Oh the Places They'll Go

Summertime is Fading Fast

2012-08-30T12:52:00.000-04:00

Although the weather doesn't show it, fall is soon upon us and it's filling up fast! Almost every Saturday in September is already booked! And Emma has a jam packed school year lined up with 3 days of preschool, soccer and ballet. She's already talked about how she is doing basketball next. We've had a busy last few weeks and not sure if I can remember everything! At the beginning of August, Justin and crew came to stay for a few days and Emma was so excited to see Jansen again (poor Collins and Luke just get left out, but pretty soon they will be right there in the mix with them!)
Emma and Elle had their first little dance camp and Emma was beyond excited to go and had a BLAST! As soon as it was over, she started asking when she got to go back. We went to see Courtney at their new house one day and spent a few hours at the pool. We had a "peaceful" lunch and it ended with a nice sticky lemonade shower from Jansen's busted cup. Neither of us know how it happened, but all of a sudden Courtney and I felt a gush of liquid on our legs and had no idea where it was coming from. Finally, I realized Jansen had a huge hole in her cup and her lemonade was spewing everywhere! A poor, super preggo girl had to sop up all the mess and we bolted out of there!
The following week we were headed to meet at the mall for a little shopping and lunch. Unfortunately, other plans were to be had. As I was headed into the parking lot to meet Courtney, a woman side swiped us on the passenger side. Luckily, no one was hurt and the kids really didn't have an idea what happened. Although, Emma started saying she was scared after I told her the car had a boo-boo when she asked why we weren't moving. Aunt Courtney took Emma and her girls to do some shopping, while Luke and I stayed back with Matt to get everything sorted out. (I owe you one Court!) Two and a half hours later, we finally met them for lunch at Chipotle. I swear there should be cameras following Courtney and I around when we get together with the kids. We sat in a circular booth and the children turned into wild monkeys. They were sitting on the ledge of the booth, in and out of a high chair, two rounds of spilled chocolate milk, and of course rice ALL over the place! We were both more than exhausted when we left.
Emma had a soccer clinic at Wake last Friday and she was super pumped to go. I swear this child had never ran this much in her life. It was an hour and a half of non-stop moving and running. She came over a few times towards the end and said "I'm tiiired!!" "I just can't keep up!" and "I'M HUUUUUNGRY!!!!" She was worn out when it was over and scarfed her dinner down that night. Monday was her first team practice and it was a hot practice. Emma was losing steam at the end and did not want to finish, but she managed to stick around until the end and said she had fun.
Luke is thisclose to being a full time walker. He just moves SO fast on those little knees of his and he knows it. Why would you wobble walk when you could move 10x's as fast on your knees? But he takes 6-7 steps at a time. Today, for the first time, he was walking and fell and instead of just crawling he got back up twice and continued walking. He may not be walking fully, but he is a full on climber, that's for sure! He is also a jabbering fool and can say several words. He can say Mommy, Dada. Sissy, Emma, Bebba (Bella and he says it every time any dog barks), Uh-oh, bye-bye, and a few more I can't remember! He also loves giving hugs and hugs Emma all day long! They are getting better about "playing" together, although Luke seems to annoy her more often than not. But that's what little brothers are for, right?? Emma's personality is growing bigger than she is everyday. She's a smart little cookie and isn't afraid to say what's on her mind! Since Elle has started kindergarten, she has become fascinated by it and asks me almost every day what she has to count to before kindergarten. I told her 100 and she said "I can do that. 100 hundred! See!!" And then today she asked what she had to count back from and I told her she had to count from 100 backwards. She paused for a minute and then goes, "Watch this Momma" she then proceeds to turn around and says "100 hundred" She turns back around and said "I did it" Ohhh man, teenage years are going to be brutal!!

Lovin that sucker!

This happened, literally, right behind me!

So excited for ballet!

Getting brave

Emma reading a story

Soccer time!

Told you he was a climber!!

Different Dynamics

2012-07-24T10:16:00.003-04:00

I've always heard that no two kids are the same-even siblings-just like no two pregnancies are the same. Let me be the first to say, I believe both statements100%. Emma and Luke favor each other, in looks, very much. Thankfully Emma was always in pink as a baby because, looking through pictures, it would be hard to tell who was who sometimes. We are VERY fortunate that we have always had GREAT sleepers and I don't wish it any other way! That, however, is about where their similarities end. A lot has to do with the fact that they are opposite sexes, and I also think Luke being a preemie has made him a lot different too.
Emma slept in our room from the minute she came home until she was 8 months old. She refused her bottle at 9 months and started solely on a sippie cup. She did not want to drink anymore milk, so I was literally making scrambled eggs with formula and throwing a little on top when they were ready. I had to do some crazy things to get more formula and fat in her-oatmeal with four scoops of formula and a whole lot of butter anyone?? She did love her baby food though, she started eating cereal and baby food from six months to a little after her first birthday. She has the exact same eating habits as me-if she's doing something else or busy playing, she is not thinking about food. Most days I have to drag her away from what she is doing to get her to eat lunch and dinner. She could really care less about food and eating-she has more important things on her mind! She's also a great snuggler and loves sleeping in our room (and let's be honest, we love having her in our room even though she needs to get out more!)
I know you are supposed to document EVERYTHING with your first baby, but I honestly can't remember when she started walking. I know she wasn't walking at her first birthday, so I'm assuming it was sometime around 14 months. She also loved to follow me around everywhere-if I left her sight, she came looking for me. And she loved (and still does!) me to hold her and carry her. She wouldn't just jump in other people's arms-she had to warm up to you for a bit first.
I know Luke is a boy, and they say boys are everywhere, and they mean everywhere! He is all over the place and so fast!! Luke began his adventure in this world slightly, ok let's be real-VERY, different than Emma. He knew early on that he needed to come join this party and no one was going to tell him otherwise. When he finally came home from the hospital, we started out having him in our room. He was the loudest sleeper EVER. He grunted and snorted and sounded like an old man pig. We moved him into the den in the pack and play and left our bedroom door open to hear him. Soon after he started sleeping in his own room and has been there ever since. He does not like having people in the room he's sleeping in. He has to be put to bed alone and as soon as he notices there is someone in the room with him-he is up and ready to go. Don't know if we'll be having slumber parties with him or not!
The second thing that stood out the most as a huge difference was having to set an alarm to wake up every three hours, in the middle of the night, to feed him. Normally, babies wake up on their own to eat, but with preemies you don't get that "luxury". That lasted until he was about 4 months old. Now-this boy is an eating machine! I honestly think he just loves eating-not so much food, but the actual act of eating. Anytime we go out to dinner, he literally eats from the moment we sit down until we leave the restaurant. And he will eat anything you put in front of him. He still LOVES his bottle and had zero interest in a sippie cup-another vast difference between the two! He will drink anything besides milk out of a regular cup with a straw. Try giving him a sippie cup with a straw and he wants no part of it! So frustrating sometimes, but it will happen! We also didn't give him very much baby food, mainly because we didn't want another Emma situation with the bottle. He stayed solely on his bottle until about 9 months-we gave him food to make sure he knew how to use a spoon-and then we started on "people food".
Another difference between them, is that he pays close attention to all of his surroundings. Emma is very observant and remembers a lot of stuff, but she didn't study people and things the way he does. It's almost like he doesn't want to fail in what he's trying to do-get a toy that got away, climbing up and down stairs....
We think this is how he's going to handle walking. He is a master at standing up on his own for about 10-15 seconds and just hanging out. He just started bouncing up and down while standing too-he's quite proud of it. Our thought is he is not going to take one or two steps for a while, but he's going to start walking and never stop! So, if he needs to take his time to figure it out, no complaints on this end!!
One wonderful thing they both have in common is their love for babies. Emma has always been obsessed with babies and every time she sees one, she asks me if she can touch them. Luke sees babies now and starts hollering to get close to them. I wouldn't change that trait for anything in the world. The "saddest" difference, to me, is the difference in the way they "need" me. As I said, Emma is my little shadow, she follows me everywhere. She always has to know where I am and if she can't see me, she comes to find me. She climbs up in my lap all the time and snuggles on the couch with me. Luke, on the other hand, doesn't have time for that. He's too busy running around and discovering new things. He will sit with Matt for a good while and just hang out, but not at all with me. I guess Matt would say now you know how I feel-I don't like it! So, those rare times he does cry out for me or comes to snuggle, for literally 3 seconds, I jump all over it. He also knows no stranger, he will go to anyone you try to hand him off too. If you want to feel loved, just hold him for a minute and he will be your best friend.
Although they may be very similar and different, at the same time, there is nothing about either of them I would change (except for maybe more snuggles from Luke!). They have both changed our lives and we are looking forward to all that's in store for us!

Let's Go on Vacation!

2012-07-05T15:54:00.002-04:00

We were invited to go down to the Lake with Michael and Heather for an entire week for the 4th. I have to say, I've haven't been this excited/ready for a vacation in a really long time! We were going to be gone for about 7 days-the longest all four of us have ever gone out of town at once. Since we were staying at a house that didn't have babies yet, I knew I was going to be packing a LOT of stuff. I tried to do the best I could to not over pack too much and stay really organized. Despite it taking an entire day, I was able to pack only what we REALLY needed and I have to say, I did a great job! We used/wore everything I packed! Too bad I'll probably never be able to do it again-ha! We got to the lake Friday night and set to work unpacking without taking over the whole house. Emma immediately spotted the pool and wanted to get in for a swim. Before we knew it, she was skinny dippin and having a great time!
We spent the next 5 days sitting by the pool, relaxing, reading, grilling out, and enjoying being away from "real life" for a few days. Emma quickly latched onto both Michael and Heather-always asking where they were and swimming with them any time they got in the pool. She has two new best friends now for sure. And since they are expecting a little boy in the fall, I think it's going to be hard to keep Emma away!

Summer is Here!

2012-06-09T15:34:00.001-04:00

Ok, so technically its not summer time, but around here it is! Emma's last day of school was right before Memorial Day, but before that was her program at school. We have been practicing and practicing for weeks her song. She would only tell us one song, although I knew there were more! Almost everyday she would sing it for us. When the day was here, we were anxious to see how she would do. Last year, she was distracted by a hangnail and tuned out for most of the program. This year, all her nails were checked and we were ready! As I thought, she was supposed to sing three songs. The first two she acted a little bored and didn't get too into them. But when that third song came on, she was ready. She sang as loud as she could and made all the hand movements and had a great time. Elle did a great job with her songs as well.
Fast forward a few weeks and it's the end of May. Matt was down in Pinehurst for a few days and Emma asked for a slumber party with her mommy. Luke spent the night at Grandmommy's and Emma and I enjoyed a fun dinner at TJ's Deli. While we were eating, a little ballerina came in and Emma was amazed. She watched everything she was doing and asked me a million questions. She was talking all about how she was going to be a beautiful ballerina and all the twirls she would do. The dance studio she is going to this fall is right around the corner, so we drove by after dinner and she was even more excited. After dinner, we came home and put our jammies on. I popped some popcorn, got out the chocolate and climbed into bed to watch Alvin and the Chipmunks 2. Emma loved it so much that it ended and she wanted to watch it again-she fell asleep during the second showing.
Emma got to go to her first baseball game too! She was looking forward to popcorn and cotton candy. It was a perfect day for a game and we had seats out of the sun, so we were nice and cool. After about ten minutes, she was ready to go but we told her it wasn't over yet. She enjoyed going back inside to get lots of food-purple chocolate, donuts, hotdogs-you name it, they had it! The team they were playing had on green uniforms and Emma was paying a little bit of attention and started asking who we wanted to win. We told her the white one was our team, so she started cheering for the white team! Although they lost, we all had a great time and Emma didn't want to leave when it was over.
She and Elle have gotten to play together a lot so far, and are enjoying Emma's new Dora pirate ship and the pools and water table in the backyard. We have also made a few trips to the Elks Club and she loves playing in the Kids Room and looking at the ducks.
Today we were at Kari's parents house for Brandtson's first birthday party. I snuck out early to get a massage and we are planning on taking Emma and Elle to see Madagascar 3, or Alex, as Emma calls it.

We're Goin to the Beach!

2012-05-14T12:19:00.000-04:00

I feel like it's been a long time since I've blogged and I have a feeling it's going to get harder and harder to stay on top of this-but I'm not giving up yet!! Justin and Courtney were here for Luke's birthday in March and we talked about coming to see them in May for Jansen's 3rd birthday. Emma was BEYOND excited to go to the beach (I really don't think she had a full grasp on what the beach really was, though). We talked to Jansen at least once a week through facetime and Emma was growing more and more impatient to go see her and the beach. The day FINALLY arrived and I thought she was going to burst through her skin with excitement. Luckily, we got her a few new movies to watch in the car and the three-ish hours went off without a hitch, for the most part. When we pulled into the drive-way, Emma immediately starts asking where the beach was. Soon enough little lady, soon enough! It only took about 3 minutes, and Emma and Jansen were off running around all over the place. Saturday was Jansen's princess party and Emma woke up again asking to go to the beach and insisted on putting her bathing suit on. Everyone had a great time at the party-it was nice and warm, perfect for playing in the water! After the party was over and the house somewhat cleaned, we were headed to the beach!!
Emma squealed with delight when she saw the ocean and was so excited to get out and see it all. She doesn't like to sit inside her sand box, so we were curious to see how she reacted to the larger than life sand box. She did great! It took her a minute to realize she had to stand on it, but soon she was running around looking for seashells and making sand castles. Luke was a little squeamish when we plopped in down in the sand, but he quickly got over it. I really didn't think Emma would be too keen on the water, but she shocked me! She fell in love with the water and didn't want to get out, even when her teeth were chattering and lips were blue. Luke thought it was the funniest thing he had ever seen and squealed every time a wave came. Needless to say, the kids loved the beach and had a blast!
J and C live in a great, kid friendly neighborhood. After the kids ate dinner, a few older girls came over and played with Emma and Jansen outside for over an hour and we enjoyed a little quite inside :)
Sunday was Mother's Day, so Blair, Courtney and I headed to the beach for a little "gal time" and despite the chilly wind, enjoyed the beach before it got too crowded. Before we knew it, it was time to pack up to start the trek home. We (hopefully!!) got a few great pictures of the cousins before heading out to grab some lunch. Everyone had a great time and we can't wait to go back!!

Birthday Birthday Birthday Party!

2012-04-23T16:11:00.000-04:00

April is quite the birthday month in our family. There's at least five within a week of each other. This year, Elle turned five on a Thursday-not that significant, expect that Emma is in school that day as well. And it just so happened to be Muffins with Mom that morning. So, not only was it Elle's birthday, but Christine and I were able to go have breakfast with them. And, she had a cookie cake for snack, AND we were going to Chuckie Cheese! Talk about an All-Start fifth birthday! Christine had to get her wisdom teeth out after breakfast, so she couldn't make Chuckie Cheese. So, Grandmommy, Jen, Luke and the girls headed over after school. The girls-and Jen-had a BLAST! They were from one ride to the next and Emma loved riding this big horse ride. I think she rode it 6 times. We did manage to get them to stop long enough to scarf down two slices of pizza and some fruit juice before they were gone again. Two hours later, we were able to bribe them outside by promising a slice of cookie cake and Luke was loving it! He couldn't get enough of it and had a green face to prove it.
Friday afternoon, Emma headed over to Christine's for a slumber party!! She was looking forward to sleeping in Elle's bunk beds and making Princess and the Frog cupcakes. Saturday was Cindy's surprise birthday party and Matt was feeling up for the party, so we all headed out to their house. Cindy was VERY surprised to see everyone at her house waiting to celebrate with her. Emma was loving playing with Marley and they ran around the whole night. There were disposable cameras people were to use to take pictures and they held two of them all night. Marley did manage to take a few pictures, but Emma had the camera backwards and if she had taken a photo, she would've blinded herself with a flash.
I swear Luke has a wooden leg. We arrived at their house around 5 and he had 6 ounces of milk, a little bit later he had an entire hot dog and cupcake, another 5 ounces of milk and before we left (around 9:30) he had 5 more ounces of milk. And that was only while we were at the party! He sees food and just needs to eat it-ha.
Sunday was Elle's birthday party and we went to see Arietteye at Market Place theater. After the movie, we had "dinner" reservations at 4 at a Japanese restaurant. We had some time to kill, so we went to the dollar store and the girls were going crazy picking out all kinds of random things they wanted. Christine and I finally realized we had to get out of there, fast! Dad, Lisa, Brooke and Sandy were able to come eat with us and we all had a good time. The fire was a big hit and they did a great job at making Elle feel special on her birthday. Once again, Luke scarfed down 10 ounces, a plate full of noodles, rice and bananas. He even managed to attack a cupcake when we weren't looking. Emma is not much of a fan of rice or Japanese food, so she had a ridiculously blue smurf drink and then a pb&j when we got home.

Happy Easter!

2012-04-14T21:57:00.000-04:00

We seem to get super excited when it's our child's first holidays-Christmas, Halloween, Birthday. I'm finding out, though, that while the first ones are fun because they are new, the real fun starts when they get old enough to somewhat understand and they get excited about holidays. We started talking up the Easter Bunny and Egg Hunts with Emma a few weeks before Easter. She had fun having egg hunts around our house and was SUPER excited about going to an egg hunt with Elle. We had been planning on taking them to the Lillie's Friends egg hunt for awhile and Elle came over Friday night for a sleepover. When we got up Saturday morning, it was cold and rainy!! So we took our time getting ready and out the door. We got to the ballpark around 10:15 and the sun decided to come on out! The egg hunt was more like an egg dash and you had about 30 seconds to stuff your bag with eggs. Emma was DYING to get in there and grab the eggs, but had to wait a little bit. When they said go, she kinda freaked out and didn't want to do it. I had to start shoveling eggs in her bag and she just stood and watched. Elle was up next and she didn't want to go either! I started shoveling eggs in hers too, and then Emma realized it was pretty fun and started scooping up some eggs. There was a place to get face paint and Emma usually shys away from stuff on her face, but she hopped right up in the chair and asked for a fairy princess. They had a great time playing in the bounce houses and Emma said later she wanted to go back to the fair-ha!
We were at brunch the next day and out of nowhere, Emma says she didn't believe in the Easter Bunny. Of course we started (silently) freaking out about that and tried to distract her from that thought.Even after about 20 minutes of hopeful convincing she was still saying there is no such thing as the Easter Bunny. She did say that Santa Claus brought the eggs-so at least we still had that! We have an Elf on the Shelf and we got an email from Santa saying there was an Easter Egg going on with all the elves and I think that's what helped convince her the Easter Bunny was, in fact, real.
Easter morning, we got up and Emma was excited to see that the Easter Bunny had come and there were eggs all over the house. She started running around grabbing all the eggs and shaking them to find out if there were candies in them. After checking out all her loot, we got ready and headed up to King for church and lunch. After we finished stuffing our faces, we were headed to Grandmommy's for round two! We got there just as everyone was eating; and we were all a little too full for food, but I managed to scarf down three Dewey's cake squares! We headed home around 8 and we all slept great that night!

Growin' Babies

2012-04-02T20:55:00.002-04:00

I remember growing up and hearing "old people" always saying how big my siblings and I were getting and how fast we were growing up. Little did they know, but I was NOT growing up fast, in fact, life was just creeping by. And I most certainly did not like being told how "big" I was when I was 14. Now, it seems it is more like little did I know. Time passes so fast, sometimes I can't believe just how fast it can go. I also remember when I was 10, 12, heck even 20, and thinking 29 is SO OLD!!! Being 29, and dreaming about 29, is two totally different worlds entirely. Twenty nine is not, in fact, old anymore. Instead, 29 is almost like the cusp of my adulthood. Although, I am married with two kids, I still feel like we are just now establishing ourselves as adults. Matt has a great job, which has made me fortunate enough to be home with our children. We have a house, own two cars, life insurance, a will and a bunch of other "adult" things. Despite all that being said, having children allows you to relive all the great things we miss from our childhood. We can pass down the toys and games we loved to the next generation. We get to spend hours on the baseball fields again and have dance parties in our living rooms. I know that it's not possible; but I wish, somehow, we could help our kids enjoy and cherish every minute of their childhoods instead of wishing to be a little bit bigger.

All that being said, our little princess is....POTTY TRAINED!!! And let me tell you what, I do not miss buying all those extra diapers! It all started the day after Luke's birthday (Friday the 16th). She went to bed the night before in a diaper that was way too big and scratchy. She woke up that morning and needed a diaper change, we were out of diapers (hence the big and scratchy one) and she had to put one of the "yucky" diapers on. She literally burst into tears as I was putting it on her. I reassured her we would be getting Elmo ones really soon. I got a bottle ready for Luke and we were in the bonus room when, all of a sudden, Emma yells out she needs to go potty! She hasn't said that since...well, it's been a long time. So of course I jumped out of the chair, scooped up Emma and we raced down the stairs. I was more than half expecting nothing to happen, but all of a sudden-pee pee! I (we) was so excited and gave Emma a huge hug and started squealing how great she did. Immediately, she said "Now I get to wear big girl panties!!" Ummmm, that wasn't quite how it was going to work, but I didn't have the heart to tell her. She ended up wearing them to the grocery store, the mall, Dewey's and home without any accidents. Wheeew! I wasn't getting my hopes up though, and it's a good thing I didn't. She pooped in them a little later and was MORTIFIED!! She did NOT want to put panties or pull-ups on. She insisted on a diaper. I tried reassuring her it was ok and she could put on a diaper if she needed to poop. It's been a little over two weeks and she is doing great! I almost forget to ask her about needing to go anymore-she will poop and pee in the potty. She just won't wear panties. I think she is going to be more willing to once its summer and she doesn't wear a swim diaper at the pool. I am not complaining at all though! And we still treat the pull-ups like panties and she rarely goes in them.
Luke had his one year check up on his birthday and he is doing great. He weighs 18 pounds and is 29 inches long. Emma was only 15 pounds and 29 inches when she was a year old! We are done with formula (!!!!) and now dealing with getting him off the bottle and using the sippy cup-he HATES them! He likes his bottle and gets aggravated with those cups! Eventually he'll get it, we hope :o)

Look Who's One!!

2012-03-27T19:58:00.000-04:00

I am way late in writing this post-mainly because I have (thankfully!!) been swamped with making cute little rompers for a bunch of little guys Easter outfits. Now that Easter is almost here, I am a little more caught up but still staying busy and loving all the cute things people are asking me to make for their little cuties. Keep 'em coming!!
Anywho-our little guy turned one on the 15th and we were blessed with a-mazing weather! Emma and Jansen were Face Timing for a few weeks prior to Luke's birthday and loved "playing" hide and seek with each other. Emma was ecstatic that Jansen (and Uncle Justin, Aunt Courtney and "Baby" Collins) was coming for three days to play with her. That was all she would talk about and constantly asked when she was coming. When that Friday finally arrived, Emma was about to burst she couldn't take it much longer. They (finally!) arrived after lunch and Emma squealed and squealed when she saw their car pull up. Courtney and I were planning on taking the kiddos to the mall while the men played golf. The girls were going to ride the carousel and have some ice cream. Nana and Katelyn were able to come as well and everyone enjoyed some yummy ice cream. Papa and Blair came over for dinner and we all enjoyed pizza and wings and some Dewey's cupcakes for dessert.
Saturday was the big day-Luke's Thomas the Train party! Everyone started arriving around 2 and Luke was just hangin out, going from one Aunt to one Grandma to one cousin and making everyone laugh. Soon it was cake time!! We had Linda make his cake and she did a fantastic job! She has made all of Emma's cakes and it's always the talk of the party. Luke was dying to get his hands on some cake and wasted no time diving into his train cupcake. He made a nice little mess and enjoyed every bite that made it into his mouth.
After Daddy gave him a bath it was present time! Being that we have a three year old daughter, we have a LOT of pink in our house. Thanks to older cousins, we've inherited a nice little collection of "boy toys". His collection definitely grew after this birthday! And no first birthday would be complete without a handmade toy box from Uncle TayTay-once it's painted I'll post a picture of it.We are so thankful for all our friends and family that were able to celebrate Luke's first birthday with us.

A Shower We'll Never Forget

2012-03-06T15:54:00.001-05:00

Sunday March 6, 2011-Luke's First Baby Shower-9 weeks and 4 days before my due date

"Kari and Brooke were sweet enough to throw us a baby shower for Luke and I had been looking forward to it for a long time. Elle was spending Saturday night with us and I thought it would be cute for the girls to have matching dresses to wear. That Sunday morning started out like any other Sunday, the girls woke up and had donuts and chocolate milk for breakfast. They got to play for a little while before we all took baths to get ready for the shower at 2. We arrived at Brooke's house a little after 2 and I was feeling good. Around 3:15 I was standing talking to a few people when I felt a pop and fluid. I ran to the bathroom thinking my water broke. Instead of fluid, I saw a lot of blood. I grabbed Matt and we immediately left for the emergency room. After what seemed like an eternity, we were able to hear Luke's heartbeat and knew he was ok. I spent the next four days getting tests done and not learning a real reason as to what exactly happened. Now the doctors think my placenta partially abruptured; which basically means if I'm bleeding at all I can't go home. Being in the hospital hasn't been completely unbearable because Matt has been able to stay with me. The hardest part, for both of us, is not being able to see Emma. She spent most of Saturday at the hospital with us and it really helped my spirits. I feel like she has grown so much in a week!! Right now we just have to take it day by day and hope Luke can cook as long as possible!"

I stole that from my other blog-although I guess it's not really stealing when it's your own work! I didn't need to go and track down that first insert to remind myself how this day went a year ago, because I remember it like it was yesterday. I still remember how good I was feeling that day, how glad I was to see everyone that was able to come to the shower, how cute Emma and Elle looked in their matching dresses, Roger and my Dad trying to read the directions to put one of Luke's toys together, the yummy food, and of course the "pop" that forever changed that day and our lives.
If there's one thing people know about babies and pregnancy's, its that the baby needs to stay put until at least 36 weeks. Everyone longs for that due date to hurry up and get there already (especially that last month!!) Although it's just a strong guess, every woman sees that due date as the finish line. If I can just make it to that day, life will go on! I have a lot of things to do, but I have to get it done by that day. If that baby is stubborn and doesn't want to come on that day, it's disappointing. VERY disappointing. And every day, hour, minute after until that baby gets here is pure torture. The end result is well worth it-a beautiful baby that you created with your husband (or boyfriend, or friend, or secret lover....) And a few days after they arrive, you get to take that nerve wracking first ride home with that sweet little person and start the no sleep journey!
But for those of us who never make it to the finish line, it's an entirely different story. Instead of feeling as ready as you can; having all the supplies you think you need-only to realize you did NOT need that wipe warmer but DID need 30 more sets of diapers! Your bag is packed and repacked, the car seat is set up, the phone tree is organized, after 25 outfits you've finally picked the ever important "going home" outfit out. Now, you're just waiting on baby-instead, you get thrown off guard. That little person inside of you says, "Hold on a minute, I'm not sitting here waiting for YOU to get ready, I AM ready and I'm ready now!!"
Thankfully, we live 10 minutes from two great hospitals and when our son said he was ready to party, we didn't have far to travel to keep him safe. Although, the ride there was a little questionable! He did his best to hold on for us, but he knew enough was enough. So on March 15th-8 weeks before he was due-his journey began at 3 pounds 14 ounces and 17.5 inches long!
We were very lucky that he (or should I say I, since I know he didn't get two nice shots in the rear!) got two doses of steroids two days before he was born so his lungs were able to handle breathing on his own. We were also very lucky that he was born completely healthy and we would have no health or developmental issues to worry about. Unfortunately, he was born a white male :o) Which meant that he was going to have a tough time figuring out how to eat, drink and swallow all at the same time. 26 days later he mastered that skill and has been growing strong ever since!! Now he's a grits lovin boy who will eat everything in sight!

Who doesnt love free??

2012-03-01T15:42:00.000-05:00

As some of you know, I have recently started sewing and monogramming. And I gotta say-I LOVE IT!!! It is so much fun coming up with cute little shirts and putting together outfits from a simple piece of fabric. Some of you also may know that it was sort of my husband's fault that I stumbled into all of this. First and foremost, I am a true southern girl. I love, love, love monograms. I would monogram my whole house if I could! My friends laugh at all the R's throughout our house-I think its some sort of addiction.
But anyways-after I had our little sass pot Emma, I knew a whole new world of monogramming had entered my life. I loved personalizing blankets, burp cloths, and any shirts or dresses I could find. I didn't, however, love paying $8-$10 every time I need her name or initials on something. So, I did what any woman would do. I begged and begged my husband for an embroidery machine. I showed him all the cute little shops on Etsy and told him I could even start my own shop and bring in a little extra mula (which, let's be real, just furthers my addiction!) He finally agreed it would be a good Christmas present. Well, that was that. I had 4 looooong months to day dream about my embroidery machine.
Anyone that knows my husband knows his OBSESSION for the Redskins. For Christmas, last year, I found a cute Redskins shirt for Emma. I quickly snatched it up and Emma got it from Santa. Shortly before the first game of the season, I thought about how cute it would be for Emma to have a matching skirt since she refuses to wear pants. Luke already had two Redskins outfits, I had a shirt, and of course Matt had tons of gear. I hadn't tried to sew since I "made" a few aprons 3 years back. I use the term made loosely, because I basically picked out the fabric and struggled to cut the pattern pieces out while my mom did the rest. I found a super easy skirt on-line that I figured I could master. I found some Redskins fabric at the fabric store, got some advice at the fabric store, borrowed my friend Kari's machine and supplies and I was off! Or, so I thought! Turns out, I should not have listened to that advice because I ended up making a toddler sized hoochie skirt! Emma was squeezed into it and literally couldn't walk in it! Luckily, I had enough fabric to try again a few days later with my mom's help. Had I not listened to the lady at the fabric store, my first attempt would've been more of a success.
After making that skirt, I started thinking about all of the great things I could make for Emma and Luke and what fun it would be to have them in things that I put together! Thus, my love for sewing was born! I'm still learning a lot, but I'm having a great time along the way!
Now onto the free stuff! I would really love to have this "hobby" of mine grow into something more. That's where you come in! What's the easiest (and cheapest!) form of advertising? Word of mouth!! I have a shop on Etsy My Shop and a page on Facebook Mamas Tiny Monkeys Right now, I'm offering a chance to win a free monogrammed shirt of your choice (can be for you, your child, niece/nephew, friend, neighbor, etc....) After I reach 70, I will pick a winner at random. All you have to do is go to my Facebook page and "Like" it. That's it! Super easy, right?? And if you already "Like" it, simply "Like" the contest post and you are entered in the drawing! Hopefully you'll look around a bit and maybe find something you'll love for your child (or niece/nephew, friend, well you get the idea!)

It's Bowl Time!

2012-02-28T11:28:00.003-05:00

Every year, Matt's company has a bowling event for Big Bothers/Big Sisters. We thought it would be fun to bring Emma along and she insisted on having Elle over for a sleepover, so we knew this could get interesting!! All morning long, Emma was pestering me to go pick up Elle and go bowling. I don't think she really understood what bowling was, but she was dying to go! We finally picked up Elle and we were on our way. When we got there, the girls had their own lane and we put the bumpers up. They were both more excited about the shoes than anything. Unfortunately, Emma's foot was too small to fit in them so they looked like clown shoes. Emma went first-of course I missed the shot with my camera! After she finished, she ran over to the seats to put her own shoes on. Elle went next and had a blast flinging the ball down the lane. Emma's turn was up again and before she would bowl, she had to put the other shoes (and socks!) back on. The girls only lasted about three times and then they just ran around screaming and chasing each other. They had a pretty good time despite the lack of bowling!

Like the matching skirts?? :o)

Let it Snow!

2012-02-23T10:09:00.002-05:00

This has been a mild and warm winter with no complaints from this gal! Matt, however, loves cold weather and snow-and when I say love, I mean gets just as excited as a school kid who spends the entire day outside playing in it. Friday night, he started hollering about snow coming on Sunday. I just smiled and nodded. Sunday morning, all that was talked about was when it was going to start snowing. It FINALLY started around 3, and by 5 Matt had woken Emma up to show her the snow. The flakes were still small and there was a light dusting on the ground. Matt asked her if she liked the snow and she said "It's not snowing, it's raining, Daddy!!" There was a little "argument" about it and Emma wasn't convinced it was snowing. Matt had to run out for a minute and while he was gone, the flakes started getting bigger and sticking more (total about 3 inches!!). After Emma started seeing all of that, she was finally convinced that it was snowing. She started getting just as excited as Matt and begging to go outside. I had to dig around in the attic for almost 20 minutes to round up snow gear. But, I managed to find it all and get the babies bundled up for the snow. Emma was all over the place and wanted to make snowmen and snowballs. Luke was itching to get down and play in it all, but I couldn't find his snow pants so he just had to watch and taste a little. Matt and Emma stayed outside until Emma's hair was soaked and her face was bright red.
Because it was so warm Saturday, that when we woke up Monday morning most of the snow was melted off the roads. There was still a good amount in our front yard, so Emma was able to play a little more. We dragged out the wagon and took a little stroll in the neighborhood before Matt headed to work.
Emma was destined to be a snow baby from the start-she was born on a snow day and has seen snow every year since.

Emma Talk

2012-02-17T19:46:00.001-05:00

I've got a lot of these today!!

It was bedtime and Emma was sleeping in our room. The TV was on and she said Can I just close one eye and keep the other eye open?

We were going to the movies and she said Bella couldn't go because she doesn't have a body, she has a tail.

She randomly turns to me and says I'm sad Mommy, I'm not happy because I want to watch Wonder Pets.

She had her little New Testament Bible in her hand and said With this ring, I thee Wed.

Runs around the house saying Come on cowboy yeeeeeeeehaaaaaaaaaaw

Emma got a box of Double Stuffed Oreos for her and Elle to eat. I hear Elle saying I wish there was more icing. I said Elle, they're double stuffed-you can't get more icing than that! She said Emma gave her the top of her cookie!

Won't ever wear pants because they are too "loose" and dresses are for princesses.

Some of Emma's favorite songs are "Drink in my Hand" Eric Church, "Red Solo Cup" (She calls it the party song) Toby Keith and "Family Traditions" Hank Williams

Has her princess wand and points it at people and things and says ZAAAP

Says-What do you say? When she's meaning to ask What did you say?

Tinker Bell Party

2012-02-08T13:18:00.000-05:00

After all the excitement that Emma's actual birthday brought her, we knew she would be in for a treat at her party. She woke up ready to rock and roll on Saturday. It was very yucky-wet and cold-outside, but we weren't going to let that spoil the party mood! Since I did a lot of prep work Friday, I didn't have to run around like a crazy person all morning. Although, Matt did get stuck at Party City for 45 minutes! Everyone started arriving around 2 and Emma was SO excited to see everyone! When she saw the presents piling in, she begged and begged to open them. But once she saw the cake-that was all she cared about! We were able to distract her for a little while and she was having a great time with Elle, Marley and a new favorite friends, Cassidy, in her room. Cake time brought everyone running and screaming out of Emma's room and presents kept them out a little longer. Christine gave Emma four pairs of princess shoes-enough for every girl to have a pair- and Emma hasn't taken them off since! She also got a Cinderella dress she insisted on putting on right away. I've never seen so many princess bags and toys than what are now in our house! Papa gave Emma the movie Big and had a special surprise he left in his car-the piano! Emma was so excited when I opened it and put the batteries in-I could hardly snap her picture she was running so fast. And Uncle Taylor made her the cutest rocking chair that I am going to paint pink with a brown E and make a cute cushion for her to sit on. All in all, I'd say we all had a pretty good time!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Emma!!

2012-02-04T21:17:00.001-05:00

Emma is every bit a girlie girl. She loves, and I mean, LOVES everything princess and pink. Her room is filled with everything pink and when she picks out a toy-its pink, princess or fairies. When it came time to pick out her birthday party stuff, I thought it might be hard for her to decide between Tinker Bell and Disney Princesses. She was saying that she wanted a Tinker Bell party, but when we got to Party City, she fell in love with the Princesses. It took about 10 minutes for her to finally choose Tinker Bell-she was a little confused when we didn't have the party that day, but it eventually sank in.
We told Emma, on her birthday, that she could eat and do whatever she wanted all day because it was her birthday. I knew there would be lots of sugar involved and probably a mall trip. I just didn't realize how much sugar! She told Matt that she wanted pancakes for breakfast, Krispy Kreme for lunch, horsies and ice cream at the mall and McDonald's for dinner. We woke her up on her birthday with chocolate chip and sprinkle pancakes with a 3 made out of icing. She wasn't too interested in waking up until she saw the candle and then she was excited.
Matt left for work after pancakes and Luke woke up for breakfast and they played a little before his first nap. While he napped, she dined on a snack of sour Airheads and Dr Pepper and watched Calliou on my Kindle while I prepped foods for her party.
We met Matt at Krispy Kreme for lunch and she enjoyed a pink and white sprinkle donut with her Krispy Kreme hat. Luke had some donuts too! After lunch, we went to the library,or to everyone else, Barnes and Nobles. She got a free cupcake and picked out a Strawberry Shortcake book. I snuck in a Pinkalicious book (ladies with girls, you need to check those books out!). After about two hours in there, we were ready to head home.
Matt was able to make it home early and Luke was spending the night at Nana and Pop Pop's house. Before dinner, Emma got her first haircut!! She was so good too, she sat still and held her head down. She actually did better than a lot of adult clients I've done in the past. She also got a Face Time call from her cousin Jansen and Aunt Courtney and Uncle Justin. She had fun talking to her for a little bit and asked us later where Jansen got her cold from. The random things kids remember!
After Luke left, Emma decided she wanted Chick Fi-La for dinner. She spent most of the time watching the kids in the play area. We managed to get her to eat one chicken nugget and the she wanted an ice cream cone!
After dinner, we made a pit stop at Target to get her present from us. We came to the decision to buy our three your old an iPod. Trust me, I know how crazy that sounds. But, if you saw the way she maneuvers around and loves our iPhones, you'd understand. There are plenty of games she loves that are geared just for her and the movies she likes to watch are only available on You Tube because they are so short. So, Matt convinced me this was better than the Leap Frog pad. A few weeks prior, Matt and Emma were at Target and she picked out a white one with a cute pink case.
When we got home, Matt got it all set up and then wrapped it for her. She sat on the couch waiting to open her present and we think she was a little in shock when she saw it. Until she realized that it was all hers, it hadn't fully set it what it was. She literally fell asleep with it on in her hands. Safe to say she loves it!

Just blew out her birthday pancake candle!

Yummy pancakes!!

Mid-morning snack

Lunch at Krispy Kreme

First haircut!

Mmmm ice cream

Falling asleep with her iPod

Beauty and the Beast

2012-01-31T10:03:00.000-05:00

The 24th is Matt's birthday and we had people over to help him celebrate. It wasn't really a surprise, but with everything that had been going on, it kind of slipped his mind. So he was happy to see everyone showing up at our house that night.
I love Disney movies; especially The Lion King, Aladdin, The Little Mermaid and my favorite is Beauty and the Beast. I was super excited when they re-released The Lion King, but bummed to find it only in 3D and knew Emma was too young for that. So, I was even more excited when Beauty and the Beast came out in 3D and in non-3D. On the way to the theater, Matt said he couldn't tell who was more excited, me or her. I think it's safe to say we both had a really fun time!

Taking a ride in her car before the movies

Helping Daddy park the car

Picking out her candy-M&M's and Sweet Tarts!

Enjoying some popcorn too

Those of you who know Emma, know that she HATES getting or being dirty. She does not want anything on her hands, face or clothes. So, I've never really worried about her drawing on herself or her clothes. Guess I was wrong!

Daddy reading Emma a story in her new Big Girl Bed!!

Taking a stroll through Target with Daddy!

He's getting so big!

Emma said they were going to the beach

Scary Times-but we're all alright!

2012-01-27T22:22:00.003-05:00

We've had quite the week around here! Matt headed out to Wisconsin last Monday for work and Emma headed to a sleepover at Grandma's with Elle. Luke and I got to spend a little time alone together and he even got to sleep in the big bed with his Mama! We picked up Emma Tuesday afternoon and came home for naps. Luke went down from around 3-until almost 8. I made him his bottle and was preparing to climb in bed with both kiddos for a movie and popcorn. Those plans changed after I opened Luke's door and got him out of bed. He had big red spots on his face and my first thought was that he slept funny. I noticed his bright red ears next and thought double ear infection. After a closer look, I found red spots all over him and his lips were purple-and thought chicken pox! I wasted no time calling the doctor and they called back about the time I finished feeding him. She told me I needed to take him to the emergency room. I immediately sprang into action-I called Matt to let him know what was happening. Then, I called my grandmother to have someone come watch Emma, and I then called my parents to see if they could meet me at the hospital. I packed a bag, changed Luke's clothes, let the dog out, set the TV up for Emma and changed my own clothes in about five minutes. I did my best not to seem to frazzled and let Emma know anything was wrong and helped her get excited about aunt Jen coming over. After three long hours in the ER we learned that he probably had a severe viral reaction and a few doses of steroids should clear him right up. Matt was able to make it back early the next morning and we went to his doctor to see what she thought. She agreed that it was probably just a viral reaction and the steroids would help. If they came back after a week, it would most likely be an allergic reaction to something. Then we would have to start the look journey of finding out what he's allergic too. .Thankfully, those nasty bumps never came back.

Despite all the bumps, all the nurses and doctors said how handsome he was!

Beep Beep!!

2012-01-16T21:35:00.003-05:00

Luke got a Little Tikes Cozy Coupe car for Christmas from my parents and it even came with its own trailer! Emma got a pink one (no trailer) for her birthday last year and loves it, so we knew he needed one too. We left it in the box for a little while after Christmas, because we literally had nowhere to put it. Once the Christmas tree came down and we got Luke's room and the rest of the house back in order, I decided it was ready to come out of the box! So the other day, while Luke was napping and Matt was at work, Emma and I attempted to put it together. As soon as it came out of the box, Emma immediately wanted to get it in and ride it. I told her she had to wait until I was done putting it together. Once I finally finished it (after about 100 "Are you done nooooow??" from Emma), Emma hopped right in and took off all over the house. Now mind you, Emma has the EXACT same car-but she did NOT want to get out of that car. I asked her which one she liked better and her immediate response was this one! We reminded her that the red one was Baby Luke's and she seemed to understand that. Guess even plastic cars have that "new car charm" Luke did like his ride around in the trailer, too!

Emma Talk's and Lukie Laugh's

2012-01-09T12:21:00.001-05:00

Remember how I said that Emma was getting a little sassy? Well, it is coming out even more! She is almost three going on 13, I swear! She is getting more and more feisty everyday and trying her best to see just how far her limits are. She has never had a discipline problem or really spent much time in time-out. She usually does what she's asked without a lot of fuss. But now, she is quick to get that little "Uhhhhh Moooom!!" and it freaks me out! Ha-maybe she'll get it all out before she's thirteen (hey, a Mom can dream, right??)

She is obsessed with the iPhone and wanted me to do something for her on it and apparently I wasn't quick enough and I told her to relax for a minute and she told me "Just calm down. Take a deep breath and calm down"

If she wants something that we aren't sure she can have, she'll say "Please, don't let me down!!"

I told her she was getting chicken nuggets from McDonald's and she starts licking her lips and said "Mmmm, that'll be sweet!"

Call whipped cream white frosting

She was being a little too sassy and told her she needed to drop the smart talk or it's time out time. She went and sat on the steps and I asked her what she was doing and she said she was sitting there because I had an attitude.

Oh, and did I mention she still loves sleeping in her shoes and will ONLY wear dresses everyday

Luke says "Hey Dada" all the time-where's the love for Mommy??

I went to get Luke out of his crib the other morning and I opened the door and hear "heeey" and see this for the first time!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-07T15:20:00.000-05:00

So, it has been a little while since my last post-I'm still trying to recover from Christmas and get all the toys put away and rearrange pretty much my whole house! I have to say, it is AMAZING how much more stuff there is with another person here. He has no idea what toys are his or sometimes if he's even playing with a toy. But he sure has a lot to choose from, that's for sure. Emma's birthday is right around the corner and then (gasp!!) it'll be time for his first birthday. So our house will once again become a madhouse with me trying to find space for everything!
We have a bonus room in our house, that never really got used much before I started sewing. It's split into two "parts" because the stairs come right up the middle. So on one side, I made room for all my new gadgets. The other side had random, unused pieces of furniture and some junk. After Christmas, it became impossible for me to put all of Emma's stuff away in her room. So after a few hours of rearranging, I was able to create the perfect little playroom for them! We can all be upstairs and I can work on projects on one side and Emma gets to find "new" toys all over again!
I found a yumm-o recipe on pinterest the other day-here's a link for the recipe Tater-Tot Casserole It is so good and you must try it soon! It is perfect for when you don't want to put much thought (or money!) into dinner and the kids will love it too!
Oh-and in case you were just dying to know-we spent New Year's at home eating waaay too much junk and having fun as a family!

Christmas Time!

2011-12-27T22:43:00.003-05:00

I've said it at least 10 times and I'll say it one more time-this holiday season has FLOWN by! I can't believe how fast it was Thanksgiving and getting our tree, to already over and time for birthdays (Matt, Emma and Luke!) We started out the holiday season planning on cutting back a little and I swear there were twice as many presents under the tree than last year.
Christmas Eve was spent getting ready for our annual dinner with Roger, Katelyn, Blair, Mom, Rob, Elle and Christine. Matt decided that we should have filets for dinner and he got the biggest ones I've ever seen! Christine and Elle came over that morning to let the girls decorate some gingerbread cookies. I wish I had gotten a few pictures because it was hilarious! Emma was having fun with the sprinkles and ate arms and heads off quite a few of the cookies before they were decorated. Matt had to run out for some last minute shopping while I got the house in order. Everyone came over around 6 and we had a few apps and then the main course of our amazing steaks. Emma was getting so excited for Santa (Matt said he saw him flying in the sky) but was so sleepy. She couldn't make it to the end of Christmas Vacation, so we put her to bed and got to work. Santa spoiled that little girl rotten and toys just kept coming out! Matt and I were both exhausted and went to sleep anxious for her reactions in the morning.
Christmas Day started with coffee and cinnamon rolls-then we peeked into Emma's room and she was passed out. Doodle-her Elf-left her a pink Barbie tree in her room and when she spotted it, she popped right up. She finally realized that Santa came and was anxious to see what she got. The first thing she saw was her princess tent, sleeping bag and flashlight-she ran over to them and wanted to climb in and zip it up. She played for a few minutes before we were able to co-horse her out and showed her everything Santa brought her. It was game on after that-there was present after present after present! Matt and I both kept saying how we didn't remember getting all these for her but she was loving opening them all. There were two things she had talked about for over a month-a car for her Barbie's and a set of 6 fairy dolls from the Tinkerbell movie. Every time we went to Target she would see them and talk about Santa bringing them for her. Of course, we saved those until the end and she squealed and squealed when she opened them and was so excited to play with them. Mom and Dad got a little spoiled too and we couldn't forget getting some things for Luke's first Christmas, although we knew he would've been just as happy with the wrapping paper.
Before we knew it, we were out the door headed to Nana's for lunch. There was more than enough food and then it was present time again! Emma was having a great time with Marley tearing into more stuff and didn't even care what the present was-she just liked opening things. She helped us open a few things too. Then it was time to head out to Grandma's house and everyone had already opened their presents by the time we got there. Although, the amount that was still under the tree just for us was a TON! Our finally stop was to Grandmommy's and at this point, Emma had opened so many presents she was starting to become less than impressed with doing anything other than just playing. She did play Candy Land for a few minutes with us.
Emma and Luke both fell asleep on the way home and when we arrived home to unload everything, they had both gotten a second wind and started playing with their many new toys. I don't think Emma still realizes everything she got for Christmas yet.

Christmas Eve Dinner

Trying to get a few family pics

Emma checking out her new princess flashlight and tent

She loves her new Dora ballerina dress

MORE presents!

Marley and Emma opening presents

Luke checking out his new toy

Emma's new dollhouse furniture from Taylor

Luke's new ride!

Emma taking it for a test drive

The pink tree from Doodle

Emma worn out on Christmas

Look at all that loot and the sad part is-it's not even all of it!

Luke loves his new exersaucer!

She Did It!

2011-12-21T15:56:00.000-05:00

Emma has a long distance love for Santa-meaning she loves him until she seems him up close in person. Santa has been at the mall since the beginning of November and we've asked her every time we go if she wants to sit on his lap. Her immediate response is "NO!" and we stop at that. Last year we weren't able to get a picture with her and Santa because she would never get close enough to him and we didn't want to push the issue. Santa came to school and she was so excited that he was there and started jumping up and down and saying "Santa! Santa!". When they went to see him, she froze and wanted no part of it. She did get brave enough to take a coloring book and candy cane from him, though. A week later, there was a pancake dinner with Santa at her school. We didn't have too many high hopes that she would sit with him, but I grabbed the camera just in case! Santa arrived and everyone was excited to see him-Emma wasn't even phased, she didn't want to go near him. We tried getting a picture with her sitting next to him, but she just wanted to get away. After all the kids spent time talking with him, Matt had an idea. He asked Emma if she would get a candy cane from Santa for him. She walked over and asked him for one and they started talking. This was our chance!! Matt said "Emma, why don't you get on Santa's lap and tell him what you want for Christmas." She climbed right up and started telling him what she wanted. Hopefully she won't forget that she likes him next year!

Christmas Spirit

2011-12-13T15:31:00.001-05:00

Anyone that knows Matt or I should know how much we love Christmas-sometimes borderline obsession. What's not to love about this time of year?? The trees, the lights, the decorations, Santa, trying to find those perfect gifts, Christmas music and movies, the food(!!), I mean I could go on and on. There's just something about the feelings that surround you this time of year that makes me long for it all year and when it's finally here, wishing it would never go away. This Christmas season has been a little harder for Matt to get into because of the warmer weather, but when those nights are chilly, he feels it a little more! We both knew how much more Emma would love this Christmas and how exciting Christmas morning will be-although I'm pretty sure Matt and I are going to be more excited seeing her reactions than she is. Of course, she hasn't found a toy she hasn't added to her list on a daily basis. We are doing our best to make sure she gets what she REALLY wants, but we somehow managed to go above and beyond our budget for her. No real surprise there though!
Emma is still pretty uneasy with Santa up close. She loves seeing him on TV and every time you talk about him, she gets super excited. It's the whole idea of sitting on his lap that makes her unhappy. She will just love him from afar another Christmas, I guess!
Christmas Eve, we will continue our tradition of having Roger and Katelyn over for dinner. This year, Mom, Rob, Christine and Elle will be coming as well. There will be lots of food and I'm sure a few pleas to open "Just ONE" present under the tree! Christmas Day will consist of Santa and cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Then, we will have to pry Emma out the door to head to three different grandparents houses.
Growing up, Christmas morning in our house always meant running and waking Mom and Dad to see what Santa brought us (we opened our other presents the night before after dinner) We always managed to have way to much candy for breakfast and then we headed off to Grandmommy's to load up on more goodies before having lunch and more presents at Grandma's house. Matt would have cinnamon rolls for breakfast and see what Santa brought at his house before he headed to King to spend the day with his family. Since we both have family in town, we want to make the trek to everyone's house so we can spend a little time with them all-even if we head home completely worn out!

Princess for a Day!

2011-12-07T14:22:00.001-05:00

This weekend, one of Matt's fraternity brothers got married. They asked Emma to be their flower girl and she (as well as us!) were so excited and honored that they wanted her apart of their special day. We spent a lot of time talking this day up and were a little worried about what actually may happen. We arrived for the rehearsal on Friday and she had just fallen asleep before we arrived. Needless to say, she was not in the best mood. The rehearsal was some what of a disaster. I couldn't leave her side and she kept wanting to go sit with Matt in the pews. We knew we had a lot of work in store! Matt and Katie (bride and groom) were both so sweet to Emma and told us, multiple times, that they were just so happy she was here she didn't have to do anything she didn't want. But we were determined! Some how, some way, we were getting her down that aisle. At the rehearsal dinner, she made friends with the four year old ring bearer and they had fun at dinner. Katie gave Emma a Cinderella Barbie and a LOT of dum-dums to bribe her a little more. She was so excited with the suckers and doll and quickly started liking Katie!
Emma is infatuated with Princesses and all things girlie. So I came up with the idea to start calling Katie a Princess and telling her she had to walk down the aisle so that Katie could walk to her Prince Charming. Emma quickly corrected me with that one, saying "Daddy is Prince Charming!!" Sorry!!
Emma was going to be wearing a beautiful white dress and looked like a mini-bride herself. We knew she would love the dress and looking like Princess Katie even more. Before we got to the church, we stopped at Target and Matt ran in for reinforcements. He found the perfect Tinker Bell Barbie, goldfish, fruit snacks and some M&M's-all her favorites! Emma did get a nap this time, unfortunately she woke up just as we were arriving and a little ill. It took a long time for her to settle down and I was convinced that I was going to have to run out of the Ladies Parlor with her kicking and screaming behind me. Matt was able to come up with one more idea-he promised her that if she walked down the aisle, she could play on the playground. Bingo!
I did finally manage to sneak out (I learned afterwards that she was completely fine after I left-go figure!!) I found Matt at a front pew armed with the goodies and we were ready. There was nothing to do at this point but pray she followed through. I can't tell you how nervous and anxious Matt and I were, waiting for her to appear. But then, there she was! And we both got a little emotional, but she was great!! She held hands with one of the maids-of-honor and walked with her flower ball (no petals allowed) and saw us and got really excited but continued walking to the front. She was sandwiched between Katie and the MOH. We couldn't always see her, but we saw her dress twirling from time to time. And I did manage to see her ask Abby when she could go to the playground :o)
After it was all over, we ran and found her and clapped and cheered and squeezed her telling her how proud we were. She was so happy to get Tinker Bell and couldn't wait to get to that playground!
For the rest of the night she would ask where the Princess was and wanting to go see Princess Katie. People would constantly come up to us and tell us how great she did and how impressed they were with her. They had NO idea the stress we felt and the relief when it was over!!