The Eckerd Files

Here it is!

2007-05-02T11:36:00.000-07:00

For some reason, I haven't been able to get this pic to post, but here it is! Kristi's finish...1:59:30 - YEAH!

more OKC marathon

2007-04-29T18:05:00.000-07:00

Here's Matt at the finish line - 1:59:37 - Good Job!

The kids came to greet us after the race!

This is one of the Walls of Time at the OKC memorial site.

Look at all of those medals!

OKC Marathon

2007-04-29T17:55:00.000-07:00

We all ran today! Matt and I ran the half marathon (we both finished in just under 2 hours - Yeah!); Mom, Kim, Layne, and Karissa walked the 5K; and Kylie, Bryce, Carson, and Layne ran the children's marathon (they logged their 25 miles beforhand, then ran their last 1.2 miles today)...notice it is still dark...the race started at 6:30 am...the kids ran at 8:15 am.

Kim ran with the kids - here's Kylie, Bryce, and Carson - Good Job!

Egg Hunt

2007-04-08T18:18:00.000-07:00

We had a short and sweet egg hunt in our back yard. Wyatt caught on pretty quick and was running from egg to egg.

Easter Pics

2007-04-08T18:06:00.000-07:00

This is about as good as it gets on a cold Easter day with four children.

Easter Eggs

2007-04-08T18:01:00.000-07:00

Another year of dyeing eggs...here's Wyatt's part...eating crayons.

Bryce drew a bunny and a chick on one of his eggs.
Kylie's has some polka-dots and stars on hers.

and here is Dayne...notice the blue hands...this was after many times of asking him to stop touching the cup of blue water.

Memphis Zoo

2007-04-02T18:30:00.000-07:00

The first grade boys got the award for the most attended group...four of Bryce's friends got to go with us.

Dayne and Sweet Sydni...they're pretty good buds.
Does anyone know what kind of bird this is? He is pretty awkward looking.

Memphis Zoo

2007-04-02T18:22:00.000-07:00

The kids thought the Polar Bear was really cool - He swam back and forth for at least 20 min.
Here is the whole crew - I'm not sure how we all even stayed together...I don't think we left anyone though...ha ha!

Here is Wyatt looking at some bird - it wasn't even the main exhibit - he didn't seem to mind.

Memphis Zoo

2007-04-02T18:17:00.000-07:00

We spent the day at the Memphis Zoo over spring break. It was a great day! They have so many more animals than we have at our zoo. Panda Bears, Polar Bears, Penquins, Komodo Dragons, Male Lion, and Hippos, just to name a few. The kids had a great time!

Here is Kylie with two of her friends, Kayla, and Rachel.

Sportin' the Doo-Rag

2007-03-23T13:08:00.000-07:00

Here's Wyatt! Uncle Matt tied this Bandanna from the LR Marathon around Wyatt's head...he seemed to think it was pretty cool!

Little Rockers' Marathon!

2007-03-04T16:42:00.000-08:00

Kylie trained this year and accumulated 25.2 miles over the past 6 weeks then rand her last mile in the Little Rockers' Marathon along with 1200 other kids aged 7-12! She ran with her friends: Ella, Ethan, and Adrienne! They had a great time, and I'm pretty sure they RAN the whole mile! Great Job!

Little Rock Marathon!

2007-03-04T16:33:00.000-08:00

My brother, Matt, and I ran the half marathon relay this relay which amounts to 6.6 miles each. As a team I'm pretty sure we finished just under 2 hours - Yeah!

Here's my good friend, Angela. She ran the full 26.2 miles in about 4 hours and 14 minutes - You Go Girl, Awesome!

Here are a couple pics of Matt and I in front of the State Capitol!

More Upward Basketball!

2007-03-04T16:24:00.000-08:00

Here's Kylie! This was her first year to play, too! She played awesome the last quarter of the last game. She shot about four times, then got to shoot a free throw and made it! Great Job Kylie!

FYI - to teach the kids "who to guard" they have five different colored wrist bands and the kids "pair up". So all they have to do is find the child on the other team with the same color wrist band - pretty cool!

Upward Basketball!

2007-03-04T16:18:00.000-08:00

We had the last game of the season this past Saturday! Bryce had a great time learning how to play!
It can be so frustrating trying to get them to understand the basics of the game, but Upward did an awesome job! Bryce learned and improved a ton in the ten weeks he got to play!
Great Job Bryce!

Valentine's Day!

2007-03-04T16:09:00.000-08:00

We made our annual heart shaped, sugar cookies again this year. It just wouldn't be Valentine's Day without them. It looks like we had some red Kool-Aid, too!

Bryce is proud of the cookies he made!
Notice Dayne's Black eye...he was trying to run between the open pantry door and the counter...he didn't quite make it. He hit right on the corner of the counter top...OUCH!

Here are the last remnants of Wyatt's cookie...YUM!

Reptiles!

2007-03-04T16:01:00.000-08:00

Kylie's class at the Home School Academy got to go the the Arkansas Children's Museum for a field trip. At the time they were having a Reptile Exhibit. This is a Leopard Gecko.

Okay...yuck...a gigantic snake...I think it's an albino something or other...yeah...just a big snake! She thinks they're pretty cool, but show her a spider of any kind and watch out...she'll jump up into your arms to get away!
A couple more snakes! They learned quite a bit about snakes and were even on TV for about a half of a second - pretty cool!

Can't Hold Out Any Longer!

2006-12-28T19:17:00.000-08:00

Wyatt was so exhausted, he fell asleep while opening presents on Christmas Day. Too Cute!

More Toys!

2006-12-28T14:12:00.000-08:00

Frog, Puppy, Cat, and Monkey Pillows and Blankets, Bionicles, Transformers, Games, etc. just to name a few!

Boys will be Boys.

2006-12-28T14:09:00.000-08:00

Just a little lovin' for dad!

Roller Blades

2006-12-28T14:08:00.000-08:00

Kylie and Bryce love their new Blades!

Cars!

2006-12-28T14:06:00.000-08:00

If you haven't seen the movie, I highly recommend it, it's great! This is Mater (he's a tow mater) and Lightening McQueen.

Toys, Toys, Toys...

2006-12-28T13:49:00.000-08:00

Horse, Bionicles, Diego's Rescue, and Fur Real Baby Lion, to name a few!

Family Photos

2006-12-28T13:44:00.000-08:00

My brother and sister-in-law, Matt and Karissa Shields.

My sister and brother-in-law and two kids, Mark and Kim Turner, Layne and Carson.

And here we are, I think everyone was looking at a different camera, oh well!

Cousins

2006-12-28T13:43:00.000-08:00

With six kids, this is about as good as it gets...especially when it's almost time to open presents!

Doodle...

2006-12-28T13:40:00.000-08:00

Doodle Horse and two Doodle Monsters...What a hit! You write on them, wash them, then do it all over again. But read closely...for best results wash within 48 hours.

Cookie Man

2006-12-28T13:39:00.000-08:00

Wyatt especially enjoyed his cookies...he got two!

Christmas Cookie

2006-12-28T13:37:00.000-08:00

You can always count on getting a sugar cookie when you visit Great Grandma Shields.

Movie Tent

2006-12-28T13:11:00.000-08:00

Remember those tents you used to make as kids...well, my sister and I built one for our kids to watch movies and sleep in over the Christmas Break. The kids had a lot of fun! Kim and I had a lot of fun, too!

Happy Birthday!

2006-12-18T07:11:00.000-08:00

Rich will turn 35 on Dec. 20th. We celebrated his bithday Saturday night!

Art Show

2006-12-13T10:39:00.000-08:00

Kylie and Bryce took and art class this past semester. Last night they had and art show so all of the parents could see all of their artwork.
Kyie and Bryce both made poinsettas - here is Bryce standing beside his.

Here is Kylie in fron of her butterfly canvas she painted.

Here are some of Kylie's creations.

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-31T19:30:00.000-08:00

The MP-Me player was the big hit of the night! We went to a Trunk-R-Treat and the kids had a great time!

Wyatt - The Little Scarecrow. Dayne said, "Wyatt needs to be a little scarecrow like Bryce!"

Dayne wanted to be a puppy dog again.

Bryce got this shirt from a friend and said, "A scarecrow shirt! I'll be a scarecrow for Halloween!"

More Halloween!

2006-10-31T19:16:00.000-08:00

Last but not least - here is the MP-Me! (I can only blog four pictures at a time) Kylie had a hard time when we first got to "Trunk-R-Treat". She was embarassed because people were laughing "at her". She does not like to be the center of attention and was determined to take her costume off! Although she never felt totally comfortable, she did have a good time!

Back to the ER

2006-10-28T13:15:00.000-07:00

Wyatt got his finger shut in the bathroom door (hinge side) yesterday. I was home with Kylie, Dayne and Wyatt; Bryce was at a friends house and Rich was on his way home from Monroe, LA. Two good friends, Tanya and Angela, came to the rescue, along with a fire truck. The paramedic said to get him to Children's Hospital. So Angela took care of Kylie and Dayne and Tanya drove us to the ER.
Wyatt's finger had been 2/3 of the way severed at somewhere around his nail bed area, but the bone was not damaged.
Anyway, seven hours (thanks to the graham crackers he had eaten), anesthetic, three sutures, replacing fingernail, and a full arm cast later, Wyatt is doing great! We're supposed to keep his arm elevated today as much as possible...yeah right...it's at a pretty good angle when he's in his high chair, but he'll only eat so many cheerios at a time!

Today we are trying to entertain him so he won't walk around so much. I don't think he can hurt his finger the way it's bandaged up, I'm more concerned of him hurting someone or something with his cast if/when he falls.

Well it didn't take very long...he's already busted his lip this morning...you wouldn't know it though...he's up and going again!

The Pumpkin Patch

2006-10-21T16:21:00.000-07:00

The Pumpkin Patch in Grady, AR at Hardin Farms has turned into an annual visit for us. We have been going since Kylie was 4 and Bryce was 2. Today Wyatt stayed home with Rich and I took the three older kids with my friend Tanya and her three older kids - It was a good time!

Here is Kylie...where else...with the horses!

Here is Bryce after the hayride to the pumpkin patch.

The tire and rope swings are always a big hit!

In addition to the pumpkin patch, the kids got their faces painted, went down the two or three story pipe slide, saw the animals, went through a haunted house, and toured through the indian village.

After the Cave

2006-10-20T20:42:00.000-07:00

We had to get a picture of all the kids by the sign: Hunter, Bryce, Kylie, Austin, Dayne, and Sydni.

I wanted to show a picuture of Wyatt - But look at the trees behind them - Beautiful!

This is the waterfall that actually comes out of the cave.

We finished off the day building a campfire, roasting hotdogs and marshmallow to make s'mores!

More caverns

2006-10-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

This is called "popcorn". Caused by the compression of the walls suppporting the roof.
These are "straws". Basically they are infant stalagtites.

This was the last room which was a little bit of everything we had seen!

We even got to see a bat! Look closely - he really is upside down!

Blanchard Springs Caverns

2006-10-20T20:30:00.000-07:00

We went on a field trip to see a cave today! The kids had a great time! Tanya and I had planned this at the beginning of the year to go along with our science program. Here is a picture of a "curtain".

This shows stalagtites and stalagmites.

I think he called this "calcite".

More "tites" and "mites".

Blanchard Springs Caverns

2006-10-20T20:28:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of the cave.

This was from the beginning of the tour - I don't really remember much of what he said.

Something about this little pool being created by natural flow of the water.

More Silver Dollar City

2006-10-18T20:34:00.000-07:00

Here is Dayne playing with the vacuum hose!

The Frog ride was hillarious - they actually hopped around. Even Kylie and Hunter were laughing and having a good time!

Hunter took the hopping over to the butterfly ride. You have control to raise and lower your butterfly, so hunter made his "hop" instead of fly - It was HILARIOUS!

We had to take a picture at the stockade.

We all had a really good time...except when Wyatt had a melt down on the train and made everyone miss the hold up - yes, he was pretty loud - the kind where they arch their back and try to get to the ground, and there's not much
you can do to keep them in your lap.
He immediately went to sleep once we got back to the stroller.

It was pretty comical...well it wasn't at the time...but you should of seen us waiting in line for the bus to take us to our truck. Let's just say we were parked in Lot JD, not A, B,
C, etc. and there was one bus to every 4 shuttles taking people to their cars. (Only the bus was going to our parking lot)...oh yeah, now imagine Tanya and I dividing up the diaper bags, snack bags, etc. among the 4 older chidren to carry while we carry our two youngest children AND the strollers... yes we had two... onto the bus! As I said, it was pretty comical after the fact!

Silver Dollar City

2006-10-18T20:21:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine, Tanya, and I took our kids to Silver Dollar City this past weekend. (Bryce stayed home with Rich and went camping and Austin, Tanya's son went hunting with his dad.) We still had six kids with us, ages 8, 6, 4, 3, 14 mos., and 9 mos. Sounds crazy. . . but it wasn't bad - we had a great time!

This is the ball pit area- there are little foam balls everywhere, flying all over the place. It is 3 stories high with air guns on each level so you can shoot the balls across the room at each other. The bottom level has a bunch of vacuum hoses that suck the balls to higher levels and this fun little thing in the middle that sucks the balls into this big "gumball" looking thing that randomly shoots the balls out of the top!

Anyway, the kids had a blast, even Wyatt! He totally had it figured out - the hardest part for him was trying to grab two balls at a time and still be able to stand up without falling - it was too cute!

Kylie had fun shooting the balls across the room!

Uncle Steve's Retirement Party

2006-10-18T20:13:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of Uncle Steve and Aunt Vicki. Happy Retirement to both of you!

Visiting Mustang, OK

2006-10-18T20:06:00.000-07:00

We had a good time at Rich's parents house a couple of weeks ago. Rich's parents had a retirement party for his Uncle Steve who just recently was able to move back to OK. Rich's brother, Scott, brought his "truck" golf cart. Kylie had a great time driving! It was a big hit with all of the kids - Thanks Uncle Scott!

Scott brought another toy to ride on - Rich was a little big, but couldn't resist!

New pictures of the kids

2006-09-24T15:03:00.000-07:00

Bryce
B Bright
R Responsible
Y Young
C Comical
E Energizing

Dayne
D Dangerous
A Amorous
Y Young
N Neat
E Entertaining

Kylie
K Kind
Y Youthful
L Legendary
I Inspirational
E Enjoyable

Wyatt
W Whimsical
Y Yearling
A Adventurous
T Tough
T Tasty

Proud dad of the next all-star.

2006-09-24T14:49:00.000-07:00

Down, Set, Hike!! Check out that good three-point stance with the feet shoulder length apart. Head up, back straight, his body in a position where he can explode out of his stance in a hurry.

Good balance is important. See Wyatt's low base?

The thing about Wyatt is he is so versitile. The previous pictures showed a strong offensive linesman stance the second showed a good defensive end and now the third. Well, just look at the deceptively sweet look on his face. You might, by the sweetness in his eyes, underestimate his crazy fast feet or his sure fire, never drop a ball hands, but never doubt his cunningness when the game is on the line.

Grandma and Papa are here!

2006-09-15T17:27:00.000-07:00

Mom and Paul went to Branson, MO for a few days then came down to AR to visit us. The kids have to get Grandma on the trampoline everytime she visits.
Dayne got a new bike!

and a cool new...well not new, but a cool, red, radio flyer scooter with training wheels! It's a lot of fun!

Kylie got a red scooter like Bryce's blue one.

We had a great time visiting - we even got to go play putt-putt!

Mt. Magazine

2006-09-07T18:37:00.000-07:00

We went to Mt. Magazine in western Arkansas this past weekend - it has the highest peak in Arkansas. We went through the visitors center and then we went fo a hike on one of the many hiking trails.
Having four children, it was difficult to stand very close to the edge of this cliff - well, Dayne was really the main concern. I could just see him running right over the edge. Needless to say, I had a death grip on Dayne and Bryce the entire time we were beside this cliff. The trail stays right on the edge for about 30 yards.

Happy Easter!

2006-04-16T12:21:00.000-07:00

We hope you all have a wonderful Easter Celebration today!

The Whole Team

2006-04-14T15:36:00.000-07:00

Here is the team of people we had the pleasure of serving in Porto Alegre. What an awesome group of friends!

More Brazil Pics!

2006-04-14T15:26:00.000-07:00

There's nothing better than serving with awesome friends!

These are my new friends from Brazil! (I made many more friends, too, but these girls were in my small group) I miss all of you so much!

Here we are at the most awesome waterfall less than 50 yards from camp! It is beautiful!

Here are all of our new friends in Brazil. This is everyone who attended the English Camp!

Brazil Pics

2006-04-14T15:20:00.000-07:00

Here is Rich and Harry mixing the concrete to lay the floor in Helen and Hugo's Home.

Here we are at a school inviting students to the
English Camp.

Here is a scenic picture overlooking the city of Porto Alegre.

It's A Bird!

2006-04-08T18:46:00.000-07:00

This is what welcomed us home from being gone for a week! This bird flew into our house when we opened the front door! "Surprise. . .I built my nest in the flowers on the front door!" There are about five eggs in the nest - if we didn't scare the bird away, we'll update when they hatch!

We Did It!

2006-03-08T11:57:00.000-08:00

I guess I should say, "I Did It". There was no doubt that Angela and Amy would do well. They finished in about 2 hours. I finished in 2 hours, 13 min, and 50 sec. I did beat my goal of 2:20:00 though - needless to say I was pretty pumped!

Little Rock Half Marathon

2006-03-08T11:42:00.000-08:00

Well here we are before the race! Amy (L), Angela (R), and me.
Here are all of our kids from Left to Right: Cadin, Adrienne, Camber, Isabella, Bryce, Ethan, Cooper, and Kylie. The three C's are Amy's, the other three are Angela's, and then two of my four came to cheer all of us on!
Here was the perfect hand off from Rich. Between miles 4 and 5 I was ready for my special energy jelly bellys.
The kids had a blast cheering for all of the runners. They even got to see Arkansas' Governor Mike Huckabee run by. (Sorry no pictures - He was somewhere inbetween Angela and Amy running together and me bringing up the rear. Grant (Amy's husband) says he was busy looking for me to run by and missed him - Oh well. . .it's okay Grant, I'm sure the kids will forgive you at some point when we remind them of this but don't have the pics to prove it.)

It's Snowing!

2006-02-10T12:19:00.000-08:00

". . .standing outside with my mouth open wide, a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-a, if all the snowflakes were candy bars and milkshakes oh what a snow that would be. . ."

2006-02-10T12:18:00.000-08:00

Only these two would have snow collect on their eyelashes!

2006-02-10T12:16:00.000-08:00

Dayne is having so much fun playing out in the snow!

Sitting Up!

2006-02-09T15:05:00.000-08:00

"Look at me - I am beginning to sit up all by myself!"

2006-02-09T15:03:00.000-08:00

"I found my Paci all by myself!"

2006-02-09T15:01:00.000-08:00

They must be Brothers!

2006-02-09T15:00:00.000-08:00

Just look at those eyelashes - they must be brothers!

2006-02-09T14:36:00.000-08:00

And last, Photo #4 of 4.

2006-02-09T14:35:00.000-08:00

Photo #3 of 4

2006-02-09T14:34:00.000-08:00

Here is Photo #2 of 4

6 Month Photo

2006-02-09T14:32:00.000-08:00

Help me choose Wyatt's 6 month photo - Which is your favorite?

First Food!

2006-01-01T16:14:00.000-08:00

I finally started feeding Wyatt real food today and not just formula. Rice Cereal...yum yum!

He did great! Granted, it was only about a tablespoon of food - but he actually ate it and it wasn't just all over him and me!

Christmas

2005-12-27T10:23:00.000-08:00

Well, we survived all of the traveling and had a wonderful Christmas. The kids had a fun time getting to see everyone and received some really "awesome" gifts (as Bryce would say).

We hope all of you had a great time celebrating Jesus' birth with your friends and family!

Clean..., cont.

2005-12-20T14:11:00.000-08:00

This is how they clean the inside of the tub - whatever works!

If you're having trouble seeing it, they are cleaning with their feet!

Clean, clean, clean...

2005-12-20T14:09:00.000-08:00

Kylie and Bryce enjoy helping me clean the bathrooms. Here's the trick: buy a box of inexpensive baby wipes and pour a non-toxic cleaner on top of the whole box.
Looks like fun, huh?

Hair Cut, cont.

2005-12-20T14:06:00.000-08:00

Okay, here is the side view - it still sticks straight up, but a definite improvement!

Hair Cut

2005-12-20T14:03:00.000-08:00

Okay, here it is! What do you think?

Wild Hair, cont.

2005-12-20T13:59:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to show another "wild hair" picture!

Wild Hair

2005-12-20T13:54:00.000-08:00

Look at that mane! Wyatt's hair has gotten so wild lately - it just keeps growing "taller and taller". I finally decided it was time for a hair cut.

Family Christmas

2005-12-09T19:14:00.000-08:00

We are having so much fun...trust me.