Grant is FIVE!

We have not fallen off the earth - we've just been ultra busy. The last few weeks have consisted of:

1. Getting a new fence (to replace the one Hurricane Ike destroyed).

2. Preparing to have wood floors installed everywhere but the bedrooms and wet areas (bathrooms/kitchen/laundry room). I have found the wood I want as well as the man to install it. I feel like half the battle is won already.

3. Attending inservices before school started back up from Christmas break.

4. Two friends had babies (Mackenzie Dick: baby girl of Andrea and Chad Dick of Sugar Land, and Drew Pernell: baby boy of Marijon and Rance Pernell of Doughtery (near Lubbock). VERY exciting times!!!

5. Learning not only how to live with Grant's new pets: two gerbils, Roly and Poly (sp??), but also focusing on keeping them alive since Rhett loves to torture them. More on that later.

6. Experiencing Grant's first splinter - it was a BIG 'UN!!!

7. Having a party at our house for our church group.

And last but NOT least....

8. Grant turning FIVE!

This birthDAY somehow turned into a birthWEEK. It started off with a birthday cake and a small family celebration on his actual birthday (Jan. 12).

Rhett desperately wanted a bite of cake...

Then we HAD to do the cupcake thing at his preschool, and of course a few days later he had his actual party with his friend which involved yet another... you got it... cake. I can't believe I, Amanda Brooke Kilgore, am saying this, but I am "caked out". Please, no more desserts for a while.

Grant wanted the theme to be "firetrucks", big surprise, I know, so we did firetrucks, firetrucks and more firetrucks. I made a monogramed placemat for each guest that had a pic of a firetruck and the words "Chief ______." Of course the boys' trucks were red, but the girls' were HOT PINK. And, the girls' firetruck's wheels were pink Swaravski crystals. How fun is that??? Exactly. Of course each child got a helmet. In order to try to make it up to the girls for it actually being a fireman's hat, I hot glued daisies on theirs. And, to top things off, each guest got a fireman badge, and as expected, the girls' badges were a tad bit special as I hot glued a pink bow on them.

Boys' Table

(There are some guests missing from this picture including Ethan. Where were you when I took this picture, Little Dude?)

Girls' Table

The beloved firetruck cake from Maureen's Bakery BEFORE Rhett found it...

The beloved firetruck cake AFTER Rhett found it...

No shocker that Grant was shy during the "Happy Birthday" song. At least he didn't cry this year... again... Maybe by the time he is 53 he'll be able to handle the "Birthday Song" like a normal person.

Grant loved this cake, folks. I mean, surely this cake was the coolest thing ever to Grant, so he was very upset when discovered the damage Rhett had done to it. You see, Kerry noticed Rhett was M.I.A. during part of the party, so he went hunting for him. He found Rhett in the "party room" (where the food was). Rhett had climbed up on a chair and was helping himself to handfulls of icing from the cake. That's typical Rhett for ya: he can find food sitting out on a table faster than our dog, and that is pretty amazing since our dog surely breaks the world record to sniffing out a yummy meal a HUMAN plans on enjoying. Thank goodness I got a picture of the cake before Rhett got a hold of it.

I made Grant a firetruck birthday shirt that coordinated with the placemats.

Grant enjoyed opening his gifts and a fun filled evening with his special friends.


Thanks for sharing my special day with me
Stephen,
Kaitlyn,
Gabby,
Jordan and Ethan,

Mackenzie,

Hanna,

and Baby Grace
(who was so sweet to wear her newest "Amanda Kilgore" creation to the party).
We missed you Seth, Evan, Alex and Emily!!! Maybe next year...

And now I leave you with a Grant quote from bed time tonight:

"I love you so much, Momma, I could pop a tire."

Gotta love little boys!

Steady.......... Steady.............

Told ya Rhett likes to stack blocks.
He did this tower ALL BY HIMSELF. Two things amaze me about this picture:
1. That a one-year-old stacked them. (he can do 13 blocks)
2. That this tower is actually STANDING since some of the blocks barely seem to be defeating gravity.

Cold Baby Tooshie (sp?)

Rhett keeping warm after bath time on a chilly night.

We had a "Holly Jolly Christmas"

It was Granbury's turn to get us for Christmas this year. Before we could head there for Santa, we had Christmas with Gramma and Dude-Dad in Sugar Land first.

Rough-housing with Dude-Dad before opening presents.

Grant and Gramma looking at Grant's new book.

Rhett loves his blocks. Get this: he can stack THIRTEEN at a time. Pretty good for a one-year-old!!! Yep - he's talented AND gifted.

Grandmother with her new monogrammed slippers.

Dude-Dad likes to play "firefighter" too. Sorry, Dude-Dad. That helmet is not the right size for your head.
Rhett enjoyed Grant's gift as well, but the helmet does not fit Rhett's head either.

Grant really enjoys his Smart Cycle. Sorry he's pantless (almost bedtime).

Rhett HAS to do whatever Bubba is doing.

Rhett REALLY likes the Smart Cycle's music... This kind of talent will get him ladies for shizzle. (either that or arrested) ha ha

Our visit to Granbury:

Uncle Garrett and Rhett.

Grant and Aunt Jessica making chocolate fondue to enjoy on Christmas Eve. YUMMMMMMM!

Leaving goodies for Santa before bedtime on Christmas Eve.

Christmas morning: Santa drank the milk!!!!!

This is what Santa brought Rhett. As you can see, Grant liked it and was sure Rhett wouldn't mind sharing it.

Aunt Jessica helping Grant with his microscope from Santa. (I can't believe any kid of mine would want a microscope for Christmas!!! I sure never wanted anything like that for Christmas. Well, this is Grant we're talking about - so I guess it figures.)

PS. Grant also got a firehouse from Santa as well. I guess I say this to prove that "Santa" is not completely lame.

Never fear! Rhett is here!

Help me to get these walkie-talkies to work, Datee!

Six days after Christmas: the boys are still opening gifts! Thanks for your help, Aunt Jess! (that fire station you see behind Grant is his other Santa gift)

There was no snow this Christmas. It was so warm, we went out to climb trees.

(I am not going to complain about the warm weather we are having this season. I really don't like the cold, and I can't stand the hot, so to me, this in-between-weather is PERFECT. I do miss being able to turn the fireplace on and snuggle up in our flannel sheets though. Sigh.)
Look who else loves Memaw's fudge??!!!!!! It's my FAVORITE holiday dessert. Rhett and I definantly fought over the pieces she sent.

How many people does it take to hang Mimi's new clock?

Wow, Dad! You're a GREAT help! What wold Pepaw and Uncle James have done without you? :)

Rhett is going through a growl-at-everyone stage which we are REALLY working on right now. However, every day Rhett chooses some lucky person to randomly be happy with (this means that person does NOT get growled at). This day was Uncle Charles' turn. Rhett thought he was really neat. And really, Uncle Charles IS pretty neat!

Wait a minute! What is that I see? Rhett eating ANOTHER peice of MY fudge??!!! Memaw, your fudge is soooooo yummy! Christmas is not the same without it.

Grant and Rhett's new train table. Grant got a wooden train table (with the works) about two Christmases ago. It was truly a hassle because he was always taking it apart and wanting me to fix it. So, I glued the track down. It was a great idea, but it failed. He ripped the tracks up despite my great plan. So, this year the boys got this train table instead. It can not be taken apart, it has FABULOUS tunnels, bridges and canyons, and all of our Thomas trains and Matchbox cars fit it perfectly. The boys LOVE it.

Just a cute video of Rhett dressing himself that I HAD to share with you.

Notice how he very particularly organizes the clothing and shoes. He gets that from his Daddy. You should see the time and careful planning it takes for Kerry to make a fajita! It's almost unbelievable. I mean, really - just slap the meat, cheese and beans on there and it really is FINE!

Happy New Year to you all! 2009 is sure to be SWELL.

Another random study session

Grant became ill Thursday after school with a fever of 101.8. He said his head hurt, his nose was stopped up, and that he felt nauseated. By 6:30 p.m., he was asleep on the couch (that NEVER happens) just snoring away, so I tucked him into his bed thinking he would be out like a light all night. Silly me! What was I thinking? This is Grant we're talking about: The Kid Who Never Goes by the Book. As luck would not have it, Grant, for whatever odd reason, was WIDE AWAKE and happy as a lark from 2:45 - 5:00 a.m. Guess who got to party with the child? Yip - you guessed it... me. I mean, the kid wasn't just awake/alert in the middle of the night; he was actually telling me stories, he was laughing at those stories (I was not), he was telling me about a kid in his class that got in trouble and what the teacher said along with other random conversations that I don't much remember because I'm not exactly "alert" between 2:45 - 5:00 a.m. Moving on - he found his 1000 Facts On The Human Body book (one of his favorites), thumbed to the page that talks about the heart, and asked me to read - yet again - about the heart. Because I am so nice and was not in the mood for a struggle in the middle of the night, and I also had no clue as to what he was doing since he has never done this before (perhaps it had to do with the illness that seemed to have suddenly been cured), I agreed to his request. This also meant that we had to discuss the diagram that went along with it. So there I am, in the middle of the night, I need to use the restroom, I don't have my contacts in so I can't see easily and am having to squint, and I am lying in bed with Grant pointing out the right ventricle, the left ventricle, the septum, the mitral valve, tricuspid valve, pulmonary veins/arteries (should these be capitalized??)and tracing the flow of the oxygenated blood's travel, all the while wishing I could just GO BACK TO MY WARM BED and trying to keep my annoyed state under wraps, when Grant asked the most precious question that made it all worthwhile. He leaned in closer to the diagram and seemed to be making some very important observations when he asked in the sweetest voice you've ever heard while pointing at the diagram, "Can you show me where Jesus lives in my heart?" Since God and I were the only ones that were around to hear the question, I am pretty sure that He and I had a good laugh together in the middle of the night.

Sleep commenced again at 5:15 a.m. Thank you, Lord, for sleeping children!

He was diagnosed with strep throat later that morning. Thank you, Lord, for antibiotics!

Rhett started throwing up tonight. Okay, Lord; I'm ready for a break now.

S.N.O.W spells "Random Surprise"

Houston RARELY sees snow. I have lived here for eight years and not seen it once - except for yesterday. Sleet was predicted in the forecast, but not SNOW!! What a delightful surprise to stumble upon yesterday afternoon. Well, I didn't exactly "stumble" upon it. It was sort of thrown at me as Grant came dashing in yelling that is was snowing. I thought, "Not unless pigs are flying, Dude." But, Grant was right. Keep in mind that it was a blustering chilly, wet day. NO ONE was outside. The boys and I had spent the day in the comfort of sweats, warm house shoes and fat free hot chocolate as we sat by the fire and enjoyed cartoons. The absolute "perfect" day in my book. We loved it and had no idea that the day was going to end on an extra high note... So when Grant came running in with the alleged news of snow, I had to check it out for myself as I was pretty sure it had to be sleet like the weathermen had predicted. Sure enough, the flakes were falling. That was special enough. But what was even more heartwarming was the sound of laughter and thrilled screeches from the neighborhood kids who were ALL outside at this point. Kids were out in their coats, gloves, hats, and everyone was playing gleefully in the snow; even adults. I felt like a kid again. It was the talk of the town. Our phone rang off the hook, and we were certainly making our own phone calls to spread the exciting news. It was so fun for kids to come knocking on our door yelling, "It's snowing!", or, "Can Grant come out and play in the snow?" It was so magical, and certainly not every day lingo around here. The rules of outdoor play totally went out the window as well. The kids usually all head back home when the street lights come on. Not yesterday. It was well after dark when they all stumbled back in to their homes. When I finally did put Grant to bed, we read Frosty the Snowman with the blinds open so we could see the snow fluttering down. (good idea, Da-tee) I'm sure those of you up in the Panhandle/New Mexico reading this (Marijon, Jordan, Carrie) are thinking that perhaps we Houstonians took this a bit overboard since snow is commonplace in your neck of the woods. But to us Houstonians, it was the perfect Christmas treat and quite the unexpected "Random Surprise".

I'm singin' and dancin' in the snow...

Snow accumulating on our roof. That white fleck in the center of the picture is a snowflake.

You could see the snow really well on Madalyn.

Below are pictures of our visit to see Dude-Dad one morning. The boys sure love playing in the HUGE empty basketball court (Wheeler Field House)... and getting candy from his secretary.

Dude-Dad and Grant doing some work.

Dude-Dad and Rhett NOT doing some work.

I think we need to start talking to Rhett now about not being too relaxed on the job.

And on a totally different note: Grant doing his "homework". No, he does not actually have homework. He wants to have homework though, so he finds something to do at the bar that includes pencil and paper, and this becomes his homework. Sometimes I'm not sure this kid is mine or Kerry's. I don't think either of us were ever pumped about homework.