Our new word

In comparison to how much Lexi Kate talked at this age, Sam says very little. In fact, he only says "Momma" when he is VERY desperate. He frequently says Dada, Daddy, Kate Kate, Chi Chi, and Ni-Ni (night night). But, today his new word is "stinky". Come on, you can say "stinky" but you won't say "momma". When I go to change his diaper I always 'smell' and say "does Sam have a stinky?" Here, lately there have been lots of "Oh yes, Sam has a stinky" responses. So, now he has caught on. The last 2 days when I have picked him up to change his diaper he will start saying "stinky".

Little Ears

So, I should have known that a daily blog was beyond my capabilities.... But, I really haven't thought of anything worthy of sharing. So, maybe I will settle for a weekly update.

This morning we went back to the ENT for Lexi Kate's one year check-up on her tubes. Great news is that her tubes look great. Her left one is starting to move a bit, but Dr. Crook felt sure it would make it through the winter. Hopefully they will come out on thier own sometime this spring/early summer. We would love to be able to swim without ear plugs! If they aren't out by this fall, we will have to have them removed- they don't want to leave them in more than 2 years.

Dr. Crook also took a look at Sam. Bad news is, it seems he is going down the road to having tubes put in as well. We are going back in 2 weeks to check the fluid level and have some testing done. We are just praying he doesn't get another ear infection before Christmas. That would mean we needed tubes immediately, and we are hoping to hold off until after the first of the year.

So, once again join us in praying for little ears. I would like to share an amazing answer to prayer yesterday. No secret that times are very tight around our house right now. Even though I am babysitting and doing some consulting work part time, we just felt like it may be time for me to go back to work full time to have regular income and health insurance. I had an opportunity come up, and Jeff really wanted me to take it. So, we just prayed as a family that God would make it perfectly clear what we should do. Within minutes of being in the meeting, I practically heard God speaking saying this wasn't what we needed to do. I was worried about talking to Jeff about it, but as soon as I called him after the meeting, he said he knew it wasn't meant for me to go back to work. Couldn't be much clearer than that.

7 steps

In my effort to be a better blogger, I figured I would shoot for every day until it becomes a habbit. Two screaming kids and a grumpy husband downstairs, means a short post today. The most exciting news of the day is that Sam took 7 steps on 2 different occasions. Hopefully he will be officially walking soon.

I have got to get better at this

I really need to start updating every night before I go to bed, just so I can have a record of the craziness and funniness that goes on around here. Because, I know I have forgotten some really good stuff over the last 2 months.

Part of my problem is that I have started working another job. Well, not that I go to work, but trust me keeping a 4 month old in adittion to my 2 kids is work. During the day I don't have a spare moment to breathe, muchless update a blog.

We have had a wonderful Halloween and Thanksgiving since my last update. Sam has 2 more teeth, 3 more ear infections, and is standing alone, trying really hard to walk.

This weekend we decorated for Christmas, which is one of my favorite things to do. I would love to decorate for all the seasons and holidays, but that would be more than my family could bear. This is the 5 weeks out of the year that I risk setting around things that can break, setting the table with good tablecloths, placemats, and dishes- knowing it is all going to cause me to constantly chase children and yelling, "stop that". But, I just can't help myself. The one unfortunate decision I had to make this year- yes, my Christmas trees look ridiculous with baby fences around them. But, weighing that against a trip to the ER- gate wins.

I am including some random pictures, and hopefully from now on I will be better about updating more frequently and having pictures to go with stories. And, did I mention that Sam is 4 weeks away from his first birthday- CRAZY!

More Lexi Kate crazy conversations

I have got to get better about updating the sight, especially when it comes to the things my kids say and do.

To start with Sam, because his won't take so long. He is now crawling, army crawling of course- I don't think my children have the normal crawling gene. Anyway, he also likes to roll over and crawl away while getting his diaper changed. So, as we are in the floor changing his diaper, off he goes bare bottom. Get the visual: naked hiney in air, man parts dragging the ground, army crawling full speed ahead across the carpet. This doesn't have a pretty ending. About six feet across the room, Sam is introduced to the idea of carpet burn, in a less than pleasant place. The child pops up faster that "jack" comes out of his "box", grabs his goods and just whimpers. Now you would think that lesson alone would deter him from repeating this behavior. Nope! So, maybe I will start potty training him, and just give up diapers all together.

Not as funny, but still a milestone in our house. Sam has pretty much given up his baby food for the food he can feed himself. He may just be as independent as his sister. He doesn't really like to take a bottle, but his hunger usually prevails on that one. His idea of a perfect meal would be his sippy cup and a variety of things he can stuff in his mouth. His favorite so far has been a meal of rice, peas, carrots, and banana puffs.

He is also pulling up on everything, regardless of how secure it is. I think we are going to have to do much more baby proofing around here. I thought I had baby proofed the dog food by sitting it on the landing of the stairs. Nope- found Sam earlier today sitting on the stairs chewing on dog food- Yummy!

So much for Sam's update being short.... now on to Lexi Kate. She amazes me with her thought processes. I thought I was a pretty smart kid, but I don't think I was as smart as she is when I was in High School, much less when I was 3. Just a few of our conversations this week: Lexi Kate wanted to wear her big girl panties to bed. I told her we could only do that if she didn't have any milk or juice to drink after supper. She said okay and went to pick out her pajamas. When she came back to me she said, "Mom, I have an idea. I can drink half a cup of milk and put one of those small diapers you use in my panties and I will be good to go."

Yesterday, Lexi Kate was out done with the 2 weeks of rain we have gotten. She was so happy the sun was out, and was ready to play. I said it sure is beautiful right now, but it looks like it is going to rain again soon. Lexi Kate says, "No, Mommy, I gave that rain a bad spanking and told it not to come back last night." I asked what she was going to do if it did come back. "I am going to put God in timeout if it rains again today." Thankfully it was pretty yesterday afternoon and we didn't have to deal with putting God in timeout.

Today, I had to go put out Open House signs on a listing in Liepers Fork. I told Lexi Kate to get ready because we had to go. She proceeded to tell me she didn't want to go to work. I said, I am sorry but we have to leave right now. She ran back inside the house, plopped down in the floor with her Bible and says, "I am going to read my Bible and talk to Jesus about what he wants me to do today." I responded, "Trust me, Jesus wants you to obey Mommy. And, if you are really good, he said you could have McDonald's on the way home." (Sorry, I am sure that qualifies as using God's name in vain.) LK's response, "Okay, we can go now, but I am still taking my Bible with me to see what Jesus says."

Tomorrow we are having our family pictures made. Sam will be 9 months old, and it will serve as Lexi Kate's 3 year pictures, and our family Christmas card pictures. Check out www.jadiethomasphotography.com tomorrow evening for previews of the pictures.

I couldn't make this stuff up

I wish I had a notebook around my neck so I could write down all the things that come out of Lexi Kate's mouth. One day I am going to want to remind her of all her antics, and I am thinking it will come at 2 times: when she starts dating & thinks she is hot stuff, and when she has a 2 year old herself.

The first real thing Lexi Kate said this morning: "Mommy, do I have T.V. priviledges?"
'Yes, Lexi Kate, you have t.v. priviledges until you disobey, then Mommy will take them away.'
"Well, Mommy, you can't take my t.v. priviledges away anymore."
'I am sorry Lexi, but if you disobey, you will lose your t.v. priviledges.'
"No, Mommy, you can't take my t.v. priviledges away. I have hid them in my heart with Jesus, and nobody can ever take that away."

Well, I guess she has that one all figured out. I am so proud that she has the concept of Jesus being in her heart and noonne can take that away from her. However, we may have some serious issues around here as she choses to hide more things in her heart so they can't be taken away.

First Day of School

I have gotten bad at blogging again. It seems time is in short supply these days, but hopefully we will get back in a groove now that school has started. The pictures above are LK on her 3rd birthday in the white dress, Sam on his 8 month day, LK on the couch after falling out of the chair and hitting her head while Emma takes care of her, LK on her first day of preschool in her rain jacket.

Today was a whole new ballgame as far as starting school is concerned. The first year of school LK cried the whole time for 3 weeks, cried for about 30 minutes for 5 more weeks; last year LK cried for about 10 minutes for the first 5 weeks of school; today LK walked right into her classroom and said, "You can go now Mom, I am here with my friends." I think that made me more sad than her crying. No hug, no kiss, just get the heck out of here so I can do my thing. I am so glad she has improved so much socially- afterall that is the whole reason we started taking her to preschool. But, she is still my baby and I want her to always need and want me. I guess I am the one that needs help now.

How did it happen so fast?

This has been one of those weeks where I have found myself wondering how the days can go by so slowly yet the years go by so fast? Earlier in the week I realized that not only was Sam already eight months old, in only 15 weeks he would be turning one. For some reason 15 weeks just doesn't seem like very long, and turning one is a big deal. I can remember when I had 15 weeks left in my pregnancy with Lexi Kate, not to mention how short a period of time it seems like it has been since I had 15 weeks left in my pregnancy with Sam. I just hate that life has gone by so fast.

It has been a crazy month around here. So many times it seems like I have meant to set down and blog, but I just haven't gotten around to it. Now, I don't remember half of the funny things I was going to share.

The highlight of my week was Lexi Kate deciding on her own free will to throw away her diapers. We have finally made the plunge into big girl world. One of the pictures in this post is of her and her friend Emma tossing all of her diapers in the trash. Hopefully she doesn't realize I went and dug them out. Sam will be using those before long.

Today was Lexi Kate's 3rd birthday party. For some reason I think these birthday parties are as important to me as they are to here. I just absolutely love planning out a great party with several friends and all our family to celebrate my children. Yes, there are days I would give her away in a heart beat, and even contemplate killing her. But, she is mine, and I am so proud that God blessed our lives with her. Birthdays are just a great day to focus on how much we love her. And, the fact that Lexi Kate gets so excited about her parties and thanks me over and over for making a beautiful cake, cooking wonderful food, decorating perfectly.... makes me want to do it all the more. At this moment 3 years ago I was sitting in this same chair reading about labor on the internet, watching Law and Order on tv. Had I known I would be going into labor in 2 hours, I would have been in bed. I haven't gotten to catch up on my sleep since....

Happy Birthday Precious Princess! You are a gift from God!

I have become my mother

Our internet connection at the beach is entirely too slow to attempt pictures, but I will upload some when we get home. The kiddos are so cute! My big realization is that I have become my mother. I guess that is okay, because she was a great mother, and I love her, but....

When I was a kid it made me "hate" my parents when they would go on a vacation by themselves and leave me with my grandparents. At the time I thought it was because they didn't love me as much as they loved each other. And frankly, I thought they were being cruel and causing me to miss out on the fun. Now, that I am on vacation with 2 small children, I realize this is no vacation at all for parents. In fact, it is harder work than being at home. Sure, the beach is nice and I am glad to be here, but I am already exhausted from taking kids to the pool and beach, making sure we have everything we need, then as soon as we get settled, it is time to come back up to change diapers, eat lunch, and take a nap. This "vacation" is simply a time to let the kids do whatever they want and have fun, so we can spend the next 2 weeks at home getting them back into routine. So, Mom, I am so sorry for all the grief that I gave you over taking a weekend away. Now, I realize how much you needed the break. Hope you are up for keeping my kids, so I can take a vacation. Jeff and I could certainly benefit for some time away together to recharge as a couple and as parents, so in fact we can be better parents.

The other thing that makes me my mother.... I actually am wearing a skirted bathing suit. I swore I would never be one of those "old", "uncool" moms that resorted to wearing unfashionable bathingsuits and clothes just because they were moms. When my mom was 30 wearing a skirted bathing suit, I thought she looked old and ridiculous. Now that I am 30, have had 2 kids in 28 months time; it isn't old and ridiculous, it is common courtesy to the hundreds of other people trying to enjoy thier time at the beach. I will admit the other moms here running around in bikinis, SOME of them actually looking decent, make me jealous. However, when I put on the 1 bikini I still own, see my disproportioned body hanging out in places it shouldn't, my stretch marks shining, and veins standing out; I take it off and grab the skirted tankini and head to the beach. Oh well, I have become my mother.

Another thing that makes me realize that I have become my mother.... I no longer desire to do the things I used to on vacation. We are here with my Dad and Step-Mom, who are itching to do fun adult things. You can tell neither of them have really taken kids on vacation. Emily never had children, and my parents were divorced when I was so young, my dad never went on vacation with me. Sure, I would love to sleep in, sleep by the pool, eat at fancy restaurants, and going shopping. But, when a 2 year old is saying, "Mommy, Mommy...." it all goes away. This morning at 5:30 Sam was awake and ready to eat. So much for sleeping in on vacation. Once he was fed and settled, LK was up wanting to watch the dolphins. So, at 6:30 we were standing on the porch watching dolphins jumping in the ocean. The old me that wouldn't have been up before 9:00 would have missed those sweet little boy smiles before the sun was up, and the precious joy on the face of a 2 year old watching fishes jump into the sunrise. I love my children more than life itself, more than any other life I could imagine, and that makes me JUST LIKE MY MOTHER.

Mom, if you are reading this, thank you for being a fabulous mother. Thank you for being the type of mom I want to be. I can only hope my children grow up feeling the love, joy, and fulfillment I felt as a child. And, if that is the case. I will be so proud to have become my mother.

Milestones

These are random pictures I don't have time to separate out... LK helping Papa reload shells for his trap shooting, Sam in the float at our pool, Sam crawling, and all the kids in the pool.





We have had an exciting week. Sam is starting to crawl to get his toys, and he is sitting up all the time. It is funny to watch him sit up and reach for his toys and not fall flat on his face. He is loving his new found independence. I am loving his ability to entertain himself. Considering that LK got her first teeth when she was 10 months old, I don't want to speculate, but I think Sam is teething. He drools like a bassett hound, and is chewing on everything in sight. His chew toy of choice is my Crocs, yes I know it is disgusting. I finally broke down and cleaned them with clorox he likes chewing on them so much. I am hoping he is teething just to explain the fussiness over the last couple weeks. Sam is usually my happy go lucky child, but he has cried all day today.

LK is still making me question my sanity. I love her, and am super blessed to have such an independent girl. I know how thankful I am going to be when she is a teenager. But her whit and stubborness, and intelligence wrapped up in an almost 3 year old body is a bit overbearing. She can negoiate just about anything. And, she is so stinking persistent I just give in. We literally sat at the dinnner table an hour and fifteen minutes to get her to eat 2 pieces of shells and cheese and one bite of pork tenderloin. These are foods she actually likes. She just didn't want to eat them tonight because we didn't have french fries.

So much more to write, but 2 screaming kids are calling my name...

Performance Review???

Not trying to toot my own horn here, just trying to give you a little background to help understand my feelings about today.... I was valedictorian of my 8th grade class, graduated w/honors in the top 10 of high school class, recieved a full scholoarship to college, graduated as the Outstanding Senior Woman from Murray State, was the Outstanding Senior in Business Administration, finished the training program of my first job in 7 weeks instead of 5 months, was offered a job in the corporate office reserved for higher up managers only 8 weeks off the training program of that job, advanced quickly and recieved raises at every performance review; in fact every job I held since then I was promoted and recieved significant raises and accolades with every performance review.... In a nutshell, I feel like I have always been successful if I put my mind to it, and honestly, I enjoyed that recognition. I know I probably deserved a lesson in humility.

Then, God in HIS infinite wisdom called me to be a stay at home mom. I love my children, and feel incredibly blessed. But honestly, some times I just feel like I suck at this job, and today my children agreed. Why is it so hard? Where is the job description, that I can check off as I complete the task? And honestly, I could use a raise!!!!!!!! Before 9 am I had soured spit up in my hair (and I actually took a shower and dried my hair this morning); LK had peed in my bed (AGAIN), after which she said, "Mommy quit throwing a fit"; LK screamed as I took her to school telling me she hated it and hated me for making her go. Later in the morning I took Sam for his 6 month checkup & shots which resulted in a crying, non-napping infant the rest of the day. I picked LK up from school, which she said she enjoyed, and thought thigns were looking up. She also decided not to nap which was fine until about 4:30 when everything resulted in tears and whining.

Jeff came home from work and immediately told me what a terrible day he had and he needed some time to unwind. Seriously? Me too! I try so hard to let him relax and not have any worries at home. I so much appreciate how hard he works to provide for our family, so for the most part I don't have to. But today, I need a break. My job is 24 hours a day 7 days a week, and sometimes I need a 15 minute break. Especially on weeks like this when my 3 part time jobs are going to require I work about 45 hours without my kids being in day care.

I am sure you have heard enough of my complaining about my rough day and rough week. I know many working moms out there that would love to trade places with me. But, sometimes I just wonder what my performance review as a Housewife/Stay-at-Home mom would look like???? I want to be calm, do great crafts, discipline perfectly, and have a spotless house; but, it isn't happening.... And, I am starting to get very frustrated with myself.

Days like today make me seriously consider calling my old boss and asking for my job back..... But, then I look at these sweet faces and know someday, "I am going to miss this...."

Sam is 6 months old

I just wrote a long post about Sam being 6 months old, and some things LK is doing now. But it got all jumbled some how. So, for now here are some of the pictures we had made today....

Behind again...

I just opened the blog to update, and realized it has almost been a month since I updated. GEEZZZZ. Sam will be 6 months old on Friday. The sad thing is several times over the last 3 weeks different things have come to mind that I wanted to post, and I just didn't get around to it. Now, I can't remember what they were.


I did want to post pictures from Sam's dedication. Sunday, June 7 was a special day for us. We got to share Sam's dedication to the Precious Lord who gave him to us in the first place. I am so thankful He has entrusted both of these kids to my care. It is a huge blessing. In addition to the dedication at church, we had 40 of our friends and family at the house for lunch. Yes, I cooked a real meal for that many people, and they all had a place to sit.


Sam has started trying to army crawl. He has only been successful on 2 occasions. Honestly, I am not ready for that, so I have quit laying him on his stomach. Sometimes he has somewhere he needs to go, so he tries to get there on his own. It is really pretty funny to watch.

LK is still madly in love with her brother. She wants to hold him all the time. She tries to pick him up pretty often now, so we are having to watch her. I hate that I feel like I am constantly telling her to stop or be careful. I know she has good intentions, but it isn't going to turn out so good one of these days.

Speaking of LK, she is becoming a potty training nightmare. She knows how to pee and poop in the potty. However, she may or may not choose to do it on any given day. She will tell me whether or not she is going to use the potty each day, most days it is a not day. I don't know what we are going to do when school starts back this fall. she can't go if she isn't potty trained. HELP!!!

My Baby is 5 months old

I can't believe it, but my baby boy is 5 months old today. He is rolling over in both directions, eating cereal and some vegetables, and trying to sit unassisted. He is growing up sooooo fast.

Dinner time first: Carrots and Hot Wings

Tonight LK and Sam both had dinnertime firsts. LK had hot wings for the first time, and Sam had carrots. LK was eating chicken nuggets, sweet potatoes, and rolls. She saw that Jeff had hot wings and asked for one. He pulled the skin off and gave her a bite, and of course she loved it. She had some more with the skin on. Nice! Hopefully I won't pay for that tomorrow.

Sam has been kinda eating rice cereal, but he isn't a fan. He has seemed to be starving hungry today, so I decided to give him some carrots. He ate almost the whole jar. He would grab my hand with both hands and shove the spoon in his mouth. It was so funny. He even licked the extra off of his mouth.

I am going back to potty training boot camp with LK tomorrow. She did so good for awhile, but we both got off track. Hopefully we can get it licked this time.

I just can't keep up

Here lately I have found myself wondering what my problem is.... I just can't seem to keep up. I know several stay-at-home moms who also work part-time, and it seems like they have things much more together than I do. It never fails that I have dirty dishes in the sink, dirty laundry to be done, and a disaster all over my house. For those of you who know me well, you know it drives me nuts! I try to pick up everyday, do dishes everyday, and even do some laundry every day, but I just can't keep up. Thus, maintaining the blog falls further down the list of things to get done today.

We honestly haven't had much going on lately. Sam has had another ear infection, I closed on the craziest realestate deal ever, we went to Chatanooga with the kids for our 5th anniversary, and we are still praying each day that JEff's business survives another month in this crazy economy.

Sam is growing like crazy. I can't remember exactly, but I think at Sam's 4 month checkup he weighed 16.5 lbs and was 24 .5 inches long. He is finally sleeping through the night which makes everything else in life much better.

LK is still her same little adorable, highly opinionated self. She is so much like me there are days I could kill her. She has decided for the time being that she is not going to use the potty. Not that she doesn't know how, or can't for some reason, she just doesn't want to. We have tried to bribe her with everything under the sun, and she just doesn't care. For several weeks she went without a single accident, but now she hardly goes potty at all. Again, drives me crazy! She is smart as a whip, and a master manipulator, which isn't working out too well for the home team.

No other big plans for the summer that I know of yet. I have one house listed now, and another to list on June 1. Please join me in praying that they both sell. We definately need it right now.

Pray for little ears

Jeff took Sam back to the doctor today while I was working... that alone deserved prayer. But, we found out Sam has another double ear infection. I am just praying that we get past this as the weather gets warmer. Poor guy isn't even 4 months old yet and we are on our 3rd ear infection.

Random thoughts

I don't know why I can't keep this blog up to date, probably the same reason I can't keep anything else in my life up to date.....

I was just having some random reflections and thought I would share for your entertainment value.... Lexi Kate is potty training, what fun that has been. Actually she does pretty well, all when she wants to. In true character for Lexi Kate she will tell you as soon as she wakes up whether or not she is going to pee in the potty that day. And, we she feels real jazzy she will even ask what she is going to get if she goes potty. I guess using rewards wasn't necessarily the best idea.... If her bladder is anything like mine, we will be broke very soon. We had told her when she peed and pooped in the potty every day she could get a swing set. We had a poop accident the other day, and I asked her if she wanted her swingset. She said, "No, I don't really need it, I will just play with my friends."

We went to KY last weekend to celebrate Easter with my parents. The most exciting part of the trip was learning that LK gets car sick. Nice! I always got car sick as a child, and unfortunately it seems LK has inherited the trait. I can't believe it, but I actually paid $40 for a beach towell for her to sit on for the remainder of the trip. I had extra clothes for her to put on, but not an extra car seat cover. We stopped at a little gift shop and asked if they had any towells. Of course all they had were Vera Bradley beach towells. To top it off, they didn't even have the one that matched the pattern of other stuff I already had.

LK got her haircut on Wednesday. She has gotten where she really likes the whole experience. We talk about Ms. Honey all the time, and the fact that we get sparkles and suckers. Wednesday after Honey finished cutting LK's hair, LK immediately asked for her sparkle spray. Then, when Honey put a glitter star on her cheek, LK informed her that she forgot to do the other one. LK then got down out of the chair, turned around in front of the mirror, and said, "I am so beautiful."

Yesterday we were on the way to meet some friends at the park. From the backseat I hear, "My daddy is Jeff Woo(d)ford, he is my best daddy ever, my best friend. He is really great." If only Jeff could have been there to hear it for himself. LK can say her full name, and our names for that matter but for some reason leaves the middle "d" out of Woodford. So sweet to hear her say it.

Sam is "talking" up a storm now. Those sweet smiles and coos make the world go round. He looks just like his daddy, it is amazing how cute the little guy is. For his sake, it is good that he is so talkative and smiley. Considering he still gets up twice during the night, I might give him away if he didn't look at me with those loving smiles and talk to me...

Rolling Over!

I know I am way behind on pictures and updates, AGAIN. But, I wanted to let everyone know that Sam has started rolling over. I can't believe he is "growing up" so fast. It is a bitter sweet moment as I realized we are starting the last of our "first times".

First trip to the ER

I shouldn't have mentioned it, but I was joking with our neighbors just a few hours before about how many trips we would make to the ER this summer. Well, mark one down for Lexi Kate. We were at our neighbor's birthday party and LK and Aidan were climbing the steps. I told her to stop before she fell, and then down she came. Her head met the wooded banister, and out poured the tears, blood, and screams. We weren't sure how bad it really was, but our neighbor who is a nurse suggested we go to the ER. LK was such a trooper. The triage nurse asked her what happened, and LK described everything perfectly. "I was climbing the stairs, and Mommy told me to come down before I fell. But, I fell down backwards anyway and flipped upside down and hit my head. It was hurting and bleeding." The nurse asked where her ouie was, LK moved her bangs and said, "Look right here, honey."

Once the doctor finally saw her, the cut had stopped swelling and bleeding, and had started to come back together. The doctor said it was a deep cut, but clean enough that he wouldn't stitch it up if it was his 2 year old. He was afraid the "trauma" of getting stitches would be more harmful than the small scar that would be left. So, we cleaned her up, got some ointment, and came home.

Fun couple of days

Last Friday we made our first trip to the zoo of the year. We had told the kids we would take them becuase it was supposed to be 70 degrees and sunny. Well, that didn't happen, but once you have told a 2 year old you are going to the zoo, you better be packed and ready. Well packing and getting ready is very interesting when you are taking 4 kids under the age of 3. We went with our neighbors who also have a 2 year old and a baby. It was quiet fun, and interesting. Sam somewhat enjoyed his first trip to the zoo....

Big words for a little girl

As most of you know, Lexi Kate is quiet a handful when it comes to obedience. And, hopefully, most of you understand that I am exhausted and haven't been very good and enforcing rules lately. Realizing that this is spiraling out of control, I am back on board. Last night LK refused to obey on the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd time I gave her a command. So, no tv it was. She repeatedly said she was sorry, and insisted she deserved tv time again. She wanted to know why if she apologized she still had to pay the consequence. She was even very, very sorry. But, we stuck to our guns and didn't watch tv.

This morning, LK informed everyone that she was disobedient last night, said she was sorry, and even though she apologized she had to pay consequences. She said today she was going to listen the 1st time so she could watch tv.

And now it is 4:30, we didn't get a good nap today, and we seem to have forgotten our lesson from yesterday. Now, we are explaining again why if we "polergize" we still have to pay "conquences". And parenting doesn't get any worse than this. How do you keep from laughing when your sweet 2 year old is saying "Disobedient, apologize, and consequences all in the same conversation." Not to mention she repeatedly says she is so very sorry.

Watch Sam Grow

You wouldn't know by looking at him, but Sam has actually been sick the last few weeks. We had his 2 month checkup this week. He now weighs 12lb 8.5oz, and is 22.5 inches long.

6 weeks

7 weeks

8 weeks

9 weeks

Long time....

I know I am way behind on posting on the blog. I still don't have my camera upstairs to post pictures, but I thought I would update the blog anyway.

Sam is growing like a weed, or more like a marshmallow. He is getting to be a little porker, hmmm... maybe he gets that honest. Part of the reason I haven't been able to post in awhile is the fact that one or both of the kids have been sick for the last 3 weeks. Sam has actually lost a pound this week. He is now 10lb. 8oz. We were at the doctor with him yesterday. He still has an upper respiratory infection, which has also developed into a double ear infection. NICE. But, we are praising God that he has been protected from the more serious RSV or pneumonia. He is smiling all the time now, and even "talking" a little. He is starting to get into the fun stage for me. Most of you who know me, know that newborns aren't my favorite. I like the variety that sleep through the night and interact with me. Sam is still getting up all through the night, thanks to the ear infection. I think I have had less than 12 hours sleep all week total. But, this too shall pass.....

Lexi Kate has had the stomach virus, RSV, and pneumonia in the last 3 weeks. And, my OB asked if I was sure I was finished having children. YES, YES, YES! I have one of each, both healthy as far as major things go. Let's quit while we aren't too far behind the bus. LK's imagination is amazing! Her memory is even more so. Last night she saw a rolled up beach now and began describing it in detail and talking about all the things we did at the beach in September. What, I don't remember what I did yesterday. LK is still a great big sister. I think she loves Sam as much as I do, if that is possible. She is a super little helper and worries about him all the time.

Jeff is exhausted. We are praising the Lord for all the work he has provided us right now. So many contractors are going under due to lack of work, and we are going under all the work that is piled up. Jeff is working from 7am- 1am every day last week. He worked from 8am-9pm yesterday, which was Saturday. We have 3 big commercial jobs going in addition to the residential. Thank you Jesus, please join us in praying Jeff can just sustain to get it all done. I am also busy with work now. I have several real estate projects in the mix, and am praying they all close.

Gotta run now to get ready for a baby shower. Thank you all for your prayers and loving our family.

Life

Starting off on a cute note, this is Sam at 5 weeks old.




Now, be warned.... if you have a weak stomach read no further....

Yesterday was Lexi Kate's best friends 2nd birhtday party. We have been playing with my family all weekend, as they were here to escape the horrible weather in KY. Around noon, Lexi Kate agreeably went down for her nap so she could get up and get ready for Aidan's birthday party. I should have known something was wrong when she didn't put up a fight to take a nap. However, I was giving her the benefit of a doubt that she was just so excited to go to the party she wanted to make sure she didn't sleep through it. She seemed perfectly normal when she got up from her nap, picked out her dress to wear and even asked me to pull her hair up in "ear dogs" so she could be super cute. We got to the party and she was playing in the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse of 1000 balls with the other kids. They were so cute playing together, when I captured the image below through the lens of my camera.



I threw the camera and screamed, "Get them out she is throwing up!" It was so bad we had to cut her dress off of her. My instinct was just to keep as much puke as possible off the balls, so I folded her dress up for her to throw up in, creating a horrible bowl and ruining her adorable outfit. I can only pray that we didn't contaminate the other kids at the party. Welcome to life..........

Cupcake Factory

I don't have time to write much, but I just had to share these pictures of Jeff and Lexi Kate making cupcakes for my birthday...

4 weeks and 30 years

Sam and I have big birthdays today. He is 4 weeks old, and I turned 30. Being the sweet little boy he is, he didn't want mommy to spend the hour of her birthday alone, so we were up from 1:30- 4:00am partying. Actually, we were catching up on my tivo programs.... It has been a great day. I actually slept in a little, 6:55am has gotten to be late for me. I got up, had my coffee, fed Sam and then Lexi Kate woke up. She wanted waffles and milk, so I fixed her breakfast. Pretty normal day.... I have resisted my urge to do anything productive today. I really want to do laundry and catch up on some unfinished tasks, but I am trying to relax. Both kids have slept so I even took a nap. Other than being with my precious family, the best part of my day was lunch with my dear friend Lanesia and her son Aidan. We took all of the kids to Puckett's. I wanted to be somewhere that it was loud and they wouldn't notice if the kids were crying or acting out. Now I am trying to decide where I want Jeff to take me to dinner.....

Yikes!!!

Sam was 3 weeks old yesterday.... where did the last 21 days go? I could just ask my body, I think it feels every single one of them. Yesterday was also my first day at home with both kids by myself. And, I will admit all of the rules got broken. First of all, it is impossible not to lift more than 10 pounds when you are home alone and have to function with a 2 year old and newborn. For one, there are times that toddlers just have to be picked up. And, accidents happen that need to be cleaned up. Jeff replaced our hot water heater this week, which meant there were days the water was shut off, which further means I had 7 loads of laundry to catch up on.... Dishes were dirty, and life just had to happen. Therefore, the rules got broken. Today, my body is not thanking me for yesterday. I also threatened Lexi Kate a whole lot more than I delivered. I hate that, but when you are nursing a newborn, delivery gets hard. And, when the 2 year old runs and you are exhausted, it is sometimes easier just to forget it.

Today some friends of our came to take pictures of the kids. That again was an experience I don't care to repeat for some time. It was just wild, but that is what moms do. They make thier kids put on matching outfits and we all smile and pretend we are having a great time doing it. And, when it is all over, we take a nap....