5th Grade Campout

At our school and many other public schools in our area the 5th graders go to camp for several days during the school week. It is time away from school but, there is plenty of school work done over the three days. The 5th grade teachers and several parent volunteers accompany the kids on their adventure. Having a boy and a newborn...Bo seemed like the logical volunteer from our family. And the small detail that I am not really a big camper! Anyway, of course Bo was happy to go and Hunter was thrilled to have him along. So, Bo was grouped with 12 5th grade boys and one additional Dad.
They set out last Monday at the crack of dawn. Bo had to arrive early in the morning to unload the students cars and to organize their gear! Hunter was very excited. Some of you may know that I design and create the yearbook for the school and so I get the priveledge of poking around school to take pictures. I arrived a bit later and the kids were bouncing off the walls. The parents were being worked hard as they unpacked all the kid's cars and then loaded all the bags into a big truck that would transport their stuff to camp. The boys were assigned a cabin by the name of Coreopsis...we would learn that this was the name of a wild flower. News to us!!!! Anyway, the camp counselors (Bo) were responsible for getting some kind of coordinating item (that means..Me) for the boys in his group. I decided on a knit ski beanie hat and had "C Boys" embroidered on it. They were in Brinker Blue and turned out really cute! They also had to make up a skit or chant to perform on their last night. We came up with a fun song to the tune of the Cadence Army chant.
It went like this:

I don't know what you thinks cool
We like Camp better than school.
Cabins are small, food ain't the best
Best thing is we don't have a test.
Sound off: C Boys, Sound off C Boys,
C Boys
I don't know what you've been told
C Boys like to rock and roll
Lights out at ten they say
What's wrong with them, we could party all day
Sound off: C Boys
Open up the barnyard kick out the hay
We are the C boys of the USA

Pretty cute huh? Bo said the boys all wore their hats and came out dancing like the football team in the movie Remeber The Titans. Wish I could have seen it! Instead I have to settle for pictures!

Wednesday came around and it was time for the boys to come home. We piled in the car to meet the buses at school. It was so neat to see the boys pile off the bus and watch them meet their parents. For some this had been the first time they had ever been away from their parents. It was also neat to watch the bonds that had been forged between the kids over the Camp. Some of them were great friends before they left and others became that way from the days spent together. I had one of the boys in Bo's group come up to me on Friday when I was at the school photographing another event for the yearbook....and he said..."ya know Mrs. Feagin...your husband is so much fun...and funnnnnny".....it made me proud. Not that I don't know Bo's funny but, this child is sometimes viewed as difficult, disrespectful and troubled....not on this camp out. Bo had no problems at all....Bo had reached him...and that made me proud. This boy had a great time on the Camp and stayed out of trouble for three solid days! That was a result of Bo's leadership....that made me proud too.And then of course the memories Hunter will have of his Dad sharing this with him and his classmates.
You know I think we tend to forget that every kid doesn't have parents who attend, photograph and volunteer for everything in their lives...like we do...joyfully, anxiously and full of pride. But, you know what....this child has memories of a wonderful 5th grade camp and that is because of Bo...one day he will talk about this year and about Hunter's Dad...and how he made a difference....how awesome is that? Our children will be better children...better parents....because we did this...and I hope that Boy will too...just from having spend a few days with Bo. Ahhh, things like that warm the soul! I love it!
I can't believe that Hunter is in 5th grade and on his way out of our cozy little elementary school that I know like the back of my hand. I don't look forward to not being able to peek in on him. Just another part of that whole stinkin' thing they call growin up I suppose......
Love to all,
J

Time is not flying.....but, I can't believe that she is 3 months old.

Our little baby Halle turned 12 weeks old last Saturday! I can hardly believe it! When you have babies with colic...12 weeks is the ribbon at the end of the finish line. It's the big milestone of survival....however, not for us this time. After weeks and weeks of attempting to solve the tummy battles...her Dr. informed me that she is really only 5 weeks old because she was 7 weeks early. And you know...that Dr. is lucky I didn't knock her out! Why was that necessary to tell me??? I have changed formulas several times, tried the gas drops, the ALL natural gas drops, homeopathic gas tablets, and then we moved to the prescription meds. The Dr. offered me three different meds...normally I think I would have started at the low end of the totem pole but, we were up to holding her for about 14 hours a day now...and so I went for the Prevacid....I could barely get to the pharmacy fast enough to fill the script. And all I kept hearing in my head was the Dr.'s voice saying...."you just won't believe how much relief this medicine will give her....and you"! So, Bo headed to the pharmacy to pick up the miracle drug....a few minutes later my phone rang only to hear Bo on the other end arguing with the pharmacist in the drive thru....and requesting generic prevacid...to which there is none, then he asked her to double check again....annoyed...I finally asked what was going on....he shouted over the phone...."did you have any idea that this medicine was $250 dollars....did you"? Then I hear the pharmacist tell him that this was only a 15 day supply...I thought he was going to come through the phone....I was shocked a bit...but, told him to just pay the lady and bring the "gold" in pill form home to our screaming child!!!! All I could imagine was driving without screaming, dinner without screaming, homework without screaming...and being able to potty and type and a whole list of other things without holding her or using one hand! GET HOME...I said!
So, he paid and came home with the medicine....he had to leave almost immediately for a business function but, called me a few minutes later. Well, he said...have you given it to her....what is she doing"? I had just put it in her mouth..."at the moment she is just looking at me, I reported.....Then in Bo fashion...he said well, for that amount of money...the girl better be walking and talking by the time I get home....and informed that regardless of how miraculous the drug was...she would not be getting another $250 supply! About 5 minutes later she started screaming again and it would become obvious to us ....the money would have been better spent on those plum colored Uggs I had been eyeing. In short...it didn't work....and neither does anything else. The one sure fire thing that worked with Hunter was putting him on the washing machine....imagine how upset I was when I loaded Halle up in her carseat to take a ride on the washer...only to realize...we had upgraded to the new and wonderfully quiet and still HE washer.........ughhh!!!!!!
So, here we are....switching to soy has helped and Halle now smiles and coos at me just when I think I cannot take another moment. And when she does....my heart melts!
One silver lining in this is it has been very interesting watching the reaction of the other children to her constant discomfort and loud crying. I will notice that they all move in to help her find her pappy or are very willing to take turns rocking her carseat when I need to get something done! None of them complain and they all love her tremendously! So much so...they would "really like to have just ONE more......!!! Yikes!!!!
We will forge on for a few more weeks and hope that there is light at the end of our tunnel...but, even still....she is precious and her little giggle can wipe out the hours and hours of tireless crying!
Babies are an amazing miracle....and our newest little one is no exception!



Love to all,
J

Hallowen 2009

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Another great Halloween! Our little Bo Peep, Michael Jackson, Batman, and Sumo Wrestler looked pretty darn cute! Faith was a little irked that we were not willing to invest in the $400 sheep that she saw in the catalog with the little girl modeling her costume but, she got over it. She had the idea all on her own that our dog Mattie would do as her sheep. I thought it was a great idea until we saw how excited our 60lb dog was to see the tables of food and a hundred kids running around. So, she had to go on without her sheep!Little Halle wasn't much up for a costume...her bad tummy leaves her a little out of sorts and she hates having her clothes changed. So I settled for her wearing her candy corn bow!!!
We had our usual block party, had good food, desserts and the kids ran around and played. Once it got dark the families huddled together and everyone set out to trick or treat! My kids were ready to go, especially Faith. We thought she would never tire....and the only reason we got her in was because she ran into a girlfriend, Reagan and the girls decided that they would rather have a playdate than trick or treat. So, they headed in the house to break out the babies and the doll strollers.

The boys trucked on and on. Hunter came home after a while to head to a Halloween party of another 5th grader. You know...this grownin up thing stinks. Didn't care much to share Hunter on Halloween night but, compared to some of my neighbors whose boys spent the whole night with friends...I counted my blessings. Hunter still loves to be with and around us....and I love that.

Another year of good company, the realization of how blessed we are by our awesome neighbors and friends.....but, most of all....our children.

Hope you all had a great Halloween!

Love to all,
J

Stay Tuned....

Due to a high volume of crying....I have barely had time to even look at my Halloween pictures must less post them and recall the memory of the night! But, they will be up tomorrow! I promise! Poor little Halle....horrible stomach and NOTHING works!

Love to all,
J

Check this out!!!

A friend emailed this link to to Bo today. The first photo is of our boys at the game taken by press. Even though the game wasn't televised...they still got the coverage!!! Pretty cool!

www.spotted.lubbockonline.com





Love to all,
~J

PS...Happy Birthday Bo!!! xoxo

Memories that last a lifetime............

You may or may not know that Bo went to Texas Tech and is darn proud of it! He has carefully
encouraged our children to be Red Raider fans and now they are full blown fanatics!!! I used to try and throw in a ..."let's hear it for the SFA Lumberjacks", and they just stare at me with open mouths!!! So...I decided to just switch and join the Raider side!!! Last year Bo took Hunter and Chandler on their first "boys weekend" and went to Lubbock to their first Tech game. It was a little slice of heaven for the boys and they have talked about it daily since they returned. Well, needless to say they were thrilled when Bo came home a couple months ago and announced that the tradition would continue. They were going to the Tech vs. A&M game! They got the RV last Friday and the boys loaded up...this time Weston would join them. We were a little nervous about sending Weston and wondered if he was old enough to handle all the activities but..we decided to give it a go! The boys were busting at the seams to get on the road...to begin their magical weekend with Dad! Hunter and Chandler had shared so many memories with Weston and they were so excited that he was coming along.
We only had one hitch in the plans...that was ...Faith was a little miffed that "Dad didn't ask me if I wanted to go! I want to go to the football game." It didn't matter which way I tried to spin how fun the girl's weekend would be....she wanted a ticket to that game.
The boys headed out to a friend's house in Dimmit, Texas...where they would hook up and stay the night. They love going to Mr. Bradford's house! Sorry, Sally...as good as you are to them...it is known as Mr. Bradford's house. They love the pool, the trampoline (without the net...they always need to throw that in)...the HUGE front yard that is THE BEST yard to play football. I happen to be on the phone when they pulled up to the house and could hear the ewwing and ahhhing on the phone! Then Chandler said "AWESOME" ....Mr. Bradford had adorned his roof with a huge Texas Tech sign in Christmas lights!!!


If you follow the Raiders you already know that they played a horrible game and lost to A&M for the first time in double digit years...but, you would not have known from talking to the boys. The fact that they stunk was a side note to the amazing time that had in Lubbock...once again!



The next day they started making their way back but, made a stop to tour Mr. Bradford's Cotton Gin. The boys loved this and brought home bags of cotton.

Last night when they arrived home...we all sat down to dinner and the boys exchanged stories of their weekend. They were beaming!!! Tech Football,tailgating before the game and RVing with their Dad ...what a weekend!


I have to admit that I am a little jealous of Bo...I don't know if he realizes how much the boys relish in their time with him on these weekends and how I know that they will remember every detail for the rest of their lives. How proud they are that their Dad went to college at Tech and how much they love sitting next to him in that stadium. I also wonder if the boys know that I think their Dad is just as or more proud to be sitting next to them. It's an awesome thing they have between them.
Even though I am jealous...I feel so blessed that our children have a Father that loves them enough to make these memories that will last a lifetime.

Faith and Halle did enjoy their souvenirs!!! Well, Faith more than Halle...


Love to all,
~J
GO RED RAIDERS!!!!

Those Darn Pigs.....

Wonder where I've been?? We have been down for the count...with swine flu. Last Sunday morning Hunter woke up at 3:45am with a fever and a sore throat. I took care of him, gave him some motrin to make him comfortable and quarantined him into the playroom! Immediately packed a bag of Halle's things, texted my Mom and let her know that we were on our way. I dropped Halle off in the wee hours of the morning ...and as the tears flowed all the way home...I kept telling myself that it would only be a couple days. Boy, was I wrong!

I took Hunter in and he tested positive for the Flu A...which they assume is "swine flu"....and so the week began. He was confined to our playroom with a TV, playstation, cell phone and a nurse that visited every 30 minutes. Bringing the baby home was taking FOREVER and I missed her terribly. It took him a couple days to kick it and finally by the 4th day he was ready to come out of confinement...which worked out well....because Chandler came home from school not feeling well and after a round of lysol....Hunter was released and Chandler was admitted. That should give you an idea of how we got to Halle living at my Mom's for 6 long days. It was good that I was busy taking care of sick kids or else I would have gone crazy.

My Dad took pictures of my sweet Halle and I am not sure if it was good for me or bad. What I could see was that of course she was being loved every minute but, it broke my heart that she would become more alert, start to babble and sqwak while she was away from me. Not to mention that her sweet little face changed so much while she was gone.

Finally, it seems whatever gunk we had has made it's way through...I am just hopeful that we can keep the illness to a minimum this winter so...sweet Halle can stay with us......where she belongs!

Here are some recent photos....
Love to all,
J

What's been going on???

I know, I know....I have been slacking! Actually, I have been moderately busy...but, I got an email from Ashley yesterday pleading for new pictures. Things have not been too crazy, just constant...which is pretty much the way it was before the 5th baby. Let's see what all has been going on....September 10th....Weston turned 6! He skipped off to school to celebrate with his friends and his teacher. Bo and I went up and had lunch with him at school. He shared brownie treats with his class and all in all ....a great day. After school we had pizza and cake and ice cream. He got a couple presents...all skate boarding items which is all the rage around here. Last weekend he celebrated with his school friends at a place called Jump Town..which is all inflatable bounce houses in this giant building. I would say judging by the amount of sweat rolling off their heads...they had a great time. He had 26 kids there...mostly new friends he has made in Kindergarten and then Hunter and Chandler got to each bring a friend too. I love to watch my kids with their friends. I don't know if my kids are incredibly blessed by who their friends are...actually, I know that they are...but, the kids that come over here are so good with all our other children. They really and truly love them. Hunter has two twin boys he hangs around with and they put up with Faith tirelessly pulling at their shirts and saying "chase me...Jofus (Joseph, but we don't have the heart to correct her) and Michael"...She is forever planning where she is going to sleep among all these boys.....well, that part seems a little scary to Bo and I....which is why we lock her down in our bedroom whenever the boys have someone spend the night.
Anyway, Hunter and his friends tossed around these little 5 and 6 yr olds for two hours inside these bounce houses. The kids loved it and Weston seemed to feel 10 feet tall. That day...his big brother was the coolest!







Halle is doing great! She is still on her NICU schedule for feeding and is gaining weight like a champ. Bo stays up with her until her 11pm feeding and then I get up at 2 and 5am. It has worked out great. Like all of our babies she has a bad tummy and she has her fussy times of the day She had her bloodwork done on Wednesday and it came back that her anemia is almost cleared up. Her blood count was just below normal for someone her age. We are so thankful. Now if we can just keep her healthy through this scary flu season....I am a nervous wreck and I will be glad when it's over...
We are not quite sure who she looks like. As she gets chubbier cheeks and puts on a little weight...we think it changes week to week. We still think the strongest contender is Weston. We do know for sure that she has inherited my family's pasty white skin...poor thing! Anyway, see what you think!

Here are some photos of Halle taken yesterday!





Oh...and a picture of Faith and her babies! Too cute! We thought it would be best to equip Faith with her own babies and supplies...just to keep her busy!
You can hardly tell which one is the real thing!!!





Love to all,
J

Back to School

The boys are back in school full swing. Hunter was pretty fired up about 5th grade until he started getting an idea of how much homework he was going to have. Chandler is loving 3rd grade and Weston thinks Kindergarten is great! All the boys got great Teachers and the year has gotten off to a great start. I cannot believe that Weston is in Kindergarten and having three in elementary school ought to be interesting for me....oh, the paper piles I have to look forward to.....

Faith had her first day of preschool today and it was most definitely harder for Mom than it was for her. As she hopped out of my car in carpool and waved and blew me a kiss goodbye...I watched her for as long as I could...all the while tears streaming down my face. I was confused as to why I was even sending her to school....I love having her home with me. She is so easy, so wonderful and we have a great time together. Why was I doing this to us??? I decided that I was sure that she wouldn't make it through the day and when the teacher called to tell me that she had been crying all day...I would not send her back. I would save the money spent on tuition and she would stay at home with me. So, I dried my tears and went on with my day...never allowing my blackberry to get too far out of reach...so I would not miss their call. Finally at 1:15pm...so puzzled as to why I had not heard from them yet....I headed to the school parking lot and got in carpool line for 2pm dismissal. I stared at the door to the school for 45 mins waiting for her face to appear, finally she came practically skipping out the door. She climbed in the car talking a mile a minute about the "great day" she had and told me all the fun things she did. She loved her classroom, her lunch, the toys and the babies there, her snack, her teacher, the playground, the singing, the praying, she loved it all....except all the boys in her class. She said there were too many boys and she really wished there could be more girls.

So, I knew on the way home that she wouldn't be staying home with me and that she was ready....I just wasn't. I am still not and I guess that will take some time to get used to....letting them grow up is hard to do and I personally don't look forward to it at all.

Here are some school photos of the kids!





Love to all,
J