Chick-fil-A Rocks!!

I LOVE Chick-fil-A!! It is my absolute favorite place to eat. I know I probably eat there at least twice a week. I am definitely an "addict." And, luckily my husband loves to eat there too, so we are always in agreement when it is time to grab a quick bite to eat. I even went there for breakfast this morning, because they were giving away free sausage biscuits today. (And, FYI, they are giving away a free breakfast item every Thursday morning for the next four weeks.)

When my mom came to stay for a few weeks after Kassidy was born, she said she was actually tired of Chick-fil-A food by the time she left. WHAT??? The town she lives in does not even have a Chick-fil-A (which makes me really sad for her) and so I do not understand how she was tired of it in a couple weeks, when I have been chowing on it for a few years!! Hopefully, I have made your mouth water for a big chicken sandwich and a huge cup of sweet tea. Just be sure and give me a call before you head out :) :) :)

I'm a big boy now!!!

Well, we did it...we got our little guys some bunk beds. I know I said that we probably would not because of the whole falling off the top bunk story, but he had his little heart set on bunk beds and he promised that he would never jump/fall off again. And, he has been true to his word - considering that he will not even climb up the ladder to the top bunk. I guess he really got scared the one time he fell and so, now he is totally content hanging out on the bottom bunk. I even ask him to sit on the top bunk with his brother and sisters so that I could take a picture and he refused to get up there!! Fine with me...he can stay away from the top bunk as long as he needs to.

So, my little boy now sleeps in a big boy bed...and he even gave up his nightime pacifier (which I know we let him keep way too long....but I like to pick and choose my battles with Brody). I had always told him that kids did not use pacifiers in big boy beds and sure enough, the first night in his bed, he did not even ask for it. He has never even ask me about it since that night. So, a success story at the Walls house - Brody is officially a"Big Boy" now :) :) :)

The Little Tornado

Well, my parents are in town for a visit and they got to see what it is really like to go out to lunch with 4 kiddos. We all went to Sonnys to grab a bite to eat and while we were getting seated, I saw a couple guys from church and I told them to be sure and sit far, far away. I was really just joking but it turned out to be a self-fulfilling prophecy today.

I made the mistake of taking Kassidy out of her seat and holding her while everyone finished up. I tend to forget how far and how fast they can reach and grab just about anything within a few feet of them. Her first successful grab was for a handful of coleslaw from my dad's plate. She put it in her mouth and cringed at how nasty she thought it tasted. Then I guess she thought she needed a drink to help wash away the bad taste, so she grabbed my tea glass and dumped the whole thing out....(I am still pulling ice cubes out of my diaper bag!) Well, when I turned my back to try to clean up some of the mess, she grabbed any empty salad plate and proceeded to throw it on the floor. Her last successful grab was for her empty car seat (which was sitting on the table - dumb move, I know) and it flipped over off the table, but my dad was fast enough to catch it before it hit the floor. But half of the restaurant had a heart attack because they thought a baby was in the seat and had flipped off the table. The people beside us looked at me and said, "Man, she is a little tornado, isn't she??" That's when you just smile politely and see how fast you can pack up your bag and get the heck up out of that place :) :) :)

Well, in the middle of all this, I had turned around to look at the guys from church and they were both just grinning and waving and looking very thankful that they had chosen to sit far, far away!!

Deal or No Deal???

Does anyone else watch this show?? Well, I happen to like to watch it...but only because the level of greediness/stupidity is amazing to me. I always DVR it and then watch it later so that I can fast forward through all the parts that I consider useless. Matt and I will watch it together sometimes and I always end up getting so mad and saying "Ok, if he does not take the deal, I am never watching this show again." Of course, the guy does not take the deal and ends up leaving with like $10, when he could have left with $300,000. For some reason, it just really burns me up. It just amazes me that people get so caught up in the moment that they lose all sensibility. They are offered a ton of money but just knowing that there is a chance (no matter how slight) that they could leave with more makes them risk it all and usually end up leaving with a minimal amount.

Greed is a crazy thing that can totally change a person and the way they think/make decisions. I would hope that I would never let greed get the best of me (because it can be an ugly thing), but I am sure there have already been numerous time when greediness got to me and I made some really dumb choices. I just hope that I can learn from each situation and learn to be satisfied with what God has already blessed me with. And most importantly, I hope I can teach my kids how ugly greediness is and at the same time instill in them a geniune spirit of thankfulness. It sometimes seems like an overwhelming task (because kids by nature just tend to be greedy) but I know if I constantly remind them to be thankful for what they have, it will eventually sink in - at least by the time to go to college, right???

Give me Patience, Lord!!!

Still no computer here at our house...but I do feel like I am getting more accomplished around the house. Well, that is until today. Kassidy has probably cried more in the last 24 hours than she has ever cried in her whole life. She is usually the most content, sweet little girl who just spends all day exploring around the house. So, when I say she has cried a lot, I guess it may just feel like a lot because I really have rarely ever heard her cry. And I am so blessed to have a content, easy baby because I do not handle a lot of crying/fussing very well (which I am not proud of and I am constantly praying for more patience). I really struggle with having enough patience and realizing that she is crying because it is really her only way to communicate at this point. I usually end up calling for Matt as my backup because he has so much patience and always seems to calm her down in no time. Some of our friends jokingly refer to him as the Baby Whisperer.

Anyway, back to Kassidy's crying spells - I know that she is cutting her top two teeth. I can see them but they just have not made it all the way through. And on top of that, she is congested and has a runny nose/cough. So, basically, I think she is just miserable and can't get comfortable when it is time to lay down and sleep. So, hopefully, she will have a much better night tonight, but if not, I just pray that I can be a patient mom that can give her hugs & kisses at 2:30am!!

Always something

Well, I am sitting here on my husband's laptop because our computer has died...It has been "sick" for a couple months but we kinda ignored all the signs of impending doom and now it is officially dead. It is so funny because we just turned in all our tax info and we are anxiously awaiting our return - and I just told my husband that this year we only really had one little project that we needed to get done with the extra money. But, it seems like something always creeps up right around the time we get our return back.

Of course, a computer is by no means a necessity. I would probably be much more productive during the day if I would not surf the net and check my email. It may actually be a blessing in disguise. Maybe if we just use the laptop, I can learn to just get on the computer once a day and cut back on a lot of wasted time. So, when I signed on to write this blog update, I was kinda bummed about our computer, but now I see that there is actually something positive that can come out of this!! I can actually spend more time cleaning the house, washing clothes, picking up toys...wait a minute, maybe this is not as positive as I thought :) :)

Just for a laugh!!

This is a really funny clip that plays off the song "Jesus take the wheel." Matt and I really got a kick out of this one. Hope you enjoy!!

Time for Medicine???

I have spent the morning struggling with whether or not to give my sick little girl antibiotics....you probably think it would be an easy decision - usually when you have a sick kid, you give them medicine. But, Kenzie is a different story. She is highly allergic to both penicillin and omniceph, so there is really only one or two antibiotics that she can take. And I try so hard to save them up and only use the when she is really sick. I don't want her to build up a resistance to those couple she can take.


Anyway, she has been running a fever since Saturday, along with a nasty cough. I took her in on Monday and the doctor decided it was just a virus but to call her in a couple days if she did not get better. Fast forward to today - still not better. So, the doctor said it was time to try antibiotics. I went back and forth this morning on whether I should wait it out or just give her the medicine. Well, when she said she wanted me to go get the medicine (as she lay on the couch all pale and coughing), I decided to just do it and hope that I was making the best decision. Now, I feel so much better - the decision has been made and hopefully she will be up dancing and singing her Hannah Montana songs in no time.

A Homeschool Family

Well, with all that talk about homeschooling, I came across a very "insightful" video about what your basic homeschool family might look like....please know that this is totally a joke and in no way am I making fun of people that homeschool - because as you know I have considered it as an option for my family!!

What really is best??

Do you ever struggle with what is the "right" thing to do for your kids?? Lately, I have really been struggling with my kids and how much of "the world" I really want to expose them to. My son is in 2nd grade at a local public school. So far, everything has gone rather smoothly and he has not come home cursing like a litte sailor yet :) :) But almost on a daily basis, I wonder if I am doing the right thing by sending him to public school. It is not really these early grades that I stress about, but it is the next few years to come that have me stressing out.

I wonder if I should step out on faith and try the whole "homeschooling" deal...I am a stay at home mom with a college education and I know I could teach him what he needs to know at this age while adding in Christian values and morals. I know it is the early years that are crucial in helping him form his core values and develop who he will become in future years.

But then I wonder if that is placing him in a "bubble" that excludes him from the outside world. I want him to grow up with the ability to make the right choice in a rough world...I don't want him to finish school and then just throw him to the wolves when it come to college and the workplace. And, of course, I want him to be an example/a witness to other kids at school. He would not really have that opportunity if I kept him at home each day.

As you can tell, I have really been thinking (and praying) about this a lot lately. Not to mention the fact that I have 3 more kids that I will have to make this decision for in the years to come. Maybe I will never really know what the "right" decision is...I think it is different for each family. But I can hope to find peace and reach the decision that is best for my kids and our family.

I am your brother!!

This is a very special video for my friends from small group....I hope this song is in your head all night.

Stand up!!

Well, we just realized that Kassidy Beth can stand up on her own. (For those of you who remember, I discovered she could sit up because I was on the phone and I put her down on the floor and she just sat there - all balanced and secure.) It is so funny because with your fourth child, you are so busy with all the other kids, that you kinda forget to watch for things like rolling over, sitting up, cruising, and standing. With your first kid, you are checking on a daily basis to see if they can do any new "tricks." I told someone that one day Kassidy will walk in the kitchen and ask for some juice and I will be like - "Wow, you can walk!!"

Anyway, back to the whole standing up incident...Matt was helping her stand and he let go for a second and she continued to stand on her own!! She looked so big and so proud. I feel like she is growing up way too fast (she'll be 8 months in just a few days). Looks like she may be an early walker...but I am not pushing for that. I know that walking all day for her means chasing all day for me!!

I did it!

I finally saw my pre-pregnancy weight on the scale today! For those of you with kids, you know what a great feeling of accomplishment this is. However, I need to specify that this is my weight from before my 4th child...I will NEVER see my pre-pregnancy weight from before my 1st child. I have just accepted that. But when I look at what I got in exchange for a few added pounds, I considered myself very blessed.

I told my husband that I had lost the weight, and I said "time for my $100 shopping spree..." But, he followed with, "I thought we agreed on $50." Sweet. I was actually just joking about the whole shopping deal, but it looks like I just joked my way into a new outfit :) :) :)