Oh What a Night, Or Weekend Rather

It's official, Andrew and MacKenzie are hitched, and I have a new sister in law!!! I had the privilege of being a part of the bridal party. The festivities began on Friday evening at our church (Community). The decorations were B-E-A-utiful. There were long cylindrical vases lining the aisle way with black and gray stones at the bottom and tall black sticks/twigs. The arrangements on the stage were similar but had dangling tea lights and red roses. There were also large black vases with red roses next to the first couple of rows. It's one those "you had to be there" moments to explain. I loved it though especially the traditional black and white wedding (with red roses).

After the rehearsal, we headed over to the Warehouse for dinner. Matt's aunt Michelle has been catering for years and decided to open up her own place. SO, the Warehouse was formed, and I believe we were the first people to use the facilities. Dinner was wonderful but short lived (we had the kids with us). I did manage to get a couple of got snapshots though.

MacKenzie is a stylist at Salon Panache which means we got to spend the entire day Saturday at the salon getting "all dolled up" compliments of her girlfriends and coworkers. It was SO fun!

I've never been much of a girlie girl. Make-up (aside from lipstick) never really interested me. In fact, I highly doubt I even wore make-up at my own wedding. I certainly didn't have my hair done--weird, eh? The extent of my make-up use now is a dab of mascara, bare minerals make-up and bronzer, and lipstick and that's on a "good" day. Most of the time, I wing it naturally. SOOO, I loved having my make-up professionally done by experienced gals. I even had FAKE eyelashes put on. WOW. I have to admit, I kind of felt like Tammy Faye after the whole experience but was told by many different people that I looked great.

After getting all glammed up, we headed to the church for pictures. I mean seriously, isn't MacKenzie the most beautiful bride EVER (even with Tammy Faye peering over her shoulder)?

I didn't think to ask anyone to take some snapshots with my camera during the ceremony, DUH! Oh well, I'm sure I will get to sort through all the wedding pictures at some point. THEN, I forgot to bring my camera into the reception and had to run back out to the car.
Isn't this this is the sweetest picture? One day these gals will have a fairy tale wedding like MacKenzie's. Sniff, sniff--those aren't my tears but Matt's. He will be a wreck. I'll be to stressed to be sad =)!

Our little dancing machines.

Miles really started connecting with his cousin Easton (Hayley, Matt's cousin's son). They had the best time together at the reception. At one point, they decided to play hide-n-seek. Why not, right? Miles hid right in front of the head table on the dance floor and right in front of Easton. Easton had his eyes covered and was counting. When he opened his eyes, OF COURSE, he saw Miles immediately and said "I found you." Miles got all huffy and said "No, you're supposed to look over there and over there before you find me." Doesn't Easton know how to play the game right? Apparently, Miles has his own version of "how it's done." I thought that was so funny and had to share.

We love Andrew. He asked Matt to be his best man. I can remember Andy when Matt and I first started dating and how smitten he was with his big brother Matt. He was always wanting to be with Matt and with us whatever we were doing. I have enjoyed watching all the boys grow up. I doubt Andrew and Ben have many memories without me simply because they were both so young when Matt and I dated.

I love these boys! Debbie and Colvin have raised some fine young men.

I spent most of the night on the dance floor rocking it out with my girls Larie and Shannon. We did the Cupid Shuffle and all the traditional wedding songs. Matt was a maniac on the floor. I had people coming up to me all night asking me where he learned to dance. It was seriously NEWS to me. He outlasted everyone.

We love you Andrew and MacKenzie and wish you many years of happiness!!! Thanks for letting us be a part of your most special day!

Lots of Laboring-Part 2

I cannot imagine the conditions being any more PERFECT for a Labor Day weekend wedding. Matt did a wedding ceremony on Sunday night for his cousin Shea (and her fiance Mike Helms). It was held on Old Hickory Lake at Historic Rock Castle in Hendersonville, Tennessee. The weather was awesome, the event was lovely, the bride gorgeous, and we had a great time celebrating with family and friends.

The conditions were also PERFECT for loads of picture taking. I thought it might be easy to get some good shots of all three of the kids since they are older (and a bit more "mature).

Simply put, Isaac is a character and wants nothing to do with serious pictures. You'd think Miles would be the uncooperative one, nope. Maybe we'll manage to snag some good ones at the beach next month??? I'm sure the kids were SICK of having their photo made by the end of the night.

One of the highlights of the night was the photobooth rental. I actually have no idea how to "formally" describe what the entertainment company was doing besides taking funny pictures and handing them out like those photo booths at the mall do. Each session took four different photos. They gave each person a set to keep and put another copy in a photo album for Mike and Shea. The kids LOVED it. It really was one of the cutest things I've ever seen.

I don't know what it is about wedding dance floors but my kids are highly attracted to them. I see parents trying to urge and push their kids out their to dance, and they simply won't do it. I can't convince my kids to take a BREAK from bogeying down. When the kids weren't in the photo booth, they were on the dance floor.

Baby I like it
The way you move on the floor
Baby I like it
Come on and give me some more
Oh yes I like it
Screaming like never before
Baby I like it
I, I, I like it.

*Had to throw in some Enrique Iglesias for you all.*

The singer mainly sang songs along the Jack Johnson, Ben Harper, Neil Young type genres, but that didn't stop the boys from requesting "Beat It" when he opened it up for requests. "Beat It" was a no go, and the musician looked at the kids like he'd never heard that song before. I believe if he had given them the microphone, they'd have sung it. I'm thinking we may need to install a permanent dance floor in our backyard to keep the kids busy since our trampoline busted.

Lots of Laboring-Part 1

This has been one eventful weekend. Not only has the weather been gorgeous, but we've been able to be outside most of the weekend. We spent Saturday at Nolin Lake. The kids swam around in the cove for a bit. They really enjoyed catapulting off the dock. It's inevitable that something "strange" always happens at the lake--it's our own little redneck getaway. Evan was swimming around the docks and stood up on a trolling motor. Long story short, Matt strapped on the goggles and swam down to find a SUNKEN boat. Yep, you heard it here, a sunken boat in our dock. This may SURPRISE most families but not ours.

Fortunately the sunken boat wasn't the one we needed for cruisin' on the lake. Papaw hooked us up with a nice pontoon.

Here's the crazy crew out on the water. You'd think I would know Nolin lake better than I do, but we could NOT find the beach. I know there is a beach somewhere because we took the kids there once. They were disappointed that we couldn't find it, but Nolin is quite large and we were lucky to find our way back to our dock.

Guichie Guichie, ya ya, dada

Have I mentioned how much fun it is to be a part of the whole "wedding scene" again? Matt and I attend our fair share of weddings which is one of my favorite parts about being in ministry. It is even MORE fun when family is involved. Matt's brother Andrew is getting married this month. My sweet sister-in-law to be MacKenzie has included me in the ceremony which means I get to be a bridesmaid again =). I have to admit I'm a bit psyched!

MacKenzie's sister and mother hosted a personal shower at their home on Friday night. MacKenzie and I had Laura's personal shower there a little over a year ago. If we can wrangle up some females for Seth and Ben, we can have one again next year. The picture above is from this year, and the one below is from last year. I am STILL the shortest in the group. I thought maybe I'd grown a bit taller--I knew I had grown wider =). I guess I need to invest in some stiletto's.

Tyra (MacKenzie's mom) asked me to be in charge of games. It's quite hard finding PG-13/R rated games online. There are LOADS of x-rated games, but I didn't find them that tasteful (shocking, eh?). So, I tweeked and came up with my own versions of games.
Game 1 -we played shoot the weiner on Andrew. Debbie brought me a poster from school which featured Regis Philbin wide legged with a book. As you can see, I changed a couple of elements on the poster, like Regis's face and the book he was sporting. At least the READ message was still clear at the top.

Game 2 - we played Porno Pictionary. Being a preschool teacher and all, I have access to certain things, like chalkboards. I had MacKenzie leave the room and everyone drew a "risque" picture and MacKenzie had to come back in the room, guess what the picture was, and select a favorite. There were some pretty great artisits in the mix. I made sure the boards were erased thouroughly. I wouldn't want any of the 3 year olds at EEP having sex education to early!
Games 3 & 4 - I asked all the girls to come up with a household chore that they HATE doing and to be specific on why they hate doing it. Once everyone had written something on the card, I collected them and gave them to MacKenzie. BUT, instead of stating I hate doing the dishes because..., she had to say I hate having sex because...It was the funniest game.

I also asked MacKenzie a series of questions about Andrew and for each one that she got wrong, she had to chew a piece of gum. Can you tell by the wad how many she missed?

She was such a great sport about everything. Here are pictures of some of the goodies she received.

We love you MacKenzie and are looking forward to adding you to our Deaton bunch!

Empty Nest

Okay so my nest isn't "officially" empty, but it sure is quiet around the Deaton baby farm these days. Make no mistake, we are still just as busy as ever, but I certainly feel a bit lost without two of my children at home. I have been a SAHM for almost 9 years now, and aside from the preschool gig, I haven't experienced life as a working (and by that, I mean, PAID) mom. Part of me feels lucky that I've gotten to spend so much time with my children, but the other part of me (the brutally honest part) is a bit worried about this new phase in my life. With Miles starting 3 year old preschool, ALL of my kids are in the school bubble. And, I know that they will ALL be gone soon--it all goes by so fast! That's why I love keeping this blog. It reminds me of all the times and experiences that I've had and am having with my kids. SO, what experiences have been going on lately:

(1) Matt and I broke down and purchased an iPad. Since neither of us have iPhones (which I think the iPad is a big iPhone minus the calling feature), we thought it would be nice to have. And, trust me, it DOES NOT disappoint. The kids have loved playing on it, and we get to play on it occasionally =).

(2) We're counting down the number of days until Andrew and MacKenzie's wedding. Our bridesmaids dresses came in last week. I can't believe that I get to be a bridesmaid again--very fun! I'm looking forward to the PARTY on September 18, and even more importantly gaining another wonderful sister in law.

Wedding showers are so much fun. It's cool seeing the latest trends, gadgets, small appliances that people register for. I think we should implement some kind of "decade anniversary shower" for those of us that desperately need some updates to our 10 year old collections. Wouldn't that be neat? Anyone with me on that?

(3) Isaac has another ear infection. Bless his heart. He just got over swimmers ear and is now on an antibiotic for the other ear. Isaac has such a high threshold for pain, but this ear ache has caused him some discomfort and it LOOKS TERRIBLE. I don't think there is anything nastier than ear goop.

(4) I've been swimming for exercise on Tuesdays and Thursdays with my friend Windy, and I cannot tell you how much of a difference it has made in my exercise routine. I'm a pretty faithful walker, but swimming has been a nice, new workout. We plan to continue through the winter at the indoor aquatic center. Miles is perfectly content playing on the steps while we workout--such a good boy.

(5) Our trampoline BROKE. We've owned two trampolines, both have been given to us. The one that broke looked like it had been welded together in numerous spots. It has held up for a while though. Matt was moving it this week and one of the legs completely snapped. We were able to get $9 from Southern Recycling for all the metal. I highly doubt that will make a dent in the price when we purchase a new one. I can't imagine not having our trampoline. It's such great exercise for the kids and some downtime for mom =).

(6) Matt and I are completely addicted to Scrabble. I bet we've played at least a dozen or so times in the past month.

All the quiet in the house has led me to start reading more. I've read two books in two weeks and am about to start a third. I love getting on the BG's public library and reserving books that are NY Times bestsellers.

(7) Homework is RAMPANT, and I truly have no idea how moms with multiple children in school manage. I'm having a hard time keeping it "together" with just two children. School comes naturally to Karson, my brainiac. Fortunately, Isaac seems to be excelling too if he can just slow down a little on his work. He will be taking the GRADE and GMADE tests next week. I'm anxious to see how he does.

I want you check out Karson's spelling words and let me know if you can spell them?: teaching, represent, consonant, blanket, choose, snail, shrunk, dream, spread, crown, pattern, frown, please, frisbee, & precious. I just noticed the Gigi's cupcake flyer in the background. I may not be able to memorize all those spelling words but can certainly recite what's on the menu at Gigi's today =).

Isaac is my creative child and always has been. It's normal for him to make a book a week and draw elaborate pictures. His teacher is impressed by how artistic he is. I would love to get inside his little mind. I was online chatting with his teacher the other night and she told me that Isaac told her that he uses a made up language at home but can't use it at school. HUH? Where does he come up with this stuff? He's also terrified of getting a stick pulled at school. I wish I applied the stick principle at home--his listening and WILD behavior could definitely use it. He did volunteer to me the other day this little tidbit of information:

He said, "Mom I made a mistake today at school." I said, "You did, what did you do?" He said, "well the teacher told us to write our names at the top of our paper and then stop. Mom, I didn't stop, I kept on going and then I had to erase it." I just LOVE his innocence, but seriously, how is he that paranoid about getting in trouble at school and home, not so much.

Today Matt ate with him at school. At Plano the kids are allowed to ask a friend to sit on the stage with them and eat. Last week at school, he picked a kid named Donovan. Donovan is twice Isaac's size and apparently a healthy eater. His lunch consisted of organic milk, baked Cheetoes, and a sandwich on whole wheat bread. Isaac's lunch, on the other hand, consisted of a Capri-sun, cookies, colored Goldfish and a yogurt crush cup. Those of you that know Isaac well, know that he is one picky eater. I feel like I'm throwing money away on school lunches because he still DOES NOT eat after weeks and weeks of school. I thought he'd eventually cave and start trying new things--WRONG. It's not a big deal, but his diet is hard to accommodate. Back to the stick pulling thing, Matt ate lunch with Isaac today and he picked his buddy Tommy to eat with him. Isaac and Tommy proudly announced that neither of them have EVER had a stick pulled. I'm thinking we might be having Donovan and Tommy over for a playdate soon. They both seem like sweet boys.

(8) Preschool is going full force. I have the sweetest, most adorable little group of 3 year olds this year. I have raved to their parents about how proud I am of them. A majority of my class just turned three which makes them the youngest bunch in the school. You wouldn't know it though. They are doing so well--and to help matters, most of them are younger siblings. Us, younger siblings know all about being "bossed into submission" by our older siblings. Sweet, sweet. Here are two of the cutest lil' preschoolers I know. We rotate who we teach with each week at EEP, and this week I was with Ms. Windy who is Miles's teacher. This meant that I got to see Miles in action. He was a little perplexed during storytime with lil' Anna Beth Nelson was curled up in my lap. He kept looking at her, then looking at me like "hey, you're only supposed to love on me mom." He would nuzzle up right next to me. And then on the playground, I saw him playing "the bouncer" of a outdoor playhouse making all the kids who came inside pay him in mulch pieces. He'd say, "you can't come in unless you give me some money." Looks like Isaac's creative nature is wearing off on Miles. What a ham!

(9) We've been enjoying this fantastic weather lately. I foresee many trips to the park in the near future and lots of outdoor walks.

(10) We are counting down the weeks until Fall Break when we return to Destin, Florida for our fall vacation at the beach. Yahoo!!! There is NOTHING like the beach in the fall. It's the perfect trip before the busyness of the holiday season (and birthday season for us) begins. We can't wait to go with our Pops, Meme, Uncle Mike, Paul, Shannon and the TWINS. It's going to be such a special trip!!!

One Proud Preschooler

Miles is officially a preschooler. He made it through his first day of 3-year-old preschool at Greenwood Park EEP with flying colors. I cannot tell you how much we have prepared (probably OVER prepared) him for this day. He isn't the type of kid who feels "left out" of the school mix with his siblings attending. BUT, there has been a lot of change in his little world recently, and I wasn't sure how he'd handle all of it.

Open House was a bust as you can see from this picture. Since I had to work open house, Matt brought Miles. I can't help but chalk his "mood" up to a few factors. Matt brought him around 1 p.m. which can be a grumpy time for kids--it's later in the day, after lunch, etc. And, then, when they arrived, he saw two of his buddies and wanted to play with them immediately. He had ZERO interest in anything school related. When Matt tried to take him into his classroom he bumped his head twice on the coat hook/cubbie/bookshelf thingie (see picture below). It was just bad all around. I was kind of surprised by his "attitude" and wondered how he'd do this morning. Don't you love his shirt and how it's covered in H20? He doesn't just get a drink of water from the fountain, he swims in it too.

Today was better than open house. Here he is with Ms. Windy hanging up his backpack. I wish I could've gotten a couple more pictures this morning but had a class of mine own to prepare for.

I love all of our 3-year-old teachers at EEP, but I always request Ms. Windy for my kids in 3-year-olds. What can I say, Ms. Windy is cut from the preschool quilt. She is just amazing with the kids and has done a fabulous job with mine. I think it also makes it easier for them with her being at church with us. They are very comfortable around her. However, Miles was convinced all summer long that Ms. Denise was going to be his teacher this year. Isaac had Ms. Denise for 4-year-olds, and Miles spent small amounts of time in the classroom with them. Every time you would ask Miles who his teacher was going to be at school, he would say, "my teacher is Ms. Anise (I'm not sure if has trouble saying her name or thinks it's Anise?)." I would remind him, "No Miles, you have Ms. Windy." I showed him Karson and Isaac's pictures from 3-year-olds and told him that Ms. Windy was their teacher too. I was so glad that Miles didn't whine and fuss and want to stay with me this morning. Trust me, I'm not being harsh not having my own children in my classroom. It's honestly way to tough FOR ME to teach my own children, and I want them to be exposed to other people and "teaching" styles. Anywho, it was a great day and Miles has been singing preschool songs all day. Ms. Windy told me she has a classroom full of singers. How precious! I'm happy that at least TWO of my children liked school today =)!