Giddenspartyof4

Fountain Fun

2009-07-10T19:07:00.003-04:00

On Thursday we enjoyed a little break from as we headed to Suwannee for a little fountain fun. T We met some of the moms from my MOPS group along with our best friends Emma and Payton.

Kyler doesn't do photos...

2009-07-06T18:44:00.004-04:00

I started taking pictures of Kyler on the beach and the longer I stood there, the more exasperated he got. It's best explained in pictures...

4th of July

2009-07-06T16:02:00.009-04:00

The 4th of July began with our annual trip to the Loganville parade. There's not much to it, some tractors, old cars, horses, and motorcycles, but the kids love it.

After the parade, we headed up to the OC church where they were holding a car show. I would have never wanted to go do that, but things change when you have a boy. He ooh'ed and ahh'ed and wanted to touch each and every one (even though there was a "Do not touch" sign on each one). Wryeton liked the arts and crafts part and I was talked into buying a ribbon halo.

After lunch at Granny and Dadaddy's, we went home and had a marathon nap. Good thing because we were up late watching fireworks. The Riddles invited us over for a steak cookout. We all gorged ourselves on all the food. We had steak, salad, baked potatoes, macaroni and cheese, creamed corn, watermelon, and Alicia's red, white, and blue dippers. We had homemade vanilla ice cream and red, white, and blue jello pie for dessert. The kids then played in the baby pool and sprinklers in the front yard before we left to go see fireworks.

Dan led us to the middle of no where to go see fireworks. I had never even heard of the town of Gratis so I was a little skeptical about the show. Michael laughed and joked how the fireworks were going to be some farmer holding up Roman Candles and sparkles. Boy were we wrong! We were pleasantly suprised to watch the solid half hour of amazing fireworks! It was a great fourth!!

Summer Fun~ Part 2

2009-07-05T22:30:00.007-04:00

We just got back from a fun vacation with the Danley Family in Panama City Beach.

We packed all the kids in my Tahoe and the boys took Eric's truck with most of the luggage and we were off! The kids were actually very well behaved on the way down as they watched DVD's, colored, and played the Leapster. Our only small problem was them constantly asking us if we were there yet. Leigh-Ann and I took a tally and had a competition to see who's kids asked the most. It was a close score, but my kids asked the least (by 2 I think). However, there was a time when Wryeton asked about 6 times within 30 minutes when I thought I was surely going to lose.

Our days consisted of the beach and pool in the morning, a relaxing nap in the middle of the day and good food at night. Michael made his low country boil on our last night there, but this time he added crab legs along with the shrimp. It was yummy!

Some memorable moments from the trip include:

-Standing in the Wal-Mart line for 45 minutes waiting to check out with the rest of Panama City. It looked like an Atlanta Wal-Mart when the threat of snow is looming. The poor lady next to us had melted popsicles in her cart.

-Using a prehistoric ice-cream maker that took 4 hours to freeze and churn the ice cream (I'm not kidding on the time)

- Having to wade through the seaweed to get to a clear spot in the ocean. When you got out of the ocean, you were covered in green slime. Thankfully, the seaweed moved out near the end of the week and the ocean water was clear and beautiful.

-Being asked to move our tent so a wedding could take place on the beach. Are you kidding me?

- Wryeton learning how to do handstands in the pool.

- Leigh-Ann's yummy sangrias.

- Michael's awesome low country boil.

-Teaching the Danleys how to play Killer Bunnies and then vowing never to play it again because the fun arguments it caused :)

- Seeing Wryeton and Kyler's sweet faces as they rode the go-carts for the first time.

-Getting my first tattoo... yeah, I'm so kidding on that one! Just checking to see if you were actually paying attention :)

Here are some pictures from our trip.

Summer Fun~ Part1

2009-06-30T22:14:00.011-04:00

Here are some fun things we've been up to this summer...

We spent some time outdoors with our favorite neighbors and they shared some fresh watermelon with us.

The kids and Michael then took a spin on Codie's four-wheeler. I really thought Wryeton would be scared of riding, but she couldn't get enough of it! Mommy wasn't too sure, though, because it went way too fast for my babies! Check out the video clip...

We also visited Discover Mills and Bass Pro Shop after church. Michael took Wryeton, Kyler, and Cale for a ride on the merry-go-round.

Wryeton painted a fishing lure at Bass Pro Shop for Michael.

Check out her tongue as she concentrates.

Michael and Kyler also got their picture taken at Bass Pro to look like a magazine cover.

Imaginations at Play

2009-06-10T15:16:00.017-04:00

We visited Imaginations at Play in Buford this morning for a playdate and the kids had a blast! It was such a cute place with different areas for the kids to play pretend.

They had a "music treehouse" filled with different instruments for the kids to play.

They had a green screen for the kids to star in their own movie. There were dress up clothes but Wryeton didn't want to use them for her movie.
There was a sandbox full of moon sand.

Wryeton loved the paint area!

They could pretend they were veterinarians.

Kyler loved the train table.

There was a huge bathtub with bubbles and fishing galore.

There was a grocery store where the kids could shop or be the grocery clerk...

We will definitely be back to visit again!

Last Day of School

2009-05-26T13:50:00.009-04:00

Wryeton and Kyler's last day of school was last Thursday. Due to the fact that I'll be going back to teaching, Wryeton will be attending school with me- so this was her last day at Bright Beginnings. Thankfully, Mr. Kyler-man is still there for at least one more year because we love Bright Beginnings!

Here are some pictures from their last day of school. They were supposed to have a water day, but with Georgia's crazy weather it was too cold! They had fun "field day".

The four year old classes had a parade around the school with their patriotic hats.

Kyler waiting for Wryeton to come around for the parade.

Wryeton's "Fun Day" Activities

Kyler's "Fun Day" Activities

Strawberry Picking

2009-05-26T13:45:00.004-04:00

Last Wednesday, Wryeton had a field trip with her class to Washington Farms. The kids were able to visit and touch the baby farm animals, learn about how strawberries grow, and pick some strawberries. It was really windy but they all had fun.

Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting!

2009-05-14T20:33:00.008-04:00

Everyone, that is, except for me and Kyler. Wryeton and Michael are taking Tai Kwon Do together and I don't think it was anything either of them expected.

Wryeton is very slow to warm up to anything new and she really wanted some peer support there, so she basically refused to do anything. That is, until Master Choi came over and made her feel totally comfortable by making it fun for her. She was kicking and punching in no time.

Michael was so busy worrying about Wryeton that he didn't realize he was getting an incredible workout with his black belt partner. Poor Kyler wants to participate so badly but he still has to wait until he's 4. So until then, we'll kick and punch on the sidelines.

Wryeton Rides!

2009-05-01T08:32:00.005-04:00

Wryeton finally mastered riding the bike this week! We helped her a few times, but it really was just her getting out there practicing and teaching herself how to start, stop, and balance when she feels she is falling. And yes, I know she should have a helmet on! : )

Wryeton's Five Year old Pictures

2009-04-27T08:59:00.006-04:00

Michael's best friend, Nathan, took these fabulous pictures at Vines Botanical Gardens for Wryeton's five year old pictures.

Happy (late) Birthday Michael!

2009-04-13T11:42:00.001-04:00

Michael turned 31 yesterday and I wanted to show everyone the fish he caught a couple of weeks ago. Michael's dad, Gregg, took him fly-fishing for his birthday present. They go with their favorite fishing guide, Rex, up in the North Georgia Mountains. You would think Rex was a family member as much as he is talked about around here. He's a talented fisherman and a really cool guy and that's why Gregg and Michael love to go fishing with him. Michael, Gregg, Rex, and Michael's best friend Nathan, traveled to the Chestatee river so that they could fish and get some beautiful pictures of the river (that was Nathan's job). Michael caught about 30 fish that day and they were about to call it a day, when Michael's line pulled. As he was pulling in, Rex knew it was a biggie as he turned around to Gregg and mouthed "Oh my God". The fish was 27 inches long, and about 6 pounds! It was quite an acclomplishment as some avid fly-fishers fish a long time to catch a fish this large. Happy Birthday Baby!

Rex and Michael

Easter Sunday

2009-04-13T09:40:00.001-04:00

Our Easter Sunday started with a visit from the Easter bunny. The Easter bunny has gotten more generous from when I was a kid!

Here's Kyler's loot: A new book for our Tag Reading system, cotton candy, cereal bowls, bee garden tools, a cookie, gum, egg-shaped sidewalk chalk, socks, and jelly beans.

Here's Wryeton's loot: A princess game for the DS, cotton candy, cereal bowls, ladybug garden tools, a cookie, gum, egg-shaped sidewalk chalk, socks, and jelly beans.

We then headed to church to celebrate our Risen King! We had a wonderful service with an emotional drama at the end. We took some pictures after the service before the kids messed up their nice clothes. Kyler was wearing a white shirt...enough said!

After church we went to see Ms. Amber in the hospital. She had baby Kai 2 months early because of Amber's high blood pressure. Kai was born on Friday and weighed 3 lbs. and 3 oz. She is having some help in the NICU breathing, but other than that, she's great!

We were then off to Grandma Creech's house to eat a yummy lunch! Cousin Dillon was there and the kids had a small egg hunt. Kyler and Wryeton looked for most of the eggs while Dillon ate the chocolate eggs :)

Our day ended at Granny and Dadaddy's house. We ate dinner, celebrated Daddy's birthday with a Carvel Ice Cream cake...yum!, and had another egg hunt.

Diggin' in the dirt

2009-04-13T09:23:00.000-04:00

Dadaddy and Granny came over on Friday with the tiller to help start our garden. They brought over strawberry and tomato plants.

The tiller was loud, but Wryeton wasn't scared- she started working right away!

Kyler, on the other hand, wasn't so sure about it!

Kyler finally built up some courage...

We had a fun day digging in the dirt!

Easter Egg Hunts

2009-04-10T10:11:00.000-04:00

I was so excited to find that the kids had their Easter egg hunts on two different days since there are 2 of them and only 1 me! Wryeton's egg hunt was at Walnut Grove Park and it was about 45 degrees! The kids still had a lot of fun but because of the weather, no one stayed to picnic.

To make the hunt fair, the teachers number the easter eggs from 1-14 and then assign each child a number. Wryeton had the number 2! So we were off to find 14 eggs with the number 2!

As you can see by the shorts and sudresses below, Kyler's egg hunt was a little warmer. It was a perfect spring day! Kyler was not so thrilled with finding his eggs. His teachers let them go and grab as many as they could and then she divided them evenly. I think he was intimidated by everyone running around and the craziness. After finding one egg, he started screaming and threw the basket across the courtyard. He settled down when he heard it was time to eat lunch (the boy never misses a meal!)

Kyler with his class- the sun was in his eyes.

Kyler pouting after he threw his easter basket.

Everyone have a Happy Easter and remember the reason we celebrate- because HE is Alive!!

Wryeton's 5th Birthday Puppy Party

2009-03-28T10:51:00.000-04:00

This is a double post from my Pampered Princess Party blog, but I am posting it here too for friends and family.

]Last Saturday, the months of planning and creating came together for Wryeton's 5th birthday puppy party. As the guests entered, they visited the grooming station where they got puppy ears, a puppy nose, and freckles.

Next, it was on to the adoption center to pick out our puppies and stuff them with love.

The guests had to name their puppies and they made a dog collar using stretchy cord and pony beads. We wrote the puppy's name on a metal rimmed key tag and attached it to the dog collar.

We played "trainer says" but I don't have any pictures of that- sorry :(

It was then time for cake! The kids sat down to the puppy-themed table. I used dog bone scrapbook paper for the placemats, my 49 cent Ikea dog bowls, the topiary I worked on FOREVER, 2 black candlesticks I found at Hobby Lobby on 80% clearance, and a feather boa.

My topiary was inspired by the topiary Party Planning Mom used at her Strawberry Shortcake party.

After all the planning and creating, I didn't dare make my own cake! I found a shaggy dog cake from Publix and switched out their red ribbon for a pink and white polka dot bow. I really wish Fig and Ruby lived near me because their sweet puppy cake is So Cute!

For the party favors, I made up little bags of graham cracker bones and velvet color mini-posters with my own label that coordinated with the invitations I created. Thank you Pumpkin Petunia for the idea (although yours are a lot cuter)!!!

Now on to plan the next birthday!!

An American Girl Day

2009-03-25T14:30:00.001-04:00

I've been wanting to let Wryeton pick out an American Girl doll out for while but wanted to be sure she was responsible enough to take care of it. I felt like five was a good age. She's no longer a preschooler...she's a big girl now.

So on Wryeton's birthday, Michael and I headed up to North Point Mall to the American Girl Store without Kyler so she could pick out her very own America Girl doll. We walked circles in the store at least 5 times before Wryeton decided on a doll that favored herself. She also got a cheerleading outfit and a two purple American Girl Store shirts- one for her doll and the other for herself so they could match

I'm still having a hard time explaining to Michael the importance of an America Girl doll vs. a wal-mart doll (honestly, sometimes the price is hard for me to swallow, too!). Nevertheless,

Wryeton loves "Liz" and tries to take her everywhere!

Wryeton and Kyler's First Fishies!

2008-08-02T09:42:00.000-04:00

In December, Wryeton found a princess fishing rod at Bass Pro shop and couldn't stop talking about how much she wanted a rod just like that so she could go fishing with her Daddy and Dadaddy (Grandaddy Giddens). Dadaddy and Granny surprised her with it on Christmas and it wasn't until this week that she was actually able to use it. On Sunday we decided to worship God and his nature by going fishing on the Ocmulgee River. It's amazing how much peace you can feel in nature.

We were a little nervous how the kids would do with all the slippery rocks, but they jumped right into the river! Wryeton caught her very first fish with a little help from Dadaddy.

Wryeton caught about 7 fish that day!

After spending the day at the river and seeing how much fun Wryeton had, I decided to start a journal with her. Wryeton dictates every single word as I write, then she gets to draw a picture. Here is her journal entry about fishing at the river.

Here are some other fun pictures from the river:

Everyone took a few spills!

More Pictures from the beach!

2008-07-21T09:39:00.000-04:00

Sorry... I just got the pictures off Michael's camera and had to share some more "candid" photos!

You can't have too many toys on the beach, right?!

Ft. Walton 2008

2008-07-20T09:36:00.000-04:00

Our yearly beach trip has come and gone and while we talk about how we need to go more often, it is always a once a year thing. Talking about going more often gives us hope and helps keep us from getting depressed as we are driving our 6 hour drive home.

We had a great time while we were there, though. Wryeton and Kyler are old enough to stay down on the beach for longer periods of time (especially with our tailgating tent up). Their favorite activity by far is building sandcastles with Dadaddy (Grandaddy Giddens). I do need to clarify, though, that it is Wryeton that helps and Kyler that stomps them down.

Wryeton started packing for the beach at least a month prior. I set out a laundry basket and she was constantly putting items in there that we would need for the beach and didn't want to forget. She insisted we buy her gogglers (goggles) and a face mask. How many times did she actually use them? She didn't! But, she felt complete knowing that they were in the beach basket.

Anyway, hope you enjoy the pictures...

Proud Cousin

2008-06-03T09:35:00.000-04:00

Can I hold him now, mommy? I can't count the number of times I have heard this question in the past week. Wryeton and Kyler have a new precious cousin named Cale. He was born one week ago at 6:59pm. Wryeton stayed at the hospital for almost 6 hours waiting for her new baby cousin, but unfortunately she would have to wait another few days to see him and almost a week to hold him. Cale had to stay in NICU for 4 days and since she wasn't a sibling, she could only see him through the glass window as the nurse held him up. Among other minor health issues, we were told he may have to stay another 5-9 days due to his jaundice levels. Thankfully, he was able to come home, but had to remain in his "light-up alien bed" to lower his jaundice levels. Again, I heard a sweet voice ask, "Can I hold him now, mommy?"

As of yesterday, Cale no longer has to stay in his "alien bed"! Hooray! We went to go visit him at home and Wryeton was finally able to hold her new baby cousin. She held him for as long as we would let her (she could have stayed there holding him all night). She absolutely adores her cousin Cale!

She read him a story and made sure she showed him the pictures. He's so little you can hardly see his head poking out from the top of the swing.

Toothbrushes

2008-05-07T09:33:00.000-04:00

Kyler has this odd obsession with toothbrushes and it's to the point where no one's toothbrush is safe around him. Mind you, he has several of his own, but he has decided ours are much more desirable to use. Michael and I have had to buy more toothbrushes in the past month than we have probably ever bought in our life. This is because we don't dare use them again, because who knows where they've been! We find them on the floor, in the toilet, in the toy bins, and under our sheets. My favorite, though, has to be one of the many times we were in a hurry leaving the house. I glanced down after grabbing my purse and saw Kyler streaking out of the house with my toothbrush. Before I could say anything, he ran to the nearest ant hill and started stirring my toothbrush around in the dirt. As I'm running toward him yelling "NO" he promptly sticks the dirty toothbrush in his mouth. Now we're dealing with him gagging as I am making sure no ants made it onto the toothbrush and into his mouth. All I can think is a saying that you will hear me say OFTEN- "Boys are a totally different Breed!"

The Princess is four!

2008-03-24T09:20:00.000-04:00

I never felt this day would come, then again most of the important milestones in my kids' lives have caught me off guard. Wryeton turned four in March and it took a while for us to pin down exactly what kind of party she wanted. I was worried that we would end up with a DoraCinderMontana Party. Thankfully she finally decided she wanted a party like mommy 'does' , so we went with a Princess and Pirate party.

I planned for weeks for this party because I wanted to make sure everything was just right with the perfect party favors, the perfect cake, and the perfect activities. Unfortunately, the flu did not care how important our princess' birthday was because Michael and I both got it about 3 days before her party. I cried and pleaded with myself to just start feeling better, but my body didn't care. I had a couple of breakdowns with the thought that I wouldn't be able to follow through with all of my elaborate plans. It's funny, though, because once the party came around, Wryeton didn't even notice that the cream puff pastries weren't served or musical crowns wasn't played. She had a blast because her friends were there and she was able to play with them. I do have to thank my mother-in-law, Debra and my friend LA for pulling through during the party. Debra made sure the food was all together and LA took care of the kids. It was a magical day!