Keeping up with the Rhodes's...

Tuesday, 22 September 2009

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    Were to start, were to start... An update has been a long time coming, xanga crosses my mind every once and a while, and while I hate missing out on reading every ones posts, I dont log on very often to catch up on whats going on. Its just one more stop on my internet journey, and with facebook and cafemom and the other sites that call out to me, I have had to cut back on something. I do want to do a better job of blogging tho, there are so many things I have thought "oh I want to write that down so I dont forget", and guess what, Ive forgotten them =/.
     Blake is now a preschooler!! He is loving school, and altho  I still get a "I dont want to go to school tomorrow" every now and then when I pick him up, he is ready to go back by the next morning. He says he likes it, and he has fun, so Im not sure why he pulls the "I dont want to go back" out every  now and then. I think he may be afraid hes missing something fun at home. He is coming home with new songs and bible verses, asking me what letter words start with, and I love going thru his backpack and seeing the projects hes worked on that day, and hearing him tell me about them.

    Blakes 1st day of school
    Blakes work from the first day of school!

    If Ive talked with you in the past few months, I have probably shared my fear of him going off to school. I really did stress about it ( Im a worrier, what can  I say), fearful that he would hate it, that he would feel like I was deserting him, and that he would cry every day when I dropped him off, wondering if we were making the right decision for him. His first day was great, I couldnt have asked for a better morning. I did a lot of praying the nite before, huddled in the bottom bunk while Blake slept above, just for peace for him and peace for me as well, as I have been know to tear up at the thought of leaving him ( Its only for 3 hours, 3 days a week), I thought for certain I would be a mess that day.  When I went to wake him up that morning, the first thing he said was, "I dont want to go to school!". Uhoohh this isnt going to go good, was my thought, but after we jumped into his "Blakeyman" (His clothes all layed out on the floor to look like him) and had some breakfast, we headed to school with smiles on our faces, despite the rainy weather. Since it was the first morning, I wanted to take him in instead of just dropping him off at the door, so we went in, looked around at the toys some and then I told him that Lexi and I were heading out, wed be back in a bit. He was so worried about the crayons and the glue, he barely even looked up to tell me bye, I even had to tell him twice I was leaving before he heard me. A far cry from the leg hanging and tears I expected. Heading outside, I talked to a friend for a bit, and then Lexi and I headed out to start our morning. NO tears from me either, altho I did feel them well up just for a second when I was talking to my friend about it. I know that God truly gave us both peace and calm that morning, I cry about anything anymore, and for me not to cry about this has to truly be a Godsend. When we came back to pick him up, he was still all smiles, happy to tell me about Chester the Racoon, who they had read stories about that day. Just one cute thing, he has a little pocket in his bookbag, that I put a kiss in when I dropped him off that first morning. He is so careful with that pocket, only opening it a tiny bit when he wants me to put a new kiss in, getting mad at Lexi for letting his kiss out. Every once and a while he will ask me to put a new one in. I thought that was sweet, he really seemed to hold that little gesture dear.  He is now on his 3rd week of school, and seems to really enjoy it so far.
    The kissing hand Blakes 1st day of schoolBlakes Racoon 1st day of preschool Sept 8 2009Blakes preschool work
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         Anthony is such a great dad, he has been such a blessing this summer, letting this hyperactive, full of energy boy tag along with him most days on the farm.  Blake loves to be just like Daddy, if Anthony is wearing long pants, so is Blake, If Anthony has boots on, so does Blake, and so on. Blake is a little shadow, all around, never far behind daddy, his little mirror image.  Its so funny to go down the lane, seeing Anthony and Blake bouncing around in the tractor, kneeling over a big slab of concrete with trowels in their hands,  Anthony putting things together, while Blake cheerily takes things apart with his little tools.  Altho that little tendency did get him in a bit of trouble when he made his bike into a little pile of pieces.  Altogether, I think this little boy would say he had a great summer, hanging with daddy.
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         Lexi is such a joy, she is so full of giggles and songs,  bright eyes and chapstick. She loves hanging out with Mommy, but is sad to when she cant go to the barn with Daddy and Blake. Daddy is sure to give her extra hugs, and she is usually busy torturing the kitty or dragging around her toys soon after they leave. She really entertains herself so nicely, often sitting in a pile of mess of something, singing B-i-n-g-o or some other little diddy that is going thru her head. She loves music and stories, doesnt do a lot of playing with dollies and such, she would much rather give her stuffed animals (which she loves, and has way to many of, horses and cats mostly) a bottle than her dolls. She loves clothes, and has her favorites ( owl shirt, cat shirt, pink pants..) that she wants to wear about every time we go somewhere. So if you see her wearing the same outfit a lot, its not that she doesnt have other clothes, its just that mommy is humoring her sense of style =).  She also loves coloring, and markers, and gets quite into her work, bending low over the coloring book to stay in the lines.
        She is a pretty good shopper, the other day I realized that I had spent quite a lot of time shopping at the Lollipop shop sale in Charlottesville. She was so sweet, just walking along beside me, playing on the dirty floor and looking at things. Happy as a clam.  She found a new kitty shirt, which made her very happy, she carried it around the rest of the morning.
        Not saying the little girl is perfect, she has a whine that will make you consider pulling your ears off. Believe me!  Ive considered it! =)


         New baby girl is soon to arrive. 5 days to be exact! That is if she arrives on time.  Im thinking I may go over with her, I was 5 days over and induced with Lexi, and altho for a while I felt like I might just go early, the days keep coming and going, and NO baby. I am okay with that, altho I do have those end aches and pains, I know she will be here in the next 2 weeks at least =) Im just enjoying these last few days before everything changes, I know its just a matter of time until I am enjoying 2 rushed bites of supper and bleary sleepy eyes. I am looking forward to meeting this sweet bundle, and seeing who she looks like tho.
         Well I feel good about getting this update done, Its been a long time since I even logged into xanga, so it feels good to be back on track. I really should be mopping the kitchen floor, but I am glad to cross this off the list of "to dos".  Wishing everyone a wonderful Fall,  I will keep you posted on baby news =)
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    Fathers Day 2009!

Monday, 10 August 2009

  • The last few weeks have been busy. I must have a very severe case of nesting, I am feeling the desperate need to get things done!! I have been wanting and talking about getting some fresh paint on Blakes walls for the past couple of years. I was pregnant with Lexi (or maybe she was a newborn!, I cant believe Im not remembering right now) when we moved Blake upstairs, and I really did nothing to his room, except fill it up with his things. It was blue, at least, but the paint was chipping horribly and no sooner would I vaacum than it would be covered with little blue chips again. This summer was the due date for my project, I had always hoped to get to work on it this year, but wasnt sure if I would be able to get it done with all the other things going on this year, i.e. pregnancy, setting up a baby room, garden, vacations, life...so on.
    Anthony has been such a help with this, one Sat when he had off he helped me paint, and then last Sat he helped me put up a border, which let me tell you, not the funnest job. But its on there now..for good...I hope..
    Blake has spent a lot of time with Daddy at the barn this summer to, taking things apart, helping put things together, riding in the tractor and helping feed calves. That also gave me time to work in his room, and get things done a lot faster than if I had had another little set of helping hands. Blake did get his paintbrush wet a time of two, tho, and was happy to get to contribute to his room. His only request was that it be "dark green". Not green, DARK GREEN.  We compromised and did half dark green, and the other, what else but John deere yellow. Well its a bit darker than John deere yellow, but it works good with his border. He is so excited about his new room, all the work was well worth it to see his huge smile over his green walls and John deere curtains and border and his bunk beds, one stacked on top another. We had had them set up as twin beds until a couple of weeks ago, but we set them up when we were painting, and him and Lexi had so much fun playing on them. He was so excited when I said he could sleep up there if he wanted ( which Duh, of course he wanted!!) and hes been up top ever since. I was a bit nervous about him rolling out, or getting disoriented in the middle of the night and thinking he was still on ground level, but he has done fine. So anyway, its getting late, but I just wanted  to post a few pictures here before I go...
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    I still want to get some tractor pictures up on the wall, I have a few plans for things when  I can get around to them.
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    Im hoping to make some duvet covers for Blakes bed at some point to, but for now...we got red and blue..
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    There was also a few things I needed to get done in Lexis room. After painting and moving her in last summer, there was a couple things that hadnt gotten finished, a fan that was just sitting in her closet needed to be put up, a few spots needed some paint, curtains, and a border (which still needs to be put up, but Im a lot closer to picking one now). I moved a few extra things down from her room to the baby room, and now I am in love with her room all over again =) I found some curtains, painted some spots, Anthony installed a fan (which has been so nice on these HOT nights) and now it is ALMOST finished!  Some pictures of her room..

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    The border will get done this year, Im determined that it will be..

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    My 2 cuties! I love them!
    Thanks for looking, Hope everyone is having a fantastic summer!

Thursday, 30 July 2009

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         I had so much fun watching the kids today. They were quite the little busybodies while I mowed the lawn. They do pretty good about entertaining themselves for the  hour and a half that it takes me to mow, usually playing with their kittens, in the sandbox, their bikes or on their little battery operated  tractor/car, the swimming pool, and sometimes all of the above.
         Today they opted to play car and tractor. We had gotten Blake a tractor at a yard sale last year, and for his birthday this year we bought him a new battery so that he could pick up a little speed, the other one just barely squeaked around the yard anymore. He has spent many many hours on this little green machine, ripping around the yard, standing up  in the seat scoping out the "fields" he needed to work in, taking corners on 2 wheels, hauling hay and rocks and cats and weeds for me =) in his little wagon, even Lexi a time or 2, all this while Lexi looked on a bit enviously from her Belmont Estate sale tiny fourwheeler of many years past, whose battery was probably older than she is, and inches along at a less than snails pace. Her only hope of picking up some speed was if a strong hurricane wind came thru.    A few weeks ago we had picked her up a little beetle Dora car at a yard sale to, missing a battery charger, but Anthony (being the smart guy he is) was able to rig up something with a charger we had for something else.   How much fun she could have now. It runs great in the gravel, but gets a bit bogged down in the grass. It could use a new battery to at some point, but as they are a bit pricey, she will just have to be happy moving at a medium speed.
         As I zoomed around the yard on my "fun ride",  the kids played on theirs.  Lexi is still learning how hers works exactly, she gets a little freaked out by the initial jolt when she first pushes the gas pedal.  She would often get stuck in ditches or up against a tree, or be to nervous to head up a steep hill. Blake was so cute, he would ride to the rescue, screeching up on his little green tractor, the wagon bumping along behind, hopping off almost before it stopped moving, (He learned that from his Grandma Mildy BTW) , giving her a push, or a pull, hefting the front of the car up like he was Superman. Then they would happily start off again, to pick up nuts under the hickory tree, and  to "jump the bump" at the end of the lane.  He even  screached by me with a handful of flowers, I thought maybe I was going to be rewarded for being the best mom ever, instead, he took them to his little sis.  I thought that was really precious, evidently he had a abundance of love for little Lex yesterday.  So so cute, it warmed my heart.
         This summer is just flying by, I cant believe that it is almost August!!  And less than 9 weeks until little Baby Rhodes arrives. I have spent a lot of time the last couple weeks in preparation for the new arrival. I know I still have time, but dont want to wait until the last minute either. So the toy room moved to the basement, the empty toy room is in the process of becoming the baby room, Blakes room is in the middle of renovations and Lexis is now finally at a point where I feel good about it. Anyone that has toured her room in the past year has seen a almost finished wall with some wires hanging out, needing  just a circle of paint around the 2 holes, curtains for 2 windows, and a blanket thrown over the other, a few more wires with a light bulb hanging out of the ceiling, just waiting for the beautiful white fan stored in the closet, and a borderless wall, stripes just ending...there.
         I found some curtains that I liked, finally got Anthony to put the wires back in the wall, AND Lexi now has a beautiful fan to watch go round and round as she drifts off to sleep. Soooo, I need a border yet, and sometime in the future I would like to get something a little different for her big girl bed, which she doesnt sleep in yet so no biggie. What we have on there is what came with the bedroom set. Feeling good about finally getting all that accomplished, but boy am I tired. =)  A bit more work in Blakes room, attempt to sew up a few curtains, and I will be finished with that as well. Yay!  I really wanted to get these things completed this summer, now Im ready to get some applesauce and corn in the freezer, some tomatoes on the pantry shelves, and maybe some more pears ????
         Since It wouldnt be one of my posts without at least a few pictures, Im going to see if I cant dig something up. Im sure I have a  few pictures on this computer somewhere =D

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    And a goodbye to the ol' Rover, it found a new home today.


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    I love my family!

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Tuesday, 05 May 2009

  • Happy Birthday to my sweet boy Blake!!

    Happy 4th Birthday to Blake!!

    I cant believe it is May 6 again already!! And my sweet little baby is turning 4!! What a little blessing he is to us, so full of life and questions and happiness and more questions and just excitement about everything. As I was watching some old videos of him when he was little tonite, I was reminded of how fast these 4 years have gone. How could that same little thing with the huge mop of hair be this same boy. So bittersweet to see him  grow up, no longer needing me for everything, but able to do so many things for himself now.  He will always be my sweet little baby boy, and we love him to pieces. Heres a small look back at some past birthdays, and a few pictures of his party this year. =)

    Blake May 6, 2005

    blakes 1st birthday

    blakes 2nd birthday

    blakes 3rd birthday



    blakes bday invitation

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    The food!
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    Bugs, bugs, and more bugs!
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    Dirt Cake/Pudding!
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    Eating marshmallow caterpillars
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    Look at that happy face!
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    Love this face =)
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    Alexis with the bugs she found in the basement. Unfortanetly it was a rainy day, so the party was relocated indoors. It worked out pretty well tho, glad we had a big basement for the games and and piniata.
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    This was a tough ole bee..
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    and its finally broken! Candy everywhere!
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    Popping balloons with our "bee stingers"
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    Julie is such a big kid, shes keeps the party fun..
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    Sweet birthday boy! He even let Lexi open one of his gifts, since she had been "whining all week about it being my birthday!"
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    I made this one big so you can see Blakes face. Ha to funny he really liked his cake and ice cream =)
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    And that was the party. Looking forward to celebrating the day with Blake tomorrow. He is excited about choosing his special birthday dinner, he wants pizza ( not homemade, the kind you buy at the store Mommy.. and without PICKLES!! ) ( Thats what he calls peppers =))  and cookies.

Friday, 27 March 2009

  •    Its hard to blog sometimes in the winter. The days just seem to go by, one by one with nothing much to write about. At least nothing I feel is interesting enough to actually log on to write. Maybe its lazyness, when the kids go to bed I just want to use my brain as little as possible the rest of the evening.
    Just a few things that happened this week that I thought were cute. We have spent as much time as we can outside, if the sun is shining, that is where you will find us, basking in the sweet warmth we have been longing for all winter. The kids are in their element outside, going from the sandbox to the garden, from the four wheelers to the back porch, from the slide to the swings, they are happy doing anything and everything as long as they are not in the constrains of the house.  The warm days have been wonderful, the cold days in between the warm days have been long, oh so long. Its like they forget everything they played with and entertained themselves with all winter, and they have no idea what to do with themselves.  "Play with Tractors, that was so last winter, we want to play in the mud and the freezing cold.."


       Blake has been trying for the past week or 2 to climb up the back of the slide. Now this is a great slide, long and fast, with a few little speed bumps in the middle where Anthony had to spackle some holes and hasnt got around to grinding the excess off. He witnessed one of his little friends doing this wonderful trick, and has been working on it ever since. I was impressed as I watched him out the window to see his perserverance. So often he is quick to give up on things, coming to me complaining that he just cant do it and he needs my help. This was not the case this time, he tried and tried, day after day to run up this slide. He got halfway up for a while, and then would slide back down. A little bit further, and then the slide back down, all in his big yellow farm boots. The other day as I watched thru the kitchen window as Blake and Lexi played outside, I saw Blake finally reach the top of that old black slide. I wasnt close enough to see his smile, but I know he had to have felt really great to finally reach the top. When I asked him about it later, his face just lit up, he was so happy he had conquered the slide, and then he was off to do something else. I thought a bit about how often  I want to give up on things, I try and try to do something, to be more generous or think more of others, or take more things to God instead of relying on myself, ....the list could go on and on. Even just little things, like making a purse, and I get hung up and dont know where to go next, so I store it away in the back of a drawer, not knowing when it will see the light of day again, all the things that I have such good intentions of doing, but they get hard and I run. I dont want to give up, I want to be a good example to my kids and keep running up that slide till I finally reach the top. Keep running to God for help, relying wholey on him to help me with decisions and choices. Dont know if that makes sense to anyone, it made sense to me that day as I worked it around in my brain, and I thought about how I need to persevere in all things, but especially in a closer relationship with God.


       The other day I came home with a little suprise for the kids. A doctors kit from a 75% off consignment sale. They have had so much fun playing doctor on each other and their stuffed animals, and whatever prostate body that might be sneaking a nap on the kitchen floor. The other day Blake escaped out the back door with his little kit. Wondering why he was so quiet, I headed out several minutes later to investigate. I found him in the garage, a bowl of cat food piled high in front of "Stinky Dinky", and Blake with a measuring tape from his little kit checking out..something on the cat. I guess how long he was. =) As  I watched, the stethescope came out and he listened for a heart beat.He must have found one because  next came the thermometer, and Im not sure what he ended up doing with that, I snuck back inside, giggling under my breath. He told me later the cat wasnt feeling well, but he checked him out and he was feeling better now.  =)


    Tonite on the way home from church, Blake and Lexi were talking about what they did back in the back with the other kids.  They played playdoh, watched a movie, ate crocodiles ( real ones!! so they said) and then Blake started talking about 'tricity. We were kinda lost on what he was saying, so after a few questions, he elaborated enough to help us out.  "I turned the lights out in the bathroom at church, and I told Miss Mary about it, because it was wasting 'lectricity and then we wont have any money for lights and to watch tv and for water." How cute is that?!

    And now if youve made it thru all the reading and rambling, here are some pictures..=)
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    Popcorn snack in the sunshine!
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    Lexi pulled hers in her wagon out to the top of the hill so she wouldnt have to share. That girl loves her popcorn!
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    Lunch with some friends
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    Silly boy

    Valentines Day 2009
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    Not a great picture of Lexi, but I liked her Valentines Day outfit.
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    Flying planes with Daddy one sunday afternoon
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    A fun playdate!
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    Making dinosaurs =)
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    Plowing the garden with Daddy
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    A "friend" that Anthony caught at the barn for Blake. He thought the hawk must have injured it a bit, since it just sat and wouldnt fly away. The kids loved it, all I could think was what kind of disease this mangy bird might give them....
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    I thought the progression of these was kinda funny. Lexi got turned around on the curve and ended up head first. Blake consoled her when he got done.
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    Story time with Grandma
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    Lexi with one of her fav snacks at Grandmoms house-Choc milk!
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    Homemade Playdoh
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    I spent way to much time on the computer, and the phone. Here I am doing both!
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    Anthonys 32nd birthday! March 2, 2009. Blake made him these green playdoh cupcakes.
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    Watching a farm movie with Daddy
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    Everyone was very into it =)
    Thanks for stopping by! Now were caught up until the beginning of March, only 1 month behind now =) I have lots more pictures, I hope to post soon! Hope everyone is having a wonderful April so far!!



Friday, 06 March 2009

  • This was a post  I started a while back, and just never got finished. So now the beautiful day that I wrote about a week or so ago is  a thing of the past, and the cold temperatures are back. We even had snow this morning! We did have quite a few pretty days tho, and Im sure its just a matter of time before the sun is here to stay.
    Updates have been so sporadic for me this year, I hate the feeling I get when  I fall so far behind, or even when I just dont have the energy to log on and see what everyone else is doing. I dont want this blog to become a burden, so I have just had to let go some of the things that I used to try to do, like the weekly or at least monthly updates. Altho monthly wouldnt be to bad, I should be able to keep up with that.
    One of the main reasons I have been exhausted is this pregnancy. Yep you read that right, Baby # 3 is on  the way! This pregnancy has been the most unpleasant so far, which really I know I shouldnt complain because as rotten as I think I feel, I know their are some who have had it a lot worse. That thought doesnt help in the moment tho, as Im writhing on the couch begging for some one to have mercy on me and get me a glass of water. Or when I lay down for a much needed nap and Blake decides its time to get up, and I feel to sick and tired to even function. ( That is when I fall asleep anyway and wake up to find my "helper" has cleaned the sink, the counters, and the floor with several inches of water. He was just washing his hands, and saw how dirty the sink was, and then the counter, and then..well you get the picture. Or that he has gotten his own snack which consisted of Poptart and candy bars. How do they find this stuff? ) As the 2nd trimester looms in front of me, I do feel like I am slowly starting to feel myself again. I am starting to get my energy back, and if I can just get something to help me sleep at nite, I think I will be good as new before long. The sick feelings have started to not be near as often, and mostly hit in the evenings, so then its only a bit till Anthony is home and can help out. Well just listen to me rattle on...Just a bit more on the new baby front and then back to the here and now..My 2nd appt was yesterday, the first last week just being a preliminary one where they ask you all kinds of questions about your family history and previous deliverys. The appt yesterday was a lot busier, with a lot more going on that I wont go into detail here. =) I had a glucose test which I must say I think I did pretty good downing that fizzless Orange drink in less that a minute, and then after a hour in which I had my exam, they took my bloodwork and thankfully it was good. 117 and they wanted it to be less that 135. I still have to do it again at about 30 weeks I think, they wanted to do this one early since both of my sis's both have diabetes, just to be on the safe side. The funnest part was I got to hear the heartbeat, which of course is always special, and then the Midwife asked if I wanted a ultrasound. Are you kidding, I would love one, so she checked and they could fit me in. That was so awesome, I have never had a ultrasound when they are that small, we usually just have one at 20 weeks. It was so neat to see it nestled in there, and then to see it move! Ah it just made it so real to me. I mean of course you know its in there, but to actually get to see it,  moving, and hearing the heartbeat, it just brought it home. I wish Anthony could have been there, but hopefully he can be there for the 20 week one, where ( crossing fingers here) we will get to see if we have a little Matthew or a little Angelica. Just kidding on the names there, you know we wont tell! =) So thats the baby news! Oh yeah except due date..September 30th!
    Well I think that may be all I have time to write about right now, I have a few pictures to put on, and hopefully I will be back to update before several months have passed. =)


    Today was a beautiful day!! It was so gorgeous outside, we had a great afternoon playing and working outside. I have to write this down before I forget, because it was so precious to hear Blake say this. I was working around the sandbox, picking up things in the yard and pulling some hated weeds, while Blake dug holes in the dirt and got his tractors stuck. We were talking about the day, and how nice it was to be outside, and as I was walking away, I hear Blake still talking. I asked him what he was saying and he said he wasnt talking to me, he was thanking God for the Sunshine. "Thank you God, for the sunshine." To sweet I walked away with a smile on my face.
    We spent some time picking up sticks, and Blake discovered we had a tree just his size in the front yard. He enjoyed climbing up and down it, and ran excitedly to tell me. When Lexi finally woke up, we took a trip down the lane in the ole golf cart to take the guys a snack. We met Justin on the way up to feed the calves, and Blake wanted to go help, so Lexi and I headed on alone. All in all a beautiful day, we had a great time enjoying the sunshine.
    "Thank you God., for the sunshine."

     I havent updated much lately, It just seems like to much work sometimes to keep up with. I havent even logged on here in so long, I feel so behind on some of your alls post. I hope to catch up again someday. Thanks for everyone who has kept checking in despite my abscence. 

    A few, okay a lot of pictures from our year so far.
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    Some pictures from the Discovery Musuem in Richmond
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    Ice "booting"


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    Lexi and her buddy
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    My sis and baby Rylea
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    Cat ready to watch the superbowl
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    Eating popcorn outside on a beautiful day!
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    Lexi took her little bowl of popcorn all the way out to the top of this hill once friends arrived. She wasnt about to share =)
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    Picnic!!
    Well I think thats enough pictures for now, Ive taked up quite a bit of the page here. Will try to put some more recent ones on soon! Hope everyone is having a good last little bit of winter!
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Thursday, 05 February 2009

  • Dear God..

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    This was Lexis prayer tonite as she clutched her monkey to her chest.."Dear God, Thank you for Mommy, for my jammies, for my monkey, for my monkey jammies ( they really are the cutest things =) ), for mommy leaving my  door open...."She is such a Cutie!!

Wednesday, 04 February 2009

  • Our Snow Day!


    Yesterday we finally got some long awaited snow. I am not much of a snow person, I much prefer sunshine and sandcastles, but I was looking forward to it for the kids. They have been talking about making snowmen and going sledding ever since the beginning of cold weather. Lexi has developed quite a affection for all things snowmen, wrapping paper, her brothers shirt, other peoples shirts =), if there is  a snowman to be seen  she will spot it. So I knew she would love making one of her very own.
    We had a beautiful day on Monday, with high temperatures and the morning spent in light coats in the sandbox. By the evening it had cooled down considerably, and I thought maybe we would actually get the snow they had been talking about, but the thought had seemed so strange earlier in the day.
    Tuesday morning we awoke to a white blanket of snow on the ground, and trees limbs hanging with beautiful white icicles.
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    Im full Mommy!
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    Anthony with his mouth full =)
    After a breakfast of snowman pancakes, we decided we better head outside quick before it all melted away. It was already warming up. So after bundling up, we called Daddy and said we were ready to head outside. We were so excited he could come up and play in the snow with us! Blake really enjoyed sledding, Lexi did to most of the time, although after a spill with Blake, she kinda lost her taste for it. I think she may have got a little snow down in her boots, and of course that would take the fun out of it.
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    And they are off!!
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    I thought this was funny. Anthony was taking a picture and I was trying to get Lexi to look at him so I threw a snowball and accidentaly hit him in the head. Anthony captured my "Uh oh" face. Thankfully there was no reciprication.
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    After a bit of sledding, we decided to make snowmen. Lexi didnt want to help by then, she was cold and ready to come in so she played on the back porch until they were completed.  Blake was torn between helping me or Anthony, so he ran between helping to roll the big snowballs.  Anthony of course thought the bigger the better and had to make a ginormous snowman that made mine look like a little dwarf. It was funny to see him be a big kid, rolling and rolling the snowmans body and then having to get it back across the yard. Dreams of a entire snow family melted, as we got colder and we decided 2 snowmen were enough. Grandma Rhodes had given us a snowman kit for Christmas, so Blake ran inside to get the coal, hats and scarfs to clothe the chilly creatures.
    After we finished we went inside to enjoy hot chocolate and watch out beautiful creations out the window. =) Remember beauty is in the eye of the beholder. =) All in all a fun morning, made all the more special since daddy could join us in some snow fun.
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    So did everyone else get snow? Sledding? Snowmen? Any snow fun? Hope your day was as great as ours =)

Wednesday, 21 January 2009

  • Dreams and Aspirations

    Today we finally took little Lexi to her 2 year checkup. I say finally because she turned 2 on November 13, and altho Im not good with the math, that was, lets see, a while ago. Blake watched very intently as Lexi was weighed measured, fingerpricked and then given a shot.  It was then that Blakes plans for his future changed. Since our beach vacation this fall, where he witnessed some men hard at work under a house, He has wanted to be a plumber. "Fixing the pipes, so everything will go down."  Today, all that changed. I saw the dream in his little boy eyes. As the doctor was tapping on Lexis knee and listening to her chest, Blake leaned over and whispered to me that he wanted to be a doctor when he grew up. "Why do you want to be a doctor Blake" I asked. " So that I can fix people when they are sick, and bandage them up, and give them shots." My heart filled with pride, as if he had already carried out his plan, and was a world renowned Physician. I love that my little man wants to take care of others. I am sure that he will decide on lots of different vocations by the time he is old enough to truly know what he wants to be, and I look forward to hearing all about them. Such a funny boy.
    On the way home, I asked Lexi what she wanted to be when she grew up. Blake quickly chimed in and said that Lexi wanted to be a tree so that squirrels could climb up her and eat nuts. Lexi didnt love that idea, and informed me she wanted to be a mouse, and eat cheese. =) I wouldnt mind being a mouse somedays, just sitting under the couch eating cheese. Maybe we could be mice together.
    We have been trying to stay busy at home. I often feel as if my brain is on overload trying to come up with something else to keep the kids entertained for a little longer until Daddy comes home.  The days can see so long sometimes.  I love being home with the kids, but have really enjoyed the playdates and MOPS that loom up in the week to give us a change of scenery in our schedule.
    Lexi has been having a lot of sleep issues. For the past couple of weeks, she has been waking up a LOT in the middle of the night. Im not sure what is going on, I havent seen any new teeth or anything, altho she still has lots of gaps in her mouth. She has been funny at bedtime tho. The other nite, I layed her down and went downstairs. She normally goes to sleep pretty quickly, with just a bit of talking to her animals. This particular nite I heard her singing. Trying to figure out what it was, I huddled around the monitor to listem. " Building up temple..Building up temple..Building up temple of the Lord.." So cute, it made me laugh to hear her up there singing herself to sleep. A few nites later, her taste in music was a bit more boppy.. Huddled again at the monitor, I hear " Hit the road Jack..Hit the road Jack..Hit the road Jack..and dont come back.." =D Loved it!

    Some more things the kids have been saying:
    The other day we made cookies. As they cooled on the rack, Lexi and I made a trip to the bathroom while Blake remained in the kitchen. When we came back, I noticed Blake under the table with a guilty look on his face, and a space on the rack where a cookie had been. When I asked Blake if he had eaten a cookie, He said "NO" Now you can get a lot by me, but I knew this wasnt the truth. I had looked where they all were placed right before I left the kitchen, and I knew one was missing. We had a talk about lying, and punishment for it, and I explained if he had just asked, I would have given him one, and he wouldnt have had to take it. He said " Mommy, I was hiding under the table, because I didnt want God to see me. Like Adam and Eve, Mommy!" I couldnt help but laugh.

    The other day I was talking on the phone to a friend who was having a hard time with something. Blake was sitting beside me playing, and I didnt even realize he was listening in on the the conversation. " Im really sorry your sad, and that your going thru this right now," I told my friend.  Blake chimed in  " If your sad, you just need to tell Jesus, and ask Him to help you." Wow, he really is paying attention to me! Maybe I should have just given him the phone =)
    Well Im getting tired, so I guess thats enough for now. Hope everyone is having a great week! Thanks for reading and keeping up with us.



Tuesday, 13 January 2009

  • A Love Affair

    Blake loves stories! I mean really loves them. Especially if they are about him and Lexi. Every trip in the car this is heard about 30 times "tell me a story when I was a little boy and Lexi was a little girl, tell me a story about that". When one story is over, with him adding in the parts that he remembers or that mommy and daddy forgot to mention, we hear the same thing again "tell me a story when I was a little boy and Lexi was a little girl, the one about the skunk mommy". Lexi is sitting in her seat saying "excuse me, excuse me excuse me Mommy!" just trying to get a word in.
    This boy doesnt miss a thing. He is so full of questions, wanting to know and hear everything. The other day a friend of ours car broke down along the road and we went to pick them up and give them a ride back to their house. This was what I heard the whole way to meet them. "Mommy,did we bring tools to fix their car? Why not Mommy, did they get a flat tire? Did they have a wreck? Well what happened to it then?" I dont know Blake it just broke down and were going to give them a ride. "Well maybe they were driving down the road and their was a truck beside them and they ran into the side of the truck and now their car doesnt work anymore.  Mommy we forgot to bring the tools!!" "Mommy why is that policemen there? What did they do?" (in a shocked whisper) "Is he going to give them a ticket"  It was a long long ride! =)
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    I thought these were really funny. He wanted to sit beside Daddy and sat almost right on top of him while they ate their cereal.
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    I had to put this cute one of Lexi in. Hopefully Ill get to do a post on her soon, since Blake is hogging up all the picture space on this one =)

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    These days Blake is hardly ever seen without his best friend, his bud, Dinky the Cat. He drags that poor cat around everywhere, to watch movies, to play games on the computer, to build a traintrack, to play in the clothesbasket, pretty much whatever he is doing, he has Dinky on his lap or tucked under his arm. Some kids have a imaginary friend, Blake has Dinky. They even have a language they can communicate with. The other day after Blake had drug the poor thing around for a hour or two, I took mercy on the cat and told him that it was time for Dinky to go outside, that he had to pee. "No he doesnt Mommy he doesnt have to pee, he TOLD me he doesnt have to." He also tells Blake when he wants him to share his snack with him, feed him animal crackers (cuz thats what Dinky wants), and when he wants to watch a movie. One smart cat we got here, and how lucky for Blake that he is always wanting to do the exact thing that Blake is wanting at the moment..hmm maybe Im being played here. =)
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    Helping Uncle Justin do some car maintenance
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    This morning I found Blake curled up with the cat on my bed.  When I asked him what they were doing he told me to hold on he was telling Dinky a story. Of course I had to listen so I went into my closet on the pretext of hanging something up. He was telling Dinky a story about when he was a just a little baby cat, and it was Lexis party and they went upstairs but Dinky couldnt come because he was just a little tiny baby.....and so on. I wish I would have been quick enough to grab the camera because it was absolutely precious to see him explain to this cat why he couldnt be involved in what they were doing but that it was okay.
    Today after lunch we went for a walk to take Vegas a carrot, and a apple because he really needed both, or so Im told. It was a little nippy but we bundled up warm and started off on our walk. Vegas really enjoyed his afternoon snack,and Lexi really enjoyed petting his soft nose. From there we went over to the barn to see what the guys were doing.  They were working on putting some metal up on the front of the barn so we hung around there and watched a bit. Blake was having a great time riding his bike in the barn, and he was not ready to trek back up the lane for naps. Anthony said he could play a bit, and since he was wearing his huge coveralls which are still way to big for him but he wanted to wear anyway, he got to stay for a while. When he came back up to the house, his pockets were bulging with rocks, little rocks, a "heart" shaped rock, white rocks, really ugly rocks, he had several handfulls of his "precious" stones, each one he had chosen for a special reason. We put them in a bowl, and he took them to bed with him. He gets very attatched to things such as this, and will carry them around for days and days, taking them out and sorting them. I can only imagine the pile of special things he will have accumulated by the time he is 18. He seems to be a collector like Anthony. I can see him adding to the piles of arrowheads and baseball cards Anthony already owns.
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    Helping Daddy clean some metal for the barn
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    The kids love to hide when Daddy comes home. When they know hes getting ready to come up for lunch or when his truck pulls in for the evening, such a flutter of excitement and activity youve never seen. Lexi loves to hide the same place as Blake, whether there is room for her or not. Today they discovered the tiny closet in the hall that normally has my vaacumm cleaner in it, but since that is still in the dining room waiting for someone to wake it up and sweep the filthy kitchen, there happened to be just enough room for a little boy and a little girl. They could hardly wait, and when I called Anthony to tell him that lunch would be ready in 5 minutes, they headed for the closet. They waited and waited and waited in there, with one small tiff because Lexi kept opening the door to peek out. But it was Blake who couldnt wait to be found, and when Anthony started stomping back the hall in search of the 2 little munchkins, he was the first out the door. See this boy can not hide. No matter if you have explained to him a 100 thousand times that it is so fun to stay hidden and let them search and find you, he is so excited and wants to be found so bad, he always gives his spot away. I love watching the kids scurry under the table or behind the door when Anthony gets home. =)
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    He really is a sweet sweet active little boy, who loves life and getting into anything and everything.I love when he notices something Ive done, like cleaning the countertop in the bathroom and he praises me for it. " Good job, Mommy, you did a good job!" To sweet. He gives the best hugs, altho sometimes they can be a bit overexuburant and more like a stranglehold. I love this sweet boy, full of mischief and love and puppy dog tails.
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heidirhodes

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    • Name: Heidi
    • Birthday: 8/19/1979
    • Gender: Female
    • Member Since: 2/23/2007

About Me

  • Lets see, about me...hmm i love my family. Each day is new and exciting thru a almost 2 year olds mind. I want to try to live my life a little more like that. What can i get into today? I love to scrapbook, my MOPS group, going thrift store shopping with my sis, talking on the phone, making Alexis laugh, reading to Blake, and of course spending time with my sweet husband Anthony. Walks outside, jetskiing at the river, trying new recipes, watching The Office, Lost and Heroes, going to auctions with A, well the list could go on and on and on but i will stop there for now..