Wordless Wednesday: The New Sonic Playground

Our small town has had a Sonic for as long as I can remember (big surprise, when the headquarters for Sonic reside in our great state). I am addicted to love their Cokes. Hubby likes their Sweet Tea.

Great. Now I’m thirsty.

Anyway, we now have a brand new Sonic that includes a fenced-in playground.

Looks like I’ll be getting my fix in Cokes for awhile {there goes the water-only drink diet}.

Well, it was supposed to be a wordless post. But, wordless might just be beyond me. Oops

Originally posted at Amy Loves It!.

Labor Day Weekend Trip to Great Wolf Lodge

"Labor" Day...

Well, Labor Day is almost over, but I saw this post on DoodlesPlace, and I just had to participate!

So, here are my "Labor" Day stats:

How long were your labors?
Abby Grace – 22 hours, 15 minutes
Ella Reese – 11 hours, 1 minute
Meleah Faye Estelle – 1 hour, 30 minutes

How did you know you were in labor?
Abby Grace – major back pains and regular contractions
Reese – regular, hard contractions that woke me up
Meleah – when the nurse was about to give me Pitocin, and I had 2 contractions within one minute

Where did you deliver?
Abby Grace - hospital in Ada, Oklahoma
Reese – the same hospital in Ada, Oklahoma
Meleah – the same hospital as her sisters (are you seeing a theme here?!)

Drugs?
Abby Grace – Epidural
Reese – Epidural
Meleah – none

C-section?
Abby Grace – no
Reese – no
Meleah – no

Who delivered?
Abby Grace - our *favorite* student-nurse-midwife, Kyanna
Reese - a midwife (whom we liked!)
Meleah – a doctor who I had never met before (and who almost delivered her bare-handed!)

(And a bonus question) How long were you pregnant?
Abby Grace – 41 weeks, 1 days
Reese – 39 weeks, 6 days
Meleah – 39 weeks

Story Time...

Another Day of Homeschool!

Wow! The girls are really loving school. Both are very cooperative, engaged, and excited about their lessons. I am very proud of them. It works well, because Meleah lays down for her morning nap, and gives us quiet time to focus on our lessons. We do our reading and quiet time in the afternoon while Meleah takes her second nap.

Here are a few pictures from our day! Enjoy!

Homeschool Time!

We are proud to announce that the decision has been made!  We will be homeschooling Abby Grace for her Kindergarten year!

We cannot wait to share with you all of the awesome things we will be doing this school year.  Thanks to all for your love and support in this decision.

And, while we're at it, check out the Homeschooler's Wish List, posted on my blog site.

My "baby" is five!!!

It does not seem like it has been five years since I gave birth to my sweet Abby Grace. FIVE years!

She weighed 7 lbs, 14 oz (or as my DH put it to one person: 14 lbs, 7 oz!), and was 21″ long. She had beautiful blue eyes and a smidge of dark hair.

I was in labor with her for 22 hours, and she was born at 5:45 am, on Friday, May 14, 2004. Shane, Grammy (my mom), MeMe (Shane's mom), and Kristi (Shane's sister) were all right there as she was born. PoPow (my daddy), PaPa (Shane's dad), Allen (my brother), and Raigan and Kerrigan (I only had two nieces then!) were on the other side of the curtain. A student nurse-midwife (whom we adored) delivered my sweet girl. It was an amazing, if long, experience.

Now, five years later, she is a tall, skinny little thing with curly blonde hair that won’t grow past her chin. She is a smartie-pants, and writes her letters well. Abby Grace has taught herself several letters. She enjoys coupon-shopping with her Momma, helping bake and cook, sorting laundry, and reading books.

Abby Grace is a joy, and I am so glad to be her Momma.

I just cannot believe she is 5.

You know your kid watches too much tv when...

Abby Grace announced today, "You know what? I saved money with GeiGo (aka, Geico)! Fifteen minutes will help you save money with GeiGo."

Then she starts dancing around the room singing the theme song, "I always feel like somebody's watchin' me!"

I blame her love for Man vs. Wild and all things Discovery Channel.

You'll get it when you get to Heaven...

After church today, we went to McDonald's for a nice, healthy, family meal. We had a really good time.

As we were getting back in the Tahoe, the wind blew out one of Reese's Sunday school papers. We did not catch it... it was long gone. On the way home, Reese was a little upset about losing her paper.

Abby Grace tried to comfort her:

Abby Grace, "I see it! Jesus is riding on a unicorn and he grabbed it!"

Reese, "No, I don't want Him to get my paper. I want it."

Abby Grace, "It's okay... you'll get it when you get to Heaven!"

Pause.

Abby Grace, with a big smile on her face, "Isn't that NEAT?!"

Link to Abby Grace's pictures

I took some pictures of sweet little Abby Grace (aka, Mittens) and posted them on my other site. You can view them here.

The wisdom of a 4-year-old

After my computer crashed today (it has been doing that quite a bit lately), Shane offered to come home and look at it. While I was waiting for him, Abby Grace (while coloring) gave me a piece of her wisdom:

"Mommy, I know you need your computer, but that's just part of life. Sorry!" She said all this without even giving me a glance.

Ah, the wisdom of a preschooler...

Jesus told me I could...

Tuesday night:

Abby Grace - "I want to put on my pajamas."

Daddy - "We are about to take a bath. Then, you can put on your pajamas."

Abby Grace (very loudly) - "No! I don't want to take a bath! I want to put on my pajamas NOW!"

Daddy - "In just a minute, after your bath."

Pause

Abby Grace (very calmly) - "Well, Jesus just told me I didn't have to take a bath and I can put on my pajamas now."

*Mommy and Daddy trying to hide their snickers, keep a straight face, and think of something to say.*

Mommy - "It's funny that Jesus forgot to tell that to Mommy and Daddy."

Daddy (whispering to Mommy) - "It's funny that she made that up."

Abby Grace (upon hearing Daddy's whisper) - "I did NOT make it up! I'm telling the truth! Jesus really told me that!"

A New Form of Art

Last night, I went to the store and the girls stayed home with Shane. I was gone about 40 minutes. Here is what the girls accomplished in that time (this is not including pulling out every toy they own!). And, in case you are wondering, I did not get mad. I took pictures. Things like this (hopefully!) only happen every once in awhile. The girls were so proud of themselves. I have to say, I was speechless for a few minutes. I think that spoke volumes to Abby Grace, because she looked at me and said, "Mommy, we weren't supposed to put stickers on the wall, were we?" I told her that, no we only put stickers on paper, but that she wasn't in trouble this time. As it turned out, the hallway wasn't the only place the Sticker Bandits hit. My dining room table, chairs, hutch, desk, and bedroom wall were hit. Just this morning, I found a sticker on a flip-flop I left in my bathroom.

Abby Grace's letter to Santa

Dear Santa,

Hi! I would like a big Jasmine doll, a big Snow White doll, Aladdin, Snow White's prince, Oliver and Company dvd, Barbie and the Diamond Castle dvd, and Imagination Movers stuff, and toys. Please don’t forget my sisters Reese and Meleah!

Thank you,
Abby Grace Norton
4 ½

Abby Grace... just like her Daddy?

Last week, the girls and I made aprons to wear when they make crafts (also, to celebrate the week of learning the letter "A"). I hadn't taken a picture of the girls showing off their aprons yet, so I decided to do that this evening. Neither girl took a nap, so Reese was too cranky to take one, but Abby Grace was ready and willing. She takes two really good pictures, and then asks if she can make a funny face. Well, she made several funny faces (check out the slide show at the bottom of the page).

The blog is actually about how she did exactly what her Daddy does every time we take pictures. I had to take a pic of him in his suit for the church website on Sunday, and if you look at the other slide show, you will see what was accomplished. He always takes silly pictures. Abby Grace has seen this, and totally imitated him tonight. We all had a good laugh, but as I type this blog, it makes me think about so many things. She writes backwards, is really into astronomy and the solar system, loves the Bible and church, changes her voice when she "reads" different characters' lines, and makes up stories; all from watching her Daddy. It is really amazing what children pick up from the major influences in their lives. Despite having extremely selective hearing, doing things backwards (which can be charming at times), and being so stinking optimistic (says the major pessimist, here!), Shane is a great example of the kind of person someone should strive to be. I will be very pleased if my eldest daughter turns out like her Daddy (minus the selective hearing!)