We've Made a Beautiful Life.

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-25T08:48:00.006-05:00

Thanksgiving 2011 was celebrated with our little family. I started making the food first thing in the morning. We watched the parade as I cooked. Eddie loved seeing a song from the Spiderman play on Broadway. We were finally ready to eat at 6:15. I feel like we are perfecting our Thanksgiving menu. I love the food we have! Ben took pictures for everyone to enjoy. The chef.
Peter helping to set the table.

Creegan loved playing with the ladle.

Cranberry almond salad. The almonds are carmelized and sooo yummy!

Fruit salad with fudge stripes in it!! There are cookies in this fruit salad, people!!!

Crescent rolls. I don't make anything that uses yeast cuz it never works for me.

Our delicious sausage, apple stuffing! This has been a Thanksgiving staple for four years now.

Peas were a must for Ben this year.

Mashed potatoes, standard fare.

The drink of choice for 2011.

Eddie set the table. It was his idea to fold the napkins and set the silverware on them! I was so impressed!

Ben took complete control of the turkey! This was the first time we got an entire turkey and not just a turkey breast.

Pumpkin toffee cheesecake with caramel drizzled on top! YUM!

I love having holidays with my family.

Greek Festival

2011-11-05T09:14:00.003-04:00

We went to the Greek Food Festival last night. It was a nice night, not too cold but cool. It felt like Fall. We were worried the kids wouldn't like it, but they loved running and rolling on the grass and dancing to the live music. Eddie said it was the "funnest neighborhood ever". We had a great time!
Creegan loved the food and dancing to the music.

I love my boys!

Halloween Carnival

2011-10-20T13:18:00.005-04:00

Dressing like a scarecrow relaySawyer and Peter

Peter

Hay ride
Jeff, Eddie, Sawyer, Riker

cute brothers

Eddie, Riker, Sawyer, Peter

poor Creegers is always tired

donut race

Sawyer is so excited for Eddie!

Peter got pretty frustrated!

look at that cute tongue

Annie, Kalena, me-Mom donut race

painted faces

Jeff, Mitchell, Ben-dad donut race

scary tree climber

Eddie's favorite game

Cute Little Costumed Boys

2011-10-20T13:13:00.002-04:00

Eddie had to be something scary for Halloween. He is acting the part!

Cute brothers!

Oh, I love my boys!!

The cutest Batman ever! Look at those little teeth!

Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-16T16:34:00.005-04:00

It's time to take a break from Utah trip blog posts. Here's some pictures from the pumpkin patch we went to on Tuesday, October 11.Peter, Eddie, and Sawyer, their buddy.

Sawyer and Eddie

Creegers

Sawyer and Eddie

Peter with the coolest pumpkin I have ever seen!

Eddie and Sawyer

Look at Eddie's adorable picture pose!!!

Screaming "Happy Halloween"

picture perfect Creegy Croo

Oh, he got so sad because I wouldn't pick him up! Isn't it adorable?!?

He was so tired.

Silver Lake

2011-10-13T13:26:00.005-04:00

Eddie loved climbing up these rocks.
Peter found some rocks he felt comfortable climbing.
So adorable!
Looking at the lake.

Getting a little nervous. Luckily Uncle Mark was there to rescue and Grandpa was there to help.
Finding an alternate path up the rock climbing mountain.
At the top!
All at the top!

July 30, 2011

Hogle Zoo

2011-10-04T13:31:00.003-04:00

July 29, 2011Peter is so cute in a hat.

Eddie likes to mismatch his socks on purpose.

Eddie is very sensitive to volume.

Archaeologists in training.

So happy and cute!

I think these tunnel pictures are kind of cool.

Contemplating life.

Peter looks so old.

It was hot outside of that tunnel.

Watch out! A spider is about to bite!

A spider and his unsuspecting victim.

Creegan Turns Nine Months Old

2011-09-29T13:11:00.006-04:00

July 28, 2011

With Uncle Tom
Tom turns 307 months old, and he is sitting up like a champ!

Beyond Glaze

2011-09-15T15:06:00.002-04:00

We discovered a new donut shop while in Utah. All of the donuts are glazed, but they have really interesting and delicious frostings. It's too rich for Eddie. Here we are on our first trip. Of course we went back for more!

Playing at Amanda's

2011-09-12T20:35:00.002-04:00

We visited my friend Amanda. Eddie and Peter got to play with Maddie and Kennedy on their slip and slide, and I got to meet baby Noah for the first time. When we went back a different day for Noah's blessing, Peter was disappointed that the slip and slide wasn't out. We had a lot of fun!

Playing at the Park

2011-09-09T16:07:00.003-04:00

We met Ben's family at this really cool park. Unfortunately, I didn't get a lot of pictures. There was some water with ducks that the kids liked to chase. There were multiple play areas, one with a plastic dragon the kids could climb on. I enjoyed having my kids play without needing me to be with them.Blowing bubbles

Cousin Rayne. She turned two in May. She kept bringing me M&Ms to eat and would tell me each color as she gave them to me; I was impressed! We got to be good friends!

:)
Peter and Eddie and Hunter, Ben's cousin's son.

Ben's cousin, Melody, and her baby Matthew. Me and Creegan. Ben's sister, JoAnna, and her baby Caius.

It was a fun day, and Peter wanted to go back to this park.

The Main Library

2011-09-06T15:44:00.005-04:00

We took Trax to the Main Library. Eddie and Peter loved the train, but they were super nervous the door might close on them when getting on and off. They have the same concern about elevators. I learned Trax is really not worth it. It costs a lot of money if you aren't a student, and the ride is really slow!Sweet Pete!

Creegan fell asleep like this on the way!

I love these boys!

Isn't this a great picture? The wavy benches. I wish this library could be the library I go to every week!

It was super sunny!

Running

I can't remember what Eddie was licking, but it was gross!

Taking every opportunity to play; Eddie and Peter wouldn't let him not play!

I love this boy!

What a cute family!

Playing Outside at Grandma's

2011-09-04T22:42:00.004-04:00

Grandma has a great yard. Eddie and Peter were in tears the first few days when I would suggest they go outside without shoes. You just do don't that in Florida-the grass really is painful here and there are so many little live things! Also, it's not so hot in Utah. In the morning and evenings, Eddie complained of being chilly! Peter being his silly self!

Peter was so great about pushing Creegan gently on the swing. My dad built this awesome swing. There are two seats, and the swing goes around in a circle, like the swings at amusement parks.

Eddie loves jumping on the trampoline, though he got nervous he would be shocked when getting off.

Creegs loved the swing.

Sitting with Grandpa, while the big kids played.

When we arrived in Utah, Tom thought he would never win over Eddie because Eddie loves his Grandma so much. Luckily Tom is fun and won Eddie and Peter over by playing hard. Now Tom is literally Eddie's best friend in the world, and Eddie misses him a lot. (So do I.)

Creegan's first experience sitting on grass. Look at that face!!!! I love it!

My dad found out after dipping Creegy in the pool just how cold it was! Sorry, Creegers!

Peter swinging!!

Playing at South Towne Mall

2011-09-02T07:33:00.003-04:00

Eddie loves to climb!

Riding the train with grandma.

On the train.

At Temple Square

2011-08-27T07:41:00.002-04:00

It was really sunny. It was a very hot day.

Tom went with us almost everywhere we went. I know everyone thought we were a cute little family. We were!

It is so funny to hit the statue of the praying guy.

With Grandpa.

I didn't get any pictures of the missionaries that accosted us. They wouldn't leave us alone; it was a really bad experience.

At Cafe Rio With Kaleb

2011-08-27T07:36:00.002-04:00

Peter took this picture. I am happy to say I went to Cafe Rio enough times while in Utah to get a free meal. I miss it so much now that I am back in Florida!

Celebrating the 24th of July

2011-08-27T07:30:00.002-04:00

With Mark
We did fireworks super early because the kids and I were still on Florida time at this point. Of course Eddie was really worried about the noise of the fireworks.
With Trina

Celebrating My Dad's Birthday

2011-08-27T07:20:00.001-04:00

We spent a month in Utah this summer. It was the best trip ever. Here are some highlights from the trip.

Cute Pics of Creeg

2011-08-27T07:13:00.002-04:00

These pictures were taken in July.

Brothers Watching a Movie

2011-07-15T14:39:00.001-04:00

Father's Day 2011

2011-07-15T14:28:00.003-04:00

These pictures were taken a few days after Father's Day- the day the presents arrived in the mail! Ben had purposely dressed to match Peter on this particular day. When the movies came in the mail, Eddie and Peter each chose one to wrap and give to their Dad. They hid their movies for Dad to find. Peter hid his in the window sill, which I thought was quite clever. He moved his to match Eddie, though, so they both ended up behind a pillow on the couch. Of course, they showed Ben right away where they were hidden. Before Ben opened his gifts, Eddie told them they were movies. I thought Ben would have already guessed, but he hadn't. Eddie couldn't wait to watch "his" (Eddie's) movie. Sorry, buddy; you are going to have to wait a few years! We love you, Ben! Thanks for being a great, Dad!

Eddie's Fifth Birthday

2011-07-07T14:28:00.012-04:00

Eddie turned five on Wednesday, July 6. We had a fun day. We didn't do anything extraordinary, but we spent most of the day as a complete family, which was really nice.Making the cake the day before Eddie's birthday.
First things first-opening presents. Eddie wanted to do a treasure hunt to find his presents. So I told him which room they were in, and he went and found them. Thus they got opened in my bedroom. Eddie's happy about his Spiderman mask.
Spiderman stopped by to help open presents.
In this picture Eddie is thanking me for his birthday presents; he was so happy and sincere. He had had a long list of what he wanted for his birthday; I was surprised he wasn't immediately disappointed that he didn't get everything he wanted. He was disappointed later, but I was impressed with how well he handled it.
This seemed very much like a Spiderman birthday-Spiderman wrapping paper, Spiderman mask, Spiderman bike, and Spiderman helmet!
Two of Eddie's favorites-crepes and blueberries. A perfect breakfast. Look at that full crepe!
I know my kids love crepes just cuz I let them put chocolate chips on them!

Helping Daddy build the bike.
Matching brothers! I found some cute clearance clothes when shopping for Eddie's birthday presents. I let Eddie and Peter each choose what they wanted to wear. Peter originally had a different shirt on, but he changed to match Eddie. Peter has since asked to wear this shirt again. I have never had him request particular clothes before.

Eddie making a silly noise over and over again because it made us laugh the first time he did it.

The bike's maiden voyage.
Luckily Iron Man was able to join us.

Peter can pedal, but he tends to walk the trike instead.

Yummy camera case.

Eddie did an excellent job riding his bike. He really should have had a bike before now, but we just didn't know where to store it, and it's really too hot to ride bikes in the summer.
We took Ben to school and went to Toys r Us so the kids could use their birthday coupons while Ben was teaching. Peter chose a bowling ball set. He found it when we first got there and never changed his mind. Eddie was really disappointed he couldn't get whatever he wanted. He was so happy when he found this set of two swords and shields. By now he has modified (which means he broke it on purpose..urggh!) his sword so it can be a knife.
After we picked up Ben from school we went to dinner. Eddie chose Moe's because he gets a cookie there.

It's nice to be in a picture with my boys, even if we can't get everyone to look at the camera.

Decorating the cake. Eddie wanted an airplane cake since we are flying out to Utah soon, but it was too complicated. I showed him this racecar cake, and he was happy.
Creeg's trying to be involved.

Decorating the cake's racecars.
Eddie's friends came over for cake and swimming. This is Sawyer. He is one week younger than Peter.
This is Jackson. He's almost two years older than Eddie.

The finished cake
Cute birthday boy, cute cake.
Eddie had us light some of the candles a second time because he didn't make a wish the first time around.

Blowing out the candles.

Eddie chose strawberry cake. He looks pleased with his choice.

Eddie's favorite icecream has not varied over the years-mint chocolate chip. He and Ben chose "Edy's" brand for the big day.

Handsome even with a messy face, and I think Ben wants to prove his around sometimes cuz he keeps taking pictures of himself with the kids.

Nothing will stop Peter from eating when he has a yummy treat in front of him.

Look at those eyes...and that icecream!

We went swimming after eating cake and icecream.
Eddie loves swimming in his floaty. This picture makes me want to go swimming right now.

Peter is a very cute and silly kid!

Creegan's first time to sit in his floaty. He's only recently started sitting up with any decent balance.
He loves eating the floaty.

Cute brothers. Here you get a great shot of Peter's "cashew" (tattoo). :)

Some fun things I want to remember about this day: We were reprimanded a few times because we didn't say "Happy birthday" often enough. Eddie was really excited when Grandma called him "birthday boy" on the phone. He was surprised that the cashier at Toys R Us "knew" it was his birthday (she wished him a happy birthday cuz he paid with his birthday coupon). Multiple times he mentioned loudly that it was his birthday, in hopes that people standing near us would overhear.

We had a great day! I can't believe my li'l Eddie is five (and don't try to call him "li'l Eddie"!)! Happy birthday, Eddie! I am so glad you are mine!

First Birthday Party Ever

2011-07-03T22:58:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I did my first birthday party ever. I have to admit I actually felt really happy to be up late the night before making cupcakes for my big five year old's big day!

Eddie has been looking forward to the party all week. Eddie's response to Peter's first tease yesterday morning was, "You have to be nice to the birthday boy!". Of course Peter just teased him more.

We had Eddie's party at Michael's. Eddie LOVES doing crafts, especially painting and building projects. This was a perfect place to have a party; it was inside and not at my house! The kids painted and decorated treasure chests. Thus our party was pirate themed.

Working on the craft-Peter's smiles are great in all these pictures.

How can you not love this cute little boy!

I am having a hard time inserting my comments by each picture, so I will put them all at the end.

Eddie got really great presents at his party. His favorite was the Iron Man from his best buddies, Jackson and Sawyer; he couldn't wait to get home so we could get it out of its box.

I had talked to him ahead of time about saying thank you after he opened each present. I warned him not to say if he didn't like something or if he already had it. After everyone left the party he asked, "Didn't I do a good job at just saying thank you, Mom? When I didn't like that present, I just said "thank you"!". I asked him which present he hadn't liked, and he said the remote controlled spider because it was too scary. He told me that maybe he could play with it when he gets bigger. When we got home he told Peter he could have it. Peter's been loving it, but Eddie plays with it, too. Looking at these pictures, though, I can tell he loved this present right when he got it. Look at those smiles!

Eddie received lots of fun crafts as birthday presents: cars to paint, Buzz Lightyear and Woody to paint, and a box containing seven different crafts. He also received Cars cars, a Cars bathtub set, and a Toy Story coloring book.

Blowing out the cool treasure chest candle. Eddie was really excited about the gold coin candy on top of his cupcakes. He wanted to eat those all week. He chose Funfetti cupcakes with strawberry frosting. I also made yellow cupcakes with chocolate frosting.

Proof that Ben and Creegan were there. When we were taking off for the party, Eddie was shocked that Ben was going with us. You can see usually we do our adventures without Ben. It was really fun to see how happy Eddie was that his Daddy was going to be at his party. I was a little worried about how Creegan would handle the party. It was at 10 a.m., and I knew he'd be tired. Ben held him for the first half, and our friend, Annie, held him for the second half. He did great, though you can see how tired he was. By the time it was over, he was ready for a good nap. Creegan loved the balloons and water bottles.

Michael's happened to be doing free face painting in the store, so some kids got their faces painted after the party. My children have never wanted their faces painted before, but Peter waited in line, got right in that chair, and told the face painter he wanted to be a butterfly (what the girl ahead of him had requested). He spoke to the face painter himself. Eddie didn't get his face painted but commented at home that he wants his face painted next time.

The party was a huge success. I wasn't stressed out. A lot of my friends asked about having parties at Michael's, so they must have liked it. Eddie exclaimed at the end that he liked the party the best because it was his birthday. I love doing fun things with and for my children. It was a great day.

Firestation Play

2011-06-18T01:20:00.002-04:00

Creegan spends a lot of time playing at the firestation these days. He is the only child in the family that plays with it. He likes to try to get that bell in his mouth. On this particular day he got away from me after his bath.I love that you can see that Creegan has hair after his baths; it's all fuzzy looking.

Eddie wanted to be in a picture with Creegan, and I love, love, love it!

Making a face/eating a toy

I love that bum and those ten perfect toes!

Eddie is being the Green Goblin. He is posing that he is going to throw that booster chair at Creegan. Luckily he is not really going to throw it, though if Creegan were Peter I am pretty sure Eddie would actually throw the chair (all in the name of play, of course).

Standing

2011-06-18T01:15:00.002-04:00

I love seeing Peter's hand on Creeg's in this one.

These pictures are from the first time Creegan pulled himself up to a standing position. It was on June 8. All those smiles you see in the pictures are for yours truly. He was proud of himself because we were proud of him. Now he pulls himself up to standing all the time, especially on my legs when he wants me to pick him up.

Memorial Day

2011-06-18T00:56:00.004-04:00

I've decided to stop being choosy with the photos I put up. I will put up every picture I love, especially since my posts will mainly be pictures now. Ben took these photos. As you can see, he is a much better photographer than me. He's just done a more thorough job of figuring out the camera.

This Creegan kid is so beautiful!

He sure loves his mama!

I love this picture because you can see that Peter just watches Eddie and does everything he does!

Brothers! Handsome brothers, at that!

Feeding the turtles goldfish crackers.

The geese took over for the turtles. I love that you can see Peter pointing at a goose.

I love pictures of Eddie and Peter together. Once again, Peter is following Eddie.

Can you believe I have a son this big?!?! He will be FIVE in a couple of weeks!!

Peter is so handsome! His eyes and smile are astonishingly beautiful!

Peter has never liked swings, so I am surprised he got on this and seemed to enjoy it.

Creeg's Seven Month Pictures

2011-06-05T11:13:00.001-04:00

Creeg Pics

2011-06-03T19:07:00.002-04:00

Some May pictures of CreeganHe now sits in his booster seat during breakfast so he can eat with us. He often chews on his fingers, possible coming teeth? This picture was his first time in his seat.

Creegan loves to jump while standing on our laps, but he isn't often happy in his johnny-jump-up. This picture was his first time in it.

Now that Creegan is mobile, he gets into all sorts of things. For example he literally got in to this floaty.
One day I found Creegan in the bathroom, foot up on the toilet, chewing on Eddie's toothbrush (which Eddie had left on the floor).

Peter at Three Years Old

2011-05-30T14:59:00.002-04:00

*Peter loves Creegan. He calls him "baby Creegan" or "babe". He is now becoming a little dad to Creeg by taking inappropriate toys from him. The other day I heard him tell Creegan to not play with a cord. When Creeg started playing with it again, Peter said, "Did you not hear me? I said, "Don't play with the cord!"." I wonder where he learned to say that... ;)
*Peter always has bruises and cuts on his arms and legs cuz he falls a lot. He scratches his scabs, so his owwies are always bleeding.
*Eddie is Peter's favorite person. He spends a lot more time talking to Eddie than he does me or anyone else. Whenever I ask him what he's talking about, he tells me he's not talking to me. He watches Eddie and does everything Eddie does.
*Peter's recently become quite a bully to Eddie. He loves to step on his feet or pretend to bite him, anything to work Eddie up. Eddie gets really worked up by this stuff.
*Peter talks so quiet. It's really hard to hear him, especially in the van. Eddie always translates for me, simply because of the volume.
*Peter's recently begun playing with other kids at playgroup and other playdates. He used to always play on his own, but he doesn't always anymore.
*Peter's always been great about going to nursery or having us leave him. He just walks right in without a backwards look and does great until we are with him again.
*Peter is still always pretending he's someone else, usually Spider Man or Iron Man. He doesn't let you get away with calling him Peter.
*Peter loves dipping his food in things, like ketchup, bleu cheese, ranch.
*Peter loves to talk in silly made-up language. He does this with his daddy, mainly "mish, mash mee shoo". Also, "country" is one of his favorite words, though he has no idea what it means. He also says "sim suck" to Creegan all the time.
*Peter's really in to playing trains right now. He also loves to color; he's great for his age.
*Peter recently learned he likes swinging on gliders. He's never liked swings his entire life, not even as a baby.
*Peter is really in to giving kisses right now; he loves kissing me over and over again. He gives the best hugs, and his frequent "I love you"s are so precious to me.
*Peter has always been such a calm, happy boy! I tell him every day that I'm so happy to be his mommy. He replies that he's so happy to be my Peter.

Peter's Birthdays

2011-05-22T15:32:00.003-04:00

Peter's birth day, May 2, 2008!
Peter turns one, May 2, 2009!!
Peter is two, May 2, 2010!

Peter's Third Birthday

2011-05-22T14:24:00.009-04:00

Peter got a birthday package from his Grandma a few days before his birthday. He was so excited to have a package. It had two presents in it; he thought one was for him and the other for Eddie. Sweet boy! Grandma sent Peter some Little People for his birthday; he and Eddie love playing with them. Peter always closes his eyes when he's fake smiling.

Making the funfetti cake.

Tasting the fruit of his labor.

Peter got to open his present from Eddie the night before his birthday. Eddie showed it to him, and I just couldn't make him wait to the next day to open it. He's super excited about his little action figures of the Iron Fist and the Black Spiderman.

We began Peter's birthday at Donut Kingdom, where he got to choose two donuts! He was in heaven rotating bites between his two donuts.

This year we did the birthday decorations the days of Peter's birthday, rather than me doing them the night before. Eddie especially enjoyed decorating. Peter and Eddie loved having balloon fights.

The presents seemed to be a success, I was happy to see. Peter got this Imaginext RoboCop, combining his love for robots and action figures. Unfortunately that door would never stay closed.

I love how every time we told him to hold up a present for us to take a picture he would cover his face with the present and then fake smile. :)

Peter was really excited to get a Woody action figure but immediately asked for Jesse and Woody's horse. Sorry to disappoint, Pete-ch!

I put Peter's cake together and frosted it the day of Peter's birthday, also something I used to always do before the actual day. All of the white frosting was put on by me while I was holding Creegan. I am sure you can't tell. ; ) Peter and Eddie decorated the robot. Eddie insisted it have three eyes; Peter was cool with that.

The finished product

After dinner our friends came over for cake and brought Peter this cool present. You can see how excited Peter is about it; look at that huge smile!!!

He sang "Happy birthday to you", along with the rest of us. He sings it so cute. He never really understood it was his birthday. Every time you'd say happy birthday to him, he would wish us a happy birthday, too. Every present he got, he asked Eddie permission to open; he thought they were all for Eddie. He didn't get it, but he had a fun day!

Blowing out the candles, you could visibly see the spit coming out of his mouth! Yum!

Eating his cake with his hands. He ended up putting his cake on a separate plate from his icecream. He'd selected his own plate, but I had already dished up his cake and icecream on a different plate, so he moved his cake to the plate he had chosen and kept his icecream on his original plate.

We had a really fun birthday! I am so happy this adorable little boy is my son Peter!

Playin' in the Shower

2011-05-22T14:21:00.003-04:00

After Eddie's surgery we were instructed to give Eddie showers in order to keep his incisions from getting too wet. Eddie was so scared about showering up until actually taking one. After his first shower he exclaimed he wanted to shower every day after breakfast. He hasn't showered every day, but he hasn't taken a bath since. He loves them! I haven't been able to convince Peter to shower, as well. One day, though, after Peter was done with his bath, he just got into the shower with Eddie. They had a ton of fun. Unfortunately, Peter has been unwilling to shower since.

C's First Cereal

2011-05-15T16:10:00.002-04:00

Creegan tried baby cereal a couple of days after his six month birthday, as we were out of town on his actual six month mark. He seems to have a take-it-or-leave-it attitude. I have learned he only likes it if it's mixed with lots of warm water. Even then he won't eat much of it. He doesn't eye table food or want what we are eating. Someday I assume he will want to eat more than breastmilk. Until then I will keep trying baby cereal each day.

Creegan at Six Months

2011-05-06T11:06:00.002-04:00

These pictures were taken on May 2 because we were out of town on April 28, which was Creegan's half-birthday. It was hard to get him to hold still. We love having this little boy in our lives, and we love having him be six months old!

"Dis-A-ney World", Take Two

2011-05-06T07:18:00.003-04:00

We headed back to Disney World to finish up the final two days of our four day passes. This time we went with a plan and a double stroller!
Eddie and Peter loved the racecars. Look at their intense faces. This is the one ride we went on without Creegan.

My adorable boys!

Peter adores Eddie so much; I love these pictures. They initiate putting their arms around each other.

They were pretending to blast off in to outer space.
The trip was such a success that we want to buy annual passes. We had so much fun!

Easter

2011-05-06T06:49:00.005-04:00

The best part of our Easter was the birth of Eddie's, Peter's, and Creegan's newest cousin, Caius.
The baskets

The candy tasting

The egg dyeing

Eddie's eggs

Peter's eggs

Peter's Potty Training, Take One

2011-04-18T10:52:00.002-04:00

Last Monday Peter ran out of diapers. I had purposefully not purchased more diapers for him. So began the potty training.
He'd chosen a potty treat, mini candybars. We learned very quickly that Peter has excellent bladder control. He can hold his pee for over 24 hours. He doesn't even pee in his sleep! Peter is also very determined, which I already knew. I tried everything: obviously candy, sticker charts, grab bags, offers to take him wherever he wanted to go, and offers to take him to the store to buy a toy. He wouldn't go for any of these things. He wouldn't pee on a kix or an icecube, in his underwear while sitting on the toilet. He wouldn't pee from putting his hands in warm water, giving him a bath, pouring water on his penis (and he hated me for that one). He fought peeing on a tree. We had a super hard week, and I gave up. I would much rather have him peeing and pooping in a diaper than not at all.
We went to the store to buy diapers, and the cheapest option was pink princess pull-ups. They were $10 cheaper than their blue Toy Story counterparts. So he's rockin' the pull-ups for now. We'll try again in a month...

Backwards Boy

2011-04-18T10:39:00.002-04:00

Creegan now scoots backwards. It began last Wednesday. I laid him on the rug and turned my back for a few minutes. When I looked again he was on the opposite side of the rug. He lifts his bum and then seems to push himself back with his arms. He can get across the room like this.
Stinkin' cute!

See how upright he now holds his upper body.

See him lift his bum up.

Sleeping on Daddy

2011-04-18T10:27:00.000-04:00

Love that smooshy face!

Creeg's "Pinky"

2011-04-18T10:19:00.003-04:00

Creegan now takes a pacifier!!! He's pretty particular about when he'll take it. He can't be hungry at all. He can't be too tired. It absolutely can't be during the night. His face must be pressed up against my chest. If conditions are perfect, he will take it and fall right to sleep. If it falls out, though, he wakes up immediately. It is great, though! I get to feed him less, and there are less times where he is crying and I can't do anything about it. Yay! Eddie and Peter call it his "pinky" cuz they think that that's what it's called on Megamind; I am pretty sure they are saying binky, though.

Eddie's Appendectomy

2011-04-07T09:43:00.002-04:00

Eddie woke up on Saturday, March 26, feeling nauseous. He spent that day and the next throwing up. On Monday morning he woke up and acted fine. He had an appetite. We went about our normal activities. During dinner on Monday he began to look nauseous again. I told him not to eat if his tummy hurt. He went and laid down on the couch. He was eager to go to bed soon after. He woke up at 11 p.m. and threw up. Tuesday morning he still felt sick. He told me his right side hurt. I didn't think anything of it. He didn't mention it again until 3 p.m. He began to have a fever. Ben and I worried but thought we were being paranoid as we researched appendicitis online. By dinner time, Eddie was in so much pain if he moved at all. This is when we knew something was wrong. Ben took him to urgent care at 7:30 p.m. I stayed home with Peter and Creegan since Creegan breastfeeds.

Urgent care said there's nothing it could be besides appendicitis and sent Ben and Eddie to the ER for a CT Scan. Eddie had to have an enema that he had to hold in during the scan. He did great. The scan confirmed appendicitis, and they were told they would operate that night. The surgeon came in at 4 a.m. They were taken to the surgical waiting room at 4:30. The pictures were taken by Ben's camera phone on their way to the surgical waiting room. Another more pressing surgery came in, though, and Eddie had to wait until 6:30 a.m.

The surgery was done by 7:30. During the surgery the surgeon learned that Eddie's appendix had begun to rupture. An abscess had formed by the opening in his appendix, keeping the fluids in the appendix. It was a blessing.

Eddie's hospital recovery was slow. It took a long time for his stomach to "wake up" and begin working again. We were released from the hospital on Sunday, April 3. He's getting better each day. We are so proud of Eddie. He's been so brave about doing a lot of scary things! We learned from this experience that we can do really hard things. We hope we're done with the really hard stuff, though!

My Five-Month-Old

2011-04-03T22:09:00.003-04:00

Now he's eating the sign.

What a beautiful baby.

Creegan Update

2011-03-27T13:15:00.002-04:00

Creegan loves to eat his hands. Sometimes it's just his thumb he has in his mouth.
Sidenote: his hair if finally getting longer. I am surprised by how strawberry blond it looks in these pictures.

Creegan learned to roll over, from back to stomach at the first of the week (March 13) and from stomach to back at the end of the week (March 19). I remember my other boys taking awhile to utilize this knowledge but not Creegan.
A favorite position of Creeg's, lower body all the way rolled over and upper body on his side. I realized he likes to breastfeed in this position, as well.

He loves, loves, loves eating cloth, his shirt or any material he can get his hands on.
We tried out his excersaucer. He's not a huge fan, but it doesn't help that his brother doesn't leave him alone while he's in it.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-27T13:12:00.001-04:00

Disney World, March 2011

2011-03-12T20:04:00.003-05:00

the shuttle was a highlight

Eddie likes to salute in pictures.

My cute babies

I love my boys!

Creegan did great in his carrier. I am proud of myself; I never imagined I would be brave enough for a trip like this with a four-month-old. I wouldn't have been with the first two.

Aarrggh!! Free pirate hats. Score!

C didn't spend much time in here, but Peter did.

Ticklish because of the sunscreen Ben's trying to apply

my beautiful boys

How Eddie dressed himself for church

2011-03-12T19:54:00.000-05:00

What Eddie Said

2011-03-12T19:50:00.002-05:00

Eddie heard Ben telling me how odd it was that our van hadn't broken down since we'd filled it with gas. He said, "Dad, that's not odd; it's great!".

Creegan at Four Months

2011-03-12T19:48:00.002-05:00

I like this picture because you can see how active he was.

What Peter Said

2011-02-15T19:17:00.003-05:00

At bedtime I was singing Eddie and Peter a song about a train coming down a track. Peter interrupted me and said: "You mean "hell of a track", Mommy!"

Blessing Day

2011-02-08T12:00:00.004-05:00

Creegan was blessed on Sunday, February 6, 2011. He wore the same outfit Eddie and Peter wore on their blessing days. It barely snapped over his crotch (E and P were blessed younger). The world celebrated by holding the Super Bowl.

Bathtub Pics

2011-02-02T07:57:00.002-05:00

Creegan takes baths in the bathroom sink.

How lucky am I to be the recipient of these smiles and loving looks!

He may be smiling at himself in the mirror.

He loves sticking out his tongue at us and having us mimic him.

Creegan at Three Months

2011-02-02T07:43:00.002-05:00

This kid is such a delight. He started out as my most difficult baby (acid reflux, crying for no reason I could understand, pyloric stenosis,), but now he is so easy. He is really calm. Everyone who holds him comments on how still and calm he is. He spends his first hour every day just chillin' on the floor. He is then ready for his nap. He falls asleep while laying his head on my shoulder while I burp him hard. It has to be hard (Ben's really embarrassed about how loud it is when we are in public places). Creegan absolutely does not let you sit down when he's tired or fussy, so a rocking chair is a definite waste of space. He's beginning to enjoy watching his brothers. If he can see Eddie or Peter while he is supposed to be eating, forget it; he'll stop eating so he can smile non-stop at them. He doesn't like loud noises; he is more jumpy than Peter was but less jumpy than Eddie. He loves his Dad, and his Dad loves him. He loves playing in his bouncy seat. He has learned that hitting the bird makes it spin. He can grab and hold the other toys. He's just a lot of fun. I've never enjoyed having a baby this much; it's probably all the difficulties we've been through with him. We call him "The Creeg-Meister" or "Creeg", but Peter reminds us constantly that his name is "Creegan". We love our little Creegan.

Li'l Shoes

2011-02-02T07:40:00.002-05:00

We've had these adorable shoes for all of our boys, thanks to Uncle Steve and Aunt Jamie. I realized the other day that we almost missed our opportunity for Creegan to wear them. This boy has big feet! I love this picture, with his tongue sticking out. His hand almost looks like it's in his pocket.

Cute Church Boys

2011-02-02T07:34:00.002-05:00

My mom sent us some blazers and ties my brothers wore as children. Eddie LOVES them! When he saw himself in the mirror, he said, "If I had less hair, I would look like Dad!".

Handsome Peter!
Cute Creegan; tired and cute.

Big Developments

2011-01-16T09:13:00.003-05:00

There's been a lot of big developments this past week.We converted Peter's crib into a toddler bed. I've been hesitant to do this because Peter was in no way ever going to climb out of his crib, and I remember how hard it was to get Eddie to stay in his toddler bed. The first couple of evenings, Peter didn't even attempt to get out! Peter is a great sleeper, so he rarely wakes up during the night. One night when he woke up and got up, he came out and saw we were all asleep (I was faking), and he went right back to bed without being told to. Of course now it's easier for Eddie and Peter to play together when they should be sleeping, but I guess we all have good memories of doing this as kids. I am really impressed with Peter, and I really happy I don't have to get him in and out of bed anymore.
Creegan now grabs things on purpose. He concentrates really hard on an object and then flings his totally straight arm until he is holding the object. Now it's a bit more dangerous to hold him on my lap while I eat.
Eddie's big development has been a big, swollen hand. It looks great in this picture. Almost two weeks ago, Eddie was climbing a steep hill using his hands. He didn't notice a big fire ant hill that he put his hand right in to. He got at least 15 bites on his right hand and four on his left hand. He handled it really well that first day, but by the next morning he was crying from the pain. He hurt a lot for five days! His hand got so swollen; it was unbelievable. Right now all the bites are scabbed over, and he has some water blisters. He won't use his right hand for anything, which means we are doing a lot more for him now (helping him get dressed, put on his seat belt, etc.). It's been really sad. He said he will never climb up that hill again and he can't understand why there was an ant hill on that hill when it wasn't there last time he climbed that hill (which was a year ago!).
We also set up Creegan's crib this week. Our plan had been to buy Eddie and Peter a bunk bed around this time so we could put Creegan in the crib Peter has been using. A friend offered us her crib, though, so in order to save money and to put off the bunk bed til the kids are a bit older we took it and converted Peter's crib into a toddler bed. It works great, but this means we have three beds and all the toys in one tiny room. It's tight but doable. Maybe one day I will put Creegan to bed in his crib. I'm enjoying him sleeping with me, though.

The best development this week though has been the birth of my new nephew, Owen. He was born on Friday, January 14. He looks stinkin' cute, and I wish so badly I could see him. Owen has been a name we considered using for Peter and Creegan. I am so happy to have a little Owen in my life now! Love you!

Cute Boys

2011-01-01T16:49:00.002-05:00

Peter's always lovin' Creegan. He likes to touch his head, hold his hand, and talk to him in a REALLY high-pitched voice. He tells me all the time how much he loves Creegan, and he loves pretending he is Creegan. What's not to love about these cute little boys?

Creegan's Two Month Pics

2011-01-01T16:39:00.002-05:00

Creegan had his two-month check-up on Dec 30. He weighed 11 lbs 13 1/2 oz, which means he gained two pounds in three weeks! You can see his little legs are getting chunkier and his cheeks are chubby! What a cutie!

Swing Nap

2011-01-01T16:36:00.001-05:00

Creegan takes a nap in his swing most days. He falls asleep in his swing well and stays asleep for awhile, allowing me to use both my arms for awhile.

Creegan's First Smiles Caught On Camera

2011-01-01T16:30:00.002-05:00

Creegan gave us a great Christmas present, lots of smiles. They began by Ben singing to him "Little Ghost" by The White Stripes. This song also made Eddie smile as a baby.

Gingerbread House

2011-01-01T12:29:00.002-05:00

Ben did a great Christmas post. To see it, go to http://benjaminsbrain.blogspot.com/2010/12/christmas-2010.html.

Creegan's Surgery

2010-12-26T16:27:00.000-05:00

The night of Friday, November 26, Creegan seemed really congested. He was four weeks old. He'd had a cold at two weeks old that hadn't gone completely away. I assumed it was his cold getting worse again. In the early morning hours of Saturday I gave up on him sleeping laying down. I picked him up. When I stood up with him, he projectile vomited. It got everywhere. I thought it was weird but moved on. As the day continued, he projectile vomited more. I assumed it was his acid reflux getting worse. The previous week I had been tracking his spit ups because I was wondering if my diet affected how many times he spit up. So I was aware that his norm was four to six spit ups a day, which was a lot more than my other two ever spit up. Creegan had never been put on medication for acid reflux, so I thought maybe things were getting worse and we needed medication. The projectile vomiting continued after each feeding, so I fed him for shorter amounts of time and burped him more frequently. On Saturday night he stopped pooping.
On Sunday I took him to church, like normal. I was a little nervous that his vomit would get on other people. I went prepared with multiple blankets and baby towels, which is what I'd been using each time he threw up (burp cloths were way too small). I ended up spending most of church in the foyer, and we left early. We already had an appointment scheduled for the next morning, so I just thought we would get through this day and have medication the next day. I started to wonder, though, if this could be an allergic reaction to something I ate. I'd eaten pecans and walnuts at Thanksgiving, which I hadn't eaten since Creegan was born. We'd had Thanksgiving leftovers on Friday and Saturday, so I thought it was possible this was causing his vomiting.
Nights started to get worse. He couldn't lay down at all. He slept very lightly and woke up to throw up often. He always wanted to eat, though.
I took him to his doctor appointment Monday morning. He weighed 9 lb 13 and a half oz. His doctor thought it was the acid reflux. She reassured me it wasn't a food allergy. He pooped while at the doctor, his first poop since Saturday night. I began to feel better. I thought it was just acid reflux and things were going to be okay. I filled his prescription that afternoon and gave him his first dose of zantac. He didn't vomit for three hours after taking it and he fell asleep and slept deeper than he had been. I was really excited.
Monday night was terrible, though. Tons of vomiting. No sleep. And not just vomiting after feedings anymore. Vomiting all the time. No more poop since that morning. Tuesday was a day filled with vomiting. I didn't even bother to change our clothes between vomits anymore. I just washed a load of blankets and towels and sat on the couch with Creegan waiting for the next one. At this point I was convinced it must be a stomach flu. Ben wanted me to call the doctor, but I wanted to give it 24 hours and see if it got better.
On Wednesday it wasn't any better. Creegan's pee changed. There was very little of it. It was very dark, and there were red spots in his diaper every time he peed. They looked like blood but may not have been. Ben didn't have to go to school, and I was so relieved because I didn't know how I could take care of Eddie and Peter on top of all the vomiting. I felt like I was hanging on by my last thread. Ben did have a paper to write, but he only worked for a few hours this day. We called the doctor. She thought it could be a side effect of the zantac. She upped the amount he was taking and said to make sure we fed him after dosages. We tried that, and it didn't work. We called the doctor again and learned that somehow Medicaid had assigned Creegan to a different doctor. The nurse wouldn't answer any of our questions or help us because Creegan wasn't a patient there. I really lost it here. Ben called Medicaid and assigned Creegan to the right doctor. They said it may not show up in the doctor's system for a couple of weeks, but they could fax the doctor something sometime in the next three days! At this point, I knew Creegan may end up in the hospital and three days was too long to wait. I spent all my energy praying, and thankfully, Creegan's doctor found out what had been going on and she called us. She knew the Medicaid problem was stupid and it would all get worked out, so she continued to be our doctor. She suggested taking him off breastmilk and just feeding him Pedialyte. She thought it might be a stomach flu. Ben bought Pedialyte, and we tried it. Creegan couldn't keep it down. Ben and I had been fasting for Creegan this day. We ate an early dinner. At 6 p.m. I decided it was time to take Creegan to the emergency room. I was worried about him being dehydrated, and I knew he needed an IV. I packed up some stuff and said goodbye to Eddie and Peter, not knowing when I would be back again. It was really hard for me to take Creegan to the emergency room by myself. We'd never had to do this before, and I was really scared and overwhelmed. What choice did I have, though? It was almost Eddie's and Peter's bedtime, and I especially don't want them to be without one of us at night time, and I don't want them to not be able to sleep in their own beds.
I checked in at the hospital at 6:45. They struggled to get Creegan's oxygen read. He weighed 9 lbs 5 oz. He'd lost a lot of weight the past two days. They did an x-ray. Some technicians were holding him for the x-ray, and he vomited all over them and the floor. They gave him an IV. They did bloodwork. They put a catheter in to force a urine sample. His white blood count was low; it looked like he might have an infection. The on-call pediatrician wanted to test him for plyoric stenosis, which couldn't be done until morning. We were admitted at 2 a.m. on December 2; he'd been admitted for jaundice on November 2. I continued to feed him when he wanted to eat. He wouldn't eat much, but he did want to eat a little. I fed him at 5:30 a.m. After that feeding, I was told to not feed him because he needed an empty stomach for his test in the morning. He was hungry by 7:30. His test was done at 10 a.m.
The test was an ultrasound where he had to drink barium. I was there for the test, watching but he was out of my reach. Creegan's stomach was full from the feeding he'd had four and a half hours before, which was unusual. The doctor stuck a tube down his nose into his stomach and used a big syringe to empty his stomach. It took three and a half of these big syringes to empty his stomach. They fed him the barium also through the tube in his nose. There was a screen where you could see all of the insides of his body working. It was beautiful and fascinating. It was also a very low point for me. I was tired and the tube in his nose was sad to me and I knew from what I was seeing that he had pyloric stenosis and I knew what that meant-surgery.
Pyloric stenosis just means that the muscle between the stomach and the intestine grew too big and blocked the entrance into the intestine. As a result no food can leave the stomach unless it's thrown up. Thus no pooping and lots of projectile vomiting. This problem usually develops in babies between three to four weeks of age. It's most common in Caucasian males that are firstborn. Surgery is required. The surgeon goes in and stretches out the muscle so it's no longer blocking the entrance to the intestine. The positive results of the surgery are immediate. Problem's corrected and body functions normally.
Creegan's pediatrician called and said the surgeon would come see us and perform the surgery later that day. I was to not feed him at all because there was a risk he would aspirate. He had the iv, so he was receiving hydration and nourishment, but his stomach was empty and he felt hungry. Thanks for my wonderful friend who took Eddie and Peter, Ben was able to be with me at the hospital. I really didn't want to go through Creegan's surgery alone. We waited and waited all day, but the surgeon didn't come until after 10 p.m. (Ben left around 6 p.m. to get Eddie and Peter. This was the first day in Eddie's and Peter's entire lives that I never saw them. I didn't see them at all the next day, either. Very sad for me.) The surgery was scheduled for 8:30 the next morning, Friday, December 3.
Thursday night was very hard. Creegan screamed constantly for the first half of the night. Thankfully he slept in my arms the second half of the night. The best part of not eating was less vomiting, although he did still vomit the fluids the stomach makes.
Ben arrived Friday morning at 7:35. We were supposed to be going down to surgery at 7:30, but they didn't get us until 8:30. I was scared but happy that we were almost done with the worst part, and things would only get better. The surgery was done about 10 a.m., and it was super short. We were with Creegan again by 11:30, which was after his time in the recovery room.
So much of my mental efforts had been focused on getting to and through the surgery that I was completely unprepared for the post-surgery situation. I didn't know how sad I would feel to see him being pushed in that big (normal-sized) hospital bed, covered in a huge blanket, laying on his side, like he likes, with all those tubes coming out of him, especially the ones in his nose. I didn't know how scared I would be to hold him; I was worried I would hurt him (he had four small holes in his stomach, one had been for the camera, one for air, and two for the instruments). I didn't know he would hurt so much. When he would cry because of pain, my heart would break (he had morphine and Tylenol). I thought he would be dying to eat, which he still couldn't do until 4 p.m. The opposite was true, though, he didn't even want to eat when it was time.
There was a whole schedule for his feedings. He could eat every three hours. He began with just an ounce of Pedialyte. Then two ounces. Than a mixture of breastmilk and Pedialyte. Then we just kept increasing the amount and eventually just switched to breastmilk (from a bottle). He never vomited after the surgery, so all seemed well. He pooped Saturday morning. So all really was well.
We got to go home Saturday around lunchtime. Of course, as soon as we got home, he projectile vomited everywhere. The doctors didn't say this would happen, so it really scared us and I wanted to be at the hospital, just to know there were medical people around that could answer questions. Of course it was a Saturday, so we would have to wait until Monday to speak to his doctor. He vomited a few times that day and the next but never after Sunday night.
The lowest his weight got was 9 lb 3 oz. Before we left the hospital he was at 9 1b 5 0z. On Monday he was still at 9lb 5 oz. By Friday, though, he was up to 9 lb 11 oz, not as much as he'd been, but he was gaining weight and pooping and peeing.
I didn't take any pictures at the hospital, but here are a couple of post-surgery pictures. The first one was taken on December 6, three days after the surgery. You can see the four steri-tape things on his stomach and dried blood.

The second was taken on December 17, two weeks after the surgery. You can see all four scars, the line under his belly button is one of them.
Now he looks even better than this, less red. We are only three weeks removed from this, but it feels like a lifetime ago. We haven't seen his doctor in two weeks, which is a record so far. We will be taking him in this week for his two-month check-up.
The most important thing I learned from this experience is our children are absolutely worth every struggle we have to go through with them. I also had to learn to ask for and accept help; I had to let go of my concerns for Eddie and Peter and just completely trust their care to other people (not an easy task for me). I told Ben I would really, really like to live near family; I just don't want to do the hard stuff so much on my own anymore. I learned that you get whatever child you get when you have a baby, and each child will come with a unique set of needs and challenges that you can't possibly predict. I learned that there are always children in the hospital, and my heart yearns to somehow help them and their families. I learned that I am really, really loved by a lot of people. I learned that I can do whatever I have to do. Being a mother has helped me become a much stronger person. I love my children and the simple pleasures in life are my favorites: singing to them, reading them books, putting them to bed each night, holding them, caring for them.

Creegan's First Toy

2010-12-20T16:20:00.001-05:00

Creegan was visually interested in the toy, but he was more interested in Eddie.

Creegan's First Smile

2010-12-11T16:16:00.000-05:00

Creegan smiled the night before he got really sick (Nov 26) when I laid him down. It was a big smile and was gone very quickly. I don't know if he was really trying to smile. He didn't smile again until Dec 11. These were photos I took of him on Dec 11 soon after his first real smiles. I didn't catch him smiling on camera, but I think he looks really cute in these close-ups.

New Jackets

2010-12-10T19:49:00.002-05:00

Grandma and Grandpa bought Eddie and Peter new jackets while they were here. Eddie and Peter LOVE them! Eddie loves that his is reversible and is constantly changing which side he wears it on. Sometimes Peter wears his jacket all day long. Eddie and Peter chose to hug for this picture. They give each other hugs and express love to each other often.

Creegan's One-Month Picture

2010-12-10T19:45:00.003-05:00

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-12-08T10:13:00.002-05:00

This was the first Thanksgiving we spent completely on our own. I thought I would be sad, but I actually enjoyed it. I was going to do a very simple version of Thanksgiving because I had a four-week-old. Ben was set on a bigger dinner, though, and he agreed to make it. I made the pie and helped with the rest. It was delicious! My favorite, pecan pie.
Yummy turkey.
The best stuffing ever!!!
My perfect husband!

Playing Outside

2010-12-08T10:02:00.003-05:00

We spent much of November playing outside; Creegan needed to sunbathe to help get the jaundice out, and Eddie and Peter needed something to do. I needed to get out without going too far.
Our little cross-eyed beauty.

He loves to have his neck back as far as possible.
Having fun!
Fun often turns into a fight. Look at Eddie's upset face!
A friend let Eddie wear his boots, and Eddie felt pretty cool.

Creegan Hearn

2010-11-23T13:57:00.001-05:00

Li'l' Thumbsucker

2010-11-16T13:19:00.001-05:00

Creegan's found his thumb more than once when he's been hungry. It calms him.

Grandma's Birthday

2010-11-14T19:07:00.006-05:00

We were lucky enough to celebrate my mom's birthday with her this year, as it fell during the time she was here helping with Creegan.
Eddie went grocery shopping with Daddy and picked out a present for Grandma. It was a yogurt with M&Ms in it.
Peter wrapped Grandma a can of her favorite drink, Mountain Dew.
Eddie and Peter helped Grandma open her presents.
We made a cake, too.

Happy birthday, Mom! I am so happy we got to celebrate with you!!!

Outings with Grandma and Grandpa

2010-11-14T09:32:00.001-05:00

Havana, 11/8/10

Maclay Gardens, 11/10/10

the beach, 11/13/10; Eddie got to fly a kite for the first time. He'd really been looking forward to this. He did great! Peter preferred to watch.

Creegan, Week One

2010-11-09T14:25:00.016-05:00

On October 28 (12 days early), my water broke at 5 a.m. I called a friend to pick up the kids and got ready to go. At 5:30 I began to feel a lot of pressure. By 5:45 I was having contractions. We checked in at the hospital at 5:55 and waited in the waiting room for 5-10 min. I got changed into the gown, and my midwife checked me. I was dilated to an 8 (I'd been at a 2 at my appt the day before). I asked if I'd have time for an epidural. She said yes if I didn't go too fast. She stepped out of the room, and I began a contraction that made me feel I needed to push. They ran my bed into the labor and delivery room. Between contractions I rolled onto the bed in the l & d room. Within five TERRIBLE minutes, Creegan was out. He was born at 6:28 a.m.
He weighed 7 lb 11 oz.

Brothers meeting.

Look how round his face was and how pink his skin was.
We went home on Sat, Oct 30.
Peter grew so big!
We went trick-or-treating.
Creegan wore a pumpkin hat.
Creegan got really yellow.
He was admitted to the hospital on Tues, Nov 2, for jaundice treatment.
I wasn't allowed to breastfeed him, which broke my heart, cuz he was a natural breastfeeder. E & P loved feeding him, though.
C met Grandma and Grandpa.
Creegan and I came home from the hospital on Thurs, Nov 4.

It was a big first week! We love our Creegan!

What Peter Said

2010-10-25T15:34:00.004-04:00

Peter: Mommy, say, "I love your smiles!".

I do love your smiles, Peter!!!!

Cute Little Costumed Boys

2010-10-25T15:31:00.001-04:00

Menacing and adorable! Mama loves it!

Havana Pumpkin Festival

2010-10-21T09:59:00.006-04:00

The highlights of the pumpkin festival were the firetruck,wearing real oxygen masks

and real fireman hats,
and the train ride!

Ben's Birthday Cake

2010-10-11T19:29:00.004-04:00

Ben turned 32 on October 7. On Thursday, the morning of his birthday, he opened seven presents, two of which were legitimate (the rest were toys Eddie had had me wrap). On Friday night Ben and I went out on a birthday date. This was the first time we've gone on a date for one of our birthdays. This was also the first time since having children that we went to both dinner and a movie on a date (although we didn't take the time to go to a real restaurant; we got chinese to go). On Sunday we made a special birthday dinner and cake. Ben once again selected an applesauce cake recipe he found online; he always wants applesauce cake like his grandma used to make. The problem is no one knows her recipe. This was the best applesauce cake we've made, but it wasn't great. Apparently it wasn't like grandma's. These are the only birthday pictures we took this year. Happy birthday, Ben! We love you!

Muscle Boys

2010-10-11T19:26:00.002-04:00

Look at my muscle-y boys! They love showing off how strong they are!

Dancin'

2010-10-09T22:48:00.002-04:00

Our boys LOVE to sing and dance, and they are so stinkin' cute doing it! Eddie is of course posing for the camera with his classic tongue-out pose. Peter is in mid-move, utilizing a battery as a microphone. I love my boys and have a lot of fun watching them.

First Pumpkin Patch of the Season

2010-10-09T22:28:00.008-04:00

A church nearby does a pumpkin patch each year. Every Saturday they have face painting (whic my kids won't do), a bouncy pirate ship (which Peter won't do), games, and pony rides all for free. We took advantage today, and Eddie is hoping we will go back again this year. He really wants to do another pony ride!
Peter was trying to get away, so this is the best picture we got. I don't know why it's so hard to get a picture of three people, but it is. Hence the old picture on the sidebar on this blog. I have no clue where Eddie learned about peace signs or why he is doing one in this picture. Maybe he's trying to do bunny ears!? I have no idea where kids pick up on all the standard things, but they do!
Eddie was picking out the perfect pumpkin for carving "just for pretends" since he knew we weren't buying a pumpkin today.
It's hard to not get beautiful pictures in pumpkin patches, with all the orange and the sunlight.
We waited in a long line for the pony rides; I was fairly certain that one or both kids would chicken out, but they didn't. Peter couldn't stop smiling the whole time! He loved, loved, loved it!
Eddie was nervous at first, worried he would fall off. But he enjoyed it. I was walking around with Peter, who was on the horse in front of Eddie. Every time Eddie and I looked at each other, he gave me a cute little finger-wiggling wave. He didn't want to let go of the horse.
E and P got balloon swords, which they also waited in a long line for while I was in the pony line. Notice that Eddie is wearing his shirt backwards today. He asked me if some people do this and decided he wanted to try out this fashion style. He chose his pajama shirt, so he could be "comfy". Of course he topped the outfit off with black socks (which he pointed out were matching each other-sometimes he opts for one white sock and one black sock if he can't find matching socks) and his boots. I loves that he dresses himself and tries things that sound interesting to him.
Peter loved the "crows" at the patch. He was so excited to get his picture taken with one.

What a fun day, though I wish I hadn't gotten a sunburn.

Halloween's Coming Early This Year

2010-09-27T21:47:00.004-04:00

We've made a countdown chain to Halloween. We love putting on costumes and making scary faces. Peter's are never anything short of adorable.

Our first Halloween inspired dinner, pumpkin drinks and ghost toast. I am sure there will be many more Halloween-inspired posts.

Cute School Pictures

2010-09-21T14:45:00.004-04:00

Eddie is sticking his tongue out in the pictures to be funny. I love my boys! They are so cute!

Remembering September 7, 2007

2010-09-07T13:39:00.003-04:00

Today is the third anniversary of our car accident. I don't think I have ever recorded the events of that day, so I plan to do that here.

It was a Friday. I woke up that morning with a strong impression that I should take a pregnancy test. We were trying to be pregnant, and I knew there was a possibility I might be. After having Eddie my cycles varied between 28 to 38 days long, so I may have already been late but I may not have been. My plan had been to wait until the next week to take a test, but I felt like I should. I got up and took a test, and it came out positive. I woke Ben up and showed him. We were excited. I think I may have written in my journal right away. I don't remember anything else about that morning.

At about 1 p.m. Ben suggested we go to the gas station to buy a drink and then go to the video store and rent a movie to watch later. I was about to make lunch, but we decided a quick trip out would be fine. I had been chatting with my brother, Brent, and my friend, Joni, on gmail. I said a quick goodbye to them, picked up Eddie, and we headed out the door. Because we were just going to be gone for a few minutes, I left my purse and the diaper bag at home.

While out there were two moments where I felt impressed to change our plans. Of course, I didn't recognize these feelings as impressions at the time. After the gas station, I felt a strong desire to just go home and skip the movie store. It was already the plan, though. Ben was expecting it, so I didn't mention anything. The second impression was on our way home from the video store. We passed a store that had some wooden rocking chairs on display outside. I really wanted to buy a rocking chair because I had never had one. I was all excited about being pregnant, and Eddie was only 14 months old, anyway. I really felt I should stop and look at the chairs, but I dismissed the feeling because we needed to go home and feed Eddie lunch and we didn't have room in our car for a rocking chair anyway.

I also think that when I was buckling Eddie into his carseat after the video store, the seatbelt seemed a little messed up near his neck, maybe not tight enough on one side. I thought about taking the time to fix it, but I wanted to hurry home. I am sure we would have missed the accident if I had fixed his seatbelt, and I wonder if his neck wouldn't have been so cut up if the seatbelt had been more secure. Regrets...

So Ben was driving. We were turning left onto our street. The intersection was busy (Peachtree Industrial Blvd and Chamblee-Dunwoody, I believe), as always. The light was green, so Ben had pulled out into the middle of the intersection, waiting for a clear spot to turn left through the two lanes of oncoming traffic. That was how both Ben and I were taught to handle an unprotected left turn, inch out into the intersection and turn when it was clear or when the light was turning red.

Eddie had dropped something and was requesting it, so my head was turned and I was reaching behind me when the accident happened. I knew it was going to happen, though, because Ben said we were about to be hit right before it happened. What had happened is that the light had turned yellow (I saw it yellow before I turned my head). Ben waited for a car to go through the light that he could tell was going to go through the light. There was another car quite a distance behind the car that Ben had waited for. It never crossed Ben's mind that this car would try to make it through the light because it was so far away, but this car did. He was going 55 to 60 miles an hour. The speed limit was 50 mph, but everyone goes faster than that on Peachtree Industrial Blvd. The car was in the innermost lane. So Ben had begun to turn when he realized this car was not stopping. Ben stopped going forward, but didn't have time to reverse. The impact was a head-on collision because the front of his car hit the front of our car on the passenger side (my side). Our car was turned so we were facing the same way the other car had been facing. Our car was pushed a minimum of 30 feet, maybe more. I still remember the noise of the tires being pushed over the road.

Everything happened very fast, but here were the thoughts that crossed my mind before anything else happened. 1. I knew without a doubt that my garments had protected me from more serious injury. That was very clear knowledge that came to my mind-the first thought I had. 2. "Well, at least now we can get a new car with working a/c." We didn't have a/c at the time. We'd tried to have it fixed multiple times, but it didn't ever work. It never once crossed my mind that this accident could be construed as anyone's fault but the other driver's.

The impact caused two interesting things. 1. My glasses had flown off my face, and I couldn't find them anywhere. I can't see so well without my glasses. The remainder of this day, I couldn't see. 2. I was wearing a button up shirt that was buttoned up. All of the buttons came unbuttoned and most of the buttons flew off the shirt in the impact. I think I had one button left after the accident. Thankfully I had a tank top on underneath the shirt.

Immediately after the impact Ben asked if everyone was okay. I remember saying I didn't know if I was okay. I felt like I couldn't breathe. It was just the impact of the airbag knocking the wind out of me. It was weird to me at the time and still now that my first concern was myself. I expected it would have been Eddie, but I guess if you aren't sure you are breathing, you naturally focus on yourself. Ben then looked back at Eddie. When he saw Eddie, he panicked a bit because Eddie was bleeding from the neck. We realize now that the amount of blood coming out of Eddie's neck was minimal, but at the time seeing blood pouring from your baby's neck, you kind of panic. At this time Eddie starting screaming and panicking, too. I opened my door, which, thankfully did open just enough for me to squeeze out of it, and ran to the back door to get Eddie.

It was at this point that all sorts of other people were arriving at our car to check on us. One man opened the back door to check Eddie. He saw me trying to get Eddie out and he told me he was a carseat expert (whatever that is), and that I needed to leave Eddie in his carseat, and that he was buckled in really well-that I had done a good job. I didn't even hesitate to remove Eddie from his carseat, as he was screaming. A man who worked at a car repair shop also arrived at the car and told me I could wait in their shop where it was nice and cool. I don't even know if I asked Ben if he was okay. I took off to the shop. It was very hot outside, Eddie was very upset, there was a lot of commotion. Ben knew where I was going, and I left.

At the shop, we were given cold water and one muffin. It had nuts in it, which Eddie had never had. I prayed he wouldn't be allergic to nuts and began pulling out the actual nuts and feeding Eddie the muffin in small chunks. He calmed down, and I calmed down a bit. Tears ran down my face the whole time I was at the shop, though.

After maybe 15 minutes, I took Eddie back to the accident. An ambulance was there. Ben was still sitting in the driver's seat and was surrounded by people. I learned that the other driver, a man, was unconscious and had already been taken to the hospital. (I prayed for this man a lot that day; he ended up being okay. He was from out of state, in ATL on business, the car was a rental). There was an ambulance there for us, just one. The paramedic was telling me I could refuse to be treated or I could go in the ambulance. Apparently, though, children had to go to a different hospital than adults, so I would have to be separated from Eddie. I refused. I signed some paper that refused treatment for me and rode in the ambulance with Eddie. We didn't have family to call. I didn't know what to do. If I had been clearer headed, I wouldn't have taken an ambulance to the hospital. I was just worried about Eddie, not sure if he was really okay and I wanted him to be treated. Here was an ambulance. I was forced to make a decision, so I got in. Ben knew where Eddie and I were going. He had the logic to grab a few things from the car and put them in my purse (like the rented movies). I knew his foot hurt and was bleeding, and I knew he was going to be taken to the adult hospital in another ambulance. The paramedic told me that the hospitals were kitty corner to each other, so I told Ben to just wait at his hospital and I would come and find him when we were done at the children's hospital. I had a cell phone and Ben did not. Ben at this point had not tried to stand up, and I had no idea how serious his injuries were.

The paramedic removed Eddie's carseat from our car (who knows why since you aren't supposed to use them after an accident) and buckled it into the ambulance. He put Eddie in it and made me sit on the other side of the ambulance, also in a seatbelt. Eddie screamed his head off the whole time. His arms were reached out to me, and I couldn't reach him by a long shot. I just sang "I Am a Child of God" to him the whole ride to the hospital, not caring how I sounded or what others thought. It broke my heart then and still now to see how scared he was and how much he wanted me and that I couldn't do anything about it.

We arrived at the hospital and Eddie and I were taken into a room. I don't remember much about the visit, other than that we were taken care of quickly. They said he was fine; he'd be bruised and sore and I had to keep his seatbelt cut medicated so he didn't get infection. I asked for a diaper and they gave me a couple and they also gave Eddie an apple juice. At this point someone came in and asked my name and said someone was on the phone for me.

I went to the front desk and Ben was on the phone. He was at the other hospital. He was in a room. He'd been seen and was waiting for doctors to come back. He apologized about the accident. He said the cops said it was his fault, and he got the ticket. He felt terrible and was really worried about us. He did say that one witness had left his card saying he knew it wasn't Ben's fault. I think this may have been when he told me he was going to be admitted. The only thought I had held onto during all of this is that soon we would all be back home together. I was just holding on until then. The news that he wouldn't be coming home with me was devastating.

I used the bathroom and asked someone how to get to the other hospital. They explained it to me, and Eddie and I started what felt like a long walk, though it was actually very short. It just felt long because I was almost completely blind without my glasses. I honestly couldn't see anything and had to rely on knowledge in my head for finding the place. I had to cross a super busy road, which scared me to death even though I was crossing on a crosswalk with the green walking guy signaling it was okay. I held out one arm, signaling to traffic to stop with my hand because I was so scared we were going to get hit.

I found the emergency room in the other hospital. I inquired about Ben and was sent back to a room, where he was laying in a bed. His foot was completely dressed in gauze, but it was also completely soaked with blood. I was surprised by all the blood. He said there had been much more blood earlier. I learned that his heel had been shattered, that surgery would most likely be necessary, and that they didn't know when it would take place. He needed an orthopedic surgeon to come see him. For the time being he was just to wait in this room until he could be moved to a permanent room in the hospital. He ended up not being moved until maybe 8 p.m. or even 9 p.m. Doctors and nurses did check on him every few hours. His foot may have been dressed a few times. Ben asked for food at some point. They said they'd bring him some but they never did. When he got to his room late that night they also said they'd bring him food and never did.

Eddie and I went in and out of his room, visiting him. I remember going outside and calling my mom at some point (several hours after the accident, the first phone call I made). She sounded all excited to hear from me. She said she was just about to call me, and I felt sad to have to interrupt what would have been happy chit chatting with such terrible news. She cried and asked if I wanted her to come out. Of course I did, but I knew it was stupid. What could she do? So I said no and told her I would keep her posted. I wanted to cry to her to tell her that I was pregnant and I was so worried about the baby, but I didn't mention the pregnancy because Ben and I hadn't talked about telling people yet, and we'd waited months to tell people we were having Eddie. Ben called his family at some point, but I don't remember if he used my cell phone or not.

I knew I would need to call someone to ask for help, so I called my friend Jen. She lived the closest to us. I was closer with her than anyone, not that we knew each other very well yet at all. She was at a farmer's market. I told her what had happened and where we were. I asked if she could come be with me at the hospital. I told her Eddie was hungry. She came right away. I remember watching for her through the window of the waiting room. I remember seeing someone in white capris with really tan legs, and I knew it must be her (remember I was practically blind). She came in and gave Eddie food, some sort of drink and maybe a granola bar? I don't remember. She sat with me. My brother Brent called, and she sat with me while I cried to him. I then talked to her about whether I should be seen by a doctor or not. My chest hurt, and I was worried because I was pregnant, though I didn't mention that yet. She encouraged me to be checked. She helped with Eddie while I talked to the people at the front desk and they took my info. She went back with me so she could help with Eddie while I was being checked (I didn't want to be out of Eddie's sight, and I didn't want to be out of his). She had her son with her, who was one year older than Eddie. I told her while we waited for the doctor that I was pregnant cuz I knew she was going to hear me tell the doctor about it in just a minute, and I wonder if she'd already overheard me tell the nurse when I was getting checked in. She was so nice about it, so excited for me.

I had some xrays done and everything looked good, so I guess I just had some internal bruising. By this point it was dinner time and we were all starving. Her husband was finishing up school. They had had plans with friends that she canceled. She asked her husband to come to the hospital and bring Chick-fil-A. She asked what I wanted, chicken nuggets, fries, and lemonade. I said I would share with Eddie, which she thought was silly, but that is what I would've done anyway. We didn't think about Ben needing food because we didn't know how neglected he was.

James, her husband, showed up with food and took Jonah, their son, home. Jen ended up giving Ben her food because she realized how hungry he was.

Our hometeachers showed up, don't know who called them. It was good to see familiar faces, though I wouldn't call us friends with them at that point. They were dressed up. They gave Ben a blessing and helped him give me a blessing. I don't remember Ben's blessing, and all I remember from mine is that I need to stop questioning why this was happening to us (this thought had been in my mind all day) and start feeling so grateful that we were so protected. All day long Ben had been saying how blessed we were, how happy he was that we were okay. I just felt negative and upset. Oh, the blessing also said that I should let Eddie sleep with me that night and take comfort in being with him.

Once they came to move Ben to a room, we said goodbye to him. Jen went to the children's hospital to pick up the carseat I had left there (I hadn't realized yet that it was compromised). She came back, picked me and Eddie up, and took us home. She then went to her house to get some antibacterial medicine for Eddie's neck and came and brought that to me.

Ben called after he got settled in his room and told me how he was still so hungry and how he was basically being ignored. He also told me he was in a lot of pain and no one was giving him pain medicine, though they said they would. These things upset and worried me.

Eddie and I laid down in my bed. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw and heard the accident. Eddie slept, and I eventually dozed.

Sometime that evening my mom had called my brother, William, who lived four hours from us. He stopped mid-mowing the lawn to take my mom's phone call and never went back to finishing it. He gathered up his family, quickly packed up, and drove to Atlanta to be with me. I learned at some point while I was at the hospital that he was coming. He arrived at midnight. He gave me a blessing that night that confirmed what I already knew about my garments protecting me and that said that's it's true that death is around every corner (I couldn't stop thinking about how we could have lost our lives).

It was a hard day and I had no idea how much harder it was going to get before it got better. I got new glasses the next morning. Ben came home from the hospital the next day. His surgery was scheduled for a couple of weeks later, when the swelling went down. I had no idea that Ben would be confined to our couch for so long. I didn't know how many hours we would spend each week at his doctor's office or how many months of physical therapy he would require. I had no idea how much he would struggle just to get to school and how much I would worry about him. I had no idea he would be on crutches for months. I had no idea we would have to spend days in court (the court eventually decided that both drivers were at fault) or pay so much money on hospital bills and deal with such headaches with insurance (we hadn't even had our insurance cards with us). But it all worked out for the best. We witnessed a lot of love. We were given a new carseat. Multiple ward members let us borrow cars long term (it was two months before we bought a new car), and we received many rides to appointments. Ben's parents drove 17 hours from Arkansas to see us, though they only stayed an hour. The best blessing of this accident, though, was how our family grew closer. Prior to this accident, Ben was so consumed by school that he literally never had time for us, especially for Eddie. Ben and Eddie fell in love with each other these months while Ben laid on the couch. They played a lot together. Our family grew so much because of it.

I am happy to be so removed from this day, but I am grateful for all the lessons I learned. Here's to no more car accidents!

Baby Love

2010-08-24T08:55:00.003-04:00

Our First Family Bowling

2010-08-01T10:22:00.007-04:00

On Friday we took Eddie and Peter bowling for the first time. We had a ton of fun! Peter can't stop talking about those "heavy, heavy balls". He somehow knew they were heavy before we got there, though, because he was talking about them on the way there.
Waiting while Dad got everything set up. Look at his beautiful eyes!

The ball return is loud and kinda scared Eddie and Peter, though Peter would try to shove the balls back down it.

Boy, is that ball heavy!

So excited to see what will happen! And he got a strike on his very first time! Sometimes Eddie would jump up and down while he would wait to see how many pins would be knocked over on any of our turns. Eddie did opt to just roll the ball down the lane one time.
Peter needed help carrying the ball, obviously.

Both boys are so curious about what will happen!

Look at that happy boy! After Peter would bowl, he would lean forward and touch the ground with the palms of his hands, then he would prance around with his pointer fingers on his dimples, smiling. Unfortunately I don't have a picture of this.

Both Eddie and Peter want to go back soon. They have been playing online bowling all weekend.

Playing With Friends

2010-08-01T10:11:00.002-04:00

Eddie is growing up, folks. Remember this little shy guy who balked at any outside attention? Now he approaches every child he sees in public. One day he saw a boy and a girl, two years older than him, playing by our house while we were arriving home from somewhere. He immediately approached them and played with them for a bit. After that they began to come to our house, twice daily, to see if he could play with them. The first time they came over it was 8:30 p.m., long after Eddie had gone to bed. The next morning they came back, and Eddie opted to go outside to play. I set some strict restrictions on where they could play, and I watched from the window the entire time (Eddie's only four!). I thought it might bother E that I was watching, but he saw me and waved and signed "I love you" and kept looking up to make sure I was watching. He even continuously talked to me, requiring me to open the window. The kids did an excellent job following my rules. Eddie had them all playing firefighter in no time. I can't believe how big Eddie is and how much more comfortable he has become with other people. He is not a bossy friend, but he is an instigator in what to play. I am so proud of him.

As an update, Eddie has never gone back out to play with these kids. They kept coming over for two weeks to ask but have now given up on him. We are all fine with this; there will be plenty of years of playing with friends when Eddie is older. (And it's not like Eddie doesn't have organized playdates with friends we know!)

Cute Mug

2010-07-24T10:40:00.002-04:00

Because there was some concern about placenta previa, we had a second ultrasound on Monday. Thankfully, all is well. This ultrasound was such a fun experience for our family. We saw Creegan move a lot and got some great pictures, which wasn't the case the first time around. I love this profile picture because you can see Creeg has my nose, which Eddie also has. It's adorable! Eddie was so interested in the baby and recognized many body parts on his own (like heart and spine), which amazed the technician. Because she was enjoying Eddie so much, she did a 3D ultrasound for us, and we got to see Creegan! He looks so much like Eddie and Peter.
What a cute mug! I love you, Creegan!

Eddie at Four Years Old

2010-07-11T19:11:00.004-04:00

Favorite Foods-blueberries, oranges, bagels with cream cheese, crepes, chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches . He doesn't eat cereal if there's milk in it, though he often asks for it. For breakfast he wants things that have to be cooked (waffles, pancakes, etc).

Favorite things to do-play firefighter (no matter where we go, if he is playing with other kids, they are almost always playing firefighter; I guess he has some sway with his friends), play package guy (he delivers packages to our door and of course comes in and opens the package for us; he is also the one to pack each package), run, play that he is a worker fixing or building something; he likes to paint, play with playdough, and play with stamps; he's playing with Legos quite a bit right now, but I think that is just because I recently moved them from his closet to a shelf in his bedroom (he's never really been into building that much, unless you are building with him); dance and sing (in the morning when I get up, I often find him sitting on the couch singing his favorite songs; he stops when I come in the room; he mimics the vocal style of the singer of the song, which is really cute and funny); he used to play with trains all the time, but doesn't often do that anymore; he likes rockets, astronauts, and outer space. He likes to play pirates. He and Peter like to pretend that a ghost or a monster or Jesus is in my bedroom, and they have to go see this ghost, monster, Jesus and then run away from him. He and Peter play with cars a lot.

What he wants to be when he grows up-a firefighter. He always wants to know what I am going to be when I grow up. He doesn't believe me when I tell him that I already was a teacher and that I am a Mom and those are the things I wanted and want to be.

Interesting things-
1. Eddie has been an apple juiceaholic for most of his life. He completely gave it up a couple of months ago and won't drink it anymore.
2. We are still waiting for Eddie to sleep through the night. He does sleep through the night about once a month. Usually, though, he gets up and gets in bed with us. If we wake up we take him back to his bed, unless it's 5 a.m. or later.
3. Eddie's favorite person in the world is his "mom that lives far away". He is referring to my mom, but don't tell him that she is my mom because he gets upset (she is his mom!). He also calls her "grandma with the silly car" because she drives a yellow VW Beettle. He talks about her every day. He loves writing her letters and talking to her on the phone. Admittedly I have felt jealous about his feelings for her (occasionally he cries because he misses her so much), but I am so happy, really. My biggest fear about moving far from family was that my kids wouldn't have a good relationship with my mom. While we don't see her a lot, Eddie definitely loves her so much!
4. At the library Eddie firsts runs to the nonfiction kids books. He likes books about anything, but his favorite books are about the human body.
5. He is interested in the sounds each letter makes.
6. He asks us every morning what we dreamed that night and tells us his dreams, very few of which he actually dreamed. Usually he adopts our dreams and repeats them and says they are his.

Favorite TV shows-He's watching a lot less tv than he used to. He's just not that interested. Recently he has enjoyed watching Phineas and Ferb. It's fun that he can explain to me who's who and what's going on. He doesn't seem to like the shows geared at younger kids so much anymore. He still likes Fireman Sam. He LOVES watching Minute to Win It and Wipeout, both gameshows. Afterwards we play and play games like the ones on the shows.

Favorite songs-Look for a post coming soon about his first mixed cd to find out some of his favorites.

Favorite books-Right now he is into "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs", "Gus, the Pilgrim Turkey" by Teresa Bateman, "Everything I Know about Pirates" by Tom Lichtenheld, and "Otis" (a tractor book) by Loren Long

Edison's Fourth Birthday

2010-07-09T10:39:00.022-04:00

What a perfect day Eddie's birthday was this year. The day before we made Eddie's rocket cake. He chose a chocolate cake with red frosting. I was worried we wouldn't be able to make the frosting look truly red. I told him it might take a lot of food coloring. I then turned my back for half a second while he poured in all the red food coloring we had (3/4 of a bottle). And it was red!!

Eddie chose candy corns and M&Ms for decorating the cake. He thought the candy corns would make a good nose (notice the two "noses" standing up on the nose of the rocket) and good fire coming out the back of the rocket. Good idea.

Eddie was so excited for his birthday this year that he couldn't go to sleep the night before. He literally couldn't hold still. So we had two late nights in a row (July 4th and July 5th); July 6 is not good timing a birthday! He was up on his birthday at 6:30a.m., bouncing on our bed and on me.

When we got up at 7, he ate his standard piece of birthday cake for breakfast (I've always had a cupcake out for them first thing on their birthday; we put a candle in it and sing. This year it was just an edge of cake we'd cut off from the rocket.). Then he didn't know what to do with himself while he waited for Peter to wake up. We decided to make his favorite breakfast-crepes. We had blueberries, his favorite fruit, to go with them. Of course, he mainly ate chocolate chips with his.
After breakfast he got to open his presents first thing. We didn't do this at my house growing up, but it seems like a good idea for kids. This way they can play with their new presents all day. He asked Ben to help him open his presents. Of course that only lasted for the first gift.
He got his first mixed cd! It's full of songs that he's loved throughout his life. Later I will post what they are.
He got walkie talkies. This gift was Ben's idea, and it is perfect for our little Eddie firefighter. Peter's excited about them, too, though he can't figure out how to push the button while talking.
His presents were wrapped in this really cute robot wrapping paper that I was excited about. Eddie didn't comment on it, but Peter did.
He also got this cool rocket and space station that he and Peter love, love, love! Much arguing ensued on who got to play with it. Luckily they have calmed down about it. Peter probably plays with it more, but when Eddie wants it Peter plays with the smaller rocket we already had.
We told Eddie he could choose something fun to do that day. We had a few ideas in mind, in case he needed help, but he came up with Chuck E Cheese on his own. We haven't been there in a year, and he has never asked to go there this past year. Ben had signed Eddie up for their birthday club last year, so we get free coins each year around his birthday. So it worked out perfectly. Peter loved Chuck E Cheese this time around. He ran around and checked out each and every game. He loved running around the tables in the animatronics area; it was like a maze to him. He loved riding "race cars" and playing games, especially one where he had to hit a button that made balls fly into a dogs mouth. He also liked air hockey. Ben went around with Eddie, so I know less about what he liked. We actually earned enough tickets to buy something-candy!
We had to convince Eddie that he didn't want to eat at Chuck E Cheese. It wasn't too hard; we only had to mention Steak & Shake and he was excited. We live right by one, and he always wants to go. We so seldom do that this was a special birthday treat.
Eddie wanted a shake in a big glass, and how could we say no on his birthday? His favorite kind of icecream hasn't changed, mint chocolate chip. He loves the cherry on top!

My friend had called that morning to see if they could come over and swim that afternoon. That sounded fun to Eddie, so after lunch we went swimming at our pool with his friend Jefferson. She brought a fun pool toy, a penguin that swims and dives all over the pool. Eddie loved it and was sad he didn't get to keep it. "Jeff-er-rey" (how Eddie says her name) did bring him a present, though, which was really kind. Eddie loved the fake snake. We invited her to eat cake with us.
Eddie asked at the end of our singing if that was the end of the song before blowing out his candles both times we sang to him today.
After cake we were all exhausted. We had a simple dinner, that I don't think E and P hardly ate. Then we went to bed. Eddie fell asleep so fast! It was a really perfect day for our whole family! Happy four years old, Eddie! We love you!

July 4, 2010

2010-07-07T14:42:00.009-04:00

This Fourth of July Ben wanted to avoid the crowd of the actual fireworks, so we set ourselves up at a strip mall across the street from the park where the fireworks were to be set off.
We arrived early and had plenty of time to play and have fun. Eddie and Peter especially loved eating candy (I happened upon a hidden stash of Easter candy before we left for the fireworks!) and running around on the grass. They also met a new little friend named Spencer that they had lots of fun with.
We lit our first sparklers that our fireworks neighbors gave to us. They freaked E and P out at first, but eventually E held his own.
When the show finally started, we were disappointed to learn that our view was almost totally blocked by a big tree. We saw the fireworks that went up really high; that was about it. Peter watched from Dad's shoulders for a minute before he realized they weren't really worth it. Then he laid on the blanket (or played with passing dogs) until it was time to go home. The good news is no one was scared of the fireworks this year.

Overall we had fun. Despite all my complaining about tired kids on July 5, I am sure we will go again next year. Though, we will not be going to this same strip mall!

Eddie's Cleaning Up

2010-06-27T18:48:00.003-04:00

A few evenings ago, Eddie built a long, straight line for his trains. At bedtime I asked him to clean it up. The picture is post-cleanup request. When questioned, he told me he just unhooked each piece of track so he would know how to rebuild it in the morning. :)

All the Little Live Things

2010-06-27T18:38:00.003-04:00

I've known the South is infamous for big bugs for four years now, but it's only been in the past month that I have learned that some things here are very, very small. While walking home from the bus stop in the rain, Ben had to step over 20 or so little, tiny frogs that were all over the sidewalk. He said they were about the size of a dime. I wished I could have seen them. A day or two later, we spotted these same little frogs in the grass in front of our house. Now just about every time we are outside we can find them. They range from the size of a dime to the size of a nickel. Eddie and Peter love to chase them with their finger in order to touch them. I am always so scared Peter is going to squish one inadvertently. Thankfully, this hasn't happened yet. Florida is definitely a fun place for a child to grow up because of all the little (and big) live things!

Peter's Games

2010-06-27T17:07:00.004-04:00

I recently moved our games to the floor of our hall closet, making it easier for Eddie and Peter to get their own games. Daily I question the sanity of this decision as I see the hundreds of games pieces strewn across the floor. Peter is the real culprit. He loves to play games by himself and gets all the games out at some point each day. Peter's favorite game is Candy Land. He will play it alone but prefers for us to play with him. He loves to play with the "guys" (the game pieces) on and off the board. When he plays on the board, he walks the guys around the path and has them pretend to eat candy. If we are trying to really play the game, he will pick cards with us and name the color (though he's usually wrong about the color). He doesn't move his guy, though. He just continuously picks cards.
Peter plays Memory by himself. He picks two cards straight from the box, and says "not a match" then says what each card is a picture of. I don't know what he would do if he got a match because he's never gotten one! Right before taking this picture, I said "Peter" to get him to look up. He looked up, said "Say cheese!", and gave this cheesy smile! I love this kid of mine!!

Creegan

2010-06-21T10:06:00.002-04:00

Around November 9 our newest little boy will be joining the family, Creegan. I'm officially at the half way point right now. I feel like I have been pregnant forever, but I can't believe how soon my life will completely change. I am happy, though. I have never been this calm about a new baby. It will be hard, but we are already an established family; we'll be okay. Eddie and Peter, especially Eddie, are super excited about this new little baby. And Eddie and Peter play well together and can entertain themselves. I feel so honored to be the mom of three little boys. I only have two concerns about having sons: circumcision (I feel awful doing it and they are so miserable afterwards!) and losing them when they are all grown up and married (wife's family of origin tends to get precedence).

Here's how we came up with Creegan's name. Ben mentioned, since he is so into music, that it would be neat to name a child after something musically meaningful to him. The summer Ben and I worked together we shared a lot of music with each other. I really took to the band Barenaked Ladies that Ben introduced me to. We went to their first concert together that summer. We went to all of their concerts before we had children. We even traveled so we could go to multiple shows. Anyway, Creeggan is the last name of one of the band members (there actually used to be two band members with this last name). When Ben mentioned he wanted to name a child after something to do with music, I began thinking about BNL. I thought of Creeggan and instantly fell in love with it as a name. Ben loved it, too. We decided two g's, though adorable, seemed a little much, so we are using Creegan. Jim Creeggan, of BNL, has a beautiful voice and writes beautiful songs. I especially love "Peterborough and the Kawarthas" from the Barenaked Ladies are Me album. It's a sweet song about a father leaving his little boy. I put Eddie to sleep with this album, so it's especially sweet to me. Go to this site to hear a sample http://www.amazon.com/gp/recsradio/radio/B000H1RG2M/ref=pd_krex_listen_dp_img?ie=UTF8&refTagSuffix=dp_img

I love you already, Creegan! I am so happy I am your Mama! See you soon!

Aquarium Visit

2010-06-14T14:35:00.008-04:00

We recently discovered there's an aquarium less than an hour from our house. We went to check it out on Memorial Day, I believe. It's tiny (sea life lives in glorified bathtubs), but the price was low.
Eddie and Peter were able to tame a wild dolphin.
The most fun I had was watching these tiny crabs run for their lives every time we approached their box. P and E are huge to them!!
I love this pic! Right before I snapped it, a "bud" (bug) flew up Peter's nose.
The most exciting residents of the aquarium.
Peter loves to walk on paths (be they a particular color of tile, a painted line, or a particular stripe in a carpet). He likes us all to walk with him. It looks like Peter is following Eddie in this picture, but Peter began this path. Eddie rushed ahead to be first. Peter didn't mind because he wanted to walk the entire path, while Eddie skipped the beginning. Makes a great new header pic, I think!

Car Museum

2010-05-24T14:57:00.004-04:00

The weekend before this past one, we took Eddie and Peter to the Tallahassee Car Museum. It was everything we feared it would be-a little boring for young children. We still managed to have some fun, though.
This car was a highlight for Eddie and Peter because it had firefighter paraphernalia on it.
The hearse was the most interesting to me. It was possibly President Lincoln's hearse. It has a trap door, so it may have been used by the Underground Railway during the Civil War.
Ben's favorite was, of course, the DeLorean. I was surprised to learn that this car was not unique to Back to the Future; many of them were made.
Eddie and Peter loved all of the pedal cars and were sad that they couldn't get in them. Interesting note, Ben and I were required to wear wristbands at the museum. E and P weren't. Peter requested one, however. You can see it on him in the picture.

Safety Fair

2010-05-24T14:43:00.005-04:00

Last Saturday we went to a safety fair held in the parking lot of a mall. Despite the heat and Eddie's and Peter's nervousness in the face of anything new or different (they get this from me, unfortunately), it turned out to be a success!
Eddie and Peter got to get in a real firetruck. They are still nervous and hesitant in this picture.
If you know how much they love everything firefighter, you will know how exciting this was for all of us!
Eddie warmed up in the driver's seat.
They got balloon swords that they loved!

The highlight of the experience for Eddie was watching a demonstration of what could happen if you were in a car crash and you didn't have a seatbelt on. He was practically in tears after the demonstration, but he can't stop talking about it and acting it out.

The highlight of the experience for Peter was seeing the bear with the hat (Smoky). Peter went up to Smoky and almost touched him!

Peter's Second Birthday

2010-05-07T09:55:00.014-04:00

Here are some pictures of Peter's birthday. I have included a few details but not many, as I wrote all about his birthday in his special book (the daily journal I keep for him).
Breakfast was a cupcake.

We immediately went in to opening presents. Peter is a great unwrapper-very fast, doesn't need any help. I love Eddie in the background, interested but not jumping in there.

He got some sand toys

and a baby that he was so excited about! He's shown an interest in dolls for a long time. We have never had any, though. We took him birthday shopping with us, and this doll he fell in love with at the store. It makes noises and its face moves when you feed it or give it a pacifier.

Peter can't wait to give the baby the pacifier. He hasn't even finished unwrapping the box yet.

This picture makes me laugh!

I let Eddie choose a present for Peter. He chose a gardening set he has been wanting for a few weeks now. Peter's not too interested, but Eddie loves it.

Peter's cake was a dump truck filled with chocolate cupcakes. It's the easiest cake I have made for one of my children. It made the birthday experience less stressful and more fun for me. I think it turned out well. When Peter saw it, he exclaimed "Yay!!"; it was a success! The dump truck was a present, as well. (Peter actually requested strawberry cake mix; I felt terrible not letting him choose, but the cake wouldn't have worked as dirt is not pink.)
It says "Peter's 2", if you can't tell.

Once Peter realized the dump truck was full of cake, he immediately reached in, grabbed a cupcake,

and began eating.

Mmm! It's good!

Happy birthday, Peter! It has been the happiest two years with you in our family! I am so happy I am am your Mama! I love you!

Peter at Two Years Old

2010-05-04T16:46:00.005-04:00

Words he says funny: cereal is cer-e-o-e-o-e-o; anything that ends with a "g" or "ck" he ends with a "d" (i.e. hug is "hud"); monster is "monter" (sometimes I think he is saying monitor); blanket is "mament" and music sounds so similar to "mament" that if he doesn't point, I don't know which one he is saying;

What he likes to eat: beans, any kind(he gets excited when he is eating beans; he loves them that much!); cereal; cheese; waffles; noodles; pickles, peanut butter (he wants to stick his hand in the jar and eat, eat, eat!); olives; he recently likes cottage cheese; he tries and likes most things. He is a very good eater!

What he doesn't like to eat: sandwiches (he takes them apart, sometimes eating parts, sometimes not); toast (sometimes he'll eat it); yogurt; eggs

What he likes to do: dance (he dances every time he hears music; he moves his fists up and down; sometimes his pointer fingers are pointing up while he does this; he sways from side to side and moves his head up and down); lately he is singing a lot; pretend to be a baby or a kitty (his baby cry and his kitty meow sound almost identical); unscrew screws with his hands and then try to screw them back in; play firefighter; play chase; hide; crawl underneath the fitted sheet and the mattress on my bed; he likes to hear stories about trains that crash off their tracks and splash into the water (this is the bedtime story he requests every other night when its his turn to choose the story I tell he and Eddie before bed); play with cars and rockets; pet real kitties; he loves when it's his turn to put the laundry soap in the washing machine; count; whatever Eddie is doing;

What he doesn't like: swinging, having his teeth brushed; the dark (he won't go into a dark room unless I turn the light on; he sleeps with his closet light on; going in to the house immediately upon arriving home; having his hair washed; Ben doing anything for him (only Mommy can do things)

Favorite tv shows/characters: Fireman Sam, Bob the Builder, Curious George, Clifford, Thomas the Train

Favorite songs: Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam, The Wheels on the Bus, We are a Happy Family (we sang this song the other night, and he sang along, which surprised me because we rarely sing this song; he must have learned it at nursery), Blast Off by the Descendents , Gone Daddy Gone by the Violent Femmes

Interesting things about Peter: The first thing he does when we get to church is run to the drinking fountain for a drink./ He follows Eddie to the bathroom every time Eddie goes and waits with Eddie til Eddie's done./ For many months he has gotten mad every time I sing or hum, unless I am singing while putting him to bed. He is just beginning to get over this, thank goodness!/ He gives the cheesiest smiles, but they are sincere. He is just so happy all the time. Honestly, he is the happiest little boy I have ever seen and has been happy since he was born. He makes our home a very happy place! / Every night before going to bed he throws his blankets, kitty, and water out of his bed. I think it's a game he is trying to play with Eddie, but he ends up sleeping with them on the floor./ He hasn't napped for several months, though he rests in his bed each afternoon. Eddie rests in my bed, in the hope that Peter will actually sleep in his bed, but he almost never does./ He is a great sleeper at night; he has slept through the night for about six months. He doesn't need me to get him to sleep. We are still working with Eddie on sleeping through the night and going to sleep without me. I LOVE how great of a sleeper Peter is!/ He likes books well enough and looks at them by himself. Sometimes he sits with me while I read, but usually when I read, he periodically stands near to listen and look and pictures and then goes back to playing./

Favorite places to go: Chick-fil-A, the library (he loves looking at the display case; the display changes each month), he likes to pick Dad up from school; he likes going to nursery; he's happy to go wherever we are going or do whatever we are doing.

What Peter Said

2010-04-29T19:58:00.001-04:00

Eddie: Mom, what is the name of that park we went to?
Me: Summer Brook park.
Peter: Five, Six, Seven Brook park!!!

Cute Peter Pics

2010-04-29T19:57:00.000-04:00

Peter faking a smile for a picture.
There's our cute, funny little boy!
Peter crashed on the floor one day. For some silly reason this made me feel really bad, like I wasn't taking good care of him. He had been in his bed at naptime and had never fallen asleep, which isn't unusual. You can see he has a car in each hand. It used to be impossible to see Peter without two cars, but this isn't always the case anymore.