The Parks

Happy Birthday, Ashlee!

2010-12-11T20:20:00.008-05:00

Following this morning's holiday parade we headed straight to a 4th birthday party for one of the kids' classmates. The kids had so. much. fun. They started out with balloon animals and hats...

They bounced in the bounce houses and slides. This is Olivia bouncing with the birthday girl...her elder by about 2.5 weeks. She is either a very petite 4 year old or my child is a giant. Take your pick.

They took a hay ride...

Played on the playground...

Ate pizza, snacks, got a special visit from the ice cream man and, of course, ate lots of cake.

Played some more on the playground...

Made some crafts...

And played one more time with the hay from the hay ride...

Although we live about 1 mile from the party, this was the sight of the kids by the time we made it home.

I can't wait to do the same! Good night!

Holiday Parade

2010-12-11T19:35:00.007-05:00

We participated in our first holiday parade as a family with the kids' school this morning. After a long day of parades and birthday parties, I am too tired to write a big blog about it...instead I will let the pictures do the talking. The kids dressed as presents, costumes that they also wore a few days ago in their first Christmas Play. The kids and I enjoyed the company of the students, teachers and parents from the school. We all had a blast and can't wait to do it again next year!

Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving-Christmas 2010

2010-12-11T18:15:00.014-05:00

Here are some pictures from this year's Thanksgiving trip to Columbus and Auburn. We had a wonderful time visiting with the Parks Family, Columbus friends and Auburn friends.

Since we will not see this set of grandparents on Christmas we decided to do Christmas during Thanksgiving this year so that they could see Olivia and TJ open and enjoy their gifts. Here are a few pictures from our Columbus Thanksgiving/ Christmas:

In addition to spending quality time with family, we were both able to visit with our friends...including Brian who is pictured here...

Here I am with Star in front of the new Auburn Arena on campus.

I enjoyed a nice campus tour on this trip, something that I've been wanting to do for years. Even though we go to Columbus annually, I never seem to get on campus in the daylight to see all of the new buildings. All I have to say is WOW. Great job Auburn University. The kids enjoyed the tour as well. We were able to drive by Toomer's Corner, their first experience, which was filled with toilet paper from the Bama game celebration. Oddly enough, with all of the new buildings and beautiful sights of Auburn, as we road by Momma Goldberg's Olivia said "Oh mom, that's beautiful". Go figure. LOL.

Here are the kids sitting outside of Wilmore before our campus tour.

Here are the kids with my line sister, Ashley. She enjoyed spending a little time with her fellow twin siblings. It was the first time that she and her twin sister Allison were able to meet Olivia and TJ. Too bad they were in the middle of setting up for a big event. We couldn't spend too much time with her, but I'm glad that we got a chance to see her this trip.

Don't know why this is underlined...oh well. We ended our trip with a nice lunch with Kamilah at Brick Oven. Ms. Johnson was even able to stop by although I don't have a picture to document it. We had such a great time, as always...can't wait to see her again.

Overall, it was another wonderful trip. Looking forward to our next!

Halloween 2010

2010-10-31T21:38:00.005-04:00

So we rounded out the Halloween weekend with a trunk or treat at a local church. I tried my hardest to get TJ to finally dress up in his pirate costume, but he just wasn't into it. Olivia, who wasn't happy that she had to "be a ladybug again?!?!", immediately jumped at the opportunity to be a pirate in place of TJ. This happens to be another perk of having two kids the same age. Rejected, but already purchased, Halloween costumes do not go to waste!!!). The kids had a blast at the event. Here are some pictures:

Pirate Olivia

TJ dressed up as...well...TJ :)

TJ and Olivia waiting their turn to start the trunk or treat line:)

Olivia greeting her fellow pirates

Pirate's treasure!

TJ really got into "trunk" or treating

The fire truck was even there:)

Another pirate ship! We picked the right costume:)

Olivia was not phased by this pirate...

...or this one who made her "walk the plank".

She jumped...with daddy's help!

Daddy and his cute little pirate!

Recharging with some homemade grilled cheese:)

Happy Halloween!

Fall Hoedown

2010-10-31T13:54:00.002-04:00

Yesterday evening we attended our first Fall Hoedown at the kids' school. The kids had a blast running around with their friends, going on hayrides, eating and getting their face painted. Here are some pictures from our fun evening!

Olivia and Daddy at the General Store and Post Office. They really did a great job decorating for the hoedown.

Here is "Coach Parks" at the bank...

They were super excited to play in the jailhouse. Don't know how I feel about that...

I couldn't find Terry when we got on the hayride so I had to take my own pics...this is the only evidence that I have that we actually went on a hayride...twice...

Olivia did not hesitate to get her face painted. Here she is standing in line with her $1 donation.

I really didn't think that she would sit long enough to get her entire face painted so we went with a half butterfly. Boy was I wrong. She did not move the entire time.

The finished product...Olivia was a happy customer.

Each class made their own jack-o-lantern and auctioned it off during the hoedown. The kids' class made this cute Cat in the Hat jack-o-lantern.

Here are the kids enjoying their lunch/dinner...

PreK-3 Halloween Party

2010-10-30T11:15:00.006-04:00

I got to attend the PreK-3 Halloween Party/Trick or Treating Event at the kids' school yesterday. So much fun! The kids enjoyed the fun Halloween food, fun and crafts. After the potluck, we got the kids dressed in their costumes so they could go trick-or-treating around the classrooms at the school. Olivia was excited about her ladybug costume...TJ, although he could not stop talking about how excited he was about being a pirate all week, declined to dress up:( We did, at least, get him to put on a fireman hat from their dressup area. Here are some pictures from the fun afternoon...

TJ and Olivia eating some lunch.

One of the moms made these adorable ghost cookies with the kids' initials on them! TJ loved the entire cookie...

Olivia was into the icing, more than the cookie. Yummm!!!

Our little ladybug!

PreK-3...we had a ladybugy, a fireman, Alice in Wonderland, Spiderman, Snow White and a mermaid. Too cute!

Here we go! Trick-or-Treat!!!

Going into one of the classrooms to trick or treat!

Watching some of the other grades...they were able to go around to the local stores near the school to trick or treat. Something to look forward to, but I sure was glad we stayed on campus:)

More treats!

Their teacher explaining to them the rules of candy eating...ASK YOUR PARENTS FIRST!!!

Olivia showing me her candy necklace that the class made.

TJ showing me his candy necklace.

We had a great time...since Terry is with them everyday I rarely get to spend time with them at school so I was glad to do so yesterday. Happy Halloween!

PreK-3 Chapel Presentation

2010-10-30T10:35:00.003-04:00

Here is a video of the kids doing their first chapel presentation at school. As you can see, Olivia seems to be a little more outgoing in situations involving crowds...we are working on TJ. Terry and I clearly didn't know each other as kids, but we each talk about how they remind us of how we were as kids - Olivia is more like Terry and TJ is definitely like I was as a kid. I definitely grew out of that, so there is hope for TJ! Enjoy the video:)

Welcome to Miami - Bienvenidos a Miami!

2010-10-23T08:17:00.009-04:00

Last weekend we did something that doesn't happen very often...we SURPRISED STAR in Miami! Star and Travis were setting sail on their 1 year anniversary cruise in Miami and I couldn't resist traveling south to catch them before they departed. Now that we live so far away we don't get to see each other as often as we'd like and I wanted to take advantage of them being so close. It was a perfect trip. The kids did excellent on the way down! They are so easy to travel with now compared to when they were infants... We got to Miami in time to catch the kickoff of the Arkansas game and Star arrived at the hotel minutes after the game ended. As soon as Star got off the plane we were texting back and forth so she was kept abreast of every play and score of the game...but she thought that I was at my parents' house...she had no idea that we were watching it at her hotel. So as she and Travis arrived (big thanks to Travis for keeping me updated on their location) we were able to surprise them at the front desk ask they checked in. She was so ecstatic to see the kids and Terry (and me, I guess). The kids hadn't seen her since last Christmas so it was a visit that was long overdue. We ate dinner together in the hotel restaurant (we were not brave enough to explore Miami at 9:00 at night) and spent the rest of the night in true Jamesha/Star fashion - chillin' on the couch in the lobby watching tv. We got up the next morning and were able to eat breakfast together, and run a few last minute errands (during which we couldn't get the Will Smith song "Welcome to Miami" out of our heads...hence the title of this post), before they caught the shuttle for the port. The ride home was just as perfect as the way down. We can't wait for our next impromptu family mini-vacation!!

Here are some pictures from our Miami mini-vacation:

Olivia at breakfast

TJ at breakfast

Coffee talk with Star - there was serious conversation going on here...fruit loop colors, etc. :)

Apparently admiring the ceiling of the hotel lobby

Family pictures!

Teague Hall, circa 1997, son. LOL.

The Crawfords

The guys insisted on doing this pose.

Awww, look how little Star is...

Ready to catch that shuttle to the port!

I loved this bench outside of the hotel.

Terry's mini-me:)

The kids really enjoyed the ride upstairs. Good idea, TParks...good idea.

Happy Anniversary, Trahmen and Dar!!!!

Gpa and Gma

2010-10-05T15:46:00.003-04:00

Continuing on with what we've been up to for the last two months...

Here are the kids and I taking a train ride around the mall during one of our frequent trips to see Gma and Gpa. Thanks to Gma we were able to take some video. The kids and I had a blast.

Here are some pictures from when Gma and Gpa came to visit us.

Gma doing Olivia's hair/hanging out with TJ

Gma with Olivia sporting freshly braided hair

Gpa, Gma with 'the grands'

Birthday Party!

2010-10-05T15:43:00.004-04:00

Lastly, this past weekend we took the kids to a Thomas the Train themed birthday party for my coworker's son. We all had a blast. Here are a few pictures of the kids on the train and at the party.

School

2010-10-05T14:26:00.013-04:00

What have the Parks twins been up to for the last 2 months you ask? Where shall we begin:

The kids had their last day at BCC Montessori. It was a difficult, but necessary, move. We'll just leave it at that.

TJ driving his taxi/tricycle

Olivia coloring one...last...picture...with Ms. Alicia. She is quite the art-eest!

TJ and Olivia with some of their BCC Montessori classmates.

The kids transferred to their new school and didn't skip a beat! Here they are having snack on their first day of school:

...and at PE doing some jumping jacks...TJ clearly was not into the jumping jack scene:

This was the their first field trip (and my first experience as a chaperone):

Circle time at their KinderMusik class...Olivia's sitting next to her teacher, Ms. Arnold

Olivia and TJ in their KinderMusik Class.

Drumming with their lollipop drums.

After their music class, they were able play. Olivia played in the bounce house and dressed up.

...and TJ spent most of his time patrolling the play area in his police car.

Ms. Louise

2010-08-07T22:51:00.005-04:00

The kids' first toddler teacher, Ms. Louise retired this week. Ms. Louise was their first teacher and the first person, other than our family, that we trusted Olivia and TJ with. She and Ms. Kim made us feel so comfortable from day one. We will forever be grateful to them for being such wonderful passionate, caring teachers for the kids. One thing that I will always remember is that Ms. Louise would send the kids birthday cards in the mail addressed to them. This wouldn't be a big deal except their birthday is right after Christmas when everyone is on a 2 week vacation from school so it was extra special that she remembered their birthdays and went above and beyond to make sure that she celebrated with them even though they were not in school. Even though the kids are no longer in the toddler room, we will miss Ms. Louise dearly. As a token of our appreciation we decided to make Ms. Louise a little something so that she will always remember us. We are usually not the crafting sort of family but we did our best.

Here is Terry helping to iron on the decorations onto the reusable grocery bag.

The kids were super excited to do a craft. I guess this means I should do this sort of thing more often.

Here are the kids decorating the bag...

The finished product.

We love you, Ms. Louise (and Ms. Newton)!!!!

Art Show 2010

2010-08-07T22:04:00.008-04:00

A few weeks ago Terry and I attended the BCC Montessori Art Show 2010! It was the culmination of all of the artwork that the kids did over the summer. The theme of this summer was traveling...each week they 'traveled' somewhere different...New York, Asia, Australia, Europe, Africa, etc. They created a piece of artwork for each place they "visited. The school did a wonderful job of putting the art show together and the kids enjoyed showing us their works of art.

For Europe, the teachers put paper underneath the tables and the kids painted on their backs. Here is Olivia showing me her painting.

The kids made the windows to go on the skyscrapers of New York.

I can't remember what these were...or what country they were for. Sorry.

Here are their paper mache maracas that they made when they traveled to Mexico. Of course Olivia's was purple and TJ's was orange and blue. War Eagle!

This is Olivia's fan from Asia.

And their masks from Africa.

The kids were even given little 'suitcases' to put all of their artwork in. Here is our beloved Ms. Newton helping Olivia put her artwork in her suitcase.

and Daddy helping TJ put his artwork in his suitcase!

The kids with Ms. Newton!
Thanks, BCC Montessori for a wonderful summer and a fantastic art show!

Take Me Out to the Ballgame!

2010-07-18T01:25:00.004-04:00

We took the kids to their first baseball game. I believe Terry took TJ to a softball game when he was an infant...but Olivia has never been. Terry has been wanting to get back out to see the Brevard Manitees play for some time now. I am not much of a baseball fan/spectator, but I agreed with Terry that they would really enjoy getting to see a game. Not much to talk about...it wasnt a big crowd at all so we got our pick of seats

We sat right behind home plate...which I think was good for the kids in terms of keeping their attention (not to mention mine!). I must say that the weather was perfect for watching baseball...so glad Terry chose a 7pm game. I don't think I would have survived an afternoon game!

While I was canvassing the stadium (which is pretty much what I do during baseball games) I saw Will and Esther! It was great having them there - it definitely made the game more tolerable for me.

We made it to the 7th inning and then had to get home so the kids could get some rest. Overall, it was a wonderfully relaxing Saturday for the Parks family!

4th of July 2010 - Columbus

2010-07-17T22:35:00.012-04:00

We traveled up to Columbus for the long 4th of July weekend. This was our first time up as a family since 4th of July last year. I must say this was the best Columbus trip to date. It was filled with lots of quality time with family and friends, and great food. We drove up Friday night and got into Columbus around 3am. Driving overnight made the trip much simpler as we didn't have to worry about snacking, stopping as much for restrooms, fighting over which dvd to watch, etc. For the most part it was just me and Terry talking and the kids sleeping. Perfection.

Each morning in Columbus we were treated to wonderful breakfasts thanks to Grandma and Granddaddy before we would head out to make our rounds around Columbus/surrounding areas. One of our firsts stops was to visit Terry's friends that he grew up with. We had an awesome time just relaxing with Mike, Mike's mom, Brian and Brett. It's always entertaining to sit to the side and listen to Terry interact with these guys. I was able to spend time with Mike's mom who is so very similar to my mother. She made the kids the best fruit plate to snack on complete with whipped cream! So good. The kids enjoyed themselves so much that they kept asking us if we could go back to see "Daddy's friends".

After the kids took a looong nap on Mike's couches, we wrapped up our visit and went to visit my old college suitemate, Monica, in Union Springs, Alabama. It had been about a year and half since I had seen her - I was in her wedding - and ohhhh how things have changed since then! She has a new baby, Marckella (I'm pretty sure I misspelled her name) and another one on the way! Marckella was absolutely adorable and Monica, as you can see, is a beautiful mother/mother-to-be.

Teague Hall 111 and Teague Hall 112 - 13 years later!
Here is our "twins" shot. I am not even going to try and spell Monica's twin niece's names...they were so good with TJ and Olivia. TJ and Olivia had so much fun playing with all of the kids and their toys. Great visit!
Monica's son, Kylan, challenged Terry to an NBA game (I'm not a video gamer so I don't know what it was called) on his Play Station 3.
Here is Olivia, who is absolutely enamored by other kids / babies. It came as no surprise that she wanted to be Monica's helper with baby Marckella.
Granddaddy had spent the entire day Saturday preparing all of the delicious food that we enjoyed for the 4th of July. I must say that I especially took a liking to the BBQ ribs and the caramel cake. I am definitely going to request that for the next time we visit! Here is TJ playing with one of his favorite toys of the weekend - a flashlight.
As you can see Olivia also found the flashlight entertaining. They were so disappointed when I told them that they couldn't use the flashlight outside in the daylight. At this point, however, she was more worried about drinking her juice box...
This is one of the few pictures that I got of them together in their somewhat coordinated outfits for the day...
After we ate, the kids and I headed to visit my Auburn family while Terry went with the guys to play golf. I don't get a chance to get to Auburn much so when I found out that one of my oldest friends/sister, Kamilah, would be in town I HAD to get over there to see her since we hadn't seen each other since the kids were 11 months old. What a wonderful time we had! We had an amazing visit with The Johnsons and the Tolberts while we were there. Here are the kids thanking Mrs. Tolbert for welcoming us into their home.

And here are Kamilah and Ms. Johnson entertaining the kids. It honestly was like visiting my own family. They treated TJ and Olivia as if they were their grandchildren/niece/nephew. I can't wait to see them again...

I can't believe it has been 22 years since we met on Shelton Lane!

Monday was another great day of family fun and visiting. We had a great time at Lake Bottom Park. What a beautiful area...nice playground, wonderful shade. The kids had a blast sliding and swinging...

Olivia even made some friends!
We tried to teach the kids how to play frisbee...
...but they didn't quite catch on!
And look who showed up! Mike and Brian! While the kids and I swung, the guys talked and played around with the frisbee...good times!
Our last stop was to visit The Williams family. They had a beautiful house and were so welcoming. Their daughter is preparing for her freshman year of college at Savannah State where she will be playing volleyball. Best of luck to her!
After we returned from visiting the Williams family, Granddaddy put on an encore fireworks presentation especially for the kids. I think he enjoyed doing it as much the kids enjoyed watching!

One last shot of The Parks family before we left for Florida!
Here are the kids getting a snack before we hit the road.

So that was our 4th of July weekend. It was so wonderful to see family and friends...we hope to get back up there very soon!

Mother's Day 2010

2010-06-26T22:43:00.007-04:00

Soooo, it's been quite awhile since I blogged. So long that I have really forgotten what has been happening since mid-April which is when I last blogged. Thank goodness for my trusty camera...according to my camera this is what's been going on for the last month and a half!

Spending time with Gma and Gpa pretty much every weekend. Now that it's such beautiful weather we spend a lot of time outside in the sprinklers, riding bikes, blowing bubbles and just plain having fun! This particular weekend was Mother's Day weekend...and yes, they are running around in their socks. Don't ask.

Mother's Day 2010.

I love this girl...

St. Augustine weekend vacation, #1 - Memorial Day. Got to spend some time at my dad's office...Like a Good Neighbor!

Can you tell he was happy to see us?!

Fun times at the pool...

Got new car seats...thanks to my coworker who made me realize that our old carseats only lasted up to 40 pounds. Oops!!!!

Next up...bikes!

Bikes

2010-06-26T21:28:00.008-04:00

Last year my coworker, who has boy/girl twins that are 5 years older than TJ and Olivia, asked if I wanted their old bikes. I rarely turn down hand-me-downs so I gladly took the bikes/training wheels off of their hands and hung the bikes up in our garage. Thanks to Gpa we finally got them down for the kids to ride. I was SURE that they weren't big enough for bikes with training wheels. Boy was I wrong! I can't believe how fast they've grown. We took the bikes to Gma and Gpa's house where they would have more room to ride.

We discovered a flat in one of the bikes...but here are Handy TJ and Olivia to the rescue!

They were pretty excited about helping to fix this flat;)

My two favorite men!
Once the flat was fixed, they started riding...

...and didn't want to stop! Olivia, at times, was more focused on her bag o' potato chips that Gma gave to her. You can see her munching on some in this picture.

There is a Spiderman and a Hummer bike. They don't seem to have a preference...

Notice Olivia's face while riding...
...and this is Olivia's face when we told her it was time to come in.

Of course Gpa (the posterchild for a grandparent) was willing to stay out there as long as she wanted!

I think she has a little more growing to do...like 3.5 feet...before she can ride Gpa's giant bike;)
But, of course, you couldn't tell that to Olivia!
This is one of my most fond memories that I have as a child with Dad...walking up the length of his legs and then flipping over. Olivia is following in my footsteps!
Next up...St. Augustine weekend #2!

St. Augustine Weekend, Part 2

2010-06-26T20:29:00.008-04:00

What was originally meant to be a weekend trip to Columbus, turned into an impromptu St. Augustine vacation. So wonderful and relaxing!

We originally set out on Friday morning to take the kids to play at the neighborhood playground but RIGHT when we were about to get the kids out of the truck, a man with his pitbull decided that the playground was an appropriate place for his pitbull to run around while he did pullups on the swings. So since we are not familiar with playgrounds in St. Johns/Duval County, I went to the Parks and Rec website to scope out some possible alternatives. Here we are at this terrible playground in Jacksonville. I won't name any names, but this was a terrible excuse for a playground. F. The kids did seem to enjoy themselves a little...I mean, anywhere that has a slide and rings is okay with them...

After the terrible park, we headed to Larry's Subs. Yummy!

We finished just in time to take the kids to see their first movie at the movie theater - Toy Story 3. They loved it! TJ definitely takes after his dad in that he will sit at attention and watch an entire movie...no sweat. Olivia is more like her mom. She sat quietly through it, but you could tell she was a little restless and was fighting sleep. My girl! (I have been known to fall asleep in the theater before the OPENING credits...darn previews get me everytime).

Although they don't look like it in this picture, they did enjoy the experience. They haven't stopped talking about it!
On Saturday, we were able to hook up with our good friends, the Brady Family, for a wonderful morning at the pool.
They LOVED playing with their friend, Tyson.

What a beautiful family! Thanks for a great time, Bradys!

March for Babies 2010

2010-04-18T20:51:00.005-04:00

Another year, another charity walk! The kids participated in their 4th annual March of Dimes March for Babies. As always, it was a wonderful morning filled with good company, beautiful weather and lots of folks walking to raise money to help the little babies! The kids actually walked a little bit this year as the old red wagon is getting a little tight! Here are a few pics from this year's walk...

Sure looks like the kids are less than amused, but they did have fun!!! This was the first pic of the morning so they were still waking up...

Daddy pulled the wagon the entire way...bless his heart.

Pinwheels!!!!

Love this picture...

Can't wait to do it again next year!

Orlando Science Center

2010-04-18T19:53:00.006-04:00

Last Saturday, we decided to have a family day out so we took the kids to the Orlando Science Center. Unfortunately as we were walking into the Science Center, I noticed that my camera batter was dying and I did not have the battery charger. Here are a few pictures that I did get before the camera battery died. Fortunately I had my camera on my phone, but haven't quite figured out how to get them off of my phone...

The kids had a good time - we spent some time in Kids Town where they got to pick and sort oranges in the Orange Grove Factory,

...climb up into and explore underneath the Kids Town Tree...

...and learn about dams and channels at the water table...

After my camera battery died, they also got to play musical instruments with other kids and do a little cooking in the kitchen area as well as discover what is underneath a city street.

Here we are in the Nature Works exhibit where they saw fish, turtles and baby alligators.

This is Terry and the kids looking at a snake skin. I kept my distance. Didn't realize live animals or anything having to do with snakes would be in the Science Center. No thank you.

We also got to see exhibits with frogs (Terry went into this one), dinosaurs and planets. They loved the "All Aboard" room with kid-sized models of planes, cars, trains and the space shuttle. (These are the pictures that are on my phone right now...) They could have played in the mock cockpit of the space shuttle all day. I guess this means I'll should be planning an afternoon at the Kennedy Space Center...

After the Science Center we got smoothies (I love love love a Mango Magic smoothie from Tropical Smoothie. Terry opted for Planet Smoothie smoothie) and rode back to Melbourne so we could join our friends at the bowling alley. We got there right around the kids' bedtime so we didn't stay long nor did we attempt to get a lane so they could bowl. Maybe next time... They did, however, enjoy the arcade games. Unfortunately they realized that you need money to play the games so the next arcade trip will require some dinero. Note to self. So anyway, that was our Saturday. It was a fun Saturday for the family...hopefully now that the season is over we will get to do normal family stuff like this more often!

Easter 2010

2010-04-18T18:25:00.006-04:00

Here are some pictures from Easter in DeBary. Enjoy!

Before church...

At church...

After church...

2010-04-18T16:24:00.009-04:00

Okay so clearly, I am leaning towards blogging monthly these days. I have such great intentions of blogging...and goodness knows I take enough pictures to blog daily. But...here is what we've been up to for the past month.

Target. We are ALWAYS in Target for one reason or another. This particular Target trip, we had Daddy along with us so they both got to ride "shotgun" in their own cart. Doesn't happen often. We also took them to Five Guys for the first time. It is rare that we go the fast food route with them for various reason (money, nutrition, TJ's allergies) but they sure enjoyed their plain Five Guys hot dog as you can see by these satisfied smiles!

We spent Easter weekend in DeBary because Terry was at the Final Four in Indinapolis. We spent some time with Gma at the playground...Olivia loves the swings and I do believe TJ would live on the slide if we let him.

We dyed eggs...

...took part in an Easter Eve egg hunt in Gma and Gpa's yard/driveway...

...and helped Gpa do some yardwork.

They got "rewarded" for their hard work by jumping around in the bed of leaves with the help of Gpa.

Luckily we had no allergy flare-ups that night - I was definitely worried;) I think Gpa enjoyed letting them run around in the leaves as much as the kids.

Next up...Easter!

2010-03-24T18:42:00.003-04:00

Without further ado...our new beds!

Well, the headboards are not new...we've been sleeping on those for years, but the mattresses are! We transitioned this weekend from our toddler beds to full size beds. The kids were so excited! They kept asking Terry "What are you making, Daddy? A box?" They were super excited to climb in and get tucked in as you can see...

...and before you knew it, they were fast asleep.

They look so tiny in those big beds...but there is now plenty of room for their sleepmates.

Hooray for new beds!

2010-03-05T07:46:00.014-05:00

So...ummmm...hi! Thanks to all of my followers who have repeatedly reminded me how loooooooooong it had been since my last post. No, really...thanks. LOL. Despite my lack of posting, February was a pretty fun month. The kids have been extra cute this month.

From Olivia using "very" to describe everything...i.e. "It is very...wind" to describe the windy weather... to TJ asking Terry what time it was, the kids are speaking and expressing themselves so well. They have embraced a new cartoon, Team Umizoomi. So now the cartoons of choice are Team Umizoomi, Dora and Diego. We love love love to read with Eric Carle's 'Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See' still going strong after 2 years and Dora's Potty Book, Thomas the Train books and 'The Crayon Box that Talked' running ever so close behind in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th spots. We spent lots of time in these things for the past few months :(

I don't know what's going on but our Florida cold snap that usually lasts, oh...a few weeks, seems like it is never going to end. Unacceptable. LOL. We got new suitcases for our weekly (seriously) trip to see Gma and Gpa. Thanks Target, clearance!

The kids enjoy packing for our trips and carrying their own suitcases inside Gma and Gpa's house. It is so adorable. They are becoming more and more independent everyday.

We had a fun visit with Grandma and Granddaddy from Columbus.

It went too fast unfortunately:( Even though we are in separate Montessori classes, our twin bond keeps growing stronger. Thankfully.

We are saying our big kid prayers better and better everyday...

...and we have rearranged their toddler beds in preparation for the full size conversion that should be happening in the next week or so. We had a fun Valentine's Day gift/card/candy exchange at school...although I did not let them partake in actually eating any of the candy. I have enough energy to contain without the help of 10 days of sugar. They enjoyed taking the gifts/cards/pieces of candy out of their bags one...by...one...and saying "Look what I got!". It was pretty comical.

We had a pretty low-key Valentine's Day weekend that began with fun heart shaped pancakes that the kids loved...and a trip (surprise, surprise) to see Gma and Gpa.

Last weekend we enjoyed our first post season lazy weekend. We enjoyed having Daddy all to ourselves. Mommy was able to get some rest and the kids absolutely enjoyed using Daddy as a jumgle gym.

(And, yes, Olivia is wearing Christmas socks...)

Finally, the kids enjoyed "helping" Daddy put together a new bookshelf and easel for their playroom.

And that was our February in a nutshell!

Parks Winter Vacation 2009 in Review

2010-01-04T20:49:00.014-05:00

Here are some pictures from how we spent the rest of our holiday break...

Here we are headed to take our birthday/holiday pictures.

The morning after the kids' birthday, Terry realized that there was a UCF basketball game that evening. The Parks and Crawfords packed in the truck and headed to Orlando.

We had a great time at the game...

as did The Crawfords.

As we were walking to the game we discovered that Light Up UCF was going on right outside of the UCF Arena. The Arena was covered with Christmas lights, festive Christmas music was playing, there was an ice skating rink, ferris wheel, carousel and other fun stuff going on. It was really hard for Star to bypass this and head into the game, but we got her in;) After the game, although a little chilly and late, we were able to take the kids on their first carousel ride. As you can see they enjoyed it:)

We enjoyed several pancake and waffle breakfasts that the kids, especially Olivia, enjoyed. She is quite a fan of pancakes/waffles with syrup. Here is Olivia sharing her pancakes with TJ.

The kids had so much fun with Star and Travis during their visit with us.

The Crawfords cooked a wonderful New Year's dinner complete with the traditional black eyed peas, collard greens as well as some spectacularly seasoned cornish hens. Mmmm...mmm...good!

Needless to say we were very sad to see them leave...and sad to see the winter vacation end.

Happy New Year!

Parks Twins Turn 3!

2010-01-03T15:51:00.011-05:00

Here are some pictures from this year's Backyardigans themed birthday "party". After a wonderful visit to the pediatrician (no shots!...yay!!!!!), we had a low-key party at the house complete with yummy cupcakes, compliments of Star, and gift-opening. Good times...

Birthday Girl - Olivia

The Birthday Boy - TJ..looking a little skeptical of the Backyardigans tablecloth.

Blowing out the birthday candles

Mommy with the birthday boy and birthday girl

The Parks Family

Our party guests, Mr. and Mrs. Crawford

Opening gifts

Olivia and I opening her Dora card

TJ trying out their stethoscope on Olivia

Olivia and her Daddy...she insisted that her hard hat was put on facing backwards...

Olivia with ALL of her Dora stickers on her shirt and Fireman TJ

Next up...a little bit of this and a little bit of that from the rest of the 2009/beginning of 2010.

Feliz Navidad!

2010-01-03T10:29:00.013-05:00

Parks/Johnson Christmas 2009...SO. MUCH. FUN! This was the first Christmas where the kids really got into the Christmas spirit. They loved seeing all the Christmas lights, "Christmas socks" (aka stockings), singing Christmas carols and Sanwanta (aka Santa). As has been the tradition since the Christmas the kids were born, we spent Christmas in Palm Bay and the family came to us. My grandma, mom, dad and sister were all under one roof for Christmas, which is always a treat. I managed to not be in ONE picture the entire day, but here are a few pictures from Christmas day...I PROMISE I was there!

These are the cutest little cots from Grandma and Grandpa in Columbus. They fold up into a little bag just like the tailgating chairs. The kids loved these so much, they even took their naps on them.

Opening their stockings...

This is Olivia with her glasses, mittens and slinky that she got out of her stocking...

TJ with the three OJ's. (Otis Johnson, the original "OJ"; Tara, aka"Otis Jr."- nickname given to my sister by her high school coach b/c she couldn't pronounced her real name "Quetara"; and Olivia Janae.)

The kids' first skates. They loved putting on all the gear.

Olivia caught on pretty quickly and wanted to "skate" on her own...they were confined to the carpet for my sanity.

One thing that was especially fun was that Olivia REALLY got into the act of opening gifts. I don't know that any adult actually opened their own gift except my grandma. Everyone else was handed their gifts one by one by Olivia and given the "do you mind if I open this one" look.

TJ was busy trying to put anything and everything into Elmo's mouth every time it opened. Silly kids!

Next up, our Christmas hairdo. I scheduled their holiday/birthday (mainly birthday) pictures for the day after Christmas so, as always, Gma had to made sure Olivia had a fresh 'do. She always does such a fantastic job with Olivia's braids. Thanks Gma!

After a wonderful Christmas day full of good food and fellowship it was time for everyone to leave :(

Coming up...Parks twins turn three!!

Extreme Makeover - Parks Home Edition

2010-01-03T08:23:00.012-05:00

I am pretty sad that the my much anticipated holiday break is coming to an end. It has been a wonderful break filled with family, friends, relaxation, and not-so-relaxing moments. Since I haven't posted in ages (with the exception of their holiday/birthday photos), I will do a medley of posts that covers all of December...here we go!

We painted our house. After 3 years and 1 month of living in our home, we finally got tired of the white walls. Thanks to Terry's wonderful basketball team full of able bodied young men, we were able to get 5 rooms painted in preparation for some new furniture...aka our Christmas present to each other.

The kids "helped" as well...

Olivia was particularly interested in "masking" the corners.

With the family room painted, we were finally able to put up our Christmas tree. It was especially fun this year because the kids "helped" decorate. My best decorated tree to date:)

As you can see, all of the ornaments were 3 feet and below:)

So out went our old furniture...

...and in with the new! The kids love their new "bench"!

My sister was also able to come and spend the week with us and keep the kids while Terry and I worked. (Ahhhh, the joys of having school teachers in the family who don't have to work the week of Christmas.) The kids loved "Johnson Montessori", as she calls it. They got to spend quality time with their Ti-Ti...playing, reading and even perfecting their golf swing.

Next up...Christmas!!!!!

Three Years Old...Almost!

2009-12-28T08:30:00.010-05:00

Tomorrow is Olivia and TJ's 3rd birthday!!! Here are some pictures from their holiday/3rd birthday "photo shoot". Enjoy! Happy Holidays!

2009-11-09T20:44:00.010-05:00

This past weekend was a busy weekend for the Parks...

This didn't happen this weekend, but I thought this was a pretty funny picture of how Olivia sat at the table the other day and ate her spaghetti. Reminds me of the that boy on Fat Albert.

Here are the kids in their cute jammies courtesy of Gma.

Some more fun jammies...

They had tons of fun at Daddy's first home basketball game of the season...we colored in Daddy's office while watching cartoons, we ran around the gym with the players, we spent some quality time playing with Daddy and watching him get ready for the game. They had a blast!

They were right at home on the basketball court :) The players on either team didn't seem to mind sharing the court with the kids...

Unfortunately they didn't get the concept of NOT running on the court while the game was going on so we spent most of the 1st half outside playing. By the 2nd half they were exhausted and took a long nap ...TJ in my arms and Olivia in Gpa's arms.

After Terry's game, we all went to yet another basketball game at ERAU in Daytona. It was the first time the kids saw/heard a live band. They had fun playing in the stands together...

As you can see, they enjoyed having daddy with them in the stands rather than sitting on the bench.

Although I don't have pictures, Terry and I went to see The Color Purple on Sunday in Orlando. It was spectacular. I have loved loved LOVED that movie for so long and the play didn't disappoint. We had a great date and the kids, of course, had a fantastic day with Gma and Gpa.

Overall, a wonderful weekend for The Parks! Good night!

Parks Halloween 2009

2009-11-01T21:05:00.008-05:00

A new blog post is long overdue. So much so that even my husband has noticed. But that, folks, is a sign that basketball season is here! That, and the fact that it now gets dark at 6pm. BOOOOO. But here’s a rundown of what’s been going on for the past month.

1. We had a few "cold fronts" blow through. We even got to wear long sleeves and pants once or twice. Not so much anymore...it got back to the mid-80's quickly...which is why I love Florida so much:)

2. TJ caught the H1N1 virus (aka swine flu)...surprise surprise. My poor child catches everything it seems. I innocently took them to get their seasonal flu shots one Saturday morning and by the evening he had a temperature that he couldn’t/didn't shake for a week. After his temperature spiked to 103.9 on Monday night we took him to the pediatrician on Tuesday and they diagnosed it. We were all put on Tamiflu and needless to say they enjoyed a week of ‘vacation’ from school spending quality time with Mommy and Daddy. Luckily the “only” symptom that he had was a fever. He never stopped running around and playing and being “upbeat” so that was great. Olivia, miraculously, only had a slight fever for day. Usually whatever one gets the other catches, but not this time. Glad that’s over.

3. The day TJ as diagnosed, was the day before we were to leave for Star’s wedding in Charlotte. What timing! It was a crazy week at work because Terry and I split the responsibility of staying home with the kids b/c I was in a training class that I couldn’t miss. We switched off half days…I worked in the mornings and he worked in the evenings. (Which, I must say, one could get used to). I reluctantly headed for Charlotte leaving my husband with the one sick kid and one potentially sick kid, but he insisted that he had it under control and I could NOT miss this wedding (I really like that boy). He was right. The kids and Terry had such a good time while I was gone! When I got home the kids were healthy, happy and the house was clean! Good job, Daddy Parks, Jr! (Sidenote: My kids think that “Jr.” is a part of our last name. Olivia’s name is officially “Olivia Janae Parks, Jr." TJ’s name is, rightfully so, "Terrence Raysean Parks, Jr." …and my name is "Mommy Parks, Jr.")

So Star’s wedding. WOW. I had a such a great time hanging out with Star and Carmen! We ran errands in the mall, Michaels and Harris Teeter, fixed up her cupcake stand, helped her with her centerpieces, straightened up a little bit around the house…and on the day of the wedding we made countless trips back and forth to the church 30 minutes before her wedding started because she kind of needed her bouquet and jewelry for the ceremony...it was the least we could do. The wedding and reception was beyond beautiful (I’m pretty sure Star should be in event planning or something). It was just a great few days. Knowing that TJ was feeling better helped me relax and enjoy the time away. I was able to get back home by Friday afternoon and I still had the weekend to enjoy with my family. Good times.

4. The next weekend Gma and Gpa kept the kids so Terry and I could enjoy some time together on this last free Saturday (except for the ones after Thanksgiving and Christmas) until mid-February thanks to basketball season. We had a good time spending time together in Orlando. We made our inaugural trip to the IKEA store…yeah…never again! We walked around the Mall at Millenia and happened upon their version of Fashion Week! We saw our first runway show which was pretty fun and just enjoyed the atmosphere. After about 10 laps around the mall we went back to our hotel/resort, which we really loved, and ate lunch before playing our complimentary game of golf on their 9-hole, par 3 course. (I don’t think I’ll be on any LPGA golf tours anytime soon!). It was especially fun watching Terry, who plays golf pretty regularly during the off season, play with clubs that were meant for someone 7 inches shorter that he is. That’s what happens when you have to use the complimentary clubs at the resort... After playing golf, we checked out a basketball and shot around on the basketball court on property...fun:) We ended the evening watching Auburn and Florida football. It was a great day, except for the Auburn loss. We ate breakfast the next day at Mimi’s Café (love it!) before going to pick up the kids from Gma and Gpa’s house. Thanks Gma and Gpa...I don't know what I'd do without them:) Really...

5. We had planned on heading home when we picked up the kids after our weekend in Orlando, but Dad mentioned that he wanted to take the kids down to South Florida to his family’s house. The kids have actually never met my paternal grandmother (their great-grandmother) or most of their 10 aunts/uncles and countless cousins so we took the opportunity to make a trip down South with the kids. They had a great time playing with Dad and one of their 2nd cousins in the yard. They played catch, “climbed” palm trees and just ran around having fun. Most importantly my grandmother got a chance to meet them and enjoyed our company. Again, a great day.

6. So, now we come to yesterday, Halloween. A holiday that I’ve never particular gotten into, even as a child. I was never a fan (and still am not) of purposely being out in the darkness so trick or treating was never “my bag”. Keeping that in mind, the last two years of the kids’ lives that we could have participated in Halloween/costume activities, I just haven’t gotten around to it. And they were too young to care. But this year, I figured they would enjoy it so I made it a point to do something with them. My sweet coworker brought in two homemade costumes that she made for her kids (now 12 and 15) so I was all set. Terry had a game in less than 30 minutes from where my parents lived so we came to Gma and Gpa’s house for the weekend. Gma and I took the kids to a little pumpkin patch at the First United Methodist Church in Deland and they loved seeing all of the pumpkins.

They, of course, tried to pick up the biggest pumpkin there...and had fun playing with the "baby pumpkins". A cool thing is that, as usual, I was representing Auburn University with one of my many t-shirts cute and a mother of 3 (1 girl and 2 younger twin boys) asked if I went to Auburn. Her parents both graduated from Auburn and she grew up in Columbus (Terry’s hometown). What a small world! But eventually we picked 2 out and were on our way. We stopped to a few stores on the way home and then went home for lunch and a nap. Unfortunately for the kids (but of course I didn’t care), they napped right up until we were to leave for Terry’s game so we didn’t get a chance to dress them up in their costumes or attend any of the Trunk or Treat activities that we had planned on taking them to. Instead we put their Halloween t-shirts on and headed to Terry’s game…late :(

We picked up Tara and headed to Daytona with Mickey, Minnie, their orange and purple plastic pumpkins and baby pumpkins in tow. We arrived to Embry Riddle at halftime (i.e. LATE) and sat on the front row with our pumpkins and proceeded to have a “Reverse Trick or Treat”! We had so many people (who looked as if they were grandparents themselves) walk by with bags of candy and drop little goodies in the kids’ pumpkins. One guy gave them each $1. (Which is not the 1st time this happened. The day we got the pumpkins we went out to lunch and some random couple eating in the restaurant put $1 bills in their pumpkins). They are not candy eaters so I didn’t let them eat anything, but they really enjoyed getting treats in their pumpkins! Thanks ERAU fans! The kids had a blast during and after the game with Tara and Gpa..

During the ride home they noticed a star in the sky and that sparked the beginning of a mini-concert that my sister absolutely loved. They started with Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, moved onto the alphabet song, then Itsy Bitsy Spider, Bah Bah Black Sheep and, finally, Wheels on the Bus. Overall it was a great Halloween even though the kids didn't get to dress up.

So that's a rundown of the past month or so in the Parks Household. Hope everyone had a safe and fun Halloween! Hopefully I can get another blog in before Thanksgiving! We shall see!

2009-09-20T19:36:00.003-04:00

The kids and I went to DeBary this weekend while Terry was out of town. This morning we went to the church that I grew up in, Mt. Zion A.M.E. Church in Orange City. My mom is still a member...actually not just a member....but the usher, the secretary, the treasurer...the list goes on. Everyone was happy to see the kids and I could tell my mom was happy to have us back. Attendance this morning was 19 including the pastor...which is normal in this tiny church. This morning as we were singing a hymn, as you can imagine the congregation acts as the 'choir', TJ decided to join in and sing...which was nice. Always nice to have the children involved. The only thing was...he decided to harmonize with the alphabet song. So while we were singing "Father I Stretch My Hand to Thee", TJ was in the background singing "A, B, C, D, E, F Gggggg!". Bless his heart. Time to get ready for the week. Until next time!

2009-09-18T07:41:00.007-04:00

It has been TOO long since my last post. It seems the longer I go without posting, the more overwhelming it is to produce a post. Lots has happened in the past month. I flew to Virginia to visit my friends Valencia and Marcus over Labor Day weekend. I first met Valencia while living in Charleston and we have kept in touch ever since. She has a wonderful husband, Marcus, and a little one on the way. They were awesome hosts. I even got a driving tour of DC...it was my first time. Of course since she's in her first trimester, we did a lot of resting and eating, which was right up my alley. We ate lunch at Jackson's in Reston (can we say, Ozzie Rolls!).

Look at my California Roll. It was so pretty, I didn't want to eat it!
Ate Sunday brunch at Georgia Brown's in DC (can we say, FRENCH TOAST!).

I also enjoyed visiting her church and going with her to some real estate appointments. It was a lot of fun, can't wait to see her next month when she visits Florida:)

Since I was gone for a few days, Terry's mom took the opportunity come visit for a few weeks to help out while I was out of town. The kids loved having "Wan-ma" at home waiting for them each day when we came home from school. She is on her way back today...she will be missed around here.

As far as the kids go, they are growing up fast. TJ has pee-pee'd in the potty 3 days in a row at school and at home (yesterday he did it 3 times!). Olivia will probably fall closely behind. That's how it has been with everything else ...walking, etc. They absolutely love their pull ups with Dora and Diego on it. I believe that is why they want to go potty so much, to "get a new Dora/Diego". They are very much involved in picking out their clothes. Olivia loves to wear dresses and the color purple (no pun intended, since she was named after a character in the movie "The Color Purple"). TJ still loves orange, specifically his "shark shirt" that he has on in the picture above. They love to play together. They love to play "rocket ship", which involves sitting on the "bench" (the couch) and putting the pillows over them. They love to "sing songs", especially singing along with a new children's CD that we got the other week. Their favorite songs are "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes", "Wheels on the Bus" and "Down by the Bay". They have moved past daily dinners of oatmeal...we now love grilled cheese sandwiches and will even eat biscuits and oven french fries. It's nice having options:)

That's about all from the Parks household. Hopefully I will do better at posting this month. Until next time...

Pump It Up!

2009-08-16T12:11:00.004-04:00

So yesterday marked another milestone for the Parks twins. Our first birthday party! We have been invited to several of these events, however there is ALWAYS a scheduling conflict. So we were super excited to get an invitation to our classmate Jolie's 3rd birthday party at "Pump It Up" and realize that we could actually attend! Terry had basketball lessons in the early afternoon so I was left at home to get the kids down for a nap, eat lunch and prepare for the party. Well, of course, the kids did not get a nap, which meant that I had little or no time to wrap Jolie's gift (which luckily I bought the night before while out and about with my friend, Jen). So in the course of 35 minutes, I fed the kids, wrapped the gift and actually got them loaded into the truck so we could get to the party on time, which was an amazing feat. They slept on the way to the facility so I thought they would be good and ready to have fun! Not. So. Much. Despite it being a private party full of very familiar faces of current and former classmates there at the Montessori School, they did not want to play on the inflatables. It was as if they were attached to my arms and hip. Terry got there a little late, but when he got there he thought that if he got in one of the inflatables with them they would be more comfortable. Again...Not. so. much. In the slide show you will notice pictures of TJ attached to Terry's leg inside of one of the inflatables. By the time he got out of it, his entire body was shaking in fright and he was no good. Olivia did not even allow me to take off her shoes, which is why she is not in many pictures. Luckily we were not the only parents dealing with this, out of the 25-ish kids that were there, I'd say 4 or 5 were hesitant to try, although only one was as hysterical as TJ was. We'll give it another try one day, but for now...no more "Pump It Up" for the Parks twins! And how funny is it that a day later, upon seeing these photos, TJ is exclaiming that "we went to a party!" Sure wish he was this excited YESTERDAY!

Luckily the day wasn't completely lost because our FAVORITE teacher from the Montessori came over to visit. She is just so wonderful...I mean, you would think after being around kids all week she would cherish her kid free weekend. But she was so excited to spend some time with the kids and the kids were equally as excited. She brought them books and kiwi fruit and little organic cheese puffs. Olivia did not leave her side the entire time. She stayed through bathtime and then had to leave :( We love Ms. Kim!

That's all for today.

Star

2009-08-11T20:03:00.007-04:00

So usually this blog is about the kids...however, for the sake of all of my friends that I reconnected with this weekend at Star and Travis' couples shower, here are some shots that I took during the event. It was a wonderful shower held at the beautiful home of Mark and Sarah Armstrong. The setting was perfect, the food was wonderful, and I was happy to reunite with old Auburn friends...good times. Oh, and Star got some really nice gifts:) Terry and I were able to get away for this event together without the kids. It was our first trip away from home without the kids since the Final Four in 2005. Crazy. The only downfall of the trip was that I was not able to drive around Auburn's campus to see how much has changed over the yaers. Next time we visit Columbus, I'll have to take some time to do that.

Anyway, the first set of pictures are of the host couples and the second set of pictures are just pictures taken during the shower. I want to thank my fellow blogger and friend, Jane Ash, for opening my eyes to the wonderful world of collages! Thanks, Jane Ash!

At the Car Wash

2009-08-02T10:28:00.003-04:00

Like I said, washing cars is one of my dad's favorite pasttimes so it should come as no surprise that he is getting TJ and Olivia excited about it at such a young age;) Enjoy!

July

2009-07-31T19:46:00.011-04:00

Cannot believe it's August already. Not sure where the month of July went...had to go through my handy dandy pictures (since I am a picture taking addict) to see what exactly we did this month. Here is a no-so-brief synopsis of our month:

We began the month with a houseguest. My former coworker and friend, Amanda (aka Prairie Dog) came to visit us for a week before she joined her husband out in Colorado. The kids enjoyed having another playmate and I enjoyed the company in the evenings. We especially enjoyed watching one of our favorite reality shows together, So You Think You Can Dance. We miss you, PD!

The next weekend we headed up to Columbus, Georgia to visit Terry's family and friends for the 4th of July. We had a wonderful weekend. The kids had a nice visit with their grandparents and were able to meet/bond with two of their great aunts and a great uncle. We also were able to spend time with several of Terry's friends and friends' families who were having 4th of July BBQs. Good times...

The following weekend we headed to DeBary so that we could see my family and I could go off and spend a day with another set of friends/former coworkers that I get together with every year. Terry was in Oklahoma at an exposure camp with one of his players so he met up with us in DeBary after he returned home on Saturday evening. The kids enjoyed a few days playing outside with Gpa - listening to the birds chirp, sitting in their favorite work truck, and riding their trikes; as well as spending time with their Gma and Great Gma at church and around the house (Olivia actually ate some ox tail and rice that my grandma made in the crock pot...go figure). We also enjoyed seeing the Burnells, including our favorite class of 2009 high school graduate, Kevin:)

Next up was some QT at the house. Olivia caught a fever on a Monday and was kicked out of daycare until she was without fever for 24 hours. My sister, who teaches high school, was gracious enough to drop everything and come stay home with us for the entire week so that Terry and I didn't have to take time off of work. What a blessing to have such a solid support system. Olivia ended up staying home for 3 days and spending some quality time with her Ti-ti while TJ, for the first time, went to school by himself. They both had a rough time when they were separated initially, but soon got over it as we knew they would. Thanks, Tara for your backup services! We love you!

One of my favorite memories of my dad was when he took me to school every morning in elementary school. Our school had low overhangs (relatively speaking for someone who is 6'8) over the sidewalks. Dad would pick me and my friends up, similar to what he's doing to Olivia and TJ with the arches in our house, and let us look on top of the 'roof'. We loved it! So, anyway, when he started to do this with TJ and Olivia it brought back fond memories. Sure wish he could still pick me up! Needless to say the kids got a kick out of it...they kept yelling "Gma, I see you!!!!!!"

Next up, a wedding! My dad informed 3 days prior that I was going to be his date to a mid-week wedding. Luckily I had a dress collecting dust that I wore to a wedding last summer so it wasn't as dramatic as it could have been. The wedding was wonderfully unique. It took place on a cruise ship! I have known the bride since before I can remember. Our Dads coached together for many years at Stetson University. The wedding was a like a mini-reunion of old Stetson basketball coaches. The bride was beautiful! Most importantly, Dad and I got to spend some quality time together. Good times.

After the wedding the kids and I hung out with the garage with Terry and he hung hooks in the ceiling for our nice FREE gifts that were given to us by my coworker who has 6 year old boy/girl twins. They are a little big now, but we gladly accepted them. I'm sure they will grow into them before we know it. Thanks, Lorri!

Okay, so now we're to last weekend. Terry had to recruit over at Disney so, of course, we took the opportunity to go hang out in DeBary with the family. As always the kids had a ball. They are pedaling their trikes now with ease; they got a lesson on car-washing (dad's favorite pasttimes). Also part of their Gpa experience was riding on the riding lawnmower.

This weekend we are hanging out at the house while Terry is away. We decided, after so many weekends away, to just hang out at the house. So far so good...if by "good" you mean getting little sleep because they have decided to stage a protest against sleeping in their own beds while Daddy is gone. LOL. Right now we are dancing to my Janet Jackson station on Pandora and playing "rocketship". Not sure what we will do with ourselves today...should be interesting!

...so basically that was our July! If you made it to the end of this blog you get a gold star! Hopefully I won't go a month without blogging anymore! Have a nice weekend!

BCC Montessori Strikes Again...

2009-06-25T19:04:00.003-04:00

TJ definitely just finished singing "God Bless America" at the dinner table. I was a little shocked and confused, until I looked at the schedule on the refrigerator and realized that this week's theme in their toddler classroom was "America the Beautiful". Good ol' BCC Montessori...

On a Roll

2009-06-22T00:57:00.006-04:00

After not blogging for 3 weeks, two blogs in one night! Sarah tagged me, hope you enjoy!

8 Things I am looking forward to:
1. My off Friday at work aka "my personal holiday". (I work every other Friday.)
2. Olivia sleeping through the night like her brother

3. Finishing folding the pile of laundry that is on a chair in the living room

4. Going to sleep

5. Meeting up with Donna and Lindsay for a spa day next month

6. My girls weekend in Charleston with Valencia at the end of the summer (haven't seen her in 4 years!)

7. Fall semester when the increased employee discount takes effect on the kids' weekly school tuition

8. Star's bridal shower and wedding!

8 Things I did yesterday:
1. Drove with the kids up to my parents house

2. Saw my grandma :)

3. Had a fun "Girls Night Out" dinner with some friends from high school

4. Gave the kids their first showers. (Olivia - thumbs down; TJ- two thumbs up!)

5. Went out and about to scope out some Father's Day gifts...ended up with NADA!

6. Took a nap

7. Had a wonderful conversation with my good friend Holly who is 21 weeks pregnant! I haven't spoken to her in ages!!!!

8. Saw an old high school classmate in Michael's. Haven't seen him since high school.

8 Things I wish I could do:
1. Go on a vacation with my husband

2. Find more time to work out

3. Work part time so I could spend more time with my kids

4. Braid Olivia's hair so my mom wouldn't have to do it

5. Hire Candice Olsen to decorate my entire house

6. Tolerate flying so I could visit more friends

7. Learn how to swim

8. Find a private swimming instructor for my kids or a 2-year old class that doesn't require a parent per child in the water.

8 Shows I watch:
1. So You Think You Can Dance

2. Divine Design

3. Real Housewives of Orange County/New Jersey/Atlanta

4. Jon & Kate Plus 8

5. Run's House

6. Say Yes To the Dress

7. House Hunters

8. All Cartoons on Noggin (Yo Gabba Gabba, Backyardigans, Wonder Pets, Ni Hao Kailan, etc)

8 of my Favorite Foods:
1. Yoplait Yogurt Light

2. Bear Naked Granola

3. Kilwin's Toasted Coconut Ice Cream

4. Ben & Jerry's Coconut 7-layer bar Ice Cream

5. Mango Magic Smoothie from Tropical Smoothie (substitute the pineapple for peaches)

6. Grands Homestyle Biscuits

7. Turkey Burgers

8. Sweet Potatoes

8 Places I have traveled:

1. Vienna, Austria (high school)

2. Salzburg, Austria (high school)

3. Cancun, Mexico (high school)

4. Bahamas (honeymoon cruise)

5. Key West (honeymoon cruise)

6. New York City (college)

7. St. Louis, Missouri (Final Four)

8. Indianapolis, Indiana (Final Four)

8 Places I would like to travel: (This is a problem since I have learned to hate flying...)
1. Hawaii
2. Baton Rouge to visit Kamilah

3. Chicago

4. Maryland to visit Valencia, Lindsay and Tonya

5. Las Vegas

6. California

7. New York City to see Broadway shows

8. Indianapolis (to the next Final Four)

People I tag:
Whoever is reading this blog and has not done this already!

Father's Day and more...

2009-06-21T23:29:00.009-04:00

So apparently it's been awhile since I've posted a blog. I must say that it's not because of a lack of material! My kids have been extra cute these last few weeks, but everytime they did something blog-worthy I was just not able to stop for long enough to get a blog in. For those of you who are going through Parks twins withdrawal (I'm not naming any names...), here we go...

Since I last blogged I have turned the big 3-0! Yay! Unfortunately that week my kids also decided to catch the Round 1 of the "mysterious daycare virus". I ended up leaving work early on my birthday to pick them up from daycare and they proceeded to spend three days at home (Terry and I each stayed home from work a 1/2 day each day) recovering from fever/diarrhea. No fun, but they seemed to get better and were ready to get back to school on Thursday.

That weekend some good friends of ours, Jen and Jason, came down to accompany us on our first beach trip of the summer. We had a really good time although it was REALLY hot! Here are some pics from our beach trip.

That evening of the beach trip, however, we noticed that TJ was getting yet another fever...and thus began Round 2 of the "mysterious daycare virus". Both TJ and Olivia ended up having pretty high fevers and stayed home all week from daycare. We took them to the doctor just to verify that it was, in fact, viral and we were right. Unfortunately you just have to be patient and let the virus run its course. One good thing about that week was that we got to spend a lot of quality time together, which gave me time to sit back and observe just how much they've grown up. By Friday everyone was fine and they were ready to return to school on Monday:)

Last week marked the kids' 1 year anniversary at the Montessori school. It is just AMAZING how much they have developed into self sufficient little people. We could not be happier with the staff, curriculum and location of the school. It is absolutely perfect. I was looking at the video that I posted after their first day of school last year and it just amazing how far they've come in a year. It seems like overnight they have started "reading" books and speaking in complete sentences. We can hold normal (simple) conversations with them and can see them processing what we're saying. What a feeling! Here is a video of them reading their favorite books...Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? and The Monster at the End of This Book. (Please excuse the random recliner in the background. We had just gotten our carpets cleaned and it hadn't made its way back into the living room yet...)

Don't you love it! I especially love that Olivia cannot say "looking at me" when she reads/sings her Brown Bear book. She says "ah-oo-wa me". So cute...

This past weekend we celebrated Father's Day. The kids and I traveled to DeBary to spend the weekend with my family while Terry stayed behind to work. An added bonus to this trip was that my grandmother traveled down from the panhandle so the kids and I were able to spend time with her. I cherish every opportunity that I am able to spend time with 4 generations of my family under one roof. Unfortunately my grandmother HATES taking pictures so I was unable to capture the moment, but hopefully we'll get to see her again before she heads back home and I can convince her to take one. I didn't get any pictures of her, but I did capture some kodak moments before the we came back home.

Happy Father's Day to my two favorite Dads!!!!!

Good night!

On the Road Again

2009-05-30T22:28:00.003-04:00

It was another wonderful Saturday for The Parks family. We headed west to the University of South Florida to attend the high school graduation of my god brother. Our families have known each other as long as I can remember, my dad was his dad's college basketball coach, and I can definitely remember when this child was born. I'm still trying to figure out how someone born in the 90's can have a high school diploma...it blows my mind. Anyway, here are some pictures from today. It was a beautiful day full of great company and delicious food! Congratulations, Kevin!

Five!

2009-05-27T18:39:00.028-04:00

What a week for the Park's Family! So much to talk about...where do I start? (Warning...this is going to be a LONG one).

Let's start with last Sunday when Terry informed me that the week ahead of us would have a theme. The theme for the week: FIVE. Clearly that's because last Friday, the 22nd, Terry and I would be celebrating our fifth wedding anniversary! Yay! Anyway, he decided instead of doing our run-of-the-mill dinner and movie anniversary celebration, he would make it a week o' fun for me. I was very excited, needless to say. Surprises came daily…Monday: A $5 footlong from Subway and a relaxing lunch together. Tuesday: $5 bills and $5 worth of nickels. Wednesday: A 5" digital picture frame for my desk at work. Thursday: A $55.55 gift card to Tropical Smoothie (I LOVE LOVE LOVE a good mango peach smoothie from Tropical Smoothie…I get the "Mango Magic" smoothie and substitute the pineapple for peaches). Friday: I'll get to Friday in a second. It was so exciting to get little surprises everyday and stretch out the celebration over the entire week. Thanks, TParks!

Getting back to Friday…it was also Teacher Appreciation Week at BCC Montessori School. All week parents were asked to bring in in flowers/treats/etc, but their gift on Friday was a "kid-free" lunch. Parents were asked to volunteer to sit in the classrooms during lunch so this would be possible. Terry talked me into doing this, and I'm so glad he did! We had a great time! Luckily we had 4 parents (including me and Terry) to volunteer in the toddler classroom with 8 toddlers. It was a wonderful ratio! We sat with the kids as they ate lunch and went down for a nap. TJ and Olivia were SO happy to see us and interact with us at school! They introduced us to all of their friends (as if we didn't know them already) and were so excited to have us there for lunch. I thought TJ and Olivia were excited when I showed up…but it was NOTHING compared to when Daddy showed up.

Olivia could hardly contain herself. Do you see this smile?!

Here is their classmate, Jolie, offering Terry one of their miniature sized chairs. I had to take a picture...

Here are some more pictures from our afternoon in the toddler classroom.

We were there a little longer than we expected, which threw off our plans to go to Five Guys (sticking with the "Five" theme), but it was well worth it. We were able to go home and get the truck packed up so we could head to DeBary for the long weekend. Mom and Tara offered to keep the kids while Terry and I went out to celebrate our actual anniversary. Although I do not have any pictures, after picking a mango-peach Tropical Smoothie we headed to Disney and enjoyed a nice stroll around The Boardwalk, Yacht Club and Beach Club Resorts before finally settling to eat at Outback (not our first, second, or fifth choice for that matter, but we enjoyed each other's company!). We'll try and plan better next time. So much for being spontaneous!

Two days after our 5th anniversary, my parents celebrated their 35th anniversary. How wonderful! Mom had a suggestion to take an afternoon trip to St. Augustine as a family so Mom and Dad drove up in one car; and Terry, Tara, the kids and I packed up in another and headed up north. It was an absolutely beautiful day! After a weekend of scattered thunderstorms we didn't run into one drop of rain while there. Good times...

It was also a special trip for Terry and I because downtown St. Augustine was the site of our wedding…how appropriate to go back and visit after 5 years (almost to the day). We went back to Ancient City Baptist Church, the site of the wedding ceremony…

...and to Casa Monica Hotel, the site of our wedding reception.

We ran into one of Terry's old players that he coached while at UNF which was a pleasant surprise (he was even taller than I remembered!) and even saw a bride and her bridal party on their way to a wedding!

The icing on the cake was visiting Kilwin's, my FAVORITE ice cream parlor. I was first introduced to Kilwin's while living in St. Augustine and am SO lucky to have one here in Melbourne. Their toasted coconut ice cream is to die for. Tara decided on my first love, Georgia Peach. It was deeee-wicious (as TJ and Olivia say). We took a self portrait eating our ice cream, but didn't quite get the ice cream in the picture...oh well;)

The kids were so exhausted that they slept the entire way home.

We stayed in DeBary until late Monday night enjoying my family's company. The kids enjoyed being "cowboys and cowgirls" with Gpa...

...and a little "Johnson Montessori" before bathtime was a perfect ending to a wonderful week!

I think it's time for bed now! Good night!

Mother's Day Weekend

2009-05-11T19:09:00.011-04:00

The Parks family enjoyed a nice weekend. It began with my first hand-made Mother's Day gifts from my kids (compliments of good ol' BCC Montessori). I got two ceramic hearts painted in a beautiful "I mixed every color available and it turned out deeeep purple/black-ish" color along with two potted plants. Olivia's plant has purple flower petals and TJ's apparently has orange flowers, but I can't quite tell yet because he picked off all of the petals before the gift was complete. I sure hope it's a resilient plant like the one that I had in college that had 9 lives. Maybe I'll even plant them outside so mother nature can nurture them…on second thought. I don't do the 'outside'. Too many creatures and animals are out there.

Anyway, the weekend started out with just me and the kids on Friday night as Terry was recruiting in Miami. The kids behaved very well for Mommy. Olivia still has a rough time sleeping in her bed. She always does her best to get us to come get her when we put them to bed, and through it all TJ falls right asleep. Friday was no different, but this time she cried herself to sleep. But before I went to bed, I decided to go make sure that their blankets were covering them and this is what I found. (You can even see TJ's head in the background).

Bless her heart! Especially since the night before, she had cried herself to sleep on the floor. She really doesn't like that bed...

Saturday, when Terry returned home we packed up the truck and headed to DeBary. I decided that even though we didn't have the results back from TJ's allergy testing that we would give ol' DeBary a try because I was going through withdrawal. The last two times we visited DeBary TJ broke out into hives and a rash so I was a little hesitant to return. I am so glad we did because, as always, the kids enjoyed seeing everyone…but of course, everyone was equally as happy to see TJ and Olivia! (So far so good with TJ...no signs of any hives this time. Yay!)

Mother's Day was lovely:) Probably because Terry remembered that I was actually a mother this year! (Last year, not so much!). After church we took the kids to the park to run around in the fountains. It was a beautiful 96 degree sunny day. The kids absolutely loved it. We enjoyed the fountains for quite some time by ourselves before the big kids started arriving and messing it up for us. Here are some pics of TJ and Olivia having fun in the fountains:)

TJ playing with G-Ma's umbrella. They LOVE umbrellas...

They were a little hesitant at first...

In fact, the first time that Olivia got soaked she ran to her Daddy!

But soon enough, they were off!

Even the ABCs provided entertainment!

Tara showed up a few hours before we headed back to Palm Bay:) The kids were ecstatic to see their Ti-ti!

And after about 8 tries, we were finally able to get a Mother's Day 2009 picture with everyone looking at the camera!

Needless to say it was a wonderful weekend!

Don't Drink that Water!

2009-05-05T19:22:00.004-04:00

Terry and I just got the kids out of their school clothes and sent them to their bathroom for a bath. We were lagging a behind a little because we started talking about something and suddenly we heard the toilet seat SLAM down.

Terry went in the bathroom and this is what I heard:

TJ: I drink da wata!

Terry: Oh no, don't drink that water! Oh, have mercy... (I can imagine that Terry put his head down, closed his eyes and shook his head while he was saying this...)

Terry: Olivia, did you drink this water, too? (sigh)

I guess the one good thing about them not using the toilet yet, no matter how long they sit on it, is that the water is fairly clean!

...off to do some laundry! Good night!

March for Babies 2009

2009-05-02T10:49:00.004-04:00

It has just occurred to me that I've been blogging for 1 year and 1 month! I know this because I remember last year's March of Dimes walk being one of my first posts on my blog. Anyway, we have just returned from the annual March for Babies. This is our 3rd year participating with the kids and once again it was a success! The red wagon served us well as walked around Melbourne to support one of our favorites charities. The kids really enjoyed the extra long wagon ride along with Mickey and Minnie and lots of juice and snacks. Here are some pictures! Thanks to my coworker April for being such a willing photographer so we could a family pic:) Enjoy!

Loading up in the wagon!

And we're off!

We made it!

Is it May already?!

2009-05-01T19:20:00.006-04:00

Where has the time gone?! It's been awhile since I've posted. Here are some pictures of the kids' first trip to the bookstore...we went to Books-a-Million while we were out and about a few weeks ago. For as much as they LOVE books, I'm not exactly sure why we haven't been before now. I think it was just easier to bring the books to them. As you can see they enjoyed themselves...

We also had a visit from one of my oldest friends from Deltona, Tonya, last week. Not sure how long we've known each other, but I definitely have a newspaper clipping of us when we placed 2nd and 3rd in our 2nd grade spelling bee at Enterprise Elementary. Anyway, she was nice enough to drive to Palm Bay while she was in town from Maryland. The kids warmed right up to her. She became an honorary member of the Parks Band:)

Last weekend I went out of town for a girls weekend with Star and her childhood friend, Carmen. We had a great time in Charlotte. If Charlotte were in Florida I'd definitely live there:) The kids stayed with Terry for the weekend and my mom was nice enough to stay over on Saturday night to help. It's always nice when G-ma comes to town! Unfortunately I had the camera in Charlotte so no pictures were taken of the kids, but here is a picture of me in Charlotte with Star and Carmen. Good times...

Tomorrow morning we will be walking in the March of Dimes March for Babies again. I think we will take our trusty red wagon and pull the kids instead of using the stroller like we did last year. I will be sure to post pictures after the walk:)

Good night!

Parks Family Easter Egg Hunt

2009-04-13T20:48:00.002-04:00

Happy Easter!!!

Easter Eve

2009-04-11T17:53:00.002-04:00

Here we are enjoying some time with Gma and Gpa coloring Easter Eggs. The kids really enjoyed it :) Happy Easter Eve!

April Randomness

2009-04-06T21:59:00.004-04:00

The last few weeks have been quite eventful. Terry and I went on a 2nd date in as many months. (I know. Crazy!!) We've spent a few weekends in DeBary with the grandparents. Our first trip was a few weekends ago and it ended with TJ breaking out in hives. Last week they spent a few days home from school because both got pink eye..staggered starts of course. TJ caught it the day Terry flew out of town to the Final Four leaving mommy to deal. This past weekend we went to DeBary while Terry was in Detroit because I had a baby shower to attend in DeBary right down the road from my parents house. It was perfect...however the weekend ended with yet another bout of hives for TJ and a fever for Olivia. We think Olivia's fever is gone, however we're still working on the hives and pink eye. Despite all of this, we have enjoyed some quality time as a family. Enjoy the pics!

This video was taken when the kids and I were playing before bedtime. I can't believe they are growing up so fast!

Good night!

A "Grand" Weekend

2009-03-17T22:06:00.002-04:00

My kids had the opportunity this past weekend to spend quality time with both sets of grandparents. Terry's parents came down from Columbus, Georgia to see the kids. It had been awhile since the kids had seen them so initially they were a little shy, but they came around fairly quickly and ended up having a great time hanging out all weekend! They stayed from Thursday through Sunday. When they left on Sunday, we packed up and rode to DeBary to celebrate my mom's birthday. We had a nice time as always! Here are some pictures...Enjoy!

Baseball, Babysitters and Brinner

2009-03-09T21:18:00.012-04:00

The Parks had a wonderful weekend!!!! On Saturday, we hung out as a family before Terry and I went on a 'date'...yes, I said it. A DATE! I'll get to that later. We spent the day doing some cleaning up around the house and just enjoying each other's company. Terry decided that it was time to broaden TJ and Olivia's athletic horizons and formally teach them how to use the tee ball set that he bought a loooong time ago. Here are some pics of their first tee ball lesson in their indoor gym, formerly known as Olivia's room.

Saturday also marked a first in that we got a babysitter for TJ and Olivia. Other than relatives (my parents, my sister, and Terry's parents) we had never left the kids with anyone before Saturday night. One of the BCC athletic boosters invited us over to their Mardi Gras themed seafood boil and I was content with the idea of staying at home with the kids while Terry attended. Apparently Terry really wanted me to go because he asked if I was comfortable with getting a babysitter. I was a little hesitant at first until he told me who he had in mind...their (and our) beloved BCC Montessori teacher, Ms. Kim! Now you all know how I feel about BCC Montessori. The kids (and we) absolutely adore that school and the teachers so this was a PERFECT first babysitter for them (and for us)! We got the kids bathed and fed before we left for the function and they couldn't have been happier to see Ms. Kim. This particular teacher puts everything to music with her beautiful singing voice...so naturally they immediately got out their 'band in a box" complete with maracas and symbols and started playing.

After playing music they ran and got their favorites books for her to read. When Terry and I left, they happily bid us farewell! It was great!

Terry and I had a wonderful time at the seafood boil. The host couple, the Laham's had a beautiful house and put on quite an event in their backyard. Complete with a DJ, wonderful appetizers and seafood for days (lobster, shrimp, gumbo...I get full just thinking about it.) Terry and I truly enjoyed ourselves on our 'date'! It was our first date since...since we left the kids with my family so we could steam clean the carpet;) Ha ha! Yep, I think that was our last date! Anyway, we returned to the kids asleep in their beds and Ms. Kim relaxing in our living room. She gave us a play by play of their fun filled evening, similar to the reports that we get at school. It was exactly what I needed. Hopefully she will be available again soon:)

Sunday afternoon, we went to DeBary to visit the Johnson family for the day. As always when we visit, it is a mini Johnson family reunion as my parents driveway turns into a Toyota car lot. My mom, dad and sister were just so happy to see their grands/niece/nephew and TJ and Olivia were equally as excited to see them. Mom, of course, had a meal ready in minutes that tasted SOOO good (Rachel Ray has nothing on my mom's 30 minute meals!) and Gpa and Ti-Ti (as they call my sister) were ready to play!!! Of course it was a trip for business and pleasure. Gma got Olivia's hair braided for the week. Olivia has transitioned into consistently allowing her hair to be done while awake, as long as good cartoons are on. This time we chose to watch "Leap Frog's - The Letter Factory". (EXCELLENT video, by the way. I have been playing this video since TJ and Olivia turned 1-ish...before they were even saying any words. It really helps them learn the letters as well as the sounds.) Olivia's hair turned out so pretty! We all had such a great time as you can see.

And finally, "brinner". This is the word that my friend, Stephanie, from high school uses to describe having breakfast for dinner. TJ and Olivia are now in a phase where all they choose to eat is oatmeal. To be quite honest, I don't mind this stage at all! It's MUCH better than their phase of not wanting to eat ANYthing and it literally takes 2 minutes to make oatmeal so there is much less stress involved on my part. It could be much worse! Here are some pics from tonight's brinner of oatmeal with raisins, a banana and a whole wheat Eggo waffle. Terry is out of town recruiting so he did not partake of our gourmet brinner;) We enjoyed the extra hour of daylight playing at the dinner table and during bathtime.

After TJ's breathing treatment and a bedtime story, the kids went to bed and fell right asleep. After I finish this blog and catch up on my shows, I will hopefully do the same! Good night!

Monday Night Manners

2009-02-23T19:05:00.005-05:00

When we got home today, with little preparation we were able to sit down at the dinner table thanks to Terry:) He came home for his pre-game nap and prepared dinner so I didn't have to do it when I got home with the kids. I love that boy. Anyway, while they were still buckled in their booster seats after we finished eating, I utilized the time that they were interacting with each other to clean up the kitchen and get the dishwasher ready to run before we headed for bathtime. Well tonight while I was cleaning up this is what happened:

TJ: <<'burrrrrrrrrrp'>> Excuse me.

Me: <<'mouth wide open'>> Good job with saying excuse me, TJ!!!!

TJ: You're welcome.

A few minutes later, after Olivia reminded me to give her her Flintstone vitamin (by pointing to the cabinet where I keep them and saying "vitamin! vitamin!") she accidently dropped it on the floor. So, naturally, I picked it up for her since she was still buckled in (3 second rule was in full effect) and she proceeded to say: "Thank you, Mom!"

I think I have the most polite 2 year olds on the planet.

Bathtime!!!!

Lazy Weekend

2009-02-22T21:40:00.006-05:00

The Parks family didn't do anything dramatic this weekend. We just hung around the house and relaxed. Here are a few pics from the weekend:

I had to capture this moment. I had asked TJ to stay in their room until he calmed down (not sure what he was 'excited' about). As always, Olivia took care of TJ by, first, bringing him something to play with (a VeggieTales movie case) and then going to get herself a book before plopping on the floor beside him...I guess in support...or protest. I love that they take care of each other like this:)

Gma and Gpa came last night as opposed to tonight and did Olivia's hair. She was extra resistant so it took a looooong time to finish her hair. My mom and dad insisted that I take a nap while they were here. Terry had been in and out due to practice and a function at the school so I certainly did not turn down that opportunity. They had a great time with their 'grands' as you can see. Here is a picture of Gma and TJ reading their favorite Backyardigans book.

This is TJ and Olivia climbing on their Gpa. You can also see a picture of Olivia and her afro before her Gma got her hands on it.

Here are TJ and Olivia spending some time in their playroom reading in their wagon, one of their favorite activities:)

Olivia, I'm sure with TJ's help, got into their armoir of clothes and decided to put on as many items of clothing as she could. It's hard to see, but underneath her tights are her Christmas socks that light up. It was a hilarious sight to see!

Our favorite Backyardigans episode and book has a character "Pirate Captain Moody" and they LOVE to make the pirate sound "Arrrrrr" along with the hand motions just like Pirate Captain Moody does. I guess at this point Olivia and TJ thought Olivia looked like a pirate because they started making their pirate sounds and hand motions.

TJ also got a haircut today. He did pretty good. Towards the end, as is usually the case, I had to occupy him so Terry could finish. With Olivia sitting on my lap and TJ sitting in the chair getting a haircut, we read a few Berenstein Bears books.

What I thought was pretty funny was that at this point in the haircut, TJ yelled out "TJ allllllllll done!". And all we could say was...not quite, TJ...not quite. Can you imagine if we let him go out in public with his hair looking like this?!

Of course after TJ got a haircut, the entire house had to listen to Daddy for the rest of the evening say to TJ: "Nice haircut, TJ! Who is your barber?!" As long as it's free, I guess it's worth it!

Lastly, here is a picture of TJ and Olivia eating daddy's pasta like it was the best meal they've had in days. This happens EVERY time Daddy gives them their dinner (even if I cooked it...which, in this case, I didn't). They did eat my spaghetti/mixed veggie concoction today at lunch, so I guess I shouldn't be too mad...

That's about all. Off to bed...Good night!!

2009-02-17T20:39:00.003-05:00

It's been awhile, I know. Here is an outline of the events of the last few weeks.

Went to DeBary to visit the family...Gma, Gpa and Ti-ti. We were also able to see our friend James before he is deployed to Afghanistan again for 6 months. This was also an eventful weekend for me as I decided to cut my hair. The ponytail is history! But that has nothing to do with the kids and this blog so...moving on.
They have a new favorite toy - their "notebook", fashioned after the Blues Clues notebook. If TJ had a choice he would eat, sleep and bathe with this notebook.
TJ and Terry got sick, thankfully not at the same time. TJ's fever got up to 105.5! Thankfully he is okay. But in order to help with his ongoing sinus infection and related illnesses, we are having to give him his breathing treatment more often. One good thing that has come out of this is that he now sleeps through the night...probably because he can breathe. Interesting concept. Oh, and potty training got put on hold while TJ got over his sickness (which included diarrhea...enough said).
On Valentine's Day, we visited Tara at a volleyball tournament that her team was in (she coaches)...Terry's team had an away game in Miami. The kids had a blast. They ran and ran and ran. TJ got to sit on the bench withe team during their match; and Olivia sat at the scorer's table during the match that Tara's team had to referee.
Gma and Gpa came to visit us this past weekend so they could see their "grands". Mom, of course, braided Olivia's hair so I don't have to worry about it during the week (unless she gets too excited in the sandbox).

That's about it...time for bed! Enjoy the pics...Good night!

January Randomness

2009-02-02T21:47:00.009-05:00

Here are some random pictures from the last few weeks...

We are embarking on the wonderful world of potty training in the Parks household. I took the first step and bought the potty, however, I'm not exactly sure what to do next. I set the potty up in the living room so they could first get used to the process.

Despite these pictures, I think we are ready to go live. I'll keep you posted.

I love this picture of my mom and TJ. G-ma and G-pa came last Sunday just so my mom could braid Olivia's hair for the week...and of course because they missed their grandchildren!

Olivia is very animated when she likes her food. As you can tell she really likes grilled cheese sandwiches!

Here are my kids just being cute:) They love to say "cheeeese" when I take their pictures now! I love it!

Parks family at a Super Bowl party thrown by our friend Gabe. We had a great time with our group of friends here in Palm Bay. The kids were very sociable...everyone had a great time!

That's all for now!

Happy Birthday, Grandma Parks

2009-01-12T20:15:00.004-05:00

Since TJ and Olivia were unable to spend today with their Grandma on her birthday, I figured we'd do the next best thing. Happy Birthday, Grandma! We hope you enjoy the video! We love you!