What a night!

HERE I COME!!!

WE'RE A TEAM!!! Hurry and take the picture b/c Sawyer's hungry!

Dear Nick Saban,

My brother, John Parker, and I are ready to play for you!

ROll Tide!

Sawyer

Now John Parker, ladies go first! Sorry, sweet Caroline! We'll have to work on that!

Can I pick up All of the ducks, daddy?

I'll make the ducks venture all over their little pond.

My star quarterback.....Mr. John Parker HARDY!!!! I'm his biggest fan!

Mama, I promise I won't get sacked during my debut at Alabama.

I am fully prepared for the game.

First Halloween as a "Family of Four"!!

Jamey and Caroline patiently waiting on the slide. My little boy didn't seem to know "patience" tonight. See how eager he is to get out of his daddy's arms? Sorry that you had to listen to him cry over this beloved slide, Shonna and Lori.

WEEEEEEEE!!! That was F-U-N!

Up, Up, Up he goes......without FEAR!

Just in case you were wondering.......

we're still here!!!! I know that it has been three weeks since I have posted, but adjusting to being a mother of two little boys, carrying on my wifely duties, and going back to twenty-four anxious fourth graders is enough to make me,or anyone else for that matter, a little overwhelmed and too busy to think about blogging. Honest to goodness , I don't know how I made it these past two weeks without the wonderful help that Jeremy provided(as always), as well as the help from our parents. But, after a seemingly short eight week stay at home with Sawyer we are slowly, but surely, settling into a routine-if there is such a thing with two children. :)

My first day back at work was on Monday, October 13th. Fortunately for me, this was the perfect day to come back to school. The children weren't there!!! HA! This is a day set aside for us teachers to have conferences with our students' parents. As for me, there wasn't anything to conference about because I hadn't been there since the very first week of school. Therefore, I spent the day cleaning, looking over the students' work samples, and preparing for the week ahead. And you may be wondering if tears were shed, and of course there were!! :( As I lay down Sunday night and began saying my prayers, I asked the Good Lord to comfort me and give me peace of mind as I return to work. AND, HE answered. After my prayer, I immediately began to cry, and cry, and cry........did I mention cry? until I cried myself to sleep. I was thankful for that crying spell on Sunday night for as I woke on Monday morning I felt peace of heart and mind. My dear, sweet mother took a personal day to keep Sawyer for me on my first day back. It made leaving him for the first time a lot easier knowing that he was in good hands with his Missy. As for the rest of the week, Claire Stringfellow(future Mrs. Russ Walters), was so kind to keep Sawyer until he was able to start Guardian Angel on Tuesday, October 21st. THANKS CLAIRE! How is Sawyer adjusting to daycare? WONDERFULLY! Debbie Smith (formerly Cross) is his 'teacher'. And she has done a terrific job caring for our little one.

Not so little anymore.......Sawyer went for his two month check-up on Monday and his stats are as follows: Weight: 12 lb. 7oz. Length/Height: 24 inches Head Circumference: 15 1/2 along with four shots: DTAP, IPV, PCV, and HIB! It tugs at my heart to see my boys get shots, but I always keep in mind that it is worth that short amount of tears/pain versus the outcome if they weren't vaccinated. We were fortunate to have two nurses come in and administer the shots at the same time on each leg. They began counting...1,2,3 and then I heard complete silence(Sawyer turning red and trying to let out a cry), then it came. Once I picked him up he was good to go! Dr. E said he looked great! Undoubtedly, my milk is agreeing with him. He believes that he is going to be tall like most of the Kelleys are in the family. He is in the 90% tile for his height, 70% tile for his weight, and 50% for his head circumference. He jokingly said that John Parker might not like having a little brother taller than him one day. {Predictions can always be made, but you never really know}. Dr. E said that you can take the height they are at the age of 2 and double it and it would give you a rough estimate of how tall they will be. So, for JP, it looks like he will be right at 6 feet tall. I'm curious to see what Sawyer's measurements will be in August of 10'. {I can wait though...time flies by too fast as it is!}

As for Mr. John Parker, he is doing well besides having an ear infection this week. This is his first one since he was one. Like Shonna had mentioned in one of her blogs earlier in the summer, that the "Two's Aren't So Terrible" when they are able to tell you when they are hurting. I whole-heartily agree. On Monday, John Parker was crying while pulling at his left ear saying, "It hurts....My ear HURTS!" He is on antibiotics and is back to his energized self. As for his schooling, he has learned what a trapezoid and parallelogram looks like. This is a cute little story: I went to pick JP up and before entering his classroom I got his work from the day that was displayed under his name in the hallway. As I was about to open the door I hear Mrs.Jean say, "Boys and Girls, this is a trapezoid". For a split second I thought that I had heard wrong, but I didn't. I knew that she goes over the basic geometric shapes with them but didn' t realize that it was in the core curriculum at GA to teach it to the two year olds. HA! I teach this to my fourth graders. However, they have to know the definition of the shape etc., whereas, the little ones only identify. {I should teach JP the definition of the shapes}. I got a kick out of it. My next question to Mrs. Jean should have been, "Where's the rhombus, pentagon, octagon, hexagon?" :) She also teaches them the upper and lower case letters. JP already knew the alphabet, but I find it so darn cute when he tells/shows me the upper A and lower a. He'll also recite his days of the week and almost all twelve months of the year. This is what used to be the Kindergarten curriculum back in the day, but now they expect children to know this before coming to school. (I'm definitely not complaining) !! Children absorb so much and are able to retain it at such a young age. You may be asking, "What's next? Spanish?" You're right. I've heard that the teachers at GA for the three year olds will teach them a little Spanish. Suzanne, correct me if I am wrong! :)

Other than doctor visits, school, and trying to keep the house clean we are doing well. I believe that there are two types of cleaning: surface and deep. The surface cleaning is something that I do daily and well, the deep cleaning is why I am interested in hiring help. After I get home from school, the last thing that I want to do is spend my time cleaning when all I want to do is hold, love and play with my boys. Once night falls, I am exhausted and ready for bed. SO.......if you know anyone that would like to mop, clean toilets, sinks, bathtubs, showers, dust, and possibly do a little laundry while they are here-LET ME KNOW.

Here are some pics of the boys. JP came home from GA with a squirrel head band that he made at school(very excited and proud of it)....AND growing, sweet Sawyer.

Random Photos

Since Sawyer's arrival, John Parker hasn't cared too much for him, but he is slowly but surely coming around. I finally got a picture of the two of them together. I put Sawyer right beside JP in his bed and JP pretended to be asleep for the picture. (AND, yes, you see the paci in the pic. JP doesn't have it at ALL during the day nor at his nap time. BUT, for some reason right before he goes to sleep at night he has to have it!! As soon as he falls asleep-out comes paci!) Jeremy and I are going to have to work on that!!

Jeremy had to work at PowerSouth ALL weekend long, therefore, missing the Alabama/Georgia game. John Parker, Sawyer and I were at home pulling for our Crimson Tide. Considering that it was a late game, I sent John Parker to bed at his usual time. During half-time, I went to check on JP to make sure that he was asleep. Instead, this is what I found. Of course, crazy picture lady, myself, ran for the camera. He had found his Alabama hat in his closet and was wearing it ever so proudly while lying on his bed. He knew he had to put his rally hat on for the upcoming 3rd quarter. Undoubtedly, it WORKED! OUR TIDE WON!!!

Jeremy and I were outside yesterday afternoon enjoying this beautiful weather with our boys. John Parker decided that he needed to be like us. He retrieved his blue chair from the garage and decided that it was a lot more fun to move around the yard and sit in the chair for approximately 2 seconds before he found himself a different location. He probably moved around at least 30 times-I kid you not!! I had to be quick to get the picture!

My boy loves anything that involves ART. (He definitely gets that from me!) His art extends all the way to the bathtub. I bought the "paint" bath bubbles for JP and he LOVES it!! The neat thing is that you can paint directly on yourself(hence the bubbles as a result), or you can paint on the side of the tub. (The water looks red b/c of the RED bubble bath paint). His other favorite thing to use as an artist (HA) is the crayons made for the bathtub. Have any of you ever used it with your little ones? They are great and will wipe right off. He and I have fun drawing tractors, spiders, letters, numbers........I am sure you get my point! :)

A Look Back

I just LOVE this precious soul!!!! I was looking back at some pictures and decided to post these from when he was younger. Man, how I wish I could make time stand still!! But, I must say that it this a fun age that he is in right now. There is never a dull moment inside or outside the walls of our home. He definitely keeps us hopping and we wouldn't have it any other way.


A funny JP story: John Parker loves to give high-fives to everyone. Well, a couple of weeks ago Jeremy, John Parker, and I were exchanging high-fives when all of a sudden JP asked himself this: "John Parker you want a high-five?" "OKAY!" Then he gave himself a high-five. I know it doesn't sound that funny in words, but it was hilarious in person. Jeremy and I were literally rolling on the floor with laughter. He was so serious about the matter. And above all else, the conversation he had with himself was priceless. I look forward each day to all of the things that he says and does. I know all of you with children can totally relate.

On a side note: He stayed with my parents last night while we enjoyed some food and fellowship with our sweet friends: Hunter, Ginny, and the precious, beautiful Mr. William(I could go on...he's just soooo handsome),and the newly engaged couple, Russ and Claire. Thanks guys for the delicious food and most of all for your friendship!! **Ginny, I found my battery charger for my camera this morning. Too bad my camera wasn't charged last night to capture our two little buddies together. Next time I'll be ready!!!

Birthdays!!!

I just had to add this picture to the blog that I took of JP last fall. I can't believe he is another year older!!





September is a very busy month for us due to all of the birthday celebrations in the Kelley and Hardy family. I wanted to wish my precious mother, aka-Missy, a great year as a beautiful fifty-one year old. We had a birthday bash for her last week on her birthday, which is September 11th. Today is my two big brothers, Jason(33) and Scotty's(31) birthday. Yes, you heard me right! They are fortunate to share the same birthday!! I don't know how my mother had the patience to raise three boys and a girl that were all stepping stones of one another....but then again it doesn't surprise me knowing my mother's attitude and zest for life!!! WE LOVE YOU MISSY, UNCLE JASON, AND UNCLE SCOTTY!!! I am so blessed to be your daughter and your little sis!!

This and That

Sawyer is a month old!! Today, I took him to the doctor for his second round of the Hepatitis B immunization and he is gaining weight beautifully!! He weighs 10 pounds and 6 ounces. He has gained two pounds in two weeks time!!




John Parker is fascinated with spiders!! YIKES, I know!!! He is loving this shirt from Old Navy with the spider whom he calls, Charlotte!! {From his fav. movie, Charlotte's Web} AND, he loves his daddy's new Alabama "Saban" Sunhat! He has the hat on backwards!! :)



Here is a little of JP's artwork from over the weekend. He decided he liked coloring on the wall rather than on paper. We had no idea that he had done this until he asked me for a paper towel. So, I gave him one and he proceeded to "clean" the the floor, doors, and walls in the house;which he does often. He then went into the playroom and I asked him what he was doing and this was his reply, "I am cleaning!" Followed by, "Uh, Oh Mama! The wall is pink!" He was trying to clean up his own artwork from the wall!! I couldn't help but LAUGH!


WOW! What a weekend we had......It all started last Thursday when I picked up John Parker from Guardian Angel and told his teacher that I would probably keep him home on Friday so Sawyer and I could spend some quality time with the "big brother" of the house. Mrs. Jean, JP's teacher, informed me that there was a stomach virus spreading through GA and that it probably would be a good idea for me to do just that. My mind was made up the moment she said the word "virus"!! {A new baby, toddler, and a virus doesn't equal perfect harmony, right?} Well, Friday rolled around and it couldn't have been a better day spent with my two boys.

Once night arrived, is when the UGLY showed up in the Hardy household!! I had just finished feeding Sawyer when Jeremy and I heard John Parker crying and calling our names. Jeremy arrived to JP's room first to find the most dreaded thing....evidence of the stomach virus. I won't go into any details but I am sure you all can picture the scene in your mind. So, here we are up in the middle of the night trying to comfort John Parker, sanitizing everything in sight, and washing the sheets. My sweet hubby decided that he would stay in the room with John Parker since I needed to be available for Sawyer!!

Fortunately, the virus didn't last too long and JP was up and running full speed ahead the next day. BUT, the virus did linger around in the house and infected Jeremy and myself. IT WAS HORRIBLE!!! It began Sunday night and lasted well into the late afternoon of Monday. Jeremy and I felt deathly sick!!! Thankfully by Wednesday, we were beginning to regain our strength. We were sooooo weak!!! I prayed and prayed to the Good Lord for Him to protect little Sawyer from this "yucky thing" and so far those prayers have been answered!!

Blue Crocs

For the past several weeks John Parker will not depart from his blue crocs!!! It all started one night when he was getting ready for bed. After his bedtime story, prayers, and the hugs and kisses exchanged between the two of us, I tucked him in and left his room. Jeremy and I were in the living room watching a little t.v. when I heard a door slam shut. Of course, I knew exactly where it came from-John Parker's room. I walked into his room only to find that the blue crocs were now on his feet, not in the closet! He was adamant about sleeping in his bed with those shoes on. Being the "push over" mom that I was, I said, "Sure! What can it hurt?" Well, that one night of wearing his shoes to bed has turned into MANY nights. Needless to say, he doesn't go to bed without them. After his bath, he immediately finds his blue crocs and puts them on his cute feet!! We have tried to hide the crocs so he won't wear them to bed, but he begins to cry until he and his beloved shoes have been reunited. We aren't sure how long this will last, but it is just a matter of time before he outgrows the crocs or wears them out completely. I jokingly say that we need the shoes bronzed since it is a huge part of John Parker's life. You would think that they are best friends. Between the blue crocs and the pappy, I am not sure which one takes more precedence! With this being said, I thought that I would share a few pictures I took the other day of him running around with his jersey, pappy, pull-up, and his infamous blue crocs. {The second picture is "hazy" due to the smoke from Jeremy's grill!!}