The Bravest Man I Know

Paul is now officially the bravest, most adventurous man I know! He has surpassed Indiana Jones, James Bond and Chuck Norris in one fell swoop.



Did he defeat an armed robber with nothing but a toothbrush you ask? No, even scarier.



Did he wrestle a crocodile, shark and lion to the ground with one arm? Something even braver!



Last night he packed up 4 kids, ages 10-1 in the van to take them all to an outdoor movie in Uptown Charlotte and was the only adult. WOW! How brave! Richard - age 5, Renee - age 10, Ashton - age 3 and Kate - age almost 2. This was especially impressive because it was a spur of the moment decision and he executed it in 20 minutes. The sad part is we got the dates mixed up and the movie's tonight! So they played on the playground downtown and then came home.


Paul, you are my hero!

I Didn't Do It....My Shadow Did

Lately Ashton likes to blame his shadow for all his wrongdoings.

"Did you hit Kate?" says mommy.

"No. I didn't do it." replies Ashton very convincingly.

"Why is she crying?" I ask again.

"My shadow hit her. Yeah, my shadow did it."

"Oh, I say. Well, your shadow is going to go to timeout if he hits Kate again. And since you go where your shadow goes, guess you'll have to go to time out too. So just tell him to play gentle with Kate." I sigh.

"Ok, shadow be nice" lectures Ashton to his outline on the wall.

Happy Birthday...Just try not to drown.

For my birthday Paul surprised me with a whitewater kayaking lesson and a romantic dinner by the river! He must have heard me talking about the time I went whitewater rafting with my church's youth group and how fun it was, so he took the time to look into lessons, pre-paid it, found a sitter and made sure to have the time off from work.

The best parts were beyond the lesson itself. I loved that fact we went on a date! I loved that it wasn't the old standby of dinner and a movie. I loved that we were being active AND outdoors. I loved that we learned something new together. I loved that we are so supportive as a couple, never making fun of the other or getting frustrated. I love the patience we both have for each other. I loved the long leasuirly stroll around the park, watching everyone navigate the rapids. I love that I can say we kayaked the largest Whitewater center in the world. I loved that I made it down the last rapid and didn't tip over at the end! I loved that Paul found a babysitter that Ashton and Kate had fun with, Dallas and Regan's family. I loved that he kept the whole thing a secret until the last moment. I just LOVED the day and I love Paul for making it happen!

The Wanderer

This morning Kate was returned to our sleeping household by our neighbor, Susan. It seems she woke early, locked Ashton in his room, then snuck out the front door (the ONE TIME WE DIDN'T LOCK IT) in her high heeled princess shoes and Ashton's old Cape Cod t-shirt.

Susan was on her way to work and spotted her. Our neighbor let then sternly led Kate back in and woke us up with "DAWN! PAUL! I found Kate in your front yard!" to which we jumped up and ran out of our room. All I could mumble quietly to Paul while wiping the sleep out of my eye was "Uh...thank god it wasn't the cops."

Olympic Fever at Our House

This is the first year we've all really been into watching the Olympics, actually...it's the 1st Olympics Ashton & Kate have been alive to see! This is how we are involving it in their lives:

Lego Beijing Olympic Renderings: Check this link out...holy cow these are LEGOS - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1046255/On-marks-set-Lego-Welcome-Olympics-everyones-quick-blocks.html

• Getting ready to witness history = 8 gold medals by 1 Olympian: We've spent all summer at the pool learning to swim so Ashton could begin his quest for the 2020 games and 9 gold medals!
• Making sure the coverage is ALWAYS on tv. Kate stayed up late and watched the opening ceremony on 08.08.08 and absolutely LOVED it! It was so colorful and fluid and simply the most amazing thing I've ever seen. (Outside of Micheal Phelps in a swim suit!) Can you beleive these are PEOPLE 2-3 high making a model of the stadium they are standing in?
  
• After watching the ENTIRE 2 hour 20 minute coverage of the Woman's marathon, which was sooooooooooooooooooooo much more exciting then I thought it would be, Paul and I have started going aggressively back to the gym and try to pretend we are marathon runners when we are on the treadmill. (And FYI, a 38 year old woman from Romania won which means...I still have time if I really want it!)
  

Cover Me Ashton

Last night, for the first time ever I think, Ashton did the most perfect thing a big brother can do for his kid sister...he covered for her! You see, when Kate is bored or finished eating, because she's not quite 2 yet she hasn't mastered the ability to tell us she's ready to leave the table. She simply begins to throw her food about in classic toddler style. Since chicken and Stove Top just weren't doing it for her last night, the food throwing began earlier than Paul & I expected. Paul just HATES it when she throws her food, as he is the usual kitchen angel that cleans it up and, understandably, became irritable with her. Ashton, not wanting his big, huge daddy to be mad with his tiny sister, very unexpectedly piped up with this - "No Daddy! Kate was just sharing with me! Thank you Kate! Good job sharing with me! See Daddy? Kate not throwing, she sharing!" It was sooooooooooo cute....but we still had to take her food away.

Also, earlier, when we were leaving Costco after picking up some milk, Kate would just not share Paul's keys with Ashton. Ashton, wanting to have EVERYTHING all the time, got pretty ticked off and decided to hit her. When I whipped around to face him in the back seat and asked if he just hit his sister, his reply was this "No Mommy" then pointing out the window "I hit the building over there and the car right there". Paul and I could barely contain our laughter with this avoidance strategy in our face.

Ol' Sad-Eyed Kate

Kate always seems to have such a sad or worried look on her face, that is unless she's smiling that famous - yet elusive - sunshine smile of hers, I've come to refer to her as "Old Sad-Eyed Kate". So when I saw the Puss In Boots in Shrek 2 make this face, I saw something so familiar I had to share. And maybe it's just me...but you be the judge of the resemblance.

"Old Sad-Eyed Kate"...humm...sounds like an Irish drinking song or an Appalachain folk tale. :)

Will Cowboys Be Kate's Weakness?

Here is Kate's new favorite song, I guess it shows I am raising a southerner! -

Cowboys Are My Weakness

by Trisha Yearwood

You'll never hear me knockin' an old pair of boots

A man who wears his Wranglers for Sunday suit

The kind that ain't afraid to get dirt on his hands

And bring you fresh daisies in a coffee can

I like a man to ride me ‘round pick-up style

Tip his hat and wink at me, shoot me a smile

Take me two-steppin' at the honky tonk

Yeah that kind of man ain't hard to want, cause

Cowboys are my weakness Gimme some down home, rugged sweetness

A little bit of outlaw, A little bit of Jesus Cowboys are my weakness

I love to hear my name inside a southern drawl

A man who takes his time, you know what I mean y'all

Gets a little rowdy, a little out of hand

But when he's around your mama he says “Yes ma'am”

A doer not a talker, he's tried and he's true

The salt of the earth, but if he's sweet on you

He'll treat you like you're the only woman alive

Yeah, high up in the saddle's hell of a ride, cause

Cowboys are my weakness Gimme some down home, rugged sweetness

A little bit of outlaw, A little bit of Jesus Cowboys are my weakness

I wanna be the lady, he loves with all his heart and soul

I wanna be the lady he keeps warm when the nights get cold

Yeah Cowboys are my weakness Gimme some down home, rugged sweetness

A little bit of outlaw, A little bit of Jesus Cowboys are my weakness

Lord help me Jesus Cowboys are my weakness, yeah, they're my weakness

My Little Mermaid!

Just a 1 short week ago Kate taught herself to float with water wings all by herself. She found some along the side of the pool someone had left laying around and brought them to me demanding I put them on her. So, curious as to what would happen, I did. She stuck her proud little chin up in the air and very carefully balanced herself swinging her legs up and back to grab her toes. She is now a professional and can "walk" through the water to get from one place to the other. I am so proud of her!

Not to be outdone with new tricks, Ashton now makes flying leaps into the pool, where 1 month ago he would only enter the pool by going down the steps or the ladder.

The favoirte destination to drive their cars to is the pool. Ashton insists on eating lunch and dinner at the pool. And you'd better not promise Kate you will take her swimming then not go...she will guilt you to DEATH.

So...if we are not around when you call or come by, check the pool!

Birthday Wishes and Caviar Dreams...

Ok, my mother-in-law made the suggestion I write about Paul and I once in a while...so here's something about me! With my 27th birthday fast approaching, I ponder what a birthday should mean as I cross the threshold into my "late 20's". If you can get me any of the presents below, I would be eternally grateful!

Birthday Wishes:

1. To live in the moment with my children, aware of them and how wonderful and complex their personalities during each minute of the day.

2. More sleep, 7 hours a night would be wonderful. Ideally, at least one day a week where I can awaken naturally, instead of to the sound of Ashton kicking his door or Kate thumping me on the head.

3. I wish to learn to sew this winter. As a mother of young children, sewing seems like a great tool to stow in the "Mommy toolbox". I want to make a quilt before I am 30, knit a WEARABLE scarf before I am 29 and make homemade Angel/Devil costumes for Ashton, Kate and Angelique this year.

4. Improve my cooking and learn to bake! I want to learn to chop/slice/dice without band-aids being involved and bake confections that do not double as blunt objects.

5. Read more books. Have more dates with my husband. Drink more wine. Watch more movies on my AFI Top 100 of All time List. Go to the gym more. Take bubble baths. Practice yoga twice a week. Begin to study for the LSAT. Hang out with my friends.(More ME time I guess)

Southern Drawl Y'all

Ashton suddenly has a southern accent...Miiiiilk (Milk), Heaaaaaad (Head), Hiiiiiiiii (Hi) etc... How did he get an accent in 3 days? Where did it come from? Surely not from Paul or I....


I'm not sure how I feel about it, but it is what it is! I guess raising a southern gentleman/belle was what we bargained for when we decided to raise a family south of the mason-dixon line! Kate and Ashton will be a G.R.I.T.S. (Girls Raised in the South/Gentleman Raised in the South). Gone With the Wind was always my favorite book/movie.

• Girls Raised in the South: "Whether called "Sweet Potato Queens", "Steel Magnolias", "Ya-Ya Sisters", or "Belles", Southern girls make the best friends."


• Gentleman Raised in the South: "He's chivalrous, kind, and moral, but he can also be messy, hog-wild, inattentive, and just plain frustrating. You love him, bless his heart, but you sure don't understand him."

Check this out for GREAT insider info on G.R.I.T.S.: http://www.gritsinc.com/GRITSexcerpt.html

"So ugly she'd run a dog off a meat wagon, bless her heart." translates from
Southern into "Damn Ugly, Poor Thing!"