Summer Fun

We had a fun filled day today. Papa left for Utah a few days ago and we are living it up (mostly to distract ourselves from his absence). I have been so exhausted nursing my and Ethan's cold and maintaining household responsibilities by myself that I let Sophia stay with Grandmother and attend church with her. I brought Ethan to church with me for the first time and just absorbed every moment we were together. He was with me while I taught the 3 yr. olds and the 2nd graders. I tried leaving him in the nursery but it was too traumatic for him to be in there without mama. The poor workers did their best to console him but told Anne (our volunteer coordinator) that he was acting as if they were killing him. I have to admit my heart skipped a beat with excitement as I looked out the window and saw Anne carrying him to me. I was surprised that the second graders weren't as excited to see him as the 3 yr. olds were (they oooed and awwwed and smothered and mothered him). I'm surprised when ANYONE doesn't get as excited over him as a 3 yr. old would. He just so cute. Anyway...

I immediately switched kids with Grandmother as Sophia had a Birthday date at the Bounce Zone. As much as I dreaded the event I ended up spending time with several of the Preschool mothers and really had a nice time. Sophia had so much fun with all her preschool buddies. I don't think she understands that there are some she'll never see again. It's heartbreaking for me because this was her first school year and her first group of friends. And the love she felt for each child just melted my heart. They were ALL her best friends. I need to do a post on her preschool experience. Anyway...

We spent time with Gigi at Grandmothers house. Ethan sang and danced, Sophia made Ethan laugh, and I plucked out Gigi's chin hair.

It rained when we got home as the afternoon was turning into evening. The air was cool and I craved the beach. But I knew I couldn't prepare in the short amount of sunlight we had left. So I put together a little inflatable pool/activity center. Sophia was beside herself with excitement. I had questioned whether or not to spend 40 dollars on it but the pride, warmth, love, and happiness I felt watching her overflow with joy was simply priceless. I love my baby girl and baby boy. Sometimes I feel like I get too caught up in disciplining and following routines and teaching that I neglect the need to be silly and spontaneous and fun. I had a fun day with my kids today. It's a day that I want to remember forever.

A Long Awaited Milestone

Ethan just turned 19 months on the 24th of May. A day before Allan's birthday, May 17th, Ethan decided he was finally ready to walk. First he walked in circles from the kitchen to the living room as he chased Sophia. It brought me to tears. My little boy didn't look quite as much like a baby anymore. For the next few days he ventured into other areas. After about 5 days...no more crawling on his knees. I forgot how strange it was to suddenly hear new footsteps. And it took me a while to finally get used to him just showing up next to me unexpectedly.  But I love it. We were ready for him to walk as he's getting so big. It's nice not to have to carry him to and from the car or in the stores. Ha, I wish. 

We were THOSE people who criticized the parents who put their kids on a leash. We have both very quickly agreed we want to purchase one for Ethan. He now hates the stroller and he hates holding my hand and he hates being carried.  And I hate having to wrestle with him in my arms and having to chase him around the store. The stroller is the lesser of the 3 evils right now. 

Anyway, I 'm sad my little dependent man is growing up.  At the same time, all in all, it has become much easier caring for him. My mom and I were talking about how easier it is now for she and dad to care for the kids on Monday while I'm at work. No swaddling, noise machine, nebulizer, gas medicine, bouncing on the bead, jumping through hoops to get him to stop crying or go to sleep. But of course, I loved those days.  I love these days to. I love watching his personality develop and I love watching the relationship between Sophia and him develop.  Every day brings new surprises and it's the most rewarding experience in the world.

That Time of Year

By the end of January I was so excited that we had apparently gotten through the flu season unscathed. I pretty much gaged my revelation by the fact we went through the entire month of Dec. and January and no one ended up in the hospital. Well, I think my biggest mistake came when I had these thoughts and forgot to knock on wood. We were suddenly hit and hit with a vengeance!!!

First, I was hit with Strep throat. Then Ethan got hit with a double ear infection...poor guy. At the same time, Sophia was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection. All of us were at the Dr.s within a weeks time. Sophia even had additional tests performed to rule out abnormalities. Well, 3 huge Dr. bills later we thought we served our time...NO MORE. I, believe it or not, was wrong!!! The little tiny microorganism that terrorized many families at our church decided to make it's stay in our home for a while. Every one of us started with a fever that lasted for at least 3 days, followed by diarrhea, body aches, congestion and coughs. We have never experienced anything like it nor do we ever want to again! The worst part was that Allan had a camping trip the first day of his illness...YUCK!

Gee Gee

Grandma told us, when Sophia was first born, that she wanted to be called "Gee Gee" for either "Great Grandma" or "Grandma Gwen". It took me a while to accept it because she has always been the very southern "grandma" to me but I've come to love it. She insisted the spelling be Gee Gee...I fought for a long time for the spelling of G.G. Oh well, Grandma usually wins.

Grandma moved to Brandon from Kissimmee in 2002, 3 yrs before Sophia was born. She's been able to watch her and Ethan grow...and I'm so thankful for it! She's as sharp as a whip and has an amazing sense of humor! She is constantly critiquing the staff where she resides, yet they love her more than anyone. She's got a gift for making friends!

Anyway, we made one of our biweekly visits today. Grandma's been weak but always feels lifted by the company of Sophia and Ethan. Grandma thinks they are the most intelligent kids on the face of the earth and insists they get it from their papa.
Here's a shot of Sophia saying goodbye to Gee Gee. She always tilts her head in so SHE can kiss HER...this always tickles Grandma.

Goodbye to 2008

So this is the last day of the year 2008. What a wonderful year it was! It was on this date last year that Ethan returned from the hospital. And things continued to climb uphill since...
Allan and I attended 3 weddings, celebrated one birth and many birthdays, including GiGi's 93rd! Sophia celebrated her 3rd and Ethan celebrated his 1st! He still has yet to walk but that's o.k. It's recently been brought to my attention that his hair's getting a little long. Several people have referred to him as a girl but I pay no mind. I love his long curls!
And I have loved so much having a baby in the house again! Because I never officially documented his milestones I'm going to take this opportunity to do so now...
Smiled-in the hospital/Roll over-middle March/sleeping through the night/ last day in May/ first word-"hot"-11 months?/ sitting up-very late-10 months.
We definitely got a crash course in Insurance companies and pediatric billing. In turn, we mastered the art of forgiving!
Allan began his 7th year of teaching and I celebrated my first year at Fishhawk Fellowship. Sophia is in her 4th month of preschool and is LOVING it! We are going to enroll her in dance classes next month! She is addicted to tap!
We all stayed healthy except for Sophia's "nursemaids elbow" early in the year! We drove to Kentucky and visited many cousins, aunts, and uncles.
God has been good to us. I can't wait to see what 2009 has in store!

We recently "misplaced" our camcorder and it's killing me because it had most of the year on it...Ethan's first year. Scooting, sitting up, crawling. And, of course, it's breaking my heart. But what I have to remember is that MOST people in the world don't have their first year captured on video. And, again, I'm trying to keep focus on the images that I do have of him.
At the same time, it inspired me to blog again. This time I'm going to try and do it everyday. Just to document the little things I know I'll one day forget.
The good news, for me, is that Ethan is still crawling. And will be for a long time if I have any say in the matter. He's still my baby. I want him to stay that way as long as possible!
He turned one 2 months ago. He still won't sit up any other way but with his legs underneath him! You try pulling his legs out and he doesn't know what to do. He just sits there, helpless. Poor thing. It's funny. He says "Hot" to just about everything and blows kisses. He LOVES getting into things. Something Sophia never really did. He's quick!
So we're getting ready for Christmas! Sophia had 2 performances and has enjoyed Christmas festivies w/ her preschool. He also started the Elf on the Shelf tradition which we've been having fun with!
So that's all for now. I feel good that I've gotten back on...pictures will come soon!

Fremp

I would just like to introduce everybody to Sophia's new best friend, "Fremp". She's an ant that Sophia discovered this evening. Listening to Sophia you would think they've been friends for life. "Fremp NEVER hurts people, Fremp is a Mama and will NEVER crawl on you." I saw her leap over another child the other day to catch an ant. I guess she thought it was Fremp. She tried so hard to get the other children around her to share in her enthusiasm about the bug. They didn't care. I think she gets it from me as I used to house lizards and rolly pollys and who knows what else in little box homes. I sort of wish I was encouraged to follow that passion (Well, I guess the fact that my parents let me keep the bugs was a start). There will be no shortage of encouragement from us. Entomology is a very fascinating field. Now, if only we can convince Sophia to spare the bugs' lives.