Messy Face

In the famous words of my father...
...when you need 20 minutes to get something done...

...just give me a biter biscuit...

...and I'm happy...

...and messy as can be!

Favorite

I think Logan has found his favorite second cousin. This is my cousin Ethanni. She was my maid of honor at our wedding and is one of my favorite people in the whole world as well. Ethi will be getting married this fall. Congrats Ethi! I can't wait until you have a little one as well so our kids can grow up together like we did. Ethanni was one year younger than I and a class below me in school...nothing like a cousin to fuel some healthy competition. Oh, and I think Ethanni adores Logan as much as he likes her!

Payton, Bella and Logan

Payton loves kissing Logan's big head
Bella and Payton with the sort the shapes hippo

We made it to the funeral this morning. My Aunt came over and stayed with the kids...and everyone was still alive when we got back. These three are a handful together! Of course they all cried when we left. I know Logan wouldn't have if he had been alone but both girls were crying and he's a sympathy crier. He does love his girlfriend Payton though.

Mitch's funeral was sad but strangely impersonal. I've only been to one other Catholic funeral before and I don't remember it being the same. In fact that funeral was for Brock, another friend from high school that died shortly after graduation and I'm pretty sure I cried throughout the ceremony.

Maybe the Father was just trying to hold the room together by not diving into the stories and details of Mitch's life...but I thought that's what funerals were for? To memorialize the deceased and remember all the good things about them. Anyhow, I guess if I wanted an outlet and a time to grieve I will have to find it on my own because the funeral wasn't it. It was weird seeing all my classmates and it was quite amazing how many of them were there. Our ten year reunion will be next year and I wish we wouldn't have had to get together early for this reason.

I was watching an episode of my favorite TV show "Mercy" the other day and a young man lost his wife. I don't know what I would do if I ever lost my husband. When the rest of the world is crazy he is my one true constant, always there to keep me on course. Or if I lost Logan...my heart hurt so bad for Mitch's parents today and for all the parents that have ever had to bury a child. Personally I don't think I would have the strength. Hopefully that trial will never come for me. I feel so blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life.

Good Day

Playing games with daddy

I'm helping mom learn how to shoot manual!

Logan had a good day today. We were bums...stayed home and left only late in the afternoon to go to the bank and pick up our taxes. I'm starting to shoot more stuff in manual. The bottom four pics are all manual...have quite a bit of work to do but I'm getting there.

Tomorrow morning will be fun for Logan, Payton and Bella. Playdate at our house with Aunt DD supervising. It will be not so great for the rest of the adults...all three mommies included. A friend from high school died last weekend and we're all attending the funeral. Hopefully we'll have some fun before we have to go! He will be greatly missed and I know it is going to be packed.

Silly Monkey

Be sure to scroll down and shut off my media player before you hit play...trust me...his giggles are well worth it.

Logan loves his silly monkey...

Crabby

With two teeth working their way on through...crabby...is the word of the day.

Nina and Papa

The girls battling it out playing wheel of fortune
Logan and Papa

Today we were supposed to go see Steve's mom and dad. But, when we got up it was icing/sleeting/raining and I did NOT want to be stuck on the road with Logan. So we called them and they said they would come to us. We spent the afternoon eating, playing games and watching the Jayhawk game.

P.S. Logan's other bottom middle tooth came in today!

Hanging Out

Pay no attention to the left over carrots from dinner on my cheeks and in my nose!
Daddy and Logan,just chillin...

I have to admit I was somewhat disappointed today. Last night we let Logan cry himself to sleep...three times. It was hard but didn't take as long as I had initally thought it would. He was bathed, changed fed and it was time for bed. After only three hours of sleep the night before I had no tolerance for the same kind of night again.

That being said, when Jodi(Olivia's mom) called to say that she thought we should cancel our playdate I was bummed. I was so looking forward to seeing Jodi and Olivia and introducing them to my special little man. But Jodi had a scratchy throat and being the paranoid kind of moms that we are we thought it would be better safe than sorry and that we should postpone. I know we'll reschedule soon and the kids will have a blast.

We did go have lunch with the girls from work. We had fun giving Nancy a world of grief for turning 50...I must admit though that she doesn't look a day over 30! Logan was an angel. He sat in a big boy high chair for the first time at a restaurant and did fantastic. He spent lots of time loving on Donna and didn't throw one fit. I was very relieved.

So we're off to see some family this weekend and we're praying for better nighttime sleeping habits!

Logan's 1st Tooth

I don't know if this picture does it justice...but Logan has his first tooth. The big swollen gums in the middle gave way today to a little white tooth peak. It's sharp...I'll be the first to say that. Last night he was up until 12:15 a.m.. Then he finally fell asleep. I thought he'd be out for at least 4-6 hours. At 3:45 he was wide awake again. Thank goodness I got off work early today. I would have otherwise been frazzled by 7 p.m. Now here it is, 10:00 p.m. and he's still fighting me. I know he's tired, he has to be! Hopefully we will all get some sleep tonight(maybe I should quantify some as equal to or greater than 5-6 hours!).

All Soaped Up

Daddy's been taking pictures again(and he's getting so good)...can't wait for mommy to be home all weekend.

We have a busy Friday planned. We're off for a playdate with Olivia in the morning. Then it's off to lunch with the girls from work. Last but not least, who could forget the weekly Walmart trip? More posting to come tomorrow evening...

Silly Little Boy

Can you guess where I am sitting?
I feel like I'm on top of the world!

I love making silly faces.

My tongue goes all over the place!

I hate watching mom on the computer but I love to sit in the computer chair...

Okay, so Logan has become a 1st class brat when it comes to allowing me to get anything done on the computer. He hates to sit in the guest bedroom with me and usually starts throwing a fit after a couple of minutes. It was during one of these fits the other day that I plopped his rear down in the computer chair. He thought that was just hilarious! I have no idea why.

He is such a silly little boy....and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Chillin'

Can you tell my daddy took these pictures?
The corner of the couch is his new favorite place to put me.

I came home Sunday and these were just a few of the pics Steve had taken. I don't know that I am a huge fan of stuffing kids into couch corners but whatever works, right? I love Logan's facial expressions and it seems like he comes up with a new one every single day.

Has anyone else ever used the Sleep Lady system to get your children to sleep through the night? I am considering it. I promised that if he wasn't sleeping through the night by six months of age that I would at least make an effort to facilitate that and I am not one of those moms that can just let their babies cry it out...we did try it though. Anyhow I saw this approach used on a TV show. I just don't want him to be two years old and still getting up every 3-4 hours. Everything that I have read says the sleep habits are learned young.

A Leap of Faith

Okay guys...I'm doing it. I'm taking a leap of faith and allowing anonymous comments. Mind you I can still remove them if I don't like what they say. Several people have told me that they would like to comment but don't have a google account and have no interest in setting one up. So here ya go! Here is your chance. If you'd like me to know who you are though you will have to include that in your comment. Remember, keep it clean. This is my kids' digital scrapbook.

Poor Monkey

This poor monkey...is used and abused, hung by his neck, slobbered on to the point of saturation, bit, scratched, slapped, screamed at, stripped of his dignity, ridiculed and laughed at and never gets a break. But alas, that's what you get for being one of Logan's favorite toys!

Loved

For the past year and a half, my husband and I have not exchanged gifts of any kind. When he would ask what I wanted I would tell him that either the fertility treatments were a gift enough(for Christmas and our Anniversary the last two years) or after we got pregnant that I was already getting what I wanted most...our baby.

I had been wanting some deer jerky(I know probably not the most romantic thing in the world) but he showed up at home a few days before Valentines Day with the jerky that I had asked for. I didn't expect to come home to the gorgeous flowers I found Sunday when I got off work early. Come to think of it this is the first dozen of roses I have ever gotten from my husband. He has gotten me plenty of flowers in the past but he has a very unique tast when it comes to flowers. He always gets me these very vibrant and colorful bouquets that quite honestly I have never seen duplicated. I love them. But the roses were simple and beautiful.

I have a wonderful husband. Sure, he has his moments(don't we all) but I don't know of a better father, husband or best friend. He manages the kids when I am at work. He always has the baby fed, bathed and ready to nurse when I get home. He tries and usually succeeds to do some kind of housework every single day. He is just so very different from the dad I grew up with. He is very adamant that the work is 50/50 in our household which makes everything just so much less stressful. I love watching him with the boys as he is ever so loving but firm when need be.

Last of all, he's the best friend I've ever had or will have. He knows me like no one else. I am so truly loved.

Heartbreaker

Doesn't that look just say,"I'm coming to break your heart baby!"?

Disclaimer: Please, pay no attention to the stack of papers, package of bottled water, dishrag or box of Diet Dr. Pepper in the background. I assure you that though it is all part of the organized chaos of my household and is sitting on my kitchen table that it does NOT prohibit us from eating together every night. Thanks, The Mom.

Logan Finds His Tongue

Doctors Appt.

Just a quick note...we ended up taking Logan to the Dr. this afternoon. He hadn't had a nap all day. He finally fell asleep at 2:45 then at 2:55 the doctors office called and said they could see him at 3:15. I almost told them to just forget it. I sooooo did NOT want to wake him up. However, since I had to go to work this weekend I didn't feel like it was fair to leave a sick babe home with his daddy with no other option for treatment outside of ER.

Not that I have a thing against ERs(okay maybe just this one in town) but I would rather have Logan see his own doctor while the clinic was open. So we got the little man up and away to the doctors we went. He actually slept through getting in his carseat and the drive there so he got a total of maybe 30 min. of sleep. Then of course we had to weigh him. The nurse was nice enough not to make us strip him completely down. With his onesie, pants and diaper he weighed 16 lbs. 15.5 oz. This would put him 70th percentile on weight. We skipped the rest of his measurements for this visit.

The doctor looked him over. She couldn't see in his ear canals for all the wax buildup so I got to hold him down while she cleaned them out with a scoop. I think this is an extremely nice word for this tool as it resembled more of an ice pick than a scoop. Anyhow, he survived with much screaming. She reported that his ears looked a bit irritated but no fluid visible yet. His throat was red and inflammed. We left with two prescriptions: an antibiotic and a cocktail that is supposed to help ease the pain of his throat. We had instructions not to start the antibiotic unless he failed to improve with the other.

I filled them both. So far he has puked up every med I've given him today...no wonder his throat is red and inflammed. We haven't started the antibiotic. Honestly it is a big amount and I'm not convinced he could keep it down anyway.

So I'm off to work in the morning and it will be the boys here holding down the fort. Maybe Logan will have a good night and an even better day tomorrow...I can hope.

A Very Short...Wait Maybe Long...Night

It was a short night for sleeping...a very long night to get through. I'm not sure what Logan's deal was last night. He was somewhat fitful when he went to bed around his normal time. Then he woke up at two and I couldn't get him back to sleep. Actually I rocked him back to sleep three times and the minute I laid him down he would start fussing.

SO I decided to let him cry it out. That lasted all of maybe ten minutes and his daddy couldn't take it anymore. I then conceded, got up and took him downstairs to play. By ten after five he was finally ready to go back to bed. He is so very gassy right now. We started baby foods in addition to his rice twice a day last Sunday. We have also started the Mylicon drops hoping that they will help. So far I'm not impressed. This is all such a change for him. He usually gets up two to three times a night to nurse but goes right back to bed.

Any tips out there from other mommies? I'm sure it is going to take awhile for his system to get regulated but is there anything I can do in the meantime?

Learning How To Sit

Look at what a big boy I am!

Logan has been working on sitting up unsupported for awhile now. I think he is finally there. He does still fall over sometimes when he gets excited or forgets how big his head is. He rolls all over front to back and back to front. I rarely find him still on his back when I get him out of bed...he's a tummy sleeper(against my wishes). Someday I am going to have fun telling his girlfriends about how much he drools in his sleep. His cribs sheets always have big drool cirlces on them! Hopefully he will grow out of that. It seems like he is changing everyday.

A Special Someone...

I did a photoshoot today for a former patient of mine. Of course I did it free of charge...trying to learn a little more about my new camera. I became good friends with her mommy and daddy while she was in the hospital and just had to ask permission to share his pic. This is Sophia. I loved seeing her home with her parents and siblings. She's thriving, of course they usually do when you get them home!

San Antonio, AJ's ABT Graduation

That's AJ in the middle

Graduation Parade

The flags were beautiful.

It was chilly but we were all so proud that it didn't matter.

Me, AJ(brother) and Kati(Sis)

The Family

He looks so handsome.

It felt so good to have a hug from him.

Playtime with Nana and Papa

I love this picture!

Okay, so here's the rest of the pics from this week. We had a great time but are so glad to be home. I'm so proud of my brother and can't wait unil the next time we get to see him. There wasn't nearly enough time...But, I'm so thankful for the moments we had. Way to go AJ! We love you.