So Long Ford, Hello Chevy!

Yes, we got a new SUV! I know, I know my Expedition was AWESOME! I LOVED it! However, it was about to go out of warranty and I am always skiddish about that. I figure the day after the warranty expires, it will stop running! So considering that and with the desire to have bucket seats in the 2nd row and a built in DVD, Corey and I decided to go do some test driving today on his day off. We went to drive a Tahoe. We drove it and liked it a lot, but when we got back we saw this Traverse. It was way more loaded than the Tahoe, so we decided to check it out. It had a sunroof and a moon roof, navigation system, DVD, Bose sound system, back up camera, heated seats, auto-start, and 3 rows of seating just like the Expedition! Of course the girls fell in love with it within seconds! I must say that when he said it was a "crossover" which was a combo of a minivan and an SUV, the dealer sort of turned me off! Just typing the word"minivan" makes me feel ill! I know that is ugly and if you are reading this and you drive a minivan, more power to ya, I just can't do it!
Anyway, we drove it and it was great! It drove smooth, it had tons of room inside, the bucket seats in the middle were awesome, not to mention all the other extras! But when we got back I stood and looked at it and made Corey and the dealer tell me over and over that it DID NOT look like a minivan in anyway! After much consideration, I decided that I could pull this off! It has everything that we could ever need or want and I don't lose any seating, which was super important!
As soon as we pulled off the parking lot huge storms rolled though so we didn't get to drive it for long. I can't wait to get out tomorrow and run it around town!
With that said, I would like to have a moment of silence for the Expedition .......................................................................................................
It was a great truck and it will always hold a special place in my heart:)

The Challenge

So, like all of you , I am a blog stalker:) I read people's blogs that I don't know...most of them I have a connection to but some I don't. I began reading a blog written by a girl named Tanna a while back. I do actually have a connection to her, her mom works with me. So anyway, Tanna came up with this Challenge back in the spring. I didn't participate but kept up with many friends that I know who did it. The Challenge is a weight loss, get fit, take control of your body kind of thing. It is a 12 week program and I decided to join in for the summer session. There are guidelines, the hardest of which is the "No Sweets" rule! I didn't realize how big of a sweet tooth I had until I couldn't have anything sweet! However, the fact that it is summer and sweets are everywhere, doesn't help! This week I found sugar free Oreos and I feel like I discovered gold! OMGoodness! They are heaven!

Anyway, everyone in the house is very aware that mom is doing"The Challenge". They know what I can eat and what is a "cheat". (You get 16 cheats for the 12 weeks) Makinley is like the drill Sergeant when it comes to what I eat and if it counts as a cheat! She is constantly on me and asking me how many I have left. Every time I put on my workout clothes, my shorts and a sports bra, she passes by and says, "lookin good Mom"!

Though I am not doing as well as I had hoped, I am making progress. In 6 weeks I have lost 7 lbs, 2 inches in my hips, and 2 1/2 inches in my waist! Not too shabby for a summers work! I have 6 weeks to go and I am kicking it up a notch! We weigh in every other Friday and last Friday I made it to a weight that I haven't seen since before Morgan. I was so excited. This has rejuvenated my spirit to keep going. I have increased my workouts to twice a day so hopefully the next weigh in will be even more fantastic!

The funny thing is tonight the girls and I were drawing on the patio with chalk. We were drawing animals, writing who we loved, and then Makinley says "Mom look..."

I asked what it was. She explained that it was me, Before the Challenge and After the Challenge! I told you she was a sergeant! I do think her before picture is a little exaggerated, but anyway, at least the after is noticeably skinnier!

I am proud of what I have accomplished but I have so much more to do! Thanks Tanna for encouraging us on a daily basis to push ourselves farther than we felt comfortable with! I know with the accountability and the support system that comes with the Challenge, I will know success!

Swimming Lessons, Fun for Most!

Since Makinley was gone to Grammie Camp the week Morgan took swimming lessons, I decided to sign her up for an advanced swim class when she got back. I mentioned it to Donna and she wanted me to take Lauren and Hunter as well. So I decided to sign Morgan up for another round too, since she would not be good at sitting there watching the others! At the last minute, Maddie also decided that she was going to take lessons. I have learned that with Maddie, lots of things sound good in theory.....!
So this week was the first week. On Monday, everyone bounced into the car ready to go. Apparently Hunter was not as excited about this anymore, but I wouldn't have known. I got them all in their places in the pool and found a place to sit and sweat for an hour! Maddie teared up a few times but everyone else seemed happy. Afterwards, everyone, including Maddie, said that they loved and and couldn't wait to come the next day. YAY me I pulled it off!
Tuesday was about the same. Everyone was happy, Maddie still cried a little. Morgan and Hunter got a new teacher, a girl, which was just fine with Hunter! He likes him a pretty girl!
Then came Wednesday......On the way we turn up the music and sing Taylor Swift, Brittany, and the Cupid Shuffle, so everyone is fine! We get to the parking lot a little early so I turn around and give each group goals for the day: Lauren and Makinley-fingertips hit the water first, Morgan and Hunter-face in the water every time you swim, Maddie-no crying. She told me that she wasn't getting her face wet today and I assured her that was what you did a swimming lessons:) So I turned to get out and Maddie says, "Miss Leigh Ann can I have a baby wipe?" I turned to ask why and she had puked in her hand! I jumped out wiped her off and stood her in the parking lot. I asked her if she was nervous and she nodded and shook her head at the same time. I took this to mean yes! She puked again in the parking lot so I moved her to the grass while everyone else got out of the car on the other side! She puked about 3 more times and then looked at me with watery eyes and said, "I'm done". So we all went to the bathroom and regrouped. Everyone went to their groups, but Maddie cried almost the whole time. The funny thing is she does exactly what her teacher tells her to do, she just cries at the same time.
So...I go back home yesterday and tell Donna that she puked on me, and she tells me that is no surprise, Wendy did that when she was a kid at swimming lessons! Hello, could have used the heads up on that one before now!
So today my goal was to get Maddie out of the car QUICK before she got all worked up, just in case we had a repeat of yesterday. We got there, went to the bathroom, and sat our stuff down, and then she did it again! I held her over a trash can while the lifeguard asked if she was ok. I assured her it was an anxiety issue and she would be okay in a minute. And she was. She got in the pool and did her thing, with less crying:)
Lauren, Makinley, Hunter, and Morgan love swimming lessons and they are making such good progress! They are all smiles in the water:)
Since today was the last day of week 1, I took them all to McDonalds for Happy Meals and Ice Cream. So even though it has been an eventful week, we ended it right!
As for next week, Donna has swimming lesson duty on Monday so we'll see how that goes! Maddie better puke on her too dang it!

Wrapping up VBS in Red,White, & Blue

What a fun week of VBS that we wrapped up tonight! Makinley and Morgan were both able to attend and they had such a great time! Morgan has never been able to go, but since it was at night this year, they added a class for the 3's and 4's. She thought she was so big! She really wanted to dress "fancy" (as in wearing her Easter dress) every day, however I put my foot down on that one! The girls really did have fun and seemed to learn a lot. The theme was Boomerang Express and so they learned lots about Australia. Last year in GT, Makinley studied Australia, so on the way home tonight she said, "Mom, this whole week of bible school has been like a flashback to when I studied Australia at school". She really enjoyed everything, but I think loved the songs the most.

We tried to get kids more involved this year so we had 3 nights that were themes, school shirt night, crazy flip flop night, and Red, White and Blue night. We had a drawing for Airhogs tickets for those who participated. We didn't win any tickets, however I do think our kids were the cutest hands down! Today, Makinley, Morgan and I had craft day. We pulled out some projects that we have been saving for a rainy day(or a day where it is 103 and too hot to go anywhere!). The girls painted dog bowls and magnets while I made 4th of July shirts. I started off trying to use different noodles and stamp them on the shirts to make fireworks. Well, that was a big flop, but I did develop a back up plan on the fly. I used the noodles and made stamps to make flag shirts instead. I think they came out VERY cute and they were so excited to wear them to bible school.

Check them out...we used "wheel" noodles for the stars, and the side of a lasagna noodle for the stripes:)

Makinley, Hunter, Lauren

Morgan, Maddie