February Sum Up

February was a whirl wind of activity. We have had a crazy month, with a few ups and downs.

The library we frequent had a reading program for the kids this month, so we spent even more time than normal reading. (Chesney is apparently a competitive reader.) We have been going to the same library for two years and he is just now starting to talk to the librarians. He told them that he loved the library because he liked to learn new things and that he is really smart because he doesn't watch very much TV. They are starting to think he is a character.

I thought of a few more Chesnisms.
a bash = a whip
jamming it down = eating really fast
to infinity and beyond = bed, bath, and beyond

He has also started to answer everything with "yes, I'm 4." "Wow you are tall..." "Yes, I'm 4." Do you like the park.." "Yes, I'm 4." It is actually pretty amusing that he thinks everything revolves around him being 4. Not sure what he thinks is going to happen when he turns 5, but I do know he is thinking about turning 5. He has been telling me every night when we talk about our day about the birthday party he wants to have.

He wants to have a super hero dress up party, a food fight, a dinosaur dig, pirate ship, dancing, and swimming. When it actually comes to time to plan his party, he may have a list a mile long. We may be having one crazy party.I think that party is on his mind because of the Valentine party we had.

Instead of paying $40 to go to the Valentine party at the Saginaw rec center we decided to have a party at home. We decorated and dressed up. I made a fancy dinner, and we danced afterward. The boys had a blast and can't wait for another excuse to have another.

The next Monday Jeff went into the hospital and had his thyroid removed. We found out after the surgery that he had thyroid cancer, so he will need to do radiation but it should be easy contained and taken care of. More than likely he will have the treatment this month (March) so I will write about it when I get a chance.

Chesney had the chance to spend time with his big brother (Jeff) and his big sister (Jennifer) while Jeff was in the hospital. He learned how to snap and decided that chewing gum was OK. Gum chewing is not a pursuit that he loved before; in fact he hated it. He has been telling me how much he loves them both since then. I guess because he loves all his brothers and sisters so much he decided I needed to have a baby sister in my tummy so he can have two sisters. He told me ,"I have two brothers so I need two sisters. Wait how does the baby get into your stomach? How do Mommies get pregnant?" I never expected to have to have that conversation with my 4 year old. I told him when he was older we would talk about it... Inquisitive rascal.

I some how managed to only get only one picture this month. Chesney and Seth both wore pirate shirts the other day, so they were running around, "you are my best matey!" It was pretty cute.

I have been nose to the grind stone with my classes this month, so I guess I better get back to the books.

Catching up

This last fall was my first semester back to school, so I did not get much extra time to blog. I am going to make time this semester so I don't have to play catch up. (Hopefully!) This may be an extremely long post so bear with me!

Chensey knows how to set a table properly.

Boys can have tea parties too.

 Chesney has been growing like a weed and is getting to be such a big boy. I don't even realize how big he is, but apparently he is huge. Everywhere we go people ask him what grade he is in and are surprised to find out he is only four.

Zoo time

I have been meaning to post some "Chesneyisms" (as we call them). He knows the right words for these but refuses to use them;he prefers he own made up words.
Lasterday instead of yesterday
Sleeve these up instead of roll up my sleeves
I can't think of anymore off the top of my head, but I will write them down as he says them and post some more later. He is full of them!

He is also getting very interested in what is healthy and earth friendly. (This is my fault, but in a good way). He is getting really good at telling what is healthy and what is not. Zach asks me sometimes if something is healthy and more often than not it is Chesney that answers first and he is usually right.

For Halloween Chesney wanted to be Batman, so Jeff was the Riddler and I was Poison Ivy. We had a good time going to Zach's house with him for a Halloween party. He and Seth love to play Batman and Robin now beause he already has the outfit.

Christmas was great this year. Chesney was old enough to really get into. Chesney was full of questions about Santa and everything Christmas related. When he went to visit Santa I thought we were going to have to pry him off his lap. He only wanted to ask him for a Batman train set and a camera, but he did want to ask him a million questions. "Where are your reindeer? (he came on fire truck), how do your reindeer see in the dark, fly, etc. Why do like cookies so much?" He was very concerned about Santa eating too many cookies and not having anything healthy eat, so he left him carrots and blueberries instead.I have a feeling next year he will be even worse. Nemo sent us an elf on the shelf and book. Chesney loved reading the book but did believe the elf was real. After I read him the story and talked with him about it he looked me strait in the face and told me, "you know that elf is not real; he is just a toy." We may have an early non-believer.

Santa is going to love this hot cocoa with carrots and blueberries!

I don't want to wake up

Yea! Presents!

We also had a great time visiting Nemo, Paw Paw, Aunts TT and Whitney, and Uncles Seth and Kyle in Lubbock at Christmas. Chesney and Zach love their relatives and had a great time spending time with them.

We are almost 100% sure that we are going to wait one more year to send Chesney to kindergarten, but I plan to put him in a pre-k program for one day a week next year to get him used to being with someone besides me. I figure that the best gift I can give him is the gift of time and I have never heard someone say they regretted holding their child back. (though I have heard a few regret not holding them back)

We all had a good time just spending time together on my break, but it's back to the books now. This semester is going to be full of Sociology, Statistics, History, and Business Computers.  I will post some new fun stuff as it happens or hopefully at the beginning of each month.

Now The Reveal!

The desk is finally in it's final form and it looks awesome! After cutting, nailing, sanding, priming, painting, and varnishing for 3 days we are done. I have been trying to get rid of this desk since we first moved in together. (unsuccessfully) We have also been searching for bedside tables with a few drawers for a long time. We could not find any so it was time to make some. Two birds with one stone! The greatest thing about this project is we spent less than $10. Remember this is what it looked like before.

This is what they look like now! Two new (old) bedside tables complete with drawers.

 After cutting the desk into two pieces we patched the sides with wood we already had, and sanded, primed and painted our new bedside tables. We already had tons of paint, wood stain and varnish on hand so no cost there. They still needed something, so we went down to Goodwill looking for inspiration. I found a great wall border for $1.50 and decided to wallpaper the drawer fronts and top. This part took the longest but it really made the tables. 

 I used some wood stain to tone down the white a little and give an antiqued look. The knobs came off the original desk. I had to spend the most to fix them; who knew spray paint cost $4 a can. It was way more work than I thought it would be, but we have two fantastic bedside tables that we could not have found in a store, so it was worth it. I love having furniture that has personality, just like me!

Project Time!

We are in a full blown house makeover. I finally got around to rearranging my kitchen cabinets. We took two car loads of stuff to the goodwill and finally got the laundry room back. I moved the master bedroom around, and am working on getting a new coat of paint on the dressers. We just repainted and upholstered a sad little bench I found on the side of the road. I think that it looks pretty fabulous for only spending $6 on it.

LOVE this upholstery fabric!

We are also working on a project with  the old desk we have been carrying around for the last 5 years. Here is a picture of the before.

I will post a picture of it when it is complete. All I can say is it will be unrecognizable. It's almost done, so you won't have to wait long for the reveal!

Chesney's 4th Birthday

This all started back in March, when I started trying to plan Chesney's birthday. ( I know I'm a psycho, but I love to plan his birthday!) Chesney's niece Madi decided not to have a birthday party, so she could go to the beach. Chesney had a very incredulous look on his face when i told him, and then it was like a light bulb went off, it turned into "you can do that"?! He was very firm from that moment on that he didn't want a birthday party he wanted to go to the beach. I was a little crushed about not getting to plan a party, but it is HIS birthday I reminded myself. I resigned myself to Birthday trip planning. We decided on Galveston, so we would not have very far to drive. I found a great condo right on the beach and it was done. The waiting began; I think Chesney asked me everyday for a month if we were going to the beach yet. When the day finally came Chesney was having fits he was so excited.

First time on the beach. We stopped in La Porte to stay the night on Thursday night. It's Nemo birthday too!

Chesney standing on the balcony of the condo. As you can see he was very excited.

Daddy and Chesney getting ready for some ocean time.

Resting after some beach fun.

Chesney getting ready for some "surfing".  Zach playing in the sand.

Playing in the waves. Chesney and Zach had a blast.

The best ice cream EVER, at La Kings.

Gulf tour and dolphin watch.

There were quite a few dolphins, but this was the only one I got a good picture of.

Chesney hung out with the Captain a little.

Chesney and his TWO birthday desserts. They were singing "Happy Birthday" to him and he was in denial.

We really had a great time. I wish we could have had a big birthday bash like last years, but Chesney had a good time so that is all that matters. Instead of doing this (last years birthday)...

 We were doing this..

I have to say I think I have a pretty smart boy. Now I just have to worry about where he might want to go next year.

Busy Fews Months

It has been almost 3 months since my last post, so I decided I better post something or I may give up on my blog project. We have been very busy since May: setting up a swimming pool, building a sandbox, birthday parties, kids coming and going, zoo trips, wedding shower, anniversary party, trips, birthday trip for Chesney, birthday with is friend Seth. We have been in a whirl wind, but having a great time.

Chesney and Zach a one of the many zoo trips.

Chesney found a frog in the backyard. I think it was one of the best days of his life!

Chesney and Zach went with Nemo and Papa to Kerrville for a weekend trip, so Mommy and Daddy visited the capital.

Chesney playing in the sandbox. It was the only thing he wanted for his birthday.(Except his trip to the beach.)

First Sleepover

Chesney and his best buddy Seth had their first sleepover together last night. They had a good time watching and movie (Toy Story 3) and eating dinner. They got to take a bath together next, and then get ready for bed. They both snuggled in after the stories and went right to sleep. I hope they still do that a few years from now, but I doubt it; there will be a lot more giggling, playing, ad not wanting to sleep. Anyways, we all enjoyed another one of life's firsts.