Let's Talk Genius.

First, let me start by saying that I love both of my children equally. They also get on my nerves equally. But I never want to be known as one of those parents who puts one child ahead of the other one.

With that being said, this post has tons of bragging on ONE child. But I think it SHOULD be bragged on because I am SOOOOOOO proud!

This post is all about this girl:

Want to know why I'm so proud of her, other than the fact that she's my beautiful angel?

I had a meeting with her teacher today. They let her take the Star Reading test the other day. She scored a 1.8. That means she's reading at a 2nd grade reading level!!! 

She's in Kindergarten. 

She just turned 5 a month ago.

 And she's reading at a 2nd grade level. 

This just blows my mind!

She is also advanced for her age in every category: Spelling, writing, and math. 

Her Kindergarten teacher says that she never acts bored in class, but she just doesn't want her to become bored. They are just now focusing on letters A-T. Kenzie knew that stuff when she was two. And the best part about all this? Kenzie never flaunts her "smartness". She understands that some kids aren't advanced, and she doesn't try to rub that in...she HELPS them. How precious is that?

During the meeting, we were discussing our options on how to help her excel without her becoming bored with Kindergarten. One option was to send her on to 1st grade completely. 

That's HUGE, people. 

But Doug and I talked, and we just don't think that's the best option for her. She's already one of the youngest in her class, and that would put her graduating at 16! I can't send my 16 year old baby to college! That's just too young.

So the option we went with was to let her stay in Kindergarten, but take the 1st grade reading class. This way, she will still be able to spend time with her friends, but to challenge her more in her academics. She will be participating in the AR reading program, which they don't even offer until 1st grade! I think this will work out perfectly and Kenzie seems excited about it as well.

Doug and I (and everyone else who knows Kenzie) is SO proud of her. I love that she loves to learn and I hope she continues to do so. I hope she stays the same sweet angel that she is now. 

How I'm Keeping My Sanity.

This semester I decided I was NOT going to be as stressed out as I was last semester. (We'll see how that goes later on lol). I'm taking 3 on campus classes and two online classes, one of which is Pre-Calculus...yep. For one of my education classes, I have to do 45 hours worth of volunteer hours at a local child care facility. I'm trying to figure out what to do about that because I'm going to have to put Tucker in some sort of daycare so I can do my hours. So I'm sort of stressing about that. But so far, I'm keeping my head on straight with everything else! 

My method this semester is SCHEDULES! Now, if you know me in real life, you know I'm borderline OCD and I need things to be organized and planned out. So, I made myself a schedule for this semester! It includes my cleaning schedule, school work time, workouts, and everything in between. This helps me out SO much. I make sure to dedicate at least 2.5 hours a day on school assignments, so I don't fall behind and get stressed out. Wish me luck this semester! It's going to be a busy one!

And of course, lots of coffee. I couldn't survive without it!

Life lately has been pretty much the same. I've been fluctuating one or two pounds because I've lost my motivation to work out/count calories. (I know, I know...shame on me)! But I'm not giving up, I promise. 

Kenzie's loving Kindergarten and Tucker has found a love for Mario and Luigi. 

 I'm excited for this weekend! It's FOOTBALL SEASON! Go Vols! We are going to visit my Papa at the River for Labor Day weekend and I can't wait! I love "mini vacations" lol. 

I also realize that this post is rambly...I'm sorry!

Family Night!

What have I been up to lately?

Oh, you know. Just losing weight and such.

I haven't been counting calories, but I've been eating less and watching what/when I eat. I just need to motivate myself to get back to doing yoga. I'm down 10 pounds, but I've been stuck here for over a week.

We took the kids to see Planes 3D last Saturday. It was Tucker's first movie at a theater:) They loved it!

I love family time with these crazy people. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Kindergarten!

It's been hectic around here. Back to school for Kenzie means no more sleeping in for Mommy. It also means that MY classes will begin soon. (Insert hair grabbing here). So I've been adjusting to the "new" schedule here and focusing on making sure Kenzie is okay at school.

My baby is in Kindergarten now. K-I-N-D-E-R-G-A-R-T-E-N. What in the world, people?

 Can we just stop her right here at this age? I'm not ready for her to leave me. But, she loves school. That makes my life tons easier to know she's having a good time and is with a great teacher and friends.

Even though she's in good hands, I still worry about her. That's my job, right? I pray about 15 times during the day. I pray for her teachers, her school, her classmates, and her safety.

 I just want to hold her hand forever and never let go. I want her to want me to sing to her every night forever. I want her to want to read to me forever. I want her to be five years old forever.

When we took her for her first day, her teacher just embraced her like she knew her forever. THAT put my Mama heart at ease. She also gave us a poem that had us crying in the parking lot. But just look at how happy Kenzie looks here. Her spirit is just so full of joy and happiness. I am beyond blessed to call her my daughter.

And that, my dears, is my emotional Kindergarten post. Because I have to stop writing right now or I'm gonna have to go pick her up from school haha!

Memphis // Nashville {HELP!}

Seeing how I already had a two month old when I got married, we didn't really get the opportunity or money to go on a honeymoon like so many lucky newlyweds get to experience. But since mine and Doug's FIVE year anniversary is coming up (September 27th), we decided it was about time to plan a weekend getaway for just the two of us.

We don't want to travel more than three hours, so our options that are sticking out the most are Nashville & Memphis. We've visited both places before, but the only thing we did was go out and drink Downtown and on Beale Street. There will be no drunken escapades this time, people. So my question is, what is there to do in Nashville and Memphis?

I definitely want to eat somewhere awesome. Like a Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives place. But I'm at a total loss as to what else we would do!

I don't want to go to the zoo without the kids, so that's out of the question. I don't think Doug's all that into museums. I want to do something memorable!

All my Memphis & Nashville girls, I need your help!