Home from vacation!

We are home from a great week in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee! My parents figured we have been going there to the Hidden Mountain Resorts for 17 years now.

Craig was off of work a couple days before we were heading down to TN so he flew down to Atlanta to spend some time with Ryan. They went to Six Flags and Craig's shoulder hasn't been the same since...that just means I get my husband around the house an extra week or two! We still had fun on vacation!

The kids and I drove down following my parents starting on Friday (20th). Autumn rode with Nana & Papa and I had the boys! It was great! They watched movies as I listened to my ipod and enjoyed the scenery around us. That night we stopped in Dry Ridge, KY and got a good nights sleep before finishing our journey.

The mountains are just gorgeous. I couldn't help but be sit there in awe while I was driving just thanking God for the beauty around me. We got to the cabin and enjoyed a little bit of time in the hot tub.

On Sunday the rest of the family arrived. Starting with Craig & Ryan around 2pm...we showed them around, played some ping pong, a little pool on the pool table, and prepared dinner. Rob, Ellen, Josh, Emily, Hannah & Ethan joined us around 6pm for dinner! Then around 8pm Aunt Sue, Uncle Rick, Gage & Zack arrived. The teenagers hit it off and had some fun on the Wii (Rob too of course)!

On Monday the 8 guys went on a 10 mile hike up a steep mountainside in the Smokey Mountain National Park! It took them ALL day! We played with the kids and took them out shopping for their new Webkinz! Grandpa & Memaw Pritchett joined us with Amber & Ariel! It was fun to see them and visit some...if you are keeping count, that makes about 22 people in our cabin at some points of the trip! Thank God there were 3 levels to spread out on :) Rob told his kids it was mandatory to swim EVERY day of the trip so we did...Ellen & I sat and watched while Rob took the kids in because the water was so cold. Not a heated pool!

On Tuesday the ladies enjoyed some shopping time, we took the kids to the park, and relaxed some.

Wednesday we all went to Ober Gatlinburg. The guys played at the arcade, Rob & Ellen took Josh & Emily down the mountain slides, the rest of us went up the mountain for another great view on the ski lift! That evening we had some pizza & salad and went to "The Track"...a great place for everyone. The little kids enjoyed the ferris wheel, go carts, swings, and other rides while the big kids enjoyed the Go Carts! The first round the little kids went with the big kids.

Thursday was the day the Pire clan & the Pritchett clan left the cabin. Craig flew home that night to get into the doctor first thing Friday morning. The rest of took some time to relax and just play around the cabin. Alex was into the Wii and playing all the sports. Nana was playing some bowling with the kids. Rob, Ellen & I got away to do some more shopping at the outlets! We had our favorite BBQ chicken kabobs that night.

Friday we all went on a hike up to Laurel Falls. It is a 3 mile round trip hike up a mountain to see some beautiful waterfalls. Papa & Rob took turns pushing Nana in the wheelchair so she wouldn't miss out on any of the fun! The kids did great...the occasional whine and complain but I was getting tired myself so I understood their pain! Almost to the bottom and it started to pour down rain! We went back to the cabin and cleaned up for our favorite restaurant...The Apple Barn! We all sat around and told what our favorite thing was about the trip and then we went around again and said one nice thing about the person next to us. It was nice to hear the kids come up with great things to say about others! After dinner the guys took the kids back to the cabin and once again Mom, Ellen & I hit some last minute stores...we found some GREAT deals!

Saturday was pack it up and head home day! It was a long day! It was so nice to come home and have my hubby waiting to help us unload and greet us after a 10 hour trip in the car!

I am so blessed and it was such a great week. Even thought there were times of chaos, it was fun and once again we made memories we will never forget! I'll post some pictures after I get the disk from my mom & Ellen (I took some pictures but they always take LOTS)

Big Words...

the last few weeks we have been really talking to the kids about love and respect. Some mornings they are so cranky and tired and won't even say Good Morning...that is rude. We have been talking about using our words to be kind to others even when we don't want to. Alex learned an important word in Kindergarten this year. His teacher Mr. Lloyd had the letters INTEGRITY really big on the bookshelf in the classroom. When I first walked in I thought, "That is too big a work for those little kids." Boy was I wrong. Alex came home the first week of school telling me all about integrity. He says it like this, "Integrity is doing what is right when somebody is looking and even when nobody is looking." That's right...but God is always watching. I thought that was so cool that my little 5 year old could tell me such a big word. It challenged me that maybe I'm not giving my kids enough credit that they can learn more and understand those big words and the impact they have in our lives.

Our key words right now...Love, Respect, Integrity, Truth, Listen & Obey! Such important things to know and really use in our daily life.

Summer officially begins...

Today marks our official begin to Summer Vacation! Drew & Autumn have done with preschool since May 15th but Alex finished Kindergarten today and is now a 1st grader! I am not the emotional type mom to get gooey about something like that, but today I did! My kids are growing up too fast!

Here are some pictures from the first days of school and the last...







Today was productive. It started with dropping Alex off for his last day of Kindergarten! Then I dropped Drew & Autumn off at my sisters so I could go bathing suit shopping...not fun! I have been looking for a new bathing suit for a couple weeks now. It hit me that the 12 pounds I have gained doesn't look so good in my bathing suit. I can admit that last summer I needed to gain a few, but I don't want all of it. I am working out daily and trying to eat better too! The other day Craig and I were running some errands and my bathing suit shopping began...very depressing. I came home and found a few cute ones on the internet but decided I wouldn't get in time for our upcoming family vacation and if I did get it, it might not even look good. So, my sister was gracious enough to watch the little ones while I went out again...I found one and at Meijers of all places! I also found a cute one at Target but decided I liked the other one better! I feel better now just knowing I have something descent to where. After my shopping spree I went back to the school to pick up Alex. He was excited. Got his report card from Mr. Lloyd, took their picture together and that was it...he is now a first grader! I can't believe it!

To celebrate the end of the school year and beginning of summer, I took the kids to the Plymouth Spray Park...boy was it busy! There were people everywhere but the kids had a blast. Alex's friend Andrew and his mom Robin and brother Kevin went with us and we enjoyed our time together!

I am exhausted and can't wait for bedtime tonight. The kids are pretty tired too and will be going to bed real soon!

Simplifying...

I think as a mom...we want things as simple as can be. Morning comes and we make breakfast, clean up breakfast, make a snack, clean up a snack, make lunch, clean up lunch....you get the point. It never ends! A friend of mine had some really great trays she uses for her boys. Unfortunately they were purchased almost 2 years ago so the chances of finding those exact trays was not very likely. I loved the idea of having their dishes on their own tray and if any spills were to occur, they would stay right on the tray instead of getting the whole table and floor! After searching ALL around...I found some great trays at IKEA and had to share them with blogger world. Any mom who wants to simplify meal time and clean up time...this is what you NEED!

$1.99 each...they are white (almost clear), oval shaped, with grooves for handles on both sides. Perfect for any little kid to carry his own from counter to table and so forth. They wipe down really easy with an antibacterial wipe or I sponge them down with soap and let them sit in the sink to dry!

So...if you are looking for ONE way to simplify meal time and snack times...this might work for your family too!


If anyone has other ideas on simplifying day to day life...I would LOVE to hear them!