No Slow Kids here

I have never considered myself one of "those moms". You know....the braggy mom with the perfect kids whose poop don't stink. Well, the poop at are house definitly stinks (oh, man. It stinks.), but I just might be one of "those moms". Is it so bad ,though, to be proud of your kids? No, indeed. I imagine that most people who blog do so in part to show off or brag just a bit about their sweet, precious, stinky poop smelling, not so perfect, but perfect for them children. So, here goes. I have a 5th grader, Sam; a 3rd grader, Maddie; and a 2nd grader, Jack. They all are in the intellectually gifted program- EXCEL- at our school. I didn't think it was that much of a big deal, but I have realized after lots of comments from teachers, parents-even students- that it might be a little bit of a semi-big deal. Maybe to the families who have only one child in the program, and then have to answer the questions of the other non-EXCEL member sibling(s). Mommy, what is gifted? Am I gifted?
This sign is just down the street from us...definitly not referring to my children. (Oh, I hope my neighbors don't blog....highly unlikely, but you never know). This last week we had awards day for second and third grade. My Jack is smart. He is funny and FULL of personality, pep and mischief. I knew he might be up for some scholarly awards because he is a smarty pants. Sure enough. He was- all A's, 1st place in Math, Reading, Journaling...a second place... He got a couple trophies for some other things- penmanship, spelling- I don't know. I'll just say he loaded up. I was surprised when he recieved the trophy for best behaved. I would've expected class clown or funniest, but I was surprised. While I'm at it, he also got the Citizenship Award. They only award 2 girls and 2 boys in each grade this one, so I was extra proud of my little man. He is the littliest one in his class. He was a preemie, you know. Around here we believe big things come in small packages. Maddie also took home quite a few awards. In third grade, they stop awarding so many- no ribbons; no trophies. It's time to get serious, I guess. She got a certificate for all A's and an accelerated reader award- she was 2 points shy of getting a medal. Her favorite award was given by her teacher, Mrs. Brumfield- the M&M award- small and sweet. Later Friday afternoon, she performed, "Every Day" from High School Musical II in the school talent show. I begged her to let me put the video on our blog, but she's shy about it. I will respect her and not turn into the mommy papparazzi, going against her will, but I was soooooooo proud of her. Gabriella, watch out! I think it might have been at that talent show, as we (and only we ) held up the American Idol- like posters, reading Maddie is #1..We love Maddie, when I realized yes. I have joined the ranks. I am one of those moms....and you know, I think I'm just fine with that.

Blackberry Princess

I do own a cell phone, although I think I was one of the last of my family and friends to do so. Yes. It does come in handy, and as everyone said I would say, I don't know how I lived without it. I do not however, own a palm pilot, iphone or blackberry (or have any desire to do so). The only blackberries around these parts are the juicy, fruity variety. Cade came over this week for a play date and Sophie was so excited to take him blackberry picking. She warned him of the "pricklies" as she pulled on her favorite cherry rain boots. They match her tutu perfectly. So, they grabbed their tupperware and headed out. They had fun hunting, eating and feeding a few blackberries to Hershey. I planned on using the berries to put over a yellow cake for a yummy FHE treat. They didn't make it. We ate up every last berry. Just as my brother is obcessed with his iphone, Sophie is just as obcessed with her blackberries. Everytime we go outside, she has to go looking for blackberries. Yesterday we went on a walk - just the two of us- good thing she grabbed a plastic cup to put our berries in. Although we eat them almost as fast as we pick them, I plan on having the kids pick some this weekend, so I can make that yummy cake I've been dreaming of (I found a delicious, easy recipe in Mississippi magazine this month) for Mother's Day.

"The Prophet Said to Plant a Garden"...

...so that's what we'll do. We have been up to our eyeballs in dirt and seeds getting our garden in the ground. Our sweet neighbor, Mr. Lucas, brought his very large John Deere into our yard and disced up quite a nice size garden. Our tractor is out of commission right now. He came back the next week, repeated the discing, adding fertilizer. I was planning on doing a small garden plot this year, but now I feel major pressure to fill every last spot Mr. Lucas prepared for us. I started some from seed but also bought some plants at the feed and seed. We planted oodles of tomatos, cucumbers (Maddie's favorite veggie), okra, bush beans, pole beans, squash, lettuce, carrots (both "iffy" veggies to plant in the heat, but oh well..), cantelope, and watermelon. I still have about 3 empty rows. I know if I go any bigger I won't be able to handle it. I plan on making that my pumpkin patch. I feel much relief knowing that the seeds and plants are in the ground, not only to grow and provide a wonderful harvest, but also to let Mr. Lucas see when he drives by that his efforts were not in vain.