The Castlemans in Mississippi

No "More Ovaltine, Please!"

2009-02-21T22:14:00.010-06:00

Our boys, never lovers of plain white milk, have developed a loooooove for Ovaltine. At our visit to the pediatrician this week I was encouraged to get them off the Ovaltine. I've been thinking about it for a while - the extra sugar we could certainly live without. Anyway, I'm happy to report we're about four days without Ovaltine and doing just fine. Every morning Tate says, "Teen please" but he still is able to live with the plain white milk.

In addition, we were told to get Eben off his sippy cup. Oh how that boy loves his sippy cups! But, once again, he's impressed and surprised me with his ability to LET GO. Oh, also, can't fail to mention that Eben's finally reached roller coaster height - 42 inches!

Catching up: Tyler on a bike!

2009-02-02T22:15:00.002-06:00

Finally we got Tyler on a bike! Thanks Dad-dad and Gamma for an awesome first bike! Tyler hasn't been on a bike at all in about a year. We really felt like it was time for her to get on one without training wheels but she was pretty hesitant at first. But, taking advantage of lots of bike riding space at my parent's house, Scott got her on that bike and now she's good to go. Tyler has a great work ethic - if she has a goal in mind, she will fight to reach it. More pictures and/or video to come!

Catching up: Soccer

2009-01-16T07:53:00.003-06:00

Tyler and Eben played soccer during November and December. For both it soccer was a new sport and it was Eben's first venture into team sports. We really had fun seeing the kids learn new skills. At four years old, Eben's team had more fun falling on the field in mid-stride and Eben could often be seen running alongside another player, from his team or the opposing team, and patting on the back while saying something encouraging. His usual spot was a few strides behind everyone else but after every game he was still under the impression that he had made a goal! His team was red, the "Rock Stars" and he was #4.

With Tyler it was exciting to see her take on a new sport and really stick with the team. She ran hard and at her age it was a lot of running! For her age group they did keep score and had goalies (not for Eben though) and her team won nearly every game! Tyler loved playing goalie and worked hard with a lot of concentration for every minute she was on the field. As usual, she also managed to make lots of friends! Her team changed names mid-season but I think they finished up as the Purple Panthers - she was #12.

Catching up: Thanksgiving

2009-01-16T07:39:00.002-06:00

Over Thanksgiving break, we took a little family trip (see pictures from a children's museum and a historic train depot) and then met up with Nona and Pop-pops for Thanksgiving at Belhaven! Apparently I was pretty busy eating because there aren't any pictures from our yummy meal (thanks, Nona)!

Photo Shoot

2009-01-15T10:41:00.004-06:00

Aunt Lindsay was kind enough to do a super speedy photo shoot of the kids over Christmas. I'm still moving them onto my computer but here are a few ...

Why you shouldn't leave your kids alone with aunts and uncles ...

2009-01-15T10:26:00.003-06:00

Here's a little video I found on my camera - yes, this is Tyler's aunt and her two uncles.

Wii is fun! (and who knew Suzy knew Red Hot Chili Peppers!?!)

2009-01-15T10:14:00.004-06:00

We spent Christmas in Orlando with a house full of Osbornes! Most of our time was filled with playing Wii - Rock Band, Guitar Hero, Olympics and WiiSports. We can't wait to get a Wii! Here are some pics of the kids thinking they are doing Rock Band. And a gem of a video (if lacking in quality) - Suzy who somehow knew all the words to Red Hot Chili Peppers "California"!

Imagination Movers

2009-01-15T09:26:00.007-06:00

If you have preschool aged children and don't know the "Imagination Movers" then you should find out about them. Our kids LOVE them - they have a show on Disney but more than that we like their CDs. They're a kid's band from New Orleans and as a Christmas present to Tyler and Eben we went to see them in concert (in Jacksonville, FL)! It was a really fun afternoon to spend with them - we ate at Sonny's ... then went to the show ... where Eben was so confused about how some of his favorite TV characters "busted out of the TV" ... Oh, and I can't neglect to say they were kind enough to mail us an autographed poster after meeting my mom!! Thanks guys

New Years Resolution

2009-01-15T09:07:00.002-06:00

How's this for a New Year's Resolution: post to your blog more than once a month! Don't leave an "Autumn" wallpaper up through mid-January!

ElfYourself

2008-12-14T09:50:00.001-06:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

"Pies and Keeny"

2008-11-05T20:44:00.003-06:00

The above title means "Pumpkins and Candy" in the Tate's 2yr old language. We had our fill of Halloween festivities and have tons of candy at the house to prove it!

Our Halloween week kicked off with a visit from Gamma and a trip to the Seward Farm's Corn Maze. We had so much fun at the playground, answering trivia questions to make our way through the corn maze, riding the cow train and taking a hay ride. It is such a cute place! Pictures will follow soon - we had to use a disposable camera because my batteries were out!

Next, it was into lots of Halloween crafts - decorating Halloween t-shirts with Gamma, making pumpkin cookies and finally carving Pumpkins. Tyler carved her own kitty-cat pumpkin, Eben worked with Scott on a "scary" pumpkin and Tate and I stuck stickers on a pumpkin for him (Scott later carved a "T" into his pumpkin. Here are some pics to share:

Of course the week ended in lots of candy gained from trick-or-treating. We went with some new friends to a nearby neighborhood. The kids were thrilled with the hayride they set up in a trailer attached to their truck. We got lots of candy and we're happy to share!

Circus with Nona!

2008-11-05T20:37:00.003-06:00

In mid-October we had a great visit from Nona, Scott's mom, known as Robbie to the rest of the world. She preached for Scott on Sunday morning while he was out of town and then had some down time with the kids for the rest of her quick stay. Definitely the highlight was a trip to the Cole Bros Circus of the Stars. While it was obviously a small-time circus, the kids didn't know any better and it was great for them to be able to sit up front and, for the boys, experience their first circus. They were spoiled greatly by Nona with cotton candy, funnel cakes and super cute face painting.

If Boys Ruled the World ...

2008-10-13T18:09:00.004-06:00

If boys ruled the world, the following three videos explains what the world would be like ... it would include a huge mess, lots of bike riding, laughter, cuteness, a bigger mess, and some singing.

Tyler and I stepped out of the house for a bit on Saturday and here's what happened. Fortunately these boys have a wonderful father who documented it all and made sure it was all taken care of before mom got home!

First Place!

2008-10-11T14:13:00.002-06:00

Dr. Tyler won first place in the chemistry division at the science fair! She came up with the idea to do the popular "Mentos in Diet Coke" experiment except she used several different sodas to determine which gave off the best eruption. Answer: Diet Coke! Here are some pictures of her, the experiment and her blue ribbon!

Smells Fishy!

2008-10-07T07:44:00.003-06:00

Scott had a successful fishing trip with the guys in our small group on Sunday night. As our "hunter/gatherer" he brought home two speckled trout and two big redfish! Here are some shots of him and the boys on Monday morning cleaning them up. Tate was a bit suspect of the cold fish but Eben loved them! Oh, and can't forget to include the fact that Scott also cooked them up for us on Monday night: fried fish for the kids (trout) and blackened redfish with a seafood stuffing for the two of us! Why do I even bother?!

Belhaven, Belhaven

2008-10-06T21:43:00.004-06:00

This past weekend we made a quick trip up to Jackson, MS (home of our alma mater, Belhaven College and also where Scott and I first met, dated, made a home, worked, had Tyler). We drove past the old apartments and met my college roommate and family (hi, Kathleen!) for lunch at Keifer's (mmm!). But, left with an hour or more to kill before the wedding we were there for, we took the kids over to Belhaven and showed them around. It was a gorgeous day and so nice to see a much-improved campus from our days there. Although we graduated some time ago, seeing our kids running through the same spots where we first started our relationship - well, it seemed to me to be a completed circle. Incredibly fulfilling to know this was a place so important in our lives - at first it symbolized the tail end of our childhoods and then our introduction to adulthood - it was the place we learned, grew up, first met, first kissed, the place we came back to after getting engaged. And now, to see our kids sticking their feet in the fountain and walking the same sidewalks was incredibly satisfying!

Belhaven has done well for itself as far as the facilities go - we were incredibly jealous to see what a gorgeous campus it's become and incredibly sad to see "our" swing is now gone and replaced by in-ground fountain.

Belhaven, Belhaven, we shall not wholly part,
This dear green hill shall bind us still to God and thee in heart.

Happy Birthday Tyler!

2008-10-06T21:37:00.004-06:00

As a close to the birthday extravaganza week we welcome Tyler to her eighth year! Happy seventh birthday, Tyler!

I can't believe we have a seven year old, a second grader, a reader, a writer, a beautiful, caring, artistic young girl to call a daughter! As I prayed with Tyler before bed on her birthday I teared up (many of you know this deserves a blog post on it's own!) at the idea of how incredible she is at seven. She is super smart, incredibly caring, patient (especially with her brothers), thoughtful, giving, laid back and easy to accomodate. To be her mom is such a priviledge and this was one of the first times, as a young mom, I felt I could look back at a substantial period of time and feel so proud of who she has become and all she has to look forward to. Tyler tackles Bible memory with a passion, she will go along with anything and is "so bored" with second grade because it's "so easy".

We celebrated at home with presents but the next night we took three of her friends out to a nearby paint-your-own pottery place and then to CiCi's for pizza. It was such fun to see her interact with her friends, to get to know them, etc.

Happy Birthday Boys!

2008-09-27T14:45:00.003-06:00

Scott and Tate celebrate their birthdays today - Scott at 32 and Tate now 2 years old! I retold Tate's birth story to him this morning ... the old "at this time of day we were doing this, etc." Tate was born at 11:35am (incidentally the same time as Tyler) after a pretty quick and easy drug-induced and epidural accompanied labor. He's the only of our children who I thought fit their name from the beginning. He was a little man and Tate seemed perfect.
He was a great birthday gift for Scott who joyfully volunteered to share his birthday. This is also the birthday of Scott's grandfather, Robert Fox (Tate Fox's namesake) who died in 2004 and my grandmother, Dorothy Osborne, who died in 2003. So, all said, it's a pretty special day for our family! I took Scott out last night for a little dinner and arcade game-playing and this morning we started the day with birthday candle cinnamon rolls and Tate's first time to be measured on our growth chart.

Cupcakes

2008-09-24T18:40:00.003-06:00

In leiu of an actual party, Tate brought cupcakes to our playdate today. As you can tell, there was quite a bit of icing!

Can He Fix It? Yes, He Can!

2008-09-24T17:53:00.003-06:00

Here are shots of the five of us at the Bob the Builder show at Lynn Meadows yesterday. The kids got to make their own toolbelts, edible constructions and wooden birdhouses.

Jeh (Yes) and No!

2008-09-23T12:29:00.008-06:00

Yesterday, while Scott and Eben were out playing golf, I had a little conversation with Tate who will turn two this weekend. Here are a couple of our conversations(by the way, we're dog-sitting this week) ...

If you'd like to see the entire conversation (it went 11 minutes so probably only the grandparents are THAT interested!), you can link to them on youtube. See Part I and Part II

Helmets

2008-09-23T11:50:00.006-06:00

To keep from losing any more teeth we upgraded Eben's helmet ... And, of course, Tate had to try it on too ...

Smile!

2008-09-09T19:05:00.003-06:00

Eben did an amazing job with his surgery today. No problems and was really thrilled to be doing the whole thing. He told me he was asleep during it but he still remembered it so I guess the medicine did it's job! I took him before hand and let him pick out some treats which included: jello, Root Beer Float ice cream, superhero popsicles, chicken noodle soup and Mexican soda.

Tonight he'll have his first visit from the tooth fairy who will find a ring box decorated with monster truck stickers and holding three separate pieces that fit together like a puzzle to form a tooth!

Tyler in Nevada

2008-09-08T10:40:00.003-06:00

Tyler hit a big milestone this summer, making her first solo trip with Nona (Scott's mom) to Nevada. They went to visit Scott's grandmother, Bammer, and were really busy doing all sorts of fun things in the process. Here's a slideshow I stole from Nona's blog to show lots of the things they did:
(also note the loss of one of Tyler's front teeth - she has a new smile!)

Monster Truck birthday

2008-09-08T10:39:00.004-06:00

I just realized I never posted pictures from Eben's little birthday party. He had multiple celebrations - one being with Scott's family while they were in town and then another a week after his birthday with some of his friends. Here's pictures of the festivities ...