Dirt . . . It does a body good

Nana Mary bought this outfit for Garrett and boy did she hit the nail on the head!

Garrett has not wanted to take the outfit off since she gave it to him.

Lucky for him, he met his A.R. goal last week and was able to wear regular clothes to school on Friday.

Nana also bought him another cute pair of khaki shorts and a striped shirt that will be perfect for this summer.

Thanks Nana!

Happy Birthday to Me

On Wednesday there was much whispering and giggling between Meagan and Garrett and much shushing by Jimmy. At 7:00, after asking the location of any glue sticks in our house, Jimmy and the kids disappeared into Meagan's room. Not one but two doors were closed in an effort to prevent me from seeing or hearing any goings on.

When I awoke Thursday morning and stumbled into the living room this is what I found:

My husband is truly wonderful. The gift means more to me than he will ever know. The fact that he took the time (over an hour) to make all of these letters with our kids and then stay up late to put them all in place means more to me than any gift he could have bought.

Jimmy, I love you and thank you so much for the banner. He also gave me a beautiful Willow Tree angel. My picture of it was too bright so it looks like a big blur. Digital photography hints anyone??

Here is Jimmy and I at my mom and dad's house on Thursday evening.

Here is me with my mom and Meagan and Garrett. Garrett was obviously not happy about having to stop playing with his friend and pose for the picture. Meagan, on the other hand, is a total ham.

Here is me with Nana Mary. If you read this blog regularly you know that Nana is the mom of my best friend from when I was a kid. She is a big part of our lives. Love you Mary!

Here is my with my friend Elice. We have known each 0ther since we were kids but in the last few years have become close friends. We scrapbook together and our kids are about the same age.

Here I am with the German Chocolate cake my mom made for me.

Despite feeling ill, my mom also made me a wonderful dinner. She made homemade roast with carrots and potatoes and gravy. YUM! Thank you so much Mom! One of these days I am actually going to learn how to make it myself. Garrett even asked me the next day if I knew how to make chicken like grandma did. I was puzzled by his question. He said, "You know, what we ate for dinner last night at Grandma's." I told him no, I don't know how to make chicken like that yet. (Especially since it was roast!)

Hanging Out with Nana Mary

My kids are very lucky to have two complete sets of grandparents as well as a great grandma.

They also have a Nana. Nana Mary is the mom of my middle school/junior high/high school best friend Crystal.

Crystal and I don't get to see each other much due to geography and usually don't write or call but when we do get to see each other it is like we were never apart. We have the ability to pick up right where we left off. We are both moms now and I am a teacher and she works in an office but somehow we are still the same two girls who loved to bowl and talk on the phone for hours and hours and gossip about crushes. Every girl should have a friend like Crystal. We were opposites in so many ways, but so much alike in others. We complimented each other in the best of ways. This isn't to say that we never argued though. As Nana Mary can attest to, there were some big fights over the years but I always knew that when it mattered, when it was really important, she would be there for me. She was there during some rocky times in high school, she was there when I got married, she was there when my grandfather died . . . I could go on and on and on.

Anyway, back to the point. (I'm like this when I talk to someone in person too. I start off talking about one topic and wind up on a totally different topic. It's quite exciting to talk to me actually!)

Nana has been involved in my kids' lives since they were born. She used to babysit Meagan when Jimmy and I would go bowl. Once we quit bowling regularly she kept up with visits and hanging out with us occasionally.

She is teaching Meagan to bake and to sew and do all of those other things that moms are too busy and rushed to do with their own kids. Meagan loves her and I do too.

Now that Garrett is older he is getting to spend time with Nana too. Just recently he went and played with Mady, Crystal's daughter. They had a blast together and I wish I had taken some pictures! (It was during the week I went back to work so I was dead tired trying to get back into the swing of getting up at 5:30. Yes, 5:30 AM!)

In case you haven't figured it out, it is Garrett in the Hulk costume in the above pictures. Nana took Garrett to the dollar store (Nana's favorite!) and he talked her into the costume.

Nana, we just want to say thank you for all that you do and we love you!