He's going to school!!

I told myself when Parker was born that I wouldn't send him to pre-school until he was at least 3, maybe 4 years old. He's my baby, the last one at home...yadda, yadda, yadda, you know. I bet I answered this question at least 30 times before school started, "So, are you going to enroll Parker in pre-school this year?" And to every person, I answered, "No, next year. This year we are going to have fun at home together. Plus he takes a great nap here at home and I would hate to lose that great nap." Well, you can tell by this post that I am now eating those words!

Grace wanted a picture of the 3 kids going to school on Tuesday before she left!

I volunteered at Grace's school to help out with the PTA. I did. They called, I said, "Sure, I will help where ever you need me." Okay folks, those are words that you should NEVER, I repeat, NEVER say to a PTA president. Unless you just want to...Want to know what I'm doing now? You guessed it...PTA stuff. I am now an official member of the PTA board at our school. Yes, the board. I've never done anything at Grace's school except help with parties because I have 2 other little ones at home. Don't get me wrong. In the past 3 weeks, I have met and made some great friendships with the gals on the PTA and other parent volunteers at the school. Also, it's really fun to see Grace in her school environment. She is thriving and I love it. So, I'm not complaining one bit about the PTA stuff. I really like that I have something to do and I am getting to know more teachers and parents at the school. It's also fun when Grace sees me in the halls and gives me a little sign language hug from her line! I love it!

The sun was bright and his little back-pack was not so little!!

Aaron gave me the green light last week to enroll Parker in the 2 day a week program that meets at our church. It's a great program. I really can't brag on it enough. The directors are AWESOME and the teachers do so much for the kids. Susie LOVES going to school there so naturally, Parker wants to go, too! He did great his first day of school. Since most of the kids have already been going for a few weeks, we thought that there might be an adjusting time. Nope. Not Parker. He walked right in and didn't even turn around. So cute. It could help that his pre-school class meets in his bible class room though...so he is perfectly comfortable and I'm so very happy.

Parker is waving "bye" in this picture...cute thing!

Now you know that Parker is an official "big boy" or so he says because he now goes to school! I've been busy this week up at Grace's school and now I'm going to get on cleaning up the playroom before it's time to go and pick he and Susie up!!

We're HOME!!

We got home yesterday afternoon about 1:00....it was a long and very tiring flight, but worth every minute of it! We left Maui at 5:30 pm and spent a few hours in the Honolulu airport (it is so beautiful, by the way) and then we were off to Salt Lake City and then home. The flights were long and full so you couldn't really stretch out, but it was just the two of us so we were just fine! There were many families there with little ones and it was a killer flight...I just kept thinking, maybe we'll take a family trip to Hawaii when they are older but not anytime soon!! Aaron's mom picked us up at the airport and then we went to pick up the kids from their different places that they were at to give DD some time to herself. Parker gave me the biggest hug and didn't let go for quite a while...love that little boy. Susie screamed when we got to her classroom at school and she kept saying, "I'm so glad that you are home!" Oh, love that little Susie Q. Parker stayed home and took at nap with DD while Sus, Aaron and I walked to pick up Grace from school. I honestly didn't think that Grace missed us that much. I guess that I was wrong....she held on to me and did not let go! It was wonderful! I missed my little redhead.

The last few hours we were in Maui, we went for a last little walk in the downtown section of Lahaina. It's all right along the shoreline...wait, we were in Maui, almost everything is along the shoreline...but it was neat to have all of these cute little shops right there with the beach and ocean. This was my Hawaiian Shaved Ice in Maui. It's called a Volcano...vanilla ice cream with shaved ice on top. The brown color is rootbeer flavor and the red is cherry flavor. It sounds gross, but it was sooo good!!

This is the resort that we stayed in...it was beautiful and we loved every minute of our stay at this place. Ka'anapali was a wonderful place to stay.

Here are the kids with all their "hawaiian loot" that we brought home for the kids...Aaron brought this little ukulele home from for Parker. I think he bought it for himself if you want to know the truth!

Grace and Sus love their new grass skirts...they put on a full hula show for us after they got all dressed up!

Maui Beaches...

I love the beaches here in Maui. We went to 4 different beaches yesterday, just because we could!! We would go to one for about an hour, Aaron would try to boogie board, there wouldn't be big enough waves and we would hop back in the jeep for another beach.

Are you blinded by all the whiteness of my legs?? YIKES, I am a non-tanner, I admit it. God blessed me with milky-white skin that burns as soon as the sun hits it...hence, I am spraying on more sunscreen. I've only gotten a little pink in the 5 days that we have been here and that was on my tummy. Poor little tummy hasn't seen the light of day in so long it was scared pink! :)

We went snorkeling over at the famous "Black Rock" yesterday and it was amazing!! We went on a big and fancy snorkeling adventure trip on Wednesday and it was great...we snorkeled at Molokini Crater which is a Volcano crater that is now mostly underwater and has a huge reef under it....it was so cool and there were a ton of fish. After the Crater visit, they took us (by boat) to a place where we got to swim with sea turtles and that was AWESOME. The turtles are huge and yet they look so very graceful swimming down so deep. But, back to my point....what was it anyway? Oh yah, we paid to go on a big snorkeling adventure and saw quite a bit, but yesterday snorkeling at black rock, we saw 3 times as much by ourselves!! It was great and the fish were everywhere!! We just keep thinking how much Grace would LOVE to swim with all of these fish....maybe in a few more years we can afford a big family Maui trip!!

We are now done eating our breakfast and are on our way out the door to yet another adventure today!! I wonder what beaches we will find today??

A few pics...

Hey ya'll!! We are having a wonderful time here in Maui, but I'm so tired from today that I'm just going to post a few pics and then I promise more later. We did the "Road to Hana" today and it was AWESOME. We saw more waterfalls, palm trees and sacred pools that you can count and we are wiped! We got up at 5 am and got back here with dinner at 7 pm. Crazy but super fun day on the road here in Maui.

Aaron is posing in front of our rental car. I think he has the "jeep itch" again. I thought we left that old jeep back in Alaska and now he wants one again? Okay, maybe I can be convinced....It was pretty fun today on the Hana Highway!

This waterfall was soooo huge! There was a couple that tried to go swimming, but they fell in before they were ready. So that was more than enough to convice me to stay dry. After all, it was a 2 mile hike to get to this waterfall. I really didn't want to hike 2 miles back with a wet swimsuit on!

These trees were so cool...I was trying to climb it and then decided I better not, just in case a park ranger decided to come walking by us on the trail. It was a great day, but I'm so going to bed now!!

Maui

What they do during Vols games....

We are still recovering over here from Monday night's loss to UCLA....it was a crazy game and ended with a kick that was missed by the Tennessee kicker. It was heartbreaking, but Parker and Aaron had a great time watching part of the game together. Here are some pictures from the evening.

After each touchdown, Aaron does 7 push-ups and Parker rides on his back. Parker thinks that it is great!

Watching the game together!

Posing for a picture with the T.V.

Parker was getting restless and was trying to peek under Aaron's jersey. He went to bed shortly after....but not after they had played about 30 games of their own football game at home. The conversation went like this:

Aaron,"Okay, Parker, Down, Set, hut hut"
Parker,"Down, Set, Hut, Hut..." Then Aaron would hand Parker the ball through his legs and Parker would run with the football and Aaron would pick him up and tackle him.
Parker, "Daddy!!! he he he. AGAIN, DADDY, AGAIN!!!!"


They played their own little game of football for about 30 minutes and then Parker went to bed. I think that Aaron is really enjoying having someone else (besides me) to watch the Vols play and I love watching them play together!

Family Reading

My friend, Lorie, took these pictures a few weeks ago of our family. Our church family read through the entire bible in 3 days, with each person signing up taking their turn to read in 15 minute slots. Our family just shared a 15 minute section the day that we read...we figured, we have to keep up with 2 other kids that don't read so we had better take what we could get! It was amazing! You sat up on the stage and they were videoing (is that a real word?) and putting the video up on the big screens to your left and right, while your voice was going through the sound system. I read for about 5 minutes and then Grace started. Oh. My. Word. That little one read with such expression and meaning, I was about to cry. She missed one word and she read for 8 minutes straight! I think she would have kept on reading, but we needed to give Aaron a chance, too! It was a neat family experience. When we were done, we let Parker say, "Jesus" in the microphone so that he could be recorded saying something, too. Susie didn't want to say anything, but she was so excited to see herself up on the big screens!

Ten Things Tuesday!

Let's see...

Here are 10 Things that I am thankful for this morning!!

1. School!! Grace is back at school and loving EVERY minute of being there...new books, new teacher and new friends.

2. Supportive Friends. Yesterday a group of us moms went to lunch to talk about the first day of school...many of them had first time kindergartners and had some fun stories to share. I just enjoyed listening and being with my friends!

3. Birthdays! Yes, my birthday was last week. My sweet family made me a cake and we went to dinner with friends. It was great! I know, when you get past 30, the words great and birthday shouldn't go together, but for me they do. My friends are the best and I loved my birthday.

Aaron and the kids made me this cute cake for my birthday!

Eating dinner with lots of good friends.

4. Women of Faith weekend. Oh my word! If you even live near a conference site, you need to go. It was a great weekend with christian sisters and great music and speakers. Just the best way for us to start out our school year. Loved it and will go back next year!

5. Pizza. Yes, the kids were so tired after the first day of school and they wanted Pizza for dinner and that is what they got!! We all went to bed early last night and it was great!!

6. Good mornings. Grace was up and dressed before me, again this morning. She is a great morning girl and for that I am so very thankful....mainly because I am NOT a good morning person!!

7. Active church family. This past Sunday, we put on a "Back to School Blessing Bash!" and it was great. We had bounce houses, sno-cones, popcorn, outside games and then a devo to kick off the school year in God's direction. The prayer where we circled our kids and prayed for a great year was a tear jearker and I'm so very thankful. Loved it, Byrnes!! I want our children to know that they are loved and supported by a loving church family. The place was packed and we all had a great time!

The sno-cone stand was their favorite! Thanks Mr. Todd!!

Byrnes, you are the best bounce house "bouncer" ever!!

The Parachute was a great time for all the kids.
I took this picture as people were coming in...the place was packed and we ran out of seats!! It was super!!

8. Football season!! The best time of the year!! The kick-off classic is this weekend and I'm going to be watching on Saturday.

9. New toothbrushes...Yes, they are wonderful. Last night I went to the store after we put the kids in bed. I bought Parker a Spiderman toothbrush. Yes, I am now officially the best mom in the world to him because he hasn't put down that new toothbrush and he has been up for 2.5 hours today!! Oh, the little things!!

10. VACATIONS!! Yes, my husband has surprised me with a trip to MAUI and we leave in less than 2 weeks! I can't wait! Aaron's mom is flying down to stay with our kids and love on them while we will be on the beach. We've never been to Hawaii and that is one place that we both have wanted to go....so now we are off!! If you live around here, I'm counting on you to check up on my mother in law and make sure she is okay!! :) It's for our 10 year anniversary and for my birthday all in one and now I'm off to find some fun stuff to do while we are there. Any suggestions???

Now go and link your list on X-Box Wife and share your blessings with others!! Happy Tuesday!!

Second Grade!!

Grace went to bed last night at 7:30....she set out her clothes, her backpack, her shoes and socks....even an extra book to read at school for if she "gets bored" as she puts it. She was up, dressed and downstairs in our room this morning before our alarm even went off! This my friends, is a little girl who LOVES school and was so ready to go today!!

This is her new backpack...if you look really close you can see her name on it...she is so proud of that part because the thread color "matches PERFECTLY with the purple color of her lunchbox!" or so she says!

Our first day of school posing spot, by the flower pot full of dead flowers. Sorry, this summer has been hot and those cute little flowers didn't last the whole summer...I guess I need to pick them and plant something cute. Maybe next week! :)

Aaron and Grace are ready to go to school in this picture. Notice, they are both wearing orange...Grace said, "Great color for a great first day of school!!" Aaron takes Grace to school on his way to work. This morning he came back home after he dropped her off at school because he forgot to take his lunch. He said that Grace was so antsy in the line to be dropped off. There was a car at the stop sign taking a while to turn and Grace says, "Come on lady, I don't want to be late!!"

There she is, the big second grader. I know, before long she will be going off to college. But for now, I'm just blown away that I have a second grader!! I'm off to a JourneyLand meeting at church and then a great lunch with all of my girlfriends!! The summer sure did blow by fast. I'm so thankful that it was safe and fun!

My dad...

I am now the proud daughter of the DEAN of Communication at Harding University!! I am so excited for my dad and the new part of his job. If you are in Searcy or get to stop by, tell the newest Dean hello from his oldest and very proud daughter!!

College of Communication announced

Wednesday, August 20, 2008 6:51 PM CDT

Harding department name change to be effective with new fall semester


The Department of Communication has been redesignated a College of Communication, President David B. Burks announced recently. Effective with the Aug. 25 start of the fall semester, Dr. Mike James, department chair since 1993, will begin serving as dean.

The college will house the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders and the Divisions of Mass Communication, Oral Communication and Theatre under the leadership of Rebecca O. Weaver, Jack Shock, Pat Garner and Robin Miller, respectively.

“This move aligns with the strategic goal of reshaping our organizational structure to match the growth and complexity of our academic programs,” said Dr. Larry Long, vice president for Academic Affairs.

“Dr. James has been a strong and effective leader in the Department of Communication, and I anticipate he will continue that tradition at the level of dean,” he added. “I look forward to working with Dr. James and the faculty in the new college. It encourages me to see the current growth and the potential for even more growth and excellence in the future.”

Formerly housed within the College of Arts and Humanities, the new college offers 10 undergraduate majors and one graduate degree. The Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders offers the bachelor of arts degree and the master of science degree in speech-language pathology.

Six areas of study are available for students in mass communication: advertising, broadcast journalism, electronic media production, Web design and interactive media, print journalism, and public relations.

The oral communication major - for teacher licensure or non-teacher licensure - sharpens the interpersonal, cross-cultural and technical skills necessary to use the voice as an effective tool. The theatre major integrates the fine arts, humanities and performing arts into one experience for all of its participants.

More than 325 students are currently pursuing a degree through the College of Communication.

The College of Communication will continue to be responsible for the award-winning student publications - the Bison weekly student newspaper and Petit Jean yearbook; VideoWorks production company; KVHU radio; a cable TV station; the fall musical production and approximately 15 plays each year; Spring Sing; and a public speech therapy clinic.

James, a distinguished professor of communication, has served as a faculty member since 1979. He began working for the University in 1973 as director of photography for the Office of Public Relations. He holds the bachelor of science degree from Harding, master of science degree from Arkansas State University, and Ph.D. from Florida State University.

He is an active member of and contributor to the Broadcast Education Association. James was one of 30 faculty members nationally and internationally selected as a 2007 faculty fellow for the National Association of Television Program Executives annual conference.

Article taken from the Daily Citizen, Searcy, Arkansas. Original article can be seen here.

They forgot to mention that he has a wonderful wife, Beth, that he met in the registration line at Harding in 1969 and they married 9 months later! He also has 4 children- Jennifer, Jeremy, Jessica and Jonathan-that are very proud of him. His 5 grandchildren are also very excited about their Papa and his new job, but really don't care as long as they still get candy and whatever they want when they come to see him at his office!! We love you dad and are so extremely proud of you! We are blessed to be one of your accomplishments!! :)