The Warren Family

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Loving every minute of it!

It has been a crazy busy month in the Warren house. Thank goodness for grandparents! Grandma made a trip down to keep Jake in early May and they had so much fun. Jake had been very sick before she arrived but his recovery occurred just in time to enjoy some time with Grandma. My Mama and Daddy took care of our little man in late May when we had to spend my birthday week apart. Jake has spent one night away from us but this time it was three and it was a little rough on all of us. Trip was in the Southwest corner of the State reviewing a school lunch program, I was in Columbia opening our new store and Jake was being spoiled by Mamaw and Papaw at their house. He was a very good boy and my Mom said that when he said his prayers that he would end it by saying "and God... please send my Mommy home to hold me right now... Amen."

No news on the house yet but we hope to have an answer in the next couple of weeks. The house we're renting is now on the market so if the short sale doesn't work out we'll be looking for another option very quickly. We're so ready to be back in a house that is really ours so we can finally unpack all of our stuff, decorate the way we want and finally be settled. Jake is anxious too. He wants to paint his room red which is his favorite color and he's so ready for that dog that we've promised him.

We had a wonderful Easter with my family and Jake really enjoyed coloring eggs, egg hunting and helping Mama put jelly beans on the Easter Bunny bow tie. Jake got a Baby Roo from the Winnie-the-Pooh stories in his Easter basket and he was so happy. The Easter Bunny chose Roo for the basket because Jake loves to pretend that I'm Kanga and he is Roo. Be sure and check out the picture of Jake in his bunny ears. Trip says that Jake will not be happy that I posted it when he gets older but I simply could not resist. I think you'll understand when you see it for yourself.

Jake is making amazing progress on his balance bike and will literally be ready for a pedal bike anytime now. We took him to the park this past weekend and the looks and comments we received were overwhelming. People really enjoyed watching him ride it and I think you will also so check out the video included below.

Believe it or not Jake actually won a real set of golf clubs (including clubs, bag, balls and glove) from his Daddy. I had just gotten home from work and Jake was hitting golf balls in front of our house with the one real golf club that he had at that time. Trip told him that if he made 3 shots in a row that went in the air all the way across the driveway that he would buy him a real set of clubs. Jake then proceeded to do exactly that so he now has his very own set of clubs (Maxfli) and has been to the driving range to use them several times already.

Our little "old soul" never ceases to amaze us. Jake still misses Circles terribly and will sometimes cry over him. He wants to know when Circles can come home from Heaven or if we can go there to see him. We were in the grocery store about a week ago and we accidentally turned down the pet food aisle. Jake turned to his Daddy with the happiest look on his face and said... "Daddy, can we buy some cat food and take it to Heaven for Circles to eat?". The things that he says sometimes seem like they should be coming from someone well beyond his years. I was holding him a couple of nights ago and thought he had fallen asleep when he said.. "Mama, is college far away?". I told him that the great thing about college was that you could choose where you wanted to go so you could go somewhere far away or you could stay close to home. He said ... "I want to go to college close to home Mama. Is Appalachian close to home?". I told him that it was and he said... "Okay Mama, I'll go there because I want to be close to you and Daddy". I'm so blessed to be his Mama!

I'll have a pedal bike soon...

I go down the big slides now...

Wading in the water was a great way to cool off...

Mama... I can see our feet in the water...

The warm sand feels good on my feet too...

Riding bikes with my Daddy...

I asked Mama to make my picture with "Winnie the Pooh".

We're the best buddies ever...

Look out Mama... I'm gonna squirt you...

Getting ready to go to the driving range

with my new golf clubs...

I'm a biker!

Wow... my very own real set of golf clubs...

I'm so excited because this box has my name on it

and it says it is from Golf Galaxy...

Check out my football pads and my tough look...

Happy 39-Month Birthday to Me!

My Daddy got a new bike too!

I'm really pretending that this is a motorcycle...

Happy Mother's Day my Mommy!

My Grandma, my Daddy and Me...

I love to help Grandma cook!

Thanks for getting Winnie the Pooh on your ipad for me Grandma!

All that egg hunting wore me out!

I'm only wearing these for my Mama because

she thinks it is sooooooooo cute....

What else is in my 2nd Easter basket Abbie?

I helped Mama decorate the bunny cake this year...

I'm so happy that Baby Roo was in my Easter basket...

I'm so excited that the Easter Bunny came to my house...

This is really fun Mama!

Come on Daddy... let's go to Mast and get a lollipop!

Friday, April 22, 2011

Looking for our next home...

Well it's official... we are mortgage free but hopefully not for long. We closed on our house in Asheville and are already under contract on a short sale. It is an awesome house with a great yard and an amazing view so keep your fingers crossed for us. We're a little nervous because we've heard that short sales can be really complicated and that they can fall apart due to things completely out of our control. That being said... we strongly believe that if it is meant to be that it will be so may God's will be done. Work is crazy right now for both of us and we're both traveling a lot. Things don't ease up for either of us until June which is hopefully when we will be moving.

Jake is just great and has already asked if we can paint his new room red because that's his favorite color. He is such a sweet little boy and he loves family time with his Mama and Daddy. Every morning when he wakes up he will say... "is it a family day today" and if the answer is no... he immediately wants to know how many more school days until family day. He still loves to be held which is wonderful and he often tells us that he loves us just out of the blue which literally makes my heart swell.

We bought Jake a balance bike about a week ago and he's already doing really well with it. I had just gotten home from work and had a migraine but when the UPS man showed up with the bike I couldn't resist letting Jake open it. I regret terribly that I didn't have the video camera going because his reaction was priceless. He opened the box and said ... "It's a BIKE! Is it for me?". He was so happy that I thought he might burst with excitement. It was wonderful! I'm so grateful that we are able to do things like that for him. I'm often reminded that there are so many children that don't even have enough food to eat much less the joy of getting a new bike for no reason at all. We are very blessed and we have very thankful hearts.

If you're not familiar with balance bikes, they are supposed to eliminate the need for training wheels. I know some folks who have gotten them for their kids and within just a couple of months their toddlers were riding regular bikes like the big kids. Jake loves it and is already balancing very well and gliding for short distances while wearing his super cool Spiderman helmet.

Take a peek at the photo underneath Jake's age on the right sidebar. It is called "How to Really Love a Child" and I found it while reading another family's blog. It really struck a cord with me so I thought I would add it to our blog as a great reminder of what a blessing our child truly is and that we need to remember to savor every moment even the silly ones, the frustrating ones and especially the sweet ones because we'll long for all of it again ... all to soon.

We wish all of our friends and family a very blessed Easter as we celebrate that He has risen.

Mama... I love this bouncy house!