You Never Know!

Chicod Prom 2009

2009-05-17T09:20:00.000-04:00

J and some of his friends went to Washington to eat and the took pics on the waterfront after dinner. Of course the girls wanted to take a lot more pics than the guys did, so for them it was hurry up and wait!

Sports Banquet At Chiocd

2009-05-14T09:09:00.000-04:00

J received a certificate for being on the football team this year

Grandmommy's House

2009-05-10T09:12:00.000-04:00

Her house is always so pretty in the springtime!

Mother's Day 2009

2009-05-10T09:01:00.001-04:00

Me, my mother, and my babies!

DARE graduation

2009-05-08T08:57:00.000-04:00

S won the essay contest from her class and got to present her speech druing the ceremony. She also helped write and performed in a skit with her friends. She played a really good intoxicated girl. She's got acting skills!! OH, and the really TTTTTAAALLLLguy is the sheriff in Pitt county. She was very impressed with his height.

T's 40th birthday

2009-04-28T18:35:00.000-04:00

For whatever reason, S wanted him to jump on the trampoline with her and her firends. He did a toe touch, pike, and he says, a triple souchow

More Easter 2009!

2009-04-08T09:04:00.000-04:00

It took them a while this year. Hid them very well!!

Easter 2009

2009-04-08T08:51:00.000-04:00

The kids still want to hunt a Grandma and Pop's house....especially since the eggs contain money!!!

J's Spring Cotillion 2009

2009-03-18T16:28:00.001-04:00

J had his final cotillion at the Greenville Country Club this past weekend. He and one of his best buds decided to take some beautiful young ladies out to eat prior to the dance and these are the pictures from the dinner. J's date is in the pink dress and his buddy's is in the yellow dress. The other pretty girl was a friend of the girls. I'd say they went to the dance with the most beautiful girls there...inside and out!

J's Spring Cotillion 2009 Part 2

2009-03-18T16:23:00.000-04:00

They really had a great time sitting out by themselves. We were in the room directly beside them, but it had a curved opening and we couldn't see or hear them and vica versa....a win/win situation!

Oops!!

2009-02-27T20:34:00.002-05:00

I didn't realize that's it's actually been over a month since I posted anything. Sorry!! Let me fill you in on what I've been doing so maybe you'll understand. Over the course of the last few weeks I've been attending school board meetings here in Pitt County. They are proposing reconfiguring the K-8 schools that are in the county to K-5 schools. As we attend a K-8 school and absolutely LOVE it, I am opposed to the Long Range Facility Plan they have presented to the public. There were 5 Listening Sessions that were held at each of the 5 high schools in the county. I attended all of those, spoke at three, and have attended 5 other smaller committee meetings with peers that are also opposed. We have been creating alternative plans, hence the name "Make a Better Plan Committee". We made some headway with the school board and they have decided to postpone any decisions to reconfigure the K-8 schools at this time. We have one more proposal to be presented to them this coming Monday. I've been interviewed by the local news station and newspaper on my stance. I write and read much better speeches than I do interviews! I have also been criticized by someone on the local papers comment section that really stung, but my skin is getting tougher in my old age and I didn't respond....they weren't worth it. I know that my kids won't "rue the day I spoke up for keeping them in a K-8 school with Kindergarten students when they were in the 8th grade" and I KNOW that I spend plenty of time "tlaking to my children more rather than talking to reporters"...ouch! I just hope that one day my children will appreciate and understand what I've believe in and did was for them and their education. Right now I'm just a pretty dumb mom to two teenagers and a tween! LOL!!

Round Two continued

2009-01-20T16:54:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately the sled broke...it was homemade and had been used this summer for grass sledding...and had already been put back together twice. It was fun while it lasted!

Round Two of Snow Day

2009-01-20T16:51:00.001-05:00

Round One of Snow Play

2009-01-20T12:21:00.000-05:00

We couldn't resist going out even though we knew more snow was coming. It is cold!!! S went sledding while the boys hid out and made snowballs. Which they then proceeded to use when we walked by!

Snow Day!!

2009-01-20T10:10:00.000-05:00

Here are some shots form earlier this morning. Can't wait to see how much we really get. The prediction is 4-8 inches. For us that's huge snowstorm..lol!! Who knew that Rico would like the snow? We sure didn't.

The "New" dresser

2009-01-02T19:10:00.000-05:00

This is going to take a while!

Polar Bear Adventures

2009-01-01T16:56:00.000-05:00

S decided to join a "polar bear" party today at ther friends house. It was cold enough that I could see my breath in the air. At least she can say she tried it once!!

2009-01-01T16:53:00.000-05:00

At the end it was all good!!

Christmas morning

2009-01-01T16:11:00.000-05:00

This was the most popular game of the morning. Who knew!

Christmas Classic Competition 2008

2009-01-01T16:08:00.000-05:00

S and her team won 1st place. Check out those facials!!

Christmas pictures 2008

2008-12-07T13:40:00.000-05:00

Took the kids to my friend who does photography on the side. Here are a few of the shots. What beautiful kids I have!!

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-11-28T21:40:00.003-05:00

Started the day off in G'ville, headed to S. Hope and ate with T's mom and step-father, and step-siblings. Then headed to my house to visit with my aunt, brother, s-i-l, and all the cousins. I am VERY thankful for my WHOLE family, both near and far. We are truly blessed!!

Flat Stanley Visits Greenville!

2008-11-26T10:36:00.000-05:00

2008-11-26T10:35:00.000-05:00

2008-11-26T10:33:00.001-05:00

L sent her Flat Stanley here from Dallas and he got to visit all over Greenville. He went to her favorite breakfast place here in town, visited Aunt J's class, as well as went to school with J and S. He got to play games with the boys, ride the go cart with S (check out the helmet), and go to CSI for cheerleading. He also went and saw three of the pirate statues that are around town to represent ECU. Fun!! And guess what? I saw another Flat Stanley hanging out with one of the other pirates yesterday!

Finally!!

2008-11-15T12:51:00.000-05:00

You know that a mother never gives up unless she's 100% postivie that it can't be done, and guess what...I found the shoes!!! After lookng in Raleigh we found them here in Greenville, belive it or not. J is very happy....and he had to pay for 1/2 of the price!!!

Last game of the season

2008-11-03T12:53:00.000-05:00

Here are a few pics of the last game of the season. J is #11. It was a heart breaking loss but J had a good game. I try so hard to get action shots, but he's just too fast!

Winter Warm-ups Competition

2008-11-02T19:24:00.000-05:00

S had her first competition today in Raleigh. They came in 2nd place....but there were only 2 teams! She's OK with that! It was just a lot of fun for her! Today was the first time she was flying during a competition and after it was over she said she thought she might get sick. Nerves and the up and down and spinning around got the best of her! A little fresh air and all was well. Isn't the hair shot fabulous?

Happy Halloween!!

2008-10-31T19:10:00.000-04:00

Well, we're down to our last trick or treater. T says we need another baby.....Maybe we'll fly to TX next year!

He did it again!!

2008-10-25T20:43:00.001-04:00

Well, it's the second time he's done it!! "E" got 4 stitches in the bottom of his second toe because he was playing barefoot in the woods. Of course he has to do antibiotics too. Oh, that's J's crown he's wearing in the picture. J was crowned homecoming prince on Thursday night during the dance after the football game. I don't have any pictures of that yet, but when I get them I'll post them!

Going out for the night

2008-10-23T18:15:00.001-04:00

"T" and I got to go to a fundraising dinner tonight. WOOHOO! Grown up time!!

Chicod Homeocming Dance 2008

2008-10-23T13:10:00.000-04:00

J was crowned Homecoming Prince at the Homecoming Dance. His good friend was crowned Homecoming Princess. The king and queen are crowned from the 8th grade while the 6th and 7th grade students vote on the prince and princess from thier grade level

Fair Results

2008-10-05T20:43:00.001-04:00

Well, S got 3 honorable mentions and 1 2nd place ribbon in the fair. Her 2nd place win was for her sweet potato entry. We did get the inside scoop for next year though. Not many people entered the shoebox decorating contest and it pays more than the apple or potato so we might give that a try too!

It's Fair Time!

2008-09-26T17:48:00.000-04:00

S had really good luck last year entering the fair so she decided to expand her entery choices this year to include an apple, potato, and photograph. We'll find out next week how it turns out!!

2008-09-26T17:26:00.000-04:00

The rest of the entries!

Rico's Halloween Costume

2008-09-21T17:25:00.000-04:00

I went and woke everyone up today with the help of Rico. Of course everyone had a smile on their face EXCEPT him. I don't think he likes his Halloween costume!!

Night of the Twister

2008-09-17T19:09:00.001-04:00

S had to create a comic strip for homework tonight that recapped "Night of the Twister". Instead of drawing pictures she decided that she would use models and photograph all the shots. Very creative!! Photography is one of her favorite things. In this shot she is showing when the sheriff was blinded by debris from the twister and a 12 year old boy had to drive him. "E" was playing the sheriff. Thanks big brother!!

Football Jamboree

2008-09-11T21:39:00.009-04:00

J participated in the middle school football jamboree today. You can imagine how much fun that was for me! My baby boy looks so cute.....and of course he's a formidable opponent too! He did a great job of knocking the ball out of someone's hands.They never saw him coming!

"Hurricane" Hanna

2008-09-06T18:16:00.006-04:00

Well, we slept through the worst of the storm last night. S said she slept better than she has in a long time! By the time I took the first pics (about 7:30 a.m.) we really had just a little rain but still a lot of wind. I think the picture of the roses does a good job showing the motion! All we had happen was that we lost a couple of branches from both of our birch trees. As you can see, it turned out to be a glorious day!

First day of school

2008-08-25T22:18:00.002-04:00

"E"s first day of high school!! He's officially a DH Conley Viking. He can wear blue, yellow, and white collared shirts this year.

Mom, it's too early. I have at least 4 more hours in bed! J and S can wear purlple, yellow, and white shirts this year.

She is very proud of her "anti-uniform" uniform. We searched high and low to find clothes that were within the policy guidelines but still allowed her to feel "fashionable". I'm kinda proud of her initiative to follow the rules but still express herself! We searched high and low to find wedges to fit her small feet. She purchased the necklace and earring herself to wear the first day of school.

Happy 14th Birthday "E"!

2008-08-18T22:00:00.016-04:00

AWESOME firework show!!

Pop was making sure he was protected after one of the smaller fireworks flipped over and sent things flying the wrong direction. Luckily the boys always have their airsoft gear outside and ready to go in case of any potential threat of attack. The pellets are rather annoying to step on, but I fell better knowing they're prepared for anything. Granddaddy was rather amused by it all!

The preshow entertainment. Legal NC fireworks!

Waiting for the fireworks show to start. By the time we were done there were another 10 kids and parents that showed up. Always something going on at the Bartholomew household. They know Mr. T LOVES to do fireworks.

Do they ever tire of this? Someone was tied to the STOP sign the other day......

A very willing “victim”.

Happy 14th birthday! Yes, we know there are only 13 candles on the cake. It was all we had and he had already blown one out on the dessert at the restaurant so we figured it all evened itself out!

“E”'s favorites! 5 lbs. of M&Ms, Laffy Taffy, and some Stride gum. Thanks Grandma and Pop! He also got some Jolly Ranchers, iced cookies, and doughnuts from Grandmommy. Rico wasn't very happy with the meowing b-day card and had to come and check things out.

Cash is always a favorite! Thank you Granddaddy!

Some of the guilty party. Notice J's expression. He wondered why he didn't have such fanfare on his birthday. S just reminded them when her's was and told them she expected the same. Notice her smile.

Happy Birthday “E”! Friends form the neighborhood made him a sign while we were out to dinner. No wonder they wanted to know what time we'd be home. And thank goodness he has some very tall friends. We knew something was up when we saw them scattering everywhere when we pulled into the neighborhood.

We had a great evening celebrating "E". He chose to eat at Rucker John's and they treated him like royalty, he came home to a greeting by his friends, ate some "wedding" birthday cake, and topped it all off with a spectacular fireworks show by his daddy. I am blessed to have such a good life!

New haircut!

2008-08-13T12:55:00.005-04:00

S now has a current version of the haircut I so loved on her as a little girl! She's got it tucked behind her ear, but it's a little longer on one side to give it a little "edge" since she's going into 5th grade and everything. We love it!

What will they think of next

2008-08-11T07:42:00.003-04:00

OK, so I don't have a picture of this entry, but I was just too surprised to run in a grab the camera and the "victim" REALLY didn't want his picture taken, so you'll have to use your imagination too envision it....There were 5 boys playing in the back yard. Now after 3 hours a riding on the sled the previous evening it finally broke during a great trip over the bump in the yard by our septic tank (the rider never let go of the rope so he took a short ride with nothing...pretty funny to look at). Left over there was the long rope, pieces of the sled, and a hollow aluminum pipe the "E" had found in the trash pile on the new house they are building at the end of the street. What could they do with all of these things? Well, T and I were sitting on the front porch enjoying the evening when we heard them come walking around the house. We looked up and there was "E" and a neighbor carrying the pipe on their shoulders. Between them was the smallest of the boys (not J) tied up very neatly with the long rope. They proceed to carry him down the street, yes, we told them not to walk on the pavement in case he slipped, tied up like a pig getting ready to be roasted. They carried him down to his house and tried to negotiate a selling price with his parents. I don't think they were able to agree on a price.......Thanks goodness they understand the "fun" and humor of boys!!!

Redneck Fun!

2008-08-09T19:15:00.009-04:00

Or should I title it, "Inevitable Head Injury"? The boys and their friends came in and asked T if they could ride the go-cart. He said sure, just don't hit his new car. Well, I was sitting at the computer and could see what they REALLY wanted the go-cart for so I told them to give him the full reason for wanting to ride the go-cart. ( You know if you leave out details it makes it harder to get in trouble later....give as little details as you can get by with so you can plead that you were given permission to do it....) The biggest kid of them all had a great time driving, S could be heard screaming, "Faster! Faster!", and as you can see it cleared out the neighbors pool and T ended up playing with about 15 other kids this afternoon. Supper just got cold as I couldn't bear to interrupt the fun! (Click on the pic of S and just look at the grin on her face)

Wild animals

2008-08-08T23:38:00.004-04:00

OK, so we've taught our children to break the law by buying and shooting off illegal fireworks. (We even bought music to go along with our fireworks show.) You know that one is suppose to drive just past the border to get the illegal paraphernalia and then head straight home making sure to break no laws on the way so as not to draw suspicion upon oneself....just in case you needed to know. At our favorite place there happens to be wonderful animals that flank each side of the store. "E" has been dying to take his picture with them so I backed up and got out the suitcase to get the camera and took the pictures. Of course S had to get in the act. J politely declined.

In honor of Lauren

2008-08-07T23:36:00.000-04:00

Mermaid girls!

Oh, Mom......

2008-08-07T23:33:00.005-04:00

OK, so the boys wanted to dig a hole and bury each other in it. Of course, I saw a special recently where kids had died on the beach doing that very thing and said no. We compromised and I let them bury J just over his suit, not too cool. Hence, the unhappy look in the pics.

Jellyfish!!

2008-08-07T23:22:00.002-04:00

OK, so I don't have any great pictures of jellyfish, but I do have a story. We thought the lifeguard was just a great supporter of ECU b/c she had yellow and purple flags flying form her stand. Well........purple means jellyfish. J was the first to get stung. The lifeguard washed it off with vinegar and he seemed to bounce back just fine. In the picture all you can see is a small red area just about an inch below his shorts. My neighbor wasn't so lucky. She and I were enjoying body surfing and talking when all of a sudden she starts flailing around. I knew what it was and started hauling myself out of the water as fast as possible. Poor thing, when it stung her hip she instinctively reached down and tried to get it off of her but instead managed to get it wrapped around her arm. As we were quickly exiting the water she kept flinging her arm around tyring to brush it off. People were just watching her because there was nothing on her arm.....it must just make it feel like it was still there. She got rinsed off with vinegar too and tried to convince her DD to pee on her arm. THAT didn't happen so she called a nurse friend. Tip for if you ever get stung by a jellyfish. Take a credit card and scrape the area in an upward direction. That helped her the most! She still had welts that evening and into the next day and hers hurt much longer than Js did.

Cherry Grove

2008-08-07T23:16:00.000-04:00

Our neighbors condo is in Little River, SC so they hop in the car and drive to the public beach access in Cherry Grove. It has a bathroom, a small parking area, and a lifeguard so it's perfect. They live there most of the summer so they have the beach thing down pat. Note the really cool table/umbrella set up. Plus, we didn't have to hall everything ourselves as she has a cool cart. We stayed for about 3 hours and had a lot of fun. On the way home we got to see one of Cherry Grove's most famous citizens out on her front porch watching the gardeners do yard work.....Vanna White! Check out the next post for some exciting creature interactions!

Back to the beach

2008-08-06T23:09:00.001-04:00

The kids and I got invited by our neighbor to go to their condo at Myrtle Beach. Of course we said yes! The girls had fun playing in the great set up they had there. One room slept 5 with two bunk beds, they had another bedroom that had a double, and then there was the pull out couch. It was just the moms and kids and we really had a great time! The funny thing is that I showed her a picture of the twins and asked her who Junebug looked like and she immediately said J. I told her that we thought that must be somewhere from the Gay side of the family. Well lo and behold, her MIL is a Gay from Franklin county around Bunn. We've checked with grandma, who has check with great grandma, and yes, she does have some relatives there. We found one name in common (our neighbors great grandfather) and we're trying to track down if there is a connection. Needless to say the kids have been calling each other cousins for the last 3 days and trying to learn the family history. The girls are just excited that there MIGHT be a possibility that they are BOTH cousins with L! Funny!

Football Camp and other stuff

2008-08-05T21:18:00.004-04:00

J has been going to football conditioning camp this week. He has survived very well and is really enjoying lifting weights. He's also proud of the fact that he hasn't thrown up yet either! We'll keep you posted on how try outs go after school starts. We're headed out tomorrow for a short trip to Little River, SC to meet our neighbors and enjoy the beach a little bit. The kids seem excited! "E" got his high school schedule in the mail today.....aaawwww.......I'm feeling very nostalgic......

Fashion Designer?

2008-08-01T17:43:00.000-04:00

When boredom sets in you just get creative. The front says "Rock On!" She's thinking of becoming a fashion designer when she gets older (along with being a plain old mom, a teacher-part-time, and a weekend cheerleading coach------I have complete faith in her abilities to do it all). It brings back memories or the 80's. Don't deny that you don't know someone who wore a large black one to school on Punk Rock day...don't deny it......

Jonas Brosthers ROCK!!!

2008-07-30T17:34:00.000-04:00

S and I went to the Jonas Bros. Concert!!!! It was a car filled with 3 moms and 5 girls. We went to eat steak and then on to Altell Pavilion (Walnut Creek) for the concert. We got about a 30 min. concert form Demi Lovato, and hour from Avril Lavigne, and then over and hour and a half form the Jonas Bros. The poor moms had to show the girls how to jump up and down while swaying their arms side to side. Fortunately the girls were quick learners and got over their mortification of their moms dancing when they realized every other person there was doing the same thing. The ride back will also hold special memories. There is NOTHING between Raleigh and Greenville that is open at midnight, not even a gas station. We stopped in Zebulon (it was midnight) in the hope that McD's was still open. Well, the drive-thru was open but the dining room area was not due to construction. we had some little ones that needed to potty...... and I got to thinking.......and there is was.......Port-a-potty!!! Of course everyone in line was laughing at us but I met each girl with a large squirt of hand sanitizer and we had a very comfortable ride home. Never mess with a momof3!!! :0)

Leprechauns vs. the girls!

2008-07-28T17:20:00.000-04:00

S and I went into town with a few of her friends to run errands and pick up some lovely required public school uniform pieces.......don't get me started on that one. While we were gone some leprechauns came into her room and turned everything over and just made a terrible mess. The brothers from several families that had stayed at home knew absolutely nothing about the leprechauns coming to visit. I guess they were too busy playing Rock Band to hear them! Well, the sisters from several families decided to get revenge while the brothers were all outside playing baseball. If this blog only had "smellivision" you could smell the Axe cologne in S's room and Brittany Spears perfume in I's room! What fun, what fun!!!

As close to the carribean as we'll get right now!

2008-07-28T17:15:00.000-04:00

Every day that we went to the pool at the neighboring resort there was a woman that was braiding hair by the pool. Now you know that S REALLY just HAD to have it done. Here is the picture taken right after it was done, and then when we took it out 10 days later. She was hoping to make it to the Jonas Bros. concert with it still in, but it started looking a little fuzzy so she asked to have them removed. She did enjoyed wearing her hair pulled back with a headband and wavy that day. Surprisingly enough it never hurt her head!

SNAKES!!!

2008-07-18T17:02:00.000-04:00

S really was enthralled with the snakes. It's a given that the boys were. She really enjoyed the snake feeding....maybe a little too much! Here she is with a Galapagos Tortoise also. She is most proud of her boa picture.

Alligator Adventure

2008-07-18T16:38:00.000-04:00

The kids and I went to Alligator Adventure, The Reptile Capital of the World at Broadway at the Beach. I was thinking to myself, "What a waste of money, this place is tiny and will be such a let down to the kids." Boy, was I wrong. They LOVED it! It really isn't a very big place but the people who work there are so nice and very eager to talk to you about the animals. They have alligators, crocodiles, snakes, bears, and tigers, along with a few birds. S took most of these pics too. I wish we have more of the lemurs. They had a two month old baby and it was so much fun to watch the interaction between the older lemurs and the baby. The kids decided lemurs are a cross between monkeys and our cat, Rico! We were there at feeding time and what a interesting thing to watch. The same handler feeds them daily so they knew when she came close to their room what she was doing. S also thought the albino alligators and "Bob" the alligator. He was born without a tail, and in the wild he would have died. He has a small enclosure that features a small shallow pool. Since he doesn't have a tail, he can't swim! As he grows, so does his grassy area. The kids had heard of him from a friend so they were thrilled when we finally found him.

NASCAR Park

2008-07-17T16:32:00.000-04:00

The guys really wanted to try out NASCAR park while we were in town. If you notice all the kids are trying to be so cool in the pics. Of course S chose a pink car!! S and T rode together in the simulator ride against J and I. I decided he'd do the course backwards and enjoyed all the wrecks he created along the way. Even with all of that he came in 10th place while the others didn't place. We decided something must have been wrong with the others...for real!! The scary thing is that he'll be driving within the next year.

Myrtle Beach Vacation 2008

2008-07-16T16:16:00.000-04:00

We went to Myrtle Beach this year on our family vacation. We stayed at the Royale Palms, part of the Hilton complex in Arcadian Shores. We got an oceanfront condo that was FABULOUS! We were able to cook and really spread out, nice when you have teens and tweens. Here are some pictures that S took that show you the view from our condo. She also took pics when she, T, and I went for a walk. She loves to take pictures of nature and I think her pic of the crab is awesome!

8th Grade Graduation

2008-06-04T16:11:00.000-04:00

I "graduated" from Chicod tonight. It's really a great school and we love the fact that the kids can stay at the same school for K-8. It's a very old fashioned approach but works extremely well as the test scores can verify! We were lucky that all the grandparents were able to come. Yes, T really was happy but we're not quite sure how to get him to smile in pics!

Chicod Prom 2008

2008-05-10T15:44:00.000-04:00

I and his friends went to the Chicod Prom together. The 8th graders (minus one guy) all wore tuxes and the 7th graders wore suits. We went to a neighborhood down the road to take pictures and they ran into their science teacher. Of course S couldn't resist the opportunity to pose for pictures. They went out to eat "alone" at the local Japanese steak house, went to the prom, and then to an after party. Wow! T and I got to chaperone and while I had hall duty T ran the snow machine...and loved it!

BETA Club Induction

2008-05-05T15:27:00.000-04:00

J was inducted into the Jr. Beta Club just as ICB was in 6th grade. (T has made numerous claims that he, too, was inducted during his middle school years but some at our house question the validity of that statement.) Doesn't he look so handsome in his bow tie! Thanks, Uncle C! The funny thing was that during the reception he and his friends kept turning to the wall every time we tried to take their pictures. A 6'4" dad intervened and look, we got fabulous pictures.....boys!!

Giving it a shot!

2008-05-01T18:12:00.000-04:00

OK, since the Mahaneys started this and see what C does for her family, I thought I 'd give this a shot! It really has been nice to be able to keep up with the babies and L so maybe this will be good for those of you we don't get to see on a regular basis. I'm going back to start this in May around the time we got the new computer since those are the pics I have available to me! Let me know what you think. I promise I'll try to keep up with this even as school gets in to session!