Kailyn recently graduated from preschool!! Yay!!! Kailyn!!! I'm so proud of her and yet I'm heartbroken that she is finished with preschool. I honestly can't properly explain the mixture of sadness and joy that I feel. To me, she is perfect. She loves God, loves to say her memory verses at school and to unexpecting strangers at Walmart, and I don't want anyone to ruin her. I don't want anyone to steal her joy or interupt her progress. I don't want anyone to break her heart, or be cruel or mean or rude to her. I would basically be content to freeze time and keep up this pace of motherhood in having 3 kids 5 and under, hectic and demanding as it is. I love every second, and I love my little girl heart and soul. I don't want to be one of "those" parents whose child never goes anywhere, or does anything, but keeping her under my wing, or in some sort of undescructable bubble where I am in control of who is involved with her and who has access to her is ever so tempting!

She has grown and matured so much over the past 2 years. Preschool has been wonderful for her. When we first started this program 2 years ago I wasn't sure she would ever make it past the first week of school! For those that don't know us, Kailyn is a momma's girl. She is extremely attached to me, and leaving me for any amount of time is an ordeal even on a good day. She has LOVED school so much that in the couple of times that i have overslept she was extemely upset with me! How dare I let her miss a day of school?! "I have to learn things mom!!" "I have to be smart!" "I have to go to school!!" (Lot's of dramatic crying in between!)

So when I walk her into Kindergarten next year, holding her hand, I'll pretend to be as excited and happy as she is. I WILL smile though my heart WILL be aching. I'll help her to find her classroom and hand her off to her teachers reluctantly and yet with pride. I'll say goodbye and kiss her and tell her to have a great day! I'll wave as I leave the room and blow her a kiss and walk back to my truck...and then...when I'm out of sight...I WILL cry.

A little background behind this photo. Kailyn and her class had rehearsal for recieving their "diplomas." When I came to pick her up from school she was in hysterics. She was crying and sobbing that she didn't want "that paper" Why she was scared who knows?? She doesn't have a hint of stage fright. She was the loudest and proudest on stage, very confident in her songs and memory verses so this fear of getting "the paper" was confusing. So...everyday for a week...I made fake diplomas and gave big pseudo preschool speeches and called each on of my kids in one by one by name to receive their "paper".....I even had Baby Luke trained! So, as you can see in the photo, our practice paid off! Love you baby girl!

Deer Hunting

This morning I rolled out of bed and my feet hit the hardwood floor in our house at a dark and early 5:30 a.m. I don't do early...not well anyway. And apart from the fact that it was early...I stepped onto our floor which felt like a sheet of ice. It was 17 degrees. Now, to a southern girl like me, that's not just cold...its ridiculous. Fred came at me with what looked like a pile of laundry to my sleepy eyes. He hands over this pile of laundry to me and says "Here, put this on." 4 shirts, long-johns, jeans, a very large pair of coverals, 2 pair of pantyhose, socks, 2 pairs of gloves, some sort of big and puffy carhart jacket, 2 fleece hats and a fleece apparatus you put over your head to your neck to keep it warm. I could barely walk.

And we were off! I was proud to be doing something with my husband...deer hunting. Yep, i could do this. I figured I would at least enjoy the peace and quite of the forrest. I waddled down to where he had set our chairs up about 100 yards from where we parked. Its hard to bend in all those clothes I learned. So maybe 10 minutes after we both sat down Fred says..."you ok?" "Oh yeah I'm fine" sure? "absoutely! He heads to another deer stand somewhere behind me on our 40 acres. "Call me if you need me" he says. I listened to the stream running down the branch and started to think about building a house one day when the first pains started to hit me. Let me tell you something just in case you didn't know...because I didn't until today. Tennis Shoes....are NOT well insulated. My toes where freezing! But I wasn't going to let it stop me shoot this Buck I was waiting on that Fred had seen the day before. No little toe was going to make me look like a sissy. I started trying to squeeze my toes together back and forth thinking that would help. I tried distracting myself by looking at squirrels through the scope on my rifel; however, 17 degrees in the shade with a good bit a wind and I was done. Stick your foot in a freezer for 2 hours...yeah, that's how it felt! I yelled for fred and started trying to unfold my Frozen Marshmellow behind out of a cheap lawn chair while holding my frozen rifel. You could have shoved kitchen knives into my shoes and I would not have been able to tell the difference between that and the pains I was having from the cold. I had plans to sit there in that chair from now till kingdom come (or the deer came), but my toes ...they were putting up a serious protest. I made it 2 hours.

Fred drove me back home and decided that he was going back. Go ahead! I turned the heat up in the house to 75, thawed out, drank some hot chocolate and put my makeup on. Fred killed a big 7 point buck about 2 hours later where I had been sitting. Oh well...here's to warmth!!

Summing up 2009

At the very begining of 2009 we were celebrating not so much the new year, but the fact that our one month old baby had survived a terrible case of RSV and MRSA. There was a time during that horrible ordeal that I feared he would die. I spent the first 3 months of 2009 at home not so much as going to Walmart or church at his dr's advice to try and prevent him from getting it again...or the swine flu which was a new scare.

I went back to work in Feb just one day a week because Lynn (Mamaw) had gone to live with Papaw in Florida while he was working. That worked out great until I was told I had to come back to work 2 days a week but it worked out that we got a babysitter for a few months.

We had Easter at my house with Dad, Judy, Jeremy, Tiffany, Jessica & Jordon. I did engagment photos for Jeremy and Tiffany at 4 locations!! Then seriously started considering photography as a career after seeing how well they turned out.

I spent the summer trying to start a business and did several jobs for people ranging from engagment photography, to kids, to weddings. LOVE IT!!!! Jeremy and Tiffany got married in June and had a gorgeous wedding! It is so wonderful to see Jeremy with such a great Christian girl! Tiffany and I went to Harding at the same time and have some mutual friends, but never knew each other. Small world huh? We love her!

Kailyn started REAL preschool in the fall this year and the realization that I just had months left with her before she would be gone all day every weekday until she was REALLY gone and out of the house hit me! UGH...that has really bothered me...and we started trying to figure out and weigh our options between private school and home schooling.

Lost weight, gained weight, back and forth to work, and school, and church, up early to bed late, the everyday laundry cleaning and errands for 5 people has blurred the days and months and they have flown by way to fast!!

The title of this blog site is Eubankspartyof5 for a reason. We went to eat at one of our favorite restaraunts in town after church one Sunday afternoon. When the host came over to ask "how many" I said 5. Fred said, "Jenny, Its just us!" I said I know! Me, You, then pointed at each of the kids said 3, 4, 5. He kindof laughed and said....."HUH....just never put a number to it I guess. 5!" Bless his heart. We have grown this family pretty quickly. Married in 2004 and by 2008 have had 3 children!

We had our very first Family Thanksgiving in the mountains in 2009 and had a great time! We stayed a week in a cabin in Pigeon Forge and plan to continue that tradition from now on! This year Dad, Judy, Jordon, Jeremy and Tiffany are supposed to come and all family are invited!!! I'd love to get one of those huge cabins for 20 people!!

Chirstmas was really special this year because we didn't have one last year! Christmas Day we were still in the hospital with Luke when he was just 3 weeks old. We came home shortly after that but had not had a chance to shop for Christmas presents and then after coming home were concerned and totally wrapped up in taking care of luke and myself still recovering from a C section. The kids had a awesome Christmas this year! Uncle Jeremy and Aunt Tiffany mailed gifts for the kids, we used any extra money we had for presents for them as well, in addition to buying a monster of a wooden playhouse/swingset for the backyard. It really was the best Christmas for me that I can remember! Dad and Judy came with Jordon and the kids had a blast. I'll always treasure the memories we made Christmas 09!!

The new year has started off great! Fred got to take off work to hunt with his brother and dad. Heather, Jody, Fred and I went to see Avatar in the Theater till 1 a.m. earlier this week and had a great time! Managed to be shot by a paintball on the way! Inhaled a meal at chilis before heading to the theater. Jody called fred Hop-a-long because of limping due to his bad knee! lol Hop-a-long...ha! that was funny uncle Jody!

Fred will have surgery in a few weeks to fix his knee and he's a bit nervous about that! But i'm thankful that it will be done by someone I trust and his recovery will be with the nurses I work with and have trusted with two of the kids (Kailyn/tonsils and Carsyn/tubes)

So come on 2010!!! Can't wait to see what's in store!

My favorite Photo taken from this Christmas! Carsyn was trying to pretend like he wasn't eating Santas Cookies!! And Kailyn and my nephew Jordon are just super sweet aren't they?!

Easter 09

Our family picture taken this past April a couple of months before Jeremy and Tiffany got married. This was the day after I made them take over 1000 photos for engagement pictures! An all day photographic Marathon Event! Fun times!