I Couldn't Delay It Any Longer......

This afternoon, I finally conceded, and took Chase for a haircut. :(  Let's face it; he has alot of hair, definitely more than most babies his age.  He even has more hair than Austin did!  It's usually out of control and half the time in his eyes now, so I thought we'd take him for a trim.  Austin needed one as well, so we took them both.  He did great sitting in the little airplane, just wondering what was going on around him.  Well, after the cut, he looks older now, and more like Austin's baby pictures again.

The Many Faces of Austin

I was browsing through some pictures of Austin lately and thought I'd share a quick montage of his many expressions.

The 'I just talked Mommy into going to the Donut Store!' face

The "I'm about to go to Kindergarten" look

The 'You better not ever think about getting rid of my puppy, Mommy!' face

This one speaks for itself............

The 'This is the best part about baking with Mommy!' face!

The 'I'm too cool for school' look

The 'You better not lay a finger on my chicken finger!' face

The 'I can't believe I'm floating by myself!' face

The 'You should definitely get me an agent, Mom! look

Bouncing Baby Boy!

I just love this picture of Chase!  It just captures his personality in one snapshot, just a happy-go-lucky kinda guy.  And you can see those two bottom teeth!

Parents' Night Away....

We're back! I know, it was a very quick anniversary getaway. :)  But we'll take what we can get!  I worked from home yesterday morning, before we headed to Addison to switch cars with Katrina, so that she would have the carseats for the boys.  After going over a list of 'instructions' for the boys, we were on our way!  Once we arrived at the Gaylord, we got checked in, changed into our suits, and then headed up to their new pool/lazy river area.  Lucky for us, since it was a Tuesday afternoon, it wasn't crowded at all.  We lounged by the pool, floated down the lazy river, went down the waterslide, and just relaxed with some cold beverages.  It was incredibly nice to just be by ourselves and chill. 

After getting in enough sun, we headed back to our room and got changed for dinner.  We made reservations at the Old Hickory Steakhouse at the hotel, which we also ate at two years ago for our anniversary.  It was delicious! I had good intentions of taking a picture of our spread before we actually ate it, but we devoured it shortly after it arrived at our table.  We feasted on an amazing dinner, were treated to a complimentary caramel and white chocolate creme brulee, and downed a yummy bottle of wine.  After all that, our trip to the steakhouse amounted up to more than our room charge!  Oh well, it was so worth it!

We called it a night shortly after.  After all, we did have to get back to work the next morning.  We got to sleep in a little, then headed back to switch cars with Katrina and was at work by 10:30am.  Sounds pretty efficient to me.  We had a great time, but I was excited to wrap up my day and pick-up my boys from school.  My heart melted with Austin's excitement to see me when I walked in the door!

Happy Anniversary, babe! I had a great time celebrating year #8 with you! Here's to becoming a statistic...........of a suucessful marriage! Love you!

When I Said I Do........

These times are troubled and these times are good
And they're always gonna be, they rise and they fall
We take 'em all the way that we should
Together you and me forsaking them all
Deep in the night and by the light of day
It always looks the same, true love always does
And here by your side, or a million miles away
Nothin's ever gonna change the way that I feel,
The way it is, is the way that it was

When I said I do, I meant that I will 'til the end of all time
Be faithful and true, devoted to you
That's what I had in mind when I said I do

Well this old world keeps changin', and the world stays the same
For all who came before, and it goes hand and hand
Only you and I can undo all that we became
That makes us so much more, than a woman and a man
And after everything that comes and goes around
Has only passed us by, here alone in our dreams
I know there's a lonely heart in every lost and found
But forever you and I will be the ones
Who found out what forever means

When I said I do, I meant that I will 'til the end of all time
Be faithful and true, devoted to you
That's what I had in mind when I said I do

Truer than true, you know that I'll always be there for you
That's what I had in mind, that's what I had in mind,
When I said I do

I've been thinking the past week about what I should do for our anniversary blog post.  As I was looking back at old wedding pictures, the above song popped into my head.  And it's so true.  When I said 'I Do', I meant that it was forever.  Done; I would only be married once in my lifetime.  Divorce has never been an option for me, unlike so many others who quickly turn to getting a divorce when things don't work out as they planned.  I recently looked it up, only to see that the divorce rate in the U.S. is an astonishing 49%.
I know that at times, in a few extenuating circumstances, divorce is necessary.  But I ultimately believe that, for the most part, it can be prevented.  Whether it's making sure that you truly know somebody before you wed, or have to endure counseling to make it all work out, couples should use every ounce of their being to prevent divorce.

Well, for better or worse, and richer or poorer, Jordan and I are in this together. Til death do us part. 

We by no means have a perfect marriage; I don't think that one really exists.  We've had our share of issues, arguments, challenges, etc., but we are determined to work through it all, especially now more than ever that we have two special little boys involved in this.  We may not like each other everyday, but we certainly love each other.  After everything we've been through, our love and marriage continues to get stronger each and everyday.

So, here's to 8 years, babe!!  I love you! Two more, and we're Hawaii-bound!  But for tonight, we'll settle for a quiet night away from the kids at the Gaylord Texan. :)

P.S. Thanks Katrina and Logan for watching the boys for us!  Hope they behave. :)

Who's Rocking Who?!

This weekend, the boys and I were putting up laundry in Chase's room.  Austin loves to sit in the little rocking chair (which was Jordan's when he was little) and say 'I rocking the baby, Mommy.'  This time, after he said it, he wanted to hold Chase.  So, I placed Chase in his arms and it was the funniest thing!  They were definitely too big for that little old chair.  Then I suggested to Austin that he rock Chase in the big glider chair in there.  After repositioning them, Austin was rocking him and rubbing his tummy. 

The pictures are hilarious!  Chase literally looks like he could be bigger than Austin.  And the one of them in the little chair, Chase doesn't even seem to be phased by the fact that Austin has him around the neck! I see lots of trouble in my future with these two!

Happy Baby!

I just had to share some pictures of our happy little boy!!



Feed me!

Scrub-a-dub-dub!

Who is this Buzz Lightyear character that Bubba loves so much!?

Movin' On Up!!

Finally, the firm recognizes my hard work! :)  Effective July 1st, I'm a Senior Manager.  Hey, it earns me an extra week of PTO, for a total of 6, so I'll take it!

Potty Training Boot Camp

Over the past several months, we've attempted to get Austin potty-trained.  But, he just never showed too much interest.  He would much rather just sit on the potty and do other activities, rather than actually go potty. Occasionally, he would go when we put him on there, but nothing consistent.  So, we decided not to push the issue and he would let us know when he was ready.  Well, probably over half of his class at school is potty-trained, and he has to accomplish it before he can move to the 3's class late this fall. 

A couple weeks ago, his teacher approached me one day after school.  They thought he was ready, and he clearly knew as soon as he would go and ask for his diaper to be changed.  He was just being lazy. :)  So, we decided to just throw him in there with undies on Monday morning and see what happened.  Well, before we even made it out the door to school, he had an accident.  After quickly changing him and grabbing about 6 pairs of extra undies and shorts, we were on our way.  He had a few small accidents where he would start to go, tell his teacher, and then finish in the potty.  I was a little skeptical when I picked him up, but he quickly proved when he got home that he was a big boy and went twice!  At school, they set him on the potty every hour and he goes.  Well, that approach doesn't work so well at home.  He definitely doesn't want to sit on there if he's not ready.  He has let me know every time he has needed to go over the past 3 days. We are sooooo proud of him and are hopeful that we will continue our great success.  We definitely give high fives, do a dance, clap, and give a potty prize (M&M) after he goes each time.  There is no exaggeration with the excitement that I express each time! :)  So, yay for Austin being a big boy in his undies!!

But going #2 on the potty is a struggle.  We'll get to that one later. :)

Chunk!

We took Chase to his 6-month checkup this morning.  He weighed in at 19lbs. 13oz. (80th percentile) and measured 27" long (75th percentile).  Both of those stats are above Austin's at this stage!  I can't believe that Chase has had such a growth spurt and got so chunky!  He took his shots like a champ and calmed down immediately after Mommy swooped him up. :)

The Big 3-0!!!

Today is the day!  Jordan has officially entered his 30's! :) I'm glad he's here before me.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my love!

We had a small get-together at our house last night for a couple friends to help celebrate.  It was definitely more mellow and tame than past birthday celebrations.  But given Jordan's new work schedule and our two little chittlin's, this was as good as it gets.  We had a good time cooking out, munching on my delicious cake balls, and just having some laughs.  Finally called it a night around 1:30am and headed to bed.  Luckily, after taking Chase to his 6 month checkup this morning, Jordan and I were able to relax and spend the day together.

Me and the birthday boy!

Going down memory lane with his companion 'Buffy' :)

Jordan and his buddy, Steph, from work

Jordan and Weldon

The two lovebirds taking a break from playing for some juice

Oldies, But Some Goodies!

Since Chase is sitting up on his own now, we figured it was time to climb up in the attic to pull down some of Austin's old baby toys.  After sifting through a few bins of toys, reorganizing the playroom, and wiping them all down to sanitize them, it was time to play! Of course, Austin was going down memory lane playing with some of his old favorites.  It was kinda weird to watch Chase play with some of these toys, as I remember Austin playing with them so vividly when was a baby.  They're both growing up too fast!

1/2 Way There!

Could it be, really?! My little boy is 6 months old today!!!  We're half way to the one year mark and it just doesn't even seem possible.  He is just such a smiley, giggly, laid-back little guy.  If I'm in the room, or anywhere around in his line of sight, he won't take his eyes off of Momma.  Okay, so I'm going to have another Momma's Boy on my hands, but I'll cherish these times now until they're 10 years old and hugging on me is no longer cool. :)

I don't have exact stats yet; his 6-month checkup is next week at the pediatrician.  But we know he's a chunk, at around 19lbs., and not that tall.  It runs in the family, so he didn't stand a chance.  (The height factor, not the chunkiness!!)  As documented in my earlier post, he has two teeth that have broken through on the bottom.  I think he's just anxious to eat more solid foods.  Every time we sit down to dinner, he eyes my plate and drools with envy.  Chase is getting better and better about sitting up on his own, but he's just such a rolly-poly.  He loves to just lay on his back and rock from side to side holding onto his feet.  Keeping socks on his feet these days is quite the battle. 

I'm still doing great as far as making his baby food and haven't found anything that he doesn't like yet.  Chase has enjoyed carrots, sweet potatoes, peas, squash, pears, bananas, and apples.  He's usually a pretty good sleeper still, but has his moments lately while battling teething.

That's it for now!

Fun Family Time!!

Well, my 5-day weekend has finally come to an end, and it's back to work tomorrow. After taking Austin to see Cars 2 and watching fireworks on Friday, we still had lots more planned for the long weekend.  But one thing not planned......taking Austin to the pediatrician on Saturday morning for an ear infection.  Apparently, one of his tubes fell out, so here we are again.  But after getting a prescription for some antibiotics and picking up some Motrin, we were quickly on our way back home.  Saturday, we enjoyed time at the neighborhood pool and cooked out.  We even pulled out the ol' $15 Target pool out of the garage to setup in the backyard for Austin while we grilled out.  It was great to have Jordan home on a rare Saturday and not working.

But it was back to work on Sunday for Jordan, so me and the boys headed over to Meow Meow and LoLo's apartment to hang out.  We had a Mexican feast that night and enjoyed more time at the pool.  Chase loves to just float around in his little float, just kicking his legs in the water.  Jordan met us there when he got off at 6, which was convenient since his new job is close to their apartment.  We turned this visit into a sleepover, which is always fun in a one-bedroom apartment.  But we're a close-knit family, so it was all fun. :)

And again, on the 4th, Jordan had to work, so me and the boys hung out at Meow Meow and LoLo's pool again before heading home to rest up and get dinner ready for Daddy.  We had planned on going to watch fireworks that the City were putting on at the local park, but Chase fell asleep early.  Rather than wake a baby, we were hoping we could see them from our house.  We pulled our camping chairs up on the sidewalk by the house and had a perfect view of fireworks! Not sure we will go to the park again and battle the crowds with a view like this at home!

Today was Jordan's day off, so I planned on taking off too.  We dropped Chase off at daycare and headed to Hawaiian Falls to meet Meow Meow and LoLo. (Sorry Chase, but it was just too hot out there to take you, little guy!)  We had a great time floating in the lazy river, splashing in the wave pool, and riding some slides.  As usual, we all had a great time and got a little sunburned. 

But it's back to reality tomorrow!  Have a great week!