How to make your mama proud!

Atleast how Keaton does it anyways...

This mama is a huge football fan, particularly, college football. I am a die hard UVA & UNC fan, however, there are other teams that I really enjoy watching, one of those being Alabama. Yesterday, was an AMAZING game versus Auburn (where Auburn didn't score a single point...wonderfulness!!!) So, what would any mother teach her son? How to say "Roll Tide", of course! K doesn't have it down perfect, but there's a destinct "oll ide"to it! And if nothing else, if I say, "Roll Tide!" He throws his arms in the air and says, "YAY!" haha!!! (For my MTSU'rs, we're working on "Go Big Blue") ;-)

I made chili again today and the weather finally coorporated with me! It was so cold and rainy and yucky - perfect chili weather! Keaton made me proud once again, by saying "yummy yummy" after most bites. He impressed us with "Bean" and pointing to beans! And calling his spoon a speen - close enough (Roll tide!)

I have also, gasp!, decorated for Christmas!!! I even did this....before Thanksgiving Day! I guess to make up for the fact that we have done absolutely NO Christmas shopping! haha

I think that's the news from here...

Finally, some long awaited pictures :)

"Hello" from B! Check out the thighs! ;-)

My sweet Sweet Pea

Our "tree" (tee) with lights (liiiiiii) ;-)

The stocking were hung by the ...bookcase?

Zach joining in on the babywearing fun ;-)

Our little Santa!

Experimenting with the camera...you might get a cavity from how sweet this picture is!

haaha.....love it!

Please be patient as we experience technical difficulties...

Ahhh, I can breathe again! A very scary thing happened when I opened my laptop this morning...the "mouse" (touchpad) and keyboard were not responding!!! ACK! I get Zach's laptop and once we figured out what my login was, his laptop disconnects from the internet!!! And really, all I wanted to do was check my email to see if 1- a friend had her baby yet and 2- if I needed to make a wrap for a friend.

I've had a lot of issues with my laptop as of late, but I love her too much to send her away. However, tomorrow, she'll be taking a trip to the Geek Squad. Hopefully her stay will be short and she'll come back better than ever.

It all started with my E's and S's...sometimes the E doesn't show up...and sometimes I get double S's...usually when I'm typing the word "as" (eek!) ;)

Then, it started having problems booting up. I'd have to shut down, restart in safe mode, shut down and restart again as normal.

About 2 weeks ago, it stopped detecting my battery, so if it became disconnected, it would immediately shut down - and I'd usually have to restart in safe mode...etc...etc...

Then this morning...My mouse was going all wonky. It would avoid any thing I needed to click on - flying all over the screen. And then if I could get it to a place to type (say, my gmail login) I'd have to punch the letters/numbers as hard as I could 5 or 6 times before anything would show up. As soon as I'd hit enter, it'd do what I'd need it to do...until I wanted to click on an email or try to read something in Reader.

So that was today!

We celebrated Thanksgiving at IHOP last night since we weren't able to make it home. It was super yummy, however, Keaton decided to display his toddlerness and throw a couple of really good tantrums while we were there. No one seemed to mind, but I was rather embarrassed. He enjoyed his create-a-face pancake with bananas (nay-nays), strawberries (mmmm, haha!), yougurt and whipped cream. I had (I think it was called) Butterscotch Rocks pancakes - pancakes filled with butterscotch chips and granola, sprinkled with granola and drizzled with caramel syrup. And of course, a dollop of whipped cream on top! :) Zach claimed he was going to get belgum waffles...but settled for something gross looking (Though NOT a cheeseburger!) instead!

I also wanted to share what I've been putting off for awhile! About a month ago, I was accepted as the Stay At Home Mommy topic editor for {busy mommy} blog! I'm so excited about this! You should be able to go here and read the articles I've written so far. It's been fun coming up with ideas and taking off with them.

Well, the battery is running low on Zach's laptop! Pray I get mine fixed quickly!! :)

Welcome to the blogging world!

Cara, who provided the awesome giveaway for my 200th post, has now joined the blogging world!!! She started her blog today and you can find it here. To kick things off, she's having a giveaway!!! The winner gets to choose from a custom wipes case, a hair bow or AIO diaper!!! You get extra entries for blogging about it (or mentioning it on a social networking site) AND for mentioning that I sent you (so mention me!!!!!) :-D

Head on over, check out her shop, and enter her giveaway!!!

Update (#3) & THE tooth

I totally did update like I'd planned yesterday. It was a HUGE improvement (for B) since the weekend. He nursed great all day which was such a relief. And B showed improvements in the "diaper area" (ie: went to the bathroom A LOT!! YAY!!!)

K's tooth came in...#15, he's close to being even again - once we get the bottom, right "eye" tooth in...

And K has a new favorite saying (Ok, NO is still #1, haha!) "Choo choo" !!! The boy LOVES his trains! He'll push his wooden Melissa & Doug train around "Choo choo"ing the whole time! So precious!

I'm needed!

Update (#2)

Well, the rest of the day went great! He took bottles and even nursed for a long time this evening! I've never been so happy to see a baby eat!!!

He's a little fussy, but nothing that we can't handle.

He's starting to get "the spots" all over his feet and hands...which a friend informed me that it usually the sign of it making its way out of the system (did I get that right, Lindsay?? I was REALLY tired when we talked!) :)

I pray tonight goes as well as last night did, if not better (ie: Keaton sleeps past 6am!)

Update (#1), more teeth

I want to thank everyone for their prayers, advice/tips & encouragement!

Benjamin slept from about 9pm - 845am!!!!

Before that, he drank 6oz. at 3pm and 8oz before falling asleep last night (HUGE steps!!!)

He woke up, nursed for about 15 mins and then took a break and drank 6.5oz from a bottle!!!

I'm so thrilled!!!!

He is currently so tired, he can't keep his eyes open, but still fighting a nap...

I stayed home with the boys from church this morning. Zach has to play...but will hopefully be home soon because this mama needs a break!

Keaton has a tooth coming in (I think after this it's only 5 more to go!) and is fussy beyond belief and, of course, can't understand why Benjamin really needs mommy right now and I can't hold them both in my arms (I've tried...the only thing I haven't tried is K in the mei tei on my back and B in the wrap on my front! Much more screaming, and I may have to resort to that! ;-)

I'm hoping B will get a good nap in (K TOO!!!) I think that'll help him feel tons better! If I could just get him to understand that! :)

I'll try to update tonight on how the rest of the day goes... stay tuned ;-)

What could be next?

Ok, I confess. I'm at the end of my rope with illness in this house.

As I mentioned in my post yesterday, B got his PCvax yesterday morning. Around 1230pm, he started crying. Fussy day? Maybe? Reaction to the vaccine? Shoot, I cry when I get a shot and I know what's going on, I can be OK with a 3 month old being upset over it!

As the night wears on, B is showing no signs of being calmed. He wouldn't nurse, but he would take a bottle - so we did that as often as he'd let us.

Most of the night is a blur. But I know he got a bottle around 330am.

I tried to nurse him around 7. He wouldn't have it. Same thing at 8.

At 830, I finally called the pedis' urgent care number and left a message for a nurse.

At this point, I'm thinking ear infection since he wouldn't nurse.

The story that ensues after this, as Angela would say, "You can't make up this stuff..."
*Note: sarcasm & my thoughts will be italicized. :)

830am - I call and leave a msg. on the nurses' line (their msg. states they have 1 hour to call you back)

950am - I finally call back (they're only open until 1230pm, so I want to make sure if he needs to be seen, we can get him in) The receptionist informs me that my msg. was not received, she jots down my info and promises a nurse will return my call ASAP.

10am - A nurse calls back (one of our favorites from the office - she remembers me and treats me like a human, a concerned, sleep deprived mom - something I really needed) She asks me to bring him on in since he was running a low grade fever over night. She gives me (awful) directions and off we go (to who knows where!)

1040am - I arrive at the urgent care center and sign in. I sit down in a VERY, hot waiting room (I ran out the door so I just threw a sweatshirt on over my nursing tank...it's 29 degrees outside...I can't just whip off the sweatshirt ...ok I could have, but, I chose not to...)

...some time passes and I realize that people are coming in and being called back - no one has asked us for our information yet or anything...I finally go up and ask if they need my info. One receptionist who knows us from our office, looks at her "desk mate" and says, "SHE didn't get your info???" I smiled, said, "No..." She rolls her eyes and says she'll be with me in a minute...

By this point, B is screaming his head off, and there is a family speaking in Spanish about the "baby who wouldn't stop crying"...nice...I did take 5 years of Spanish...and do remember a bit....

a few minutes later, we're called back. Before leaving the waiting room, I noticed a thermostat - it says the room temperature was 81! 81 degrees!!!

We get in an exam room and I notice it's probably 20 degrees cooler, however, I still remove my sweatshirt. The nurse informs me "The Pedi" will be with me in just a few minutes. I'm glad there wasn't a clock on the wall...I'm sure 20 minutes passed...

"The Pedi" (N) walks in and looks at me (T) like I have 4 heads. I inform her how it was so hot out in the lobby, she smiles...I just know this is going to be a fun appointment...

N asks me what is going on. I explain the shot/our delayed schedule, the no sleep, the screaming, the non-eating...She stops me in mid sentence as if she wasn't listening and says, "Let me listen to his chest..." whatever...

N: "He sounds great!"
T: "Yeh, he isn't congest..."
N: cutting me off again, "Let's look at the ears..."
"Oh, Beautiful ears! Not infected!"
T: "Oh good! That was what I was wondering it was! I'm so glad. Do you think..."
N: cutting me off, again, "While he's on your lap facing me, let me look at his throat" (B is as irritated w/ "N" at this point as I am and is screaming bloody murder - she got a nice good look and exclaimed "He has Coxsackievirus!"
T: Ok....
N: "You probably know it as Hand Foot Mouth..." (she goes on to explain what I already know about HFM...it's awful, that's about it...)
T: "Oh great!"
N: "Yes!"

I swear, she genuinely sounded EXCITED that this is what it was.

T: "So how long..."
N: (do I need to say it...she cut me off again!) "...Does it last? Well that depends on the child, but you are probably looking at 5-7 days..."
Why ME?!
T: "Ok, so what can I do?"
N: (She for real rolled her eyes at me) "There isn't a "cure" for it...I can't give him medicine..."
T: "OK...so what can I DO?"
N: (deep sigh) "Well, keep him comfy..."
T: (deep breath...) "OK...my child has not eaten since 3am...WHAT can I do to get him to eat?"
N: "Keep him hydrated..."
T: "And how should I do that if he will NOT nurse??"
N: (another deep sigh) "Well... the best thing to do would be to mix 1/2tsp of Children's benedryl and 1/2tsp. of Maalox and squirt it on the back of his throat...The Maalox will coat his throat and help him swallow...The Benedryl will act as an ((insert big medical word I don't know)) and basically dull the pain..."
T: "Ok, Benedryl and Maalox. Interesting. Do you have a pen so I can jot that down?"
N: "You don't need to write it down. It's easy to remember...1/2 tsp. of each...You should also get some Pedialyte and pretty much sit on the couch and give him dropperfuls..."
T: "OK, so Benedryl & Maalox and Pedialyte..."
N: "NO, you don't mix all three.... Just the Maalox and Benedryl.."

Seriously. If you cut me off one more time, lady...

T: "Oh, one other thing..."
N: (she had her hand on the door and didn't remove it until she actually left the room at the end of this next section...) (deep sigh) "...Yes..."
T: "He gets really fussy when we lay him down flat. That's not characteristic of him...Would it be helpful to lay him on an incline..."
N: "You don't have to do that. He's just wanting you and comfort..." (she opens the door to leave)
T: "No, I really don't think that's what it is...could it possibly be hurting him...."
N: (once AGAIN) "Of course it's hurting him...it's burning when he tries to swallow..."
T: "OK...so there is not a thing I can do?"
N: (as she opens the door and walks out...) "Just TLC, have a good day..."

wow...

For starters. I'm sorry that you have to work on a Saturday, and probably a Sunday too. But you know what. You knew that when you made the choice to become a "Health Care Provider." I'm sorry you got the shaft and you have to work this weekend, Hey, at least you get to be on the cool side of the building! Maybe you wanted to be at the Christmas parade with your kids...guess what, I wanted to sleep last night and I bet my husband did too! Such is life...

I'd also like to add that (in case any medical professionals read this) when patients (especially tired moms!) come in for answers, don't treat them like they should have read your medical text books before coming in...please don't act like I'm wasting your time...and hear me out with all my questions...

And "N" if by some RANDOM chance you read this, I still had a handful of questions that I needed to ask you. If you would have allowed me 30 seconds to allow the fact that my child had HFM to set in, I could have thought of them...now I'm stuck with a handful of questions and left to Google them (B/c I'm SURELY not calling to speak with you tomorrow!)

(For those reading and think this sounds harsh, yes, it may be, but I'm exhausted and worried for my baby....oh, and this is NOT sarcasm!)

"Oo-OO"

says the monkey. And in our case, our little Monkey :) Keaton has started making a monkey noise whenever we see a monkey (note: Monkey's are not often seen in this part of NC, merely in books and on toys) :)

He's expanding his vocab everyday. I'm simply amazed at what all he can "say" (I have to translate most of his words...but the fact that he's associating the same sound, usually the correct sounds, with an object or idea, is awesome). His favorite word is still "No" :) His newest is "Bah" for bath.

He has started signing milk (one that I never showed him, except in his sign language book!) in addition to more, eat, done/finished, light (sometimes), drink (sometimes), hi/bye (haha), and it seemed like there was another one, but I can't remember right now.

Benjamin had his vaccination visit today (we're spreading out his shots so he doesn't get a ton in one visit. It means more trips in, but, I feel better about it this way - I'll write more on this later) He just got one and took it like a champion :)

I was also curious as to his weight because he is wearing 6-9 month clothing (Not entirely, but some things, depending on the fit)... My little chunk at 3 months and 6 days weighs in at.......

16lbs. 1oz.!!! This is "nearly off the charts" (97%) for his age. (K weighed 16lbs. at 4 months) Unbelievable!

I want to apologize for not posting a lot of pictures recently. I've been taking them, but when ever I upload them to Blogger, they post all weird and if I try to caption them, they go out of order...I'm not stupid but I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong!! It's RATHER frustrating and I keep meaning to shoot someone an email at Blogger, but...I keep putting it on the back burner...along with calling PlaytexBaby about sending me a new pump since mine died :( going to our old apartment and visiting the Hahns and Macks!!!!...and about 18 other things!!

The Joy :)

I can't stop laughing!

Help Us Win a Wii!!!!!

I did post this on my sidebar....but we need all the votes we can get!!!! The person in first place has over 430 votes!!!!

Please go HERE and click ‘vote’ to help us win a Wii! Zach and I have been wanting one for a long time, but it’s definitely NOT in the budget. This would be a great gift for ourselves for Christmas (and my birthday!!)

Thank you, thank you thank you!!

ALSO - PLEASE pass this "memo" on to your friends and family!!! :)

And, if you vote and we win it - you can come play it! ;-)

What Should I Call This?

Let's see...where to begin!

Benjamin turned 3 months Saturday! 3 MONTHS!! It is just flying by! He's awesome :) He sleeps great - better than Keaton does now! He loves being in the sling and wrap - always falling asleep in the wrap and yesterday at Target, he fell asleep in the sling!!! I was thrilled! He smiles at me all day long, he's starting to think Keaton is something pretty entertaining and always has "stories" to tell :) He's *usually* asleep by 9pm (the past two nights we've had some going to bed problems) and will usually sleep until 730, if not later!

BeBe just left. She got in Sunday at lunch time for a quick trip. I must say, Benjamin loves his BeBe!!! He just smiled and cooed at her the whole time! :) And of course, Keaton loves her too :)

We all got adjusted yesterday and it felt wonderful!!!

We went to the Mill Outlet Village (a fabric store here). It was a place I've wanted to go to since moving here, but this was the first trip...I LOVED it!!! The people were so nice and so helpful! I got all my materials to make a "mod mommy nursing cover" :) I'm hoping it'll happen successfully and I can add that to the list of items I want to include in my store :)

I also got some unpacking done! HAHA! Yes - we moved in about 5 months ago, but that's ok! I got my spice rack hung and all my spices up (I can't stop smiling when I see it hanging!) and I got an "over the door" shoe back on the back of the laundry room door for a lot of my "little" pantry items that would get lost in the pantry.

We had snow flurries today! They lasted about 3 minutes :)

As far as pictures, I will upload some later, blogger has been having issues when I try it lately and I just don't have the patience for it!

We have a playdate tomorrow and Friday, we got for Benjamin's vaccination appointment. I'm hoping to get him "officially" weighed. (we did it on our scale the other night, which I think is more accurate now that he's over 10lbs or so)...but it said 15.5lbs (wouldn't surprise me....he's a chunky monkey) :) Check back for pictures :)

I think Keaton is Psychic...

Seriously.

Everyday, Benjamin falls asleep...

THE SECOND his eyes close, Keaton wakes up screaming...

It's been a long week with bad napping...

I have this horrid thought that I wake up and tomorrow is only Wednesday (or, even worse, MONDAY)...It is Friday, right???

This weekend should be wonderful! My friend Whitney will be in town for her baby shower!!! She used to live here, then moved far far far away (Ok, not THAT far! But when her apt was less than a 30 second walk away...Charlotte is VERY far away!) I haven't seen her...since...??? Too long ago! :) Unfortunately, she's only in town for a day and we can't have one of our fabulous 4 hour conversations - we'll save that for another day!

My mom is coming! Yay!!!

And...yes, that's about it for now! Sleep is quickly calling! :)

An overdue update

We went to the pedi yesterday (Monday) afternoon to recheck K's ears (as well as make sure that they were indeed both healthy...)

I was so worried about his ear infectionS. BUT! I'm thrilled to say, Dr. Rule said, "You would never know he had an infection...in either ear!!!!"

Both the boys' chests sounded "perfect" (B was a bit "gargly" but he had just eaten) :)

I'm worried what tomorrow brings. When K comes down with something, it starts first thing Wednesday mornings (apparently that's the "incubation" time for Sunday school germs!)

We shall see!

Just wanted to update! Off to bed!

Meal Plan Monday

Monday - Ravioli Lasagna
Tuesday - Grilled Cheese
Wednesday - Cheesy Chicken & Rice Casserole
Thursday - Tacos
Friday - Carrie’s Chicken
Saturday Lunch - Sandwiches
Saturday Dinner - Chicken Cordon Bleu Sandwiches
Sunday Lunch - Leftovers
Sunday Dinner - Chili w/ Cornbread

Siriusly

Yes - Sirius. My new love! We had to get some body work done on the van thanks to some darling children vandalizing vehicles here at our apartment complex. Our insurance company was kind enough to provide a rental car for us. The car provided - a silver, PT Cruiser. I hate it. It's so cramped. I feel like I'm in a clown car. I do enjoy the smoothness of the ride (I miss that since leaving my Saturn behind in the Kia lot...) But it has Sirius satellite radio. It's awesome! My favorite channel is 8 - Big 80's. I didn't realize how many songs I knew! I've been looking for excuses to drive around this week just so I can listen! haha!

In light of Sirius radio, I thought I'd share my favorite "Seriously?!?" moment from the week.

A [paraphrased] quote from The Early Show on CBS - "She {Michelle Obama} is just a normal stay-at-home-mom who shops at JCrew and White House, Black Market." Seriously? Maybe it's because we're po' folk in Seminary, but I don't know a single SAHM who shops there!

I do get to listen to it again today as we need to go back to the chiro. Keaton has been pulling on his ears. We need this ear infection gone by Monday! Benjamin is super congested still.

Still sick...

Keaton is doing much better. He only needed his breathing treatment 3 times today (first thing this morning, afternoon and bedtime - It's "normally" been about 4 times a day) He absolutely HATES when I do it, but will just sit there for Zach...oh well.

Benjamin is still congested. He wakes up OK, but by the end of the day is pretty cloggy. (Yes, cloggy)

We saw our chiro again today and for the first time, Benjamin was all aligned and everything!!! His jaw, his neck, his back and hips!!! yay!!!

As today dragged on, my throat became more and more scratchy. Ugh...Hopefully it'll pass quickly!

Thankfully, Zach is managing to avoid it all! I hope that continues!

November is Cloth Diaper Month!

One of my favorite blogs to read is a review blog by Andrea, called Mamma In Flip Flops2. She's doing "many" reviews & giveaways this month!!! I'm so excited to see what she has in store!!!

#15 & Oatmeal Cookies

To start, yes, Keaton's 15th tooth is making it's arrival! He's on his way to being even on the bottom front!

Keaton and I made cookies this afternoon.

He loves to "help" in the kitchen. Unfortunately, I couldn't get many pictures of him helping because flour would have ended up all over the floor....

We used the Quaker Oats Famous Oatmeal Cookie recipe.

First we gathered all the ingredients.

Keaton added a couple of ingredients...

After we mixed everything together, we put spoonfuls on cookie sheets & then put them in the oven!

We let them cool & then enjoyed!!!

They are so yummy!!!

Just another manic Monday...I wish it was Sunday, cause that's my Funday!

Weekend recap:

Keaton had breathing treatments throughout the weekend, it stopped his wheezing, but he is still super congested.

Benjamin continued to become more and more congested as the weekend wore on.

Time change:

I think K fell forward and not back ;-) He slept later than he normally would!

Monday:

We started our day at our chiro's office. She adjusted both boys to get things draining (lovely thought, huh?!!) :) Poor B couldn't even nurse this morning (couldn't breathe out of his nose). They were both seeming better after the adjustments, especially B. We got home and he nursed like it had been ages since he ate (for those wondering - I did NOT leave him starving this morning when he couldn't nurse! I gave him a bottle of pumped milk - he ate JUST fine...lil piggy!)*

We had a follow-up visit at the pedi's office for K. She said his chest sounded great, but his ear infection has now traveled to the other ear. So, we're going to give the medication a week to "do its thing" - we go back next Monday to re-check the infection. If it's still there, we'll discuss "other options" :(

She (Dr. Rule) commented on B's congestion and oh-so-kindly offered to check him out too. Good news - his ears are clear! (my biggest concern...until...) She suggested they run an RSV test...(my thought jumps to all the kids I know from church who've had it/been hospitalized with it...and I'm picturing my sweet, sweet boy in the hospital...) thankfully, it came back negative. She said it was "a great thing" that we now owned the nebulizer, because we'll most likely need it for B as well. We got the go ahead to use it with him as needed (as well as the signs to look out for - for both - when to do at home treatments, when to bring them in the office ASAP and when to go to the ER...ugh)

So between dr's. appts and naps, it was a full, busy (long) day.

* I'd like to add that we call B a lil piggy in jest. Our 2.5 month old is wearing some 6month clothes...he is a chunk :) He has thigh rolls and I love it :)

Menu Plan Monday

I'm participating through I'm an Organizing Junkie for a chance to win an AWESOME giveaway!

Monday - Chicken Divan
Tuesday - Hot Dogs
Wednesday - Hamburger Helper
Thursday - Leftovers (Tacos, chicken divan, etc...)
Friday - Sun. Lunch - Family in town
Sun. Dinner - Zach's pizza

Not a healthy week at all - but an easy week since I have a feeling we'll be battling illness all week! Head over & check out other meal plans!!!!

Another Winner!!

The winner of the embellished onesie is:

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

2 

Timestamp: 2008-11-02 21:18:03 UTC

#2 is - Marissa!

Marissa said... I would give this to my sister who is having her second baby in December! She would LOVE it!

I will email her and if I don't hear within 48 hours, another winner will be drawn. Thanks to all who entered!

Seriously?

Need a laugh?

*thank you http://girltalk.blogs.com/girltalk/