Just wanted to say that my kids love "school". This week they walked right in and didn't look back. I admit I wasn't sure I was doing the right thing by leaving my precious children in the hands of strangers. But now I feel confident in our decision. I am sure they are going to pick up some bad habits and colds. So far they seem to have only picked up good things. Madeline is all about counting everything now. She says, "I count Mommy". I have noticed that they seem to play together better, too. They hardly ever went in the playroom by themselves, but now I will look up to find them in there, playing together with their toys. Ben has started calling Madeline, Maddie. Aunt Jen is the only other person who calls her that, but she answers to it. Well, he calls himself Maddie too sometimes, but its progress from Co-pa! bb

These pics are from the kids first day at Mom's Morning Out. ( The middle one was just dress up for Ben.) I had the hardest time getting the picture of both of them because they refused to stand by each other. Tomorrow will be day three of, "school". I was so worried for nothing. Of couse they pitch a fit when I leave them, but it doesn't last long. They are so proud of their,"purses", AKA lunch box.

Ben and Madeline can carry on conversations with us now and it is amazing every time. The kids started out calling Jamie's dad, Co-pa, instead of Grandpa. I hear him saying Co-pa all the time so I was begining to think it must be an imaginary friend. We recently realized that was what he was calling Madeline. When I tell him, "Ben, her name is Madeline", he quickly corrects me by saying,"No Maddie, yuck". So I ask him," Well, what's her name then", and he says, "Co-pa".Both of them love Dora, Deigo, and Lilo and Stitch. Madeline asks to watch these shows by name all the time. For some reason, Stitch, always sounds like she is saying a word that rhymes with witch, if you know what I mean!bbb

For those of you who don't believe in Murphy's law here's a little test. Put your kids down for a nap. Start a load of laundry, make a few phone calls, unload and load the dishwasher, and straighten up your messy house. Finally sit on the couch or if you really want to test it...crawl in your bed for what you hope would be 10 minutes of peace. Presto! In less than 60 seconds you will hear one or both of your kids screaming in their room that they are,"all done" with their nap.

I know I have been a slack blooger lately. Even Jen has blogged more than me! We have been so busy. Moving, well that speaks for itself. We bought a golf cart which has given us lots of fun stuff to do. We can go the pool,park, grocery store, or out to dinner and the kids love it. I also joined the MOMS Club. We have lots of new friends right here in Fayetteville and there are always activities on the calender like playgroups, lunches, and mom's night out. I am working part time for a home health agency. I see patients two days a week and whenever else we can fit it in. The kids start Moms Morning Out in a couple of weeks too. As you can see we are in potty training mode. There were several times I didn't even knowMadeline was using the potty because she would dump it before I even saw if she really went. This picture is the first time I knew for sure she was using the potty. What a great feeling to know they won't be in diapers at their prom! The second picture really captures their personalities. Madeline, hamming it up, looking for mischief, and Ben watching her so he can follow her lead! bbb

I wanted say how nice Peachtree City really is so, if you will think this is bragging please quit reading. Man, it is so nice here! I didn't think I would see such a difference but, we are so pleased with our decision to move here. Jamie not having to commute is the biggest change. He is home by 5:15 and he can come home for lunch. We are also enjoying the PTC lifestyle. No, we don't have a golf cart, yet. But we ride our bikes on the cart paths and to the park. Soon we plan to ride them to dinner. There is so much to do that is geared toward families. Everything is kept clean and nice, restuarants and parks especially. And I am not scared to go to Wal-mart anymore, because the one here is awesome! I have joined the Mom's club so we have lots of friends and playdates. All the moms are like me in that they wanted to stay home with their children even if that meant they were poor! The kids will start Mother's Morning Out in August. Its 3 days a week from 9-1. I hope to work at a home health agency during those hours. I am excited for the kids to be in a classroom setting. I think the socialization will be good for them, and me :) bbb

I love this picture. Its so hard to get a good one of both of them. The kids are supposed to be taking a nap right now but I still hear them whining and talking to each other. Thank goodness tonight is Poker night for the girls!!!

Jamie and I had a wonderful time in Hawaii. We are so fortunate to have such wonderful friends and family that will step forward to keep the kids just so we could go on vacation! Can you believe Melba and Barney came up from Florida just to help Miranda keep the kids? I know the kids enjoyed all the extra attention too! Thanks everybody! love,bbb

What a difference a year makes! This picture is from the kids' first birthday when they were still little babies! Ben wouldn't even feed himself, but why should he when there is always a woman around to do it for him? They will be two on Saturday and things have really changed. Now they can walk, talk, feed themselves table food, hug and kiss, and, of course, throw temper tantrums. But I've changed too, I think I have learned to go with flow a little better. Our schedule is flexible and we can adjust to whatever is going on around us now. I know some think I was too ridgid with their schedule and still am. But for the record, we were in pure survival mode. Sleep and as little crying as possible were our goals. If things weren't on schedule the only ones who had to pay were Jamie and me. And, I must say I think we've done pretty good so far! The kids sleep good (knock on wood) and are happy, well adjusted toddlers. Most importantly I am still sane!bbb

This one is too good not to share. Jamie and Dan had to take care of the kids while Karen and I went to a bridal shower. (We accidentally stopped and got pedicures on the way home.) We had a great time hanging out with the old gang from back in the day when we all lived in Buckhead.
I can't believe Ben and Madeline will be two in less than a month. Where has the time gone? OK, I sound like my mom. The kids are really talking now. They are putting words together and asking questions. Everyday they say something new and their speech is a little clearer. Despite their ability to communicate, they are throwing tantrums when they don't get their way. Its a test to see how long I can ignore the fits and pretend I don't even hear them, especially in the middle of Wal-mart. bbb

Just wanted everyone to take a minute to read today's www.dooce.com (March 8th). Its a good one : )

We are slowly but surely getting settled in the new house. I still have a few more boxes and we need to hang stuff on the walls. I have no idea what is in the basement, but whatever it is should be trash since we don't seem to need it. The kids have done pretty good in the new house. The kitchen is open to the family room which works well for toddlers! But I swear they have go- go gadget arms because somehow they get into everything. We took their pacifirers away 3 nights ago. They were only allowed to have them in bed but this is a huge adjustment. They both have woken up crying in the night. I am determined to stick with it though, and not give in to the temptation to just give 'em the darn thing! Madeline has learned to say please. Of course, it sounds like peese. Its so hard not to give her whatever she wants when she says, "peese Mommee". Both of them are little mimics, repeating everything we say, they even copy me when I sigh. Sometimes I still can't believe I twins, much less two toddlers! bbb

OK so now I should be unpacking instead of blogging. But I couldn't resist a quick blog to let everyone know that moving is hard work. I think our next home will be a retirement home because I couldn't handle another move. When we got here with the truck there was only carpet in one room and of course the furniture for that room was in the back of the truck. Needless to say, I must be the luckiest girl in the world to have such wonderful family and friends. I don't know what we would have done if my parents hadn't kept the kids. And Miranda, Heather, and Jen were unbelievable since they helped me clean and unpack! Thanks guys!
On another note, please pray for my parents. My mom fell down a flight of stairs Monday night. She broke her collarbone, cut her head, and bruised her face. She kinda looks like she got in a fight, and lost. I have to add that she went to So. Regional and it was almost an hour before she saw the Dr. As a health care professional, I must say the level of care there was poor to say the least. My dad had surgery on his shoulder about 3 weeks ago. So now they match, neither one can drive or really move their right arms. Hopefully they will both heal quickly.

We closed! I can't believe it! We are moving Friday so pray it doesn't rain. My mom is keeping the kids Thursday and Friday nights, thank goodness. I hope they will sleep well at her house. They tend to wake up really early when they aren't in their own beds. But, my mom says not to worry about it. Tomorrow we are having all new carpet put in the new house. Jen is going over there with me to scrub! She is a clean freak with a touch of OCD so when we get done I know things will sparkle! Thanks Jen! I have packed a lot, but there is still so much to do. Wish me luck! bbb

OK I still should be packing instead of blogging, but I thought it would be fun to post a picture of our house. Actually, we have packed a good bit, thanks to Jen and my mom. Over the past few days, I have learned that packing is counter productive with two toddlers. And I have realized that my house is going to be a mess no matter what I do. So, I am trying to do stuff during naps and at night. Jamie talked to the attorney today and she says things look good for closing. I sure hope so, cause I am not unpacking all this crap unless we move! bbb

I really should be packing right now. Jamie got some stuff done this weekend, but I didn't do any packing Saturday. I had to work yesterday. I have so little motivation today. Its raining and cold, so I would like to go back to bed! I haven't been sleeping well since my brain is in overdrive. But what this really boils down to is that I don't want to pack and then not close. I guess I don't have a choice. I have to pack and hope we close without problems. bbb

Thought I should post a quick blog with some good news...we have a contract on our house and we put a contract on a house in Fayetteville. It all happened so fast and it has been very stressful. We got the contract Sunday night and we should close Jan. 31. Then we will move out Feb. 3...two weeks from today. Yikes! There are so many things to consider with movers, packing, the new house needs lots of work, and the kids, Ahhhh! At least my mom has offered to help, even though she has plenty on her own plate. My poor mom, she always has to help us in crunch time. She kept the kids 2 days straight while we were looking and I know it had to wear her out. So I may not be blogging too much in the near future. Wish us luck and pray we close without any problems! BBB

Thought you might like to see a picture of Wes and his new wife, Meg! Little Wes is growing up! They are expecting a boy April 20th and are thinking of calling him Harrison. I have lots of hand me downs for the little guy. Hopefully, he will be able to get good use out of Ben's stuff!
My kids are still fighting colds. Just as Madeline got better, Ben got worse. I forgot how getting up even once in the night can make you so tired the next day. Plus, all the mommy senses kick in, making me sleep really light so I will hear them. Their patience has worn thin, too. If they don't get what they want they lay on the floor kicking and screaming...or is that normal for a 20 month old and the fits are here to stay? Yikes! bbb

I just got Madeline up from a 3 1/2 hour nap, and for the first time since 3am Sunday, she doesn't have a fever! Thank you, Lord. I have been so blessed that my kids really haven't been sick. Being a nurse doesn't change the helplessness you feel when your kid is sick. Maybe tonight I will get some sleep!

I had a hard time picking a picture for this blog. As you can see Madeline didn't like Santa too much. I tried to take them again, after a month of',"What does Santa say?" and, "ho, ho, ho" but she still pitched a fit when we got close to him. So, we just stayed in the stroller and walked right past Santa as she screamed. Ben got a Tonka dump truck from Aunt Tee tee (Tina's kids call me Aunt spittin' Brittain, payback is hell) and Madeline got a baby in a stroller from Santa. They fought over the truck for awhile, but many times Ben pushed the stroller and Madeline pushed the truck-too cute! Overall, Christmas was fun. The kids were great and it was nice to have Jamie around for 4 days. We spent the day after Christmas cleaning and going through their old toys. Now I realize why it was so exhausting for my parents.

In case any of the 3 people who read this were wondering, that realtor's name is Gwendolyn McKinley. I think she works for Remax or did at one time. I called her back to get her last name and the agency she worked for, but she wouldn't give it to me. I told her I wanted to know exactly who I was dealing with if she calls back and that she was a very inconsiderate person. I finally found her full name after some googling. Needless to say, I doubt she will try to bring any clients here, but I would rather rot in this house anyway!bbb

What I am about to say applies to most but not all realtors. I hate them (except Craig). They are rude and inconsiderate of others. I hate having my house for sale with two small children. It is a pain in my hiney. An extra stupid realtor just called to see the house from our front yard. I asked if she could give me five or ten minutes since my kids just woke up from their nap. She said sure, no problem. So my stupid hiney runs around getting the kids their snack, then straightening up the house. Good thing I called her before I packed up my kids and dog and left the house since they went to lunch. But she informed me she had my number and might come back another time. Oh no you won't!! I asked her why she couln't have called me to let me know she wasn't coming. Of course she didn't have a reason except that she is a rude and selfish person. I said thanks for nothing and hung up on her. Her name was Gwen, I will get more info in her sorry hiney Monday to warn fellow realtors haters of her. bbb

Yes, it is true. Today is my 30th birthday. For the record, my mind tells me I am about 21. Alexa, who is advanced, thinks I'm turning 21! Thanks Alexa! My b0dy says I'm 40, if you go by my gray hairs, sagging boobs, and I found this one really long nose hair-ewww. My mind and body really need to get together. A week ago I "flopped" on the couch (something a very young person might do) and I missed and landed on the armrest. I still can't sit right! We are having technical difficulties with the stupid laptop so I haven't been able to blog as much. Maybe my wonderful husband will fix the computer for my birthday! Here's to the next 30 years!bbb

Life has been so crazy lately. There has been so much going on and some things you just can't blog about! We had a crack in our gas tank last weekend. We hit something in the middle of the interstate on the way to Pembroke. My father in law filled the crack by rubbing it with a bar of soap so we could get home. Way to go Ed! We had a new gas tank put in before we talked to the insurance company. Big mistake! Nationwide would only pay for a used tank which would have cost about $300, and wouldn't have met our deductible anyway. (A new tank is only covered if you have OEM, whatever that is.) $800 later we have a brand new gas tank in our 2002 Tahoe, no thanks to our insurance company. The class Jamie was taking two nights a week is finally done. Yipee!! All four of us have been fighting a cold. My immune system has been a disappointment to me so far this winter. We went to the U2 concert Saturday night. It was a huge splurge since we're broke, but Jamie deserved a treat. Plus, that counts as his anniversary, birthday, and Christmas present. Bono is so cool, even if you're not a huge fan like Jamie. We were surprised that the fan base was looking a little old. I guess that means we are getting old, too. My mom is at Crawford Long having surgery now, so please keep her in you prayers. Last, I would like to say congrats to the gorilla at the Atlanta Zoo who just had twins! I feel a kinship toward the big ole monkey for some reason!bbb