Family Fun

Bye, Bye Baby Room!

2009-02-10T12:07:00.000-08:00

Well, the nursery is officially closed. Cole and Logan are now sharing a room and Logan's room is cleaned out and locked so he can forget it was ever his first little space before the baby gets here. I am the most worried about Logan when Roewyn (tentative name, do you like it?) gets here because he is very attached to things (his bed, his mom, etc.) and I don't want him to feel displaced.

We started putting the boys in the same room last week at night, but did not attempt it at nap time. Cole has had trouble napping lately and I didn't want it to mess up Logan. After talking to several moms, I have come to the conclusion that it is not abnormal for Cole to be done with naps. (Insert me crying here.)

So...Cole now spends his "quiet time" in the playroom and Logan is on his own in the boys room. Today is not going that well, but I didn't really expect it to. I think Logan finally fell asleep (after an hour and a half) and Cole is not wanting to stay in the play room for his quiet time (but trust me, little Cole, you want to give your momma a little break!!!). I didn't expect for it to go well today, so it really is fine. I'll keep you posted though!

Ice Day

2009-01-28T09:04:00.000-08:00

I thought it was high time for my to reenter the blog-o-sphere. I will do it slowly as to not scare myself off from further posts.

Today was an icy day (as most of yall already know!). My kids LOVE eating the icicles. (They're clean, right?) So this morning we went out and had a feast.

Victory!

2008-08-27T20:16:00.001-07:00

Yes! He took a nap today. Two days of no T.V. and he slept like a little angel.

T.V. is his very favorite thing. Each day he did not take a nap there was a sign on the T.V. that said "No Nap=No T.V." For a non-reader he could tell me what that sign said quickly!

In other news, I am constantly amazed at how different my two boys are.

Cole has always hated sleep; Logan reaches for the bed when I go to put him down. Cole tries to sweep and mop and cries and yells because he can't move the broom and mop the way he wants, Logan, on the other hand, picks up the broom and patiently moves it and is just so happy to hold the broom and pretend he is helping.

Logan is way more aggressive than Cole was at this age--he will give his cousin Brady a toy just so he can take it away. And today Logan did something that I always thought Cole might do, but thankfully never did...put his toys in the toilet.

This is not good. Especially because there is also a potty trained toddler here that doesn't always flush---so Thomas the Tank Engine and his friend Percy went swimming in a nice yellow lake.

Here is Logan taking something from Brady.

Logan wants the car, but Cole wants to share.

Well...Shucks!

2008-08-26T13:13:00.000-07:00

Because this is a family blog, I will refrain from using stronger language, but man, I'm being tried as a parent lately.

My little Cole does not want to nap anymore! He is three. I am not ready for this!

Out of the past five days, he has only napped twice. There are tears (and not by Cole), frustration and my spanking hand is tired.

I am starting to think he is done with napping. Fellow bloggers, is this possible? I feel like there should have been a warning letter from the government or church or school or sombody when he turned three.

Because I haven't blogged in a while, I will post some pictures of my little rebel and his brother.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday Brady (my nephew) spends the day with us while his mommy is dentisting...

More to come soon. I won't take a break anymore, so keep checking.

In the meantime...do your kids still take naps?

Cole's 3rd Birthday!

2008-07-29T06:22:00.000-07:00

My firstborn is 3! I can't believe what a big boy he is!

We were out of town during his birthday weekend, so we had an impromtu party in Arkansas with family. We had a cake (made by Zach), and his cousins and PapaLee and LynnLynn got to celebrate with him.

We traveled on his actual birthday, so when we got home he got to pick out a special dessert at the store. Bri and Nick (his aunt and uncle) stopped by to give him a present...

Logan has gotten quite good at enjoying birthdays!

Logan's 1st Birthday

2008-07-07T11:11:00.000-07:00

Logan turned one on June 12, 2008. It was a great first birthday! We had a little family party. Both sets of grandparents were able to come as well as Logan's aunts, uncles and cousins.
Logan LOVES pizza! So, his first birthday was a pizza themed party. We all had a great time!

Logan eating pizza.

Even his cake was a pizza.
The family singing to Logan.
Logan enjoying his cake.
The family: Cole, Daddy, Mommy and Logan.

Get Ready!

2008-06-25T12:30:00.000-07:00

I have not disappeared from the blog-isphere completely!--I just took a bit of a hiatus. I thought I should catch you up on what has been going on lately.

We have been:

Celebrating!

Logan turned ONE!!!

Here is a picture of his special breakfast.

(More on this later--it deserves a special one.)

Hanging out.

We have enjoyed our friends this summer. Cole is really started to have friends that he asks for by name.

Learning to enjoying each other.

Reading together.

Visiting family.

Here are the boys with cousin Hannah.

As cute as ever!

Doing a triathlon!

Here is mom and her friend Kathleen waiting to start the swim.

Biking!
Running!
Swimming for the boys!

Here is Cole.

And Logan!

The last two pictures sum up a lot. Cole is cautious. Especially around water. Logan jumps right in--he doesn't know that he she be afraid of some things. Maybe it is the birth order thing? Logan has a great mentor (Cole) that has already taught him so much.

In other news:

I (Lauren) had my neurology appointment today (follow up for the Bell's Palsy/temporary face paralysis). Things look pretty good--although she said my eye was still a little saggy. I have a follow up brain and neck scan scheduled on Friday.
We got a lot of work done on our front flower beds. Our house is actually starting to look like we are doing things on purpose.
We bought a boat. Yup. It is 20 ft. long and cost $500 (so you can imagine the condition it is in). It is Zach's project for the next year (or two, or three, or ten...)

Hope this brings you back up to speed. And I promise to try and not let it go so long between posts again!

Vacation Highlights

2008-05-20T11:56:00.000-07:00

Among other things, one of the reasons I have been behind in blogging lately is that we took a family vacation.

We left home and stopped in Louisiana to spend the night on the way there and on the way back to break up the trip. When we got to Destin, we camped for three nights and then stayed in a hotel the last night. The kids were great (except when it was our own fault for completely wearing them out and not leaving time for a nap).

This is us gassing up and pulling out of Louisiana on Saturday. The kids are still smiling...they are not old enough to ask "are we there yet?"--but they are old enough to think it.

Here is the beautiful beach. We had so much fun! (On a side note: Beware of the spray-on sun screen--it is very easy to miss places--all of us had some funny shaped sunburn at a random spot on our body.)

This was my favorite thing we saw while we were there. The dolphin jumps up and takes the fish out of her mouth. I can't believe the height and accuracy.

This was a picture while we were on the dolphin cruise. The little girl is the daughter of the woman taking the picture!

We were all exhausted after camping and driving and just vacationing in general. I don't know that we have fully recovered yet. The week after our vacation was exciting too! (See Dr. Bri blog.)

We had a great time! It was our first family vacation (and Zach and my first vacation since our honeymoon six years ago). More pictures and details are forthcoming!

Dr. Bri

2008-05-14T20:10:00.000-07:00

Tonight my sister-in-law and best friend graduated from dental school. We now have a dentist in the family!

The ceremony was in the symphony center. We were very high up!

Here is Dr. Bri and me.

Charlette, Dr. Bri and Nick

Fred, Dr. Bri and Vicki (Bri's parents)

We are so excited for Bri. She has worked for long years! She was recognized for being on the Dean's list. I know she is going to be a GREAT dentist. She starts in July--so I can soon recommend a great dentist if anybody needs one!

Pictures from Abilene!

2008-04-30T18:26:00.000-07:00

We went out to Mom and Bill's land. Cole had a blast. It is such a fun place for boys (little or big, I'd imagine). Cole loved the tractor and Meemaw was brave and agile enough to climb up there with him at his request.

Bill and Cole were checking out the tires of the tractor. They were so big that Cole was scared sitting on top of it.

At Mimi and Poppa's house, Logan made himself at home. We had to baby proof quickly and hold things down so Logan didn't not them over. Cole helped us baby proof by finding all of the candy for us.

Cole and Poppa had a great time playing with the hose. Cole got the hose and tried to fill up the bird bath, then decided it was more fun to try and spray Poppa. Watching all of this was one of the funniest parts of the entire trip.

About 30 seconds from when this picture was taken, Cole tried to use the hose for more mischievous purposes...

We met my one of my best friend's from high school at the mall. Her three kids and my two had a great time playing on the indoor playgroup.

Here are more pictures of Cole in the tractor.

Logan loved being held my Mimi. She had to take her glasses off because Logan kept trying to take them off of her face (probably to put them in his mouth).
And here is Poppa out at the land, he was watching Cole and helping Meemaw get down from the tractor.

We had such a fun time and can't wait to go back again. Zach was sad when I showed him the pictures. He said it looked like we had so much fun and he wished he could have been there too!

Trip to Abilene

2008-04-25T11:03:00.000-07:00

Zach has been working a TON lately for some project at work. Last Thursday he came home and told me he was going to have to work a long day on Friday and on Saturday. Friday morning I woke up and thought that the boys and I would have a lot more fun in Abilene with family than staying by ourselves all weekend. So Cole, Logan and Mommy took an impromptu trip to Abilene and Daddy stayed home to work (poor Daddy!).

We had so much fun! It was great to see Meemaw and Peepaw, Mimi and Poppa, and Paul, Lenda and Mendy. Cole had a great time out at Meemaw and Peepaw's land and sitting on the tractor and playing with Meemaw. I think he had the most fun, though, trying to spray Papa with the hose. I had fun eating breakfast with everybody (Mimi cooked wonderfully as always), visiting with family and friends, and shopping with my mom. I also got the all-important food from Abuelo's! Logan loved trying to catch Jesse (Mimi and Poppa's dog), trying to play with Mimi's glasses, and attempting to escape as Meemaw changed his diaper.

I have ton of pictures to post, but that feature is not working on blogger, so I will keep trying. Look for them soon!

Gross!

2008-04-15T11:12:00.000-07:00

Two stories about my sweet little Cole:

First Story: We were at a friend's house recently eating dinner. She had gotten those big, soft cookies with icing for dessert. Cole wanted one, but hadn't eaten any of the dinner she made (this is no suprise--Logan out eats him every meal and THEN has a bottle to go with it...). We told him if he ate one black bean he could have a cookie (aren't we mean!).

Cole obliged and ate one bean. He gagged. He got that bean out as quick as possible just pawing at his tongue and then yells "Gross!" We didn't even know he knew that word. Good manners Cole!

Second story: I told you about Cole wanting to go poo outside while we are playing in the backyard. He tries every time we are out there and I always tell him no. I tell him we "need to go inside the house if we want to poopoo."

Today we were playing outside and the poo attempt happened followed by the directions to go in the house for poopoo. He said "okay" and kept playing. I was working on the computer and he was playing so well with his truck and swing set and just keeping himself busy. After a little while, he as a little too good and not yelling while playing in his playhouse. When I went to check on him, I opened the door and he was squating and pushing out a poo (isn't he going to love me posting this on the internet when he gets older). I told him he got a spanking for not listening and as I carried him away he pointed to his playhouse and said "Poopoo in the house! Poopoo in the house!" I guess I need to be more specific as to which house I mean.

Hooray! I was sick!

2008-04-14T11:56:00.000-07:00

What a joy to be sick! I was just sick enough Sunday to need to stay in bed (but not sick enough that I couldn't enjoy it) and my sweet husband took the kids. I slept soooo hard and felt better by about one. It was so wonderful to get to relax and not have to worry about the kids. Zach did a great job!

In other news, Logan got his eye procedure done again today. The doctor said there is a 5o% chance that it will work on the second time. If it doesn't work, we will go have a procedure done at the hospital where Logan will be out and they will insert a balloon or tube to open up the duct. I am thinking there is a good chance of it working this time, however, because he got a bloody nose after the procedure. Last time it all just stayed in his eye, so maybe second time is the charm!

I decided not to be in there this time. I think that was a good decision! It felt like it went by much faster and I didn't have a near sick experience. Cole and I just hung out all of two minutes until a sad little bloody nose baby was handed back to me.

Not Funny!

2008-04-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

Cole has learned something new. He loves to tell me when things are "not funny."

For example, this morning I was helping him get dressed and he gave me a little kick. I told him that we do not kick Mommy. He reaching out his little foot and ever so slightly touched my leg with his toe. I shot him a warning look, to which he said, "Not funny, Mommy!"

Fast forward to nap time. Cole gets a spanking when he gets out of bed. When the threat of a spanking is offered he usually says, "Mommy spankin. No Daddy spankin!" Mommy's spankings are just, well, not that bad. He has actually laughed after them before. (I keep thinking that it is just the act that will teach him--he will realize he has done something wrong, feel bad and fix his behavior. Zach informs me, however, that we have a little boy and they don't have a consciences to hurt until around middle school--sometimes high school).

So at nap, he got out of bed. I put him over my knees, gave him a spanking. He smiles at me and says...you guessed it. "Not funny!"

Here are a couple of other things that are "not funny."

Hitting Logan in the head with a brush/hotwheel/toys/anything that can be used to hit a little brother in the head

Shutting Logan's hands in the toy chest (see picture)

Peeing in his pants

Feeding Rusty Cole's breakfast, lunch or dinner

Opening the fridge when he is not supposed to

Hurting Mommy (voluntarily or involuntarily) by dropping a toy on her foot, out of control hugs from behind, jumping onto her lap from the arm of the couch, ect...

Easter Pictures

2008-04-01T10:56:00.000-07:00

Here are pictures from Easter week and weekend. We had so much fun with our families--we were so sad to see it end!

Cole, Logan and Mommy at an Easter Egg Hunt put on by our church.

Logan in his Easter outfit. It is the same one that Cole wore for his first Easter! (Except Cole wouldn't keep the hat on.)

Lauren's parents with the kids: Sheryl, Bill, Logan and Cole

Zach, Cole, Lauren, Sheryl, Logan, Bill, Vicki, Braden, Fred, Nick, and Brianna

Zach and Bri's parents with the kids: Vicki, Fred, Braden, Cole and Logan

Two Days, Two Surgeries

2008-03-26T08:28:00.000-07:00

Ahhh! They are over! Logan's surgeries. Two sugeries in two days. Logan is fine of course, it is always Mom that can't seem to get over everything. The kids always bounce back ,and it takes me days to calm down.

On Monday Logan had a small surgical procedure that opened up his tear duct that has been clogged since he was born. They gave me the choice on whether or not I wanted to be in the room. Since I have seen Cole have many painful procedures done because of his intussusception, I thought I would be fine. I won't describe the procedure--let's just say it involved a papoose board, a three inch metal probe, syringe with a three inch needle filled with saline, a nurse, a doctor, my youngest child and his eye. I had about one minute left in me before I was about to start crying with Logan.

On Tuesday, Logan and I arrived at Cook's Children's Hospital at 6:00. By 7:15 he was taken back for surgery. Around 7:30 the surgery was over and they came to get me. Like I have seen with Cole, the worst part was Logan coming out of the anesthetic. If you haven't seen a child do this, they just can't seem to figure out what is going on and they thrash and cry and don't calm down for about 30 minutes to an hour. During this time Logan was crying bloody tears because of his procedure the day before.

Logan has recovered wonderfully from both procedures with just a bit of fussiness and being completely scared when he get close to Cole and Cole yells. His is not quite used to his new ability to hear.

Much like when Cole had his surgeries and procedures, Mom is fine during and the day of, but the next day, I tend to me pretty stressed. Zach always says that I come home from the hospital a day or two after the kids do.

I feel like we are on the verge of doing better! Logan is already better--they drained out the ear fluid and his eye seems better by the hour. The weather is nice, so Cole will get his outside fix, my face has stopped tingling and is working wel--except when I get really tired, and Zach has been working A TON, but his big project should end on Monday. Yipee! The boys and I feel like Daddy has been out of town during the week, but we will get him back soon and thank the Lord (literally) that his job is not normally like this. Not only is it spring outside, but it is looking like it might be in our household as well!

Logan's Lair

2008-03-18T06:43:00.000-07:00

This is Logan's special hiding place. He loves to be here (and get stuck).

Potty Talk

2008-03-17T08:32:00.000-07:00

Cole finally has made the leap and started to poo poo in the potty! There is a story about one of our family members that when she was trying to get her kid to poo poo in the potty he was having trouble. The kid finally happened to do it when she had friends over and she brought the potty with the poo poo in it for all to see.

I think I have laughed about the story in the past, but I now have a new understanding and have thought about doing the same thing. (I even thought about posting the poo in the potty for the world to see!)

Cole has also learned to pee pee outside when we are in the backyard playing. Today I was working on the computer while he was playing in the backyard. I heard some serious grunting. I looked up and he apparently thought the pee pee in the backyard translated to poo poo in the backyard. He had his pants down to his ankles and was doing some serious pushing!

Doctor's Orders

2008-03-04T07:30:00.000-08:00

Our little Cole is now sick. This picture doesn't even do justice to how bad he looks (although it is a good start). He has a cough and fever and the world is his tissue. I am seriously going to have to wash everything when this passes.

Zach and I were talking about what we did when we were sick as kids. We both had the TV and couch treatment, so we decided to do that for Cole. In other words, there has been a lot of PBS on lately! Our doctor even said to have him rest and suggested T.V. and movies. So we are now watching the second Curious George in a row. After all, it is the doctor's orders.

(We Need) A Breath of Fresh Air

2008-02-27T09:13:00.000-08:00

Our poor little Logan can not seem to stay well for too long. We are so ready for Spring around here!

We went to the doctor on Tuesday to make sure Logan's double ear infection was gone, and the doctor noticed he was working pretty hard to breathe. He was going to send us for a chest X-ray, but then he decided he would try a breathing treatment first. That worked, so he decided against the X-ray and were sent home with a breathing machine. We went back today to see how the breathing machine was working. The doctor sent us home with it again for two more days and we have to go back on Friday to get checked out one more time and see if our little Logan needs a steriod shot (Yikes!).

A Candle in Remembrance

2008-02-25T12:43:00.000-08:00

Yesterday at church, Zach and I went to a service that they have once a year for families that are struggling with infertility and/or miscarriage. It was a great service, and of course very emotional for the families in attendance. We lit a candle for our lost baby.

I thought after a month and a half I would feel a bit more secure about the miscarriage and it wouldn't be so hard; I think there is a delay on the mourning, because I feel it now almost more than right after it happened.

Please take a minute to say a prayer--not only for me, but for all of the couples at the service yesterday that are dealing and struggling with these issues. Thank you so much for lifting us up in prayer as I know you have done and will continue to do. I don't know what I would do without my family and friends and God has blessed us by knowing you.

Weekend of Visits

2008-02-23T05:38:00.000-08:00

We had an exciting day last weekend! First, we went to the mall to meet up with our friends Ross and Leah. We went to college with them, lived with them (me with Leah for a summer and Zach with Ross for 3 years) and they were in our wedding. They have a little girl who is almost 2. It was so much fun catching up and introducing them to Logan.

Here are Logan, Zach and Ross

Leah and her daugther Emma

After lunch and naps, we all went to The Dallas Convention Center to visit my cousins Jill, Maegan, and Maegan's husband Wes. They were in from Arkansas for a cheerleading competition where Maegan and Wes were coaching and Jill was cheering. Here are some pictures of the visit.

Here is Maegan and me. Believe it or not, I am one of the taller females in my family!

This is Maegan and Wes. The met when they were both cheerleaders for UCA. (I dare you to make fun of him!)

Here are Cole and Logan enjoying the visit. Cole is showing his support for the cousins' team.

Aubree's Arrival

2008-02-13T08:28:00.000-08:00

I have a brand new niece! Aubree Elizabeth was born on Saturday at 11:09 a.m. weighing 5 lbs. and 4 oz. She is 19 and 1/4 in. long and beautiful! She was born at 35 weeks (a miracle because her sister was born at 31 so her momma was trying to keep her in as long as possible!) in an emergency C-section. She got to room-in with mom and dad right away so she is nice and healthy. She did spend some time under the lights yesterday for jaundice, but all is good today. My sister, Angela, is having a time recovering from the C-section, but I think she is starting to do better.

Here are some pictures from the weekend. We were able to head down to Little Rock and spend time with them at the hospital.

Zach and Logan visiting Aubree, Angela and Kevin (Hannah, Aubree's sister, came the next day)

Beautiful Aubree Elizabeth

Cole checking it all out
Kevin, Angela and Aubree
Angela and Aubree

On the Bright Side

2008-02-01T06:06:00.000-08:00

A picture of Cole and Logan looking on the bright side...

"Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 5:18

In the past month we have made three trips to the ER (two for Cole, one for Lauren), Cole had a colonoscopy, have found out we were pregnant (a little more than a month ago) and then we lost the pregnancy, Cole has had pnemonia and with it developed a huge fear of doctors, Logan has had pink eye. Just this week our car was broken into, Logan got hand, foot and mouth disease which led to a fever of 103.7 and I (Lauren) pinched a disk in my neck leading to lots of shoulder pain and lots of medication. So, needless to say there has been a lot going on. While it is easy to focus on the "bad," there are several verses that I have seen lately that call us to pray for everything, and to be thankful--so, I thought I would list what I am thankful for (this list is by no means exhaustive).

So, here are a few:

1. There is something more. No matter what we are going through God is with us and won't let us go.

2. My husband. I am so blessed to be married to him--he has been a great partner in eveything (both good and bad) that we have faced.

3. My Cole. I love his rambunctious spirit. He is so fun and also so loving. He is a wonderful son and big brother.

4. My little Logan. He has brought so much joy with his spirt and I am loving watching him grow.

5. My baby angel. Althought we never met him, God allowed us to created an angel for His kingdom. And as someone told me "all he knows is love: he was created in love, we loved his in my tummy and now he is with his Father and loved in heaven."

6. My extended family. Our grandparents, our parents (the kids' grandparents), sisters, brothers-in law, aunts, uncles and cousins--They pray for us, love us, encourage us, hurt with us, read my blog...

7. My friends. We have been blessed to know so many wonderful people that have prayed for us and loved us.

8. The church body. (They are also included in our friends.) They have called and emailed and prayed for us.

9. My MOPs group. They have been so supportive with their calls, encouragement and meals.

10. The doctors. We have seen some wonderful doctors that have cared for us and helped us get on the medicines we need and give us encouragement. My doctor for the miscarriage and Cole's doctors have been an incredible support.

11. Our health. Although little things do come up, we are overall healthy and happy.

There are so many more things to be thankful for. In all of the "bad," something good has come out of it. We feel so loved and when I look over my list I can see God in each situation. He has provided for us and has surrounded us with love. I could list so many more blessings. Thank you, God, for blessing us.

Inside Our Family

2008-01-23T07:30:00.000-08:00

Cole's colonoscopy yesterday went well. The results were both good and bad. His colon looked very good --no polyps or anything. So that is all good. The bad thing is we still don't know what is causing all of this. The GI doctor said it may just be "bad luck intussusception" and he may grow out of it. If it happens again, we may do an upper GI test. The other option is a surgery to pin his colon so it can no longer slip into itself.

As for us, we are doing okay. I thought the grief would be linear--each day and moment would be easier than the one before, but now I am learning it comes more in waves. It also leaves a lot of questions that we are trying to work through. Luckily, we have God and each other and that is making all the difference.

Cole and Logan are wonderful and a constant reminder of the blessings we have received. For that we are thankful. Here is what greeted us first thing this morning.

Cole, of course, had to climb in and join the party. He can't resist a picture.

The Baby We Lost

2008-01-21T11:45:00.000-08:00

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

After a difficult weekend, we had a confirmed miscarriage last night. We started having complications on Saturday afternoon and our doctor (who was thankfully on call this weekend) put me on bed rest. We were hoping it was just a normal part of the first trimester and everything would clear up. On Sunday, however, the symptoms increased and began to include cramping. Our doctor had us come into to the ER and through a sonogram, we confirmed that we had lost the baby. We were at nine weeks in the pregnancy. They will monitor my hormone levels, but our doctor prefers not to do a DNC as it does not look like one is needed at this time. We are sad, but healing and preparing ourselves for the fact that we may hurt for a while. Please pray for physical and emotional healing for us and pray for the baby we lost.

As for the future, we are required to wait six to eight weeks before getting pregnant. We will be prayerful in what to do after that.

Please don’t feel like you have to respond to this. We know that you are thinking of us. What we need most at this time is your prayers.

Lauren, Zach, Cole and Logan

A Day in the Life...

2008-01-15T11:27:00.000-08:00

Did I mention we are potty training?

This is right before Logan did a face plant when he knocked the basket over. (But he was still happy!)

This sums it up nicely...

Yipee! My son has a wedgie!

2008-01-11T07:21:00.000-08:00

Yup! Cole is walking around with a wedgie these days due to the switch to underwear. Diapers are a thing of the past (except for naps and night, or course!). We are officially potty training.

We started on Saturday and once he felt wet on his undies he got it! He did not have a single accident--until yesterday. Yesterday, I think, he decided this potty training was not fun anymore and he really didn't care about M&M's so much. So it felt a bit more like we had switched to cloth diapers than underwear. A bit frustrating when I now know he can do it!

He is back on track today (except for the more difficult one). I think we are going to have to go get some Hot Wheels as an incentive (read: bribe). That is what we started with and it worked very well!

Cole's Half Birthday!

2008-01-08T07:47:00.000-08:00

Sunday was Cole's half birthday (two and a half). Between church, naps and community group we had to wait until Monday to celebrate.

Here are some pictures of the glorious event.

Here is Cole awaiting his cake. (His 1/2 cake.)

He looks so old to me!

Here is daddy with his "My wife is crazy, but at least I get cake" look.

Here is what Logan did during the half birthday celebration. Cole was not offended though, Logan did the same thing during his own 1/2 birthday party.

Any Thoughts?

2008-01-08T07:39:00.000-08:00

No! I haven't retained all that weight! Yes! It was your first reaction--We are pregnant!

We will find out for sure tomorrow, but somewhere around eight or nine weeks probably. The third baby shows A LOT faster!

Crazy Christmas

2007-12-29T08:38:00.000-08:00

We thought we would tell yall Merry Christmas and let everybody know what has been happening with us.

So…

Merry Christmas!

And

We have been in the hospital and doctor’s offices a bit over the holiday. Cole has a history of intussusception ( www.kidshealth.org/parent/system/surgical/intussusception.html ) which basically causes a blockage in his intestines. He has had this fixed twice with enema and once with surgery—(surgery was about a year ago). On the night of December 23, Cole started grabbing his abdomen and screaming in pain about every 15 minutes. After watching him at home for a while and talking to the nurse on call, we took him into the hospital. We were there from about 9:15 pm to about 3:30 am (Christmas Eve) while they did a series of tests on him and gave him an IV. They didn’t find an intussusception with a barium enema so they told us to take him home and watch him and come back if he got a fever or started vomiting or the pain persisted. They also said that sometimes the intussusception can telescope in and out so he may have had it, but it corrected itself.

So we went home and he was pain free for almost 12 hours. The pain came back that night and he had a rough night, but didn’t want to go to the hospital if we didn’t need to and definitely didn’t want to spend Christmas in the hospital. However, Cole started vomiting and the pain seemed to because more intense. So, after talking to the after hours nurse once again we went back to the hospital at around 8:15 on Christmas morning. Again, we did the tests and they were negative so we don’t have a specific answer other than it could be intussusception or it may not be.

We were able to leave around 2:30. He has not had any pain since the second enema, so that has been a blessing. We are going to visit and upper GI doctor soon to get Cole further tested to see if we can find out why this keeps happening.

So we had a good December 27th free of hospitals and doctors. We got to have family time and played whirlyball.

On December 28th Cole woke up with a fever of 102 (which was of concern because of his recent past history). We didn’t want to sit in an emergency room when the doctor’s office was open, so we made an appointment and went to our family doctor. We went in at 10. We took a flu test, a blood test, a strep throat test and went to get a chest x-ray. By 1:30 we had found that the flu and throat test were negative, but the blood test showed a bacteria infection and the x-ray showed pneumonia.

Cole got a big time shot in each leg and was sent home with another antibiotic. He is doing better right now. Especially when he is on Motrin. His fever was 103.6 this morning, but the Motrin brought it down to 101.1 and Cole is running around like he feels much better. He also went to the bathroom this morning, which means, for now, he does not have any blockage.

It has been a crazy Christmas and a challenge to be calm and remember what Christmas is about! For now, we are home and getting better. The scary part is not knowing if it will stay that way for long, but we are thankful for this. We will keep you updated!

Happy 1/2 Birthday, Logan!

2007-12-14T11:10:00.000-08:00

December 12th was Logan's 1/2 birthday. Way to turn 6 months, Baby Logan!

He is soooo close to crawling. He even picks up the opposite leg and arm and then...SPLAT! He always lands on his stomach. In true Logan form, he continues to be happy and just keeps trying. (Until he has had quite enough and demands to be put down for a nap.)

Yesterday I put a toy in front of him to encourage him to crawl. He tried several times, then got wise and scooted along using just his arms and scooped it up and put it into his mouth.

So far, he does not seem to put as much in his mouth as Cole did, but I almost bet you can attribute that to us keeping a cleaner house and not having random plants and things on the floor like we did pre-moble-children.

Today I told the doctor that I have never met anybody as happy as Logan. He said, "just wait until your third one. Or eighth one; they just keep getting happier." Then he paused and said, "But if you have eight of them, you won't be that happy." I think I will take his advice on that one.

Here is Cole anxiously awaiting the cake. I got kick out of Zach as we were celebrating Logan's half birthday. When Cole was turning 6 months (and 1 and 1/2 years) he thought I was silly for making a half birthday cake and celebrating the half birthdays. This time, however, he enjoyed the party, went to get the camera for me out of the freezing car, happily gave Cole some cake--although he knew it was going to be messy, and sang "a very merry unbirthday to me." He is finally coming along according to my plan (insert evil laugh here).

Here is Cole enjoying the cake. From the time I took it out of the oven and began to ice it, his mantra was "doc-ate dake! doc-ate dake!"

And because I didn't do this fancy-schmancy blogging when Cole was an ity bity thing, I thought I would include pictures from his first 1/2 birthday as well.

And a very merry unbirthday to you as well!

Our Baby Nephew

2007-12-12T11:31:00.000-08:00

Here is a picture of the wonderful Brady. Can you believe that hair?!

Bring on the Caprons, Bring on the Babies

2007-12-11T11:54:00.000-08:00

About 9 months ago, our friends, the Caprons, came to visit us one weekend in Dallas. That Sunday their baby (suprising because they were only in their 34th week!) was born.

Well, this weekend they were back and we now have a sweet little nephew!

Bri and Nick went into labor on Sunday. Braden Ray was born at 12:07am on December 10, 2007. He weighed 7lbs. 8oz and was 20.5 in. He is a healthy baby boy and very pink (without the usual jaundice of most newborns). He is so beautiful!

A Strong Woman Versus A Woman of Strength

2007-12-06T19:07:00.000-08:00

Today was a particularly trying day with my 2 and 1/2 year old (not to mention my 6 month old was sick). Now that he has been put to bed I can laugh about our day, but in the moment it was quite frustrating. I, thankfully, found something one of the Titus women in my MOPS group gave to me recently and thought it was fitting. I don't know who the author is, but I thought I would post it. May we all become strengthened!

A STRONG WOMAN VERSUS A WOMAN OF STRENGTH

A strong woman works out every day to keep her body in shape...
but a woman of strength kneels in prayer to keep her soul in shape...
A strong woman isn't afraid of anything...
but a woman of strength shows courage in the midst of her fear...
A strong woman won't let anyone get the best of her...
but a woman of strength gives the best of her to everyone...

A strong woman wears the look of confidence on her face...
but a woman of strength wears grace...
A strong woman has faith that she is strong enough for the journey...
but a woman of strenth has faith that it is in the journery that she will become strong...

Culinary Creativity

2007-12-04T11:21:00.000-08:00

Traditionally the dog is supposed to take care of any bits of food that little boys may not want to eat. This is not the case in our home. Our 80lb. dog cannot slink by undetected and is therefore not allowed in the kitchen to satisfy his overzealous appetite. This is why our little boy has to become creative with the food he doesn't want to eat.

I Am Thankful For My Babies!

2007-11-28T11:16:00.000-08:00

For Logan's first Thanksgiving we went to Arkansas to visit my (Lauren's) side of the family. We had a wonderful time with great food and a good time with family. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera so I have no pictures of the actual event--but I thought I would show you pictures of my two babies. I am sooo thankful for them.

Logan loves to chew on his giraffe!

Big Brother Cole is so helpful!

Logan is one of the happiest people I have ever met!

Ride 'em Cowboy

Cole really getting into his ice cream!

I love my little family and I am so blessed to get to stay home with my wonderful boys. It was a hard transition to leave the workplace and school, but it works so well for us now. Thank you, Lord, for my babies, my husband, the choice to stay home and the blessings you give to us daily!

Tiny Tots and Tunes

2007-11-13T15:19:00.000-08:00

Today was the last day of our music class for this semester, so we had a special day and brought Daddies and food. We were so glad that Daddy got to join us!

Here is the family of four before music class.

This is Cole's favorite part! Bubbles!!!

We have really enjoyed the music class this semester. It is amazing to see how much Cole has learned and grown.

Happy Halloween!

2007-10-31T08:59:00.001-07:00

What a Difference a Day (or 730 of them) Makes

2007-10-22T05:39:00.000-07:00

It is getting cold outside! That is why I had to open up Logan's next bag of hand-me-downs from Cole. It is wonderful to get to reuse all of them! There is one problem. Logan happens to be much bigger than Cole was so the seasons for the clothes are off slightly. Here is a picture of both of them in the same outfit in the same place. Both the baby and the kitchen have changed!

Here is the kitchen before we remodeled.

Here is Daddy and a 7 and 1/2 month old Cole in the kitchen.

Here is a 4 month old Logan and Daddy in the same kitchen.

Here is a better view of the kitchen and the 4 month old Logan.

I can't believe how different two brothers are! They vary in size, coloring (skin and eyes and hair), personality, sleeping, eating, disposition...

But there is one thing that is the same. They are both loved very much!

Mmmmmm!

2007-10-08T10:40:00.000-07:00

I often wonder why God made it so we needed to eat three (sometimes more) times a day. It seems like He could have let eat once a week or even once a day. Much of my time as a stay at home mom is spent getting/preparing/cleaning up food for my family.

My best theory on the subject is He did it for the sake of fellowship. So we can eat meals together and relax. On Friday night, that is what we did. We ate with our friends Brad and Kathleen and their son Jake. (And the soon to be born daughter Cara!)

Here is a picture of Cole enjoying the pie. Mmmmmm! Don't you want to go eat now...

This picture is slightly deceiving, however, because both of my boys are having food issues right now. Cole doesn't really like to eat. Unless it is cheese, he can take it or leave it. He likes sweets pretty well, but doesn't get to have them unless he eats some dinner first. Dinner time is a constant struggle.

Logan, on the other hand, loves to eat. This is a problem lately because I have not had enough milk for him. I had to start supplementing with formula. I am not La Leche league (or even close--although I have been invited to a meeting once when I was nursing at a restaurant), but I enjoy nursing and personally I really want to nurse my kids for a year. That did not happen with Cole. My milk went away at six months, and although I tried everything but medicine, it would not come back.

For Logan, my milk went away at three months. He woke up one morning and his diaper was not wet at all (and I had put it on thirteen hours earlier!). My normally happy baby became fussy and uncomfortable and couldn't sleep. So after supplements for him and all kinds of good things for me (including, but not limited to pumping after every feeding, increasing calories, drinking a crazy amount of water, fenugreek...) the lactation consultant, doctor and I decided that taking medicine was the only way to bring it back. So I am taking what they commonly take in Canada and Europe for nursing problems. It is called domeperidon. It has some controversy--in the past it may have been harmful to very sick patients that took it in very large doses in the form of an IV, but it is now considered to be safe for the baby and for the mom--and it has worked very well in amping up the milk production.

So we have been able to stop supplementing for now, Logan is sleeping better and my wonderful, happy baby is back and he has stopped losing weight. We have another week before we start trying to ween off the medicine and we see if I can keep the milk production up on my own. For now, I am less stressed since the medicine is working and enjoying the conscious increase in calories. In fact, I had better end this entry because I am currently feeling that I need to help Logan out by eating another bowl of ice cream!

Catching Up

2007-10-01T11:13:00.000-07:00

Every Thursday we have a standing playdate with Kristi and Carson. The drive all the way down from Allen to play with us, and we love it! As you can see from the picture Cole absolutely loves Kristi. He always tries to get as close to her and Carson as possible. He loves to pull out Carson's pacifier and give it back to him, kiss Kristi's arms, and tries to help in any form or fashion while Kristi is feeding Carson (including going through the diaper bag and pulling out bottle lids and pacifiers just in case).

Just in case you want to see Kristi and Carson (and even some pictures of Cole), her blog is http://babycooley-coolio.blogspot.com/.

And we can't forget little Logan. Here he is sucking his thumb. This is his new thing, and it is so cute! For now, anyway.

Logan is Three Months Old!

2007-09-12T08:56:00.001-07:00

Our little Logan is three months old today! He is getting so big! He is about 15 pounds and is growing all the time. He now sleeps on his side (sometimes sucking on his fingers) and is only waking up once a night.

He is still a content and easy baby--although Zach and I wonder if he really is so much easier or if Cole just trained us well!

Cole and Logan are getting along well. Cole seems to really love his brother. Logan always smiles when he sees his big brother.

Happy Birthday, Poppa!

2007-08-28T13:19:00.000-07:00

Why are you smiling Logan?

"Because it is my great-grandfather's birthday! Happy birthday, Poppa!"

Blood, Sweat and Tears

2007-08-24T15:38:00.000-07:00

In raising two boys there is a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Today the blood and tears were Cole's and the sweat was mine.

I was vacuuming the living room. Cole was playing in the room and Logan was sitting in his bouncy inspecting my work. Cole ran out of the room one second and the next second he ran back into the room crying and holding his head. It took me a while to calm him down and then I sat him down on the counter to clean off the blood that was beginning to appear. That is when I realized his entire brow bone was swelling and he was beginning to look like the huntch back of Notre Dame in the face.

I was so nervous. I was trying to decide whether or not to take him to the hospital to make sure he didn't have a concussion or eye damage. I called my neighbor for a second opinion (she has two boys, and I was sure she had some experience in this area), but alas, she was not home. I then called my doctor to see if I could bring him by and determine if he needed to go to the emergency room.

He didn't. He just had the beginnings of a black eye (it has turned darker throughout the day) and the nurse said eyes just tend to swell up. I asked her if she was sure he didn't some how break his face. She assured me that he did not.

Then I realized the scary truth. I have a boy. A boy that, with his activity and curiousity level, that will probably get hurt many, many more times. Then I realized the even scarier truth. I have two boys.

"Adrian!"

Crazy Cole (aka Lil' Fred)

2007-08-21T17:00:00.000-07:00

Here is Cole trying to put on Daddy's helmet. You can almost hear the wheels turning.

There is one big problem (other than the fact that it is too big)--it is backwards. This is especially notable because this is one trick Grampa (Fred) is always trying to pull. There are lots of similarities between the two of them--the backward helmet wearing, the complete and total love of trains and putting the track together (and taking them apart again and putting them back together again), the working with tools, the constant attempts to be near the laptop...

We are wondering if we have another crazy physicist on our hands!

Two Months!

2007-08-16T08:48:00.001-07:00

Logan turned two months on Sunday. He is now 23 and 3/4 inches and 13lbs. He is growing like crazy. I keep trying to tell him he can sleep longer than 4 hours at night, but he hasn't listened to me yet.

Oh, well.

Here are some pictures...

The Sleeping Logan

Yay! I am 2 months!

I still can't get over his hair color. According to family, Zach's mom (Gramma) and my grandmother (Peg) and my great grandmother (Trudy) had red hair. I love it!!!

Logan's First Playdate

2007-08-14T04:48:00.000-07:00

Here is Logan's first playdate...

Check out the color of Logan's hair!

Logan just turned two months--so more to come soon!

Mr. Pee-Body

2007-08-08T09:36:00.000-07:00

To help Nick prepare for the upcoming arrival of his son (Yes! It's a boy!) in December, Logan decided to break him in a bit.

Uncle Nick swore he felt something warm on his leg, and I assured him that sometimes it felt warm through the diaper and Gramma (Vicki) backed me up saying the diapers these days don't normally leak (if they are changed enough, and we had just recently changed Logan).

When his picked Logan up off his lap there indeed was a wet spot. Nick was forced to borrow shorts and underwear since Logan took the liberty of wetting Nick's.

This may have been Logan's retaliation for Nick "learning" to hold a baby. There might have been some whiplash involved while a very nervous mother looked on.

Help Around the House

2007-07-26T05:14:00.000-07:00

I have found it a bit more difficult to get my household in order lately. It is not so much from lack of time, it is more from lack of, oh I don't know, being able to be in two places at once. Cole is getting better and better at playing by himself, and Logan (except in the evening) is pretty easy. The biggest problem is that I can't leave them in the room alone together and go to the laundry room or another room to dust. Also, when Cole gets a hint of me trying to be productive, he goes into super crazy get mode and gets slightly bosterious trying to climb or bounce his baby brother in the bouncy chair or find a pen and write on the wall (thus leaving me more to clean).

So, I try to get Cole to help. Here is an example of him "helping" me put away the laundry.
Notice he is going for the already folding clothes.
You can even see his broom in the background. We just got done "helping" Mommy sweep.

It is amazing with all of this help that I am not able to get more done!

One Month Old!

2007-07-22T09:24:00.000-07:00

Our little Logan is one month old. He does not sleep quite as much as when we first brought him home, but he is overall an easy baby. He is pretty happy most of the time--especially in the morning. Like most kiddos, he does get a little fussy in the evening.

His eating is going well (as you can see from the pictures). He even likes to eat all through the night. The most he has ever gone without eating is four hours and that is usually followed by needing to eat in two hours. So, we are up at least two times (sometimes four) at night. That is okay though, it is special time with just the two of us and I get to watch some interesting things on TV.

Cole and Logan are getting along pretty well. On the rough days, Logan cries when he sees big brother coming at him (after Cole has not been "gentle"). On the good days, Cole can make his little brother smile.

And smile we do! We had our first smile at the doctors office during our one month well visit. We also found out Logan was 22 and 3/4 inches long and 10lbs 60z.
Overall, we are doing well and so far think the transition from one to two kiddos was easier than zero to one.

Here are some pictures of our growing boy...

Daddy and Logan doing some male bonding.
Telling grandma how grumpy we are.
Relaxing a bit before we have to defend ourself from big brother trying to run the Little People bus into our head.

Cole's 2nd Birthday!

2007-07-21T18:11:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated Cole's second birthday. We had a train cake (he is really digging the choo choo's right now) and some family and friends over.

This was my first attempt at the cake. It took me alllllll morning (during which I completely neglected the birthday boy and his brother--probably not the point of a birthday cake), and it promptly collasped and looked like, well, like this...

Zach came in from mowing and yard work to help me keep my sanity and this was the train cake that we came up with together. A decent attempt, but I think in future years we will be purchasing the cake from a nearby bakery. Here are some pictures of the family. Memaw and Aunt Angela, as well as brother Logan.
Here is Cole blowing out his candles. We took them out of the cake so he did not create a shower on the train tracks.
In case you missed the party, here is Cole offering you a piece of his birthday cake.

Four Weeks Old

2007-07-20T17:17:00.000-07:00

Well, it is 3 in the morning and I should be getting sleep, but for my Aunt Sharron I will write a blog instead. Just kidding! It is only 7:15 and I am stealing a few moments while Cole is watching Charolette's Web with his grandparents and Zach is holding the baby. I have several events to catch up on, so expect a new blog for the next couple days.

The first is Logan turning four weeks! (He is over 5 weeks now, but like I said, I am behind.)

Aren't we getting big! We have lost our new born look...
He is really filling out. He is not too happy here!
Here is Cole and Logan. Cole really likes to hug and hold his brother.

Stay tuned! Tomorrow I will post about Cole's 2nd birthday!

Happy July!!!

2007-07-06T11:56:00.000-07:00

Three Weeks Old

2007-07-03T18:16:00.000-07:00

Logan is three weeks old today. When we put his pictures of the his first week next to these, we cannot believe how much he has grown! He is getting to be a chunky little thing!

Our sweet little tired chunk. Can you believe those cheeks?!
Here is a sleepy and milky Logan. Notice Cole's little hand on the crib.
He is getting rolls on his arms and legs.

Two Weeks Old

2007-06-30T06:04:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday, Logan turned two weeks old. At his two week checkup, we learned that he has gained a pound over his birth weight (the goal was just to get back to his birth weight) and he has grown an inch and a quarter. He is growing like crazy!!!

Colorful Cole

2007-06-22T19:21:00.001-07:00

Today Cole was coloring with markers. I started looking out the window and apparently got distracted by a tree or something (the sort of thing that happens when you aren't getting enough sleep) and when I looked back, Cole had colored his legs. I tried to keep coloring with him (redirecting him toward the paper), but it was too late--the seed was planted. We put the markers up when Cole looked at the marker, then looked at Logan--you could almost see the wheels turning--he hopped out of his chair, and I got to the marker just before his baby brother became Cole's newest canvas.

One Week Old

2007-06-20T17:45:00.000-07:00

Logan turned one week old yesterday. He is getting quite the belly on him. So far, he is a really easy baby (I am almost scared to admit this for fear it will change). In fact, and I will probably laugh about this quite soon as Logan seems to be waking up a little and developing a personality, I called the doctor yesterday to make sure he was not sleeping too much and that it was okay that he didn't need us to hold him all the time. We are learning very quickly that he is quite different then Cole was as a baby. Thank goodness we didn't know better when we had our little Cole.

Overall, things are going well. Cole seems to be doing just fine (and is quite helpful as you can see from the picture--that is Logan's changing table), and aside from being a little tired and moody from time to time, I am recovering from having a baby and already miss parts of the pregnancy (but not enough to do it any time soon). We are doing well and just trying to get sleep and settle into being a family of four.

Family Pictures

2007-06-17T15:35:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of our family.

Hard Work

2007-06-06T08:46:00.000-07:00

Being almost 2 is hard work! It is so tiring playing and eating and napping. Oh, and constantly finding things to climb and seeing how much we can get away with.

Everynight, it seems, Cole picks toys to take in bed with him. We are just happy he makes it back to his bed to sleep. This picture was taken a couple nights ago; I could hear the drill going for probably 15 minutes before he fell asleep( and, of course, we must have our hard hat on while doing such work. In fact usually Mommy or Daddy has to wear a hat too--you can never be to careful!)

My Little Helper

2007-06-05T10:16:00.000-07:00

Cole loves to hang out with other kids. This is great because not only is he getting a brother next week, he is getting another cousin in about six months. This is because his Aunt Brianna and Uncle Nick are going to have a baby!

Here is a picture of the future big brother and oldest cousin on his daddy's side in action. He loves it when his buddy sits in his lap, despite Cole being only around four months older and close to the same size. He also tries to pick him up. We are going to have to watch our "big brother" closely and make sure he is not overly helpful!

The Countdown Begins

2007-06-04T09:55:00.000-07:00

One more week to go. We have been working to get the baby's room ready. Moving the extra furniture out and nagging Zach until he finally hung the wall hangings in Logan's room.
Cole was very helpful in moving the furniture out.

I went to the doctor this morning. Things are progressing well, although not as much as I had hoped. It looks like I will go back to the doctor next morning and we will schedule a time to be induced on either Tuesday or Wednesday.

It is all very exciting, and I am so blessed to have carried my baby this long and he is seemingly very healthy. I am a bit sad, however, because I want to start labor on my own--you know with the water breaking and stating "it's time" or with contractions. I didn't get to do this will Cole because of diabetes and this one will be induced for several reasons, one of which is my doctor is going to Guatamala on a mission trip the following week.

If you wouldn't mind, I would really appreciate it if you would pray for the arrival of a healthy baby and a safe delivery for this weekend. That way I could go into labor on my own and my doctor already told me that he is on call this weekend. In the end, I will be happy with whether God decides I have this baby by being induced or not, but I figure it wouldn't hurt to ask Him if we could have it sooner than later.

Cole and His Sleep Over

2007-05-31T07:12:00.000-07:00

Last night our cousin Maggie came through town on her way to Houston. We had a great time visiting and eating dessert, and I once again was assured that cooking with "light" products greatly affect the final outcome. For example, don't take the time to make homemade chocolate chip cookies with light butter. (Why do they even make light butter?) I got it on accident and thought it would be a good way to use it up. Not worth it!!! I like my cookies full of fat!

When we put Cole to bed, he had a little trouble going to sleep. He didn't want to go to sleep and miss out on being the center of attention. He did quiet down, however, and when I went to check on him before going to bed myself, I saw how he had comforted himself. He had gotten several toys to put in bed next to him. All of these toys were nicely put up before going to sleep. I guess he didn't want to be lonely in his bed.

Memorial Day

2007-05-28T10:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Day!!!
Today we went to a parade in our neighborhood. Here are some pictures of the grand event:

Here are Daddy and Cole posing for the camera.Here are Daddy's and Cole's versions of smiles when I told them to smile for the picture. (They both look like they are in pain...)
Cole sat on Daddy's shoulders for the parade. He was the most interested in the dogs, the train and the firetruck.
Here is our neighbor, Dot, doing an interview for the news (channel 33, the CW, at 9 for those of you in Dallas). Cole loves Dot because she always gives him cinnamon and sugar graham crackers when he sees her. If she comes out of here door, Cole will go running for her.
Here (for all my adoring fans, or at least for Kelly) is a picture of the family which showcases my very large belly. Cole, again, looks very happy that we are taking this picture.

We hope yall are having a great holiday weekend!

The Long Weekend

2007-05-26T18:07:00.000-07:00

Zach took Friday off (his first day off since the Christmas break). We have really enjoyed this weekend. Yesterday was our five year aniversary; we left Cole with friends and went to eat at Abuelo's. It was great (except for the heartburn that followed).

We are still doing yard work. A ton of yard work. I will post pictures to show our progress soon. Cole has had fun swinging and playing in the mud. We are waiting for the weather to cooperate so we can go to the splash park and public pools that are now open. On Wednesday, we tried one of the splash parks in Dallas. I forgot my camera, but luckily my friend Christy had hers so she took the picture for us. It was overcast when we first got there and with the wind Cole was not to keen on playing, but I am sure the weather will be warm enough that we can try again soon!

Nesting

2007-05-24T10:27:00.000-07:00

My nesting phase has definitely kicked in during this last bit of pregnancy. Whether a blessing, or a cruel trick of nature, unfortunately the male does not experience this need to get everything perfect before the baby arrives. It really puts a damper on the whole nesting thing since he is still thinking logically (No, Lauren, we can't redo the living room, Cole's room, finish the nursery, redo the landscaping and most of the guest bathroom before Logan gets here).

In a compromise, we decided to work a little on the front yard. You know, just the basics: raking out the flower beds, killing every thing except the hedges and one tree, planting a new tree, redo the metal lining, replace the bark, planting necessary flowers, sawing down and replacing the light fixture (see pictures)--you know, the real simple quick stuff. Unfortunately, everything takes a bit longer than you would think, and NOTHING is simple and quick when you are nine months pregnant. Bending down once is an accomplishment in and of itself (and I am not even talking about standing back up again!)--much less staying in that position to pull a million weeds and strawberries (WHO plants strawberries in their front flower beds?!)

So Zach is helping (or forcing) me to stay under control. I went to get my hair trimmed today (no split ends for those hospital pictures were I am swollen from IVs and pushing and have the lovely look of just giving birth I tell ya!). As I began talking to the stylist, I realized that I am quite a little (or large) ball of stress lately. (I wonder if stylists must go through a counseling course before they get their license?) I am trying to be a bit calmer and zen about things, but I think the hormones have me. Why fight the feeling? After all, I am getting an awful lot done. Yesterday I:

Finished organizing the nursery
Ironed and replaced the bedding on Cole's "big boy bed"
Did four loads of laundry (including washing everything that might possibly touch little Logan in Dreft)
Packed my suitcase for the hospital
Hauled out and gave away stuff we didn't want
Washed all of the toys for Logan
Organized and put away all of the hand-me-downs that will be too big for Logan for a while
Cleaned out drawers
Cleaned out my refridgerator

I might have kept going, but my back put a stop to all of it. Cole was very good while he was watching his crazy mom run around the house. He even brought his toys to the couch to play next to me when I got to the point that I was no longer able to move. No telling what I might get done if this last the rest of my pregnancy!

More Pictures

2007-05-21T14:12:00.000-07:00

We went to the doctor again (a common occurrence since I am going once a week) today. Everything looked and sounded great. The doctor told me that Logan got a 10 out of 10 on whatever they look at from the ultrasound last week, so that is great.

Here are some additional pictures of my current "only child" (that is soon to change!).

Here is Cole helping Daddy with his hat.
Daddy, Cole, Mason, Mark and Tanner's shoulder in the covered wagon.
Cole stirring the water with a stick (right after this he accidentally hit Tanner with the stick).
Tanner, Mason and Cole. I can't believe how old Cole looks!

Updates

2007-05-15T11:22:00.000-07:00

Don't you just hate it when people get behind on their blogs!!! Us loyal readers out their get all excited about the prospect of new pictures and cute anecdotes just to be let down. So to all my loyal readers, I apologize for not posting for a couple days!

Let's see. I need to bring you up to speed on the boys.

We have officially chosen a name for the soon-to-be-born one. His name is Logan Andrew. He will share my initials. I have posted a picture of him (above--see his cute little face), taken yesterday. Little Logan has been lazy lately, so we had to get an ultrasound to make sure he was okay. He was fine, just comfortable apparently. The ultrasound tech had to push on him with the little wand to make him move...then he would just settle back down and get all cozy again. He is doing great and the tech said he already has chubby little cheeks and hair.

His older brother finished his last day of Mother's Day Out today. So he is all mine for the summer...Well, all mine and Daddy's and everybody who is nice enough to come help when Logan makes his appearance.

We went to the Arboretum this weekend with our friends Mark and Patrice (from College Station) and their kids Tanner and Mason. Here are some pictures of the crew. When I looked at the pictures, I could not believe how old Cole looked!!! He is turning into one mighty cute little boy, if I do say so myself.

This is Patrice and me (getting rather large, we were worried you wouldn't be able to see much of the car once I stood in front of it...)

Tanner, Mason (his arm at least), and Cole playing in the fountain...

Cole being very sneaky...

We may not have to give him a bath tonight...

Are We Harvesting a Couch Potato?

2007-05-09T11:47:00.000-07:00

This is Cole's guilty pleasure. He gets to sit in Mommy's bed and watch Curious George while I take a shower and get ready in the morning. It is his favorite program, and I get the security of know I have 20-30 minutes that he probably won't climb on something and hurt himself.

My kid is allowed to watch T.V. Sometimes I need a moment and forbidden fruit being what it is, I am not opposed to television watching by toddlers (in moderation, of course). This is something I think about quite often and bring up as a discussion at dinner.

Cole has learned to turn the television on and then climb in the recliner or my bed. We are learning when we may or may not watch television at the moment. This morning Cole turned on the Today Show (he is not good at navigating the channels). Before I turned it off (I do not like that show on the account of their segments on the war and completely biased reporting), I saw they were going to do a segment on toddlers watching television, so I decided I wanted to see what they had to say, hoping they had good research to end my eternal interal struggle of such a medium. Here is a link for the segment: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18556971/. Lauch the video clip to the right of the page.

After watching it, I had some of my own thoughts. I am not normally an emailer to big companies like that, but I disagreed with several of their comments and the way it was presented.

So here is what I wrote back to them. It is lengthy, so feel free to skip or skim, but I thought I would add my two cents in the Great Television Debate.

Dear Today Show:

I am writing in response to your report on the amount of T.V. that toddlers watch. I appreciate the topic, as it is something that I am concerned about myself as a stay-at-home mother. It is nice to see your interest in bringing up well-educated, well-rounded children. However, there were many problems with what you reported. I know in you want to be successful in your efforts to bring effective and correct information to the public.

In your report, you presented several useful facts, such as the amount of television parents allowed their children under two to watch (90% of children allowed to watch an hour and a half a day). These facts, while interesting, were simply that: interesting facts. You provided no research as to what these programs were, if they were educational or somehow helpful to the children, or what the long term effects of these programs might be.

The overall tone of the report seemed to view television as a guilty pleasure parents (specifically mothers) allowed just to have a “babysitter,” while you offered no facts to determine if this was harmful to the children. Television has long been viewed as negative in our society, and you allowed that to speak for you instead of providing research, examples or any information that could truly be of value to us as parents raising the next generation.

One of the most problematic parts of the segment included the people that spoke about their child’s television viewing habits. You interviewed a few mothers and one father. The mothers all had their children with them and were apparently on an outing with their children, either a park or a zoo. They admitted to letting their children watch television so they could take a shower, make a phone call or even have a couple minutes to themselves. The one man you interviewed spoke from an office with no kids in tow. Although you later showed a clip of him playing with his children, from your report it seems that he probably leaves the house most of the day and might possibly get to take an uninterrupted shower or go to the bathroom whenever he would like to do so.

It seems that there is so much judging of parenting going on and this was another vessel in which to do it. Although we are a highly competitive society, as parents, we should not be competing, we should be helping. We should want every parent to be the best possible caregiver, instead of feeling good because we compare ourselves to other people that we feel are doing a poor job. For example, we feel better about ourselves because we don’t let our kids what T.V., or we are better parents because we stay home with our children and others take their kids to a day care.

The future of our children greatly depends on parenting, so instead of pointing out that some parents allow their children more television time with a mental slap on the wrist, increasing the guilt we naturally feel as parents, it would be more helpful for you to run stories on effective use of time with our children. What does research say we should do instead of watching T.V.? How can we support each other as parents to raise kids in the best way possible?

I do appreciate your interest in family life and our values. I look forward to hearing ways to raise our children to happy, productive and well adjusted adults.

Thank you,
Lauren

When the Lights Go Out in the City...

2007-05-03T08:49:00.000-07:00

Cole is doing so much better! He has no fever and his happy disposition is back (although his little fits are getting more intense--today he went nuts when I wouldn't let him play with the broom. I wish I felt that connection with cleaning!).

We had quite the night last night! Our weather was riddled with thunderstorms and an incredible amount of rain. Our power went out around 7:15pm. It finally turned on at around 4:00am this morning, but not before our little Cole got out of bed and made a run for his parents. Now, usually there is quite a bit of light in his room, even at night, since the lamp post in our front yard can double as a second sun. Last night, however, when Cole got up and went running, he did not have the aid of light filtering in through the window. That is why I heard a loud THUNK and then a cry piercing the night. He had run into his door in his hurry to get to us. By the time I got to his room, he was hiding in the corner still crying and rubbing his now sore head. (When he hits his head he doesn't want a kiss, he wants it rubbed really fast...)

The picture I posted is yet another time that Cole hit his precious little head. We went outside for one of the first snows. Cole was in his winter jacket, which greatly reduced the use of his hands. He started to tip forward and fell straight on his head. That is the spot of dirt on the white hat. Thank goodness kids are so hardy!!!

Say Cheese...

2007-05-01T18:43:00.000-07:00

Cole has always liked getting his picture taken. Somewhere around six months he would smile if you got the camera out. Here are a couple pictures of Cole hammin' it up. The first two are around 3-4 months and the third is Cole at around 10 months.

In Cole's vast experience with cameras, he also has had many, many X-rays. This comes from two hospital stays from intussusception, an emergency room visit and now a sickness that will not seem to stay away. Yesterday was his latest photo shoot of his insides. The results turned out fine, and he seems to be getting better, but it appears as though our little tike has allergies that lead to sinus infections.

Our sweet little man gets spoiled during these bouts of sickness. For example, he currently is getting to stay up way past his bedtime and is sitting on Daddy's lap watching the Maverick's game. I can hear a little sniffle every once in a while--to let us know he is sad and cannot possibly go to bed all alone in his current state. (We can't let him cry it out when he is sick.)

As for our littlest man, he is doing well. His constant movement causes contractions, so my abs and back are tired from having contractions all day long. I had a doctor's appointment today. He said everything sounded great. He could feel one of the contractions while I was there so he made sure I wasn't progressing, so at 33 weeks everything was fine, and no labor was starting. That is great! I want the baby to stay in and get ready until he is full term and healthy--then I will try to coax him out. I am not above bribing.

The Name Game

2007-04-29T19:24:00.000-07:00

We cannot come up with a name! Our soon-to-be-due little boy is currently simply known a "Brother". We would like your help!!!

If you suggest the name we use, we will send you a gift card (to Starbucks or Target or anywhere you would like). PLEASE help us (specifically me, Zach in threatening to name our son Willard)!

You can either post the name on the comments or send the suggestions to mommacolez@sbcglobal.net.

As for the picture, it was just so cute I had to post it--it doesn't really have anything to do with the blog:).

Six More Weeks! (Give or Take...)

2007-04-26T13:56:00.000-07:00

Only six more weeks until brother is full term!!! (I am going for the 38 weeks, then the sooner the better!)

I am making out a list of folks to email when the joyous day arrives. If you would like to be included please send me an email to mommacolez@sbcglobal.net. I will put you on the list to let you know and send pictures of the little prize fighter. Don't worry, I do not send spam and I will not sell you email to anybody. (Unless the price is right.) (Kidding, totally kidding.) (Sort of.)

On the Mend

2007-04-25T09:19:00.000-07:00

After over a week of fever, we finally got some antibiotics. They sure don't like to give medicine to kiddos, hoping their body will take care of the illness--and I really do appreciate that, I don't want to give my baby medicine that he doesn't need. But, after a while it is so nice to get medicine that will make him feel better.

Last night Cole looked like he had circles under his eyes (we figured it was because he was not getting enough sleep), but this morning they were nice and swollen. So back to the doctor we went. It seems like Cole may have allergies just like his daddy, and he may have a sinus infection after they have bothered him for so long.

I put up a picture, but it hard to see the bags under his eyes.

Sleepy...

2007-04-24T08:55:00.000-07:00

The weather is icky today--enough to make me sooo very tired...OR, it could be:

1) My toddler, who would rather sleep on the floor with a blanket and pillow than in his new bed.

2) My husband, who stands up out of bed while he is sleeping and talks about working in the attic since that is what he has done for the past three weekends and as many weeknights as I will let him.

3) My every growing belly with a baby, who is practicing his defense from a curious big brother and over-zealous coonhound. By the time he is here, he will have perfected that hitch kick and double jab needed to protect himself.

Cole is back at his Mother's Day Out since the outbreak. I have tried to get as much done as possible (including catching up on my blogging). It is nice to sit for a while and I am sure Cole is enjoying being back with his friends. He LOVES to play!

Tummy Troubles

2007-04-19T08:57:00.000-07:00

Well, we spent most of last night in the hospital. We thought Cole's tummy problem had come back. Happily, it did not, but it took about 6 hours and a painful test in the ER to ensure that it had not. It was really hard to let them run tests that we knew would hurt him--especially because by that point we were pretty sure he was fine.

He is doing better today, a little tired--but I think we all are since we didn't get home until around 11, and then I wanted to make sure and wash all the hospital germs off of us. He is not acting at all like yesterday (holding his tummy, lethargic, crying...) just a little clingy and sensitive.

As frustrating as it is to be in a hospital for 6 hours, it beats being there for the three days like we were each of the past two times and not knowing what might be wrong (like the first time). It also serves to remind me how wonderful Cole is and how blessed I am to get to stay home with him! Being a parent is hard!

31 Weeks and Counting...

2007-04-17T09:03:00.000-07:00

I went to the doctor today and found out that I have gained 6 pounds in the last 4 weeks! Yikes!!! In my defense, I have started swelling a little, so let's pretend that a lot of that is water weight. I am also slightly anemic (common during pregnancy), so of course I need to do a lot of resting. I should probably take a nap today, oh, and I guess a little iron.

I only have 7-9 weeks left! A little scary, but I am looking forward to meeting our little boy (who still has no name!).

In other news, Cole did not come down with Fifth Disease and we can now come out of seclusion!!!

I put a posted a picture of Cole and me (as requested by my mom) (again, yikes!!!) and of the three of us. This was Easter a week ago.

Clean Up

2007-04-16T17:21:00.000-07:00

Clean up, clean up

Everybody, Everywhere

Clean up, clean up

Everybody do your share

If you have a kid or you have taught younger kids, you have probably heard that song before (Thank you, Barney), and that is what Cole and I have been trying to do. We have joined a website, www.flylady.net. It is supposed to get up organized and help us keep our house cleaned a little at a time. We do okay now, but I am trying to look for a solution for when the new baby gets here. I will let you know if it works.

Cole is a big help. Whenever I get my broom out, he has a broom that he gets out. He cheats though. He always steal my dirt piles for his own dust pan. I do all the work and he gets all the glory :).

Cole also LOVES to put things in the trash: paper towels, his diaper (after that have been properly folded and the mess secured), mail, and unfortunately his toys when he is done playing with them for the moment. I try to look and rescue you them, but there are a couple things that have gone missing, and I have a sneaking suspicion they have found a new home via the trash can.

Big Boy Bed

2007-04-12T08:04:00.000-07:00

The official crib to toddler bed change has taken place. The crib is now safely hidden away in the new baby's room. I have to admit, there were a few tears. None on Cole's part; I just can't believe my little boy is getting so big!

The bedchange is going fine. Cole and I (mom) are both a little more tired. With his new found freedom, Cole likes to be up and at 'em at 5:40. And he wants Mommy to be up too! We tried to put a baby gate in his doorway and encouraged him to play when he got up early--but alas, he climbed over the baby gate too!

He was up about three times last night and had to be put back in bed. I think he fell out--but the distance to the ground is much closer than it used to be so all is well. I am sure he will get the hang of it soon!

Yard Work

2007-04-10T09:35:00.000-07:00

This cold weather in April is crazy!!!--Although the weather doesn't seem to be as cold to me as to others--my internal thermostat is pretty off.

In hope for warmer days, I decided to post pictures of Cole and Daddy doing some much needed yard work in March. This will be quite the project for years to come, but for now, we are just doing the minimum needed to look descent.

Easter and a Poem

2007-04-09T06:21:00.000-07:00

A poem for you...

(To the cadence of Humpty Dumpty)

Coley Woley slept on a bed;

He fell off and hit his sweet head.

On Saturday, we tried taking one side off of his crib (suggested possible by the crib manufacturer and a nurse that I had asked) since Cole has recently taken to climbing out of his crib. He went to sleep beautifully, but about two hours later he started to cry. He tends to sleep pretty well through the night, so this was a bit odd. We decided to check on him. Cole had fallen off the bed while he was asleep and somehow rolled underneath. We walked in to see the grumpiest little Cole emerging from the depths of the bed skirt. As soon as we knew he was fine, we could not stop laughing. (In fact, even now the vision of our grumpy little Grendel will send us into a laughing fit!)

My grandma wisely suggested putting pillows on the floor by the crib when I relayed the story to her. I don't know why we didn't think of that to begin with!

I put up a picture of Cole from yesterday, all adorned in his little Easter outfit. It was a cold Easter (it snowed a little on Saturday), but the afternoon warmed up enough for us to go outside for a little bit.

My Boys

2007-04-06T08:46:00.000-07:00

Okay, I admittedly wasn't that great at my last blog, so I am going to make a strong attempt at this one. After all, I have too wonderful sons (although we technically haven't seen one of them) to report about.

The eldest of the two has been working on his climbing skills and can now successfully climb out of his crib. The first morning he started crying at 5:30 and our attempts in letting him "cry it out" for a while ended with a creeking door and Cole running down the hall (trying to escape the grasp of the evil crib, no doubt). The second morning I thought I would just make it in there as soon as he started crying so he didn't crawl out and hurt himself. Instead, at 6:10 I hear the rattling of our door knob and jump up to open the door. Cole is there squealing with delight, happy that we could join him so early in the morning. We have changed his crib up a bit, which has served to confuse him enough that we have had a couple days where we didn't have to worry about him. After a visit to my sisters house, we are going to make the change to a toddler bed. I am a bit nervous about this.

As for Brother, he still has no name. Any suggestions would be great! We like strong, not common (but also not odd names). He has been kicking and jumping in my tummy and I think he will be strong like his brother.

In other news, Cole and I (mom) have both been exposed to Fifth Disease. We found out yesterday afternoon that one of the kids in Cole's Mother's Day Out class had it. We are praying that neither of us get it. It is apparently not good for pregnant mothers, as it can mean bad things for the baby. I immediately called the doctor and found out the range of affects it may have. It may be nothing or it may be really bad--so pray for us that we all remain healthy. Unfortunately, it also means Cole probably can't go back to MDO for a while (maybe at all) until the incubation period had passed and none of the other kids get it.

I posted a picture of Cole. He is awfully cute--but if you look above his left eye (your right), he has a knot. At music class, he and another little boy had a head-on collision...A typical day/injury for him.

As I said, I will try to do a bit better on this blog. Check it and leave me comments!