Bad Mommy.....

I have been aware of my need to write a blog post. No scratch that, several blog posts. However, every time I sit down to write one, I can't seem to find the right words. Today, that ends. Correct words or not, I need to get this down. I need to continue the tradition of documenting our lives for my kids and those who aren't around on a regular basis to see the crazy in person. So here it goes, my attempt at a recap of the last few months.

September 2015:
Everybody is finally back in school Chase is in 1st grade at Franklin Academy and Jack, Graham and Anthony start their last year of Preschool at North Raleigh Church of Christ. We LOVE all the teachers who interact with our boys on a daily basis and couldn't be happier with the progress everyone is making. Chase continues to astound me with the knowledge he comes home with at the end of a school day. Jack, Graham and Anthony are working on the letters of the alphabet, both recognition and sound. Chase joined a baseball team, the Mean Machines, that plays in local tournaments on the weekend. Hard to believe that we have reached that stage with him already.

We also took advantage of Chase's track out in September for a family trip. We made the journey to Atlanta and spent time at Stone Mountain, the Georgia Aquarium and Zoo Atlanta. We were lucky to have Lindsey and the girls join us for part of this trip so we had the added bonus of time with our cousins at the same time.

Stone Mountain - it was windy, cold and foggy at the top of that mountain

Georgia Aquarium

Zoo Atlanta - in the rain

Jason and I were also lucky enough to sneak away to Virginia to watch Notre Dame play football while Meme and Popi watched the boys for us. We made a visit to Monticello while we were and enjoyed not only the historical visit there but a last minute Notre Dame win with a touchdown in the end zone closest to us.

Monticello 

Pre-game 2015 ND @ UVA

October 2015
October saw the start of soccer for all 4 boys with Jason and I coaching their teams again this season. We love seeing how much fun the boys have playing and the improvement from season to season is astounding to be a part of.

J,G,A soccer

Of course it was the heart of football season so we managed to take the boys to a UNC game. The irony, they played Virginia! The good news, UNC won easily and a good time was had by all.

J, G, A, C rooting for the Heels

Of course, October means Halloween. As the boys get older, this 'holiday' is more fun for me. Not because of the amount of candy (which by the way is obscene!) but because they have more fun going from house to house. We love where we live but it isn't a great place for trick-or-treating so we crash with some friends and go to their place for pizza and fun. Their older son went to preschool with Chase and is one of his closest friends and his younger sister was in preschool with the littles and plays on their soccer team. Jason and I love hanging with their parents so it is a win-win for everyone!

                   Halloween with the Galls (Tinkerbell, Carolina Panther, Notre Dame player,
          Hurricane player and 2 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles)

November 2015
We took another special trip in November with the boys. This time, they got to see the cousins on my side of the family. My mom decided that for each of the grandkids birthdays, she was going to contribute for us to all go to Great Wolf Lodge. We plotted and planned with my brother and his family and picked Veteran's Day for this adventure. We didn't tell the boys we were going, just packed up the car and headed on our way. The first surprise was the arrival at Great Wolf Lodge itself. The second surprise was when Bise and Meredith showed up. Needless to say, that is going to be a yearly tradition for this group!

J, Bise, G, C, A, Meredith

November also means Thanksgiving. We alternate between spending Thanksgiving in Raleigh or in Winston-Salem. This year, we were home and I have to admit, with as beautiful as the weather turned out to be, I was grateful. The boys spent almost the entire weekend outside playing and running around. We enjoyed visits from family and a great meal along with some downtime which is always nice.

December 2015
Wow...it's December already! That means that Christmas is right around the corner. Before we could deal with Christmas, we had a few things to handle first. We took the boys downtown with my grandparents and my Mom to see the stage production of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". I honestly wasn't sure how this would go which is why I haven't done many of these kinds of adventures with them before now. Of course, I should know my boys better by now. They LOVED it. All 4 sat completed enraptured during the entire performance and spent the entire car ride home telling us all their favorite parts. My favorite part was creating another memory with my grandparents with my boys. As they get older (90 and 88) I know our time with them is not forever so I want to be sure to make as many memories as possible for all of us.

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

We couldn't miss out on the YMCA Reindeer Run and its fun so add that to our list of memories and traditions.

YMCA Reindeer Run

Then we had brunch with Santa at Wakefield, which is also another family tradition. Bise and Meredith were there this year so we got some extra cousin time which is always nice.

With Grandma

With Mom-mom and  Pop-pop

Santa and cousins

Then, the crazy really began. Somehow, this was the year of us traveling to see everyone for the holidays so it looked like this. We left Raleigh the Sunday before Christmas and drove to Charlotte to see Jason's brother and his family and celebrate.

Nana and cousins

We got up the next morning and drove to Winston-Salem where Lindsey and the girls were at Meme and Popi's house. We spent the day with them and drove home.

Pile on Uncle J!

We were joined that night by Nana who left midday Christmas Eve to head to Charlotte.


*Side note - poor Jack spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day sick and it broke my heart. He was so pathetic that even the prospect of gifts from Santa waiting downstairs couldn't get him out of the chair. However, we didn't let that stop him from being part of the fun so we brought Santa's gifts and their stockings to him in the bonus room. He tried to get excited but could only muster a small smile before he put his head back down to just watch.

We packed up the Sunday after Christmas and drove to Charleston, SC to see my brother and his family. The weather was perfect and the kids spent the entire day playing outside which was great since we were heading back home in the morning.

New Year's Eve Day allowed Chase a special treat. He got to attend a basketball clinic that was run by Coach Williams and the team. He and some friends went and had a great time. He was on the court and is now officially a Tarheel for life!

Chase standing near Bryce Johnson waiting for instructions

Chase and Lily with Theo Pinson

We turned the page to a new year that will see Jack, Graham and Anthony turning 5 very soon and the end of preschool! Will get the birthday post written soon. Not sure I have the emotional fortitude this morning to handle that one....