Another birthday celebration...

Yesterday was a very special day for Shaelyn Jade's sweet little friend, Lila... her two year old birthday party! Her fabulous mom and my dear friend, Emily, entertained "martha stewart style" as always... complete with homeade-gourmet cupcakes, handmade birthday decorations, and of course, a matching table cloth! :) There were lots of kiddos there running free on their beautiful land- so ideal for a party! My Shaelyn Jade did this for most of the party....

...but finally woke up for a swing (isn't this adorable--right in their back yard??)..

...and a very fun hayride!

The grand finale was an egg hunt where 160 eggs were pre-hidden (is that a word??? :) ) atop a picturesque view of Franklin with cows and fresh air and GREEN grass (finally!) to help Lila celebrate! Of course the cows were Shaelyn Jades favorite part.... and we MOOOOOOOOOOOed at every one!!!!

....and this guy kept her pretty excited, too, as he ran along beside of us!


...The birthday girl, here...looking for more eggs!

Happy birthday, sweet Lila. We are so thankful for your family!

Happy Birthday Na!!!

Well this weekend was Na's BIG 3-0 BIRTHDAY weekend!!Friday night, Tiffany organized his ideal birthday party, for sure...all of his best buds met at the Ponderosa Hunting Club (a cabin in the middle of nowhere Berlin, TN that he and Tiff's dad and brothers built...and the boys' favorite spot to just hang and be boys) on Friday evening, and well--- we have no idea what they did (or what they ever do there, for that matter),but we are certain it has to do with sitting around a fire, laughing lots, telling very TALL tales, and getting very little good sleep! Still, that is Na's kind of party...and this is HIS birthday, so the cabin it was!

Us girls, meanwhile, had a fun night at the Calmus house- where we were, as usual, very outnumbered by kiddos...

... and where Livi Drae held her own with Cason and Coleman in wrestlemania, and then they pretty well sacked out on the couch together!

Then later that night, Shaelyn Jade pretty much took over the "big bed" all night at our house...but what can I say, I love every snuggle I can get with this girl!

On Saturday, we met at a cute little restaurant called Marcy Jo's... just on the edge of the middle of nowhere Berlin, TN... and had a fabulous breakfast!


...and then the kiddos found a very fun set of steps out back (this kind of fun could only be found at a place like Marcy Jo's, mind you!) that they must have jumped off of no less than 100x each (remember when you used to jump off of things and it NOT hurt???)!!!

(...LOVING the little Bear with his hands in his pockets like a big man...)

...and those who couldn't jump off steps yet just sat in the yard and ate leaves...

(Jadybug and her good buddy Cate)

Then it was off to PHC...

...where we rode...

...walked...

...fished (see the little fishy this girl caught with her hands???)...

...and CAVED!!!!!

Let me mention, here, that the boys have never wanted girls to even get near this "hallowed ground", but recently they discovered a cave on the land and they have been so excited for us all to come and see...and they weren't kidding!

You literally crawl down between jagged rocks...

...and slide down mud...

...and then you find yourself in a cool, damp, dark CAVE! A real cave right there in the middle of nowhere Berlin, TN! It is SUPER cool... and for once, they didn't exaggerate! :)


...It's totally dark in there, so getting a good picture was a trick!

The day was perfect---sunshine, outdoors, and our favorite peeps...all celebrating my wonderful brother Nathan!! Tomorrow (March 29) is actually his 30th birthday, so if you know this guy--- this TRUE outdoorsman...

...make sure you wish him a HAPPY HAPPY DAY!!! We love you Uncle Nate!

Thought For Thursday...

Shaelyn Jade experienced her first rainbow today...it was beautiful, one of those rare ones that actually stretches across the entire sky where you can see the whole thing! My sweet neighbor, Mr. Joe, called me and said, "Dana, QUICK!!!...look out your back window at the rainbow!!"...and I did...and then I yelled for Rich to bring Shaelyn Jade to see...and then we wanted to call Livi and Dra so she didn't miss it. It's funny how a rainbow always draws a crowd- no matter how many times you see one, it is still special, still makes you stop, in awe...and that got me to thinking about WHY that is...

12 And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: 13 I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. 16 Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth." ~Genesis 9:12-16

God, in His mercy, created the rainbow with the purpose of STOPPING US and REMINDING US...of this most important covenant between us and Him. How amazing that the God who told Noah to build an ark is the same God who talks to me each day...and the UNFAILING nature of his promises STILL stand today, for me and you, as they did for Noah. What a merciful God He is, and He reminds us of that with rainbows. How magnificent in color, how magnificent a promise! It was a special gift from God today...

Spring Means...

...pedicures...



...sunglasses...



...almost sunscreen...



...walks with poppi...



...sunroofs...



...windows down...



...green grass...



...and, perhaps best of all, BARE FEET!!!!!!




Hurry, hurry sunny weather! We enjoyed every minute of this SPRING-ISH day!!!

Going Green...

Our blood may not run green, but St. Patty's Day is still a special day for this crew!


We have celebrated many o' Green Day with these two, my bestest best friend forever, Kathryne, and her husband, Jon. In fact, the very first pictures I have of Rich and I were on St. Patty's Day 2003 in Charleston, SC... where the 4 of us donned shamrocks and partook in some traditional Irish festivities ...and made some memories that still make us laugh out loud! We celebrated yet another St Patty's Day this past week and had another little leprechaun in our group this year who cried through most of dinner and couldn't have cared less about going green! It was such a fun night and we feel so LUCKY to have Kathryne and Jon as lifelong friends...and look forward to many more March 17ths!!!

....and we promised the door guy that we'd post his picture on this blog if he'd take our picture... to no one's surprise, he won BEST Green COSTUME at his high school...so thanks, friend!

Splish Splash!

Okay...so the last time Shaelyn Jade went swimming, this is what she looked like...




...and she didn't really know what was going on...but last week, we took our little Jadybug to the Rec Center for her first real splash in the pool...and boy did she love it! I am not sure what was better...her little cute self in her bathing suit...



...or the excitement in her eyes as she took it all in...



...or the JOY in Rich's eyes as he played with her!!!



She is going to L-O-V-E water, if we have anything to do with it! We can't wait for summer days at Nonni and Poppi's pool!!!

...We ran into a few friends just as we were leaving...


...in our PJs and tennis shoes!!! :) We're wondering if she's gonna SWIM or WALK first??? :)

Where Have I Been?

No, I didn't fall off the face of the blogging world...so WHERE HAVE I BEEN, you ask? Well, I have been doing the same ole things I always do, just not blogging about them! You see...last Monday, after my Cy and Colby Day...

...This girl came to do this at our house....



...and this other girl thought it was a perfect idea...and joined her! This girl is starting to pull up on EVERYTHING in sight, including the side of the bathtub...and her Mom likes to take pictures of her doing it!



...Trouble is, this girl isn't very stable, especially with wet hands...so about 5 SECONDS after the picture above was taken, this girl lost her balance and took her first "good" dive, all the way under, on her back...as Livi, Big Daddy Andrews, and I looked on! It wasn't 1 second after that- that I took my first "good" dive-in-after-her......with THIS still in hand...



...Needless to say, Big Daddy wasn't too thrilled with me. He said I reacted as if she'd fallen into a bottomless pool, not slipped under in her bath water. Regardless, she and I were soaked...I was happy my baby was alive, she was happy I SAVED HER LIFE :)...(Livi was quite traumatized as she almost drowned in all of my splashing around and jumping in the tub with them)...the only thing dead, of course...




...OR SO WE THOUGHT! Rich thought we may be able to salvage the memory card, so he hung it "out to dry" :) all week. I kept coming by, shaking it, hearing water, trying the battery...and nothing. Then yesterday, one last time, on the way to the trashcan, and ALIVE! She's ALIVE!!!



... So no more bathtimes with cameras on wrist...new house rules of Big Daddy Andrews, of course!...His accounting little self is happy with the rest of us, now... that we don't have to buy a new camera! :)

...and this is my happy face today, as I'm back to blogging! :)

Cy and Colby Day

Shaelyn Jade and I have been so excited about today since Uncle Nate asked if we'd hang out with his two boys, Cy and Colby, while he's at work today...and Tiff's in Costa Rica! They showed up about 8:30 am and were a ball of excitement for every minute of the day until I loaded them in to Na's truck again tonight at 7 pm. We did story time at the library with Ms. Marsha...made a craft...played with trains...had a picnic lunch at Harvey Park... then played our hearts out with swings and slides and kicking a ball around. Now these two were pretty concerned about NOT having to take a nap while they were with me...and there's one thing that is for certain about me and kiddos---I don't ever want them having bad memories of my house... so needless to say, NO NAPTIME it was! :)...or so they thought! Of course Shaelyn Jade could hardly hold her poor little head up (having missed her typical morning nap) by 1 pm when we came back from the park... so down she went! Then I made a big fluffy pallet on the floor in my living room...pulled the curtains and shut the blinds...got the softest "covers"...and turned on the movie of THEIR choice, actually...Mary Poppins. It wasn't 20 minutes before my good buddy Colby Todd was sawing logs...so I moved him into our guest bed where he slept 2 HOURS...but old Cy really stuck to his guns, being the BIG boy that he is...and really didn't sleep a wink. That was a fun time for us. We made him "forts" by putting blankets between the furniture...and his "own room" in our entry way of our front door...by hanging blankets there...and he played and played, between "peeks" a Mary Poppins, and eventually Kung Fu Panda, of course. We ended our day with them letting Shaelyn Jade chase them around the kitchen and living room in her walker...shreiking as they tried to get out of her way before she ran over their toes (OUCH!)...a yummy dinner (which they DEVOURED!)...and a good game of street soccer with Livi Beasley! When their Daddy rolled up they were definitely happy to see him... but boy what a fun day we had! I am so thankful that I live near my brothers and am able to really LOVE their kiddos like I do. This day meant more to ME than any of the kids!

PS- All I got were cell phone pics...love that I never remember my camera on days like today...ugh!

...breaking for animal crackers...

Colby was a loner at the park. While Cy and Livi played TACKLE football :), he was content on his log playing with grass and mumbling to himself...just wonder what he was thinking so hard about! Probably WHERE IN THE WORLD IS MY MAMA? :)

Colby, Livi, and Cy did grab a sit on this bench a minute...just long enough for me to capture a cute picture...then they were off again!

Thank you, God, for sunshine, parks, and children...and the smiles that all 3 brought me today!!!!

While The Cats Are Away...

If you're driving around College Grove over the next week or so, chances are you may see this group of boys sticking close together....


(Cason Calmus, Cy Lankford, Will Pilkinton, and Coleman Calmus)


(Nathan and Colby Todd)


(Jesse and Rocky...and my handsome man!)

and being, well...boys!









That's right...this group of wild animals is "wifeless" and "momless" this week while Tiffany and Amanada are both on mission trips (say a prayer for them!), and Teri is in Oklahoma (with baby Cate!). We checked in on them Saturday and, to say the least, no one had had a bath, and they probably were not in the exact outfits their mom's had envisioned...but boy were they having FUN! Mom's rest assured...these daddy's are taking good care of these boys...


(Caroline Pilkinton)
...and one little princess!!!