Best Friends head to Florida!

Krysta and her best friend, Kristi Genton spent a long weekend in Tampa, FL checking out the Florida College campus and what it has to offer. The first message I got from Krysta was, "The weather here is awesome!" She had a fun time seeing friends who are down there going to college now and meeting new people also.

Did you lose a bet?

That's what Jeff thought when he saw Michelle and Holly coming up to their seats. No, no betting was taking place. Maybe a dare was kind of made? This was Michelle's first college basketball game to attend and she got a little caught up in the moment. The first half was not pretty...but in the end the Wildcats pulled out a much needed win over the Tigers which made for a much more enjoyable ride home. For the record: Michelle is a FL girl at heart!!

Deron's Worst Nightmare!

Last night the UK Wildcats basketball team, Deron Saylor's favorite team...just not their coach...played the LSU Tigers at Rupp Arena. Several of us made the drive down there and met up at our house before heading there. Michelle is not an LSU fan but wanted to see what kind of reaction she could get from Deron. He wasn't too happy to come in and see Jeff and Michelle decked out in LSU attire and Jake wearing his FL Gators shirt. It was worth it! :)

Fun times in Birmingham

Krysta (and Jeff) didn't make the trip to Birmingham, but for those of us who did, we had a fun time. As always, Maggie and Redding buddied up and had fun playing games on their Gameboys. Natalie and Sullivan hooked up for fun on the trampoline, watching movies and just horsing around. Jake had fun with Camden but spent most of his time outdoors with their dogs, Madison and Bebe. They say every boy should have a dog and after seeing Jake playing and loving on those dogs, his mommy almost agrees with that. But...not enough!

My best friend Sandy

Because the kids had no school on Monday for President's Day and because we were ready for a little break from Old Man Winter, Michelle, Natalie, Maggie and Jake made a trip to Birmingham, Alabama. Usually, Sandy and her boys make a trip up to see us when they are in Louisville visiting her family. But...this time we made it down there and had a great weekend! The weather was a little on the chilly side but nothing like what we have had here the last few weeks. Sandy and Michelle met at FC camp when we were 14 years old and have remained the best of friends ever since. Thankfully, all our kiddos get along wonderfully and we can only hope their friendships last as long as ours has.

Valentine Sweets

Natalie and Maggie spent a majority of their Valentine's Day decorating cookies. Natalie loves to watch the food network and her favorite foods to make are desserts. She has a grocery list for me consisting of all kinds of sweet ingredients to try out. Above is a picture of the cookies they made with her presentation and her chalk board with prices of her cookies. Can we say, "Time to go back to school?" I am glad they are having fun with it.

Ice Ice, Baby!

The kids have had no school for two days in a row now because of the ice storm that we have had. Some snow, cold temperatures and icy road conditions have made for "winter wonderland" pictures outside but craziness and boredom on the inside. Movies have been playing non-stop, Natalie loves the food network so has spent most of her time experimenting in the kitchen, Krysta stays in her room working on homework or reading and Maggie and Jake just get into whatever they can. Michelle just tries to keep up. :)

Lots of Snow = No School!!

Snow started falling yesterday around 12:30 and stopped in the evening sometime. The kids were sent home from school an hour early although the roads were already a mess by then. Thankfully they got home safely and we turned on the fireplace and stayed warm while watching the snow come down. In the end we ended up with about 6 inches of snow. Jeff was up in Lima, OH (about 3 hours north of here) and all they got were some flurries. He'll be in for a surprise when he gets back. With no school today, Maggie went to her best friend Bella's house to do some sledding. Jake, Natalie and Michelle spent some time playing in the snow in the backyard. With our temperatures being so low...a whopping 18*'s right now...the snow will not be melting quickly. More pictures of our snow day will be posted on Jake's page.

While mom is away....

This is what happens when mom runs a quick errand and leaves the big girls in charge. Jake loves Santa Claus and his white beard. So...while no one was watching, he got into some fruit dip, and proceeded to smear it all over his face. Thinking this made him look like Santa, he told us all, "Ho-Ho-Ho! Merry Christmas!"

100 days for Maggie!

Jake's first day of pre-school was also Maggie's 100th day of school. Maggie enjoys second grade. She is a very good reader and also loves to talk. If you are ever around her for an extended period of time, you find this to be true. For her 100th day of school, she glued 100 valentine candies to a poster to share with the class.

Jake starts pre-school

Jake was up and ready to go for his first day of pre-school. He goes for 3 hours a day, 2 days a week and has finished his first week. He had a good first day of school and is in the same classroom with his friend Ellie Rice. This week he learned about Groundhogs Day.