Way too long

So... It's been a while. I don't really have a good excuse. Just the normal hustle and bustle of the holidays. I am so excited for Christmas. I don't have all my shopping done, but I just love everything that goes into celebrating the season. We've made cookies, decorated gingerbread houses, sang christmas carols, trimmed the tree, and attended parties! I even managed to mail out Christmas cards this year which was a first! Pretty sad that we've been married 11 years and never sent any out. I think it's a tradition that is dying out. Sad but true. I was determined this year to do it! The tight that we decorated the tree, I made every last one of us get in a Christmas sweater and pose for the camera. The picture turned out quite nice and was put on our card this year. What you didn't see was what it took to get there! My boys were whining and complaining like no other about getting in the itchy sweaters, hair combed, faces washed. My husband was heard saying... "just do what she says to please your mother!" Then there was me shouting "Will everyone just ACT like they like each other for 5 minutes!" Click! We ended up with a nice result. Hey... I even mailed one out to the White house! Cause.... even the President can use a little bit of Christmas cheer! The Shackleford family wishes you a wonderful and blessed holiday!

Smokey Mountain Getaway

After a fun and relaxing fall break, I am ready to get back into the blogging buzz. We went to the Smokey mountains last week with my family. It was wonderful! Just what we needed. My parents were kind enough to rent a huge cabin in the middle of nowhere for a few days. It was complete with a stocked kitchen, pool table, Foosball table, plasma TV, hot tub, and... SCORPIONS! Luckily, we didn't see the later until our last night. I was the lucky one to find it in he bathroom when I was well... you know.... Needless to say, it kinda caught me off guard. My boys on the other hand thought it was the highlight of the trip. In fact they wanted to keep it as a pet! Go figure! Don't worry my husband saved the day and it is squished on a paper towel in a dumpster somewhere. One less scorpion. :)

Before I get to far ahead, I'll introduce the cast of Characters:

My Mom and Dad or AKA: Me maw and Papaw as they are known by my kids. They were the reason we were all able to go on this trip. THANK YOU Mom and Dad!

Valerie: Or Aunt Val. My sister the nurse. Fellow scrapbooker and confidante.

Ashlee: Oldest niece. She is 17, a senior and has a new boyfriend. She was seen texting most of the trip. I sure wish texting was invented when I was a teenager! Hmph!

Lacey: Niece #2- 12 and doesn't have a boyfriend..... yet... Fun and has a zest for life.

Ian: The nephew. Age 9. He is three months older than Jonas and they are pretty much partners in crime. In fact they were caught often having acorn wars and stirring up a nest of yellow jackets for fun. What were they thinking?

Our family: I think you pretty much know us already. If you don't then you probably stumbled upon this blog mistakenly. So read on if you think I am interesting enough.

Okay... So here goes.... We pulled into Pigeon Forge on Sunday afternoon. Found our way the cabin, settled in and went to our first show. It was at the Comedy Barn. If you're no familiar with this show, it is worthwhile watching a few clips on youtube. My favorite is the juggler. You can watch here . My family is always chosen for audience participation stuff and this was no exception! My husband was picked and was hilarious! Later in the show Jeremiah was called up on stage as well. We bought a DVD of the live show and eventually I will upload it to youtube. For now you can watch this and well... you'll get the idea. It was a fun night and a great way to start off the trip. After dinner at Shoney's it was back to the cabin for some competitive games of pool. We had a big day planned for tomorrow.

Monday was such a fun day, but we were exhausted by the end of it. First off in he morning we went to Parrot Mountain. Now this is off the beaten path and not as well advertised or touristy, but that is part of it's charm. We saw so many different types of birds. We got to feed them as well! The kids had a blast with them flying all around and landing on them. We got lots of great pictures. Next up was Reptile World where the boys got up close an personal with snakes, alligators and tarantulas. I even held a tarantula. Jonas is trying to convince me to get him one for Christmas.... I don't think so....Santa Claus is afraid of spiders. :)

We went back to the cabin for a couple hours and got ready for Dixie Stampede. If you have never been it is worth going! We were all entertained! We had a great meal too. My husband was funny.... During the Dixie Stampede they divide you on either the North or South side. My husband after a little while was like.. "why are all the servers dressed in blue?.... Wait a minute... they're in gray over there! We're on the wrong side!" HAAAA! :) Watch the finale... It is great.

Dollywood was on Tuesday. I have never seen so many old people in one place. They were all there attending a gospel music festival. Worked out great for us, as they were not there to ride rides, so there was no wait for anything. The weather was perfect too. Jonas is the thrill seeker in the family. He managed to get both me and Daddy on a roller coaster. It was FUN! Do you know what I found out I'm afraid of? FERRIS WHEELS! I swear.... that was the first and last time I'm ever getting on one. I thought I was going to have a full blown panic attack! One of the highlights fr my family of boys was sniper shooting with water cannons innocent passerbys in boats. Yes... this is an attraction. They spent a good hour in one spot. They showed no mercy. Old ladies, mothers, children, teens. They were all victims. It was the funniest thing ever. My husband said that alone was worth the price of admission. Hee Hee Hee.... :)

That night we went to The Black Bear Jamboree. It was another dinner/musical variety show. The dinner was delicious and we all liked the show. Dexter the nerd was pretty funny. Back at the cabin it was time to pack up, as it was our last night.

Wednesday morning was departure day, but not without one last stop. We went to the Aquarium of the Smokey's in Gatlinburg. It was so nice. The boys got to pet stingrays and see Sharks. What more could you ask for?

All in all, it was a great trip and so much fun to be with the whole family. We did miss Missy and her family in Utah. Maybe they'll join us for the next one. It's only a two and a half hour drive for us and surprisingly we had never been before. It was worth it and we'll definitely go back again soon. The kids are back in school this week. Boy was it hard to wake up Monday morning. Jonas was glad he has a lot of ideas for his "creative writing"assignment for Language Arts. So... now you heard what we did for our Fall break. What about everyone else?

Running

I've had a bit of a blogging drought lately... I just haven't felt very creative. Plus, I have just been so busy. You know... I thought my life was busy when I had a newborn and two toddlers in the house. Little did I know that the craziness doesn't really begin until they are in school. My month of October is booked solid already and it's only the first week! I turned 30 a couple weeks ago. That should probably be a whole blog post in itself, but I get a little depressed just thinking about it. Silly... I know. People say it is no big deal, but it is to me. I think of how fast time has flown by. It sounds cliche' but it really is true. Anyways, I decided upon turning thirty that I wanted to take a little bit of time out of my busy week and do something for myself. I decided it was time for me to get healthy! Now, I am thin by genetics, I suppose. I am always trying to put weight on instead of take it off. Most would say it is a blessing and I suppose it is... I mean, don't get me wrong, things could be a lot worse for me. I am in no way fit though. My cardio is terrible, I have no stamina, endurance. etc. I decided to take up running. I am training for a 5K. Last week when I started training, I could barely run half a minute without feeling as though I was going to die! Today I jogged/waked 2 and 1/2 miles. I can go about a quarter of a mile without stopping! I know that's not saying much for most people, but seeing where I started, and the fact that I really don't think I have run since middle school.... is a big deal for me! I feel great. My husband has joined a gym and has been working out too. Together we are trying to get in better shape for ourselves and each other. I also want to show my boys that if you put your mind to it, set a goal, and work hard, that anything is possible. Little Jonas has been running on the Cross Country team at school. He can run circles around me. His best time this year was a mile in 6:56! Yeah.... he's pretty fast. I'm not worried about how fast I am. I just want to run, finish, and not come in last! The best part about this whole thing is actually seeing improvement each time I run and I FEEL good about myself. This is good for me. The boys school has a road race on Halloween. It is just a mile run, but it is a good starter race before the 5K. Our whole family is set to run. I'll take pictures and let you know how we do. That's it for now. We're taking a little trip to Gatlinburg over fall break next week. I should have some good pictures to post when we get back.

One "SWEET" Day

So... This is a picture of me after making and bagging 350 bags of cotton candy. Granted, I didn't do it alone, we had lots of help. We've been selling coupon books in Hamilton County. The're actually a pretty good deal. They have coupons for several places all over Chattanooga and only cost $10. The school actually gets to keep 7 out of the ten, so it's the most productive fundraiser out of the whole year. Anyways, the PTA has thought of incentives for each day that the kids bring in their money. Friday was "cotton candy day." Wow... What a fun day it was. The school owns a cotton candy machine, but when we plugged it in this morning it didn't work. Lovely. After calling a couple rental places we found one and got to work. 4 and a half hours later it was done. The whole school smelled of cotton candy and the kids were delighted with their puffy bags of the pink and blue stuff. I was COVERED from head to toe with it! My husband had to take a picture and the Principal nicknamed me "fluffy." The best part.... We get to do it all over again next Friday. I'm think that snowcones sound liek a better idea for next year! :)

Bits and Pieces from the week

It's been a busy week. I'm looking forward to the long weekend. Some things that happened this week:

* Cole decided to wipe out on the pavement. Unfortunately he gets his coordination from me, his mother. No.... He there was no exciting bike wreck, no collision between brothers, etc. He was just walking outside on the driveway and tripped over his own feet. Poor thing. He gets it from me. It takes talent to not only fall down the stairs, but to trip UP them as well. No hope for him I'm afraid. He wasn't too thrilled when I decided to make this little accident a "Kodak moment." Now, he proudly displays his "road rash" to just about anyone. Oh and he was heard saying (about his "boo boo") "I LOVE it!." BOYS!

* Jonas this week was complaining about an unruly child in his class. He said... "Mom, I'm POSITIVE he forgot to take his medicine this morning!"

* We had pizza and movie night last night. We've been taking turns picking some of the "old" movies that we remember watching growing up. This week's was "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory." The COOL version with Gene Wilder, not the weird one with Johnny Depp. Don't get me wrong... I love me some Capt. Jack, but he is and never will be Willy Wonka to me. Anyways, Cole was watching it with me and the part where Wonka takes them on that weird boat ride, he turns and tells me he's not going to watch this part. I asked him... "Why is it a little scary?" He said... "No, it's a LOT scary!"

*We were driving around town running some errands and Jeremiah out of nowhere says.. " I was just thinking.... I wonder if I can get a job as a candy taster when I grow up?" Now keep in mind, this was before we watched the Willy Wonka movie. In fact, I believe it's what gave us the idea in the first place. This, of course, is the kid that woke me up one morning when he was three. I heard some noise in the kitchen and there he was standing with the refrigerator door open and DRINKING the Hershey syrup out of the bottle.

* Last thing... Jonas and I went out on a date Thursday evening. We got a babysitter and went to O'Charley's. I was really nice! Before we left, Jonas told the boys he's pay them 10 cents for every pile of crab grass they pulled out of the yard. Our yard is covered in the stuff. We got back after being gone just a short time and our driveway was lined with PILES and PILES of the crab grass. Whoever said money isn't an incentive? Needless to say my husband is about $20 poorer. :)

Ups and Downs

I'm sitting here watching the Closing Ceremonies for the Olympics as I type this. I just love the Olympics. I remember watching as a little kid. Probably the first one I remember watching was the '88 games is Seoul, Korea. I only would've been about 10 years old. I remember watching Greg Louganis dive. Is that the same games where he cracked his head on the diving board? I can't quite remember. I really got into the Winter games in '92 when Paul Wylie won his silver medal. Yeah... just Silver, but it was amazing. He wasn't expected to come close. I remember Shannon Miller winning the Silver Medal that same year in Barcelona. In '96 who doesn't remember Kerri Strugg and the famous vault? She was a part of the "magnificent 7" women's gymnastics team that won the team gold in Atlanta. There have been many exciting moments in Beijing. Michael Phelps winning a record 8 gold medals, (I was jumping up and down in my living room several times during the swimming competitions! Talk about close!) Nastia Liukin winning the all around gold, the women's volleyball team winning the gold medal and a record 108 matches, the Men's basketball team or the "redeem team" so they called it, Dara Torres competing at her age and still winning silver while showing superb sportsmanship to her competitor who had a torn swimsuit, Shawn Johnson FINALLY getting that gold medal after coming in second so many times.... There were some disappointments as well.... Track and Field not even qualifying for the finals of the relay, the one gymnast that kept missing her routines and probably cost us the gold, some of our swimmers not even making the finals, the Chinese track star plagued with an injury and feeling as though he had let down a nation, etc. I love hearing the individual stories of the athletes, their trials, heartache, and hard work. Through adversity and perseverance, the amazing feats they are able to accomplish. I love the Olympic spirit.
This has been a week filled with many ups and downs. On one hand the kids have started school, I've started back into scouts, work is picking up for Jonas, and our family has gotten into their everyday routines. Life is good. Then we get some bad news. One of our dearest friends and a coworker of my husband was diagnosed this week with terminal brain cancer. He has a wife and three children. I was sick when my husband told me. How can someone seemingly be so healthy and have a hidden germ inside them? He had a surgery on Friday to remove the tumor. He is doing remarkably well, but is obviously not the same. He is good man and one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. For example: His wife was telling me that they would be eating at a restaurant and see an elderly couple eating. He would ask their server for their ticket and pay for their meal. He would then tell them on their way out... "I don't get to take my grandparents out to lunch anymore, so I'd like to take you out to lunch instead!" Those random acts of kindness were just normal for our friend. Now begins a long road of healing and rehabilitation. The doctors gave him two years. I think of the Olympians preparing for a meet or a gold medal game, etc. How many times does the underdog win? I think of the Men's swimming relay. They weren't favored for gold, just when it looked like they were going to lose the race, they came back fighting, using their last boost of energy and ended up winning. Attitude is important. Doctors can say what they "think" a man's time left on earth is. Do they really know? I believe it's all according to someones determination, will , and desire. Will he win the race? Only time will tell. I do know one thing for sure... if we could all be a little more charitable, a little more kind, putting ourselves in the service of others, working hard, and determined to do what is good..... I believe we will be at the top of the podium one day. May a little bit of the Olympic spirit burn inside all of us.

Back to School

Today was the first day of school. I remember when we used to start the day after Labor day. They start earlier and earlier every year. It was time though. My boys were beginning to be couch potatoes. Honestly, if I had to watch one more episode of Sponge Bob, I think I'd have to do something drastic. We went out on tax free weekend and bought all of the necessities. They got new clothes, new shoes, and all of their supplies. I am beginning to think that the August school preparations are worse than Christmas. It is so expensive. Last night as we put them to bed, they were excited to wake up, meet their new teacher and see their friends. They even woke up EARLY! I give that, oh, about a week. Then I'll be dragging them out of bed and the whining and complaining will begin! I took their pictures before they left. Jeremiah got his taken at his desk. Jonas, being a 4th grader, was too embarrassed. Sigh. I just can't believe I have a 4th grader, a first grader and a preschooler. Time really does fly. It didn't seem like that when I was growing up. I picked them up and both said they had a great day! They liked their teachers and are anxious to go back tomorrow. Jeremiah told me about the fun things in his classroom and Jonas told me that the best part of his day was at recess when he just "talked" to all of his friends. He said they just walked and walked around the track and said what they had been doing all summer. I hope they keep good friends. I recently got reacquainted with an old friend from elementary school thanks to Facebook. We hadn't seen or heard from each other in about 18 years. Isn't that crazy? She has a husband, a daughter and is a journalist. It's been fun to reconnect with her and it has brought back many memories of my school days. I remember a lot about 1st grade and even more about 4th. It's funny to think I have kids that age now and they will one day be looking back on their school days as I am. I hope they continue to make many good choices and in turn have many good memories.

Louisville Trip

Hello! Sorry for the blogging drought. No excuse really, just enjoying our last few days of Summer vacation. It's hard to believe we only have two weeks left. We decided to take one last little trip before school starts. We've been keeping busy by going to the pool, library, park, etc. We decided to go away for the weekend and it worked our perfectly. It was a whirlwind trip, but way worth it. The kids had a blast, we got to see a new city, hang out with a good friend, and watch some baseball! We went to Louisville, KY where our friend Adam plays for the Louisville Bats. They are a AAA affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds. He gave us the grand tour of their clubhouse, where the kids got to try on his Jersey and eat some of the candy they have there for the players. How cool is that? Then we got to PLAY of the field! Even me! Hey... I'm terrible, but at least I have fun. The boys were ecstatic having played little league this year and then getting to run the bases and have a "REAL" baseball player play catch with them. My husband even hit one out of the park... :) How impressive! We got to go to the Louisville Slugger museum as well. That's where I got my picture taken with Cal! Guess who else was there? AMERICAN IDOL! They were filming there already for next season. Louisville was their first stop for auditions. Sad to say this.... I'm too old to try out. Sigh. They need an old person idol, I suppose. I kept waiting to see Ryan Seacrest, but nope, never did. Oh well. Anyways, we saw three games while we were there. Adam played great and got lots of hits. It's fun for our family to have someone to cheer for. We pulled in about 2 am on Monday morning. We were worn out and exhausted, but we all came home with a lot of memories. It's really fun to visit a different city. In fact, we think we might just pick one to visit every summer. The boys are growing up so fast, and it is great to be able to have these memories to look back on. Thanks for reading.

Baking a cake with Mom

Jeremiah always wants to help me when I cook. Today I was baking a cake to bring to a friend who just had surgery. He helped break the eggs, pour in the oil, etc. We scraped the bowl and put it into the oven to bake. I always let whoever helps me lick the spatula afterwards. Apparently it wasn't enough.... I left the room for a moment and when I came back in I found this: Jeremiah with his head stuck in the bowl! Jonas ran and got the camera. We both decided this was a picture!

We're off to take a little road trip/ mini vacation before school starts. We're going to Louisville, KY to watch a friend of ours play baseball. We're all looking forward to a weekend getaway! I'll be back soon with an update of our trip!

Cole's Birthday

Today was Cole's birthday. I can't believe how the time flies. That's so Cliche', but it's so true. It's hard to believe that four years ago he was creating such havoc on a household. Really... He was the one that had colic. Just writing about this makes me cringe. He used to cry every night. It would start about 7 and go til midnight. Nothing could console him. We tried everything! Mylicon drops, the vacuum, bouncing him, taking him places, rubbing his tummy, etc. He would cry... I would cry.... everyone would cry! I didn't think he'd ever outgrow it, but he did... finally! One day it just stopped! Now he's 4. He got a "big boy" bike for his birthday. He was so excited! He LOVES the movie "Cars," so he got some of those too. He wanted to go to Chuckee Cheese for his party, so we did. I just love shelling out 50 bucks for a ten cent toy at the end and eating cardboard pizza. Gotta love it! :) It was fun though and he had a great time. He woke up this morning and said..."Mom, is it my birthday today?" "Why am I not any bigger?" I think he thought he was miraculously going to wake up this morning and be "big" like his brothers! Four is going to be fun! Happy Birthday Cole!

Splish! Splash!

We've been taking advantage of good friends that have pools this summer! They've been nice enough to let us bring the boys swimming whenever we want. We're really lucky! Here are a few pictures of them being fish. Gotta love the goggles! :)

TIMBER!

Jonas went to his electricians house to help him clear a tree that had fallen down on his property last week. It got hit by lightening and made huge mess of his yard. We went to lunch with them on Saturday and they were telling us what had happened. Jonas offered to bring his chainsaw and help him. It turned out to be a bigger job than he anticipated. It was a red Oak that was estimated to about 125 years old. While they were clearing, another part of the tree fell. Luckily no one was under it at the time. In fact Jonas had just sent someone to the shed for a rake! They ended up recruiting some more people to help... as it was now blocking the driveway. They got it done before another summer storm blew through. They were grateful for his help. Everyone was exhausted after a hard afternoon of work. Guess what was greeting up when we got home??? Yep, seems a new set of storms hit us. Now in our back yard is a huge limb that fell from our great big oak tree. Guess what my husband will be doing next weekend with the help of his friend? You guessed it!