Nothing but Nix

Just some things...

2012-02-02T22:00:00.001-05:00

It's 9:38 and I'm laying in my bed with a sleeping Andrew.

When Perry is working I sneak Andrew from his bed to mine. I like having us all on the same sie of the house. Feela safe!

My best friend got married today. It was a perfect, she got married on the courthouse steps. Surrounded by family and friends.

I got misty eyed. So did he husband. He's sweet and he's perfect for her.

I brought them cupcakes from Gigi's. Heavenly is a good word to describe these cupcakes. I ate half of a grasshopper cupcake. The icing tasted like those cream cheese mints that southerns have a baby showers. Yum!

I'm going to a big consignment sale tomorrow morning. I gobto this sale twice a year. It's a good one.

I have been selling baby clothes on ebay. I have also been buying cute summer outfits for the boys. I need to sell more to pay for what I have bought.

My inlaws are coming tomorrow evening. I'm excited, we'll have fun. I'm also excited I will be able to get ready for our trip because they entertain the boys so well.

We leave Monday and I can't wait to drive under the welcome arch at Walt Disney World. It was going to be a surprise but Andrew knows. Not sure how but he does.

Owen is growing ao fast and he is saying new words all the time. He even says some sentences. Like "I cold" and "I want ball"

He loves his crib now and always has to take two toys to bed along with his baby. His baby is a small stuffed chocolate lab puppy.

Owen has become a huge Daddy's boy over the last few weeks. It's so sweet to hear him call for his Daddy.

Andrew is precious. I just want to squeeze him and I do, and he says, "Hey, you squishin' me."
He loves me and he loves to take care of me and give me kisses. He also loves to tell me he's a big boy with big muscles.
According to him, Owen is a baby, he is a big boy and Austin is a guy.

Last night he told me his knee hurt and asked me to go get him some ice. I died laughing. He saw my Dad icing his knee and wanted to be just like Granddaddy.

I could go on and on about those two boys.

Tomorrow I want to do another post with questions and answers from Andrew. Hopefully I will get to it.

Good Night.

Today

2012-01-30T21:31:00.000-05:00

Today we....

Went furniture shopping. Furniture for the boys...bunkbeds actually. We found one we like and they liked it too!

They are going to be sharing a room. We'll probably move Owen into Andrew's room this spring. No rush really because he has finally learned to love his crib and sleep all night.

After the furniture store we went to the mall. The Mall of Georgia and had lunch in the food court. The boys ate Chick-fil-a and Perry and I had Japanese and it was so good.

The boys begged to ride the carousel so after lunch we let them.

Owen chose a bench to sit on

Andrew chose a horse, it's name was not Bullseye!

(See that smirk, it's my favorite and he does it all the time when he's thinking.)

After the carousel we went to a few stores. We didn't really find anything.

On the way out of the mall I turned the boys Chick-fil-a books in and got them each an ice cream bowl. It was a mess from the first bite to the last slurp.

On the way home we stopped by Kohl's to look for khakis for Perry. I didn't have any luck but I got Andrew's teacher a cute candle for Valentine's Day.

When we got home Andrew took a nap and Owen and I played outside. It was so nice out today.

He rode in the wagon

Played a little baseball

Then rode his little truck around

Perry wanted to go run so I bundled Owen up and off they went!

Poor Perry, strollers are just not made for tall people.

When they got back Andrew was still asleep so Owen played trains by himself.

I see this face all day and it's not an adoring look more like an annoyed look.

Much better! There's my sweet boy!

He obviously had enough of me taking pictures. He blocked my camera then...

tried to run away!

I packed the snacks for Disney. We have lots of junk food that I have been buying when I find a good deal! Calories don't exist while at Disney anyway.

I popped dinner in the oven. Buttermilk roasted chicken and roasted broccoli. I wanted something other than just plain old steamed.

While dinner was cooking I stood on the counter and took these pictures of the boys playing together. It's hit or miss with these two. They can be so sweet but 2 seconds later be fighting.

Dinner is served. That thing sticking out of the rice is a parmesan crisp. I have a block of parm that I needed to use up. I love the crispiness and saltiness of parmesan crisps.

Owen loved the parmesan crisp too! Andrew called it a cheesey chip, which is really what it is.

After dinner the boys took a bath and I cleaned the bathroom while they played.

After bathtime I put Owen to bed and Andrew watched an episode of Mighty Machines with Perry.

I had a little sewing project in mind so I did that. It only took a few minutes.

It's a door bumper. I got the idea from somewhere online. Andrew is bad about slamming doors, everytime I hear one slam I cringe and wait for the cries from Owen and his broken finger. This little pad will do the trick though. I'm being proactive so hopefully no little fingers will get slammed in the bedroom door.

That's it for today! It was such a great day, anyway day that Perry is home and we are all together is a good day really.

I love spending time with my family. We are truely blessed!

Thursday in pictures

2012-01-20T21:45:00.000-05:00

I recorded what we did yesterday with my phone camera. I meant to put this up last night but forgot.

So here was a regular Thursday with an extraordinary ending in pictures...and captions.

Cutting up strawberries for breakfast

Strawberries and chocolate chocolate chip muffins.

Ready for our errands. Owen picked his hat out

Last stop was the library for a stack of books and some fun in the playhouse

Ringing the doorbell

pita pizzas and strawberries for lunch

Andrew's obsession right now is building garages for his boat and trucks

Playing together so nicely

night night hugs

We are booked for another trip to Disney World!

We'll be there February 6th-10th and can't wait!

Resolutions and fruition part 2

2012-01-10T20:24:00.000-05:00

Another area in my life that I want to improve on is my cooking. I only struggle with this half of the time. When Perry is home I am on top of it. We both like to cook and we make meals that a great, lots of variety and most of them are healthy.

On the other hand when Perry is not home I struggle with making a full meal for just me and the boys. Together they eat less than an adult, unless it's breakfast. It's just hard to come up with creative meals that are healthy, kid friendly and only enough for 2! I try to avoid leftovers because I don't enjoy eating them.

It is also hard because I have made these rules for myself. Like if I'm going to make pasta I should at least use 1/2 whole wheat pasta. I can't use seasoning packets or condensed soup because those are full of salt and other junk! Those rules are fine but sometimes rules are made to be broken.
When I don't bend the rules I get frustrated and when I get frustrated we go to Chick fil a. Now, I know that sounds crazy and it is! Really fried chicken can't be better than enriched flour pasta. But I justify it because it's easy and everyone eats dinner. By the way, I get them fruit instead of fries. Does that help?

I'm not sure when I made these rules but I'm pretty sure it's from watching documentaries like Food Inc.

So my ultimate goal is this:
Make a healthy kid friendly meals and snacks we will all enjoy

My obstacles:
Andrew is very picky about veggies
My "rules"

My plan of attack:
Stop buying 100% whole wheat pasta. NO ONE likes it, its wasteful if no one eats it!
Allow myself to bend the rules.
Freeze extra portions so leftovers do not go to waste.
Make some meals ahead of time so it's ready when the boys are.
Celebrate success!

We haven't had very many dinners alone yet this year because Perry had been home and we've hung out with my parents a few nights. I did want to share some of my success so far though.

One of the first meals of the new year I planned to let the boys build their own pot pies.

We used little ramekins and I set out different veggies and chunks of chicken. They did a great job of filling their little dishes. I had to finish Owen's off because he got distracted eating the veggies. He's our veggie lover!

I served the pot pies with fruit salad. The results? Owen and I both gobbled ours up and Andrew picked out the chicken and ate his fruit. I call it success because he ate chicken that was not fried and we were able to spend time together in the kitchen.

For this meal I allowed myself to use some low sodium cream of chicken soup mixed with milk and I used store bough crust that I had leftover from Christmas (which the boys didn't eat). I also used either fresh or frozen veggies to maximize nutrients (Did you know canned veggies only retain 40% of their nutrients and sometimes frozen veggies are more nutrient rich than fresh?) Also, we had no leftovers because I only made enough for one meal. So this meal is a keeper!

Another one of the first meals of the year was pita pizzas for lunch. These are not new but I made a few changes and got Andrew to help.

Andrew chose to put tomatoes on his because they are one of his favorite foods. We used whole wheat pita, I can get away with that because they taste like the regular ones. I put spinach and pesto on mine and Owen's. These were great. Andrew ate about 3/4 of his and Owen ate the rest and a piece of mine. Another success.

For a snack last week we used the rest of our pitas and made homemade pita chips. They were great with the hummus I made. Both boys ate that for a snack. The only downside is that there was a lot of hummus leftover and I ended up tossing it.

Also last week for dinner I found two recipes on Pinterest. One was baked sweet and sour chicken and fried rice. The boys loved the sauce on the chicken. Andrew picked around the veggies in the fried rice and Owen ate his and Andrew's. I'll count that as another success!

The other recipe was for mozzarella stuffed meatballs. I served them with spaghetti and Prego and they were a hit! Everyone loved them! I had leftover meatballs and we ate them with marinara sauce for lunch the next day.

Overall, I am feeling confident in the meals that I am making for the boys, we have only eaten at chick fil a once and that was when we were out and about. I'm looking forward to trying out more recipes on the boys. It's been a fun challenge so far!

Resolutions coming to fruition part 1

2012-01-10T17:12:00.000-05:00

This year I made some New Year's resolutions in my head. They really are not out of the ordinary, mostly revolving around the order, or lack there of, of our house. The way it is run and the way it looks most days.

I struggle with the way my house looks on a daily basis. Not the way it is decorated but the way it gets cluttered so quickly after I clean. I'm not a neat freak by any means but I want my house to look like I am. I have never been a tidy person. My husband is not a super tidy person and our children are learning our habits. So this year I made a promise to myself to learn to be more aware of my mess making habits and to help the boys learn how to do the same.

I have realistic expectations for the boys. I know they will probably put every toy in its place before moving on the next one. But I do expect them to help me put them away at night and to know where they belong.

To help with goal of mine I have adopted the motto,

"A place for everything and everything in it's place."

Now I know this motto is nothing new but I say it in my head and sometimes out loud when I am cleaning and organizing. Which I have been doing a lot of. Just this past week I have conquered the refridgerator and freezer, three kitchen drawers, 4 kitchen cabinets, the pantry, my dresser, and I'm half way done with one the closets downstairs.

It feels great to get rid of things that are of no use and that take up valuable space.

I'm hoping that by maintaining all of the unseen areas in the our home that it will show in the common areas. Does that make sense? To help me with his process I have been reading cleaning and organizing tips and following along with this blog series. I have also adopted a new cleaning schedule that should only take an hour a day. So far I am enjoying having an actually list of things for everyday.

Here is some of the progress that I have made so far. These pictures are from my phone.

ps. When I looked at these picures I noticed a few things that were out of place already. For instance, our Disney photopass is in the drawer, I should have just gone ahead and put it with our Disney maps and mementos. See I'm learning...slowly :)

Let's catch up

2012-01-02T21:00:00.000-05:00

I can't believe that it's already 2012. The end of 2011 just went by so fast in a flurry of activity. I want to back up and post pictures from Thanksgiving through New Years. This blog is our only family scrapbook so I want to document those fun times.

So let's back up to the end of November. We were still on a Disney high and I'm sure everyone around us (or at least me) was tired of hearing about our trip.

For Thanksgiving we traveled to Alabama to celebrate with our family. We ate on Wednesday with Perry's family on Wednesday and with both sets of my grandparents on Thursday. The food was great the whole trip but the company was even better.

On December 8th we went with Dad and Ellen to Bryson City to ride on The Polar Express. This was the same railroad that we went to Day Out With Thomas in August of 2010. I have to say that they did a much better job with the Polar Express theme. Round trip to the North Pole was about an hour and fifteen minutes. They served hot chocolate and cookies, we sang Christmas carols and got to see Santa Claus. Owen was bouncing off the walls the whole time with excitement. Andrew was so calm and serious. It's serious business going to the North Pole. He was so patient for the conductor to punch his ticket and when Santa was making the rounds. He and Owen both got a bell from Santa's sleigh and they still love to make their bells ring. We will have to go back on The Polar Express in a few years.

This year Perry was able to get the whole day off for Christmas. This was the first time we got the whole day together. On Christmas Eve morning we woke up early and drove to Alabama.
We got to spend time with my Meme and cousins. I got to meet the newest member of the family. My little cousin had a baby on December 15th so she was so tiny and so precious!
After visiting with my Meme we had lunch and exchanged gifts at Perry's parents house. It was a lot of fun and the boys gt so many great toys. We had to make Andrew open all of his presents. He opened his garbage truck first and was just content to play with it and it only!

Next we headed over to the Phillips' for dinner and dirty Santa. The boys got more great gifts including a lot of good books. Only the adults play dirty Santa and you cant ever tell with this group. This year was very mild and the only gift really fought over was a ceramic chef's knife. Which Perry got to take home. I got a big wall clock and was very satisfied. After we opened presents it was time for us to go. We had to get back home and get the kids in bed so Santa could visit.
The trip home was not bad at all. The boys napped and watched Polar Express. We got home and put Owen to bed. Andrew sat out milk and cookies for Santa and some lettuce for the reindeer. He had a little trouble going to sleep because he was so excited!
Santa came not long after the boys were asleep. We headed to bed with much anticipation for the morning.

When we woke up that morning we had a bed intruder. When Owen woke up I went out to the living room to get my camera ready and Perry sent the boys out to see their loot.
Andrew immediately went for his sandbox. The one he has wanted for 3 months. Once again we had to tell him to look at his other presents. Owen kept saying, "wow wow."

I had a lot of fun buying their gifts this year. I read reviews on all their toys and got them only things I thought they would love. We also didn't go over board because I wanted them to play with what we got them and not be overwhelmed. So far they have played with all of their toys and seem to love them all. The Plasma car has been the favorite overall though. Owen likes when I take him on rides through the house.

After we destroyed the living room and ate breakfast we headed to church. I loved Christmas being on a Sunday! I wish every Christmas could be on Sunday! We were planning a big dinner so we went to the only place that was open and got some Japanese takeout. We just got one order and it was good. Not very traditional but good! After lunch all my guys took naps and I started prepping for dinner.

Andy and Jackie drove over and we had my parents over for dinner. We made standing rib roast, potato leek gratin, balsamic Brussels sprouts and yeast rolls. Dinner turned out good and I was glad that the roast was not overcooked.

Perry and I both agreed that this was our favorite Christmas ever. Our boys are at such fun ages and it was so nice to have all the family time on Christmas.

As part of our Christmas Andy and Jackie got us tickets for the Chick fil A bowl. Auburn versus Virginia. The game was on New Year's Eve and we had such a good time. Andrew went with us and Owen stayed with my Dad and Ellen. We went to Fan Fest and let Andrew and Owen platy games and jump on inflatables. We watched Tiger Walk and got free samples of Chick fil a stuff. When Fan Fest was over we headed over to the Dome for the game. We had good seats and we could see everything. The game was very exciting, the best one I've ever been to. Andrew was awesome the whole time! He sat in his seat with his popcorn and just watched everything that was happening around us. His favorite part was the half time show. He was not too excited about the fireworks that went off when a team scored though. They were pretty loud!

I finally broke my Auburn losing record and they won the game. We were headed out of the Dome around 11:15 and caught the fireworks from Little Five Points at midnight from the interstate. We picked Owen up then went home and we all went straight to bed! Safe to say we were all exhausted!

As we closed 2011 Perry and I both agreed that it was the best year yet! We had a lot of fun this year! We were all healthy and happy. Perry's job seemed to calm down this year. He was able to have every holiday and birthday off. We got to take our first family vacation, Perry and I grew in our marriage and we found a nice fit in our church and got more involved.

We are really looking forward to seeing what is in store for us in 2012!

December 23rd

2011-12-23T21:13:00.001-05:00

It's been a busy day! We are leaving bright and early for a quick trip to Alabama. We'll be back tomorrow night so Santa can visit. This has already been the best Christmas season yet and it's really just starting.
I made this peppermint serving tray for my cookies. I saw it on Pinterest of course. I also found the cookie recipe on Pinterest too. Needless to say I love Pinterest and get so many great recipes and ideas.

December 22nd

2011-12-22T10:29:00.001-05:00

I have been promising/bribbing Andrew with a trip to Lollipop so I decided today was the day. We are here now and out of all the fun inflatables look what these two decide to play with. HELLO! We have a train table at home. Go jump and get rid of all your energy!

I have so much to do still before Christmas, hope I get a good nap out of these two today.

December 21st

2011-12-21T21:15:00.001-05:00

Andrew had us rolling on the floor while we played Wii fit. He loved running....it was so hilarious. I love that boy.

December 20th

2011-12-20T21:46:00.001-05:00

<p>Spending the night with Grammie and Granddaddy tonight. They are up way past their bedtime but I guess that's allowed at the grandparents house.

December 19th

2011-12-19T20:43:00.001-05:00

Perry is such a great Daddy. Andrew needed a little help with his art set so Perry helped him make a picture out of his vehicle stamps. Andrew adores his Daddy and I love to watch them play together. It never gets old.

December 17th

2011-12-17T23:19:00.001-05:00

Candy cane crunch cookies. I got the recipe from one of my very favorite bloggers. Everything I have made of hers is great, these cookies included. I'll post the link to this recipe tomorrow.

December 16th

2011-12-16T23:26:00.001-05:00

December 15th

2011-12-15T20:52:00.001-05:00

Owen loves rolling around on the floor with Abby, well really just rolling around her on the floor.

Abby is our guard dog when Perry goes out of town. Tonight was a fun night. We put on our pjs and ordered pizza for dinner. After Owen went to bed we drank hot chocolate and ate reindeer cookies while we watched Charlie Brown's Christmas. Now Andrew is watching The Grinch....again

December 14th

2011-12-15T12:59:00.002-05:00

Playing cars with my buddy while Owen naps.

December 13th

2011-12-13T23:02:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to me! I had such a good birthday, I was especially happy that Perry was home to help me celebrate.

We had a fun day. Pancakes for breakfast, shopping for a kid off the Chick-fil-a tree. I made a shirt for Owen and relaxed some. We had dinner with Dad and Ellen then we went to look at Christmas lights at Lake Lanier Islands.I ran to the grocery store to buy cookie baking ingredients for some teacher gifts. I bought Andrew a surprise. Perry, Andrew and I Skyped with the in laws and I just got done baking 6 dozen cookies. I should be sleepy but I had a gingerbread latte from Starbucks when I went to the store. Maybe I'll snuggle up with my hubby and watch a Christmas movie.

Here's my picture for today. I bought Andrew (really its for our family) a tin of popcorn. We used to get one of these every year at Christmas. Some student would usually buy one for my mom. My favorite was always the cheddar cheese popcorn. The last to go was always the plain butter kind. This tin has white cheddar which is only a little dissapointing. He was excited to say the least. He's used to plain air popped popcorn, no salt or butter so this may ruin him.

December 12th

2011-12-12T20:27:00.000-05:00

Today was one of those days that I really had it going on as a mom. We got a lot done, had a lot of fun, and all had a nice nap. What more could I ask for?

This picture is from this morning when we took sausage balls to the firemen. The boys were not thrilled to be sitting on the firetruck. They like them from a distance.

I look like a mess because it was rainy and I had just sobbed while listening to this song as we pulled into the parking lot. Man, it's really a tear jerker.

Oh my goodness, I just watched the video, it's water works for me. I'm going to go love on my sleeping little boys.

December 11th

2011-12-11T20:51:00.000-05:00

He stole Granddaddy's glasses this morning. I tried to make him say, "the human head weighs 8 pounds." He would not cooperate.

December 10th

2011-12-10T19:46:00.001-05:00

Andrew waiting on The Nutcracker to start. As you can see he didn't wear his dog shirt. I didn't like the monogram on it.
We had a great time at The Fox Theater, it's always a treat to go there for any show or concert.
Andrew did well and only talked a little. He said his favorite part was, "the big girl." I think he means Mother Ginger and I have to agree. That was my favorite part as well.

December 9th

2011-12-09T21:58:00.000-05:00

I made an outfit today for Andrew. It's far from perfect but it's not bad for my first try. He's going o wear it to The Nutcracker tomorrow. I am so excited, I love going to The Fox.

December 8th

2011-12-08T23:47:00.001-05:00

The boys found a game to play while we shopped for computers. It's crazy how quickly little kids can learn to use electronics.

December 7th

2011-12-07T22:03:00.001-05:00

Started decorating the mantels today. I bought two 20' pieces on real garland. It doesn't smell as good as I thought but I love the look. I have been trying to find something to go over our fireplace forever. It's a work in progress and I'm not sure what else I will add.

The rest of our trip

2011-12-06T22:51:00.000-05:00

Our fifth and final full day at Disney World he headed to Epcot. We hit most of the hot rides. Andrew loved Soarin' and we all loved the Nemo Ride. I accidently left my phone on the seat of the Nemo Ride and it took a little while to get it back. When the world showcase opened we visited Mexico first and ate an early lunch. We hustled through the world showcase then went and rode Test Track and Mission Space. The boys napped in the stroller for about 2 hours. It was so nice and relaxing. I laid down on a bench too and took a nice break.

Perry really wanted to eat German food so we had a reservation at Biergarten. He loved the food but it was my least favorite meal. The restaurant had a good atmosphere though.

We let the boys play in the fountains while we took turns riding Mission Space then we head to find our spot of Illuminations.

I have the boys some snacks and they ended up feeding the ducks that were hanging around. One of the ducks even nibbled at Owen's toes and he thought that was so funny.

I left our spot to grab some snacks and chose to grab some fish n chips to share. They were not very good so we ended up giving the ducks some of the fish too.

We were all captivated by Illuminations, Perry said it was his favorite out of all the Disney firework displays. After Illuminations we caught our bus back the hotel. We were all very tired that night. Perry and the boys fell asleep quickly while I starting packing to go home.

The next morning it was Perry's birthday so I went to the giftshop and bought him a coffee mug that he had been eyeing. I woke everyone up when I realized that we were going to miss rope drop unless we got a move on.

We packed everything up, loaded the car and headed to the Magic Kingdom to end the trip. We drove since we were leaving straight from Magic Kingdom to go home. The first part of the day was enjoyable. We spent most of our time in Frontierland and Adventureland. We headed over to Tomorrowland for lunch and it was starting to get really crowded. We rode the teacups after lunch then headed down Main Street to do some souvenir shopping. It was so crowded at the front of the park. The boys started getting restless so I grabbed what we had picked out, paid and we left. We had 3 snack credits left so we got some goodies for the road at the Main Street Bakery. We were actually ready to get out of the park because of the crowds. We had definately been spoiled by the low crowd levels all week.

Andrew was so excited to ride the monorail to the parking lot. He chose a monorail as his souvenir and he was very excited that he got to ride on the red monorail, just like his toy. We made it to the car really quickly and before we were out of Disney World the boys were out. It was 2:40 by the time we left. We only had to make a few stops and the boys were perfect travelers. We got home a little before 11:00 pm.

Overall, we had the best vacation ever. We made so many memories and we can't wait to go back. We started planning (in our heads) our next trip to Disney.

If someone were to ask me to give them tips for a Disney trip I would tell them these things:
*Stay on property and take advantage of Disney transportation. We hardly waited at all for the buses.
*Try to visit when Disney offers free Dining. There is no telling how much we saved on food and most of the food is really good.
*If you get the chance to do a Holiday party. Do it! The Christmas Party was so worth every penny! I've heard the same about the Halloween party.
*Visit during the off season, rates are low and so are the crowds
*Let your kids nap in the stroller, if they will. We saved so much park time by staying at the parks.
*Grab a child swap pass whenever you can. These are just as good as fastpasses.

One of my goals for our next trip is to pay better attention to the parade and show schedules. We were so wrapped up riding rides this trip that we didn't get to watch a lot of shows.

As of now, we are planning on going back to Disney the week after Thanksgiving 2012. Only 354 days to go!

December 6th

2011-12-06T18:47:00.001-05:00

Playing with the Christmas train at Granddaddy and Grammy's house. This is currently Andrew's favorite thing to do.

December 5th

2011-12-05T10:11:00.001-05:00

A little art project this morning. We made handprints ornaments and now they are just painting...paper, themselves, the table whatever.

December 4th

2011-12-04T18:24:00.001-05:00

This little boy is ready for bed. Trying to hold him off until at least 7:00. I'm ready for bed too. We have some errands to run and a Dr appointment tomorrow.

December 3rd

2011-12-03T20:20:00.001-05:00

Lights are up on the porch. Found a way to light up our wreath with a string of lights that only lit up half way. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

December 2

2011-12-02T11:48:00.001-05:00

Went to the post office this morning to mail these boxes. I love our small town, we have to have the friendliest postal workers ever. The lady was so patient as I asked her 50 questions about all the different shipping options.

December photo project

2011-12-01T21:39:00.001-05:00

It's December first and I am so happy because December is my favorite month. I love this time of year. I started baking tonight and I baked 3 1/2 dozen chocolate chip cookies and 3 dozen pistachio cran cookies. The house smells great, now I just have to figure out what to do with 6 and a half dozen cookies.

Disney World

2011-11-27T21:58:00.001-05:00

We have been back from Disney for a week now and not a day goes by that we don't talk about it and dream about going back next year. Disney World really is the happiest place on earth! Our trip could not have gone smoother and the boys could not have behaved any better. It was just perfect!

I don't know the best way to talk about all the aspects of our trip so I think I'll break it up. Starting at the beginning.

We decided that driving to Disney would be easiest if we broke the drive down into two days. On Saturday we left around noon headed for Valdosta. If was a very easy trip and it went by very quickly. We only stopped once. The boys napped and watched movies. We stayed in a decent hotel and had dinner at a great local southern restaurant.

It took me forever to fall asleep that night, I was so excited about being at Disney the next day!

Sunday morning we had breakfast at the hotel then went to Wal-Mart before heading south. I grabbed some breakfast items and some snacks. We were on the road to Orlando by 8:30! We took our time driving and made a a stop or two. The drive was once again so easy! We drove through the main gate at Disney around 11:30, I think. We were all so excited!

We stayed at Pop Century, it's a value resort but it's a Disney Property and it was great for the kids and we enjoyed it too. We got to skip the long line and go to the online check in counter. We got our welcome packet, a few buttons, coloring books and best of all we got upgraded to a preferred room. A preferred room is just close to the main building were the food court is and were the buses load. That was very helpful since Pop Century is a huge resort.

We got to our room, it was small but we didn't care! I unpacked everything and got organized. We had reservations for lunch and we had some time to kill so we decided to drive our car to Wilderness Lodge and explore a little. We were blown away by Wilderness Lodge, it is huge and it's so nice! We checked out the geyser and walked around the pool area. We had lunch at Whispering Canyon Cafe, we had the dining plan and a friend had recommended that restaurant. It definitely did not disappoint!

After lunch we headed back to our resort. We needed the boys to nap because we had a big evening planned. Perry dropped me off so I could get ready and he drove the boys around so they would fall asleep. That worked like a charm. After I was ready, Perry picked me up and we headed to the Magic Kingdom for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.

The boys woke up as we parked the car and we changed their clothes, got our stuff together and jumped on the tram. The boys were still groggy but loved riding the tram and then the monorail to the park. When we got to the Magic Kingdom I had butterflies! It was so magical all decorated for Christmas.

The Christmas party ended up being my favorite part of the whole trip. I am so glad that we decided to do it because it was originally not on our agenda. The crowds were so lite and we walked on every ride. We got to visit with Santa. It was such a nice setup with nutcrackers, presents, and Cinderella's Castle in the background covered in lights. Not to mention it snowing while we were walking down Main Street.

We loved the shows that we were able to catch and best of all was Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas parade. There really are not words, it's just so....magical! It didn't hurt that we had cookies and hot chocolate for dinner that night!

We ended up not getting back to our room until after 11 that night. The boys were champs the whole time and they loved every minute of it. Needless to say, we all fell asleep as soon as we laid down that night!

Monday morning we woke up early and got dressed for our first full day in the park. We were headed back to the Magic Kingdom. We had breakfast in the room and the boys were so excited about riding the bus to the park this time.

We got to the park in time to watch the welcome show and for rope drop. The boys loved the welcome show and the train but we were in front of a speaker and it was LOUD!

After the park opened we headed to Frontierland so Andrew could ride Big Thunder Mountain.We walked right up on Donald Duck but the boys were not interested, they wouldn't even get out of the stroller.

We ended up staying on that side of the park until lunch. Andrew knew his favorite rides by now so we were pretty much doing whatever he wanted. We had a reservation at Tony's Town Square. It was also very good and we were starting to realize that Disney food was really good.

We headed back to the room for naps after lunch. Owen napped for 3 hours! When Andrew woke up I took him exploring around the resort and bought him a Mickey Mouse rice krispie treat.

When we got back to the park we rode some more rides. We are dinner at Pecos Bill's and we were very thankful for the free dining plan. We watched the Main street Electrical parade then the fireworks and headed towards the exit. Not before making a stop at The Main Street Bakery for a treat.

Perry and I shared that huge cookie ice cream sandwich while we waiting for our resort bus. It was so rich and so good! Best of all it was free because of the dining plan. We got back to our room right at midnight. The boys fell asleep on the bus so we just laid them in bed when we got back to our room.

On Tuesday morning we were up bright and early and raring to go! We took showers and got ready to head to Hollywood Studios for day 3. We got to the park 40 minutes before rope drop. We had heard that it's a mad dash to Toy Story Mania and boy were we glad that we had been warned. When the park finally opened that mass crowd was escorted to Toy Story. We decided to ride it first then get a fast pass which turned out to be the best plan. At first the line was longer for the fast pass than the ride. We walked right into the queue and I was kinda sad we didn't have to wait because the waiting area is really cute and decorated like Andy's room. The boys loved it! The ride was great and it was everything that everyone said it would be. As we walked out there was no line for the fast pass so we grabbed some and went on our way.

We walked up to the Disney Jr. Live show so we watched it and the boys were blown away to see their favorite shows come to life! Watching them during that show was one of my favorite memories from our trip. After the show Perry and I took turns riding the Rockin' roller coaster. We didn't have to wait in line at all because of the single rider line! We took full advantage of that! Andrew started getting a little restless so we got him a Premium Mickey ice cream bar. The first one was smashed so we ended up having two!

After we took the back lot tour we headed towards the restaurant for our lunch reservation. We had a character lunch planned and I was excited to see how the boys would react. They are not very big on the characters but they enjoyed having the characters come to the table. We saw some of their favorites. Jake from Neverland pirates, Handy Manny and Oso. After lunch we decided not to leave and to try to let the boys nap in the stroller. They ended up falling asleep at the same time. I found a nice quiet and shaded bench to sit on and Perry went to watch the Lights, Camera, Motors stunt show. The boys were is a very deep sleep because what I thought would be quiet turned out to be on the Disney Rocks parade route and it was loud but they never budged, for 2 hours! When they woke up they were ready to go so we took Andrew to ride tower of terror and to ride Toy Story again. Andrew really surprised us with Tower of Terror. He loved it, he would try to hold his hands up and scream the whole time. It was so much fun riding with him!

I don't really remember what we did until it was time to get a seat for Fantasmic.

About 30 minutes before the show started we got some drinks and pop corn and found our seat. Fantasmic was awesome and the boys were mesmerized the whole time. After the show we rode Star Tours a few times, walked through the Osborne Family lights then went to watch the bus back to the resort. It was not as late and we were hungry so we visited the resort food court for dinner then back to the room and ready for bed.

On Wednesday morning we changed our plans and headed out a little earlier for Animal Kingdom. We rode Kilimanjaro Safari first then went to Dinoland to let the kids play at the bone yard while Perry and I took turns riding Dinosaur. Dinosaur was the only ride Andrew said he didn't want to ride and I was thankful not to have to ride it again. It's pretty intense. The boys loved the dig site and stayed there for about an hour digging and putting rocks in their hair.

We spent the rest our day at Animal Kingdom riding rides, Andrew's favorite was Kali River rapids, playing in fountains, riding expedition Everest, eating lunch then napping. We were so thankful when the boys fell asleep again at the same time in the stroller. We found a nice shaded spot and took turns riding Expedition Everest. Again there were no lines, I was able to ride the roller coaster 3 times in about 20 minutes. I used my snack credit to buy a root beer float then headed back to sit with the boys so Perry could ride.

After their nap we went back to ride the water ride and let Owen play in the fountain. By that time it was getting late so we watched its a bugs life and then went to The Festival of the Lion King. It was great, we all loved it and I have to say it was my favorite thing about my least favorite park.

At some point during the day I noticed that Owen's shoes were MIA so on the way out I stopped by lost and found and sure enough someone had turned them in. We boarded the bus to The Grand Floridian for our dinner reservation. The Grand Floridian is breath taking. It was so pretty decorated for Christmas. We had a delicious dinner. The boys were getting restless so we asked for our dessert to go. There are no buses that go between the resorts so we decided to catch the ferry over to Magic Kingdom then ride our bus back to the resort. We missed the first ferry because it was to full. That was frustrating at first but our wait paid off. By the time we got on the second ferry Wishes, the fireworks show at Magic Kingdom started and it was so nice to watch from the water. That is also one of my favorite memories. Perry and I holding our sleepy boys under a blanket of fireworks. It's something I will never forget. When we got off the ferry we hustled over to catch our bus and we walked right on! Perfect timing! The boys had perked up by the time we got back and since it was still early we took them to the kiddie pool. They splashed and played and had a great time while we enjoyed our dessert. After the pool we got the bathed and they fell asleep as soon as we laid them down.

Okay, I have to stop here for tonight. I will try my hardest to finish tomorrow. If you made it this far thanks for sticking with me!

The Dole Whip Float

2011-11-18T10:51:00.001-05:00

I read countless times that when at Magic Kingdom you must try a Dole Whip or even better the Dole Whip Float.
I finally got to get one when passing through Adventureland, I chose to get the float. It's so good and refreshing! I think next time I will just get he pineapple ice cream though and leave the juice out.
I would say that it lives up to the hype.

Big Thunder Mountain Railroad

2011-11-18T10:50:00.001-05:00

This is Andrew's favorite ride. He tries to hold his hands up the whole time but he gets tossed all around, laughing and screaming and laughing the whole time.

Naptime

2011-11-17T13:36:00.001-05:00

We have decided that this is the best way to let the boys rest. Our first day at Magic Kingdom we went back to the room for naps and that killed about 4 hours. The rest of the days the boys have fallen asleep at the same time in the stroller. It has worked great for us. We find a quiet and shaded location and Perry and I take turns riding rides or seeing shows. We don't waste any time and the boys are well rested. Win win.

3D

2011-11-17T10:07:00.001-05:00

There are quite a few attractions that require 3D glasses. Owen loves wearing the glasses and will keep them on the whole time. He usually is not crazy about throwing them into the bins after the show or ride is over.

Viva Mexico

2011-11-17T09:49:00.001-05:00

Seems like Andrew is never around for blog posts, I will get him next time. We're in Mexico now, we ate churros and nachos and we're about to take the Gran Fiesta tour.

Tuckered out

2011-11-16T23:03:00.001-05:00

Owen quickly fell asleep after his bath tonight. We had a fun filled day at Animal Kingdom then we went for a swim tonight. With a good night's sleep he'll be ready for a full day at Epcot tomorrow.

We have arrived!

2011-11-13T10:47:00.001-05:00

The excitement level is off the charts in our car! Perry and I can't wait to see the boys faces when we get to the Magic Kingdom tonight.
We have a reservation at Whispering Canyon cafe for a late lunch then we'll rest.....then we'll to go to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party!
This is going to be a great trip!

1 week

2011-11-06T10:06:00.002-05:00

This is our Disney countdown! Every morning Andrew rips one of these Mickey Mouse heads off the door. We clap and cheer then count how many days are left. It's very exciting. To let Owen in on the action we stick the ears lower on the door and let Owen rip them off again. We cheer and clap and count the ears again.
Needless to say we are VERY excited and though we've only been planning for 3 weeks I have logged many many hours planning our trip.
We have a ton to do this week but even planning for Disney is magical.
I hope to be able to update the blog with pictures from my phone but don't hold your breath. It's likely I will be too busy riding Splash Mountain or eating a Mickey Mouse ice cream bar.

Halloween Festivities

2011-11-02T21:58:00.000-04:00

We kicked off Halloween by going to a neighbor's Halloween party. We had a great time visiting with our friends and neighbors and enjoyed some really yummy food. Our neighbors are great party hosts, we played games, carved pumpkins and all around had a great time. We went as The Incredibles and it was a lot of fun dressing up as a family. Andrew loved being Dash! We didn't win the costume contest but there is always next year!

The Wednesday after the party Andrew had trunk or treat at his school. We decorated our trunk but it looked really bare compared to some of the other cars. It was our first time decorating for trunk or treat, I will plan better next year. I made homemade caramel corn and mixed it with some other goodies for tasty snack mix.

On Halloween we walked around our neighborhood with Michael, Emily and Ila. Ila and Andrew rode in the wagon most of the time while Owen walked mostly. Ila really stocked up on the candy while my boys gave it a half hearted attempt. We saw lots of friends while we were out and about in the neighborhood. Next year I think we'll do the hayride instead of walking so much. That's what Andrew really wanted to do this year.

Overall it was an Incredible Halloween and we were so happy that Perry got to be home for all of it.

More Fall Fun

2011-10-21T22:44:00.000-04:00

We love living in North Georgia and we especially love it in the fall. There is so much to do, so many fun places to go and so many fun festivals. Two weeks ago Perry's parents and little brother came for a visit and we went to Ellijay for the Apple Festival.

The festival was fun but the most fun that we had was beside the festival grounds at a little amusement park. A nice man approached my father in law and asked if we wanted his extra tickets. We happily accepted them and were able to spend an hour or so riding rides with no lines!

I thought it would be a good idea to put Andrew on a kiddie ride first. Boy was I wrong. He hated it and whined the whole time that he wanted off! Both boys loved the big slides, the hay mountain and the big jumpy pillow. My mother in law, Austin and I decided that we wanted to ride a bigger ride that spun and went up and down.

Andrew saw us get strapped into our little pods and he wanted to ride. I was a little hesitant but we let him get on. I am so glad that we did. He laughed so hard the whole time. The fast spinning and the sudden ups and downs didn't phase him a bit. He is my little thrill seeker.

On the way back home we stopped at an Orchard to grab some apples and some apple treats. I bought a few apple donuts and they were so good!

It was time to watch our teams play when we got home. We enjoyed some game food and good company.
Overall, it was a great day with family, food, good weather and lots of fall fun.

Last week the local country fair was in town so Perry and I took the boys for an evening of family fun. We arrived shortly after the fair opened for the evening to avoid the large crowds. I am glad we went early because we pretty much had the place to ourselves. Andrew did most of the riding, we didn't know at first that there were a few rides Owen could ride. After Andrew rode a few things we walked around for a while. We visited the Indian exhibit, looked at all the steam tractors that we got to see in action in July. Andrew remembered them and didn't want to get close until we promised that they were not turned on so they wouldn't be loud. He still covered his ears as we walked past them. Next we visited the barn with the animals and the petting zoo. They had some of the cutest baby goats and pot belly pigs. Owen loves animals so much so the petting zoo was so fun for him. Andrew enjoyed it too and said that the sheep was his favorite to pet. As we were headed out of the fair we found a ride that Owen was big enough for. He sat with Andrew in the little fish and had the biggest smile on his face the whole time. The boys had a great time and Perry and I talked about how much fun we had just watching the kids have fun. I never thought that could be possible but watching your kids experience new things really is more fun than doing them yourself.

We ended our night with dinner at Andrew's favorite place to eat, TacoMac.

On Saturday we decided to visit Gold Rush days in Dahlonega. First we stopped by Andrew's school and bought 2 plates from their bbq chicken fundraiser. The chicken was delicious and we were happy that we had a decent lunch once we got to the festival. The place was packed! It always is so I don't know why I was surprised. We walked around and looked at all the arts and crafts vendors and antiques. We took the boys to the kids play area and let Andrew go down the inflatable slide a few times. Owen was getting antsy so we decided to let both boys ride ponies. Andrew actually got to ride a big horse and a real cowboy walked along beside him. Owen got a pony and I walked beside him. They both loved it, Owen smiled the whole time and Andrew was so serious about riding his horse like a cowboy. Owen threw a nice little tantrum when he had to get off his pony.

We took that as our cue and we headed to the car to go home for naps. We spent the rest of the day resting, playing, snacking and watching football.

We have another fun weekend ahead of us with another local festival, this time we'll be celebrating moonshine! HA! Tomorrow evening we are going to a Halloween party and I can't wait to post pictures of that. We are going to be a site, that's for sure!

This week

2011-10-05T23:09:00.000-04:00

I've really been in a blogging slump lately. I still enjoy blogging but have found it frustrating with our computer. It's old and buggy and it's really slow. We're not replacing it though until it's completely shot.

Anyway, so this week has flown by so far. Perry comes back home tomorrow and we can't wait to see him. We have a fun weekend ahead of us. His parents are coming for a visit and we're going to the Ellijay Apple Festival. It should be a good time.

So this week I have tried to keep us busy. The time Perry is gone flies by if we are busy. On Monday we went with our play group to a local pumpkin patch. It was our first outing with the group since April. We enjoyed seeing out friends and there were a lot of new faces.

The boys had a blast pulling the wagons, feeding the animals and being on the hayride. We went to this farm last year as a family. I wore the same outfit, something about that shirt says pumpkin farm to me. The farm is close by and run by a really nice family. We didn't buy any pumpkins because they are kinda expensive. I already bought a few pumpkins at Wal-Mart for $3.88 anyway.

Probably the boy's favorite part of the outing was feeding the animals. They built a new barn this year and they have some goats and a cow that you can feed. Andrew cautiously feed the cow by holding his cracker outside of the fence. Owen was so into it! He would hold his cracker and hold on tight as the cow took it from him. It made me a little nervous because he was really getting close to those teeth. The cow was gentle and all fingers were spared. Owen did not want to leave the cow so he threw a fit! Which is what he does a lot these days.

On Monday evening I decided to take the boys to Chick-fil-a for family night. It's hard for me to resist that place anyway, but nearly impossible when there is free food involved. We got there early and ate then I let the boys play on the indoor play ground. We saw several friends, including Andrew's swim teacher Ms. Heather. We hadn't seen Ms. Heather since June at his last swim lesson but Andrew still talks about her all the time. He was so excited to see her! He can't wait to take more swimming lessons next summer.

After we got home from dinner and got Owen in bed I helped Andrew with a little project for school. His teacher gave us a blank poster to fill out at his open house. Well we finally sat down together and filled it out. It's a poster all about Andrew. There were spaces for likes and dislikes, family and what he'll be when he grows up. Which he said he wanted to be a pirate. We had fun and both enjoyed the Mommy/Andrew time.

This afternoon the boys were a little cranky so we ventured to Wal-Mart for a few things and to kill some time before dinner. While I was there I picked up some Elmer's school glue for a little project. Thanks to Pinterest I now have a wealth of activities to keep the boys occupied during the witching hours.

I decided to make some slime for the boys. I tried last week but I read the directions wrong and it was too stiff to really play with. This time it turned out perfectly and both boys enjoyed it. Owen kept trying to eat it of course but after I fished a few pieces out of his mouth he got the idea. Andrew could have played with his slime for hours. Next creation I plan to make is ooblick, but first I need to check out the Dr. Suess book from the library. I remember my mom making it for her class when she taught elementary school.

Anyway, I guess that is enough rambling for now, thanks for sticking with this post if you did. I just want to be able to remember these times with my boys. Now that it's all typed out I will.

Auburn at Clemson

2011-09-30T19:31:00.000-04:00

Two weeks ago Perry and I went to the Auburn game at Clemson. I bought the tickets for a surprise date with my hubby but ended up having to tell him quickly after I purchased them. I bought the tickets thinking the game was one weekend but ended up being the next. Thankfully he was off work so my plans weren't completely spoiled.

Perry graduated from Auburn and so did his parents, it's in his blood and he is a devoted fan! As a family we cheer for Auburn. I know we'll go to games as the boys grow and I look forward to the memories we'll make. Personally, I cheer for Alabama but I like Auburn when they are not playing each other.

Anyway, we had a nice drive over to Clemson even with all the football traffic. I think it added to the excitement of the game. Neither of us had ever been to Clemson so we did the best we could making our way around campus and followed the crowds to the stadium.

Our first taste of Clemson was kinda sour because we followed signs to our gate but then were redirected by someone working the gate. After walking around the outside of the stadium 1 1/2 times we found the right gate. Then it was a pain trying to find our seats. We were up in the upper upper upper deck, also known as space! We missed kickoff as we climbed and climbed the steps to find our seats.

All was well when finally sat down and found ourselves surrounded by Auburn fans. Auburn went to Clemson as National Champions with a 17 game winning streak. They played well I thought the first half but then it went down hill. We hung in there while fans cleared out around us. Shame on you bad fans!

The game ended in favor of Clemson and their fans rushed the field to celebrate. I hated that Auburn lost, especially since I have never been to a game where they won. The Auburn fans didn't seem to be shocked, I think some knew it was bound to happen.

We were happy to get home to our boys and even though Auburn lost we had fun and enjoyed the time together.

Camping

2011-09-30T17:43:00.000-04:00

This week I got a wild hair that we should go tent camping. Perry agreed, but was confident that the boys and I would hate it. Well yesterday we packed up the van, picked up Andrew from school and headed to Amicalola State Park. It's only about 20 minutes away from home so it seemed to be the obvious choice for our first camping trip.

We checked in at the lodge and then made our way to find an empty camping spot. The campground was pretty empty when we got there but more campers showed up later. We put our tent up and set up our chairs and let the boys play with their Tonka trucks for a few minutes.

Next we headed out of the park and across the road to Burt's Pumpkin Farm. We walked around and looked at all the huge pumpkins and then went on the hay ride. Andrew and Owen loved it and Perry and I enjoyed the nice quiet ride. After the hay ride we bought some treats from the farm store. We got a slice of pumpkin pie, a slice of pumpkin roll and a pumpkin muffin. We all shared them and agreed that the cold piece of pumpkin pie was the best.

After the pumpkin farm we went back to the state park to explore. We threw rocks in the creek, Andrew fished a little bit, then we went to the playground. We also visited the visitor's center to see the snakes. They have several tanks with snakes native to this area on display. Oh my goodness snakes give me the heebs! Owen would toddle right up to the tank and put his face right up the the rattle snake and copperheads and it would make me cringe. I know obviously they can't hurt him but it still creeps me out!

When we were tired of exploring we headed back to camp to cook dinner. Perry built the fire and I got all the food out while the boys played. We cooked hotdogs over the fire and baked beans, (that we had to get creative with because I forgot a can opener), and grapes. Of course for dessert we had s'mores. By the time we finished eating it was getting late and the boys were getting tired. I cleaned them up and put pjs on them. I tried to get them to go straight to sleep in the tent but that was not happening. We loaded them in the car and I drove around for a few minutes. They were both out before I could even make a loop around the park.

After Perry and I put the boys in the tent we sat by the fire and enjoyed the peace and quiet. It was perfect outside, cool but not cold by any means. The skies were so clear and the stars were so bright. I downloaded a star map on my phone and we were able to identify some planets and constellations.

We let the fire burn down then we headed to the tent. It was a perfect evening but I was concerned about how much sleep we would get. Turns out we slept pretty well and sleeping on the ground is not that bad. Owen cried out a few times but that was it. We were able to sleep until a quarter til 8. That's not bad at all.

When we woke up it was kinda chilly so instead of eating cold cereal we packed up and headed home. We got home about 9 and Perry cooked breakfast while I gave the boys a bath.

Overall it was a great time and we are looking forward to more camping trips. Maybe we'll get a little travel trailer one day because sleeping on the ground was my least favorite part.

Things I learned while camping:

Remember a can opener and paper towels

Wetone's wet wipes are a must have while camping

You can never have enough flashlights

The longer the hotdog/marshmallow roasting stick the better

Back to school

2011-09-06T22:22:00.000-04:00

Andrew started 3 year old preschool this morning. He has been so excited to go back to school to see his friends. This morning he hopped out of bed to eat breakfast and as he ate I asked him if he wanted us to walk into school with him. He said yes so that is what we planned to do.

After we all got dressed and took some pictures we headed to school. It was such a nasty dreary morning. We parked and walked up to the doors. A few cars were just dropping kids off so there were teachers by the doors. They opened the doors and Andrew just walked right through them and left us standing there.

I didn't even get to hug him. He just thinks he is some old pro! Well I was happy that he was so confident. Such a change from last year.

While he was at school we went grocery shopping and hung out around the house. We left 15 minutes early to pick him up because we missed him so much.

He was in the best mood when we picked him up from school! He talked non stop about his day informing us what he ate for snack and who cried when they got dropped off.

We are so happy that Andrew loves school and we look forward to see how he grows this year.

Well Checks

2011-08-25T21:52:00.000-04:00

On Monday Perry and I took the boys for their well checks. Andrew had his 3 year and Owen had his 15 month. You would think after last years 2 year and 2 month well check that I would not have made such a rookie mom error. I am just happy that Perry was there to help wrangle the boys. It would not be so bad if if we could just skip all the forms. Is your child doing this or that? Is he stacking 3 blocks? Does he favor one hand over the other? blah blah blah. Those forms always make me so anxious. Really? I have no idea if Owen can draw a line because every time he has gotten a hold of a crayon he has just chewed the tip off.

Anyway, rant over! After both boys were checked out the nurse practitioner said that they were both healthy and happy. Andrew has a little fluid on his left ear that caused him to have a little trouble during his hearing test. She said she would check it again when I brought Owen for his flu shot.

Andrew weighed 38 pounds and was 38 1/2 inches tall, he's in the 80th percentile. Owen was 24 pounds and 32 inches tall. He's in the 40th for weight and 70th for height.

Both of the boys had to have shots, 1 in each of their legs and Andrew had the flumist. Owen has to go back next month for his flu shot.

We are so thankful for our healthy and happy boys.

today

2011-08-25T15:39:00.000-04:00

It's been a good day around here today. The boys have been behaving themselves mostly and we all got a great night sleep last night. Actually the first night EVER that Owen slept in his bed, all night, without making a peep! Yes I know, I have been sleep deprived for almost 16 months now and we were okay with it until about two weeks ago. So, I have been trying to sleep train him as gently as possible. He has really hated it but it seems to be working and I am so thrilled about it.

It's nap time right now so it's nice and quiet around here. Owen is napping in his crib and Andrew is on the couch. He usually is in his bed napping but he fell asleep in the car on the way home from Wal-Mart. When he does that he is super grumpy so I just layed him on the couch and he fell back asleep. Hey, I pick my battles and today this was not going to one of them. After all, we already had a chat about why we don't litter and also why boys can't feed babies with their bodies.

We went to Wal-Mart before nap to grab a few groceries and to look at some dinner ware. I got the ingredients to make Edie's tortellini soup. It looks great. I'm omitting the San Marzanno tomatoes though because I slaved for 3 hours last night freezing tomatoes.

Yesterday afternoon the boys and I drove over to Warbington Farms to buy a box of tomatoes. We bought 20 lbs of better boy and beefsteak tomatoes and 5 lbs of Roma tomatoes. I think I am going to use the Roma tomatoes in the soup tonight.

While I was in Wal-Mart I bought some new dinnerware. We have always just had a random assortment and I have been on the lookout for some white dishes. I have looked high and low and I don't know why I never thought to look at Wal-Mart. I bought these, they are not exactly what I wanted but they will do. The best thing about them is that if we ever break one they sell them individually at Wal-Mart.

Well I had a little more to say but Andrew is starting to wake up. I better run.

Hide and Seek

2011-08-23T20:57:00.000-04:00

Last week my cousin Cleary came for a visit and she introduced Andrew to hide and seek. Hide and seek is the best childhood game! I don't know why I haven't thought to play it yet with Andrew. Growing up my mom, Matt and I would play hide and seek in the dark and I always loved it!

Tonight Andrew initiated a game with me and we had so much fun. He doesn't exactly get that you are supposed to be hard to find but that will come with more experience I guess.

Funny things about playing hide and seek with Andrew are:

1. It takes him about 2 seconds to count to 5 so you better hurry!

2. He thinks a good hiding place is either in the middle of the floor or where I hid the previous round.

3. Out of six rounds he hid in the same place 3 of them.

4. If I ever had any doubt where he was his giggles will always lead me straight to him.

5. He opens drawers and even the fridge to look for me.

What a funny boy, I think we will make hide and seek part of our Mommy/Andrew time after Owen goes to bed every night.

Where's Andrew?

Braves game

2011-08-18T17:02:00.000-04:00

Last Sunday we went to an afternoon Braves game with Perry's parents and little brother. We had such a fun time and the boys couldn't have behaved any better. They were so great about staying in our seats and being still. We had great seats in the shade and since there was a breeze we stayed cool the entire time. Both boys took naps during the middle of the game but other than that they couldn't take their eyes off the field.

Andrew enjoyed doing the tomahawk chop and learning the song take me out to the ballgame. Andrew held his glove in the air a lot of the time ready to catch any foul balls. Thank goodness nothing was hit in our direction.

I can't wait to to take the boys back to another game, maybe the Braves will win next time.

Andrew's 3rd Birthday

2011-08-11T15:39:00.000-04:00

Andrew had such a fun 3rd birthday. We decided to keep it small but fun and celebrate with family and one of Andrew's friends. We spent the first half of the day at the Cumming Aquatic Center. The boys love it so much and I love it because all the water is shallow. Owen tried to follow Andrew around the whole time, even trying to follow him down the water slides.

After the water park and naps we celebrated with pizza, cake and ice cream. Andrew's buddy Jack came over to celebrate. Andrew pretty much planned his entire party. He picked out the toy story cups and plates and described what type of cake he wanted. I made him a chocolate cake with chocolate icing with rainbow sprinkles. He also said he wanted "green grass ice cream," not sure what he calls mint chocolate chip "green grass" but whatever.

After we had pizza and cake we opened up a few presents. Andrew got some pretty fun toys. His favorite being his new GeoTrax train. His Nana and Poppa took him to Toys R Us to pick out a train and he picked out the Christmas set. He sleeps with it every night. We hung around the house for a little while playing with toys then we decided to go for a sunset boat ride.

Jack and Holly came along with us on the boat. It was the perfect ending to a great day.

2011-08-02T12:12:00.000-04:00

Today is our 4th anniversary. It's the first anniversary that Perry and I have celebrated together. He has always had to work until this year. I can't believe that it's already been 4 years, they have really flown by. We sure have accomplished a lot though. If someone told me 4 years ago that we would have 2 kids and would be living in Georgia after Texas and Alabama I would have never believed them. I'm happy that we are where we are and now I can't imagine life any other way.
We have had so much fun so far and I know there are some really good times to be had. We've also had some hard times and heart ache. When Matt passed away Perry was a rock for me and he held me together for Andrew.

Today as we celebrate our marriage we also prepare to say goodbye to Perry's grandmother. Our hearts are heavy because she will be missed but we can also smile. We smile because we know she's about to be received into heaven and we know that's where she longs to be.

I am so thankful that she made it to the Cayman Islands for our wedding. She was so brave to hop on an airplane off to a different country at the age of 81. I shouldn't have been surprised though, she had always been up for an adventure. When Perry and I got engaged he proposed to me with his grandmother's ring. I was honored and still am to wear it. I hope we continue to pass it down along with stories about Grandmother's life.

We are blessed to have such a close family that can rally together when times are hard. Please pray for Grandmother, that God will comfort her and for Perry's family, that they will feel the Lord's presence.

2011-07-23T22:04:00.001-04:00

Whew.....what a long day! I am so glad to be nestled on the couch with the boys sleeping peacefully in their own beds. Today was just kind of a blah day.
The boys were grumpy and clingy and I was not feeling well so we all just fed off of each other. I struggled to get Andrew to take a nap at his regular time, he fought it and ended up falling asleep around 2:45. When he does this he wakes up in such a raunchy mood.
By the time he was up it was time to start thinking about dinner and every mom knows about the witching hour. I managed to throw some dinner together while Owen was hanging on to my legs and while Andrew was crying for fruit snacks.
After we ate dinner they were both in better moods but I was still feeling yucky so I put them in my big bathtub. While they splashed I cleaned the bathroom. After over an hour the water was pretty cold and they were starting to dump cups of water on the floor. I pulled them out and fought both of them to get their jammies on. At that point I was hanging on by a hair. It was still to early for Owen to go to sleep so we cuddled on the couch with a movie, a movie with no sound. Kind of a blessing because Andrew didn't seem to notice.
After some snuggles Andrew and Owen kissed and hugged goodnight and I told Andrew to watch his movie. I told him to not come in Owen's room! We go through this every night that I have to do the bedtime routine by myself. I turn on an episode of Deigo and I know I will have 24 minutes to get Owen to sleep. I'm not proud of using Netflix as my babysitter but it works....usually.
Owen was pretty tired so I only nursed him for a few minutes and then layed him in his bed. I patted him on his back and hummed and his eyes were just closing when.....( insert yelling voice) "Mommy! I want to use my wizzars!" That's scissors in Andrew's language. In any other situation I could have smiled and giggled at his lingo but in that instance I was only frustrated, very frustrated. Owen immediately popped up to see Andrew and as soon as Andrew came in sight I shot him a mean mommy face and told him to go! He stepped backwards until he was out of the room and I could hear his footsteps back into the living room. My heart immediately felt the pull. I cringed at the tone of my own voice. I felt the guilt immediately.
Owen eventually settled back down and I went to join Andrew with a heavy heart. As I walked through the kitchen I noticed a trail of moon sand he had dropped in the floor but I couldn't have cared less. I felt so bad for treating Andrew so harshly. He greeted me enthusiastically with a magazine and a plea to use his "wizzars". How could he be so forgiving and happy to see me?
Until his bedtime we cut triangles out of Perry's Field and Stream magazine and cuddled on the couch. During our bedtime prayers I asked for forgiveness and I told Andrew that I was sorry. I don't think he really understood what I was talking about but I had to anyway.
I know that the situation could have been handled better and I know that when I am stressed and tired my tone is not very loving. I am just so thankful for my children and their hearts. God is truly using them for my sanctification. I'm so thankful for their forgiveness and especially for God's forgiveness, no matter how bad I mess up.

Owen now

2011-07-23T13:38:00.000-04:00

I haven't updated about Owen since he was 11 months I believe. He has changed so much since then, he is a full fledged toddler, always on the go, always right behind Andrew. He loves his big brother so much and no one can make Owen belly laugh like Andrew. Don't get me wrong, it's not all belly laughs and hugs, they have their moments. Usually their "moments" involve Owen getting frustrated because he can't do everything Andrew can and that usually results in a fit on the floor or a bop on the head for Andrew. Andrew never has a hitter but Owen I'm afraid is. When Owen hits Andrew he just looks at us like, "Do something please."
Owen still only has his bottom teeth but he has been working hard for the past month on his top teeth. They are poking threw his gums finally but they really give him a lot of trouble. He is such a slow and late teether.

Owen's Word List
mama
dada
nana
thank you
gammy
gandy
nite nite
aadew (Andrew)

I won't take so long to update on our little blondie next time.

2011-07-23T12:56:00.000-04:00

As everyone knows it's been HOT lately! We've been able to beat the heat though by keeping busy with museum visits, indoor play places, the water park and a morning visit to the zoo. Usually my go with the flow Andrew was not having any more running around! All he wanted to do yesterday was stay home and play. I'm so happy that he likes being at home.

So yesterday we kept the television off and we all played together. I made a batch of peanut butter play dough, it was more fun to eat than to play with. We built a fort (Owen's first), played with moon sand (A mess!), finger painted in the bathtub and played in the plastics cabinet with a flashlight.

It was such a great day and we all enjoyed it so much.

Peanut butter play dough: 1 cup of peanut butter, 2 TBSP honey and about 3/4 cup or a little more of powdered milk. Mix it all together and add more milk if it's too sticky.

Cow Appreciation Day

2011-07-23T12:15:00.000-04:00

I know I am several weeks late on this post. July 8th is Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-fil-a. We all love CFA and it tastes even better when it is free. I was able to talk Perry into wearing some cow spots although he was very skeptical. As we parked we couldn't see anyone else dressed like cows. He almost didn't wear his spots in. I figured that we would probably just get free entrees since we weren't exactly decked out. Much to my surprise our entire meal was free. Owen even got his very own kids meal. His first one!

After we ate we let the boys play on the playground and Perry and I ate ice cream cones. It was such a fun evening and we will definitely be participating next year too.

4th of July in pictures

2011-07-19T15:33:00.000-04:00

Who is this kid?

2011-07-05T15:10:00.000-04:00

Owen has changed so much over the last few months. Here is the proof.

The picture of the left is from March and then the picture on the right was taken last week. I just can't get over how blond he has gotten. He doesn't even look like the same kid to me.

Not only is his hair changing but he is growing so much. He is cutting his top teeth right now and he is also jabbering all the time. He can now say, "thank you" and "night night". He also sings his bedtime songs all day long. He has the sweetest little signing voice. Everyday he is showing up more and more of his sweet personality. We love him so much!

Apalachicola

2011-07-05T09:46:00.000-04:00

more beach pictures

2011-07-04T15:58:00.000-04:00

2011-06-27T23:26:00.001-04:00

Our first three days of vacation have consisted of....
fishing, boogie boarding, floating in the water, building
sand castles, flying kites, snacking, applying sunscreen,
napping, blowing bubbles, playing scrabble, reading books,
watching sunsets, staying up late and having a blast!

Beach bound

2011-06-22T22:36:00.001-04:00

But first we are going to Alabama to visit our families and to pick up Austin. He's going with us to Cape San Blas. We are all so excited!
We have big plans to do nothing except build sand castles, collect shells, nap, eat seafood, and kayak. I'm not sure I have ever been this ready for our beach vacation. Cape San Blas is where my heart is. I love it there, I have so many memories of mom and Matt there and I'm so excited for my boys to make memories there too.

So tomorrow around noon we're going to leave for Alabama. Saturday morning we'll leave early to head south. We are going to take a pit stop in Prattville to visit the Galloways. We can't wait to meet Sara and visit with Kaitlyn and her parents. Then on to the Cape.

Here's to a safe and fun trip!

Saturday at the Farmer's Market

2011-06-12T15:30:00.000-04:00

Yesterday morning we visited the Dahlonega Farmer's Market for the first time this year. I think it has grown since last year, there where probably 15 vendors. Not all of the normal produce is ready yet but we still managed to score some treats. I bought two stems of my favorite flower, hydrangeas. Also some purple potatoes, a loaf of home made organic Italian bread and a bottle of local honey. The prices are so cheap at the farmer's market. They hold the market in a small park in Dahlonega and it's so nice and shady. Andrew ran wild and had a blast. We will be back next Saturday hopefully for blueberries and green beans. Maybe after we go to the market we will stroll about Dahlonega. It's such a neat little town and walking around never gets old. Here are some pictures for our morning.

Andrew loved talking about all the different veggies

Telling Owen all about the big rocks

Exploring Hancock Park

Andrew running around

Owen walking with Uncle Michael

pool days

2011-06-07T22:50:00.000-04:00

It has been so hot here the only place to be is in the pool! Today after swim lessons I met my friend Holly and her son Jack at our neighborhood pool. My boys were already tired from swim lessons and waking up extra early. We swam and snacked for about 2 hours. There were quite a few people at the pool today and it was a lot of fun. I really enjoy the other moms that live in the neighborhood. Andrew spent 99% of his time in Owen's crab float jumping from the edge into the water. When it was time to go Andrew was not having it. He pitched a ROYAL fit! I mean screaming fit. I didn't even know what to do. Thankfully I had my friend there to help me lug all of our junk to the car. I'm guessing that he was just over tired from his lessons. Speaking of his lessons, he did great while he was actually with the instructor. He loves to swim to her and he is actually swimming under water a little bit. She will let him go a few feet from the steps and he can propel himself to the steps. He is so proud of himself when he does that. When it's not his turn with the instructor he is usually splashing or putting his head under the water. Today he was holding on to the side of the pool and putting his head under and he hit his forehead on the side of the pool. He was having so much fun he didn't even notice. He had a nice scrapped place. It seems like he is getting new bumps and bruises everyday.

Here are some pictures from our time at the pool with Holly and Jack. We are going to try to go swimming together at least once a week.

Haircuts

2011-06-06T19:48:00.000-04:00

Swim Lessons

2011-06-06T19:25:00.000-04:00

Today Andrew had his first day of swim lessons. We have wanted to get lessons for him for a while but I'm glad we waited. I think he is just old enough, not sure how much he could have learned before now.

His lessons started off pretty rough. This morning we arrived about 15 minutes and watched the other class finish up. We were sitting under some shade on some picnic benches. I was chit chatting with a friend while Andrew was sitting next to me. All the sudden I saw Mindy jump and out of the corner of my eye I saw Andrew fall. He fell straight back and landed on his back, smacking his head against the concrete. It was like slow motion, I just couldn't grab him fast enough. When I grabbed him I knew there was going to be blood. Thankfully there was not but we were both shaken up. Mindy grabbed a can drink out of her cooler and I put it on his head. He has a pretty good goose egg and just a scrape.

By the time he had settled down it was time to start the lessons, I told the instructor what happened and she said she'd keep an eye on him. I guess he was still shaken because after the fall he was not wanting to swim. I finally talked him into sitting on the side of the pool. I tried to take his Crocs off but he wasn't having it. I knew it was because his head must hurt because he's not scared of the water at all. Finally the other instructor came over to try to get him in the water.

The instructor immediately said, "Hey, I know you Andrew!" The instructor is boy friend of one of my sorority sisters. We had met several months earlier at a Japanese restaurant. Andrew attached himself to Robert and was good after that.

Once he got going he did great! He went under and would stay under for a few seconds. He kicked kicked kicked and had a good time. He was not very good at waiting on the side of the pool while the other kids took their turn.

I hope that he learns something this week. I'm thinking about maybe asking Robert about some individual lessons maybe at our pool. We'll just see how it goes.

Here are the only pictures I got from his first day.

Time to Catch Up

2011-06-05T14:11:00.000-04:00

We have been busy since Andrew got out of school. We have been going to the pool almost everyday and that has helped keep us cool. It is so hot here but we are loving it.

I was so nervous about how I could handle both boys in the pool this year. I had plans to spend the summer in the back yard with the baby pool if the pool was too much. Thankfully it has been surprisingly easy. The boys both cooperate most of the time. Owen stays in the little crabby float and Andrew will either play on the steps or kick around the pool while in a tube.

Tomorrow Andrew starts swim lessons and I hope that he enjoys them. He keeps telling me that he is not going to go under. We'll see. He sticks his face in the water all the time at the pool. Maybe I will post some pictures from swimming lessons, no promises though.

I never even got around to writing about Owen at one! I took him for his well child check a few weeks ago and he did great with his shots. He also had to have some blood drawn but he didn't even cry. He weighed 22 lbs and was 31 inches tall. He's in the 40% for weight and 75% for height. He is walking a little bit but mostly crawls everywhere. He does a funny tripod or sitting up crawl. It's so funny to watch. At almost 13 months old Owen says, "mama", "dadada", "nana", "uh oh" and "ball".

For Memorial Day weekend we were in Alabama visiting family. We went on the boat one day on Lake Guntersville. We saw a lot of tornado damage and it really seemed to bother Andrew. He is still talking about all the destruction. We also visited with my Aunt and Uncle on Weiss Lake. They have some property in Leesburg and we had a great time playing on all their toys. I tried paddle boarding and I love it! They had a Yoloyak, it's kind of like a kayak but it's shallow so you can stand up easily. I want a YoloYak so bad now, maybe in a few years.

We go to the beach in 20 days and it can not get here soon enough! I've already started getting out stuff ready. The boys are going to have so much fun this year! I can't wait for all the sun, fun and seafood.

We've been doing a few projects around our house. We've lived here for 2 years now and are finally getting some stuff we want done. We are trying to decide on a paint color for Andrew's room so it will be down after that. I just painted the boys bathroom today. Also last week Perry repainted the garage floor. The list never really ends though. There is always something when you own a home.

My garden is doing well. I have some squash that is growing along with a few peppers. I cant wait for our tomatoes to come in. I don't like tomatoes but Andrew loves them! I hope we get enough to make and can some spaghetti sauce or salsa.

Anyway, I guess that is about all for now. Maybe I can get it together soon and post regularly.

Videos

2011-05-26T16:17:00.002-04:00

Here are two of the videos from Andrew's promotion ceremony night before last.

Excuse the shakey camera, we are not professionals! Hope you enjoy!

School's out for summer!

2011-05-26T15:37:00.000-04:00

It seems like just yesterday that I wrote the post about sending Andrew to preschool. I was so worried and I felt so guilty. I thought about how I felt often this year and I would feel relieved every time I would pick him up from school. He loved school from the start, well the second day I should say.

First day and last day. I can't believe how little he was and how old he looks now...tear....

His enthusiasm for school never yielded. He was just as excited the very last day as he was the second week. He loves his teachers, director and friends so much! School did change him but it was all for the better. He never got bullied and he didn't even learn any bad words. His class was such a great group of kids, so sweet and they really got along great! During the promotion ceremony his director said she was so impressed about how close the two year old class was. How they took care of each other and how they really seemed to care about each other. Every single kid will be back next year and they will all be together as they grow. It will be fun to witness. I can't wait for September!

He did learn how to do this!

Not only has school been good for Andrew but it was been good for us as a family. It has really helped us get more involved in our community and it helped us feel grounded and really at home.

As I mentioned the school put on a promotion ceremony and graduation for the 4 year olds. It was short and sweet and made me tear up! The kids did two dances then received their certificates. The dances were HILARIOUS! When it was time for the two year olds to be recognized the director was going to call them by alphabetical order. She called the first kid up, his last name started with a B. Then Andrew got up and went on stage next! It was so funny but they went ahead and gave him his certificate. The rest of the kids wondered on stage out of order too. We have it on video, I'll try to get it on here.

Andrew and his buddy Luke

Andrew and Ms. Cally

Promoted!

Yesterday was Andrew's last day of school and they celebrated with a cookout for the kids and families. It was a lot of fun. They had several stations set up and a bouncy house! That was definitely the best part. The kids had a blast and it was such a great way to end an awesome first year of preschool. Andrew's teacher made a class slide show and its so sweet, it's amazing to see how much the kids grew this year. Andrew the slide show she gave out awards. Andrew got The Most Encouraging award. She bragged about how Andrew tells everyone what a good job they are doing and is always clapping for everyone. He's like that at home too, he's always telling me what a good job I'm doing when I'm pouring his orange juice or driving the van.

Giving out awards

Playing in the rice with Luke

Playing with Chloe, he'll get to play with her all summer, she's our neighbor!

I guess it goes without saying that we were very pleased with Andrew's first year of preschool and that we don't regret sending him at all! I love when a situation turns out better than you could have imagined!

Garden progress

2011-05-15T09:48:00.000-04:00

My garden is still growing nicely. I don't have to water it as often as the straw bales are holding more water. The plants are still a few weeks away from producing anything but they are growing bigger and bigger everyday. I've been feeding the plants the fish emulsion fertilizer about every 10 days. I need to get some sort of pesticide. I'd like to keep the plants as natural as possible so I have some research to do. I'm pretty sure the caterpillars are munching on some of the leaves.

You can see how the plants have grown since late April here.

Small Style a little late

2011-05-13T13:39:00.000-04:00

I took the boys to the park yesterday evening to kill some time. When Perry is gone and I am almost maxed out I like to take them so we can burn off some steam and some daylight.

We had fun, it was the first time Owen has really played. He walked all around holding on to the equipment. Andrew tried to play tag with some big boys but one of them plowed right over him. Andrew cried because he scraped his elbow and the other kid cried because he felt bad. I felt bad for the older boy, he was obviously a sweet kid and it was completely an accident.

Anyway, I tried to post this last night but blogger was down or something, it was in read only mode.

Go to Mama Love Papa for more small styles

Mother's Day

2011-05-10T15:55:00.000-04:00

I had such a wonderful Mother's Day. It was so much better than last years where I spent the day visiting Owen in the NICU.
On Sunday morning I woke up to the smell of breakfast. That's not unusual when Perry is home. He always lets me sleep in and fixes the kids breakfast. The best part about breakfast was that my sweet hubby added chocolate chips to the pancakes. He doesn't care for chocolate chips in his pancakes but I love them. He really knows how to speak my love language!
My in laws were in town for Owen's birthday so they went to church with us on Sunday morning. Both boys went straight to their rooms with no tears so that's always a success.
After church we ate at my favorite local restaurant Piazza. After lunch we came home and snapped a few family pictures. My in laws headed home and we all took naps. Well, Perry ran some errands while we napped. When I woke up I had beautiful white roses on the table. He's very sweet to me. We spent the rest of the day just hanging out and enjoying each other. It was such a wonderful day and I am so blessed to have been able to spend it with my favorite people.

I haven't received my gift yet. Perry said it's still hasn't shipped yet even though he ordered it two weeks ago. I don't know what it is but I did send him a hint about a month ago. I'm sure whatever it is I will love. Anything from my hubs is always special.

The Party was a Hit!

2011-05-09T13:42:00.000-04:00

We celebrated Owen's first birthday with a party on Saturday. We invited a few friends and neighbors and had Perry's parents over. We had a great time and I am finally learning how to host a party and enjoy it.
I ordered a birthday package from Parties by Hardie from Etsy. I will be a customer of hers for a very long time. Her decorations are so cute and so unique. I bought the file from her then printed out all the elements on card stock. The package came with every thing from ticket invitations to banners to thank you notes.

I made the cakes, baseball cupcakes for the guests and a home plate smash cake from Owen. He loved his cake but he didn't demolish it like Andrew did. We served hot dogs and a few other snacks including peanuts.

I bought baseball fabric from Hobby Lobby for the table runners and cloths. I used baseball place mats that I bought two years ago from Pottery Barn Kids. Austin let me borrow his glove and helmet for decorations. I had guests sign a baseball for Owen for his memory box.

Most of the kids were Andrew's age so they all played together on the swing set and in the rock box. I was afraid that Andrew would be jealous of Owen's presents but he couldn't have cared less. We had such a great time with our friends and I think they had fun too. After a couple hours people started heading home and we sent them away with a box of Cracker Jacks as a party favor. Overall I think it was a success. We got to celebrate our little man and we are already looking forward to another birthday party in July!

Dear Owen

2011-05-06T21:41:00.001-04:00

Well here we are on the eve of your first birthday. Your first year has flown by faster than I could have ever imagined. We are ending this year together full of joy and excitement. I know there are some really fun times right around the corner. Sadly your life didn't start out quite the same. We of course were over joyed that we welcomed a new son into our family but there were also feelings of fear and anxiety. I loved you even before I knew you but the feeling I had for you the first time I saw you is something I can't explain. I couldn't take my eyes off you from across the room. I was heartbroken when they took you away from me in the operating room. Thinking back I was not overly worried because they assured me you would be back in my arms in no time. My time in recovery was torture. My body ached to hold and nurse you and the only thing I could do was cry and look at a picture of you on my cell phone sent by your Daddy. I hated that I couldn't see you while all the family got to watch you through the special care windows.

I was completely devastated when I learned I would not be able to see you until 1:00pm. That would be 12 hours after my surgery. Finally after 7 hours of watching the clock a nurse pushed a wheelchair into my room. I couldn't get up fast enough. I was so elated to finally get to hold you that the pain I was feeling quickly faded away.

When I finally got to see you I was sad to see all the sensors and wires hooked to you. The tiny feeding tube going into your nose broke my heart. I held you close but was still not allowed to nurse you. You were just working too hard to breathe.

The next few days are a blur. Your Dad and I stayed in the nursery as much as possible. I skipped taking my pain meds once to stay with you, I learned quickly that that was a bad idea. As the days went by you got stronger and stronger and you got your breathing under control. When I got discharged from the hospital we checked into a hotel just a minute away. We spent as much time as possible in your little nursery nook.

We were so relieved when you were discharged from the hospital. We brought you home to meet your brother and to start our lives all together. The first few weeks at home I was in a ton of pain and I was an emotional mess. I held it all together most of the time but when your Daddy returned to work it was very hard.

I had so many lingering feelings from when you were in the NICU. It was quite the adjustment for me to have two babies. I felt overwhelmed with so many emotions, love and joy were just two of them.

Thankfully you seemed to stay a sleepy newborn for a long time and I was so grateful to be able to just love on you. It seemed like when you decided that you wanted to grow up it happened so quickly. You accomplished milestone after milestone and now here we are. You are right on the verge of walking and talking. You love your big brother so much and you want to do everything he does. I know the two of you will always be best buddies. He is just as smitten with you as you are with him. You two truly have a special bond!

Owen, over the past year you have helped me to become a better person and mother. As you have grown this past year your sweet personality and pleasant demeanor have helped me to heal from your scary start to life.

Tonight, though I am a little sad that my baby is turning 1, I am mostly excited. I know you are growing and learning so much. Though of course I don't want to rush you, I can't wait to see the toddler, boy, teenager, then man that you are going to become. Just remember than as much as you grow, I'm always here and you are welcome to stay a Mommy's boy forever. I love you Owen and I am so blessed to have you as my son.

Space cowboy and hand me downs

2011-05-05T20:25:00.000-04:00

It's Small Style time again. Today we just had preschool then went out for Mexican food in honor of Cinco de Mayo! Oh and I trimmed Owen's hair again, the back looks better but the front looks kinda goofy. This is a good angle though.

On Owen, Gap shirt and shorts, both hand me downs from Andrew. Most of his clothes are. That's what happens when you have boys close in age and born during the same season.

On Andrew Spaceship tshirt from Gymboree, Gap Jeans from a consignment sale and Justin boots from a different consignment sale.

You can see more small styles at Mama loves Papa

Mother's Tea

2011-05-04T22:20:00.000-04:00

In honor of Mother's Day Andrew's preschool hosted a Mother's Tea this morning. I showed up at school a tad early but there were already a ton of moms and grandmas there. One of the teachers pinned me with a paper flower that Andrew made for me. That was surprise number one. I took a seat next to one of the other moms in Andrew's class and we got to chit chat for a little while. After about 5 minutes the teachers brought the kids down and all the kids ran to their moms. Andrew couldn't see me for a few minutes. When I finally got his attention he ran to me and gave me a huge hug and kiss.

Next the kids lined up to sing two songs. No one in the two year old class would sing and the four year olds sang so loud. It was very cute. Andrew just stared at me the whole time. When he came back to sit down he told me that he did a good job and I agreed.

After a blessing we fixed out plates and sat down for with our snacks. Even though we were sitting with eight other people it was great one on one time with Andrew. He was so affectionate and sweet. His teacher passed out two more crafts that he made, they were both so sweet.

I managed to get a picture of him with some of his classmates. They are so cute and it will be fun to watch this class advance together. I think most of his classmates will be back next year including Andrew.

We have been so happy with his school and his teachers.

M, Andrew, B and K

Chloe is our next door neighbor and she and Andrew are big buds.

Several of the teachers commented to me today about how sweet Andrew is and how he is always smiling when he is at school. Comments like that make me one proud Mommy, not that I was not already super proud of my sweet boy!

Thank you Andrew for making my morning so special. I love you so much!

This post marks my 400th post. I can't believe that!

Phil 4:13

2011-04-30T20:27:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago we started working with Andrew on some scripture memory. I picked a short verse and wrote it with dry erase marker on his bathroom mirror as a reminder for me. Every night after I brushed his teeth we would say it together. After just a few days he was saying it throughout the day.

I will not always be with Andrew to encourage him when he is challenged but the word of God can be imprinted in his heart. That's my prayer for him anyway.

Small Style

2011-04-28T19:24:00.001-04:00

I have been following Mama loves Papa's small style for the past few weeks. Usually the little girls styles are showcased but today their were more boys styles. I figured I could join in on the fun. I know it must be fun to dress a little girl but I have fun dressing my boys. Hope you enjoy, maybe I will do this next week too!

These pictures are off my phone so that's why Andrew is blurry.

Andrew: shirt ralph lauren from the Children's Polo Outlet, shorts Gymboree clearance $2.99 and keds.
Owen: hand-me-down shirt from Hartstings, hand-me-down shorts Tea Collection, gift from a friend.

Mary Mary

2011-04-26T13:21:00.000-04:00

Quite contrary how does your garden grow?

In years past I would say, "It doesn't grow"
I have never been able to keep plants alive. Our first summer in our new house we planted a squash plant and it never produced, I just slowly killed it.

While I would not call myself a master gardener or even a gardener at all, the prospects are good. All my plants are healthy and thriving so far. I just hope that my plants produce and that all my hard work and research has paid off.

I posted a picture a few weeks ago of my straw bale setup. I was still conditioning them at that point but had gone ahead and started some seeds. The mint I planted died because I just put it straight in the straw. DUH! it does need soil.

When I felt that it was safe and that my straw bales were cooled after their initial "cooking" I plants some plants.

Here is what I have going.

1. Chives I planted from seeds with a stray zinnia that some how got into the mix.
2. Basil also from seeds.
3.Those are my squash plants that are also from seeds. There are 2 plants in each little hill so I will have to pluck out the smallest and toss them so the other one wont have to compete. Sad right?
4. View of my peppers, tomatoes and lettuce.
5. Cantelope that I planted out of one of the sides of the straw bales.
6. Bell pepper and sweet banana pepper plants.
7. Two heirloom rutgers tomato plants.
8. Mushrooms are a great sign when you are straw bale gardening, sign of decomposition.
9. Crooked neck squash and eggplant plants.
10. Lettuce and some wheat grass that is growing from the bales.

I couldn't get a good picture of the jelly bean tomato seeds that I planted for Andrew. They are still too small.

I am not having to water my bales as often because they are holding more water. Once a week I fertilize the bales with a fish emulsion mix and it seems to be doing the job.

I will keep posting as my plants grow and start to produce some goodness.

My how we've grown

2011-04-25T18:25:00.000-04:00

Same place, same suit for Perry, same tired scowl from Andrew. Bump turned into a boy. Perry now sports glasses and a goatee. I love looking back and then comparing. I think Andrew's face is so funny, at least he was able to show us his face this year.

Owen's big day

2011-04-25T17:09:00.000-04:00

Not only did Owen celebrate his first Easter yesterday but he also cut his first two teeth and also took his first real steps. I say real because the day before he took two steps but those were mostly a falling forward steps.

Last night when we got home Owen was so hyper. I guess being cooped up in the car made him so wild. I was in the floor playing with him and I stood him in front of me and he took a real step. We did it several times and he took up to two steps before sitting or falling down. I just cant believe he is almost one and will be a full fledged walker soon!

After the excitement of the first steps Perry was trying to get something out of Owen's mouth and felt teeth. We were wondering when he would finally get his first tooth. We will be 1 in two weeks. His bottom two teeth were just through his gums. His gums were not puffy and teething doesn't seem to bother him. I am so thankful for pain free teething so far. Pretty soon he will probably have a mouth full.

I will try to get a picture of his little pearly whites soon!

Easter 2011

2011-04-25T17:01:00.000-04:00

We had such a nice relaxing trip to Alabama for Easter. We are usually so rushed when we come but not this time. We had time to visit with most of our family and to do a few extra things we don't always have time to do.

We spent our time in Alabama....meeting the newest member of the family, Bryant. We went fishing, we ate the fish that we caught. Perry taught me to shoot a gun. My granddaddy and I researched a little into our family tree. We watched Austin play baseball, Andrew went for a canoe ride. We went to church for the Easter egg hunt, we played with cousins, Aunts and Uncles. We threw the football. We ate A LOT of food and chocolate. We had another Easter egg hunt at my grandparent's house. We got a visit from the Easter bunny. We dressed up and smiled for pictures (sometimes) and we enjoyed being with family.

I guess that's about it. Overall just one fantastic trip.

2011-04-25T11:34:00.000-04:00

I have tons of pictures to post from Easter
but until I find the time I will leave you
with this one of Andrew.

Doesn't he look so grown up! I could just squeeze him.
He takes his egg hunting very seriously!

Easter Parties

2011-04-25T11:25:00.000-04:00

We had so much fun last week with all the Easter festivities. Our play group had an Easter party and egg hunt last Monday and then Andrew had his school party on Wednesday.

I feel so blessed to have found our play group, we have made friends with a great group of moms and kids.

This party was so much fun. It was at a local park so the kids could run around and play and the moms got to talk. The food was really yummy too and best of all the Easter bunny made an appearance.

We also feel blessed that Andrew is at such a great school. We are so happy that we sent him this year. He has opened up so much and is so much more independent. I can't believe that he only has a month left!

His party at school was fun too. They hid eggs in the worship center since it was supposed to rain. The kids in Andrew's class are so funny and cute!

A Super Prize

2011-04-25T11:00:00.000-04:00

On Wednesday while Andrew was at school his new swing set was being delivered and setup. The night before we told him that he would have a big surprise waiting on him when he got home from school. He could not wait to get his "super prize."

Well the swing set was not completely installed when we got home from his school Easter party. We tried our best to keep him away from the windows and we put him down a little early for his nap. When he woke up it was ready and we were ready to show him. We called Grammy and she came over to see his reaction!

The top middle picture was his first reaction. He was amazed! They both love their new swing set and I know they will spend many hours playing on it as they grow. Owen loves his little swing and Andrew's favorite part is the binoculars.

Andrew wakes up ready to go play at his "park!"

Thank you for such a wonderful gift Granddaddy and Grammy.

Owen is 11 months old

2011-04-10T14:58:00.000-04:00

My little Owen is 11 months old now and I can't believe that in less than a month we will celebrate his 1st birthday!

Owen is such a sweet and affectionate baby. He loves his Mommy so much and he loves to give kisses and give sweet hugs. A few days ago he started "love" on his little blue bunny. I'll say, "Owen can you love the bunny?" and he'll cuddle into it with his mouth wide open for a big wet kiss.

Owen and Andrew are becoming best buddies. Owen follows Andrew around and can keep up with him pretty well. Owen loves to wrestle with Andrew and loves to crawl all over him. Sometimes Andrew is a little rough and Owen will let him know by screaming!

When I took Owen to the Dr last week when he was sick he weighed 21 pounds. He is eating everything that we eat and he really loves chicken. He is still nursing and can drink water out of his cup. Mostly his cup acts as a toy.

Owen still only says mama and dada but he is constantly babbling away and making all kinds of noises. He laughs all the time, I mean non stop. It's a funny sounding gurgling laugh.

Owen still is completely toothless! He has the sweetest gummy grins and they truly are all gums. He is not even showing any signs of getting teeth.

Well I guess that is all for now! Next monthly update is the big 1!!!

This week

2011-04-09T07:55:00.000-04:00

We've been staying busy around here. Nothing major really, just life. The boys felt much better this week but unfortunately I caught their bug and have only been able to breathe through one nostril since Tuesday. Gross right? Perry was home all week so he took care of me. I wish he never had to work, we have so much fun when he is home.

Monday I took Andrew to his first dentist appointment. We have a really great pediatric dentist in our town. The office is so fun with tons of distractions. They are also very quick and very enthusiastic! Andrew was excited about going and we had been talking about it for a few weeks. I was nervous because at this point his dental health is all on me. They tried to take some xrays but Andrew wouldn't keep the little wing bite in his mouth. They said it wasn't a big deal and they don't really need them yet anyway. He opened his mouth wide so the hygenist could clean his teeth and for the dentist to count his teeth. His teeth were great, no cavities or build up. For his good behavior the dentist gave him 2 gold coins that go in his toy machine at check out. Andrew is still talking about his 2 gold coins.+

Tuesday afternoon Perry took Andrew to get a summer haircut. He looks so much older, like a 5 year old or something.

On Tuesday night we got some pretty nasty weather. I was so nervous about this storm. Usually storms don't bother me but I just felt uneasy about this one. I gathered up flashlights, emergency water and had our shoes waiting in case we had to head for the basement. We went to bed about 11:30 when we felt like we were in the clear. We had a few sticks in the yard Wednesday morning, nothing compared to some folks around the southeast.

On Wednesday Perry and Andrew did some landscaping and Owen and I stayed in since I was feeling bad. Wednesday night we cooked out with my Dad and Ellen. They grilled steaks on the Big Green Egg and they were so good. We brought the sides and dessert. It was a fun night until my cold meds starting wearing off and we headed home.

Yesterday we played outside and did some more yard work. I was feeling a little better. I worked on my straw bales and planted some zinnias. I am loving all our flowers and bushes that are beginning to bloom. We've got hostas popping up and hydrangeas are starting to sprout new buds. We have 4 different types of azaleas, one type is blooming now and the others should stagger for the next few weeks.

I am enjoying planting this year and have done well with keeping my plants alive so far. My big project this spring and summer is my straw bale garden. I have 6 bales. I planted some tomato and basil seeds in one and the rest are ready for some transplants....I think. I planted some mint from my Dad's yard. I'm waiting to see if it survives then I will know if they are ready of not.

Perry and Andrew played tball while I fiddled with my bales. Andrew can really hit the ball but he doesn't like to go get it, so that's Perry's job. My Dad came over to see Andrew hit the ball and he decided to pitch him one. Andrew hit it right back to him. We were all shocked, it was so funny and Andrew was so proud of himself. Maybe he'll always enjoy baseball, Perry and I both love baseball season!

Last night after dinner we drove over to the lake to walk around and let Andrew throw rocks. It's his favorite thing to do right now. It felt so nice out and Andrew enjoyed himself so much. There were some geese and a few ducks. Next time we go we'll have to remember to bring some bread for them. I think Andrew would get a kick out of that. We stayed for about 30 minutes. It was getting late and the boys still had to have their baths. Andrew was devastated! He cried the whole way to the car then whined the whole way home. I told him we would go back today but it looks like it's going to rain, maybe in the morning.

We don't have any plans for this weekend. I just need to get my house in order and ready because Perry's parents are coming on Monday. We can't wait for them to come visit. We always have a good time and this time they are bringing the new pontoon boat. I hope the weather cooperates so we can enjoy some time on the lake.

Well I guess that is about all for now!

2011-04-03T20:40:00.000-04:00

-Both boys have ear infections and had viruses this week. We went to the doctor on Wednesday for Owen and then on Friday for Andrew. Owen has to do breathing treatments and they are both on antibiotics, they are feeling much better, despite their runny noses.

-Perry is home for 5 days!!! YES!!!!

-My cousin had a baby this week and he is beyond cute! I can't wait to meet him and smell that new baby smell!

-I have been watering my straw bales so that they will start to decompose. I should be able to plant my veggies next week. I'm don't have my plan for what I want to plant where yet but I'll have to figure that out soon.

- Andrew is on spring break this week. We want to take him to Six Flags. If we don't go there we will probably go to the zoo.

-Andrew has his very first dentist appointment in the morning. I am so nervous. I hope he cooperates and I hope we've done a good job brushing his teeth.

-Owen will be 11 months old this week and I have started planning his first birthday party. I thought of doing a joint birthday party for the boys in June. Maybe next year, Owen deserves to have his special day!

-I absolutely cannot wait until Easter. I can't wait to see family for a few days. I can't wait to see Andrew in a suit and I can't wait for Owen to hunt for some eggs.

I guess that is about all that we've been up to!

Spaghetti

2011-03-27T22:08:00.000-04:00

Tonight we gave Owen spaghetti for the first time. He loved it! He actually cried for more when he was done. I love pictures of babies eating spaghetti! I don't think I have a picture of Andrew's first experience.

Just starting, not much sauce yet.

Digging in! I used garden spaghetti noodles tonight, that's why that noodle is green.

Maybe one of my favorite pictures ever!

A trip to Carrollton

2011-03-27T21:00:00.004-04:00

Friday afternoon Owen and I went to Carrollton to visit our best friends. Perry was on a trip and I thought Andrew would have more fun with Grammy and Granddaddy. It's been a few weeks since we had seen baby Cole and he had grown so much! We visited, laughed, ate and had a great time. We went over to the house that Rico has been working on. It was built in 1900 and is such an awesome craftsman style house! They should be in it really soon! Emily and Rico are such sweet parents! I got to love on Cole a pretty good bit, Owen did get pretty jealous though. We would have loved to stay longer but I was really missing Andrew. We wont wait so long to go back for a visit. Thanks for letting us come visit Emily and Rico!

Interview with a 2 year old

2011-03-26T20:08:00.001-04:00

I've seen kids interviews on a few blogs and thought I would interview Andrew to see what he would say. This was fun once I got him to sit still for a minute.

What is your name? Andew

How old are you? 2, holding up two fingers

Who is your Mommy? looked at me

Who is your Daddy? looked at Perry

What does Mommy do? builds castle, flowers, do puzzle

What does Daddy do? da da da....da grill on the chicken

Where does Daddy work? to fly airplanes

Where does Mommy work? in the blue car

Who is your brother? Owen

What is your favorite color? gween

What is your favorite toy? pieces... puzzle pieces

What is your favorite animal? elephant

What is your favorite food? oatmeal

What is your favorite drink? owange juice

I am loving.....

2011-03-23T19:30:00.000-04:00

all the new plants my husband planted in the yard this week.

that we didn't kill any of our plants this year and they are all starting to bloom!

the clean and fresh feeling of the rooms that I have cleaned out.

the weather and playing outside with my boys most of the day.

my Phil & Teds double stroller all over again.

talking to my best friend about nursing, baby sleep patterns and the best and softest baby clothes.

that I get to see that said best friend this Friday.

that Andrew looks for Owen when he wakes up so they can play.

that we are making plans for summer.

that I have gotten a few more leads in my genealogy search.

the new cash envelope system we have been using this month for groceries. I think we have saved more than usual.

Perry will be back home on Saturday night.

that we will get to go to church all together after two weeks of being sick.

life!

Genealogy

2011-03-19T13:06:00.001-04:00

I have always been semi interested in genealogy. I think it's nice to know where you come from. Last night though I was watching the new show Do You Know Who You Really Are? It sparked my interest. I know that my great grandmother on my paternal grandfather's sides maiden name was Saye. My granddaddy has a book of all the Saye descendants. Since most of the research has already been done I figured I could start there with my search. I called my granddaddy and asked about my great grandmother's father. I really needed to see the book but my grandaddy gave me the name of his grandfather, Thomas Saye.

With that name I was able to do some research online. It was not long at all that I was able to track the family all the way back to England where the information stops. Turns out my great(x6) grandfather, William James Saye was born in England in 1728. He married Nancy Hodge, born in 1730.

From there I can track all the way down to me. I really want to find out more about what part of England he was from and more about his ancestors.

There are forums, web pages and even a facebook page devoted to the descendants of William James Saye and Nancy Hodge.

I found out that the son of William James and Nancy Hodge Saye was Richard Saye. He was born in 1740 in England. Richard was married to Mary Hodge, most likely his cousin and was killed on October 9, 1779 during the Siege of Savannah during the Revolutionary war. He left his wife, my great(x5) grandmother with 7 children. One of those children being James Saye born in 1775. James settled in Hall county. Which is where I grew up! There is supposed to be an old article in the Hall County Library containing more information from the family tree. I would love to go look in the archives for any deeds or census information.

I want to research and learn more and I want to do it while I have my Granddaddy's help. He enjoys this kind of thing too. I am thinking of signing up on Ancestory.com to see if I can get any information but I don't want to be disappointed. I think the knowledge will be nice to pass down to my boys.

I got this picture from the William James Saye and Nancy Hodge facebook page.

Maybe it's Richard (great x5 granddaddy) or James (great x4 granddaddy).

Did they have cameras in the 1700s?

We belong in a zoo!

2011-03-19T12:30:00.000-04:00

Yesterday my friend Holly and I took our boys to the Atlanta Zoo. It was a beautiful day, kinda hot actually. I didn't think it would be crowded but it was. There were a bunch of school kids on field trips. Andrew loves to walk when we go to the zoo so I just brought Owen's little push car and no stroller. I guess the freedom got the best of Andrew because he ran and ran and ran. We really only looked at a few animals. It was fine though just as long as he didn't run too far ahead. We rode the train, carousel and played on the play ground. It was a fun day and we were all so tired. My boys crashed early last night so that was nice! Can't wait to go back!

St. Patrick's Day

2011-03-17T23:51:00.000-04:00

Life can feel a little mundane when you are a stay at home mom with two little ones. That's why I take advantage of any occasion to change things up around the house. Since today was St. Patty's day I took the opportunity to add splashes of green (mostly to our food) to our ordinary routine.

This morning we had green blueberry muffins and green grapes for breakfast. I made them last night with just a regular muffin mix and a few drops of food coloring. Andrew and I both love muffins!

Of course I dressed us all in green then took Andrew to school with a green fish net for his first show and tell! His teacher requested something green from our house. I couldn't find anything interesting from our house so we borrowed the fish net from Granddaddy.

At school Andrew had green juice and green popcorn for snack! Andrew keeps talking about that green popcorn!

After school we headed to home to play and to have lunch before snack. Of course we had to have some more green food! I made penne pasta with pesto and chicken. We also ate more green grapes and lime jello for dessert. I also gave Andrew a few chocolate coins.

After naps and a little time outside we headed to dinner with Dad and Ellen. We ate at Andrew's favorite, Taco Mac! We got there early but by the time we left it was really hopping with basketball fans. Taco Mac even dyes their beer green on St. Patty's Day, not that I enjoyed any.

It was so nice out when we got home we played for about an hour. I pushed Owen around in his little car and Andrew pushed his Tonka truck all over the yard.

I meant to do a little craft with Andrew but we just didn't get to it.

Tonight we are staying with my Dad. Andrew is already asleep and my Dad is rocking Owen. Perry is in Houston for some simulator training but will be home tomorrow night. Tomorrow our plan is to go to the zoo with our friends Holly and Jack. It's supposed to be a beautiful day tomorrow too. Maybe I will remember to take some pictures and post them on the blog.

Owen is 10 months old

2011-03-10T18:01:00.000-05:00

Well as much as I protested and told him not to Owen turned 10 months old! I just cant believe that we will be celebrating his first birthday in two short months. 10 months seems so much older than 9 months.

This month Owen learned how to crawl super fast. He amazes us with his speed. He can almost keep up with Andrew and he can crawl across the room to get a toy in no time.

A few weeks ago he threw his first fit! Yes, we have a little boy with quite a big temper. If I take something from him or sit him down after being held be will flail himself on the ground and do a little head bang. He doesn't bang his head on the floor he just does this weird rocking back and forth thing. He is very persistent with what he wants, and right now he wants me! He has separation anxiety like no ones business. If I hand him off and walk out of the room be prepared for the tears to flow. If someone takes him away from me and they leave the room he is less likely to melt down.

Owen loves to play with Andrew and his month they really played a lot together. Owen has no interest in his baby toys, he only wants trucks, trains and mega blocks. I know it's very frustrating for Andrew and he is constantly asking me to hold Owen.

Owen is napping at more consistent times now but it takes him some time to wake up. During this time he just likes to be held. It seems like he is always waking up as I am preparing a meal so it's hard to hold him and get everything done. I want to get an Ergo baby carrier so I can strap him to my back after naps. That way we both win. He gets his cuddle time and I can have my hands free. Also an Ergo would make trips to the park, zoo and even the grocery store easier. I am trying to find a good deal on Ebay. Maybe soon I will find one.

It seems like this post makes Owen seem so needy and high maintenance. He really is not that needy. He's just attached to me and wants to keep me in sight. I think that's pretty normal at this stage. I know I will miss him loving on me all the time when he is older so I will just embrace this stage.

I love you Mr. Owen!

Whole Hweat!

2011-03-04T14:24:00.001-05:00

Have you ever seen the episode of Family Guy when Stewie calls Cool Whip, cool hwip. With all the emphasis on the H. I dont usually laugh at thay show but that scene does make me snicker.

Anyway, when ever possible I put an extra emphasis on the h in wh words, such as Hweat! Not so much whole though. Perry thinks it's funny and I like to make him smile.

So anyway, today I made some whole Hweat pretzels and cinnamon rolls. They are both very good. I only used half the dough and I froze the rest. I got the recipe from the Heavenly Homemade blog. She has a ton of recipes that I cant wait to try.
I will try to post some pictures from my phone, it's been giving me a hard time.

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untitled

2011-02-25T08:46:00.001-05:00

So I have not been blogging lately because our computer is messed up. The mouse and keyboard both stopped working. I plugged in another keyboard and mouse but it's such a pain. I have only missed being able to upload pictures and blogging a little.
It seems that we have been busy but nothing alone has been blogger-ific!
I've been cooking up a storm and destroying my kitchen everyday doing freezer cooking. I am making a ton, not only for us but for two friends. It's been really fun. I imagine that if we have 5 kids one day that my everyday cooking might be a similar feat. I will need some bigger pots, thats for sure.

Two days ago I took Andrew to our neighborhood play ground. It's kinda boring and to make it worse Andrew got a huge splinter in his finger. Dad and Ellen had to come over to help me get it out. It was awful! Andrew screamed like I have never heard when I was trying to get it out. Finally, I was able to grab it with the treezers and pull it out. I said, "we're done, it's out!"
Andrew jumped up and exclaimed, "I did it!"
It was very funny and I was so relieved that he was no longer in pain.

Owen has been all over the place and is keeping me busy. Yesterday in the amount of time it took me to lay Andrew down for a nap Owen found the toilet. I walked out of Andrew's room to find him in the bathroom having a grand ole time.

Having a crawler brings on more work. I am constantly sweeping and vacuuming. My floors have been clean lately but somehow Owen always can find something to put in his mouth.

We went to Zoo Atlanta on Tuesday. It was spur of the moment but we had a great time. We bougt an annual pass so we'll be going quite often. Andrew loves the animals and the train and Owen loves being outside.

Tomorrow Perry comes home from his trip around noon then we are headed to Alabama to visit and for my cousin's baby shower. We are planning on staying until Monday. On the way home we are going to visit with Emily and Cole. I cant wait to get my hands on that little boy.

Today it is supposed to storm so we are already hunkered down inside on the couch. Toy Story 2 is playing and we'll be watching lots of other movies and eating lots of popcorn. It should be a nice snuggley day!

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Amazing

2011-02-16T14:21:00.001-05:00

Today my best friend Emily became a mother. Cole Edward was born at 3:40 this afternoon. He weighed 8 pounds and 4 ounces and was 20 1/2 inches long. Emily asked if I would take pictures when he was born and I was so honored. I have experienced my own c-sections but it was such a special experience to be on the other side of a birth. Emily did amazing! Cole is such a beautiful little boy with a head full of dark hair, he looks just like his daddy.
Cole was working a little too hard breathing so he had to go to the transition nursery. When I left the hospital he was doing well and Emily was feeling great too. I cant wait to go visit them soon.
Thanks Emily and Rico for letting me share in your joy. I love all three of you!

Sorry for any misspellings, the computer is broken so I used my phone to blog.

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2011-02-07T21:53:00.001-05:00

Owen is 9 months old

2011-02-07T21:49:00.000-05:00

9 facts about our 9 month old.

1. He weighs 21 pounds and wears 18 month clothes.

2. He has a lot of hair and it sticks up most of the time.

3. He says, "ma ma", "da da" and "na na"

4. He loves to pull up on Andrew's train table and take the track apart.

5. He has a temper and hates when someone takes something from him.

6. He eats meals with us and nurses still.

7. He is so attached to his Mommy and likes to keep me in his sight.

8. Loves to "walk" while he holds on to some one's fingers.

9. Is such a blessing to his family!

Speaking of...

2011-02-02T16:18:00.000-05:00

We've been staying busy at the Nix house. Since the last time I blogged I have been purging our house. I have been bagging and boxing up clothes, toys, random stuff for goodwill and then tossing the rest. I need to do more because I cant really tell the difference. I went through all the baby clothes and packed up a box for my cousin. She's having a little boy in April and I cant wait to meet him.

Speaking of babies! My best friend Emily is also having a baby boy in about three weeks! She is 37 weeks now so really he could come sooner! I am so giddy about Cole Edward's arrival! I am loving all these babies boys that will soon be here. This past Saturday Owen and I made a trip to Carrollton for Emily's baby shower. She got a ton a cute things. After the shower we hung out for a little while at her house and I spent the whole time fawning over all the sweet newborn clothes. I can't wait to snuggle little Cole and smell that sweet baby smell. I know I have a baby myself and he smells yummy but he wont let me hold him like a baby anymore! So I cant wait to hold a swaddled little newborn.

Speaking of my baby! He is crawling! He started crawling 2 days ago and he is on the go non-stop! He is also pulling up on anything and everything he can get to. He also started taking steps when I hold his fingers. My life immediately just got busier as I have to be extra vigilant about what he can reach. I need to buy some more fireplace and corner guards.The baby-proofing is a little lax around here because Andrew does not require most of it anymore.

Speaking of Andrew, he got a new pet! He has a beta fish that has two names. Sometimes the fish's name is Tuna and sometimes it's Mahi! He got both of those names from my dad, they talk about salt water fishing all the time. My dad lets Andrew play with his new reel and they talk about what fish they are going to catch. It's pretty cute. We were not really planning on getting a pet any time soon but Andrew had a little accident the other day and to help him feel better his Grammy bought him a fish. Andrew's accident involved a fall and four scrapped fingers and lots of tears. Poor buddy, he walked around for several hours with a wet paper towel on his boo boo. I guess it was the only thing that made it feel better. Now he is proud of his boo boo and showed his teacher when she got him out of the car this morning. So that is how Andrew ended up with a pet fish. I asked Ellen what happens when Andrew has to get stitches or breaks his arm? A pony?

Speaking of grandparents, we have weekend plans with Perry's parents. We are going to Gatlinburg for a couple days and I can't wait. I am not sure what all we will do but there is plenty of stuff around. I am sure we will figure something out. I just hope that it is not too cold!

Speaking of the cold! Perry is snowed in in Madison, WI. He is supposed to be home tonight but that doesn't look like it will happen. I just hope he will be home sometime tomorrow, we are supposed to leave on Friday for TN. I just have to keep telling myself that as bad as I want him home, I know he wants to be home even more. At least I can leave the house and I have the kids to hang out with. He's stuck in a hotel room! Oh the glorious life of a pilot!

Well I guess that is all the "speaking of" news I have for now!