My Own Personal 'Panic Room...'

Funny story... This is a "Carterism" that I need to remember!
Carter wasn't in his big boy bed long before he figured out how to open the door. We never had a problem with him getting out, but just in case... we turned the lock around to make sure he didn't wander by himself in the middle of the night (he also knows how to use the outside doors and locks!).

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago... Joel was working late, and I was trying to get the kids ready for bed. I also wanted to pick up in Carter's room a bit before he went to sleep, so in we all went to "play" and put toys away. My friend and I had been playing phone tag all day, and we finally got in touch. She asked me about something that I was going in the other room for, when I realized that the 3 of us (luckily) were locked IN Carter's room. Now... this wasn't an ideal situation by any means. But... it could have been MUCH worse. Both of the kids were in there with me. I had my phone. Nothing cooking on the stove. Dogs were ok. However, I still couldn't get us out. I tried the coat hanger in the doorknob trick, but all that did was give a little mind lots of bad ideas. I finally gave in and called Joel. He hadn't even left the office yet, but packed up and came home to let us out. The kids took pictures with my phone to pass the time. I had just gotten my other replaced (got wet) and hadn't realized I still had the cover over the camera. Oops. Sorry they're a little fuzzy, but they still make me laugh.

The next day, he locked us all out of the guest bathroom.

Yesterday, I went to lay down with him before his nap as he wasn't feeling good at all. I got up to realize he had locked us in his room. Again. You think I'd have learned.

I did learn, however, a trick to getting the door open when it's locked. Dare I say it aloud where little ears can hear!

MMOYC Easter Egg Hunt

Our neighborhood moms' group held the annual Easter egg hunt this past weekend. The weather was beautiful! We couldn't have asked for a better day. That being said, it was late in the morning and hard to get a shot of the kids without them squinting. Carter and Laney had a great time, and they got to hang out with lots of their little friends. Like last year, Carter tried to get an early start on the eggs a few times! And I am pretty sure he downed most of his candy before we even left the park. Ugh...


Laney had a great time taking apart the eggs and putting them back together. She actually gathered up the ones Carter had already cleaned out and put them back in the baskets.

Here is a picture of (most of) our Thursday play group. So fun to watch them grow up together! This group has been going since before Carter could crawl.

Family Pics... Finally!

We have't had family pictures done since Carter was 3 months. This is actually a make-up session from last August (taken Feb 2010). It turned out to be perfect timing to get some of Laney at one year. My friend, Ashley Canfield, did these. She actually took my favorite one of Laney (in her big flower hat) at the previous session. Anyway, she sold me the CD of all the pics for a steal! It was nice to be in some of the pictures for a change... only so my children will know they really did have a mother!

No Bib Can Contain This Mess...

...and no camera can do it justice!

I ran across these pictures again while looking for some others (these were taken in Feb.). They make me laugh as I remember how much fun Laney was having making such a mess! We had to literally pick her straight up from the chair and put her in the bath. No sense in even trying to wipe her off. I didn't think I was ever going to get all the stickiness out of her hair.

Carter's Latest...

I'm not sure what got him started, but Carter is a big fan of sleeping on the floor now. There have been days when I have put sheets on the bed 2, 3, even 4 times because he takes them off - mattress pad and all - and makes a pallet on the floor.

Go figure...

I got tagged...

... and I hate to be "it," so here goes:

Kimmie (see how the Reeds roll and pictures of her cutie patootie - Lil' G - on the list to the right) said I had to write 7 random things about me:

1. I would much rather load than unload the dishwasher.

2. I dont' like cooked fruit (ie... cobblers, pies, etc). Banana pudding may be as far as I go. I do, however, LOVE fruit in its "natural state."

3. If I could pick any place to live, I would either pick somewhere near any body of water (ok, so maybe not Galveston. I'll need to be more specific), OR on a ranch. A real, working ranch. If I REALLY could choose... I would have both!

4. Would rather be on the beach than in the snow any day.

5. I love to be organized, but I usually am not.

6. Some day I want to run as fast as I think I'm going.

7. I get a little sad each time I have to clear out clothes the kids can't wear anymore. Our babies are growing fast.

Feel free to be "it" now if you wish!

??

Joel and I just aren't sure if Breezy really feels at home here yet. We're hoping she will feel comfortable to just be herself around us soon. :)

March Madness...

...And I don't mean the basketball tournament. I'm still in denial about the A&M game, so we're not even going to go there...

This, however, is the best way I can describe the last 4 weeks.

I guess the highlights have been the 'trio' of surgical procedures we've had: Joel - 2nd knee surgery since Thanksgiving (for the same thing), Breezy - emergency surgery to remove all kinds of fun stuff from her tummy, and Laney's ear tubes. I think those were all within 2 weeks??

Poor Joel never apparently healed from the first torn meniscus - or it never actually was fixed. Either way, he had another surgery to repair a pretty major tear in his left knee. Breezy threw-up everything she had eaten and then some for 4 hours and then didn't eat for 4 days. After an initial vet trip and meds, we ended up at the ER on a Saturday afternoon and she was taken in for emergency surgery that night. 30 stomach staples later, she's good as new! (don't look if you have a weak stomach. this is Breezy's tummy with her staples.) I was amazed at the 12 inch incision and amount of staples. Luckily, the damage was only to the stomach and no other organs. Laney had the most minor of them all - about a 10 minute procedure to put in tubes in both ears. I was feeling a little guilty as she hadn't had an ear infection in a month - thinking maybe we were rushing this, etc... but the ENT said she actually had one the day tubes went it. Second thought... glad we did it. My sweet baby has been through too many antibiotics already! She got over her last round of congestion MUCH better.

Throw in lots of rodeo (working and attending), lots of running, washer breaking and flooding utility room, many fun birthday parties, MMOYC events, and potty training (though we are soooo close! several days with no accidents), some colds and a stomach bug... and, well, that's March. It's been fun (maybe 'entertaining' is a better word), but I am hoping April is very uneventful!

I am happy to write that everyone is healing nicely and back to normal routines. And... I have never been so happy to wash clothes! I met some wonderful people on my rodeo team this year, and it really made the hours go quickly. We have loved the recent round of great weather and are staying outdoors (and away from ERs) as much as possible.

A few pictures...Hayden and Carter on the tractor

Watching the ponies

My new secretary

The Birthday Bug... A Bit Belated!

Laney's birthday seems so long ago now! The first year has gone by so much faster this go 'round.

This time last year...


And now...

We celebrated Laney's actual birthday with our Thursday play group gang. They are really Carter's friends, but Buggy has been with them from about 3 weeks on, so I guess they're her friends, too! I tried out my ladybug cupcakes on the boys before I made them for the family party. The kids didn't have school that day, so we met earlier and had lunch as well.

Saturday evening, we had family and a few of Laney's little friends over to celebrate. She had a big time, and it was great to see everyone again. Several folks in from out of town (thank you!), and the "little girls" were all able to get together. There were 4 little girls born within weeks of each other in our Sunday school class. Three, actually in the same week (the 2nd, 4th, and 6th). It is always fun to see them together. I, as usual, saved too much stuff for the day of the party, but we were able to pull it off! We had Double Dave's pizza rolls, salad, fruit, and lots of yummy treats.

A few pictures from the party...

Laney is the happiest baby. I don't say that just because she's mine. She is literally the happiest child I've ever been around. She is always smiling and laughing. I can't tell you how many people have commented on it. Pretty funny, really. I even had the receptionist at the pediatrician's office ask me if we were in the right waiting room because Laney looked 'too happy' to be sick.

This little girl LOVES her daddy and LOVES her brother. Along with Carter and Breezy (Scooter is usually asleep somewhere), she races to the door when daddy gets home. She is also really playing the role of 'little sister' well with Carter these days! It's so entertaining!! We have nicknamed her 'Little Sister Project Wrecker.' As much as they can annoy each other, no one can make her laugh like he can. He is pretty protective of his sister, and Carter loves to help me with her still. He makes sure she is taken care of.

I didn't think she was ever going to crawl. Ever. But, she finally started right before her birthday. She has gone from nothing to walking in between furniture in just a matter of weeks. She wants to take off and walk, but her little legs just haven't figured it out yet. She's pretty quick on all fours though, and she took the stairs on her first attempt.

A little more about Buggy Pop:

She loves:

*to eat! and she prefers meat!!

*stick pretzels
*taking a bath (though sometimes she'll try to crawl out)

*cold weather

*to talk - she is pretty chatty!

*her pinkie - just like Carter's BB, only recognizable as a blanket! She likes to sleep on top of it.

* to play... with anything. She loves shoes (especially shoelaces), brushes, and phones. She will "brush" her hair and pretend like she's talking on the phone.

*GO, DIEGO, GO nothing else gets her excited like hearing the opening song. I know, I know... she shouldn't be watching TV. Easier said than done.

*to "read"

*to be on the go

She doesn't particularly care for:

* carrots

* getting her face cleaned off after meals

* cutting teeth :(

* ear infections

...um... that's pretty much it!

She is about 50-60%, so she's not too big, but I feel like she's wearing mostly 18 and some 24 months right now. 8 teeth are fully in, but 2 of her molars cut through a couple of weeks ago. I think the bottom ones are coming in now. We are going in on 3/9 for tubes as the ear infections were pretty frequent and just wouldn't heal. Guess that and her hair color are the only "genetic contributions" (to borrow a phrase from my cousin) that she got from me!

Laney babbles quite a lot, but she can consistently say: mama, dada, night-night, more (mo), ball (bawl), bye (with a wave), and usually dog (dow). She's really big into B's right now. When we go over a bump in the car, Carter and I will yell, "Bump, bump, bump!" And she will start repeating it. She will tell me 'No' by shaking her head or waving her hand and saying something that sounds more like 'na' - but you know what she means.

"Lala" has really stuck. Sometimes I'll call her Laney just so she'll know her real name! But... there are quite a few other we call her as well: Buggy, Buggy Pop, Lala Pop, Laners, Doodle Bug, The La, Baby Girl, Molly Mismatch (when she's in her random play clothes that don't match) - just to name a few.

----

Lord,

We thank you so much for our precious baby girl: for her smile, her funny little personality, her health, and everything in between. We are so grateful for the joy she continues to bring to our lives each day. Thank you for a family who loves her and a brother who is her best friend. I thank you for the "little friends" she is making and the relationships that are already beginning to form. I pray that you bless her with friends who love her for who she is and give her a spirit of gentleness, forgiveness, and loyalty so that she may be a friend to others.

Please equip us to bring her up in a way that is pleasing to you - to teach her your word and show her your love through us. Continue to work on Joel and me as parents and give us the wisdom and patience we needed daily to be all we can be for our daughter.

Thank you for picking the perfect children for us, for teaching us daily about unconditional love, and for the privilege of being parents. How fun it's been to celebrate Laney's first year.

In your Son's precious name we pray...