Mommy Milk Week!

 

I am proudly celebrating 

World Breastfeeding Week.

Read more...

'Bishin' "

On Saturday Jamie woke up and said, "Hey, let's take Charlie fishing." We've been making plans to for quite a while, but never actually went through with them. I was so excited, and because of Charlie's non-stop conversations in the car, I knew he was too. We loaded up and went to the Grandfather Mountain Trout Farm. I observed, babysat, and acted as a photographer. We had a great time. Charlie caught two, well, he tells everyone he caught one and Daddy caught the other. No matter what I loved the sitting back and watching them spend this special time together. Brady and I sweated a lot, but next time we go we will both get in on the action.

 

Click here if you can't see the video. Also, remember to pause the music on the left in the blue box if you hear it playing :)

Read more...

Things that make me go "BLAH"

In light of the night I spent with Jamie and the boys in Lowes of Boone, this post comes directly from that little spark that ignites inside everyone occasionally. Stepping onto the soap box...


Things that make me go "Blah"
1. Boone Lowes Hardware and grouchy old men in the plumbing dept.

2. B.O. (both the under arm kind and the kind in the White House)

3. Blue Cross/ Blue Shield of NC

4. Parents who allow 10 year olds to play in the Chic Fila playplace.

5. Gravel on little knees

6. The Kardashians (who are they and why are the famous??)

7. Non-English speakers getting paid to take "help" calls (ie. BellSouth, AT&T,....)

8. People calling my chubby little boy "fat"

9. Smokers in the car with children

10. Apathetic parenting

11. Driving by the new Humane Society and then reading about education cuts

12. My hair

13. "Accidents" in undies and slides

14. People from Florida waiting 15 minutes for a parking space and blocking traffic

15. Stepping on cooked macaroni

16. Dirty people touching baby's hands/face

17. Telemarketer calls during dinner

18. Troopers and Sunday mornings

19. Bees

20. General King Street attire

Whew...now that I got that off my chest. There are 20 reasons for you to think I am a terrible person. On a lighter note, please feel free to revisit this post to help rebuild your love for me.  Giving Thanks

Read more...

Making our world Cheynie

This post is a bit early, but simply because the star will be out of commission for a while, and I wanted to make sure these birthday wishes were read.


15 years ago (from Saturday) the chubbiest little girl arrived into our family. My cousin, Cheyenne Jordan Hayler, by all guesses was going to be a boy, but thank goodness we were given a little tomboy that has grown into the most mature, beautiful, and thoughtful young lady that I know of. She's not the little flower girl from my wedding anymore, but she's all grown up. Everytime I force myself to travel into the crowds of public with my boys I can't help but find myself getting red in the face with sheer anger at some of the trash that is in our world. (I don't have to remind you that neither of my boys will get married, and if by chance they sneak a girlfriend into their lives, I WILL be that mother-in-law they've feared.)  I'm afraid I am this way because parents have focused

I love her even if she beats me at Corn-Hole

on raising their children to be a success in the eyes of pop-culture. Obviously this is reflected at the most inappropriate times, like the checkout lines when the F-bomb rings out of the mouth of some trashly mini-Gaga only feet away from Charlie's ears. Just when I think there is no hope for our youth, I remember.....my friends, I know someone who has no idea how beautiful they are on the outside because they are even more beautiful on the inside. This is someone who isn't beautiful because they are measured on the beauty scale of Hollywood society. I'm talking a natural

Cheynie and Charlie beginning their race

beauty. The timeless beauty, one from the old days with beautiful deep eyes and a flawless complexion coupled with true poise, you know, like from black and white movies. She's got a smile that is always a comfort to me. It's beautiful, but it means so much more. It means that times are rough, things aren't always smooth, you don't always have an easy road.....but there's no use to frown about it. I don't ever think about her without seeing her smile in my mind. She is wise beyond her years, and so humble that she would deny it.

As my little sister, Casey told me once, "Cheynie is everyone's best friend because she is so sweet." That was exactly right! I'd never thought about it, but it is so true. She IS everyone's best friend. Cheynie loves my boys like I do, and let me tell you, there aren't many of those people around. She celebrates their accomplishments with me, and tears up when she sees them hurt. I am not sure, because I've never seen her DNA bloodwork, but she quite possibly could be my other sister. Even if the genes aren't there, I'll settle for a cousin with a truly Cheynie Smile :)

Happy Birthday, "Hinny!" 

We sure do love you!

click here if you can't see the video, also,

remember to pause the music on the left side in the blue box

Read more...

Reece Family Blogs: Puppy Fun

Reece Family Blogs: Puppy Fun: "'A grownup is a child with layers on.' ~Woody Harrelson It's so easy to forget the simple things that thrill you as a child. Seeing the..."

Read more...

Charlie's Friends

I'd like to take a minute to introduce you to some very important, but often unnoticed members of our family. I've added a brief explanation so that everyone will understand.

 
This is "Tad" otherwise known as, "Tag" by some unknowing adults. "Tad" is present every nap, every night, every trip to Dr. Baker's and certainly every early morning in the car. The blanket itself is useless, only the "Tad" is part of the family. I can't count the endless nights I have been summoned to Charlie's room to find "Tad" lost in the covers.


  This is "Pill Pill." A special Christmas gift from Nanny and Paw Jimmy, this friend can only be loved on my Charlie himself. No one, not even for a second, not even in the dark and dead of night, can lay their head on him.
or.......else!

 Here we have Rudy, named from the movie Ice Age
III.  A bit scary at times, but always the toughest dinosaur/animal in the basket. He brushes his teeth, and thanks to Rudy's wonderful hygiene habits, so does Charlie.

The newest member is the swift swimming, Goldie. Once this humble bowl held four Goldies, but now only one. Goldie is so loved that nothing adorns his bowl but the very best gravel hand picked from the driveway.

My very favorite friend in Charlie's room is Busterd. Yes, with a "d." He's been drug and thrown about every place imaginable, but still seems to find his way into my room every morning with "Tad." Busterd has a permanent boo boo on his foot from a horrible run in with a Sharpie :(

 Dun dun duuuuunnnnn.....the Super Heroes. Thanks to Grant, Nanny, and Ebay we have a fierce trio: Pie-Da-Man, The Boobie Man, and Batman/Pooperman (depends on the day) Pie-Da-Man wrecks everything neat and organized he finds in his tracks, The Boobie Man can "fight all the bad guys down," and Batman/Pooperman, well he can soar from unimagined heights. Nothing is too dangerous for him.

Watch out, this is Bad Guy, he fights and shoots anything in his path, especially Mom after she has scolded Charlie and then isn't looking.

Our house is full of characters, that is for sure. With two little boys in my house, I am sure I will have several updates to our household cast soon. Stay tuned.......

Read more...

Our Precious Belly Laugh

And amid the chaos, if just for a moment, everything seemed right in the world....I love to hear my babies laugh.

Click here if you can't see the video

Read more...