Happiness Is

Hard to believe 2014 is already more than a third over!  A quick update on The McQ Zoo: we moved into our first house in January and have been enjoying it so much!  Jack is registered for Kindergarten to start in the fall, and Lander will be going into a 2-day 2YO program as well. Jack is playing tball again this spring, and he has also been racing BMX. We found him a great used racing bike online and he has really fallen in love with the sport.  Brett and I are really into it too, and now Lander even has a Strider bike, so this is quite the family affair!  We are looking forward to all the fun summer will bring, taking advantage of every pretty day to play outside, work in our yard, or just get stuff done around our house.  We have Six Flags/White Water season passes, and we went to Six Flags over spring break once already.  We also went camping and have another trip planned over Father's Day weekend. Before that though, we have our annual St. George Island trip with Brett's family during the week of Memorial Day. 

Brett and I are working hard and doing well in our jobs, so that is a big plus for us these days. Jack is an awesome big brother and great kid most of the time. He has some normal 4YO tantrums and the occasional meltdown, but overall he is laid back, incredibly smart and just plain joyful.  His BMX and tball skills are awesome, and it is a lot of fun to see his drive and passion for sports. He gives his all and sets his own goals. It is cool to be proud of him, but it is even better to watch him be proud of himself and develop his confidence. Lander is a spunky, spirited little princess with a heart of gold and a fiery temper!  She is going through the "mine" phase, and she has some serious perseverance!  Funny how such a sweetheart can turn into a crazy monster if she doesn't get her way, haha. She loves candy and any bottled drink with a top she can take off and pour everywhere. She is a language sponge right now, picking up new words every day and amazing us with everything she understands. She loves her big bro "BoBo," and she wants to do everything he does!  Our not-so-much-a-Baby Girl is almost 21 months, and she entertains us constantly.   

This weekend was particularly special to me, reminding me of some of the best times in my own childhood, playing outside and loving it. It started with a special mommy/son dinner/movie double date with Jack and our BFFs on Friday night. Then Saturday we played/worked outside almost all day before some BMX track practice and an awesome tball game where Jack had two solid hits off of pitched balls. This morning we went on a creature hunt in our yard, discovering mostly worms and roly-poly bugs. Then we headed to the track and watched Jack race (he was incredible btw!).  When we got home I filled up the baby pools and got out the squirt guns, and Jack and Lander splashed and played and enjoyed our yard once again on this gorgeous day!  Here are some pics from our weekend!  As always, thanks for reading.  We wish you love and laughter, from our zoo to yours!

The boys mowing the lawn...

Jack just before his big hit...

Posing in his new racing jersey and BMX pants...

Just being cute at the BMX track...

A proud papa after Jack got 1st place in a round 2 transfer...

Mama and little sis are proud too!

Lander tried out BoBo's gear on her Strider...

Jack getting some good air in a lap after the races...

Lander made me a pie...

Happy that he "surfed" successfully down the slide...

Loving the set-up Mommy made in the yard...

Christmas Card 2013

Our Christmas cards came this afternoon...really late this year, so most of them won't get where they are going until after the actual holiday, but I still love the design I picked, and I LOVE the images I used.  Jack helped me stuff and label and stamp, and then we took them together to the post office, stopping on our way to make a few hand-deliveries.  It was a warm and muggy first day of winter, but we are still in the Christmas spirit despite the weather and all the sickness in our house.  Now Daddy has a stomach flu...following Lander's ear infection and the ridiculous cold that I'm still battling.  Jack seems to be the only one in mostly good health; I know I say it all the time, but the kid is tough as nails...

Anyway, I thought I would go ahead and share our Christmas card and spoil the surprise since they are going out so late as it is!  Merry Christmas from The McQ Zoo!  Maybe I'll have a chance to do some actual blogging again in the New Year.  :-)  Until then, the best, most realistic way to keep up with us is to check out my Facebook Page...

McQ 2013

View the entire collection of cards.

If you can't see the image above, click here.

To find me/us on Facebook, click here.

When/If I Can: The Birthdays Post - Part 1

It is hopeless.  I can't deliver on my promises of catching up, so I'm just going to have to accept that I am too busy to post as often as I'd like.  Working, momming, wifing, it all takes time and energy, and the truth is, I pour my heart and soul into LIVING, so enough is enough.  I'm done trying to keep up with my self-expectations and feeling bad when I can't seem to whip out a picture perfect post a day, a week or even a month after a spectacular event has transpired in The McQ Zoo.  I'm going to change my tune to this: 

I'll get to it when/if I can.

And tonight I have a little time and a bit of "umph" left in my brain after a great day with my kiddos, so...

Enter August, a month of birthday celebrations for both Jack and Lander!  Jack turned 4, Lander is now 1, and we did it up over the course of 2 weekends with a joint "little kid" party, and then individual family (and "big kid" for Jack) parties on their actual special days.  We could not have imagined it more perfectly.  With the excessive rain, I honestly think we got the best weekend of the whole summer for our outdoor shindigs; it was dry, sunny, and there was even a slight breeze that stopped in here and there.  Thank you, God, for those beautiful days!

Anyway, I posted the best pics already on Facebook from the 1st weekend, which included Jack and Lander's joint party (Power Rangers and Beach Baby themes) and Jack's individual party, which was the coolest Lego Ninjago theme complete with a visit from his karate Dojo Master who officially invited him into the "Black Belt Course!"  It was a HUGE deal!!!  We were so happy to have all the cousins and big kids from the neighborhood there to witness Jack's surprise, and of course aunts, uncles, grandparents and a few of our best friends.  Here is the video!

I also want to highlight some of GRandi's work on the parties.  Without her we would not have been able to pull it all off.  Thank you again, GRandi for all of your help and your undeniable creativity and talent!

Also, thank you to Grandma and Grandpa for donating all of the beach accessories!  These were the same ones we used 3 years ago for Jack's first birthday, so it was extra special to use them again!  

Lander and her little pals had a splash!

My Power Ranger and my Birthday Girl...

Here is Jack with his pals Aidan and Beck on the front of the 

bounce house we rented (left) and a few more of the guests,

including Molly and Ari, getting ready for cake (above).

These were our party favors: Power Rangers "Pocket Racers" and Goldfish Crackers!

 My Birthday babies enjoying their special "cakes" made by GRandi!

 These (above) were among the many favorite gifts received from our far too generous guests.  Jack wears his safety vest fixing stuff all over the n'hood now, and Lander LOVES to push her babies in their new stroller!  Thank you to all of our friends for so many thoughtful gifts!  We will be sending formal thank you notes, but please forgive me for the delay!

 Here is Jack decked out in his new sparring gear after Mr. Ewing invited him to the Black Belt Course (that's his best bud Braeden behind him) and also a pic of all the cousins and "big kids" on the bounce house. 
  

 And finally, what is a party without a black eye?  Jack was accidentally head butted by a pal in the bounce house during the joint party.  The first pic was after the swelling went down on the day it happened.  By the next day, it was a pretty noticeable birthday shiner!  Too bad he wasn't wearing his sparring gear in the bounce house!  Jack is one tough dude though, with some seriously hard-headed friends, haha!  

Well I suppose I should stop here for now before this post gets any longer.  I am sorry I didn't get to Lander's cake smash party yet, but...

I'll get to it when/if I can!

Just January...

I'm too far behind to elaborate,

But I've failed to keep this up-to-date,

So now I'm going a different route

To get my pictures sorted out.

A simple little slide show

Should be enough to let you know

What fun we've all been up to

Here in The McQ Zoo,

Month-to-month, that's my new plan,

I'm determined now! I think I can!

I only need a few more hours

And perhaps some stay-awake super powers!

But of course, I won't be caught up still,

I doubt, my friends, if I ever will,

I don't know when, and I don't know how,

So just January is all for now.


Just January: The YouTube Version

 

Just January

Stone Mountain Christmas: 12/21/12

Happy New Year!  2013 - can you believe it?  I am looking forward to this year, but I have to admit, I am hesitant to say goodbye to the best year of my life so far.  2012 was fabulous for me, not gonna lie!  I got my baby girl, and I got to spend extra time with both my kiddos while I enjoyed more than a few months off from working.  Now I have to hunker down and find a new job, and I am not happy about it.  

BUT - this is not about that.  This is about the JOY I just experienced over the holidays.  I am always behind, but I want to post about some of our Christmas fun before time gets too far away from me.

Stone Mountain Christmas: As usual, my mom, my sister and our kiddos all went to Stone Mountain Christmas, and this year Aunt Jen and her boys came too.  It was FREEZING.  I mean, like, INSANELY cold.  The kind of cold that no one in GA should ever have to know!  Still, if there was ever a time to be bundled up, this was it.  Unless you are a crazy, full-of-energy, hot-natured bunch of boys!

And of course, there was my sweet baby girl, all warm and cozy in her PJ's, and then later snug as a bug in a rug on my chest in the Moby Wrap...

Jack has been talking all year about the "Holly Jolly Cabaret," which is a fun, comedic musical show they have had for the last few years.  I can't believe he remembers it, but it somehow has made a big impression.  Here is the set from this season.  

Then of course we had to visit with the Snow Angel.  Jack looks a little worried, but he was actually really excited!  Baby Girl did great!

The fan fave is definitely the train ride.  I was playing with my iPhone on the train, and apparently the flash is a bit obnoxious!  Sorry Aunt Christie!

Nice "photo bomb," Logan!

My babies on the train: Jack with his new light-up sword, and Lander wrapped up close keeping ME warm!

After the train, my kids saw Santa.  Stone Mountain is the best place for us to see him b/c there is hardly a line, and it is just really calm and laid back...nothing like the chaos of the mall scene.  Jack asked for a metal bat, a real basketball, another train and a new PEZ Dispenser.  :-)  Lander just smiled like crazy!

The one above is the one I took with my iPhone.  The one below is the official one the Stone Mtn. photographer took.  Of course, I told Jack to do the funny face!  

We finished up with Santa just in time to see the Snow Angel make snow and watch the fireworks, or "boom-boom," as Jack still calls them!  Jack tasted a little of the snow on his tongue, and Lander enjoyed the bright lights in the sky!

It was a fun-filled event, as it is every year, and it is truly something I love doing with my mom and sister and the kids.  We got home to Daddy really late, but since it was a Friday night, we were all able to sleep in the next morning.  We spent the weekend before Christmas just relaxing together and getting the house ready for Christmas morning.  We also rode Jack's little bike one last time...

I have to stop for now, but I'll crank out Christmas Eve and Christmas in my next post!  Stay tuned for more of Christmas 2012 with The McQ Zoo! 

~The Zookeeper ;-)

Holiday Hustle

The last 2 weeks have flown by as the holidays are underway and Christmas is literally just around the weekend.  After my weekend in Chattanooga with my mom, I headed to Raleigh with my MIL for my SIL's baby shower.  Lander of course came along, but this time Jack-Bo stayed behind and hung out with Daddy. I was obviously sad to leave him, but what was worse, he had his first karate "graduation" where he got the next belt ("novice orange"), and I hated to miss it.

GRandi had Friday night plans, so Lander and I drove up ourselves and enjoyed a quiet night at the hotel after checking in with the parents-to-be for a little while.  My sweet little road trip buddy...she was excited to finally be done with the ride!

The next morning, GRandi flew in and took a shuttle to the hotel.  Then it was time to head to the shower! The shower was a Christmas theme, so of course Lander was appropriately dressed!

Check out the amazing Gingerbread themed diaper cake GRandi made for Cathy!  She is seriously talented!

And here is the wonderful spread from the shower hostesses!  Everything was Vegan for Cathy, and also, how cute is that watermelon cradle with the "baby" melon in it?  All the food was so festive too!

After the shower we had dinner at Robbye and Cathy's house while visiting with some of their family who came into town for the shower.  It was a lot of fun, but after such a busy day, Baby Girl was worn out! 

Sunday morning we made our way back to Atlanta, but not without a few nursing and potty breaks!  Here is Lander, happy to be free from her car seat temporarily during our stops!

When I arrived home, I was SO glad to see my little Jack-Bo!  He had been very good for Daddy and they enjoyed their time together, but it is better when we are all together!

They really missed each other!

Now, here we are, getting back to normal!

The week went by super fast, as I prepared our home for Christmas and shopped and wrapped and all that fun stuff.  Lander hung out in the "bungee" doorway jumper for the first time, and Jack decided to regress momentarily to try out the old excer-saucer!  Lander officially became a "hip baby" and is still working on her sitting-up skills.  My kids are growing up WAY too fast!

On Friday my mom and sister came over for our annual "Cookie Day," and we busted out 4 triple batches of our famous sugar cookies.  It was a nice day together, but it was a sad day in the world with the horrible news of the Sandy Hook shootings.  I cannot even imagine...I'll end with a prayer.

Dear God, please help the families of those poor people who have suffered the Sandy Hook tragedy; help them to feel your presence and find peace in knowing their children and loved ones are now home safely with You in your heavenly kingdom.  Please guide them in their lives so they may go on knowing your power and feeling your love.  And God, please help guide our society in such a way that something like this will never happen again.  I don't know the answer, but I believe You can show us if we all just open our hearts and souls to hear your message.  Thank you, God, for all of the blessings in my life, and please continue to guide and provide for my family and our friends and loved ones.  Amen.