(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Way to busy playing to be bothered with looking at the camera!

We're The Proud Owner Of An 8 Month Old!

Anderson is 8 months old today! Jeremy and I went away to a one night marriage retreat on Friday night and the boys stayed over at my parents. As Murphy's law of parenting would have it, Anderson started crawling while we were gone! Such a little stinker! His crawling isn't super effective yet, but he is definitely getting from point A to point B on his own. My little man needs to slow down with all this growing up! Enjoy the video and I'll have his 8 month shots up this evening on the Every 5 Days blog.



If you are having trouble viewing the video, try this link.

100 Days Of Fun

Tuesday was Jackson’s 100th day of kindergarten. His assignment was to do a poster with 100 things on it. Sounds easy enough, but I dare you to try to come up with 100 different things that will actually stay glued to a poster board! We raided the house, first aid kit, bathroom drawers, front yard, Nana’s art supplies, our art supplies and a few other places to get the project finished. We had everything from a Q-tip and dental floss to a bubble wand and sea shell. My favorite thing was probably an empty box of animal crackers. I was super pleased with the end result, and I really liked how we made a stick and 2 free CD’s into a “100” for the center of his poster. It’s hard to believe that Jackson is already 100 days into school, and from here on out it’s all downhill. He’s doing amazing, and we are so proud of our big boy!

All About Anderson

My sweet Anderson is still having a rough time. He’s doing better, but he has a terrible cough. He was coughing bad enough that he went back to the doctor yesterday and was diagnosed with an ear infection and given prescriptions for steroids and breathing treatments. We gave him the first breathing treatment last night and he hated it! He is breathing better this morning, so I know it helped him. Unfortunately for him, the more he cries and fusses during the treatment, the deeper the medicine gets into his lungs. It’s hard to see him so upset and crying over something, but on the whole, his fussing is actually better for him right now because it will help him breathe better after the treatment.

Personality wise Anderson has gotten spoiled rotten over the past few days. He wants to be held all the time, and if you put him down to play he looks at you like, “What do you think you are doing? I’m supposed to be in your lap!” He is refusing to sleep in his crib at night and for right now we are letting him get his way and sleep in our room. It’s not going to be like this for long, but Jeremy and I both know that we will cross that bridge when he is feeling better. It’s not worth the battle right now when he’s still sick. We’re just going to love on him and cuddle with him as much as he likes, and we’ll figure out everything else later.

That’s it for today. Y’all have a great day!

The Definition Of Pitiful

Anderson was admitted to the hospital Thursday for dehydration due to a viral infection. He was a pitiful little boy. He was lethargic, and was so dehydrated that he didn’t even have enough fluid in his body to make tears or drool, and his veins were collapsing. It was horrible. I haven’t been through a virus this bad as a parent, and I hope to goodness that we never have to go through this again. We never did figure out what was wrong with him, other than a viral infection, and Anderson was discharged Saturday. He’s doing better, but he’s still a long way to being his normal, sunny self. He’s a few pictures from the past few days.

Just got his iv and was sleeping. Pretty pitiful, huh?

Sitting in baby jail, aka the crib.

Friday morning his eyes were so swollen from the iv fluids. He looked so sick.

Friday afternoon he was very puffy but looked perkier.

Saturday morning right before he was released.

It’s been a long few days and I’m exhausted. Over the course of two days and nights at the hospital I think I slept a total of 7 hours. Anderson was a trooper during his stay, but we’re all worn slap out. Please say a prayer for sweet Anderson that he’ll be back to normal soon. Love y’all!

24 Hours Later

Anderson has now been in the hospital for 24 hours. He is doing better, but he is still a puny little boy. We finally (just now) got him to take a bottle. It was his first bottle since 4:00 on Wednesday afternoon. He's had 2 jars of baby food, but he did run a low grade fever a little while ago, and just a few minutes ago had a very bad, loose diaper.

Fingers crossed that he's well enough to go home soon. I would love to go home today, but I just want to be 100% sure that he is better before we get sent home. I don't want to hurry home to just have to have him get sick again and then come back. I would rather him get completely well before we go home.

So prayers are still greatly appreciated for our sweet Anderson. I'll update again later.

Prayers For Anderson

Anderson got admitted to the hospital today around lunchtime. He had thrown up a few times last night and by this morning he still wasn't taking his bottle or eating anything. Add that to a pretty bad cough and congestion and we knew he was a sick little guy. Jeremy took him to the doctor at 9 and much to our suprise she decided to admit him for IV hydration. He has tested negative for RSV, strep and the flu, and Dr. D was pretty much stumped at what else might be going on. Better to be safe than sorry with such a small baby, so she felt like we needed to have some further precautions taken. We have been at the hospital since noon and he got his IV about 3:00 this afternoon. So far he has only had 2 really wet diapers since last night around 8:00, and the poor little guy was so dehydrated that he had to be stuck 3 times to get a line that would work. When he was getting his IV he didn't even have tears to cry.

Overall he's pretty pitiful right now. He's fussy and irratable and just one sick little fella. After one bag of IV fluids he is now crying tears again, so that's a good thing. I graduated from HS with his nurse, and she's taking good care of us. I ran home long enough to pack some stuff for tonight and now I'm about to head back to the hospital. Please keep Anderson in your prayers for speedy recovery. We truly appreciate it. Much love!!

A Scary Turn Of Events

We got home late after karate class on Tuesday night and we got Jackson into the shower when we got home. Anderson was smelling a little bit like sour milk, so we put him into the garden tub while Jackson was taking his shower. Everything was going fine and then in a blink it all changed.

Jackson got out of the shower and Jeremy was drying him off while I still had Anderson in the tub. Jeremy and Jackson were playing a game and about to run to Jackson’s room to get his pajamas and I guess the bottom of Jackson’s feet were a little wet. He took off running and didn’t make it more than a few feet when his feet went out from under him and he slammed his face into the bathroom floor. He started wailing and literally by the time Jeremy grabbed him up off the ground he had a huge goose egg on his forehead. I was panicked; it was a big blue knot about the size of a half dollar in seconds and Jackson was hurting so bad.

I grabbed Anderson out of the tub and sat him butt naked on the bathroom rug and then ran for some Tylenol for Jackson and an ice pack. I had Jackson in my lap and then made a call to the pediatrician to see what to do. I know that when there is a head injury you want to see a bump on the outside because if you can’t see it, then the bump is on the inside of the head, which is not good.

She called back after a few minutes and we had done everything right. Jackson has a  nice knot on his head today, but he’s fine.

It’s moments like this in parenting that partly explain why I have a head full of grey hair. I don’t guess it will get any better!

For The 5 People Who Might Want To Watch This

The Song That Never Ends

"Welcome to winter with 2 kids."

That's what I was thinking when Jackson woke up Sunday morning with a terrible cough. He had a very mild and random cough Saturday, but by Sunday morning it was completely different. I was changing Anderson's diaper when Jackson walked out of his room and immediately he started coughing so hard that I thought he was going to throw up. It wasn't a regular cough either; it was very croupy sounding, and what scared me more was the fact that when he quit coughing he was still gasping for air. He has seasonal related asthma, mostly just wheezing, but he has never had an asthma attack. That's what I was afraid was about to happen. He had gotten pretty upset by the coughing and I got him calmed down and gave him some puffs off of his inhaler and a dose of Mucinex cough medicine.

After a few minutes he was feeling better, but he was not a happy camper when I told him that we were going to Primed as soon as it opened up. He is terrified of getting shots, but I was fairly certain that he had bronchitis and wouldn't need a shot.

We packed up and headed to Primed by 8 and after an xray and strep test it was determined that he had bronchitis and an upper respiratory infection. He was given a breathing treatment and we were on our way by 9:30.

Between Anderson's ear infection problems and now Jackson's bronchitis and upper respiratory infection, spring can't come too soon!

It Was Destiny

I logged into Facebook last night and saw this on my timeline:

I knew we were meant to be friends!

18 years ago, way back in 1994, I watched her dance the most beautiful talent that I think has ever been done in the Miss America pageant. We had happened to video tape the pageant and after I saw her talent (and she won!) I watched that video over and over.

I danced ballet for 15 years and I was in awe of how someone who couldn’t even hear the music could dance like that. She was amazing! Us both being from Alabama probably didn’t help my stalker rating, because y’all, I was all about Heather Whitestone that year.

So this past Saturday night when I was watching the Miss America pageant I typed her name into the Facebook search engine and saw:

1. Her page wasn’t private.

2. She doesn’t have a million Facebook fans like a lot of “celebrity” types do.

3. She actually responds to people on her page and seems so genuine.

So I sent her a friend request and I was rather surprised when she actually accepted it. Squee!!!

For me, being friends with this Miss America on Facebook is like a Catholic getting a friend request accepted from the Pope. You just really don’t think it would happen. I’m thisclose to sending her a private message and suggest we meet for a double date with our hubbies.

Dinner with Miss America really trumps a Facebook friend accept, dontcha think?

A Friendly Reminder From The Resident 5 Year Old

Tuesday evening it was pouring when I went to pick up the boys from daycare. I was already frazzled because I realized that I had a hole in the bottom of my work boots and my trouser socks were soaked. Add wet feet to the fact that it was freezing outside meant that I was not in the best of moods as I was trying to load the kids into the car. Our daycare has room for one car under the awning and I was trying to hurry and get the bags into the car, juggle an umbrella that was not worth the trouble, buckle Anderson into the car seat and attempt to stay dry. I was moving as fast as I could and asked Jackson for what had to be the 5th time to please get into the car.

I walked around to his side of the car to see what in the world was taking him so long and I see Jackson jumping around in a huge mud puddle splashing away. His shoes were absolutely soaked and I was not happy. I quickly asked him, “What in the world do you think you are doing?”

Without missing a beat, my sweet 5 year old said, “I’m jumping in a mud puddle, Mom. I’m a kid. This is what I’m supposed to do.”

Score 1 for the kid.

5 Baby Products I Wish Existed

Seriously, is that not the cutest kid ever?

Now that we’re back to parenting a baby again, as opposed to a pretty self reliant 5 year old, I’ve decided that someone needs to get on the ball and invent a few products that would fly off the shelves if they actually existed. These are a few of my dream list baby items:

• Baby socks that actually stay on. We’ve yet to find any socks that we’re not constantly pulling back onto his feet. Also needed, socks that don’t get lost in the dryer.
• Bibs that absorb drool and spit up as opposed to just letting it sit on the surface of the bib and stink to high heaven.
• Toys that self sanitize when they hit the floor of a doctors office during cold and flu season.
• Diapers that sound off alarm bells when your baby actually poops in their diaper instead of just passing gas. Anderson is wearing tons of footed outfits right now and having to take them off for every false alarm is getting old.
• At home otoscopes so you an check your kid for ear infections at home instead of taking them back to the doctor. Again.

Now I just need someone to get busy and invent some of these things. I’m too busy parenting!

Wedding Dress Challenge

I was flipping through Red Book magazine the other day and saw a story about the Wedding Dress Challenge and I decided to give it a try. The challenge isn’t necessarily about fitting back into your wedding dress, but working towards something that gives you a set bench mark whether it is your wedding dress or a little black dress that you haven’t fit into in years. The challenge is running from now until June.

I’m going to put it all out there and tell y’all that I’ve been married for 10 years now, and I’m about 17 pounds heavier than I was when we got married. Granted, I’ve had 2 kids, but I’ve lost all my baby weight and then some. I don’t have any excuses for these last 17 pounds.

So I’m going to do my best to watch what I’m eating and get motivated to lose these last 17 pounds, and see if I can fit back into my wedding dress.

What do I have to lose by trying, other than a few pounds?

Weekly Confessions

• I paid my speeding ticket the other day. Believe me, that’s a $200 lesson that won’t be forgotten.
• I’m a little behind the times, but I watched Water for Elephants last week and immediately had to order the book on my Kindle. It was so good. If you haven’t read it, I highly recommend it. Consider yourself warned though that there are a few times when the circus didn’t have enough money to buy food for the meat eating animals, and the other circus animals became breakfast. Poor little goats!
• Jackson got his 2nd report card yesterday and he did so good. It’s hard to believe that he’s reading already. Gone are the days when I could just spell something out so he wouldn’t know what we are talking about. Now he just sounds the letters out and figures the word out. So proud of him, but that really cramps my sneaky parenting methods.
• Winter has finally arrived in the south. Yesterday was a high of 45 with winds up to 25mph. Cold!!! I prefer 70 degrees with a comfortable breeze. 25 mph winds are a far cry from comfortable breezes.
• I absolutely love going on vacation and I’m all about ordering travel guides. I got a travel guide in the mail this week to somewhere we will be visiting in May and I’m super excited. I can’t say where it is just yet, but it does involve an airplane. Yay! I love traveling on airplanes. Jackson found out about this trip (which he won’t be going on) and was less than happy. He told me, “Well, I’m just gonna go anyway.” It’s good to know that I’m raising a small version of myself as far as attitude is concerned.

That’s it for me today. Y’all need to confess anything?

Magical Advice For The Magic Kingdom

We’re planning on taking our first family trip to Disney this year, and to be quite frank, it’s absolutely terrifying. This is the first vacation I’ve planned where I know I’m going to be exhausted by the time it is over. Jeremy and Jackson have never been to Disney, and the last time I went to Magic Kingdom was 20 years ago. I’ve never been so overwhelmed this early in the planning process of any vacation, and I’m begging you Disney experts out there to help me out with your infinite knowledge of all things Disney.

Here’s what I know so far:

• We’re going to Disney in September.
• We are staying in the park, probably at a value or moderate resort.
• We will have the dining plan.
• We plan on doing at least 1 character meal.
• We are driving.
• We will have 3 days in the parks. We plan on spending 1 day at Animal Kingdom and 2 days at Magic Kingdom. I just don’t think Jackson is old enough to enjoy Epcot.
• We are not using the park hopper passes.
• I have purchased “The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World.”
• I have signed up at touringplans.com and visited mouse savers and all ears.
• Anderson is not going.

That’s about as far as I’ve gotten with planning our vacation. I’m open to any and all suggestions y’all have to offer. Thanks so much for helping us out!

It’s All Fun And Games Until You Glue Your Fingers Together

There's a fine line between using nail glue to repair a broken fingernail and accidentally gluing your fingers to the glue container. Friday night I crossed that line.

The Friday before Christmas I went to get a manicure and got the new gel finger nail polish instead of my usual OPI. The gel polish supposedly stays on about 3 weeks, and I figured since this was a treat that I don’t normally do for myself that I needed to make it last as long as possible. I had 2 nails that were slightly broken and the manicurist used some nail glue to repair them so we didn’t have to cut them off.

A few days after my manicure I noticed that the nails were getting loose again so I ran back by the nail salon and they added some nail glue back to the original breaks and sealed them back.

All was well for a few more days when they came lose again. Instead of running back to the nail salon I made a trip to Wal-Mart and bought some nail glue to fix it myself. About 5 minutes later my nails were fixed and I was back in business.

So the other day I had another nail on my left hand get broken and when I got home I pulled out the nail glue and set out to fix the nail myself. I opened up the nail glue and was trying to figure out the best way to fix my nail when all of a sudden my right hand started to get hot.

That’s when I realized that I had been applying a little too much pressure to the glue container and that I was squeezing nail glue all over my hand.

The heat I was feeling? Turns out that was the glue bonding to my skin.

The glue container? Now stuck to my skin.

I panicked when I realized what was happening and shook my hand hard enough to get the container off of my fingers. Unfortunately when I shook my hand I slung the glue container to the floor where it promptly got stuck on my bathroom rug. Then I did the stupid thing of panicking again and picking the glue back up where it got stuck on my fingers again. I slung it one more time to a clear spot on the counter and began to assess the damage.

Y’all, it looked like I had shellacked the fingers on my right hand. I was covered in shiny nail glue.

Remember when you are a kid and you get Elmer’s glue on your hands and it dries all kind of wrinkled and old looking? That’s how my right hand looked.

I got my container of finger nail polish remover out and rubbed some over my hand thinking that it would help me get it off. Turned out that my remover didn’t have any acetone in it. We were already planning on having dinner out, so I had to eat looking like I was trying to preserve my right hand before I could go to Wal-Mart and get some acetone remover.

Then the acetone remover didn’t work either and I had to spend the entire weekend picking dried glue off my fingers. It was about 2 hours into my glue picking when I vowed to myself to quit the madness of nail preservation; from now on I’ll get the nail clippers instead of the glue. It’s much easier!

My Child The Slacker

Jackson has been on this phase lately where he is constantly scoping out potential careers and deciding what he wants to do when he grows up. We were on our way home from church on Sunday and he told me that he needed to talk to me about something very, very important.

Jackson: “Mama, we need to talk.”

Me: “Okay. What do we need to talk about?”

Jackson: “You’re really not gonna want to hear this.”

Me: “Really? What am I not going to want to hear?”

Jackson: “I’ve been thinking….”

Me: “And….”

Jackson: “Well, I’ve decided that I don’t really want to do anything when I grow up.”

Me: “You have?”

Jackson: “Yes ma’am. I just think it’s best if I don’t have a job when I grow up. That way I can just have fun and not have to worry about work. I think I like that plan.”

I think I missed the Peter Pan booth at Career Day.

Happy Birthday Amy!!!

Jeremy and I want to wish his sister Amy a very happy birthday today. This is her first birthday as a Mom, and we hope she has had a very special day. We love you!

Happy Birthday Amy!!!

A Despicable Gift?

Jeremy and I usually give each other practical gifts for Christmas. Because his work attire is standard funeral director stuff, i.e. navy blue suit, white dress shirt, tie and black socks, he's always needing useful stuff to keep his clothing up to par. So for Christmas this year I got him a really nice tie, some dress socks and a pair of navy blue long johns that he can wear under his suit pants so he doesn't freeze his fanny off on cold winter days. Thoughtful, right?

Fast forward to the other night when it was bitterly cold outside. We got home and Jeremy went into the bedroom to get some comfortable clothes on. When he came back into the living room I nearly died. Jeremy was wearing a dark colored over sized shirt, his new navy blue long johns and his dark work socks.

He looked exactly like Gru from Despicable Me.

I leaned over to Jackson on the couch and whispered to him that his Daddy looked just like Gru.

Y'all, I thought Jackson was going to wet his pants he was laughing so hard. Even Jeremy thought it was hilarious although he has repeatedly declined letting me take a picture to prove my point.

Spoilsport.

It's been 4 days and two things are still happening:
1. Jackson and I still laugh hysterically every time we see the long johns.
2. Jackson and I are both still calling Jeremy, "Gru" every chance we get.

I guess this means that Jackson and I are Jeremy's little minions....

It Was Almost A Parenting Win. Almost.

 

Jackson has gotten a wee bit picky about trying new foods lately. When we introduce him to something new he’ll either say he will try it and back out at the last possible second, or flat out refuse to take a bite.

This morning I decided to make fried eggs for breakfast. I like my eggs cooked over medium, with the whites done and the yellow runny. It grosses Jeremy out, but I love them cooked that way.

I told Jackson I was cooking eggs for breakfast and then made a big production out of how we were going to fry our eggs. I got the oil hot, broke the egg into the grease and cooked one egg perfectly for him. I showed him how the yellow runs when you poke it and he was having a great time playing with the egg yolk. When it came time to eat the egg he was a little hesitant, but he took a bite and pronounced it good.

*Insert sign of relief*

I cooked another egg for myself while he finished his egg. When he got done (and ate the whole egg) he was off to play and I ate my egg. I was cleaning up when Jackson walked back into the kitchen clutching his throat. He walked up to me and said:

“Mama, I can’t eat fried eggs anymore. They give me strep throat.”

I gotta give him points for creativity. Reluctantly.

Happy Birthday Dad!!

Today is my Dad’s 60th birthday! We have been so blessed to have him in our lives, and we hope that he has the best birthday ever!

Happy 60th Birthday Dad!!! We love you!!!

It’s Not Christmas Without An Elf Video!

Just For Kellyn!

Back by special request of my favorite sister! Hope you enjoy!

Weekly Confessions

• I got an early Christmas present from an Alabama State Trooper this week; my very first speeding ticket. I was so bummed! He clocked me going 68 in a 55 on a back road in the middle of one of the most rural counties I travel through. I didn’t even know I was speeding. It was a pretty day and I was just scooting along! He was really nice and right as he handed me the ticket he said, “I wish we didn’t have to meet this way.” You and me both, buddy! I guess I need to go revise my "Things I Have Never Done” post!
• I have gotten hooked watching the Turtleman on Call of the Wild. Typing that last sentence out makes me feel almost like I’ve just admitted to being a Trekkie, but the show is like watching a train wreck. I can’t wait to see what he’s going to get into next.
• I’m thisclose to being done with my Christmas shopping, and that includes 9 teacher gifts! We have 6 for daycare, 2 for kindergarten and 1 for Sunday School. My wallet will be thankful for January to roll around, except for that darn speeding ticket!
• It’s been 75 degrees here this week. Gotta love Christmas in Dixie!
• Jackson is going to be spending next week in Mississippi with his Papa and Gigi. It will be the perfect time to do the “some assembly required” gift for Anderson that is sitting up in the attic. Having 2 kids has required some adjustments in the Santa department!

That’s it for today. I hope y’all have a great weekend!

A Decade In The Making

Ten years ago today I married my best friend, and I thank God everyday for Jeremy and our kids and what they mean to me. They truly complete my life, and I’m a better person because of them.

Happy Anniversary Jeremy! I love you with all my heart!!!

Wordless Wednesday

I Give Him Bonus Points For Creativity

At the very last minute I decided to take Jackson to Primed last night. He had been complaining of a sore throat for a few days, especially when he swallowed, and I didn’t want to let it get out of hand. He hadn’t been acting like himself all afternoon, complaining that he felt like he was going to throw up, then trying to go to the bathroom, and then saying he was all better when absolutely nothing had changed.

We were at church when I decided to take him on in because he still was complaining. When Jackson caught wind that he was heading to the doctor he was miraculously healed and became particularly clever:

“I was wrong, Mama, my throat decided that it’s all better now.”

And then on the way to the doctor: “Please, Mama, I promise that I was just making it up. I’m not sick!”

And then in the waiting room: “I really don’t need to see the doctor. You can just check me out of the waiting room.”

And then 30 seconds later: “I don’t want a shot. Please don’t let them give me a shot. I’m not sick anymore.”

And then 15 seconds later: “I’ll buy you a Hello Kitty cell phone if you just let me get out of here.”

And then in the exam room: “How about this for an idea; we just leave here and pretend we didn’t ever come.”

And then with the nurse: “I’m not sick and I’m really ready to go home.”

And with the doctor: “I can’t get a shot because its past my bedtime.”

Luckily for my creative kiddo, the strep test was negative and he just has a red throat and slightly red ear canal. He’s being treated with amoxicillin just in case, but no real cause for concern.

Too bad I won’t be getting that Hello Kitty cell phone.

The Cutest Joseph That Ever Was

Jackson was part of his children’s choir Christmas special last Sunday night. I was really nervous about this because Jackson has had some problems with stage fright in the past. Imagine my shock (and fear) when I found out that Jackson had been cast as the role of Joseph for the manger scene. He had been doing well in practice for the most part, but when it came time for the dress rehearsal last Saturday he decided that he wasn’t going to do it anymore. It took me promising that he could go to Dollar Tree and spend $5 on whatever he wanted to get him through the practice. I made an even more expensive deal to get him through the Sunday performance. He had to sing the songs, smile and do the part of Joseph and he would get an additional $10 to spend at Dollar Tree. I know it’s bad to start bribing him on stuff, but it was money well spent when he cooperated as well as  he did on stage. I did get a little nervous when it was time for the kids to come down the aisle for the manger scene. For a second there I couldn’t see Jackson and I was afraid that Mary (Jackson’s friend Gracie) was going to be unescorted on her trip to Bethlehem! But Jackson did great! He sang, smiled and did such a wonderful job. I was so proud of him for doing something outside his comfort zone, and he was proud of himself for doing such a good job. I wish I had gotten some better pictures, but Jackson had some major red eye going on. Enjoy the pics!

Has It Really Been Six Months?

Our sweet Anderson turns 6 months old today. I’m somewhat in shock that it’s already been six months since he was born. I remember when Jackson was a baby I was so overjoyed every time he reached another milestone. I would clap and cheer him on when he began to roll over, crawl and then walk. Now with Anderson I wish I could just freeze time. It’s not that I don’t want him to reach those milestones; it’s just that I know that with every milestone that he passes, he is getting further and further from this sweet stage in babyhood. Already he’s become a “hip baby” that gets toted around on my hip instead of being cradled in my arms. Soon he’ll be walking and time will go even faster. More than likely he’s going to be our last little baby, and I want to enjoy every second that I have with him, even if it means that he’s going to be spoiled rotten in the mean time! We could not have asked for a better baby; at 6 months old Anderson is on a perfect little schedule, so much so that you can set a clock by him. Granted, most mornings we’re still up with him at 4 a.m. but I know that this too shall pass. Anderson doesn’t cry or fuss, and he absolutely adores Jackson. Jeremy and I have been so blessed, and I can’t wait to see what the next 6 months will bring us.

Ask Amy Anything Answers

I’m sorry I’ve been so inattentive lately. Life has been crazy busy lately, and while it’s not an excuse, the combination of work, home, 2 kids, 1 husband and church has really done me in lately. Blogging hasn’t even been much of a thought lately, but I promise to do better!

So a few days ago I opened up another round of Ask Amy Anything and here are my Q and A’s.

Miranda asked:

“If you were stranded on a desert island and could ONLY take one person with you (it doesn't have to be a family member, so don't panic), who would it be and why? I have my own ideas about this answer and want to see if I'm right!” I’m not sure how I’m supposed to answer this without offending someone, so I'll just take the safe route and say that I would probably take Jeremy with me. Seeing as how he is my husband, he would probably be pretty peeved if I picked anyone else.

“What one Christmas tradition do you remember from your childhood that you want to make a tradition with your own children?” I remember taking long car rides on Christmas Eve looking at the Christmas lights, and then when we got home we got to open 1 present. It was always torture trying to decide which gift to open because you didn’t want to pick something like socks when you knew there were toys under the tree also. I’ve incorporated the Christmas lights and Christmas gift tradition into what we do with Jackson, and now Anderson gets to join the fun!

“What is your favorite snack/meal/goodie that you only eat during the Christmas season?” Peppermint almond bark and fudge. I love both of them, and only get them at Christmas.

“What are you getting me for Christmas? (just trying to sneak it in there HAHA!)” I thought we weren’t exchanging gifts. Hmm. In that case, how about the gift of knowing that you have the coolest best friend ever!

Jessica asked:

“What is your favorite book or who is your favorite author?” I absolutely adore anything by Mary Kay Andrews. She is a southern writer and all of her books are set in the south. She’s funny, charming and we would get along just swimmingly.

“When do you put up your Christmas tree?” We buy a real Christmas tree, so I have to balance when I want to put the tree up, and when I know that if I get the tree too soon that I’m going to end up cleaning up millions of pine needles by the time Christmas rolls around. As it is, I plan on putting up our tree sometime this week.

“What time do you go to bed at night and get up in the mornings?” In a perfect world I would go to bed between 10 and 10:30 and get up about 5:45 during the week. However, I don’t live in a perfect world and I usually end up going to bed around 11 and because of some ill timed insomnia issues of mine, I wake up around 4 in the morning. Its miserable being up that early, but I have a problem that when my eyes my brain kicks into overdrive and I can’t go back to sleep. By 10 or so in the morning I’m just about give out. If I want to sleep all night I have to take Tylenol PM.

Esther asked:

“What's the weirdest gift you've ever gotten?” I got a very girly, frillyish angel for a wedding gift. It was from a distant aunt, and it was one of those gifts that you appreciate the thought, but also think, “We’re in the world am I going to put this thing?” It ended up going on the back of a bookcase!

That’s it for today. I hope y’all have a great week!

Happy Birthday Mom!

I want to wish a Mom a very Happy Birthday today. She’s so special to us, and we love her so much. I hope you have a wonderful day!

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

Ask Amy Anything

Because it’s been awhile…

And I have a killer headache…

And it has rained for 2 straight days…

And because I’m trying to finish shopping the cyber Monday deals…

I’m opening today up to another round of “Ask Amy Anything” which basically just means that y’all ask me a question in the comment section and I’ll do my best to give y’all a good answer!

See how uncomplicated that is? So now, y’all get busy asking me question to make me feel better. Have a great day!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving!

A Minor Procedure Of Sorts

So I’m having surgery today. What? That isn’t how you want to spend your Thanksgiving holiday? Seriously though, it’s going to be nothing. I’m having a small cyst removed from my right kneecap. This surgery was scheduled for a year ago and then I found out that Anderson was on his way, so no go on the surgery. I had almost opted to forget about the procedure, and then right at Halloween my knee really started giving me trouble. I made a visit with my orthopedic who agreed to swap my cyst for a small scar in what should be a very short outpatient procedure. I will have to take it easy for a few days, but I’m not expecting that it’s going to be very bad.

I’m checking into the surgical center at 11:00 today which wouldn’t be a big deal if I wasn’t already starving and I know surgery won’t begin until right around 1:00. As usual, I was instructed to have nothing to eat or drink after midnight except for a sip or two of clear fluids around 5:00 a.m. for my blood pressure medication.  So right now I’m starving and it’s only 8 in the morning!

So my Thanksgiving is going to be spent with my feet propped up and a remote control in my hand. Now that I think about it, it sounds like a pretty good idea to me. Maybe I’ll even get to watch the parade this year!

I’ll catch up with y’all again soon. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

Our Shot At Fame And I Blew It

Monday morning I received an email from babycenter.com that a nationally produced TV show was looking for kids named Anderson to do a segment about. Babycenter knew about our Anderson based on our profile that send me emails about development for both of the boys. All I had to do was email this producer and tell him when our Anderson was born, give some basic contact info like phone and email address and what region of the country we were in. I knew since it came from babycenter.com and had already been confirmed by a secondary email, it was a legit request, so I fired off a quick email on my blackberry and didn’t think anything else about it.

About an hour later I received a call from a producer of Anderson Cooper 360 and she told me that they were looking to do a piece about babies named Anderson. She asked how old our Anderson was and I answered a few more questions and then she said, “We are specifically looking for babies named after Anderson Cooper. Does that apply to you?” I had to answer honestly and say that no,  he was not named after Anderson Cooper. I didn’t tell her this, but I’m not even a fan of Anderson Cooper.

After I begrudgingly told the truth that we just loved the name Anderson, knowing all the while that I was blowing my chance of getting a paid vacation to New York to appear on TV, I also shared with her that one of our Anderson’s nicknames is Anderson Pooper. She loved it! She then offered us tickets for the show if we are ever in New York.

So there was my shot at being on a national tv show and I had to blow it by being honest. I’m such a goody two shoes. But seriously, there is no way I could have gone on tv and claimed that I named my kid after Anderson Cooper. My plane would have probably gone down if I had told that lie!

And really, it’s totally their loss at not meeting the cutest Anderson Pooper in the world!!!

Close, But No Cigar

Jackson is learning tons of “popcorn” words in his kindergarten class. Popcorn words are words that will pop up frequently as he starts to read. He is super interested in spelling words lately, and we’re always spelling things together, especially when we are in the car.

The other day we were doing our spelling game when Jackson walked into the kitchen and announced that he had figured out how to spell another word.

Jackson: “Mama, I can spell ‘dog’ now!”

Me: “Wow! How do you spell ‘dog’?”

Jackson: “B-A-D!”

I guess Jackson has heard me say one too many times that Macy is B-A-D. I’m fairly certain that my days of spelling words because Jackson is in the room and I don’t want him to know what I’m talking about are numbered.

Too B-A-D for me.

Advice Needed

I’ve been having chronic headaches again lately. And by “chronic” I mean that I’ve had a headache for 4 weeks straight now. The headaches are part of the reason I’ve been so sporadic with my blogging. It has been awhile since I saw my neurologist (since before I was pregnant with Anderson), and I’m out of the loop on headache medications now. I used to take Maxalt and that medicine was a gift from God except for the $20 per pill price tag. I often had to choose whether or not a headache was Maxalt worthy before I would pop a pill because I didn’t want to waste expensive medicine on something that Tylenol or Excedrin would help. I don’t have any Maxalt right now, so I’m out of luck in that department.

I couldn’t get an appointment with my neurologist until December, so until then I’m just living on a combination of Excedrin, Ibuprofen and Tylenol. I’m completely aware that I’m giving myself rebound headaches, I just don’t know what to do without taking the Tylenol because the pain is so bad.

So, if you suffer from headaches what do you do? Are there any new migraine medications out on the market that might be worth mentioning to my doctor? Because y’all, it feels like an eternity to December, and trying to function with constant pain is getting old. I’m open to any suggestions you have.

Y’all have a great day!

It’s The Thought That Counts, Right?

Saturday night we were enjoying dinner out with my sister Kellyn, her husband Jason, and their little boy Luke. We had decided to go to Logan’s Steakhouse since they have delicious rolls and unlimited peanuts to munch on before your food comes out.

Jackson isn’t much for peanuts, but he was being so nice to crack the peanuts for me while I was busy being occupied with Anderson. Jackson had cracked 5 or so peanuts for me (which I had devoured) when I glanced over to Jackson just as he was cracking open another peanut for me.

Unbeknownst to be, my sweet 5 year old was taking the peanuts, dropping them on the filthy peanut covered floor, stomping on them with his dirty cowboy boots, picking them back up off the floor, dusting them off and then handing them to me.

Good times, I tell ya. Good times!

By The Numbers

Married: 9 years, 11 months

Pregnant: 78 weeks

2 sons

3 years of diaper/pullup changing

1 state

2 cities

6 vehicles

1 funeral director education (For the hubs)

3 daycares

1 public school

1 dog

1 happy family.

Join in! What's your numbers?

Thanks, Esther!

Things I’ve Learned Lately

• Sonic’s Blue Coconut slushie will not do your white linoleum floor any favors. Imagine a red Kool-Aid stain, only blue.
• The pain from having a huge ulcer on your bottom lip will not get any better when the cheese from a piece of pizza gets stuck to the roof of your mouth. My mouth is  pretty much one big sore right now.
• Hearing your 5 year old describe a friend as, “the bombdiggity” because his kindergarten teacher used that phrase is priceless!
• Even when my life is hard there are always people who have it a lot worse than me.
• Nothing beats eating a pecan fresh off the tree.
• I might as well give up on the mountain of laundry that is accumulating. We’re never going to get caught up.
• Seeing as how I’ve had a constant headache for the last 3 weeks, I’ve almost forgotten what it felt like to have my head not hurt.
• Splurging to get your hair washed, cut, dried and straightened instead of just getting it cut is a nice treat every now and then.
• Hearing a baby laugh is the sweetest sound in the world!

What have you learned lately?

I'll Be Back..

I've been hit and miss lately. Actually, much more miss than hit. But never fear; I'm almost back. In fact, I'll be back this afternoon with Anderson's 5 month shots. So have a great day and come back to visit me this afternoon to see some pictures of the cutest 5 month old!

Things I Have Done

I shared with you 22 things that I have never done a week ago. At 31 years old, here are 22 things that I have done (in no particular order).

1. Gotten a tattoo.

2. Flown from Alabama to Colorado and back by myself.

3. Spent a combined grand total of 10 hours in labor with my sweet boys.

4. Loved my husband and kids more than life itself.

5. Been a lifeguard.

6. Taught abstinence education and STD prevention to junior high and high school kids.

7. Finished college in exactly 4 years.

8. Performed in front of 100,000 people.

9. Rappelled down a mountain.

10. Gone white water rafting 6 times.

11. Seen Dirty Dancing and Pretty Woman more times than I can count.

12. Ridden in an ambulance once.

13. Been to Puerto Rico twice, Mexico twice, and the Bahamas once.

14. Seen New Kids On The Block 3 times in concert. It would have been 4 times but they cancelled the last show when I had tickets in 2008.

15. Met my husband on the internet.

16. Had my tonsils removed as an adult. It was torture, but totally worth it in the end.

17. Made dear friends all over the country from blogging, and consider their friendship as real to me as people I know in real life.

18. Made a chocolate cake and chocolate icing from scratch.

19. Been a follower of Jesus since I was ten.

20. Gotten stuck on a roller coaster over water at Six Flags.

21. Only had 1 cavity in my life.

22. Drank an entire 2 liter of Mountain Dew in one sitting. I was literally shaking uncontrollably after I got done.

That’s it! Anything surprise you? What have you done? I hope y’all have a great day!

Wordless Wednesday

Things I’ve Never Done

I’m 31 years old and I’ve never:

1. Watched more than 30 minutes of any Star Wars movie.

2. Eaten a Whopper from Burger King.

3. Eaten sushi.

4. Vacationed completely alone.

5. Been to New York or Washington D.C., although both are a dream for me.

6. Smoked.

7. Gone into labor without being induced or given birth without an epidural.

8. Slept past 10:00 in the morning.

9. Seen the Pacific Ocean.

1. Been to a professional football or baseball game.

11. Seen Sixteen Candles, Footloose, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off or The Godfather.

12. Been in a helicopter.

13. Seen a Broadway play or musical.

14. Gotten into a physical fight.

15. Voted for a Democrat.

16. Met a celebrity, unless you count Steven Seagal, and I don’t!

17. Been in a hot air balloon, gone bungee jumping, water skiing, snow skiing, surfing, scuba diving, parasailing or skydiving.

18. Broken a bone.

19. Gotten a speeding ticket.

20. Changed a tire.

21. Played bunko.

22. Had anything published.

That’s it for me. Y’all have a great day!

Follow the template I copied from The Pioneer Woman without her permission and list 22 things you’ve never done!

Shakin’ My Tail Feathers

Last night I went to my friend Kasey’s art studio for one of her painting classes and made what I think is my favorite painting ever which says a lot considering I have done well over 10 pictures at her studio! I had such a good time, and I was so proud of the end result. The picture looks so great hanging in my living room and I can’t help but stare at it every time I walk into the room. The feathers have a little bit of glitter on them which gave them the perfect finishing touch. I absolutely love the painting, and I just had to come and shake my tail feathers to show y’all what I did. Whatcha think?

Pumpkin Patch Pics

We went to the Pumpkin Patch weekend before last and had such a good time. The weather was perfect and we couldn’t have asked for a prettier day. Jackson had a blast playing on the inflatables and riding the pony and the train. Anderson was a doll as usual and spent most of the day in the carrier where he enjoyed the scenery. We picked out 2 huge pumpkins that I will carve later this month. Enjoy the pics!

A Few Days Off

I'm taking a few days off from my blog. I ask that you pray for an unspoken prayer need, and I'll be back in a few days with new pictures of the boys.

Much love,
Amy

"Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven."                   Psalm 107:28-30

Check Out My Punkins!

I know I’m biased, but these are the cutest kids I’ve ever seen!

Weekly Confessions

• Jeremy and I have been parents now for 5 years. Between the two of us we have a total of 34 years of education. Explain to me then, why, neither Jeremy nor I can manage to put a pair of socks on our wiggly 4 month old unassisted.
• We have things planned for 9 out of the next 10 days, including a camping trip with my family. Our next day off? How about next Friday, the night before the camping trip. Clearly we are crazy and far too busy.
• Anderson is 4 months old today, and with the exception of a few hours here and there, I’ve been on the clock for 4 months straight. Between work, home, kids, husband and church, it’s no wonder I walk around in a constant state of exhaustion.
• Jeremy had a stomach bug the other day. Let either of my boys get sick and I’ll go to the moon and back to nurse them back to health. Let Jeremy get sick and I’ll stop by Wal-Mart to get him medicine and supplies, but then I quarantine him in the bedroom and wish him the best of luck.
• I got a tattoo a couple of weeks ago! I’ve wanted a Jesus fish for well over 10 years now, and I finally decided to go through with it the night before my 31st birthday. I was afraid that it was going to hurt but it was nothing, and since it’s so small it was over in less than 30 seconds. I love it, and I’m so glad I finally got it!

Anything y’all need to confess?