Abby's Bama Bounders Birthday

Tuesdays with MeMe

This past Tuesday

I helped the kids cook

supper for their Mom and Dad

I had noticed how much they loved making brownies

over the summer

so

I thought every couple of weeks we would give Kim

a break and I would help them make supper

This really brought back

memories for me

I was a stay at home Mom

but

I didn't want my kids to grow up

not knowing how to take care of

themselves just because I was always there

so

we gave them many jobs

cutting grass

weed eating

weed pulling

pool cleaning

car washing

dusting

sweeping

ironing

and finally the day came

when I decided it was time to

learn to cook

We talked it over with the kids

and once a week they were going to cook

now....... they also

were in elementary school

we gave them a simple menu

and they really did a good job

but.......

I do remember the very first meal

consider that Josh was in the first grade

the meal included a salad

now...this was way before the days of

salad in a bag

all you had was

iceberg lettuce

or at least in Berry that was all you had

so Brady and Courtney told Josh

to get out the head of lettuce

and tear off pieces into bite size

and put it in a bowl and return it to the frig

Well......

we got ready to eat

sat down at the table

all three of the kids were so proud

Josh remembered his salad

now remember...

he was a 1st grader

and you can picture

his brother and sister give him a job

that in their

much more highly developed minds

could not be messed up.....

Josh

got the bowl out of the refrigerator

put the bottle of salad dressing

down on the table

took the lid off of......

a bowl of torn up cabbage!

I remember the moment of silence

then.....

the brother and sister...laughing

Josh and the look on his face

but

his Daddy helped him cut it up a little smaller

and put a little mayo with salt and pepper

while

I informed the brother and sister

that they would.....

eat it

eat a lot of it

and love it

I guess it worked

all of my kids are

good cooks

and

they can also iron a mean shirt!

Back to last Tuesday

our menu was

Bertolli Chicken Parmigiana with Penne

Bacon wrapped green beans

Caesar salad

and BarBQ bread

Of course

the Bertolli's is easy to make

but very good

Emma took on this job

since it involved heat

on top of the stove

They all buttered the bread

Abby made the salad

They all

enjoyed

making the bacon wrapped green beans

They got so into it that they

went upstairs during a baking time

and

made place cards

The meal was really good

Mom and Dad seemed to enjoy it

and

I think they were very proud of their selves

Can't wait to do it again!

MeMe Notice
all hands were scrubbed
and I made a point of explaining to them
that we had to disinfect the counter
after the raw bacon was on it!

Happy Birthday

Abby Claire Lawson

MeMe and Pops

Love you

Focus Your Eyes

Okay I am going to try this

Focus your Eyes

Think with your Mind

--------your Body

SIR!

picture

pointing to your eyes, head and chest as you say this

as part of your

KARATE BELT TEST

pretty big deal for a

5 year old

and

MeMe

can't even remember it

help me out

John Brady!

Back row
taking a really deep bow
our little man

He did it!

JB2 & JB3

Anna Got Married

Congratulations

Anna and Rob

the wedding was beautifulThe Father - Daughter dance

The reception was at the
Museum of Natural History
on the
University of Alabama campus


Calling all Crimsonettes
the 4th dance/routine to the tune of
Yea Alabama

John Brady enjoying the chocolate cake

Lawson enjoying my iPhone

Courtney, Dave and Lawson

enjoy a slow dance

The Vapor Sisters

(minus Teresa)

Rememories Taste Good

My doorbell rang Friday morning

It was one of "my girls"

Yes, one of my cheerleaders

from those good ole 1990's

Look what she brought me

She read my blog

and

went and got these cookies for me

I went straight to the kitchen

and

made some kool aid

AHHH!!!

so good

so there you go.......... until

JEN

left a comment that stirred some more memories

JEN asked if they had little almond slivers

in the cookies

YOU KNOW

that rang a bell

so

the cookies Kim brought me taste just

like what I remember

But

I

am going to hunt the Archway cookies

with the almond slivers

I will update you

Thanks, Kim....for a loverly rememory

Tuesdays With MeMe

Emma, Abby and John Brady started back to school Tuesday

of course

that is

Tuesdays with MeMe

so

I got to pick them up from their

1st day of school

Northport Elementary

was my first lineMei Anna

also rides with me on Tuesday

that little smile will brighten a day!

John Brady is in the back seat

but

MeMe can't get turned around enough to get a picture

and

oh me

if you hold up the pick up line!

On to

Huntington Elementary

To drop off Mei Anna

and pick up

Emma and Abby

We went to McDonalds
for a
back to school treat

As we were pulling into the driveway
I handed Emma my camera
I asked her to take some pictures of John Brady
since I had not got to take one myself

Well, the Kim Lawson Photography
came out in Emma
She snapped about 30 pictures in the time
it took me to put the car in park
I heard her telling him to
look this way
turn that way
smile
don't smile
so
I thought these were the two cutest pics
that Emma made

Thank You for Loving Me

Kim and the girls came to the house Monday to visit

They brought me a "thank you"

for this summer

NOW

I never need to be thanked for keeping my babies

BUT

it is nice to know that you are appreciated

Brady, Kim, Emma, Abby Claire and John Brady

Thank You and I Love YouI have already tried this idea

I am putting this pumpkin on my door

in place of my summer wreath

I am looking for a fall bow to top it off

Now, these are truly "PRICELESS"

Back to School

Here we come......

It's a Rememory

I have made a lot of Kool Aid this summer

With the hot temperatures

the kids were always thirsty

As I was making my Kool Aid with Splenda

my mind went back to my childhood

my Mother never made Kool Aid

but

I learned to love it at

Vacation Bible School

at

Westwood Baptist Church

Those ladies made the best Kool Aid

I have tried to copy it

They mixed grape Kool Aid with

what seems to me to have been lemon

It was just the right amount of sweet

(and I am sure it wasn't Splenda)

and tart

Man, could it quench your thirst

and they always had these cookies

that were shaped like

windmills

I would love to find

some of those cookies

Treat time was something to look forward to

Skip forward to my

Tuesdays with MeMe

I mix grape and lemonade Kool Aid

I love it

not sure about the kids "loving" it

but they do drink it

but

it isn't as good as the

"Vacation Bible School Kool Aid"

I wish I knew their secret!

Praying Mantis

It seems like there were a lot more interesting

insects back when I was a little girl

We were always playing with some kind of

interesting bug

or

at least watching one if we were scared of it

A praying mantis

is one of those insects that I remember

being plentiful when I was little

It has been a long time since I can remember seeing

a praying mantis

Now

all of you could possibly see these insects more often that I do

Living in the country

around planted fields

that get sprayed regularly

could easily affect the number of insects

we see

But

anyway

Lawson

along with his MeMe

was so excited over this

Praying Mantis

and I thought the

Praying Mantis

just looked bewildered at all the

activity going on in the yard

Look at it

it just looks

aggravated!

Finally......

It is time to put together

Lawson's 3rd birthday present

Dave took on a major landscaping job

(with the help of his Dad)

make a level spot for Lawson's play set

he started working on this about 4 months ago

and this weekend

it was not declared finished

(water and electricity still to be run)

but it was declared

ready for the play set

So...

we spent the weekend in Birmingham

Sorting the lumber and hardware

And....it begins

Everybody had to help

Movin' on up

FINISHED

Lawson paints a sand dollar or.....

Lawson paints Lawson

I had Lawson a sand dollar to

paint as a reminder of our

summer beach vacation
He was very serious about his painting

Notice the drop of sweat running down his cheek

Lawson had been outisde about 5 minutes

Okay, I sanctioned this hand painting

so we could put his hand print on the sand dollar

little did I know

what I started!

See that serious set to his jaw

Couldn't wait on his Mommy to see this

Good Times!

And....

this is what the bath tub looked like

after Lawson's bath