A visit from the Hensons

What I am about to write is rather sad when I look back at my life over the years. In college I had a great friend, Laura Baria. We were basically inseparable. We would take trips home together, go on long tennis trips together, study together (well, maybe not because I didn't do a lot of that), you name it, where you found one, you usually found the other. Then the dreaded day came...graduation. I moved to Birmingham for graduate school and she went to Ole Miss for pharmacy school. We still managed to get together pretty often but then the next big life event happened...marriage. I moved to Dothan and she moved to Jackson. Then shortly after, we started having babies. Between the husbands, the kids and the distance, we never see each other. To be exact, it has been almost 2 years since I had seen her last and neither of us had met the other's youngest child until Wednesday. Finally! Though the visit was short, it was great to see my old pal. Hopefully, since I've moved back to Mississippi the time between our visits will be shortened. Nevertheless, at least we have phones and blogs to keep us updated as to what's happening with our families. Believe it or not, I failed to get a picture to mark the occasion, so I decided to swipe a photo of Laura's cute little boys, William and Wes, off of her blog instead.

They're Sleepy

I walked into our living room the other morning to find this:According to Caroline, all of the animals were sleepy, so she thought she would join them for a quick "nippy nap" as we call them.

Farmer Will's Birthday Party

On Saturday, our family came over to help us celebrate Will's 1st birthday. We were so excited to have so many of our family members take time out of their own busy lives to spend the afternoon with us. In total, we had over 30 people stop by, so needless to say, our house was rocking. I guess this is one of the many benefits of living closer. Of all the guests, perhaps the VIPs of the party were Matt's grandmother, Mamaw Elsie, and my grandparents, Mommaw and Pappaw Bill. Though they all told us they wanted to come, we knew that we shouldn't assume they would actually come until we actually saw them walk (or stroll) through our front doors.

Since I'm staying home with the kids these days, I decided I would embrace the homemaker role for once and try my luck at putting together and printing the invitations, baking the cake, planning the entertainment for the kids and cooking enough food to feed the masses. Thankfully, it all turned out pretty well....well, that is if you don't count the baked beans that I left in the oven ALL afternoon. Yes, these delicious beans baked for over 4 hours and caused all of the women at the party to search my kitchen up and down to find the curious smell. Matt's Dad was the only one who thought to check the oven, only to determine that he thought I was baking brownies! Finally, my Mom and I found the scorched, unidentifiable beans in which I made a special trip to the grocery store. Enough about that....

Though we had a jumper for the kids to play in, swings, a sandbox, a pinata and even a hay ride to provide the kids with plenty of entertainment, the birthday boy stole the show when cake time arrived. He held nothing back and almost burnt his little finger when trying to get a bite before his candle was blown out. I think he truly enjoyed his day as being the center of attention. Wait a minute...what am I saying? He thinks he's the center of attention everyday. Anyway, the day was a lot of fun and well worth all the time and effort that went into it. Matt and I would definitely like to thank Mamaw Kat and Pappaw for all of their help in getting everything ready for the party....we couldn't have done it without them! To wrap things up...we just hope everyone had as much fun as the four of us and are so thankful we have such a sweet little guy in our lives.

Trick or Treat

Halloween proved to be a lot of fun for all of us. Kevin, Mecie, Hunter and Helen came over for "witches stew" and "mummy dogs" just before we all loaded on a trailer that Kevin pulled behind his mule. (To avoid any confusion, the mule I'm referring to is motorized....not the animal.) Anyway, our neighborhood really gets into Halloween with most of the houses sporting some sort of decoration. Since Matt's parents arrived early to help us get ready for Will's birthday party, Mamaw Kat decided she would join us for the hayride. That left Pappaw at the house by himself to give out candy to the many trick-or-treaters we had come by our house.
By the way, I couldn't be totally outdone by all the neighbors, so I pulled some decor together to spruce up our place as well. This is how it turned out. Of course the best thing about this picture are the two little faces looking out the window at me.

Happy Halloween!

From Cowgirl Caroline and her trusty steed, Will the Thrill!

Happy 1st Birthday Will!

Today my little man turns 1! Looking back over the past year, I cannot help but thank God for the blessing he gave our family by sending us Will. During his first few months of life, he had everyone fooled into believing that he was going to be laid back. Even Nana made the remark that I may have to light a match under his pants to get him going he is so laid back. Well, once Will became mobile, he proved us all wrong. I have never seen a more energetic, happy little fellow in my life. He loves everybody he meets and melts their heart with his beautiful blue eyes and bright smile. I am especially proud of the strong bond he and Caroline share. I often find myself sitting back and just watching the two of them play together. As they say, actions speak louder than words and it is obvious that our two kids love each other immensely. I hope that this sibling bond continues to grow through the years and that they will always stay close friends. As for Matt, well he is tickled pink (or shall I say blue?) that his little man is going to be a true little rascal that loves sports and the outdoors. Will lights up every time he sees a ball and pitches a fit when it's time to come inside. Matt can hardly wait until he can take him to the baseball field. When I first found out I was having a little boy, I wondered if he would be a Momma's boy. Well, there is no doubt that he is that indeed. I must admit that there are times when this gets a little tiresome because everyone needs a break now and again. However, I'm going to cherish every moment he clings to me because I know the day will come when he won't need me quite so much.

Will, on your birthday, I pray today the same prayer I pray daily for you and that is that you will grow to be a man who loves God, your family and others. I pray that you will discover the purpose God has for your life and that you always know just how much your Mommy and Daddy loves you!

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On a lighter note...I let Matt read this post before I put it on the blog. He smirked and said, "Well, it is obvious it was written by his mother." I questioned him about his remark and he then came back with, "I mean, you did lay it on pretty thick. It appears that according to you, he is second only to the coming of Jesus Christ." "WHAT?" I replied. Well, perhaps I did lay it on thick, but it's Will's big day so please excuse a Mom when she brags a little bit. As for Will being 2nd, I must clarify and say that Will AND Caroline AND Matt are 2nd in my book! Matt is just feeling a little rejected because I've spent the last several nights putting this video of Will's 1st year together instead of paying attention to him!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

My new tricycle

Caroline finally got a tricycle! Yes, as a reward for learning to use the potty like a big girl, Nana bought her a tricycle. Though she's been potty trained for a while now, Nana waited to get the tricycle until things settled down a bit after moving into our new home. Not to mention the fact that our garage has been a mess ever since we moved in and we just now have room for yet another outside toy for the kids. Heck, it is beginning to look as if we need a separate garage for just our kids' riding toys. Anyway, Caroline loves her new trike and is trying to get the hang of it. Thanks Nana!

Sunday Best

I'm one of those moms who loves dressing their kids in matching Sunday outfits. I know I'm not the only one out there with this fetish, because as soon as we walk through the doors at church all of the moms say, "I sure do miss the days when I could put my kids in matching outfits. They are just so cute." Since most of the outfits tend to be on the feminine side, I know my time is limited as to just how long I can get away with putting my little boy in "prissy" clothes as his father calls them. So, until he reaches the ripe old age of two (or maybe I'll push it to three), I'm gonna take as many pictures of my little darlings in their matching smocked attire. Wouldn't you?

No deer and a sore rear

This weekend we had a great time even though the result of our fun resulted in no deer and a sore rear end. Despite getting up before the rooster, Matt didn't kill a deer. Maybe when his little man gets a little bigger he can bring him some good luck. If I were a deer, I would want to come out of hiding to see this little fellow, wouldn't you?


Anyway, my Dad and I went on an absolutely beautiful trail ride on Saturday. We rode a few hours in the morning, ate lunch and then hopped back on our horses and hit the trail for a few more hours that afternoon. The scenery was beautiful and what made it even better was that we were at home in Neshoba County! Who knew? I don't know why I told my Dad that my rear wasn't sore this afternoon because I should have known that just as soon as I bragged on being able to handle riding all day when I haven't done that in ages would eventually catch up to me. Yep, despite all my padding, I am a little sore from the ride, but it was worth every little pain.

A big THANK YOU goes out to Mimi for agreeing to keep the kiddos so that Matt and I could frolic like we were kids again. Supposedly they were angels (though Caroline did spill the beans and tell me that Mimi had to get on to her for hitting her brother). After we all came in from our fun day, we headed to Mimi and Pop's church for their fall festival. I knew that when they said they would be serving stew that we definitely didn't want to miss it, but my husband could not truly appreciate what he was about to partake. Of course the cooks of Spring Creek didn't let me down and my husband was full as a tick when we left. As for the kids, they are really beginning to like the concept of fall festivals...especially Caroline who got to take her first hayride with me and Mimi. However, today when I asked her what she liked best about the Fall Festival, she quickly replied, "I got to hold Baby Lane...she dressed up like a lady bug."

Practice makes perfect

On Friday evening, we headed to Philly so that Matt could hunt Saturday morning and I could go on a much anticipated trail ride. We decided to stop off at my grandparents' house on the way to my Dad's so that the kids could get an early start on trick-or-treating. I don't know who enjoyed the visit more....my kids or my grandparents (just look at their face when they saw my little goblins at their door).


Cowgirl Caroline and her trusty steed Will the Thrill really put on a show. When I told my grandfather that we were on our way, he said, "I don't have any candy...can you bring some with you or do I need to run up town real quick?" I guess he forgot that I told him a week in advance that we would be trick-or-treating on Friday night and make sure he was prepared. For those of you who don't know my grandfather, this is quite typical, so I was already prepared and brought the candy my kids would be receiving from them so that Matt could run in the house to give it to them prior to Caroline and Will's big debut.

While we were there, Will showed off how well he can walk and for a moment disappeared. (Something I better be getting prepared for I'm afraid.) Anyway, about the time I said, "Where in the world is Will?" my grandfather said, "He's under the table because he just grabbed my leg." He thought he was pulling a good one over all of us and cackled when we realized where he had gotten off to. As we were leaving Caroline informed me that she liked to trick-or-treat and was ready to do some more. Good thing we got an early start!

Fruit Loop Fridays

It appears that a tradition may have started at our house on Friday mornings. A week or so ago, I allowed Caroline to eat some Fruit Loops in my bed while she watched cartoons as I was getting ready (without milk of course...I put them in a Ziploc bag). Of course, she loved this idea and on Friday requested to do it again. This time her brother was awake, so it added a whole different dimension to the request, but I figured I would give it a try. I quickly realized that this could turn into a daily request, so I notified the two Fruity Tooties (that's what I call them when they eat Fruit Loops) that this would be limited to Fridays only and would only be continued if they didn't make a mess in Mommy and Daddy's bed. Of course Caroline happily agreed, so we'll see how it goes.

Fall Crafts

Since I like to stay busy and try to avoid watching TV, I am trying to teach my kids to do the same. This isn't hard to do since they find plenty of things to do themselves; however, I have challenged myself to try and do some sort of craft on the days we are at home and not out running errands. So far, Caroline has loved the idea and is enjoying making all sorts of things. I hung a string above our breakfast window to display all of our artwork and ever time we make something or she brings something home from playschool, she quickly reminds me that we have to hang it up for all to see. Mimi gave me a great suggestion in that instead of keeping all of the artwork my little darlings make over the years, I should instead take pictures of it so that I'll always have the memories without all the clutter. That is great advice and as you can see, I better get to taking pictures because we're quickly running out of room on our art string.