Love is Not Easy...But It's Worth It

Just like the title says love is not easy. Sometimes it is the hardest, scariest thing you will ever do. If you think you have loved wait until you become a parent and you will be hit with a new form of love that can not be easily explained. You love someone that is truly 100% dependent on you for all things even as they begin to walk, talk, and make their own decisions. Love can hurt when your child says, I'm too old for kisses mama." Love is scary when you let your child spend their first night away from home, their first day of school, first date, first "real" girlfriend, etc. Love is unconditional and no matter what your child says, does, or acts you still love them with all their heart. Last night we had a real conversation that has been a long time coming. Our oldest Ricky was born to us when we were 14 and 17 years old. He was a sick baby to say the least but he powered through with us there by his side at every moment. He was and still is an amazing drummer. He has so much musical talent oozing from him it is crazy. He was always and still is at the top of his class in testing and overall achievement. He is so active in lots of things that we sit in awe at how he can go to football practice at 6:30am, attend school and make straight A's, soccer practice after school til 6, study for Joshua's Law, and work on the weekends. He never lets his guard down so to know that something is wrong with him is like finding a needle in a haystack. Well last night we found the needle. See even though Ricky is amazing and strong he also has a breaking point just like you and I. This soon to be 16 year old is under a lot of stress and instead of talking to his parents he has tried to shelter us from it because he feels we have enough stress on us. He carries the weight of the world on his shoulders and never once did we see it. He has felt like the 3rd wheel in the family and felt that our lives were messed up because we had him so young. This is the farthest thing from the truth. We talked til 11pm last night reassuring our son that he was the best thing that happened to us and that no matter what he says, does, or how he acts we will always love him because he is a part of us. We told him that we know what it feels like to fail and how hard it is to come back from a failure that we work hard to make sure he does not have to experience that. We do things for him that we wished as kids we had. We told him that he is our son from the day he was born til the day God calls us home and even then he will still be ours. We told him how proud we are of him for all the things he does and how he accomplishes everything he puts his mind to. Last night was nothing we expected to happen but it was well needed. Our son needed his parents to be by his side and help him and we did that. Our son was crying for much needed one on one attention and he received it. Children do not come with a manual and most of the time we handle things incorrectly but last night I think we got it right for a change. Ricky now knows to infinity and beyond that his parents love, adore, and admire him and that will never change. He knows that the stress he has he can talk to us about it and that we don't expect him to do all these things that cause stress. He knows that school work comes first and everything else is a choice. He knows that no matter what everyday he will come home to a family that will love him for who he is, help him, encourage him, and help him get back on track. At the end of the day our son knows that his mom and dad love him unconditionally and nothing will change that. Ricky were NOT and never will be a mistake. You are our son and we love you to the moon and back. You are an amazing, smart, helpful, courteous, kind, loving, sweet, handsome, friendly, son, friend, brother, etc. We love you.

Little Things

The little things count the most. I have heard this saying said many different ways but it all means the same...The little things are what matter. My sister and her 2 sons and our niece moved in with us a couple weeks ago. Her oldest son still has issues waking up at night to go to the bathroom. He had an accident the other morning. Well to my surprise Caiden jumped into action. He helped get him in the bathroom and washed up. Caiden stepped in like he knew exactly what to do. He never thought twice. Never made fun of him. He told him what to do and got him a rag and some body wash and cleaned him up. He made my heart smile. Then yesterday Caiden was outside with 2 of his friends and they were being boys running around in the woods. One of his friend's leg got caught on a briar and scratched him up pretty good. Caiden jumped into action. Brought him in the house and pulled out the Band-Aids. Before it was over Caiden had used 3 Band-Aids. :) He told his friend to come sit down and he went to work bandaging up his wound. This little boy amazes me. He can be so caring and loving and put others before himself. Its like he has a knack for taking care of others. Guess he got that from me... These little things make my heart smile and reminds me that yes I am doing a good job raising him. Yes he is learning great lifelong skills. No it will not always perfect but Caiden will surprise me and remind me that God never said it would be perfect and he never said it would be easy but he promises it will be worth it in the end....

Welcome Max...

We got a puppy this weekend. We decided to name him Max. He is fitting in perfectly with our family. He loves to be loved on and cant stand for you to leave. He is a cutie/sweetie puppy and loves running, jumping, chasing, and licking. He is giving Caiden  a run for his money. I dont know who has more energy....Caiden or Max...

Just Breathe

Those of us that have children know that we can be so mad at them and so happy with them at the same time. Both of our boys know how to test our nerves but they are both loving, sweet, and kind (at times). Today is Caiden's first day at summer camp. We were hurrying to get dressed and out the door. I was busy ironing clothes and gathering stuff for the day while he brushed his teeth. He took a little longer than usual but i didnt think twice about it. After he was done i went in the bathroom to wet my hair and fluff it. When i hung the towel back on the door i noticed something.

My anixety level started to rise. I just painted this door a week ago. See caiden is a professional artist in our home, or so he thinks. He has drawn his own creations on almost every door in the house and even on Ricky's video games. I thought he had grown out of this stage but I guess not. Then I got close and read it and my heart melted. He wanted to surprise his mom with a love note. Well he won. He surprised me alright. I havent mentioned it to him yet so I am anxious to see how he reacts when I ask him about it. Kids they will surprise you, drive you crazy, but always warm and melt you heart. Caiden mommy loves you so much and never forget that. I will always love your forever and ever.

Southwire Family Day at Six Flags

Every year Southwire (the company Rick works for) has their family day at Six Flags Over Georgia. The kids love to go. We all piled in the car along with our neice Ty, neighbor Gabby, and nephew TaTa. We met up with Rick's sister and her crew : ) at the gate. The guys went their way and Cassie and I took the girls and Caiden. We had a really good time. When we finally got home around 11pm we were all pooped....

Bubby Turns 6!!!!

Well our Bubby turned 6 on April 8. We had a lego birthday party. Our neighbors Danielle and Gabby helped me make a lego cake. I am good at baking a cake but decorating not so much. Danielle and Gabby did a great job R icky's cake so I was super excited when they offered to help me. I found some great tutorials on Pinterest for the decor and games we played. It was a frugal but fun time.

Snaggle Tooth

Well Bubby lost his first front tooth. The next one that comes in will be his permanent tooth. We knew it had been loose for a couple weeks now. Then today when I got in the car he told me he let a boy on the school bus pull his tooth out. YUCK!!! Boys will be boys right. He is excited that the tooth fairy will b coming tonight.

Our Little But Older Man.....

Tuesday, April 8^th my Bubby turned 6 years old. It is amazing to see how much he has grown it what seems like no time. He had an extra special birthday because it was also his class trip to the zoo. We had a great time looking at all the animals and hanging with his friend Summer. He doesn’t like to admit it but she likes him and he likes her!!!! They are so cute together. As always tradition is you pick where we all eat for dinner so Caiden chose Texas Roadhouse. April 8^th is a very popular birthday since the Texas Roadhouse crew sung “Happy Happy Birthday” about 20 times before we left. They passed out a lot of cake and ice cream. Caiden said he had a very good birthday and at the end of the day that’s all that matters. He is our little man growing up. We plan to have a “Lego Birthday Party” next weekend so I will post pics of that. Hope you like the zoo pictures.

 

Band Concert

Ricky had his first band performance last night. He was amazing. I am so in awe when I see him play. He has rhythm. He gets that from his dad. : ) I can't keep a beat.  Ricky will be trying out for District Honor band in a couple weeks. We have all the confidence that he will succeed. He has already accomplished the goal of acquiring First Chair. If he holds this seat the remainder of the year he will be able to march in the marching band with the highschool next year when he is in 8th grade. He is shooting for this goal and we have all the confidence that he will make it. Rick and I were in the stands last night smiling ear to ear at how well Ricky was doing. Ricky we are so proud of you. You can do anything you set your mind to. Hope you enjoy this video. Sorry for the blurriness. The gym was packed and we were sitting at the top of the blenchers. Ricky is standing in the back next to the boy that is playing the big round drum. You will see Ricky when he begins to play. You can't miss those hands. : )

 

Self Image through a Child's Eyes

 This morning Caiden and I were in the bathroom brushing our teeth and washing our face when he brought up a touchy subject for me. He said, “Mommy you have a lot of bumps on your face.” I have always had trouble with acne and no matter how old you get it still bothers you. We are taught early on that image is a very important aspect of life. We have to look nice, dress nice, act nice, talk nice just to be accepted by others. I have dealt with my fair share of bullies both children and adults, so there is a reason for my insecurities. I can deal with my insecurities a lot better now than I did when I was younger. Rick tells me every day I am beautiful. I know I am beautiful because God created me and he makes no mistakes in his creations; however, our human insecurities sometimes cloud our judgments. Anyway this morning, I told Caiden, “I know mommy has a ton of bumps and it makes me look ugly.” He replied, “Not to me.” Those 3 little words put me on cloud nine. He sees me as a beautiful mommy and no acne scar or bump can take that away from me. He is just like his dad. They are blind to the obvious signs that others and myself see as imperfections. All they see is the true me and I need to be reminded of that. He made me smile so big today just by making me see how beautiful I am by saying 3 little words. He is a sweetheart and I hope that society never changes him. Caiden thank you for loving mommy so much. You are my Bubby and I will always love you.

 

Little Boy Growing Up

Caiden is growing up so much. He is getting smarter and smarter everyday. One day i am going to blink and he will be in highschool. He loves school and loves telling me what he did at school. Last night he wanted to tell me our phone number so i recorded him. Here's a glimpse of my smart boy....

Happy Birthday Tata

We celebrated Tata's 12th birthday this year at Chuckie Cheese. The kids had a blast. Tata that he was too old for some of the activities but once you put tokens in his hands he was a kid again. He decided on a John Deere cake this year. I guess uncle "Rick Rick" is rubbing of on him. Happy Birthday Tata we love you.

Kiss Kiss

On August 20th Caiden received his first kiss. I was picking him up from afterschool when all the little girls wanted to give him a hug before he left. He made his rounds passing out hugs when it was Summer's turn she hugged him tight then laid a kiss on his cheek. He smiled all the way out the door. He then proceeded to tell me "mom just cause a girl gives a boy a kiss when he is hugging her does not mean they are boyfriend/girlfriend." He is so funny. Then he sd "dont tell daddy cause he will think I'm gonna get married or I'm in love." I tell you, kids really do say the darndest things. Caiden i love you so much but dont give all of mommy's kisses away.....

3 O'Clock Rock....Will be missed

For those of you that don't know our boys attended an afterschool and summer camp program in our county. Earlier this summer before school let out the county commissioners decided to close the camp. After much frustration and support from parents on why the camp should stay open it was decided the camp would stay open for the summer. However, to much dismay the camp and afterschool porgram was closed on 8/7/13. It was a sad day in so many children's lives and the lives of the staff members. This was an aswesome program that was much more than just an afterschool program. It became a second home for my oldest son (Ricky). He was in tears all day Wednesday at camp because he knew it would be the last day. I fought long and hard to keep this open. I am a firm believer that when children are idle they have time to get in trouble. When you keep them busy and active it is better for them in so many ways. This center kept the kids active, their minds sharp, and their hearts open. I can't explain all the good things about 3 O'Clock Rock because it would take forever for me to finish this post. I hope that one day another program will be started that will help children in the same ways this program did; however, no program will measure or take the place in our hearts that 3 O'Clock holds. Michelle and the staff have become family and that is how it will remain. Michelle thanks for all you did for Ricky and Caiden. You were a second mom to Ricky for 4 years and even though you only had a few months with Caiden you made an impact on him as well. They will miss their time at 3 O'Clock Rock but it will never be forgotten.

First day of school

Today is Ricky's first day of 7th grade and Caiden's first day of kindergarten. Both were excited. Caiden was a little scared but when i dropped him off he was fine. They are both growing up so fast. Good luck boys hope you both have a great year this year.

I'm Independent

Today i told Caiden he could dress himself. I was loading the dishwasher when he appread from around the corner with this outfit on. I laughed so hard for about 2 minutes then we went and picked out something together. Hope this makes you laugh too.

Deputy for a Day

Ricky attended the Carroll County Sheriff's Camp this week. Last night he was chosen to be Deputy for a Day. He was sp excited. He will get to ride with the deputy and spend the day seeing what they do. WAY TO GO RICKY!!!! We are so proud of you.

Snaggle tooth

Caiden lost his 2nd tooth last night. He came in the living room complaining that it was hurting and a few minutes later it was out. He was excited to put it under his pillow so the tooth fairy would come. I will post a pic later of his gift from the tooth fairy who by the way caiden thinks looks like an ogre. Hahaha

Caiden's 5th Birthday

Caiden turned "5" last Monday. We had his birthday part on the 6th and he had fun. This year we went with Skylanders on the birthday cake. Skylanders is this new type of creature/monster figurine that you can buy and put on a portal and transport into a video game the kids play. Caiden loves these creatures and wants to collect all of them. They are expensive so Birthdays and Christmas is when he usually gets one. Anyway we had his party at the indoor playground at church and he loved running and playing. On his actual birthday he chose to eat dinner at McDonald's so after Rick got off of work we all headed to McDonald's for dinner. It was a fun time.
                                                             Happy 5th Birthday Bubby!!!!



Ricky's 12th Birthday February 26th

February 26^th

Today marked Ricky’s 12^th birthday. Time has flown by so fast. Today he is in middle school, getting used to lockers, and having 7 periods. Tomorrow he will be graduating and heading off to college. J I can’t believe how much he has grown. He is really an exceptional person and a leader in so many ways. Today he chose his favorite place to eat which you all know by now is Taco Bell. As we walked in the door and got in line 7:22 hit and I grabbed the camera and snapped this family picture. 7:22PM is the exact moment 12 years ago that Ricky was born and took his first breath. Ricky you are so special and I hope that you always lead and follow in the footsteps of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He will always be with you. Remember only you will get you to where you want to be. Always shoot for the stars and never give up. Put in the hard work and you will always succeed.

Sorry about the blurry picture but when you only have 60 seconds to snap a shot and a group of boys that think I am crazy for doing this in the restuarant while people were in line, you get what you get.

Love,

Mom