6

Was a little busy today so I didn't / don't have time to write a bunch today.  My little peanut only has 6 days left before school.

Looks like he's sittin' around waiting for something.  School perhaps?  :)

7

Seven days.
One week.
168 hours.
10,080 minutes.
Too many seconds to count.

(I might have cheated a little on the math -- the effect is the same without having to think too hard.)

:)

That's right -- 8!

So tonight we had Joe's back to school conference.  Like an open house / meet your teacher, only we had a scheduled time.  We got to bring all of his stuff in and get it situated for when he starts school next week.  We signed all of the emergency information, got his pin number for lunch (which he's keeping under lock and key because they told him he wasn't supposed to share it with anyone), and went to the book fair.  Do you want to know the most impressive thing that happened during all of this?  You'll never guess.  I didn't cry.  That's right.  I held it together.  For today anyway.  :)

He's so excited, he's jumping for joy!

9

Yes.  I've started a countdown.  It will be just be a love fest dedicated to Joe before he leaves me forever.  :)  In all seriousness though, let me show you what had me crying in Target a couple of weeks ago.

Pencils.  It was the beginning of the school shopping and it all hit me.  As I put the pencils in the cart I got a little choke up.  Maybe more than a little.  Just nine more days.  I'm kind of hoping I'll hold up like I did at graduation.  I cried so much about graduating before I actually graduated that when it came time for commencement I was good to go.  I'm hoping this goes the same way so I don't make a fool out of myself come Sept. 6th.  Not that I didn't already make a fool out of myself in Target.  :)

Who wouldn't miss seeing this face?

10

That's right -- 10.  Ten short days before my baby goes to kindergarten.  Not sure where the last five and a half years have gone but they seemed to have gone by too quickly.  Trying to squeeze in all the time I can with him before school.  Next Tuesday will be the first day of the rest of his life.  The years will fly by so quickly with brief summer breaks in between and before you know it, he'll be off to college.  Some of you may be thinking I'm being a little over dramatic here, but I'm pretty sure I'm just the right amount of dramatic for me at this time.

Love him so much. 

i heart faces: Pet Week

So it's pet week over at I Heart Faces and although it's not a new photo, I thought I'd share my most recent favorite photo of my Jackson.  It was taken a couple months ago on one of the last snowy days this winter.  I love how there's little bits of snow/frost on his fur.  Just a quick photo taken in the car but I love it.

 

Wild, Wild West

The boys have week long "camps" at school.  This week was Wild, Wild West.  We made "Wanted" posters for the preschoolers and school age kids.  They turned out really cute.  We were all supposed to dress up Friday too.  Some of us did.  We don't have a lot of western wear at our house so we stopped at the store and got bandanas.  Jeans, white shirts, and bandanas -- easy enough.  I had a hat to wear and James wanted one too.  After refusing to buy the overpriced pink foam cowgirl hat at Michaels for James, he was not happy with me.  Yep, I said pink foam.  I told him he could try on the one at school.  The one for the pictures.  He took it from my office first thing and didn't take it off all day.  He wore it to the assisted living center during their field trip, he wore it outside to play, if we let him he probably would have worn it for nap (see picture below).  His teacher was able to wrestle it away long enough to let the other kids take pictures.  Who didn't want to take one with the hat?  Why James, of course.  He is so difficult.  I wanted to get a pic of us all together but it just didn't happen.  This is what I got. (And by I, I mean the teachers at school because my children don't really want to cooperate and I think they're getting sick of me shoving a camera in their face.)

The "napping" . . .

The "Wanted" Poster.  Because posing for one just would have been too hard.  Pretty sure that he might be wanted for wearing the hat like that.  (The band goes inside the hat James.)

Joe.  Pretty sure he might be wanted for picking on his brother.

 

And me.  I think I might be wanted for showing up to the fair like this.  To be fair to me, my hair had been in pigtail braids and under a hat all day.  Not really sure I could've went without it.  I do love hats.

I'm Way Behind

Ok.  So my cousin Jennifer came to visit me twice at the end of Spring / beginning of Summer.  It was great to see her and the kids and even though she had another agenda while she was here we enjoyed the time we had.  I feel bad that I have not taken the time to blog about it and post the pictures.  You may think that I'm going to do it now.  You're wrong.  The kids are up and that stuff has to wait until they are sleeping. 

My reason for bringing up their visit is that "Beautiful Eyes" is the theme at I Heart Faces this week.  I thought about taking a new picture but honestly when I think about eyes I think about these ladies.  My cousin and her 2 daughters.  Her son is also blessed with these beautiful eyes but he was not with on this trip.

Love, love, love these eyes.  Love, love, love these girls.

A little bathtime convo. . .

 

The conversation went a little something like this:

Joe:  Mommy.  I have two balls. (while pulling at them)
Me:  (Long pause) Yep.
Joe:  What are they?
Me:  Ummmm. . . They're testicles.  But I guess you can call them balls too.
James:  I have two balls.  I have two balls.  I have two balls.
Joe:  (Pulling at them)
Me:  Please don't pull them though.
James:  I'm not pulling mine, I'm squeezing them.
Joe:  I'm squishing them.
James:  Look at me Joe.  Look at me!  (all while rearranging and yanking on them)
Me:  You can't do that.  You will hurt yourself.
Joe:  Look at me mommy.  I'm holding them gently.  (while cradling them like a baby)
James:  Not me.  I'm pinching them. 
Joe:  How will it hurt me mommy?
Me:  Tomorrow's a daddy day and I think he would love to talk to you about it.

The end.  (I hope)

And this is why I should have had girls.  :)

Best Friends

So I've always wanted to enter a photo challenge, do a 365 project, or something like that.  Not sure why I haven't ever tried but I thought it was about time I got off my butt and did something.

The theme at i heart faces this week is friendship. 

I know that my boys are the best of friends (when they're not fighting).  It sure seems to me like these little cuties are too.  I did a little photo session with Kari and her family on Sunday and the girls had such a good time running across this bridge.  I love how Syd looks back to her sister to encourage her along.  So thankful that I got to take their pictures and catch these moments.

What we do at our house.

Ever been bored on a Sunday night?  Well. . . we were tonight.  We cured our boredom with a little bath time photo session.  (The poses were their ideas.)  Have so many other post to do / pics to show but this is my perfect ending to a great weekend.  (More to come on that later.)

Joe was into participating a little more than James.  I was just loving it all.

The little guy . . . 

The not quite as little guy . . .

 

Happy Sunday everyone!

And so it begins . . .

So . . . my "baby" is starting kindergarten in a month.  One month.  ONE MONTH people!  Where did the time go???  I'm an emotional person to begin with but I feel like this might take my waterworks to a whole new level.  I hope that I the tears will come now so I don't make such a fool out of myself that first day of school. 

The boys had their last day of baseball on Wednesday and they got to play a game (they were just practicing skills before).  Everybody had a turn to bat and everyone had a turn to run the bases and score.  It should have been no big deal then when Joe ran across home plate.  But it was.

 

When he crossed that plate his face beamed with pride and my eyes welled with tears.  Thank God I was all Jackie O with my sunglasses on.  I glanced around and did not see any other parents with my problem.  It just all hit me at once.  He is really becoming his own little person and I'm so incredibly proud of him.

My kindergartner:

*sigh*