Go Rams!

***scroll to the bottom of this post for an update***

I've had a bit of blogger's block recently so I decided to talk about what everyone else is talking about, the VCU Rams!  I went to Virginia Tech for one year and instantly became a die hard Hokie Fan and I'm an avid follower of college football because of it.  I graduated from VCU with my undergrad and graduate degree, but never really felt a connection to the university like I did at Tech.  I never really realized what sports could do for a school until VCU pulled out some amazing wins to get them into the Sweet Sixteen, Elite Eight, and now the Final Four.  Richmond has just exploded with excitement over this huge feat and I have hopped on the bandwagon!

The Dominion Power building in Richmond used its own resources to light up the city skyline in support of the hometown team.

Maymont, a popular petting zoo in Richmond, also outfitted one of their own in VCU attire!

My school celebrated the finale of reading month today with a black and gold VCU themed spirit day.  I proudly wore my VCU School of Education shirt.  The faculty gathered in the office at the end of the day for a group picture and I hope to get my hands on it so I can post it.  We are planing on watching the game with our small group on Saturday.  I have not gotten a t-shirt since the madness began, but if they make it to the championship game, I might just have to lie, steal or cheat to get me one (just kidding)!  Go Rams!

***Update***

Here is the RPES facutly dressed in black and gold to support VCU.  I found this picture on our local news' website.  NBC 12

spring

Did anyone else see it snowing on Sunday?

I really thought we were done taking these snow pictures since spring FINALLY came (or so we thought).



I am impatiently awaiting the arrival of my spring break, which is still 3 weeks away.

bowling

Jason and I are youth sponsors for the middle school students at church.  Today we took them on an outing to the bowling alley.  Bryce was very excited that he got to tag along with the big kids.  He enjoyed rolling the ball down the ramp!

 It was really difficult trying to aim the thing the right way.  It never rolled the same direction twice.

Watching and waiting.



High five after his STRIKE! 

Bryce lasted for 2 games before he had had enough.  It was definitely a fun way to spend a Saturday.

twins

The boys went shopping with MeMa this weekend!  They got haircuts today too!

catching up

I went in late to work today so Bryce and I could catch up from being apart over the weekend.  We had a nice morning of playing, laundry, a run to the bank , grocery shopping and some more playing.  Bryce was absolutely giddy when we got home last night.  He just laughed and laughed when we talked to him.

I promise the iPhone obsession will wear off soon and I will go back to taking pictures with a real camera, but it has been so nice to just pull out my phone, take a picture, post it to facebook, and then use them on the blog once I'm at my laptop. 

Bryce told me last week that he wanted a pair of sunglasses like Chase's.  It was my mission to find Thomas sunglasses this weekend, but I only came across alligator (or maybe they are crocodiles).  He was happy just the same!

Did you notice that Bryce was wearing a Santa train shirt today? I hid the shirt at the bottom of a drawer after Christmas because he wanted to wear it everyday.  I was switching clothes over today for the warmer weather and he spotted it.  I tried to get him to take it off because he had a new basketball shirt on underneath it, but there was no chance!

Hey Y'all

We headed down to Savannah on Friday for a quick weekend trip with a group of teachers from our children's ministry at church.  We were able to get in a little sight seeing before the "business" of the trip.  I am a Paula Deen fan and I have always wanted to go to her restaurant.  We stopped by the Lady & Sons on Saturday morning to see if it was even possible to get in for a meal while we were there.  We got there at about 10:30 and they told us they could seat us at 11:00.  Imagine that!

I must say, my asparagus sandwich was one of the BEST things I have ever eaten.  I was tempted to get the buffet because it was full of southern comfort foods, but I just wasn't that hungry.  I am so glad I went with the sandwich.  Jason ended up getting the buffet so I was able to do a little tasting of his.

No Paula Deen meal would be complete without dessert.  I got the oreo gooey butter cake, Jason got the banana pudding, and our friend Jenny got the peach cobbler.  Yummy!

After we ate we decided to walk off a few calories and explore the city.  We went down to the waterfront and caught the remnants of St. Patrick's Day on River Street.  Jason enjoyed some green beer while I bought a purse and some shoes!  Then we headed down to City Market for some live music.  The weather was perfect while we were there.

We spent Saturday evening and Sunday morning checking out the children's programs at Savannah Christian Church.  I cannot even begin to explain the size of this place.  We went to the second service on Sunday morning (which was the fourth service of the weekend) and there were close to 800 people there.  Talk about people loving the Lord!  We were also amazed at the number of high school students who came out on Saturday night for their worship service.  This church is obviously doing something right and we brought back many great ideas that we hope to adapt and implement with our youth. 

We spent a lot of time in the car Friday night and most of the day today.  We even made a stop at South of the Border.  I don't personally care for the place, but I guess when you see billboards for a hundred miles, it's worth stopping.  I was just glad that Bryce was still awake when we got home and he couldn't have been happier to see us. 

Happy St. Patrick's Day

DQ

We went to Dairy Queen for a little treat last night.  It was yummy!  I'm not sure who likes M & M blizzards more, me or Bryce!  Happy Wednesday.

new toy

I've been itching to get a new phone for a while.  I have talked myself out of a smartphone and its monthly payment many times.  I finally broke down today and made the purchase.  I was able to justify it to myself becuase we have tax return money to pay for the actual phone and we are getting ready to pay off our kitchen appliances and my gym membership is ending next month.  Even after putting the majority of that money into additional principal payments on our mortgage, there was enough to spare for a data plan on my new iPhone!

I'm pretty sure Jason may want a divorce after getting my phone set up and me all squared away.  I'm a slow learner when it comes to technolgy.  It's not enough to tell me, "it does this if you do this".  I want to know how and why.  Jason is a great teacher, I'm just a slow learner.

I originally wanted the Droid Pro because it had the keypad layout of the blackberry, but better internet.  After playing with the phones yesterday, I had decided to get the Droid X.  However, after remembering that my ipod is dead, it made sense to get the iphone and then I wouldn't need a new ipod.  I'm really happy with my purchase so far!  Jason is due for an upgrade next month so he said he would take the iphone off my hands if I end up hating it and wanted something else.  I'll let you know how it goes!

As for our weekend, we had a lot of fun.  We did some home improvement on Friday and got a new chandelier hung in the dining room.  Pictures to come some day.  Jason and I had a great date night on Saturday.  We went out for Thai and then went to our belated, unofficial 10 year high school reunion.  Bryce stayed with my parents and had a wonderful time.  Today we were here, there and everywhere and loved that it got dark later.  Unfortunately I don't have any pictures to show for the weekend!  We have a busy week ahead, hopefully you will hear from me this week!

pizza pizza

Turns out Bryce is a normal kid after all.  He DOES like pizza!

I thought we'd never find a kid food that he liked.  He still won't eat macaroni and cheese.  I guess I shouldn't complain that he doesn't like those things, but unfortunately he doesn't like many healthier things either.

another birthday and other random stuff

With Jason's immediate family living so close, there is always a birthday to celebrate.  Today we celebrated Jason's aunt Vickie's birthday.  Bryce and Chase liked wearing the party hats and eating ice cream cake!

Bryce and I did some toy box cleaning this weekend and restocked the toy box in the car, threw out some toys in the downstairs toy box, and did some major organization with the play room toys.  I'm a little OCD about organization.  Once I organized Bryce's toy bins, I took a picture of them, then put the picture on the front of the bin so Bryce will be able to put his toys in the proper place.  It may take a while (years) until he gets it, but it's worth a try.

Bryce got some play dough for his birthday and he absolutely loves it.  We keep it at his table in the kitchen and it keeps him entertained for quite a while!

 It's back to the grind tomorrow, but we sure did have a fabulous weekend!

HaPpY

We have had the BEST weekend.  My love language is quality time and I definitely got plenty of it with my boys this weekend!  We went out to dinner and dessert on Friday and had a great time.  We rarely go out because Bryce isn't much fun at a restaurant, but we gave it a try anyway.  He colored and talked with us while we waited for our food and then he ate an ENTIRE grilled cheese for dinner.  Dinner usually consists of one bite of food and then a temper tantrum because he can't stand the organized sitting of a meal at dinner.

We went to Sweet Frog for dessert.  This place is like heaven on earth.  It's a frozen yogurt shop with a toppings bar to die for!  Jason likes his ice cream smooth so he could care less, but for me, the crunchier the better.  Bryce was too cute as he carried his bowl around.  He got chocolate/vanilla swirl with M&M's and a gummy worm.  Notice how all the candy was missing before he finished his ice cream!

Today didn't disappoint either.  Jason was gone most of the morning so it was just me and B-Man.  We did our usual Saturday morning grocery shopping and I was a sucker for almost everything Bryce wanted.  He got Sponge Bob gogurt and Buzz Light Year Cheez-Its, but I had to put my foot down at Chuck E. Cheese string cheese because neither of us would have eaten that kind.  We also ended up with some Mickey Mouse sippy cups and  Land Before Time DVD that I wanted to get him.  We managed to get a few groceries too!

After the store we went to Barnes and Noble to play with the trains because we haven't already played countless hours at home since his birthday!  I was in the market for more books for him because I feel like we read the same books over and over again.  Bryce wanted a basketball book and we ended up finding a picture book about basketball and Rodney the Ram (VCU mascot)l.  Next we FINALLY got our hands on some girl scout cookies and had lunch at Subway.  The weather was nice today so we were able to get outside and play some basketball too.

Jason was home by the time Bryce got up from his nap so we headed out for dinner at California Pizza Kitchen.  While we were waiting for our table we stopped into a toy store and I found this Melissa and Doug ABC puzzle that I have been looking for for months!  Bryce enjoyed playing with it while we ate.  Another dinner score because Bryce ate a piece of pizza and worked his puzzle!  We rewarded him with a mini basketball and a trip to a fun new candy store, Sweet Spot.  Really the candy store was for me, but Bryce enjoyed getting a gummy of every animal ever made, ha!

say cheese

While there isn't a camera on the tripod, Bryce totally gets the concept of taking pictures and asked me if he could take mine!

Happy March

Where did February go?  The days just seem to fly by.  Bryce is getting older and more independent and I see my little baby growing up too fast!  He seems so grown up and I have so much fun talking to him as he can carry on a great conversation!  This morning he told me he and Dada were going downstairs to play with his cool toys.  I asked if I could go and he said, "No, Mama, just boys."  Ha!  Here he is playing trains this morning.

When I got home today we played trains some more.  I was able to get the last set of tracks set up that he got for his birthday and it really expanded the railway!  Thomas has definitely come to life in our living room.

Chase and Taylor gave Bryce this guitar.  It also plugs into a microphone and you can sing while you play.  I was able to get him to sing a little for me tonight so I recorded it.  I missed the first part, but it's still good!

"Jesus Loves Me"