DelGreco Days

Pictures...finally!

2009-03-24T10:00:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from the last couple of months. Actually, most of them are from a couple of days ago when we were playing outside :-) I've been really bad about taking pics lately. I need to get on that!

Boys being silly

Carter getting the last drop of ice cream

Daddy and Jackson playing trains in Jackson's bedroom.....

...while Carter chills out on the floor.

Making "rock cakes" in the front yard

Sweet boys

Cutie pie Carter

Jackson on his bike!

and again!

Bouncy Carter

Spring is here and I'm so glad! We've had some really pretty days and it's been great to be outside. The boys would live outside if they could and get bored very easily when we are inside so Spring and Summer are our friends. If only summer wasn't so darn HOT!

My Poor. Neglected. Blog.

2009-03-07T14:58:00.000-08:00

Well, let me start off by saying that it was my intention to just let the blog go since I haven't posted anything in so long, but here I am in an empty house (about to get ready to go on a date with David) and thought I would attempt to catch up on the happenings at the DelGreco house. The boys are at Mimi and Papa's house so I have nothing to do! Well, I have lots of stuff to do, but you know what I mean :-)

The boys. Carter and Jackson are doing great! Jackson is a little speed demon on his bike and David just bought him a new one so he looks like an official big boy. It's so fun to see other kids that are much older than him practicing on a big boy bike because Jackson seems to be so proud. And we are too! I have no idea how that guy figured out how to ride a bike without training wheels so young. Amazing. The conversations we have are awesome. He is so aware of everything and the other day he actually said, "my bad." Really??? My 4 year old knows what that means??? He is such a sweet and caring kid. Don't get me wrong we are also struggling with bouts of pouting and dealing with emotions that he is trying to figure out how to handle. I really try not to laugh when he gets so angry at one of us and he grunts really loud and shakes. It's like he wants so bad just to throw a fit and scream and hit something but he knows he'll get in trouble. He really is such a delight and we are so blessed to have him in our lives! Oh yeah, he starts soccer at the end of the month so we should have lots of fun stories and pics to share.

Carter is, well, a 2-year old and we are dealing with all that comes with living with a 2-year old. We survived Jackson so I know we can do it, but some days...well, we've all been there so I don't need to get into it :-) As I said, we went though the terrible 2's with Jackson, but with Carter it's been amplified. He is a very strong willed and independent child which is both awesome and exhausting. I think part of the reason it's a little more difficult is that he has an older brother to follow around and he wants sooooooooo badly to be able to do EVERYTHING Jackson does. "I do it!!" is his favorite phrase right now. He climbs in his own chair at mealtimes, his carseat, has to be the last to shut the door, the fridge, and even insists on climbing in his crib when going to bed. He climbs up the side and does a front flip into the bed. In the mornings when he gets up, I hear "mommy, where are you??!!" and then he bangs on the door. I know, I know. It's time for a big boy bed. Honestly though, he seems to be quite content in his crib. Having rails does not restrict him in the least. Although he's challenging right now, he is also so super sweet and gives the sweetest sloppy kisses. He has the happiest disposition of any child I've ever known. He is just generally a happy kid. He has been that way since the day he was born. Such a great baby and always content. When we are out in public we always get comments that "he just always seems so happy" or "he's so good." Now, I know I say that in the same breath as the aformentioned royal tantrums, but I guess that's the way it goes with a 2-year old. One minute up and then next on the ground...literally rolling around in a fit. Oh well.....On a side note, I've gotten into the habit of rocking him before nap time (something I swore I would never do) and I love watching him drift off to sleep. So sweet. He came down with a cough yesterday and so I'm really hoping he doesn't get sick. We've already had a round of the stomach bug and everyone got it except for David. Not fun at all.

As for me, I have started back to school to get my master's in education. That's another reason I have been neglecting my blog. I've had to write lots of papers and getting on the computer to type doesn't always sound appealing unless it's for a grade :-) I'm going online and it's been great so far! I thought I would be crazy stressed out with the little men around, but I have found time to do it either when they are napping, at school or asleep for the night. I actually get most of it done during the day so that David and I spend the evenings together when he gets home. I shold be done next Spring and then will do my student teaching in the fall. The plan is to hopefully begin teaching in Spring of 2011. Jackson will be in Kinder and Carter will be 4 1/2. I'm really excited about it. The only problem is that I can't decide which age to teach. I'm bouncing between elementary and middle school. I have to decide quick since it'll change the course of my classes. I'll keep you posted.

David's doing great as well. His back is healed and it's awesome that he no longer has to worry about the pain that he would get when it would go out. Now, it just gets sore around the muscles (like we all do when we get sore muscles). I asked him the other day if he would do it all over again and he said probably not since it was such a horrible recovery. SOOOOOOO glad that's over with! He went through some rought stuff with that surgery and he pulled out of it like a champ! He's the most amazing person I know and I'm so glad I married him :-) mush mush mush.

I think that should catch everyone up. Sorry if there are a lot of typos. I don't have the energy to spell check. I'll post new pics soon. David and I are going out tonight so I have to get in the shower. Yippppeeeeeee!

I'm going to marry you Mommy"

2009-01-06T07:39:00.000-08:00

This morning, Carter asked me to draw a princess on his magnadoodle. So, I drew a very sad representation of a princess and Jackson looked at it and our conversation went something like this:

J: Mommy, you're a princess. I'm going to marry you.
Me: You can't marry me. I'm your mommy.
J: Why can't I marry you?
Me: Well, I'm already married to Daddy
J: Why did Daddy already marry you?
Me: Because he loves me
J: I love you too so I'm going to marry you
Me: Ok Jackson
J: Let's get married tonight.

I hope I'm always his princess :-)

Finally...!

2008-12-26T13:35:00.000-08:00

A family picture where we're all smiling!!!

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas!

"Dear God...."

2008-12-21T15:32:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to jot this down before I forget it. The cute little day-to-day things that these little ones say are just too precious to forget. I need to be better about it because I know one day they will be having adult conversations with me and I'll miss these toddler-isms.

At night, after we get Jackson in bed we say prayers. He gets to choose whether we say them or he says them. Lately he's been wanting to say prayers himself and here's how about how they go...

Jackson: "Dear God, thank you for our blessings and thank you for Mommy and Daddy and Jackson and Carter and thank you for the food on our table and thank you for letting us have a good day today and thank you for our family in heaven and thank you for letting there not be monsters and dinosaurs in my closet tonight. Amen."

How cute is that? I have had to try really hard not to laugh at the end of his prayers. I hope I remember all of these cute little things once they hit the teenage years :-)

Recent Pictures

2008-12-17T06:59:00.001-08:00

OK, since I am so far behind on blogging, I figured I'd try and do this in 2 posts instead of one since so much has been going on. Here's some pics and I'll add the story behind them in another post. They are pictures from Jackson's school Christmas program, making gingerbread houses with their cousins, wrestling with Uncle Michael, and reject Christmas card pics. Be back soon....all we really care about is pictures anyways, right?!

Such a Sad 2nd Birthday.....

2008-11-17T09:47:00.000-08:00

Well, Carter's birthday came and went on Saturday without any celebration at all. The poor little thing has been sick since last Tuesday evening with an ear infection and a stomach virus. It's been pretty miserable around here this last week. He has pretty much wanted me to hold him the entire day which is really hard when you have 2 kids. His ear infection and runny nose soon turned into a sinus infection (we think) and so not only was he in pain from his ear and upset stomach-he couldn't breathe either. We took him to the doc twice and today he seems to finally be on the road to recovery. Anyways, we were supposed to have his birthday party on Sunday, but that didn't happen. We didn't even get to sing happy birthday to him b/c he was so miserable everything made him cry...even just looking at him. Luckily, my mom was in town this weekend since she was coming in for the party so she was able to entertain Jackson while I tended to the sickling :-( It's looking like we'll have the party either Wed. evening or this coming Sunday.

It's very sad that my "baby" turned 2 without an official celebration or even recognition :-( Oh well, I guess he's too young to know right now anyways, right???

OH, Have I Mentioned........

2008-11-12T12:40:00.000-08:00

GO TECH!!!!!!! LOVE MY RED RAIDERS!!!

Bye Bye Training Wheels

2008-11-12T10:39:00.001-08:00

Jackson just learned how to ride his bike without training wheels on Sunday. David kept telling me that he could do it, but I insisted that he was too young. Well, David said he was just going to try it and see how he did. That kid took off! I couldn't believe it! David stayed behind him for a few times while he got his balance and then he was a pro! He was making sharp turns and going up on sidewalks and down driveways like he's been doing this for months! Even our neighbors came out and were amazed :-) Anyhow, here are some pictures from his first day of riding his bike like a big boy and then the last one is of him passed out on the floor after a long hard day of bike riding.

Airfest 2008

2008-11-12T10:25:00.000-08:00

About a week and a half ago, David and I took the boys to Airfest 2008. David took Jackson 2 years ago when I was about 2 weeks away from having Carter so I stayed home. He STILL talks about that day and the planes and helicopters he saw. He was only 2 then and is 4 now so I figured it would just be twice the fun! I'm pretty sure that Carter enjoyed it more than Jackson. Jackson loved the planes but HATED the loud noise and when I say loud, I mean LOUUDD!!! He held his hands to his ears the whole time and cried quite a bit. Carter couldn't care less about the whole show. He was more interested in pushing around his stroller. Oh well, David and I loved it and we got some really cool pics. Better luck next year...

Halloween Pics

2008-11-12T09:53:00.000-08:00

Good grief! It's getting harder and harder to keep this thing updated!

Here's some Halloween pics from last month. The kids had a blast and even Carter was into it this year and had the whole "trick-or-treat" thing down. Couldn't quite keep up with the older siblings, but he did great. Jackson was a ninja and Carter was Darth Vader. The boys' cousins, Andrea and Elizabeth, came over for the festivities and they cleaned house!

Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-30T11:08:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, my sister-in-law (Amber), her 2 girls (Andrea and Elizabeth), my mother-in-law (Joanne) and me and the boys headed to the Pumpkin Patch to pick out some pumpkins and of course get some cute pictures. I think the kiddos were more interested in the hay than the pumpkins and I don't think we ever got a single pic of the whole gang smiling. Oh well, we still had a great time! Halloween pictures soon to follow!

Has It Really Been Over a Month???

2008-10-19T11:10:00.000-07:00

Wow, I just checked out the date of my last post and I can't believe that I haven't posted in so long! I know I should be posting a lot more since the boys are both in school 2 days a week, but I'm doing Bible Study on Tuesday mornings and my Thursdays are full from running errands and catching up on things WITHOUT 2 little boys. Anyways, that's my excuse and I'm stickin' to it! I made a list of things that have gone on and there's SO MUCH! Hmmm...where to begin....

I guess I'll start off with my mom being in town for 2 weeks. She lives in Galveston and was an evacuee after Hurricane Ike wiped out a lot of the city! She stayed with us and then went to Lubbock for about a week and finally went back to find her apartment hadn't been damaged too bad. She said the city was just a mess and there was so much devastation. It will take them a while to rebuild and meanwhile she is working in Houston and having to commute back and forth everyday. No fun. I'm so glad we were able to take the boys to the beach before that happened!

About a month or so ago, David took Jackson fishing as a "Dad and son" thing. David said they had a blast and Jackson caught 3 fish! Such a big boy. I think David wants to start taking the boys camping (or at least Jackson-Carter may still be a little young.) I think Jackson would absolutely LOVE it. Here's a couple of pictures of him with his fish!

I know last time I posted I was talking about Carter having such a hard time adjusting to school. Well, that has all changed and he LOVES it! Thank goodness. Sometimes he gets a little teary when I drop him off, but usually I wait around for a couple of seconds to make sure he's not crying and he stops immediately. I really like his teachers and they have said that he went from the child that was crying the most and had the hardest time adjusting to the most talkative and playful child in the class. Yeah!! It's so cute now when Jackson comes home singing his Bible songs Carter chimes in too. Completely precious. Some of the songs they sing are "Jesus Loves the Little Children", The "B-I-B-L-E" song, "Go Now in Peace", "Deep and Wide", and others that I just can't think of right now. I'm so pleased with their school.

My good friend, Lauren and her little boy Parker came in town so they were able to stop by for a play date. Parker is 3 weeks younger than Carter so they are really close in age. If only they didn't live in Dallas, I know they would be best buddies! Lauren is due in March with her second boy....yeah!!!! Here are a few pics from our visit.

The National Auto Show (is that the real name?) came to San Antonio so of course David wanted to take the boys. It wasn't as spectacular as we thought it would be. Actually, it was just a bunch of cars that you could get into. Made for great photo ops though! Here's a few and Jackson really did enjoy it.

We made another trip to Sea World a couple of weeks ago. That's always fun...but it'll be more fun when it's a little cooler outside! The boys definitely think the best part about Sea World is feeding the dolphins and The Shamu Show.

Also, Carter got his first haircut about a week ago! Yep, after almost 2 years the boy finally got a hair cut. He actually didn't REALLY need it, but he looked like he was sporting a mullet. He had precious curls in the back if only the front would catch up!

Another exciting thing is that David and I were able to go to the Tech Homecoming game without the kiddos! The boys stayed with David's parents and we headed to Lubbock for the weekend. We really had so much fun and Tech won so it was even better. We still have a lot of friends up there so it was nice to catch up with old buddies. Plus, we got to spend time with Kendall, Holly's precious little girl. I wish I had gotten a pic! I can't wait for our next trip!

Well, Halloween is coming up and we're still deciding on what to be this year. I say "we" because Jackson actually has an opinion this year and he keeps bouncing between Mr. Incredible, Batman and Star Wars. I really want him to be Batman so Carter can be Robin. Would that not be the cutest? Anyhow, stay tuned. There's no telling what he'll want to be by the time Halloween finally rolls around.

I'll leave you with a few random pictures from the last month or so.

I have come to realize that pictures of me are very scarce. I think I need to do something about that!

I promise I won't wait so long to post next time. It has seriously taken over an hour to write this!!!!

Slacker

2008-09-29T12:32:00.000-07:00

I'm such a slacker. I promise I'll add a new post soon!

Brotherly Love

2008-09-11T13:43:00.000-07:00

When I went to pick up the boys from school today Jackson's teacher pulled me aside and said that she had to tell me something that happened today. My immediate reaction was to think that Jackson had gotten into trouble for something. Not so. She told me that they happened to go to chapel today at the same time as Carter's class. Apparently, Carter was crying pretty hard in chapel and Jackson had seen him. Then, the teacher looked over at Jackson and said that he had tears streaming down his face. She said that he wasn't crying hard, just visibly upset. She asked him if he was ok and if he needed to be alone for a little while since he kind of acted embarresed after she saw him and he said "no, I'm not crying." She said after chapel was over he was back to his normal cheery self. Isn't that the sweetest thing ever? They really DO love each other! His teacher said it was the sweetest thing she'd ever seen :-)

On another note, Carter is still having a very hard time at MDO. This is the end of the second week and the only progress we have made is that he finally ate his lunch today. He cries for a lot of the day when he's there. His teacher said that he'll start to play and run around with the other kids and then he realizes what he's doing and starts crying and wanting to be held. It's like he is determined not to like this place and darn it, he's not going to have fun either! I hope it gets better because I sure am enjoying my 2 days a week off :-)

The Mind of a Four-Year-Old

2008-09-09T16:23:00.000-07:00

I just have to jot this down before I forget it.

Just a minute ago I heard Carter crying and he came running into me holding his ear. Jackson's chasing him saying, "I'm not going to do that again. I'm not going to do that again!" So, I say, "Jackson, what happened? Why is he crying?" Jackson responds with "Am I going to get in trouble?" Only after I finally gave in and said that he wouldn't get into trouble just so I could find out what happened did he tell me that he hit Carter with a toy. He even went over and showed me the toy he hit him with :-)

Man, they learn young don't they? Now, the hard part....how to deal with situations like these. Hmmmmmm.

A New School Year...and Tears

2008-09-09T07:51:00.000-07:00

Both Jackson and Carter started Mother's Day Out last Tuesday. Well, I should say Carter started. Jackson has been going for 2 years now. Jackson woke up pumped about school on Tuesday and walked right in when we got there. I knew Carter wouldn't react the same way. In his class, we hand the kids over to the teacher without entering the room so it's easier when seperating from them at this age. He was fine when I handed him over, but as soon as I left, I heard the crying. I felt horrible, but remember Jackson doing the exact same thing for a couple of weeks. So, we're just going to tough it out. Thursday didn't go any better. In fact, it was worse. They actually called me and told me that he was having a rough day, but to try and leave him there so he doesn't get the idea that crying means Mommy will come and pick him up. SO, he made it all day and napped, but didn't eat anything. He was in a great mood this morning when we dropped off Jackson and when we got to his room he screamed bloody murder. So, we'll see how the day plays out. Ugh!

Here are a few pics from the last week or so. David took Jackson fishing over Labor Day weekend and he caught 3 fish!

Galveston

2008-08-30T06:51:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it's taken me this long to post about our trip! We had a great time and Jackson loved the water. Carter - not so much. He still had his cast on so we think maybe he was just hot and cranky in general. He wanted nothing to do with the sand or water so we ended up taking him back to my mom's apartment to take a nap while Jackson stayed at the beach with my aunt and uncle, Patsy and Allen. We spent 2 days at the beach (the second day it was just me and Jackson while Carter stayed home with my mom.) We hunted for hermit crabs and sea shells and played in the water for about 3 hours! Needless to say, both boys napped wonderfully while we were there.

We ate out every night which was a bit of a challenge with Carter. It seemed that as soon as we sat down he wanted up. We ate at Landry's, Rainforest Cafe, and Willie's. We went to Kemah Boardwalk and walked around and took a train ride and Jackson was able to ride a few other things. He had a blast. We also went to Moody Gardens and visited the Aquarium which both boys LOVED. It was so neat to see all of the underwater exhibits.

It was a very jam-packed weekend, but very fun as well. The weather was perfect although I could've done without the bazillion mosquitos.

Here are some pictures from our weekend.

Also, Carter got his cast off on Wednesday and he is so much happier now. We have to leave it open and not cover it at all which is unfortunate because it looks pretty gross. I'll spare you the pics :-)

Another big event that we just had is the boys' Open House at their Mother's Day Out. Carter wasn't too fond of it so the first day should be very interesting. I think it'll take him a couple of weeks, but he'll be just fine once he settles into it.

Carter is talking soooo much, it's really amazing to me. There's not much he can't say. Just another reminder that he's growing up....way too fast :-(

Here's a few random pictures from the last few days.

Rainy Days

2008-08-21T13:15:00.001-07:00

Not much has been going on around here lately. It has been raining for the last 3 days and today it finally looks like we may have a full day of sunshine. It's really hard to keep the boys entertained when the weather is bad since they love to be outside so much. Especially now that Carter has a cast on, it's even harder. It really limits our options and makes for quite a few meltdowns! Carter is very frustrated by the fact that he only has one workable arm right now. Now, I'm pretty good at deciphering his toddler jargon, but I'm still not 100%. SO, should he need help with let's say, picking up a sippy cup, the world pretty much comes to a screeching halt complete with full throttle tantrum performed in true 2 year old fashion. The scary thing is he's still a few months away from the two-year mark. Yikes. Anyhow, we all definitely have cabin fever and I'm glad that we'll be getting out of town this weekend to visit my mom in Galveston. The boys have never been to the beach so it should be fun. Luckily, Carter has a waterproof cast so in case he decided to test the water he'll be ok. He's not fond of the water so that's pretty unlikely. Jackson, on the other hand, LOVES the water so I'm pretty excited to see his reaction.

Here's a few pictures. The first picture is of the boys on our front porch watching the rain. The others are just random pictures to show Carter's cast. The third picture is a pretty good example of his tantrum face. Lovely.

We signed Jackson up for T-Ball in the fall. The season starts in mid-September. Isn't that going to be so cute??? I don't care if he's any good. I just want to get cute pictures in his uniform!

Hope to come back from the weekend with fun pictures!

Great News!!!

2008-08-15T12:52:00.000-07:00

We had to go back to the surgeon's office this afternoon because Carter somehow wiggled out of his cast last night and left the fingernail totally exposed. Yuck! He got a whole new cast all the way past his elbow this time so it wouldn't come off.

While we were there, they gave us the great news that the biopsy results showed that it was benign!!! Yeah!!! Thanks again for all the prayers.

Hopefully, things will resume to some sort of normalcy in our household pretty soon :-)

We're Home!!!

2008-08-14T17:27:00.000-07:00

Thank you for all the emails and well wishes for Carter. He did amazingly well. Our day started at about 6am. We had to be at the Children's Hospital at 7:30am for a 9:30am surgery. I just knew that Carter would freak immediately when we walked in and not stop screaming until they had given him his anesthesia. But, he was only fussy for a short time when we walked in and were being admitted. He definitely didn't like us changing him into the gown, but after that he seemed to really relax. He sat very still while the nurses checked his vitals and then we were off to the play room until they were ready for him. He played very well and especially loved the markers, crayons, puzzles and fruit baskets that they had to play with. At about 9:20 they came to give him some "funny juice" which he takes like medicine and that makes him groggy and kind of silly. For the first few minutes he was acting normal and then all of the sudden one of the nurses kind of smiled at him and he just started cracking up. So, from then on he was pretty giddy. They let one of us go back with him while they put on the laughing gas mask and we decided David could go since I don't think I could handle seeing my sweet baby like that. David came out to the waiting room and then we sat for about 2 hours. (Our cell phone games really came in handy.)

At about 11:30 they called us in to go and see him in the recovery area. We were definitely not prepared to see the monstrous cast that they had put on his arm. When they told us a cast, I invisioned a small cast just to cover the hand. Oh no, this thing goes almost up to his elbow and is covered with a foam cast so he doesn't hit himself in the face. It looks bigger than him! Anyhow, he was a little fussy at first, but after they gave him a little morphine he was very calm and relaxed and pretty much slept until we were able to leave. When we got home, he slept for about 3 1/2 hours and we woke him up to see if he would eat something. After a banana, a nutrigrain bar and a cookie, he was feeling much better and walking around talking and smiling. He is really curious about this thing on his arm and hasn't quite figured out how to grip the sippy cup yet :-)

They want him to wear the cast for about 4 days and we should have results of the biopsy by tomorrow!!! That's amazing since I thought we would have to wait a week.

Here are some pictures of the day. Doesn't he look precious in that little gown?

Thanks for all of your prayers. I really don't know how the day could've gone any better (unless of course he didn't have the surgery at all!!!)

Also, Jackson's taking very good care of his little brother. He comes up to him and scratches his back and tries to walk behind him with his arm around him. It's so cute :-)

Hope to be back tomorrow with good news about the biopsy results!!!

Sweet Carter

2008-08-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

This last week has probably been the hardest week I've been through as a parent so far. Last year, Jackson fell and cut his lip open while we were shopping at La Cantera. The amount of blood and crying is something I'll never forget. When something awful like that happens, it's like a permanent vision is embedded in your brain. I can still picture Jackson's face hitting the stone step and how it seemed to "bounce" off of it. He immediately grabbed his mouth and blood just started pouring. I had so many worries like did he knock out any teeth? How many stitches would he need? What kind of damage was done? After a trip to the ER, they said they don't put stitches in the mouth since it heals very easily. He got to eat lots of popcicles and got lots of TLC. You can still see a small scar on his lip but only if you get really close and know to look for it. Sorry to get so graphic on the details :-) Thinking about it just brought it all back!

On to Carter and the happenings of the last week. Last Wednesday he woke up with a fever. So, with his history of ear infections, I decided to go ahead and take him in to get a head start on the infection and catch it before it was full-blown. Luckily, he didn't have an infection. I also asked the doctor about a black stripe that runs down the middle of his right index finger. he has had it for about 3 months and we initially thought it was a result of some kind of trauma to his finger. But when it didn't grow out we figured it had to be something else. Our pediatrician gave us the name of a dermatologist to see and explained that it is a mole underneath his fingernail that gives off a pigment down the fingernail. Then she mentioned melanoma...that it is very rare in kids this age..."but you just never know with these kinds of things since you can't see it." So, we made an appt. for Monday the 4th.

Meanwhile, on Saturday, Carter still has a fever, was extremely fussy (screaming and couldn't be consoled) and I noticed a little pink spot in his diaper when I was changing him. So, I thought ok, he must have a UTI. I took him to the after hours pediatrician down the street and got in immediately (probably because he was literally screaming at the top of his lungs.) They get us in a room and they want to take a urine sample so they put a little baggy around his "part" and we waited for him to pee. Well, since he hasn't been eating or drinking very much at all, we waited and waited and waited. He finally fell asleep and I just kept checking him to see if he had gone. The nurse finally came in and said that the other option was a catheter (sp?) and I told her that we'd wait a while longer :-) After about 30 more minutes and no pee, we decided on the catheter. Meanwhile, I call Dave and he is on his way so I don't have to do this by myself. By the time he got there they had just finished (good timing, huh?) After all of that, they weren't able to get any urine and they figured he was dehydrated and we would need to go to the ER for further testing. Did I mention that the doctor also mentioned a possibility of meningitis???

So, off we go to the ER where they inserted an IV and drew blood, did another catheter, and took an Xray of his stomach. All the tests were completely normal and they found a large mass in the Xray and found that he was extremely constipated. So, after all of that, my poor baby had to have an enema to top off the evening. We waited for him to poop and they finally sent us home with the diagnosis of a virus and constipation. They ruled out meningitis because his white blood count level was low which means that there is a viral infection.

He finally pooped the next day, and on Tuesday was still very fussy and just acting very lethargic and just not his happy cheery and very active self. He had also developed a rash on his stomach, back and a little on his cheeks. So, I took him back to his pediatrician for a follow up and asked why he was still not 100%. She looked him over and said that the virus he had was roseola and the rash was a sign that the virus had run its course and he would be better by the next day. She was right and we have our little man back to normal now, thank goodness!!!

So, back to the dermatologist appt. on Monday the 4th. We walk in and of course Carter freaks out - he is so not fond of doctors these days. She takes a look at his finger and says that there is a mole underneath the fingernail that we can't see. We would need a biopsy to determine if it was melanoma. She has never seen cancer of this type on a baby but it's better to be safe than sorry. She told us that it's usually an outpatient procedure for adults and they remain awake while it's going on, but they would have to put Carter to sleep becuase there us no way they could keep him still for that long. So, she sent us to a hand surgeon. We met with her on Wednesday the 6th and she took some Xrays which showed that there was nothing on the bone. If it was malignant then it would've probably already have spread to the bone since it's right under the nail. Anyways, she explained everything and I made an appt. for the biopsy on Thursday, Aug. 14. We went home trying to decide if this was the best choice since he's already been through so much lately. We were trying to decide whether to watch it and wait a while or just go ahead and do it so as not to worry about it constantly (which is totally what I would've done.) In the end, we decided to go ahead with the surgery and get it over with. So, we will go in the morning of the 14th and they will put him under anesthesia and then remove the fingernail, remove the mole and the pigmented line, and then close it all back up. He will have to wear a cast on 3 fingers just so he can't mess with it. They will send the mole off to be evaluated and then at our follow up appt. to remove his cast one week later, we will discuss the results.

Our sweet baby Carter has been through some pretty rough stuff this last week and it was definitely hard on David and me. I know there will be things that happen down the road, but this was definitely the worst thus far. Hearing melanoma and meningitis in one week is pretty hard to top.

Please pray that C's biopsy goes well and that is is benign. Like I said, and they keep reinforcing, it is very very very rare for this to be melanoma in someone as young as Carter, but of course, you can't ever be too cautious. I can't wait until next Thursday has come and gone!

On another note, I feel like I've left Jackson out of the last 2 posts so I'll try and post a little on him too. He had his last day of school on Thursday (his Mother's Day Out offers 2 summer sessions). He absolutely loves school and I'm so glad we found the church that he goes to. He goes to chapel, plays, does art, eats, and just has a blast. It's so cute when he comes home singing a new song that he learned in school. His current favorite is "Jesus Loves The Little Children" and sings it constantly. He will be in Mother's Day Out this year and then pre-school next year. He won't start kindergarten until 2010 since he is a summer baby and we decided to wait one year before starting him. That way he'll be one of the oldest in the class instead of one of the youngest. More important for a boy than a girl, I suppose. Luckily, his Mother's Day Out and pre-school are at the same place so he won't have to switch schools until kinder. He is such a little boy now. No more toddler. This past year has really been remarkable in how much he has changed. He understands so much more now and communicates so well. I love taking him to the grocery store when it's just the two of us becuase we just chit chat while I'm shopping. He thinks it's really cool, too, because he gets to sit in the front seat of the basket where Carter usually sits. He is pretty wonderful :-)

Here's a couple of pics. I'll throw in one of Carter's finger in case you're wondering what it looks like.

Carter Gets A Shiner And Counts To Ten!

2008-07-29T14:39:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, the boys were chasing each other around the house and Carter ran smack into the couch with his face. He cried for a good 4 to 5 minutes and then was ok. Poor guy got a huge shiner right below his left eye and I tried to get a good picture of it, but it just doesn't do it justice. Oh well, one of the many shiners I suppose he'll get throughout his childhood!
Also, Carter can count to 10! One day last week I heard him mumbling something and after listening really closely, I realized he was trying to count. I suppose he's hearing Jackson count and just picked it up b/c it's definitely not something we've been teaching him. Here's a video of my little genius. He missed "5" in the video, but you get the idea :-)

One other note, we have taken Carter's "binky" away from him during the day and only let him have it in his bed during nap and night-time. Granted, this is only the second day of this and it's been a little rough - especially since he can say "binky", we hear it quite often. He's also a little fussier which is to be expected since his pacifier always calmed him. I figured I should just go ahead and bite the bullet since he'll be going to Mother's Day Out in a month and I don't want him walking around with it all day. I DID give it to him after his head-on collision with the couch, though...poor baby needed to be comforted! Hey, baby steps :-)

Here's just a random pic of the boys, but I figured I needed to include Jackson in this post too :-)

Busted!

2008-07-22T13:32:00.000-07:00

Every now and then, when I'm in the boys' bathroom, I catch a whiff of something not so pleasant. So, I look around to see if something is causing the foul odor and then I just dismiss it since little boys don't have the greatest aim. He has to miss sometimes...that's probably what the smell is. The weird thing is that I always smell it when I'm getting them ready for their bath and running the bath water. The toilet is right next to their tub, and again, little boys miss, right?

So, we get home from school today and Jackson has to go to the bathroom. After a couple of seconds I hear a splash and know that can't be good. I open the door to find Jackson peeing in the bathtub!!! on top of his washrag!!! in the middle of all of his bath toys!!! Gross!!! And to think I have been bathing them in the tub that he's been peeing in!!! Needless to say, a decontamination is desperately needed so I guess I'll get to work.

Note: Don't just assume little ones are peeing in the toilet once they are potty trained! And to think that I was only worried about him missing the toilet. Why didn't I think to check the bathtub :-) Live and learn!!!

My Baby's 4!

2008-07-17T11:05:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that Jackson is 4 years old. It feels like the time has just flown by at lightning speed and yet, I can't imagine (and hardly remember) what life was like without him. Right after we had Jackson, people would always ask me, "Can you even remember what life was like without him?" And I always thought "uh, yeah I remember! I actually had a life that didn't revolve around another little being! Yes, I remember!" I never understood why people always asked that. Anyways, now I can honestly say that I can hardly recall what life was like when it was just David and me. 4 of the 7 (almost 8) years we have been married, Jackson has been in our lives. Of course it was wonderful when it was just the two of us, but now we have these two little people running around making us smile and laugh. We really are so blessed.

Happy birthday Jackson! Thanks for filling our home and hearts with so much love and joy!!! We love you more than you'll ever know.

Sorry for the sappiness (is that even a word?) but I thought his birthday blog deserved a little sap!

This "Mommy" Thing

2008-07-14T05:54:00.000-07:00

It seems to be really weird timing, but since David's been out of commission for a while, I really feel like I've gotten the hang of this "mommy" thing. (I know I'm going to regret saying that and today I'll have a totally horrible day and then come on here and blog about it!) Anyways, back to my point, maybe it's the fact that I've been the sole care-taker for over a month, but I find myself getting less frustrated and overwhelmed which is strange because I figured that it would be completely the opposite. Now, don't get me wrong, there are still times that I'd like to pull every single hair out of my head, but those instances are far less frequent. It could be due to a few things. The boys are playing a lot more with each other which is nice to at least be able to unload the dishwasher or put in a load of laundry without a "helper" at my feet. We've been able to get to the swimming pool a few times (which Jackson loves and Carter hates). We've kind of gotten into a daily routine since summer began and we can count on the weather to be consistent...scorching HOT!!! It usually consists of walking to the park in the morning and then having lunch, then nap and then either pool, errands or playtime, then dinner, bath, etc. I know lots of people that just fly by the seat of their pants and don't have any sort of schedule, but I keep my sanity by having one and I think the boys like it as well. We have always kept the boys on a pretty regular routine including nap times and bed time. As soon as we could get Carter on Jackson's schedule we did it and it helped so much! Although I mentioned that they boys are playing a lot together and having so much fun, this also means that they are fighting over toys and TRAINS. Oh, the TRAINS! We have a new rule, if Jackson wants to play with the trains without Carter interfering (which is always), he has to go to his room and shut the door. Otherwise, it's a neverending battle and screams and yelling can be heard down the street. Those darn trains!!! It's so funny, when Jackson's at school, Carter will take all the trains and gather them up and carry them around as if he thinks someone is going to take them away. I can't imagine where he would get that idea!

Although I said that David has been out of commission, he has really been able to help out a little more this last week or so. He got up with the boys the last 2 Sundays. He can't change any diapers, but he was able to feed them breakfast and I got to sleep a little later which was very nice. Sadly, I think the hardest part of the day is getting up in the mornings. It's taken a while to get used to getting up every morning with the boys since David and I usually switch off mornings. Every other day one of us sleeps in until 8 while the other one gets up with the kiddos. I know, I'm spoiled! But, this is how we have always done it and it really is wonderful! David's like that though. When the boys were waking up in the night for a feeding when they were babies, we would always rotate shifts and every other night he would get the middle of the night feeding and THEN go to work! Yep, I have it pretty good!

I know I said that mornings are rough (although I'm pretty used to it now), but bedtime has gotten a bit stressful as well. Carter has decided that he wants nothing to do with bedtime. He wants to stay up and party like a rock star. He went thru this phase when he was about 13 months old, but then it ended. Well, it's now back with a vengeance. The other night he was up until 9:30 after trying to put him down at 8:15, 8:45 and then 9pm. We would get the screaming child out of bed and then bring him back into the living room to watch a movie, which is what we usually do before bedtime to calm them down. Well, after 3 times of doing this, we thought "DUH!" Why would he want to go to bed when he gets to come out here and watch movies if he cries??? So, now we have been laying him down at around 8:15 and then letting him cry for a bit (which never gets easier to hear might I add) and he only cries for a minute or 2 now before falling asleep. He has gone as long as 30 minutes though. He throws his pacifiers out of his crib so after he falls asleep I have to ever so quietly go in there and put them back in his bed so he doesn't wake up. It's pretty comical now that I think about it. I open the door and then shut it and then get on my hands and knees raking the floor with my hands looking for his 2 or 3 binkies in pitch black. Yes, he sleeps with multiple binkies in case he loses one in the night over the edge of the crib :-)

Ok, I think I'm done rambling!!! Here are a few pics and a video of Jackson singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". I was shocked at how well he stayed on key!

Stay tuned for birthday party pics. Jackson's birthday is Thursday, the 17th and his party is this Sunday. Big 4 year old!!!

Back After a Blogging Break

2008-07-07T16:13:00.000-07:00

Note to self: Never take a break from blogging! I have no idea where to begin!

First of all, let me update on David. He has been back at work for about a week and a half. He is still in a considerable amount of pain off and on - especially during the night. He doesn't have to use a walker (he actually only used that for about the first week or so) and will wear a back brace for the next 8 weeks. It is a very slow process, but hopefully it will be one that he will look back on and be thankful that he went through. We should see a great deal of improvement in the coming months.

Now, on to Jackson and Carter. They have been quite the little characters lately. I feel like I always say that, but they just constantly do things to crack us up! I posted on an earlier date about how they love to run around the living room like wild children after they have their pj's on. It's like it's their cue to gear up for craziness. Anyways, their newest thing is to get their hooded towels from the bathroom and put them on their heads and pretend to be super-heroes. Jackson usually prefers the Lightning McQueen superhero towel and Carter sports Mickey Mouse, The Superhero. Carter is so cute when he comes up to me and asks for his towel. In his cute little voice he'll say "hewo" (as in "hero") and point to the towel.

We are gearing up for Jackson's big birthday. We will have a small family get-together for his actual party and then next Wednesday we're going to have some of his friends help him celebrate at our neighborhood pool. I can't believe he's going to be 4! I feel like I'm going to blink and Carter will be 2!

Also, I decided not to go back to work in the fall after all. I know, I'm so wishy-washy. But, the truth is, the closer it came time for me to actually go back to work, I decided it might not be so much fun after all :-) By the way, did I mention that both boys will be in Mother's Day Out 3 days a week starting in Sep? I think those 3 days may have been what changed my mind :-) I know there is so much more to catch up on, but for now, I'll just leave you with pictures. The video at the end is a glimpse of the superheroes in action.

Happy Birthday Nonna!!!

2008-06-19T18:20:00.000-07:00

Evening Routine

2008-06-04T07:15:00.000-07:00

Every night after the boys are in their pajamas, it seems that they get a second wind and explode with energy. I got a video of this last night. They chase each other around the house and it usually ends up with one or two bumps on the noggin. David and I usually just sit back and crack up watching them. Who needs TV? Here are the crazy boys running in circles around our living room. I wish I had half as much energy as they do!

Sea World and Surgery Postponed

2008-06-03T06:58:00.000-07:00

We took our first trip to Sea World on Sunday! David's parents got all the kids and their families season passes for Christmas and we finally put it to use. It was a blast and VERY HOT! Jackson got to ride his very first roller coaster (a Shamu ride and the Log Ride.) He was very brave and was smiling every time I saw him. Carter had to spend most of the time in the stroller checking everything out and did pretty well until the very end. I think he was just tired of sitting and watching Jackson have all the fun. We fed dolphins and saw the huge aquarium and even caught a couple of shows. We only saw the very end of the Shamu show, but the kids faces while watching it was priceless! Here are a few pictures of our fun day!

Also, David's back surgery has been postponed until June 10. His surgeon ended up having to have knee surgery (wonderful) so we have to wait a while longer. We'll keep everyone posted.

I Have a Bodyguard!

2008-05-28T07:45:00.001-07:00

I just wanted to jot this down before I forget it.

The boys and I were wrestling on our bed this morning and Carter accidentally socked me in the face. I said "No hit, Carter." Jackson came over and gave me a hug and said "It's okay, Mommy. I'm always here to protect you." I just looked at him and he smiled and patted my head. I said "Thank you, Jackson. I feel very safe now."

I love that kid!

Busy, busy, busy!!!

2008-05-25T11:11:00.001-07:00

Wow, there has been so much going on this month that I don't even know where to begin. This is why I should never take a break from blogging for a long period of time. Trying to recap the last few weeks is a bit daunting!

OK, to sum it up, I went on a girls' trip to New York City, Jackson had his last soccer game of the season followed by a soccer party at Chuck E. Cheese, David threw out his back again and is scheduled to have a triple disc fusion (major back surgery) on June 2, My Granny Jones in Lubbock passed away and we went to Lubbock for the funeral, I sold my business (The Paper Doll Stationery) and Carter turned 18 months old! Whew! I think that about covers it :-)

So to start with, I escaped from the stresses of everyday life with a weekend in Manhattan with a few girlfriends. I had never been before and David never really wants to spend his vacation going to NYC. He would really rather relax on a beach somewhere...and now I know. There is NO relaxing in NY. I have never walked so much in my life and one night we couldn't even shower so we could get everything done that we wanted to do. We had a great time and I'm glad I was finally able to go. Here are a few pics from our weekend.

Jackson had his last soccer game yesterday and they had a soccer party at Chuck E. Cheese last Wednesday. I think I'm more giddy at the fact that he got his first trophy than he is. I proudly display it on his dresser :-) It was really a blast seeing him play his first actual team sport. I think God gave me boys for a reason. I LOVE going out to the games and watching him play....even if he is only 3. This is just the beginning! Here are a few pics from his soccer party.

Also, David has had back problems since he was a kid and his back goes out about 3 times per year unexpectedly. When he has one of these episodes, it usually takes a good week for him to recover and get back to normal. A couple of weeks ago, he threw out his back and when it didn't start to get any better and pain started going down his leg, he headed to the doctor. After much discussion, we all decided that surgery would be the best route at this point. So, on Monday, June 2, he will go in to have a triple disc fusion. The surgeon will remove the bottom 3 bulging/herniated discs and fill it in with a bone and binding solution and will use a device to fuse the vertebrae together. He will need a good 2 weeks at home to recover and then should be able to return to work (doing minimal things) after that. The doctor said that after around 6 weeks he should be feeling a lot stronger. Please keep him in your prayers.

My Granny in Lubbock passed away last Tuesday night and we went to the funeral this last Friday. She was 96 and her mind was sharp as a tack. She had been in a lot of pain and after performing a CAT scan in the hospital they found that she had cancer growing throughout her body. She stayed 2 days in the hospital and then passed away on the second night. It was a beautiful service and I can't complain. She lived a long and happy life. Here's a picture of Granny holding Jackson at about 5 months old.

Also, I sold my stationery business, The Paper Doll Stationery. I'm planning on returning to work part-time starting in September when the boys start back to Mother's Day Out. I figured now would be a good time to sell it since I don't think I'll have much time to dedicate to it once I'm back at work. Lacy Greenstreet Brown bought it and I think she'll do a really great job!

And last, but not least, Carter turned 18 months old!!! I can't believe my baby is not really a baby anymore. He is more fun (and more challenging) everyday. Here are a few pics of the boys.

I promise I won't break from blogging this long again. I feel like I just wrote a book!

Our Day!!!

2008-05-10T10:24:00.001-07:00

ImageChef.com Flower Text

Happy Mother's Day to all the mommies out there. I hope you all have an awesome (relaxing) day. You deserve it!

Bike Parade and Time-out

2008-04-28T07:12:00.000-07:00

Here in San Antonio, in mid-April, the city pretty much comes to a screeching halt to celebrate Fiesta. Businesses close and San Antonians party! At Jackson's school they had a fiesta bike parade. The kiddos got to parade around the parking lot on the locomotive of their choice and then dance to the Bunny Hop and The Mexican Hat Dance. It was very cute and Jackson loved riding his bike around...especially wearing the helmet we bought him the day before the parade. He loves that helmet so much that he asks to sleep with it! We don't let him, of course. Still, pretty funny. Here are some pictures of the Fiesta Bike Parade and a short video if him doing the bunny hop with his classmates.

On another note, we have pulled out the good ole' pak-n-play to begin time-outs with Carter. As I recall, this is about the age we started with Jackson, too. He has been throwing and hitting and I just don't want it to get out of control. There is no way I could get him to actually sit in a time-out chair like Jackson does, so the pak-n-play will have to be punishment until he can restrain himself long enough to sit still in a chair. If any of you have not tried this, I really recommend it for those little ones that need to be taught right from wrong and are too little for the time-out chair. I had great results with Jackson and others that I suggested this to seem to have had success with their little ones as well. Anywho, we started it a couple of days ago and I must say, I have yet to see results other than the fact that we have taught Carter to say "I'm sorry" after he gets out of time-out. Hopefully the hitting and throwing will slow down after he gets the jist of the whole time-out thing. Jackson gets great satisfaction out of this new-found punishment for Carter. It's like he is saying "Finally, he is getting in trouble for being bad!" For the longest time we just had to tell Jackson that "He's a baby...he doesn't know." Well, to a 3 year old I'm sure that just sounds a lot like "blah blah blah blah". Of course, now whenever Carter does something wrong, I constantly hear "put him in time-out!" Yes, thank you Jackson. Gotta love it.

Here are just a couple of random pictures and a video of the boys playing with a rope. You can see Carter's tantrum and then just as quickly as he melted down, he was right back up giggling and playing again. So goes life with a toddler!

Carter and Kacie watching big brother, Jackson, and big sister, Camryn, at the Bike Parade.

The boys playing with a rope in our living room.

My BRILLIANT 17-month old

2008-04-18T09:25:00.000-07:00

Since Jackson didn't really start talking until he was 2, the fact that Carter knows around 20 words already really impresses me! Don't get me wrong, I know it's probably because Jackson never STOPS talking that Carter has picked it up, but still...I think I have bragging rights :-) Here's a video of Carter saying some of his words. Sorry it's rotated. I have no idea why it did that. I know I didn't tape it that way. Oh well, just tilt your head to the right :-)

A few other words he says are uh-oh, tractor (tacter), cracker (cacker), eyes, shoes (soos), crocs (without the "r"--I don't think I need to translate that one), cookie, and night-night (ni-ni). Plus, I love his voice so all the words just sound so cute. It's also funny when he wants my attention he starts out with "Mommy!" like he's calling for me. No doubt he got that from big brother.

The boys are still getting along great. They do have their moments and I know there will be many more in the future, but they really do adore each other. The other day we were at the park and some of Jackson's friends were hovering around Carter. I guess Jackson didn't like it and he came over and put his arm around Carter and said "Don't be mean to him. He's my brother." It was so darling. They also entertain each other in the car. Apparently, Carter is one of the funniest things Jackson has ever seen when he makes a spitting noise or chews on his croc...gross, I know. But, to hear Jackson laughing so hard he can barely breathe, I'll risk a little dirt in the mouth. We frequently hear Jackson saying "Come on Carter, let's go in my room" or "Let's chase" which usually results in a bruised forehead on at least one of the boys. Like I said, they do have their moments--sharing isn't going too well in our house right now. Carter is sooo not into it and everything is HIS. Jackson also didn't hit this stage until much later, but I assume that just comes with the territory of having an older sibling to fight over toys with. Jackson had the good life for almost 2 1/2 years. I bet that was a rude awakening! Here are a few more pictures of the boys. Carter is being his monkey little self and Jackson is just being himself--all boy!

Kids say the darndest things.....

2008-04-10T10:57:00.000-07:00

Jackson has been keeping us in stitches as of late. He says the funniest things and the best part about it is that he doesn't know it's funny so he doesn't laugh...which makes it even funnier! Here are a couple of examples:

To set the scene: Carter is very BRAVE and doesn't seem to posess fear of any kind (this bothers me a bit as I imagine a life of bloody noses, stitches, and accidents of all sorts....ugh!) He is constantly climbing things and running with his eyes closed (yes, I said closed), wrestling with Jackson, doing somersaults, standing on tables...you get the idea. Well, me and the boys were playing the other day and Carter was being his usual dare-devil self and I was watching Jackson just stand there and look at him with this weird/kind of annoyed look on his face. Then, he turns to me and says, "That guy is crazy." I think I laughed for a good 5 minutes.

Another funny happened yesterday when he was playing with David. The conversation went something like this:
D: Jackson, do you know what language we speak?
J: What?
D: Do you know what English and Spanish are?
J: No
D: Those are languages. People speak different ways. What language do you speak?
J: Dog

Again, David and I laughed for a good while.

There are so many more and I could post forever, but my littlest man just woke from his nap. More later!

A Special Prayer Request

2008-04-03T16:26:00.000-07:00

Some of you may have heard about the 14 year-old Lubbock boy, Brandon Byrd, that died in a dirt-bike accident over the weekend. Well, that boy was Patsy and Allen's grandson (my aunt and uncle). They were at the site of the accident when it happened. It has hit the whole city pretty hard and my aunt and uncle are absolutely devestated as are the immediate family members. He had a sister who was 16 months younger than him. I honestly can't quit thinking about it as it's just so tragic. I know he's in a better place...it's the grievng family that he left behind that I feel so deeply for.

Please keep my aunt and uncle (Patsy and Allen) in your prayers as well as their family. They really need it right now.

Here is a link: http://www.mem.com/Story.aspx?ID=2374420

First Soccer Game

2008-03-31T12:20:00.000-07:00

Jackson had his first soccer game on Saturday and they were so adorable. I really didn't think that they would know what to do at this age. I fgured it would be a lot of sand kicking and nose picking, but those little ones did pretty good. Now, I'm all for good sportmanship, but the other team was HUGE! I promise there was a little girl on that team that was 8! Anyways, they didn't keep score, but I'm pretty sure we got stomped. Jackson scored a goal only it was during a time-out...we just won't tell him that. He did great and only had one meltdown. When we first got to the field, all the other kids had brought a ball so they could practice beforehand. Well, Jackson's Mommy and Daddy apparently missed the memo so he went ball-less and was not happy about it, either. Once his little friend, Camryn, shared her's all was well with the world again. He wanted to play the whole time which was awesome since about 4 of the kiddos wouldn't let go of mom's leg. Here are some pictures of The Highlighters first game.

Also, Jackson got a much needed haircut on Sunday and he looks totally different. Here's the new "do". He's getting to be such a big boy and these pictures really show it!

There's not much to post about Carter right now. He is as busy as ever trying to do EVERYTHING big brother does and screaming fits have become pretty regular in our house. Anytime he doesn't get something he wants he starts screaming and stomping his feet. And when I say anytime, I mean ANYTIME. It's gotten to where Jackson will try and figure out what he wants. I'll get down to ask Carter "what do you want? show me." Jackson chimes in with "He wants his binky" or "He wants a snack" or "He wants to watch a movie". Carter also is throwing fits at naptime and bedtime. Long gone are the days of just laying him down and him drifting off to sleep. As soon as I lay him down he pops back up and starts wailing as if he's hurt. Here's the bad part. He says "Mommy" now and every now and then in between screaming/crying, I'll hear "Mommy!" and I just want to run in there. I hope this is just a phase because it's driving me (and Daddy and Jackson) crazy. I think it's payback since he was such a perfect baby. Can't have it all I guess?? Here's a pic of the little man at Jackson's soccer practice....trying to be just like his brother.

Easter Weekend

2008-03-25T08:58:00.000-07:00

We went to church Saturday night instead of Sunday morning (which was a first for us.) We thought it would be less crowded but it turns out that everyone had the same idea. It was pretty packed. The boys went to Sunday school and Jackson did great. Carter...not so much. For the first time, we were called out of the service to go and get our child. Yep, we were THOSE people that had to leave in the middle of the sermon to go and tend to their screaming baby. We have never left Carter in Sunday school before so he had every right to be a little upset, although I didn't really think we'd have to leave the service. Anyhoo, after he saw me and had a few graham crackers and goldfish he was back to his chipper self. Here's a pic of them right before church.

Then, on Sunday, we went over to David's brother's (John) house and had lunch and the Egg Hunt. David's other brother, Michael, dressed up as the Easter Bunny to suprise the kids. Andrea and Elizabeth LOVED the bunny, but the boys were a little scared. Jackson finally warmed up to him, but there was no way Carter was going near that bunny. Here are some pics from our Easter Sunday.

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter, too!

A Typical Day

2008-03-22T09:11:00.000-07:00

One day last week, within an hour, the boys had completely destroyed 2 rooms in our house - the living room and our closet. Instead of getting aggravated, I pulled out the camera and took pics so I'll have evidence as to why I'm in the nut house one day :-)

They were eating goldfish in the living room and watching a movie while I was doing laundry. Jackson wanted to watch me do laundry (lately he loves to watch the washer fill up with water) so I left Carter by himself to eat his snack. Mistake #1. When I came back in the room (maybe 2 minutes later) he had thrown the goldfish all over the floor and proceeded to stomp all over them burying them in the carpet. Such a mess and that took forever to vaccuum up.

Then, while I was attempting to "freshen up" before going to the grocery store, I let the boys play in our closet. I mean, what can they possibly get into in there? Mistake #2. Well, they DESTROYED it. All of our dry cleaning was out of the bag and scattered and our shoes were all over the closet. Dry cleaning bags that were covering our newly dry cleaned clothes were now on the floor. It was a disaster. I actually forgot to clean it up before David came home and he wondered what on earth happened :-)

I had to laugh because this kind of stuff happens everyday...I just happened to document it that day. The funny thing is all of that took place in less than an hour. Gotta love it. Here's the pics.

....the aftermath.

Picture Overload

2008-03-16T17:34:00.000-07:00

We have had a fun couple of days! On Saturday, we had great weather and the temp reached in the mid 90's. So, the boys and I pulled out our swimsuits and played in the backyard. Well, the boys played in the sprinkler and Mommy tried to catch a few rays, but Carter didn't quite dig the sprinkler so I spent most of the time calming him down after he would accidentally walk into the sprinkler and get wet and cold. He would just stand there and not move waiting (and screaming) for me to go and get him. Jackson had a BLAST. This is such a great age to do those types of things with him. He just takes to new experiences immediately and you can tell that he is just so "into" it. I bought a new sprinkler for them and Jackson just sat there examining it-- so amazed. It's so cute.

David built them a sandbox today and they spent 3 hours in there this afternoon. Jackson was great at putting sand in the pail and using a shovel. He wanted to cover up my feet, David's feet, Carter's feet, and his own feet. He wanted us to take his shirt off so he could just lay down on his stomach and pretend he was going to sleep. It was so funny, and now I know how to keep him entertained on a boring day.

Carter, on the other hand, was constantly throwing sand out of the box (very age appropriate, but still annoying) and getting it in his mouth and eyes. He also really had a great time, but of course, we had to watch him closer so he didn't eat a mud pie :-) All in all, they loved it and it's awesome that David is so handy around the house and that he was able to build them their own little sandbox.

Here are some pictures from the weekend. Notice how they're in swimsuits on Saturday and then coats, etc. on Sunday. Gotta love that Texas weather! Also, Carter is wearing a hat because he has an ear infection...not because of blistering cold winds :-)

Soccer Practice

2008-03-14T10:37:00.000-07:00

Jackson had his first soccer practice on Wednesday! There are 10 kiddos on the team and it's co-ed....6 boys and 4 girls. They are the cutest little things I've ever seen. From what I understand, they don't actually keep score since they are so little. I think it's mainly just to learn the fundamentals. Their team is called "The Highlighters" which is very appropriate since their jerseys are NEON yellow. Jackson is very excited and kept walking around telling everyone that he's #11. The coaches set up some cones and the kids practiced kicking through them. So cute. Their first game isn't until March 29th, but they'll have a few more practices between now and then. I'll take my camera next time. These pics were sent to me by another little girl's mom so they aren't great of Jackson. Aren't they precious?

2008-03-06T10:00:00.000-08:00

This is just a random video of Carter being silly :-)

Talks of Heaven

2008-03-06T08:05:00.001-08:00

This morning when I was driving Jackson to school he saw a billboard with a lightning bolt on it. Here is how our conversation went.

Jackson: Mommy, what is that? (pointing to the billboard)
Me: A lightning bolt.
Jackson: You know, lightning is angels bowling in Heaven. There's nothing to be afraid of. (Jackson used to get scared when it would storm and the thunder was really loud. So we would always tell him that.)
Me: That's right.
Jackson: Can we go to Heaven?
Me: Someday
Jackson: Then, we can see Mamaw 'cause she lives in Heaven, right? (Mamaw is my grandmother who passed away last Oct. Jackson always went with me to visit her in the nursing home.)
Me: That's right, Jackson. Do you miss Mamaw?
Jackson: Yes, I miss Mamaw.
Me: Well, you know what? Someday we will all be in Heaven together and you can see Mamaw again.
Jackson: Someday? (You could tell he was deep in thought over this word.) Tomorrow?
Me: No, not tomorrow. I don't know when, but God does.
Jackson: God? I love Jesus.
Me: I know sweetie, me too.

Isn't it just so sweet what comes out of these little one's mouths? It's awesome that he's learning so much about God and Jesus at this young of an age. I'm amazed at the things he is learning at his Mother's Day Out and from our family. On a regular basis, he will just start singing "Our God is an Awesome God" which his Mimi (David's mom) taught him. It's so cute to see him playing with his trains or whatever he is playing with at the moment and under his breath you can hear him whispering songs. He also sings "Jesus loves Me" and "Jesus Loves the Little Children". So so sweet.

I just wanted to share this sweet story since my last post was just a big complaint! Even though I get frustrated (Carter is still driving me batty) they are such great kids. I just need to remind myself that it's all a phase and one day I will look back on this time and laugh at how stressed out I was at times....possibly when they start driving? Oh, I don't even want to go there :-)

I'm Back!

2008-02-29T09:15:00.001-08:00

Well, as it turns out, it was just the monitor that bit the dust. So, we bought a new one day before yesterday and all is back to normal now...thank goodness. What did we ever do before the internet? I honestly can't remember! Jackson is at school right now and Carter is rolling around in his crib trying to decide whether or not he wants to fall asleep yet so I thought I'd try and blog while I have the chance.

To catch up, it has been a little rough in our household the last few weeks. For some reason, both boys decided to go through a "challenging" phase at the same time. By challenging I mean "Driving Mommy Absolutely Bonkers" phase. Jackson is learning all about his independence and is voicing his opinions very loudly. "No" is a very regular word these days (I thought that phase had passed, but it's back with a vengeance). He takes his time with everything he does (much like his Daddy.) Of course, 3 year olds have no concept of time, but seriously! When trying to get into the car, he lazes around and looks for snails and picks up rocks and sticks to play swords and then he HAS to climb in the car BY HIMSELF! This process takes forever and then he looks into the trunk as he is turning himself around to sit down in his seat and then I have to strap him in. I'm not the most patient person in the world so I have to just bite my tongue everytime we have to get in the car. It's also always "5 more minutes" or "2 more minutes" or "No, I'm not ready yet!" This is also the phase where I am so scared to see a really fat person or someone with really crazy hair, b/c leave it to my child to point it out...vocally. The other day we were at the park and he said "Mommy, that girl in the green shirt is on Sesame Street". She just smiled and said "Really, I didn't know that." That was nothing...it could've been so much worse. Then, at the zoo the other day we saw a group of "misfits" shall we say. They were dressed like thugs and had red and orange and black spiked up hair. I just cringed hoping Jackson wouldn't see them, but sure enough he goes "Mommy, that girl has spiky crazy hair. She looks like a lion." Then, he just started cracking up. Luckily, they pretended not to hear and kept walking. I know you all really wanted to hear all of this in great detail. Just letting you know what you're in for! Get ready :-)

Now, onto Carter. He is 15 months old and throwing tantrums full throttle. I really don't remember Jackson going at it this young, but maybe I blocked it out :-) He is trying SO HARD to communicate and when he just can't get his point across, he is throwing himself on the floor in a screaming fit or standing up screaming and stomping his feet up and down. He fusses in the car now so every car ride is so much fun (you may refer back to the previously mentioned trip to get the older child into the car). He also doesn't really care for the stroller. I always have to carry snacks wherever we go to entertain him and those snacks always end up on the floor of the car. Then, David asks me how my car gets so dirty! Trips to the grocery store with both boys are now impossible. Jackson is great (he used to be the one that would give me trouble at the store) but Carter on the other hand starts fussing as soon as we walk through the sliding doors. I usually end up carrying him the last half of the trip which is so not fun while trying to shop for groceries on the bottom shelf! No amount of snacks will appease him during our trips to the store so the little man usually stays home with Daddy while I go shopping. He and Jackson have been playing really well together, but they are also fighting over toys really well together now too. Oh, the joy! And I still have about 17 more years of this!

OK, I think I'm done venting now. This is like therapy! Here are a few pics of our little angels :-) Notice the foot in the face in the pic below.

Corey and Julie Chandler came over last weekend and we got to meet their 9 week old baby boy, Hudson. Isn't he just the cutest? I just wanted to hold him all night! That age is so sweet when they just sleep in your arms and cuddle for hours. What a cutie pie.

Oh yeah, Jackson starts soccer at the end of March and we are so pumped. I get to be a Soccer Mom!!! I wonder if I'll get a sticker for the back of my car :-) Where's my minivan?!

Been Away

2008-02-24T08:55:00.000-08:00

Well, our computer kicked the bucket, I think. I've been having to use David's laptop when he gets home from work at night. I never realized how much time I spend on the internet until I had to live without it for a while! Anyways, we have been super busy and I will update as soon as we either get our computer fixed or buy a new one!

The Zoo

2008-02-13T07:35:00.000-08:00

We had a great weekend. We headed down to the San Antonio Zoo on Sunday to check out a new exhibit and it was awesome! They recently added an underwater exhibit with hippos and alligators and all kinds of cool stuff. Jackson could've stayed at that one place the entire time (so could I.) The boys were great the whole time except at the end when Jackson found out that we were too late to ride the train since the zoo was closing. After letting him choose where we would go out to eat, he was over it! Alamo Cafe is where he always wants to go because he LOVES their tortillas. We all had a great time and the boys were pooped when we got home. Here are a few pics from the zoo.

On another note, Carter has turned into quite the little monkey. He will climb anything and will push something next to whatever it is he wants to climb in order to reach it. Drives me crazy! Jackson was never a climber. Just another disimilarity between the 2. Anyways, when I don't hear him for a while, I start my search around the house. You know that eery quiet that just isn't normal? Well, recently, I've known where to look. His newest trick is climbing up on the train table in the play room and standing there until I come in and find him. He then gets a huge smile on his face and lifts his arms up like "Look what I can do!". No matter how many times I tell him "no", he continues to do it over and over and over. Maybe it's because I can't help but smile when I see him do it. It is pretty cute. Here's my monkey.

Also, Jackson came home from school yesterday with a cowboy hat that he had made (It was Rodeo Week) so I took a quick pic. He also brought home an adorable Valentine with his picture and foot prints. So precious. I'm so glad that he loves school so much. They do so many arts and crafts and things that I will be able to save forever. And, since I'm not one to pull out the scissors and glue and glitter, school works out great! Crayons, markers (Color Wonder) and playdough are about as far as I go :-) Here's a picture of the cowboy hat he made.

Is it just me?

2008-02-05T14:46:00.000-08:00

Or does everyone with kids have a house that resembles this?

It seems that no matter how often I straighten up (which honestly isn't often enough) my little tyrants come racing through right after me and mess it all up again! If I unload the dishwasher, Carter is up on the open door trying to "help". If I'm folding laundry, both boys have to be right there "helping". My point is, no matter how hard I try to keep things straight and in order--it just doesn't happen. So, I thought I'd share a pic of our playroom which ALWAYS looks like this! Drives David and me crazy, but there is just no hope for this poor room. It can look spic and span after the boys go to bed and then by 8:30 am it looks just like this. Ugh.

The other pictures are of the boys with Uncle Michael on Super Bowl Sunday, Carter wearing Jackson's undies (Carter brought them to me one day and backed up and sat in my lap so I would put them on him), and the boys just being silly together.

And yes, Carter LOVES LOVES LOVES his binkies!

Jackson Video

2008-01-29T10:19:00.000-08:00

Well, now that I'm all nostalgic, I'll also share the one I made for Jackson when he was a baby. Here you go...

Carter's Video--First 14 months

2008-01-29T10:10:00.000-08:00

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

When one of my friends, Courtney, sent me a video of her baby's first year I realized that I had made one for Jackson a couple of years ago and that I should do the same for Carter. So, I put this together with photos from his first 14 months. Hope you enjoy.

I can't believe I'm 30!

2008-01-28T08:53:00.000-08:00

Today's my birthday! I hit the big 3-0 which is very unbelievable to me! I really liked being 20-something and for some reason when I hear the number 30 it brings about thoughts of adulthood and responsibility and maturity that just didn't seem to apply to the twenty-something years :-) Anyways, I'm looking forward to the next decade and hope they are just as great (if not better) as the last!

Jackson has been saying the funniest things lately. He absolutely cracks us up with the things that he says. It's amazing how these little people pick up on anything and EVERYTHING that is going on around them. Jackson will say, "So, what's going on in here you guys?" totally straight-faced and dead serious...he really wants to know. He also says, "Mommy, Carter isn't very happy, is he? (Carter is crying). I think he needs his binky to make him feel better." There are so many examples that I really need to start writing down so I don't forget them. I'll share more later.

Also, once you have kids there are certain things that you say (or yell) that you never imagined would ever come out of your mouth. For example, Jackson has a butterfly net and he loves running around "chasing butterflies". Well, yesterday I walked around the corner and Jackson had the butterfly net over Carter's head and he said "Look Mommy, I catched Carter!". I calmly replied, "Jackson we don't catch people with butterfly nets...butterfly nets are for butterflies. Get it off your brother's head!" I had to laugh afterwards at the thought of someone on the outside listeing to me say that. Who would have ever thought?

I'll share more pics later!

Sweet Silence....

2008-01-24T10:41:00.000-08:00

Who would've ever thought before having kids that silence could sound so sweet? Jackson is currently at school and Carter is taking his nap. I already worked out and am now peacefully typing on my newest project! I love it! The only bad thing is not knowing when you'll be interrupted...maybe that's why Blogger lets you save your post to publish later.

Anyhoo, I wanted to share some pictures of the boys. The first one is of Jackson and his best friend Zach. Zach's mom and I are great friends and our boys are all the same age (she also has 2 boys). They came over for dinner last weekend and we all had a great time. Zach and Jackson enjoyed movies on J's spiderman "couch", the youngest boys slept and the adults actually got to talk and enjoy some wine! What a concept! Although it's bittersweet to see how fast these boys are growing up, it is so nice as they get older that we are able to do more things and are less restricted...or should I say on "lock down" :-) It's still hard, just not quite as difficult as it was when we had a 2 year old going through the "terrible 2's" and a newborn.

The third picture is of Carter carrying around his "binkies". It's so funny. Jackson used to do the same thing. He would have one in his mouth and then carry the others around.

And the last pic is of the boys running around holding their ears. I think Jackson did it and then Carter decided he wanted to do it too. It was too cute!

Well, have to run. Carter's awake....silence is over :-)

I'm in!

2008-01-22T11:44:00.000-08:00

OK, I tried this blogging thing a couple of months ago and got around to posting ONE time. SO, here goes my second attempt. Not making any promises though! David is totally going to make fun of me for doing this :-)

Here's a run-down of what's been going on lately in our house. Jackson is going to Mother's Day Out 3 times a week, but will be back to twice a week starting next month. I enrolled him in school 3 days a week when I thought I might be going back to work part-time starting this month. KLRN, the PBS station I worked for before kiddos, offered me a part-time position with very flexible hours. I was super excited. Well, after searching and searching for Mother's Day Outs for Carter (he's too young to go to Jackson's school) and part-time care, I came to the conclusion that I would just wait until Septemeber when both boys can go to the same school to return to work part-time. I had NO IDEA that it would be this hard to find reliable/suitable care. Or maybe I was just too picky about who would watch my baby :-) Anyhow, Jackson absolutely LOVES school and today they had Pajama Day where they got to wear their pj's to school. Very cute! Wouldn't you know I didn't get a picture? OH well, I'll just dig up a pic of him in his pj's and pretend it was today :-)

Well, that's it for my first post. Hopefully, I'll be back before too long!