Family - Our Alabama Life

Back to School: An Interview

Posted on August 26, 2016 in Family, 0 comments

We are now two solid weeks into the school year, so I think it’s high time for a back to school post, don’t you? We have hit the ground running in fifth and third grades. I saw where Kristin asked these questions of her girls and I just loved it, so I thought I would borrow her questions and conduct my own back to school interview.

Kyndall started fifth grade, which means she is now in middle school. She is in a different building, about three minutes away from me. Yes, I am having a hard time with this. SHE, on the other hand, is loving the freedom that comes with having a locker and changing classes and riding the bus to my school. And at only two weeks in, I can already tell she has matured. It’s amazing how quickly that happens!

Questions As Answered By Kyndall

What is your favorite color? Green.
What is your favorite toy? My phone.
What is your favorite television show? Henry Danger.
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Chocolate-chip pancakes.
What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Chicken nuggets.
What is your favorite snack? Chocolate-chip mini-muffins.
What is your favorite fruit? Watermelon.
What is your favorite drink? Milk.
What is your favorite outfit? All my dry-fit outfits.
What is your favorite game to play? Soccer.
What is your favorite animal? Dogs. Max.
What is your favorite song? Better Dig Two By the Band Perry.
What is your favorite book? Ellie’s Story
Who is your best friend(s)? Maddie and Shaylee and Libby.
What is your favorite holiday? My birthday.
What do you like to take to bed at night? My soccer dog, Ruff.
What is your favorite summer memory? Going out on the boat.
What do you want to be when you grow up? A marine biologist.
Tell me three things about you! I love animals. I want to play soccer and volleyball in college. I like to read.
If you had one wish, what would it be? For my very own genie.
If you could have one superpower, what would you want it to be? Why? I would want to fly.

Libby is in third grade and really loves it. Her teacher stands on her head each Friday if they have had good behavior for the week. Apparently, this is the highlight of her school year, so far. All of her friends from previous years have different teachers this year, so she has made lots of new friends. It is so fun seeing her attitude changing and growing and her interests expanding!

Questions As Answered By Libby

What is your favorite color? Turquoise.
What is your favorite toy? My brother. (Is that a toy? Lol!)
What is your favorite television show? Victorious.
What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Biscuits and chocolate gravy.
What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Red Lobster shrimp.
What is your favorite snack? Candy.
What is your favorite fruit? Strawberries with sugar.
What is your favorite drink? Sprite/Dr. Pepper/Mt. Dew all mixed together!
What is your favorite outfit? Umm..everything in my closet!
What is your favorite game to play? Candy land.
What is your favorite animal? A zonkey. (What the whaaaa??)
What is your favorite song? We Believe by the Newsboys.
What is your favorite book? Field Trip Mysteries books.
Who is your best friend(s)? Lily Kate, Bailey, Emmi, and Kyndall.
What is your favorite holiday? Christmas!
What do you like to take to bed at night? My mommy. (This is true!)
What is your favorite summer memory? Our lemonade stand.
What do you want to be when you grow up? A famous dancer.
Tell me three things about you! I love dancing and singing. I have a big sweet tooth. I am all about makeup and jewelry.
If you had one wish, what would it be? To become a famous dancer or singer.
If you could have one superpower, what would you want it to be? Why? Telekinesis, so that I could lift Daddy up in the air when he was bothering me.

I love, love, love doing interview with my girls. For more fun, you can read this interview I did with them in January, birthday interview with Kyndall and Libby last year, or this one from 2013.

PS: I know my posting has been sketchy over the summer, but I’m attempting to improve that. Beginning September 1, I am joining in with Bailey over at LoveBaileyJean.com in an effort to blog every single day of September. Crazy, right? Bailey has topic suggestions for each day and I will be following along with some of them while also throwing in my own personal topics. (Hopefully, there will be LOTS of new house updates!)

I would LOVE for you to subscribe over in the sidebar so that you don’t miss anything. It’s about to get fun around here =)

Birmingham Zoo Birthday Fun

Posted on July 27, 2016 in Family, Travel, 0 comments

This summer should be nicknamed “Zoo Summer”. First, we visited the Nashville Zoo, then The Little Zoo That Could, and, most recently, the Birmingham Zoo. Both girls have birthdays soon and when we asked them what they would like to do, my animal-loving Kyndall decided to go to the zoo instead of having a party.

We woke up bright and early Monday morning and made the two-hour drive to the Birmingham Zoo. (Unbeknownst to us, the zoo was offering a discount for Pokemon Go players. TIP: Be sure to ask for any daily discounts at the ticket window!)

For a typically sweltering summer day in the south, the animals were out and about a lot more than I expected. The baby bears were running and playing, a giant hippo was out of the water catching some rays, and a rhinoceros lounged about, napping in the sun. We didn’t make it to the big cat exhibits on this trip, but we did catch a peek of them prowling around as we rode by on the zoo’s train!

The Birmingham zoo’s resident camel, Hope, gave the girls a quick ride. (Speaking of camels, and in case you haven’t seen Zootopia, let me entertain you with a camel joke: What do you call a three-humped camel? Pregnant!! Ha. Ha. Ha.)

And of course, my girls always have to take advantage of all photo props. How cute is that giraffe and gorilla?

Since it was such a hot day, we took advantage of the Birmingham zoo’s super cute splash pad area. The zoo has two huge splash pads, complete with variating water sprays and a bucket that dumps water. It was the perfect way to cool off in the middle of our zoo exploration.

The girls made fast friends with Leo the giraffe. He loved the lettuce they fed him and the keeper was great at encouraging the girls to interact. She had them hold the lettuce behind their back so they could feel Leo’s tongue, over their head so he had to reach out and get it, and up close so they could pet his head.

The lorikeet exhibit was one of our favorite things about the Birmingham zoo. We were able to feed them nectar and they kept landing on us. At one point, Kyndall had four birds lined up across her shoulders. She was in Lorikeet-heaven!

After a super fun-filled day at the zoo, this is exactly what we ALL felt like doing!! Since we didn’t have a super comfy stroller to ride in, that wasn’t an option.

The Birmingham zoo also has a huge zip-line course that looks amazing. On our trip, the zoo’s scales were not working properly, so we weren’t able to participate. I definitely recommend giving that a go if you are at the zoo, though.

My future animal scientist/birthday girl was able to talk to several of the zookeepers about what she could do as a future career. While she is still leaning more toward marine biology (so she can work with dolphins!), her second option is to study animal science and become a keeper for the elephants!

Five on Friday 002

Posted on May 6, 2016 in Family, Life, Unscripted, 2 comments

Five on Friday is my new favorite way to wrap-up what we’ve been doing this week. I began with episode 001 last week and I’m sharing five more exciting things we’ve been doing this week!

one. Muffins with Mom. I’m very thankful for an amazing PTO president who organizes so many great events for our school. This week, I was able to sit down with my girls and enjoy a muffin and a glass of milk before starting our day at school.

two. Yet another reason I’m super excited to be back at the farm–a HUGE garden. I can’t wait to make and freeze homemade salsa, fried okra, dill pickles, and blackberry jam. The girls are super excited (right now) about digging in the dirt and planting those fruits and vegetables and getting to pick them in a few months. They are such farm girls at heart!

three. Spring weather. Jase had an eye appointment this week in Huntsville, so we stopped by Bridgestreet (an outdoor shopping mall) afterwards for a treat. The weather was perfect and all three of my kids were angels. It was seriously the best shopping trip I have had with them….ever. I owe it all to the being outside and the gorgeous sunshine! And, of course, to the chocolate covered apple and pretzels from the Chocolate Crocodile (wink,wink!).

four. Fundraising completion. I was elated to hand over the adoption fundraising blanket and funds to Zeke and Lisa for their adoption. Such a fun step in helping bring home their baby girl from China!

five. I complained in last week’s Friday post that I am not a fan of Justin’s current schedule. One thing I do like though is that he is off every other Friday and his schedule just happened to coincide with our Weather Day this week. Friday morning pancake breakfast together is the best thing. Followed closely by spending the day together, even if we are planning to spend it painting and cleaning our fixer upper!

Now it’s your turn–comment below and tell me one thing YOU’VE done this week!

Thoughts on a Beauty Pageant

Posted on May 2, 2016 in Family, Life, Unscripted, 0 comments

You guys, this weekend could be called “The One With All The Pageants.” Seriously, we attended not one but two school beauty pageants.

Generally, I am not a fan of beauty pageants. I think the whole idea of judging a girl on her ‘beauty’ by a two minute walk across a stage is preposterous. There are many other pageant-type events that are so good (Junior Miss, for example), include more than just a walk across the stage, and offer scholarship money to the winners.

The girls have been begging to enter our school’s beauty pageant for several years now. I kept putting them off and finally gave in this year. And then spent the weeks leading up to the pageant reiterating to the girls that this is all for fun. It doesn’t matter who wins and who doesn’t, it’s about the getting ready.

It’s about wearing makeup and curling your hair and getting all dressed up.

It’s about letting Aunt Mal be your stylist while Trey feeds her a hamburger.

It’s about having GraGra tie the bow on your dress because she is way better at that than your mom.

It’s about smiling and laughing and having a blast strutting your stuff on stage in front of all the girls’ families.

And dang it if every single one of the girls in this pageant weren’t beautiful. Exquisitely so.

Kyndall was awarded third alternate. Her friend Maddie was crowned Little Miss Rebel. (See what I mean about all that exquisite beauty? And you should have seen the other girls, too. I couldn’t have been a judge, that’s for sure.)

The girls brother-from-another-mother came to cheer them on. I don’t think he enjoyed the pageant very much, but it was so sweet of him to want to go watch the girls.

On Saturday night, we went back to watch the high school girls in their Miss Rebel beauty pageant. Libby was so funny–we have known Macie for years, but when Macie was on stage, Libby whispered to me “That’s my pen pal!”

Our gorgeous niece, Gabby, received second alternate at Miss Rebel 2016. I definitely can see this girl walking the catwalk one day–she is so confident and any modeling company would be lucky to have her.

If there is a lesson to be learned from this post, it is that beauty pageants are so much fun. But that’s it–it doesn’t determine your beauty or your worth. And win or lose, enjoy your night 🙂

Five on Friday 001

Posted on April 29, 2016 in Family, Life, Unscripted, 2 comments

I feel like with all the house posts and Stitch Fix reviews and other super-important stuff, I’ve neglected sharing the day-to-day family things that I love sharing on this blog. (Don’t get me wrong, I love sharing the house posts and Stitch Fix reviews and other super-important stuff too. I just don’t want to leave out the little family updates.) I stumbled across the Five on Friday link-up and I think it’s the perfect way to wrap up each week with an update. This is episode 001 in what I hope to be an every-Friday series.

one. Farm life. I don’t want to give the impression that everything is glamorous and beautiful on the farm. The bugs are abundant and I stepped in cow poop just this week. But I love it. I love every sweaty, stinky minute of it. I love that my kids are getting to live this life. I can’t wait to get more chickens and a few pigs and grow our farm even more than it already is.

two. Grandfather time. Our school hosted a Donuts with Dad day and since Justin couldn’t take off work, Pops stepped up to the plate (literally!). Then, the girls spent the night with Papaw and Nana so Justin and I could have a date/house planning night and we met up for breakfast the next morning at Ihop. (I know I’ve told you this before, but Ihop has the most amazing drink ever– it’s the Tropical Island Twist and just telling you this makes my mouth water.)

three. Stump researching. Justin salvaged an old tree stump from his grandparents’ house when they passed away. We want to do something really special with it in the new house and I have been researching what we can do with it. Now, we just need to decide which idea to go with!

four. Family time. Justin has been working a new schedule, which I dislike 90% of the time. But every so often, he gets a long weekend off–Friday through Monday–and we get to spend tons of family time together. It almost makes up for the long hours he has to work the other part of the time.

five. Date night. I have crazy eyes and I hate selfies but I so love this man. Lately, we’ve been having a lot of serious discussions about building a house (and paying for said house). We’ve disagreed on hardwood (Justin doesn’t want it in the kitchen but I do) and home exterior (Justin wants brick because it’s maintenance free and I want vinyl because it’s pretty) but I wouldn’t want to go through this process with anyone else.

Your turn–tell me one thing you’ve done this week!

Marriage Matters

Posted on February 23, 2016 in Family, 2 comments

This weekend, Justin and I had the opportunity to attend the Ignite Marriage Conference at Church of the Highlands in Birmingham. COH has several campuses, and our tickets were for the Grant’s Mill location.

We went down early on Friday to look at a few house things and then we all met up for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. (I loved the conference, but the Cheesecake Factory alone was worth the trip to Birmingham!)

I am almost embarrassed to say this, but this little trip was the first thing Justin and I have done without kids since before I was pregnant with Jase. That is zero date nights in a year and a half. I know, I know; shame on us.

The conference speaker was Dr. Jimmy Evans and he definitely exceeded my expectations! He was real and raw and oh-so-funny. The entire conference was based on healing, and how we have to have peace in ourselves before we can expect peace in our marriage.

I think Justin and I have a great marriage. We get angry and we fight and one of us is horrible at saving money, but we are committed. And that’s what counts. Hear this: if you are married to an addict who refuses to get help or if you are a partner in an abusive relationship, get out now. And I don’t, for one single second, judge any decisions you make in your life–your marriage, your call. But I do feel like too many marriages today end in divorce because there is a lack of commitment.

Justin and I were ahead of the game when we got married. We both come from a long line of committed, Christian marriages. We both knew going in that divorce was not an option for us. There have been good times and there have been times where I haven’t even wanted to look at him, but I know, for better or worse, we are in it for the long haul.

One thing Dr. Evans said that really stuck with me this weekend was about anger. He stressed the importance of never going to bed angry. Yes, I’ve heard this advice my entire life, but Dr. Evans brought it to light in a new way. He said the devil counsels you during your sleep–if you go to bed angry, the devil can convince you to stay angry. I’ve never thought about it that way, but it makes so much sense now.

If I let something little eat at me, I just get madder and that little something grows into a big something. I’ve learned (over several years of marriage–I’m a slow learner!) that if something bothers me, I need to talk to Justin about it. I’m not helping either of us if I bite my tongue and let my anger grow. I need to talk about it or just let it go, already.

Another quote I triple-starred in my notes was this:

“Your friends are your future.”

I have heard that time and time again but it is so very true. I am so thankful for a tribe of families that keep me grounded and give me a good kick in the behind when I need it.

You guys, marriage takes work. It is not easy and it doesn’t just happen. We have to be intentional about loving on our spouses and building our relationship. A good marriage is worth the fight!

Love to you!

Courtney

We Love That Basketball: Life Lessons Learned from A Season of Basketball

Posted on February 8, 2016 in Family, Life, Unscripted, 0 comments

(Did you sing that title? They’re playing bas-ket-ball. We love that bas-ket-ball. Lil Bow Wow. Anyone?)

Kyndall just wrapped up another season of basketball. She LOVES playing basketball. And when she plays, she plays hard. She leaves everything she has on the court.

I know these girls are only nine and ten, but they played for keeps. Practices were tough. Can I tell you how much I love girl sports? They develop bonds between friends that last lifetimes. And, according to this study, women who play sports are 74% more likely to succeed in business.

This year, Kyndall’s team did really well. I think they finished the regular season with 10 wins and 4 losses, or something like that. On Saturday, they played in the West-side championship for Morgan County and brought in second place. It was a good game, but they just couldn’t pull in the win.

During this season, I’ve realized some life lessons that are taught through basketball. In no certain order, here they are.

You win some, you lose some, but you should both win AND lose graciously. Play your hardest and accept the outcome, either way. Don’t sulk. Don’t cry. Don’t blame the ref. Don’t be a sore loser.
If you keep running the same play, you’ll get the same results. Sometimes, we have to re-adjust the game plan.
Be a team player. Pass the ball. Cheer for your teammates. No one person can win a basketball game.
Don’t be afraid to take the shot.
Hustle. It doesn’t matter if you have a controlled dribble or a great layup if you can’t beat the other team down the court.
Passion beats talent 90% of the time. It doesn’t matter if you can make the shot if you don’t care to make the shot.
Respect the coach. Even if you don’t agree with their decision, the coach is in charge.
You are responsible for yourself. If another player gets mad and acts a fool, that’s on her/him. How you act is on you.
It takes a minute to shake out the nerves. At the start of every game, every player is nervous. Give it a minute and a few good plays and those nerves work their way on out.

Would you add anything to my list? What lessons have you (or your children) learned from playing youth sports?

Ice Skating Fun at the Point Mallard Ice Complex

Posted on January 18, 2016 in Family, Life, Unscripted, 0 comments

When we went to Nashville a few weekends ago, they had an ice rink set up outside the Opryland Hotel. It was very warm outside, so they were having a hard time keeping the ice from melting. Instead of chancing it, we told the girls we would bring them ice skating at home.
We are fortunate to have the Point Mallard Ice Complex near our home. They offer a special $4 skating price during the week and since we were out of school on Monday, it seemed like the perfect time!

Gra-Gra offered to keep Jase so that both Justin and I were available to help the girls skate. It took us a little while to get warmed up, but ice skating is a lot like riding a bicycle–once you know, you know.

We ran into a lot of people we knew there. Apparently, today was a great day for ice skating! It was really fun to see the girls who take lessons, all decked out in their outfits, twirling around on the ice. Libby really thought she needed a pretty dress 🙂

I was impressed with how quickly both girls picked up skating. They have both been once before, several years ago. After only about twenty minutes today, they were tearing up the ice. Almost like they were naturals.

At only $4 per person, I really feel like we got our money’s worth. We also grabbed some concessions as a makeshift lunch, and they were pretty cheap as well. All in all, it was an inexpensive family fun day that I would definitely recommend.

PS: The girls thought it was really funny that I used to have birthday parties here when I was younger. They couldn’t possibly imagine a building existing that long! 🙂

Jase’s First Birthday

Posted on January 15, 2016 in Family, 0 comments

(Disclaimer: I have been trying to get this post up since Tuesday. My computer isn’t working correctly, my camera isn’t working correctly, and the weather hasn’t been conducive to the one-year pictures I have been dying to take. The post is going up, finished or not. When you read this, please pretend it is Wednesday, January 13.)

Today is my baby boy’s first birthday. One year ago today, at 9:41 am, he came painfully but quickly into this world and our lives were forever changed. Right now, he weighs 18 pounds, 3 ounces and was a whopping 27 and a half inches long. This puts him in the 5th percentile for weight and 10th percentile for height.

He is crawling like a champ and stands on his own, but has yet to take a step. If you try to make him walk, he picks both feet up and holds them straight out into the air.

He is jabbering away, but the only real word he has said (and meant to say) is “bite bite.” Just like his daddy, food is his favorite thing. He has said both “Mama” and “Dada” a few times, but I don’t think he really meant to say either.

He loves to get in his walker and race around the house. It is his absolute favorite thing if someone will chase him (and someone always will). He will laugh out loud as he speeds across the floor.

He has the coolest dance moves, grins with mouth wide open, and loves to shake his head no.

We celebrated his day with family. It was super low-key, because that’s how you do it when it’s a third baby :). He loved everyone singing Happy Birthday to him–he laughed and smiled and danced.

He wasn’t so sure about the cake, though. It got on his hands and his elbows and he wouldn’t even taste it. Which is surprising, given his love to eat, well, anything. (The boy eats ladybugs for goodness sake!)

He gave up on the cake experience pretty quickly. On the bright side, there wasn’t a whole lot of clean-up to be done. Just a few quick swipes with a baby wipe and it was on to the presents.

How handsome is he? I know I am partial, but good grief! This baby has all of our hearts in the palm of his hand!

One of my favorite things during this year has been watching my girls love him. Y’all, it’s the grandest thing. Kyndall cries (literally, cries!) if he does a ‘first something’ and she isn’t there. Don’t feed him a new thing, teach him a new trick, or do something fun if she isn’t present. She is worse than I am about those types of things. Libby doesn’t get quite as upset, but it does really bother her, too.

They think he needs to be picked up the very second he makes a noise. If he points at a toy, it is instantly delivered into his hands. He never cries or fusses, because he doesn’t have the chance to. With three mama’s, he gets what he wants, when he wants it.

At his one year check-up, both girls begged to leave the room so they wouldn’t have to witness him getting shots. They didn’t want to see him be upset or hurt. I was the mean mama and made them stay and they both closed their eyes and covered their ears!

Happy birthday, baby boy. We love you BIG!

PS: Read Jase’s birth story, part 1 and part 2.

A Tribute

Posted on November 30, 2015 in Family, Life, Unscripted, 14 comments

Yesterday, in the wee hours of the morning, Justin’s granddad passed from this earth. In the coming days, the family will plan his funeral and lay him to rest. Papaw was an amazing man and today, I want to celebrate his life.

I want to celebrate the love he had with Mamaw. Together, they were one of the greatest love stories I’ve ever witnessed. There is no doubt in my mind she was waiting for him in Heaven and they are having the most glorious reunion.

I want to celebrate his strength and his honor. He served in the US Army for 20-something years and fought bravely for our country.

I want to celebrate his dedication to and affection for his grandkids.

I want to celebrate his excitement over Jase, a grandson to carry on the family name.

I want to celebrate his faith. Even at his sickest, Papaw had a peace that can only come from God.

I want to celebrate him, as the cornerstone of the West family.

I want to celebrate his sense of humor, whether it be participating in a staring contest with Libby, attempting the girls’ nose trick, or telling jokes.

While we are already missing him terribly, I want to celebrate that, today, he is walking with Jesus in Heaven. Rest in peace, Papaw.