OH Happy DAY

Oh happy day, Oh happy day when Jesus washed my sins away. Praise God my daughter Karson was baptized at church today. Two of our members were baptized last Wednesday night, and as we were coming home from witnessing that, Karson told Matt that she wanted to talk to him in private. After talking with her, Matt came and told me that Karson wanted to be baptized. I, of course, was more skeptical--she's only 8 years old. I said, "Matt I think she's to young." Then, I decided to go and talk to her about it and see what she had to say to me. She told me in her most mature, 8 year old way that she wanted to be special and do it because Jesus did it. I was pretty impressed with that answer. I talked with our children's minister about it the next day and she said, "Tiffany, let her do it." She also said the most important thing for her to understand is what it means afterwards. That's all I needed to hear. I was baptized at 13 and Matt at 15, but our daughter was TODAY at age 8. Karson is incredibly bright (and, there was NO talking her out it--she had her mind made up), and I believe with all my heart she did out of complete obedience to God. **Side note, what's even neater is that she was able to share her baptism with another member of our church named William Fondaw. He's been coming for a couple of weeks from a half-way house close to church. What a testament of faith for him (a) to become a follower of Christ and attend church regularly (b) to become a BAPTIZED follower of Christ and (c) to try and change his life for the better. WOW, very happy for William also.

It's FRIDAY

I know, I know, I didn't post anything about our Valentine's Day but trust me NO ONE was slighted least of all the kids.

Check out their loot. Karson received a necklace from a boy NOT in her class. I thought that was more interesting than she apparently did. I can't say that I blame the boy, Karson is definitely a stunning gal (I'm partial I know). Isaac got a papermade flower with a hand written "I love you Isaac". I'm not sure if it was signed or not (guess it could've been from a boy?).

Those of you with a couple kids in school know how hard it is running back and forth between classes. Plus, I have Miles with me, so the running around is even more challenging. At any rate, I only got a few Vday school pics. Karson's class was intently watching Toy Story 3--pictures didn't seem appropriate =).
Miles paid ZERO attention to his Valentine's loot. He's probably the least loving of all my children. Both Karson and Isaac are snugglers and always wanting someone to sleep with them or cuddle up with them or hug on them. Miles, not so much. When it's time for bed, he wants to be in HIS bed. He don't want NO lovin', snugglin', cuddlin', coddlin'. All he wants is a hug and kiss goodnight. Don't get me wrong when I say he's my least loving--he does have loving moments such as telling me he loves me. But affection just ain't his thang, and he's more than happy to let you know if he likes you or not at any given moment. He's my more independent and outspoken child. SO, my point, I'm not surprised Valentine's Day isn't his thing. In fact, he had ALL of his Valentine's in his backpack when he got home from school on Tuesday. I said, "Miles why didn't you hand out your Valentine's?" to which he replied, "I didn't want to." Ornery thing. I called Ms. Windy to make sure that he didn't actually SAY that during class, and she told me that they were simply forgotten. Whew.

I always want the traditional BIG BOX OF CHOCOLATE for the holiday. Really, when can you truly indulge if it's not on Valentine's Day, right? We polished it off yesterday. I wish I'd went to Walmart on Tuesday for the half-price boxes--never even thought of it. I guess that's a good thing. The kids have so much candy, I will probably be snacking on it for the next few weeks. I did make a couple of sweets runs on Valentine's Day. I needed GiGi's, Baskin Robbins and Riley's bakery. By the time Miles and I made it Riley's, he had to pee and let me and everyone standing in line know. Once we got our goods, I took him outside and let him pee in the bushes. SO, sorry if you saw a little guy peeing in the Riley's bushes on Vday--he belongs to me =).

Our computer tried to crash this week. Always a fun adventure but luckily I back everything up now (after two previous crashes, I'm prepared). If you ever see anything called Security Sheild pop up on your computer, DO NOT DO what it says to do. Fortunately, I didn't fall for its tricks--it's malware, aka PESTware. I was able to back up my files immediately and remove it thanks to a link Paul sent. And, I didn't have to a complete system restore. Oh the joys of PC ownership. My next computer with be a MAC for sure.

The weather this week has been refreshing. I love being outside even if it is in the mid-50's. Miles and I decided it was time for us to purchase another trampoline. This is our 3rd trampoline. The first two were donated to us. We gave one of them to our neighbors and kept the other one--neither were in great shape but FREE. Who could complain? The one we kept had been welded back together in several different places and had some make-shift parts on it. I had a feeling it wouldn't last long, but it managed to make it through two summer seasons. At the end of last summer, Matt was jumping on it with the kids and broke one part of it. The kids were still able to jump but not adults =). One sad fall afternoon when Matt was moving it over to mow, the leg snapped. It wasn't pressing for us to get another one, but I KNEW, come spring, another one was VITAL. Well, it's not technically spring, but the weather was perfect this week to purchase another one. I found a 15 footer at Sam's Club. We spent Wednesday afternoon putting it together. I should say I put together all the framing and Ben and Matt did all the hard work installing the pad and springs. The kids jumped all afternoon.

Miles has also enjoyed riding around in his jeep. It's hard to believe that he was crusin' around with his sister only a few short years ago. Check out my link.
http://tiffanymomof3.blogspot.com/2007/09/cruisin-together.html

Look at him now:

We're ready for a fun weekend!!!

Snow Week Recap

This week has been totally unproductive, but oh well, we've enjoyed snuggling up and staying warm amid this snowy wonderland. You won't hear me complain about all these snow days mainly because I feel like time spent with your children is TIME spent with your children whether it's in the winter or in the summer. I do feel sorry for the teachers though who usually have to go to school a couple days longer than the students--and, I feel sorry for the board who has to reconfigure the school calendar and field LOADS of phone calls from angry parents. But ME, nah, I don't feel sorry for being at home with my kids enjoying our time off. So, what have we been up to this week:

(1) KARSON: she and I have been playing Madame Fate. We're completely addicted to Big Fish games. She had a playdate with her cousin Elizabeth on Tuesday and with her friend Emma on Wednesday.

She built a snowman with her dad on Thursday.
Karson's been with both sets of grandparents for shopping and playtime at their houses. She's been to the library and started reading a 500 page book called The Invention of Hugo Cabret--very cool.
She has decided to participate in PBS GO's Writers contest and write a book. She and Isaac have published numerous books.
Don't you want to read the book "The Mystery of the Past"? I hear you oohing and aaaahhing.
Tomorrow she has a basketball game in the morning and was invited to go with a friend to a concert tomorrow afternoon at Living Hope called Slugs and Bugs. Lots of fun for Karson!!!


(2) ISAAC: he is completely addicted to the iPad and loves playing games. A few people got him iTunes gift cards for his birthday. I think he's blown through them faster than anyone I know. He's not a snow person so he loves being inside. He got to play with Evan on Tuesday. He has a little friend Tommy who lives a stones throw from our house, but both of them are to scared to go to the other one's house for a playdate. However, we are going to Tommy's on Sunday for his birthday party. He has been to see great grandparents this week. He loves seeing Granny and Grandad--the kids used to go there every week on Fridays, but lately, with health problems (and full time school), we haven't been able to spend much time there. He's been Valentine's shopping with Pap and Nana and got to spend the night (JUST him) on Wednesday night. He got LOADS of books at the library yesterday and a new Goosebumps DVD.

(3) MILES: nothing is different for Miles this week besides missing preschool. We were supposed to have his Valentine's party yesterday =(. I guess it will be postponed until next week. He got a haircut.


He's been sleeping with Karson some this week. They remind me so much of each other and love their sleepovers in Karson's room. He also loves playing with Emmie Lou (his cousin). Matt took him and Isaac over to see her and Mamaw and Karen on Wednesday. Life for us (he and I) has been different this week. We're used to quiet mornings at home--just the two of us =).
(4) ME: I decided to purchase some of those Sally Hanson nail effects this week since I had a $2 off coupon and they look fabulous.
My verdict: don't waste your money. They are stickers and would probably be great if you never use your hands =).
I got my Snapfish book in. If you read my facebook post about a week ago, I received a Snapfish book but it was NOT mine. It was a wedding book of Kyla and Michael Meade. When I called Snapfish, they told me they would send me another book and to just recycle the other book--weird, huh. I went running around with Shannon yesterday while all our kids were at Mom's. It's always fun spending time with her. I've been to the library and book mobile a couple of times. I've tried to keep up with exercising. I'm liking exercise TV on the DVR especially Denise Austin--she moves at my pace. This cold weather makes it REAL hard to stay motivated. I can't wait until this 50 degree weather moves in this weekend. I had some skinny jeans hemmed at Mickies--I got them on sale at Macy's for nothing but they were about TWO feet to long. This is the first year for me and skinny jeans. I've tried on LOTS of pairs but never found any that worked until this year. There are two brands: Celebrity Pink and Grane that work for me--both JUNIOR sizes--WOW.


I also was able to pick up a plate at The Paintn' Place that Karson and I did a week ago. I thought Karson's new EASTER plate turned out cute. My plate collage is so fun. I hope to line the walls of my kitchen one day with all their plates (and holidays).


(5) MATT: I'll let the video speak for itself. I love that Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" is playing the background--completely appropriate on lots of different levels.


(6) PARTY OF FIVE: we went on a Valentine's date today beginning with lunch at Pizza Hut and a movie Gnomeo and Juliet. We've had a super, snowy winter week at home!!!
**I know this is hodgepodge post, but my brain is hodgepodge right now.

RIP Justin H. Deaton

This blog is in memory of Justin Hinston Deaton. You came into our lives on a Wednesday and brought us lots of joy. Yesterday marked one week since you left this world. We miss you and are sad you're gone. We hope you meet Princess Sparkles in Hammy Heaven. Until we meet again....

Justin the Hammy is kaput. We're not real sure what happened to him. We kind of think he was sick from the get go. Plus, it's not REAL comforting that Petco gives you a 15-day guarantee on the life of their rodents/animals. I figured Justin was different after day 3 when I put a fresh carrot in his cage, and he didn't even budge. Sparkles would've had that thing devoured in minutes. And, Justin wasn't NEARLY as active as Sparkles. He slept all the time day and night. So, Matt and I weren't real surprised when we checked on him last Saturday, and he was hard as a rock. Thankfully the kids were spending the night with my mom and weren't home. And, we were able to take him back (as a return--eek) to Petco and get our money back. Breaking the news to the kids the next day was a bit harder. Isaac was more angry than sad yelling, "but I wanted a pet." Miles and Karson were the weepy ones. The loss of a pet is hard. I decided to email Isaac's teacher to let her know about the loss and help her avoid an awkward moment. She emailed back and said, he and Ms. King (the aide) had talked about it and he told her "they (hamsters) don't last very long." I'm not sure what to do at this point. I think the few days we had Justin were just enough for the kids. I know they would like another hamster but haven't been pressing the issue at all. I'm not sure if we'll return to Petco anytime soon.

Tuesdays Child AGAIN

2, 4, 6, 8 (minus # 2), these are the current ages of our children. Our Isaac celebrates numero SIX today. He was born at 7:11 p.m. on Tuesday, January 25, 2005. With his Don King hair do and ear to ear grin, life sure hasn't been the same since he joined our family. He's brought us so much joy.

This is how he was 90% of the time as a baby. He had/has a happy disposition, what a gift!

I can honestly say, Isaac is a easy going kid in that he RARELY has a bad day. He's usually happy (and energetic) at all times. Don't get me wrong, he does his sharing of complaining and has bad attitudes like ALL of us do at times, but his MOOD is generally pleasant. He's not a fit-thrower or tattle-teller, and takes some pretty severe hammering when the "boys will be boys" wrestling takes place, but rarely does he get hurt or if he does, he'd never say anything. He's the kind of kid that if he's crying, you know something MAJOR has happened.

Look at that precious face. He's such a cute kid, always has been.

When Karson turned six and was in kindergarten, we decided to do birthdays on a smaller scale--meaning no big event. Simply put, we wanted to celebrate with family and make it easier. When I arrived at Plano, the secretary said, "there's been a lot of Deaton's here today." She told me that Matt's brothers came to eat lunch there. I think it's neat that they do this--Andrew and Ben have eaten lunch with the kids a few times this year--very cool!

And, since Isaac has 23 classmates, taking treats to school is a celebration in and of itself. This afternoon I took donuts and milk to his classroom at school. I bought three bags of chocolate and three bags of powdered donuts. Powdered are Isaac's favorite, but I figured lots of kids would like chocolate too and they did. I didn't come back home with many of either.

I pulled Karson out of class early so she could join us for the celebration. What a wonderful big sister she is. Ms. King was trying to convince her to come back to kindergarten with them.

Plano has rules like any other school, but one of the more "odd" rules is that you cannot leave school before 3:15 or you will be counted tardy for the day. Anyone with a 4 year old knows how SHORT their attention can be at times, especially in a school setting. Miles is NO different. We decided to leave the classroom around 3 p.m. He had had enough. We hung out on the big courtyard area at Plano waiting for 15 minutes to pass. Our neighbors Mia and Laila joined us. Isaac and Mia's birthdays are two days apart so Mia was celebrating her birthday at school today too. We sure do love these gals!

Isaac's birthday cupcake (top right) on the Plano January wall.

Miles giving me the thumbs up. I particularly like the sign next to him saying LIFE IS FULL OF CHOICES, CHOOSE CAREFULLY. I don't think that was there by mistake =).

With Isaac this year, I decided to make it extra special by letting him get a pet--hamster Justin. And, we went to his favorite place for dinner Chick Fil A.

Isaac and his cake. I should post the picture taken right after this one. Miles was up on the table too and blew the candles out. Isaac had this "look" on his face and yelled at him. Oh well, on to the presents which is all Isaac cared about anyway =).

We're fortunate that his best buddy Donovan came to CFA. They sure do love each other. When I walked into Isaac's classroom today, Donovan told me "Tiffany, I'm coming to Chick Fil A tonight." His mom and I had been facebooking about Donovan and Isaac's discussion of his birthday--how funny. We're so thankful that they could join us. They already feel like family to me =).

Isaac opening up his loot. He got some neat Hot Wheels cars, LEGOS, money, a Rocket Ship art project, an iTunes gift card and a RAZOR scooter--quite a load.

WE SURE DO LOVE THIS TUESDAY CHILD and are thankful for such a wonderful day of celebrating with him.

Introducing our NEW family member

Meet Justin the hammy. Why the formal name, not real sure, but it was Isaac's choice. I wanted something like Sergeant Slaughter or Captain Crunch, but it's simply Justin.

When Karson turned six years old, I let her use her birthday money to purchase a hamster. I'm sure those of you that follow my blog remember Princess Sparkles. Sparkles the hamster was in our possession for a whoppin' 6-8 months before she went missing at Pap and Nana's while Matt and I were out of town. The story was that Karson didn't snap the cage shut one night and she got out. Of course, Karson said Isaac didn't snap it, and so on and so on. I have no idea what happened, but I wasn't ready for a replacement at that point. I thought I had blogged about this story but couldn't find it anywhere. SO, for those of you who thought we still HAD Sparkles, sorry to disappoint. Sparkles WAS an amazing hammy. She was a Houdini and got out of her cage on a regular basis. She went through (or GNAWED through) THREE cages. In fact she was smart enough to get out of her cage and return before morning. I would find half eaten bananas or desserts on our kitchen counter, crayons in her cage, chewed up garbage bags, etc. We used to keep her in Karson's room until she chewed through the cage and would get out at night and climb into bed with Karson. I had no idea hamsters were so crafty.

With Isaac's sixth birthday right around the corner (next Tuesday to be exact), I let him use his birthday money (via the great grandparents) to purchase a new hammy. We already had the cage, bedding and treats. All we needed was a ball, food and a clean habitat. Oh, and Isaac thought he needed a toy TV also--we spare NO expense for our pets. I spent last night cleaning the cage and preparing it for our new companion. We went to Petco after school today and picked out Justin. I would've loved to have gotten another Black Bear hamster, but they were out of them. And, on top of that, Isaac wanted a BOY hamster. So, we have a Syrian. I can't tell much of a difference and the pet store lady told us there wasn't much difference. I wonder if he'll be an escape artist like Sparkles. I imagine he'll be even harder to contain, he is a BOY hamster after all.

Dream Big

and BIG things will happen. Karson has some of those wall sticker doo-dads in her room that say "If you can dream it, you can do it."

The pictures in this post are just to adorable to pass up. Elizabeth spent the night Sunday night, and we did some rag rolling. I thought the girls looked so cute watching the Golden Globes and dreaming of fancy dresses, sparkling make-up, shiny nails and all the pizazz of Hollywood life.

Curls, Curls, Curls...

At the ripe ol' age of 35 Martin Luther King Jr. won the Nobel Peace Prize. I mean WOW. I'm thankful that my children are taught about important people like Martin Luther King Jr. and his dreams which were simply treating people the way you would want to be treated. It's completely ludicrous that someone would kill him for this idea. I want my children to dream big. I have so many wonderful dreams and prayers for their lives.

I can't brag on Karson and Isaac enough especially when it comes to their academics. Isaac recently came home with his 2nd round of test scores and blew them through the roof: making a 187 on his Grade test (102 is above average) and a 490 on his Gmade (474 is above average). I also received Karson's test scores today for her Grade: 468 (above average is 435) and Gmade: 501 (495 being above average). The Grade test is reading assessment and Gmade is the math assessment. Trust me though, (althought they help) grades aren't everything--the heart is what matters the most. The MOST important thing in this world are people. I love that Martin Luther King Jr. inspired my daughter to write this:

Karson D.

My dream is to help the eviorment.

I could help the eviorment.

I could tell other people.

I could go to a pet shelter and make pets feel at home.

I could have a food drive.

I could give poor part of my alounce.

I could have a yard sell where everythings free.

I could plant a community garden.

*Let us all truly think like Martin Luther King Jr. and find ways to be more self-LESS in 2011. The world is full of pessimists and people who complain ALL the time. There's no shortage in those areas. There are shortages though in people who are JOYFUL and simply dreamy! Let's SHINE in 2011!