VBS Week!!!

We had a pretty uneventful weekend. Friday night, the kids stayed the night with Nana and Papa, I went out with the girls, Shane had a Golf Tournament Dinner to attend for work. No parties =(, but it was nice to have a slow weekend. I actually started and finished a book (I highly recommend any novel written by Sophie Kinsella, HILARIOUS).

Right now, our main focus in the Brown house is VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL!! As some of you know, Claire has never been too keen on "school". She stays with me and Mom during the day, and has never had to stay with "strangers" or "not her people". As this is an awesome thing and I am extremely fortunate, it is had made for an extremely hard time getting her to attend activities such as Sunday School or Children's Church, without us staying. She has an extreme case of separation anxiety. Yes, we have tried just leaving and she literally chases us down the hall, no joke, after a complete and utter meltdown. She has gotten better as she gets older, but it is still an issue. It literally makes me sick to my stomach when I think about leaving her at school one day, but we all know, including Claire, that it is going to happen. To prepare her (and me and my Mom =)) for school, she is going to attend preschool this fall, half days a few days a week. Our main focus all the time is getting her to attend classes at church. We have not been totally successful, but she does at least enjoy them and we just have to stand in the back, rather than sitting in the story circle or on the tiny chairs during craft time (such a sight to see Shane =)). Our goal for the summer: Get her to go to VBS!

So, being the good grandparents they are, Keith and Becky (aka Nana and Papa) volunteered to help with VBS and are the guides for the 4 year olds, Claire's group =). Now, last year, I had to attend the entire VBS week with her, as she was terrified. So, with Keith and Becky helping, we were going to leave her. We really did not know if this was going to be a positive step for her or not because she was not really going to feel like she was on her own with her grandparents there, but at least we were not with her. She was very excited all day, ready to go to "Bacation Bible school" =). We get there, still excited, sign in, and take the long walk, all the way to the front of the auditorium, to her fun group of 4 year olds, her hand getting tighter and tighter on mine. I am still not worried, she loooooves her Nana and Papa, this will be just like any other day. We get to them, I lean down to give her a kiss and put her name tag on...she freaks out. Keith had to take her from me, crying and I had to run off. (sorry so long, this is what blogging is for, right?) Shane and I stayed until she was okay, which was about 10 minutes, after Keith took her out in the hall and calmed her down. We left to a very happy scene, Claire holding onto the rope with the rest of the kids, going to her first room for a story...lets all take a nice sigggghhhh of relief!

This is such a big deal and HUGE step for us!! Even though we were leaving her with her grandparents, she still felt uneasy and had to be brave and stay. I have prayed and prayed for her to get through this "phase" and start enjoying things other little boys and girls do her age. I prayed specifically last night that she would stay, have a good time, and know that we would come back for her when it was over....my prayers were answered!! She was so happy to see us, to tell us all about her night and what she learned!! First thing she said this morning, "I can't wait for bacation bible school tonight!". We are going for round 2 tonight!!!

Here are a couple pictures we took of the kids last night. Owen was upset that he could not stay and attend!!

Owen did not want his picture taken...

Big girl!

Still doesn't want his picture taken =)...

Owen at VBS with uncle Chad's glasses on...

If you look really close, you can see a man in middle of the pic with a white shirt on, that is Papa, holding Claire...I know it is dark, but that was when she was still nervous...

SuperSTAR Claire!

While the boys were home sad with their ailments yesterday (see the previous post), Claire was hanging with Aunt Tara. Claire loves all of her aunts, but Tara picks Claire up all the time, just to hang out together. Claire loves Tara because she usually has some kind of sweet goody for her and she is usually dressed in pink or sparkly, some of Claire's favorite colors (yes, sparkly is a color=)). Well yesterday, Tara took Claire back to her apartment and let her play dress up in her clothes...one of Claire's most favorite hobbies, DRESS UP!! Tara always has her camera in hand (she is going to make a good Blogger Mama one day, hopefully sooner than later =)), so she took some fun pictures of Claire in her clothes...see my little diva in action, we sooooo have our hands full!!
Rock Star - Tara's SHIRT

Posing with Aunt T...

FYI - Claire Isabella asked me and Shane a few days ago if she could change her name....her choice: Halle Stacey Star...I am sure you are all thinking the same thing we did...what do you think this name sounds like? =)

TGIF!!! Have a good weekend!!!

Poor Brown Boys

I come home last night from some much needed, MOMMY ONLY, shopping. Shane and the kids are outside playing and Owen, as always, is excited to see me. Shane tells me to come over and see O's mouth...OMG! Claire was swinging and Owen ran in front of her and was knocked down, by way of foot to mouth! Now, this is not the first time Owen managed to bust his lip by walking in front of the swing, in fact his third, and he has done the same to his sis, but this was by far the WORST busted lip ever. Apparently (THANK GOD I was not home) it bled a lot, but he was okay once Shane (smart Daddy) put some Anbesol on it. So, once I am calm about this...Shane was half way proud of his boy's wound, "He is tough", I notice our Pug, Cooper is running across the yard, limping. "What has happened in the hour and a half I was gone?". We couldn't really tell what was wrong with Cooper, so I took him to the vet today. He has an "Inflamed paw" and is on 2 different medications. Owen is completely fine, eating and drinking, even without Anbesol today. His lip looks awful and I can barely stand to look at it, but it helps he doesn't seem to care. My poor little boys had a rough 24 hours, but all is well this afternoon, thanks to Sonic milkshakes and some really bad smelling dog foot cream =). Below are a few pictures of them vegging out watching Shrek the Third...Claire is off shopping with her Aunt Tara.

19 days and counting...

...that is until our much needed, family vacation to Gulf Shores. I need this reminder today as work is crazy for both me and Shane. I don't think we even spoke last night as we both were working (of course after I watched The Bachelorette with Tara and Jessica, GO GRAHAM!!), and then today and tonight, same plans. I have had to work away from home today. I come home and Mom had the look of "Your child is a terror!!" on her face. Mom was not feeling good today, but still watched the kids so I could work. I noticed the smell of some kind of cleaner when I walked in through the laundry room. She tells me that she was on the phone and noticed Owen go into the laundry room. She asked Claire to go see what he was doing, Claire came back saying "I am not going in there, he will spray me!". Mom runs in there and Owen is spraying down the laundry room with Oxy Clean and proceeds to point it at her. Oh Owen! I notice a single Keds shoe is on top of our TV armoire, Claire's shoe when she was much younger. I ask Mom, "Why in the world is that shoe up there?". She tells me that Owen found it and wanted to wear it, the kid loves to take shoes on and off. Well, this shoe is about 2 sizes too small and there is only one, she did not see the mate. He threw such a fit wanting to wear it, she finally shoved it on to his little club foot =), and then he was furious that she did not have the other. So, she hid it on top of the armoire =). As she was telling me this, he started scaling the stairs right behind us, on the outside of the rails!! Poor Mom, hightailed it out of here as fast as she could =)...Oh Owen!! Where was Claire during the day you ask, Mom said that she barely came out of her room today. When Mom would ask / beg her to come down and play with Owen, she would say, "No, I am okay up here!".

Soooo looking forward to the beach...even if it means in a car with 2 kids for 12 hours...maybe we should start praying now =).

Both of the kiddos are sleeping and there is no way I am going to risk waking little man up to take a picture of him today, but below are some adorable pictures of them exactly 1 year ago today (what's a post without pictures).....they have grown so much!!