TGIF

After a long hot Friday Sophi falls asleep after dinner. Too bad she wasn't in her bed. I was taking Jazz for a bike ride while the girls finished up dinner. She was done and Mike had told her she could get up but I don't know what happened. Don't worry. I woke her up for ice cream and a night swim.

My So-Called Boring Life

I took these pics on Wednesday but didn't have time to post last night! I have been quite bored this week with no kids and no job but I still have not found time to sit at a computer. It has been really hot down here this week. I think it has only been in the upper 80s but the humidity makes me feel like I'm wearing a wet blanket. I don't ever remember an August being this bad but apparently it's always this hot. I know I always say it's hotter up in Virginia but I think I just meant during June and July. Anyway, you guys know how I sweat so much? It was so hot yesterday that I had to change my clothes FIVE times!!!!! I wore a whole load of laundry yesterday! Today was a little better, I am only on my third outfit. That's just plain crazy. Tomorrow I am working (thank goodness!) and I seriously had to look for a pair of pants that won't show my butt sweating! I think I found a good pair, stayed tuned for the much anticipated butt sweating results!

My Wednesday started out by taking pics of the dogs wrestling. I know how entertaining those pics can be for you guys...Jazz and Fin really get into it.


My two boyz. Bo avoiding eye contact with the camera as usual.


Katie and I went for a walk later that morning. Then we ran errands. Then I took Em to horseback. This was her first class since May. I think I was on my third outfit by the time we got to class. It was quite disgusting at the stables. The biting flies and ants crawling up my legs were nothing compared to the smell of urine that encased my body the entire time I was watching Em ride. I guess the flooded waters had washed all the horse urine to this one spot along the stables, between the stalls and the arena. So when I left class I felt like I was wearing a wet urine blanket...and I needed to change again. Paige came with us, dressed as a cowgirl. She really wants to take classes but I told her she had to be 6 years old and be able to talk. She can't/won't talk out loud to the teacher.


Em uses a crop to get that horse moving. It looks like she is trying to use it on her sister!


Paige and Lucy cuddle. After horseback we had to race home to jump in grandma's pool. We swam around with the dogs for awhile then headed home.




Em gets her horse to cantor. Usually the lazy horses only go a few yards then walk on and off. Cody kept going twice around the arena without stopping so Em got a good workout.

Paige Goes to School...Finally

We made it to school just before the bell rang, or didn't ring, since they weren't working. We got off to a bad start since Paige had to mope and hide from me because I dried Sophi's hair first. Once I did her hair and sat them down eat Paige knocked her whole cup of juice onto her skirt and shoes. Then she forgot her bookbag. What a morning. So much for an early start. Luckily it didn't phase Paige and she was super excited as she posed here next to her portable classroom. Her real class is getting a new floor and should be done soon. This portable is allll the way in the back of the school so I walked her down there and helped her get set up. One poor little girl was crying so hard for her parents. She sat next to Paige and I tried to get them talking but she was too upset.



Paige finds her cubby but her bag filled with a box of tissues won't fit in!

Finley's Extended Family

Here is a link to the breeder from which I bought Finley. The mother is a PE teacher and the dad stays at home with the kids and puppies. They were a very nice family that did not have a website to get their pups noticed. I talked Kimmie into setting one up with blogger since it is pretty easy for us types! She worked hard on it all summer and I think it looks great. There is a main page and then two links in the upper right hand corner. Finley and I are featured in the "brag book" link.

In other news...we are "starting" school tomorrow. Paige is so happy she finally gets to go for real. Jen tells me there is another bad storm brewing. Between Jen and Mike I don't really have to watch news or weather channels. We had a slow weekend. It was super hot since all the wind blew away. I was forced to stay inside today due to hotness and cramps. Yesterday mom and I gave blood up at MOES and got a free burrito and 10$ of gas. So that was pretty sweet. I love free stuff. Paige came with us to watch me give blood. She was pretty sure we were going there to drink blood so she came along to see what we really were doing. Turns out my veins are pretty awesome. I filled the bag in just over 3 minutes.

At one point in the weekend, Finley was visiting Abbey and Jen took a great video of Will practicing the "spin" command with Finley. Enjoy!

The Day After

This is about as exciting as it will get....
The lake 4 houses down from us is full! You might remember this lake if you have come to visit us, we often take walks to it, or pose for pics by it. It usually has about a 3-4 foot embankment. Today it has none. Grandma and I took the dogs for bike rides this morning because they needed to get out after 24 hours of rain! Mom is still without power. I ended up asking her neighbor across the street if I could plug in her garage fridge. He had power! He didn't believe the other side of the street had none but I assured him it was true. Anyway, we ran an extension cord across the street so mom's food wouldn't go bad. Of course it started to rain again while I was hooking up her fridge and Finley still hadn't run yet so we ended up getting soaking wet!!! I don't think either of us cared, we were just glad to be out of the house. OH, also, we did have one fence panel fall down. It was already broken so I can't blame it for falling all the way over!


And another shot. This is the corner of the lake where Greg and Grandad always like to pose for pics. The people all along the lake were also without power. I can't believe we didn't lose power. Especially after I made fun of FAY's strength! P.S. It's raining again as I type....

Stir Crazy!

We're still pretty limited in what we can go out and do here. Lots of flooding, like in our back yard. There has been heavy rain all day long and it's really pooling up out there. The county announced early today that they would have school tomorrow and then they called around 6:00 and cancelled for tomorrow again! So the first week of school for the girls was pretty much a wash. Get it? Wash! Paige is über-peeved. Bad enough that she didn't get to go this week at all, but tomorrow was pizza day. She was really looking forward to that.

I haven't had to work since Monday either, so that's been nice. In a sad turn of events, my boss just called and said the base will be open tomorrow so I'll have to go to work. Brevard County had a LOT of flooding and sewage backing up into the streets, so I was really hoping that I'd be staying home again tomorrow. I was already planning a trip to Pizza Hut buffet for lunch! Instead I'll be driving into work through poo-flooded streets.

Chris and I went up to see what the storm was doing to the beaches earlier today and he has a video on his site if you want to see the big waves spreading what was left of our beaches across the ocean floor!

Here is a short video of Paige out back earlier today in the torrential downpour. She kept looking for any excuse to go outside. When the shed door blew open she volunteered to go close it! Then it blew open again and she was right back out there.

Live From New Smyrna Beach!

I'm reporting LIVE from storm central. School has been cancelled for yet a third day. The storm is stalling so it could get a little worse over night. But then again, a little worse than nothing isn't much. Seriously, I don't want to jinx myself or anything but we have had two windy rainy days, but that is about it. I did spot a fire caused by a down tree branch today and called the fire department. That's right, I was out riding my bike with Jazz in this "crazy" weather. I better stop making fun of FAY or she might come get me! I'm just really bummed for Paige, she is so excited to start school!!! For all of you guys worried about us, don't waste your time until I call you and tell you to start worrying...or until I show up on your doorstep with my suitcase! News people like to blow this stuff way out of proportion. I remember 4 years ago when there were real storms in the ocean. Actual hurricanes, not T.S.'s!!! Those storm would cover the entire state of Florida and the reporters are acting like Fay is one of those! Puh-lease!!! Stop the madness. Ok, I'm going a little stir crazy here. We have been inside forever so you'll have to forgive me.....That's all for now. I'll keep you updated!

Wii Fart!

Mo is ready for the Olympics. It's a special training regimen for a special event at the Olympics. I bet the hugger will be so proud of her!

Poopy Pants!

Hanzie wasn't feeling well so Paige and I paid him a visit and took him and Abs on a walk around the block. He did so well with Paige, she walked him the whole way while I took the two rambunctious pups! It was kind of comical to see 38 pound Paige walking 110 pound Hanzie! It was super hot and Paige was beet red and sweaty afterwards.

Paige is not happy!

Paige was super excited to go to her first day of real school. So of course, a tropical storm is coming and the county already closed school for the next 2 days!!! For some reason my work hasn't announced any closing, but I'll be staying home anyway. Tomorrow was a scheduled work from home day to start with, so I won't be getting up at 5 a.m. to hear if the Space Center is open or not!



Paige will go Thursday for her first day, I guess. So to make things better, Grandma Bobbie took Melissa and the girls for ice cream. It's "kid night" every Monday and the girls got their faces painted...

First Day of School for 2/3 of the Girls!

I'm so embarrassing! I had to take pics of Em lining up for class. She looked super cute, I managed to cut off her shoes which looked great with her outfit. She is so excited to go to school. That is such a good thing with kids. You don't want them to hate going to school!
I know this pic is blurry but Paige's face was so funny that I had to post it.


Mrs. McDuffie stands guard so that us obnoxious parents can't get in!


After we dropped Em off, Paige and I took Soph to school. Soph will be in Pre-K this year. No more playing and babysitting. This is real book-learnin' now! Soph wore her new halter top and she also brought her bear to school, which is apparently a big no-no! I just read in the letter from the teacher ... NO TOYS FROM HOME! OOOPS! She was so happy to see her girlfriends from last year. Matty, from Paige's soccer team is also in Soph's class. You might remember him as the one who wore flannel pajamas under his uniform....


Paige's fav teacher came in as we were leaving and gave her a big hug. Paige is asking me every five minutes if she can go to school! She has her first day tomorrow in case I hadn't mentioned that!

Saturday Beach Visit

Saturday afternoon called for a visit to the beach after sitting around on the couch all morning. We have had lots of clouds and rain and are expecting a little more with the approaching tropical storm. I'm not worried yet. After the beach we tried out the new Beachside Burrito Bar on Flagler. The had a good kids menu so we all piled into the restaurant and ate there. I loved my burrito! They also had a delicious pineapple salsa that I am going to try and make at home. The bar didn't have too many people at it, but I think they somehow messed up most of the orders. They have only been open a week so we cut them some slack.

Two beach bunnies deciding which type of burrito they want.


Nice form Fahv-ruh!!!


Em was sooooo thankful her daddy came to the beach to properly instruct her on how to ride the boogy board.


What do you think? I would have instructed her to hold on!


Anybody want some freckles?


Beautiful clouds.


They were building a sand bowling alley.

Friday

Friday was a pretty nice day. I guess the kids thought so too because Jen heard them talking in the afternoon saying it had been the best day of their lives. Apparently it only takes a trip to Eatza Pizza to make that day happen. I can't stand their pizza but they do have the best mashed potatoes and green beans ever and its a buffet!

This is my killer puppy. Fin was nearly chased out of the dog park the other day for being so vicious! He was barking non-stop at this lady's dress. I can't explain it but let's just say I don't blame him.


I think Will was refilling his plate during both of the next pics! You know, we only had 6 kids there and yet there are about 50 empty plates!


Love Noah's face on this one!


After pizza I brought the kids home, picked up Abs and Hanz along the way. Abby thought she would try out the tramp. Not sure she loved it. She kept going up there though. Kiki jumped around for about 30min with the kids.


An example of frog love that I found while cleaning my pond. You might have to click on the pic if you want to see the frog love up close!

Meet the Teacher!

This morning the Eagneys took their children to their brand new school! We are so excited to be going to Jen's school. Not that she owns it but I just don't want to type in the title in case a stalker is reading! Anyway, as you can imagine, Paige was very shy and wouldn't talk at all. Luckily she has two of her best buds from pre-school in her class. She will start the year off in a portable and move into her newly renovated room in a month. Paige will have the same teacher that the boyz all had in kindergarten. She is a very nurturing, older grandma type English woman. Mike loved it today when she said Paige was going to have a tip-top year.

Here Paige demonstrates how to sit at a desk.


Emma will have our friend Liz as her teacher. Ian, from soccer, is also in her class and sits close to her. Em is thrilled to have Liz as her teacher but we have to try and remember to call her by her proper teacher title!!


Back home, after a quick stop at the bank...blue pops for all. We picked up some school spirit shirts while we were there. I picked up a bright green one for myself. They didn't really have any colors that looked good on me. But I was tired of wearing my old navy blue one!


The girls pose in their new school clothes. Nannie will love this outfit that Grandma Bobbie picked up for Paige from Gymboree. It is a whole sunflowers motif. Em is sporting the latest from Old Navy. Above, Soph protests the war in her own way by wearing a shirt with doves and peace signs. It is quite overcast today with much rain expected today. We have a storm system moving across the ocean towards us so we'll see if it develops...

A Big Loss for Emma

Em went in to the dentist first thing this morning to have two canine teeth removed. Her tiny mouth is too crowded. Apparently the baby canines don't fall out for another few years. Both the orthodontist and dentist agreed that the canines should go so that the teeth hidden in her gums don't try to find another way out. Em did very good, the dentist said she was better than the adults. We were in and out in about 30 minutes. Fast service with a toothless smile!

Em prepares for the extraction.


She dressed up all fancy in her new school shirt. She wanted to bring her new camera to document how brave she is.


The big holes that were left.


Look at those gigantic teeth! Here they are next to a barbie doll!!! Just kidding, that's a polly pocket. Seriously those are big teeth and I was kind of grossed out.



In other news...


Sophi shows off their new camera. Nanni this is the one I was telling you about.


After tooth pulling the girls all got haircuts in preparation for school next week. Paige wanted bangs and super short hair. Then when she got home she said she looked like a dork. She looks super cute!


Sophi wanted to grow her bangs out but have super short hair.


Em just got an inch cut off and some layers around her face. She was happy since Hair Cuttery was providing a free hair cut to a child in need for each paid hair cut.

Back To School Shopping!

Saturday was spent shopping in St Augustine, the nation's oldest city. They have some great outlets there and to make things easier (?) we went with the Schraders so that the girls would be occupied with the boys and not be bored shopping. It worked because we actually shopped for FOUR hours!!! I could hardly believe the girls let us shop for so long. We only went into a few stores so I would love to go back on a grown-ups only trip.

The girls were looking for shoes since their grandad sent them some back to school spending money. Em ended up buying some fancy new riding boots. I doubt she'll be able to wear them to school since Volusia county voted to have PE every day of the week girls will not be able to wear fancy shoes, instead they will wear tennis shoes EVERY day! Boring!! Some teachers will be nice and let the girls change their shoes before PE but most will not. The boots are a little big, they did not have her size so I let her get a size bigger since she'll hopefully be having a growth spurt in the next year...
The girls also each bought a pair of Vans. They had soooo many shoes in the store that I wanted them to have. Paige's are really cute, black with little cherries. Em also bought some black Vans with colored hearts. Please excuse the messy background. We are in the process of going thru all their clothes to get rid of stained and stretched out shirts!

Sophie got a sweet pair of Vans that she wore right out of the store because she loved them so much. The looked pretty hip with her fancy white dress. I tried to buy her some tennis shoes as well but she said all she needed were the black ones because those were the only ones she wanted to wear! We had a great family bonding day, thanks for the shoes Grandad!

Only One More Week of Summer

With only a few days left in our summer vacation we are trying to squeeze in a few more visits to the beach. We decided to go after dinner, prime shark feeding time, and were greeted with absolutely beautiful weather.

I made the girls stay close to me since Uncle Greg is afraid they will get eaten by a shark. Hello? It's the shark BITE capital of the world, not the shark killing human capital!


The girls with their new rashguards from Grandma. They love looking like little surfer girls so they put their little bikini bottoms on with the tops! Love it!


Today we went swimming at Grandma's. We had to entertain Kiki since Grandma was at work today. As we were getting ready to jump in a huge rain cloud passed over and let loose. It was still sunny, but also pouring rain. I wish I had photog skillz so that I could have captured the rain and fun and sun all at once! But here is what I got instead.


Maxin' and relaxin'. The kids thought it was hilarious that we were swimming in the rain.


On Wednesday we were waiting in the car for Jen to return so that we could help her move to her new classroom. For those who haven't heard, the girls got into Jen's school this year (the one I work at all the time) so we are very excited. We already know Paige's teacher and it is the one I wanted so I am happy. Paige will go to school on the 19th but not the 18th and 20th. They do a staggered start here for kindergarten so that the teacher can give more individualized attention to the kids on their first day. (supposedly)


I know I'm glamorous but do I have to pose every 10 seconds???


Camera face impersonator!


AAAHHHHH! The water is suddenly so deep! What's that? Over there!!!


A nice little rain cloud passing to our north.