September Catch Up

This month has flown by and I have not even had enough time to sit down and post anything. So, here is my attempt to catch up the happenings of September...

Dance lessons have started this month and Maddie and Ashlyn are really enjoying learning tap and ballet. They are in two different classes, which means we go to the dance studio on two different days - however I think it is working best that way so they can make their own friends and they don't have to be in competition with each other.

We spent some time at the Kansas State Fair the first two weekends of September. This year was different since Aunt Mindy was here. She got to join us in watching the girls ride the rides, which is obviously their favorite part of the fair! Brooke was also big enough to ride a couple of rides this year as well. She enjoyed it so much and was so cute giggling on them. The older girls wanted to ride the bigger rides this year - so Daddy and Aunt Mindy got to ride with them. Mommy rode a few rides, but not many because I get sick on the spinning rides. However, I did get convinced this year to overcome my fear and I rode the Mega Drop with my neices and nephew. (This is the ride where you go up really high and then sit and wait for it to drop you back down) I was so scared and probably could have thrown up, but I did it and was very proud of myself once I got done. Although, I have no desire to ride it again. On the second weekend, Chris and I worked at our friends food booth and sold Tacones and Hogs. (In case you are wondering, Tacones are a tortilla baked into a cone shell and filled with taco salad and a Hog is a 1/2 lb full beef hotdog wrapped like a pig in the blanket) They are awesome and probably my favorite foods at the fair, which eating fair food is my favorite part of the fair!!

Lastly, this week we got to see our Maddie cheer at the Southeast football game. She attended a mini cheer clinic during the week and then cheered during the second quarter of the football game this last Friday. She did a very good job, but I didn't get any pics that weren't either too dark or blurry - sorry. It was so cute seeing all those little girls out there cheering for their team.

Chris and I wonder what activities and sports our girls will get into. It is fun to watch them try and experience new things and determine if they like them. I guess we'll have to wait and see what they choose.

Labor Day at the Lake

We spent the weekend at the lake with family and friends. It was a blast, especially since we got to try out a jet ski this time. I've never been on one before, so it was a little scary at first for me, but I got past my fears quick. The first time Chris and I went out together, we accidently fell off - twice! It was fun though. The girls loved going on the water with Daddy. They were much more into the lake this weekend than they were on the 4th of July. The last day we did some tubing and boy am I sore!!! I think I used muscles that I've never used before. But, it was still a great end to the weekend, especially since it didn't start off great.


Daddy & Maddie on the Jet Ski



Ashlyn & Daddy on the Jet Ski



Mommy & Angel Tubing

My Knight in Shining Armor

My weekend didn't really get off to a great start. However, I will say that my husband was my "Knight it Shining Armor" as he came to my rescue several times and did so without complaining and with a kind and compassionate heart! It started on Friday morning - on my way to the bus stop to get Maddie off to school. I didn't even get out of the neighborhood before I noticed that I had a flat tire. I immediately called my darling husband to tell him the great news and he graciously came home to help me with my tire. Chris aired up the tire enough to drive the van to the tire shop and then took Maddie to school while I waited for the tire to be fixed. Once that ordeel was over, I decided I would check out a few garage sales and do a little shopping with my friend Angela. No bid deal, right? Wrong! Before going into one of the stores, I decided to quickly change Brooke's diaper before we went in - and set my keys down on the floor of the van. Once I was finished, I scooped up Brooke, the dirty diaper, my purse and shut the locked door - but forgot to pick up my KEYS! Immediately I knew what I had done and again had to call my "Knight" to rescue me once again. Chris stopped what he was doing, went to the house to get the spare key and met me at the van to unlock to door so I could get back in. What a trooper!! The day continued as I picked up both Ashlyn and Maddie from school and went to the grocery store to pick up a few items for the weekend. Since it was Friday before Labor Day weekend, Dillons was packed and I told the girls that if they were patient in the store and behaved, they would get a special treat after supper. Unfortunately, that did not turn out in their favor. Both girls could not keep their hands off of each other or anything in the store. I eventually told them both that they were on their final warning and if they touched anything in the store or each other, they would not be allowed to get their special treat. And, I once again had to stick by my threat. When Ashlyn grabbed the frozen food door and kept opening it, I turned to her and told her that her special treat was gone. And, you would have thought I told her that her world was over. My beloved 4 year old, whom I love with all my heart, decided to throw a fit like she has never thrown before - literally! She plopped her adorable little behind (I can say that now since it has been a few days) down on the floor and started throwing a crying fit - and it wasn't quiet by any means. So, as any good mother would - I walked away from her, not to give her the attention that she most certainly wanted. However, my plan did not work as I thought it would. You would expect that once you walked clear across the store that she would get up embarrased or scared or something!!! She didn't and instead continued to throw her fit, which made me more mad than I have ever been! I proceed to walk right back up to her, get down to her level and sternly tell her to get her behind off the floor immediately or she would be in bigger trouble than she has ever been before. She thankfully did what I asked and I whisked her into an isle that had NO shoppers in it and gave her a significant paddle on her backend. It may not have been the wisest thing to do as spanking in public is not the most appreciated thing in this world, but I needed to get that behavior nipped in the bud immediately. She now knows (thanks to Daddy's stern lecture once we got home) that her behavior that day will NOT be tolerated, Period! Chris decided to end our day by taking the family out to dinner and Mommy got to pick. I chose Applebee's so I could have a chicken salad and stick to my diet. We finally got seated, received our drinks and was about to order when Maddie started crying that she had a stomach ache. We waited a few minutes, talking with her to determine if it was a pain or if she was sick to her stomach and decided that we better leave as we did not want her throwing up in the restaurant booth. So we left and Chris went and picked up hamburgers for us to eat at home. However, my "Knight" had done one other good deed that evening that I found out about later that night. Chris and I drove separately to the restaurant so he could catch a movie after supper and I could take the girls home to put to bed. I got to the restaurant first and waited with the three girls. As Chris was driving to the restaurant, he saw a car stopped on the road and pulled over to help. The car he stopped for had run out of gas and Chris luckily had a full 5 gallon jug of gas in the back of his truck. So, not only was my husband my "Knight" that day, he also came to someone else's rescue. He is such a great guy and I love him with all my heart! Thanks to my wonderful husband - I am the luckiest woman on Earth!