Sunday, baby, Sunday

Sunday was more than a crazy eventful day! First, todd had the boys help him set up our new
basketball goal...eh, help is a word to use loosely. They did help quite a bit...they helped hammer stuff, hold stuff, screw stuff and lose stuff! Well, maybe unintentionally, but there have been some missing parts and I no one seems to know where to find them...hmmmmm. 

After 3 hard days of work in the garage and outside, the goal is finally up and ready!  Way to go, boys!! She's a real beaut, ain't she, Clark!?

After the boys got to hammer and bang stuff out, we got a text from Steven that Bogie was in the hospital with contractions! 

We made it to her room around 4 and I forgot that kids other than the moms own cannot come in the birthing room. Todd took them to Nana and Poppa's and I thought I would be joining them in a little while. Little did I know, as the contractions got stronger and we helped Linds as much as we could through them, she began pushing around 5:15pm!  It was the scariest and strangest and most wonderful predicament I found myself in. Still in the room, I was feeding her ice chips and fanning her because she was so hot from doing the equivalent of 1,000 sit ups!

The crazy girl had no epidural but pushed on as hard as she could. Sloan L'uhverne Smith was born at 7:08pm. Mom, baby, and dad are all doing awesome and couldn't be happier. 

Movie dates

 Last (freezing) Saturday, Casey and I took our boys to the Avalon in Alpharetta to see the movie 'Home'. Casey hadn't been to an 'experience' movie theater and when she bought her and Grant's tickets, she was floored that it was so expensive. But, when we got in the theater and she reclined her chair, took off her shoes, and closed her eyes, she was in lala-land. Grant kept looking over at her saying 'tee-hee, my mom's asleep!'

We then braved the cold to go watch Keely's and Linde and Leah's soccer games. It was too cold to take pics but Keely played goalkeep and Linde and Leah smacked each other on the head for high fives. It was quite a sight to behold! Then, it was on to El Porton with the Goodloe's for dinner. This was the dining entertainment we didn't pay for...

Testing, strep 1, strep 2

This week Nolan has been feeling a bit crummy. Since we ran out of his allergy meds, I first figured that is what has been causing his tonsils to swell, feel lethargic, and sound like he was swallowing golf balls when he talked. Today, we got him an appt to see his pediatrician. After a quick swab of the throat and a spin in the infectious diseases merry-go-round, the nurse came back in and said, "yep, it's strep." She then asked me if I wanted Reed tested because he was in the room with us and just along for the ride. I said 'sure' thinking, eh, he'll be fine, he doesn't have a single symptom. Eh, I was wrong. Now they both are on meds and Nolan has been feeling pretty yucky since we got home. I'm glad we got him to the dr today and since he's 'contagious' he can't go to school tomorrow, and neither can Reed. Needless to say, their spring break starts tomorrow instead of necpxt Monday.  Does this look like the faces of two boys stricken with a highly infectious bacteria!?!

Laughs all around

Last Friday night, we joined our kinfolk from the motherland-the McIntyre's-at a comedy club in Buckhead. The boys have seen improv before, they just don't remember as it was a few years ago. Anyhow, this place is tee-nincey but holds about 50 people. It's called The Basement Theater and is literally in the basement of a building. Every Thursday and Friday  night they do PG rated improv specifically for families. The boys weren't getting the jokes at first but when they started the slapstick stuff and filling their mouths with marshmallows while trying to talk, they were rolling with laughter. This place is definitely on our list of places return in the future!

Then, Sunday, the boys were supposed to have a soccer game to make up for another rained out soccer game the week before. However, the rainout got rained out. Hmmmph. Oh well, Jammy and Grandy came for the day to hang out and the most fitting place we could think of to take the boys on a nasty, wet afternoon was Skyzone! They were ecstatic. We hit up the PGA store to kill some time and Reed has Greandy wear his leprechaun hat while he hit some balls. Best rainy Sunday we could have asked for!

Green with cuteness

As yesterday was the calling of the Irish to eat, drink, be merry and drink some more, we did a few of those things. Our resident leprechaun left the boys a little green to brighten their St. Patty's day blues. First, they got to wear 'cool' shirts that were green in place of their 'cute' collared shirts they normally wear on Tuesdays. Second, the mighty mini green fella left them fedora hats and themed socks adorned with shamrocks and shades of green from head to toe. Lastly, in their hats were limericks the leprechaun wrote so they knew he had been by...with a hat-load of bubble gum. When a friend of theirs at school told them that leprechauns weren't real, Nolan answered back, "yea they are, my mom would have never given us THAT much gum!!"  Happy St. Patty's Day to all!

Callaway, take me away

Last weekend while Todd was goofing off with his buddies, Pete and Charlie and the boys and I had an adventure of our own. We got a room to share at Callaway Gardens, hitched up our bicycles and picnic baskets, and set off for the first of many mother/son trips. Reed and Nolan were excited because they claimed to have never stayed at a hotel before...really? I guess there was one time in Asheville when they were much younger, but other than that, I believe they were right. Pete had Charlie brainwashed that staying in a Motel/Inn (where the door faces the road) is 'camping' and he can soak up all this kind of camping he wants! 

Our first objective was to ride our bikes into the gardens and catch the last Birds of Prey show at the Discovery center. Too bad no one told Charlie the ground was wet and slippery because the first hill he went down...he went down. His poor little body flopped onto the asphalt face first  as his bike skidded down and out to the side and Pete and I stopped dead in our tracks. He got up clutching his chin shouting, "it got the face, mom! It got the face!!!" Good thing for him, he had only a minor flesh wound to the chin and a slight bloody nose. Other than that, he was in ship shape! And, quite bravely, he got cleaned up and back up on his bike.

 We made it to the show just in time and were so happy we did! What an awesome show they put on. Falcons, owls, and hawks flew mere millimeters above our heads and had the whole crowd ducking for cover. It was so much fun, we went back for another show the next day!

Other than relaxing (as much as two moms can do with 3 hyperactive boys) we rode bikes, played tag anywhere there were 2 blades of grass put together, played on the beach in the lake, had a picnic, and overall had a swell time. This may become a yearly, if not monthly, thing for the Tuttle/McLure ladies and boys!

Dinner at the Inn and this was about as still as the boys sat all throughout the entire meal. 

Our cozy quaint quarters for the night. 

Reed too lazy to tie his own shoes. Oye, that kid. 

The McLure family acquired a new camera, her name is Mabelle, and Reed became quite the photographer of just about everything. 

Looking for 4-leaf clovers at the azalea overlook. 

Trying to photo bomb each other. 

Playing tag on this tiny patch of grass. 

Handsome spring devils

Spring pictures are in and survey says....Reed and Nolan are the most handsome boys in their grade! Ding, ding, ding, ding!!!

Oh, I wanna dance with somebody!

Last week, Arnold Mill Elem held their annual daddy/daughter and mother /son dance in the gym. They had a DJ, decorations immortilizing 'One Moment in Time', photo booth, and tons of kids running this way and that. The daughters that were there with their dads were clung to them like glue and had them dancing the night away. The boys, on the other hand, just found this as an excuse to act like maniacs with their friends and run around the gym. I couldn't get R &N to step on the dance floor anywhere near me! Casey and I sat on the bleachers on the side of the gym looking like the poor pathetic saps that didn't get chosen to dance in the 50's, just waiting for Mr. Right to come along and sling us to and fro  and dip us here and there.  They all really ended up having fun and it was cute to have this little event with my little men. 

Sope creek, more like NOPE creek

Last weekend the sun was shining, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the temps were in the mid 60's. Perfect day for a hike and picnic, right? Well, for the first part of the hike and picnic, yes, it was lovely and we couldn't have wished for better conditions. However, having a picnic... on the river... in March...with a dog can, at times, become challenging. All Polly wanted to do was try and steal our food and then splash around in the cooooooollllldddd water. The boys loved hopping from rock to rock, until Reed hit a slick spot and fell in. Ouch! Cold, wet shorts, socks and shoes are no good for a few mile hike! Needless to say, he wasn't happy but in his true trooper spirits, he finished the hike squeaking all the way back to the car. It was a nice hike, for the most part, but a really crowded one as well.  Check Nope Creek off on the bucket list!

Seuss week

This week week is Dr.Suess' birthday at school and every day was 'crazy' something or another. Monday was pjs day, Tuesday was crazy sock day, Wednesday was crazy hair, today is hat day and tomorrow they're supposed to dress up like their favorite Dr. Seuss character. Since I forgot to take pics of their pjs, socks, and hats, please enjoy the crazy hair pictures I remembered to take yesterday. 

Outings abound

The boys have been to school 1 out of the past 10 weekdays. Now, they did have a scheduled week off for pre-spring-post-winter break and had tons of fun all week. But because of the 'unfavorable weather conditions' of the better part of last week, there was 20% attendance...Monday only. Since Friday was their last and final 'snow' day, we turned in a couple of vouchers Santa brought them and went to the Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville. This place is so cool and we could have spent 3 more days there playing with all of the gadgets and gizmos. 

Their most favorite part was sifting through the sand and water to find and identify gems and stones of all shapes and colors. Then, it was off to uncover dinosaur bones, shark teeth, and Reed's favorite stingray dental plates. (I think he was just so proud that he found one and identified it properly so he said it was his favorite. Not too sure he knows what it is, but he's confident!)

Later, we went into the planetarium where the host showed us the winter's night sky and what constellations we could find if we were able to get away from all the city light pollution. The boys thought this was extra cool but kept pointing out Cannes Major (big dog) and calling it a cat. Well, maybe they won't speak Latin, but that language is dead anyways, right!??

After the museum we went to a late lunch and then to the Academy to spend the gift cards Nana and Poppa gave them for Xmas. Thankfully, Todd found the one that was missing in his car so the boys had a good bit of moolah to spend. They both bought basketball shoes (just in time for, wait, basketball is over and they didn't even play this season), a shirt and Nolan had money left over for another shirt and backpack. They were quite proud of their purchases. I was just proud of them for not breaking anything in the store. It's the little feats!

Saturday, they wanted to get out some energy so we did just that in a 3.1 mile hike/walk/jog around the Roswell Park. There's always time to sit and enjoy the scenery on a park swing and this is the lake Polly went in, head-first, to chase some geese. Good thing she is up to date on all of her shots. I've seen 3-headed turtles crawl out of this mukety muck!

Lastly, Sunday the boys said they wanted to go ice skating. Since it was a bit of a crummy day, I ablidged and while Todd went and got himself a cool new phone, we went to the Cooler. Yes, it's really called The Cooler!  I have taken the boys ice skating before and I got more of a workout holding them up in the past. But, this time they did great all by themselves and the place was pretty crowded. We skated for close to two hours before they said their legs were tired and they were ready to go. Then, it was off to Nana's for dinner!