The Costumes Arrived!

... and the A-Tots are so excited!

The Generic Batman Model:

 The REAL Andrew Chapman Batman: (much stronger and much braver)

First time seeing himself in the mirror:

The life of a Superhero is serious business:

The Generic Wooly Lamb Baby Model:

The cutest Wooly Lamb this side of the Mississippi: (Abby-Han Wooly-Lamb)

Her first time seeing herself in the mirror:

She was enamored (and kept running around the house saying "Baaaaah"... no one coached her on that, either).

Now, I'm sure they will wear these costumes every day for the next 60 days (until Halloween).  Pumpkins, mums, fall weather, apple cider, pumpkin patches, candy... bring it on.  The Bishops and the A-Tots are really for fall!

Compromise

I love Halloween.  This isn't a popular stance for an Evangelical minister to take, I understand.  I don't love anything evil, but I do love the thought of dressing up and going trick-or-treating, or to carnivals and Harvest festivals at churches, or trunk-or-treating, or Halloween parties and all the creative decorating of the houses and neighborhoods.  It's just plain fun.  But I've never loved Halloween so much as I do now that I have kids.  I start dreaming of what they will be probably in the early summer.  It is fun having a boy and a girl 20 months apart because I can make them a "pair" or "couple costume".... at least for a couple years surely, right?  Well, nix that.  I got only one year for that.  When Abby was 14 months old and Andrew was 2 1/2, I was able to dress them as Mickey and Minnie (and they looked so cute, I might add.)  

I mistakenly thought I had one more year to pair them as something.

I was wrong.

They love the Charlie Brown movie we have, so I found the cutest Snoopy and Woodstock costumes.  Chapman said no.  I suggested that Andrew be a pirate and Abby his parrot.  Didn't want to.  Max and Ruby?  Pooh and Piglet?  Ketchup and Mustard?  Even the red and green Angry Birds?  Chaps said no.

Since he is only 3 1/2, I really, really wanted to make him a cute furry animal one more year.  Two years ago, he was The Cowardly Lion that was to-die-for-cute.  I fully realize that the years and years and years of Superhero and Disney Princess costumes are right around the corner and I would never get the chance to dress them as cute fuzzy/furry animals anymore.  So, I suggested Chappy be a skunk.  Nope.  A Panda Bear.  Nada.  A darling deer costume that I found... "You can be Bambi!" - (who he loves).  Wrong.  I even gave in a little and took away the "furriness" of the costume and suggested a cute soft dinosaur costume.  Sorry. 

I let him look online with me.

He thought about being an Angry Bird, and thought about being a Yellow Crayola Crayon (and then I could make Abby the Pink Crayon!!!), but then he decided against that.  He really only liked 3 costumes:  

1.)  The Grim Reaper

2.)  KISS (yes, the band)

3.)  The Dark Knight Batman (all black costume)

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?!?!?!?

This sensitive child is afraid of his own shadow, hates loud noises, and cries when other people cry.  After trying my best persuasion skills, I finally realized that his mind was set...the best thing I could do was to try to taper his idea.  Of course #1 and #2 were out.  But if he insisted on being a 3 year old Superhero (of which he has never even seen Batman), the least I could do is steer him away from the black Dark Knight one... I just find it a little inappropriate in light of the Aurora theatre shooting to dress up as The Dark Knight Batman months later.  Too soon.  But, there was the classic Batman costume from the 70's - the blue one with the yellow belt, that Chappy also loved.  So, there you have it.

But, since Abby is just starting to talk, I have one more year of deciding for her.  So she is a Wooly Lamb (that I love):

  

And my boy is Batman:

Won't they look cute together?  *big sigh*

Backyard slide antics

S-U-P-E-R (what happens when the stay-at-home-mom was a former cheerleader)

Adrian will probably hire a nanny for the children once he sees this video.

(For the record, my cousin Bret from Chicago is on a cheer scholarship at a college in Texas.  Some parents put aside thousands of dollars a year in a Section 529 College Savings Plan for their children.  I teach cheers instead).

Relaxing yet Productive Weekend (the perfect combination)

Friday night we hung out at the house, just the 5 of us.

We started out Saturday morning with a 5-year-old birthday party for my niece Haley Bishop (Adrian's brother's youngest daughter) at Pump It Up (indoor inflatables like a Moon Bounce, big slides, obstacle courses, etc...).  Very fun - and to die for cake from Costco - lined with custard... $17.00 apparently for a big sheet cake that was unbelievable.  Thank God I never knew about the deliciousness of these cakes before - we've had Costco memberships for like 12 years and who's saying how huge I would be had I known years ago.  Then Adrian and Peyton went to the movies while Andrew, Abby, and I napped.  Then I went out to Starbucks and then with a girlfriend to see the Whitney Houston/Jordan Sparks movie "Sparkle".  It was so nice seeing her.  Meanwhile, Adrian and Peyton and the babies invited Uncle Joe Joe over (Adrian's best friend and Best Man at our wedding) and they ordered chinese and played hide-and-go-seek for a while and then put the ankle biters to bed and they watched Hunger Games upstairs (Joe just bought it that day, the day it was released).

I came home and vegged out for a while before going to sleep.

Then Sunday, after clearing up some criminal withdraws from our checking account that occurred in Maryland over the weekend (what a nightmare this is), we hung out and rested, then I stayed home with the kiddos and Adrian went grocery shopping and then mowed the lawn.  I worked in the yard for a while edging, blowing clippings, and watering while Adrian made spaghetti for dinner.  Then I raked and cleaned up the leaves in the backyard and then listed my old TV on craigslist that has been sitting in the garage for a month.  It sold in 45 minutes.  :)  Then Adrian cleaned out the garage and got a ton of empty boxes together on one side of the garage for garbage day on Tuesday.  I listed a couple more things on Craigslist.  The little bit of cash is nice, but the freed up space is much nicer.  And it's fun to see someone buy something they really want for cheap.  We put the kids to bed and are now hanging out upstairs.  That's it.  We didn't do anything too productive, but it really was the perfect amount of both R&R and getting some stuff done.  And if we hadn't had money stolen from our Checking Account, I'd be feeling like we even got more ahead.

But, great weekend overall.  Thankful.

Andrew Chapman's Dedication Verse

(just wanted to document this lest I forget it).

4-19-09

We had Andrew dedicated this morning at church. At our church when a baby is dedicated, the parents of the child are to choose a Bible verse for their child and the father reads that verse in front of the church over the child. This is the verse we chose for Andrew (that Adrian read): 

Ephesians 3:14-19 

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." 

Andrew, in his crib, the morning of his dedication:

A picture at church with Sissy and Adrian's mother (Nana), who passed away 2 short years later:

Empathy

(just wanted to document this lest I forget it).

2-15-11

The ice maker in the freezer got jammed today and kept making a non-stop crackling noise.

Andrew kept looking at the fridge and furrowing his eyebrows.  He tried multiple times to check behind the fridge, and then looked at the freezer door seemingly very distraught.

Then he ran to me clearly upset and said, "Momma, the ice cream is crying!"

Next scene: He has his cheek pressed against the fridge door and his arms spread out giving the fridge a hug.

(*Side note: We haven't had ice cream since July).

Cheese Sauce

(just wanted to document this lest I forget it).

3-9-11

An exchange Andrew, 25 months, and I had the other day in the car.

(As we were pulling out of the driveway)

Andrew:  "Andrew loves cheese sauce."

Me (thinking of how much we both love cheese):  "Momma loves cheese sauce, too!  We love to eat cheese sauce on chips.  We love eating cheese sauce with salsa.  Oh, and we put cheese sauce on broccoli and eat it, don't we?"

(Then, since he wasn't being very talkative, I went on and on for about 5 minutes in a monologue about all the different things we put cheese sauce on and eat.)

Pulling into the grocery store parking lot, Andrew shrugs his shoulders, looks confused, and says, "Mary, Joseph, and Cheese Sauce?"

Oh.  Je-sus.  Right.  Well, nevermind the broccoli thing then.

My current faves

I did an entry a few years ago (one of my only entries on this blog) about some of my current favorite things.  I thought I'd make a new list to reflect what I currently love 3 years later.  I'm a list maker, so this format (of list making) is fun for me.

1.  Freshly steam mopped floors
2.  Weighing in at Weight Watchers and hearing the lady, Phyllis, say, "You've lost 3.6 lbs. this week!"
3.  Chocolate molten lava cake (#2 and #3 are not necessarily associated)
4.  A freshly mowed and edged lawn
5.  Taking afternoon naps with the rugrats
6.  Ditching the family after Adrian gets home from work and going to get a massage, walk around the mall with a Starbucks, get my diamond ring cleaned at a jewelry store there, and browse through the stores.
7.  Coming home from these ditching-the-family-excursions to a welcome from the toddlers that is on par with a soldier returning from a 6 year war.
8.  When the toddlers have just gotten bathed and their hair washed and blown dry, p.j.-ed, and come up to me with their blankies and ask me to cuddle them.
9.  Sitting on the couch every night at 9 p.m. watching Adrian, Peyton, Andrew, and Abby play hide-and-go-seek, especially when Abby is "It" and has to count in the corner with her hands over her eyes
10.  Every morning at breakfast when I ask Andrew and Abby "Who wants a banana?" and Andrew raises his hand and yells, "Meeeeee!" and Abs raises her hand and yells, "Meeeeee, Baby!"
11.  When Adrian walks in the door from work and the toddlers get so excited seeing him and running to him that you can see hearts coming out of their eyes.
12.  Girls' days on Sunday with Sheila (my good friend and next-door-neighbor)
13.  When we go home for a week in the summer to my parents' house in Michigan for a family vacation and my mom (and dad) keep the kids all day, every day so Adrian and I can run around doing couple things sans kids - shopping, movies, dinner, Saugatuck, (anything!), and we return home to safe and sound kiddos who went on treasure hunts for rocks, walked to every park in Roosevelt Park, played in 5-gallon-buckets of water in the backyard, napped, had healthy meals made for them all day, and received gifts for eating said healthy meals.
14.  My kids' birthdays
15.  Doing photo shoots of people
16.  Running all over Bartlett with the toddlers in the double jogging stroller and hearing Andrew say, "On your mark, get set..." and Abby say, "Guh!"
17.  Freshly cleaned teeth from the dentist
18.  Watching Dateline on Friday nights
19.  Talking to my sisters on the phone - and mom.
20.  When Adrian comes home and says, "I.LOVE.MY.JOB."  (and he's never said anything but this with this job)
21.  Burning Yankee Candles
22.  Making an extra payment on the mortgage and feeling like we're getting ahead
23.  Fitting comfortably into jeans that were snug 3 weeks ago
24.  Buying Peyton Red Converse so she can look like Harry from "One Direction"
25.  Looking forward to Adrian and my next vacation together (he might win a trip to Bora Bora for us in February)
26.  Hearing Abigail's new words she is saying - and connecting together
27.  Clean sheet day
28.  Watching Nazi Germany/WWII specials on the history channel with Adrian while lying in bed
29.  Salsa and margis from my favorite Mexican restaurant
30.  Boot season returning (what most people call fall and winter)... cowboy boots, riding boots, and best of all, no need for snow boots down here
31.  Entertaining friends here on Saturday night
32.  Driving around as a family looking at houses
33.  Taking a shower, putting on a cute outfit, putting on jewelry and perfume, and doing my hair and makeup for the day
34.  A good Memphis thunderstorm
35.  Listening to Coast-to-Coast A.M.
36.  Preaching
37.  Using creative energy - on house, yard, photography, crafting, blogging, organizing, or anything else
38.  Being married to Adrian
39.  Drinking French Vanilla Cappuccino every morning
40.  Going to Julia's for play dates
41.  Online shopping
42.  Payday (just keeping it real and honest)  :)
43.  Planning the sentimental charms I eventually want to get to create a Pandora bracelet
44.  Looking forward to Halloween costumes and the holidays with the kiddos
45.  Adrian's cooking
46.  Long, hot baths
47.  Reading in bed
48.  When nothing is on the calendar for days in a row
49.  Listening to Praise and Worship music with the babies in the car and hearing them sing
50.  Listening to talk radio
51.  Sitting and relaxing in Starbucks

Evolution of a house (and the subsequent shrinkage of a pocketbook)

House when Adrian bought it - no yard, eroded tree roots, gross flower beds:

After we added sod and then had the canopy on the trees raised:

Before:

After we added a new architectural roof, gutters, painted all the trim, raised the canopy on the 2 big oak trees, and completed flower beds:

Before:

After finished flower beds and mulch:

Before with the overgrown flower beds:

After I finished the flower beds and landscaping:

Before I pressure washed the mailbox brick, mortar, and driveway (also before I painted the garage and trim and pressure washed the brick above the garage):

After pressure washing the mailbox brick, mortar, and driveway, and painting the garage door and trim:

Before pressure washing brick, mortar, and concrete (look at the mold and grime in the lower half of the brick):

After pressure washing the brick and mortar:

More after the pressure washing (below the windows, the brick and mortar was green and black):

Great room when we bought the house - gross berber, dark brick, no paint (just primer):

Great room after - new paint, painted brick, hardwood floor (NEXT is window treatments!):

Dining room bay window before:

What we had for a couple years:

After we replaced the linoleum with 18" tile and repainted the kitchen the same color as the rest of the rooms:

 

Adrian's office before:

Andrew and Abigail's nursey after (with new carpeting, new paint, new furniture, and window treatment):

We have also replaced the whole downstairs with the hardwood floor that is in the front room (hallways and our master bedroom, too), put the tile from the kitchen in the bathroom, laundry room, master bathroom and separate commode room, and shower, and put the new carpeting in the nursery in both of the kids' rooms and all the closets in the house.  We also redid the master bathroom, had the walk-in shower gutted and tiled with the same tile as the rest of the house.  We also had the whole house painted the same color and the laundry room and bathrooms a shade darker than that.  We also had a new wooden privacy fence put up in the backyard and had all the cupboards in the kitchen refinished.

Now, if we can ever pay off this house someday so it is officially our house and not the bank's house.

Abigail Hannah Punkin Pie

That's her official name.  We also call her Abby, Abs, Daisy, Daisy Duke, Lovey, Baby, Abbyhan, Deep Dog #3, Doozey, Doozenberg, among many other names.  I thought I'd take a post to introduce her since when I last blogged (when I created this blog 3 years ago), she wasn't even a bun in the oven yet.  

She's a sweet, sweet girl, as Andrew tells people. 

She calls herself "Baby".

She's kind of the princess of the family.

She's loves Bubby (Andrew).

And for the most part, he is very good to her.

She also loves Sissy (Peyton), who she calls, "Sasa".

I think she really loves our family.  And we are bananas about her.

Still Updating

I escaped to Starbucks tonight to get away and drink a hot beverage.  While I was breathing in the relaxing Starbucks aromas and latte mojo, I attempted to briefly update this blog again.  I am still debating on how committed I might or might not be to doing blog entries, but even if I do 2 a year, the design layout will at least be updated so all I'll have to do is write the actual entry.

Lots of good stuff going on for our family - Adrian is loving, loving his job that he started a year ago, Peyton is going into the 8th grade and getting braces on Monday, Andrew is 3 1/2 yrs old and still at home with me, and Abigail will turn 2 years old in a few weeks.  How that happened so fast, I'll never know.

We are always working on home improvements, trying to get ahead in lots of areas, and enjoying life at home here in Memphis.  God has been so good to us.