Dancing with the Beares

Our cute kids have skills like no other!

Maecie loves to dance any time there is music ... makes a mama proud!

I'm thinking Clayton has seen this commercial one time too many! I just love our kids!

Family Fun Night!!

The slide just kept getting more and more down the lane as Clayton's turns wore on ... We finally had to tell him to back it up!

Waiting to see how many pins he knocks down.... looks like it could be a good one....

And he got a spare!! Way to go Bubba!

Mommy and Maecie smiling for the camera!

Daddy can make a strike even with Maecie on his shoulders ... must have been a good luck charm!

Final score ... Mommy wins! But Daddy and Clayton gave it a good try....

I think it was a successful night! Good times had by all!

Beare's Say the Darndest Things Part 2

The other day, Clayton rode to the Auto Parts store with Dad and Papa. They had fun and blah blah blah ... well the next morning Grandma came to pick up the kids for a fun filled day. When I went to put Clayton's carseat in the van, our conversation went as follows:

Clayton: I don't need my seat, Mom. I can just sit on this seat with a seatbelt like a big boy.

Mom: No, you have to sit in a carseat. Those are the rules.

Clayton: But when I ride with my Papa, he lets me sit here without my seat.

Mom: Are you telling off on your Papa??

Clayton: Don't tell my Dad!

Hahaha ... I love that he tells me things and then says, "Don't tell my Dad!" as if he is going to get in trouble! Love that kid!

Growing and Growing and Growing....

Our garden is growing ... and I'm very proud. So I thought I would include some updates. We started out like this. I was very pleased with they way most of my seeds had sprouted. However, when it came time to plant them in the ground, we needed to purchase some extras to supplement. There are still a few things that came from seeds.

This picture includes lettuce, spinach, onions, oregano, cilantro, basil and flat leaf parsley. The lettuce and spinach all came from my seeds and I have been able to add much of them into my salads and smoothies!

These are my zucchini, yellow squash, cucumbers and sweet potatoes (the dark green leaves to the right). We already have about a dozen cucumber buds, many of which were my seedlings. How awesome!


These are our tomato plants. We have cherry tomatoes and roma tomatoes and beef steak tomatoes! The first cherry tomato turned orange today! So they will be coming in very soon! Only a few from seeds, but I'm okay with that.

And here, we have pepper plants, as well as okra, and just a few corn plants that were seedlings. I am excited about all of them! I can almost taste the lovely meal I am going to make this summer!!

And for the big finale ... the first Zuchini!! Isn't she a beauty?! I was so excited that I just sliced it up and ate it with some Tastefully Simple dip. But I can't wait for Zuchini Bread, Sauteed Squash and Onions, as well as Baked Italian Zuchini! I am in garden heaven!!

Because I Said So

These four words were a dread to me, growing up. When I asked my parents why I couldn't go out with my friends, or why I had to clean my room, and their response was "Because I said so," I would just roll my eyes. I even swore I would never repeat those words to my children!

Because I said so. What does that mean anyway? That's just a cop out so you don't have to answer the question! All I wanted was a reason for something to occur. Was someone coming over and that's why I had to clean my room? Were we going somewhere as a family and that's why I couldn't go out with my friends? Come on, mom ... what was the real answer? I never knew since all that was said was "Because I said so."

Well as my oldest grows older, he loves to know the reason behind stuff. Like why the ants march in a line. Or why do we have to water the garden. For these questions, I give answers that explain as best as I possibly can.

However, there are times when he asks questions, and even when I give the appropriate response, he is still not satisfied and asks why. For example, when we had to search for the dog, I asked Clayton to get in the car. To which his response was, "Why?". I tried to explain that we couldn't find Daisy and needed to get in the car to find her, so please get in your seat. "But why do we need to find the dog?", he asks. And my explanation continues. This goes back and forth a few times and I was losing my patience. I needed to find the dog and he needed to do what I asked him to do. And before I knew it, the dirty words escaped my mouth. "Because I said so! Now get in the car please."

I had stooped down to that level! I answered my child's question with the most vague of answers. And I wasn't that upset about it. I didn't bite my tongue and think that I had turned into my mother (which isn't that bad of a thing to begin with!). It actually felt kind of good and Clayton's response was much more favorable than I thought it would be.

Yep, "Because I said so" is a pretty good reason after all. Why? Because I said so!

Babes in Arms

Tomorrow my little princess will be 14 months old. She is growing incredibly fast and I am often wanting for her to go back to a different stage or at least slow down. She has brought so much joy to our family, that I am wanting her to stay small forever.

When Maecie was about 9 months old, she stopped letting me rock her to sleep at night. She wanted to be put in her bed when she was tired. I could close the door and walk away and she would just fall asleep! Clayton was a good baby, but he was never this way. He still wants to sleep in our bed sometimes, even though he is almost 4.

I was really pretty excited when Maecie would do this. How cool that this little girl would want to go to bed and not fight it!

However, the older she gets, the less I like this. I want to hold her, to rock her, to snuggle her. Since she is always on the move, these things don't happen often.

The other day, Maecie was extremely tired. Probably over tired and over stimulated with all of the activities we had going on that day. She was ready for a nap, but after I layed her down, she screamed! I mean, she screamed and screamed and was making herself hoarse! So I went back in. She then picked up her blanket and reached for me. So we sat in the rocking chair and rocked. She snuggled in close and fell asleep. I didn't want to wake her up if she wasn't out, and let's face it, I didn't want to give up this moment, so we rocked for a while. I hummed songs, stroked her hair, and savored each minute.

How do these children grow up so fast? How do they know just what they want at the exact minute and so easily communicate this to us? And how do we make the most of each moment?

I don't know the answer to the first two, other than this is the plan and the way it works. But for the latter, I just know that I have to slow down and enjoy the moments I do have. Rock Maecie to sleep when she will let me....let Clayton climb in my bed in the middle of the night once in a while ... laugh at their jokes and their quick wit .... and wipe away their tears when things don't go their way.

What a Wonderful Weekend!!!

This has been such a memorable Memorial Day Weekend!

I kicked it off by hanging out with my best-friend and cousin, Sarah. She stayed the weekend with me while her parents were out of town. Friday we watched movies as it poured rain.

Saturday night, we went to dinner with "the girls" at Carrabba's. It was YUMMY! And then we watched Twilight while Patrick went jug fishing with the guys.

Sunday, after a short church attendance, we went home to find my parents, brother and his family at the house. Adam, my brother, and his wife had just returned from Hawaii and we were exchanging children and vehicles that had been kept in their absence. Always a good reason to gather and grill out. So my sister and her family drove up to eat lunch ... hot dogs and hamburgers with all of the fixin's.

Monday we celebrated Memorial Day by heading to Mountain Island Lake for a day of boating. We met up with some new friends and played at the sandbar. We picnic-ed (sp??) and rode around until the kids were passed out or either on the brink of passing out! Then we returned home for more grilling out and movies.

Over the weekend, Sarah and I have managed to watch all 3 Twlight movies, one each night. What a wonderful weekend we have had to spend together, as a family!