. Family, Friends.......and Hot Springs. A perfect, BIRTHDAY, weekend.

Well it was a surprise all week. I didn't know what was going on. But my Husband and friend were concocting a fun day for Saturday to celebrate my birthday. It's no secrete that I love Hot Springs AR. We go there a lot. So the plan was to go down there with kids in tow and enjoy just being with each other. The fun part was we did things that we have done before and things we have never done. That made it interesting. The weather also made it interesting. When we left it was cold and gloomy. Not to mention the sheets of rain obstructing our view on the way down. But the weatherman said that it would clear up by the afternoon. So we pressed on praying the whole way. We first headed to Rod's Pizza Cellar for lunch. The Morris family had been there before and we knew how good the food was. This place also has a train that goes around the whole restaurant which the kids love. And TVs in every corner. Cartoons and sports were the only thing on. Why isn't there ever anything else on? honesty! I had my good friend Dawn to keep me entertained. So I was good.

This is a picture to keep forever. Kids talking with their mouths stuffed full with pizza! Gross. OK maybe it isn't a keeper, but this one is. How cute are they! Talen and Kelland.
Layton and Jalen. They are good friends. Sports 24/7 with these two.

Now there are some wacky kids for ya. The brown family has 4 kids as well and we both have kids around the same age. Layton and Jalen, Jaren and Deserae, Kelland and Talen, and Brigham and Brody. Brody is missing in this pic but you get the idea. We are one wild group.

Then it was off to Oakland Park for a little horse racing. We have never been there before and it was a lot of fun. The kids loved seeing the horses even though they smelled really bad. But I was really impressed with how small the jockeys looked. and how muscular the horses were. I really didn't know how all of it worked because I have never been to something like this before. But you could tell that this was something people took very seriously. There weren't a lot of kids there. Mostly people with wads of money and a beer in hand. But it was still very thrilling and exciting to see the horses do their thing. It's something I've only seen on TV. We enjoyed it. I think we'll be back.

This was us just waiting around. There was 30 min in between all of the races. But the actual race only took 5 min. It was hard to wait sometimes with the kids. (Now I know why people don't bring them.) The races went on all night long. But we could only stand to stay for 3 of them. It really just becomes the same thing over and over again. But those 5 min are pretty intense.

OK, I just had to put this picture in. It's so funny to me. Who do they think they are? Seriously!! It reminds me of an album cover for a Rap/hip hop group or something. 9 is a funny age. Yo man! What up Duwg.
The Morris Family at Oakland Park.The Brown Family at Oakland park.

So after this we still had some time to kill so we went to the old down town of Hot Springs (my favorite part) and went to the Fudge Factory for some ice cream. It's a little place that looks like it did the day it opened in the 1920s. A cute little sweet shop. It was fun. And the ice cream was so Divine. But the fudge is to die for. So we stayed clear of that this trip. Maybe next time.

How come children are never happy with what you give them. They always want what isn't theirs. Kelland was a good big brother and shared. With a little convincing from his parents.

Finally a picture of cute Brody. He stole his Mothers ice cream.

Dawn with her girls. Look at all the pink. ........I love pink

What a great day. Thank you Don and Dawn. I love you both for this!

Happy Birthday Cally!

Well, I want to give a big shout out to my friend Cally on her special day. We were the best of friends all through our teen years. And after graduation (as with all those relationships back then) we went our separate ways. But because of this wonderful thing called Facebook (as if no one else had heard of it), my sister Natalie found our long lost friend. We soon found out that we were all into blogging. And soon rekindled our friendships once again. Her blog is on the top of my list to read. Not just because she is a dear friend but because it is truly entertaining. She hasn't changed much and the changes made were for the better. I love that she LOVES being a Mother. And I love how talented she is. Her bags and drawings are to die for. Also she is a gifted writer. Very clever and witty. She has adorable children and takes wonderful pictures of them. If she had more time she could be a very accomplished photographer. I love that we still have a lot in common and that are friendship is still as strong.

So I know that we decided to swap talent for talent and do an exchange around our birthdays. But I've got to tell you I am a bit nervous. I've seen what you can do with your bags but you were very sweet to go on blind faith to exchange your hard work for my jewelry. I'll admit your style is different then mine and so it posed a little more of a challenge for me. But I like a challenge. And I pride myself in custom jewelry, making any style my own. I hope I accomplished that. This is also the first time I have displayed my work. So I am a bit shy about that as well. I know I need to quit doddling and just do it already. So This is for you, my dear, sweet friend. I hope you like it.

An antique version of something you loved and wanted.

This photo I got off of your Blog. You posted some cool art that you really liked. See if you can remember which one it was. It was my favorite.

A mothers bracelet with your children's birth crystals.

Happy Birthday Cally. And ENJOY! It was fun making it for you.

Oh!... Yum!........ Memories!

I found a whole group of pictures in the other camera this week that I haven't down loaded yet. Ever since I got my new camera I forgot about the old one having pictures on it. It was fun to go through the pictures. There were fun memories that I didn't even knew existed. It's like when a good friend stops by to bring you one of your favorite treats. Just because she was thinking about you and she thought it would be fun. It was a plate full of delicious memories. Oh the joy it brought to my soul. So, I thought I would share some......... Memory treats anyone?!!

A relaxing Sunday afternoon memory

This is a fun Sunday activity (that I love) when it happens. I try to get the kids together on Sundays to read stories out of the friend Magazine for some "together time". This is my favorite place to sit and read in our big comfy chair. But it is starting to get a little snug. These kids have got to stop growing!! (If ONLY!!!)

A photo shoot memory

I was cleaning up the office when Kelland came to me and asked for a photo shoot. Well, more like "Mommy, take a picture of me." He would make this silly face and pose. Then the flash would go off and he would make another face and pose. He would do that over and over again. For some reason, all his pose faces have the same look. Funny I know, but don't tell him that. He insists that each one is unique. I actually enjoyed cleaning the office that day.

Baby's first hair cut memory

This actually was a few months ago. Don took him for me and he grabbed the "other" camera instead of the one I am loyal to. So I didn't see these pics to remember to post them. Don takes the boys for their first hair cuts because I just cry when they cut off the curly locks. With all of my other boys, once they cut the curls off they didn't grow back. But for Brig I was pleasantly surprised to see them come back. full as they were before. Thank you Nana. I love my curly head boy!

Well, I can't wait for my next batch of memory goodies. What will it be next time? A sleep over? A baking session? A crayon incident? Who knows. But I bet it will be as sweet as this batch.

Jaren, I'm your # 1 fan!

Jaren turned 7 on Saturday. He has been anticipating this event since Christmas. My son has a Lego star wars obsession to put it lightly, and he just couldn't wait to get his hands on some more Lego sets. Jaren has always been like this with his birthdays. And I would always try to make it more then just about presents. I thought by having a party with friends and games and birthday festivities it would take the focus off of the one thing he couldn't stop thinking about. Sometimes I would insist on the guests not bringing gifts. It didn't seem to matter either way. He isn't really a social butterfly so he really never had any true friends to invite. They were always his Church primary class because I was friends with their moms. And as hard as I would try he never seemed to have fun on his birthday until the gifts were opened and it was time to play with them. This year was different, FINALLY!! He still doesn't have a lot of friends but the two he has are good ones. Ones from church and ones from school. He wanted both of them to come to a big birthday party at our house. But two friends doesn't make for a big party. So I suggested going somewhere. Unfortunately, the only place open around here for kids on Saturdays is Chuck-E-Cheese. A parents worst nightmare. But kids love it.So we picked up his friends and headed down to north little rock. It was fun to hear him laugh and socialize with his friends. Really this is something new for us. And it turns out he's quite funny. He had a blast with his friends and all the kids enjoyed Chucks place. When we got home it was time for presents. It used to be all that he could think about but this time he was content to wait until the end of the day. This is really a big deal. The fact that he could focus on being with friends instead, was huge for him. This is true progress. He's getting older and I think is starting to deal better with his obsessions and self soothing tendencies. I'm so proud of him and glad that he had a great time. I think it's safe to say this small, dinky birthday was the most successful one we have had. And I know his favorite so far.

I wanted to get other presents for him to open that wasn't Lego's because it just doesn't seem healthy to feed his obsession. But if we spent a lot of money on things he is not interested in then it's a waste. So I decided to just get small, inexpensive things like..... a BIG candy bar, his very own cup, some stickers, some star wars PJ's, things like that. And he couldn't open them all at once. He could only open one every hour until we left for his party. At first when I told him he had presents starting at 9 am and going all day I could see the (oh so) familiar excitement in his eyes. I had to prep him by saying that these things were not Lego's but small gifts just for fun. And that his big gift was coming after his party. I was proud of myself for thinking of this because I think it helped him to keep his focus off of what he knew was coming. I think it also helped him to wait as long as he did. It helped him but it was still him who accomplished it. I'm just so proud.

My dear sweet Jaren. I know that life can be hard sometimes. That you have things consuming your mind to the point where it is hard to focus on anything else. I know this is a struggle for you. But I am truly proud of the way you are dealing with it. You have come a long way Jaren. I am so happy with the way you are growing and improving. I hope you never forget how special you are. How you put a smile on my face when you walk into a room. How your hugs fill my soul with joy. How important you are to this family. I promise you I will do everything in my power to make your life as easy as I can and as fulfilling as possible. You deserve all that I can give and more. Your our sweet Baby J still, no matter how old you get. And we will love you always. Happy Birthday.