It's okay that this week...

... I told Grant that Rhett and I would eat lunch with him at school on Wednesday and that I'd bring McDonalds with me and ended up showing up with donuts and chocolate milk instead. Hmmmm, it seems that McDonlads doesn't sell lunch food until 10.30, and I needed to order my food at 10.15. Grant sure didn't mind the change of the day's menu. Not sure what I can say about what his teacher thought. I was feeling guilty about it until I realized I could possibly win a Nobel *prize for it since it seems those things are being handed out like hot cakes to just about anyone.

...The loud thunder kept us up last night which meant that Rhett was crying b/c he was scared so Grant couldn't sleep and then Grant needed a breathing treatment at 3.30 a.m. due to coughing that was keeping ALL of us up. Why do these things happen when Daddy is out of town?

...I left the sunroof partially opened in my car overnight. Not a big deal, but since it rained outside, it rained a bit inside my car as well and we, along with the a little neighbor girl, Ashlyn, had to drive to school in a wet car on a cool morning. That's a great way to start the day, huh?

...I left my favorite dessert (chocolate brownies with chocolate icing and colored sprinkles) out within Madalyn's reach while picking up Grant and Ashlyn from school. I came home to find this.

But despite all the "fun", there were some high points. My favorite being that Grant got to go to the Treasure Chest today at school and pick out a prize for once again earning all of his positive reward stickers. Instead of getting something for HIM, he got something for ME. He said he knew I would like it b/c it had flowers and lots of pink. HOW SWEET!!!!!!! I think it may be the sweetest thing he's ever done for me.

Grant drew a picture of Thanksgiving at school this week. What are the black arrows pointing to, you ask? That would be the big white wind-powered windmills that are between Texas and New Mexico. I know that when I think of Thanksgiving, I often associate windmills with the holiday as well as pie and turkey.

Oh, and who can forget another high point of the week?! My little brother, Garrett, got engaged to his high school sweetheart, Danielle. She is beautiful, sweet, smart, gentle, quiet and just about the skinniest thing with perfect naturally curly hair you've laid eyes on. They are looking forward to a summer wedding. I am looking forward to getting another perfect sister!

Scoodle Doots

So... I have this little business called Scoodle Doots where I sell all things monogrammed = shirts for fun, shirts for holidays, shirts for special events, sippy cups, travel mugs, sports bottles, burp cloths, hooded towels for babies/kids, diaper covers for baby girls, mouse pads, and so on.

Recently I have been wanting to get my own website or a spot on "Etsy", but Christmas orders are coming in from many sweet friends and I just don't have time to do both a website and get Christmas shirts mailed out. Thus, my little business has a blog until I catch up with time. Only Christmas items are posted now, but soon I hope to add all the other spunky crafts I have to offer as well.

So, stop by and check out how Scoodle Doots can help your little ones celebrate Christmas in their own unique way. I have several designs to choose from, or I am more than happy to work with you to create a specific design for you.

Hope to see you at Scoodle Doots soon!

*Although only Christmas items are seen on my Scoodle Doot blog at the moment, I make a lot of other personalized items that make great Christmas gifts... Let me know if you are interested.

Trick or Treat

Eating dinner on the way to Treat in a Trunk at church. (those are supposed to be sideburns...)

This has got to be the cutest (and skinniest) Elvis EVER!

Does Grant's costume look familiar to you? It should. It was the same one he wore last year. He loved it and wanted to wear it again this year. I had NO complaints! He thought he was pretty cool. Rhett just liked the suckers.

I spy an Elvis. (and a Gabby Cat behind him)

Grant and his gals. (from left to right - Grace, Reese, Devin)

Funny side note - Grace wanted to be a firefighter for Halloween. Her costume had muscles built into it. ha ha


We found some friends!
Grace, Devin, Avery, Pearson, Grant and Rhett, and in the very bottom right corner is Brady's giraffe costume.
Grace and Grant helped to pass out candy, and they were really excited about it. They were so excited, Ms. Lisa had to remind them to give one piece of candy to each trick-or-treater instead of the handfulls they had been giving. (Did you notice Grace's six pack?)

Gramma had her usual Halloween treats for the boys. Doesn't she make a sweet scarecrow?

It's only been two days since Halloween, and between the candy the boys have eaten and the candy I've taken (I mean "borrowed") from them, there's almost nothing left. No worries though, Pops. We are brushing our teeth.

In case you wanted a visual aid...

Last night was a normal night. We ate dinner, the kids got a bath, and they were to put to bed. I was enjoying my quiet time on the couch while eating Reduced Fat Oreos when I heard an unfamiliar cry coming from Rhett's room. You know what this means, Moms. It means that you prepare yourself for anything as you quickly enter the child's room as you have no idea what to expect since it's not a sad cry, it's not a scared cry, it's not a mad cry and it's not a sleepy cry. And as a mom, you KNOW the differences. This cry - it was new, and I knew it could not be good.

I knew what was wrong as soon I entered his dark room - I could smell it. Yip. It was the foul, unmistakable smell of vomit.

Grant was woken by the noise and unbeknownst to me, he quickly used the opportunity as a spring board for drawing ideas. He decided he'd draw each time Rhett threw up. One could easily say Grant never suffers from Drawer's Block. The child uses anything and everything as inspiration. I mean, doesn't everyone use vomit as an inspiration for art work?

I was trying to get Grant back to sleep and deal with a sick baby who was throwing up every ten minutes!!! when I had to break down and call Kerry. He was so sweet. He left his dinner with a client to come home and help me.

I ran off to the grocery store at midnight since I was out of laundry detergent (I can NOT let vomit laundry sit overnight.) and Lysol and Sprite. I had already had my shower for the night, so I threw on my glasses, some mismatched clothes, threw my hair up in a make-do pony tail and headed out the door. I was sure I would see no one I knew, so I didn't care how I looked. But as usual, I guessed wrong, and I DID run into someone I knew at the store. BUMMER! It was the beloved Mr. Ray, our neighbor. He's the manager of the store, so it makes sense for him to be there, but I could've sworn I saw his car in his driveway as I was leaving the house which is another reason why I felt "safe" to enter the store in less than my Sunday best. He was very kind when he saw me. He did a bit of a double take and said, "Amanda? What are you doing here this late?" I gave him a quick version of the story. He offered to help me out to my car and made sure to ask if Kerry was home to help. As if that wasn't nice enough, he told me to bring Rhett into the store when he was well for a cookie. What a great neighbor, huh?!

Today I am keeping a close eye on Rhett who is watching "Little Einsteins" over and over again, and I am trying to conquer the vomit laundry that has piled up in the bathroom. Since I'm washing all things "sick" twice in hot water, it's taking a while, but by golly, it will get done.

And for those that would like a visual aid of the night's happenings, I give you Grant's interpretation of last night... you can click on the picture to enlarge it.


He drew a picture of Rhett each time he threw up. I circled those in red. The green box in the bottom left corner is a picture of me giving Rhett a shower after one of his many sick episodes. I'm not sure what the rest of the drawings are. I believe some are of Rhett lying in bed.

What a brother, huh?? I think he decided to do this after I kicked him out of Rhett's room. He kept coming in with Kerry's guitar wanting to sing/play a song for Rhett to make him feel better. YES, it was a very sweet motive, but I was trying my darnedest to keep Grant from catching the bug. Anywho, when Kerry got home from his dinner, Grant showed him the drawing so he'd know what was going on. Kerry got a good laugh out of it. Only Grant would do such a thing. What a nut. Who knows. Someday he may be a famous artist and you will be able to proudly boast, "I knew him when he drew pictures of vomiting kids." ha ha

Kerry was finally able to get Grant back to sleep, and I was finally able to get Rhett resting comfortably.

Wish us luck.

First Annual Visit to Dewberry Farm

Dewberry Farm has been on the October Family Calendar of almost everyone we know and then some including "Good Morning America" and "Super Nanny". But the world may now add the Kilgore family to the Dewberry Farm Club. We visited the farm this last Saturday, and yee-haw! It was FUN, y'all!

There was duck racing. Daddy's muscle power was needed...

We pet the baby chicks. (and then washed our hands)
We road the hayride to the pumpkin patch.

We played in the hay.

One of us even ate the hay.

There were sack swings.

And bouncers. (The corn maze is behind Grant.)

There were one-of-a-kind farm rides.

And we mustn't forget the personification of gerbils activity.

There were fun bikes.

And there were forts, lighted professionally carved pumpkin night tours, rope swings, pony rides, gold mining and MUCH more - so much that we spent about 8 hours there! What a perfect fall Saturday!

Of course Grant had to turn some aspect of the day into a learning experience. Again, another example as to why we sometimes wonder if he really is our kid...

Here is a picture of the baby pumpkins he picked from the pumpkin patch. For all you city folk, the little yellow one is what is formed from the flower on the vine and it continues to grow into the bigger green ball, and then finally into a big, orange pumpkin! Grant took the baby gourds to school today to share with his class. I'm sure NO ONE enjoyed it as much as he did!

How To Keep Busy When Daddy Is Away

Today marks the ninth day Kerry has been in Brazil on business. He was supposed to fly home all night last night and get home early this morning, but the partner asked him to stay an extra day for an unexpected meeting. Thus - our jack-o-lantern carving night has been postponed 'till tomorrow night. I've done really well this week as long as I do not think about just how far Brazil (Rio de Janeiro) is from Texas - or the continent of North America for that matter - but who's counting? It wasn't until day 6 (but again, who's counting) that my single-motherness routine began to get really old. Of course, this is when the weekend hit. I do better on any given day when we are in school and have a routine to go off of, but routine is especially helpful when Kerry is out of town. Lazy Daddyless Saturdays really end up being annoying Saturdays, and Sundays just about do me in as I teach the 2nd/3rd grade Bible class. I can teach anything language/writing/reading any day, but throw me into teaching a Bible class of 16 silly kiddos, and I'm about as stressed as I can be. I want to make the lesson fun and hands-on, but at the same time I have to be sure they're taking God's Word home in their little hearts. It's QUITE the task. The main thing that makes it tricky is that I usually end up changing the curriculum - not the Bible lesson itself since that's pretty much a done deal - but the activities that go along with it. And while the kids enjoy it, it really wears me out. The other issue that makes teaching the class extra stressful is telling the Bible stories in a way in which the young ones can "get" them. The Bible is full of what I call "Big Kid Words" and difficult themes that are too "above" their developmental level to truly be able to grasp. Whew! What a job. Guess I need more practice at bringing it all down to their level. Between ALL of that and getting myself and both boys dressed and out the door and in car seats in time to get to church before the 1st service is over so I can set up my classroom, I'm basically left in a mild to moderate panic and I am sweating. Oh, wait. I live in Houston. Of course I'm sweating. But wait! Isn't it October? Yes, yes it is. But Houston doesn't seem to know it should feel like fall outside. Moving on... So in order to pass the time this week, I have cleaned the house top to bottom, bought a new vacuum to make the house even cleaner, cleaned out (ended up with three trash bags full of junk), organized and vacuumed Grant's very scary closet, made some baby gifts, decorated this pillowcase for one of my " babies" who just had a tonsillectomy- actually she's a seventh grader, but I've had her since she was in the fourth grade - thus she has been christened one of "my babies" (She said her favorite colors are lime green and purple. Just a word of warning for all you sewers out there - finding lime green and purple on the same fabric is almost impossible. I had to improvise, and I HATE improvising on gifts!!!!! This gift is not as gaudy as I would've preferred, but oh well. I hated to put her name on the part of the pillowcase where you lay your head - rubbing one's cheek across a raised layer of thread did not sound comfy to me. I think it would've looked spunkier though. Again, oh well...)took care of odds and ends, attended a birthday party, got my eyebrows waxed with Rhett lying on my belly, went grocery shopping with my "keybay" and even bought Rhett's Halloween costume (he's going to be Elvis - fake sideburns and all). But Saturday - Day 6 - just got too slow, so the boys and I made pumpkin cupcakes. I figured what better way to make the house feel warm and cozy and full than to make sweets. It worked at making me feel better until I stepped back and studied the baking mess that was going to have to be picked up by someone, and I was pretty sure that someone was me. You know the mess I'm talking about. The one with sticky, bacteria-filled egg goo strings that are smeared from the mixing bowl to the sink, and orange food coloring that has stained the counter and your clothes, and lest I forget the splattered batter that flew across the kitchen when Rhett picked up the beaters from the bowl before I could turn them off? I really wanted to add some contours to the pumpkins and possibly add some darker/lighter streaks for effect, but the mess was calling me... I decided that perfecting my cupcakes was the least of my worries. The boys did enjoy themselves though. Grant tries to eat five cupcakes day. Rhett wants nothing to do with them, and I don't really want to eat them either since they don't have a speck of chocolate in them. We are pretty sure Daddy will like them though. Grant, my little chef, helped to mix the cake, and he cut the stems for the pumpkins (thus some stems are quite long). Rhett, as I stated earlier, just made messes. But, hey! We did manage to pass some time, didn't we?

Bet you can't do better than this, Heather. (Just kidding!!!!!!! I have no doubt that you could totally beat me down with a Halloween cake that people would stand in awe of and be afraid to cut into so as not to disturb your perfect design... I'm' sure you have a Halloween cake brewing in that head of yours. Be sure to post pictures of it!!!)

Daddy, we miss you so much! We can't fill the void anymore. We need YOU!

Shopping With a "Keybay"

Rhett is going through the cutest stage right now where he LOVES to wear hats. The police hat seen in the previous post and the "keybay" hat seen below are his favorites. So when he said he wanted to wear the keybay hat to H.E.B. today, at first I dejected the idea. But then I thought about how short this precious, new phase will be (Grant was never into this kind of thing), and what harm would it do for him to wear an oversized keybay hat to the store??? So, we loaded up the car with our diaper bag, wallet and the beloved hat. I think every person we passed in the aisles either said a sweet comment or gave a quiet, delighted giggle at this country sight in the middle of this big 'ole city!

Who knew a trip to H.E.B. would present a perfect fall picture opp?

We were on our way to the car with our groceries in tow when I couldn't help but notice the enormously perfect pile of pumpkins (there's some accidental alliteration for you writers out there to enjoy) we were walking past. I lifted Rhett out of his "race car" grocery basket and plopped him down with the festive gourds- keybay hat and all.

Note to the Martin side of the fam = this is one of Granddad's old hats. Sweet, right? I need to send these pictures to Grandmom... Too bad she doesn't blog.