Videographer

Daegan got a camera for his birthday. He requested a digital camera, but Uncle Daniel and Aunt Heather went above and beyond (like they always do) and got him one that took pictures and video. The quality isn't great, but he has a blast with it. Last week he took it for Show-N-Tell, capturing video and pictures of his class.

Today I caught him videoing his brothers crazy bike riding. These two bikes I got for a total of $5 at the thrift store!

Kids Riding Bikes, by Daegan from Gretchen Brown on Vimeo.

Have I mentioned how much I love this cool, windy weather - for me, it is perfect!

Jason turns 36!

Happy Birthday to Jase!

Today he turned 36.

He got some cards from his parents and his Mima on Friday night and Sunday my mom cooked him spaghetti. If you have never experienced the Caines "Happy Birthday" singing rendition then you might not understand the expressions on the faces in these pictures, but... He had lots of help blowing out his candles (a random number of 11) (he told me this shirt reminded him of Jimi Hendrix?)

Tonight we had our family celebration
lots of help with candles again!

His wonderful wife got him his favorite - a Dairy Queen cake!

I'm just sayin'.

I love these pictures of the kids all around and excited about Daddy's day.

Happy Birthday, Babe!

Another Photo Dump...

...for Jason's birthday!

(more on birthday celebration tonight)

Some of my favorites of "Daddy"

at workwearing a tie with the boyson the deck with the bird (and Mollee)looking for turtles and ducks on the dock (Destin, FL 2005)

fishing with the kids (Destin, FL 2009)walking the Buddy Walk with Mac

playing Xbox with the kids at the beach last summerWhat a great Daddy! Happy Birthday!

Hat Day

Somehow, Mollee got the privilege of wearing Daddy's expensive Stetson hat?

Book Fair

This week there has been a book fair at school. Last year we weren't able to send money for the kids to spend, but this year I gave them each a little money and told them to get what they want - no questions asked!

Always interesting what they come up with (and no surprise)

Mollee - a Barbie Mermaid sticker book and a Taylor Swift biography

Tavis (the only one that came home with change - my 'non-spender') - an Iron Man comic strip book

Daegan (oh, Daegan!) - a notebook and a set of pens...from the Book Fair!and a guilty/goofy grin to go with it!

Tavis: Allergy Test #3

As I've mentioned in past posts Daegan and Mollee both survived an allergy test last summer. This time it was Tavis' turn. He has headaches a little too frequently. Last year a lot of them ended in migraines with throwing up, but we remedied some stress in his life and he hasn't had any that bad since.

But he still gets headaches and with the track record of our family I wanted to make sure I wasn't ignoring sinus issues. He didn't have any major issues, some minor reactions to dust, a few trees, cats, etc. Thankfully, nothing major. But he is going to use a nasal spray for his ongoing congestion and see if that helps his headaches.

This test occurred last Friday (the beginning of my strep decline). I forgot to take a picture of his "shots" and as he was getting in the shower that night he didn't want to wash any of the marks off until we documented proof of the test.

He didn't get his prescription filled until I recovered a little and thought about it, so I'm not sure yet if there is improvement.

Strep

Our house has been hit....hard....by the strep bug. Mac and Daegan were at the pediatrician's office Thursday. Daegan had strep, Mac had a sinus infection, but I suspect if we sent off for a 24 hr. strep test he had strep too.

Thursday and Friday for me consisted of a lot of yard work. I worked very hard in the backyard trying to get it cleaned out. By Friday afternoon I was wiped out. I have to admit, it seemed a little silly how tired I felt. I had been working hard, but was I that out of shape physically to cause such exhaustion? When I went to bed Friday night I was exhausted and could not get warm, it got to the point that I was shivering. After a few hours of that I asked Jason to find a thermometer. I had a fever of 102.8.

Saturday my mom took me to the Minute Clinic (while Jason was playing Mr. Mom, a role he doesn't necessarily like to play). I also had strep. The 6-minute test only took 65 seconds to show up positive. I had my tonsils out when Jason and I first got together 15 years ago and I haven't had strep since. Mom took me home and I climbed back into bed, took my penicillin and tried to stay on top of taking fever-reducing meds, but I could not get the fever to come down. From Friday evening until this morning (Monday) I've had fever around 102. I have not been that sick ever in my married life (that I can remember?).

Today I was so relieved to wake up to no fever. I've been tired and my throat still hurts a lot, but I had to 'man up' and get out of bed because Capps was crying this morning saying his throat hurt, and guess what. He has strep also.

So we have four down, three to go!

Pray that Jason doesn't get it. They say it is more miserable for adults and I really don't want him to get it. I've spent the day washing sheets, washing towels, replacing toothbrushes, etc. - and resting, of course. Hope I get to make it to the grocery store tomorrow, but that will depend on my energy level.

Hoping this is will be the end of our strep saga....

Matching...(not)...bad...

I'm not in to matching my children's clothing. My sister always matched her boys when they were younger and it just wasn't for me.

While shopping for Easter shirts for the boys this year, I couldn't pass up $5 polos. I bought them each a different color but when it came time for Easter, I just couldn't make them match.

Last Sunday, they insisted on all wearing their new shirts.
A friend at church said they looked like The Wiggles, that didn't sit well with me, Thanks, Heidie! but I do think they look like a handsome group, and I'm not even biased! Funny thing is, the three big boys all have the same size - we would hate for Tavis' shirt to be too big!!

Photo Dump: Mac

Mac hasn't been around as long as the others, but here are a few of my favorites of him. Enjoying his first milkshakes

Smile (with cheeto cheese dust teeth)and The banana suprised look?

Gardening with kids!

My mother and I are a lot alike, but when it comes to plants - not so much. She could work out in her flowers/yard/garden all day, and she has a gorgeous yard to prove her love. I, on the other hand, do my best. If I'm going to spend the day outside, I'd rather it be with a book sitting in the sun, preferably by the pool - not digging in dirt.

Our yard has horrible soil so it takes even a greater effort to make it happen. I have my daffodils come up in the spring and I'll plant pansies at the mailbox in the fall. Right now, I'm in the process of transplanting a lot of monkey grass from my mom's yard to a big bed along our sidewalk. Nothing will grow there, so I'm hoping the monkey grass will just take over - low maintenance is the key!

Yesterday, I took a trip to Home Depot, got hanging ferns for my front porch and bought some flowers to pot and some Moisture Control potting soil - I need all the help I can get. Of course, I had help. Capps wanted to water the newly potted flowers but could barely pick up the watering can, so we could only fill it 1/3 full each time- imagine how long that took!Our house isn't grand looking on the outside (although we are about to start some major outdoor repairs, renovations and painting - picked out colors today!) so I love to spruce it up with potted plants on the front porch.

Now I just have to keep everything watered....

Unfortunately, my track record isn't great in this department!

CAPPS

To go along with my Capps photo dump today, I get to proudly announce that he lost his first tooth last night. It has been dangling for days, so I was glad to see it go!

Photo Dump: Capps

My Capps!

It is hard to come up with a lot of pictures of him. It could be argued it is because he is #4, but I think it is because he is always 'in the background'. He doesn't like to be center of attention, like his older three siblings.

This is the face that will be in my mind, even when he is graduating from high school

I love this one, his little laugh is so contagious (he was laughing because Daddy was wearing kid sunglasses)

His first oreoIf you've been to my house, you know this is one of my favs

For the entire Fall months around this Halloween, he wore this outfit most days

This is why he has short hair - he has baby monkey hair that just sticks up all the timeThis is the constipated look you get if you ask him to smile

In his cool Iron Man glasses!

Can't believe he is going to kindergarten next year!

Photo Dump: Daegan

This is what I think of when I think of Daegan, he'd melt your heartHere he insisted on getting dressed after his bath, so I left his room and this is how he came out, red boots and a scarf (he has always been my eccentric dresser)Christmas afternoon he insisted he didn't need a nap, this is how I found him, I guess he was sitting up trying hard not to fall asleepI loved dressing this boy - now he picks his own exciting outfits This is for blackmail one day - Princess DaeganHe wore these goggles for many weeks
Then he got his own glasses - first time to play Xbox with glasses - "The Professor"

My Daegan Dear!!

Photo Dump: Tavis

I love this picture. This is when we were living with my parents for a few months while getting our house ready to live in. Jason had just gotten home from work and Tavis wanted to sit with Daddy on the couch, with his blank and he wanted to make sure to have a hat like Daddy's.This one cracks me up too, Jason was leaning against the counter and Tavis, very purposely, leaned against the counter and struggled to get his hands in his pocket - just like Daddy! I also like how Daegan is looking on....
Tavis will always be known as my sleeper. He took a nap until he went to kindergarten and he very often fell asleep during their rest time. Even today, if he is tired he'll get ready for bed at any hour by himself. This was where I found him one Sunday afternoon when he didn't get his regular nap.

This is how I found him last year on a Saturday afternoon, he had gotten tired, laid down on the couch, but used my throw pillows as his blanket.

This was his nose scrunch that he always did and still does a form of todayAnd this is the smile I love - his eyes always seem to light up when he smiles