Christmas time has come and gone..

Caiden's 1st Christmas!!

This Christmas was extra special this year for many many reasons. Tyler is getting really into Santa and it's so cute listening to him talk about him and we even "tracked" Santa online on Christmas Eve. It was Caiden's very 1st Christmas and even though he's too little to remember and know what's going on, it was still fun dressing him up in his little Santa hat! AND we got to share it with our new dog Buck! We stayed in Charlotte this year for Christmas day and eventhough it was nice to be together as a family, I sure missed the big gatherings with ALL the family in one house. Luckily we got to have that not long after Christmas!

"why does mom put me in these silly hats?"

Tyler opening his stocking (he asked if we were bad this year because Santa didn't put anything in our stocking, just his... LOL)

Buck's enjoying his hickory smoked bone Santa brought!

The Friday after Christmas we surprised my family in Columbia a couple hours earlier then we had said originally because I was able to get off work which was really great! We went to my Nana's house in Gilbert, SC along with my Aunt Robin, Uncle Jimmy, Jimmy and Zach, my whole family, my Papaw, Aunt Cherri, Uncle Robbie, Caleb, Joshua, Skylar, Aunt Becky, my cousins from Charleston and many more! Nana made a DELICIOUS dinner with a roast, pork, ham, corn, green beans, asparagus cassarole, rolls, mac and cheese, red velvet cake, etc...YUM!!!

Me, my Great-Grandma, Kate, Nana, Aunt Becky

Tyler with his cousins- Skylar, Caleb, Joshua and his Uncle Jay!

My cousins Zach and Jimmy

We brought Buck with us and he had a blast playing with my parents dog Sparky. They chased each other around the big yard and played fetch in the lake out back

a better Santa...

The daycare I work at was open Christmas Eve until NOON and lucky me had to work! I got there around 8:30 AM with the boys and to my surprise, there were only 10 kids in the whole center so I got to leave! Tyler wanted to play for a little bit so I hung around then we headed off to the mall to see Santa and get another picture taken...and boy was it better!

Merry Christmas

Caiden (4 months) and Tyler (4 years)

Wonderful Wieblers!

Howard and Robin Wiebler came over Sunday night to visit and took us out for a yummy dinner!! It was so nice to see them (as always!). They got Tyler a 487 piece Spiderman Lego set and Caiden, Eric and me a new outfit!! They are such wonderful people...like second parents to us. Thanks you! We love you guys XOXO

Brotherly love

Fence'm in... Part 2

Eric and our good friend John took off work Friday to finish digging the holes for the fence and WOW did they finish it all in no time! It turned out that they needed a different size (longer) drill bit. They were able to dig about 20 holes in 4 hours as opposed to 4 holes in nine hours! Great job you guys! By the end of the day Eric had only 2 more to go, but he needed a one man auger since the holes were so close to the house. He got up early Saturday morning to finish those and once the holes were all dug, he started with the fence. It's gonna look so good! I'm so proud of my hubby; he sure is amazing!

Check out this fence in the making...

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So I decided to take the boys to Petsmart to get their picture taken with Buck and Santa Clause. It seamed like a good idea at the time, I even figured I'd be fine without Eric... BOY was I WRONG! Picture this:

• Me in high heel boots
• Caiden in his infant seat on my right arm
• Buck pulling on his leash in my left hand
• Tyler wondering next to me
• Rain
• cold
• Slippery tile floor
• Animals everywhere.....

Do you see where I'm getting?? I was definitely an experience I'll never forget! As we were entering Petsmart with Caiden on one arm, Tyler in front of me and Buck in my left from the rain in black heels, a lady was leaving and wanted to "share" the doorway... she said excuse me, but I really couldn't move... I tried but when I did I slipped and fell INTO the doorway as I told the lady "sorry but I can't excuse me!" Oh how embarrassing!! Luckily the door caught me and she was able to help me back to my feet and nobody was hurt. Now that I think about it I'm wondering if that's how I got this bruise on my left forearm? Hmmm...

After that we made our way back to see Santa and I was a little disappointed in his little helper.. Santa was a girl! LOL The picture turned out cute though.. Caiden looks surprised! (haha)

Fence'm in...

We have our new dog, a dog house, now we just need a fenced in yard! Eric picked up all the wood and supplies on Friday to begin building the fence. On Saturday morning before the rain came he marked the perimeter of our yard and measured where all the post holes will go. He also started working on the gates. Early Sunday morning Eric and our friend John rented a power auger from Home Depot, but the first one they rented was broken, so they had to take it back. When they finally started (around noon) they thought they were going to finish in a couple hours, when at the end of the day, they only got 4... They both said it was hard work and very frustrating but they stuck through it and hopefully they can finish soon! My baby deserves a foot rub for all his hard work... and high fives for John because he missed the Panther's game to stay and help!









This is our fully loaded truck! Eric said it was driving really low to the ground...








Tyler and Daddy working in the rain (under a tarp)

Picture time!!

Eric and Tyler throwing "leaf balls" at a park in Cincinatti

Family photo inside a treehouse

Caiden sitting outside in his "chair"

"Santa baby"

Tyler and Buck sitting in front of the tree..

Brotherly love...

Charlie Brown Christmas Tree?

Okay, we're just not having any luck (again) getting the "perfect" Christmas tree. It's the second year in a row we've brought home a Charlie Brown tree. When we're there picking one out we think it's great, then we bring it home and set it up and think "wow" that tree is small! We were going to go to the Mountains to chop down our own tree to start a family tradition, but we didn't get the chance so we'll have to start it next year. Plus, with the drought going on, there's not the best selection... at least that's what I'm telling myself now because I really wanted to go to the mountains....

We decorated our tree last night and although it's small, it's still very pretty. We also added a Nativity Scene that was passed down from Eric's dad who got it from his dad! It's old, but really neat!

Our 2006 Charlie Brown Tree

Our 2007 Charlie Brown Tree!

...and Buck makes 5!

We finally found our new dog and he was definitely worth the wait. Eric found a listing on Craigslist for a black lab and we went to visit him this Saturday morning. By the afternoon we had him back at our house for a "trial run". After spending just a couple hours with him, we knew he was the right dog. The family we got him from did a great job training him and had several kids (13, 5 and 2) so he is great with the little ones. He is a 1 year old pure bred black lab so he still has plenty of energy, but is really well behaved. His name is Buckeye and we call him Buck. He loves to catch frisbee and play fetch (definitely prefers the frisbee though) and of course loves to play in the water. When he is ready to come inside he lays down and loves to get attention. We are all so excited to have him around it is great for the boys to have a dog to grow up with. We are definitely lucky to have him. Of course, he is a boy so the Mick family boy to girl ratio is now 4 to 1. Yowza!

Giggle giggle

Caiden is 3.5 months old and is laughing, smiling and cooing all the time. Eric is with him on the changing table getting Caiden to laugh... so precious... my favorite sound

Where's Tyler?

Over Thanksgiving in Cincinatti we went to this awesome park that had trails, a playground, and a tree house. We found this beautiful tree whose leaves had fallen off. Tyler layed in them and threw the leaves like it was snow... it was lots of fun!

i heart cincy

what i (and eric) love about cincinnati

• 1. Seeing wonderful family (Nana/Mom, Wayne, Tish, Chris, and Bella)

Our niece Bella-boo!

• Waking up and seeing snowfall on Thanksgiving morning!


• The beautiful skyline when you first enter the city at night

• Greater's Ice cream (black raspberry chip is YUMMY!)

• Listening to Wayne and his daughter Julie play music on their guitar and violin (beautiful!)
• Skyline Chili

• Visiting Eric's house he grew up in on Lisher
• Goetta - it's not a "Cincinnati" thing, we just seem to eat it only when we go there and it's de-lish!
• The Riverfront
• St. Xavier Football (it's where Eric went to HS and they're ranked #1 in the NATION!)

Happy Turkey Day!

We had a DELICIOUS Thanksgiving meal at Eric's mom's house. There was turkey, sweet potatoes, fruit salad, green beans, stuffing, corn bread, pumpkin pie, and so much more! YUMMMMMM-Y!!

Cincy here we come!

I got off work at 6 and we were on the road to Cincinnati by 645! Eric got off work early and picked up Tyler from school so they can finish packing and load up the car. I made a list that morning and we managed NOT to forget anything... even our cell phone charger? Did you know that years ago toothpaste was the most forgotten item while traveling? Well, we even brought that!

The traffic wasn't bad at all. There was a little right in the beginning, but then it was smooth sailing... well... until we hit the RAIN! Oh how I hate driving in the rain (luckily I wasn't this time!) It was pouring down rain while were were driving in the mountains and I need new wipers on my car so it was hard to see at times. The road must have been repaved or something because the reflectors on the road and wall weren't working or there, so it was SO hard to see! I had to keep myself awake to help Eric. Oh I was so nervous! We managed to make it through the mountains and into Knoxville safely. Around 1 AM we pulled into a hotel and stayed the night in a comfy bed!! We we wake up, we'll be on our way to Cincinnati!!!

and work.....

Monday was Tyler's first full day back to pre-school and my first day back to work. Sunday night I was all prepared for a GREAT first day on Monday.... at least I thought... Tyler was great, he even helped me out in the morning.. It was the little guy that threw me off "schedule" Who was I to think a "schedule" existed with an infant!??

The begining started off okay, Caiden slept for 7 hours that night (eventhough he woke up at 430) and I nursed him and brought him in our bed. I woke up around 6 to shower, get ready, etc. Everyone was still asleep until about 7. Caiden's been a little congested lately (poor guy) and there's really nothing I can do. I think I might need to get a humidifier... Any way, so he woke up and I put him in his swing so I can start getting Tyler ready. Tyler's like me in the morning; he wants breakfast right away! So I made him some cheesy grits. Still, everything is going to be "okay." What I was really concerned about was Caiden's next feeding. I work at 9 and want him to eat before I get there, so that would mean he'd need to eat around 745-8 AM. He was starting to get a little fussy so I tried to feed him. He was very squirmy, but managed to eat for about 10 minutes on one side. When he latched off to burp not only burped, but spit up ALL over him AND me.... it looked like it was all the milk he drank! So I had to change him of course, and time was running out for me to get to work early... if he wasn't going to eat now, I had to pump. After I changed him, he wouldn't stop crying.... I'd put him in the bouncy chair.. cry.. I put him in the swing.. cry... so I held him, bouncing him on my knee while I tried to pump a bottle. Tyler, of course, was sitting quietly finishing his grits and Eric had already left for work. After I finished pumping I scrambled to get the diaper bag, my lunch, Tyler's jacket and we were out the door by 830! (Yes, I still had spit up on my leg but I was going to work at a daycare so it was bound to happen there if not home!) Every morning I call my mom to chat and wish her a happy day, but as soon as I heard her sweet voice ask me how I was, that was it... tears started flowing... I don't know what it is about me, but I swear I can cry on the spot! Once I told her about my morning and got it all out, I was okay! When I got to work and dropped the boys off in there class everything turned around for the better and we all had a great day. Tyler and his classmates made a "spice cake" that day and it made the center smell super yummy! Tuesday and Wednesday were much better in case you were wondering :) I must of had the bad case of "Mondays"....

Birthday Bash

Today was Eric's 28th Birthday!!! (Happy Birthday baby) I got off a little early from work today so we could get home before Eric did and surprise him with dinner. We stopped by the store on the way home to pick up some steaks, potatoes, and yummy slice of red velvet cake! As I unloaded the boys and groceries out of the car and began dinner... guess who's pulling up in the driveway? Yep, Eric walked in just minutes after we did and the first thing Tyler and I said was "You're not supposed to be home yet!" But, of course, we were SO happy to see him and he even helped us make dinner and boy was it yummy-licious! Happy Birthday honey, we love you!

University of Tampa

GOOOO TAMPA!!!
My sister's volleyball team won their first 2 matches in the Regionals against South Carolina-Aiken and Lynn University. They play in the FINALS tonight against Florida Southern. The winner advances to the Nationals! Last year Kate's team WON the Nationals and they have a chance to win it again this year! The game tonight is at 7 PM and you can watch it live on the UT webcast . She's lucky number 13! GO KATE!

For Robin...

and for anyone who has ever lost someone special in their lives...

God Saw You

God saw you getting tired, When a cure was not to be.

So He wrapped his arms around you,and whispered, "Come to me".

You didn't deserve what you went through,

So He gave you rest.

God's garden must be beautiful,

He only takes the best

And when I saw you sleeping,

So peaceful and free from pain

I could not wish you back To suffer that again.

~Adam Males

**this poem made me think of my Memaw who died of cancer 2.5 years ago...we miss you and love you so much

It will be the little things that you will remember,

the quiet moments,the smiles, the laughter.

And although it may seem hard right now,

it will be the memoriesof these little things

that help to push away the pain

and bring the smilesback again.

With Loving Memories

I love you Robin...

I'm thankful for....

I know it's Friday, but I forgot to post this yesterday! (AHH)

I couldn't really decided what I wanted to write about today, and I've seen "Thursday Thirteen" done on other blogs and thought I'd given it a try. I was going to do 13 embarrassing facts about me, but that would be embarrassing (hehehe), so I decided with 13 things I'm thankful for since next Thursday is Thanksgiving (YAY)! So here goes:

1. I'm thankful God blessed me with 2 beautiful, healthy boys

2. I'm thankful to have such a loving, caring, devoted husband who I love so dearly

3. I'm thankful to have the BEST parents a kid could EVER have. They have always stood by my side and supported me in everything I did. I admire them so much.

4. I'm thankful that I have the greatest friends. If it weren't for them, I would have no reason to want to stay in Charlotte. They're my second family :)

4. I'm thankful that I have wonderful in-laws who mean so much to me.

5. I'm thankful that I was able to complete college after having a baby at a young age, getting married, and working all at the same time.

6. I'm thankful that I have the worlds best volleyball player as a sister and best golfer as a brother! (and no, I'm not bragging, it's the truth!)

7. I'm thankful to have a job where I can still see my boys during the day and continue to nurse Caiden

8. I'm thankful I am able to nurse Caiden because I believe it's the best thing for him :)

9. I'm thankful to have a roof over my head and food to eat...

10. I'm thankful for everyday that I wake up an I am alive!

Hubby-wubby

Oh how I love my husband so very very much! Yesterday was my first day back to work... yep, I went back to the good'ol Sunshine House daycare. Tyler's excited because he's back with his old friends again and Caiden is in the infant classroom where he's 1 of 3 kiddos in the room! I will be the Lead toddler teacher in the class 2 doors down from him so it will be easy for me to "peak" on him. Also, they are going to let me continue nursing Caiden. When it's time for him to eat, I'll be able to leave my class to go nurse him! How awesome is that! I don't need to worry about pumping bottles anymore!! So anyway, when we (me, Caiden, Tyler) got home last night around 635PM, Eric had dinner in the oven and had bought me a bouquet of beautiful flowers.
"I love you and thank you for all that you do" is what he said to me.... oh it was just the sweetest thing! I love YOU Eric with all my heart! You make me so happy.