the mayor's first race

We started today with a trip to our favorite pumpkin farm.  We have this down to a science...we literally spend more time traveling to and from this pumpkin farm then we actually do inside the pumpkin farm. But the kids absolutely love this place...and to be honest, so do we.  We took some pictures on the tractor while we waited for the ticket window to open to buy our hayride tickets.  We were on the first hayride of the day and the kids were just as excited on this ride as they were on their very first.  After the ride we picked out our pumpkins.  The Mayor found his pretty quickly; Love Bug took a little longer.  She refused to get one of the big orange pumpkins because she said she was tiny so her pumpkin needed to be tiny too.  We compromised and she got a decent sized white pumpkin.

On the way home we got "icy drinks" (slushies) and then went to our favorite Saturday lunch spot.  We ran by Target and then home to organize the basement.  The playroom was getting out of control so we organized, consolidated and put toys into storage.  Now everything fits in the actual playroom and the rest of the basement can be enjoyed by the adults.

We got Love Bug ready for a birthday party and The Mayor ready for his race.  The mom for Love Bug's friend actually wanted me to just drop her off at the party so I was able to go with The Mayor and D to volunteer and help set up for the 5K.  The Mayor helped D put the cones down for the course and gave out waters at the aid station.  I picked Love Bug up from the party in time for us to make it back before the 5K, and she decided to hop into the double jogging stroller with Emma so our friend Gary could push them.  She was determined to be a part of this race.

about to enter the birthday party

Love Bug and the birthday girl, Paige

Before the 5K, Love Bug with Gary, Cathi, Alli and Emma

The Mayor's one mile race was scheduled to start one hour after the 5K, but he didn't understand that.  He saw all the racers and started getting upset because he thought he was missing his race.  It took a lot of convincing but D finally convinced The Mayor he was not going to miss his race.  D actually ended up coming back from the aid station early and met up with Gary, Cathi and the girls on the course and let The Mayor finish the 5K with them.  It was a little pre-race warmup for his 5K.

His one mile race was awesome.  He did great.  He didn't want D or me running with him, but he said we could run behind him.  D ran behind him encouraging him as he went.  The Mayor got tired but that probably had more to do with the 50 laps he ran around the parking lot while we were setting up then it did from actually running one mile.  I kept trying to tell him to save his energy but he kept saying he had to run so he could have energy.  One day he will learn!

He received a medal at the finish line and that made the race all the more better.  He was so proud of that medal he actually kissed it.

Love Bug participated in the Tot Trot in her dress and sandals.  She didn't care and she didn't let it slow her down.  In fact, the course was too short for her so she asked D if she could run it again.  It is kind of sad that my 3 year old runs faster and better than me all while wearing a dress and sandals.

We were at the race site for almost 4 hours so needless to say we are tired.  We made a quick run to Zaxby's for dinner then home for super fast baths and bed.  The Mayor slept in his race shirt with a big smile on his face. After our bedtime prayers, I kissed him and said "goodnight my little runner" and he said "goodnight my little cheerer".  I love him so much.

showing his muscles before the race

at the start line

he's off!

finished strong!

his first medal after his first race

love my boys

at the start of the tot trot

our little gazelle

happy racer

all clean and wearing his race shirt

friday funday

This week has flown by.  Even though D and I were only gone for a long weekend, it has taken the entire week to try and get caught up.  D has been super busy at work and the kids have been just shy of complete wild donkeys.  Today I was the cooking helper in The Mayor's class; it is always fun being in his classroom.  It gives me a chance to catch up with the teacher on how he is doing in class, meet his friends and classmates and of course it gives me time to see my favorite boy.  And there is nothing better than walking into your child's classroom and they are actually happy and excited to see you!

After the cooking portion of my morning was over, they put blue and green icing on rice cakes to make little Earths, I went to see my dear friend Hayley's new baby.  He was born over 2 weeks ago and I am just now getting around to seeing him.  William is deliciously adorable and snuggly.  You forget just how little newborns are.  It is hard to believe The Mayor and Love Bug were ever that little.

decorating his Earth

showing off his masterpiece

sweet little William

Before I knew it, time had flown by and it was time to pick my sweet girl up from preschool and get home to welcome The Mayor's bus.  We had a great treat this afternoon when Meega and Bennett came over to play.  With school being in session, our play time with Bennett and Walker has severely diminished and I am not happy about it!  But Fridays are our free day so we hope to plan many more play dates with our cousins.

After the play date, the kids and I ran to Publix for milk and stuff for dinner and then we played outside until bedtime.  D and I decided to go to the pumpkin patch tomorrow with the kids.  We were originally going to go on Sunday with Meega, J, Bennett and Walker but there is a good chance of rain on Sunday and since this weekend is our only weekend we get to go to the pumpkin patch, we decided to go alone tomorrow when we know it is going to be sunny.  We are going to miss going with the entire family but hopefully this is the only year this happens!  We still have our Christmas tree outing to look forward to with the entire family.

Our weekend is jammed packed with pumpkin patches, a birthday party, a 5K (The Mayor is running the one mile fun run and he is beyond excited about his first race!), church, tennis and another birthday party.  Monday will sadly be here before I know it so I hope to enjoy every second of our busy weekend.

she says this is the face you use when you are scared

love my sweets

wearing daddy's glasses

it's good to be back

D and I had a wonderful weekend in Augusta.  It was great being with our friends and having a break from the kids, and the kids had an amazing weekend being spoiled by MeMe and Big Daddy.  We had 17 friends racing in Ironman 70.3 this weekend and D and I wanted to be there to support them all.  It was great being a spectator without the panic of having your spouse racing and D finally got to see what it was like to be a spectator.  Pretty sure he enjoyed himself but I am willing to bet he likes being the athlete more than the spectator.  Because we had such a large group, we decided to pitch a large tent at the finish line with our Tri club banner for our crew.  We were able to see our friends 5 times on the run course because we had such a prime location.  It made for great cheering and huge moral for our friends.  It actually made me want to do a long distance triathlon.  But no worries, that feeling is now gone :)

our tent and banner

about half of our crew

D watching our friends leave on their bikes

me and Laura after her awesome finish

We arrived home yesterday and I immediately took Love Bug to her friend Andrew's birthday party.  We were a little late but she still had a great time.  After the party, D and I both went to the bus stop to get The Mayor off the bus and he loved seeing his daddy there.  We were all quite exhausted from the long weekend but it felt great to all be back together.  

Today was a bit rough...everyone is still trying to bounce back into their routine.  The Mayor took a much needed nap this afternoon and then fell right to sleep at 7:00.  I am hoping this rest will help him get back to his old self tomorrow, and I'm about to go to bed myself because I need to catch up on the sleep.

Love Bug enjoying her ice cream and birthday cake

Andrew and Love Bug

she refused to take the hat off...she wore it all day and chose to add accessories

the first lost tooth

Before I catch up on the past two weeks in the Shirley household, I will start with the big news.  The Mayor lost his first tooth!  Last night we were practically begging him to let us pull it...it was literally horizontal in his mouth it was so loose.  He wouldn't let us, he kept crying and was afraid to let us touch it.  But this afternoon, he came off the bus with the biggest smile yelling "I lost my tooth!!" He had an "I lost my tooth" sticker on his shirt and his tooth was hanging around his neck in a little plastic container in the shape of a tooth.  He said he kept working on it during class and it fell out.  He was so proud!  I am proud to say I didn't shed one tear but it is sad to know my sweet baby boy is growing up and that smile of his will never be the same.

Last week, I went to The Mayor's class on Wednesday because it was early release day and we were celebrating September and October birthdays.  He was so excited to celebrate and have me in his class. His teacher has this huge inflatable hammer and she gives each kid a "birthday beating".  The kids love it...she "beats" them whatever their age is and then one additional one "to grow on".  So The Mayor got 7 beatings :)

getting his beating

enjoying his snack

Last Friday was Farmer's Day at The Mayor's school.  We went out to buy him jeans and a vest that should really be worn during the middle of winter (but he swore it looked like something a farmer would wear) since he wouldn't agree to wear the long-sleeved button down plaid shirt.  We are still working on our issues with buttons on shirts...after we shopped we enjoyed a little Italian Ice and some fun one-on-one time.  I also told him he could wear my cowboy hat to really complete his outfit.

wearing my cowboy hat for Farmer's Day

Nothing is better than celebrating a great week than by getting some frozen yogurt.  We met Ms. Vicki and Aidan at the frozen yogurt place by our house to eat and then we let the kids run around for over an hour outside.  The weather was great and they had a blast playing outside making up games.  

Monday, Love Bug and some friends in the neighborhood had a play date after her ballet class.  She and Andrew have become really good friends.  They love playing together and we love having regular plans for our Monday mornings.  It is great for them to play and even better that the mommies have time to chat and catch up. 

Love Bug and Andrew

I put out the Halloween decorations this week...yep, it's early and I don't care.  I love this time of year and the kids love having decorations up.  They especially love putting the window clings on the windows.

I had a lot of left over batter and icing from cupcakes from a baby shower I helped host, so I decided to make a few one night after dinner and let the kids decorate them.  Love Bug thought it was great to be my helper; she put the liners in the pan and put the batter in them.  She is such a great helper!

This week I received The Mayor's karate pictures and his kindergarten picture.  I am beyond happy with both.  He looks so handsome and so old!  I can't believe how big he is getting!

This afternoon we went to karate and then came home to get ready for MeMe and Big Daddy to arrive. D and I are going away with our group of triathlete friends for a huge race weekend so MeMe and Big Daddy are going to spend the weekend with the kids.  While I was getting things ready around the house, I caught this sweetness happening.  I couldn't believe they kept it going once I got the camera out...usually the sweetness goes away when you try to get photo evidence.  And yes, The Mayor is wearing fairy wings and Love Bug is wearing a towel over her clothes.  My friend gave her that towel today so she wanted to wear it and The Mayor put Love Bug's wings on and ran around the house saying he was the tooth fairy.  Hysterical!

lunch date

This morning was the first day I volunteered in The Mayor's class.  I have signed up to be in his class every other Wednesday from 9:30-11:00 during their literacy block.  The second I walked into his classroom my sweet boy jumped up and hugged me, told me he missed me and that he loved me.  If only he will always act like this when I walk into a room...

Anyway, he was so happy I was in his class and did amazing.  I was really proud of how well he followed directions and understood the work sheet I was doing with the class.  He took his time and got all of his answers correct.  After the literacy block was over, he asked if I would stay and have lunch with him.  He loved getting to sit on stage with me and we talked about his day, his friends and what he would be doing the rest of the day.  I am so happy and blessed to be able to stay home so I can easily volunteer in the class and eat lunch with him.

my handsome lunch date

After the kids came home from school, I immediately put them down for a quick nap because Awanas and choir were starting tonight at church.  We had one hour from The Mayor getting off the bus until we had to leave so it was a super fast nap for him (Love Bug's was a little longer since she gets home about an hour before he does) and neither one of them wanted to wake up.  Somehow I got us out the door and into church only a couple of minutes after 4:00.  Thankfully a dear friend is the assistant teacher in The Mayor's class so I knew he was in good hands and her report this afternoon was that The Mayor did great!  Love Bug's teacher is super sweet (she was The Mayor's lead VBS teacher this summer) and after a little coaxing and luckily running into her favorite Sunday School teacher in the hall, she became excited about going into her class.  I signed both kids up for choir this year and they both seemed to love it.  The Mayor said all the singing and dancing made him tired and thirsty but he said he had a great time.  Another friend of mine was teaching Love Bug's choir so she sent me a picture and she looks to be loving it!

Tomorrow D will be home late since he and people from his company are running a corporate 5K downtown tomorrow evening.  But thankfully that will lead us into Friday and into our weekend.  We have lots of fun plans...Friday night is Spirit Night at our high school for all of the elementary school kids.  Saturday D and I are going to a friend's house to watch the Bama/Texas A&M game during the afternoon and then coming home and taking the kids to our neighborhood's Screen on the Green.  There will be a DJ from 7:30-8:30 and then at 8:30 they are showing "Despicable Me".  The kids think it is just the coolest thing that we will be watching a movie outside.  Sunday is church and tennis...and cooler temperatures!

Love Bug in her choir class

cuteness monday

Love Bug had ballet this morning and after ballet, we headed to our friend's house for a play date.  Me and two other moms from the bus stop have made this Monday morning play date a pretty regular thing since we all have kids at home around the same age.  Love Bug is the oldest at 3 1/2, Andrew will be 3 in three weeks and Nolan is 18 months.  They get along well and have a great time playing.  Today, Andrew and Love Bug really hit it off though.  They were like little BFFs.  We ended up staying until it was time to go to the bus stop to get The Mayor and Andrew's older sisters and they wanted to walk together...and hold hands.  Too cute!

The Mayor had a great day (and it was picture day) and after he got home, we had a quick snack and then went to OT.  He had a great session today.  I am so proud of him...he hasn't been to OT for a month (we had to cancel one appointment and then Labor Day fell on his session) and his OT said he did so amazing today.  She doesn't think we need to start weekly sessions and that we can keep him on the every other week plan.  YAY!

practicing his smile for picture day...and being silly

Tomorrow both kids are in school and for once I am a little sad.  I kind of want to let them skip and keep them at home with me.  But I won't...I can't start that precedence but I will be excited to spend the afternoon with them.  Wednesday I volunteer in The Mayor's class so that will be a fun treat for me...and hopefully him!

go dawgs

This week was a short week but it felt jam-packed with stuff.  MeMe and Big Daddy left Monday morning and the kids were sad.  They missed having constant playmates and people giving them their undivided attention and Love Bug really missed her Big Daddy.  She has that man wrapped around her teeny tiny pinky finger.  She literally had him feeding her like a baby...oh was her world rocked when he left.  It was no longer Easy Street around here for her.

pouting...none of us babied her like Big Daddy...she wasn't happy

No worries, they will be back in 3 weeks and Love Bug will be back in heaven.

Saturday we went to lunch with some friends and then ran around looking for granite for our basement kitchen.  We think we found the granite we love.  It is exciting to think this could be done within the next few weeks.  We got home in plenty of time to get settled and watch Georgia finally beat South Carolina.  It was a great game and we all went to bed happy!

Today we had church and then I had a tennis match.  It was brutally hot...I mean it felt like July out there.  After a long 3 hours and 15 minutes my partner and I finally won in a third set tiebreaker.  I ran off the court to come home and change because we promised we would take the kids to the gym pool after my tennis match.  We got to the pool 1 1/2 hours before it closed so the kids still had plenty of time to play.  We ran through a drive-thru to grab some dinner and after we got home and ate, it was time for the kids to go to bed.

Tomorrow is picture day for The Mayor at school and Love Bug has ballet.  She is beyond excited and The Mayor spent time today "practicing" his smile for picture day.  He cracks me up!

Go Dawgs!