Roommates for Three Weeks!

Since Gary is living with us for three weeks, we moved Mollee's top bunk in Mac's room. They are really enjoying being roommates! and I took a picture of Mollee's room, since it won't ever look this clutter-free again!

Coupons sometimes cause...

an overload of toothpaste and shampoos

Which isn't a complaint, prior to coupons we were always out of both!

On a crazy sidenote: I took the kids to school this morning (which Jason usually does on his way to work), my coupons were already done and organized for the new sales, so I went to Publix. At 8:00. It was so nice. It was quiet, the shelves were stocked, everyone was helpful and cheerful (no time to have 'had a bad day'), and no lines. I think I'm on to something? Well, except for the early part!

Remember these?

I can't remember what we called them when I was in elementary school? The kids call them "fortune tellers" - not sure what I think of that??They are always making new ones and asking me to "play". As a parent, it is a little annoying, but I can remember thinking how great they were. Sometimes I frown on what they write under the flaps. On this one, one side says, "You have stinky feet" and then other side says, "You smell like a flower".This is one of Capps' and it is ok, but you can guess who has had some questionable "fortunes".

Gary meets the Caines Clan

Tonight Gary got to meet almost the entire Caines Clan (everyone but Emma)! It was Gary's birthday and Hannah's birthday! I think he survived!!Kids set up everywhere for dinner!The girls are always outnumbered, but they hid in a back bedroom and played Barbies.

The little guys tried to shoot me from the bottom stepIt was a crazy three hours for sure!

A Ho-Hum Monday

I apoligize for this post having no paragraph breaks (which drives me crazy) - no matter how many spaces I put between the paragraphs, nothing is there when I hit "publish post". Any suggestions are welcome: The weekend started out great with a fun date night! We had awesome food at Outback and then coffee and dessert at Panera (which was so unneccessary). To say we had a wet weekend is an understatement. I ran a few different errands Saturday morning (one, picking up a new mattress) and when I got home my shoes were muddy and my pants were soaked. A nasty day, indeed! After having the kids home for a week, I was backlogged on little errands, so, regardless of the weather, I ran a few more errands in the afternoon. We enjoyed a low-key Saturday evening, in preparation for Sunday. Sunday morning took us to church and then to my parents for lunch. I hung out with Ruth to help her pass time as she was anxiously awaiting driving to Atlanta to pick up Gary from the airport. Of course, we passed time by shoe shopping - still looking for bridesmaids shoes! Gary is staying with Jason and I for the next three weeks before the wedding. We stayed up to welcome him to our home. He had some problems in the immigration office at the airport, but it all got worked out and he got to our house a little after midnight. We greeted him, said "Happy Birthday" (he got to have a 30 hour birthday as he crossed time zones backwards in flight) and then we went to bed - showing Gary where his room was and where the bathroom was. Not long after, while Gary was getting ready for bed, our power went out. Nothing like - "Welcome to America, here is a home you do not know, try to navigate it in the pitch black!" It was out a couple of hours, but thankfully, I use my cell phone for my alarm clock. (To avoid embarrassing one of my children, I won't name names, but there might have been some panic with the darkness from downstairs!) The kids headed back to school this morning. Jason has been in and out as he is finishing up a few odds and ends of work since it is still rainy and he wasn't staying at one jobsite. Gary played a round of Toy Story Yahtzee with Mac before Ruth came and rescued him. I've been working on paperwork (did I blog that I have taken over the books for the company that Jason works for?) and now blogging and soon heading to Wal-Mart and, somehow, it is almost time with pick up the kids from school. "Ho-Hum" sounded like a good way to describe today. Not sure why, it is definitely not boring, just blah. The rain makes it feel ho-hum. Tonight, Gary gets to jump right in to the Caines family chaos. Everyone is going to be together at Mom and Dad's for spaghetti and a birthday party for Gary. Nothing like being jet-lagged and getting thrown in to meet your new family - all 34 at once!

Pump-It-Up

Alternate Title: Spring Break, Day 5

We made it to Pump It Up today! I just took the kids by myself. Didn't get any great photos, but here it is: It was a good hour and a half of playtime!

I took lunches for the kids to eat in the car. I needed to go to Publix, so they ate as we traveled that direction. I got my grocery shopping done and the kids all got a free cookie in the end!

Tonight, Jase and I get to go on a double date with Jeremy and Heidie. Christine is babysitting and the kids are SOOOOO excited about that. It is part of the Spring Break fun for them!

More Bubbles and Friends for Lunch, but no Pump It Up!

Alternate Title: Spring Break, Day 4

I was gonna meet two friends at Pump It Up today. We had gotten five passes, so I was going to just use them all in one trip. Unfortunately, they were having a fundraiser all day, so we opted not to go.

One friend was working hard to get items ready for a consignment sale, so she preferred to just stay home anyway. The other friend had a sad 3-year-old, so I told her to come to our house to play. And she brought pizza for lunch!

I didn't take many pictures, but the boys did end up on the deck playing with bubbles at some point!

No Pump It Up, but it was a fun day that ended in lots of outside time in the afternoon, a yummy dinner that everyone ate and a little visit with Papa before his surgery tomorrow!

Road Trip = Legos and Fish

Alternate Title: Spring Break, Day Three

Today, last minute, I decided to take a road trip with the kids. We went to an outlet mall about an hour-and-a-half away. The DVD player stopped working in the car about 5 minutes down the road. I thought it was good for the kids to just play, even if I wasn't 'travel ready' with coloring books, games, etc.

We hung out at the Bass Pro Shop at the beginning and the end of the trip - I had no idea what a fun place that was. The kids loved the big fish tank! and all the stuffed animals!The main reason we went to the mall was because of the Lego Store. These things are amazing!Mac with life-sized Darth Vader, made out of Legos!

I also let the kids build their own lego character - one set of legs, one body, one head (lots of different facial expressions), a hat or hair, and one accessory (gun, sword, coffee mug, goblet, broom, binoculars, handcuffs, etc.)

I wasn't really sure what to expect, but the mall was absolutely worth the trip. It had a lot of outlets - a Disney Store, Stride Rite, Children's Place, Croc (Mollee got a new pair for $9), Carter's, just to name a few.

There were quite a few other stores that I wanted to go to, but I'll have to do that on another trip - one without kids!

Bubbles, David, Chalk and Popsicles

Alternate Title: Spring Break, Day 2

Luke had spent the night so he was still with us and today was my day to keep David - seven kids today!

Mac and David enjoyed bubbles after breakfast!

The kids played with sidewalk chalk on the front porchI kinda felt like this one was a crime scene?David enjoyed a lot of time on the screened in porch

Mollee colored on the porch for a little while

The boys played more "War"Because I know you'll love me even with a no-makeup look (and because Capps wanted me to take a picture of us, do you know how hard that is?)And we enjoyed PopsiclesAfter Luke and David went home, Daegan remembered that today was the release date of the new Xbox Lego Clone Wars game. The kids rallied piggy banks and begged to go get it. It didn't take to much to persuade me, I wanted them to be able to get this.

Then Daegan spent the rest of his birthday money on an Airsoft gun. I'll be sure to report soon if that was a good idea or not.

Playground, Ice Cream and Luke

Alternate Title: Spring Break, Day 1

We met friends at a playground today for a picnic and playtime.

I got a picture with one of my favorite people in the world: and one of the cutest:I wasn't very good at taking pictures, but I got a few:We went for ice cream afterwards:Luke was supposed to spend the night with us Friday night, but after Mollee threw up (randomly?) Thursday night, we postponed it to today. It was originally for Daegan's birthday, so Luke brought Daeg a gift.The boys played it as soon as we got home.Then they got a snack, watched 'Wild Kratz', played outside, rode bikes, climbed trees, played "War", built Legos.....