Happy Labor Day, everyone! I hope at some point today you
get to rest from your “labors”! I am very grateful to UTC for having me teach
for them. It has been a blessing. The person who hired me was Dr. Valerie
Rutledge. She is the director of the Teacher Preparation Academy, and she is
AWESOME. Thank you again, Valerie!

It is 8:00 A. M., and Tropical Storm Lee has helped us to
already have 2 inches of rain. Thank you, God! I know the plants and animals
are grateful, and I hope our area farmers haven’t lost too much of their crops
due to the recent drought here in the Southeast.

Enjoy your friends and loved ones today, and if
you are with us here in the Southeastern United States, stay dry.

"New" beds

Here at the Caylor-Brown house we had a “rite of passage” so
to speak. On Friday evening, Ammon and Carter began sleeping in their “big girl”
and “big boy” beds. We had been talking about it since May! Last week, they
chose their comforters. Carter wanted Lightning McQueen, and Ammon wanted
Princesses. We were so fortunate to find them back to back on the same shelf at
Sears.

Carter's side

The beds are the brand Cocoon. They can either be 1)cribs,
2) day beds, or 3)full beds. They were wonderful cribs, and I recommend them
highly. I could not believe how beautiful they looked as full beds. If Carter
and Ammon ever decide to pick out their own beds one day, I want to try using
one as a day bed.

Ammon's Side

I am trying not to be too sentimental. I share those feelings with you all quite often, but converting the crib was bitter-sweet: My babies are growing up.

On May 22, I wrote that I was disappointed in myself for
being late with the hummingbird feeders, and that I hoped they would forgive
me. They did. LOL On Friday morning there were approximately 6 hummingbirds
jockeying for the drinking position. The feeder has holes enough to feed 4
hummingbirds, but as you people with feeders know, there is always one who is
defending his “territory”. It is so enjoyable and amusing to observe them. I could watch them for hours. Bless their little hearts. They are “tanking up” for their journey south for
their “winter vacation”.

If you know a young boy/girl who needs a trip to the barber in a location that is “kid friendly”, you need to try the Classic Barber in Hixson. We highly recommend it. If you are a reader from another town/state/country/continent (once again I have friends in Australia and Ireland), hopefully you know a similar barber. First of all, the owner of the barber shop made a huge corner of his shop “kid friendly”. It has a television set with several different children’s DVDs to choose from, and I think if you request, he has some type of TV “plays station”. There is also a chess board and some other toys. There are also 4 flat-screen televisions to choose from too. We’ve never played, but there are two pool tables as well.

The barbers themselves are so kind to children. You can tell that the owner has chosen barbers who actually like children.  They don’t talk “baby talk”, but they speak to the children on their level. Some barbers only use electric clippers. The first time Carter heard clippers where I get my hair cut, he cried. However, these gentlemen will use the sheers at your request. Now, because of the trust Carter has in them, he will allow them to use the clippers. Carter is so still and good for them, and I am so grateful. He has never once cried or twitched or complained. They tell him that he is better than some adults. At the end of each hair cut, Carter gets to choose a sucker, and even though she doesn’t get her hair cut, Ammon gets to choose one too. We look forward to our hair cuts at the Classic Barber.

….no, my trips to the Little Debbie thrift store have not caused me to have cavities!  LOL ;o)

Happy Tuesday folks!

Monday morning held a schedule that was out of the ordinary.
It was my semi-annual teeth cleaning and check-up day. I started going to
Hamilton Family Dentistry almost a year ago, and I really like Dr. Bradley Brewer
and his staff. When I asked him when he suggested bringing in children, he
recommended that they be at least 3 years old. Now, Carter and Ammon did not
have their teeth cleaned, but I wanted them to go with me yesterday to build
their schema for their future trips to the dentist.

Mamaw accompanied us, and for about the first 10 minutes,
Carter and Ammon did great. They were very interested and watched what the hygienist
was doing. I was very proud of them. However, Mamaw decided that they were getting
to “wired up”, and she took them out in the lobby for the last 10 minutes. The
morning wasn’t over after my appointment. Carter, Ammon, Mamaw, and I all had
lunch together, and we headed to the house. Before we returned home, Mamaw decided
that she wanted some Little Debbie snack cakes, so we dropped by their thrift
store. I learn so much from watching grandparents. Mamaw allowed Carter and
Ammon to choose their own boxes of snack cakes, and then she gave them the money
to pay for them. Ammon and Carter seemed so grown up handing their money to the
cashier. I am so glad my children have their Mamaw to help build their life
skills and more importantly their character skills.

Ammon and Carter have been helping pick up toys for over a
year now. They can also clean tables and chairs with towelettes. We have very
rarely made cleaning into a game, and they seem to understand that it is a
chore that has to be done. I was so excited today when I decided to recycle
some water that was put into Carter and Ammon’s turtle wading pool on
Wednesday. On Friday evening, I decided to take several buckets full of water
to our rose bushes for watering. These have to be the HARDIEST roses I’ve ever
seen. Mamaw got them for me on my 39^th birthday which was also my
first birthday here at this house. The pink rose bush has even been mowed down,
but praise the Lord had established good roots! Okay, so I simply asked Carter
and Ammon to help me, and they did! In total, we carried three buckets of water
(per rose bush) to the roses. I was so proud of Ammon and Carter for helping. I
am sure some of you have children and grandchildren who do far more than this,
but it was so nice that they volunteered to help. I bragged and bragged and
thanked them several times! I hope and pray we will never have chore issues
here, but I am preparing myself if we do. I hope everyone has a wonderful
Saturday.

P. S. We also want to let our friends and relatives know
that we are praying for very little property damage and no injuries or loss of
lives during the East Coast’s Hurricane Irene weekend. God bless you all!

No Ammon and Carter = no Sponge Bob, Yo Gabba, Gabba, Dora, Fairly Odd Parents, etc.

Carter and Ammon are spending more with their Mamaw. I
always miss them so much while they are gone, but like my good friend Claire
Lane (a wonderful mother I must say) said a few days ago, “Babies need a break
from us just like we need a break from them.”  I do get several chores completed, articles
written, and UTC teaching responsibilities taken care of while they are gone,
but one thing I get to do that rarely happens while we are together is to watch
the television shows I want. You know what the sad thing is? I crave to watch
the news!  Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgh! I remember
when I was 13, would visit my Nanny Caylor, and be bored out of my mind for an
hour when she watched the news! LOL

The autumn of 2008, I had started teaching online for UTC,
and I was also preparing the house for the birth of Ammon and Carter. It
was also, unfortunately, national election season! I had become so disgruntled with
the mainstream media’s coverage of the election until a good friend told me to watch FOX News (nationalcable not local). This is not a promotional for FOX News by no means, but from the logical, analytical, and pensive mind of Haven, its news is the best for me.
Now, three years later while Ammon and Carter are out of the house, FOX  News stays on while I am in the house
cleaning. The news casters are almost like family now. I am a Facebook friend
with one of them, and the last time we were in New York City staying at 46^th
and Times Square (two blocks from the FOX News building), I got up at 6:30 am,
ran over to the building, and shouted “Happy Birthday” to Brian Kilmeade (FOX
and Friends) who shares a birthday with me. He was doing an interview outside. I
really like FOX News, and I highly recommend it.

Who needs a swimming pool? (Carter-8-23-2011)

It sure has been hot, but it is summer! Each season has its
fun and wonderment. We are looking forward to cooler weather, hay stacks with
pumpkins, leaves of different colors, and the anticipations of frosts,
Halloween, and Thanksgiving; however, we will miss the fun and frolic of
summer. We took these pictures of water fun on Tuesday. It was hilarious watching
and listening to Ammon and Carter enjoy the water hose and mop bucket, and I
wanted to snap some photos and share the moment with you all. Have a great
Thursday everyone, and try to gain some sort of enjoyment out of our heat wave.

Ammon & Carter's water hose fun (8-23-2011)