She is acting like a firework........

Well, today JJ has been working so it's been up to me to entertain the kids. We have watched cartoons, painted, cooked rice krispy treats and chicken pastry for dinner. We are certainly not going outside because it's way to hot for big mama!!!! So, now I have been cleaning and of course twiddle dee and twiddle dum want to follow me everywhere. So, we turned on some music really loud and I gave them a cloth and they went to washing chairs and placemats. The kitchen is more of a mess than it was when I started but at least they are entertained. Then, suddenly Sadie's favorite song came on the radio and this is what you get...............................!!!Not sure about the dance moves. I guess I better watch what I am doing from now on......

Mommy's little swimmer's!

I must say that I am very proud of my two kids and their lack of fear of the water. It's been a tough job this summer with Dakota because of his fearless attitude. I even let him go to the bottom of the pool at the beginning of the summer to try and scare him, and he came up laughing. We tried every floatation device possibly (except for the arm floats because they are TERRIBLE for kids when teaching them to swim later). We tried the ring and he liked it for about 30 seconds and then he just looked at you and put his arm straight up and smiled as he went through the hole. So we decided we were just going to have to hold him and hope he catches on. He has done more than that. He can now hold his breath, blow bubbles, and kick his feet and glide short distance. Much better than Sadie at that age. I just hope it carries over to next year when he can actually cognitively learn how to swim. Sadie has also picked up where she left off from last year. She was a little afraid at the beginning of the summer, but that fear is completely gone. She has really progressed in the last couple of weeks and especially today. She can now jump off the side and swim back to the side. She can dive for diving sticks (which is her favorite), and she can even do a flip on her own now. She loves the water and basically just loves swimming more than playing. I am actually thankful that she is a bit short because that has forced her to swim since she can't stand up at either pool that we go to. What I am most proud of is what she accomplished today. She can finally take breaths which help her to swim a greater distance. Today at the Cookes' pool I made a deal that if she would swim all the way to the latter she could get this water gun that she has wanted all summer. She seriously practiced for 45 minutes and she had to do it without me in the pool because I told her we had to have it on video. Believe it or not, SHE DID IT!!! She now has a lot more confidence in herself and I love it that she accomplished this on her own. Here are a couple of videos of our little ones! So proud! Thank you Lord for helping them learn such an important thing about safety!

Update on Chloe!!

Chloe loves being in my belly! We are very anxious to meet her, but very thankful for all that we have learned through this entire process and blessing. This past week we thought we would meet sweet Chloe, but God had a different plan and her lungs were not quite developed enough to come into this crazy world. We are scheduled for a c-section this coming Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. We are very excited! Please continue praying that she is developing well and that her lungs will be ok. We will keep you updated when the surgery is over and we have her in our arms. Praise be to God for this miracle!!

Sadie's first soccer camp!

Last week Sadie had the chance to experience her first camp! She went to a soccer camp that was held indoors from 9-10:30. The first day she was a little nervous and clingy to me, but then she really ended up enjoying it. I must say that I was a little concerned when she came up to me on the first day and said, "Mama, I am sweating (need I remind you that it was indoors). I was like, it's ok, Sadie, you will survive. After a little bit of gatorade she made it back out there. She especially loved being complemented at the end of the week by the person leading the camp by her saying, "Sadie is a really good kicker". She should play some more soccer. Sadie loved that attention and of course went and kicked another soccer ball. All in all we were pleased with her progress and glad she didn't give up. Here are a few pictures from the week!

Beach 2011!!

We had an eventful week on our family vacation this year. It kind of started of sad with Gran-gran passing away and going to meet Jesus in Heaven! With sadness in the air, we still managed to have a wonderful time at Peppertree Resort. JJ and I traveled back and forth to Roanoke Rapids for the funeral arrangements and did our best to enjoy our time together. My sister and her family went with us to the beach. This was Dakota's first time really seeing the beach and he loved it. He of course was not afraid of the water, sand, or anything! Sadie did a great job swimming and is continuing to get better and better. She did learn something new while she was on vacation. She learned how to get diving sticks off of the bottom of the pool. We were so very proud of her! We ended our vacation by taking the kids to the Aquarium on the last day. It was very nice and they enjoyed it a lot! We look forward to many more vacations and introducing Chloe to the ocean next year!