson making his way out of the hay maze

Next comes Jared!

John Ashford found his little pumpkin

Carson with his

Group photo

Happy Fall from the Mims!!!!

Race for the Cure

2009-10-24T21:17:00.000-07:00

This mornings race was pretty special to me! Not only did it mark the 1 year anniversary of my first race, but Kelly and my boys ran with me this time! Last year, they were spectators coming to be my cheerleaders. It really was a great feeling and everyone did awesome! John Parker was the first to finish out of all of us, with a PR time, (times on the sidebar). Carson placed 3rd in the 9 & under age division! He was very excited! The weather was cold prior to running, but perfect once the race started! I was thrilled with my time, I finished almost 9 minutes faster than last year! Whoo Hooo!!!

Before the race!

On your marks.......

Clay, Carson, Alec & John Parker after the race

Kelly & one of his buddies, Scott Chavers

After the race

Carson with his plaque

Great job, Spartans!

This pink poodle was showing her support!

It's Official.... I'm Crazy......Send me to the Funny Farm!

2009-10-22T21:20:00.000-07:00

I'm tired....... tired of being behind in my housework, tired of being in the road all the time, tired of thinking, tired of worrying, tired of being tired. I am just tired! Today, has been typical of what the past few weeks have been like. My day started with getting the children dressed and taking them to have school pictures made. After pictures, I went to the bank and made a quick run through Wal-Mart to pick up a gift and a few food items.... that quick trip cost me around $100! Next was back home for lunch, getting clothes packed for XC practice and Flag Football games, and also clothes for the children to film a commercial for my daddy's business. After being home for about an hour, it was trip #2 to Tupelo. We had to be at my daddy's store at 2:30 and didn't leave until 4:40, just enough time go get from the east side of town to the west side. John Parker had football pictures at 5:00. We were there for about 30 minutes, then headed home again for a change of clothes and to take the puppy out for potty break! Next stop, my mommas to drop off the boys. Carson had a football game at 6 and John Parker one at 7. I checked the weather off and on all day, praying for rain! Sorry, I know we've had enough of it lately, but didn't know how to be in 2 places at one time! I should mention that Kelly isn't slacking, he is out of town for a few days! Carson opted not to play, he was tired.... wonder why? Stephen took Park to his game, which by the way, was was finally cancelled! Now trip #3 to Tupelo..... I took Avery to a friend's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese. She had a ball, and guess where she wants her next birthday party??? At the end of the party, I was so ready to get home, everyone settled, my pj's on and relax watching The Biggest Loser. Nope, didn't happen..... got out to my van and couldn't find my keys. Went through my entire purse twice, Lesley went through it too and finally I dumped the whole thing out, no keys!!!! I went back inside looked in the restroom, on and around the tables, still no keys! Thankfully, I only had Avery and we were able to ride home with Lesley. The plan was to come here and get the extra set and make trip #4 to Tupelo!!!! When we got to my parents, I opened the door to get John Ashford out of his car seat, and guess what he was sitting on? Yep, my keys!!!! Who put them there? Yep, me..... the crazy one..... just minutes before starting the insane process of trying to locate them. We had walked out together, and apparently I had ALREADY gotten the keys out of my purse and when buckling John Ashford in, I dropped or put them on the seat! How does one do this??? I mean really, I had a moment of insanity, I mean one where you scream outloud!!!! My daddy drove me back to town to get my van, and at 10:30 I finally arrived home, put on my pj's, snuggled with Carson (boys take turns sleeping with me when daddy is gone!) and watched The Biggest Loser!!! The only thing missing is the little, white jacket that lets me hug myself! I liked when I only made 4 trips a week to Tupelo, not 4 in one day! Tomorrow, my little Odyssey, hopefully, will not leave its space in the garage! Forgive my grammatical errors, I am just too tired to care!!!!!

Rustic Homeschool Camp

2009-10-18T21:34:00.000-07:00

Last week, Roan and I took our children over to a two day camp hosted by H.E.I.R.'s, (Home Educators Instructing Righteousness). These ladies were so gracious to let us join them! They did a wonderful job coordinating and preparing fun and interesting activities for the children. Thursday they were divided into age appropriate groups and rotated through different classes. The classes were all science related with lots of cool experiments and activities. Thursday night we enjoyed a hot dog supper with singing and devotions. I am so proud of John Parker for leading a song in the assembly! Afterwards, we went up to our bunkhouse for bed (according to Avery was the best part!). I must say it was an experience, glad I had it, but next time I will be staying at a nearby hotel! I am not high maintenance, well maybe just a little, but I do need a private bath with a hot shower!!! Friday was a little less structured with the children doing lots of fun fall crafts! We enjoyed a wonderful potluck style lunch!

Clay, John Parker, Carson & Jared excited to be at camp!

Camp Mascot - Archie??? not sure if that's his name!

John Parker & Clay dissecting owl pellets

Avery, Leah & Emily surprised reaction to their balloon experiment!

Madison, Carson & Luke doing surface tension experiments

Jared, Leah and Avery doing a sink/float activity

Getting a lesson on the chemistry of tie-dye

Avery on her top bunk!

She came down and got in with me as soon as the lights went out!!!

View of the bunkhouse

Pumpkin Carving

Not sure who got more paint, Jared or the pumpkin?!

Free play!!! The boys favorite time!

Me, Dawn & Roan
(Can you tell who stayed in the bunkhouse and who stayed in a hotel?)

Isn't the blogging world so cool! What's even neater, is when you get to meet one of your blogging buddies for the first time! You read and learn so much about them and their families, and it was so great to meet this sweet, fun lady, Dawn from Catch Me if You Can.

We all had a great time and met lots of new friends! Hopefully, we will be able to attend again next year!

MSU Homecoming

2009-10-16T20:58:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, Kelly took the boys down to Starkville to watch the Dawgs play! While they were at the game, Avery and I cleaned out one of our attics. I went through and divided 6 large Rubbermaid containers of the boys' clothes from 0-3 months up to 3T's. I passed them on to a few friends and family. Also, I got rid of almost all of my baby equipment! Sad but very liberating in a strange sort of way!

The Homecoming Queen, Tyler Kellum, was a former student of mine when I taught school. She is a precious girl, very deserving of this honor!

Tyler being escorted by her dad, Dr. Mark Kellum

Even tough State lost, the boys had a great time!

Go Dawgs!!!!

Corinth Rotary 5K

2009-10-15T19:00:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago some of our Spartan kids traveled to Corinth to run a 5K. Once again they did an awesome job and did not disappoint! This was the first race in awhile that I didn't run and was able to just enjoy watching the runners, cheering them to the finish and taking pictures! I let the boys choose between the 5K or the 1 mile fun run. John Parker chose the 5K and Carson the 1 mile, they both did a great job! I told Carson that since he was only running a mile, he needed to give it all he had! He and another little boy were neck in neck to the finish, he finished 3rd!

READY.......SET..........GO!!!!

They're Off!!!

Run Carson!!!!

Almost there!

Looks like a serious conversation!

Sweet girls showing team spirit!

Clay, John Parker & Carson

Fun Run Participants

Running

2009-10-04T20:45:00.000-07:00

A little over a year ago I started running! Wow, what a difference it has made in my life and the lives of my family! Not only did I start to run, but so did Kelly and my boys! Kelly has amazed me with the pounds shed, he has done a great job, he looks awesome and most importantly is healthier! Way to go honey!!!! I remember last fall, running the Race for the Cure and the boys did the 1 mile fun run, they asked did I think that they might could run next year?! Of course, I told them, little did I know that they would run numerous 5K's this year and improve a little more each time! I can remember running 1 minute walking 2 and feeling like I was literally going to die, but this morning, 1 year later, I ran 9 miles, yep 9, and the best part about it was that I enjoyed everything about it!! I am so thankful for all the encouragement and training tips from dear friends and feel so blessed to have great running partners, I am pretty sure that it would not be as enjoyable without them! Kelly and I are training for and very much looking forward to the St. Jude 1/2 in December! Can't believe I am actually going to do it!!! "Gotta get me one of them stickers, 13.1!!!!!!" Happy Running!!

Tallahatchie Riverfest

2009-09-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

Yesterday our family ran the Tallahatchie River Run in New Albany. We woke up to not only rain, but thunderstorms, seems to be the norm for all of our race days! We dressed, headed out and ran into torrential downpours! Thankfully, closer to race start it was just a drizzle, which is actually wonderful to run in! The Spartans once again showed up in the green sea of shirts! Wow, it is really cool to see all those shirts all over the place! I am so incredibly proud of the whole team, but especially proud of my boys! They have come such a long way since they first started running! It was a very difficult course with LOTS of hills, but we had lots of fun! I am pretty sure we will run this one again next year!

Me at the beginning smiling & feeling strong!

John Parker ran his best race with a PR of 28:01!

Way to go Park!!!

Me at the end of the race NOT smiling & wanting to die!!!

Carson finishing strong!!!!

Top 3 overall female finishers!!!
Notice the shirts..... Yeah Spartans!
Coach Heather 2nd, Danielle 1st & Catherine 3rd

Stephen showed out with a 20:40 and won 2nd in his division!!

Us after the race looking lovely!!!

Some of our Spartan family!

Say Cheese!!!!!

Spartans XC

2009-09-26T19:52:00.000-07:00

The Spartans

This year John Parker and Carson joined the Spartans, our home school cross country team. This has been such a wonderful experience for our entire family. We have enjoyed the company and fellowship of old and new friends! Coach Heather is AWESOME!!! We love her, she is so great with the kids. It is really amazing to see how everyone has improved week to week. The team has run in several local 5k races and will compete with other schools in meets. Our season ends in October, and I am afraid I am going to have withdrawals!!!

Here are a few random pictures from the season.

Avery & Leah enjoy their play time during practices!

John Parker & Carson with friends after a run

Jared found a kitten hidden in the grass

Stretch Time!

Saltillo Meet

This is how everyone looked after their race!

It was so rainy and muddy! Some of the runners had to climb hills on their hands and knees!

Can you say Determination & Dedication?!

All of our Varsity & Jr. Varsity teams did great!

We had 11 varsity girls place in the top 20!

To good friends and good times!

Last week after practice, the whole team went to Mi Pueblo to enjoy some yummy Mexican food! We took up the entire restaurant! There was standing room only!

Coach Heather got a pie in the face!

She made a deal with the girls.......the price you pay!!!!!

She is a great sport!

Avery's 5th Birthday!

2009-09-24T22:00:00.000-07:00

Giving Stephen a thank-you hug for her 'Fancy' dress!

I truly can not believe that my baby girl is 5 today!!!! So much has happened in her 5 years. She was born during Kelly's activation in Iraqi Freedom. Thankfully, he was still in the States and was able to be at her birth, spend a few days at home with us, and see her a few more times before going to Iraq in January of 2005! At the time, I couldn't see, but now I know we were blessed with her to help me get through that year! Kelly may have missed her first year, but he definitely has made up for it in the past 4! She loves her Daddy!

As our tradition, We celebrated her special day with friends and family! This year she wanted to have a "Fancy Nancy" tea party and that's what we did! If you don't know who Fancy Nancy is, you should check her out, sooooo funny and cute! The girls had a fabulous time playing games, making bracelets, learning a little French, and having a tea party!

Avery & Maddi all dolled up!

Here is the table all set for the tea!

Avery helped me do this first thing this morning!

She kept asking all day, "How much longer till my party?"

Making her wish!

One, two, three... BLOW!

Ella Joan in her 'fancy' dress!

All the girls!

John Ashford is really concentrating on his ice cream!

Leah & Avery

Sorry about the quality of my pictures, my flash wasn't on!!!

Chick-Fil-A 5K

2009-09-07T19:47:00.000-07:00

The Mims and Johnson Crew

Jared , Avery, Sam & Leah with Mr. Moo!

Today our family traveled to Memphis to run in the Chick-Fil-A 5k. We met up with the Johnsons and had a fun time! Thanks to Roan, who needed rest after running the Tupelo 14.2 Miler yesterday, for watching Jared and Avery! This was by far the largest race we have participated in. I am not exactly sure how many runners, but my guess is between 800-1000! I was so happy to get to run with my sweet friend, Stacee, even if it was only for a little over a mile! The beginning of the race was so congested that we were basically walking the first 1/4 of a mile! When we were finally able to run, I tried to make up for the lost time! Unfortunately, my partner, Carson, didn't like the faster pace! He gets extremely nervous in large crowds, hates them as a matter of fact, so he always runs right with me! Today, though was too much for him, and I had to stop and walk with him 3-4 times. I felt terrible to leave him and didn't this race! It was a fun, scenic course, but also a little tough! Oh, I forgot to mention that it was super HOT! We did not have great times, but I am totally okay with that - just can't wait until next year to beat it! HA! Kelly ran with Parker and pretty much had the same experience as me, just a little slower! The race clock showed 32:39 when I came in, but haven't seen the official posted times yet! The after race refreshments were pretty impressive! Free Chick-Fil-A sandwiches, pizza, hot dogs, donuts (Yuck), fruits and lots of drinks to choose from! Congratulations to Julie and Olivia for placing in their age division! After seeing the girls get their awards, we all headed over to the Smoothie King for a yummy lunch! Can't wait till next time!

Carson & me right after the race!

Kelly & me - the race ended at 3rd base on the Memphis Redbird's field!

Olivia! Love her shirt!

"Running is a mental sport & we're all insane!"

John Parker enjoying his sandwich

Jimmy, Julie & Roan

Jared, Avery & Sam

Carson & Clay

Kelly and me with our boys! So proud of them!

Roan & me

Our family! Last picture of the day!

Welcome Ella Joan!

2009-09-03T20:29:00.000-07:00

August 4, 2009

7 lbs 3oz.

18 1/2 inches

Big Brother, John Ashford

First nap together..... Precious

Joan is our mammaw's namesake
I'm sure she is smiling down on Ella!

Carson lovin' on his new cousin!

All my parent's grandchildren
Ages 10, 8, 6, 4, 2 and New!

Avery is loving it, Ella Joan not so much!

John Ashford and Ella Joan

Jared's 6th Birthday

2009-08-11T18:01:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we had a few families over to help us celebrate Jared's birthday. We also had his great-grandparents and great-aunt over. They are the ones who took care of him for most of his little life. He loves them so much! Jared was so excited to have them here! We enjoyed hot dogs and hamburgers from the grill. Even with just a few families, we had a house full of children, it was completely chaotic, but so much fun for Jared!

Jared with DaDa & Granny

Jared, Sam & John Ashford helping blow out the candles

Opening his gifts

1st Day of School!

2009-08-10T20:34:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day! It started with a wake-up call of 5:00 for a run with the older boys. We met friends at the track and had a great run! Afterwards, we drove through Connie's for chicken and gravy biscuits and Shipley's for donuts! No, I did not eat both!! Okay maybe I popped a few donut holes on the way home! I wish that everyday would be like the first day! Everyone bright eyed and bushy tailed, eager to start and ready to learn! Avery was the most excited of all, her first day of Kindergarten! She woke up, picked the perfect dress, and wanted me to fix her hair and put in a bow! She was so cute, grinning from ear to ear!

Carson doing his typing lesson

Jared still looking a little sleepy!

John Parker playing a reading game

Take a peek at our closet! Everything is so neat and organized! I love it!

Just wonder how long it will last?!

I am excited to be starting our 6th year of homeschooling, thankful that I have this opportunity with my precious babies and blessed to have met so many wonderful friends through our journey!

Back to School Fun!

2009-08-10T19:15:00.000-07:00

After a two month sabbatical, I'm back, or at least I hope that I am! I know it has been way too long since my last post and so much has happened this summer! I have been dreading posting because I was overwhelmed with how behind I have gotten, But........ I have decided to just start with the here and now, if I get to it I will catch up on some of the summer, but if not that's okay, too! Let me just say that the summer was great, but entirely too short!

We began our back to school festivities on Friday with a scavenger hunt. This has become our tradition at the start of each year. The kids love it and get so excited running through the house searching for the clues and of course their treasure at the end! In the past, the kids have gotten new backpacks, school/art supplies, and this year it was Barnes and Noble gift cards. As soon as they finished the hunt, we all loaded up in the van and headed to choose their books. I enjoyed a yummy coffee from Starbucks while they looked for the perfect book! Afterwards, we went to Chick-fil-A for lunch and ice cream!

Showing off their cards!

John Parker 5th Grade - age 10

Carson 3rd Grade - age 8

Jared Kindergarten - age 6

Avery Kindergarten - age 4

Enjoying lunch & especially dessert!

Fun times!

Frog Level 5K

2009-06-13T19:32:00.000-07:00

This morning the children and I drove to the Pratts community to run a 5K. This was the first time that I have ever been to Pratts, didn't even know where it was until today! The weather was terrible, a really strong thunderstorm came through about 30 minutes before the start, but only delayed the race for about 10 minutes. I am very proud of all of us! John Parker and Carson placed 2nd in their age divisions, and I placed 1st in mine! I joked with Jimmy, telling him that I was glad Roan wasn't there, or I would have been bumped down to 2nd place! Our times are posted on the sidebar.

John Parker & Carson were thrilled with their trophies!

Emily & Me

Avery giving Stephen a congrats hug!

John Parker, Carson & Clay all smiles!

My sweeties got a little bit wet!

There was going to be a frog jumping contest at noon, but I was just too tired, wet and cold to hang around for it, maybe next time!

Elvis Presley 5k

2009-06-08T07:31:00.000-07:00

Elvis even showed up to motivate the runners!

Saturday morning John Parker, Carson and I ran the Elvis 5k. I wished Kelly could have been there, but he was in Birmingham. I can't even begin to tell you how proud I am of my boys, including Kelly (lost 35 lbs. since he started running-Wow)! I am amazed at how well they are doing in just such a short time of training! I don't know our official times, still waiting for it to be posted, but I know I achieved a personal record and broke 30!!! I am thrilled with that! Carson ran with me the entire race, either one step behind or right beside me, but when he got about 500 feet from the finish, he broke out into a sprint and left me! That little stinker! I asked him later was he trying to beat me or just ready to be finished, and he said he was ready to be finished! I didn't know at the time, but John Parker was not far behind, I think we all finished within less than a minute of each other. Stephen ran his first 5k and did awesome, 21:15 or close to it! He placed 2nd in his age division!

Kim & Emily all smiles before the race

Caroline, Lia & Kate ready to run

Carrie Ann & Barbara
They came to cheer Scott on & were kind enough
to watch Jared & Avery for me!
Thanks girls!

Finished!

John Parker, me, Leah & Avery

Ben & Carson won 1st & 3rd in the 9 and Under age division!

Way to go!

Me, Emily & Kim afterwards!

John Parker with his buddies, Ryan & Clay!

Stephen claiming his 2nd place prize!

Sam, Avery, Jared & Leah having fun playing in the shade!

The Spartans were well represented

We all had a such a fun time running and being with friends!

The boys can't wait till the next race!

St. Jude Memphis 1/2 Marathon

2009-06-03T13:52:00.000-07:00

It is official, Kelly and I are now registered to run a half-marathon the first weekend in December !!!! Who would have ever thought!!!! If you had asked me last year, I would have laughed at you and said no way! I am so not ready for it either mentally or physically! I still have a long way to go, but have plenty of time to train my mind and body!!! I am super excited and can't wait to have the 13.1 decal on my van! That is motivation in itself!!

Around Here.............

2009-06-02T22:04:00.000-07:00

summer has begun!

not much blogging has been going on!

cleaning and organizing is a slow but steady process.

lots of swimming and playing outside is going on!

we're enjoying food from the grill.

ball fields and baseball games three nights a week!

the children are dirty most of the time.

our family continues to run together!

books are being read!

I'm drowning in laundry!

we have enjoyed having lots of company in our home!

our garden has produced some of its' first fruits.

we still have chickens!

thoughts and plans of next school year are swimming in my head.

lots of Popsicles are being consumed!

we are celebrating new beginnings.

our children have learned that death is a time of rejoicing for those rewarded a home in heaven.

life's lessons are being learned.

we are leaning on God to lead us in the way that he would have us to go.

we are BLESSED!

Our Little Flip Flopper!

2009-05-17T20:54:00.000-07:00

For the past year, Avery has been taking gymnastics at Flip Flops and loving it! Yesterday afternoon, she got to show off some of her skills. I guess you could call it a recital, but it was more like a demonstration. All four teachers were there and each led the girls through their different events or exercises. They were all so adorable! Avery was beaming from ear to ear the entire time and couldn't keep her eyes off the audience! She is a little ham! Avery did a great job, and we are so proud of her!

Showing her balance on the beam!

Flipping over the bar!

This is one of her favorites!

Strong arms

Straddle roll

Being silly in the mirror!

She is looking at us in the audience!

Gold Medal Winner!

Our Olympian Champ!

(future Shawn Johnson?)

Daddy gave her beautiful pink roses!

Avery is a daddy's girl!

Avery with Ms. Misty, one of her favorite teachers!

Thanks Flip Flops for making this a fun and exciting 1st year for Avery!

She had a wonderful time and can't wait until next year!

Tie-Dye 5K

2009-05-16T21:22:00.000-07:00

This morning Kelly, John Parker and Carson ran the Tie Dye Invitational 5K Cross Country Run. The race was hosted by our newly opened children's museum, Health Works. This was John Parker and Carson's first 5K, and I was very nervous and excited for them! They did great, and I am so proud of them! Way to go boys!

Clay ran with them and coached and encouraged them to the finish!!!!!

Silly girls!

Carson, Clay & Ben right before the start

Mark (I think-can't keep those Chunn boys straight!), John Parker & Ryan

Rachel, Leah, Avery, Sarah, Sam & Jared waiting to cheer the runners completing their first lap!

Kelly nearing the finish!

John Parker's adrenaline kicking in at the sight of the finish line!

Carson almost there, too!

First 5K complete!

I am loving Avery's sweet little blonde curls!

Julie was crowned the Tie-Dye Queen!

Today turned out so much better than I had expected! I enjoyed being a spectator for a change, taking pictures, visiting with friends and meeting new ones, too!
Our family is really enjoying this new hobby of running together! A big thanks to the Johnsons for being such an encouragement to us!

Thankful

2009-05-14T20:33:00.000-07:00

What a blessed life I have, and I am so truly grateful to my creator!

I am thankful for...................

God and his salvation through his son, Jesus.

Kelly, my lifetime partner and friend. He is such a devoted husband and father. He provides for us day in and day out, tirelessly working so that I can be home with our children.

my beautiful children and the joy they bring to my life.

love and support from my family and friends.

for my health and the health of my children.

the comfort I get from a prayer, scripture or encouraging words given by others.

forgiveness.

the quiet moments and the not so quiet moments.

the example of others.

unconditional love.

troubling times and the strength I gain from them.

for the home of Heaven one day!

Gum Tree 10K

2009-05-10T19:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my entire family participated, for the first time ever, in the Gum Tree 2K and 10K runs! We were joined by lots of good friends and fun times were had by all, even in the torrential downpours & occasional lightening! John Parker and Carson ran their first 2K and did an awesome job! I am so proud of them! Emily was very sweet to watch my children while Kelly and I ran. Thanks Emily! I did beat my time from last week's race by a minute, but this race was much harder for me! I am pretty sure that the downpour had something to do with it! My shoes felt like bricks were weighing them down! Even though it was tough, I am so glad I did it! I am addicted, I think! I am hoping to make this a new tradition for us! Next year we are going to be joined by John Parker and Carson running the 10K!!!!

Me, Stacee & Roan before the race

Kelly & me getting our ipods ready!

So proud of Kelly for running his first 10K, even though he did run off and leave me!

John Parker heading towards the finish!

Kelly & me after our 1st race together!

Our rain drenched children!
Some were not such happy campers, mostly Sam B!

Leah & Avery lovin' on the cow!

Notice the Kenyan runners in the backgound. They were the overall winners, finishing around 30 minutes, I was almost halfway there!!!

Emily, Roan & Sam (he is getting a good whiff of his mama's hair!)

Jimmy & Stacee

Kim, Gracie & Jimmy

Congrats to Kim for her 1st race!

Buddies!

Congrats to John Parker, Carson, Ryan & Ben for their first 2K and Clay for placing 4th in his age division in the 10K! Way to go boys!

At the law office waiting to go over to the festival!

Gracie .... so sweet!

Coke Classic 10K

2009-05-03T13:06:00.000-07:00

I am happy to report that I ran my first 10K yesterday! My daddy, John Parker and I got up early and traveled north to Corinth. Unfortunately, Kelly had drill in Birmingham and wasn't able to go! After arriving at the Johnson's, Daddy walked on over to register for the race, and this was the last time that I saw him until afterwards. The race was so much fun, way more enjoyable than I could have imagined! The course was really nice, with lots of spectators sitting out on their lawns cheering the runners on. I was very thankful for cloudy skies and cooler temperatures! John Parker hung out with Megan, who was watching the little ones, during the race. Thanks again, Megan!

Sam, Leah, Grace & John Parker waiting for everyone to finish

John Parker is very eager to train and be able to run next year! Every one did great, and several even set personal records! Check out Roan's blog.

Me nearing the finish! I know I look like a big ole' nerd, but I was so excited to be almost finished!

Right after crossing the finish line, I saw Daddy standing on the side grinning at me. He finished in 1:01 and I finished in 1:07! I can't wait until next year and hope that Kelly, John Parker and Carson run it as well!

Roan & me right after the race

Calling Kelly to tell him my results

John Parker & Clay hanging out eating fudge-sickles!

I had a great time and am very thankful to have great family and friends supporting and encouraging me!!!

Long Time...... No Posts!

2009-04-30T21:06:00.000-07:00

Life is really crazy, so much has been happening . We are trying desperately to get through the rest of this school year, boy are we ready for summer! We have started playing baseball, all 3 boys! We will be living at the ball fields for most Monday, Tuesday and Thursday nights for the next two months!
Running has been going really well. Kelly and the boys have been running with me and they are doing great! I have been working really hard on training for the Coca-Cola 10K, but am having some issues with my knee. I did my first long run of 5 miles Monday night, and it was great. While running, my knee felt pretty good, just a nagging pain on and off. Last night I ran 3, no major pain, but tonight I was supposed to run 2 and barely finished 1! I really don't know what happened. I did a few stretches before starting and ran 1/4 of a mile before the knee started hurting. I went ahead and finished the first mile, but decided I really should stop. I have had a few people tell me not to try and run Saturday, but I want to so badly! I am very frustrated, but trying to remain calm and think logically, or at least let others think logically for me! I am going to call a doctor that Roan recommended first thing in the morning. Hopefully, I can get an appointment with him tomorrow. I will do whatever he tells me to do. I really don't want to injure myself to the point that I can't run.

The chicken coop is finished and now is home to 15 chickens (1 flew the coop, and Hunter thought it was a toy!)

Kelly has planted the garden and hopefully it will produce much fruit and veggies!

On a more serious note, I ask that you all keep us in your prayers. Jared's mother had her 6 month review last week and the state changed his plan to adoption. This was a shock to us, because we were told numerous times that the plan would stay reunification for the next 6 months. I won't go into all the details, but just please remember all involved in what could be a life changing event in your prayers.

Life is crazy, but God is good!

Mansion 5K

2009-04-18T12:27:00.000-07:00

This morning when I woke at 5:30, I went into the kitchen to make a cup of coffee and a peanut butter fold-over for a boost of energy! When I opened the cabinet door to get the bread, a tea pitcher fell from the top shelf and hit me square on the bridge of my nose. It hurt soooooo bad, I thought to myself is this a sign of things to come and should I just go crawl back into bed?! I rubbed my throbbing nose, made my coffee and sandwich, and headed off to a hot shower! I had planned on being at the race by 6:15, but actually didn't get there until closer to 6:30. On the way, I witnessed a beautiful sunrise and an extra bonus, an awesome rainbow. That was my sign that all was going to be good! It was OK that I was running behind, because so were the race coordinators! I took a very slow warm-up jog and then off to the start line. As soon as the start was announced I hit start on my Garmin, and to my sheer dismay, it wasn't displaying my pace or distance! Can you say - Frustration...... I shook it off and just tried to concentrate on my pace and breathing. I ran pretty well and only took 2 maybe 3 short walk breaks. It began to rain and by the end of the race I was wet, but it felt great! At the finish, I saw my time was 34:00:04, and I was really disappointed, because I had set a personal goal of 32:00!

Nearing the finish!

After returning my chip, I went over to the sidelines with Jimmy, Olivia, and Julie to watch others come in. Jimmy informed me that the course was 2 tenths longer than it was supposed to be! That meant I did better on my time! Roan told me how to use a pace calculator to figure my actual 3.1 time and it was 31:55!! I am very happy with that!

"Are we having fun yet?"

After finishing, Roan went back and ran with Jenny, Season and Megan coaching them to the finish!

I had a great time seeing everyone and seeing them accomplish their goals! I am concerned about my knee, and hope that it will be okay. It seems like a pretty common issue, and hopefully with proper care I can manage it without a serious injury. I am looking forward to the next race in a few weeks, this time a 1oK! I do plan on taking it easy and slow and enjoying myself!

Jenny, Megan, Season, Becky, Lindsey, Roan & me

We had several men from our church who also ran and all placed!

Way to go Scott, Jackie & John!

Happy Easter

2009-04-17T18:59:00.000-07:00

We were blessed with a beautiful day to celebrate Easter with our family!

We, of course, started our day very early with 4 little sleepy, bed heads coming downstairs to see what the Easter bunny left! Everyone headed back up after breakfast to get dressed and watch their new movie, The Velveteen Rabbit. After church, it has been tradition for my family to all come here for lunch and an egg hunt.

Avery is thrilled with her loot!

Forget the candy, show us the money!

Reese's Pieces for breakfast! Doesn't get any better than this!

All dressed and ready for church

Hunting eggs

Kelly planting his garden with lots of enthusiastic helpers!
Hope they are as excited when it is time to weed and hoe!

Even Hunter found an egg and believe it or not peeled it himself!

Mama, Christy, Carter and Lesley enjoying the beautiful weather!

Andrew Carter 2 weeks old

John Ashford loving riding the 4-wheeler with Stephen

Johnson Annual Egg Hunt

2009-04-15T12:24:00.000-07:00

It has become a spring tradition for us to attend this fun event. Unfortunately, I had to miss this year because I had a bridal shower here. Kelly was a super trooper and took all the children, including John Ashford! The kids had a great time playing on the fort, finding eggs (I think Roan hid around 600!) and eating lots of candy! Thanks Johnson family for hosting this each year!

John Ashford & John Parker

Carson & Clay

Ashton & Jared

"All these rules are stressing me out!"

Ready, Set, Find

Avery

Easter Egg Fun!

2009-04-14T21:23:00.000-07:00

Wow, I am so far behind blogging! How does this always happen to me? There are so many things that I want to post about, and I become overwhelmed when I start thinking how behind I am! So, I am going to take baby steps and try to make myself simply the post.
Less is better, right?! Here goes......
Last week was one of the hardest I have had in a while. I had so much to do, and so little time, but I did manage to squeeze in some fun for the children. Thursday, we dyed eggs. I had never done this with so many children, alone! Usually, I have others around to help supervise. All went pretty well with the exception of a few spills, some broken eggs, and John Ashford thinking that he could drink the dye and also bathe in it! He had bluish-green hands when he finished. I set everything up for them and let them have free reign, expressing their artistic sides! They all enjoyed it very much!

Eagerly waiting to start the dying

"OOOHHHHH...."

Jared

Everyone busy at work!

Avery taking care of the broken ones!

Old McKelly Had a Farm.......!

2009-04-10T21:09:00.001-07:00

We received an early Easter arrival yesterday! Chickens.....16 of them! Kelly has been talking about chickens, goats and cows for months(think he's going through some mid-life crisis or ful-filling some of his missed out childhood experiences!) I kept saying I am not a farmer's wife, buying my eggs at Kroger suits me just fine, but....needless to say my children are now the proud owners and caretakers of 16 very cute, but not for long, little chicks! They are in a large Rubbermaid container in our garage with a heat lamp. Jake and Hunter are lying on the rug next to them, chicksitting, I hope and not dreaming of nuggets! Kelly and the boys, with much assistance from Stephen, are going to built a coop in the next few weeks. This should be very interesting.......

I will post better pictures later!

Spring Cleaning by Force

2009-04-08T12:12:00.000-07:00

It is always good to have events in our home, because otherwise some things may never get tended to. It seems like we put it into a higher gear to complete unfinished tasks or things we really try to avoid, like the garage-UGGG, when we have a deadline! This weekend I am hosting a bridal shower for our niece, Nikki.
This is the only shower she is having, thus led to mailing out 7o invitations! I know from past experience that we can count on about 1/2 of those to turn out. I actually gave Kelly his "honey do" list weeks ago, and he has completed most of it. Me on the other hand, have not even put a dent in all I need to do! I am stressing out at this point! I have been doing a little each day, I mean very little in cleaning out closets, drawers, cabinets, etc...... I still have windows to clean, front and back porches to pressure wash and sweep, grass to mow, field to bush hog (not me) food to buy and prepare (I have my list, but am open to easy finger food ideas,any suggestions?) our entire house to clean, and trying to keep up with my running schedule! I know it will all get done, because it always does, but just thinking about it make me have heart palpitations! I am sure you are wondering why I am typing this and not up working! I was lying down to get John Ashford to sleep and now he is.... so "Hi Ho Hi Ho it's off to work I go!"

Week in Review

2009-04-03T21:10:00.000-07:00

Let's see if I can recall what all has gone on with the Mims this week.........

Monday, my sweet friend, Kim was kind and brave enough to watch my kiddos, so that I could welcome a new addition to our family. My cousin, Christy, delivered the cutest, little baby boy!His name is Andrew Carter and bless his sweet heart he has 5 older sisters. Let's start praying for the little man now! Thanks Kim, the children had a wonderful time and can't wait to come again! After picking up the kids, we had piano and allergy shot. Kelly came home a little early and practiced some baseball with the boys, while I ran at the hospital track.

Tuesday, we had school and then Avery had gymnastics class. I dropped off the children with Kelly at the office and went to Kroger to grocery shop, saved $46 with coupons and plus card savings! I am trying harder to be a smarter shopper.... every penny counts! Rushed home from the grocery store, unloaded and put away groceries, changed clothes, jumped back in the van with everyone and went to the track, ran 3 miles, then straight to Carson's soccer game. Whew... can you say exhausting!

Wednesday was a little more relaxed. We had school and did some house cleaning. We didn't have to get in the van until late afternoon! It was my daddy's birthday, so we went out to eat before church to celebrate his 54th! Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Thursday, I began the day cleaning out the "catch all" closet under the stairs. This is our safe place in case of bad weather, and storms were predicted for the day..... so had to clean out to make room for 5 children and me! Thankfully, we didn't have to take refuge there! Soccer games were cancelled because of extremely wet field conditions..... Yessssssss! We were going to the track to run, but it looked like we had more rain moving in, so Kelly got on the treadmill, while I started supper. After he finished, the skies were cleared, so I decided that I would run on our little, country road. The temperature was wonderful, and I felt great. My only fear were dogs chasing, biting me and being run over by a car! I obviously needed to fear severe thunderstorms, high wind, and treacherous rainfall! The plan was for me to end my run at Christy's house, and Kelly was going to pick me up there. I made it to her house about 2 minutes before the storm came over us! Next time, I will check the radar! I came home to a clean kitchen and was able to take a quite, peaceful uninterrupted bath..... thanks to my bodyguard, I mean sweet hubbie!

Today we were on our way to co-op, and Jared started singing a tall tale song about John Henry, and I realized that I had forgotten the video of Paul Bunyan that I was showing to my group! I had made it all the way to the Trace, in Kelly's truck because I had to take 12 feet logs (cardboard carpet tubes) for our logging games and had to turn and go back home! Oh my, not a good start! All turned out okay..... I was only 14 minutes late, and there were several other mamas who came in after me! Our co-op was great! We reviewed the Pacific and Southwest regions by playing a game, kids created some beautiful sand art, talked about tall tales and wrote our own, and the best part was going outside to chalk out the diameter and height of the sequoias! Wow, I can't wait to behold that sight, Lord willing, one day on a vacation with my sweeties!

When I got home this afternoon, I had received a gift from Kelly in the mail! It is a Garmin running watch, and I am so incredibly excited about having one! After the race last weekend, I wanted one so badly! Kelly says that I am so spoiled, but I choose to think that I am so LOVED!
Thanks honey! He did use it this afternoon during his run, he ran 3.1 miles in 33 something! Yeah! I am so proud!

That's all for now! Gotta get some sleep! John Parker and Carson have baseball practice at 9:30 and 10:30 in the morning! I am going to run 3.5 miles at Ballard Park while they practice. Wish me luck, this will be the most I have ever run!

Disclaimer!
Excuse the rambling and please disregard all spelling and grammatical errors..... I am one, extremely tired mama!

Training for My First 10K

2009-03-31T20:38:00.000-07:00

It's official, I just registered for the Corinth Coca Cola 10K on May 2nd! I know that I am really in over my head with this one...... but I will finish even if I have to crawl over the finish line! Roan has helped me with my training plan for the next 5 weeks, and Kelly came in yesterday with new running shoes!!! Huge motivator!!! He ran 2 miles yesterday, and we ran 3 together this afternoon! I have been running on the treadmill, but the past two days I have gone to a track and it is so much better! The weather has been wonderful, and the time seems to go by quicker. Today, I was 1/4 mile from being finished and Avery came running across the track telling me that she had to "potty!" I had to stop and go find a tree to squat behind! After all that, she couldn't do it!It wasn't fun to stop so abruptly and have to start back! Not much fun at all.... but I did finish!!! Next time, we will have a potty break before going to the track!

Pontotoc 5K Ridge Run

2009-03-28T20:26:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday night at church Scott, a dear friend, said "Hey you're going to run next Saturday right?" I told him that there was no way that I could finish a 5K because I had been running very little since January, like maybe once or sometimes twice a week for only 2 miles! He was very persistent in "encouraging" me to run, he even said that he would run with me! I ran 3 times this week for 3 miles between 39-37 minutes, so I knew that I would probably not finish under 40! Throughout the week, I watched the weather thinking, "Ok, if it is raining, then that is my ticket out of this!" Ha! No such luck, Roan said the rain will feel great!! So much for that excuse! Kelly and the kids got up with me this morning, in the RAIN, to go and give me moral support! I am so glad that they did! I was a nervous wreck! Roan had said that there would be lots of walkers at this race, that was a relief, I felt better about not being the last to the finish line! Well, walkers decided to stay home! If I wasn't nervous before then that was icing on the cake, I felt like throwing up and the race hadn't even started! There weren't a whole lot of runners, so I'm thinking that I am surely going to be the last to drag myself across the finish line! Oh yeah, forgot to mention that my "encourager/motivator" failed to show up because it was raining too hard! Can't wait till I see him at church in the morning! Anyway, Jimmy offered me the use of his super cool Garmin to use during the run-loved it-thanks Jimmy! The gun sounded right at 9:00 and off we went! I felt super the first mile, I was running at a little over 9 minutes pace, I have to say that most of this was downhill, gotta love gravity! At mile 2, I am beginning to think I am not going to be able to finish this, my legs were so tight! I can't remember how many hills there were, but it was brutal, especially the last one! I had to walk it! At the top of the hill, I could see the finish, what a beautiful sight it was! My kiddos saw me coming in and ran to meet me and run back to the finish with me! I finished in 34:56! I had shaved some time off from my 1st 5K- I was thrilled!!!! We stayed to see the awards presented, and I was surprisingly shocked to have my name called for 3rd place in my age division, I must say that I am not sure if there were any others behind me, but hey! it's a medal, right?!! Roan did super placing 1st, not sure exactly what her time was around 25-26. Jackie, another friend from church, placed 1st in his age division! WHOO HOO!! Kelly took me out on a date tonight to celebrate! We went to Ichiban and had sushi-so yummy! After eating we hung out at Barnes and Noble waiting for our movie to start. We had a very nice, quite, relaxing night together! Thanks momma for watching all the kiddos!

Here are some pictures that Kelly took with his I-Phone!

Nearing the finish!

Me, Roan & Jackie

Pray for Stellan

2009-03-24T11:03:00.000-07:00

I'm asking all of you to please pray for MckMama's Stellan...he has been in the hospital with some very serious heart issues for the past few days, and it seems to be getting worse. Most of you know Stellen's story, but if not, I encourage you to read about this little miracle. He desperately needs another miracle to survive, so please, if you have some time, pray for Stellan and his medical team, as well as his family.

Catching Up!

2009-03-18T18:54:00.000-07:00

So life around here has been incredibly busy, but when is it not? Last week, we had our Contenders of the Faith and Keepers of the Home meeting. This club comes together once a month with the parents leading all the devotions and activities. The boys learned all about magnets, and the girls learned how to make chenille and sew pillows from it and the younger girls painted cute, little flower pots and planted snapdragons. The kids enjoy this time so much. On Tuesday, Kelly took the day off to mulch all our flower beds and this was an all day job, but he had lots of helpers!

Carson also started his spring soccer season Tuesday night and will be playing twice a week until May. On Friday, we had our Konos co-op. We had studied the states of Alaska and Hawaii and culminated with lots of fun activities on Friday. The kids made leis, Hawaiian headbands, volcanoes and snowmen. Also, the kids enjoyed snow cones and fruit smoothies. Carson did his report in large group about Eskimos, and he did an awesome job! After our sack lunches, we had a mom who grew up in Hawaii, come and teach our children 2 Hawaiian dances. Everyone had a great time! Saturday, I spent the entire day cleaning house, and it was a MESS!!!! We hosted our monthly Bible study Saturday night. This week we have been finishing school around 11:30 and after lunch for the past 3 days the kids have been outside playing, fishing, walking the trails, riding the go-cart, and today withOUT permission went wading, swimming in Papa and Nana's lake!!!! I was not a happy mama! I am pretty sure that will never happen again. With all the rain last week and all the playing outside, I have been spending lots of time doing muddy laundry. They have been begging me to go swimming, so I can't wait for the water to heat up so they can have some good, clean fun!!!!

Here are some pictures from our co-op.

Carson

Claire and Hannah

All the kids had a blast erupting their volcanoes!

Tammy trying to crack the coconut!

Carson & Caroline enjoying smoothies

John Parker doing the hula!

Avery

Jared is ready to eat his snowman!

Yee Haw! John Ashford is 2!!!!

2009-03-08T13:51:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we celebrated, my nephew, John Ashford's 2nd birthday.

This is the guest of honor 15 minutes before his party!

He was playing outside with Carson and fell in a mud puddle.

I took him upstairs and gave him a quick bath!

All cleaned and ready for some "cowboy" fun!

Reid

Sam & Julie

Avery & Leah

Haley Brooke

All the kids enjoyed digging for treasures in John Ashford's new sandbox!

Anna & Maddie

John Ashford got lots of fun gifts, but this was the boys favorite that he received. I am sure they will enjoy teaching John Ashford how to make lots of cool creations.

Stephen, Bennett and Manny

Time for some yummy cupcakes! Sure was good! Can I have seconds?

Happy Birthday! We love you!

Hello Sunshine!

2009-03-06T21:19:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful day! This morning we met with our Konos group for co-op and afterwards we all went to the Natchez Trace for a picnic and hike. We have been studying the Midwest and Rocky Mountain States for the past few weeks. Tammy, one of the moms in our group, is an expert backpacker. She gave an excellent presentation with lots of interesting information. This was right up John Parker and Carson's alley. They are ready to go and buy all the neat, little gadgets that Tammy showed and go backpacking in the Rockies!!!! The weather couldn't have been more perfect for a hike. It was really a fun time, and the kids loved it!

John Parker giving his presentation on "The Pony Express"

Tammy, the backpacking queen!

Carson volunteering for Ms. Tammy's presentation

Our small group learning about the Lewis & Clark Expedition and making nature journals

Ready for the hike!!

Avery

Tammy and baby Abigail

Sam, Joshua & Avery on the trail!

Ben, Carson, Jonah, John Parker, Clay, Sam & Eli

Look at all the vans!!!!

You might be a homeschooler if...........

Jared Update

2009-03-03T19:00:00.000-08:00

Jared has been with us for almost 4 months, hard to believe. This morning his case worker carried him to a doctor's appointment in Memphis. She picked him up at 8:30, and he still isn't home and it's 9:15. He was supposed to be back by 2, but the case worker had another foster child she had to wait on to have admitted into the hospital. I talked to her awhile ago, and she said that Jared had been a real trooper, and he had fallen asleep in the waiting room of the hospital. It has been really different without him here today, I have missed him. I have thought many times about when he leaves to be with his mom again. I know that it will be bitter sweet. Our prayers have been all along for her recovery and reuniting her family again. Jared has done so well here with our family. Jared very seldom talks about his mom and has only cried a couple of times missing her, but some days he will talk constantly about her and his brother. He is trying to remember. It is so sad and breaks my heart for him. We meet with the case workers and his mother in a few weeks for a permanency planning meeting. We have been told that 1 of 3 things will happen. The case workers based on information from us and progress that his mom has or hasn't made will make a recommendation to the judge at her 6 month court of jurisdiction review. The judge will either place Jared back with his mother, give her 6 more months to get it together, or change his plan to adoption. We have been told that this is pretty basic procedure, and lots of times parents will understand the seriousness of losing their child permanently and will really step up to the plate. I really feel like I am in the dark most of the time. What information I have gotten, I have had to basically quiz them, asking tons of questions. Wendy just called and said they should be here soon. She said that he was wonderful today, that she couldn't have asked for a better child. She said that he had talked about us all day, including the dogs! They took him to Build-A-Bear in some of their down time, and he is so excited and ready to get here to show everyone! This experience as foster parents has been one with lots of different emotions experienced from all of us. We are just taking it all one day at a time. Pray for peace for whatever the future holds with Jared.

I've got the blues.....

2009-03-02T20:30:00.000-08:00

I am singing the winter time blues! I am so tired of this crazy winter weather we have been having and all the sickness that comes with it..... I want sunshine, warm temperatures, birds singing, grass greening, flowers blooming, kids swinging, and the list goes on! I don't know what it is, but it seems like every year between Christmas and spring time, I get the blues, not depression really, but just a yearning for new birth, spring cleaning, yard work! I love being outside planting flowers and enjoying the fresh air, it truly is therapy for me. Growing up I never understood my mama's love for flowers and being outdoors working so diligently! I thought it was so silly to waste time that way, but now I see. I am making my list of all those things I want to do in and around our house, and it is insanely long, but I am ready to start checking them off one at a time. Sunny days are coming............

Sleep Over!!!

2009-02-27T23:10:00.000-08:00

Boys enjoying hamburgers

Tonight John Parker has some of his friends here for a sleep over. Kelly grilled hamburgers, which were delicious, by the way, and John Parker wanted nachos and cheese dip. Oh so healthy, but the boys really enjoyed it! They have played X-Box, Wii, they have been running like a bunch of wild bucks up and down the hall upstairs battling with light sabers! Kelly just went up and told them to get in their pj's and settle down. They are watching Star Wars and are very quite now. I just hope that they go to sleep soon and don't wake up before 5 a.m.!!!

Fun times!!!!!!!

Ryan, John Parker, Matthew, Alexander,

Clay, Ben & Carson

John Ashford about to dump his cake!

Doesn't he look so sweet with his new, big boy haircut!

Happy Birthday John Parker!

2009-02-17T00:03:00.000-08:00

Our firstborn is 10 years old!!! What a blessing the past 10 years have been! What joy we have experienced seeing and watching John Parker grow into such a wonderful young man. He is a great big brother to Carson and Avery, always enjoying being with them, protecting them, playing with them. He has really grown and matured so much over the past year. Sometimes, I hear him say things or see him do something, and I have to step back and remind myself to soak it all in, don't take a single milestone, conversation, smile, hug, laugh, or moment for granted!!!!

Happy Birthday John Parker..... We love you so much!

3 years

4 Years

5 Years

6 Years

7 Years

8 Years

9 Years

Day Six - Animal Kingdom

2009-02-16T20:04:00.001-08:00

We spent our last day at Animal Kingdom. As soon as we entered the park,we headed straight to Mt.Everest! This is the best roller coaster in all of the parks. The boys talked about nothing else but this since they found out we were going back to Disney. We spent probably a good hour or more riding. Most of us at least rode it twice, some even three times! Lots of fun!!!!

I had never seen the "tree lady" before, but just minutes before I did, Roan was telling me about her and how strange she was! She walked on stilts and moved around in the trees. She was kinda creepy, but very beautiful!

Mt. Everest

You can see us coming down right above the tree top!

Hidden Mickey

Avery and Pocahontas

Jared, Avery, Jimmy the Cricket, Carson & John Parker

Another Hidden Mickey

Donald & Avery

Kali River Rapids

Just about the time the rain came in, it was time for the rapids!

This was the very end of our day, so the timing could not have been more perfect!

The kids really enjoyed this ride! They loved getting wet!

Wet, tired & hungry

We all went back to the hotel and started packing for home.

Jimmy & Roan decided to leave Thursday night and break up the trip into two days.

Kelly and I stayed and got up early Friday morning and headed home.

We had a wonderful time, and the kids can't wait to go AGAIN!!!!!!!

Fun time and great memories!!!!!!!

Day Five - Magic Kingdom

2009-02-06T17:50:00.001-08:00

On our second day at Magic Kingdom, we celebrated Leah and Sam's birthday. The first half of the day the girls and Sam went to breakfast at Cinderella's castle, and the boys all went to ride the thrill rides again.

Avery

John Parker & Carson

Avery, Rebecca, Cinderella, Olivia, Julie & Leah

Finally, we meet Cinderella! She greeted us as we entered her castle.
Avery loved meeting all the princesses and getting their autographs.

Snow White & Avery

Avery, her favorite princess, Aurora & Leah

Leah & Roan

Thanks Roan for treating us to a wonderful time and a delicious breakfast! We ate so much that we didn't even want anything for the rest of the day!

My favorite princess

Giving Belle a hug!

Best Buddies!

Avery & Dumbo

Disney would not have been complete without Avery riding Dumbo!

That is all she remembered from her first trip here when she was 2.

The girls having tea in Minnie's kitchen

The boys checking out the fridge!

Avery in Minnie's back flower garden

Hidden Mickey

Jared at Mickey's

Parker in front of Mickey's house

Mickey & Minnie with the kids

Clay, Carson & John Parker just off of Splash Mountain

Avery & Goofy

Boys in a sword fight at Pirate's of the Caribbean!

My little pirate

Our last picture before leaving Magic Kingdom!

What a fun time we had!

Until next time......

Day Four - Hollywood Studios

2009-02-04T21:05:00.000-08:00

Our Family

Johnson Family

Isn't this so pretty!

John Parker, Carson & Clay
Are they ready for Tower of Terror!?

Parents Beware!
This is what happens when you leave Kelly in charge!

Carson on a Star Wars speeder

John Parker in front of Star Tours

Pixar's Block Party

This was something new from last time we were here.

They played lots of fun, dance songs like YMCA and the cast members pulled visitors out of the crowd to participate. Avery went down to dance, but decided different after she got there! Very fun and entertaining!

Toy Story, Monsters Inc., & A Bug's Life characters were all stars of the show!

Woody & Jesse

Buzz Lightyear

Couldn't tell ya....

Again, no clue!
Cute though!

Boo

Cute in a weird sort of way!

Don't know...

Sulley!

Mike... Kinda Creepy Looking!

Stars of A Bug's Life

Kids with Lightning McQueen & Tow Mater
Jared loves Lightning!

Avery in front of the new Toy Story Mania ride!

John Parker

Avery & Kelly ready to do some blastin'!

Rebecca & Julie

Olivia

What precious, beautiful ladies!

Love, love, love this park! We all survived the Tower of Terror and loved Rockin' Roller Coaster! The boys all enjoyed the stunt show while the girls went to the American Idol Experience. That was really fun! Another great day at Disney!

EPCOT- Day Three

2009-02-03T14:11:00.000-08:00

Another beautiful day!

Nothing but blue skies!

Avery holding on tight with her

little scratched nose and bruised forehead!

All are refreshed, smiling and ready for another full day of adventure!

Waiting to enter the park!

Almost the entire crew! Sam was camera shy!

"Umm... Sam what do you think? Should we go to Finding Nemo?"

"Sounds like a plan to me!"

Our little navigators!

The Seas is a great exhibit!
We all enjoyed the aquarium, Finding Nemo the ride and the interactive show, "Turtle Talk with Crush."

Hidden Mickey

Snack Time!

This was in the exhibit The Land. So cool how they do this!

All the boys playing in the fountain at Morocco

Avery & Sam

Posing with Donald in Mexico

We're Vikings!!!!

Sunset in Paris
As close as I'm going to get, anyway!

Italy

Carson & Clay in France

Some were still smiling after 10 hours!
Waiting for the big firework show at the World Showcase.

It was a long day, but all in all it was a wonderful day. We were quite exhausted by the end! After showers, the kids were in dreamland once again (the parents too)!!!!!

Magic Kingdom - Day Two

2009-02-02T20:29:00.000-08:00

Cinderella's Castle

Day two began with a wonderful devotion time coordinated by Jimmy and Kelly. Afterwards, we headed out to Magic Kingdom. What a truly magical place for those of all ages. There is a little something for everyone, so this was a great start to our week! What a full and fun day of exploring and experiencing new and exciting adventures. From the laid back exploration of the Swiss Family Robinson's Treehouse and Tom Sawyer's Island to the more adventurous rides on Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain, and Space Mountain. We had a lot of brave children with us!
Leah rode every roller coaster and loved them all! Each time she got off she would say, "I didn't even scream." Avery rode Splash and Thunder Mountain, but when asked did she like it, she would say no! We had beautiful weather and lots of fun!

Olivia, Leah, Jared, Rebecca, Julie and a few monkeys
peeking from behind the leaves!

Jared, Clay, Carson & Sam

Kelly took this picture of Jimmy and Roan taking a picture of each other!

Crossing the bridge at Tom Sawyer's Island

7 of the 10!
Jared, Avery, Clay, Carson, John Parker, Julie & Olivia

John Parker "holdin' down" the fort!

Carson & Clay

Avery and Sam waiting patiently while everyone rides

Space Mountain!

Too Cute!

Disney - Day One

2009-02-01T19:59:00.000-08:00

We began the second leg of our trip to Disney leaving Atlanta early Saturday morning. We all had a good sleep and a hot breakfast and got back on the road. The kids were great traveling, just anxious to get there. We heard the famous questions, "Are we there yet? and How much longer now?" a couple of hundred times.

Parker, Clay and Carson in the back playing Game Boys

Avery and Jared watched several movies and slept quite a bit

Finally, we arrived around 5 o'clock! After checking in to our hotel and unloading the vans, we all headed to the bus which took us to Downtown Disney. We ate supper and did a little shopping. My boys had Christmas and birthday money that they wanted to spend in the Lego Imagination Store. They love this store and have talked about shopping there for months. We also looked around in the mega World of Disney store. They have everything imaginable in there!

Avery and Leah

This is the last picture of Avery without a scratched forehead and nose. She took a dive off a brick wall, just a few minutes after arriving at Downtown Disney!

The whole crew minus the daddies!

Avery and Leah trying on Mickey Ears

Life size Lego creations!

Boys with Lego Bionicle

Home from Disney!

2009-01-31T20:28:00.000-08:00

We arrived home safely yesterday afternoon from our week long Disney vacation with the Johnsons! We enjoyed beautiful weather right up until the last 3 hours of our last day in Animal Kingdom, and it began to rain. It was a wild, but great time vacationing with 10 children and 4 adults! The children enjoyed having each other to ride rides with, many memories were made! I spent most of yesterday afternoon unpacking and washing. We all were exhausted and in bed by 9 last night! We had a wonderful time, but it is always so good to be home!

Happy Birthday Carson!

2009-01-16T12:37:00.000-08:00

Today my second born turned 8! What a joy he has been in our lives! When he is serious, he is serious! When he is silly, he is silly! He is always the little joker, even when he's not trying, he can make you smile. He can say the funniest things and have you rolling with laughter.

John Parker, Alexander, Clay, Jared, Matthew & Carson

My how the time flies! Here are some pictures of years past birthdays.

I love seeing these pictures and the changes from year to year.

They also make my heart ache just a little, seeing my baby grow up so quickly.

I need more time!!!!!

2nd B-Day

3rd B-Day

4th B-Day

5th B-Day

6th B-Day

7th B-Day

8th B-Day

This year the boys wanted to have a sleep-over party! We told Carson he could have 5 boys stay the night. They had a ball! At one point, all 8 boys were running up and down the hall upstairs having a light saber battle, this is when I really started re-thinking the idea!!! Fortunately, it only lasted a short time and nothing got broken, only one picture got knocked off the wall!
I popped popcorn for them, and they all settled down and watched Star Wars II.

All were fast asleep by midnite!

Happy Birthday My Sweet Little Man!!!!

Friends

2009-01-11T19:45:00.000-08:00

Norm, Barbara Jo, Emily, Kara, & Sabrina

Fourteen years ago, when Kelly and I married, we moved to Chicago. He worked as a sales representative for Action and this was his training territory. I had never been more than an hour away from home, so moving to Chicago was incredibly scary! You know God works in our lives everyday, and this move definitely had God's hand all over it. See Kelly wasn't a Christian at the time, but he was supportive of my desire to find a congregation to worship. God led us to a church where Norm Webb was the preacher. He and his wife, Barbara Jo, were from Alabama, yes... our state's next door neighbors, now we weren't the only ones with those "cute" southern accents! They were also young, newly weds just like us! They were so kind to us, and we became fast friends. The best part about it was that Kelly really started to show an interest in learning the truth, and Norm was a wonderful teacher. He had several home Bible studies with us, and was incredibly patient and helpful in answering all of Kelly's questions. One cold, very cold night Kelly showed his desire to be baptized, it was late, probably around 10 or so, and he wanted to be baptized in Lake Michigan!!!!! Norm talked him into going to the church instead and be baptized in the heated baptistery. We were only in Chicago for eight short months, but those were some of the most important in shaping our marriage! I am so thankful for our time there and the lifelong friendship we formed with Norm and Barbara Jo. We don't get to see them much, but there will always be a special place in our heart for them. This weekend Kelly's military school was in Huntsville so the kids, and I went with him. Norm and Barbara Jo have been working with a congregation in Athens, right outside of Huntsville, for many years now. Last night we were able to meet for dinner at Red Robin and visit. It was so great to catch up and see each others' children and how much they've grown! The restaurant was very crowded so we had to split up into two tables. Their girls and our boys sat at one table and we sat at one right across. It was so funny to watch them! For the first several minutes, none of them said a word, no one looked up from their coloring sheets! They did warm up some before our meal was finished, but still I don't think a whole lot of conversation was going on.

Maybe one day (wink, fingers crossed!), years down the road, when they are courting each other they will look back on these pictures and laugh! After eating, we walked down to take a group picture of the kids. Then we went to the Chocolate Crocodile and had a delicious treat! I had a huge chocolate covered strawberry! Yum

Jared, Sabrina, Emily, Kara, Avery, Carson & John Parker

Girls enjoying chocolate covered marshmallows

Carson is in heaven - decisions... decisions!

We had a wonderful time!

Happy 14th Wedding Anniversary!

2009-01-07T07:50:00.000-08:00

Today marks the day that I married my prince charming 14 years ago! Our marriage has been one of many blessings. Kelly and I have grown closer over the years, growing and maturing, experiencing life's trials, ups and downs, happy and sad times. We have laughed together, cried together, celebrated together and sorrowed together. We have watched our family grow from just the two of us to now the six of us! It has been a joyous ride! The thing that I am most proud of is our relationship with God, and how we both have grown closer together with him in our center! Kelly is a wonderful husband, a great father to our precious children. He is a wonderful provider, working tirelessly making sure we have what we need and enabling me to be home with our children. I am so proud of his work ethic and the example he sets for our boys! I am looking forward to the next 14 and experiencing with Kelly all that the years may bring.

The above pictures were taken on our 10th anniversary cruise, which actually didn't happen until just before our 13th (last December), due to the event that Kelly was serving in Iraq on our 10th! Am I confusing you yet?! I am sure that I am because I am confusing myself! Anyway, we enjoyed our second honeymoon so much. It was so incredibly beautiful! It was a wonderful time together. By the way, our first honeymoon was spent at Disney, which we will be visiting again in just 16 days!!!!!

Back to School

2009-01-05T12:15:00.000-08:00

After a one month break, we started back to school today. At least 4 of us did! John Parker woke up sometime in the night with the dreaded "BUG" again!!!! This is 4 times for him since October - I am about to pull my hair out!!!!!! I stripped all the bedding, sprayed everything with Lysol, quarantined him to his room and banned the others from entering! I am just praying that no one else gets it! School went well with the other 3. Jared and Avery did great with their new reading book Get Ready for the Code! We also started our KONOS States and Regions unit, we will be participating in a 16 week coop this semester. This is the largest coop we have ever been a part of with 13 families and around 50 children. I am so thankful for the ladies who coordinated this effort and laid it all out for stress-free execution!!!! The kids are so excited, I am just hoping to keep my head above water. I know that it will be a wonderful, fun experience for all of us! Positive Thinking!!!!!! Happy Thoughts!!!!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T22:37:00.000-08:00

For the past five years or so, it has become tradition to ring in the New Year at our home with our church family. This year was no different! After Bible study, everyone came out, and we had a great night of fun, food and fellowship. Lots of us played different games while some just enjoyed visiting with one another. Those who were brave enough went out and watched some fireworks...... it was soooo cold out there! Several chose to head home a little early, but surprisingly the majority stayed and welcomed 2009 here with us! I am wishing you all a very peaceful and prosperous 2009! May God bless you and yours this year!

Stephen, Kelly, John, Ray, Scott & Carrie Ann

Becky, Amanda, Beth & Bennett, Leslie & Lisa

Leigh & Annie

Barbara

Roan, Julie & Sam

Annie & Emily

Jim, Scott, Johnathan, Manny & Bennett

Jerry, Stephen, Johnathan & John

Christmas!

2008-12-30T21:20:00.000-08:00

Christmas has come and gone again, but not without lots of fun memories made and a few new traditions adopted! We enjoyed our time spent with both our families! In the past we have spent Christmas Eve with my family and Christmas Day with Kelly's. We changed things up a bit this time. We celebrated with my side on the Saturday before Christmas and with Kelly's side on the Sunday before. That totally freed up Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to relax and enjoy ourselves in a much less time crunched way! After services Wednesday night, we came home and Kelly read the kids a story about the candy cane, we tried to recite "Twas the Night Before Christmas" from memory, and then the kids opened their Christmas PJ's. They already know what they are before opening, but they still get excited about them each year!

They happily and eagerly got ready for bed, they knew they had to be fast asleep for Santa to come! Santa came, and he did not disappoint- all the children were thrilled with their gifts! We all sat down for the traditional breakfast casserole and then spent most of the day playing, cleaning, assembling Legos, cleaning, trying out new board games, cleaning, eating almost all the contents of the stockings, and did I mention cleaning -where does it all come from!

Jared testing his new race track

Carson assembling Legos

Avery serving tea with her new set

John Parker & more Lego assembly

Watching the Polar Express

My parents, Stephen, Lesley and John Ashford came over for a delicious steak lunch! Kelly and I then took the kids to see Marley and Me. I am sorry to say that it was a terrible disappointment to me due to some of the content! We still had a fun time and will probably continue this tradition in the years to come! This is a Christmas that will always be remembered! It was a joy to have Jared here with us and share with our family during this wonderful holiday season!

John Ashford

Hunter & Jake sitting in the window wanting badly to join the fun inside!

'Tis the Season.....

2008-12-18T20:54:00.000-08:00

"Tis the season to be jolly... fa la la la la ....!!!" Can you believe that Christmas is here once again?! The Mims' crew are all ready, eagerly anticipating and counting down the days! Our home has been a flurry of activity for the past couple of weeks! Last week we caroled at Cedars Nursing Home, which was a wonderful experience for both the kids and myself.

Notice Jared in both pictures looking up at John Parker and Carson trying to figure out the words to the songs! I have to say that when visiting and talking with the residents, he was so precious! He would go right up and hug them, hold their hands, and talk to them like he had known them his whole life!

We also did lots of baking and candy making! I am sure that I have already put on 5 extra pounds just sneaking a piece here and there! We made fudge, dipped pretzels, Reindeer food, peanut butter balls, pecan crispies, pralines (which were a flop, but still tasted yummy!), cheese balls and one of the cutest goodies were the Rudolph cookies!

Yesterday, we went to the Johnson's for an ornament swap. It was lots of fun!

Jared, Clay, Carson, John Parker & Matthew taking a moment to pose!

Everyone enjoyed visiting with friends and eating some great food!

The girls patiently waiting for their number to be called!

Checking out their ornaments!

Today Avery attended a cookie party at her friend Lilly Grace's house! The girls all enjoyed lunch, cookie decorating, and even made some super cute crafts!

Isn't this cake adorable?! Lilly Grace's Mimi made it!

Leigh was kind enough to take pictures for me during the party!

Here they are posing for a picture for their picture frame.

Having fun!

So cute!

Hard at work! Santa's little elves!

Thanks so much for hosting this fun party for the girls! And double thanks for allowing me to do my grocery shopping during the party! Avery had a great time and can't wait till next year!

Tomorrow we will be staying home to clean and get ready for my family's Christmas gathering here on Saturday evening. Hope everyone is enjoying this holiday season! Fa la la la la!!!!

Happy 36th to Me!

2008-12-12T20:48:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is my official birthday, but tonight I celebrated with my family. Kelly picked up Pizza Hut Pasta Bakes, bread sticks and a delicious cake from Creative Cakes for our dinner. My family all enjoyed the meal, and I enjoyed not having to cook it! Kelly and the kids gave me a Wii Fit, and it is the coolest thing ever! Technology is amazing. You start by creating your own profile by choosing a Mii, entering your height and age information, and do a few quick tests. There is a BMI check, this is done by entering your height then standing on the Wii Balance Board to let it read your weight. After you've checked your BMI, you'll do a basic balance test and find out your current Wii Fit Age. This balance test measures how well you can control your left and right balance. Based on the results, you'll be assigned a Wii Fit Age. Mine was not too good! At least I have a goal! LOL! It tracks your progress with daily workouts. As you spend time exercising, you can earn Fit Credits that unlock additional exercises. There are more than 40 activities and exercises, including strength training, aerobics, yoga and balance games. After embarrassing myself in front of everyone doing the step aerobics, we discovered that we had the balance board backwards!!! That explained why I was so lousy, but it was great fun for my audience! I wanted to call everyone to tell them that I wasn't so terribly uncoordinated after all! The boys love it as much as I do! We are going to add it to our schedule next semester as a 30 minute block of P.E. I am sure this will be their favorite subject! What a great night, at home with my family, enjoying all my many blessings! I am so thankful that God has given me 36 wonderful years here on his beautiful Earth, it is far more than I ever deserve or am worthy!

Mommy of Five

2008-12-10T21:31:00.000-08:00

Okay, all you mommies of 5 or more out there - I always knew you had to be extra gifted, but I now have new found respect for your balancing act. How do you do it and remain sane? Whew, it's a tough job! I thought what's one or two more?! Kelly is loving it, he thinks this will fix my desire for more children! I don't think so...LOL! I am not complaining, really the week has gone really well, just busier and at times very chaotic! A few more mouths to feed, couple of more loads of laundry to wash, a dozen or so arguments to settle, several more boo-boos to kiss and tears to wipe, but the best part is lots more hugs and kisses to give and receive! Addi, my niece, is the sweetest thing, and she has been such a joy to have in our home. All the children have been so helpful with her! Saturday, I will again be just the mama of four!

Holiday Fun!

2008-12-05T21:01:00.000-08:00

We officially finished our first semester of school today. I can't tell you who is happier the children or me!! We are going to spend the next few weeks enjoying our time off with lots of baking and hopefully some cute crafts. We have plans to make goodies for our Bible class teachers, shut-ins from our church and some of our neighbors. We will be making cookies, fudge, chocolate dipped pretzels, pralines (if I can find an easy no fail recipe-any suggestions?), peanut butter balls and muddy buddy mix! I love this part of the holiday, spending stress free time with my children in the kitchen! I must be honest in saying that this "stress free" time does come with some mental preparation! I just try to remember that it is only a huge,disastrous mess for a short time, but the memories made with my children are forever! Tomorrow, my niece is coming to stay a week with us while her parents go on a trip. I will have an entire week to experience mothering five! I will have a 2,4,5,7 & 9 year old. It is sure to be an interesting time! I may have to spend the next week recovering, but if I do, I will and it will be okay!!

Smoothing the Edges

2008-11-30T21:10:00.000-08:00

Our first week with Jared has gone surprisingly well. The first part of the week was a little frustrating, only because the routine was interrupted a few times. On Tuesday, I had to wake him at 4:30 for a doctor's appointment in Memphis and he had a visit with his mother on Wednesday. This was the first time I experienced any sort of defiance from Jared. I waited until about 2 hours before his scheduled visit with his mom to tell him, I didn't want to get his hopes up and then something happen and the visit not take place. As soon as I told him, he blurted out "I don't want to go visit my mom!" I asked him why and all he would say is I don't want to go! I told him that his mama would be sad if he didn't go to see her, that it would be just a few hours, and that I would take him and pick him up if he wanted me to. Thankfully, he got showered, dressed and I took him to meet his case worker. After his visit, I expected him to be upset, but he happily bounced into the van! He was completely fine! My heart melted Wednesday night while out eating before Bible study, he asked that now since he was living with us could he call me mom and Kelly dad! Honestly, it took my breath away, and I really didn't know how to respond. I did tell him it would be okay, if that is what he wanted. I know he is so confused, bless his sweet heart. He told Carson one day that he was living here forever! I am so afraid to even think about if and when he has to leave! Parker and Carson have been extremely helpful in showing Jared the ropes. Parker is really enjoying his role as the oldest, I have seen some maturity out of him this week that I didn't know existed. He is growing up way too fast! The first few days Carson and Jared bonded the most, Carson played every single thing that Jared's heart desired. Unfortunately, that only lasted a short time, until Carson started teaching him how to take turns with certain toys and choice of activity. Carson is my very obsessive and literal child, he has been very consistent in reminding Jared to say please, thank-you, you're welcome, yes ma'am, talk quieter, etc..... Jared doesn't respond as well to him as he does Kelly and me. Avery and Jared have a ball. They play and play, giggling and laughing together, such a sweet sound to my ears! Thanksgiving, our families were able to meet Jared, again he just fit right it. He has no trouble adapting, which has been a wonderful blessing for us! Honestly, I don't know how I would have handled it if he didn't! This is our last week of school and then we will be off until the first week in January. The children are getting so excited about Christmas, I am sure it will be one etched in all of our hearts and minds forever.
On Thanksgiving, Kelly took the boys down to the railroad tracks behind his parents' house. They had a great time collecting rocks and exploring the woods.
Avery and Jared sliding and posing in front of the tree! So cute!

Happy Thanksgiving

2008-11-26T20:52:00.000-08:00

On the eve of Thanksgiving, I am pondering what I am most thankful. The mental list is forever long, endless almost, but there are a few that stand out the most. I am thankful for God and all the ways he touches my life, I am thankful for a wonderful husband who loves me and cares for me unconditionally, I am thankful for my children and all the joys they have brought to me, I am thankful for my family and all the love they have shown me over the years, I am thankful for my friends who are such a huge support and encouragement to me, I am thankful for our health, I am thankful for the courage God has given me to take someones precious child into my home to care for, I am thankful that he is here with us, but most of all I am thankful for the opportunity to have an eternal home in Heaven one day - what an amazing blessing! I hope that you are all blessed with a wonderful Thanksgiving full of love, laughter, and, of course, turkey and all the yummy trimmings!

Maybe.....

2008-11-24T19:58:00.000-08:00

This was our first full day with Jared, and things were pretty much uneventful! We had breakfast, did a few chores, and then started school. I must say that Parker, Carson and Avery did wonderfully, I am sure they were all trying to set a good example, I am just praying that it doesn't wear off after the new of having Jared here is gone! LOL! I found a little Kindergarten workbook and writing tablet for him. He breezed through all his work and practiced writing his name! Funny story, I won't post what his last name is, but he doesn't spell it correctly, he leaves out one letter. I tried to show him how to spell it at church last night on his notebook, but he said no that was wrong. My mom suggested that I try showing him his medicine bottle with the correct spelling. Nope, not a chance, he insists that he is right. Sooooooo.... we only practiced his first name, and he wrote it flawlessly! After school and lunch we all went to Tupelo to take Parker to piano and Jared to my salon to get his hair trimmed. The case worker came by for a visit tonight. It looks like he will be with us for at least three months and possibly more, all depending on how things progress with his mom. Tonight, I am tired! Today I have been more attentive to everything and everyone, maybe that is why Jared is here with us, maybe this is God's way of telling me to remember the important stuff, maybe this is an answer to my prayers in being a better mama, maybe......

Bringing Jared Home!

2008-11-23T20:36:00.000-08:00

My heart is full! Today has been pretty amazing, in some ways like a dream. God is so good! As we rang the bell, and waited for someone to answer the door, my stomach was in complete knots. We were greeted by one of the volunteers, who Jared calls "Uncle Rob." He told us that Jared was packed, ready and very excited to be coming home with us today! We all waited in the front living room while someone went to get him. He came around the corner all smiles ready to go! After hugging the ladies and telling them good-bye he was out the door with Kelly following, carrying his small red suitcase and bag filled with his only possessions, a few clothes and his one favorite toy! When we arrived home, Parker, Carson and Avery carried him upstairs to his room. He was so excited! They showed him his bed and all the Power Rangers they had set up for him on the headboard. He was like a kid at Christmas. We unpacked his things and put them in their "home." After that, they played dress-up, Power Rangers, went out and walked the trail, played in the tree house, chased dogs... you name it and it was packed into about 2 full hours of non-stop entertainment. It was time to get ready for church. I showed Jared all the things he would need to shower and dress for church. Twenty minutes later, he was coming down the stairs dressed and all smiles! He did really well in worship services- I didn't know what to expect, but he drew in his new notebook and sat still for the most part. He did get antsy towards the end of service and leaned over a few times to ask if it was almost time to go home! He was worn out and sleepy. We ate dinner at my parent's house and then came home and got ready for bed. I am so thankful that today went as well as it did, really it couldn't have been any better. He seems to be very well adjusted, despite the circumstances of his situation. Jared is funny, sweet, precious, adorable, a little rough around the edges, but nothing that a little love and encouragement can't smooth out, and did I mention that his SMILE lights up the room!

...And Then There Were 4!

2008-11-22T22:08:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is the first day of a new life around here for us. Tomorrow, I will no longer be the mama of three, but four. Many of you know that Kelly and I were licensed as foster parents in early August, and we are excited that we will be taking in a precious, little 5 year old boy. His name is Jared, and his smile is infectious! Our whole family went to meet him and spend some time with him yesterday afternoon at his temporary placement. While talking to Jared's case worker, he and the children played outside on the playground. They were all running and playing together like that had been friends forever! We spent last night setting up another bed in the boys' room, getting clothes out and washed, and the boys gathered several toys together for him. We will be picking him up tomorrow afternoon. Please pray for our whole family as we transition into this new chapter of our lives. Pray that we will be a blessing to Jared, and he to us!

Making a List... Checking it Twice!

2008-11-21T06:32:00.000-08:00

Only 34 days till Christmas!!!

Christmas Cards - Check
Christmas Blog Background - work in progress
Christmas Shopping - Check
Decorations - almost Check!
Wrapping Gifts - started
Baking goodies with kiddos -

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around our house!! Busy, busy time of the year, but so much fun!! I have enjoyed reading all Roan's Christmas tips that she has been posting. I am so glad that I got a jump start on Christmas, because we have all been under the weather for over a month now! Hopefully, that is soon to be behind us, so that we can enjoy the holidays healthy and happy!!! I will post pictures of my decorations when all done and the house cleaned! If you haven't made your list, better get started so you can start checking it twice!!!!!

Tagged!

2008-11-20T20:01:00.000-08:00

Leisa, so sorry it took me so long to do this tag! Here goes!

Here is what I am suppose to do: go to page 56 of the book that is nearest to me, go to the 5th sentence and copy the next few sentences:

Sometimes we feel frightened by the darkness of depression, a marital challenge, or an impending move to another part of the country. Calling out and reaching out for our heavenly father is the best thing we can do. Even when we can't feel him, he is there. And he promises us that someday the darkness will be gone and we will live with him in brilliant light forever, because he is the light.

Psalm 18:28 Lord you have brought light to my life; my God you light up my darkness.

Kim, Emily and Dana you're tagged!!!

Company Going... Christmas Coming!

2008-11-13T22:19:00.000-08:00

13 days since I last posted! I can't believe that it is the middle of November already! Life has been incredibly busy! We have all over the past month been visited by an unwelcome guest named "Mr. Stomach Bug!" He first visited Carson and stayed way too long and a few weeks later he paid Kelly a visit, then me, Avery and as of today he came knocking on Parker's door! This bug has most certainly worn out his welcome in our home and I hope tomorrow he is gone to stay!!!!! I have been Christmas shopping like a mad woman for the past few weeks and am proud to say that I am almost finished! Yea! I usually wait until Thanksgiving night to drag down all of our decorations, because Kelly says "I'm robbing the Pilgrims," if I do it any sooner. Well, this year I am sorry to say that the Pilgrims are getting robbed, because my decorations are coming down this week!!! One of my biggest obsessions is Christmas decorations and wrapping paper. I promised myself that I wasn't going to buy either this year, because we have plenty. Ohh..... but they really do seem to call my name. I can't even tell you how many rolls of wrapping paper I have had in my hand and put back over the past few weeks. Well, I fell off the bandwagon and bought just ONE roll of paper at TJ Maxx tonight, and at Sam's I just had to have this very cute, whimsical stocking! No more..... I promise!!!! Just a quick little update on my running.... there has been very LITTLE of it since the race I am sad to say! I ran two days the week after, and last week only one, but I was sick! Good excuse right?! This week I have run 2 days and plan on 2 more before Sunday. Yesterday, while running I was keeping my pace to I hate this... I hate this.... I hate this.... repeatedly. LOL! No, really, I may dread the run, but afterward I feel great for accomplishing the task!

Happy Fall Ya'll!

2008-10-31T21:40:00.000-07:00

Fall has always been one of Kelly's favorite seasons, and is one that I have grown to love as well. The kids have had a blast the past few days carving pumpkins, making cupcakes,trick-or-treating and hayrides.Kelly and the kids working hard carving their pumpkins. Carson proudly showing off his creation!
We began our traditional trick-or-treating making stops at our close family and neighbors tonight. Everyone is always so glad to see the kids dressed in their costumes, and of course the kids love it! There was an unhappy sheriff in town, he did not appreciate being made to sit still for a photo! Calmed down now! John Ashford looked so cute in his costume!
We crossed paths with our cousins at one of our stops and took a group photo.
What a crew!!!! One of the kids favorite places to trick-or-treat is Stephen's! They love to go there because they never know what to expect! Most of the time the tables are turned and they are tricked! This year he was sitting on the porch, posing as a lifeless scarecrow with his head covered by his shirt. He left the candy bags on the table beside where he was sitting. As the kids reached for the treat bags, he jumped up and scared the kids, or at least tried to! They weren't scared a bit! He said he almost suffocated waiting for us to get there! So funny!!! For the past few years our dear friends, John and Leigh, have hosted a Halloween party at their home. It is always a great time to get together, enjoy a hot bowl of chili, hot dogs, and other goodies. Kelly, has some competition in the chili cookin' department, and I do believe that he feels threatened by Leigh's! After eating, we made a hot cup of coffee and walked the neighborhood with the children letting them do a little door to door trick or treating! It was so much fun! Thanks John and Leigh we all had a wonderful time!Saturday night the kids and I went to the McFarling Annual Wiener Roast/Hayride! Kelly's Aunt and Uncle always host this fun event at their farm. This is one of the few times a year that we get to see Kelly's cousins and their children! It is amazing how much they seem to grow between events! It is always so much fun and the kids love the hayride and smores!!! Kelly was in Birmingham and very disappointed that he missed it! Here are some pictures of the kids enjoying the hayride.

Race for the Cure-My First Race!

2008-10-25T11:24:00.000-07:00

I did it!!!! Finished my first 5K in under 40, the official time was 35:46, I think!!! Whoo-Hooo! Mama, Me, Roan & Stacee before race Stacee, you make it look so easy!
Just past mile 1- I'm thinking what? 2 more!!!!
Go Roan, Go!!!
After race photo, with eyes closed I might add! Kelly took my picture crossing finish, but some ladies big brown ponytail covered my face!
Scott, Stacee, Roan and me - they're discussing their times, I am just trying to recover!!! They all did great! Roan finished 26 something and Stacee 28 something- they are both training for the St. Jude 1/2 marathon! Check out Roan's blog for her family's times. They amaze me-awesome!!!
Mama did the 1 Mile fun run with Parker and Carson!
I am so proud I accomplished my goal...I am shooting for 30 next race. I am thankful my sweet family was there to cheer me on!!!

Fall Getaway

2008-10-25T10:05:00.000-07:00

Kelly had a conference this week in Jackson, and the kids and I tagged along. We left Wednesday afternoon and got back yesterday afternoon. It was very short, but much needed. I have been feeling cooped up with cabin fever lately. We went to Bible study at the church in Clinton Wednesday night. It was good to see friends there and also to see some of the ladies that I met last year at the women's retreat. Thursday, I took the kids to the MS Museum of Natural Science. It was a great museum, the kids really enjoyed it. They had some beautiful nature trails, but the weather was rainy and cool. We were able to walk for a while on one in between rains.
Afterwards, we went back to our hotel, The Edison Walthall, one of the oldest in downtown Jackson- not my favorite, but it was paid for, to rest and wait on Kelly to finish his class. We went to Target to do some Christmas shopping, but unfortunately did more shopping for ourselves! We enjoyed a delicious dinner at the Macaroni Grill, ate way too much, but it was soooo good! Friday morning we checked out and went to a different Target, I know... pretty silly for some, but not for me! I had to return some stuff and also wanted to see if they had some things the other didn't have in my size. Kelly finished at noon, so we picked him up and headed out. We stopped at Raising Canes, a chicken tender place and picked up lunch and went to the reservoir and had a picnic. The weather was beautiful! We also stopped and walked the BaldCyprus Swamp Trail on the Trace. It was very interesting and the kids loved it! That is the extent of our short, but fun trip!

Broken Bones

2008-10-13T20:16:00.000-07:00

I wanted to update about the little boy in the 4-wheeler wreck that I posted yesterday. I got this email from his mom tonight. Please remember him in your prayers. Here's what she said:

Okay, I'll try to update everyone at once! Today has been a really trying day.

First of all, I was really thinking that Noah's injuries were minor. Like as in a little tear in the cartilage, maybe a torn tendon or ligament, that type of thing. His pain has been almost non-existent with it only hurting if he tried to stand on it. The swelling was not atrocious, and there is no bruising whatsoever. So when the doctor came in after the x-ray and said, "This is baaaad... His leg is broken." I was unprepared, to say the least. He said that we'd need to go to an orthopedic surgeon but first we needed to do an MRI. Then after the MRI he came back and said, "This is really bad. It's worse than I originally thought. Y'all will probably have to go to LeBonheur to have this fixed. The break is in his growth plate. It's broken in multiple places." So I sat there looking like a deer in the headlights. I only took Noah today as a precaution so that down the road nothing would come back to bite us because we didn't have it x-rayed!! There was no sign that there was this kind of damage. And believe me, I was LOOKING for an excuse to take him to have it seen about. It wasn't even a bad accident!!

We went to the ortho and he said to us, "This is B-A-D. I'll have to consult a pediatric orthopedic specialist for this. It's really bad." Then he showed it to me on the MRI. Oh, y'all.... It's awful. Noah's growth plate in the tibia (large bone of the lower leg) is shattered. The protrusions on the outside top of the bone are broken off, and there are two breaks thru the growth plate and down into the shaft of the bone. One looks like a twisted break (don't remember what kind of fracture that is called) that starts at the top corner of the growth plate and runs a couple of inches down and around into the shaft of the bone. The dr. is worried that Noah's leg will just quit growing altogether, or that it may grow unevenly and leave him with a crooked leg. He said that it's the worst growth plate fracture he has ever treated or seen in his office in all the years he's been practicing. This was not a record I was ever interested in breaking, no pun intended. I'm still in stun mode. This just doesn't seem real.

Thankfully, we don't have to go to LeBonheur, but Noah does have to have surgery. We'll be having surgery some time in the morning on Wednesday to screw the floating pieces back together. To put Humpty Dumpty back together again, the doctor said. He also said that he would not be able to do anything to repair the growth plate because any attempt at repair would only worsen the injury. And the consequences.

We go tomorrow for pre-op and to find out surgery time. I'll let y'all know. It will be outpatient and we should be home in the evening on Wednesday.

Thanks for checking on us. I appreciate y'all.

I'm still numb.

Lori