Ending 2009

Our visit to LSU campus on our way to Orange, TX


On December 23, 2009 Katelyn got her ears pierced. We were in Clair's picking out girlie things when she saw another little girl getting her ears pierced. She told me that she wanted hers pierced and after trying to "scare" her, she still wanted to do it, so we let her. She cannot wait to pick out new earrings. She has done fine with it, and hasnt complained at all about being sore or hurting. AND SHE DID NOT CRY AT ALL!!


This is Kate in some of her new Christmas gear from her Nannie, Jon's mom.
The bow has a "K" on it and the gown is from the Disney Store, so of course it has princesses on it.


This is Josh opening one of his presents. The kids also got a Wii for Christmas.

This is Heston, I am not sure why the formatting is different than the others, so do your best to see him! One of his greatest accomplishments this year is potty training! He even wakes up dry! His friend Dax got to move up at school since he was potty trained so that gave a lot of incentive fro Heston to go potty in the potty! He should move in the next few months to Dax's room.

He was also upset that we did not let him get his ears pierced like Kate. He did get over it!

We have a new nephew/cousin. This is Clark Sittig. He born on 12/16/09 at a hefty weight of 9 Lbs. 10 oz. He is such a sweety and I cannot wait to get my hands on him.

We left on 12/19 to go to Texas for the holidays. We stopped by LSU to tour the campus b/c Josh is a big LSU fan. He loved it. I might have a future Tiger on my hands. The campus is pretty and Death Valley is HUGE!! We saw the Tiger mascott, Mike, too. Heston kept saying "here kitty kitty. come see me" thank goodness Mike was sound asleep the whole time. We enjoyed a short visit with Mi Jean and Daddy Lloyd and Nonnie in Orange. On 12/21 we went from Orange to Fort Worth where we saw Hallmark Baptist. They were building their new auditorium when we moved, it is now finished and it is beautiful. We also saw a few old friends and enjoyed Whataburger and real mexican food. We also got to experience warm weather and traffic!! Jon and I also enjoyed alone time together shopping and eating lunch out at Grapevine Mills Mall, (which is located across the street from Ed Young's chruch) without any children! On 12/23 we left Fort Worth and went to Longview to see one of Jon's old friends, Jeff and his family. We drove through a tornado!! A tornado touched down in Longview the evening we were there! The rain was unbelievable and I wondered if we would make it to our hotel. The next day a cold front moved in and we were in the 30's and 40's the remainder of our trip. On 12/24 we drove into Marshall, where we stayed the remainder of our trip. We saw some old friends and enjoyed being with family. On 12/26 we headed home. On a sad note, my best friend Kristi, lost her dad on Christmas night after fighting cancer for several years. We went to the visitation on Sunday and the funeral on Monday. He was a very good, sweet man. We are back to work and getting things back in order at the house. It is hard to find a place for all the new things. We appreciate everyone's hospitality and generousity to us this holiday season and throughout 2009. We believe great things are in store for our family in 2010! God Bless! Until next time, Cheers!

Catch Up...

This is Kate just before her last soccer game. Billy and Ruth gave her a soccer ball Christmas Ornament that was placed on our tree Friday...only to have Heston break it on Sunday. Katelyn was upset and we are in search of a new one. The joys of having a little brother!


Jon took Kate to Disney on Ice (Finding Nemo) in October. She had a wonderful time and now in all her "imaginary play"she is Dory...one of the main charactors in Finding Nemo.



Most of you know by now that Josh got his tooth chipped in PE. He ended up having a root canal the first week in November. He now wears a mouth piece for every physical activity and will have a crown with in the next few months.

This is Josh playing in his first basketball game. Jon and I were both surprised at just how good he is. He stole the ball 6 times in this game and scored too. He is loving it!

This isn't Heston's first haircut, but he acts the same every time he goes, so thought I would let everyone "see" how big he has gotten. He always has to sit on Daddy's lap and is good initially but then once it takes longer than he wants...he starts to cry.

Hope this catches everyone up on just how big the kids are now. I hope to get out Christmas cards by the end of this week, each will have a recent picture of the family. Hope all is well. We are looking forward to our trip to Texas at Christmas! Until next time (which might be after Christmas) Cheers!

Fall Fun

Ok, there are no new pictures on this blog, only because they are still on the camera and not on a CD that I can take to work. I will post fall pictures as soon as I can. I had to blog because we have some exciting news. Josh tried out and MADE the basketball team for school. There were actually a lot of kids trying out (both in 4th and 5th grades) and only 12 spots. He did it. He is so proud of himself and we are too. We will have a busy 4 months ahead!! He also made the Honor Roll-all A's and B's. We are very proud of him. He is a good kid and we are blessed!

Katelyn will have her last soccer game on Saturday and says now, after a slow start, that she loves soccer. She will also have an eye appointment this month to see if the glasses are the right prescription and if maybe we have corrected her eyes to some extent. She is learning so much at school and with Jon looking at another possible lay off, we have decided that at all costs, she will stay in daycare to continue preparing for kindergarden next year, but we will pull Heston out of daycare to save money, if it comes to that. Jon will also be doing some glass work for the lawfirm I work for in the near future so we are excited about that too.

Heston is fine. This past Sunday we had to move him to a toddler bed. We put him down for his nap and all the sudden he appeared in our room. Jon and I looked at each other like "if you are here...then how did he get here". We put him back in his bed and asked him how he got out...he climbed right out like it was nothing. Since he is alreay two and half, we thought we'd change his bed. Well he hates it, but he is getting used to it. He loves to sleep and loves his crib so this is a big adjustment for him and it is why we haven't changed it sooner. Why rock the boat, right?

Jon is over the shingles and is still working in Birmingham for now, but like I said, another layoff is possible. I am fine too, work, work, work and kids, kids, kids...that is about it for me.

That is all the news I have for now, so until next time...cheers!

Katelyn's First Sleep Over

I forgot to mention that on Friday night Katelyn had her first spend the night birthday party. I wasn't sure if she would really want to sleep over so I told her we would call about 9 to see if she wanted us to come get her. She kept telling me "no" I want to spend the night," but being an over protective mom, thought for sure she would want to come home and sleep in her own bed close to mom and dad. Well we called about 9 to talk to her, she got on the phone and in a frustrated voice told me "Mom, I have told you lots of times, now, that I want to stay the night" and with that I said "ok, we will be there in the morning to get you" She said ok and hung up on me!! She did great. Jon went and got her the next morning and she was a happy camper. She is just getting so big.

Good but Busy Times-

This is Jon, me and Sherri, my best friend from Middle and High School. I was her maid of honor in her wedding. This was taken at the CCS Class of 99 reunion. I know I graduated in 98 and not even from CCS, but they invited me -so we went. We had a great time!! Jon and I made it a date night and since mom and dad were in New Jersey, we actually had to hire and pay a babysitter, it was worth it-I think that is the first time we have ever had to hire a sitter.



This is Kate playing soccer. She is trying more and more, but "doesn't think it is fair that they try to take the ball away". We are making progress.

Fall is officially here. We are so ready for cooler temps and are really staying busy, that is why I haven't posted anything on this site in a good while.

Jon has shingles! Need I say more? So far it is a mild case, but that hasn't stopped the whining. I had to send him pictures from the internet so he could see "when he could whine about it". His case doesn't even compare to what I saw in the pictures I found. I know he is in pain and uncomfortable, but it could be much worse than it is. Dad called in a favor to one of his co-workers, who on Sunday night met him at the hospital to confirm the "self diagnosis" and prescribe him some medicine. Since He is on medication we are hoping that helps the duration and severity of his case.

I will be taking more pictures and updating as we have fun times and holidays ahead. We are also glad to hear Grandmother is better and are praying her back surgery goes well. We are praying for the busy months ahead too. As Jon works out of town each week, the kids and I are sticking to routine that is working and the time he is away goes fast. Josh and Kate have dentist appointments on Friday so pray no cavities!! Jon will be taking them, so pray he remembers all the questions I am having him ask the dentist too. Kate and Heston, last week, both had double ear infections and strep throat - they are all better and have been back to school for almost a week. Josh has fall break soon and he is really looking forward to a break from school and even more so-HOMEWORK. I hope all is well with all reading this blog and until next time-CHEERS!

Old and new things

Kate in her new glasses, not a happy camper but it is getting better!


Josh first day of 4th grade-complete with summer reading projects.



5 cousins on a huge rock at a park in Mnt. Lakes, NJ

The Davis kids at Uncle Travis and Aunt Deb's house

5 cousins at Turtle Back Zoo in NJ

These are just some pictures from the trip and the promised pics of Josh's first day of school and of Katelyn in her new glasses. It has been 6 days and so far so good. She is doing better and I have little complaining out of her now. She also starts soccer tomorrow-she is very excited, but more concerned about what she will be wearing than actually playing the game. We also have 2 Birthday parties this weekend-so busy busy here. The weather is cooling down a bit and rain rain every evening for the past week and they say into next week as well so I am hoping for a beautiful fall here in East Tennessee.

Until next time-

PAIN from all angles!

Since school has started things have been extremely busy. Josh has more homework than one person could dream up. 4th grade is very different from 3rd. He has homework in most subjects every day. Spelling has been bumped up a level or so too, with having to know the definitions of 10 out of 15 words. He must read 20 minutes a night. He has several homework pages in Math, Science and Social Studies and normally has a writing assignment too. It has been a rude awaking for all involved in the Davis house. I remember learning this stuff in like middle school not in the 4th grade! All this is going on while I am in chronic back pain. I have always, always had back pain. Recently it has gotten so bad that I literally could not take it any more and decided it was well past time to have the Doctor check it out. Jon was still laid off on the day of my first appointment-He met me there and we talked to the Dr. (who is a Christian) and discovered the need for x-rays. Well the x-rays told volumes about why I was in pain. I have mild scoliosis, moderate arthritis and a "twisted hip" which keeps everything out of alignment. I have started treatment, chiropratic adjustments and medication. If there isn't significant relief soon, then I will be forced to have injections in my back and an MRI. We are praying, praying, praying it does not come to that. Jon has been very sweet, praying with me, bringing me ice packs etc. I am feeling some better and we are praying and believing I will get a complete healing!! We serve a God that can still heal.
The little ones are doing well. Katelyn is making new friends as she has been promoted to the Older 4's class at school. Heston is in the older 2's now, I can't believe my baby is 2.5!! He is talking like crazy and is showing us just how smart he is-
Jon is also doing well. He is back to work and will start traveling out of town next week-for which I am not ready. He is pretty helpful, especially with the kids each night. He picks them up from daycare, starts dinner, and helps with the homework process, bath time etc. Now housework, not so much. However, right now I am under Dr.'s orders not to vacuum, sweep or mop-needless to say it is just not getting done!
That is about all the news I have from the Davis' for now. Oh, Josh is going on a little over night retreat with the children's department tomorrow and Saturday-now you have all been fully updated! take care and talk soon-

New Jersey Trip

Josh enjoying Ice Cream on our last night in New Jersey


Mom and Dad finding out Deb is having a Boy due on 12/21



Girls enjoying ice cream




Cannon and his broken arm. He broke it while we were there.





All five outside Cuban Pete's in Mount Clair, NJ






Another one of all 5 outside Cuban Pete's

We had a wonderful visit to New Jersey last week. The kids daycare was closed for the week and we did not have to pay the outrages daycare costs so we took a trip to New Jersey the last full week before Josh started school. He is in the 4th Grade this year! We can't believe it. His first day was today-8/12/09.
While in NJ we went to the lake 3 times, we went to the Turtle Back Zoo, went to parks, on walks, ate ice cream, went to the Movies-3D Ice Age which was Katelyn and Heston's first time-so it was an experience to say the least, it was storming really bad and the power went off right in the middle, they said go home and we'll give you a refund.-Needless to say Katelyn and Heston were very ready to comply with the request. Cannon broke his arm on Tuesday of our visit, which was a big bummer as we had to cancel plans to go to the shore. We again had a wonderful time.
I will be posting more pictures once I get them saved to the computer and will also include one of Josh's first day of 4th grade. Until then-
Cheers!!

PS Pray for us...Jon has gotten laid off again and they have messed up his unemployment so we have now gone 3 weeks without a paycheck and/or an unemployment check. We are also trying to keep the kids in full time daycare so there is less adjustment on them, however it is our biggest expense, even over rent. Thanks!

Finally...

Nannie and Kate
Finally, Jon loaded some pictures so I could Blog about the visit from Nanny and Pa Pa Jay.
They came 4th of July weekend. It was a good but short visit. Friday night they got in late, came by so we could have a look at our boy (who was greatly missed, especially by Kate and Heston) and to see our house. They got the short tour of the house and property and went for rest at a local hotel. On Saturday morning we met up again and we took them to the Chattanooga Ducks boat/car tour. It was very interesting and really fun. The car/boat was used in WWII and built by women, which I thought was an interesting fact, and guess what?- it still runs-LOL. The owner is a client of the law firm I work at and he gave me a free family pass, otherwise it is really expensive. We will, however, go again. It was such a good time and well worth the time and money. After that we ate at Sticky Fingers downtown and then headed to the hotel so the kids could swim. The five of us swam, Nannie watched and rooted for the kids playing and Pa Pa Jay took a nap. We finished up and headed to our house where we all napped and then prepared dinner. Right after dinner we all said our goodbyes and just like that it was already over...


Heston waiting to get on the boat.



Nannie and Pa Pa Jay with the kids. All in all it was a good visit!

Best Buddies

Here is a picture taken at church, all 3 sitting nice and quiet waiting on me to clock in for Wed. night work. Heston is reading the Bible. He also calls church "bible" not church. It is really cute.
The kid also loves his bed, he has learned to climb in his crib, he just can't climb out so we will be moving him to a toddler bed soon.

Jon still has a job, although each day we wake up and wonder if he will get laid off that day. We are praying they stay busy! He also has an upcoming side job at my place of employment. So we are thankful for that. The media director at our church also wants him to join the Sunday morning crew. This is a big deal b/c you are supposed to have a year volunteer time in that department before you can do it on Sunday mornings, but she said he is just too good-

In just over a week now the kids and I (and GrandSherry) are heading to New Jersey to see Travis, Deb Grace and Cannon. We are very excited, except for the driving part. That will prove to be interesting to say the least. I will post pictures of our trip as soon as we get back.

I am about to leave work and take Josh for his 1 year ENT check up at the Dr. Everything should check out just fine. Josh got stung by a wasp this weekend on his neck. He was really a tough guy! He is almost as tall as me, maybe lacks 6-8 inches...which isnt saying too much since I am short but says a lot since he is only 9!!

Heston and Katelyn still fight like cats and dogs, but really love each other. He hugged her real big last night as they were separated for about 2 hours...Katelyn also told me that she "hopes Heston has a good time" while with GrandSherry and Granddad last night.

I am fine. (like anyone cares about me and Jon since there are now grandkids) but if anyone was wondering, again we are good. Staying busy and school is quickly approaching-we are going to make the best of the 3 weeks til school starts. A little sad I will have a 4th grader.
Cheers!

A lot to "blog" about-updated

This is Heston asleep after getting into a real Coca Cola
and drinking it-he did not nap that day!!


This is a mouse we caught on our back porch. This provided 3 days of
entertainment for Jon and Josh. Josh was a little sad that the mouse was
still alive and stuck. We put it in a plastic bag to put it out of its misery sooner.


This was taken before church a few weeks ago. The kids clean
up nice!


Kate and Heston. Heston is crying b/c he was not off the slide when
Kate showed up. She "booted" him off!

Josh at his Spring Musical at our church.

Josh's last 3rd grade school project-Tigers. He made an A.

Tire swing construction. Recently Kate requested to Granddad for a tire swing

like Caillou. Caillou is a character on a show Katelyn watches. He made 2.


This is one. Dont worry Josh is ok, he got a little dizzy!

This is the other one. As you can see, I cant keep Kate off of them.

She loves them. She can get on and off by herself and swing herself.

She actually starts swinging it and runs and jumps on. It is quite impressive.

this was Josh at his B-day party. We had it at the Chattanooga

Lookouts game in April. He threw out the first pitch. This was

one of the umps.


Josh just before he went out. He did the best of the 3 B-day boys

and got a huge cheer from the crowd.

Steph and Jeremy came to visit this past weekend, which marked our

2 years in Chattanooga. They also helped us move 2 years ago, Saturday.

They brought this basketball goal, which we have already put to use.

We all love it. Heston and Kate use a little one Nonnie got them for

Christmas while us big folks play on the big one. Gets us all outside-even

in the heat.

Heston finally gave up after drinking that coke-oops this is the second

picture, but after all the trouble of posting it I am scared to delete it

so enjoy again!


Heston enjoying his coke!!!!



Heston at the Lake-he loved throwing rocks


Heston and Kate at the playground at the Lake

This is also a repeat. Sorry.



I am doing this new "couponing" thing. We are saving 50-70% on groceries these days. It is wonderful. Last Thursday I went to Publix (a grocery store here) and spent 49.51 and saved 64.92 even with buying a box of Huggies Diapers.

Family picture at the Lake . We live maybe 10 minutes from Chester Frost Park and Lake. We love going there and plan on going at least twice a month during the hot months. The kids love it there and it wears them out so nap time is great once we get home.


Jon and Josh-Baseball team, award night at the Lake

As you can see we have had a busy Spring. Summer is officially here and it is

hot. Josh is currently in Texas and Jon is still working in Nashville.

Today is Jon's 30th Birthday and we plan on celebrating this weekend with cake

and presents. Maybe even a date if I can con someone into watching Kate and

Heston....

This is also the kids last week at their current daycare. I am switching them to a

Christian daycare next week, in which I hope they are happier and healthier. I have never left Heston at his current daycare without him being in tears when I leave. Please pray for an easy adjustment for them. The rules are also a little different as well as the hours, so also pray that I can adjust!! Until next time....Cheers!

Why do they fight?

I have figured out the 5 years between the 2 oldest is a good age difference, at least if the boy is older, so I think I lucked out. Kate and Josh get along for the most part. Very little fights between them. Kate and Heston, however are another story. The other day Kate asked me if I could just "lose" Heston. 'No' I replied...in response I get dramatic tears! Another case in point...Last night Josh and Kate spent the night with Grandsherry and Granddad. Heston woke up this morning and only asked for Josh...so at least the feeling is mutual between them. In the past few days I have seen Heston chasing Kate with a stick, Heston pulling her hair and Kate and Heston fighting over a bike. I have figured out the mention of the "wooden spoon" stops everyone in their tracks. A very useful tool, I now don't leave home without. Last night Heston was not obeying while at church, I grabbed by handy wooden spoon, he quickly took it away from me and started spanking himself on the bottom, to which the adults around responded with continuous laughter. Not what I was looking for in a discipline moment...but I have to admit I laughed too.
This weekend Steph and Jeremy are coming. They should be here tonight, so I promise to post pictures next week...at all costs! Til then, pray, pray hard for the kiddos!! or maybe more prayers should be said for me!-Cheers!

Fun Times

Since Jon is working out of town during the week, I am really trying to stay on top of the chores so that when he is home on the weekends we can play!! The kids are really missing him during the week. Last week we had VBS every night so they were easily distracted when they realized he wasnt coming home from work each night. VBS was a huge success and the kids absolutely loved every second. Josh is enjoying his daycare and Heston and Katelyn are tolorating theirs. LOL. Tonight I plan on cooking dinner and feeding the troops then mom and dad are coming over to watch them so I can visit a friend in the hospital. Then Tuesday, I plan on puling weeds while the kiddos play outside...so Jon can come home this weekend and put new mulch in the flower beds. I have taken new pictures but havent managed to get them to work so I can upload them to the blog. I will try very very hard to get this done this week. We are anixously awaiting a visit from Jeremy and Steph next weekend...the kids are super excited! and Jon is looking forward to some golf. Last Saturday we went to Chester Frost Lake and the kids loved every minute of being in the water and playing in the sand and on the playground. We only stayed about 2 hours and headed home for rest time (which they rested, I ran erronds). This weekend who knows what we will come up with, but plan on doing some chores before the big visit from Steph and Jeremy. Hope all is well. -Karrie

Summer is Here

Heston wearing Josh's hat at the mall, if I could only get the pacie away from him.


Heston eating my salad!


Kate on the mower


Heston at mom's

Josh got his report card yesterday. He made 100's in math, reading, spelling and got a 75 in English. We had a great year. The kids will start daycare on Monday and we have VBS next week too, so a busy week is approaching. Jon will also be out of town the whole week, which I am NOT looking forward to. In the 3 weeks he has been off I have already gotten spoiled to not having to get kids up, dressed, fed and out the door. Not to mention the hectic evening schedule next week for VBS. We will be lucky to get baths every night...

The kids will also attend a VBS at Dallas Bay Baptist Church, several of our friends attend that church so they will have fun. That is in a few more weeks. Josh will be traveling to Texas for a few weeks and I will be taking the kids to New Jersey to visit Travis, Deb, Grace and Cannon in July. Travis and I are planning to take Josh to a Yankees Baseball game.

All in all we have a busy summer. I am already looking forward to school starting in the fall, just to get into a routine, but a much needed break from homework and hectic school and church schedule is really needed too. I am sure Josh wants a break as well. He got a trophy for his Accellarated reading program at school this year. He got first place for most AR points in all the 3rd grade classes. (I may have already told you).