Surprise!

Coming in the door...
Still not sure what was going on...

Hiding out in the kitchen

still hiding....they were late, in typical April fashion.

This is Anne Marie, Me, April and Jessica...the girls that pulled off the surprise...

On Saturday I helped throw one of my best friends, April, a surprise housewarming shower. She and her family just moved into a brand new house about twenty minutes away. It is a beautiful house and April is just a beautiful person so she was welldeserving. Her husband, Justin was in on the surprise. I didn't talk to her at all last week because I just knew I would blow the surprise. She says she was shocked, but she's an actress...and a good one at that...so she might have just pretended to be surprised. Either way she got some goodies and had lots of good food I might add. It was fun to do something for her because she threw me showers for both my babies but her kiddos are half grown and I didn't meet her til after they were born and there are few other occasions that you get together for...but this was one of them and I was grateful to be apart of it. Happy housewarming Rich Family!

Day with More Old Friends...

Amy, Me, and SayJ.

Janice, Val, Nancy and Guest of Honor Michele

The boys and their Momma's!

Take two

Mesmerized.

Sadie Jane, with Daddy's hat on.

You can tell which two kiddos had never watched a movie at dinner...Micah and Pax refused to look.

Kristen had the most popular lap in the place!

SayJ with Daddy!

Another.

We continued our visits with out of town friends on Friday night at Longhorn's with my mom's friend Michele visiting from Texas. I was again without Mick or a sitter but had PLENTY of helpful hands in friends and other Grandma's! I couldn't believe that I actually enjoyed myself and got to eat my meal! Thanks to Amy, Val, Janice, Kristen and Brad taking Micah to the "mens"! Kristen whipped out the DVD player after the boys had eaten and we were all still visiting...slowly but surely every child made their way to her lap. Which is even funnier because she and Brad are expecting a little girl in July! Her lap really was SO full. Needless to say Sadie Jane is so excited not to be the only girl in this group of boys! Mick called at the end to come rescue me so I grabbed Say J and pretended it had been so difficult so that he would help with her:) just teasing! It was a fun night visiting with old friends. Sadly it takes Michele coming in from out of town for all of us to get together when we all live within ten minutes of each other. But such is life and busyness. We missed my parents who just couldn't resist heading to the lake! So these pictures are mainly for Mom. Mick did make it for a few minutes to help me get the kiddos home after he won his game! If it ever warms up we will make it to a game, but it doesn't look promising thus far. Go Panthers!

Wedding Dress Shopping!

JoMarie (aka. Cookie), Me and Sadie Jane, Ang, Blakely, Micah on the floor, Madison and Makayla

Not for me. For one of my oldest and dearest friends, Angela. We have been friends for so long and she recently got engaged and came up to go dress shopping. Unfortunately I did not have a sitter for the kiddos so I took my two with me to the dress shop. Yikes! Angela's sister in law and a friend of mine decided since I was bringing my two she'd bring hers too. It is hard to find sitters on Fridays! So we took that place over and the kiddos were all surprisingly well behaved. Angela looked super beautiful and I am so excited for her big day. Micah, Madison and Makayla(sp?) loved all the mirrors and it was so fun to watch them. I am not sure what Angela thought about sharing her stage with all the children, but she definitely was a trooper for allowing them to come and take over her special time.

my kid...

That is what Mick says when Micah does something weird or crazy...he's your kid. So today MY kid was cracking me up as usual. Just wanted to record a few things because that funny kid also lost my wire that connects my camera to the computer because he was using it for a lasso and then a jump rope. I think that I took it from him and put it someplace "safe" but now for the life of me I don't know where that safe place is...

So you are just stuck with words...ahh you can stop now and I'll never know.

Today at the mall we were walking around the gap and Micah saw a girl who looked to be 3 or 4 with a paci in her mouth. He was in the stroller but he just kept yelling...hey ...hey...girl, you are too big to have a paci!. I was pushing so fast but he just kept raising his voice and with our gargantuan stroller you can't really maneuver through the racks rapidly, when we finally got away he wanted to make sure I saw that girl that was too big to have a paci. I tried to explain to him we don't say stuff like that to people it might hurt their feelings...and might get mommy beat up. Goodness knows I'm not gonna judge someone not knowing what kind of battle that Mom has been through or what kind of day she had that made her decide to plug her cute little girl. Oh but my little legalist will!

When we got home from the mall Micah stayed downstairs while I went up with Sadie Jane...I come back down and he is sitting on the potty going. All by himself...so proud. I know, I know, enough with the poopin already. But he gets five m&m's and then head's off to nap. The boy loves some sugar and it seriously is like crack for him. An hour and a half later I thought he was long since asleep and he comes out the door, "did I take a good nap?" I could tell by his hair he hadn't slept a wink. Then he climbs back into bed amid a circle of his stuffed animals. I ask him what he has been doing all this time? He waves his arms at his stuffed pals and said "Just talking to everybody."

Poopin' Bandit

*Disclaimer: This is a post most likely only a fellow momma would appreciate...and even that may be pushing it. So read my "crappy story" with caution.

So like most accomplishments I don't blog about them for a few days until I believe we are set on our path of success... but I believe I can say with confidence now that we have a fully pottytrained boy! Thank you Jesus! Since we had such a time of things I wanted to write down a few things that worked and that didn't for those of you embarking on this lovely pleasant journey. Also, I think one day this post will be fun to read aloud while Micah's girlfriend is at the house and he is upstairs getting ready, etc.
Micah has been teetee trained since June of last year. I had heard horror stories about boys and potty training but Micah pretty much did it himself (lest you get jealous, most everything else has been a battle in his life, thus project poopy) He started pooping in the potty then but we weren't confident that he was getting it and with Sadie Jane coming soon we postponed that half of the potty training until after her birth. Once we started back Micah seriously refused to go in the potty. He went once at school with his Mrs. Mann but other than that he would beg for a pullup and if we didn't oblige he'd hold it til he hurt for days at a time. I begged for advice, offered the child anything but he would not sit on the potty for anything. The girl who cuts my hair also cuts Micah's hair and has four children that pottytrained so early. I enlisted her help while she was cutting his hair and she talked to him about it. It seemed he was buying what she was selling and she gave me a little bit more permission to do some things Dr. Phil didn't neccesarily support...but Dr. Phil has two children and a degree but Ms. Jonie has 4 children and she cuts hair so I am thinking she has more experience with this. So, while Mick was home for a few days for a winter break I took Micah in the potty and we closed the door. We got prepared to go and then I told him he could either go in the floor or the potty but I wasn't going to put a pullup on him. The first day after much crying and pleading I compromised with if he would sit on the potty and try he could then have his pull up. He would then still have to go potty in the bathroom to at least associate that with where he needed to be doing his business. I was worried that Mick wasn't backing my hostage negotiations so I gave in but found out shortly thereafter Mick would support my total hold out. Day two I said no pullup and I meant it. I pulled up our bath mat and closed the door, fully prepared to be cleaning the floor momentarily. Micah has this strange habit that he has to jump in order to go potty so I told him to start jumping and we started chanting "poopy in the potty, poopy in the potty" After a few "i can'ts" and quite a few "please let me have my pullup" Micah got that look in his eye and I heavehoed him onto the potty...lo and behold...mission accomplished!!! I was so excited we clapped, we danced and I cried. Yep, I cried about my son going in the potty! I NEVER thought that would be on my list of special moments with my son, but it definitely is. I really was proud of him, and me for not giving up and for not loosing my cool. The first day he got all sorts of surprises for doing it but after that he has settled for m&m's or skittles. Truth be told I really think he didn't understand how it was all going to workout so he resisted...that and the fact that he is stubborn as all get out and it was one battle he thought he could win. He had an accident at Aunt Wendy and Uncle Mickey's but he was playing and I totally forgot to remind him. Since then we have had lots of successes! Today he went twice already and I am afraid he's hurt himself all in the name of five precious m&m's. So long pullups! See you in the princess variety in a few years! Thanks to all you Momma's out there for advice and encouragement! We indeed aren't going to high school in pullups like I was afraid of...

How do you know?

This is a question I think every momma asks...how do you know when to take your child to the doctor? Say J had her first ear infection a few weeks ago and hasn't been the same since. We have already made a trek back while on antibiotics because she was so grumpy (for her) to find I was simply wrong. With Micah he had continuous ear infections so I am concerned that Sadie Jane will be the same way...and she is so happy go lucky that her grumpiness could be confused with just a normal baby. But if I don't take her and I make her sit with an ear infection I will feel awful. She is pulling her ear like it is her job (which Micah's doctor told me is NOT as sign of an ear infection, but is still worrisome to me) Soooo...we are headed back to the doctor today. I wish that I could simply be trained in the art of ear infection detection and be given a dozen of those little rapid strep tests. With those two things alone I could save our family thousands. But alas, I don't have them so I must pay my copay for the doctor to give me the look. With Micah I had the excuse of "I'm a first time momma" but now, I am just me, a little overprotective and a lot a worrier. Praying for Sadie Jane to be well, but at the same time wondering what in the world is wrong with her if her ears are fine. Ahhh, motherhood.

The Tradition Continues

I guess I should start by thanking or blaming Uncle Mickey for this lovely tradition. Since Micah was about 6 months Mick would hold him in the air like a little cheerleader. I would cringe and I can not count how many times I have said "Mick, please put him down!" as onlookers stared and shamed me for being such a mother. Mick has always gotten alot of attention from others for doing this and we all know how he hates that, ha ha. I have always said it wasn't about Micah doing it but about people giving Mick the attention he needs. At Olive Garden one time I overheard two elderly women plotting to call child services on us for abusing our child! While I am not a huge fan of this "stunt" I have come to accept the fact that I have no control over my two boys. Well, about a week ago I saw Mick "working" with Sadie Jane and I knew what was coming...and up she went. She actually loves it and her little hamhocks all smushed together is a bit cute. My hands still sweat when I see Mick doing it and I still insist he stop it, but I am wise enough now to know that this is just the first of many photoshoots of SayJ and her Daddy doing their cheerleading...at least there is more of a possibility of a future there for Sadie Jane, because I am not thinking Mick would want Micah to go that route.
Also we do usually put pants on her in the winter but she had her third blowout in 24 hours and I was tired of doing laundry so we were staying home so I let her go pantless. I know it is a great look, right?? But with pants you couldn't see those hammy's either!

Daddy's Girl...and boys...

t




e

Mick has been gone the past few weeks with baseball so this weekend we had some uninterrupted time with him. We also had Hayden this weekend too so that was a special treat. Hayden signed up for his first organized sport and much to Mick's happiness, it is tball. Mick took Hayden and while they were gone Mick couldn't resist taking Hayden to Gable's and getting him cleats and a new glove. Such a special time for them to spend together. Especially since Hayden is not our child yet he is the only one that resembles Mick. Too funny, and yes we hear this ALL the time!

Sadie Jane LOVES her Daddy and you can already see how much she adores him. We were all eating dinner and Mick was holding her...he does this alot when he is home so I can eat a meal and know what in the world I ate. She just loves on him, she doesn't really do it with me and it is just so cute so I took some pictures of her leaning and loving on her Daddy.

Micah and Hayden have so much fun together and again Mick spent alot of time just playing with them. Mick also went and got us ice cream on Saturday night and if you know me, you know that made my day! If you can't tell I am just real thankful for my husband. Obviously having him gone makes me appreciate when he is here even more. As always those who do it alone or who have husbands deployed, etc. I pray for you when I think of just having to do the weekdays alone and am so grateful for the weekends!

Best Laid Plans...Opening Day...

So I had great plans for Mick's first game of the season. We were keeping Hayden so I had us make signs, get suckers for the boys and then go to the game. Easier said than done, right? Micah took an extra short nap...SayJ was having an off day and it was cold outside once the sun went down. It took me about 30 to 45 minutes to get drinks packed, layers of clothing packed, diapers, extra change of clothes...snacks and on and on til I was exhausted once we got in the car! Then we get to the game and I realize that I can't watch two boys while nursing a baby girl in the car. So I let the boys play for a bit while SayJ naps in the car...then I load us up for our picnic dinner in our car seats...hotdog and frenchfries from the concession stand. Healthy, healthy! You can tell from the pictures the boys went separate ways so there was NO way to keep track of all three. So I gave up and headed home. Not exactly what I had planned. I still insisted we take a picture with the signs I worked so hard on! And a picture of SayJ in her new purple tutu that she never even got out of her carseat in. Oh well, better luck next time. Oh and we won!! Yippee! Good Job Daddio!

MORE Brotherly Love.

Funny stuff. Micah wanted to get in SayJ's crib yesterday after her nap. So I put him in and he says, go get your chamera! So since he usually runs from the "chamera" I did the photoshoot. Halfway through I realized that SayJ looked like a boy...right down to the blue paci (yes, we recycle around here) Soooo, Micah picked out a bow and I found a pink bib close by to finish our shoot. This is mainly for Jenny since who really wants to see THIS many pictures of my kiddos?