The 3's of Me

Abby Woodham Presley, the maiden name thrown in so everyone who doesn't know the married name understands who i am talking about, has tagged me in her blog. Tagged me to participate in what i imagine is the modern day adult version of a chain letter. I will oblige because my husband is not working which mean i am in a good mood and i have extra hands to referee the kids while i do this. Maybe you will learn something about me you didn't already know.

The 3's of Me

Three Names I go by:
1. Whitney
2. Mommy
3. Sister (only by my Dad, strange isn't it? Eric and i also call Ella "sister" so i must like it)

Three Jobs I have had in my life:
1. Peach Park ice cream girl and Durbin's fruit stand (who in Chilton County didn't sell peaches or peach ice cream. I also dislike peaches, peach pies, peach cobbler and peach ice cream. My form of rebellion.)
2. Waitress (only briefly at Red's BBQ)
3. Barclay Insurance ( This was a full time job even though i don't remember my title. Not sure i had one. I was that low in the totem pole. This job was taken because my parents told me to work when i didn't know what i wanted to go to college for. Best advice EVER.)

Three places I have lived:
1. Naples, Florida
2. Meridian, Idaho (suburb of Boise)
3. Statesville, North Carolina ( i could have continued on about another 5)

Three Favorite Drinks:
1. Sweet Tea
2. Dr. Pepper
3. Cherry Sprite ( Yes, this is a cherry limeaid with no lime.)

Three TV shows I watch
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. Private Practice
3. Fox News and Disney ( Usually what is on with the kids and Eric)

Three Places I've been
1. Jamaica
2. Canada (who in my family hasn't?)
3. New York City

Three of my Favorite Foods
1. Oysters
2. Mexican food
3. Fried rice

Three Cars I have owned
1. 1985 BMW ( i threw in the year so you didn't think my parents spoiled me. Dad told me at least i would be the only one at college with an antique.)
2. Ford Explorer
3. Nissan Maxima ( funnest car EVER! i am sure you all can tell i can't squeeze all of my kids into any of these cars so now we roll in Tyeisha Sparkles)

Three things I hate doing
1. Exercise
2. Cleaning house (this does include laundry.)
3. Wiping butts when the kids are potty training

Three places to find me on the weekend:
1. At home
2. Target
3. The beach

Three movies I have seen in the theaters recently:
1. The Blindside
2. Alvin and the Chipmunks The Squeakeal
3. G Force

Three places I would like to visit
1. Italy
2. Fiji or Bora Bora ( Not going to be picky about that one)
3. The Greek Isles

Three people I tag to complete the 3's of me:

I can't possible name three people to complete this and here are my 3 reasons:

1. I don't even know who reads my blog and has a blog themselves.

2. The ones i do know have already done this (Abby) or are blog slackers on her family blog (Mari) so i only have hope for Leslie and i am sure she has done this at some point.

3. I don't want anyone to feel like i have called them out to do something (Thanks for putting me on the spot Abby! HA!) If you have a blog participate. I enjoyed taking time out to do this. Thanks again Abby.

Ella is Student of the Month

Today was the Student of the Month luncheon. We picked up a special lunch to take and share with Ella. She chose McDonalds. I added a milkshake to make it special. We had a great lunch and then the principal, Mrs. Schneider started handing out the awards. We are not sure how the children were chosen but there were a some from each grade. There were about 8 or 10 students from pre-k through 2nd grade in our luncheon. We are guessing there were categories because Ella's Certificate says she was "recognized for outstanding achievement in respect".

Phillip (yes the kid that was in my field trip group that vomited) sat with us because his mom wasn't there. Ella and he talked and then Ella's name was called. A parent was supposed to walk down with the kids to receive the parent's award. I let Eric take the credit.

John wanted to go to. Note the Principal says " a future student practicing". If she only knew John. That might be his only walk for a Student of the Month award. HA! :) Enjoy the video.

Field trip

Friday i chaperoned Ella's field trip to the zoo. I was not looking forward to riding a charter bus full of kindergartners for an hour. Melissa was here so i had a sitter and felt like i should be an active parent. *pat on my back* Anyway, when i arrive i find that the chaperoning i had in my head and their chaperoning were different. I thought we would all walk together and i would simple make sure all the kids stayed together. Like herding cattle. Well, turns out they gave me three kids and when we got off the bus they were mine. All bathroom breaks, lunch, what exhibits, gift shop, etc. were all left up to me. All i had to do was show up for the train ride at 12 and the bus at 1:30. Other than that they didn't care as long as i still had all three kids. At least this was easier than my normal four. Ella puts on her field trip t-shirt and i began reading all my rules the zoo had. My second little girl shows up, Brianna. Still waiting on Phillip. I continue reading.....BLAHH UGHHHH BLAHHHH, SPLAT cough cough, SPLAT. Phillip was here...and sick. He was sent to the clinic and i only had the two girls for the day. After the drive (trust me you want me to skip the drive) the girls and i headed towards the Cheetah and Giraffe's. We were conquering the zoo methodically. We saw everything.

Ella petted the giraffe,

deer,

armadillo,

Alpaca,

and emu,

and then we fed the birds.

Saw the alligators and crocodiles, monkeys, more birds, took a train ride,

had lunch and headed home. After a little gift story shopping, of course.

The girls were great and i liked being able to do our own thing. Long ride home but Melissa and the boys were waiting on us when we got back.

Disney Pictures Day 3

I know i already detailed our crowded day at the Animal Kingdom and our trip home so i will get straight to the pictures.

Disney Pictures Day 2

The Magic Kingdom.....it was magic. HA! We pulled into the parking lot (after many detours), rode the tram, then the monorail, and finally arrived at the gates. It was a beautiful day so we started walking. We go to the kids areas of the park first because we were sure they would get the busiest. We spot the sword in the stone. Could we get the sword out of the stone? Jack tried, John tried, then Ella gave it a a pull and up came the sword. Judging by the look on her face i think she thought she broke it. HA! On to Peter Pan. Eric had to ride It's a Small World. Not sure who loved it more Eric or the kids. More walking. More standing in line and waiting. Eric and Melissa took Ella and Jack on Splash Mountain and then Melissa and I took Ella Jack and John on their first roller coaster. Eric took Ben for a walk so he could nap and we met him in line to see Trigger and Pooh. We took in a few shows and then Eric took John and Ben back to the hotel for a rest while Melissa and i took Ella and Jack on some more rides. We all had dinner and met back up for the parade and fireworks. Between the time change and the busy day, the 10 o'clock fireworks were killing us. Everyone saw them except Jack. He is sure it was thunder. HA!

Disney Pictures Day 1

Here are a few of our favorite pictures from day 1. We saw the Muppets in 3D, the Extreme Car Stunt show, Disney Playhouse, and The Little Mermaid. We took a ride through the movies on The Great Movie Ride, We attempted to ride the Toy Story but it was experiencing technical difficulties so i was glad that we weren't on it when they figured that out. Eric and Melissa took on the Tower of Terror. I wasn't up for the free fall and i was very grateful that they both kept their dinners down. The kids saw lots of characters and even had their pictures taken with a few. It was nice having Melissa there to guide us to the high points like the Mickey Bars.

Another Exciting Week...

for Ella! Ella missed school on Monday for our last day of Disney and when she came home from school she had exciting news! She is a Glendale Gator Student of the Month! In part, the letter reads "Your child has been selected as Student of the Month for March due to the excellent qualities that he/she exhibited". They are having a luncheon on March 23rd so Eric and I are very proud of her...again. :)

She got her Spring photos back. This is a true "school" photo. Even though i had it written on the HUGE calendar on the wall, i was distracted by my Grandparents arrival and Ben's birthday, i forgot to make her picture pretty that day. So this is what she really looks like at school. HA!

We also got to pick up her glasses today. She was really excited. She likes to take them of, put them on, and clean them. We are working on putting them on and leaving them. She says they make everything look larger. Here is the winning pair (along with her special treats for getting student of the month).

Animal Kingdom

Yesterday we slept in a little, packed the car and traveled to the Animal Kingdom. This was our last stop on our Disney weekend. We planned for a few hours of uncrowded sightseeing and then home. WRONG! It turns out it was the local schools spring break as well as lots of schools and colleges from Alabama, Mississippi, Texas and a few other random states. I guess they thought it was a good day to visit the Animal Kingdom as well. Super crowded but we made the best of it. We saw maflingos (flamingos to the rest of us), gorillas, fish, lots of other birds, naked mole rats, a hippo, the Nemo musical, the 3-D Bugs Life show, the Lion King show, walked behind Mickey Mouse in the Safari Parade (totally an accident) and ended with some ice cream. It was a long day but fun. We arrived home about 8 after a LONG car ride home. I thought they would sleep the hour and a half but instead they screamed eeny meeny miny moe to determine who would play the computer first. John would land on himself and then Jack would take his turn and land on himself. You can see how they continued to go back an forth. It was as annoying as it sounds. Melissa was in the back, thank goodness. It was a great trip but so much to do in so little time. Can't wait. Another post with my favorite pictures coming up.

Magic Kingdom

Today was our full day. We knew we would have to get there early and we would be there until 9 for the fireworks. It was busy and judging from all the Alabama and Auburn attire a lot were from Alabama. Ella and Jack loved the rollercoasters. Eric rode Splash Mountain with them and then took John and Ben to the hotel for some rest and Melissa and I took Ella and Jack to some more rides. We all met back at the castle for the Spectromagic Parade and then the fireworks. It was a long day, the kids are exhausted and it was a blast. :) Tomorrow, animal kingdom and home!

Welcome to Disney

The rain cleared up and we headed for Disney this morning. We were a little behind schedule because Eric has been at work through the last two nights because of all the rain. It also didn't help we had to go by the hospital to drop off a camera and John's multiple vomiting spells all the way here. Luckly he was feeling much better when we arrived. We started with Disney's Hollywood Studio's. We rode some rides, saw some shows and walked A LOT! More pictures and details when we get home. Tomorrow, the Magic Kingdom. More dreams coming true. :)

Rain Delay

Slight rain delay for our Disney Trip. Maybe tomorrow all our dreams will come true at the most magical place on Earth.

Jeepers Creepers

Where'd you get those peepers? Today Ella and I had our eye appointments. I came out fairly well. Mild prescription and since reading gives me a headache I got a new pair of glasses.

Ella started off well. The doctor was concerned about the vision in her right eye so he wanted to dialate and then remeasure her focusing.






She has the lazy eye. Please do not mistake this for the condition that turns you eye cross. Ha! She has 20/25 vision which isn't in itself bad but her right eye, lazy eye, could cause her vision to decrease or leave her vision undeveloped so he suggested she get glasses so her vision can correct itself. Since we caught it early she should be able to rid herself of the glasses in the future. She was excited about getting glasses. I am excited about it not being forever.

She tried on a few pairs. You will have to wait to see the ones she chose. :)

Airport

We made our trip to the airport this morning so it is official.....MELISSA is HERE! She also sent useless useful gifts.

(from a few weeks back, when it arrived)

from today

We are all enjoying the raft since the water is still ICE cold. Tomorrow a little competition to see who can stand on it. Little scared. Melissa and the boys also enjoyed the beautiful sun today.

John doesn't like tan lines. :)

More adventures to come.

Meet....

Tyeisha (tie-EE-sha) Sparkles Brackin. She is not a new addition but she does now (after 2 1/2 years ) have a name.

On the way home from school Ella asked me what my car's name was. I told her it didn't have one. She said well every car should have a name. I asked for suggestions. She said it should be a girl car since I was a girl. Girl power. :) She thought only a moment before she bestowed the name Tyeisha on my car. Tyeisha it is. As if that wasn't bad enough Jack shouts ,from the backseat, he wants to name her Sparkles. Great. Now I drive around a beautiful Suburban that goes by the name Tyeisha Sparkles. I can't tell you how proud I am. :)

Ben's haircut

Eric made me cut off baby Ben's curls. Might have had something to due with the lady calling him a girl the other day. :)

Ben before

Ben after

A little more manly. Eric said i cut all his "wings" off. I thought all the curls were cute. Good thing they grow back.

Eco fest

Today Ella accepted her award for her Creature Cut Out. She did stop to correct the lady on her teacher's name. It is Mrs. McKay! HA! It was a beautiful day. Lots of people so we were only there for about an hour. We went up to see the other entries. Ella's had been pulled off the wall and was missing his eyes. Jealous! :) We assured her that only meant another scavenger hunt to find him new eyes. We were so proud. I just forgot to tell her to SMILE when she was on stage.

We got one when she came down.

We caught a shuttle back to our car a took a minute to play in the sand and water.

Ella got a haircut

Ella decided it was time for a haircut. I mean why not cut your hair the day before you except an award? I prayed i didn't mess it up too bad. HA! I cut the boys after she was done. Nothing to drastic for them. Once you get started you don't stop until they are all done. :)

Ella before (excuse the cheesy grin)

Ella after.

Yes, she wanted it that short. I can't say i am going to miss the long stringy hair.

PB & J

Papa Bill and Joyce, better known as Papa and Grandma Fraser, came for a visit. They made a few a few stops around the state before arriving just in time for Ben's birthday. Papa found his way to the recliner and John settled in with him.

They were asleep in no time :) For dinner we went over to a restaurant on the ocean. After a very long wait we were seated and had a wonderful dinner.

We took a day to hang out and then checked out the hospital and had lunch with Eric. They only stayed a few days before heading to Jacksonville and then home. I can't say how much we enjoyed their visit. We were so glad that they made the long trip from Mississippi. The kids LOVED it. Jack thinks they should have stayed until his 5th birthday. John loved Papa. He wanted to go with them. I had to drag him put of the truck. It was a fun few days having them here. We love you Papa and Grandma. Thanks for coming. Here are a few more pictures from their visit ( i left hot the hot tub pics HA!)