Vicksburg Military Park - Part 1

I've decided to break this into two parts because of the amount of pictures I have. Part 1 is Cadence, Part 2 is all the beautiful sculptures at the park.

We went to Vicksburg today to see the Military Park and to have a picnic. It was an absolutely gorgeous day, so we took the windows out of the Jeep, loaded up the cooler and headed out. We arrived about noon, and LOVED seeing all of the monuments. Even Cadence seemed to love it, but she got the most excited when she discovered that there were ladybugs EVERYWHERE! She kept trying to catch them, and loved when they would land on her. We stopped to eat at the picnic area at the U.S.S. Cairo, and I also taught her how to roll down hills. Two older ladies in a van stopped and watched me teaching her (yes, I actually rolled down the hill, too!), and Mike said they were smiling and laughing when they pulled off.

After our picnic we finished the driving tour, and headed back home about 2:30. It was absolutely beautiful, and it made me realize how seldom we do stuff like this. Note to self: go on more outings while she's still little!

With Daddy in front of the Illinois monument


In the tunnel at one of the battle sites


Coming out of the tunnel. The Confederate soldiers were stationed at the top of that hill.


At the U.S.S. Cairo


We found ladybugs!!


The flowers she picked. She was mad because Mike kept calling them weeds.


With one of the statues at the Wisconsin monument


Racing Mike up the hill at the Wisconsin monument


At one of the overlook spots at the cemetery


Standing by the Missouri monument. We both loved this one the most.


Asleep on the way home

It seems that she hates me now...

Well, today I had to be a mean mommy and call her bluff. It all started last night when I told her she needed to start picking up her toys because it was almost time for bed. She told me, “No. I don’t HAVE to pick up my toys!” to which I responded, “You’re right. You don’t. But if you don’t, I will. And if I do, they get taken away.” She got angry which led to her getting sent to bed early and all of the toys left out - including the new Princess Barbies she got for her birthday and the Barbie car - getting put away and out of reach.

When she woke up this morning she was cranky, and when she discovered her toys were picked up it only got worse. She argued about everything from getting dressed to who’s fault it was that her leggings were inside out (hers. I turned them right for her when I gave them to her.) She also asked me where her toys were (in a VERY snotty voice) and I told her I put them away because she didn’t pick them up last night. She got mad, stomped some, and told me, “I want my toys! Give them to me NOW!” Because of that, she won’t be getting them for a VERY long time, and because of the snotty attitude all morning, she didn’t get to go to school.

Now, for most children this would be awesome. But for some crazy reason, even though she can’t stop throwing tantrums at school, she loves it! The rule since the last round of parent teacher conferences was that if she couldn’t act like a big girl in the mornings before school and get dressed, she went to the babysitters. If she didn’t want to act like a big girl, she wasn’t going to be able to do big girl things. This morning I don’t think she actually thought I would take her to Terry’s, but I did.

She screamed and was angry the entire way there, tried to run back out the door, and then got all pitiful when I refused to take her with me. Terry said she’s been great all day (after she calmed down), so I’m hoping maybe this will make her think twice before throwing a tantrum in the mornings again.

Oh, and when I went to tell her teachers that she wouldn’t be there because of the fit this morning, I found out she punched a little boy in the stomach yesterday. Apparently he told her she was out during a game (which she was) and she didn’t want to hear that.

Why do 5 year olds have to be so impossible?

We partied hard all weekend!

Wow, what a weekend! On Friday we had a Halloween party at school, Saturday was a birthday party with my MIL then trick-or-treating that night, Sunday was a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese with my mom, and then today, since it's her actual birthday, we brought rice krispie treats to school. It's been a non-stop sugar rush, but it's been loads of fun!

The party at school went well, and she apologized to her friend that she hit the day before. The cupcakes were a huge success, they got to dress each other up as mummies, and a fun time was had by all!

On Saturday we met at Gym of Dreams in Brookhaven and had a party with Mike's side of the family. My inlaws were there, along with Jake's girlfriend, Jessie, and her two nieces, and Mike's uncle George and his wife Sarah, and their two foster kids were there as well. She had a pink pumpkin cake, all the kids dressed up, and they LOVED playing on all the equipment in the gym. I'm pretty sure her favorite gift was the set of princess Barbies - she's played with them nonstop since she opened them.

Saturday night we went trick-or-treating in Brookhaven, and I was reminded once again why I love being able to walk around my neighborhood instead of drive around the county! We had a lot of fun, though, and everyone was so glad to see her in her costume. My mother in law actually got dressed up as well, and looked better than she probably should as a hippie!

Sunday we went to Chuck E. Cheese in Hattiesburg with my mom, Sarah, Cecily, Benjy and met Jen, Jay, Aubbie, Breann and Josh there as well. It was SO much fun, and we ended up with a ton of tickets. The cake came out ok - we left it in the Jeep so it started melting. I wish I would have taken a picture of the back of it, because the rock was sliding back into the ocean! It was very cute, though, and Cadence loved it. She and Aubbie rode this rollercoaster ride over and over, and I was getting pretty good at the skee ball. I'm now excited to go back!

She looked so pretty today, and has been telling everyone she sees that it's her birthday and now she's FIVE!! And yesterday she was just 4, but now she's FIVE!!! She's so cute telling everyone, and told me last night that next she'll be 6, then 7, 8, 9, then TEN!! I told her we didn't need to talk about that right now, and 5 was plenty old for now.

It's birthday cake time again!

I can’t believe my baby is about to be 5. Monday is the big day, but on Sunday we’ll be having a mini party for her with my mom, and I’m making the cake. I’ve made all but her first birthday cake, which was made by Nana but designed by me. I think I’m actually starting to get pretty good, and thankfully have kept pictures of all of them. So now, a gallery of past cakes, and the inspiration for this year’s. I promise to post pictures of the finished cake after Sunday!

First Birthday - Luau theme, palm tree cake for adults with mini hula girls for the kids.


Second Birthday - JoJo’s Circus theme, and my first attempt at fondant




Third Birthday - Cinderella theme, and the most elaborate so far.




Forth Birthday - Princess theme with a crown cake and mini crown cakes for the kids to decorate.




Fifth Birthday - Ariel doll cake - This is the inspiration

The Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday I got to go with her class to the pumpkin patch. They took a class picture, then we loaded up on a hayride pulled by a tractor, saw tons of farm animals and Christmas trees (it's also a Christmas tree farm), then set off to find the perfect pumpkin. After picking out her pumpkin she played on the swings and ran through the maze, and then we headed back for "pumpkin juice" (pretty sure it was orange koolaid or gatorade) and trail mix. She seemed to have a blast, and I'm so glad the weather held out and I was able to go with her!

Oh, the week we've had!

Last Wednesday when I went to pick her up from carpool, I was told that her teacher, Mrs. Walker, needed to see me. When I stopped by, I was told that she’s been having a problem with Cadence having tantrums over very minor things, and that she had been in the office the last two days (and they weren’t there on Monday for Columbus Day.) Tuesday she was sent because she didn’t want to get in the circle to talk to the Spanish teacher, and then when she did, she sat with her back to the teacher and her arms crossed. Wednesday she was sent because she had a few tantrums throughout the day, and her teacher has now enacted a “zero tolerance” policy on tantrums - if she throws one, it’s straight to the office. I talked with her teacher and the preschool director that day, and we decided that if she has a tantrum, she goes straight to the office, and if she goes to the office she gets brought to me. If that happens, it’s straight home - no apologies, no negotiations, nothing. She loves school, so we’ve taken the approach that getting to go to big girl school is a privilege, and if she can’t act like a big girl she goes to the babysitter’s.

After our talks and laying down the rules, she was an angel on Thursday. Friday, however, was a different story. She had a mini tantrum over not getting the color pencil she wanted, but her teacher said she calmed down and got control very quickly so they didn’t send her to the office. When it was time to leave, they gave out the Cookie Award, and her best friend got it. That sent her into hysterics, but since it was carpool time, they didn’t send her to the office.

Now, about the Cookie Award. It’s a special thing they give to one student each week who has been helpful, cooperates and is overall a good citizen. Wee One hasn’t gotten it at all yet, because she’s done nothing but throw tantrums! There are only 9 kids in her class, and I found out from her teacher on Friday that it’s down to mine and one other kid to get it - and he’s a Japanese exchange student that speaks very little English. Mrs. Walker said that there’s no doubt in her mind that he will get it, but she’s not sure he’s really going to understand what it’s for or why he got it. So, it’s basically down to mine. And she’s been acting like a little toot and is running the risk of not getting it at all!! Her teacher says she won’t repeat any kids until everyone has gotten it, but with the way Cadence has been, we’re not sure when she’ll have a good enough week to get it.

Cadence and I both had another talk with Mrs. Walker on Friday, and she said that she REALLY wants Cadence to be the one to get it this week. So we made a sticker chart at home, and every day that she was good at school this past week, we’ve put a fairy princess sticker on it. The chart even says “No Tantrums!” and “No, No, No Ever Go To The Office!” (she picked the wording.) As of right now there are 4 stickers on it, and today is the big day. I also told her that if she comes home with the Cookie Award today, that I will buy her the new Princess Tiana Polly Pocket set she’s dying to have instead of making her wait to see if she gets it for her birthday. I’m curious to see if she has it today when I pick her up in about 45 minutes. Please, Please, Please let her have it!!

We’ve had some problems at home, though, during this. The kicker came Tuesday night when I told her to pick up her toys so we could get ready for bed. She told me no, so I told her she needed to pick them up, or I was going to (which means either put up for a REALLY long time, or thrown away.) She stood up, put her hands on her hips and said “I don’t know and I don’t care! How about that?” I almost slapped her at that point, but instead picked her up, gave her a spanking and put her straight to bed. I also told her that her toys were getting put up and she’d have to earn them back. She was FURIOUS with me, and cried (or rather, screamed) herself to sleep, but too bad so sad Princess. Wednesday night she did help out a lot around the house, and she cleaned the dining room, picked up her toys in the living room, helped me put up her clothes in her room and helped me set and clear the table. I gave her the toys back, but warned her that if she EVER talked to me like that again, they were going away and she wouldn’t get them back as easily next time. The child is going to drive me crazy!

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WE GOT IT!!! She was just a little excited when I picked her up!

A wonderful weekend

This weekend has been wonderful. Mike and I headed to Louisiana to spend the weekend alone and watch the LSU game. We got to Hammond about noon on Saturday, checked into the hotel, then headed to Baton Rouge to see a movie. We saw Zombieland, and it was amazing! Afterwards we found a place to watch the end of the Ole Miss game (poor team couldn't catch a break), and hung around to watch LSU and Florida. Unfortunately, the highlight of the night was the two guys at the table in front of us who couldn't hold on to their glasses. The Tigers played like a crappy high school team, so we left at halftime and headed back to Hammond.

After a great night's sleep in a massively huge bed, we ate breakfast at iHop and headed back to get Cadence. We got to see everyone at Mike's church since it was homecoming, and then headed home. I had homemade soup and cornbread for dinner (great since it was so cold outside), made cupcakes with Wee One, and then she READ A BOOK TO ME! Her teacher sent home a book for her to read, and then she has to draw a picture of her favorite part. She read it to me, answered the questions at the end, then read it to her daddy and answered his questions as well. It's hard to believe my baby is reading, and that was definitely the best part of the night. The weekend couldn't have ended any better!

I want to send lots of prayers and wishes to Kahla, and I can't wait to post that sweet Baby Emery is here safe and sound. She is supposed to be induced bright and early in the morning, so hopefully I'll have a new "niece" soon!

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Just an update to say that Baby Emery is HERE!!! She was born October 12 at 6:41 pm and is absolutely beautiful! Congratulations Kahla, Jeff and Big Brother Chase!!!