In Case They Ever Wonder

1. I love that you are the best (although maybe the slowest) pumpkin carver in the world (or at least in our family. Wait, I forgot about Derek...) 2. I love to hear you read to the kids, particularly your sacreligious retakes of Halloween: Is It For Real and the famous rap version of So Much . 3. I love that you are the world's best finder. Cameras, keys, books, cans of soup, etc. 4. I love that I couldn't be married to anyone else and constantly be asked, "Do you just laugh all the time ?" 5. I love that you just can't stay off WebMD. 6. I love that you are literally the most amazing kitchen-cleaner ever. I consider your nightly work in the kitchen an extravagant expression of love. 7. I love that you are not scared of anything except the show - "Pregnant and Didn't Know It." (I don't, however, love the fact that you so love to scare me, hiding behind doors, army-crawling into our bedroom to catch me off guard, utilizing black lights and oth...

These little piggies have been living in a pig sty. We used to have a great cleaning routine. A weekly list of particular chores that happened on a weekly basis. I actually used to dust our house each week. Then, this became an every-other-week cleaning routine. Not quite the standard I was hoping for, but the house was staying basically clean. With this pregnancy, we have resorted to the "when-is-the-next-time-we're-having-company" cleaning routine. (Thankfully we have our fair share of company, so haz-mat has never been required...) Sophie had a lovely way of reminding me that we have adopted a new system. She walked into her bathroom, which I was furiously cleaning, took one look at me, and said, "Let me guess. You're getting ready for Aunt Pammie!" Yes, indeed, my cleaning the upstairs bathroom can only signal one thing - somebody's coming! House-keeping creates a very real tension in my life. I truly love a clean house. I actually, physically feel b...

Will has been in a fairly trying stage lately. Ultra-demanding, ultra-intense, ultra-loud... Typical days beginning with "Milk, Milk, Milk," closely followed by "Read, Read, Read," followed by "Play, Play, Play," followed by "Eat, Eat, Eat." With variations of that pattern repeated throughout the day with the decibel level growing louder with each cycle. (the infamous White Family Half Glance...) He is something of a mama's boy anyway, but lately he has wanted my undivided attention (meaning it was unacceptable for me to interact with Matt, Sophie or anyone else). This made homeschooling Sophie on Tuesdays and Wednesdays a particular joy! He found it utterly unacceptable to be left out of anything Sophie might be doing, right down to wanting to write in the same book she happened to be writing in. As far as his own school experience, I truly wondered if he (or his poor teachers) would make it through the one 11:30 a.m.-5 p.m. day a week he i...

We spent a fun afternoon at a pumpkin patch so very close to our house. It was very low-key compared to the fabulous Gentry's Pumpkin Farm in Franklin, but it turned out to be just what we needed for a fun fall outing this weekend. A hayride started our pumpkin patch adventures! (Will did not want to be held during the hayride! He wanted to be a big boy! Sophie found her pumpkin right away! Will so wanted to lift his pumpkin! He tried and tried! I was definitely the only mom at the pumpkin patch, saying "OK, kids, we've got to go, the game is about to start!" Sophie whizzed through the maze, but Will went at his own pace and own direction! Sophie loved mining for gems, and Will loved playing in the water! Sophie was a big fan of feeding the pigs, and Will couldn't get enough of the goats (or "maas" as he called them!)

Today was the most important game of the year for me and mine. I know the Iron Bowl is the biggest game for many Bama fans, but when you grow up as die-hard fans of the Crimson Tide in hard-core Vol territory, the UT-Alabama game is the most important of the year. The outcome determines bragging rights for the next 364 days. How many years have I dreaded going to church on Sunday to face all the UT fans just waiting to torture me? Of course, if we won, we always handled the win with grace and class! (Well, maybe not exactly always...) So tonight I hid in my closet at times, wet my pregnant pants, just about went into labor, and had to calm Will who thought something horrible was happening from all the screaming. In the end, we are all smiles at my house! At any rate, I am ready for a win in the Iron Bowl, hoping for the perfect season and praying Papa gets to plan a trip to Pasadena, but for me this is about as good as it gets!