Summer Lovin'

Yesterday marked a week on the road for us. We left early Sunday morning to make our twice a year trip South and arrived at Pops and Lulu's house Monday evening. We left the next morning for Orange Beach and spent the rest of the beach wrestling kids in the sand and water. Billy and I enjoyed a date night when we ate at a VERY old favorite of ours, Doc's Seafood Shack. After supper, we went to Cobalt Restaurant for dessert. It was fun night of good eats! We enjoyed a couple of other great restaurants that you should try if you ever visit the gulf coast... The Shrimp Basket (there are multiple locations and the whole family enjoyed the variety of foods we tried) and Tacky Jack's for breakfast (pancakes that hang over your plate). Obviously, I enjoy the dining part of our vacations! :)

Cooper continued to love the beach (like last year)... the sand, the water, everything. Calleigh warmed up to the soft sand, but never had any trouble with the hard sand next to the water. It was an experience that we will remember for years to come. With us being down there in early May, we didn't have any trouble with crowded beaches or party-ers. It truly was a family (and family-friendly) vacation. Hopefully next time we go, the kids will either be finished with daily naps or they will at least be taking their naps at the same time. It felt like we were spending a lot of time in the condo waiting on one of the kids to wake up. :)

One of my favorite (non-eating) memories is the time we spent at the indoor pool with ALL of the family swimming and playing. My second favorite is the nights on the beach "crab hunting" with Cooper. He was a RIOT! He would chase the crabs (with NO fear) across the sand and try to capture them with his net. Too bad it was so dark... the pictures or film would have been priceless!

Above are a few pictures from the first night. More pictures will be posted soon!

Birthdays are for remembering...

"I'm ONE!"

Today is Calleigh's 1st birthday and we have had a wonderful day. We had a small celebration for our sweet baby girl centered around the Kentucky Derby. We had traditional derby foods (Cucumber sandwiches, Chocolate Derby Pie, and lemonade) and dressed to impress. The ladies wore hats and the guys wore their hats and dressy clothes. We had a wonderful time and Calleigh got some great gifts, but most of all she loved the attention.

I found myself reflecting today on what my life looked like a year ago and I remember being surrounded by family and how excited "Pops" was to be here for Calleigh's birth. She was a chunky, beautiful girl who was a week early but a full pound heavier than Cooper. She had the prettiest complexion and she melted my heart right away. I remember Cooper coming in to meet her and how sweet he was to her. I am one blessed woman!

Happy birthday to my precious baby girl! You have completed our family and made us all so happy.

A little out of the ordinary...

So today's post won't be typical... I want to ask everyone who reads my blog to pray for Tyson Lewis. He is a freshman at YC and he is in Congestive Heart Failure. He is a VERY kind and faithful young man who beat cancer 11 years ago (he lost his leg to it) and unfortunately, they have yet to figure out WHY his heart is SO enlarged and WHY only 20% of it works. Today the doctors on Omaha are taking a biopsy of his heart (a concerning procedure all on it's own) and they hope to get results in a few days. Unfortunately, (as his dad has said) if this doesn't yield results, Tyson's options are limited. Please pray that a cause and solution are found with this procedure. He and his family have already experienced SO much pain already. I can't imagine what this scary time is like for them.

Tonight, I have organized a "Prayer Walk" at a local park for women from the college, church, and community to come and pray. It will likely be a cold night (and maybe even wet), but my understanding is that God listens to prayers no matter what the weather! :) I have encouraged the ladies who attend to bring a flashlight for the obvious reason, but ALSO because I hope that as drivers by see flashlights, they might wonder what is going on. I couldn't help but think of this as an opportunity to be "a light to the world". If you are not in York, PLEASE join us (from afar) and lift this family up at 9pm with us. Psalms 54:2

In Lones family news, we took pictures this weekend at JCPenney's and while we didn't get as many pictures as I would have liked, there are a few good ones. See for yourself (customer's name: CHRISTI LONES). We ended up spending the day in Lincoln running all over town. We got a lot done and found a few bargains.

I realized this morning that in less than a week, Calleigh turns ONE. One week from today, we begin finals at the college. Two weeks from today, we will be arriving in Alabama. CRAZY!!! I just hope we have time for everything.

New tricks...

Coop has 2 new tricks. The first one I haven't caught on tape yet, but I am sure I will eventually. He is VERY much into mimicking what I do or sometimes even what Calleigh does (especially if it is something naughty that she gets away with). Our newest game is where I mimic him by doing whatever he is doing with his arms (he is VERY expressive with his arms now) by crossing them, putting them at my side, crossing again, and then holding them out. He thinks this is the funniest thing and now he has started trying MAKE me "play this game". He will grab my arms and try to put them across my chest to get us started. Today I looked at him a couple of times only to find him looking at me and mimicking ME in hopes of starting the "game". What a cut up!!!

His other new trick is in this video. He can't quite get the concept of moving the finger back and forth to make the noise, but it is still hysterical!

Calleigh is growing and learning things at an amazing rate as well. Yesterday I got her to sign "more" for me several times (at the appropriate times... eating, of course) and today she REALLY started shaking her head at me, especially when I would ask her about going to bed. Here is a video of it...

Happiness is...

Happiness is...

• a household on the mend
• a child absorbing everything and repeating everything :)
• a child who not only had gotten his appetite back, has suddenly become interested in new foods again!
• one child sleeping so I can spend quality time with the other.
• a child who's new favorite toy is "big" legos. (Coop is in his own world when he plays with them and constantly is saying "oh no" or "uh oh")
• a husband who is finally able to sleep again
• a phone call to my parents
• having sunlight lighting up my living room.
• remembering all of these things come from the Lord. (James 1:17)

Gratituesday (part deux)

Friends are something I have never taken for granted, but this week has proven a great time to give thanks for some of the amazing women in York who have been there for me in some way over the past week.

• Thank you to Sarah for always, always treating my children as her own and taking them in several times over the past 2 weeks within MINUTES of a panicked phone call from me.
• Thank you to Candi for offering several times; neigh, really, really wanting to help us with whatever we needed.
• Thank you to Lindsey for taking the kids today for the 3 hours while I covered one of Billy's classes and my own. She had her 2 kids and 3 other kids ALL BY HERSELF and she WANTED to take in my kids. Needless to say, my children loved her and all the kiddos they got to play with (Cooper cried the whole way home begging to go back).
• Thank you to Amber and Marti and their love for Cooper and their weekly playdates with Cooper. To top of that long day, they came BACK 2 hours later and kept both kids while I took Billy to supper for his birthday! They are so good to us!
• Thank you to Barb for taking my kids on Friday for several hours so I can get some work done and so Billy can get some rest.
• Thank you to Gail, Kimberlee, Summer, and Kami for the facebook "stalking" and offers to help. I particularly loved Summer's offer to go get kleenexes for us! Talk about being specific! :)
• Thank you to Becky for the offer to help and even bring us dinner, but most especially for fielding nursing questions on her day off because I am too embarrassed to call the clinic AGAIN!!!
• Thank you to Cathy for the AMAZING (I'm not kidding) supper that she brought us. YUM! YUM! YUM!
• Thank you to the nurses and doctors at the York Medical Clinic who fielded SO many calls (and visits) from me as a concerned wife and mother. Boy... I am so glad they haven't run scared when they saw my number pop up on caller ID.
• Thank you to our bosses for being so understanding and willing to work around Billy's "sick time" schedule.
• And thank you to all the countless friends who have prayed for Billy or my kids and for those who continue to ask how we are doing. I also appreciate the random visit from Rick yesterday to check on us. My son was so excited to see him because he thought Rick was coming by to take him "bye-bye". Ha!

Since I KNOW this is never a good idea to individually thank people because I will inevitably forget someone, bear with me as I add posts of those names I forgot. I think it is important enough to thank people by name and more importantly to thank GOD for these people by name. Thank you all for being blessings to my life.

Gratituesday (gotta love my man!)

Yesterday, my beloved husband turned 35. While the day came and left quietly, it marked a momentous day for him. It was at this age that Billy’s father had a heart attack and this has been a point of great concern for Billy for years. He has seen this date as a “looming, dark cloud” and he has been motivated over the last year to get in shape. I am SO proud of him… he has lost 20 pounds!

So here is my Gratituesday subject… Billy. There are so many reasons to love, appreciate, honor, and respect him, so I am going to list a few of those.

• Billy is the most amazing chef
• Billy LOVES to cook (lucky me!!!)
• Billy is a Christian man
• Billy is a wonderful provider that put family above a lucrative career

I respect Billy for…

• His keen mind
• His relationship with his parents
• His adoration for our children
• His hands on approach with our kids

I appreciate Billy for…

• All the times he has gotten up in the middle of the night with a baby
• all the meals that he cooks after a long day at work
• co-parenting with me
• loving and caring about my family like they were his own
• loving me, even when I am unlovable
• all the things I am forgetting and never giving me a hard time for it J

Over all, I am grateful for Billy being in my life and taking care of me. I am one blessed woman!

And she's down for the count... (and more)

This weekend afforded me the unusual, but wonderful ability to have a "date night" with my LITTLE man. Since Billy and Calleigh are sick, I took my (mostly well) boy to Songfest and we had a blast. He got to hear a lot of fun music and dance with some of his friends.

Cooper with Amber... one of his favorite "girlfriends"!

So this weekend has led to an interesting Monday. Calleigh hasn't been acting like herself all weekend, so we have treaded lightly with her and made sure to keep her as comfortable as possible. A somewhat low-grade temp exasperated her other symptoms of runny nose and general crankiness, but it wasn't until today that I really began to wonder if something more was the matter. I took her to the clinic and guess what... she has a NASTY ear infection! Ahhh!!!! She is now on antibiotics and a decongestant to hopefully bring this thing under control.

While she and I were in the clinic, I asked the doctor more questions about Billy's pneumonia (that we forgot to ask last week) and I found out that he would likely be dealing with this another 2 weeks (which was a TOTAL shock to him) and that he could relapse if he were not VERY careful. We are both more committed to making sure he gets well and stays well. He taught 2 of his 3 classes today and slept for the 4 hours between those classes. I am "teaching" his 2 classes tomorrow and a wonderful savior/friend is watching the kids for part of the afternoon so Billy can rest a lot.

The only "fun thing" I have let Billy do today is we went out to eat for his 35th birthday just a few blocks from our house. We were gone a whooping hour and a half, but it was nice to be out with just the 2 of us. It has been almost a YEAR since we have been out without kids! Amber and her mom were kind enough to watch the kids and take them to the park.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention how blessed we are to have such wonderful and caring friends here. I'd be afraid to start listing the friends who have helped and the friends who have offered to help. There is no way I could properly show my gratitude for everything and everybody. The Lord really has taken care of us thru the "angels" here in York. Thank YOU!

Looking forward to tomorrow... it's GRATITUESDAY!!!!

Stay away...

Oh gosh... I can't begin to say how physically and mentally exhausted I am. But I am well and that is more than I can say for anyone in my household.

Yesterday, Billy was diagnosed with Pneumonia. He hasn't had a fever since around midnight last night and other than a continuing cough, sore throat (when he coughs), and fatigue, he claims to be getting better. Got to love modern medicine!

Cooper is getting better and other than his persistent cough, he is "back to normal". Calleigh, on the other hand, has had a terrible day. She basically whined ALL DAY LONG! She would want to be held and then she would wiggle down and fuss when she got got down. Nothing made her happy except Cooper playing with her (for a little bit and then she would start fussing again). About 3pm, I started getting her ready for her afternoon nap and I changed her diaper, which lead to the need to change her clothes. When I did that, I noticed that she had a little sunburn (at least that is what I think it is) around her neck and the back of her head. It wasn't terrible, in fact it was kind of cute. She now had some color!

It wasn't much longer before I noticed that she seemed to have a raised rash on her back AND she was REALLY scratching at her neck. I laid her down for her nap without her shirt on because I had lotioned her down pretty good. When she woke up an hour later, the rash has spread. It was rapping around her chest and was "crawling" up her face. After a frantic call to the clinic (it was 10 minutes until 5, i.e.- closing time), we were told to try some Benadryl, an oatmeal bath, and aloe lotion. We did all of it before bed and she was still scratching, whining, and running a low-grade temp. We were told to watch her temp and her breathing.

I suppose I am asking for prayers for my family. Seems as if they all could use it!

They are dropping like flies...

Well, not really, but I know that all of my family is now sick except me. Coop has been sick for more than a week and it got progressively worse, so we took him yesterday to find out that he has a "child's version of bronchitis". He was prescribed a plethora of drugs and hopefully we will see a significant improvement in the next day or so.

Calleigh has been a little bit under the weather for a few days, but not as bad as Cooper. Well, she woke up very early this morning due to a coughing fit and was a pitiful little girl until she finally fell back to sleep. Thankfully she has napped very well all day today and was fine until about 6pm tonight when she started running a fever. We are praying for a restful night for both children.

And now to the last... the "big boy" of the house, Billy. He has been sick since yesterday and he is pretty sure it is just his allergies. Let's hope after tonight's "comfort food" supper and another good night's rest will do the trick for him.

Now for a quick funny story. We put C & C in the tub tonight just to help them get comfortable and to hopefully bring down Calleigh's fever. Well, we have learned that we should always put Cooper on his potty BEFORE we put him in the tub. It seems that he has figured out that there is "more than one way to skin a cat" and is interested in learning how to pee standing up. Anyway, as he stood over the potty he began to make the "hissing" noise similar to well, to someone "peeing". :) Billy and I had a very hard time not laughing our heads off! Ha! Ha!

Pictures from yesterday and today

One of Calleigh's new outfits from Lulu. I LOVE the leggings! She is so hip!

Cooper discovered that he liked leaves... jumping in them and racking them!

Silly and amazing coincidences...

Tonight Billy decided to bathe both of the kids as a deterrent... They are both under the weather and were really wanting to go to bed around 6. (We needed them to wait so they would actually sleep thru the night.) As I gathered "post-bath" things, Billy got the kids ready to climb in the tub and in the meantime, he put Calleigh on Coop's potty. I walked in and hurriedly ran for the camera as I thought it was just too cute to not document (her belly poking out so far, not to mention the fact that she was actually sitting on a potty). I snapped my pictures and Billy pulled her off the potty to put her in the tub only to discover that she actually peed! I am sure it was a coincidence, but I am going to start putting her on the potty more often. Who knows... maybe she is a peeing protege! :) Ha!

Day is done... gone the sun...

Well, the sun has set on another magnificent Sunday, I was greatly blessed by it. We enjoyed a morning of singing and reading scripture at church and then an excellent meal at Kerry's. (Don't be surprised, but we ate too much!)
We made it home in time to QUICKLY take some pictures of the kids and then whisk them off to bed. Neither made a peep for a couple of hours and so Billy and I enjoyed naps too. When we all woke up we headed outdoors for the most beautiful afternoon.

It was somewhere between cool and warm and just perfect for the kids to play outside and for us to take a walk. We had such a nice time that we completely lost track of time and didn't start home until after 6:30. Once we got home, the kids got a snack and a bath and then they were off to bed.

Yesterday was an exciting day for the kids as well. We took them to an Easter Egg hunt at a friend's house.

They both had a fun time and I think Cooper really enjoyed the candy. Had it not been so windy, we probably would have stayed as long as possible because Cooper found their slide! Happy little boy! I am hopeful that this week will be nice enough for us to go to the park and let him slide to his heart is content.

Fridays are the greatest!

Today is Friday and while nothing major is happening, I am just so happy to see the sun and to have gotten out of the house for a little bit this afternoon. I am looking forward to tomorrow when we take the kids to an Easter Egg hunt. I will take tons of pictures and hopefully some video.

Part of our time out of the house today included a trip to Walmart and a stop by the College. I thought we would just pop our head in on a couple of our friends and ended up spending more time there than we expected... but that was ok! Miss Gayle (and President Eckman) spoiled them with Animal Crackers and Calleigh didn't want to leave her. We then went down the hall to see Miss Jackie and Taylor. I wanted to see Miss Gail (M) too, but we missed her. Coop tried on Taylor's motorcycle helmet (I hope that is the CLOSEST he gets to a motorcycle for a LONG

time) and loved it! I thought he looked like the "Vader" character in the movie "Space Balls".

Too funny. After that visit, we went to Hulitt to pick up a book for me and the kids got to see the McNeeses. Calleigh LOVED Miss Bev and was heartbroken when I took her. It took a few times to leave because she kept lunging for Miss Bev and well, Miss Bev seemed so happy to hold her that she kept taking her! It was so cute!

After naps and a quick supper, we went out to the YC softball game. We only stayed for a little bit since it was rather windy but before we left, we took the kids to the small playground next to the field and both kids loved the slides. Loved them so much that Cooper cried the whole way home!

Calleigh didn't mind going home...

...but Coop wasn't as happy!

I know we all feel amazingly refreshed from the little bit of time in the fresh air and sunshine.

Praise the Lord for springtime!

In "other news"... last night the kids got to open a big box sent for them from their Aunt, Uncle, and Cousins in Alabama. They were birthday gifts for the kids and let me tell you... they were a HIT! They are Leap Frog animals and they play music and are customizable so they will say the kids' names, etc. I had to take them away last night just so they would get ready for bed. Aunt Jennifer also got them "Future President" shirts on one of her recent adventures. I will have them try those on soon for pictures.

Here are a few of the kids last night enjoying an extended Cooper birthday and an early Calleigh birthday...

He's growing up on me... *SOB!*

Today was Cooper's 2 year appointment and our last time with our BELOVED Dr. Eberspacher. Dr. E is moving to a new "urgent care" clinic in Lincoln, so we will be losing an amazing doctor. Anyway, Cooper got "A's" all the way around. He weighed 32 pound (90th percentile) and was 37.25" in height (100th percentile) and 20 inches around his head (100th percentile). I was proud! :) He did very good in the doctor's office today, although he was uncharacteristically shy! He usually runs and gives our nurse a hug and talks to everyone. Today I couldn't get him to udder a word and couldn't even get a smile out of him. Strange!

Calleigh enjoyed a wonderful morning with Miss Nicole (she used to keep Cooper when he was first born a couple of hours a week). When Coop and I came to pick her up, she wanted nothing to do with me. I picked her up 3 times and each time she started crying and reaching for Nicole. It melted Nicole's heart and honestly... I loved seeing it as well. Nicole is a wonderful mother to her 2 girls and I am so blessed that she loves my kids (and others) as much as her own.

After I pried Calleigh out of her arms, we went for a Daddy visit. Billy came outside and we walked around campus and enjoyed the BEAUTIFUL day! Calleigh experimented for the first time with walking on grass without shoes on. I think she will like it when she gets used to it. After we got home and ate lunch, both kids rushed to bed for a nap. I ended up having to wake them up so we could go wish a wonderful young man goodbye as he leaves YC for new adventures. After a little cake, the forgave me for interrupting their naps and we walked around for a little while longer. We made our way to Miss Sarah's house (another favorite with my kids) and Calleigh got to swing in her toddler swing and Coop got to jump on her trampoline. Both kids had a wonderful afternoon. We look forward to many more beautiful and fun filled days!

Ahh... Welcome SPRING!!!

Gratituesday (reflections on 2 years)

Daddy helping take his new truck out the package

Cooper opening the first of 3 "woof woof" movies

Coop's very own Coca-Cola Double Fudge Cake

Blowing out his candle

(thanks Amber for the great pic)

Yesterday was Cooper's birthday. He was born 2 years ago in York General Hospital with minimal fuss and barely a squeak. Things are different now... he is loud, silly, and ever so busy. This weekend of celebration was no different. Saturday we had some friends over to help us celebrate and he loved every minute. He got balls and a "woof woof". He was so thrilled with his toys that he will not let Calleigh play with them. Even if he is playing with another toy, he will carry his new dog around to make sure she doesn't get it. If she goes near any of his balls, he starts yelling "Baby, Baby, Baby, No, No, No!" Luckily, Calleigh doesn't seem to mind right now, but I expect that to change at some point.

Since yesterday was his actual birthday, we decided to save our presents for him to open after a celebratory visit to McDonald's last night. He LOVES opening gifts and with 3 new "woof woof" movies, I'm sure we will have a busy day. Unfortunately, a couple of his other gifts are for the summer, so he will have to wait to play with those and he didn't seem to really understand that.

So now to the gratitude... Cooper was a long awaited gift from the Lord. Billy and I had been married 10 year when we had him and were blessed with great and fun experiences and travels before his birth. When he was born, Billy and my mom were in the room with me and while I don't consider giving birth as a beautiful thing, I do consider it a blessing and I am so glad that 2 of my favorite people were there to witness the birth of yet another favorite... Cooper. Since he was born, I can remember thinking that HE was the very reason I was born! I realize that is a lot of pressure on both him and I, but Coop is a special little boy and I am so excited to see where the Lord leads him.

I pray daily for him to be open to God's plan for him. I also praise the Lord daily for giving us Cooper (and Calleigh, of course). He has brought many smiles & laughs and I expect he will bring many more years of joy. Cooper has taught me how to appreciate the small things in life and how to slow down and enjoy the moment. So I dedicate this Gratituesday to Cooper and the joy and lessons he brings to my life. I love you "Little Bit"!

Sick but smiling...

Unfortunately, our sweet girl is a little under the weather. We assume it is from her teeth, but I don't suppose you can ever be sure. Anyway, even though Calleigh has been permanently glued to my side (or Billy's at night), NO ONE can make her as happy as her big brother. Yesterday after Cooper's nap, I took Calleigh in his room to get him out of bed. She immediately perked up when she saw him and he refused to get out of bed... he was insisting that I put Calleigh in with him (he was saying "Baby" over and over and patting the bed next to him). Well I did and I had to grab my camera in hopes to capturing some of the resulting happiness.

Gratituesday (inspired by L.C.)

"Gratituesday" is something that I am inspired to "celebrate" due to Laura Coppinger and her wonderful blog. Each Tuesday she blogs about what she is grateful for and invites others to do the same. I thought I would try to do that today.

I have so many things to be thankful...

• I have 2 beautiful children who are healthy and happy.
• I have a husband who cares for me, loves me, and is good to me and the kids.
• I have a home that is warm, has running water, and electricity.
• I have a job that is rewarding, inspiring, and allows me the opportunity to get out of my house for a few hours each week and allows Billy to spend time alone with the kids.
• I have food to eat and my husband is an AMAZING cook who LOVES to cook for me.
• I have clothes that fit me, cover me, and keep me warm.
• I have a vehicle that works well and is safe for my family.

I am perhaps most grateful for my God who provided all these things to me and who has granted me the opportunity to praise Him for this amazing gifts.

I have much more to be grateful for so I will save a few for NEXT "Gratituesday". Thank you Laura for your inspiration and the Christian example you set for all of us ladies in York and all of your blog followers.

I do have a funny story to share that has nothing to do with gratitude. Tonight, my husband's boss came by for a few minutes to see us. Cooper has spent limited time around him and we expected him to just sit with us a watch his Disney show while we caught up. I was completely wrong. As soon as we sat down, Cooper jumped out of my lap and ran up to our visitor and IMMEDIATELY unzipped his pj's "for him". We figured out that he was telling us that he had to potty, but you can imagine after I got over my mortification... I had to laugh. I suppose that means I should add one more thing to be grateful. I am grateful for the funny things my children do that embarrass me and ultimately give me something to laugh about! Thank you Cooper!

Snow during Spring Break and other "sneaky" things...

So, this past week was Spring Break and it was an amazing week of hanging out and running around. The kids had a WONDERFUL time having both Momma and "Da" (what Cooper calls Billy) here with him. When he would wake up from his nap, he would holler for me, but as soon as I would go in to get him, he would start insisting on Da coming to get him. :) It was a lot of fun for us all. The weather was really good for most of the week and Thursday was the best of all. We had weather in the 60s and it was beautiful. The irony was that the next day was miserable with blowing snow and COLD temperatures. It was a good reminder that God is in control of EVERYTHING!

This weekend Billy made pancakes for breakfast. Pancakes are one of Coop's favorites and Billy tried something new... blueberries. I know that isn't a new concept, but it is to Cooper. Unfortunately, about 6 months ago, he started being very picky about what he eats and we have really struggled with getting him to eat anything besides the same 10 foods. Anyway, Billy added blueberries and it didn't slow him down at all. Cooper ate a ton that morning and has had one the past 2 mornings (we ALWAYS

make enough for leftovers). The 2 pictures to the left are of

Cooper eating the blueberry pancakes and enjoying every bite!

We have also been very pleased that within the last 3 weeks he has started eating bananas & apples and while he has been eating yogurt as much as we let him. He asks for it by name (not that most people could decipher what he is actually saying) and seems to love it. My fingers are staying crossed that he will continue to expand his love of good foods.

Calleigh's dress

Here is the picture that I promised...

And an old video...

Daddy's girl...

When we found out that Calleigh was going to be a girl, all of the men at church told Billy she was going to have him wrapped around his finger. I never really bought into this idea... Billy just isn't that kind of guy. This week I might have caught a glimpse of how wrong I could be.

Billy has been watching a dress in Lincoln for at least a month in a half. Every time we go into the store he would look at this dress and talk about how cute it was. I never knew why he liked it but he appreciated it from afar. This week on our trip into Lincoln, he changed his mind. He bought THE dress and I was so tickled that DADDY picked out and purchased a dress for his "princess", I thought I would share a picture of it. When I get a pic of Calleigh in it, I'll share it.

A few more pics from Pops and Lulu's visit

Swim Lessons with Pops and Lulu

Calleigh was already worn out before we got in the water

Going to the edge to practice jumping off the side

1...2...3...GO!

Coop got to open some of his B'day gifts and both kids loved the keyboard

Another cool toy... thanks Pops and Lulu!

A few pics

Chillin' with Pops and Lulu

Calleigh LOVES her Lulu and only had eyes for her...

Post bath

Coop wearing Lulu's reading glasses... doesn't he look like Jonathan Lipniki? Ha!

Calleigh and Lulu getting ready for church

Love and Spoilin'

Today was a sad day. Cooper, Calleigh, and I took my parents (Pops and Lulu) back to the airport for them to return home. As the kids and I went back to the car without them, Cooper began whining and saying "OooOoo" (Lulu) over and over and looking back at the airport. I felt as if I was hurting him and riping him away from them, but he recovered rather quickly as we got in the car and cranked up "101 Dalmatians" on the car DVD player. He didn't even mention them again until we got home and he started looking for and calling for "OooOoo" again. :(

My folks flew in on Friday night and the weekend was wonderful. We hung out and played and let Calleigh reacquaint herself with Pops and Lulu. Cooper, of course, remembers them and RAN down the corridor at the Lincoln airport Friday night as soon as he could see them. Thank goodness for lax security late Friday night. Ha! Sunday was full of Sunday School and worship, playing and more playing. We even got to celebrate my Dad's birthday together for the first time in at least 6 years! We took him out to Kerry's so he could get a Cheeseburger (his favorite meal).

Monday, I was kicked out of the house and given the wonderful opportunity to get a ton of work done in my office. Since we don't have a sitter, I only get "office hours" when Billy is able to come home to stay with the kids. I was able to get SO much work done in preparation of my on-line classes that I will teach this summer. I even went back on Tuesday to work some more. Monday we celebrated Cooper's birthday (he doesn't turn 2 until the 29th) so my parents could give him birthday presents from them. He was SPOILED and he loved it. He completely enjoyed tearing off the paper and seeing what perfectly picked gift they got him. He got a keyboard, a Crayola "Color Me a Song", a new pair of Crocs (my son LOVES shoes... he is SO my child!), and several other thoughtful and fun gifts. All of these gifts were AFTER the suitcase full of new clothes they brought for both kids! Most of the new toys make some sort of noise or music which delights him and Calleigh... not so much Momma and Daddy. HA! We will live and we have loved watching him play with and enjoy all of those toys.

Tuesday we celebrated my birthday. My folks kicked it off with a BANG Monday night by surprising Billy and I with a new TV for our living room (B's birthday is in April). I got some new clothes, so beautiful jewelry, and a new pair of Crocs for me. They are SUPER cute. If you haven't seen high heel Crocs, you should. I will be sporting them all summer long!

My husband and kids spoiled me with items from my favorite band, Better than Ezra. The kids got me a t-shirt and Billy got me 3 CDs. These 3 CDs are significant for the following reasons... #1- the new CDs completed my collection (I now have ALL BTE CDs), #2- I got the re-released version of Closer (my favorite album) that I didn't even know existed, #3- I got a duplicate CD... THAT WAS SIGNED BY THE BAND!!!! Such a cool surprise! Billy also made my favorite meal. He makes the most amazing roast and then he tops it off with rice, gravy, mushrooms, mac and cheese, green beans (only so we could have a veggie, ha!), and deviled eggs. For dessert, I requested key lime pie. YUM! YUM! After all of that gluttony, I was shocked to find that I didn't gain a single ounce this morning! That is truly a birthday miracle! :)

After stuffing ourselves to the max, we took the kids to swim lessons and Pops & Lulu got in with the kids while Billy and I filmed and took pictures. I don't know who had more fun... the kids or the grown up kids!

As I drove home this afternoon with my sleeping kids behind me, I counted my blessings again and 2 of the best ones are my mom and dad. They are wonderful to my kids, my husband, and to me. Being surrounded by my parents, my children, and my fantastic husband made this birthday the best yet! Thank you Lord from whom all blessings flow...

Pictures to be posted soon...

Fingers crossed

(this is a picture of Coop and I playing with Photo Booth--- he thought it was fun)

Today seems to be much easier for Calleigh so far. She slept thru the night with only one exception, but that required no attention from us. She fell straight back to sleep and slept until 6. This morning has been better with less whining and considerable change in overall attitude. Unfortunately, no teeth have broken thru... makes me wonder if she is having the same issue that Coop did during his teething. He would have teeth start to come in and then the would go back up (I had never heard of it, but I had several moms tell me of similar episodes with their kids). It is certainly not what I want for my little girl, but she is tough and I hope that when they do come in, she gets several at one time.

Cooper is trying out new tricks on me. This morning he walked around with at pretend camera and said "Cheese!" He would say this until I said "Cheese" back. It took me a few times to figure it out (silly Mommy). Also, he has apparently figured out the correlation of Calleigh crying and meaning that she gets attention so when she cries he FAKES CRYING! I can assure you, this is more frustrating than cute, but I did turn my head to laugh the first time.

It is obvious that Calleigh is feeling better because it has been WWE in our house this morning. Calleigh has been "pouncing" on Cooper as he is watching TV. She pulls him to the ground and they wrestle while he hollers for me to come help. Of course, since I am such a carrying mom... I don't! :) I can't help but think it is perfect payback for some of the things he has done to Calleigh.

Oh... in other Cooper news, his potty training continues and we have not "forced" it at all. Yesterday he only had one wet diaper and he has slept thru the night without wetting 3 times in about a week's time. We are continuing to let him lead this effort and we will see how long that takes.

Next week is full of excitement! We start SWIM BABIES on Tuesday with both kids AND Pops and Lulu come to visit on Friday. We are so excited! The kids are going to LOVE the attention that my folks will shower on them and I am sure Coop and Pops will have a large time doing "boy things"!

Grrr... teeth!

One thing is for sure with babies... when you think you have them "figured out", they change their game plan. Calleigh has started teething again and it has made her less than chipper and it has completely changed her sleeping habits. While she was has previously been taking 2 GOOD naps each day (each anywhere from one and a half to 2 hours) and sleeping thru the night, she is now barely napping (the 2 naps each around 45 minutes). Nights have been pretty frustrating too. She wakes up at 3 and again at 5:30. We had been able to let her go at 3 and then at 5:30 we would give her a bottle and let her fall back to sleep for an hour or so. Not tonight! At 3 she woke up and cried until 4 when we decided it was useless to let her cry or try to pat her back to sleep. Lets just say that it is currently 4:56, I am watching old re-runs of Wings while Calleigh is sitting in the floor playing with a dirty sock and every once in a while looking up at me to make sure I haven't fallen to sleep.

Oh how I wish I could fall asleep! :(

Yuck!

Last night, Billy indulged my cravings for a Kerry's cheeseburger and we had a family night out. The kids were pretty well behaved and we were in the driveway when "IT" happened. Calleigh sits directly behind me in our SUV and so I always get her out and Billy gets Coop. As I opened Calleigh's door, she began throwing up some kind of orange yuck and kept throwing up. Luckily, we had a big blanket right next to her that I was able to catch a little bit in, but it was really too late. She was covered in it and I had it on my coat, sweater, and jeans. We got her in and immediately in the tub. Apparently, she ate too much because she felt fine and seemed SO happy. Amazingly, everything came clean (got to LOVE Oxyclean powder) and even the carseat is clean now.

Outside of that, we had a really nice evening and the kids went down with great ease. They were both asleep by 8 and we got to enjoy the olympics in peace.

Tomorrow we head to Lincoln (about a 45 minute drive) to pick up Calleigh's 9 month pictures and a toddler bed for Cooper. Should be a BIG day! :)

Just another day...

I don't really have much to say, but I need to get better about blogging about the little things... they won't seem little later in life.

-Calleigh walks better and better everyday! The best motivation for her to walk is a paci dangling just out of reach.

-Cooper continues to amaze us with his potty training. He goes anywhere from 2 to 5 times a day.

-Cooper's vocabulary continues to increase daily as well. His favorite word right now is "stuck" (or some version of it). He knows how to use it properly and is constantly looking for a reason to use it. :) Billy's favorite word that he says is "Brrrr". If you ask him if it is cold, he immediately says, "Brrrr" with his hands pulled up beside his chest. It is pretty cute.

-2 days ago Cooper "jumped" out of his crib. We are still not sure how he did it, but it has motivated us to finally get him into a toddler bed. I dread the transition that will come with this new bed, but it doesn't matter if it is now or later... we will have to deal with it.

Today we are enjoying a rare day of sunshine and relative "warmth" (the 30's count as warmth, right?) and I am grateful. Too bad it is too messy out from the snow melting to take the kids outside.

Hurry up SPRING TIME!!!!

A video...

Pictures