Matthew- 15 months

Finally!!! I got the video to work with sound! :)

Took this video last night after we got home from a friend's house. It was 10:00pm and WAAAY past the kids bedtimes. I was feeding Matthew 1 last snack before bed and he was cracking me up. This just shows a fraction of it but it shows some of his new words and some of his signing that he is really enjoying. It is great knowing what is going on that kid's mind.

All was going well until he saw his pacifier and said "Mama"...that means "I want something." Then he signed 'help' but it is so far off from the actual sign for help- it really makes us laugh! He is such a ham and really makes us smile!

Matthew's Man Cave

I love this video! Matthew just figured out where he likes to hide...mainly just to poop...but I guess you could call it his Man Cave- a place to get away from it all!

Hopefully this will help me remember how small he really is. Someday when he is taller than me and bigger than me that will be hard to do. But for now he is my little boy...and still my baby!

Bird calling

It is absolutely hilarious watching my son and daughter trying to call birds.

My parents came up 2 weekends ago to watch the kids while Mark and I went to Iowa for a football game. This was one of the many funny moments!

What is new...

Not much....and I'm thrilled about that! :)


Of course with kids their is always something 'new' they are doing and saying. For instance Matthew is learning new things and saying new things almost daily. This week he has learned how to say 'cracker' and 'balloon'! He is still signing since he really enjoys that and big sister loves to teach him signs. He is quiet a cold/allergy mess right now but it really doesn't slow him down or keep him fromhaving fun!

Macy is 3 1/2 now and I think we are getting closer to that beautiful age of 4 where I hear their is less attitude and less power struggles! I SURE HOPE SO! The first 6 months of 3's have been very interesting. She has her sweet and precious moments though out the day but lots of power struggles. Lately though she has been such a helper and so loving to us all!!!

We had some wind damage in May and are FINALLY getting our new roof next weekend! So excited!! Also, Mark and I will be attempting some tile work in the spare bathroom in the next few moths so that should be nice and interesting! :) Still don't know why someone would put carpet in a bathroom!!! So between that and the 2 surgeries the kids have needed this year will totally through our budget off for the year but that is just life right? Just very grateful we have a healthy family that will be able to enjoy it! :)


Here are some recent pics and videos of the kids.

Matthew sporting his new car that I got at a garge sale for only $5!! One of my MANY great garage sale finds this year!
Macy picking out pumpkins at Jacob's Orchard.

Macy ready for fall.

How Matthew fell asleep tonight. So precious! I just want to bottle his sweetness up so I can remember these precious days with my baby boy!!! They go by WAY to fast!

Macy

It seems like most of my latest blog posts are videos about my kidos so I thought I would take a second to record some funny moments in Macy's life in the last few months.

* Most funny saying EVER: "I'm wearing pink because I'm a princes pink kind of girl!" Where did that come from?

* Coming into bed the other night saying " It was kinda raining a little bit....so I just came into bed with you". We tell her to only get into our bed if she is scared and the rain scares her...so she thought she could pull one on us at 3am. And she DID! It wasn't raining outside!

* She calls her little brother and anyone else she is mothering (aka smothering) sweetie

* Loves to watch princess movies and play dress up (Fancy Nancy parties)

* Always has a baby of hers sleeping and won't let me talk very loud b/c it might 'wake the baby'!

* Cooks me lunch in her play kitchen consisting of hot dogs and potato chips- daily

*LOVES her little brother, playing outside, watering flowers, and Popsicles

*Refuses to acknowledge that her Nana and Papa's dogs have died and keeps telling me that when they are done being dead they are coming back to their house. :(

* Can't get over that her Uncle Jason is in college and isn't living with her Papa and Nana anymore...again :(

*Wants a cat SO BAD that she already has its name picked out and colors that she wants it in. And says that when Katie isn't around anymore (our dog) she can have a cat...not sure about that one! Ha!

* Absolutely LOVES her daddy right now. She will do anything for her dad. So precious!!!

I keep thinking, "Oh, I won't forget this stuff" but of course I do....so I'm hoping to make this more of a tradition. To record my kidos cute sayings or funny things they do. Because let's be honest -I will forget some of the 'little' things that take up the 'big' part of my life, and honestly that makes me a little sad. I love the age of my kidos right now and even though it is TONS of work I just wish I could freeze frame this moment in life and be in in forever!

Fancy Nancy dinner at our house

Last night was our first family dinner since July 24th (yes I've been counting the days)....so we decided we would make it special for Mark...and I'm pretty sure we surprised him!

We had a Fancy Nancy themed dinner. Fancy Nancy is a great children's book series that we have fallen in love with at the library. Macy received one of her books for her birthday and has loved them ever since. Nancy is a girl who loves, loves, loves to be fancy and loves to use big words to show off her fanciness (or gaudiness)! We had tons of fun dressing up with high heels, jewelry, dresses, tu tu's, and makeup (us girls anyway).

Here are some pictures...and yes we even let Macy drink out of a fancy cup. She loved it too.

After our fancy dinner we had parfaits (which Nancy makes quiet frequently) and I'm pretty sure that was Matthew's favorite part. Just watch this video..."Want a bite".

Walking around and more

Matthew has this walking thing down! He is all over the house and is just loving his freedom to go where ever he wants. It is wearing me out but it is so exciting to watch his face when he figures out something new.

We went to football practice on Thursday night and I realized that I won't be sitting in the stands at all this year. All he wanted to do was go up and down on the stairs. Looks like we might be sitting on the grass hill this year....I mean walking in the grass hill....we don't sit anywhere these days! :) He loved the football field though...and of course as soon as he saw Mark he wouldn't let him put him down. Not sure who had more fun- Mark or Matthew- walking around the field after practice.

New words for Matthew are ball, Daddy and Papaw. He is working on saying lots of letter sounds so I know new words will be coming soon. He is constantly 'jabbering' using the same inflection and pausing that we do when talking...we have no clue what he is saying but I guess he does! He looks us straight in the eye (and if we aren't looking at him he turns our heads toward him) and jabbers away.

Seems like forever ago that Macy was doing this stuff- I just love this stage!

I'm falling down!

What we do around here for fun! This at least helped me procrastinate from putting the laundry away!

Matthew using his 'walker'

We are getting closer to having a walking baby boy!!! Hard to believe I only have 1 more week until my baby turns 1! I was a little emotional when Macy turned 1 but I think it will be harder with Matthew. Good thing I have a party to plan to distract myself!

My new favorite website

http://www.crafthope.com/



So I feel like most of my posts have been about my kids....and that is a good thing I guess but I also feel like I'm sort of merging out of the 'baby fog' and feeling like I can again claim a small portion of my week (or part of my day) to do something fun- just for me!!!



Some of my friends and I get together on Wednesday nights to catch up with out kids (we meet at 8:30 pm after bedtimes and leave the kids home with our hubbys). Most of us bring some sort of craft (which is usually for our kids), or baby book (again for our kids), or some other random thing we are working on. We really get a lot accomplished, have great food, sometimes a little wine, and great laughs!!! I usually get home before 11 but have been out past midnight a few times! It is just a great time and well worth the lost sleep.



Well, my friend Erin (who I just adore and is super crafty) found this site and has helped start a 'working bee' group in her home. Once a month (on our Wednesday night craft night) we work on the current project. This month we are cutting up old cotton sheets/t-shirts/clothing/etc. to make rags to send to FL to be used on animals affected by the oil spill. Such a great idea! Last month we made bean bags to be used by childen in Africa to learn English in their portable schools. We got the sweetest thank you note from the head of that charity- it literally brought tears to my eyes.



I love being a part of something that is beyond just me and my family...especially when it can be used to make a child smile or an animal breathand really enjoy the laughs it brings.

"So Big!" and more

It's been a busy week so far. Monday Matthew got his ear tubes put in (post to come later in the week with pictures). Yesterday he finally figured out "So big!" and I can honestly say that since Monday he is babbling so much more. Maybe everyone was right when they said we will notice an immediate 'difference' from the tubes! :)

Matthew's latest accomplishments- "So big!", clapping, and working on 4 new teeth (2 of which are now in). Still working on getting a good picture or video of the teeth.

New things

I feel like my little man is doing new things every day....I guess that probably means he really is! So far this week he has learned to wave 'bye-bye', knows when he has done something good and will clap for himself, make a tractor sound, and say 'Katie' (our dog's name)!! All in 1 week! Oh and I'm not just saying he can say Katie b/c it kinda sounds like it....no, he really says it....and he pronounces it exactly like he should. Man, he loves that dog...her cage....her food...her water....and her leash. I just wish she liked him that much in return....someday! LOL!

Macy's favorite song

Macy loves to sing her latest favorite song from church. She came home singing it and I found a clip online. Click Here to listen to what she is singing.

Playing with the kids

Don't know what was so funny about this but we all couldn't stop laughing.

Caged

My little man loves to sit and play in the dog cage. Although it is tempting we have never locked him in! :) Katie tolerates a lot but welcoming a kid into her cage is ranked right up there at the top of her list of things she can't stand. She really is a good dog!

The Big Guy

Seriously don't know where the time has gone but my little 'big guy' is almost 10 months old! He is just changing every day. Saturday was our Spring football game so I took the kids to go out and support their daddy and the entire BSU team. The weather was great and we all really enjoyed it. Matthew learned how to clap which was pretty great too! We have been working on it for a while now so it was great to see it finally 'click'.....and at a football game at that! :) So I'm also hoping the baby signs I've been teaching will begin to show themselves too.

It also seems that with crawling Matthew feels more like a true 'big guy'! He is crawling all around the house and knows he can get into everything whenever he wants. The latest is the dog food (so we switched to a smaller size piece of food- sorry Katie!) and my kitchen cabinets. Anyone who has ever had a baby/toddler before knows the 'fun' in playing with pots and pans. I know I can get safety locks on them but he isn't doing any harm and it makes me keep my kitchen floors so much cleaner too! Lately I can't get him to even eat baby food- just food from our plate....and still no teeth!! I don't know how he does it! Even though it is a little sad for me he is now taking a bottle much better these days. It has given me much more freedom too! Letting go has to start somewhere....:(

I just feel so blessed to have my happy and healthy kids!

Sometimes it's the simple things...

Grandpa Naylor sent a cute and entertaining birthday card. It is providing hours of entertainment! :)

The tonsils are out!

Well, we have made it through day 4 after having Macy's tonsils out on Wednesday. I'm so glad it is over- I think we all are.

I had never heard of anyone needing their tonsils out for any reason other than strep throat. Macy never once had strep (that we know of anyway) but had such large tonsils (and later we found out her adenoids were huge as well) that it was causing her airway to become blocked when she would sleep at night. We have been noticing her snoring over the past 4 months or so and noticed she drooled a lot at night. But until a few months ago when I noticed her tonsils were HUGE I never thought of the the two being related. Of course I was thinking she had some sort of rare infection that was going to be way more serious than a tonsillectomy (I think that is a mom thing!). So I was relieved that the pediatrician and the ENT thought that they needed to just come out.

That was over a month ago and it just took a few weeks to schedule the surgery. I honestly can't find one negative thing to say about the entire process. Although, it was a horrible feeling having someone carry your baby girl down a hallway when she was screaming "I want my mommy!" but I kept telling myself that I was doing this for the best. It helped fight the tears off a little. After she was out of surgery I got a call in the waiting room saying she wanted her mommy. That was the best feeling to hear those words and that I got to go into the recovery room -which they rarely allow family in! They even let Mark come in a little later. I got to hold her in a rocking chair while the nurses monitored her and I tried to just keep her calm and from crying. We spent the day trying to get her to drink/eat and to go potty. She ate lots of ice cream and even ate some pizza! Who would have thought pizza! But that is what she wanted and the Dr didn't give her any limitations. Thankfully we got to come home by 8pm and she was running around the house that evening playing with all her new toys and balloons.

The hardest day was yesterday- day 3 after surgery. We were told this would be a tough day and we were prepared to just watch movies and hold and cuddle Macy all day. And that is what we did....and it was nice. :) I think we both enjoyed it!

Here are a few pictures of Macy in the hospital and a few taken today. What a difference!!

Matthew army crawling

Wild Man Matthew

I knew from the moment that I first felt Matthew move in my belly that he was going to love to move around!!! He never stopped when I was pregnant so this doesn't surprise me one bit! I'm getting my rest now b/c I know once he starts crawling and walking I'm not going to get any down time. :) What a great kid!

A new game around our house

This was hysterical the first few times....now it is well....let's just say I'm just grateful for happy and healthy kids- with good lungs!!!

Latest pictures

Macy and I next to our baby snowman!

Both kids enjoying the Johnny Jumper.

What happens when Mommy feeds Matthew without a bib- what was she thinking!

Matthew pulling up on toys!

Macy and her boa she got for Valentine's Day.

My happy baby boy!!

What happens on long snowy days while baby brother naps- mom looses

her mind and brings the snow inside!

Macy showing off her V-Day outfit.

The latest on my two kids

So far this year I'm not doing as good of a job as I had hoped on

updating our friends and family on our family...

My goal is to get better at this for two reasons- so that in between visits home to see family everyone can see what is going on with our kids (and us too I guess!) and to keep a journal of cute and funny moments in our life. As much as I think I will remember all of the funny things Macy says or the cute things Matthew is now doing...reality is that I won't! How do I know this? Because I can barely remember what I ate for breakfast and couldn't tell ya the last movie I watched. *Sigh* I CAN however tell you the last time my kids pooped (and describe it in detail), what THEY ate for lunch yesterday, how much they currently weigh and the latest milestones they have achieved....sorry probably too much information...but that is where I'm at in life! :)

So latest milestones for Macy:

* We are 100% done with potty training!!!! Never thought I would ever get to say that but the big 'poop in the potty' moment happened about a month ago- I've never felt more proud! Ha!!
* Macy LOVES to ask questions and they are getting more detailed like "Mom, do we have any milk or do we need to go to the store and buy some?" or "Is Annie and Liam coming over on Friday or on Tuesday (she has no clue what days of the week are but she at least has the words figured out!)
* We have started a sticker reward chart giving her stickers for doing certain daily things - brush teeth, make bed (her choosing not mine), getting dressed ("All by myself"), sharing toys with her brother or friends, picking up, etc. This has really worked with her attitude on doing certain things. It is amazing what stickers can do. Mark wants to continue doing this until she is 18....but I really doubt bribing with stickers is going to keep her from staying out late with friends...maybe! :)
*We are reading LOTS of books and she is acting more like a big kid every day. When people say "kids grow up fast" man....they really mean it. She is just so sweet and so caring- and a great big sister.
*Macy will be 3 in almost a month- hard to imagine but she is! So we are working on a birthday party idea too.

The latest with Matthew:

*Matthew is almost 8 months old - and is finally ear infection free (for now anyway)!! He had an ear infection (right, then both, then left, then both) for almost 2 months. During that time I had some of the hardest 'Mommy moments' I've ever had. I really don't know how families with very, very sick kids can go through Dr appointments and medicine like that for months. Thank God we are done with all of that. Praying that they don't return or we could be looking at tubes. :( It has been so nice having a 'happy and healthy' Matthew to love and enjoy playing with!
* Pulling up on almost anything has become one of his greatest daily accomplishments. He looks so proud of himself. It is scaring me to death because I know crawling and walking are not too far away- yikes!
* We all have been getting so much sleep lately which has been great! Matthew is sleeping 11-13 hours at night only waking once to eat around midnight. It has been so nice for both of us. Although I do miss the little guy by morning and I'm itching to hug him when he wakes up. He really enjoys playing in his bed when he wakes up so that has been fun to listen and watch him do too. Such a great kid!

That's about all for now. Will try and post some pictures later...but must go check on my sleeping kids.

And one more

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/carrot_banana_muffins.html

These muffins make a great breakfast for just about anyone. I even subt. the banana with some applesauce and flax meal for the eggs!

Unique combinations, but so YUMMY!

Here are some links to some new favorite recipes that we have enjoyed over the last month.

Don't judge too quickly...just try it!! I used pureed pumpkin leftover from last fall and it was just so yummy! Your kids will think so too!
http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/sweet_potato_peanut_bisque.html

A New Year

So we are now 11 days into 2010 and for some reason (like most beginnings) I have this renewed and refreshed view on just about everything - motherhood, life, church, relationships, etc. Maybe it's the beautiful snow outside or the beginning of a new year, or it might just be because my sick baby is feeling some what better and I'm getting more sleep- Who knows?! Either way it's been a good year so far.

View of our backyard after our big snow.

For Christmas and New Year's we went to Texas to spend time with Mark's family. We had a wonderful time visiting with everyone and seeing our old friends. We drove...yes...drove to Dallas which meant a long time in the car for both of the kids and us. For some reason I was dreading the drive (well, to be honest, for two reasons...a 6 month old and a 2 1/2 yr old who were just starting antibiotics b/c of sinus and ear infections) but once we were in the car it really went by fast...and we had a GREAT time! I guess you really can make the driving hours part of the fun. Another perk (besides saving tons of money on airfare) is that we got to spend some time with my side of the family in Missouri and stop and see some friends of ours in the Tulsa area. Plus with my brother's wedding after New Year's Day it just seemed like the easiest route.

Pictures of the kids opening toys.

Macy really got into Christmas this year- I think she opened up each and every present that was given to our family. It was so much fun seeing her eyes light up when we talked about Santa, leaving him cookies, and a carrot for the reindeer. Even more fun when she would open each present and look at if as if it was the best gift ever! Probably one of the sweetest things she did this year was wanting to take baby Jesus with her to bed each night. She got a Little People nativity scene and she just loved that baby Jesus in a 'hay box'. How could this mom tell her no? So baby Jesus spent most nights in her room right next to her in bed. Aww! Macy was also in Brian and Sarah's wedding. It was beautiful and Macy did a great job being a flower girl. It was her second time around and she did pretty good considering she was low on sleep and high on sugar!

Walking down the isle.

Matthew is now 6 months old. Poor kid has a double ear infection now and has had one since before we left for Christmas break. I sure hope this isn't a sign of what is to come this winter. I'm just not very good at diagnosing him and his ear infections. He is still a happy kid even when sick. Sleeps less...but is still a happy kid. We did celebrate his 1/2 birthday (just this time :0) when we got back with 1/2 of a cake. Something we did with Macy....can you see their resemblance? Too funny!

Matthew (top) and Macy (bottom) each at 6 months.

Mark starts in with Spring training next week- and the long hours and stressful days will be here until Spring Break. My how we live for breaks!!! He enjoys it and absolutely loves his job-- so it is all worth it. It's been great having him home these past few weeks. I think Macy and Matthew have really enjoyed their daddy home too. Who wouldn't? He is a great dad!

That's about all that is going on here. Hopefully now with the holidays behind us and the new year upon us I will be able to post more often. HOPEFULLY!! :)