Downward Facing Dog

Well, I'm doing it again...yoga. Some of you may or may not know that before Kristin was born, I was VERY into yoga and did it at least 4 times a week. Now, I wasn't standing on my head or wrapping my legs around my neck, but I was pretty good. I even did yoga for pregnancy. Then I had Kristin....and it was all downhill from there! I've often said I needed to start back again and have even done some yoga for kids with my class in the morning at school, but nothing consistent or that would qualify as a workout. By the way, nothing is funnier than watching kids doing yoga, especially the "Do Nothing Doll" pose where they lay on their backs, eyes closed and just relax. Many times I've wondered how long they would stay there if I didn't say anything! Anyway, I've also come to the conclusion that heart disease runs in my family and things need to change. SO, four years later, I pulled my yoga mat out of the closet and did some sun salutations. I don't know if you've ever done yoga, but you don't realize how had you work until you roll out of bed the next morning and can barely move. The only thing you can do...more yoga. That was me this morning. But last night I slept better than I have in MONTHS. So, here's to sun salutations and dog poses. I'm back on the yoga mat!!!!

Merry Christmas!

It's Amazing Allysen!!!

My Missouri husband WILL become a HOGS fan!

Enjoying 24 hours of "A Christmas Story"

Future Rock Star!

Having fun with the creativity table
Sound asleep after a long day.....

Well, once again Santa visited our house. Hope everyone had a wonderful day. We had a lot of fun. We spent Christmas Eve in Joplin with Chris' family. Since Chris had to work Christmas night, we just decided to spend Christmas at home. Kristin woke up around 9:30 (she slept better than in days--her ear and sinus infections are clearing up). She was so excited to see that Santa left an Amazing Allysen doll! That along with the pink guitar from Grandma and Grandpa are her favorites so far. Although we have put together and played with everything!

On Friday we'll be leaving for Cabot to spend the long weekend with Mom. Lynn and her family will be there again (they were there Christmas Eve and part of Christmas Day), so we'll have Christmas Part Two...no, part three--Christmas in Joplin, Christmas in Siloam, Christmas in Cabot--PHEW!!

Enjoy they pictures, hope everyone had fun and got what they wanted from Santa!! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Daddy Dress Up

I walked into Kristin's room a few days ago and just cracked up. What you see in the pictures is what I found. Kristin had apparently talked her daddy into letting her dress him up and fix his hair. Isn't he just lovely? She is such a daddy's girl. Tomorrow night I'm going out with some friends, so Kristin and Chris are going to have a "Daddy-Daughter Date". They are going to a movie and out to eat. I'm not sure what movie they are going to see, but knowing them, I might be home before they are!

Snow!

Kristin went out today and played in the snow. The cold front came through Wednesday evening and we got three inches of rain. Around 9am Thursday the rain turned to freezing rain and sleet which continued for about 12 hours. Finally it all turned to snow and we ended up with a couple of inches before it was all said and done. Kristin and I made snow-cream...yum! Most of the snow has melted, but some is still hanging around.

We are doing pretty good. I went back to work this week and am glad I did. It's nice to be back in some kind of routine and it's hard to be depressed when you are surrounded by crazy kids! Everyone at work, the kids and parents have all been great, and I am thankful for them all.

Happy Halloween!

Well, Halloween is over. I love Halloween and this time of year. It turned cold today, which is just how I think it should be for Halloween. As most of you know, I love cold weather and Kristin is just the same. She hates wearing a jacket/coat and was mad that I made her wear a coat tonight, but she soon got over it. She had fun dressing up as Ariel and going trick-or-treating. Because it was cold, we only went around our block and to Ms. Brenda and Ms. Shawn's house. Kristin still ended up with a full bucket of candy, which is plenty. We called it a night pretty early, came home and warmed up with a bowl of soup. There were still a lot of kids out, so Kristin got to pass out candy, which I think she enjoyed as much as getting candy! I finally talked her into taking off her costume and getting ready for bed. After lots of moaning and groaning, she got in bed and was asleep within five minutes!

Future Teacher

Thanks to Ms. Brenda, Kristin loves school and is already practicing to be a teacher. Today her class consisted of a couple of Barbies and Bratz dolls. They read "Cars" and sang "Picky-Picky Bumble Bee" and at some point a Bratz doll got put in time out for hitting her friend who would not sit on the line with their legs crossed! Yes, my child is the future of Montessori education!!! Maria would be proud!

Sports in the Arft House

Well, the Cardinals made it to the World Series--woo-hoo!!!! Chris is happy as can be even though Kristin told him that she HATES (gasp!) baseball--oh the horror!!! I really couldn't care less, as long as Arkansas is playing well, I'm happy. Chris, on the other hand, eats, breathes, and lives sports. Now that the Cardinals are in the World Series, he's on cloud 9. Sunday afternoons involve lots of channel flipping for him, you see he has to keep up with NASCAR, the Chiefs, and baseball. It never ends! I'm happy though that the Cardinals made it...now if something could be done about the Chiefs.....I think that's a lost cause!

Fun at Cabot-Fest

Over the weekend we visited my parents and went to Cabot-Fest. Kristin had her first experience on a roller coaster (a kiddie one) and just like her mom and dad (we LOVE them), she had a blast! The picture turned out fuzzy, but you can still tell she was having a good time. Kristin will ride anything and was very dissapointed that she could only ride the kiddie-rides. We had a fun and as usual, the weekend flew by!

I Love Baby Hunter

Last weekend we went to Joplin to visit Grandma and Grandpa. Brandy was also there with Hunter, Kristin's newest cousin. He's already 4 months old and is quite a cutie! Kristin LOVES Hunter...when we got home she kept saying over and over..."I love Baby Hunter!" Won't be long until she's teaching him everything she knows!!!!

Feeling Better

Well, Kristin is pretty much back to her old self. No fever or cough. She's been going nonstop since Sunday afternoon. Yesterday I found her in her room wearing her swimming suit and fairy wings. She is such a goofball!!

I am still battling a cold/allergies...I'm as stuffed up as a Thanksgiving turkey! On Sunday I sent Chris to Wal-Mart for medicine and as he was driving down the road, he heard a THUD. He realized it was my cell phone that he left on top of the car! He'd put it up there while getting Kristin in her seat. He found it and brought it home, but needless to say it is barely working.

Is it Friday yet????

Still Sick

Yesterday Kristin seemed to be doing better--no fever and almost no cough. This morning we got up for soccer and she was pretty grumpy, but still wanted to go play. Today was picture and trophy day and she was excited. So, we got dressed, arrived at the field.....she then refused to play, was crying and said the wanted to GO TO BED!!! After being there less than 10 minutes, we loaded back into the car and went home. I took her temp--101.3. She took some Motrin and got in bed. The picture is of her relaxing and watching her princess movie. After her temp went down she ate and was wanting to go out and play. But I talked her into taking a nap and she's now been asleep a little over two hours. Hopefully this won't last much longer.....

Keeping Your Pillow Warm

A couple of nights ago when I went to Kristin's room to check on her, this is what I found in her bed.....

Her doll, Jilly, was tucked nice and snug in bed, but Kristin was nowhere to be found. So, I went to our room and found this...


Kristin sound asleep....you can tell she was running fever--her cheeks were bright pink. I woke her up to give her a dose of Motrin and asked her why she got in my bed. She said "I was keeping your pillow warm for you." Needless to say she spent the night in bed with me!

Going To Be a Long Week.....

It's going to be a very long week....right now we are all in allergy misery. Well, I don't think Chris is. He takes Claritin and it works well for him. It has no effect on me--none at all. So, I am miserable. I'm sneezing, stopped up, wheezy, and in a pretty crummy mood. School was not good today...everytime I was in the middle of a lesson I would have to stop and sneeze or blow my nose--which is nice and red now, I look like Rudolph. Anyway, I went through a couple of boxes of kleenex and finally took some benadryl towards the end of the day. Needless to say, I was dragging by the time I went home--I don't really remember closing my room and will probably be searching for lesson plans in the morning. I finally made it home, took a nap and got up when Chris left for work. Low and behold, Kristin started sneezing and is finally asleep after endless coughing and wheezing.

So, I have a feeling it's going to be a long long week. I feel sorry for those who have to be around me, because I am well aware of the mood I'm in! I guess now I'll take a hot bath and fall into a benadryl-induced (hopefully deep) sleep!

The Klutz Gene

Yes, Kristin is blessed enough to have received the klutz gene, along with being a climber, from me. I thought Saturday was going to be like any other....we got up, went to soccer, I was in my room reading, Kristin was in her room playing and Chris was mowing the yard--perfect Saturday. While in the middle of my suspensful Dean Koontz book I heard a crash followed by a scream. I tore to Kristin's room, almost falling myself (the klutz gene), I found Kristin laying in the floor crying and holding her cheek. I checked to make sure she didn't have a broken arm or anything too serious (you never know with the klutz gene) and got her calmed down enough to find out what had happened. Apparently she wanted to see her Daddy mowing the backyard, so she climbed on top of her toy box to look out her window. I guess that seemed like a much better way instead of just walking to the patio door....anyway, she slipped, fell, and hit her face on the windowsill. It's much better now, but over the weekend it looked like she'd been in a punching match!

The klutz gene....combine that with wanting to climb everything and impulsivity and you get....KRISTIN!

A Day at the Park

Yesterday we spent teh day in Joplin with Grandma and Grandpa. After watching the Chiefs lose miserably, we went to the park. Kristin LOVES going to the park and we've had perfect park weather lately. The slides at this park are her favorite (it's actually an elementary school playground) because they are big and "go faster" as she puts it. She's our little daredevil!

Goooaaalll!!!!!!!!!!

Kristin started the fall session of Iddy Biddy Soccer this morning. Her friend Jordan is also playing, so it helped having a friend there with her. She had fun and was more into it than in the spring. The same man is coaching, so I think she was more used to him this time--she even gave him a high-five! That man has so much patience! The best was this morning when he was explaining a how they were going to play "green light, red light". He told them when he said "green light" they needed to run with with their ball and when he said "red light" they needed to stop and put their foot on the ball. He said, "Can you do that?" They screamed "yeah" and all took off!

The Next Rachel Ray

I recently joined a book club and ordered three cookbooks--one is Rachel Ray and two are Paula Deen and all three are wonderful!! I've spent the past two days going through recipes, deciding what to try and making a list of things to buy at the store. Chris is such a picky eater that he won't eat too much of it, except chicken dishes. He just doesn't know what he's missing! Shawn, Allison and Brenda are going to be my guinea pigs and taste everything, though they don't know it yet!! Ok, I'm off to the kitchen to make Brown Sugar Squares with Chocolate Frosting....yum...now if I could get someone to come clean my kitchen.....

Home Again.....

We're back home after a weekend with Nene and Papa. Lynn, Brandon and Lindsay were there too, so needless to say, there was never a dull (or quiet) moment! Kristin loves playing with her cousins and usually they get along really well. They tend to all be stubborn and independent (especially the girls), so arguments break out every once in awhile. But they don't fight much and Brandon is a good referee!

We celebrated my birthday and mom and dad's anniversary--that was the highlight for Kristin--she loves parties! The weather was great and we even played a game of croquet (I won!).

On the way home tonight we stopped in Fayetteville and ate at Noodles for my birthday dinner.

Over the River and Through the Woods....

We're leaving today to visit Nene and Papa (my mom and dad) for the weekend. Kristin is SO excited and can't wait to get there. Hopefully she'll sleep for most of the three and a half hour trip, but I doubt she will. Usually she talks and talks and talks and talks......

Lynn, Brandon and Lindsay will be there also, so it should be a loud, but fun weekend. Hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday!!!

Vegas Vacation

I finally got all of our Vegas trip pictures downloaded, printed, etc. We had so much fun and cannot wait to go back. It was a new experience for Chris since he'd never flown before, but he made it without any problems.

We stayed at the New York New York hotel and casino, which was great. It was made up of different New York landmarks, only smaller. Going through each hotel is like visiting a different city or country.


I loved the Paris hotel and the smaller version of the Eiffel Tower. Chris was more impressed with things like the NASCAR cafe, the automobile museum, and The Drive, where he was able to drive some exotic cars. There is so much to do and see, we didn't get to do all the things we wanted (that just gives us another reason to go back!). Although the temperature was in the mid 100's while we were there, humidity is pretty much non-existent. That really does make a difference. It was so nice to go out at night and not have to worry about bugs and mosquitos. I didn't have any allergy or asthma problems while there, either. Now we are back in reality--back to work, humidity, and good ole Arkansas.

Out of the mouths of babes......

This is why I love working with children---a few days ago as I was getting ready to dismiss my kids from circle time Daniel came over to me, gave me a huge hug and said "I love you and I'm so happy to be at preschool!" I told him I loved him too and that I was glad he was coming to preschool. Then he sat down and said that he wanted to say a prayer, so I said ok, and told the kids Daniel was going to say a prayer. He closed his eyes, bowed his head and started rambling, then said "Thank you God for my school, that we can take a nap and play on the slide...that's all, Amen." I just thought it was the sweetest thing. Just when I think I've heard it all, they hit me with something new. Kids are always honest and aren't afraid to tell it like it is. Of course there are the times they are too honest like when one little boy said "Ms. Laura (I was wearing a ball cap on this day), I bet your hair looks really bad under that hat. You look kinda rough....."

Night-Night

Will my child EVER go to sleep without a battle??? She's finally down for her nap, but she will fight again tonight. I don't think she will ever accept that it's ok to be sleepy and it's ok to go to sleep. She has gotten better than she used to be and I guess since she never slept through the night as an infant (or toddler) I should be glad that now once she's asleep, she's ASLEEP. Plus she talks in her sleep, which is always entertaining. And then there's her prayer she says everynight..."Now I lay me down the street...." Nope, never a dull moment.....

First Day of School

On Wednesday Kristin started her second year at Sunshine Montessori School. She's the oldest one in her class and next year will be in my class (that could be scary). She loves school, but is staying home on Monday and Tuesday with Chris. It's been good--we get a break from each other and she gets time with daddy. Here's a picture of her ready to go to school!

Chris is busy with Wal-Mart, working nights 8pm-8am and I'm still teaching the 4-5 year old class at Sunshine Montessori. Kristin will start Jitterbugs next month (dance class that comes to the school) and will also be playing soccer again next month (I think she likes getting a trophy more than actually playing). We are busy but having fun!

Tontitown Grape Festival

Two weekends ago we went to the Grape Festival in Tontitown. This was the first year Kristin has gotten to ride the rides and she had a blast. She wanted to ride everything in sight--the bigger and faster the better! We had a good time and she was worn out by the time we got home, which is always a good thing!