Sunday, November 29, 2009

home sweet home

sorry for the hiatus y'all! hope you had a great thanksgiving! we've been out of town visiting my family in maryland and i didn't want to announce to the whole world that we would be gone! we've had a VERY long day and i've got a VERY busy week, but stay tuned for catch up posts from our trip and our thanksgiving!

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Monday, November 23, 2009

thankful for.....spit up!

bless my little connor's heart. he's a spitter. and when i say spitter, i mean he and i are both constantly wet. today we had 5 outfit changes......BEFORE 11am!!!!! a typical day consists of 4-5 outfits, 6 burp cloths, and a load of laundry, just for my little sweetness.

but you know what, he's a happy spitter. in fact, laughing acutally causes him to spit up large amounts HA! and as long as he is happy and healthy, i cannot complain. i'm just thankful i have a baby with a reflux problem as i know there are many people out there who just wish they had a baby period and don't. so all in all, i'm thankful to be wearing "eau de spitup" all day long!

are you all ready for some yummy thanksgiving day treats??? i can't wait for the big day!


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Thursday, November 19, 2009

love you...bye

so tonight was one of those nights where my heart totally melted onto the floor.....

like every other two year old (at least i think) bedtime is a challenging time. ever since we've moved parker to a big boy bed, we have good nights and we have had bad nights. lately we've had more "bad" nights so to say.

for some reason now parker insists on having the light on in his room. the normal routine is bath time, read books, pray and then parker is allowed to read a while in his room before it's lights out. we've found he does better having A LOT of down time in his room before going to bed. so around 8:15ish either b or i (usually b!) goes up and tucks him in bed for good and turns out the light and turns on the fan. well lately, he's been getting out of bed after lights out.....

tonight i happened to be upstairs when this happened, so i went back in and tucked him back in bed as i informed him that if he got out of bed again i would take away his latest love, thomas the train. 2 seconds later i found myself wishing i hadn't made that promise as he got back out of bed. as hard as it was and as cute as he is, i had to stick to my word. so out of the room goes thomas.....

complete meltdown....

multiple times more of getting out of bed and supernanny technique in full effect--no talking. no eye contact. no nothing. just putting him back in bed...

then the sweetest little voice comes out the door and down the hall "pabi", the beloved paci he hasn't had in MONTHS. total regression moment. my heart is breaking, "pabi" was like a best friend to him.

in i go, holding back tears, not saying a word and without parker saying a word, up into the air goes his little arms wanting me to pick him up and hold him....

i cave. of course. CAN YOU BLAME ME????

BUT I DIDN'T SAY ANYTHING (supernanny would be proud!)....

UNTIL he takes both of his little hands, grabs my face, STARES directly into my eyes and says "love you, bye" (this is what we say every night as we leave his room::it's our tradition). sorry supernanny, NO WAY i cannot respond to this incredibly sweet little boy wanting the security of his mommy. i held onto that sweet little boy like i never have before and my heart melted.....




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Tuesday, November 17, 2009

parker's 2 and a half!

dear parker,

today you are two and a half and FULL of life! oh how you make me laugh and melt my heart these days! you are one energetic little boy who has to explore everything, but you will also sit quietly and read books and watch Curious George or Sesame Street.

some of my favorite moments lateley have been......

butterfly kisses--i taught you how to do these and you love to grab my face and daddy's face each night before bed and give us butterfly and bunny kisses. each time you say "it tic-kles!" in the CUTEST little voice EVER!!!

dancing--you LOVE LOVE LOVE to dance. your alarm clock is set to radio and the other morning daddy went in to get you and you were dancing on your bed. you gave daddy "the hand" and wanted him to leave so you could keep on grooving :-) HILARIOUS!!! you are dancing all the time and you've got quite a few good moves that i have no idea who taught you them.

singing--you don't quite "sing" yet, but you start to say words to "old macdonald" when it plays on your keyboard....i'll hear you say "cow" "pig" and then go "e-i-e-i-o". it's really funny.

paparazi--you like to take pictures now and you say "smile" and "cheese!"

connor--you love to make connor smile and go with me upstairs to get him from his nap. you talk in this sweet little quiet voice when we go intohis room during nap time.

fun words--not sure if i mentioned this before, but you call screwdrivers, "screwboppers" and you refer to batteries as "bi-do-ins" (aka vitamins).

parker we love you SO MUCH and enjoy being with you each day!!!

love,
mommy

my sweet little boy!



love that smile....melts my heart daily!!!


you've regressed a little bit at times :-) but that's ok, because you will always be my baby boy!


you got this thomas set one day for going #2 in the potty!



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connor's 4 month stats

here are connor's stats from his 4 month well-check appointment this morning:

13 pounds 13 ounces (25-50%)
26 1/4 inches long 95%!!!!!

he's going to be a tall skinny one!

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Monday, November 16, 2009

grrrrrrrr

ok so my website is not uploading pics since my files are too large and i had to wait on hold with the support line for photoshop elements for FOREVER today and by the time i got through to someone the kiddos woke up from naps which means i could barely have a conversation with someone i could barely understand therefore i still cannot get my website functional PERIOD. could i write a longer sentence???

nonetheless, here's what came about in santa's workshop last night:

the new and improved tutus--extra fluff and LOTS OF TULLE! i'm working on lining up some models as they will be WAY cuter on little munchkins :-)










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Sunday, November 15, 2009

design central

so i've been crazy busy lately working on designs for the upcoming christmas bazar! here are just a few with LOTS more to come! AND i've been working on my website so hopefully have that up and running soon too!

twirl pants:



panther's tutu:



snuggles:




zebra luvy:


burp cloth set:


another luvy:


boys snuggle--fabric is REALLY cute with frogs!


burp cloth set:s





set with applique:





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chicken hodge podge

do you ever just throw a bunch of yummy ingredients together and call it dinner? well that's EXACTLY what i did tonight. no recipe, no planning, no nothing! i just took chicken, pasta noodles, mushrooms, frozen peas, onions, garlic, shredded cheese and a can of cream of chicken soup, mixed it together and put it in the oven and called it "chicken hodge podge" aka dinner :-) not too shabby i might add. i should have taken a picture but hubby was STARVED and before i knew it he had dug in!

do any of you do this? what do you cook when you haven't planned a meal for the night?


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Saturday, November 14, 2009

becoming a blogger

i have to admit i was a little hesitant when a friend of mine suggested i start blogging. i mean, seriously, do i really have the time for something else??? but i figured if anything i could update at least once a month and the out of town family and friends could see pictures of the boys and what we've been up to and i'd have a nice little scrapbook keepsake.

it's been just over a year since i officially became a "blogger" and now i am so thankful that i'm doing it! it is a wonderful way to document life and it's SO FUN to look back and see what we were doing a year ago. i can't wait until i have 5, 10, maybe 20 years to look back on! i've never been one to keep a journal, mostly because i usually find that my pen won't write fast enough to keep up with my thoughts and then i just get too overwhelmed so i don't even start! BUT i'm a pretty fast typer so blogging solves that problem for me :-)

i totally encourage you to start blogging, even if it's just once a month to document milestones or a vacation you went on--you only need a few sentences or a few pictures with captions. you will be SO THANKFUL to have this to look back and reflect on. so why wait any longer and start blogging! let me know when you start and i'll add you to my list!

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Friday, November 13, 2009

30 days of thanks

ok, so i'm a little late in getting started BUT better late than never!



check out HERE for details! you can also leave your "thanks and giving" as a comment on my blog each day!

TODAY i'm thankful for all of my friends, both old friends and new friends!


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friends

so last night i got to meet up with a group of girlfriends from my old bible study! i have known these girls since i first moved to charlotte 4 and a half years ago and we quickly became close friends. we used to meet regularly to do a bible study, fellowship and just "do life" together. these girls have been with me through some of the most difficult times of my life and have shared in so many joys and sorrows with me. we have laughed together and we have cried together. we have agreed and disagreed. we have ate together and exercised together (more eating though!). we have gone through infertility and we have witnessed miracle births and adoptions. we've been through illness and celebrated health. we have "waited" together. we have chartered the unknown together. but most importantly, we have grown in our relationship with God together.

over the past 6 months, life has seemed to take us in different directions making it quite a challenge to regularly meet each week, but by the grace of God when i emailed everyone last week about getting together, 8 out of 10 of us made it out last night! we had a great time catching up at one of our regular spots, the cheesecake factory ::




melanie, laura, allie, jennifer, maria, dawn, jeanette, tracy and renae...i am SO THANKFUL to have each one of you as a lifelong friend that i know i can turn to during the good times and the bad. love you all!!!

being a mom can be lonely. just because you have your kids to keep you company all day long, doesn't mean you don't have times of loneliness or long for an adult conversation. it is hard being a mom or maybe you want to be a mom so badly and aren't right now.....life is hard to go through alone and i encourage you to get plugged into a small group at a local church or join a MOPS group (mothers of preschoolers). trust me, you will be welcomed and you will most likely find some new close friends! if you want more information on how to get involved with a small group or on MOPS, feel free to contact me!


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Wednesday, November 11, 2009

celebrating 4 months with sweet baby connor!



dear connor,

i feel so incredibly lucky to have such a sweet and healthy baby! you are getting more and more interactive each day and i love it! we have your 4 month appointment next week, so i'll get your stats up then, but here's what you've been up to lately:

~you talk and giggle all the time. i love to listen to you make yourself laugh! i think the sweet little noises you make are the cutest!

~you have this new fascination with my mouth and constantly want to put your fingers in it!

~you like to be held in a football hold which is daddy's favorite!

~everything seems to make you laugh and smile!

~you've rolled over a few times from your back to belly but mommy has put a stop to that by holding you instead of giving you floor time :-) i'm not ready for you to "grow up" yet, but i believe it is inevitable so i envision more rolls to come in this coming month.

~you've started rubbing your eyes when you get tired, so not only do you still cry and/or fuss when you are tired, you now take that little hand of yours and rub your eyes--so cute!

~we tried out the baby einstein bouncer again last night and this time you didn't fall forward and hit your head :-) you loved it as you discovered that if you hit a key on the keyboard, music will play! it was neat to watch because after you got it the first time and then the second time was a success too, you kept doing it over and over!



~you're still a great sleeper at night and you always want to go to be around 6pm but i try and keep you up to 6:45 just because i'm afraid you'll get up before 6 in the morning (you usually sleep until 6:45-7:00 these days). i love how you wake up in the morning and entertain yourself for 20-30 minutes before i come and get you. such a sweet sound to wake up to!

~as for daytime naps, bless your heart...in the mornings we are always on the go with preschool, MOPS, target, errands or our new mommy and me group so you basically sleep on the go in little cat naps. the afternoons i try to get you to sleep for a good 2 hours, but lately it's not happening. maybe you are teething? i hope not!!!




 you and parker still LOVE each other!










thank you connor for filling our days with joy!

love,
mommy



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Tuesday, November 10, 2009

who are you?

i neglected to mention this in my last post....

so i want to know who you are that's reading my blog! as you can see i've added two new counters to my blog to track the number of hits. the real time one is obviously WAY off and i've got no clue where it's coming up with those numbers, but the other counter is showing about 10 hits/day, of course about 2 of those are me, but i'm THRILLED to know that people read my blog regularly. so do me a favor and leave me a comment and become a "follower" when you have a chance! it's ok if you're a blog stalker, i'm one too, see my post from a few weeks ago :-)


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busy busy busy!


so i have a love/hate relationship with being busy. i love to be around people and out doing things, but i also like being a homebody. the thought of putting hte kids to bed, getting in my jammies and turning on the DVR with hubby ALWAYS sounds like a good night to me BUT i do like having close friends to catch up with too. especially now that i have two kids, i find it harder and harder to motivate myself to go out in the evenings which is why i am SO excited about two new groups that i've joined. my "mommy and me" group meets thursday mornings which is perfect since i usually have the most energy first thing and my new meetup group has stuff planned ALL THE TIME, literally. i got to meet some of these fine ladies the other night for a MNI (mom's night in). everyone was so nice and so welcoming, so i'm really looking forward to bunco night in a few weeks!




all that being said, we've been BUSY! last week i had something every single morning and my mother in law came to stay with us for the weekend.

parker got to make shortbread cookies with grandmama---they were SO GOOD:




MOPS this week was AWESOME. we watched a video on "mom anger" by julie barnhill and she is beyond hilarious! it was nice to learn that every mom has had one of those "moments" where we are less than thrilled with our children's behavior and more importantly our reaction to it. julie gave some great tips on how to handle our emotions when faced in those "moments".

and this little girl shrunk down in size with her new hair cut!





and i forgot to mention that brandon came home with a HUGE GINORMOUS bag of wings friday night with plans to invite people over sunday for the game:








too bad the panthers lost :-(
i've also been CRAZY busy sewing inventory for the upcoming christmas bazar at parker's school. they tell me i've got an entire table i need to fill up. i will probably only be able to use about half of it, but hey you've got to start somewhere right? i think i'm most excited because it's given me great motivation to try out some new designs and projects. i just love great fabric and cute designs and i totally overwhelm myself with all the ideas i have running through my head!

ps: could this blog post be any more all over the place?!?! guess that's what happens when you don't blog for a few days and you've got a lot to catch up on.

happy monday!




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Thursday, November 5, 2009

mommy and me

today i took the boys to a "mommy and me" bible study. this was the orientation meeting and i'm really excited about the group. we had 6 moms come and they all were in the same life stage as me. i've been wanting to find a bible study closer to home for a while now and this one is perfect! everyone lives close by and one of the girls lives in my neighborhood! i'm looking forward to making new friends, growing in my relationship with christ and just doing "life" together.

i'm also excited today becuase i hit up hobby lobby and got some supplies to make christmas gifts this year. there are SUPER cute, but you'll have to wait for pics until we get closer to christmas--don't want to ruin the surprise!





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Wednesday, November 4, 2009

special moments


these past few days i've had some great "special moments" with the boys where my heart just melted to the floor....you know, those times you just hope and pray you remember every single detail and feeling forever and ever and ever....

today is a very special day...one year ago i found out i was pregnant with connor. after a year long fertility journey and a miscarriage, i was overjoyed to find out i was pregnant again! i was starting to lose hope that i would be able to have another child, and then losing a child at 5 weeks was beyond devastating. but God had good plans for me! thank you Lord for blessing me with another sweet little boy. my cup runeth over!



how SWEET is this face????


i've had such a fun time with connor this week. he's growing up and i love/hate it all at once. yesterday he rolled over onto his belly and today he did it again. in a few days, he'll be doing it all the time i am sure. i've also enjoyed "talking" to connor lately. he's so cute as he gets really serious and tries so hard to shape his mouth and coordinate the sound coming out all at once. i love how babies "talk"! the noises they make are so sweet. i've also accidentally taught him to do this:



yep. i tried to see if he would copy me ONE TIME when i stuck my tongue out and now he does it ALL THE TIME when i get close to his face and talk to him. too funny! i love these special few minutes i get to spend with him every day. i want to tuck them away in a safe place and never forget them!

and tonight, b and i had a blast with parker at bedtime. seriously, i don't think he could get ANY cuter. i recently taught parker how to give "butterfly" kisses and i gave him one tonight and he absolutely loved it! he kept wanting more and it's so cute how he says "butterfly" and "it tickles". parker has SUCH a kind heart and he is really going to make his wife happy one day. i just pray he stays this way. i asked him tonight if he would always let me hug him, give him butterfly kisses and love on him like this and he said "yep" (his new favorite response). i just cherish these moments with him because i know one day they will be gone.




seriously, i am so beyond blessed to have these sweet boys in my life!


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