Preston had his 1st taste of cereal on Wednesday. I know he isn't quite 4 months old, but this boy wants to eat all the time. He has been sleeping through the night for at least a month now, then he started waking up to eat at 1:00 am and 4:00 am last week. I think he hit a growth spurt, and I figure starting cereal a week early won't hurt. He did really well. He even opened his mouth when he saw the spoon coming at him. Maddie wanted a turn to feed him, too.

Yummm!!

More, please!!

Big kiss from Maddie

1st Reese's Cup

Most of you know that I have life threatening food allergies. From my own research, I have learned that my kids each have a 30% chance of getting these. I can't tell you how much I have prayed over my children for their protection from this burden. I remember going to weddings when I was small and ending up in the ER barely breathing because they served nuts at the reception. All I had to do was breathe them, and my throat would start swelling. My sweet family does not get to enjoy pecan pie during the Holidays. In Kindergarden, I had to sit in the hallway as my class enjoyed the Christmas party because someone's mom forgot about me and sent brownies with nuts. I don't tell you this for sympathy. haha I am just sharing my fears for my sweet babies. When I was pregnant with Maddie, Marty and I went to Peurto Rico. I had a massage, and the girl did not read the labels on her lotion even though I asked her to. She used 3 products with almond oil and I spent the rest of the trip in bed covered in hives. I ate at a local restaurant (pregnant with Preston this time), and they served me a dish with walnuts and assured me it didn't have nuts. Off to the ER again. Two weeks ago, my pediatrician talked to me about checking Maddie for peanut allergies. You can imagine my hesitation. I told him I planned on waiting until she was at least 4. (Did you know that Planter's Nuts recommends waiting until kids are 6 before they try any nuts?) Anyway, the doctor talked me into bringing Maddie in yesterday to feed her a peanut butter sandwich. You may wonder why I wouldn't just do it at home. If Maddie had a reaction, we might not make it to the hospital in time. So...we did it in a controlled environment with Epi nearby. I had the biggest knot in my stomach all day. I called my mom for reassurance (twice), and so...Maddie had her 1st PB sandwich. And a Reese's cup. Then we waited. The doctor, his nurse, and I stared at her for 30 minutes. She was happy to entertain with all eyes on her. Thankfully she did not have a reaction, but most kids don't the first time they are introduced to nuts. We have to go back in two weeks, and repeat. In a few months, Marty will take her to test for tree nut allergies and possibly shellfish. I will be asking for lots of prayers during this time. In a few years we will do it all again with Preston. I'll let you know how it goes!!

1st Day of School

Today was a big day. Maddie went back to preschool full time in the 2 year old class, and my big boy went for the first time. Marty took them this morning...he told the teacher all of Preston's likes and dislikes. I couldn't go. I would have never been able to leave. Preston gave me a big smile on the way out the door as if telling me he would be okay. I cried and cried. He had a wonderful day! Maddie is doing great in her new class. They have their own potty, so I think we will finally be out of diapers with her soon. Preston was all smiles when I picked him up. He only napped for 2 hours today, so he was ready for bed a little early. Oh...we had gymnastics again tonight and Maddie made it the whole 45 minutes!

This was Maddie's first trip to Chuck E Cheese. There is so much to look at and a lot of noise. She took a few minutes to take it all in. Marty and I were discussing how many tokens we should buy when we hear this extremely loud, glass shattering scream...it was Maddie...she spotted Chuck E. She jumped into Marty's arms and we couldn't help but laugh. We have never really seen her be afraid of anything before now, but Marty did a great job of calming her and explaining that it was just a person playing dress up. She watched him move across the room, and of course he approached her. I coaxed her into giving him 5, which she did very quickly. She gave him 5 once more, and then she started to laugh. She was proud of herself! We told her how great she did, and then we decided we wouldn't go to Disney anythime soon! There wasn't a lot of activities for 2 year olds...especially not ones that give you tickets. She rode the car with little Chuck E multiple times. It prints a cheap little picture to remember the trip by, so if anyone wants a copy let me know. We have 7! It was fun, cheap, and a good way to get out.

GO BLUE!!!

Can you believe it's football time?? This summer has flown by. I am back to work full time next week. My sweet little boy will be in preschool. Uuugh.

Back to football..Marty went in to work today, so I TIVO'd the game for him. He turned off his phone and avoided TVs at all cost today. We took Maddie to Chuck E Cheese when Marty left work, so he is just now watching the game. I know that his beloved Wolverines lost today, but he doesn't know yet. He is yelling at some guy right now "son, if you want to be a linebacker for the Big 10, you better go eat a sandwich". He cracks me up.

We were playing outside last week, and Drew was kind enough to share his razor (I think that's what they're called??). I was trying to tell Maddie that she was too small for it, and boy did she prove me wrong. She hopped right on and took off down the sidewalk. It was so cute to see her pushing with her little leg.

Daddy was able to go to gymnastics with us tonight. Maddie did really well for the first 30 minutes. The last 15...not so much. She was tired from being at school all day, and she started getting silly. There is so much going on, I have a hard time concentrating, too! It's very neat to watch the big girls practice.
Here we are stretching.

Maddie did a flip down the ramp by herself.

TA-DA!!

It's Hannah's turn to walk the beam

Crawling through a tiny hole. Sorry the pics aren't that great. Our camera stinks!!

I took Maddie to see The Backyardigans Live for her birthday. The first 5 minutes, she nearly strangled me with her little arms and she kept saying "I wanna go bye-bye". She ended up singing and dancing along, but she never left my lap.

Daddy was trying to get some work done, but his helpers had other ideas.

We went home a few weeks ago, and Maddie got to have a slumber party with her cousins. Kelsey, Hailey, Kyndall, and Gracie gave her more attention than she knew what to do with. They can get her to do anything! She would eat for them, dance for them, and go potty for them. I called Marty and asked if we could adopt an eleven year old. They really made my life easier for a couple of days. Of course Preston got lots of attention too!

Happy Birthday Daddy and Maddie!!

I don't know what a party is, but I'm having fun!



The Dora cake. Yum!














Playin at the pavilion park in our neighborhood

Check out the matching shirts. haha We thought is was funny.

















Dora pinata filled with fruit snacks and fruit rollups






You pull the ribbons to tear open the pinata. We thought this was nicer than hitting her with a bat. Grant let me know that next time, he would like to have a pinata that he could beat on. haha

Losing his shorts




Bryson and Christa












Cake time! Everybody's favorite!!

What have we been up to?

We are approaching "two" with a vengence. We are two days away from Maddie's big day, and I must have threatened her with "no Dora birthday party" 50 times in the last week. She was such an easy baby. She behaved so well in public, even in restaurants. Not so as of late. Miss Sassy Pants wants to be in charge. She wants to do everything "by mysef". I have found myself giving in! It is a huge change going from one child to two, especially with them being so close in age. Maddie makes us laugh all the time, but when Preston was born, I think he brought her the gift of pushing our buttons. For example, we had some friends over a few weeks ago. I cleaned all day (in between feedings, naps, play time, etc.). Our appliances are stainless steel (not ideal with kids), and as I finished cleaning the fridge, Maddie leaned against it. "Maddie, mommy just cleaned that. Let's not touch." She looks me square in the eyes, and reaches out one hand and plants it on the fridge. She's giving me a look as if to say "what are you gonna do about it?". I just have to pick her up and put her in her room. I used to say that I would never spank my children. Now I go to bed saying "Thank you Lord that I didn't beat her!".

I have realized that it is best to keep Maddie busy. I recently enrolled her in a mommy and me gymnastics class. Our first time, she was so excited that she couldn't pay attention to the instructor. She was rotten, and we should have left after 5 minutes. The second time we went, the place was packed. She loved watching the big girls do jumps on the vault. She screamed "oh no, she fall" every time someone did a somersault. She was only half as rotten as the first time.

I know all of this is normal behavior, and she is a sweet and tenderhearted little girl most of the time. In the rough moments, I find myself praying for God to help me make lemonade with my precious lemon. I want to extend His grace and mercy to my children so that they will understand His love for us all. I am so grateful for His love for me when I have a rotten day!

I still have to say that Maddie is so great with Preston. Every morning she says "hi big boy" and gives him a kiss. Last week, I was holding him in my lap and she screamed "Mommy, Peston spit. No spit Peston! Not nice!" How do you explain that it's okay for him to drool but not nice for her to spit (except when brushing her teeth)? Oh, the challenges of parenting.

Speaking of my little drool box, he is 3 months old today! I can't believe it. Time goes so fast. He started sleeping through the night a few weeks ago. It was just in time because this was my first week back to work. Thankfully, my parents are visiting and taking care of the kids for me. It makes the transition much easier.

I had a 40th birthday party for Marty last weekend. I thought it was in my best interest not to have his and Maddie's the same day. We had a great time, but I didn't take one picture. In fact, the camera never crossed my mind. Happy 40th honey! Maybe we'll get some pics of the big 5-0 in 2018.

I will post pics of the kids tomorrow!

Family Pictures

Thank you, Melanie, for capturing our family.

This cracks me up