Dang! Another Year Slips By!

My parents told me time would fly by...boy, were they right! We're preparing for the holiday season. We've introduced an honorary member to the Poythress Pod. Peter, the elf on the shelf, has brought a new outlook on good behavior - because he's the eyes and ears for Santa! Preston and Pierson pop out of bed every morning and search for Peter's new spot! Each one is so delighted when they find him first!

Speaking of Pierson and Preston...I would love to freeze them just the way they are! At least for a few years. Everyday brings something new, and Preston can carry on a conversation like yours truly. Pierson's belly and cheeks are so full and chunky, I just want to squeeze, hug and kiss him all the time - and he can't stand it! It's killing me! He looks like a little cherub.

As for the whole Pod, the pool house is about finished, we enjoyed lots of poolside fun this summer. The family ventured to Emerald Isle for a week during July, which was blissful...it will be difficult to go back to the Outer Banks, I think. We're hoping to hit the slopes this winter and teach Preston how to ski. I'm sure as soon as he realizes that Danny snowboards, he'll want to do that instead. Brittany's employed full time, but is quickly realizing that "the world of work" isn't all it's cracked up to be. She's enrolled at J Sargeant Reynolds again this Spring to take some classes while she works. Maybe mom and dad were right? I think so. It's been tough to step back, but we find assurance in the fact that we gave her a "good and proper upbringing". Danny's been hitting up the golf course quite a bit, and I've been running, running and running. Finished my first 1/2 marathon this Fall, looking forward to doing another. Perhaps I'll include more frequent blog updates to my resolutions for 2010...

Wow...it's been 8 months since I last blogged. That's poor. I'll have to blame it on Facebook, I suppose. Much has changed since I last posted, and that's an extreme understatement! The Fall was enjoyable. Brittany headed off to Longwood, it's tough letting go. Unfortunately, college life away from home did not suit her well, and she returned home after the first semester to start at J. Sargeant Reynold's CC for Spring. Now that the Spring semester is over, she has decided to take a break from college, I hope this isn't a permanent detour from higher education for her, however, "college is not for everyone", and I do believe that. Inevitably, hindsight is always 20/20, and I hope that Brittany will not make decisions hastily that she will regret later.

The holidays flew by with a blur, the house is bursting at the seams with toys. I look forward to having a yard sale in the near future to reduce the clutter. I'm always looking to reduce clutter. Pierson turned one in January, I could barely believe the first 12 months were gone. My baby is growing up too fast for my liking. He started walking at 14 months and is now traveling all over the place (and getting into EVERYTHING - literally).

Winter almost escaped entirely without wintry precipitation....fortunately we had a monster of a snowstorm in March that dumped nearly 8 inches. That was AWESOME!! Pierson was a little short to enjoy the snowfall, but Preston was my little snowman. Preston enjoyed a "jump-n-play" birthday at Pump-It-Up in Ashland. His pal, Carrie-Lynn, shares a birthday nearby so they had a party together. That was fun, the two are inseparable.

So, it's practically summer now...the pool is open (thanks to Danny aka "pool boy"), the landscaping and mulching has come together, the pool house is almost complete...even though almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades....we'll be glad to have that project behind us and have the ability to just RELAX for a while.

Enjoy the updated pictures!