the reeds

Silly Girl

2013-01-03T19:12:00.001-06:00

This silly girl was 10 months old on December 17. I obviously have some catching up to do on the blog:) She loves to clap and dance. She's dramatic. She's tough. She says "uh oh" "mama" "up" "na na/no no" and "Dent/Trent"... and blabbers all of the time. She likes to stand up by herself, hold both hands up, and say, "up!" She's cruising everywhere, but she's not walking yet {thank you Lord.} She's still into everything and will crawl towards the fireplace, shaking her head, saying "na na" but STILL tries to get into it. She's even popped her own hand. Whew...

She still loves bath time... especially dancing in the tub. But when she's ready to get out, she will let you know it by crying and screaming. She probably thinks her name is "No Miller!" because Trent says it 1000000 times a day:)

Merry Christmas

2012-12-24T22:02:00.002-06:00

Santa 2012

2012-12-09T16:37:00.000-06:00

Trent loves Santa this year. Miller, my child who likes pretty much anyone, HATES Santa. We've tried twice, and both times we had the same result... screaming and tears. Fun stuff:)

I took this picture when Santa and Mrs. Claus walked in... priceless...

And just to make sure you know her true feelings about the Big Guy, this was last weekend...

9 month update and a mohawk

2012-12-02T12:33:00.001-06:00

Miller's 9-month appointment was last week. She weighed in at 23.4 pounds, which is off the charts. She had on clothes, so I'm thinking she's closer to 23 pounds, right? She was 28 inches long, so she's a pretty big girl. Trent grew really fast during his first two years and then slowed down, so I'm expecting baby sister to do the same thing.

She also has EIGHT teeth, four on top and four on bottom.

Obviously this picture has nothing to do with Miller, but I think it's hilarious! He didn't like me playing with his hair, until he saw the picture, and then he thought it was hilarious too!!

Halloween wasn't that long ago, right?

2012-11-24T08:09:00.002-06:00

Trent is obsessed with Thomas, so I assumed he'd want to be Thomas for Halloween. WRONG. He wanted to be Spiderman. What?!?! I didn't even know he knew who Spiderman was, and he obviously did not. I asked him what Spiderman did, and he said, "He kills spiders." Nice. I decided to splurge, spend $25, and buy both the Thomas costume and the Spiderman costume... and he still said he wanted to be Super Why the day before Halloween. That was an opportunity for the life lesson "We don't always get what we want, buddy."

He wore his Thomas costume to the Fall Festival at school, because it was very warm outside!

He was Spiderman on Halloween night. Miller was a lamb. I'm thankful I still get to pick her costumes. Surely I have another year of this, right?!

The more children in a picture = less children looking at the camera:) At least they were all cute in their costumes!!

9 months and funny pics

2012-11-18T11:55:00.000-06:00

So, I haven't been a very good blogger. Life has been busy, just like this little girl. She is cruising the couches, refuses to sit down in the tub, and loves all cords, outlets, fireplaces, etc. Trent has always been a rule follower. At nine months of age, I am calling it... Miller will be my child that pushes the boundaries. If she didn't get 90% of her personality from me, I could probably say more about it:)

She has four teeth, and I expect two more any day now. You can see the ones on the bottom, and the top middle ones have cut through as well. The top two have a pretty big gap between them. I see braces in this girl's future:) She is very social and loves to wave, laugh, clap and "dance." She is very unhappy before bath time, but she is a different child when you put her in the tub. She loves water. After a bath, she's wild for about 5 minutes. Then she takes a bottle and goes to bed. Unlike her brother, she's not big on cuddling and/or rocking. I'm not sure how I feel about this, but I guess it saves me time at night. She still thinks Trent is hilarious, and he loves entertaining her... until she grabs one of his trains, and then it goes downhill.

A few weeks ago, I woke up to Trent saying, "Miller, get off me!" I looked at the monitor and saw this... Yes, Miller is crawling over him. Apparently he'd gotten in her bed to play. We had a long talk about not doing this again:)

Here's another funny one... just another Saturday night at our house. Miller had pulled the tool bench down on herself (no worries- she wasn't crying) and Trent was jumping around shirtless swinging his shirt in the air. Fun times;)

... 8 months ...

2012-10-19T13:04:00.002-05:00

Miller turned 8 months old on Wednesday, October 17th. Wow! I would say I can't believe it, but since she's EVERYWHERE, she gives me reality checks on a daily basis:) She is pulling up and trying to "cruise." She loves anything she's not supposed to have and anything her brother is playing with at the time {I feel like I said this last month, but it's most definitely still the case.} We lowered the crib, because she was a flight risk. She's tough about falls and bruises but quick to scream when she doesn't get her way. She is a charmer in public and will smile at anyone who will look at her, much to her brother's dismay. She attracts people to the buggy, and then he has to talk to them:)

Who told me that dressing girls was much more fun? Oh yeah, everybody!! You were all correct:) The above 8-month pictures were taken yesterday before our visit to the pumpkin patch, so stay tuned for that post.

And of course I can't forget about big brother. He LOVED wearing his Alabama jersey last weekend and was thrilled that it had his name on the back.

He was also pumped about dressing up as a farmer for school this week. He didn't even mind that his overalls were too short-- another Mom of the Year moment:)

Happy Friday!!

It's not easy, but it's fun... Beach September 2012

2012-09-30T14:32:00.001-05:00

First, thank you all so much for your kind words on my last post. I didn't really think anyone was going to judge me {at least not you sweet souls that read my blog} but I sure appreciate the kindness... and I'm thankful that I'm not alone in this waking/eating situation:)

Now, onto the beach. We went a few weeks ago. As you've probably experienced, everything about the beach is a little more difficult with young children... the packing, the driving, the eating, the sleeping, the photo sessions, etc. We decided a couple of years ago that staying for a week helped justify all of this effort, and it's worked out pretty well. We had a great time, and I can't wait to go again next year!

Here are a ~~few~~ million pictures from our time at the beach...

This is not really related to the beach, but I dread the time change! I don't know what we are going to do when it's dark outside at 5:00. We spend a lot of time outside. Miller is MUCH happier outside- at least most of the time.

Finally, it's official. Nothing in our house is safe. She's everywhere.

And I do mean everywhere...

Time to Miller-proof the house!

Just life

2012-09-26T22:03:00.000-05:00

Trent fell last Tuesday. He cried a lot, but I figured he was just tired. I couldn't even find a knot where he hit his head but iced a random spot as much as he'd let me. Apparently, I was wrong. He hit his eye. These pictures were taken almost a week after the incident... but the day before his school pictures. Fun stuff, huh?

Doesn't this last one look like some odd eye shadow?

Thankfully the injury didn't slow him down for long. He was back in the dirt soon enough.

Little sister isn't scared to get dirty either. She didn't mind crawling on concrete, but she eventually decided she'd give her knees a break.

Thank goodness she still falls back on her bottom after this move. At seven months old, her favorite toy is anything that is in Trent's hand, which is a train 99% of the time. She enjoys door stoppers, outlets, and cords of any kind. She also still wakes up in the middle of the night. YES SHE DOES. At over 20 pounds, she still wakes up for a bottle. And I give it to her. It's ~~probably~~ not the right thing to do, but giving her a bottle keeps me up for about 12 minutes, because she goes right back to sleep afterwards... and I do too. I fear that letting her cry it out in the middle of the night will result in less sleep for me and possibly even wake up Trent {who has a sound machine and is across the hall from her, but this girl can get LOUD.} I'm going to try to work on this bad habit over Thanksgiving when I don't have to get up and go to work in the morning. Please don't judge; an exhausted mama is not a happy mama. And at this point in life, we are praising God that He gets us through each day; and most days are pretty good. Count your blessings. You'll feel blessed!

7 months

2012-09-18T09:14:00.000-05:00

Miller was 7 months old yesterday. Her 7-month pictures were super hard, because she decided to start crawling two days ago. God bless me us. She pushes herself up to a sitting position, and then she goes... not very fast or very far... but I know it's only a matter of time before ~~the house is destroyed~~ she's completely mobile. She only tumbled out of the chair once during the photo shoot, and I managed to reach her before she hit the floor. That explains the lack of terrific chair pictures:)

She was much happier on the floor.

Big brother didn't understand her issue with the chair. He said, "Let me take a picture with Teddy mama." {Teddy is actually his bear, and he's unamused that Miller uses him for her monthly pictures.} He nailed it on the first shot. {Yes, those are rain boots-- in the house. At least it actually rained yesterday, since rain is not a criteria for him wearing the boots!}

I don't want to speak too soon, but it appears Miller's reflux is FINALLY getting better. She's actually worn the same outfit all day for the past few days. Woohoo!!
She had her first ear infections {yes, both ears-- not big fun} while we were at the beach last week. We visited the Emerald Coast Urgent Care for the second time {Trent had an ear infection at the beach a few years ago.} She weighed 20.5 pounds, and she's on Amoxicillin for 10 days. She already seems to be feeling better. Happy 7 months baby Miller!!

PicMonkey

2012-09-11T21:07:00.001-05:00

I am a little behind, but I just discovered PicMonkey, and I love it!

Here are my Miller collages...

I am working on some of Trent too, but these days he likes to tell me, "Mama, that's enough!" before I get a good one.

Game Day

2012-09-02T10:23:00.000-05:00

Game faces on...

Now say "Roll Tide!"

Now Miller, you are Bama, and Trent pretend you are Michigan...

Elephant print bloomers + chunky thighs = SMILE

I need to take her out more.

2012-08-31T15:24:00.002-05:00

Last night I took Miller to Publix, and she got to ride shotgun in the buggy for the first time. Saying she liked it would be an understatement. She smiled at everyone and bounced up and down most of the time {which was a pretty long time, since we walked around for an extra 10-15 minutes because she was so happy.} The closer people got to her, the bigger she smiled. She even laughed when the guy that bagged our groceries told her he liked her hair {I also laughed, because he had spiked hair too!} Here are a few pictures I took with my phone...

We might be spending a lot of nights at Publix, since she isn't nearly this happy at home!

I took some pictures tonight...

2012-08-29T22:29:00.000-05:00

This tricycle has been worth every dime we spent on it. I'm seriously thinking about getting another one just like it, because he LOVES it.

He did not love it when he tried to pick a rose and got stuck by a thorn.

But one camo band-aid later, we were back in the games.

Of course little sister was there too, trying to escape the rocker. And the humidity made her hair lay down!

6 month-old Miller

2012-08-24T16:34:00.000-05:00

Miller turned 6 months old on August 17th. I can't believe she is half of a year old. It's so funny how with your first child you get so excited about every milestone, and with your second you just want time to slow down a little bit {except for sleeping-- I am all about some sleeping through the night, regardless of age.}

Now, for the "baby book" information...

At her six month appointment, Miller was 19.1 pounds and 27.5 inches long, which puts her in the 95th percentile for both height and weight. It's neat, because Trent, Miller and I were all 27.5 inches long at our 6 month appointments:)

I know I've said it before, but this girl is nothing like her big brother. Trent cried every single time he went to the church nursery from the age of 4 months until he was 2 years old. Miller has never cried when I've handed her to other people. I'm pretty sure we bore her, because she's super fussy at night when it's just the three of us; but, if we go to someone else's house, she is a happy camper. She likes constant entertainment/stimulation.

She rolls and scoots anywhere she wants to go, and I've even caught her rocking like she's thinking about crawling in the past couple of days {God bless us, I'm not ready for a crawler.} She sleeps on her belly, she's got the sitting up thing down pat, and she has two teeth. She still has reflux, and it's common for her to spit up 20+ times a day. The Prevacid helps the pain associated with the reflux, but this child lives in bibs, and we change clothes constantly. She takes six 5 oz bottles a day {I'd love to give her more ounces and less bottles, but with the reflux and spit up issues, we are stuck at 5 oz right now.} She had formula for the first time last week, and she took it well. She sleeps from about 9-5 most nights, and she goes right back to sleep after her 5:00 bottle until I wake her up around 7. I really wish she'd cut out that 5:00 feeding, but it might be a while, because she still wakes up twice a night about once a week. We haven't found a baby food she refuses yet, but I'm sure it's bound to happen. Her hair is still growing straight up:)

Silly girl in the tub

Having fun playing with paper at the doctor's office

"Wait, did you say shots? I don't think so..."

First Day of School

2012-08-21T17:33:00.000-05:00

Trent's first day of 3-year-old preschool was yesterday. He said that he had so much fun. He also told me that he's in 3-year-old class now, and he named his teachers... but that is all he said about it. I tried to ask questions, but I'm learning that little boys aren't as chatty and detail-oriented as little girls. I guess it's a good and a bad thing:)

Below is a comparison of yesterday's picture and a picture I took in January (seven months ago) when he started 2-year-old preschool. They grow up so fast!

Buffalo Chicken

2012-08-12T18:00:00.000-05:00

Other than heating up frozen casseroles, I'm pretty sure this is the only thing I've cooked since I moved over six months ago. I got this recipe from my friend Mindy, who brought it to me many times and started my obsession with it:) I actually copied and pasted the email she sent me below. It is FABULOUS and very addicting!

Here it is..

You'll need:

Crockpot

3 lbs frozen chicken breasts

1 bottle Frank's Hot Sauce - Buffalo flavor (avail at Kroger, Publix, etc)

1 dry Ranch dressing packet

8 oz cream cheese block

baguette

margarine or butter (2-3 Tbsp)

colby jack or provolone slices (if anyone wants cheese on their sandwiches)

Cook time is about 6-7 hours total, so I usually start it around 10:30 am. Prep time is literally less than 10 minutes.

- Put frozen chicken breasts in crockpot.

- Pour entire bottle Buffalo sauce overtop.

- Sprinkle 3/4 ranch packet on top of sauce (use whole thing if you want very mild buffalo chicken).

- Add cream cheese in dollops around crockpot.

- Cover and cook on low for about 6 hours.

- Remove chicken breasts from mixture and shred with two forks in a large bowl.

- Return shredded chicken to crockpot, add 2-3 Tbsp butter and cook (still on low) for another 45 mins to an hour to allow chicken to soak up sauce.

- Serve on toasted baguette with (or without) cheese of choice.

In other news, Trent's summer preschool class had their end of the year party on Friday. They have a week off, and fall classes start August 20th.

And this little girl will be six months old at the end of this week. That's another post that hopefully I will get around to writing soon:)

A tooth and Mr. Useful

2012-08-03T21:07:00.001-05:00

This little girl cut her first tooth yesterday, and I expect to see another one very soon. I'm not sure if they are the culprit of her waking up between 1:00 and 3:00 am and at 6:00 am every single night/morning this week, but I sure wish she'd start sleeping well again.

She rolls over and sleeps on her stomach now, and she manages to wiggle her way to get things she wants. I was kind of hoping she'd just enjoy the sitting stage for a few months.

She'd rather pull on blinds and play with breast pump parts. {Seriously, I'm not sure why, but she's always grabbing for them!}

As we were walking around Publix last week, Trent asked me, "Mama, is baby Miller useful?" I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in Publix. After I explained how baby Miler was useful {I got pretty creative,} he asked if he was useful. As soon as I said that he was very useful, he started listing the reasons he's useful... "I follow directions, I keep my hands to myself, I clean up when asked...." These are things that they talk about at school, so I'm glad he's paying attention:)

Letters

2012-07-30T19:46:00.001-05:00

I love this picture! I have always been big on writing letters- especially when I don't feel like I can express my feelings in a verbal conversation. {Unfortunately, this meant I often wrote letters when it was not appropriate, such as breaking up with boys in ~~high~~ middle school.}
When my parents moved 10+ years ago, I had to throw away a big box of letters {many folded just like this, complete with the "pull here" tab and "private" descriptions} that had been under my bed for a LONG time. I even saved a few of them. Maybe I can use them one day to show my children that I've "been there," ha!
It was a sad day when my mom enforced the "If it comes through the laundry, I read it" rule. But after tiny pieces of paper ruined lots of laundry, I can see why she came up with this idea; and it worked pretty well:)
It makes me sad to think that my children will likely only communicate through text and emails. Don't get me wrong, I love technology and have even taken advantage of emailing thank-you's, but I think personalized letters are special.
Speaking of my mom, Mama D celebrated a birthday last week. Happy Belated Birthday Mom! We love you!

We're friends again

2012-07-27T22:31:00.000-05:00

I want to clear the air... Publix and I are friends again. I went back to the same store I visited last night again this morning, and I had no problem purchasing 14 jars of food. I went to another store in town and bought 16 more jars without any issues. Both cashiers were super sweet, and I have my 40 jars now:)

I checked the weekly sales ad, and no quantity was specified on the BOGOF ad for Earth's Best. I also looked at the BOGOF sign on the shelf today, and it simply stated that limits per customer may apply.
I couldn't find anything that said the limit was 10, so I'm chalking it up to an employee enforcing a store "policy" that most ignore. It's okay; she's a rule follower. Mike was a big rule follower, and I'm pretty sure Trent is following in his footsteps. I can appreciate, and love, rule followers.

Thanks for listening/reading about my little issue. I laughed at all of the texts I received today asking if I'd gotten my 40 jars yet.

I'll try to stick to posting pictures of my children for a while:)

I just wanted some baby food

2012-07-26T22:01:00.001-05:00

I've always loved Publix. I'm pretty sure I've never had a negative experience in the 6+ years I've shopped at Publix. I guess it was bound to change at some point.

Miller and I went to Publix tonight, while Trent was hanging out with Mama D, Daddy G, and Trevor. I was looking for Dr. Brown's bottle nipples, but I was pretty sure they didn't carry Dr. Brown's products. I was correct, but it didn't even bother me. The store wasn't crowded, so Miller and I went up and down a few isles. My heart skipped a beat when I saw that Earth's Best baby food was Buy One Get One Free. Sometimes it's just the little things:) I literally thanked God as I walked down the isle and thought, "I'll definitely be adding this to my Thankful List tonight.

I'm sure I was smiling as I took my 40 jars {yes, you read that correctly} of baby food out of my cart and placed them on the counter. It was then when it started going downhill.

"Are these on sale?" the check-out girl asked me. Ummmm..... no, I just decided to get 40 tonight. Instead I went with, "Yes, they are BYGOF," explaining why I was stocking up and super excited.

"The limit is 10. You can only buy 10," she said in a matter-of-fact tone.

I explained that I always bought more than 10 in Montgomery when they were BYGOF. She was unamused but apologized. I asked her who made the rule, and she did not know. I asked if they could hold the ones I couldn't buy so my family could come purchase them. She told me they'd be put back on the shelves. {At this point I think my blood pressure shot up.} I asked if I could get back in line and buy 10 more. She said no and apologized again. She asked me what 10 I wanted to purchase, and I told her it didn't matter, the first 10 were fine. I think the lady behind me was over it and might have complained if I'd started sorting through flavors.

I was SO annoyed when I left the store. I'm still not over it. I plan to go back tomorrow on my way to work and again on my way home. It's not about the money saved at this point. It's not even about the baby food. It's my crazy, hormonal {Miller still gets all breast milk} self thinking, "I'll show you. I'll get my 40 jars of baby food one way or another." I know it's not the right attitude, and this is probably one of the most ridiculous posts I've ever posted. But sometimes I think it's good to keep it real.

I'm officially signing off and stepping down from my soap box now. Goodnight:)

her face says it all...

2012-07-22T22:09:00.001-05:00

"Oh my goodness, I can sit up, and I'm wearing a bow!"

Bouncing

2012-07-21T14:37:00.000-05:00

He liked the idea more than the actual bouncing, which is the case when he tries most of her toys:)

Happy Birthday Daddy {Mike!}

2012-07-19T21:41:00.000-05:00

Today would be Mike's 33rd birthday. Since both of my children are asleep, and it's only 9:00, I think it's a sign I'm supposed to blog.
I was thinking about how some who read my blog might not have known Mike personally. I want to share a couple of stories that show his personality. I can't remember if I've shared them before, but I'll always remember them.
One night we were having dinner with his team from work in Atlanta. He'd been working with this group of guys for about a year. The group decided to walk about two miles to the restaurant. Mike was currently receiving some kind of treatment, and it was a bit of a struggle to keep up with everyone. Of course he didn't complain, but I thought it was odd that they didn't think to drive the restaurant. About half-way through dinner, I realized that these men had no idea that Mike had cancer, much less that he'd had it for years and was currently receiving treatment. I whispered, "Mike, have you told them about the cancer?" He looked at me like I was crazy and responded, "I don't think so. It's never come up."
I don't know why I was surprised, because that was totally Mike's personality. He hated pity and couldn't imagine anyone feeling sorry for him. {We are actually alike in this area.} He didn't let cancer define him or use it as an excuse for anything; he didn't want that kind of attention.
I'll never forget our first visit to MD Anderson. We were both filling out forms, and one question on the form I was filling out was to rate your stress level on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest level of stress. I asked Mike, "What's your stress level, on a scale of 1 to 10?" He replied, "I don't know, two?" Seriously!? I told him that mine was a 10, so we would average it and put six:) I can't say I share his laid back and calm personality, but I'm thankful that my son inherited those traits from his daddy.
We always tried to make decisions as if Mike didn't have cancer and not let cancer rule our lives. That's why I have two children, and I thank God for them every single day. Mike did not believe he was going to die from cancer until the day he died, December 22, 2011; and he was ready to go to Heaven that day. He had more faith than anyone I've ever known.
Tonight, we celebrated Mike. Trent and Trevor blew out his candles, which would have probably been the case if he was still here with us:)

Mike was a wonderful husband and father. I'm lucky to have so many wonderful memories of our 12 years together {8 married plus 4 dating.} I can't wait to see him again in Heaven.
Finally, here is one of my favorite pictures. Trent was about Miller's age now in this picture.

July in Pictures

2012-07-15T21:56:00.002-05:00

This little girl will be five months old in two days. I attempted to take her "monthly" pictures today.

You can see a little of her personality {and her hair that continues to grow straight up} in these pictures...

I tried to take pictures of Miller and Trent last weekend. This is the best one I got, and it isn't good. They both look rather mad/serious, which was probably the case, ha!

I gave Miller squash and peas last week. She seemed to like the squash much better than the peas. We might try some carrots this week.

We went to the lake on July 4th, and it was great to see the Gunter side of the family. Of course I attempted a brother/sister picture. {And looking at this now, I think Miller has grown a good bit in the last two weeks!}

We even tried to get a picture of all three of us. Can you tell from my forehead and Trent's face that it was warm that day?

Trent also caught his first fish this month. {He had some help from my dad.} Here he is reeling it in...

And here's his catch...

In his defense, he caught some bigger ones, but it was too hot to stand out there and take pictures. In the picture below, he is getting a cricket for Daddy G. He's already more of a fisherman that I will ever be, because I would not reach my hand down in that basket!

Thank you for your continued prayers and interest in our lives. Mike's birthday is this week, July 19. Thankfully Heaven is a forever celebration, but we will miss celebrating his 33rd birthday with him.

I hope you all have a good week! Hopefully I will post more often one day:)