Loving Summer

Here are a ton of pictures from the end of the school year to current... Jayce's 5k graduation and Gabe's 3k end of year program, and lots of summer fun (in no particular order as always) :)
We are having the most wonderful summer ever... No structure whatsoever, no alarm clocks, no camps, nowhere to be other than church and a few playdates here and there..., it's great! So what do we do? RELAX!!! We wear our bathing suits almost all day long, I've finally learned that trick after years of washing 3 outfits a day for the boys in the summer... just dress them in them in the morning and keep the suits on unless we're going somewhere! They'll dry out! We love going to Nanny's pool and the summer dollar movies, and we've even taken several road trips to mimi's and the beach! My boys have gotten so much easier this summer! All the sudden we can go to Sunday lunch and ENJOY eating out with them, sit through a movie, travel without fits (most of the time), and pool time is enjoyable rather than nervewrecking! Love my boys at this age!!! Not that have not loved their other ages but it's just fun to be able to do the things I had gotten used to just not doing for a few years... a whole new world with them at this stage it seems!
Gabe's fits are becoming fewer and further apart... and we have definitely made improvement in that department...
They tell Jay and I all the time how much they love us and that we are the "best mommy/daddy ever..." They've learned we like to hear that :)

A few updates:
Jayce lost his first tooth while we were at the beach with our good friends the week after school got out!
Jayce learned to ride his big boy bike the Saturday after it got out!
He is swimming great without swimmies or floaties!
Both boys are really enjoying golf with daddy on summer evenings!
Gabe is very excited about turning 4 in a month, much more excited than his mommy is about it!

doing something right

So after Spring Break, a field trip to pick strawberries yesterday and a parent teacher conference today, I feel like I'm getting a small dose of what this summer will bring... I'm sleeping great, let's put it that way, and that's huge for me! Having 2 non napping, full speed ahead little boys requires some energy for sure, but I am loving their ages MOST of the time... I love when they are playing together, and I overhear little conversations, they don't know I"m watching... Today after hearing Gabe say he'd hurt his leg and had another boo boo (which he literally is covered... another boy thing), I heard him say "Dear Jesus, can you please make this boo boo go away?" Then he turned around and said "Mom, Jesus said that he's going to make my boo boos go away now." I LOVE that he's doing on his own what I've tried to do with him so many times... something is clicking!

Then later, on a not so great note, Gabe had to give up his t ball practice tonight because he did something I'd told him 2 times not to do already that day and the next consequence was to lose tball... well he had to test, so he lost it...Mind you this was going to be my first break at home in almost 2 weeks and I was desperately looking forward to a quiet house for an hour but gotta do the right thing... He starts having a throw down fit and if you've never seen Gabe throw a fit, it is something... really is... He is literally a crazy boy when it's happening, he's jumping, screaming, running in circles... repeating again and again "I want to go to t ball..." It lasts anywhere from 10-30 usually if at home... If out, from the time we get him in the car until we reach home usually...If at home, I try my best to remain calm and pray out loud while he can hear me "Dear Jesus, please help ME remain calm and help Gabe know that he cannot act this way and that it hurts you and mommy for him to do this, etc..." This is something I started doing a while back after realizing we are supposed to pray to the Lord about ANYTHING that is a problem to us, to bring it to Him.. and after losing my temper and way too many times, I realized prayer could be good for both of us... I then continue to pray quietly and busy myself until he's done...I believe in spanking and time out for certain things but when Gabe is having these... with my recent physical issues with back and leg, I'm just not willing to risk hurting myself worse by trying to constrain him or carry him to his room.. he's a big boy and it's literally dangerous for him to flail around in my arms while he's doing this.. so I just walk away and try my best to pretend there is not a crazy 3 year old in my midst! Eventually, he stops, and returns to sweet Gabe where he says he's sorry and wants hugs... crazy....And it's amazing how when I've spent time with the Lord that day, he will give me a peace as I go through it, to remember, it is a phase and just continue to pray that God will help Gabe love HIM and want to please HIM, children obey your parents :)

In any case, he was balling when Jay picked up Jayce for practice... I knew it would definitely make a mark so that's good...But sweet Jayce saw his brother so sad and I saw him start to wipe under his eyes, he said "Now let's wipe these tears off your face little bro, you got to smile for me..." then he started to make silly faces to make him laugh...

It was here, after the craziness of the fit, the frustration that we had yet ANOTHER one just when things started to seem to be better... that I realized, I'm doing something right... Jayce is the sweetest big brother to Gabe and was so trying to cheer him up... and Gabe, he got it and is ready to play Thursday... assuming no fits between now and then... I love them fits and all, this too shall pass...

Happy 6th Birthday Jayce

Dear Jayce,
You are 6 years old today and I CANNOT believe how time has flown by! We pulled out the baby book tonight and it truly seems like only yesterday we brought you home!
You actually looked a year older to me this morning when you came downstairs, you have hit a growth spurt and are super tall and even are losing some of that belly! You're the tallest on your t ball team this year!

You chose tonight to have a small bday family party with only your nanny and grandaddy and mimi and papa, because you said you wanted to "be with the ones you really love on your bday." This was precious and this is so much of why I love you!
You have the most tender heart in the world, you cry every time your mimi and papa leave to head back to Columbia.. you love them that much! You love your family so much! Today you said you were moving to Virginia as soon as you were 27 to live with your cousins :)

I asked your favorite food today, you said candy... not surprising, then you said spaghetti if it had to be a real food... So for your dinner we had spaghetti and ice cream cake for dessert as you do not really care for real bday cake!

Today for lunch I brought you Zaxby's and balloons and we got to have a date at our own table in the lunchroom! You were so proud to hold up your rice krispy treat to show your friends! I left a big cookie for your class to enjoy at snack time and you were super excited about that! I loved the look I got when I came in with your treats! Like you were on top of the world and so proud it was your special day!

Jayce you are so much fun! When you are not here, mommy is not quite sure what to do because the house is SO QUIET! I am so thankful to have such a sweet, funny, talkative, caring, yet ALL BOY and strong willed little boy at that! I want you to use all of these characteristics to serve your Heavenly Father in any way you can throughout your life!

You love Jesus and to talk about him and are full of good questions about Him. You are loving kids choir right now!You are playing t ball this year with little brother on the team! Your best friend in school is Braden you said today... sometimes it varies... along with girlfriends...and girlfriends this year have been :Hallie, Marry Ella, Aleah, possibly now Melana, but you're being shy on this one...You're very funny talking about them, and tell me that sometimes you and your friends trade them and they've never even known they were your girlfriend in the first place :) Please don't be mad at mommy for writing this one day, it's really a cute story!

What mommy might love most about you right now is your adorable smile and laugh when you think something is really funny! I also love the way you raise your eyebrows and give a half smile and shake your head when your brother is being silly! Oh yea, and how much you love that brother! You said to him today, my best friend is someone sitting right here and gave him the biggest hug! He is so lucky to have you Jayce and I KNOW that you will always take good care of him :)

Happy Birthday Jaybird! We love you so much and I thank God each day for the little boy you've become and will become :)
Truly Blessed,
Your Mommy

still here...

So, it's been so long, I was afraid I'd forgotten how to log in... I've got so many pictures to update... Christmas, snow, etc...
Wanted to jot down a few things the boys have said lately that made me smile...

We are in a love/hate stage... they love each other to pieces, yet cannot be around one another 5 minutes without some type of disagreement... over a toy, whether Jayce needs to help Gabe or he can "do it myself" or sometimes just a real difference in opinion...For example..
Gabe said he wanted me to take him to the zoo to see the dinosaurs... Jayce said "Gabe, they do not live at the zoo, silly..." Gabe: "uh huh they do Jayce!"
Jayce: "Gabe, the dinosaurs all live in heaven now..."

They are growing all the sudden so much and I cannot tell you how many times people look at me in shock like "when did they get so big?" I ask myself the same question. I went to clean out Gabe's closet today after months of procrastination... knowing that this time, putting away the jon jons was not going to be as easy... With Jayce, I could simply move them over to Gabe's closet and still look at them on my other sweet boy... Now, sadly, I'm bagging them up for the attic or consignment sales...very sad :(... I looked at his closet full of big boy button downs and khakis and thought to myself how in the world did this happen so fast? His crib is finally stored away as we made the transition a few months ago to his big boy bed (which he's done amazingly well with)! And it's time to transition his room to a "big boy room." Wow... but I tell him every day, he will always be my baby and he says "uh huh, I'm yours and daddy's baby big boy!" Along with my sadness though, I feel very content with out little family of 4... A few months back, I asked the Lord to please change Jay's heart if it was his will for us to have more (as Jay was not interested) or to change mine... but most likely I thought he'd want to change Jay's :)... Well, to my surprise, he has not changed Jay's and has actually changed mine to being quite content as we are now... If the Lord surprises us later, I know that I'd feel differently but for now, I'm thinking this is as he wants us!

Gabe is actually obsessed with turning 4 and asks about every day "am I four yet?"
I must say though that I am enjoying the freedom that comes along with the older years... and I've decided the Lord works it out for the school years to begin just as nap time ends... that way mommy still gets a break :)

OH, Jayce got his first call from a girl about a month ago... what in the world? 5K? She also gave him a Valentine that said "I've got my eye on you!" Granted she's adorable and I love her but still, he's 5... really? A phone call?

Anyhow, that's a quick random update for now... I'll post pics soon, I have Jay's old computer and am trying to figure out the best way to post them on here :)