On a lighter note....

Skylar sported her new UNC outfit on Friday....as any devoted football watching toddler would...for some pre-game inspiration. And luckily it worked!...I'm pretty sure Dah loved the outfit.....I know I did, and she certainly did....however, she was a little confused at first....When she put it on, she said "GO COWBOYS!!"....LOL...I had to tell her, YES HONEY, exactly right...we do love our Cowboys...but this outfit is for the tarheels....and the she says...ok.."Go Carolina!!" .....That's my girl! :-) I'm pretty sure Randy is hoping for a better outcome for the Wolfpack this weekend and he'll have Skylar wearing the Pack colors of course!! Yes, I know...poor child....she'll be confused for life in the ACC world....Anyhow...It will be her first Wolfpack game this weekend...if Hanna doesn't come through and mess it all up!....

We had a fabulous Labor Day weekend, complete with family, friends, amazing weather, awesome food, and tons of fun! Celebrating the typically "end of summer" weekend....we had The Crocker Family, The Urban Fam, The White Fam, and of course, Randy, Skylar, myself and Nana Jan...all at the lake house. We also got to spend a little time with some of the Cooper family and that's always a welcomed addition to our boating fun! Even the doggies all had a good time! Gizmo, Caffrey, & Toby....ran all over the place, enjoyed the water, and tried chasing the bocci balls a few times....(mostly Caffrey) We had to discourage that....and encourage more tennis ball chasing instead. We ended the weekend with a fantastic dinner with my folks in H-town and then rolled back to Raleigh to get ready for the short work week.....it's been a busy week too....Skylar starts back with dance class tonight....this time it's not a mommy&me class but a pre-ballet/tap class....I'm sure my floors will never be the same after she gets those shoes....should I be re-thinking this???!! :-) Updates to come......have a happy Thursday.....

McCain / Palin

Now, I'm not usually one to get extremely vocal about politics. But I've about had it with Obama's fluff and call for change, when the changes he wants to make.....well let's see....he's for an increase in taxes.....(yes..he is)including payroll, property, and death taxes,.....(likely to fund more programs for those who choose to sit on their rear ends waiting for government handouts...rather than work...)compromise the security of our nation....keep us dependant on foreign oil/gas....we'll that's just not the change I'm looking for. How about you??? And really...can you be "Comander in Chief" without ever having put on a uniform and fighting for troops that you want to command???? Let me put it in laymen's terms...Do you want a boss at your job, who knows nothing about the job you do?? We'll I for one,....not so much. In fact...I'd be inclined to quit that job quite honestly. I'll tell you, if you're a mother...one thing should tick you off about Obama if nothing else....he's "Undecided on whether life begins at conception. " I don't know about you....but I KNOW life begins at conception....and I'm going to leave it at that for the mere fact the more I think about that statement, the more my blood boils....
Republican or democrat....listen to the speeches....weed out the crap and meaningless fluff....and let's get down to the real issues facing our nation. I've even posted a link here for ya starting with Palin's speech.
http://www.wral.com/news/local/politics/video/3480630/

I'm sick and tired of people who are jumping on the Obama bandwagon without knowing a freaking thing about what he actually stands for.....or what he DOES NOT stand for I should add.....Just don't be one of those people. Do the research, read on the issues and make an informed decision in November. And if you aren't a registered voter, I'll be happy to help you get registered.....as long as you're voting McCain/Palin ;-)
I'll even give you this link.....to help you read up on where the candidates stand on issues....from various sources....... http://www.ontheissues.org/default.htm
I encourage you to read it. Understand it. If you need more information, find it....but do the right thing....and be an educated voter. We can all swing the words of candidates in our favor or with our opinions...but lets dig deeper and find out who our future leaders should really be....
I think Palin said it best when she said "For a season a gifted speaker can inspire with his words, but for a lifetime John McCain has inspired with his deeeds." McCain/Palin.....if you really want change.

Where to begin...

Have you all missed me? Likely not...but I like to think you did anyway!! It's been quite a month for the Hodges family. Where did I leave off last time???......Ummm ok so, begining of August Randy and I celebrated our fifth year of marital bliss ;-) ....complete with a wine tasting, lunch at a fav. Irish pub, a movie, and an awesome dinner at 18 Seaboard. If you've never been....I highly reccomend it. Moving right along...the following weekend was spent visiting both my grandmother's in the hospital. After much prayer and some quality time with them, they are both out of the hospital now but still recovering some....and to a point...will always be in the recovering stages....it's hard to see them in the shape they are in...one is worse off than than other...but I'm thankful I can spend the time with them now that I can spend and give back to them for all the love and support they've given me throughout my life. Many days...I wish I lived closer so that I could see them more.....or help out more.....but we love our home and we've made a wonderful life together here....and until I move east....aka...to the water....I'm not seeing us leaving the Raleigh area. So I'll continue to visit as much as I can, and hope they know how much we love them....Anyhow, while in H-town on Sunday....Randy bought Skylar a new princess fishing rod to keep at Dah and Grand-C's house....(they have a pond right beside them.) We'll Skylar has learned how to cast her own rod and can reel it in too....so Randy, Dah, and I took Skylar to the pond to go catch a fish.....she's was rather excited about the worms they were using for bait...was pretty funny...well there were tons of little fishies just waiting for a tastey worm....and Skylar caught her very first fish on her own!!! However, as she handed the rod to Randy to grab the line ....and get the fish....she fell right into the mud at the edge of the pond....and boy she was less than thrilled about that. She immediately wanted the clothes off and to get in the bath tub....and so ended the fishing trip...but that was about five minutes of fun we can laugh about for some time...not to mention her first catch all on her own! (See tiny fish on hook to the left...and Skylar all muddy!)

Sooo the following week we celebrated Papa Joe's 60th birthday with an awesome dinner and cake at their house. Skylar always enjoys singing the happy birthday song and she of course helped Papa Joe blow out his candles! ......After yummy cake and ice cream....we headed home and straight to bed........For the weekend following...Randy had golf with the guys and Skylar played "golf" with me....in our hallway and living room....because she needed to play since her daddy was playing.....Saturday evening...we all went to a cookout at Tracy's to celebrate Stephanie's completion of her Masters Degree!! Yayyy..MSW...now! Skylar enjoyed playing cornhole for the first time....got the bean bag in the hole on her first try!! It was great visiting with everyone I hadn't seen in quite a while. Had church on Sunday.....and then...Sunday afternoon we spent at the pool with the ...(I think)...unless my days are running together...which quite possibly could be the case....that may have been earlier in the month.....anyhow...we were at the pool at some point this month with people.....lol...Is this what happen's when you turn 30?? The memory is the first to go?? gggeezzz...does that mean I can get away with turning 30 AGAIN this year in October rather than 32?? One can hope.....Anyhow...that brings me to this past weekend. Our 2 1/2 year old attended her first concert...POP GO THE WIGGLES....at the RBC....when the lights went down, and the "pre-show" started...she starts yelling I want to go home!!! they turned off the lights!!" "Turn the lights on!"".....my first thought was...oh great..this should be fun......so Randy took her out to the lobby...which was well-lit...and she was fine...Then she hears "Toot toot chugga chugga big red car" and she was ready to come back in for the show. She LOVED it....she sang and danced....as did all the kids AND parents....the silly things we do for our kids...it's truly amazing to me....she knew most of the songs....and Randy and I sang along too....sad that we knew all those songs....but Skylar had a blast and we are really glad we were able to take her to the concert. She, however, DID NOT care for the big balloon version of Murray on the stage....she keeps saying "Murray balloon needs to go away...." So we explained that the Murray balloon is now in the trash :-) Her favorite Wiggle is actually Jeff...hence the purple attire for the show...and the Wiggle "light" pictured above....wise investment....seriously.... ;-)

Saturday began with a breakfast out at Pam's farmhouse...then shopping at the NCSU bookstore for Skylar's attire for her first Wolfpack game in September...All her father's doings....Not mine...but I suppose I started it with my purchase of some UNC attire for my blue-eyed baby girl...;-) Blue IS her color afterall...lol...she'll be cute nontheless...of course. (Notice her shirt says..."It's the SMILE that keeps me out of trouble." )....Look at her expression...I couldn't resist this pic.....anyhow..After naptime we celebrated our neighbor's bday with friends and some other kids. Skylar had a ball playing with the older kids there....and of course spent some couch time with baby Lily...she does love Lily....We had a fantastic dinner and lots of fun. Sunday morning we went to church, then lunch with Randy's parents, uncle and Granny and then came home for nap-time. After nap, we loaded up and went to the Riffle's awesome new house. We enjoyed some pool time and a wonderful dinner and the girls (Katelyn and Skylar) had a fantastic time playing together, dancing, and singing. They were just too cute. As Skylar said her prayers last night....as she often does...she says..."Thank you for God....my family..."...(rather than thank you God for my family)....so she continues..."Thank for God...all my friends...... "Thank you for God...Katelyn...and Jesus Loves Me...AMEN!" that last sentence...all in one breath...it was really sweet. It was a perfect ending to a spectacular Sunday........have a happy week and thank Jesus for loving you too!! :-)

The weekend......

We celebrated Nana's birthday with her on Friday at Kaze' Japanese restaurant! It was our first time going and Skylar's first time at that sort of restaurant. She was azmazed by the cook....for about 10 minutes....but she's 2, ok well almost 2 1/2....can't expect her to watch a cook too much longer than that. She enjoyed using chop sticks.....for about 2 minutes...then it was back to the fork. I don't like wooden utensils either...can't blame her there! (I really think she was more excited about her dress than watching the chef. The kid loves being all dressed up. She even wanted to wear her dress to school on Monday....but that's another story....I'm pretty sure the dresses and bows deal came from her grandmothers....but hey....she's got an arm you wouldn't believe...can throw a ball with toughest of 2 year olds!) lol....Anyhow....Skylar Loved the soup and salad....ate her hibatchi dinner quite well. After our chef was done, she wanted to see more "fire mommy" "I want more fire"....I'm not sure if that's a good thing...lol...but she thought that part was so neat! However,....when she was full...and ready to go...it was time to go....she was ready to head to the house for some cake and ice cream! But first she had to check out Uncle Stewart's bike....she calls him "silly Uncle Stewart" when she sees him on his motorcycle.... but she thinks it's pretty cool. NOT cool enough for her to ever ride on it though....or any other motorcycle....untils she's 50! ;-) ...says me!! Anyhow, we had a little cake and ice cream at the house and Skylar coaxed Uncle Stewart out of some quarters for her piggie bank. It was quite a nice evening and I think everyone enjoyed themselves. Skylar even sang Happy Birthday to Nana...ummm...4 or 5 times I do believe!! Was a good time!

On Saturday, Katelyn came over to play. Skylar was soooo excited to see her. She was looking out the window until Katelyn arrived...and then she ran around the living room yelling "KATELYN'S HERE!!!" Needless to say...she was VERY happy to see Katelyn. The girls had such a great time and got along so well. They played on the swingset and ran around outside, had a dance party in the living room, did some finger painting,....color wonder of course! :-) Then Randy enjoyed making block-bead necklaces with them. That was rather cute. We had such a great time! The rest of the weekend was rather low key....little shopping for Skylar...out dinner at our fav. mexican restuarant on Sunday....where Skylar of course enjoyed the music and danced her little heart out in the aisle.....she's so ready to get back to dance class....told me so the other day....sort of surprised me....but I guess it shouldn't....the child breaks out the dance moves at the very thought of music!!.....anyhow that's about it...brings us to Monday...another fun start to the work week :-) Have a happy Day.....

A little Pacing in the racin'

Today's Verse: Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.
Hebrews 12:1 / KJV
Now...what I take from this...may not necessarily be what is being conveyed here..if you continue on reading further into the context....but it put a thought in my head......watch out!....MPH is thinkin' again!.....The race....life truly seems to be a race....a marathon, a triathlon,....all the "thons and lons" together...and it's not without tremendous hurdles I might add..... What are we in such a hurry for? In a real race, runners are racing to get the 'finish' line. Well I don't know about you, but I'm really in NO hurry to get to my 'finish' line. I'd like to have long,.. long fulfilling life and the time to be a.... feisty... old, old, old, healthy, but waaayyy old, lady sitting on my front porch in a rocking chair with my coffee.....watching great great grandkinds run around before my finish line meets up with me. It seems to me, most of us...or at least I know I'm guilty..of waiting for tomorrow...or next week to get here....for something exciting that is going to happen....or even waiting for that time when our child speaks their first word, takes their first step...or loses their first tooth. What's our hurry? Shouldn't we just enjoy each day for what it is....and what we can make happen in our lives that day....I think I'll try to do that more. I've said it before....and now I'm saying it again....because we all need a little reminder from time to time........And I know it will be a challenge. If you're like me, many of us are just "waiting for the weekend," so we can spend time with family and friends and not think about work work work....other than work around the house I suppose ;-) And really...who WANTS to think about that. But ya know, we are never guaranteed tomorrow, so today is what we have. I'm going to try and learn to be a bit more patient in the race of life....not to sound cliche' ...but I want to live each day being thankful for today....hoping for an even better tomorrow, but exercising patience rather than always "ready in waiting" for the next exciting thing that's coming....I'll enjoy each day with Skylar for what she says and does on that day...and if I can...I'll even write it down! :-) I certainly don't want to rush her growing up....time goes by way to fast as it is. She'll be 2 1/2 at the end of next month and that just doesn't seem real. There's no shame in being excited about new things...events to come....but maybe a little pacing in our racing is something we could all use. Running long distances builds endurance.....you have to pace yourself...you can't run a continuing sprint all the time......or you could...but not without an oxygen tank and a pack of wolves chasing you....(although some coaches used to believe otherwise.....I never got along with them) ;-) Anyhow...just a thought. Let's enjoy today and everything that's good with life today....pace ourselves and build endurance for a long happy life....as the verse says....."Run with patience...the race that is set before us." Have a good run today!

And..it's back to green tea 4 me!

Hello one and all. The Hodges have been on vacation....and now need a vacation from the vacation ;-) We were fortunate enough to be invited to stay with our friend Kim down at the beach on last Friday night 7.11.08....this meant packing and leaving a day earlier than we had planned since we had a wedding on Saturday at Wrightsville and then my side of the family would be down for the remainder of the week. So we packed up and got down there Friday night. I tend to move a lot faster when sand, sun, and water are involved.....Anyhow, going down early was a tremendous help....and I don't even know if she reads this but if so...THANK YOU KIM!! It was such a relief to be able to enjoy some relaxing, sand and sun prior to the wedding....and despite the boat mishaps (long story)....check in to our house at Carolina Beach and still make it to the wedding on time! Unfortunately, I left my camera at the house that day so I don't have wedding pics, but it was beautiful! Ashley and Greg looked so happy and everything was perfect for their special day. My parents kept Skylar and Randy & I enjoyed some drinks and dancing at the wedding.....hanging out with friends.....a little too much fun I think....ummm...well I'm sure too much fun....but anyhow.....the wedding was amazing and I know the new Cooper couple has many many years of love and fun awaiting them.

As for our week at the beach....it was fantastic...crazy, fun, lots of food, family, friends...and perfect weather! And birds...there should be some rather plump birds at CB now...I'm pretty sure of it....Over the course of the week my aunt and her 3 boys were there along with my parents and my brother. My aunt's other daughter and friend came down for one night as did a friend of hers. Randy, Skylar & I enjoyed our time with everyone....Being a red-head, my little one can't be...and doesn't like to be out in the sun a lot...she prefers it cool and cloudy....(I know....she didn't get that from me!)...and we didn't have much of that except for early morning and late evening....which tended to be when she enjoyed the beach the most.....She loved our visit to the aquarium but we're pretty sure she was thinking it was a zoo too because she kept asking to see the animals!! Guess another trip to the zoo in the fall will need to be put on the calendar! Although the beach house tended to be a bit zoo-like at times...but I guess that's not really what she ment by going to "see the animals"....Wouldn't have it any other way though. We are definitely not a boring crowd...that's for sure....Ohhhh..the sharks...I have tell you about the sharks....After dinner one evening, we went out on the pier and watched people surf fishing for shark....why? I have no idea...I suppose they like the challenge...I prefer to fish for fish and keep them...but these guys were going after the big ones....(sharks)...and they caught some! But the neatest thing was seeing the sharks (while up on the pier) swimming in the water....it was so cool...and somewhat frightening at the same time. These were no baby sharks and they were freakishly close to where most people would swim off shore. It was insane. Soooo, the week was full of fun in the sun....food/drinks...swimming....oh and the wii, let's not forget the wii play...as you can see pictured here....boxers in action...and then have....walking, walking, and more walking....but we needed to be walking with all that we consumed...that's for sure!! I'm pretty sure the tiki hut /ocean grille will miss our crowd!! We got to see some fireworks, hear a little music, venture out for a little night life, and actually took a few naps ourselves...when Skylar napped of course....!! But trying to keep a toddler on a schedule at the beach.....haaa...it's a tough thing to do. And by the end of the week, Skylar was in dire need of getting back on her normal schedule. I don't care how late a kid sleeps to make up for going to bed late....or how long of a nap they take....if MY kid is off schedule...lemme tell you...it ain't pretty. So on the Saturday we departed, Skylar slept most of the way home...which put her timing back on schedule pretty much. And she's been a complete angel since. As for Caffrey's week....well he spent the week being spoiled by our friend Ms. Conni and her son. They took such good care of him and I'm pretty sure he misses them already. Skylar apparently missed Caffrey too, because she hasn't given him a minute to breathe when she's around him. Funny story about that ....in another post to come of course....anyhow...We picked Caffrey up Saturday evening and got everyone home and back on schedule. Sunday we were lazy and missed church but we made it to the grocery store where Skylar "helped" put all the items in cart and pulled the cart along. Twas a couple times we had to put random items back on the shelf without her seeing....but she was soooo proud to be helping us grocery shop. After our eventful shopping trip it was home for lunch and nap time. Skylar woke up from her nap ready to go "shopping" again...she wakes up saying..."I had a good nap mommy and daddy! I had a good nap!" ..... :-) So we loaded up and went to farmers market so she could pick out some fresh fruit and veggies. Then we took her to lake wheeler to feed some hungry duckies and play on the playground.....As she said her prayers that evening....she said "God bless...(insert name) as she goes through the family....and "Thank you God for the playground!" I had to laugh...I thought that was too cute. She comes up with the most random funny things...I must say...I'll have to post some Skylar wisdom sometime. You'd be surprised how much of a comedian a 2 year old can be, but sweet and gentle and so loving all at the same time.....So...as Skylar would say...for the beach week..."It was perfect mommy, it's just perfect!" .........And now...it's back to school for our little princess...back to work for Randy....and as for me...it's back to work...back to a 1/3'rd of the caloric intake I had last week....and as for my beverage of choice...we'll it's back to the green tea for me!! Have a happy day!

Catch a big fish!!!

For the weekend previous to the 4th, we had thought about doing some visiting in H-town but things weren't going as we would have liked to facilitate that....sooo we actually stayed home....well, stayed in Raleigh, but when do we ever stay home??? Naptime and bedtime is about it I suppose. Randy and I took Skylar out to Lake Johnson to feed the ducks and ride the pedal boats etc. I'm pretty sure she was eye to eye with some of the geese. They were as tall as she was and so we preferred to guide her towards the little ducks to make friends. One of the ducks ate some bread out of her hand and she swore "That duckie bite Skylar's finger!" It didn't.....of course...but I think she was a little shocked that the duck took the bread out of her hand before she was ready to give it to him/her. Nevertheless, she enjoyed her time out there. After naptime we got to visit with the Urban's and other friends at Kim and Brian's new beautiful home in Eagle Ridge! Soooo pretty! Had a great time over there grilling out with friends and Little Aidan and Skylar tried to teach their daddy's how to play golf. Well Aidan liked the golf balls of course....and Skylar loved it all....especially running around all over the greens....maybe she'll teach me one day....that'd be a bit of challenge I think....lol...

I do hope everyone had a happy 4th. We were at the lake house among the storms and rain. But we did get in a good bit of lake/sun time, some fishing, and some "not so little" pyro action in the sky. Throughout the long weekend we had family time with the Hodges, my folks, and friends....the White's, the Prince family, and neighborhood folks. There was lots of yummy food, pretty sweet fireworks.....compliments of my hubby, golf cart escapades...at Skylar's request....and just an all around great time despite the storms that we had to plan around. Skylar's new hobby is fishing we think. She was quite adamant about going fishing and she even held a fish. We frequently heard, "Catch a big fish Daddy!!....Catch a big fish Mommy!" Obviously she wasn't thrilled with the size of the brim and the 'bait' fish we were catching ;-) However, she delighted in feeding them bread and potato chips. I'm pretty sure those fishes won't need to eat anything else for days. Nor do I for that matter. What is it with vacation and eating?? I've yet to figure it out. My brain seems to think...vacation = eat whatever you want...well that doesn't work so well for the waistline ya know! I'm pretty sure all that 'grey matter' up there in my head needs some re-wiring when it comes to being away from home. How about you? Do you "vacate" from your daily healthy eating routines? It sure takes some willpower not to do that. I mean I won't give up chips and salsa for anything but I can stay away from the pastas I think. Easier said than done though when you have a 2 year old to feed and what they need to eat isn't necessarily what you/I really need to be eating. Oh well....I suppose I just have to add miles to my running to make up for it for now! Speaking of which...boy do I wish I looked this cute in a bikini....Skylar was quite proud to show off her red, white, & blue! ......So it's back to work for the week and then we leave for the beach on Saturday....a wedding in Wrightsville then Carolina Beach for the week. Saturday can't get here fast enough for me! But I'm praying old Bertha out there in the Atlantic stays far far away from us! If the weather cooperates....maybe we can catch that "big fish" that Skylar wants!! Let's hope! No sharks though preferably....we've seen our share of those in our beach travels....I'll settle for the mahi please.... ;-)