The Library

As many of you can probably already tell (from my book club posts), I love reading! There is nothing like curling up in bed with a good book just before going to sleep. When I was younger, before Aiden, I used to read a lot. Since having Aiden however, I have less and less time to read. I was thinking that the older he got, the more time I'd have to read - but I was WRONG! It seems like the older he gets the more and more he demands my attention, and the more and more I am having to go behind him either removing him from a situation he shouldn't be in or cleaning up after him. Recently though, I decided that I was going to have to find a way to make time for reading. So, I decided to cut back on the amount of time I spend on the computer and in front of the TV, and start reading instead. I joined a book club, and more recently Jaime and I got new library cards.

I couldn't be more excited about the new possibilities having a library card opens up for us. I don't have to worry now about how much I'm spending on books or how many books I've already bought this month. Now I can go to the library, get what I want, and return it when finished....and I don't have to pay a dime so long as the books are turned in on time. So far the only downside to the library is that some of the books I want are all already checked out and then I have to request they hold it for me when it becomes available. Not a problem, except that sometimes it can be months before they become available. So, with those titles, I usually just end up buying them. Either way, I'm still saving money.

My most favorite thing about the library however, is that I can not only get books for myself, but I can also get them for Jenny and Aiden. They have lots of books here at home, but we've read all of them at least 10 times. So now I can go and get them new books to read every week! I've already gone twice to get them books, and here are the ones we got....

Elmo One, Two, Zoo - This book was fun and really cute! Aiden liked it a lot, and even Jenny enjoyed looking at the colorful pictures. Those little flaps on the right with the different animals on them make it very easy for little ones, like Aiden, to turn the pages. This is a board book, which is also a necessity when choosing books for Aiden. Paper pages are bound to get torn with him. So these cardboard pages are the way to go!

The Kissing Hand - This was another cute story. This one was about a little raccoon who was about to start school, and he was a little nervous. His mother taught him a great way to keep from being scared and to know that she was always with him, even at school. This was a great book for Jenny, because she recently started kindergarten.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar - This was always one of my favorites in school. It is written by Eric Carle, and it is a classic. It tells the story of a very hungry caterpillar that starts out as an egg, and then eventually turns into a beautiful butterfly, but now without getting a stomach ache first!

Chicka Chicka ABC - This is another one that I got for Aiden, again with cardboard pages. Reading this story is a fun way to teach your kids the alphabet. Aiden and Jenny both love this one!

The Sneetches....And Other Stories - Another classic story! Written by none other than Dr. Seuss. His books are so fun to read, and Jenny really loves the rhyming words. A great thing about this book is that it has a total of 4 stories in it, so it can be read multiple nights.



It's Vacation Time - This is one that Jenny picked out. I'm not sure why she chose this one, because when we got home she asked me what it was called and what it was about. We read this one a few nights ago, and she liked it. It's about some friends who are getting ready to go on vacation, but they can't get everything to fit in their suitcase. The illustrations in this one are really bright and colorful, so Aiden likes it as well.

Henny Penny - This one I can remember reading as a child, and I'm sure a lot of you have read it too. It's about a chicken, Henny Penny, who thinks that the sky is falling so she must tell the king. On her way to tell the king, she runs into several of her friends who decide to go with her to tell the king. Eventually they run into Foxy Loxy, a fox, who tries to trick them....but does her trick work? I can't tell you that, it would ruin the ending! =)


So, those are the books we've been enjoying for the last couple of weeks. Soon I'll do a post on the books that I have been reading lately, and hopefully y'all can suggest some new ones for me. I hope you're all having a great week....TGIF!

Brain Dump on a Thursday

I feel like we haven't had a whole lot going on lately, but at the same time I feel like we've been super busy. Weird. I have a lot of thoughts on my mind though, so I'm just gonna dump it all out here.


Teen Mom is quickly becoming one of my favorite shows. I just started watching this season, but I'm thinking I need to go back and watch the previous seasons. Honestly, sometimes the moms on there make me really mad, but then there are times when I am so heartbroken for them. I will say though that Amber drives me crazy and needs to grow up and learn to be a mother to her child!

Have you tried Coffee-Mate's Peppermint Mocha coffee cream? It's ah-mazing! If you haven't tried it, you definitely need to. I have heard great things about it, and just recently tried it. It will definitely be a staple for my coffee from now on! You better believe it's on tomorrow's grocery list.

Speaking of grocery lists, I really need to go grocery shopping. I have been putting it off and putting it off, but it can't be put off any longer. I made a quick trip to the store the other night to grab a few things for Jenny's snack and school and a few other things that we use on a regular basis. I'm thinking of trying meal planning again. I did it for a few weeks before, but I always end up spending more money when I meal plan than I do if I just "wing it".

Did I tell you how well Jenny is doing in school?? This kid is SO smart! Sometimes I can't believe how smart she is! She is only 5 years old and is already having weekly spelling tests....and she does really well on them! In fact, she recently had her 9-week review over her spelling words she's had for the past 9 weeks. Out of 43 words, she got 41 correct!! I'm pretty sure I've already mentioned this before, and I've probably mentioned it more than once, but I just can't get over how smart she is!

Can I tell you how much I love MOPS? For those of you who don't know, MOPS stands for Mothers of Preschoolers. It is a group for mothers with children from pregnancy/birth to kindergarten. We are a group of mothers who come together to love, support, and encourage each other as we follow our call of motherhood. I have MOPS on the first and third Thursdays of the month. Those Thursdays are quickly becoming some of my favorite days. Aiden really loves being in the MOPPETS program too. When I ask him if he wants to go to MOPS, he says, "Yes! I love it MOPS!" Ha!

Today the kids and I are going to be painting pumpkins! The other day at the pumpkin patch we let them each pick out a small pumpkin to take home and decorate. So, later this afternoon we are going to paint them. Jenny is really excited about it. Aiden doesn't know yet that we're going to be decorating them, but I know he'll love it too - once he gets over how messy his hands will probably get. Ha!

Another thing Jenny and I are looking forward to is making pumpkin cookies! We might even make pumpkin muffins this weekend for breakfast too! Lately we have really been trying to enjoy this Fall season, and I hope we will continue to find more and more ways to do that! I love doing anything fun with the kids and then turning it into a tradition with them.

I am really looking forward to the Alabama game this weekend. Last weekend's game was a total disappointment, but I'm not gonna give up on them! =) This weekend they are playing Ole Miss, and I can't wait to watch them win....I hope!

Well, I guess that's all I have in my thoughts right now. Plus, it's time to wake up Jenny to get her ready for school and on the bus. I hope you're all having a good week!

Wordless Wednesday

My babies last year around this time....

Pumpkin Patch

One of my favorite things about Fall is going to the Pumpkin Patch with the kids! Since there was no school today, Jaime and I took the kids to the Pumpkin Patch. Last year we went to one that had a hay ride and corn maze, but I don't think the kids enjoyed it too much. Aiden was too young to remember it, but Jenny said she didn't remember it either, so I'm thinking she didn't enjoy it much. This year we went to a different one that is much closer to home and a lot smaller. The one we went to didn't have a corn maze or hay ride, but it did have a lot of fun things for the kids to do.

We had a great time! We even let the kids pick out 2 small pumpkins that they are going to paint later this week. We are going to go back in a few weeks to get a larger pumpkin for carving.

A Wonderful Sunday

We had a pretty good 3-day weekend. How was yours? Actually, ours is more like a 4-day weekend because Jaime is off tomorrow too. The kids and I always enjoy having him home with us. Plus, he helps me get a lot of stuff done around that house that I normally wouldn't have the time or patience to do with an almost-two year old running around!

Sundays are usually pretty relaxing days for us. Jaime works during the day, so the kids and I sit around the house most Sundays and watch movies and TV. Sometimes, if the weather allows, we go outside and play. A lot of Sundays though I spend most of my morning cleaning house. I know I should go to church, and I really want to go to church too. I've gone several times before and I always enjoy it and feel so refreshed and filled with God's Word after the service. The problem is, now that Aiden is home with me all the time, he hates being left in the nursery at church. In fact, 9 out of 10 times they call me out of the service early to come get him because they can't calm him down. Once I pick him up he's fine, so I know it's not that he's hurt or has anything wrong with him - he just wants his Mama. Most of the time, I love that he is so attatched to me. But then there are times (like at church) when I wish he weren't so attached so that he would go play with the other kids and have a good time while I enjoy the church service. Thankfully, he seems to be getting over his seperation anxiety lately. When we go to MOPS he cries when I drop him off, but when I come back to get him he's absolutely fine! No crying, no whining, no nothing. He's usually sitting at the table eating a snack or coloring a picture. So, yesterday Aiden and I went to the church service at the church where I go to MOPS (I was going to Free Chapel for Wed. and Sun. service, MOPS is at Northview). And guess what?? Aiden loved it! I was able to listen to the whole service and they didn't come to get me at all! I'm not sure why this church seems to be working better for him, but I'm glad it is! I think it's because at Free Chapel there are TONS of people so it tends to be a little stressful trying to get him to his class, and there are about 10 other kids in his class with him. At Northview, there are a lot less people and only about 5 kids in his class. If that's not the reason, then maybe he is starting to outgrow his seperation anxiety and is getting to an age where he knows I'm just leaving him for a little while and I'll be back. Either way, I'm happy and so is he! We will definitely be going back this weekend!

After Jaime got home from work Jenny's mom dropped her off with us (Jenny spends a week at her mom's house and then spends a week at our house). When she got here, Jenny had a tummy ache but thankfully she started to feel better soon. Once she started feeling better Jaime and I took the kids to the park. Sunday is Jaime's day to go play soccer with his friends, and while we're there watching the game I take the kids to the playground. We all had a great time, and Jaime's team won their game! Here are a few pictures I took from the game, and a few of the kids on the playground.

After the game, Jaime and I took the kids to Walmart. Jenny got to pick out something for herself for doing such a great job on her spelling test. Her test was over the words she has been learning for the past 9 weeks. There were 43 words total, and out of 43 she got 41 correct. Can you guess what she picked?? My most favorite Disney movie of all time, and I'm pretty sure it is her favorite now too.... Beauty and the Beast!

When we got home we watched the movie together and then had a "sleepover" with Jenny and Aiden in our bed. Obviously we had a wonderful weeked! I hope you all had a great weekend too!

Morning at the Park

Seeing as how Aiden and I woke up an hour late this morning, we didn't make it to MOPS. I was disappointed that we didn't get to go, but Aiden was a lot more upset than I thought he'd be. Last time we went, he was very unsure about me dropping him off in the MOPPETS program while I went to the MOPS meeting. He cried at first, but stayed there the whole time, and he wasn't crying when I came back to get him. He seemed like he enjoyed himself, but I didn't think he liked it all that much. So this morning when I told him we weren't going to MOPS and he started crying, I was very surprised! So, I did the next best thing! We woke up Jaime, and he and I took Aiden to the park. We were there for a little over an hour, and Aiden had a great time! When we first got there we were the only ones there, but it didn't take long before other families starting showing up with their little ones. It was such a nice day out, I'm surprised there weren't more people there.

Riding in this car is probably Aiden's most favorite thing to do at the park. I don't know what it is about this car, but he usually spends the first 10 or 15 minutes we're there in it, and he will go back to it over and over again. He especially likes it when his Daddy rides in it with him.

Another one of Aiden's favorite things at the park is the swings! He has a swing at his Grandma's house that he loves too. He isn't afraid of being pushed high either! In fact, he prefers it!

Pretty soon it will be time to move Aiden from the baby swings (see previous swing pic) to the big kid swings (like the one shown in this pic above). Aiden is very excited about the new possibilities this opens up for him. He took a test run on one today. Sure enough, he is almost ready! Just gotta show him how to hold onto the swing without letting go. Before I know it he won't even need me to push him on the swings anymore - he'll be pumping his little legs and swinging on his own. That will be a sad day.

I especially love the picture above. If you can't see it well, it is a picture of Aiden and Jaime talking through these tubes. They are actually pretty neat! (Jaime is kind of over in the back corner of the picture, talking into the tube on the other side).

We might now have made it to MOPS, but we still had a great day! I love days like we had today!

Family Night

I don't know about you guys, but there is nothing I love more than spending quality time with Aiden and Jenny. Even more than that, I love being able to share that time with them with Jaime. It's always a great time when the four of us spend it together. Don't get me wrong, date nights that are just Jaime and I are great too, but I'd rather spend time with the kids. I know, that may sound strange, but I have really awesome kids!!

Sunday is usually our day to go to the park, but since it rained last Sunday, we spent the evening at home. Jenny and Aiden had fun fingerpainting....

After fingerpainting we helped Jenny put her puzzle together. Did I mention how smart Jenny is? In case I haven't (although I'm sure I have), she is a very smart 5 year old! She put together this entire puzzle with very little help from Jaime or I. Aiden watched....and chewed on markers....ha!

On more piece!

She did it!