What A Fun Weekend

Everyone knows I love Halloween, but this holiday weekend was better than usual.  On Friday, we threw Brayden a surprise party.  We took Brayden and a few friends bowling.  It was so fun.  And Brayden had no clue until he got inside the bowling alley.  He'll be 9 tomorrow.

Can an almost 9-year-old boy ever take a nice picture???

Saturday was filled with soccer, of course.  Then date night with my hubby.  We saw Secretariat.  I love a good horse movie.

 

Then Halloween was yesterday.  I made a fun, spooky dinner after church and then we took the kids trick or treating with the Clayton's last night.  It is so fun to see them all dressed up.  Rex couldn't get to the next house fast enough.  Emerson and Piper held hands the whole time.  So cute!

5 year olds say the sweetest things...

Rex told me he thought Texas has a lot of cowboys and was wondering where we can go to see some.  I told him he had a real cowboy living in his own house.  I told him how his daddy grew up on a farm, riding horses, herding cattle, wearing boots, and all that good stuff.  The next morning, Rex told his daddy how happy he is that his dad is a real cowboy and that he wants a horse and boots just like dad.

This one's for Carole...after I talked to you on the phone last, Rex asked me to play him a board game.  He got it all set up on the table by himself and then when we sat down to play he told me he was ready to go on a date.  I asked him what made him think he was ready to do that and he said because he could get a fun game ready by himself.  He said to not tell Kennedy and Brayden, but he knew who he wants to invite on a date...of course, he was thinking of Emily.  We better keep those two apart until they're 16.  He's too sweet!

Go Stros!!!

We've now been Texans for 3 full months and have discovered the best part of being near a major city (Houston) is the baseball.  We went to our second Astros game last night and cheered the Stros to another win!  The best part was that last night's tickets were free from our public library for the kids reading 20 books during the month of June.  That's even better than what we paid for the last game's tickets which were also awesome because all summer long we can get 2 free kids tickets with every adult ticket.  Brayden sure loves his baseball and the kids were super happy when they saw themselves on the jumbo tron.  I'm hoping next year it works out for us to go see the Astros play the Padres.   I'll be calling mom to send me a few Padres shirts for that game.  We can't totally change loyalties just because we seem to constantly change cities.  For those of you who are wondering....the second best thing about southeast Texas is the 5 country music stations that we can tune into!

Emmy Gray's Birthday

What a fun day to celebrate!!!  Emerson is 2 today.  It is so much fun to shop for a little girl.  She is getting dress-up clothes and a tea set.  The princess dress is Cinderella, of course!  I got up early this morning to make her chocolate doughnuts for breakfast (I found the recipe on pioneerwoman.com- they are yummy and the pictures of her cooking are awesome).  Then, I took the kids to the sprinkler park to play.  It is hot, hot, hot here and a little short on amusement.  I'm hoping we can get a house with a pool so the kids will have more to do here.

Which, brings me to our next bit of news...for those who don't know...we've moved to Texas!  It was kind of an all of a sudden move.  Someone Donald knew from a past job called him up to talk to him about some work in Texas.  Donald was mildly interested and decided to fly to Texas just to squish any interest he had.  Well, he came back to Summerville and we decided to move to Texas.  Within 3 weeks, we were in Texas.  We live in a little town called Lumberton in Southeast Texas.  Donald is remodeling homes that were damaged during Hurricane Rita.

We like our new ward and Lumberton is a nice, safe town.  The kids went to school here for the last month and met friends right away.  The home we rent is kind of a dump, so Donald finally gave into the idea of getting a cat and we now have the sweetest little gray with black stripes kitty, which Rex of course named Val.

It seems everyone here went on vacation as soon as school let out so the kids are anxious for their own summer camps to start.  We have cub scout camp, soccer camp, and swim lessons lined up for the summer.

But, today we are just happy to be celebrating our sweet, little, funny Emmy Gray (Val has a different opinion of Emmy- Emerson thinks Val is one of her baby dolls and Val does not like to be carried by one arm or leg).  Emerson makes everyone laugh everyday and is always ready to give a kiss to anyone who helps her.  We are so glad she's 2.

Bahamas

Donald & I just returned from 4 days in the Bahamas.  The water was so blue and beautiful.  We stayed at The Atlantis on Paradise Island.  There is so much to do there...pools, water slides, aquarium, lots & lots.  We were able to get in the water and play with dolphins.  It was funny because when the dolphin was asked if Donald was a good kisser he shook his head no and another time he sprayed Donald in the face with water.  They are such smart animals.  We also went snorkeling, which was the favorite thing we did there.  We went out on a sail boat to a reef and swam off the boat to snorkel.  There were many different colorful fish and the coral was beautiful- all different kinds, colors, and shapes.  Mostly, it was nice to just relax and enjoy being together.  Thanks Paul & Lisa- we had a blast!

Family Fun Run

Two weeks ago, our family ran in the Flowertown Fun Run.  Donald did the 5K and came in second for his age division.  I ran the 1mile with the kids.  Kennedy was the top girl finisher and Brayden and Rex did well, too.  Rex ran the entire mile as fast as his little legs would take him.  It was a fun start to our weekend.

Snow day

I'm kind of late posting snow pictures.  What a fun morning.  It doesn't really snow in Summerville, so to wake up to a blanket of perfect white snow was wonderful.  Kennedy had all the kids up and dressed, including Emerson, and outside at 6am.  They played for several hours.  Lots of snow men were made that day.  So pretty.

Leaves Are Falling All Around

Yeah!!!!  We finally closed on our home in Myrtle Beach and decided to take a little trip to Asheville to celebrate.  The leaves were on fire and the mountains were so beautiful.  We stayed in a cabin with a hot tub- which the kids loved.  Our days were spent taking in the beauty all around us.  It snowed on the mountain tops Saturday night and it was the first time playing in the snow for Rex and Emerson and the first time for Kennedy since we moved from Utah.  Fun, fun days.

Mud Run

On Saturday, Donald and I did a mud run with our friends Chad and Carole.  The mud run is a 4.2 mile run interspersed with 30 military-style obstacles.  It was so dirty and slippery, but so fun.  Our team finished about 700 out of 1700, which we nursing mommies thought was pretty good.  We are already making plans for next year's run.  Go Muddy Buddies!!!

Update

Lots of excitement in the Gerratt household, as usual. Emerson has finally started walking- a little sideways, but walking nonetheless. Kennedy competed in her first triathlon last weekend and did a great job. School started Monday, AHHHH! Peace and quiet for a few hours and a house that actually stays pretty clean. And, we are pumped for the soccer season to start soon.

4th of July

When we got news that Summerville was having a family parade on the 4th of July, Kennedy and I right away knew what we wanted to do. My mom had put my older brothers and sister as a choo-choo train in a parade when they were little kids and after years of staring at their picture in the hall, I was excited to have my own kids join in the fun. We spent the week shaping and painting cardboard boxes. Our little train turned out quite cute and kids had a blast painting them. The bosses of Summerville must have liked our little train too because it won the prize for "Most Original" entry into the parade. The kids got cute Uncle Sam hats, a gift certificate to use downtown, and their picture in the paper (if you'd like to see the pictures from the paper they can be found at www.summervillejournalscene.com). Independence Day was a fun day for all!

Camping

Memorial Day weekend was super fun. We went camping with a group of family and friends- all with little kids. Between the five families there were 16 kids ages 10 and under. The Balls suggested a camp site in Asheville they had been to before and it worked great. The camp ground was on a lake with a beach and the kids played for hours in the sand and water. We went to Sliding Rock- a natural waterslide- and slid into a pool of 48 degree water- burrrrrr. Kennedy was feeling extra brave that day and went down the rock several times. It rained each night so we headed to bed early to escape the weather, but it was clear and beautiful during the day. The Clarks came from Tennessee and it was really good to see them before they move back to Utah- we'll miss our friends. We had so much fun we're already planning our next trip.

Meet Our New Neighbor

So, this big guy moved into the pond across the street from our home about a week ago and now his girlfriend has moved in too! Our neighborhood is on a golf course and to spot a little 3-4 foot alligator is not uncommon. But, this big daddy is about 13 feet and is living in the pond about 50 yards from our house. He has me keeping the kids indoors when Donald or I can't be outside with them.

Boring Baseball?

So, baseball season is upon us. I thought I could brainwash my children into believing as I always have that baseball is a boring sport. I talk up football, basketball (of course), and soccer like there is no greater fun in the world, but I have always said baseball was a bunch of standing around watching the pitcher and catcher play catch. So, much to my unliking, Brayden decided he wanted to give baseball a go this year. For the past month he has been counting down the days to the start of the season (you all know how focused he can be). He was thrilled in the store picking out a mitt and seemed to enjoy the first two practices. Saturday, their first game, couldn't come fast enough for him. I was kind of dreading sitting out in the sun with three little kids all morning, but once game time rolled around, I found myself getting a little excited. Watching Brayden out in left field staying in "ready position" and totally anticipating a ball coming his way was fun. I was nervous during Brayden's two at bats, but thrilled when he hit solid base hits at both ups. So, maybe I'm admitting I was a little wrong about baseball. It is fun and exciting and pure joy for my 7 year old boy. We'll see if I feel the same way when game 10 rolls around.

Disney World

Our latest adventure was a trip to Disney World last weekend. My sister flew out from Arizona, Russ & Julia drove down from Greenville, and we hit the road, too. Altogether we had 6 adults and twelve cousins hitting up Orlando. We visited Animal Kingdom one day and Magic Kingdom the next.
Animal Kingdom was cute. We went on a few rides there and saw the animals. Brayden loved the Yeti ride (It is a lot like the Matterhorn at Disneyland). Of course, Kennedy refused to ride nearly every ride and burst into tears about every 30 minutes because the rides were too scary (alas, 10 year-old girls). Magic Kingdom was fun, also. Some highlights were seeing the space launch from Kennedy Space Center over Space Mountain, being able to use our fast pass late on Space Mountain and avoiding more than an hour wait, the funny guy dancing at It's a Small World, and just seeing the cousins get along so well and having fun together. Brayden instantly hit it off with Reilly and McKenna and Kennedy picked up right where they left off the last time they saw each other three years ago.
My sister drove up to SC for a visit and it was fun staying up late talking and hanging out with the kids.

Big week for our little girl!!!

Babies grow up way too fast. After a few weeks of attempts, our little Emerson has taken off crawling. I cannot leave a room now without her trailing behind. Also, Emerson got her first two teeth this week. That makes her the earliest crawler and teether of the Gerratt kids. How fun to watch all her new milestones.

Ski!!!

This past weekend we made a trip to Greenville to visit the Joneses. On Friday, we took the kids to the circus. Our favorite parts were the animal acts- I especially loved the elephants. Then on Saturday, Donald, Russell, and Curtis took Brayden, Ryan, and Austin up to Asheville to ski. It was all the little boys first time skiing and they had a blast. Brayden has been dreaming about throwing snowballs at Daddy ever since Christmas when he found out he was going skiing. When Brayden got back Saturday night he had the best glow on his face; like he had just accomplished an amazing feat. In a few years all the kids will be old enough to ski together and it will be so much fun!

New Year Happenings

Wow!!! 2009 here we come.
We had a great Christmas even with a few bumps. On Christmas Eve we hit a dog on the highway and it totally trashed the front end of our Durango. It has taken weeks for the repair shop to get it right, including returning it to me two times just to have it break down on me. But Rex and I are happy to have our car back- we started to go a little stir crazy here at home. We celebrated with a trip to the park yesterday.
Santa brought our family a Wii for Christmas and it has been a ton of fun. I've lost 8 lbs since Christmas by doing a little Wii fit every day or so. I really like the step aerobics and yoga.
Kennedy's basketball season is wrapping up. It has been a lot of fun to see her growth. She is becoming a better shot and is super at defense. Next up- soccer season.
We enjoyed a visit from Grandpa and Grandma Gerratt. Rex and Rex hung out like life-long buddies.
Cousins from Greenville were here last weekend. Nine kids under one roof- wow! Brooke and Emerson were very cute together. They watched each other very closely and took toys from one another. Two beautiful babies!!! I love Brooke's auburn hair.
Next up is a trip to Greenville for us. The circus is in town, skiing is a short drive away, and Pottery Barn has an outlet in nearby Gaffney, SC. Should be fun.

Christmas pictures are here!!!

I have given up trying to get four children to smile nicely at the same time. I now take what I can get- Kennedy smiling beautifully and the boys giggling, scrunching up shoulders, sticking out tongues or whatever floats their boat. After taking about 100 pictures to put in our Christmas card I finally decided on this one- not because it shows a perfect little family, but because it shows each of their personalities. Enjoy!

Fall 2008

I forget how busy Fall can be with Halloween, two birthdays, Thanksgiving, getting ready for Christmas, sports, etc. This Fall has been a blast, though. Between taking a trip to Asheville and Kennedy scoring her first goal in soccer it's been a wonderful season.

Halloween- It's one of my favorite holidays. I always try to convince my kids to dress up in coordinated outfits, but at least one child voices dissent. So, my efforts to have them all dress up together as a train fell flat. Kennedy wanted to be Giselle, from "Enchanted", Brayden was Ashe, a Pokemon character (yes, its still his obsession), and Rex and Emerson went as Tom & Jerry. I made Kennedy's, Rex's, and Emerson's costume, and what Brayden put on to be Ashe is what he wears to school everyday. We also dyed Kennedy's hair red and she's still red-haired today- it's okay, it matches her temperament.

To celebrate Halloween, we also went pumpkin picking. There is a little farm on John's Island where we picked pumpkins and took a hay ride. It was a fun afternoon for the kids.

Since we had a baby and moved over the summer we didn't take a trip then, so, we headed up to Asheville for several days to take in the Fall colors. It was gorgeous. The Blue Ridge Parkway was on fire. Pictures do not do it justice.

Earlier this month, Brayden turned 7 and Kennedy 10. Wow!!! They sure are growing up fast.

A week ago we also had our first rush to the emergency room for stitches. Rex fell on the stairs and split his chin wide open- he needed 6 stitches. The doctor said Rex was his best patient of the day because he laid still and didn't cry at all while the doctor stitched him up.

Kennedy has been playing soccer and last night was her team's first play-off game and she also scored her first goal. She dribbles and passes the ball so well that she often sets her teammates up for goals, but she just hadn't made any herself. She was so happy and the proud look on her face was priceless.

Check out the new pictures of Emerson. She is so sweet and cute. She is just about sitting up on her own and is still happy to see anyone who'll talk to her. She is going to try her first taste of solid food 0n Thanksgiving- a little sweet potato.