First Day of First Grade from the Mommy’s Perspective

The day began a little earlier than usual as there could be no more “five more minutes” in the comfort of a cozy bed this morning. Thankfully, our little boy did not have the pleasure of sleeping late during the summer and pretty much kept his same morning routine. Thankfully, he was a little easier to rouse this morning. Excitement coupled with a tummy ache made for a quick “up and at ‘em” kind of morning.

Just as he chose his back to school supper last night, he chose his first day of school breakfast this morning. Pancakes were the breakfast of choice this morning. “I believe I will take pancakes for my breakfast this morning. Syrup on the side please.” We made a deal, he could put his pants on and lay back in the bed while I fixed his breakfast. Oh, the moments when he is not quite awake and I catch just a glimpse of my baby boy…I just love it…and I know these glimpses are almost over. I will look at him and remember when he was a First Grader…He has already changed so much. First Grade. As I have said many times before, where did the time go?

Each year I want to document something for the kids about the first day of school.  Here is a little of my journaling about the first day of school:

We stopped at the end of the drive for an official First Day of School Picture. I think this will be our spot. Even when we build one day, I think we will come to this spot for a picture. I love it. We said our prayer and talked about all the day would hold. We listened to music, sang and clapped. I delivered final instructions, told you I love you and a lady opened the door. You were rushed out, but not before I told you I love you one more time and to have a wonderful day! First Grade. Wow.

On the way to work, I worried. Your tummy hurt most of the day yesterday. You woke up with it last night hurting and complained first thing this morning.  I cannot wait to talk to you this afternoon and obtain the information for our next post - First Day of First Grade from Austin Kieff's Perspective. 

Stay Tuned...

Is it over?

Can it be? We can hardly believe it to be true. Really, we are in a state of disbelief. Austin Kieff surely is. We haven’t even finished posting about our vacation. This period of time we could hardly fathom a few short months ago has flown by. With only one week left, we are in bit of a quandary. What do we do? How do we end Austin Kieff's first summer vacation? Well, we are still working on that one. But, this past week was definitely a good start!

On Wednesday we left for Tuscaloosa, but more on this trip later. Thursday afternoon we left Tuscaloosa for Cullman. Specifically, we were on our way to Grandmother and Granddaddy's house where we would of course make a trip (or several trips) to the Lake. Not to be confused with just any ole' lake...the Lake is Granddaddy's Lake. He shares it with lots of other people, but it is his. At least that is what Caroline thinks. She asked several times, "what are these people doing on Granddaddy's Lake." I guess we go to Papa's Pond...so it must be Granddaddy's Lake...

The kids were super excited for several reasons. First, we were arriving in the daytime! While this may not seem like much to our friends and family, arriving in the daytime is a really big deal for our kids. We usually leave Jack, Alabama after work on a Friday evening somewhere around 6:30 or 7:00. We stop for supper (by stop I mean, order to go and let the kids go to the restroom). Sometimes we stop in Alabaster to pick up a few things we need from Wal-Mart because I forgot them. This turns into our arriving somewhere around 11:00…sometimes later depending on traffic.

How exciting it was to arrive at Grandmother and Granddaddy’s and not have to go straight to bed!! Second, not only were Grandmother and Granddaddy awake and not ready for bed when we arrived, but Uncle Tickle Monster was there, too!! And, to top it all off, Hunter was there! My kiddos were in a state of pure bliss. Neither was too keen on going to dinner (or eating dinner for that matter), they were ready to play! Austin Kieff was also ready to fish. And of course, fish he did…Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday evening!! There were even several fishing attempts during the day!

While the boys went fishing Thursday night, Caroline, the proud new owner of a wardrobe fit for a princess, was only too happy to model for the camera (see previous post here). Grandmother, an excellent seamstress, has made Caroline some of the most beautiful clothes since she was born. Most recently, Grandmother made a dress with matching slip that can be worn as a sundress in yellow and blue, an adorable black/red/white sundress that Caroline LOVES, and a short set from one of my favorite patterns. I know I am biased, but Caroline is beautiful in all of them!!

The best part of waking up…is Folgers in your cup…NOT…it’s breakfast and Grandmother’s biscuits! Every morning, (did I type every morning? Yes, EVERY morning) Grandmother bakes fresh homemade buttermilk biscuits. She could stop there…my crew would be happy (well all of us but David!). But, does she just stop there? NO. SHE. DOES. NOT. Grandmother, sometimes with Granddaddy’s help (not mine again because I let the sausage burn…hey, David’s our meat cooker, ha!), scrambles eggs, fries bacon and sausage. She slices fresh fruit (peaches, cantaloupe, canary melon [more on this discovery later]) and cooks grits for Caroline…sometimes gravy. And everyone sits around the dining room table to eat. The kids take turn saying grace. Austin Kieff, a little nervous about praying out loud generally sticks to his tried and true “God is Great…” when we are there. Caroline sings her sweet blessing from school.

After breakfast on Friday, we began packing our necessities for a trip to the Lake. I am not sure who was more excited Austin Kieff, Caroline, or…David! We were barely unloaded when the question of swim or ride the “tube” was posed. Oh, the life…for the toughest question of the day to be, “do I swim or do I ride the tube”…I almost forgot for the boys, fishing was a third option! I love summer time!

Caroline elected to swim while the guys changed into swimsuits and did a few other things.  This momma, after almost eleven years is still a little leery of the lake water and was all to happy to sit on the steps and watch.  I will, on rare occasion as I believe my sweet husband captured this past weekend, join in the water fun...for a quick swim or ride, but prefer to be on dry land, the dock or in the boat!

I can only describe the expressions on the kids and adults faces as sheer joy when the boat first gets going. Of course there are always the impatient, “is it my turn yet” from Austin Kieff and Caroline’s “it’s my turn now. Isn’t it my turn now?” (only to determine 5 seconds after takeoff that it is decidedly not her turn). Austin Kieff, still rather timid in his Dad’s and Uncle’s opinion, smart and cautious in my opinion, likes to go fast on smooth water and slow it down and wait for the water to calm a bit once things get a little rough. This weekend he did hang on through some areas I wish he had just let go. I was so worried he was going to jerk his shoulders out of socket from hanging on for dear life! There was no way he was letting go, no matter how high he bounced. Towards the end of the weekend, he did let go a few times…finally gaining some approval from his Dad and Uncle Chris. Let me reiterate, I am perfectly okay with him NEVER riding the way his cousin, Dad or Uncle like to ride. Did I mention that he did not get hurt, and was not the least bit sore the mornings after? This cannot be said for any of the other three!

Dinner at the Lake is always a feast. Mr. Charles and Granddaddy usually grill. This trip it was chicken on Friday and ham steak on Saturday. Grandmother, Mrs. Brenda and Great Grandmother always make sure there are plenty of yummy accompaniments to the main course. This trip there were fresh green beans, grilled potatoes with peppers and onions, salad, Mississippi Mud, Corner-less Chocolate Fudge Cake, chocolate éclair, baked beans, potato salad, cantaloupe and I am sure something else I have forgotten! Needless to say I was very thankful to get in a couple of good run/walks in over the weekend. I am afraid they were more of a necessity than anything!

The return home from the Lake on Friday and Saturday night (despite the delicious food we enjoyed) was followed by ice cream. David and Austin Kieff enjoyed chocolate shakes from Whitlock’s General Store while Caroline requested a strawberry shake. I had a cup of soft serve vanilla that was delicious!!

Did I mention, every morning begins with Grandmother’s breakfast? Saturday morning, after breakfast (and by breakfast I mean: homemade biscuits, bacon, sausage, scrambled eggs, grits…just want to make sure we emphasize how much our family loves Grandmother’s breakfast) we took Austin Kieff to get a haircut. My schedule has not permitted me to take him for several months. We had planned to take care of it while on vacation, but the place we had used in Pensacola twice before did not have any availability when we wanted to go. So, needless to say he was a little overdue on Saturday morning. The wife of one of David’s friends has a hair salon next to her house. As Caroline says, “the beauty shop girl” cut Austin Kieff’s hair, one of the best cuts he has had, and let her pet the kitty cat. The “kitty cat” was a mounted bobcat the “beauty shop girl” killed last year. David enjoyed catching up with his friend Jon afterwards and Austin Kieff drooled over an outside toy watched their son ride his motorbike.

After the haircut and a trip to the farmer’s market for a couple of canary melons, blueberries for Caroline and a jar of honey for me, it was time to head to the Lake. David was itching to ski a little and boy did he! Austin Kieff and Caroline had so much fun watching their Daddy ski. Austin Kieff begs David to ski almost every time we go, so the little guy was super excited to watch his Dad. David even showed off a little on the slalom course and received some applause and thumbs up from several onlookers. I am fairly certain his arms and legs felt the course much more than he admits!!

All in all I think everyone had a fun time catching up and just spending a little time together. Sunday morning, after breakfast, of course, we endured the long (thankfully only a little over 3 ½ hours) drive home so that I could get to a meeting and Monday came way too early! With both of us back to work and the kids back to their routines after several days off, we were not the happiest of campers this morning! I think we are all looking forward to our last weekend of summer!

Here are a few pictures from our stay:    

My Lucky Little Princess

First, I will clarify that I am saying I have a lucky little princess...not a yucky little princess as Caroline thought I called her!

My sweet princess is lucky because she has a Grandmother who loves to sew for her!  Here are a few of her latest creations.  Caroline was only too happy to model!  They and my baby girl are beautiful...

Caroline's slip that can be worn by itself. 

This is my favorite picture.

Her dress over the slip

Her REBEL colored dress

Her sweet shirt and shorts

Promotion Sunday!

Sunday was Promotion Sunday at church.  Caroline moved rooms, but remains in Miss Christy Chance's class.  Caroline is one happy little girl!  For Austin Kieff, this is a really big deal.  It means he is moving to a classroom upstairs! 

I cannot believe we have moved from Cha-Cha and Papa John's room on the end all the way to upstairs...where did the time go?  Recently, I looked at pictures from the Sunday we "moved our letter" to FBC-Troy.  My, oh my, has Austin Kieff grown.  Our family has grown by a member and been through some of our most challenging struggles since joining.  We are definitely thankful for our FBC family!  Sunday we found out one of the members of our Sunday School class would be moving on to teach a class himself.  We will miss you Jason Jones, but are so proud of your decision to teach.  Our prayers will be with you. 

Last week we received a postcard in the mail with the Bible verses for the month of August.  August 5th's verse was:

You will be my witnesses. Acts 1:8

This was a good verse to get started on for several reasons.  First, new teachers, new room, new rules...all things that make Austin Kieff a little nervous...so remembering...well reciting a long verse for the first day (his memory amazes me) might have been difficult.  Second, he has had the verse before or at least talked about it during Upward.  And, finally, Brother Luke talked about what the verse means during service.  Talk about building on a lesson!  I think, although there was some squirming going on, that Austin Kieff understands the verse more now which, is a beautiful thing to see! 

Also, Miss Caroline memorized the verse.  She is so proud of herself (and so am I)!!  I love hearing the kids recite scripture...apply scripture...tell others about scripture...May my children grow to find  Your Word more precious than gold, than much pure gold; sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb...

Vacation Day 2

What a week! My one goal was to make some lasting memories for my kids, memories like I have of summer vacation spent in Pensacola. I truly think this goal was achieved. Our day-by-day: Day 2


Sunday, July 1, 2012, was to be spent taking Nanny to Three Rivers Baptist Church, visiting and relaxing while we waited for Daddy to arrive. Getting two kids, who stayed up way past their bedtime were too excited to sleep because so much vacation excitement, ready for Church Sunday morning proved to be a little bit of a chore. But, believe it or not, we arrive at Nanny’s house, 30 minutes across town, on time. Well, “on time” for what we thought was the start of Worship Service. However, about ten minutes from Nanny’s house we discovered that Worship Service actually started in oh ten minutes!! Being late did not deter us from our plans. We escorted Nanny to Three Rivers Baptist Church, where we arrived fashionably late and made a grand entrance, ha! Thankfully, they were having a special July 4th service and we arrived during the special music program so there was not really an interruption!! The pastor and his wife were so excited to see Nanny and Nanny was so happy to be there. I was just thankful to spend Sunday morning in Church with my Nanny. Service was followed by a potluck lunch…yum!

We could not leave Seminole, Alabama without paying Aunt Ann (also known as Amen) and Uncle M.T. (called Uncle T by Caroline) a visit. We officially met Pal who is the most adorable and loving little dog, I mean family member. The kids had so much fun playing with Aunt Ann, Uncle M.T. and of course Pal! We couldn’t leave Aunt Ann’s without a prize…that violates some longstanding rule, right? Well the kids each had a banana and I left with fresh tomatoes, cucumbers and a few hot peppers for David. I have such fond memories of going to Aunt Ann’s house (which is where Nanny lives now) when I was a child. She always had a prize drawer full of the best cereal prizes and toys she picked up here in there. Uncle M.T. always supplied cool pens and order books to play office. They are the same with my kids. There is always a prize, a toy and SO MUCH love!

Nanny was not feeling well so we dropped her off at her house before heading back to change clothes and spend a little time in the…WATER! I didn’t realize how bad Nanny felt until later in the week :(.  Once back at the Bayou House we changed our clothes and had a snack.  It seems like when we are on vacation these kids are ALWAYS hungry!

I forgot to mention that on the way back from Nanny's on Saturday evening we did a little exploring and discovered Perdido Kids Park.  We literally just did a drive by to check it out before calling it a day.  But, on Sunday after some time in the water we decided it was time to pay the park a real visit!

So back to the WATER...the kids packed there things in the wagon and were ready to spend the afternoon playing!!  And, boy did they play!  We swam, we built sand castles, we caught minnows and tried to catch blue crabs.  We searched for hermit crabs.  We watched the birds and the jets.  We had a WONDERFUL time together!!

We played in the water for a couple of hours before deciding to change out of swimsuits and try out that park we found.  What. A. Park.  Perdido Kids Park is an awesome place take children of all ages to play.  There is a Big Kid area and Tot area.  There are misters that are fun for children and nice for adults if you are just a little hot.  The kids of course made quick friends of other children there...Austin met a sweet little girl and Caroline met a mischievous little boy! 

After leaving the park, since we did not have anywhere we had to be, we took a right towards the water instead of heading back to the Bayou House.  Well, what did we discover but Big Lagoon Park!  The super friendly Park Ranger gave us a free pass to tour the park before sunset (well 8:00).  Another place was added to our "places to visit while on vacation" list!

We made a quick trip to Publix before heading back to the Bayou House.  It was almost time for Daddy to arrive and our family time to officially begin!!

Here are a few pictures:

Caroline before church

Austin Kieff on our way to church

Playing in the water AT LAST!

Hot and read to play...not take pictures!

Future Blue Angel Pilot

My busy bee

My wall climber

Big Lagoon Park

Vacation Day 1

What a week! My one goal was to make some lasting memories for my kids, memories like I have of summer vacation spent in Pensacola. I truly think this goal was achieved. Our day-by-day beginning with Day 1:

Saturday, June 30, 2012 we left Jack, Alabama bright and early to make it to Pensacola prior to Aunt Sue’s and Uncle Bob’s departure for the airport. The kids were hoping to see their plane take off, but with security the way it is now we thought it best not to take them to the airport if we weren’t actually flying out. So, we arrived at the Braithwaite Bayou House about an hour before Aunt Sue and Uncle Bob had to leave. We went over a few housekeeping items and then spent some time chatting prior to Aunt Sue’s best friend Renee taking them to the airport. We (read I) unloaded our bags and put everything in our bedroom for the week. Caroline and Austin Kieff wanted to go straight to the water, but I had a few errands that needed to be ran.

First on my list was a trip to Life Way. I wanted to pick up the Frazzled Female bible study. The study I am going to attend actually started the week before, so by the end of our trip I was two weeks behind, but that’s okay! However, this Mommy had a surprise; Kazoo was at a local car dealership. For those of you who do not know, Kazoo is the mascot for the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. The kids enjoyed meeting Kazoo in a less intimidating environment than game day (hundreds of fans swarming and or yelling) and even met some of the baseball team and obtained their autographs! Fun start to our vacation!!

 Note:  Caroline is still apprehensive of some mascots...make that all mascots with the exception of

Big Al!

We did knock out item one and having the memory of an elephant (so I thought since I did navigate us through Mobile, Mt. Vernon, McIntosh and Sunflower the weekend before and was feeling pretty confident) I felt like I could disregard the directions of the GPS and skip getting back on the interstate to find 9 mile road to accomplish the next item on my revised list.

Second on my list was a little shopping for strappy plastic footwear, but two very tired kiddos nipped that one in the bud. Instead, we decided to head to the Cock of the Walk for lunch. Back to that memory of an elephant…boy was I SO wrong. The kids lucked up with a trip to the airport anyway and even saw a few planes in the air. Depending on what time the actual flight left it could have even been Aunt Sue and Uncle Bob’s flight! Well, after two other almost right treks I decided enough was enough and listened to the GPS. We did find 9 mile road, but much to our disappointment, the Cock of the Walk serves supper and doesn’t start serving until 4:00! Chick-fil-a to the rescue!! Grilled chicken nuggets, an ice dream and a cursory perusal of my Bible study later…I mean two 6 counts, fries and a half hour in the play area later…we decided to run into Target prior to heading out to see our Nanny.

Me and my silly kids at Chick-fil-a

Now, remember my errand of wanting to shop for strappy plastic footwear? Well, we did shop and find strappy leather footwear for Caroline…so technically I guess I could cross that off my list, ha! We finished the day with a visit to Nanny and Papa John’s pizza…and cheese bread…and bread sticks. Nanny wasn’t feeling very good so we did not stay too long. Austin Kieff slept through supper, but enjoyed a late night snack when we arrived back at the Bayou House.

Look Who's Riding a Bike

From the title, some of our dear readers may have assumed this post would be about Caroline, after all, Austin Kieff is,  as he so sweetly reminded us, six years old now.  However, thanks to living in the country, a very bumpy drive and very few opportunities to ride his bike (insert parents' fault), the poor little guy has had very limited opportunity to ride his bicycle.  I will qualify this statement by saying he has been an excellent bike rider with training wheels for quite some time.  But, as Austin Kieff so boldly said, enough is enough. 

So, this past Sunday after two days of creative pleading and persistent persuasion (insert begging), David removed Austin Kieff's training wheels.  The first go was a little shaky.  Yes, there was a wreck.  The second go was equally shaky.  By the third go he was riding like a pro...well almost!  This mom is feeling a little bad about the delay, especially since it only took about ten minutes to go from "what have we done" to "way to go!!"

Our new training wheel-less bike rider is so proud of himself.  His mom, a little more nervous than before when he asks to go ride his bike.  His dad, a little more thankful that he removed those training wheels that often had to be pushed a little in the sandy portions of our drive!  Sandy portions which thanks to Daddy and Papa are almost all gone!!

Our proud bike rider:

He even does pretty good on the grass!