Memorial Day Weekend

On our way to Santa Clause, Indiana, for a weekend with the Bell Family!

We spent two full days at the theme park/water park, "Holiday World/Splashin' Safari". It was a LOT of fun. Boy, can these kids go, Go, GO!!!

Nick, Hudson, Tyler, Cade... They all LOVED riding the rides, sliding the water slides, and swimming in the pool, too!

Hudson, Callie, Cade... This park had a lot to offer kids of all ages. It is a great family weekend trip. Hudson wanted to run with the big boys (Nick & Tyler) most of the time, but he did take some time out for his little brother & little sister :) He was so sweet to still get on some of the kiddie rides with the two younger/smaller ones. This may be the last year he's willing or able to do that...

Ken & Callie

Tyler, Cade, Nick, Hudson

One of my favorite pictures of the weekend... Most of our pictures were taken on our phones because we didn't want to tote the big camera around the park or leave it in the water park while we were out, so we were lucky to get some good ones. Cade & Callie had a blast in this slide area of the park. Callie loves to slide, and Cade loved taking her down with him :) We coaxed Hudson into coming over for a chance to get a picture of them all together because there wasn't a time they came down that there weren't smiles plastered all over their faces... my sweet babies :)

Thanks for the fun weekend, Ken, Connie, Nick, & Tyler! We'll definitely have to get together and do this again sometime.

Kindergarten Graduation

So our first baby graduated from Kindergarten today. What a special day, a special memory, such a special boy! Too many great pictures not to show them all... Enjoy the slide show!

Dear Hudson... At six years old, you are one of the most sensitive & intelligent little boys I know. I hope you will always have the same excitement about learning that you have had during your first year of school. I hope that you will always be so eager to treat others kindly, reserve judgement, and make new friends. You are such an awesome gift from God. He has great plans for you, so keep your eyes on Him. One day when you have your firstborn, you will understand how much Mommy & Daddy love you! Always...

In the pool!

Callie got her first taste of the swimming pool this year today at our neighbor's house. She loved it! I was pretty certain she'd be fearless. I even handed her off the diving board to her Daddy a few times. Go, Callie! Fun times ahead!

 Little Cade-o had a blast, too. We finally convinced him that he doesn't need his swimmies in the shallow end because he's tall enough to stand. Trying to get him used to being in the water without them so we can work on those swimming skills! He quickly slides them on to go jump off the diving board, though :) 

Hudson was running all around the pool, in & out, having a great time. He was too quick for my phone's camera :) He's doing really well in the water. Since he can swim independently, we'd like to get him started on learning some swim "strokes". 

Looks like an exciting summer of swimming for the Freeman's!!!

A week with two

I've had a very entertaining week! With Cade out of preschool for the summer, he & Callie have been my buddies this week while Hudson finishes his school. Those two...whew! They're a hoot together! They have a "love-aggravate" relationship! ha! They'll play together really well for a while, then they can't get into each other's business enough! All in all it's been fun :) Here are a few highlights...

SPIRIT is back! Cade, of course, will watch the entire movie. Callie sat like this for almost a whole hour! I was impressed! She was glued to SPIRIT, too :)

 As Howie & I were getting Callie ready for bed one night, she belched really loudly, laughed, and said, "scuse me!" Oh well... at least she's learning some manners.
A little fun together, even at the mall!

Callie got her first taste of riding a bike this week. Her brothers ride their bikes pretty often, so, of course, she wants to ride a bike, too. So we pulled down Cade's old "Thomas" bike out of the attic. Fits her pretty well! Now we just have to gain the concept of pedaling :)

 Speaking of riding bikes, Cade gave riding without training wheels a try this week. These pictures are from his first attempts. (Daddy, of course, is there for guidance & support, and getting a little exercise in the process! lol!) The bike looks pretty sideways here, but by day 2, he was riding the length of our road with no help from Daddy! He's got to learn to take off on his own before he's fully independent without training wheels, but he's getting there. Go, Cade!

Cade & I have been reading a lot this week. He loves all kinds of books, but especially books about animals. We had read a dolphin book one day and talked about how dolphins have a blowhole. They need to come up to the surface to breathe because they are mammals. Another day we were reading about other fish and how they have gills that let them breathe underwater. Cade said, "Yeah, fish don't need to come to the circus (read: surface) to breathe like dolphins do." Yes, smart boy, you are most certainly correct :)

Cade also informed me this week that he needed to start helping me out by babysitting Callie. HA!

Happy Birthday, Andi Cate!

  Andi Cate is 6-years-old! She celebrated yesterday with a swimming party at her house. She had a lot of friends & family come who are crazy about her, and crazy enough to jump in a swimming pool with temps only in the 50s! Nonetheless, everyone had a great time wishing Andi Cate a Happy 6th Birthday!

Look at her beautiful Barbie cake made by Mrs. Cynthia Simmons! And it tasted as good as it looked :)

And here are the three Via kiddos on Easter Sunday a few weeks ago. Cade & Brooks had a large time at the birthday party and were practically inseparable. Hudson enjoyed playing with the two of them & with Andi Cate, too. Miss Jesse pretty much kept to herself in the cool weather, but she was as sweet as ever. Love them all!

From First to Last

2010-2011 Cade's 1st year of preschool

First Day (age 3 1/2, with our trusty friend, Pooh Bear)

 Last Day (age 4 1/2)

Cade has had a wonderful first year of preschool. He is at a great preschool, and has the most special teacher (Mrs. Joy). Cade has learned a lot, made new friends, and had so much fun!

Way to go, Little Man! We are so proud of you! Hugs & Kisses :)

2011 Flooding Update

According to reports, the Mississippi River crested in Memphis today at 47.8 feet. The only higher level on record is 48.7 ft in 1937. Luckily today, we have a very efficient Corp of Engineers that have worked very hard to prevent the mass flooding of homes & businesses like occurred in the past. The levee system is working, and expected to hold, protecting a vast area of land. Unfortunately, the low lying areas including some homes & businesses and lots of farmland are flooded by this enormous amount of water rolling down the Mississippi... We are simply thankful it was not worse, and that, up to this point I believe, there has been no loss of life. 

Below are some pictures from the Action News 5 Facebook page. I heard on the news last night that in one specific area of the river that is usually 1 mile wide, it is now 3 miles wide! Definitely an event to document & remember...

20 months

20 months old... wow... I'm really having a hard time believing we are this close to her 2nd birthday! What to say about our little Jewel now?... She repeats a LOT of what she hears on a regular basis, so her vocabulary is growing leaps & bounds! Plus she inserts herself into conversation often :) She loves to "dress up" with her hair bows & everyone else's shoes (as seen below). She's a singer... her favorite song being "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". She loves, Loves, LOVES to play outside! She thinks she's as big as her brothers :) and she takes care of her animals & babies every day... She feeds them, gets out her diapers to put on them, sits them at the kitchen table, and puts them in her chairs, too, so they can watch "Sesame Street" together (bottom picture). What else can we say, other than we adore our precious Callie Jewel!

Happy Mother's Day

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY 2011!!!

It's always good to be with family on special days like today. My mom is a SPECIAL lady. My sister & sister-in-law are so loving with their children, nieces, and nephews. My mother-in-law is a SPECIAL lady. My "grandmother-in-law" is a SPECIAL lady. My other two sister-in-laws are extraordinary mothers & aunts. See... I've been blessed with some great women in my life. I'm very lucky to be able to call them my family, too. I also have three of the most precious gifts in my life. Their names are Hudson, Cade, & Callie, and they bring joy to my life every day.

Thank you, Lord, for your love, and the blessings of these women in my life, and the gifts of my children.

Proverbs 31: 10-31

2011 Flooding update

**Mississippi River forecast to crest at 48 ft on May 11. Current river stage is over 43 ft.

**Approximately 52% of Lauderdale County is underwater.

**There are 37+ roads, or portions of roads, closed in Tipton County due to flooding and/or water damage.

**In yesterday's paper, Tipton County officials noted that Tipton County is protected quite effectively by the bluff. The concern, however, grows over loss of farmland & potential landscape changes.

The following are pictures from downtown Memphis...

Riverside Dr at Beale St

 Overlooking Mud Island

(Thanks, Aunt Lu-Lu for sending the pics :)

A dirty girl

I hate to document this, really, but she might be amused by this one day when she has her own children. She'll most certainly be embarrassed! ha! Anyway, Little Miss Callie Jewel has developed a nasty habit - putting her hands in her dirty diapers!!! Over the past five days, when we've gone in to get her up in the mornings or at naptime, she's had dirty hands, a dirty bed, and a dirty diaper at least five times! She's not taking her clothes or her diaper off (although she tried once), she's just putting her hands down in there. Yuck! Of course, she immediately goes into the bathtub or the sink. The bed gets stripped to, and everything in it, including her lovies & pajamas, go into the washer. As of today, she is sleeping exclusively in bodysuits & pants, or zipper pajamas with the zipper safety pinned up! 

She looks ashamed of herself, doesn't she?

Hhhh... Oh my, little girl! What are we doing to do with you?! (Love you forever, I know :)

May floods once again

Last year during the first weekend in May, I saw more water out over streets & farms & in houses (even in our neighborhood!) than I think I'd ever seen. It was very "localized" (probably not the correct term, but brings to mind the picture that I have in my head...) Those rains came down very quickly, in a short period of time. Areas were flooded that no one had ever seen flood before. It was more like the "500 year" flood.
This year, during the first week-10 days of May, it is forecast that we will see more water in (and out) of the Mississippi River than ever before. History has recorded two great floods of the Mississippi in the last century - 1927 and 1937. As the waters continue to rise, looks like 2011 could top the list. Because the rain has come more "spread out" over days & weeks, we don't have the flooding in town that we had last year. This year's flooding is stemming directly from the high waters of the Mississippi River. The smaller rivers, creeks, and streams that feed into the Mississippi are backing up, and running backwards in some cases, because it has no where to go. The ground being flooded is primarily surrounding these rivers & tributaries, although still effecting homes, farms, businesses, small & large towns, too (Dyersburg, Memphis, Tunica, etc.). 

This morning, the MS River was at 42 feet (flood level is 35). It was forecast to crest at 45 ft on May 10. Tonight, however, that flood level has risen to a prediction of 48 ft! In addition, the news stated that the river could remain at this level of 48 ft for up to seven days! Wow! I'm hoping to be able to take or at least download some pictures so that it will be documented for the children. 

Our prayers go out to all the families effected by the flooding, whether by evacuation of home or another type of property damage. And we are so thankful for the generosity of others who are opening shelters, volunteering in shelters, and helping out in other ways, too.

"And the rains came down, and the floods came up..."