Happy Birthday Jean-O

My great aunt, Jean, just turned 88. She is a trooper. When I think about all the things that she has seen in her lifetime, I am truly amazed about how much she has seen. From her parents traveling in a covered wagon, literally, to losing everything to fires and storms to having 7 older brothers and sisters passing on before her it is just amazing to think about all the different things that she has seen and done. Her days are now mostly spent alone with the television and her little dog, Lollie, by her side. She is blind, diabetic, has broken her hip and now has trouble walking for very long, her mind goes in and out sometimes but through it all she keeps on trucking. My Mom is her primary caregiver which is a daily challenge for both of them. I think my Mom's wings will be bigger in heaven for what she does for Jean - that is where she will be rewarded for the daily chores that she does because I know that she doesn't get the praise that she deserves on earth.



For Jean's birthday, we took her out to go shopping for a new bedspread, lunch and the Dollar Store. Yes, simple things seem big when you don't get out much. I think she had a great day and slept well that night!

Tax Season

Is almost over.  Thank you LORD!  It has been a rough couple of months for me, the kiddos and especially Chad.  He was working Saturdays which is not happening anymore (fingers crossed there are only a few Saturdays left in this season) but he has been working ridiculous hours during the week.  We have stopped having dinners as a family and it is definitely dark when he gets home.  My hat literally goes off to single parents, how in the heck do you do it?  Being the entertainer, caregiver, housekeeper, cook, chauffeur, lawn care, teacher, wife and friend is hectic when you are doing it from 7am to 8pm every day.  I honestly have no clue how single parents keep their heads above water.  Kudos to you all!

The positive of not having Chad home very often is that we realize how important the time that we do have together is and there is a lot less wasted time.  It has made us notice what contributions each member of the family brings to the table and we appreciate each other more.

I am so looking forward to April 21st when the tax deadline has passed and the period for amendments has come and gone.  Easter should be great this year, it is really late and I think that is the perfect planning of God to allow the tax world to enter Easter with a clean slate!

Good Intentions

I have such good intentions with this blog.  I am going to update it regularly, use it to keep everyone updated on the happenings of the Lackey's (if there is anyone out there that cares), jot down funny things the kids are doing as well as milestones that we pass, yadda, yadda.  The reality of it is that I just forget about it and by the time that I have a minute to sit down and write something I inevitably have one hundred other things that I put first.  So, here is my attempt to post something and maybe I will do it more often.  Maybe.

Painted Toes and Feet and Floor

Sarah is obsessed with painting her toenails lately and T has no problem joining in every once in a while.  He likes to paint and he just takes the toe painting as something fun to do which I have no problem with if they can stay quiet while I hold a conference call or two.  He is a great big brother and typically plays along with all of the craziness that Sarah and I do.  One day he will make a lucky lady really happy :)

 Sarah's Painted Toes

 T's Painted Toes

 I told T that I was going to give this to his kindergarten teacher and this was his response!

Magic Carpet Ride

What do you do on the hopefully last day of a rainy week when the kids are going absolutely stir crazy and you have run out of movies to watch?  You go on a "magic carpet ride".  We had a blast running around the house until our carpet went a little too fast and a passenger fell out into the bookcase.  Before the injury to the carpet rider occurred, we were having a great time...we just go slower now!

Snow (and Ice) Storm 2011...Take 1, 2, 3, 4, 5....

We were really excited to have a white Christmas this past year, it is the first time that I remember having one in Georgia.  It was a lot of fun (other than Chad having the flu) playing in the snow with the kids.  When the second snow of the winter rolled around we were excited as well.  "Plan for 8 inches of snow," the weather people warned on television.  Chad and I rolled our eyes and thought that we would get a couple inches if even that much.  Well, here we sat with snow over our ankles and right at 10 inches, not the 8 that was in the forecast.  So, we bundled up the kids and went out to play.  We had fun running around, making snow angels, watching Mack and Molly hop around and loved having Daddy home for an extra day.  Then the ice started.  On top of the 10 inches of snow came 1 or 2 inches of ice.

Day 2 we were excited having Daddy home for an extra day but I did not think that we would all survive another day of confinement so we shoveled the driveway and braved the roads in the speedy car (AWD) and went to Wal-Mart.  It was wonderful and took us 10 times as long to get there as it normally would but it was okay - we were out of the house.  We got some new movies, toys and snack foods and were pretty happy the rest of the day.

Day 3.....seriously.  Daddy went back to work and we went to visit Nana & Pop.  A 17 minute ride on a normal day took me one hour and fifteen minutes.  It was worth every minute.  The ice had created the perfect track for sledding in Mom & Dad's yard.  We slicked up the bottom of a dog crate and slid down the hill for an hour.  It was the most fun that we had all week.

Day 4....OVER IT.  I was so sick of looking out the door and seeing white.  I want to see all of the brown grass and what is soon to be mud in the backyard.  We decided to go to the mall (the kids, Mom and I).  I let the kids just run and run through the corridors.  I was the mom that I typically despise and it felt great.  We were gone the entire day and it was just what we needed.

Day 5....not really anything to say.  It was the fifth day of crappy ice in Atlanta.

I was so excited to see the snow and ice melt this week - there are still a few patches here and there but by and large the snow and ice are gone.  Now they are forecasting a wintry mix this week and I think that I heard all the viewers of the newscast scream in unison, "UNCLE!"

Hello 2011....Goodbye 2010.

I recently compiled a scrapbook of all our happenings in 2010 and realized how truly blessed our family has been.  2010 was a great year for the Lackey's, a year of growing, a year of change and a year of fun with family and good friends.  With all sections of the CPA behind him, Chad returned to work at Beacon Financial to pursue his passion of helping people reach their long and short term financial goals, saving, planning, and investing all things that he is wonderful at doing.  The firm has increased since he has been there and I know there is only one way to go from here.  I resigned from Google in October and have been having so much fun with Tyler and Sarah.  I am doing some consulting on the side but I have more than enough free time to spend with the kiddos.  With all of the changes that we embraced in 2010, I think that we are ready for the challenges of 2011.

Of course you cannot enter a new year without resolutions so we have a few.  We are going to focus on family this year in different aspects.  We want our family to be healthier by moving more, watching less television, eating healthier and maybe even planting a garden now that I am home to care for the fruits and veggies.  We are also focusing on spending more quality time together both with the children and without.  2010 was so busy that oftentimes we looked up and realized it was weeks since Chad and I had any 1:1 time, it is our promise to have at least one date night per month with more if we can swing it.  We are working on the kids routines and sleeping in their own beds (doing pretty good already).  And I am sure that there will be more as the year progresses.  But most of all, Chad put it the best when he said, "Babe, this is going to be our year.  I just know it."

Here's to 2011 and the joy that it brings.  Happy New Year, People!