TEN THINGS TUESDAY (on Wednesday - again)!!!

It's that time of week again. A time where I reflect upon the things that I am thankful for. I am a day late, again, but I still believe in the old saying, "better late, than never!" hahaha!! This week, I am thankful for:

1. Rob having a safe trip to Orlando. He flew out yesterday, to teach a few classes, and will return home on Friday. He's enjoying his time there and it's a nice break for him. I pray that he has a safe return flight on Friday.

2. Girls night tonight with my Mom and sister!! This will be so much fun. We are meeting at Ruby Tuesdays, for dinner. Then, we are going to see the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants movie. Kelli and I are both excited to spend time with our Mom.

3. My wonderful in-laws who are watching Emily and Ryan tonight, so that I can go out with my Mom and sister.

4. Emily's shopping spree, with Nana and Sarah yesterday. Nana also gave me money for Ryan, so that I can take him out. Emily has a ton of cute clothes and a new pair of shoes to start the school year off right! I will take Ryan out tomorrow, for him to choose some outfits.

5. Matthew!!! He has been one of my best friends for 22-years now!! He is ALWAYS there for me, no matter what. I'm so sad to say that I'm not nearly as good to him, as he is to me -- but, he loves me for all my flaws. Although, I will say that IF he ever needed me for anything, I would be there in a heartbeat. He lives in Maryland, so we hardly see each other. But, he is one of those friends where you can just pick up the phone and start right back into a conversation, like no time at all has passed. Thank you, Matthew, for your friendship!

6. Jenn, and my wonderful surprise card that I received in the mail from her last week. You are always so sweet and I love you, my wonderful Bostonian friend!!!

7. My Dad and taking my van to get inspected for me yesterday. Yikes!! We had let it expire last month.

8. My sweet, precious children. I love them so much and am so thankful for them EVERY single day of my life. They never cease to amaze me and I am blessed beyond belief to be their mother.

9. A wonderful summer break. We didn't go on any fabulous vacation, but we enjoyed every single day of our summer, which was fabulous for us. We have 6 days left until school starts. So, we will have fun and enjoy the last few days of a non-hurried and rushed schedule!

10. The weather yesterday, today, and for what seems to be the remainder of the week. It is beautiful ~~ nice breeze. In fact, I have the windows all opened and we are enjoying the nice, fresh air. God is soooo good!!!!!!

The Name!

After two days of being undecided, about his new pet's name, Ryan has come up with --- "Lucky!" So, we have "Lucky," the Albino Leopard Gecko! I knew that you all were in suspense as to what his name was. hahaha! He's very active and is a lot more curious of his surroundings, than "Leppy" was. So, we're pretty sure, when comparing the two, that "Leppy" was sick. He was definitely more fragile than "Lucky." I will post more pictures tomorrow, when Ryan can take him out of his new habitat and play with him.

Emily's Ice Skating Jam Fest Program!

Last night Emily had her Ice Skating Jam Fest Program. What a nice ending to a wonderful week at camp! They had a ton of ice skating numbers, along with the guest Olympians who performed. The kids from skate camp, did their routines at the very end of the show. Emily's group skated to "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun." They all wore a different color ice dress. She wore her pink one. She did such a wonderful job. I was so proud of her. Unfortunately, where we were standing, I couldn't see her right away, because they were in a line and she was right beside a very tall girl. Here is a video of her routine. She is the one in the bright pink skate dress. Make sure that you scroll down to the bottom of the page and 'pause' or 'stop' my music, so that you can hear it. Also, remember that the video is not the best quality because I'm behind plexi glass. hahaha!!



Here are a few pictures of the evening. I don't have very many because I was recording the routine with my camera.

The group lining up, to take a bow~

Emily is in the bright pink~

Nana and Emily, after the show~

Me and Emily, after the show~

Introducing ~~~~~~

~~~ our newest family member! Yikes, did I just call a replacement Albino Leopard Gecko a "family member?" Ooops, I think I did! Well, here is the new little guy or girl. It's still a little too young for us to tell what we have. Ryan hasn't named it, yet. So, I will just show you the new pictures. Without further ado, here they are ~~

Here it is, in the container, before we put it in the aquarium:

This one is pretty active, so it was hard for me to get this picture:

Poor "Leppy" has passed away!

Yes, you read that correctly, Ryan's Albino Leopard Gecko, that he just received at his birthday party, only 4-days ago, has died!!! He was absolutely fine this morning. When I picked Emily and Caitlynn up from ice skating camp, Caitlynn wanted to come over because she hadn't held "Leppy" yet. Well, when they went into Ryan's room, they noticed he was laying on his belly and they touched him and knew that he was gone! Poor Ryan was so upset when we told him. The only good thing in this entire situation is that PetSmart has a 14-day policy on returning pets, and getting new ones, in the event something like this happens. So, Ryan actually picked "Leppy" up and put him in his little container and we ran to PetSmart to get a replacement gecko. Unfortunately, they were completely out of them and will not be getting a new shipment in until tomorrow. So, bless Ryan's heart, he had to come home without anything but a new book about 'caring for your leopard gecko'. We decided to purchase a manual on how to take care of him. I will post pictures tomorrow of the newest member of the family. By the way, the above picture was taken when "Leppy" was alive!

Thank you, Jenn!!!

Tonight, when I went to get my mail, because I was super late at checking it today, I got the best surprise!! Here it is:




My sweet friend Jenn, from Boston, sent me this card! I hope that she doesn't mind me sharing it. It definitely put a smile on my face and made me so happy! She is definitely one of those "true" friends that I talked about in my "Ten Things Tuesday" list! I am so blessed to have her in my life! I love you, girly!! Thank you so much for making my night! xoxoxo

TEN THINGS TUESDAY!!!

Well, it's that time of day again. A time where I reflect upon the things that I am thankful for. I cannot believe that I forgot about it last week. Things have been so busy, especially with the end of the summer wrapping up. This week, I am thankful for:

1. Kelli and her family buying a Jonas Brother's concert ticket for Emily, for her birthday present. They went tonight and are having such a blast. They've all been texting me so I know the play-by-play. I really wish that I would have bought a ticket before they sold out. This is her first concert and she is so excited! Here are Emily and Caitlynn before they left for the show.


2. Kelli, my sweet sister, for surprising me with a brand new CD of the New Kids on the Block's greatest hits. Wow!! It's been fun listening to those songs and going down memory lane. What a thoughtful gesture from my little sis! I love her!

3. That today is the 3rd day that Ryan has had his new albino leopard gecko, named "Leppy," and he was finally able to pick him up. He got this from Nana and Poppy for his birthday. The instructions said that we needed to wait for 3 days so that he could get used to his new habitat. Here is Ryan with "Leppy!"

Ryan, getting ready to pick "Leppy" up!

Ryan is so happy. He just woke up and his hair is a fright, but look at how happy he is. Also, that is not 'trash' in the background, that is his bottle collection!

A close-up of Ryan's hand, holding "Leppy!"


4. True friends! This one is a biggy for me. Sometimes true friends are hard to find -- and, I am happy that I have many of them who love and truly care for me. The feeling is definitely mutual!

5. Ryan! His birthday was last Thursday and he turned 8-years old! What an honor it is to be his Mommy! I miss his baby and toddler years, but am enjoying every milestone that he reaches. He has really started coming out of his shell recently and we are learning that he is quite the comedian. He still prefers to be home than anywhere else, but is spreading his wings some. He also is a leader. If he doesn't want to do what his friends are doing, he just won't do it. He can still be quite the loner, at times -- but, he is completely fine with that. I love him with all my heart! I am so thankful for the gift of Ryan, 8 years and 5 days ago!!!

6. Emily! I love her with all my heart! She is my sweet angel. Quick to give compliments and praises to people. We were in 7-11 last week and she said to the cashier, "I really like your hair. It's so pretty." This lady had the neatest braids and it was pulled up into a fancy bun. She looked at my precious girl and said, "Thank you so much. You are such a sweetheart." I am so happy that she has a kind heart and very nurturing in nature. I am so thankful for the gift of Emily, 10 years and 2 months ago. What an honor it is to be her Mommy, too.

7. Rob for being so supportive of my need to get out and 'find' myself again. For whatever reason, I seem to have 'lost' me and it's been difficult lately. I am finding time for myself lately and I feel that is making me a better person all around.

8. A wonderful hike with my babies!! We love to go hiking and explore nature. We all had so much fun!


9. The health of our entire family. I have mentioned this in other 'ten things tuesday' lists, but feel it's worth repeating. Good health is not to be taken for granted.

10. Giving up diet pepsi -- something that I used to absolutely LOVE. I feel so much better without drinking it. Also, Rob says we are saving a ton of money now that he's the only one drinking diet pepsi. hahaha!

Figure Skating Camp and Mount Trashmore!

Today, was Emily's first day of a week-long ice skating camp. Rob dropped her off at 7:45am and I picked her up at 2:30! She had a day filled with hip/hop dancing, ice skating, nutrition classes, exercising, and all other things related to the wonderful world of figure skating. They actually have four Olympic ice skaters at the rink, to help out with the camp. I'm not sure of their names, but will post as soon as I remember.

While Emily was at camp, I took Ryan and his friend to the skate park, at Mount Trashmore. This is definitely one of their favorite parks to skate. While the boys were skating, I took a nice long walk around the park. They have long trails all around the lake. So, it was nice to get some exercise in while the boys were skating. Plus, I walked right when I got there, before it got too hot. As the day progressed, it was a scorcher. Kelli and Hunter met us there a little later. They were having so much fun, until Ryan and Hunter went down opposite ramps and didn't see each other and collided! They were both hurt pretty badly. Hunter's knee went into Ryan's side/ribs. The park attendant got ice for them and that was the end of our adventure at the skate park. Here are some pictures from our day. I don't have any of skate camp, because I wasn't there. But, I will have some by the end of the week, to share.

Ryan~~

Ryan~~

Ryan~~

Nick~~

Ryan's New Pet!

Meet "Leppy" - Ryan's albino leopard gecko!!! Yikes!! This is what Nana and Poppy surprised him with today at his family birthday party! I will not be holding him, that's for sure!! hahaha!!

Ryan looking at his new pet. It was hidden in the garage!

My sweet boy is so happy! Look at that unbrushed hair from the pool! hahaha!


Today, we celebrated Ryan and Hunter's birthdays, with the family. Last Saturday, we had their friend party at Mike's skate shop. So, this has ended a week-long celebration of Ryan's 8th birthday. He had two fun parties and we even took him to Chuck E. Cheese, to Woodland to skateboard, and to Mike's to skateboard, on his actual birthday. I can't believe that my baby boy is 8-years old already. He is growing and changing so quickly -- too quickly for my liking! hahaha! Here are some pictures, from his birthday parties!

Ryan and Poppy!

Ryan!

Ryan and Hunter!

Emily, Maddy, and Morgan!

Noah and Ryan!

Ryan opening his new deck!

Ryan, at Woodland on his actual birthday!

My skater girl Emily, at Woodland!

Ryan and his ollie off the ramp!

Emily going down the ramp again!

Mommy and the birthday boy, at Chuck E. Cheese!

Daddy and the birthday boy!

Mommy and Emily!

Daddy and Emily!

At the family party today. Ryan likes his cupcakes, without frosting. hahaha!

The boys opening their presents!

Scott is throwing Joshy into the pool! He loved this!


So, as you can see, we did quite a bit of celebrating, over the course of the week! I'm thinking that next year, we are going to have one party for family and friends! However, if their birthdays fall during the week day, we will always do something special with them, on their actual day.

Guess What Picked Emily Up Last Night??

Yes -- you are seeing correctly!! A white stretch hummer limo picked her up for a night out on the town. Her friends, Maddy and Morgan called to see if she could go on a limo ride with them to get some ice cream (their mother just so happens to be dating someone who owns a limo service -- yay!). So, they went to Newport News, to Maggie Moo's, watched a movie in Town Center. Then, went to Virginia Beach and cruised the strip! What a fun night!! Mine, was quite uneventful, in comparison!! hahaha! Here's a picture, of the girls, inside the limo.

Sandy Bottom Nature Park Hike!

Yesterday, I took Emily and Ryan to Sandy Bottom Nature Park and we had a nice, long, and very hot hike!! hahaha!! It was a lot of fun, though. They love to go hiking around the huge lake and we hadn't gone in a long time. So, Emily actually packed lunches for us and we set off for a fun day. We really enjoyed exploring and had fun, UNTIL the very end of the trail, where the kids started arguing. My goodness, I don't even know what set them off, but I was so aggravated that we didn't even have our picnic. We left and after the kids calmed down, we ran home to get my bathing suit and headed to the pool, to eat our lunch and swim.

Emily and Ryan reading about the rattlesnake warning in the park.

My sweet babies.

Two, of the many turtles, that we saw!

Checking out the backyard habitat! There aren't any pictures of the backyard habitat, because there wasn't much in the habitat to see! LOL!

Miss Adventurous, Em, walking out on a log!

Ryan, is watching his sister from the sidelines! LOL!

My sweet angels!!

My precious babies!!