Garage Sale success!!

Well, other than a cough I developed from being in the dust of my attic and the wind of the last several days I have successfully survived another garage sale with my friends. I would have to say it was a roaring success. I am not the organization behind the operation but I have good manual labor skills and some aptitude for selling our stuff. It was the most profitable one to date. So I hope there is a swing set in my backyard's future....We would love it!!

High Points of Spring!

Yeah for spring!! We are so ready to be outside!! The Hackleman's love the outdoors, playing in the yard, Todd planting grass and other plants, playing ball, watching ball, you name it! Reed has had a blast driving his Gator that he got for Christmas, running with Truman, throwing the raquetball to Jack, learning to throw overhand to his Dad and Mom (most of the time, I get to be the "ump guy") We are still not sure what hand we have going on...he hits and golfs left handed (w/ right handed clubs) and picks and chooses which to throw with. It is about equal distance and accuracy with either so Todd is hoping for the dual handed pitcher like the guy from Creighton. Should be interesting to see what develops! We have also gotten to play several days at the park and have even flown a kite a day or two. Reed and I have also enjoyed some playdates with friends. Reed got to invite his friend from daycare, Dalton over a few weekends a go. The boys had been planning all kinds of stuff to do! They have really gotten into Super Mario Brothers, I think from Dalton's older sister's DS...anyway there is a lot of pretend play with Mario and Luigi. Reed loves to pretend that he is Luigi and even likes to dress like him in his "Jingles" aka Overalls! Took me a few attempts to figure that one out. He finally told me he wanted to wear the things that go over the arms and have the things that jingle on the buttons in the front...overalls! Reed still loves his animals and knowing all about them. Tigers are still the best but his favorite color is red now! There is hope for the Sooners! He is a smart little guy and loves to count and learn his letters. Can't believe he will go to pre-school in the fall! Here are a few pictures of some of our spring adventures!

Catching up!

What a whirlwind of last few months. We have survived the holidays, a few illnessess, and lots of snow. We have had a few slow months at work which have been nice for catching up at home but tough on the pocketbook. Things are picking up again just in time for a massisve amount of new Medicare regulations and form changes!! ARRGGHH! - which is my most favorite saying as Reed repeats that and "not TO-DAY!" all the time. That was his favorite thing to say as we tackled potty training.

ME: "Reed do you need to potty?"
Reed: "Nope, not TOOO-DAAAY(w/ a little uplift in his voice!)Mom!"

Needless to say he decided to learn to use the toilet and not have to hold it in all day. However, there was a lot of lobbying for pull-ups. I told him that when the pull-ups ran out then we were not going to buy any more. He promptly told me: "Well, I just will talk to my dad and he will take me to Tawget to get more! Cuz, Tawget has wots of them Mom!"

We have survived this as well and although we are still in pull-ups at night I think we have the rest of the bathroom thing figured out! Yea!!!

I DO NOT have BUGS in my tummy!!

We have the throw-ups at our house so stay away!! Or as Reed heard me telling someone on the phone...he has a stomach bug! This did not sit well with him the idea of BUGS in his stomach!!! He informed me quite adamantly that he did not have bugs in his tummy! He choked (his version of throw-up)them all up... they were gone! Then he kept going into the bathroom this afternoon and I kept asking if his tummy was upset...no he was looking for bugs!! Hopefully we will have more restful night and no one else will be BUGGY!!

We have the tree decorated...Will it stay that way???

Well our decorating continued today as we decorated the tree this morning. My guys are plagued with this nasty respiratory virus(my diagnosis). So amidst the snot and coughing we decorated the tree since I deemed us too germy for church today. Reed doesn't quite have the coughing in the elbow down yet...he coughs all over everything and then tells me he is supposed to cough into his elbow! Close I guess but not so sanitary! He was also not so willing to accept the reasoning that God doesn't want us to spread germs so it is okay to stay home. (We did do some extra blessings during our night time prayers this evening, so I hope you are feeling the extra love!) I was able to distract the disappointment of missing Sunday School with decorating the tree which Reed is quite the expert! So much so that he is still tweaking it everytime he goes by it! We still don't have topper...Reed can't decide between an Angel or a Star...he has good reasons for both and due to the cold stuff we didn't do any shopping this weekend (other than the tree!) So, the dilema continues...Angel or Star...Angel or Star...? I'll let everyone know as soon as we make a decision so that you all can rest!

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas!!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas around the Hackleman House. For those that don't know my husband, Todd LOVES, LOVES, LOVES Christmas!!! We have been hardcore decorating since Friday after Thanksgiving. Right after our Black Friday shopping!! We had a lot of fun...we didn't do any crazy hours, just 7:00 AM and stayed in Derby. It was a blast!

So today we went and got our tree!! Since Todd and I have been married we have had a GIGANTIC artificial tree that we bought the first year we were married. We must have been blinded by the love of newlyweds because this tree was HUGE!!! It was like the artificial Griswold tree! It took up the whole living room! So as the love for the tree faded...and reality set in..we opted for a real tree this year. I am smelling its wonderful fragrance right now and Reed had so much fun going to pick it out! The picking of the tree was interesting to say the least. Picking a tree is much like buying tennis shoes with Todd...very, very selective...so since Christmas is just 21 days away we FINALLY picked one. The question at the house tonight is who actually picked it out?!? I'm pretty sure I spotted this one! ;)

Busy Month

Wow, where did November go! I guess it has been a busy month although I'm not really sure what we did. We had some birthday parties and lots of work and as much outdoor park time that we could get. Reed is growing like a weed. We have moved into 4T pants because of his long legs and we got new shoes that I hope will last until spring but the way that kid's feet grow...who knows. He is a busy little boy that loves animals and has an evergrowing Cwrismas Wist! He has lots of "needs v. wants" and lots of wheels turning in his head which results in "mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom..." "what Reed?" "um, um, um, Mom, mom..I don't know" - can we say broken record!!! He has very little desire to be potty trained despite all mine and the sitter's efforts. I believe that he is taking the Hackleman stance on this and he will do what he wants in his own time. (doesn't mean I'm quitting on him...The Thompson stubborness will not let his mother rest!)

Speaking of Thompsons...two years ago today we lost a great one. I miss my dear ole dad everyday, as I watch my little man grow and change I see so much in him that my pop would have loved. I know he isn't missing a minute of it, but I wish I could hear his clever antedotes and his laughter over things like Reed telling me "Mom, you talking toooo much!" or watching him golf in the backyard or learning to hit a pitched ball. With many memories on my mind this evening...I'll say good night to you all and to my dad...I love you and miss you everyday!