Halloween Preview

 

He wanted to be a Baseball Player. 

Or, if you asked him...'a baseball'.

 

I ordered him pants, shirt and a belt.

However, the XXS Youth pants were too tight, and the XS were about 5 inches too long.

And we've got a cold front now so he'd be all covered up anyways, so we had to move to Plan B.

Last minute, Lance convinced him to be a duck hunter.

Better yet, Duck Commander.

 

A trip to Bass Pro, some camo face paint, and a neck full of duck calls, and you've got yourself a costume! 

 

We only wish we had Unlce Si to go with us Trick-Or-Treating! 

 

Happy Halloween everyone!!!!

See ya later, old friend

 

It's not official, yet. 

But the process has begun {thanks to some diligent teachers at school} to be 'ra-ra' free.

It's a big ordeal in the Farrar House.

 

About a month ago, they {teachers} put him down for a nap and didn't offer his ra-ra.

He asked for it, but they just told him it was in his bag.

He went right to sleep.

The next day, same thing.

 

This went on for about 2 weeks.

Then I decided we'd stop taking it in school at all.

We did that for about a week.

 

Then last week, we left it in his bed all week long.

He has it when he wakes up and when he goes to sleep but other than that it's in his bed.

 

I really thought this day would never come.

I know he won't have it forever, but it's nice to see him letting it go slowly, and somewhat on his own.
He understands he's a big boy now and doesn't need it.

My big boy.  He's not a baby anymore.

I stressed over him having it, because he's 2 and a half, but really, I'm learning, they'll do things when they're ready.

 

Just like potty training.

He's been hit or miss (literally) for about a month now.

However, Friday when I picked him up from school he had gone on the potty every time!

And all weekend when we'd ask if he needed to go, sure enough he'd go!

SUCCESS!

 

Sometimes its nice to just go with the flow and not get so stressed out about age or mile markers or what others are doing.  Just let it be.

Keeping up with the Jones's so to speak.

I hate keeping up with them.  Or trying.

 

Happy Tuesday Friends.

Praying for all of those who experienced Sandy last night and are facing the destruction today!!!

 

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin Patch 2012

Every year I think we're going to be on the ball come October and make it to the Pumpkin Patch the first of October. 

 

But this year is no different than the last.

 

Last Sunday before Halloween and here we come.

 

Better late than never right.

 

We still did everything you're supposed to do at the Pumpkin Patch...

 

Like Hayrides...

Play in a corn box with digging toys...

Slide down a big slide on a feed sack...

 

and take pictures in front of fall scenes.

 However, being that we were last minute, the 'patch' was a little picked over, so we picked those two little cuties to the left to take home. 

 

Pumpkin Patch 2012.

Check.

 

Maybe next year we'll be more prepared!

Embracing- with the grandparents

 

We are so blessed to have most of our family close by.

We are even more blessed to have our parents within 15 minutes of us.

 

Each one brings something different, yet important, to Easton's life.

It's so special to see just how each one interacts with him and how he responds to their love.

 

He loves to read daddy's old books when he's at Honey's house.

She has more toys than we have so he never gets bored over there.

 

He likes to share Candy Corn with Bob.

{yes, he wants to be called Bob- and it stuck...Easton will correct you if you call him Grandaddy}

 

With Gigi he always has to smile for the camera.  Gigi likes pictures.

They also have fun in the yard picking up sticks and throwing them in the ditch and collecting acorns.  You can bribe him for kisses with Acorns.

 

And with Papa, he's the calmest I've ever seen him.

But Papa is pretty quiet and easy-going so I guess it just rubs off on him.

This particular day they were watching the squirrels and talking about how they run in a pattern, up the tree, down the tree, across the yard and back.

 

I am so very thankful for each of these people and I thought it appropriate to include them in todays Embrace The Camera!

 

Honey, Bob, GiGi {Big Ron} & Papa, THANK YOU for loving our boy so much!

 

Gatlinbug {Part 2}

If you missed the first part of our trip, you can click {here} to see.

 

 We made it to Gatlinburg by supper time.

Once we found a place to stay it was dark and way past supper.

We ate at Loco Burro in Gatlinburg.

Somehow we always end up eating Mexican.

If you ask Easton what he wants, he'll no doubt say 'rice'.

If you're heading to the smokies, eat there!  It was YUMMY! 

Lance's Chicken Fajita's looked much tastier than my quesidilla! 

 

We ended up in an arcade.

Big shocker.

I don't know if it's being a boy mom, or just my boys, but we always find an arcade.

I told Lance that I thought our vacations were doomed to arcades and putt-putt.

Which ways the nearest Joann or Hobby Lobby???

 

Even though arcades aren't my thing, it's fun to watch Lance and Easton play!

 They have a big time!

 

 

After the arcade we ended up in an Old Timey Photo Booth.

This picture makes me laugh!



Lance had JUST completed his Hand Gun Carry class and had been to the gun range before we left on Saturday morning.When he got home he stressed the importance to Easton of never, ever, ever, ever touching guns.  That they are not toys.  When we walked in this little store, Easton was all kinds of curious as to WHY all these folks in the pictures were holding guns.You can imagine his surprise when we got dressed up and the lady asked him if he wanted a shot gun or a hand gun!  This picture has really sparked some questions.  I hope we didn't teach a double standard here! 

 

 

Also, no trip to Gatlinburg is complete without stopping at the Apple Barn in Pigeon Forge.

The Apple Fritters...DELISH! 

And.  My little love fit right in with the scarecrows!

It's officially Fall Y'all!

And we LOVE it!

 

Happy Friday!

10,000 Reasons

 

This is rare. 

'Hold me' is not, but laying his head down on my shoulder, arm around my neck, these days its rare. 

 

 

We'd been to church, been to visit the new house and had a yummy lunch at home.

We'd all had a good nap.

I was putting away laundry, making no-bake cookies, putting together Ham & Rolls.

It was a good day.

 

Lance was out working on the 'jon boat' and the boy & I were in the kitchen.

I don't sing.  I sing in the car, but I don't sing too much out loud.  Without music.

It's a wee bit scary.

But Sunday, I was singing . 

I was singing 10,000 Reasons and he stopped.

Dead in his tracks.

He looked up at me and watched me sing.

Then.

He wanted me to hold him.

I picked him up, continued singing, and he laid his head right down for a good 2-3 minutes.

 

And just like that, he was off and running again.

 

Oh those moments.

 

May I always make the time to stop what I'm doing for moments like that!

 

May I always rememeber the 10,000 reasons I HAVE to give thanks!  

  **please pardon the mess of a kitchen in the background- I know you see it**

Gatlinburg {Part 1- Cherokee Lake Fishing Tourney}

 

Last weekend we took a quick trip east.

Matt (Lance's brother) was fishing in the WalMart Bass Fishing League Regional Tournament.

After 2 good days of fishing, there was a pretty good shot at a win.

And the winner, he wins a $40k Ranger Bass Boat!

That's not something we wanted to miss.

 

So, we packed our bags Saturday morning and headed to the Weigh-In.

 

But, the thing about fishing, you don't know how anyone else is doing... 

 

There's a 5 fish limit each day.

Saturday he finished with 3 fish. 

 

We waited while all of the boats drove in and nervously expected a win.

At least, I did. 

 

He was next to last co-angler to weigh in.

Matts fish for Saturday put him in first place in the co-angler part of the tournament.

{Each boat has a 'boater' aka professional and a 'co-angler')

 

If the guy behind him weighs in at less than 22lbs 7 ounces for his 3 day total, Matt wins!

 

No such luck today.

The guy after him weighs in for his 3 day total at 22 lbs, 10 ounces.

3 ounces folks.  That's 15 quarters.

 

Here's the kicker, each fish you weigh in must be alive.

On Friday, a fish in Matts live well...well...wasn't alive.

They penalize you half of a pound for that.  That's 8 ounces.

Had that fish been alive, Matt would have won that Ranger Bass Boat.

 

However, going in to this tournament, Matt wanted to finish top 6 so he would qualify for the All American tournament next summer.

 

Finishing 2nd not only qualifies him for that, but it's an all expense paid trip for him!

 

 

This man here, Mike Black, he was the Boater Matt fished with on Saturday.

He WON in the Boater division.

What did he win?

He won a Chevy Silvarado and a Ranger Bass Boat.

Not too shabby for 3 days {actually more like a lifetime} of fishing!

 

He was such a kind man.  In his speech he mentioned the guys he had fished with over the last 3 days had a willingness to learn and listen, and that's what he enjoyed more than fishing, was teaching.  Such a nice guy!

 

This was a neat experience for me.  I'd never been a part of anything like this!

It was fun to do something different and learn a little more about this sport. 

 

We left the fishing tourney, and headed to the Great Smokey Mountains for the rest of the weekend.

We'll see if I can get my hiney in gear and get that post together soon!  ;)

I'm not making any promises. 

WINNER of the #prinstagram Give-Away announced!!!

Thank you to those that entered!  That was fun!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If this is YOU, YOU or YOU, email me!

 

And obviously, that first YOU, I've already talked to...cause... you're my bestie...I swear to the rest of y'all this wasn't rigged!  She really was comment 8!  ;)

 

 

 

Email me!  I'll get you hooked up with Social Print Studio!!! 

 

And the rest of you, got check out Social Print Studio and print your Instagrams!

You know there's tons of priceless pictures on there that need to be printed!

 

Happy Wednesday!

Prinstagram Give-Away!!!!!

When I find something that I love, I like to let others know.

I'm a 'shout it from the roof tops' kind-a-gal.

 

Last week, I decided I was tired of not having any pictures printed so I set out to do something about it.  I googled, 'printing instagram pictures' and I found Prinstagram.

 

I browsed the website, which is clean and easy to navigate and decided on the Squares.  I chose the 4 X 4 size squares at 24 for $12.  They also have a mini square which is about 2 X 2, with 48 of those for $12.

 

$12!  Now, I'll buy $12 all day long.

 

I placed my order on Tuesday.  Thursday morning, a package was left on my desk.  2 days folks.  2 days! 

 

I tore into the package like Christmas morning!  The quality of these prints is amazing.  They are thick, maybe thicker than card stock.  The coloring is spot on.  The size?  Perfect.  They even sent me a mini square sample and I may order a handful of those on my next order.  

 

 

 

I couldn't wait to get home to put them on my chicken wire frame!  I had mini clothes pins from Hobby Lobby that were perfect for this!  And, the clothes pins didn't even dent the pictures!  That's excellent quality in my opinion!

This is a large frame, however it filled up quickly, so think of that when making your purchase.  24 squares will fill up a space quick. 

How cute would these be strung on some twine in your kitchen?  Down your hallway?  Over the mantle?  Monthly pictures for that One Year Old Birthday Party?  The options are endless! 

 

Not only does Prinstagram offer squares, they offer stickers, mini books, posters, tiny books & mini prints.

 

You're going to see a LOT more instagram pictures from me in the future!  I'm @annie_loo if you want to follow along! 

 

This is such an easy way to document our home building process.  Drop your photo into one of the many photo editing aps to add text, date, etc- upload to Instagram, add a filter {or not}  & print from Prinstagram! 

 

Easton LOVES looking at pictures, so I'm thinking about making him a few little mini books for our car rides!  The options really are endless!

 

The fine folks at Social Print Studio have offered 3 readers of The Farrar Four each a $20 credit towards their next purchase.

 

**to enter you must be a follower of my blog**

For additional entries do any or all of the following:

**LIKE Social Print Studio on Facebook**

**Tweet or re-tweet about this give-away**

(make sure to include @annie_loo and @socialPS and link back to the give-away) 

**Follow Social Print Studio on Twitter**

**PIN any of the pictures above and reference the give-away**

 

 

Leave a comment for each entry!

 

A ***WINNER*** will be drawn on Wednesday!!

GOOD LUCK!

 

Also linking up with AP again this week for Project Pinterest!

This one...

Charlie.  Ra-Ra.  Putting books up as asked.  Bed Time.

There's so many things I love about this picture. 

 

This one.

I really feel like I 'get him'.

I know what makes him tick.

And what doesn't.

He's my heart.

Mothers intuition I suppose.

 

Here lately we're having a listening issue and a 'NO!' issue.

These are 2 things that I will.not.tolerate.

 

He is a GOOD GREAT KID, but he's 2 and he likes to test his boundaries. 

 

We've tried time out.

We've tried spanking {a little- I really don't think it's the answer}.

Neither work.  They only make him mad.

 

I got an email on 9 disciplining secrets and I'd say we already knew them, but practicing is so different.

 

A few nights ago he would not get out of the tub and I'd asked him a zillion times to get out of the tub for.the.love.of.all.things.holy.get.out!

 

No go.  He wanted to 'schwim'.  He wouldn't pull the drain up.  He kept turning the water on.

I was TRYING to give him the opportunity to do the right thing and listen.

 

Normally, I might have raised my voice, spanked his leg (lightly, but enough to get his attention) and ended in a hissy fit- from us both.

 

But then that email clicked back in memory.

 

After several worthless attempts, I said 'that's ok, we're not reading any books tonight.'

He stood up. 

He got out. 

He asked for books.

I was firm.  I held my ground. 

We did lotion, jammas, kissed Daddy and said our prayers.

But no books.

 

But you know what, IT WORKED!

 

I didn't have to holler.  I didn't have to spank.  I didn't have to threaten time out.

Taking something he loves away, if only for a night, did the trick.

 

And speaking low, calm and direct was so much more effective in getting him to listen.

 

I felt very powerful.  Very proud of myself, and of him. 

Even though he hadn't listened, he accepted his consequences.

And he remembers exactly what he did and exactly what happened as a result.

 

This is  SO MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE!

And LESS STRESSFUL!

 

And now, if I ask him to do something, and he does it, he says 'I'm yistening mommy, I yistening!'

 

I'm sure there will be times that require a different discipline approach, but for right now, that's whats working. 

 

CLICK HERE for the article!

 

Project Pinterest: The Perfect Sweet Tea

There's no denying that I love me some sweet tea.  Besides Dr. Pepper, it's my absolute favorite.  However, I cannot ever seem to make 2 gallons the same, nor does it ever taste as good as Milo's, Sonic or Chick Fil A.  I am a sweet tea connoisseur. 

However, on Pinterest, I spotted a delicous looking mason jar filled to the brim with ice cold sweet tea.  I was drooling on the spot. 

This weekend, with the fridge bare, I decided to make the Pinterest tea in hopes that it would satisfy my craving.

I gathered my ingredients, and set out to brew the perfect batch of sweet tea. 

You'll need:
6-8 Family Size Tea Bags (I used 7)
1 1/2 Cups of Sugar
1/4 tsp of baking soda (they say this is the magic ingredient). 

Put 4 cups of water on the stove to boil.
Sprinkle 1/4 tsp of baking soda in the bottom of your tea pitcher. 
Place tea bags in pitcher and finagle a way to keep all the strings up out of the tea for easy removal.
Once the water is boiling, pour over your tea bags.
Cover and let steep for 15 minutes.
Remove tea bags.
Pour in sugar and stir until desolved.

I put my tea bags in my measuring cup and fill cold water on top of the tea bags.
I continue doing this until the tea bags run clear, making sure all the flavor is in my tea.

 

 

Once the tea bags run clear, I fill the rest of my pitcher with ice.  Because who can really wait for the tea to get cold in the fridge.  And no one wants a cup of melted ice warm tea either. 

So, just add the ice.  You'll thank me once you take a sip of this ice cold, perfect sweet tea! 

{{I wish I had a nice picture of the tea in a mason jar, with a cute red swirled paper straw sticking out with maybe a vase full of daisys beside me, while sitting on the deck reading a book and soaking up the sun...but...that's not real life folks.    I also tried to get my camera out, but something is going on with the kitchen light in the apartment, and it goes out at random.  Like when I'm trying to take pictures of my sweet tea making process.  So, this lovely iphone picture will have to do.}}

Hope this tea makes your Monday a tad bit sweeter! 

 

I'm linking up with AP, of ILYMTC, for Project Pinterest.