MALI TURNS 1

Time sure flies when you are having fun!!! Right? The past year has flown by and our baby girl is a big (haha) 1 year old!!! We were fortunate to have Grandma and Pa down here with us to help celebrate Mali's birthday. She had a princess cake because she is Princess Mal Mal!! We had her party on Monday night because the weather was bad and we werent able to work. Then on Weds night (her b-day) we went to Disney on Ice. She LOVED it!! Here are a few pics from both events. Thanks to Grandma she had a delicious fudge cake on her birthday too!!

Time to blog!!

Ok it has been over 3 months so I figured that its time for me to get on here and update and post some pictures. The kids started school in August. I cant believe it but Lexi is a Jr and Marlee is in 8th grade. John and I are getting old!! That means 2 in high school next year :( Makenna is in the 7th, Maleah in 4th and Michael in 1st. Our babies are growing up and growing up fast!!

Marlee and Makenna both made cheerleading!!! GO PANTHERS!!! They really do a good job and I am so proud of them :) Since this is the 1st time they have cheered I have to admit I was a little nervous about them trying out, but they did it and I knew they would!!

And Makenna has had her 12th birthday!! She is now in Young Womens. We had a little party with a few of her friends. The night of her birthday she went skating with some friends and Rachel came home with her and spent the night. She stayed here until late the next night. The two of them went out to dinner by themselves and had a great time!!

Mali's birthday is next week and we cant believe that she has been a blessing in our lives for a year already. She is growing and learning everyday and we cant imagine what our lives would be without her.

Where does the time go?! School is out!!! :) Marlee and Makenna both made the cheerleading team at their middle school, so they are officially cheerleaders for Cowan Road Middle School. I am so proud of both of them for working so hard at try-outs. They have practice every Tues and Thurs throughout the summer. Michael graduated from Kindergarten, without actually graduating. He was sick with a hot fever, ear infection and strep throat. Maleah, Mali and Lexi are all doing great as well. Daddy and Mama met John and I on the 18th in South Carolina and dropped Maleah, Michael and Mali off to visit for a while. Then on 24th, Jessica (she was in Atlanta for a Braves vs Yankees game) took Marlee and Makenna to the island too. So John and I have been alone for 5 days now :) We have really enjoyed being able to spend some time alone. Don't get me wrong, we MISS the kids terribly, but we have enjoyed our alone time. We have plans to drive up on the 3rd to spend the weekend and bring the kids back. Just to update anyone who reads this on how Mali is doing, she still hasnt grown much, she is now 8 months old and weighs just a little over 14 lbs. Back to John and I hanging out alone, we really have enjoyed being with eachother. We have kind of just lounged around, watched TV played eachother some Ms PacMan. We watched a really good movie, Fireproof. If you haven't seen it you need to.

Below is the lyrics to one of the songs in the movie.

Love is not a place to come and go as we please

It's a house we enter in then commit to never leave

So lock the door behind you Throw away the key

Work it out together Let it bring us to our knees

Love is a shelter in a raging storm

Love is peace in the middle of a war

And if we try to leave;

May God send angels to guard the door

No, Love is not a fight but its something worth fighting for

To some love is a word that they can fall into.

But when they're falling out keeping that word is hard to do

Love is a shelter in a raging storm

Love is peace in the middle of a war

And if we try to leave;

May God send angels to guard the door

No, Love is not a fight but its something worth fighting for

Love will come to save us

If we'll only call

He will ask nothing from us

but demand we give our all

Love is a shelter in a raging storm

Love is peace in the middle of a war

And if we try to leave;

May God send angels to guard the door

No, Love is not a fight but its something worth fighting for.

Cause I Will Fight For You

Would You Fight For Me

It's Worth Fighting For.

50 things about me :)

1. What color is your toothbrush?
pink
2. Name one person who made you smile today:
Mali, Maleah and Michael
3. What were you doing at 8 am this morning:
ironing Johns clothes
4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago?
calling dentists
5. What is your favorite candy bar?
Hersheys
6. Have you ever been to a strip club?
No
7. What is the last thing you said aloud?
shes a whiner!!!!
8. What is your favorite ice cream flavor?
chocolate
9. What was the last thing you had to drink?
Sprite
10. Do you like your wallet?
I guess...but its definately time for a new one
11. What was the last thing you ate?
a bite of Maleahs chocolate chip pop-tart
12. Have you bought any new clothing items this week?
sure have
13. The last sporting event you watched?
the NFL draft
14. What is your favorite flavor of popcorn?
popcorn from the movies with lots of butter
15. Who is the last person you sent a text message to?
Celeste
16. Ever go camping?
Yes, LOVE IT...... me John and all the kids with the exception of Mali, she wasnt here yet
17. Do you take vitamins daily?
no but I try to
18. Do you go to church every Sunday?
Yes, most of the time
19. Do you have a tan?
Yep when I get a chance
20. Do you prefer Chinese food over pizza?
Depends on who cooks it
21. Do you drink your soda with a straw?
only in a restaurant
22. What did your last text message say?
IDK John has my phone this morning
23. What are you doing tomorrow?
going to church
24? what happened to 24?

25. Look to your left, what do you see?
my kitchen
26. What color is your watch?
dont have one
27. What do you think of when you hear Australia?
I want to go there one day
28. What is your birthstone?
Opal
29. Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive thru?
hit the drive thru
30. What is your favorite number?
7
31. Who's the last person you talked to on the phone?
Andrew.....Answered Marlees phone and it was Rebeccas little brother
32. Any plans today?
help Liz move and take Maleah and Michael to the movies
33. How many states have you lived in?
3
34. Biggest annoyance right now?
Stupid People
35. Last song you listened to?
your mamas calling back..............Marlees ringtone for when I call
36. Can you say the alphabet backwards?
no
37. Do you have a maid service clean your house?
I wish
38. Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time?
my worn out Rainbows
39. Are you jealous of anyone?
nope
40. Is anyone jealous of you?
nope
41. Do you love anyone?
Lots of people
42. Do any of your friends have children?
Most of them
43. What do you usually do during the day?
work cook clean
44. Do you hate anyone that you know right now?
No
45. Do you use the word 'hello' daily?
everytime I answer the phone :)
46. What color is your car?
one is silver and one is grey
47. Do you like cats?
NO
48. Are you thinking about someone right now?
Yes
49. Have you ever been to Six Flags?
yes
50. How did you get your worst scar?
cut my finger on the church fence

What is that on my arm?

So I cooked a big pot of beef-a-roni tonight for dinner. I wanted a big glass of cold milk to go with it BUT when I went to the fridge and got it out, it was out of date!! To me there is nothing like a big glass of COLD milk with spaghetti!! Mali was in her bouncy seat on the kitchen table right in front of me eating her baby food (mac n cheese) . I was talking to my sister Mariah via SKYPE, while we were having dinner. As I was eating my dinner, something from Mali's way landed on my arm. I just wiped it off, as any mother would do and took another bite of my beef-a-roni. Then I looked up to give Mali another bite and her bottom end had EXPLODED all over her and her bouncy seat. THEN it hit me.............. it was flying Mali poo that had hit my arm!!! Mariah informed me that I probably shouldnt eat anymore from that plate, maybe I should fix me another!!! SO I gave Mali her bath and washed my hands and arm...... and fixed myself another plate :)

Where did February go?

Where did February go? I dont know BUT it went really fast. On February 20 my very young looking husband turnded the big 4-0 YES 40 years old!! I decorated his office all in black for the big event. The kids decorated the living and dining rooms. We grilled out that night, fun time for all. Our little Mal Mal as she is most oftened called is finally starting to grow!! She had her 4 month check-up last week, 19 weeks old, and she weighed 11 lbs and 9 oz. She is such a sweet and happy baby. (most of the time) Tonight Maleah was talking to her and she was laughing SO hard that it almost sounded like she was crying. This past Sunday, March 1st we went to church, late of course I think we got there around 10:30 and it starts at 10, around 11:30 the kids in the hall started getting really loud. To make a long story short.... it had started snowing and the kids were all in and out playing in the falling snow. It snowed until sometime very late that evening and the kids had a wonderful, very wet time playing in the snow. Monday was a SNOW DAY for us, I'm not sure how things are really done down here and if they will have to make it up or not. This weekend is a busy weekend down here. It is race weekend and we live about 5-10 mins from Atlanta Motor Speedway. We were hoping that Daddy and Mama would have been here this weekend so we could take Daddy to the race but had surgery yesterday and wont be able to come for a while. *we are praying for a speedy recovery* The above picture was taken a few weeks ago, while I was giving Mali her bath. This expressiong and sweet look is how she is most of the time. She has been such a blessing to us as are all the kids. We love our 5 girls and 1 little boy. ~Times are good and our home is filled with lots of laughter and love~

2009 is here!!

I cant believe another year is here already. And I cant believe my baby is already 3 months old as of this past Wednesday. I had her weighed that day and she now weighs 10# and 11 oz. She is such a little cutie!! The kids are really enjoying having another little one around. And she is such a sweet baby!! She really enjoys eating. Yes I feed her and she loves it. She usually doesnt get messy but I let her just so I could take some pictures of her messy!! She LOVES tapioca pudding and sweet potatoes!! (the orange face) Just to catch up a little bit since the last post...... Christmas came. What a wonderful time of year. Lexi came and stayed several days with us and I was actually able to get a pretty good picture of all of the kids together. AND it didnt take as many snaps as I thought that it would. It may not be the best but for a picture of 6 kids, I thought that I did a good job. We had a wonderful time together.

Then next was New Years Eve. Well the day before that I think it was we were eating dinner approximately at 9:00 pm. And it was so good. I had made beef tips over rice and I dont remember now what I fixed to go with that. ANYWAYS while we were eating Marlee ran outside to get something from one of her friends and when she came back in she said look who's here and when we looked....... it was Grandma and Pa!!!! They surprised us by coming down to see us. I had asked them to the day before, Daddy had a Dr.'s appointment in Durham and I tried talking them into coming but Mama said they couldnt they didnt have clothes or anything they would need with them. I didnt know but they were planning on coming here all along. So New Years Eve, me, Mama and the girls but a bunch of party food and partied all night!!! Mama laid on 1 couch and I laid on the other and both tried staying awake until the New Year came in. Other than that there isnt much going on. John and I are working really hard to build our business. We now OWN 14 machines and are hoping to increase our inventory to 20 very soon. As anyone knows........... good help is hard to find. We have several really good, hard working guys and gals right now. Hopefully there are a few of them that we can hold onto. The kids have a long weekend since it is MLK day on Monday! They have off for their winter break the middle of February. We may go to the Island for that week, but we have also talked about going to Myrtle Beach. Oh yeah John got me a new laptop for Christmas. It has a webcam and camera. This is just one of the many pictures that has been taken with it. We have really enjoyed talking to our family back in NC and being able to see eachother. We are very excited for this new year with our wonderful little family and teaching Mali so many new things. Love to everyone!!!