The Roop Group

DISNEY WORLD!!

2011-11-16T09:49:00.001-05:00

We finally did it! We went on a grand adventure to Disney World. I think Tony and I were as excited (if not more so) than our children. We started our trip, with Raegan and Drew's first time flying.

Tony and the kids had never been, and I hadn't been in probably 10 years. It was still as wonderful as I remember.

We rode Dumbo with a fabulous view of the castle.

We ate breakfast with Mickey Mouse and his friends.

We met Buzz Lightyear, and helped defeat the evil Zurg on his adventure ride.

We traveled with a Princess and a pirate for a while.

We went on a jungle safari.

The most precious memory was my little princess seeing her favorite princess for the first time. She was in awe and had tears in her eyes. (Cinderella for those who aren't familiar :)

Such a sweet moment for my sweet little girl.

Even in Disney World, we supported our Hokies.

We enjoyed Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, complete with a parade and fireworks display in front of Cinderella's Castle. The parade's were a family favorite.

At the risk of sounding cheesy, it was an unforgettable and "magical" trip. We made lots of memories while spending quality time with our two oldest. If you are wondering where our youngest was, she was in Virginia being showered with love by her two sets of grandparents.

Drew playing soccer

2011-10-12T15:57:00.000-04:00

Our little man has had a blast playing soccer. He is very competitive (like another male in our family we know and love) and has as much fun with his victory dance as he does actually kicking the ball.

You never have to wonder what this boy is feeling.

His shirt looked a little more like a dress, but he didn't mind.

Callie is ONE!

2011-10-05T10:49:00.000-04:00

It's so hard to believe that just one short year ago, Callie came into this world so tiny, so big eyed, and brunette!

She started at a mere 6 lbs 7 1/2 oz.

And she was a Daddy's girl right from the start.

She has grown and changed so much in the last year.

She loves to explore everything, climb anything, and always has a smile on her face.

Her sweet little personality shines as bright as those eyes. We love you our little blue eyed angel face and couldn't imagine our lives without you! HAPPY BIRTHDAY CALLIE!!!

Happenings...

2011-10-04T14:02:00.000-04:00

I'm a slacker... I know. Here are just a few shots of whats been going these last few months.

Drew finally got to start preschool. He would go everyday if I would let him.

Raegan is also in preschool... again. She is going to a program at Tazewell Presbyterian preschool. After much praying, we made the decision to hold her back since her birthday falls in the summer.

And our sweet baby girl is (sniff, sniff) turning ONE!

Here are some pics of her latest photo shoot.

I just love profile pictures. And look at those dimples in her hands and elbows.

This is my favorite though... She was done with pictures, and just started yelling.

I can still hear that impatient little squeal.

Evening of yard work

2011-07-20T09:18:00.003-04:00

I'll start with the most real picture I've gotten of Drew since he was a baby. He usually has some cheesy smile or one that's fake. I don't know how I got it, but this is a real smile from my little man. Now, to the evening of yard work. Funny how something a simple as mowing the lawn can be so fun for kids. Everyone had to have their turn "helping" daddy.

While Drew waited his turn, he was searching for bugs.

Raegan, who is always camera ready, had to pose with her daddy for her turn around the front yard.

I wish I could say Raegan was searching for bugs, but since she is about as brave as her mama, she was picking out little weeds.

And she spent some time entertaining her baby sister.

Then it was Callie's turn around the yard. She seemed a bit nervous at first, but ended up enjoying it more than her siblings.

But she had the most fun chasing a tiny ant that was running around by her feet.

Yippy! We love being outside, no matter what we are doing.

Now I know...

2011-07-15T09:37:00.003-04:00

Why they make swim diapers. Callie loves the water, and was wiggling to get into the pool. I just stuck her right in, diaper and all. Not a big deal right?

Not so much. I don't feel like these pictures do that giant diaper justice, but it was huge!

I guess they really are super absorbent.

Little miss Callie thinks she is big stuff now standing up with just one hand. It won't be long and she will be walking everywhere, not just crawling. I've heard it many times, and said I've said it before, but it just happens too fast. *sigh*

A whole hand!

2011-07-06T10:02:00.005-04:00

My sweet Raegan turned 5 yesterday. Watching her grow and change over these last 5 years has been such a blessing.

From a cautious baby girl of 1To a spunky little 2A sassy 3An adventurous 4 To the independent 5 year old she is today. A little "spicy" personality, but a very tender heart. She tries to make us laugh with her knock knock jokes, and loves to give a performance. She can dress up and be super girly, or can dig in the dirt and get dirty. She is a wonderful helper and entertainer with baby Callie, and is always trying to teach Drew something new. HAPPY 5TH BIRTHDAY RAEGAN!!!

Another big milestone was that Callie turned 9 months yesterday.

She is saying bye-bye, da-da, and has learned to crawl.

What a sweet heart she is!

And so Drew wouldn't feel left out, here is a picture of the three musketeers.

Down a lens...

2011-06-23T15:43:00.004-04:00

Thanks to sweet baby Callie (and her mama's carelessness) my Nikon D40 full focus lens, which is the one I use everyday, is now broken. That leaves me currently with only my zoom lens, perfect for distance and close ups... not so perfect for photographing our daily life. I hope to be able to purchase a new lens soon, but they aren't cheap! Until then, please enjoy all the close ups we can take. Here is Callie having a good time with her Grandad.

A Gerber face if I've ever seen one.I love the expression that comes out of those giant eyes!

This is by far my favorite picture EVER of my mom and dad!

This one isn't so bad either :)

I had to show this one of my sneaky little man trying to get in the picture.

Is he a stud or what.

And we will follow our little stud, with our little diva.

Her absolute favorite part of dance is performing on the big stage. Are we surprised???

Favorite pictures

2011-06-06T13:28:00.008-04:00

I have been so slack recently about posting. (sorry dad :) I have just preferred to be outside, or at the pool, or making cupcakes , or taking a nap with my children than sitting at the computer. Here are some of our favorite pictures of the kids lately. This may be a long one...

Preschool is finally over, and Raegan has "graduated" from the 4 year program. Funny thing is, we decided to hold her back one more year, so I guess she will be graduating from 4 year preschool again next year. Regardless, our oldest never misses the chance to be on stage in the spotlight. She spent most of the ceremony waving to all her adoring fans.Here she is reciting Hey Diddle Diddle with her best buddy, Carter.Now that schools out for summer, let the water play dates begin! We have taken full advantage of Sonya's blow up water slide pool. It promises hours of fun, and nice long naps :)Macie and Raegan needed a break from all the play.

Callie spends most of our outdoor play dates under her little shade tent. As long as she has some children to watch, she is just fine.

Sonya's niece, Addison is about 2 months younger than Callie (but with those cheeks, Addison looks older) and already these two are BFFs. They look like they are asking each other what their crazy mothers are doing throwing them into this water slide pool with all those crazy children.
I love those chubby cheek toothless grins!

Drew is always up to something, and here he decided to ride his toy down the hill.

I just wish you could have heard him yelling "Woo Hoo, watch me go"

Callie always has a grin for her brother and sister.

I just LOVE those eyes.

Callie has also been sporting a new hairdo. I just love the "pebbles" ponytail. This has to be my favorite picture of Raegan in a long time. She was laughing so hard, and every time I see it I just want to laugh with her.

Raegan also got her first pair of glasses. Hot pink glasses, of course! And thankfully, we splurged the extra $25 for insurance. She hasn't had them a month and already broke the first pair.

And last, but not least, a sweet picture of my handsome little man. He just can't get much cuter!

Coloring eggs

2011-04-25T20:20:00.003-04:00

One of the "joys" of being an accountant (or in my case and accountants' wife) is the yearly dreaded TAX SEASON. With the madness that comes with the end of tax season, updating the blog was not at the top of my list of things to do while acting as a single mom. Tax season has come and gone for another year and the next few posts I will try and do a little catch up of the last few weeks. We really did color eggs this year. We just did them 2 weeks ago when my brother and his family were visiting. Tony was still slaving away while we colored eggs, but I managed to wrangle the kids up for a family photo of sorts.

Cheese

Drew took egg coloring very seriously and checked on his eggs regularly. He didn't dare take them out until they were just the right color.

Here they are painting eggs with their fingers. This seemed like a good idea at the time, but their hands were stained for days!

I didn't get a picture of the end result, but rest assured they were all just beautiful and very unique.

Easter 2011

2011-04-25T09:11:00.003-04:00

We certainly were a colorful crew this year!

I've tried and tried to get a good picture of the 3 kids. It's easier said than done, but here are a few that weren't too bad.

Poor little Raegan is having a terrible time with allergies this year. She looks a little red and puffy eyed, but is still a cutie.

I love having two girls. It's so much fun to match them! I just wonder how long it will last. Hope everyone enjoyed their Easter.

Making the most of the warm weather

2011-04-05T20:11:00.005-04:00

I'm so glad that we got out and enjoyed the sunshine and 75 degree temps Sunday since today it was snowing. The kids loved riding their bikes (in an empty car lot). Races with Callie were their favorite thing to do.

I feel like I say this a lot, but Poor Callie! Yes, that is her under those helmets.

And she still had a smile on her face. She has to win some award for most tolerant baby!

These 3 can keep me on my toes, but I sure do love them!

Getting big

2011-03-24T14:35:00.004-04:00

Callie has been practicing a new trick. She is still a little wobbly and needs the boppy for support, but she is almost ready to sit up! I can't believe our baby girl is almost 6 months old!! Poor kid doesn't get to spend much time in the floor (for obvious reasons, like the next pictures)

These two still can't get enough of her. I thought that the novelty of Callie would have worn off by now, but she is still the best "toy" they have.

Thankfully, Callie is VERY tolerant of all the love and attention. They are always willing to "help" Callie with her new tricks.

I'm in no rush for her to learn all these so called milestones. She will be crawling and then running around before I know it, and for now I rather enjoy her just being content to sit with her mama.

Spring is in the air

2011-03-15T18:08:00.002-04:00

And with spring comes afternoon walks.

And wonderful spring weddings we get to dress up for.

And, yes those are RED cowgirl boots our oldest daughter is wearing with her Sunday finest. She is quite the fashionista!

What we have been up to

2011-03-14T15:28:00.003-04:00

Callie is getting lots of hugs from Drew
Raegan and Drew are expanding their dress up clothes to include things from my and Tony's closet so they can more effectively play mommy and daddy

This just totally suits Raegan's sassy little personality

And we have been having lots of fun playing with Callie's growing hair in the bathtub.

Just the everyday stuff that I have come to love.

Home photo shoot

2011-02-20T13:09:00.007-05:00

It seems like I'm too "thrifty" (ok, cheap) these days for things like professional pictures, so here is my attempt at pictures at home. They turned out way better than I expected.

This one is too funny not to show. This is his silly personality.

My favorite of Drew.

I can't believe how grown up our little girl looks in this picture. (and please excuse the tie dye shirt, that's what she wanted to wear for her photo, and it's so "her" that I didn't argue)

So they aren't quite "professional" quality, but they made me smile. That's the point of pictures.

For those of you who don't know, our sweet dog Casey, who was very recently diagnosed with cancer, died last weekend. She was a four legged part of our family, and is terribly missed!

Happy Valentines Day

2011-02-15T14:59:00.003-05:00

Our 3 little love bugs.

It's that time of year...

2011-02-03T22:22:00.003-05:00

Tax time! And every year, we are reminded to be thankful for each of our little tax deductions!
Callie at 4 months
Drew at 3 1/2 months
Raegan at 6 months

And I couldn't help but post these picture of Drew entertaining his baby sister.

Birthday and Baptism

2011-01-27T11:15:00.006-05:00

We finally had Drew's birthday bowling party this past weekend and boy was it wild! There were kids running around everywhere, but they all seemed to have a good time.

Make a wish...

take a deep breath...

and BLOW !!! He was thrilled to be the center of attention.He is such a big boy now!

Since my brother and his family were visiting, we decided to make the most of the weekend have Callie baptised as well. I was concerned that she may not be considered an "infant" if we waited much longer. Here are our friends and family who joined us in celebrating our 3rd Covenant child.

And I just can't get enough of her in this sweater and hat! Such a doll baby!!!

Here is a cute one of Drew who we caught doing a little light reading.

After this marathon weekend, Eva and Callie were doing what we all wanted to do... SLEEP!

I'm so thankful for our family and friends who came out two days in a row to celebrate both occasions with us.

Sisters

2011-01-15T23:00:00.003-05:00

I didn't realize just how much difference it would make having a child that could actually help out with a baby, but it has been so much easier having my little mini-momma Raegan around to help out with Callie. She just adores her baby sister, and Callie lights up when Raegan is near. I am so thankful that these two girls will have to chance to grow up together. I've jokingly said having these two for sisters will either make Drew a fantastic husband, or he will never want to get married. I just love Raegan's face in this one. She just wanted Callie to look at her while she ate her breakfast.
Callie tolerates all of Raegan's love like a champ!
Drew jumped in this early morning picture, but doesn't look thrilled about it.
And I just couldn't help but show off this picture of our little angel! Is she a doll baby or what!!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-30T13:59:00.002-05:00

Since I had a ridiculous number of pictures from all our Christmases, I took the time to make a smilebox creation of all our festivities. This was hands down, THE best Christmas ever! The wildest, and most hectic, but the best!!! Hope you enjoy the highlights here.

Create your own photo album

Winter getaway

2010-12-12T18:52:00.005-05:00

Every year since we have been married, Tony and I have always taken a post-tax season mini-vacation to unwind from the long work hours crammed in just a few short months. This tradition carried over when we had kids, and now we take a little mini family vacay. Well, this year we decided to start a new tradition (so long as we can afford it each year) of going on a pre-tax season trip. What a great idea it was! We loaded the car and headed to Wilderness at the Smokies (an indoor waterpark) where we met my brother and his family and my parents. I only took a few pictures, but we went non-stop from sun-up to sun-down! We came back tired, but had so much fun.

Raegan and Drew were intrigued by the wave pool, but much to scared to actually go in it. Even when there were no waves. Callie was a trooper on the trip. She caught a nap whenever she could, and still managed to be her sweet little self.

This was their favorite... a wet, but safe slide that they went down no less than 100 times. I LOVE this picture of Drew.

Raegan did get brave enough to go down head first.

Callie had her first experience at swimming.

She didn't seem to mind, but wasn't very impressed.

This girl stayed in the water until her lips were purple.

We left tired and wet, but it was worth it!

Finally decorated

2010-12-08T13:42:00.005-05:00

We have had our Christmas tree up for almost a week now. It took us 2 days before we actually put on the lights, and 6 days to do the ornaments, but it's finally decorated! No ribbons, no breakable ball ornaments, and no rhyme or reason to where the ornaments are placed this year. And I have to say it's my favorite tree ever! The kids did most of the work, and even told me where to put the heavy or special ornaments up high.

Drew concentrated so hard when he put them on. And funny enough, the back side of our tree is almost as ornate as the front. Drew spent most of his time decorating back there.

We had Christmas music blasting and there were lots and lots of giggles.

I even managed to get a real smile out of my little Drew. Who knew all I had to say was "Don't smile" That had them both grinning from ear to ear.

The finished product!

And this was Callie the whole time we decorated. I have a feeling she won't be this cooperative next year :)

Our first big snow

2010-12-06T10:32:00.005-05:00

We are up to 13 inches and it's still snowing! This is one fun way to start the snowy weather season. We just wish it was warmer than 14 degrees outside!

These pictures were taken yesterday when there wasn't quite as much snow (a mere 10 inches) and it wasn't so dangerously cold. Thankfully Daddy was brave enough to take the kids sledding down our front yard.

Snow ball fight!

I couldn't tell from inside, but I think Drew won.

I love how much taller Tucker is than Drew.

This is just to give you an idea of how much snow we had yesterday. Imagine 3 more inches and more snow still coming down!

Callie and I played it safe and stayed indoors. She did enjoy watching them from the front door.

Raegan watched to make sure our little neighbor friend, Isabella, wasn't out.

Drew couldn't climb the fence with all his garb on, but he kept peeking through the cracks.

new toys

2010-12-03T22:37:00.004-05:00

I feel like all I have put up lately are pictures of Callie. Drew is in an anti-picture taking phase though, and Raegan's day still revolves around Callie. I guess the "new" hasn't worn off yet. Anyway, here are just a few pictures of the kids. Drew doing a little light reading in the Bumbo chair. I think it's kinda sad that his legs were too fat to fit in this chair as a baby, but he fits just fine now.

We brought out the old entertainment mat and of course the big kids like it just as much, if not a little more than Callie.

I love this picture of her watching the lights on the little star. I remember all my kids

watching that star with wide eyed wonder.Callie was up to 10 lbs 9 oz at 8 weeks. She is getting quite a belly and lots of rolls. So cute on a baby.

She looks like a little baby doll. Now I see why Raegan thinks that's just what she is.

Thanksgiving Day

2010-11-26T10:46:00.003-05:00

Since I'm not allowed to show you our whole family picture yet (since my mother is using it for her Christmas cards) I thought I would just show you the one of Nana and Grandad and their cute crew on Thanksgiving. What a crew! Raegan holding Eva

Uncle Scott snuggling with Callie Sweet Eva and her infamous cheeks.

Drew and Ben spent most of their time running up and down my grandmothers ramp.

I loved this picture of the boys... neither looking at the camera and both with fake smiles.

We found Drew relaxing on the swing after about 100 laps on the ramp. He was so tired and apparently needed a little break.

The kids slept like logs last night and are now rested and ready for our next Thanksgiving on Saturday. We can't wait!

Look alikes....

2010-11-26T10:25:00.001-05:00

Here is Callie at 6 weeks Here is Tony at just a few weeks.

Does anybody else see the resemblance??

What has Callie been up to?

2010-11-19T20:59:00.005-05:00

At 5 weeks, Callie started smiling.And she spends lots of quiet time in her jacuzzi... aka my bathroom sink. Why did I even have a baby bath tub with Raegan and Drew?

She finally got to meet our dear "Aunt Mo" or Mom Owens.

She gets lots of love daily from her brother and sister.

And even likes to cuddle up on our bed for some family snuggle time.

Recent pics

2010-11-16T17:01:00.002-05:00

I feel like if I don't take pictures of Callie every day, I will miss something. I forgot how quickly newborns change. She has lost most of her hair in the front, but she is still dark brown... no red in sight. Here is the best picture we could get of me and all three children. We took this for Tony to have on his desk, and it definitely shows some personalities.

And who doesn't love a sleeping baby picture. She doesn't normally sleep out of a swaddle, but she had fallen asleep on me and this is what happened when I laid her down. Isn't she just too cute.

Callie is growing...

2010-11-08T08:56:00.004-05:00

She is filling out and loves to watch her older siblings play. And thankfully, they are almost always willing to entertain her. She is 1 month old already. WOW! Go Hokies!

She is just so cute.

Now that is what I called getting comfy!

Raegan took this picture early one morning. I just loved Drew in this one.

Again, goofy little Drew being the silly big brother. I love Callie's face in this one. She seems to be calling out for help :)

Fishing trip

2010-10-26T11:45:00.005-04:00

We had beautiful weather this past weekend, and since it may be some of our last warm days of the year, we decided to take full advantage of it. Tony, his dad, and I took the kids fishing! This was their first official time with hooks and worms, and boy was it fun. This was my favorite picture of the day. They were practicing casting and reeling before we actually put the hooks on. Drew tried the "relaxed" approach to fishing, but as you can see, Tony ended up doing the practicing for him.

If you can look past the dirt on his face, he has the prettiest eyes!

Raegan, surprising enough, was much braver than we thought and actually held worms!She said the worm was cuddling her... YUCK!

We didn't actually catch any fish, and it may have something to do with this little guy. He spent much of his time throwing rocks into the water to see if they would make a splash.

My boys enjoying some fishing.

Raegan and Papaw Roop just hoping they might get a bite.

We had a small incident with a briar patch, another little incident with a hook, and mud all over us, but no one ended up in the lake or in the ER. It was one of the most fun days we have had in a long time.

And where was Callie the whole time?? Snuggled up next to her mama in the sling. She didn't seem to mind she missed out on all the fun. Maybe next year.

Callie Danielle is here!!!

2010-10-10T08:56:00.007-04:00

And then there were THREE...

Sweet baby Callie Danielle Roop

Callie Danielle arrived (very quickly) Tuesday, Oct 5, 2010 at 11:13 p.m. She weighed 6 lbs 7 1/2 oz and was 19 inches long. The most surprising thing by far was that she has a head full of dark brown hair. Not a speck of red in sight. Raegan was a little disappointed that she didn't have hair like her, but she loves her just the same. I have more pictures that anybody other than the grandparents want to look at, so I will try to keep it to some of our favorites.

Froggie legs

Checking out Callie's toes... one of my favorites!

Sweet face

I love this burp shot of her squishy cheeks. Drew was so excited that she was really at this house.Raegan thought she needed a blankie.

The 3 musketeers.

Such a proud big sister. She is constantly asking "Can I hold baby Callie?"

She had such big bright eyes.

The proud big brother.A backseat full of kids and car seats.

Preschool Trike-A-Thon

2010-10-01T17:16:00.005-04:00

Every year, Raegan's preschool holds a fund raiser Trike-A-Thon to raise money for St. Jude's Children's Hospital. It's funny to think that last year Raegan could barely pedal a tricycle, and Drew was scooting around on a foot powered toy. This year, however, they were both zooming around like maniacs. Now, doesn't this picture just scream disaster?? Forty five or more 3 and 4 year olds bunched up together all ready and waiting to take off. Thankfully, there were no serious injuries to report! Here is Raegan, ready for take off.

Drew, somehow, was the leader of the pack.

He had the best time buzzing round and round the little track.

Raegan would fly around the corners.

We had to take a little break from time to time (me more so than the kids)

And, just so all of you know that I'm STILL pregnant (if you couldn't tell in the last picture :) here is the big belly shot. I will be 38 weeks Sunday. I can't believe that baby Callie has tricked us all and decided to just stay put for a while longer. I'm thinking she is definitely a red head now!

(And if you are wondering, that is just my cell phone in my back pocket :)

Corn Maze fun

2010-09-19T16:14:00.004-04:00

Raegan's preschool class took their first field trip to the corn maze. I knew that I wouldn't be able to walk around the maze, but hated for the kids to miss out on the fun. My dear friend Sonya was willing to come with Brodie in tow, and walk around with Raegan and Drew. Here is quite possibly one of the last pictures of the kids and me with baby Callie in my belly. (and boy is it a BELLY!!) The three amigos getting ready to go!

Drew checking the place out before they took off. I just can't help but take tons of pictures of him. He is so cute!

Raegan holding the baby bunny. If you only knew how many times I heard "Can I P-L-E-A-S-E take this bunny to my house?"

Raegan making friends with the horse before she got on for her ride.

Drew enjoyed the horse from the safe side of the gate. He wasn't quite brave enough to actually ride him.She loved riding the horse.

No trip to any farm would be complete with out an old fashioned hay ride. Again, I didn't participate, but Sonya was willing to go for a ride.

Ball player in the making

2010-09-17T10:40:00.002-04:00

Tony loves to get the kids out in the yard and play a little ball with them. It doesn't matter whether it's tossing a football, kicking a soccer ball, or hitting a baseball Raegan loves to participate. That's right, RAEGAN. Drew is still a little to easily distracted and will play for a few minutes, but Raegan could play for an hour. I had to post their most recent "game" of baseball from yesterday evening. The funniest thing is what Raegan chose to wear. It was getting a little cool and windy, so I told Raegan to go in and get her jacket if she was cold. Well, this is how she came back out. She did finally take the hood off, but it was so funny watching her hit the ball in her winter coat.

She seems to be a natural with anything sports related, and can really hit the ball.

We have a few things to work on (like not closing your eyes when you are hitting) but she is doing great.

And what was Drew doing while Daddy and Raegan played baseball? Riding a pink tricycle or pushing a pink lawn mower of course. I guess that's what happens when you have a big sister. You just play with whatever.

Building towers and riding bikes

2010-09-11T08:24:00.007-04:00

We haven't been doing nearly as much lately, since my 3rd child seems to want out just as badly as my other children did. This means I am sitting a lot, and the kids are finding more ways to entertain themselves. I got a kick out of these first few pictures of them building a tower. It's speaks volumes about how they play. Raegan loves to "direct" Drew on how things are done. Here she is showing him how to build his tower tall. And don't you love Drew's "Super Drew" cape? Mrs. Howell made that for him and he loves it. He saves the day a lot around here now. Don't know what I'd do without my little super hero :)

And of course, Drew does the work and Raegan gets to knock it down. I just wonder how much longer Drew is going to allow her to rule the roost. I feel like her days are numbered.

One of our new favorite things is going to an old car lot with the kids bicycles and letting them run wild. I take a chair and watch, and they have lots of fun chasing each other and just riding. Raegan insists she wants to try to learn to ride without training wheels, but bravery is not one of her strongest qualities. We will see if she ever really lets me take her training wheels off. Drew has just recently learned how to pedal, however, he isn't the best at turning around. He doesn't understand the concept to just keep pedaling and turn your handle bars. Thankfully, Raegan is usually willing to help him out.

He is a pro at the scooter. He can fly on that thing! (And yes it's a princess scooter, but he doesn't seem to mind... yet)

I just loved this picture because you can see just how many more freckles my sweet little red head has now.

2010-08-16T12:31:00.001-04:00

Customize your own free slideshow

Hard at work

2010-07-30T13:47:00.003-04:00

Thanks to our dear friend, Carrie, I have recently started using 'Confessions of a homeschooler' ideas and lesson plans for the Letter of the week. Our first letter of course, was A and Drew is able to participate in some of the activities. Here are some highlights. Drew was hilarious with this activity. He still doesn't know all his colors, and he was trying to find the matching crayon. He sat just like this for almost a solid minute before he finally found the match.
He concentrates very hard when he colors. Much more patience with it than Raegan at this age.

This was my favorite activity. Turning an A into an alligator.

We did lots of other activities, but Raegan was most proud of this one. She wrote her name at the top and found all the A's.

One very proud little girl.

For those of you who would like to see other ideas, here is the website. I highly recommend it!!

http://confessionsofahomeschooler.blogspot.com/

Big party

2010-07-25T11:10:00.004-04:00

I realized I hadn't put any pictures of Raegan's actual birthday party up, so I thought I better get to that. We normally just do a small family get together on the kids actual birthday, and then have a "friends" party at a more convenient date. This year (as you already saw with her mini bowling party) she ended up having two parties since so many people had the day of her actual birthday off. Her real party was about 2 weeks after her birthday, and she asked on the morning of her party "Momma, do I get to turn 5 today?" Either two weeks of being 4 was enough for her or we had just confused her with 2 parties. Here is the cute little Minnie Mouse birthday girl ready to have fun.
The Minnie mouse cake

Our family portrait of the day

Patiently waiting for the candles to be lit so she could make her wish (which she announced that she wished for a Buzz Lightyear?!)

She insisted on "Vanna White"-ing all of her presents so everyone could see.

Raegan and Elizabeth Nestel going down the slide. These two became instant friends at bible school.

It was a little cold, but the kids didn't seem to notice. They all had a great time on this big water slide. And thankfully, we had no injuries!

And, no Raegan Roop party would be complete without a game of duck duck goose. She loves a good goose chase!

It was a little chaotic at times, but the kids all had a wonderful time. Happy 4th birthday, again, Raegan!

Budding artists

2010-07-23T15:53:00.003-04:00

Somehow, painting never gets boring or old.
It takes lots of concentration...

and apparently, a couple of good guard dogs.

One of the quieter (but messier) ways to enjoy the great outdoors.

Raegan turned 4

2010-07-06T14:17:00.004-04:00

How can it possibly be that my first born child turned 4 years old. It seems just yesterday that we got to bring the sweet little bundle home from the hospital and really call her ours.She has been counting down the days until she could say she was 4, and that day came yesterday. Since Tony and some of our friends and family had the day off, we decided to take advantage and have a mini bowling party.

Here she is with her sweet little friend Jayden. These girls are princess crazy, and two peas in a pod!

Drew had lots of fun, even if the dinosaur chute was pink.

Daddy tried to give the kids some pointers on bowling.

But they just really wanted to slide down the dinosaur.

Of course, a hot pink ball for the birthday girl.

Raegan loved the dinosaur chute, but Ryan preferred the old fashioned way. He even got a strike!

Since we only had 5 kids at the party, everyone got to blow out a candle.

That's a really big breath. She must have really wanted her wish to come true.

She tried to act shy while we sang Happy Birthday to her, but she really loved being the center of attention. And if you are wondering why there are two cakes... lets just say that this pregnant mama really wanted a DQ ice cream cake and Raegan didn't. We will call it a compromise :)

Keeping me on my toes

2010-06-25T08:47:00.003-04:00

It's a good thing this little boy is so cute and funny. He keeps us laughing at his funny antics, and silly personality. I've been trying to remind myself of this during these potty training days, since I just cleaned up poop from my cream colored living room carpet today. (Good thing I got a carpet cleaner for my birthday :) He can go all day and night peeing in the potty, but the poop just can't seem to make it in the potty. The yard, the bathtub, the bathroom floor, his underwear, and now my carpet, but not the potty. Next house we have is definitely going to have hard floors and NO carpet! Good thing I love this little man so much!

Less isn't more

2010-06-23T20:58:00.001-04:00

This girl has a mind of her own, especially when picking out her accessories. She doesn't go by the rule that less is more!

Practicing for baby

2010-06-21T19:29:00.002-04:00

Raegan and Drew play 'momma & baby' all the time. I was cleaning out Drew's closet today (nesting and trying to make room for the new baby) and found this cute little basket. It instantly turned into a baby bed and Raegan set to work "taking care" of Drew. If only she will be this helpful when the new baby arrives. Drew was a very good baby and even smiled right on cue :)

Of course, she needed a turn acting like the baby too. I don't know how she squeezed those long legs into this little basket, but she did it.

The Big Recital

2010-06-16T16:07:00.005-04:00

Most of you saw from a previous post that Raegan has been taking tap and ballet. Well, she finally got to have her big dance recital this past weekend. If there was ever a moment when I feared she might get stage fright, it's all gone now. This girl loved every minute of being in the spotlight. This is my little ballerina all ready for her big performance. She was SOOO excited! This was actually from the dress rehearsal, but I loved this pose. I get that hand on the hips thing a lot these days. Dancing seems to have brought out even more of her inner diva.

Raegan and her friend Macie.

All the Tiny Tappers. Aren't they just adorable!

She got flowers from her daddy, and as you can see in a definite daddy's girl!

This was just part of Raegan's cheering section.

Yes, Raegan felt totally at ease up on that stage performing for a huge crowd. We may be in for it in the future!

A day with Thomas

2010-06-15T09:37:00.004-04:00

We decided to brave the crowds at Tweetsie Railroad, and go for a trip to ride Thomas the Train. Blowing Rock NC is about 2 hours from our house and my brothers house, so it was the perfect meeting place to spend some time with our family. I realized I never actually got a picture of Thomas himself, but we did get to go for a ride and fun was certainly had by all. Here are just a few highlights from our day.

Patiently waiting in line for the Ferris wheel. This was Raegan and Drew's first time.

Uncle Scott was WAY more nervous about riding with these two than they were.

Daddy looked a little nervous There they go...

The kids also really enjoyed riding the helicopter.

The camera stayed tucked away most of the time, but the kids all had a great time. Well worth the time, money and effort. It was nice for the cousins to have a chance to play and enjoy each other's company.

Movie night

2010-06-09T12:45:00.003-04:00

We all always enjoy family movie night. We watched Toy Story 2 (which I think Tony and I like just as much as the kids) to get ready for the release of Toy Story 3. And, we always love the chance to curl up, eat popcorn and drink fresh lemonade.

Child Labor

2010-05-24T15:53:00.002-04:00

One of our favorite family activities... washing the car. I know, it's sad, but the kids LOVE helping out and my car gets clean in the meantime. Everyone wins :)
It was a team effort, and I really did help. I just couldn't resist the chance to grab my camera and take a few pictures.

Drew was very serious about his work.

The funniest thing is that the kids usually keep washing the same parts over and over.

Or, in this case, they kept going back to the spot that Tony had just rinsed and washed it again. Needless to say, it took us a long time to actually finish the car that day.

Of course, my car didn't stay clean for long. It seems like every time we grab our rags and bucket, the forecast immediately changes to rain. This day was no exception and it rained that night. Oh well, at least we had a lot of fun getting sudsy and wet on this very warm day.

Soccer star

2010-05-19T10:22:00.003-04:00

This is Raegan's second season playing soccer and she still loves it. She isn't much better than last season, but as least she is having fun. She is always willing to cheer her teammates on, and may have a more promising career in cheerleading. For now, she still enjoys playing soccer.

She is a little diva from time to time, and needs to take lots of breaks.

What does Drew do during the game? Anything he can get away with. He would LOVE to play and would probably be better than Raegan, but he can't until next year.

He usually cries on the sidelines, but if he has a ball in his hands he is okay.

He likes baby Jenna, and got caught in a sweet moment sharing snacks with his little buddy.

Are they cute or what?

She may not always know what's going on in the game...

but she always looks cute with her matching soccer hairbow and socks.

It's hilarious watching our little "star" and we enjoy it just as much as she does.

And the verdict is...

2010-05-10T19:51:00.002-04:00

Just wanted to tell, looks like baby #3 is going to be another GIRL!!! Our oldest child is going to have to share her crown :)

Siblings

2010-05-07T13:52:00.006-04:00

Now are these two cute or what!

Lately, I've been sitting back more and watching my children play by themselves. It's always funny to hear what they come up with. I can't catch all of it on film of course, but here are just a few cute pictures of my kids (when they play nice) Here is our own little "Dr Drew" taking care of his sick patient. When I asked what was wrong with his patient, he said "she has a loose tooth" Looks like we have been reading the Berentstein Bears go to the Dentist a few too many times.This little girl loves her babies, and is trying to teach Drew how to take care of the new baby coming this fall. She gives him lessons on burping, feeding, and changing diapers. It's funny to watch Drew listen intently to her. I can only imagine how life will be when baby #3 finally arrives.

She gave him a lesson in buckling up for safety, and pushing the stroller gently so as to not dump the babies out (as Drew often does) This would be an example of what NOT to do to the new baby. He is as big as she is!

And here are just a couple of cute ones of Daddy and his little guys. (Since we parents rarely make the blog :)

She is such a daddy's girl!

Two little monkeys

2010-05-06T11:52:00.004-04:00

We took some time to go visit with Tony's grandparents in Telford, TN. The kids always love going to see Mamaw and Papaw Bradley, and LOVE to climb their tree. I think they just like to act like the monkeys they are :)

Trip to the beach

2010-04-21T08:23:00.002-04:00

Accountants and their families may be the only people who consider April 15th a reason to celebrate, but we always take a little trip at the end of tax season. Usually, it's a getaway for just me and Tony, but this year we decided to take the kids along. We took a little trip down to Cherry Grove Beach for a long weekend, and had a much needed vacation! The weather was beautiful, and warm most of the time and we all enjoyed our relaxing trip. I, however, forgot my camera, so the only thing I had was my cell phone. The pictures are less than great quality, but you get the idea. This was just before we left for home Sunday morning. There was a chill in the air that day, but it was still gorgeous for our morning walk.

The kids were ready to go Friday morning!

Raegan sunbathing in her SPF 50.

I'm not sure if you can see this one very well, but the beach was nearly deserted which made for perfect sea gull chasing. This was a favorite weekend activity! The kids found a friend to play with, and got LOTS of exercise. It was nice to just let them run on the beach and not have to worry about losing them!

Digging for shells.

Drew stopped for about a two minutes to have a snack, but this was the only time he sat still.

Raegan wanted to test the ICE COLD water.
But she quickly realized it was just too cold and came running.

Well, the Roops are fairly well rested and had a wonderful time. The kids are already ready to go back.

Cleaning their cars

2010-04-12T13:42:00.002-04:00

Since I seemed to have piles and piles of laundry waiting on my this lovely Monday morning, I sent the kids out to play on their own. After a little while, they were back whining that they had nothing to do. So I gathered up some old rags and a bucket of soapy water and they set to work. They washed their cars for what seemed like hours and I didn't hear another complaint (until they were hungry again :) Such an easy way to keep them entertained and this was a job they took very seriously!

Picnics and creeks

2010-04-09T08:33:00.005-04:00

With the beautiful weather that we have been having, the majority of our free time is spent outdoors. The kids wanted to go on a picnic one day, so Sonya and I loaded them up and took them to the museum for a little creek fun.
This was my favorite picture of the day. She was picking a flower saying "he loves me, he loves me not" and when I asked her who she was thinking about while plucking the flower, she said "Daddy of course, and he LOVES ME!" It was really cute.

The boys had the best time splashing.

Drew was brushing up on his planting skills for our small garden this year. I don't think he really understands the concept yet as he was planting twigs.

This boy had no fears and LOVED getting muddy.

Raegan would tip toe into the water but didn't get very brave. Imagine!

Drew posing with his mama.

Sweet Macie apparently deep in thought.

Brodie was protecting the pack with his sharp shooting. I think he got a bear.

The boys had the most fun by far. They were in their own little boy world.

Raegan trying to get Drew to hold her hand, not to help him but because she was a little chicken.

She preferred to hold a hand while testing the water.

He is such a wild little boy...

but is so cute, we wouldn't change a thing about him!

They needed a snack after all that playing.

And when Drew laid down and said "I'm sweepy" we decided it was time to go.

We can't wait for our next "pioneer" adventure at the museum!

Won't fit much longer

2010-04-06T07:35:00.003-04:00

I'm no sure how much longer I'm going to be able to keep this up. With my already expanding belly, things are getting tight :)

Easter Egg hunting

2010-03-28T21:03:00.004-04:00

The Tazewell Easter Egg hunt was Saturday, so Tony took a little break from doing taxes (it is tax season after all :) and we loaded the kids up and headed to the park. They each gathered several eggs, took a picture with the Easter Bunny and got a bag of candy so the day was a huge success. We topped it off with lunch at Sonic (aka: grease pit!)

Drew wasn't so sure about the Easter Bunny. Raegan was super impressed that not only was the Easter Bunny apparently a girl, but she talked to her. Goofing around before the hunt began.

Just a couple of cute little red heads!

Hmmm, wonder how many eggs I will find?

Every time Raegan opened an egg, the prize went in daddy's pocket. I think she was afraid Drew might get her stuff.

Drew's favorite thing was the chocolate! That's my boy!

He is so cute!

Dancing Queen

2010-03-26T23:15:00.003-04:00

Raegan officially started tap and ballet this past week. Tony and I have never mentioned dance classes, but Raegan has begged us for some time now to be a ballerina. We thought she was a little to young, but finally gave in, and signed her up. She was so excited she nearly exploded on the way to her first class. I've never seen a little girl of 3 be so set on something. Of course, she loved it and can't wait until her next class. I have to say, she really does make the cutest (and tiniest) little dancer I've ever seen :) Here is the dancing queen on her first day.

What have we been doing?

2010-03-22T08:09:00.006-04:00

We really didn't fall off the face of the earth. Lets just say I might have gotten a little lazy with sitting at the computer and loading pictures. After a mild scolding from some friends and family, here I go again. We were able to play outside this entire weekend, but I was too busy playing and enjoying the fresh air myself to bother with taking pictures. So instead, I will show you what we have been doing to occupy our time indoors this past month. Here is an evening favorite activity... jumping on daddy. They would take turns standing on the ottoman and leap into daddy's waiting arms. Drew can't get quite the air that Raegan does, but he had fun just the same.

We spent a little time exercising. Here they are doing push-ups. (Not sure why my children aren't wearing their pants!)

And some crunches. Raegan really gets into working out :)

We have had some crazy bed head!

I don't know what this boy does when he sleeps but he almost always looks like this in the morning and after nap time.

And of course we have had several camp outs.

This was a Christmas gift from Nana and Grandad and has been a hit. It takes up almost our entire living room, but it's worth it for the hours of entertainment it provided!

We have played dress up with friends... and yes the boys are in dresses.And our favorite thing to do on a rainy day is turn the garage into a race track.Which usually turns into a bumper car ring :)

Expanding!

2010-02-22T18:56:00.003-05:00

For those of you who don't already know, there may be another little redhead in town! That's right, we are having another baby. Our little "Sally" as Raegan has called her (and yes, she insists it's a girl) is due October 17th.

Not much too look at, but even at the size of a bean that little heart was beating away! I just don't understand how people say that there isn't a baby in there! We already love this little bean, and hope and pray that we will be ready for his or her arrival. What are the odds that this baby might have dark hair??

"Sunbathing" in the middle of an ice storm

2010-02-05T12:49:00.002-05:00

This picture was just too funny not to share. As I said in my last post, we have been sick for a while, which means we haven't been out of the house for 6 WHOLE DAYS!!! I thought that I was suffering the most from cabin fever, but I'm beginning to think that the kids are. Raegan decided do a little "sunbathing" in our living room this morning. She turned all the overhead lights in our house on for her "sun". If only I had the same imagination so I could close my eyes and be laying in the sun on a beach somewhere.

Lots of jammie time

2010-02-04T09:13:00.007-05:00

This past week, both the kids have had bronchitis which has left them with fevers, terrible coughs and just feeling very crummy. That said, we have spent lots of time in the warm tub (for the steam) and playing in our cozy jammies. Here are just a few things that the kids have done in their jammies. Drew found a new way to enjoy playing in his new birthday/Christmas train table. I think he might have just been too tired to stand up and play, so he thought that sitting would be much better :)

And our little Diva, Raegan has so much fun dressing up. I'm not sure what she was supposed to be, but she thought she looked great!

This barely touches the surface of the silliness that goes on in our house :)

Painting has become another favorite thing to do. You can see that there is art work already on display on our fridge.And, last... Drew still hasn't given up his pacifiers at night. He is supposed to only get them when he is actually IN his bed, but sometimes he sneaks in there and grabs them when we aren't looking. They have just felt so crummy, I allowed him to suck on them just this once. He just looked so pitiful. Don't you love how he still holds handfuls of them.

Hopefully, the coughing will stop soon and we will be well on our way to recovery.

Rough night?

2010-01-26T17:11:00.003-05:00

I'm not sure what happened to Drew in the middle of the night, but for some reason he tried to get out of his jammies. This was as far as he got when I found him in the morning. Some things, we will just never know!

Always entertaining

2010-01-14T18:55:00.003-05:00

I just think everybody should be so lucky as to live with a fun little girl like this one. You never know what to expect! This is what she did with her raspberries at dinner.

Her only explanation for this was that is was her bride outfit (I'm guessing wedding dress) only it's a bath towel. And, I'm not sure what purpose the little puppy serves.Yes, she is sassy, messy, hyper, chatty, selfish, loud, etc... but we can't imagine our lives with out her! It's a good thing she is so cute.

We love you Raegan!

At it again

2010-01-13T16:17:00.003-05:00

My poor sister in law... she is in for some interesting gifts for her baby girl now that I've got my sewing machine. What better way to practice my new skill than something fairly simple like burp cloths. Well, here is my first attempt at a burp cloth. I love this fabric, and used an old baby towel as the alternate side. It's a little "uniquely" shaped, but that's what makes it homemade. Who wants perfectly straight, mass produced burp cloths anyway. And what are my kids doing while I'm making my projects? Making some lovely art projects of their own. I love Drew's dot technique. These were our latest Dollar Store find.

Raegan using her favorite color, pink of course.

This is completely unrelated, but I had to post this. My son found a new way to enjoy one of his favorite toys, his dump truck. Who knew it could double as a riding toy as well :)

New Toy

2010-01-11T22:55:00.004-05:00

A new toy for mama that is!! I finally managed to find my grandmothers old sewing machine that my dad had inherited when she passed away. I had been told it was tucked away somewhere and that as soon as my dad found it, I could have it. Well, I took matters into my own hands, dug to the bottom of one of the closets and found it! I brought it home, dusted it off, paid $5 for a down-loadable version of the manual online, and set to work. Here she is!Now I have absolutely no experience in sewing, but I've been determined to give it a try. All I needed was a machine... and now I've got it. It took me a good 20 minutes to figure out how to thread it, but after a few trial runs, I was cutting up old t-shirts to make a "project". I made Raegan a new t-shirt purse. Just what every 3 year old needs! No pattern, no experience, no plan... just some scrap material and a little imagination.

Now I understand the rush of creating something from almost nothing. I can't wait to get some real material, patterns and a little more experience under my belt. Who knows what I'm gonna do next. Don't look to closely at the details. Raegan loves it, but I don't think I have a career in fashion just yet :)

2009 in review

2010-01-04T16:29:00.016-05:00

January started off with two sick kids... who quickly got better and started running around again.And everyone should sit on a couch on a couch.February led us to LOTS of dress up, even when eating lunch. And some good quality reading time.

March Raegan was really started playing with her babies. She is quite the little momma.And we danced... alot!And a new-to-us doll house that entertained the kids for hours.In April, we could finally get outdoors. And the kids loved helping with the mowing.

Raegan got to go to her first Hokie game.

May brought weather warm enough to do projects outside. Oh, how I miss outside days!Raegan always uses the one handed approach so she doesn't get too messy.And Drew still chooses to get as messy as possible!

In June, we took our first beach trip with Sonya and her kids.Raegan was not the bravest when it came to the waves.

Drew loves his pacis~!

In July, we celebrated Raegan's 3rd birthday Princess style!And she decided that it was too cold (in mid July!) at breakfast one morning. Drew began trying new styles.

In August, we headed back to the beach with the whole Yates family
Drew being his cute little self.

and Raegan acting all prissy. I love it!

In September, Raegan started 3 year old preschool. I loved this picture of Drew picking flowers.

In September, we visited a pottery place called "Kil-n Time" in Bristol. I was a little nervous since everything in the store is breakable, but the kids LOVED making ornaments and presents for grandparents day.

Raegan was really into it!

And still, more yard work!In October, we cheered on the Hokies with our friends, the Butchers.

November (and more time inside) meant breaking the rules sometimes :)

And playing in the leaves for the first time (the kids, not me :)And of course, our family on Christmas Day.

and for those who didn't get a Christmas card from my parents... here is the whole Yates crew.Happy 2010 everybody!

Same spot, a year apart

2010-01-04T16:16:00.004-05:00

I was looking through some of my old pictures and came across this one from last year on Christmas Day. Then I remembered I took a similar one of Drew this year on Christmas. Amazing what a difference a year makes!

I can't believe how much taller he is in this one, but he still has that crazy hair!

Behind...

2010-01-02T17:12:00.011-05:00

Finally some Christmas pictures. Instead of doing several different post, I'm just putting a whole bunch of pictures in this one post... so bear with me folks. This could possibly be the longest post in blogger history!

Drew spent most of his days rearranging the Christmas tree and admiring the presents. Only 2 presents were actually partially opened before Christmas day! And Raegan (who had picked our our own outfit) was playing waitress. Decorating our gingerbread house. I think more icing and candy was eaten than actually put on the house.They were posing with the house, but the look on their face says... When can we eat it or destroy it!Raegan all dressed up for her preschool party.All the little kids in her class playing "hot potato" with their presents.Snuggling with her mama at the party.Our living room campout by the gas logs when our power was out. Our living room was tranformed into a candle lit trampoline. Here are the kids at about 5:00 am. The power had just come back on and all the lights with it... but these two were out cold! We just left them there until morning.Christmas Eve we celebrated with Tony's family. Here is his Mamaw Bradley with her two redheaded great grandkids. Tony's mom, Mamaw Debbie and Papaw Chris... or as Raegan calls him "Buddy"
All the Bradley great grandkids... Alyssa, Ryder, Raegan, Sadie, Drew, and Hunter.
The family gathered.

Our living room on Christmas Eve night with the kids "Santa" gifts.

This is a priceless picture... Raegan's surprised face that she wasn't on the naughty list after all and Santa did come to bring her a present. She was still half asleep.

Playing with their new toys before we headed to Nana and Grandad's.Stocking time. Christmas at Nana and Grandad's. Who knows what Raegan was getting Grandad to do for her.Of all the present that Drew got, his favorites were this train shirt and a $5 pack of hotwheels... go figure!Raegan and Ben getting a geography lesson from Tony. Raegan snuggling with Uncle Scott.
The only family photo we got on Christmas day.Ben kept saying, "I'm ready for you to take my picture" My silly family
Drew snuggling with Aunt Tammy and baby Eva... she's not gonna have much room in her lap for Drew much longer!

Raegan and her wild hair!I couldn't resist taking a picture of Raegan. She went potty by herself and managed to pull her tights up too... but her dress got stuck in the tights. We let her walk around like this for a little while, and everyone got a good laugh. The day after Christmas, Tony's high school buddy Joe stopped by with his wife Jenn and daughter Sophie. These two have been friends since little league baseball... that's 25 years and they still like each other :)
Sophie loved Raegan but was a little scared of Drew (wonder why, he is so meek and mild :)
That evening, we had our Christmas exchange with the Kauschs and the Nuckels. Since Doot's birthday is Christmas Eve, and Drew's is the day after Christmas, we celebrated for them as well.
Raegan and her pal Junetta.
Drew trying to blow out his candles

He thought he was a big boy just like Ryan.

Me and my sweet daddy.

Let the chaos begin.

Well, I hope I didn't exhaust you with all these pictures, but I couldn't pick just a few. We had a wonderful Christmas and loved getting together with all those we love. I hope you all are as blessed as we are, and have a wonderful start to this New Year!

What a month

2009-12-29T22:49:00.006-05:00

It's gonna take me a few posts to get you caught up on what's been going on in our lives, but here's a start. First I'm gonna show you the whopper snow we had a week or so ago. We still have a few inches covering our yard, and with the scattered flurries we continue to have I don't think we will see grass for sometime. We had about 16 inches of snow!
This is our front walk before Tony dug it out.
This is after. I love it!

Drew did NOT like his snow suit!

Getting ready to go down for the 25th time! Daddy got a work out that day!

This picture cracks me up! She was sitting behind a mountain of snow that had been piled up from shoveling. All you could see was her little head.

Now this is getting comfy in the snow!

Daddy and two of his redheads all bundled up.

Raegan offering daddy some much needed help shoveling the snow.Raegan was digging a hole to find the grass. She never did find it.

Drew wasn't really that fond of all this snow. As you can see, it was up to his hips which meant he could barely walk at all! He got carried alot.

I much preferred them to look at the snow from this view rather than from outside in it. At least I didn't have to bundle, unbundle because we had to pee, and bundle again!

Thanksgivings

2009-11-30T14:52:00.009-05:00

We spent Thanksgiving Day with our Dear "Mom O" and had a great time.

Even though not all the brothers and sisters were able to come, we still had a very full house.

Little Ben being his cute self. I can't believe he is gonna be a big brother in April!

Our four generations.

Uncle Scott and Drew goofing off.

My boys were too tired.

O n Saturday, we headed to Tony's grandparents in TN. It was a long day with no naps, but we had fun visiting with family.

Raegan and Papaw Chris taking a break.

The most fun for the kids was the piles of leaves. Where in the world are Raegan and Drew?

What a sweet face!

I'm not sure who had more fun, me or the kids.

Leaf angels?

Are they cloud gazing or just so tired they couldn't move?

We have so much to be thankful for this year... A roof over our head, a husband who still has a job, food in our pantry, and lots of family to love us. I am so thankful for my husband who works so hard to take care of us, and my sweet kids who always manage to make me smile. Happy Thanksgiving 2009!

Practice makes perfect

2009-11-16T18:19:00.004-05:00

To start this post off, I'm gonna show off my lovely pedicure that Raegan gave me. We have been working on her writing skills, and I decided that she needed other things to practice hand/eye coordination. This is just one of the ways we worked on it. I should have known this is what my toes would look like. After all, she isn't really fond of coloring in the lines. She started out doing pretty well, but quickly started adding more and more color... well, I think the picture is enough description.Her skills are improving though. I wrote the first line, and she followed the dots on the second line. Not too bad for a 3 year old.And next we have Drew. This little boy is so funny. We have recently taken his beloved pacifiers away from him during the day. He is only allowed to have them at naptime and bedtime. He has gotten sneaky though and we have to hide them once he gets up. Otherwise, this is usually what we find...

Him hiding with a hand full of paci's. He has always loved having one in his mouth and one in each hand. BUSTED!

Oh well, we are still working on it!.

Helping with chores

2009-11-13T15:48:00.003-05:00

I always find it funny that our little guys always want to be doing whatever it is that Tony and I are doing. Whether it's folding laundry, sweeping the floors, cooking dinner, raking the leaves... whatever we do, they want to "help". It always takes a LOT longer to actually do these tasks with two little helpers, but it's way more fun. I happened to have my camera ready when Tony and his motley crew set to work raking, then mowing the fallen leaves in our back yard.
Just like Daddy...

And you've gotta love the Dennis the Menace look!

Boys will be boys

2009-11-09T16:44:00.004-05:00

I found Drew doing some reading the other day, and couldn't resist taking a picture. He is such a silly little boy these days. You never know what he will do next. Hiding after he had been caught.

I love the crossed knee. He was just relaxing.

He is such a sweet boy.

This picture (although a little blurry) just screams DREW! This is his personality shining through.Drew has always loved cars and truck. When he plays with them, he just zones out. He is very methodical about lining them up and then pushing them down.

And of course watching them roll.

Such a silly boy.

Preschool party

2009-10-29T22:08:00.003-04:00

Raegan had her first preschool party today. As you can see, it was a Halloween party and they got to dress up in their costumes and go "trick-r-treating" in the upstairs classrooms of the church. Raegan was dressed as none other than Cinderella, and she had a great time. Here is her preschool class all dressed up.

We had some crown issues, but she thought it looked best right on her forehead... to each her own!

She was aggravated by Hannah "Tinkerbell's" wings because they kept hitting her.

I love this preschool just as much as she does. It has been so much fun and they get to do such cute things.

My little performer

2009-10-23T10:46:00.002-04:00

Drew has recently discovered that he can sing. He has always loved music and tried to sing, but something just clicked last week. Now he can sing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, The ABC's, Wheels on the Bus... the list goes on and on. Here is a little clip of him singing Twinkle Twinkle and trying to sing My God is so Big. He is very entertaining and SO cute!

Arts and Crafts

2009-10-19T17:35:00.002-04:00

I forgot how the cold weather brings out the arts and crafts more often than in the summer months when we spend most our free time outside. We did spend some time outside today collecting some lovely fall leaves and twigs to make a collage. My dining room table looked like this for about two hours, and I'm still scrubbing at the glue spots, but we had fun!

Our spiders.

Raegan's abstract leaf collage.

My more traditional approach... yes, I have just as much fun as my kids do at these little projects.

Drew didn't get to participate today since he took a 3 hour nap, but I'm sure he will be ready to make a mess in the near future.

Hokie game tea party

2009-10-17T22:29:00.003-04:00

Tonight, the Butchers came over to watch the Hokies play a little football. Raegan has been looking forward to Annie and Ellie's visit all day, and spent most of the afternoon running to the front door saying "I think they are here... oh man, that was somebody else" While the grown ups watched the terrible football game, the kids entertained themselves with more important things than football. Like putting on the all important "eye black" like the players wear. Having the all important popsicle break.

Or having a half time tea party. They had so much fun, and Raegan is already asking when we get to do it again. Who really wants to watch football anyway.

Role play

2009-10-16T16:33:00.002-04:00

I'm just wondering if this is a glimpse into my kids futures....

Chef Raegan? Dr Roop?

Only time will tell :)

Corn Maze

2009-10-11T17:02:00.002-04:00

This past weekend we decided to try out the local corn maze with Nana and Grandad and our friends the Kidds. They offered hay rides, horshoes, pony rides, bouncers, and of course the Maze. Nobody was brave enough to ride the pony, but Raegan loved holding the little rabbits. She kept saying, "I sure wish I had a little bunny like this at my house". The kids (and the grown-ups) all had a great time, so here is a little slide show to highlight our trip.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Why Drew doesn't get to use markers very often

2009-09-17T14:17:00.002-04:00

This little boy is known for the messes he can make. I'm gonna have to blame myself for this one (well at least partially) I usually keep a close watch whenever my kids get to use markers instead of crayons. I was distracted by an important phone call, and after realizing that my kids had been very quiet for more than 2 minutes, I looked up to see what was going on. This is what I found. It took a couple of days for his hand to return to its original color.

I'm not sure if you can see the pink on his back, but that was Raegan wanting to join in the fun. Of course she would never color on herself (as that would be messy) but she jumped at the chance to make Drew her art project of the day.

Oh, the joys of motherhood!

Old time fun

2009-09-15T13:59:00.006-04:00

This weekend, we visited my Uncle Darrell's little cabin in Haysi, VA. He built this cabin on the land that my grandmother and my mother's families were raised. This place is built on the top of a mountain and the road was a little treacherous to drive on. The view was spectacular... unfortunately I didn't think to take a picture of that. Almost all of my mom's brothers and sisters were there and my grandmother (who is 95) and her sister Vivian (who is also in her 90's) were both there. My kids provided the entertainment for the adults and we all had a great time. I love getting together with family! Enjoy the pictures...

Raegan spent most of the time jumping off the porch.Drew practicing his happy face...

His sad face...

And his SUPER sad face...

This is how my little man walks all the time. It reminds me of an old man just soaking it all in, only Drew is usually going at warp speed.

They actually took a sweet picture together.

Drew and Grandad having fun.

Drew riding Doot's horsey.

My sweet grandma, "Mom O" who Raegan still calls "Aunt Mo".

Drew spent a lot of time in the dirt and Raegan spent a lot of time washing her hands so she wouldn't get too dirty... typical.

Another sweet picture of the kids.

My 90 something great Aunt Vivian helping Drew drink a little lemonade.

Uncle Ken, Drew, Raegan and Aunt Viv just hanging out.

Raegan got to help nana crack some walnuts. Thankfully, the walnuts were the only thing that got cracked. I questioned nana's sanity when she willingly sat with Raegan and a hammer.

Raegan's first day of preschool

2009-09-08T16:46:00.004-04:00

Raegan has been so excited for her first day of preschool to come, and today she finally got to go. I was afraid that she would cry, or worse be scared that I wasn't there. In reality, she had a blast. She gave me a kiss goodbye and said "see you in a little while mom". I, on the other hand shed a few tears last night AND today. It's just hard for me to believe that my baby is 3 years old and is grown up enough to want to go to preschool. I've debated on sending her this year or just teaching her at home. She was so excited about the idea of going to school with other kids, so we decided to give it a try. I just wish there was a pause button so I could keep my kids little for just a little longer.

I think Drew was so excited because he thought he was going to preschool too.

Drew wanted a first day of school picture too.

Raegan was saying "Drew, come give me a hug before I go. I'll be so sad without a hug from you"

But, sad she was not. She walked straight in and barely looked back.

This is the teacher's aid, Ms. Terry.

And Raegan's Teacher, Ms. Lou.

When I picked her up, she said she had a great time at preschool and wanted to know when she could go back. I just hope that this will last!

Best of buddies

2009-08-23T23:36:00.004-04:00

I've been slack to say the least about my blog lately. It seems like our weekdays are full, and our weekends are even fuller. I've had loads of pictures to go through and am finally making some progress. To please those of you who are going through Roop Group blogging withdrawals, here are some precious pictures of my kids. It seems like wherever you find one of my kids these days, you will find the other close by. That doesn't mean they are always as loving as these next pictures will show, but they have their moments. I found these two one morning after breakfast. As I was cleaning up the breakfast dishes, they got really quiet... which usually means trouble. This time however they were simply sitting together in these little totes feeding their babies. Aside from the mess they made when dumping out the toys stored in the totes, this was very sweet.

Drew acting embarrassed :)

Drew LOVES to be read to, and lucky for him Raegan loves to read... or at least tell the story that the pictures seem to tell. But since Drew can't read either, he doesn't seem to mind her "Cliff's notes" versions. Here the two are snuggled up on the couch reading a Christmas book. (Hey we still sing Christmas songs too)

And my little wet heads after bath one night. How do you like Drew's Fo-hawk?

Don't worry, I'll do better at posting.

(at least I'll try)

Raegan's version of Jesus's Birth

2009-08-19T10:22:00.003-04:00

This morning Raegan was "reading" the story of Jesus birth for a little pop-up book to Drew and I just had to share it. Her version is hilarious. I will be sure to provide interpretations, but I'm pretty sure if you know the story you can figure it out.

"A boy and his Grandma (that would be Joseph and Mary) were riding a horse to a new hill. (Bethlehem is on a hill in the book) All the people said, you can only sleep with the cows over there. (there was no room for them in the inn) Then a fairy came and said hi to the sheeps. (the angel appeared to the shepherds and their sheep) Then the boys (wise men) rode camels and looked at a pretty star in the sky. All the boys and girls and animals were happy and kept looking in the box (mary and joseph and all the animals are smiling at baby Jesus in the manger). The fairies (angels) came back and brought a star and the grandma (Mary) was holding Jesus and the cows and the boys (wise men) were all happy. The end!"

She got the point of the story, but I could hardly contain my laughter at her interpretation. I'm not sure why poor Mary had to be a Grandma and Joseph got to be a boy. We've got a little work to do on working out the details, like Angels are NOT fairies. But for now, I'm gonna enjoy her 3 year old version.

Family Beach Trip 2009 (41 photos), by Amy Roop

2009-08-18T10:58:00.001-04:00

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.

One way I keep up with my kids...

2009-07-21T14:27:00.003-04:00

Every month or so, I take the car seats out of our vehicle and clean them up. It always motivates me to clean my car AND gives me a really good excuse for this...

Well, the covers have to be washed, and in order to get them back together properly we have to do an adjustment of straps/trial run before they are placed back in the car. They (and I) got a big kick out of sitting in there car seats in the living room. Drew is currently not a fan of pictures for some reason. Maybe he is starting to take after his daddy :)

Raegan, on the other hand is always willing to turn on her cheesy grin and work the camera.

For those 5 minutes they sat still in these chairs I actually knew where they both were and that they weren't getting into any trouble. I wish I could say the same for the other 11 hours and 55 minutes that they are awake during the day!

Buzz cut

2009-07-14T22:09:00.004-04:00

Here are a few before pictures to let you see how moppy Drew had been looking. I've had to trim his bangs, over his ears and behind his neck twice. Finally, I said let's just take him to Chunky (Janet is her real name, but she is Sonya's mom and she cuts our hair). No, he doesn't have a bloody nose, he just likes to stick things in his nose. I just love this one with those two front teeth shining. He finally has 8 teeth now, but wouldn't you know that some in the back came in before the side front teeth.Proof of the previously mentioned fascination with his nose.It always amazes me how much a haircut transforms them. This is MUCH shorter than his first real haircut, but he looks so cute!!!

He is also practicing his spoon skills since he is finally eating things other than baby food.

And if one picture of something up his nose wasn't enough, here is another to emphasize the point of his fascination. Seriously, I've found mini M & M's, pieces of cracker and pieces of ripped up tissues up his nose. Thankfully, I've been able to retrieve all of these items with no harm. I am however preparing myself for a trip to the ER though. After all, he is only 19 months!!!

She's 3

2009-07-13T08:24:00.007-04:00

Okay, I've been a slacker mom and didn't even post the birthday pictures from Raegan's 3rd birthday. She turned 3 on July 5th, however, we aren't having a party until July 24th. Maybe I just mentally decided her actual birthday wasn't until then. Anyway, we did have an mini celebration at Nana and Grandad's for her. It was a Sunday, so we had lunch after church with our friends Lisa, Michael, Ryan and Jenna Kidd. Raegan got to open a couple of small gifts, and eat Cinderella cakes that Lisa had made.

Taking a second to pose with Mama and Daddy.

Raegan sharing her cake with Ryan.

Lisa worked so hard on these little cakes, and Raegan just loved them. (I did too!)

She was saying "WOW, these are for me?!"

A little fun chasing Drew in the yard after we ate.

One of her gifts she got to open, and she wore it the rest of the day.

Drew picking some flowers... how sweet is this?I thought this was so sweet of her and my dad.

Gotcha!

What sucker??

These last few were taken in the church parking lot after church. Drew found the only water puddle and of course stomped around in it.

Annie and Ellie Butcher wanted Raegan to have their old tricycle, so here she and Drew are trying it out.

She was so proud of herself for riding all by herself.

Drew was chasing her on the bike.
She had a fun little birthday, but I still can't believe my baby is THREE!!!! Time flies...

July 4th

2009-07-07T21:46:00.005-04:00

The Roops spent the 4th of July at the museum eating BBQ, roasted corn on the cob, and funnel cakes and drinking lots of fresh squeezed lemonade. We participated in a few games, sampled homemade apple butter, and watched some folks pretend to fight a battle. It was a fun filled day, and after a quick nap for the kids we headed back out to the Tazewell celebration which offered bouncers for the kids and fireworks to end the day. It was a very long day, but we had so much fun. Neither of the kids actually watched the fireworks, but instead covered their ears and eyes. Somehow, when it was all over Raegan says "I loved the fireworks, they were great. A little too loud, but it was great!" I wasn't even aware that she saw them. Since there was a little rainy weather that evening, no pictures were actually taken of the bouncers or the fireworks. Here are lots of pictures from the museum festivities for you to enjoy.

Raegan enjoying her roasted corn.

Drew enjoying the free entertainment that rocks/dirt supply.

Drew hiding behind a weeping willow tree.

Raegan trying to hula-hoop with this little wooden ring.

And the hula-hoop fell down.

Yes she is cute... and yes she knows it!

Me and my little man.

The siblings

Raegan and I were watching her cousin, Connor Kausch in the sack race. It was too cute!

Enjoying some fresh squeezed strawberry lemonade.

Drew was looking on, just wondering if he could join in the fun.

Since he was too little ot join in, he just "helped" Nana out saying "get set, GO"

Is he cute or what?!

Tony and his little man.

The Roop men on one of MANY laps around the museum grounds. I don't know how Drew isn't a bean pole as much as that kid just goes and goes!

Outdoor fun

2009-06-30T15:21:00.004-04:00

Since the weather has turned a little warmer, we've been spending more and more time outside. Everything is just more fun outside. We swing, blow bubbles, pick flowers, slide, swim, even eat outside. The favorite thing this year, however, has been Raegan's little pink mustang. She and Drew don't even have to go anywhere, they just like to climb in and pretend they are off on an adventure. Which is probably best, because they can both make the car go, but neither of them seem to understand the whole steering thing! Drew has an interesting technique of getting in the car.

And he knows he isn't supposed to stand in the car.

"How do you turn this thing on?"

Never fear, Princess Raegan is here.

Somehow, i don't think he could fit in the car with Raegan AND her puffy Cinderella dress.

Drew just being his cute little self, still happy to just sit behind the wheel and go nowhere. We finally got a pool set up for the kids and Raegan loves it. She doesn't appreciate the grass that trails in on her feet though, and spends a lot time trying to get it out. That keeps her busy for a good 1/2 hour.

Her graceful entrance into the pool. Take One. (the tongue must help her with her balance :)

Take Two.

Searching for more grass...

For some reason, both the kids are having a hard time calling it a day to go to bed. Maybe it's because it's still light outside by the time I'm ready for them to be in bed. Regardless, I found Drew hiding under the kitchen table the other evening when it was time to turn in. He is somehow even sneakier than his sister. Really cute, but sneaky!

Birthdays and early Fathers day

2009-06-15T12:56:00.007-04:00

Since Tony and I will be out of town on our birthdays next week and will be traveling back on Fathers day, we decided to celebrate them all a week early. I didn't take any pictures of the cookout on Friday night, but did remember to take pics on Sunday. We spent some time with my folks and my brother's family. It was fun seeing the 3 cousins playing together. Raegan and Ben usually have a hard time playing nice, but yesterday they loved each other. They were so sweet together, and we hope it wasn't a fluke. Maybe they will get along a little better this year at the beach in August. Anyway, here are some of the pictures of our family day.

Here is the whole Yates/Roop gang.

The Roop Group :)

The Roop girls.

Check out these freckles! How cute are they!!!

The Grill master himself.

Tony and his little redheads.

Mama and Raegan sporting our cool shades.

Raegan and her nana.

Raegan and Ben actually liked each other this time!

Uncle Scott getting Drew.

Cutie pie Drew.

Ben working on his basketball shot.

Drew is such a boy... he played in the dirt and mulch the whole time.

Scott, Ben and Tammy.

The redheaded Roop kids.

We had lots of fun hanging out with our family, and no day would be complete without a bedtime story (or two). Aren't they sweet!

6 years and going strong!

2009-06-08T14:22:00.003-04:00

Yesterday, Tony and I celebrated our 6 year wedding anniversary. I can't believe it's already been 6 years. We look so young, but are even happier now than we were here. Happy Anniversary Tony!

Beach bums

2009-06-08T10:34:00.002-04:00

Last week, the kids and I headed to Myrtle Beach for a week without poor Tony. Tony didn't get to go on this trip because 1. he had to work and 2. we had a HUGE To-Do list that he hoped to complete in our absence. We also had some new tile flooring laid in our kitchen, bathrooms and foyer. I didn't think I could handle having toilets in my living room or the fridge in the dining room. Thankfully, Sonya has a beach house now, so she and I loaded the kids up for a week of fun. I must say, having 4 kids under 4 living together for 8 days was a little hairy at times, but we did have a great time. That said, we were SO happy to be home. The new floors are down, and Tony somehow managed to almost complete the nearly impossible To-Do list. Here are just a few of the many pictures of our trip. Enjoy!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Trip to the Zoo

2009-05-25T16:35:00.006-04:00

This past Saturday, we headed to Asheboro, NC to the Zoo. It was a very hot day, and there were LOTS of people there, but somehow we managed to have a great time. Here are some of our highlights of the trip. Raegan took a turn "hatching" like a chicken.

Everyone's favorite part of the trip was the elephants. That's all Raegan talked about on the way down. "When are we gonna get to see the elephants?" she kept saying. The elephants didn't disappoint us either. They put on quite a show, playing in the water and squirting each other. Raegan kept asking if they were taking a bath or if they were just swimming. Not sure if you can see, but there were two elephants in this picture. One was just under the water and you can only see his back.

I believe that Drew was admiring the elephants in this picture.

Nana will do anything for these kids... even ride an little anteater :)

I think Raegan liked these statue animals as much as she liked the real ones. At least she could ride these.

Watching the elephants from another view.Say cheese...

Drew thought he was a better navigator than we were. He must have been trying to decide where to go next.

Grandad and Drew are best buddies, and as with most days, if you saw one, you were just about guaranteed to see the other close behind.This was my favorite picture of the two of them.

Tony, Raegan and I posing with the Zebras... or cows as Drew called them. Come to think of it, he called every animal he saw a cow! They are his favorite, but unfortunately they didn't have any cows at the zoo. Maybe next time, we will take him to a petting zoo.

Speaking of cows... every sign that had animals on it, Drew ran up to and yelled (you guessed it) "COW"!!!!Tony took this picture of our little train pushing through the crowd.

Raegan and Daddy posing with the giraffe.

Grandad and his little buddy admiring the giraffe as well.Drew had the most fun digging in the dirt with a stick, but hopefully we can take him back again when he will appreciate it a little more. He is such a boy!
They were exhausted when we finally made it back to the car. I don't know who fell asleep first... the kids or Grandad :) We had lots of fun, and hope to actually go back and see the other half of the zoo in the near future.