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Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Happy New Year

What a year this has been! Here is a quick run down of what sticks out most of 2008!

Twleve West Main became Josh's 2nd job
Housing market collapsed leaving Josh with some free time :)
Expecting baby number 2

Sands, Grady Franklyn was born on August 11th
Alamance is still my home away from home
New York City to celebrate our 4th anniversary
Dog leash was to blame for Charleigh's broken leg
Sugar Mountain nights in the condo

Cancer took our friend Brian
Lots to be thankful for
A trip to Raleigh to watch Jon and Maggie get married
Nfl: Panthers had a winning season :)

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

A Few of Charleigh's Party Pics

Charleigh's 2nd Birthday

Last Sunday we celebrated Charleigh's birthday in eric carle style. I decided it would be cute to have a Very Hungry Caterpillar party and it turned out to be a huge success. The food for the bash was the caterpillars diet in the book. The tables were decorated in reds, blues, yellows, and greens with streamers and balloons. The kids got to play with all of Charleigh's riding toys, ball pits, and tents. And my favorite part of all was the cake. My mom and I made a caterpillar cake to resemble that of eric carle's. And if I do say so myself I think we did a pretty good job. I just love making the day big for my kiddies. I know they don't even know yet, and I know some people think I go overboard but it is one day to live it big for Charleigh, and now Grady. It was worth all the time making her cake when I saw her little face light up and say "2 Charchi" (which is what she calls herself) everytime she looked at the cake. It was worth all the planning and decorating to see her run around and have fun with her friends. I am attaching some pictures of the party! Charleigh girl, I hope you had a great birthday. As for myself, I have a few days to rest until I get started planning Grady's! What can I say...I love parties!!!

A visit with Dr. Tom

Today was Charleigh's 2 year visit and Grady's 4 month well baby visit. I am sure most kids are okay until the word SHOT comes into play, but not my two kiddos. I am positive that you heard the wailing where ever you were and I bet you thought some kid was being attacked by the boogie monster. Oh no...that is our normal behavior the minute the lady calls "Charlotte and Grady Sands."Charleigh didn't want to be weighed, measured, listened to, and most of all touched. Poor Gman doesn't have a chance watching the way his big sister acts. The bad thing about this is that Dr. Tom is Josh's college roommate and he wants nothing more than to love on Charleigh and play with her. Needless to say, we have never had a play date at Dr. Toms house. By the end of the visit, Charleigh was dressed and smiling, Grady was sleeping on the bottle, and Josh and I had made it thru our first visit with 2 of them. Most importantly, they are both healthy and growing just the way they should be!

Monday, December 29, 2008

Some of my Favorite Holiday pictures

Happy New Year!


We hope that you all had a very Merry Christmas and that you have a Happy New Year!

Love,

Josh, Erin, Charleigh, and Grady Sands

Then and Now...







It is hard to believe that my Charleigh girl is two years old! Here is a picture of her on December 21st 2006 and one of her today. My how things have changed. Happy Birthday punkie head!







Tuesday, December 16, 2008

I am still alive!


Okay so it has been about 2 months since my last post...what can I say? I only am a wife. mother of 2, teach full time, have dinner to cook, clothes to wash, papers to grade, parties to plan, shopping to do, and yada yada yada. I do the best I can. Maybe my new years resolution will be to post at least 1 time a week. I will try! Alright so a lot has gone on since the last time I wrote. In order to cover it all I will make you a short list of the major highlights. Have fun reading about my so called crazy life!

October:

* Basically the whole month was consumed with Charleigh's broken leg. She had a cast from her diaper to her toes. So much fun for us!

* Grady turned 2 months old and got his eating under control...not so much spitting up.YEAH!

* For Halloween, Charleigh was a beautiful butterfly and Grady was a stinky little skunk. Both so fitting! :)

November

* Grady turned 3 months old and is getting to be a chunky little man.

* We celebrated Thanksgiving with all the people that we love.

* Charleigh started talking non stop and saying tons of new words.

* Went to Banner Elk for Thanksgiving weekend and went to Blowing Rock for the lighting of the town. (I would recommend this to anyone. It seems like a great time however both of my kids screamed so we had to leave!)


Looking back it doesnt seem like much has happened but I think that is only because I am sleep deprived and can remember nothing. I count on my camera to remind me of all the major milestones and events in out life. Moments like this remind me to slow down and really make the most of all we do. Sometimes I get so caught up in other things that I dont take the time to savor all the little things that mean so much.

Monday, October 13, 2008

Dixie Classic Fair




In the midst of the drizzling rain, we decided that it would be a good night to take Charleigh and Grady to the Dixie Classic Fair for WBFJ night. We got there and Charleigh had a great time! She fot to walk around and see the livestock and then she heard the music...coming from a carousel. Josh found out how much it would cost and Charleigh got her first ride at the DCF. She had so much fun riding round and round on the horsey with dada. After the ride, we went to see Mandisa and Matthew West and they were both amazing. And of course our trip wouldn't be complete without some yummy roasted corn! On the way to the car the 3 of us ate the corn, while Grady slept in the sling snug as a bug in a rug.

For Me?!?


Last week was my dreaded first day back to work. I had spent the whole night before crying over having to leave my babies and go to the crazy place called school. I have to admit, that the day wasn't as bad as I had thought it would be. The one perk of teaching is that you are too busy all day to think about how sad you are and how much you miss home. After a long day away from my kiddies we finally got back to our house and for once Josh was actually home before I was. When I walked in the house with Grady there was the most beautiful vase of flowers that I had ever seen. Earlier that week he had talked to Jon Herron and had ordered them for me to help make my day a little brighter. I couldn't believe that he got them for me! I whole heartedly believe I have one of the most caring and thoughtful husbands in the whole world. I love you Josh!

Monday, October 6, 2008

Charleigh...our interior decorator



Last week we finally finished her big girl bedroom. So we decided that it was time to make the move from the baby crib to the big girl bed. I thought it would be a good idea to start out with her nap time since she falls to sleep better then, than at night. During the first hour and a half she managed to pull everything out in her room, and finally crashed amongst all the stuff. I am certain that on Saturday night she played in her tent a lot longer than Josh and I were awake. And on Sunday when I went to get her up, she had decided to tatoo her arms with black marker scribbles...just lovely! I have to say that it is getting less messy everytime she goes to bed and the playing isnt lasting as long. However, I dont see her laying down, covering up, and falling asleep anytime soon. She has a great new room to go and explore...the fun has just begun for her!

Monday, September 22, 2008

Such an Honor...


On Sunday we were able to dedicate Grady at our church. What an honor it is to be chosen to be parents! God has been gracious to us and the least we could do is give him back to the Lord! Hannah says it best in 1 Samuel, " I prayed for this child and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord." Thank you for Jesus for this wonderful blessing!

Charleigh and Mason, sittin' in a wagon...


On Saturday we spent the afternoon with the Smiths at City Lake Park. We had such a nice time hanging out with friends!Charleigh and Mason had a great time playing in the Animal Land, riding the train, and climbing on the playground. Jeff and Josh did a fine job keeping up with the little ones while Candice and I chit chatted and played with Grady. How much do we love the Smith family?!?

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Happy 20 month Birthday Charleigh!



One day I was talking to my friend Holly, worried about how I could make both of my kids feel special with all that is going on in our world. She told me to spend time with them on their birthdate, each month as kinda like a Kid Date. What a great idea! So for the 1st one I thought we should do it big since Grady was just welcomed to the family. What better place to celebrate than Chuck E. Cheese!




Charleigh had a blast...along with Jon and Maggie:) She loved all the little things you ride and getting the tickets. When we left she had gotten enough tickets to get a bracelet, clapper, stickers, and a comb. We had such a blast and I can't wait to celebrate next month. Happy Day Charleigh!


Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Like I need one more thing to do...

I have a million things I should be doing right now, however creating a family blog seemed like a lot more fun! I decided that it was time to keep up with the Smiths and Barbers. No, really I did it so I could create a page with pretty paper and pick out music. That is the real reason why I have spent all afternoon perfecting my page. Not so you can keep up with my life but to create something that I could be proud of. I hope that you enjoy reading about my crazy, but wonderful life!