Mardi Gras!!!! Whoo Wee!!!

Beads, Beads, More Beads If You Please!!

There was no lack of them let me tell you. There were beads coming in all directions, a few hit my face. It was absolutely the best parade I have ever been to in my life.....and that includes the Mocksville parade where they used to throw out candy when I was a little girl.....The atmosphere was just amazing, people so happy and carefree. Trying so hard to catch the bead bombs that were flying all around them. There was no lack of excitement. The floats were fabulous and so many. We were supposed to see American Idol Taylor Hicks but we stayed too long at dinner and missed the beginning of the parade, we were in Grand Stands so it was very easy to view the parade and did I mention BEADS? Way too easy to get them too. Ross and I left the parade wanting to stay another night to see a few more and to experience a little more of what New Orleans had to offer.

We started off getting there Friday afternoon, checked into the hotel and off we went on a search for gourmet.... we ended up at Lucy's retired surfers restaurant ( all the nice ones closed at 2:00, we tried Emril's and one other) we had fish tacos that were really good and I had two $5.00 Corona's (that is steep!) Oh well it is Mardi Gras. Then we couldn't handle it anymore.....we just had to run up to our room for something we haven't done in I can't remember how long.....(it's not what you're thinking)....to catch a nap before we all gathered for dinner. Oh how nice was that. I almost didn't want to get up for our dinner. We met some folks there that we jived with really well and found out that we had all planned the same activities and dinner for the following evening so we were excited about that. After dinner Ross and I went up to the roof top pool and jacuzzi for a little R&R and it was so beautiful and cold when you got out of the water but fun!

The next day we took a walking tour of the French Quarter. Very interesting and VERY COLD. we walked from 10am to 4pm. after the tour we shopped and how could we resist finding Brad and Angelina's pad...not too shabby but they were nowhere in site....the door was cracked a bit as if someone were out on the veranda but had stepped in, we didn't want to stalk too much so we left after snapping some quick pics. We saw some very interesting and or talented people along the streets and loads of wonderful art. It was like a museum of sorts along the french quarter.

some guy dressed up and acting like a robot (even the sounds he made)

When we got back to the hotel it was a rush to get ready for our dine around plans we went to a really nice dinner had drinks and a good time. Ross and I really appreciated the time we had together and couldn't believe it would be over the next morning. We thought, because we wanted to get some more shopping done and go out to Brennen's for breakfast that we would only stay at the parade for a few minutes but after we got there and the energy in the air got our systems we stayed the entire parade and had a blast.

The next day we did just as we had planned. Brennen's for Breakfast was a little more than I thought it would be. A two hour Breakfast!!!!! After that we had to rush back to the hotel and ride off to the airport with a few of the other guests.

Our kiddies were back at Nana Lynda's having a great time and probably not even missing us at all but we were eager to get back to them once our flight plans started taking their course. By Sunday at 7:30 everything was pretty much back to normal we were cleaning up and the kiddies were getting ready for bed, it was almost like the whole thing was just a nice dream....but I have the 50lbs of beads to prove it was all was real

who do I look like

http://www.myheritage.com

This was so funny and easy to do. I did Ross's Dad and him he didn't get anyone I was expecting, I have always thought that Ross looked like a cross between Matthew McConaughey, Chris Cline, and Heath Ledger; or looked more like one on some occasions. None of those names pulled up some off the wall ones(Dean Cain) for the most part . So have fun seeing who this site thinks you look like, I did.

Happy Birthday Three Year Old Aynsley!!!!!!!

In the south we like to Monogram everything from our towel's to our cupcakes.

Aynsley looks older today than yesterday! Last night as I was tucking her into bed I decided to cradle her in my arms rocking her back and forth singing her all the bedtime songs to her that I did when she was a baby. I was telling her she had to let me treat her like my baby one more time (don't tell her I said this but I think she liked it).

So when we woke up on her third birthday there was a light blanket of snow on the ground and it was still snowing, too bad it turned out to be more rain and sleet than snow. She really wasn't acting herself, a little grumpy as if she didn't want a birthday to be turning three. So we headed off to school where they were all afraid that they would be closing early so we went ahead and had cupcakes at 9:30!! It was great finally after cupcakes I got my first smile of the day from my littlest Stocklin.

still no smile

Let's see if she gets any happier after she gets her cupcake??????????????Maybe?

We are all home right now, because of the weather we are staying in, we had plans to go out and do all of Aynsley's favorite things, including meeting Daddy out for Pizza. Daddy is coming through for us by bringing pizza home early to spend time with all of us.

We are just celebrating at home tonight she will have a tiny gathering this weekend.

As far as everyone else.......

Julia is riding her bike like a champ with no training wheels Wow oh wow she has impressed us all and you will never guess who is trailing right behind with just a little more effort......Yep, Liam Alexander. By this summer I think we will be hitting the trails at Tanglewood. It's going to be so much fun. We are really getting to a point that we can all do activities as a family. So nice I might add. Julia is also reading five or more books a day and seems to like silly ones, right now she is hooked on Amelia Bedelia she loves to read them and tell me of all the silly situations she gets herself into. Liam is writing his name and knows his ABC's but can't write them all yet, Aynsley just picks up whatever they are doing and either runs with it or doesn't care. That is who she is.

We are having the after Christmas Blues!

Merry Christmas to all!!!! Happy New Year too!!!!
We are all sitting here after a wonderful, fun filled visit from our Parents in New Jersey and Sister and Brother-in-law from New York, missing them all. It was so much fun having the house full at Christmas time and always having something to do. The kids will suffer the most. They started their day off with climbing into bed with their Mamie (for the girls) then sitting on the couch cuddling with Pap Pop, jumping on Uncle Jon's shoulders, and getting pampered by Aunt Marissa. It was very nice sharing the holiday together. They are all on their way home or home now and life here is slowly creeping back to normal. I am taking down the Christmas tree and all the decorations around the house. Getting everything down is not as much fun and getting it out I have to say.

a picture of Garrison and his Dad having a laugh.

The entire family went to My Ma Maw's for Christmas Eve Lunch, thank goodness it was nice outside because we had 36 people there and her place is tiny. Everyone had a great time there eating, playing football, watching football, and spending time chatting. Did I mention eating?

We had Granny and Grandaddy, Aunt Brooke and Uncle Curtis( they had to leave to go to their third but not final destination of the day after opening gifts) here for Christmas day they came for brunch we all opened presents then they spent the rest of the day playing with the children's gifts with them. Julia even got a mani pedi from Granny and Mamie.....What a treat!!!

Friends, friends, wonderful friends!

Usually whenever one of the kids have someone over to play, they all get to join in on the fun. They have really come in to their own around here. Always interested in meeting the new neighbors that are moving in or having friends from school over. This is Samantha and she is one of Julia's school friends at Southwest.

This is Liam's friend Walter. He goes to school with Liam at Clemmons Moravian. They typically like to do boy things so we try to give them time alone. Walter has an older brother so he isn't used to having girls around at all!

Liam and Aynsley both get great enjoyment when they have Jake over. He has been loads of fun to have here at our home. I can remember a time when I couldn't even hold him for one second and the last time he was here, he fell and I made it all better. He is the same age as Aynsley and a great little buddie.

Carson is Jake's big sister and is just about everyone's friend. She is sweet, fun, and considerate she takes after her mom, who is one of my best friends. When Carson is around all of my kids want to be with her. We are so fortunate to have so many friends and family in our lives so I am reminded to thank you all for being part of our lives. You brighten it, make it better, make it stronger. Thank you!

Ready for my Close up

I told everyone about Julia's many teeth popping out (four with in a few weeks of each other) now she is growing in her adult teeth and man is she looking as cute as ever. She is just the smartest, sweetest, cutest big girl I have ever seen in my life. She loves school but sometimes says she gets bored. I don't know. She is so looking forward to Christmas, she is counting down the days and thinks she will explode if it doesn't get here soon. I think this is the most exciting year for her yet. Liam seems a little excited and Aynsley really doesn't care too much, I say this becuase I don't have a tree up yet but most importantly there aren't any presents laying around or she would be excited and opening presents that aren't even hers.

jump for my love

Up and Running, Better than Ever!!

We're back and Mama's got a brand new bag....Well camera that is. Ross took me today and we have it up and running. I have been snapping away ever since I got the battery charged. I have so missed taking good pictures of the kids and all of their friends while they are playing.
Thanksgiving was great and now it's crazy time. Just a few short weeks until Christmas, the kids really don't know what they want, I guess that is why they are asking for everything. I can't wait to have our family here with us for the holidays. It is going to great!
The weather here is very warm and sunny and has been for around four days in a row. Great for the break from school. We are always playing outside and making good use of our Scooters, trampoline, and playground equipment.

Today Liam had his friend Gasan over, they are just about the same age and play very well together. He is a cute, sweet boy that lives in our neighborhood.

Let's not forget little Miss Aynsley Cole

She contemplating on whether she really "did" want a PB&J or if she just wanted to pick it apart on the table. Either way she is the cutest little almost 3 year old I know.

Paint ball anyone?

Yesterday Ross met up with a bunch of co workers and headed for the country to play paint ball. I guess he had a wonderful, fun, exciting time because he is still talking about it. I couldn't go to see or play but really want to know what all the hype is about. He is talking about getting my parents to use some of their land to build a paint ball park. We shall see what the future holds for that endeavor.
(this picture is of Ross and his friend Sean, who just was married a few weeks ago)



As far as the children they are all out of school for a week for fall break.

Julia has lots of plans which include; seeing as many of her friends as possible, eating lots of junk food, playing outside,(all things that can be done with her friends. Liam just wants to go go go and Aynsley is fine as long as she knows I am near by.
I am going to just roll with it, we have multiple neighbors moving in right now and can't wait to see what the dynamics are going to be like between everyone. Julia is just excited to have more kids her age all around her. I am just excited to have the construction trucks that were constantly blocking my drive out of the way and Ross is excited to have the Port-a Jon away from across the street from our front door. Yes it will all be nice and we will all be happy.
So until the next time ciao Baby

UPDATE? It's about time!

It has been quite some time since I was last on here. If you couldn't tell school has started back and the days are shorter and shorter. The kids keep me busier than ever, with playdates and the introduction to homework every night. Julia is a spelling bee and is reading around two books a day.
Liam and Aynsley are closer than ever with the three hours of time they have together with out their big sister around. Then Aynsley and I still have our time with no one but each other on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. She is growing up so much, melting my heart just like the other tow have done to me. I kid you not they are addictive. I love these crazy, wild, silly, and sweet kiddies. They really are the best.
Ross is busy with work and supporting us when he is around. He loves to play with the kids and spends time every night with Julia reading. He is enjoying the age everyone is at I think. They adore him too. When he is home there is almost always a wrestling match going on and if that is over they always save time for a tickle contest, if in fact, that didn't all happen at the same time. They are all a big MESS!!!!
I have been working more than I would like but we just got a Honda Mini van so I have to play catch up for now, it will soon get better I hope.
Oh our upcoming events include having Marissa, Jon, Mom, and Dad here over Christmas from NY, PA and NJ. That is going to be a blast. I don't know who is more excited about it, Me or them. Anyway we can't wait to have them all here for our first Christmas in our new house.

Missing Tooth!!!

Julia is missing a TOOTH!
She lost it today in the parking lot of the airport picking up her Daddy.
She literally lost the tooth very soon after I plucked it from her little mouth. She was worried about loosing it so we found a lunch baggy in the car and very carefully placed the front left tooth in the bag for her to go around and show random people who were coming in and out of the building. Well then her Daddy got off the jet and Julia ran to the fence to tell him about it and he had to walk through the building to get to us and when he did she ran over and jumped on him catching the bag on his briefcase ripping the bag open and causing the tiny tooth to fall and become unfound. I then soothed her telling her we would write the Tooth Fairy and letter explaining what had happened and darted off for my long needed hair appointment. When I got home she hadn't written the note but has now and is tucked away in her bed awaiting the hopefully understanding Tooth Fairy. I have a feeling she will understand and compensate her for her loss.

Beach Trip

We all thought that the entire summer would pass and we wouldn't have taken a single family vacation. We did manage to squeeze one in, a tiny one but packed with fun. The children and I left Sunday around 4:30 pm and stopped only once. We arrived to vacation with my "Favorite Aunt" Lynda around 8:30 pm. (She had rented a house for 8 days and was gracious enough to invite us to stay with her for a bit. We of course were honored and said YES!!!!) We went to be to wake up early for all the excitement. We were at the beach all day building sandcastles and boogie boarding (Julia was the super best of us all, she did it so much she had board burn on her belly. Afterward we got ready to go out for dinner. We only drove 10 minutes and Liam and Aynsley were both dead asleep. We decided it would be best to turn around and eat some food at home. Ross arrived around nine that evening and we (the adults) sat up chatting for a bit then off to bed. Another day filled with fun at the beach but for the night Lynda had plans of her own....She wanted Ross and I to have a date and she wanted to have a date with the children. We all had fun, it was fantastic to be with Ross where we were. Sadly he had to leave around 4am the next morning so it wasn't a late evening. I left later that day and we were all together at home that night. Nice ending to our summer, and we returned just in time for school for Liam and Julia on Friday. We had a blast!

Aynsley on Parade!!!!

Oh I almost forgot....I had a extreme makeover!

I have wanted to show everyone what I used to look like (not so long ago) My daughter Julia was the one who talked me into the makeover.....She said I needed a different look, a different outlook on life. She's only 6 what does she know? Well I thought about it for a while.....about one minute to be exact, and decided she was right so I went through terrible surgery that seemed like it took forever to recover from and well now here is the finished production. Please know that I am the happiest I have ever been and it only looks like it's getting better. Thank you all for your support.
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Julia attended her Kindergarten teacher's wedding on Saturday. I think he was almost as happy to see her as she was to see him. He had such an impact on her throughout the year and I think he will remain one of her favorite teachers for a long time to come. She has many more to go seeing as how she's about to start the first grade. It was a beautiful wedding and afterward he and his wife wanted pictures with their kids from their classrooms who came. It was a nice experience for her.

(Julia the much younger woman)

Posing

Three Beautiful Babies!!!!!!!
Just kidding around getting ready to go out and they just looked too cute to resist taking some quick pics. They have all had a wonderful summer so far and have been just the best little family anyone could ask for. They keep me smiling, and tired. I love everything about them from their quiet sweet times to their yelling screaming aweful times....they are Ross' and mine all the way. We are the lucky ones to have them grace us every morning with their bright faces ready for a new day of fun and excitement.

My Babies

Children's Museum

One day not long ago we had a girls day. Ross had a boy's day but he didn't take any pictures so I can't share with you the details of their adventure. I think it was top secret anyway.
During the "Day with Girls only" we went to the Children's Museum. They had a wonderful time playing at the grocery store, pretending to shop like big girls, they played Mommy with all the babies, Made Doughnuts in the Krispy Kreme Factory and Aynsley went fishing for our dinner in the river.


We had a delightful time and they were all smiles. Last year we were all members and wore out the museum but after being away for awhile it was a real treat.
Later on we met up with Daddy and Liam and enjoyed dinner together. We didn't eat the fish Aynsley caught but we did eat. A very nice day for everyone.

I AM READY FOR MY CLOSE UP

LOOK AT THIS CHILD!

She looks so comfortable and modelesk. I am bound for years of trouble out of her. She is so prissy and so grown up. I can't even think about it.

Anyway going to the pool has been pretty good since Liam had his surgery, we bought some earplugs that fell out all the time and werent really working so we just recently perchased plain old wax ones and they are working fantastic. He has been diving off the diving board and flipping into the pool no problem.

Aynsley is no longer wearing her life jacket, she has graduated into plain old bathing suit attire. She is a pretty good swimmer and all the other mom's at the pool almost have a heart attack when they watch her jump right in the water. They all ask how old she is and are amazed.

It has been a great summer and we are looking forward to spending some time with Daddy Ross in the weeks to come. There has even been talk of a short beach trip. We would all love that. No Cape Cod for us this year. Boo Hoo.

Ross is turning 32!!!

Ross is creeping up on his birthday and we are planning at least two cookouts. He wants to have one with his work family and friends, and one with family. Nothing too fancy or complicated, you know how he is....He would rather be surfing at the beach with no worries. I mean just look at him he is forever barefoot and without a shirt. The first warm day (even if it is in December, just ask Carmen, we had gone Christmas Tree shopping and he came to help get the tree off the top of her van barefoot and shirtless)he is like this .Instead we will just be here enjoying our friends and family that are close. Maybe next year if he doesn't have to have another back surgery or anything like that we could spend his birthday really being somewhere he enjoys more than home with his friends.

This weekend he had the joy of being alone with Aynsley for one day. It is so important to have one on one time with our children so they feel special and get only our attention on them instead of divided three ways. He enjoyed it but made a point to say never to sleep with Aynsley if I could help it. He said she moved around all night. I already knew that one.
We all got back together on Sunday for family time. Grilling out, playing soccer in the back yard, and we took a walk with some of our neighbors and met even more neighbors that are moving in soon. I think we are really going to enjoy our neighborhood when it is completed. Everyone has children, although some are grown and out of the house. It is diverse in every way, older, younger, all cultures, and many people from out of North Carolina that are moving here.

What Surgery?

Liam and I awoke early to arrive at The Surgical Center by 7:15 without eating or drinking a thing......He went in his Superman jammies and I couldn't even brush his teeth (Yuck) He finally went back for his tubes to be put in and his adenoids removed around 9:00am. They took him away in a little red wagon and he was just chatting it up with everyone, who by the way, instantly fell in love with him. When he got out of surgery they came and got me telling me how everything had gone and that he did well. I went back to see him and he was not happy!!! He had an IV and wanted it out immediately and would not take no for an answer. He started kicking me and hitting and trying to remove it himself, wouldn't take a drink of anything because he was so upset. Finally after an hour and some medicine to calm him down he did just that. He then became the sweet boy we all know and love. He began to tell me how they put a mask over his face and he was breathing in Strawberry air trying to blow up a balloon. He said that he was supposed to fall asleep after blowing up the balloon but did not (he did just doesn't remember) then he said he came in here. We were in the recovery room until around 11:30 and then left to have lunch and whatever else he wanted (which inlcluded milkshake and banana pudding) then we came home and he gave Julia a big hug when we got here. He really does not like to be away from her.
Later on he began to jump on the trampoline and swing playing with his sisters non stop and then Paul and Cathy arrived. He was the life of the party after that. Ross asked me if I was sure he had the surgery afterall? He did and so far so good.
Now I am leaving for Roaring Gap Country Club for a catering and Julia and Aynsley are at Grandaddy's swimming and playing while Liam is on an adventure with Nana Lynda. I expect them all to have a fantastic time.