I hope everyone isn't expecting too much from this blog...it's kind of moved to the bottom of my priority list, which is pretty full right now. :-)
I fed Liam his first solids on Nov. 14...squash mixed with rice cereal. He loved it! I had to go to Baton Rouge for work on Nov. 15, which was the first time I left him overnight. It's strange how the more kids I have, the longer it is before I leave them overnight. Lauren was 4 weeks old, Bailey was 12 weeks old, and Liam was over 4 months old! You would think it would be the opposite...like you would be more nervous to leave your first child. But I think what actually happens is the more kids you have, the harder it is to get away! Daycare called while I was out of town and said Liam threw up twice, but Heath said he was fine that night. They called again the next day because he had diarrhea all day. Poor little guy...you would never know anything was wrong judging by the huge smiles he gave me when I got home! Then I had to leave him again for 2 nights to go to my annual Birmingham trip last week. He is so sweet and easygoing, and he now sleeps from 9:30/10:00 until 6:30/7:30!
Lauren got all A's and one B on her progress report. Math is starting to kick her butt (and for Lauren, that means a B)...better yet, it's starting to kick all of our butts! I swear they are working on stuff that we learned my freshman year in college. Heath and I try to help her, and we end up scratching our heads and having to look up this stuff to refresh our memories! Lauren's St. Fred's soccer team (jr. high) finished the regular season undefeated! Now she has apparently begun playing up on the varsity team. Her competitive (travel) soccer team played in the LA Competitive Soccer League, which is made up of Competitive I, II, & III teams. Their team competed in 6 Competitive II league games within our Western district. They had to place 1st or 2nd in all of these games in order to qualify for the Competitive II Tournament, which they did. In order to move up to Competitive I in the spring, they would have had to finish in the top 4 at the final tournament. Unfortunately, they lost they first game by one point, so they couldn't advance, but they will remain a Competitive II team in the spring. That darn Soccer Delics team from Lafayette that we lost to in the state championship game last spring continues to be our nemesis!!
And Bailey continues to be Bailey! She is repeating everything she hears. Yesterday in the car, she told Heath, "No running! You have to walk! No running!"...this was probably from her teacher, Ms.Tonda. When we put her in her bed for naptime or nighttime, she says, "You stay in your bed. You get out, you get a spanking!"...this comes from us. It's something new every day. She is really starting to talk in full paragraphs, and is just getting so big so fast!
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
11/08/11
Lauren played in a junior high soccer tournament all day on Saturday. St. Fred's beat Ouachita Jr. High, Lee Jr. High, and West Ridge. Lauren played awesome and scored a few goals. They tied West Ridge in the finals, and ended up losing to them in the kick off by one missed goal. That tournament consumed the whole day Saturday. Then it was time for the LSU/Alabama game...what a game! It was a little disappointing in the fact that no actual touchdowns were scored, but still a great game to watch nonetheless.
On Monday we took Liam for a follow up visit to his pediatric gastrointerologist. Luckily they now have a satellite clinic in Vicksburg, so that cut our trip in half. We're keeping him on Nutramigen formula (a.k.a. liquid gold) since there is no doubt he has milk AND soy allergies. She said 90% of babies with a milk (cow's milk protein) allery can tolerate soy. However, there are those 10% who can't, and Liam definitely cannot. The good news is that 80% of these babies outgrow the milk allergy by 12 months of age. He will slowly be exposed to milk products in the months to come as he begins to eat foods like mashed potatoes, casseroles, etc. Dr. Rippel recommended using Beech Nut or Earth's Best brand baby food and cereal products, since these are made with almost no preservatives and are almost completely natural. Gerber's adds preservatives and often adds milk by-products to their foods. Beech Nut is only sold at Wal-Mart, Brookshire's, & Super 1, and Earth's Best is only sold at Target and health food stores. I bought the Beech Nut rice cereal (surprisingly it was around the same price as Gerber), and there is an obvious difference just by looking at the cereal. Gerber's is shiny and almost metallic looking, and Beech Nut just looks like white powder flakes. Dr. Rippel also noticed he has a little mild eczema, which is also sometimes another indicator of being more allergy prone. Well, I thought I had escaped having a child with allergies like I did as a child, but maybe not. We'll keep our fingers crossed for sweet Liam, and maybe he'll end up outgrowing some of this by the time he's one.
Also on Monday, Lauren decided to change the colors on the rubberbands of her braces to green and red since she will have them until the end of the year. Little did we know, Dr. Hummel also changed out and repositioned her wires that day. Bless her heart, her mouth was so sore for the next couple of days. Ughhh...I remember how painful braces were!
And here's something from Bailey on Monday...
I'm not sure what she was trying to do, but I looked over and she was under the chair. Heath pulled out the camera, and Bailey was saying, "I'm right here, Daddy! Look...under the chair! I'm right here, Daddy!" A mess I tell you...
Tonight, Heath was putting out pinestraw as it was getting dark. He felt a bite and looked at his leg to see that it was completely covered in ants! When he first showed me, I was picking on him for being a baby since he didn't really feel sorry for me when I stepped in ants last week at the soccer field. But after a few minutes, you could see that there were literally hundreds of bites! I really felt bad for him, but he was a trooper. I'm posting the picture below because it is so unbelievable, so scroll down if you don't want to see!
Bailey has discovered where we hide Christmas presents (in the wine closet under the stairs). Tonight she went to use the potty, then she reappeared in the living room with her pants still pulled down (I have no idea why) carrying a huge box of Mega Bloks. I couldn't get this picture to post correctly, so just tilt your head to the left. J
On Monday we took Liam for a follow up visit to his pediatric gastrointerologist. Luckily they now have a satellite clinic in Vicksburg, so that cut our trip in half. We're keeping him on Nutramigen formula (a.k.a. liquid gold) since there is no doubt he has milk AND soy allergies. She said 90% of babies with a milk (cow's milk protein) allery can tolerate soy. However, there are those 10% who can't, and Liam definitely cannot. The good news is that 80% of these babies outgrow the milk allergy by 12 months of age. He will slowly be exposed to milk products in the months to come as he begins to eat foods like mashed potatoes, casseroles, etc. Dr. Rippel recommended using Beech Nut or Earth's Best brand baby food and cereal products, since these are made with almost no preservatives and are almost completely natural. Gerber's adds preservatives and often adds milk by-products to their foods. Beech Nut is only sold at Wal-Mart, Brookshire's, & Super 1, and Earth's Best is only sold at Target and health food stores. I bought the Beech Nut rice cereal (surprisingly it was around the same price as Gerber), and there is an obvious difference just by looking at the cereal. Gerber's is shiny and almost metallic looking, and Beech Nut just looks like white powder flakes. Dr. Rippel also noticed he has a little mild eczema, which is also sometimes another indicator of being more allergy prone. Well, I thought I had escaped having a child with allergies like I did as a child, but maybe not. We'll keep our fingers crossed for sweet Liam, and maybe he'll end up outgrowing some of this by the time he's one.
Also on Monday, Lauren decided to change the colors on the rubberbands of her braces to green and red since she will have them until the end of the year. Little did we know, Dr. Hummel also changed out and repositioned her wires that day. Bless her heart, her mouth was so sore for the next couple of days. Ughhh...I remember how painful braces were!
And here's something from Bailey on Monday...
Tonight, Heath was putting out pinestraw as it was getting dark. He felt a bite and looked at his leg to see that it was completely covered in ants! When he first showed me, I was picking on him for being a baby since he didn't really feel sorry for me when I stepped in ants last week at the soccer field. But after a few minutes, you could see that there were literally hundreds of bites! I really felt bad for him, but he was a trooper. I'm posting the picture below because it is so unbelievable, so scroll down if you don't want to see!
Bailey has discovered where we hide Christmas presents (in the wine closet under the stairs). Tonight she went to use the potty, then she reappeared in the living room with her pants still pulled down (I have no idea why) carrying a huge box of Mega Bloks. I couldn't get this picture to post correctly, so just tilt your head to the left. J
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Sweet Liam
St. Fred's girls soccer beat West Ridge 2-1 last night. Then they beat Lee 6-1 tonight. Who says public school sports are better than private? I've been hearing this from Heath as long as I've known him, so I'm rubbing it in just a bit. :-)
This morning, I was calling Bailey to come in the bathroom so I could fix her hair. She didn't respond, so I went into the living room only to find her sitting on the couch drinking straight out of the milk carton! I have always bought organic milk for her, now that we know the benefits (didn't know all of this stuff when Lauren was little). So thank goodness she is the only one who drinks from that milk carton! I can't imagine where she would have learned this from... (hint, I don't even drink milk!)!!
On the way to daycare, she asked for sticks (I keep lots of packs of Newk's breadsticks in the car because she loves them so much). I told her no, we would have to get some later. Then, as we were crossing over Forsythe, she said, "No, go that way!" as she pointed to the right. Surely this 2 year old child doesn't realize that Newk's is that direction?!?! Then when I was putting on ChapStick, she said, "Mommy, I need makeup please". She put on the ChapStick and said, "Ooooh, I'm pretty now. You're pretty too, Mommy. Mommy, we are so pretty!"
So...I love my baby boy. Of course I do, right? But I mean really, I absolutely adore Liam. Heath jokingly tells me that I am obsessed with Liam. I am not really, but I do think I am a little overwhelmed right now with how incredibly different it is to have a boy. I love his big blue eyes, I love his adorable cleft chin, I love his NEVERENDING smiles, I love the way his face lights up when he sees me, I love the fact that sometimes all he wants is me to hold him! It is mind-blowing to me the amount of love that I can feel for another person.
Now, please don't get me wrong, I love ALL of my children EQUALLY. If I would have been a blogger in the past, I am sure I would have written the overwhelming feelings I had for Lauren and Bailey when they were babies. There is a just special kind of love for them when they are this tiny. Lauren and Bailey amaze me everyday with the things they are learning and doing, but they can be such stubborn little boogers sometimes! Just like the saying goes, "You spend the first 12 months of your children's lives teaching them to walk and talk. Then you spend the rest of their lives telling them to sit down and shut up!" LOL!
At this age, Liam just lays there and smiles and "talks" to me. I am so thankful for this new little life that we have been blessed with. Each of my 3 children was a very special blessing in their own way.
Liam has such a sweet spirit. He is so patient with his loud and sometimes rough older sisters. Most of the the time, they pretty much leave him alone. But they do love to hold him and "pet" on him and give him hugs and kisses...when THEY feel like it. Sometimes hugs and kisses from Bailey involve her putting her entire body on Liam, and Lauren is a little freaked out about changing diapers because of his "boy business". But no matter what his sisters are doing, Liam just keeps on smiling at them!
It is so funny to hear everyone's thoughts on who they think Liam looks like and why. We get lots of mixed opinions on that topic. If you look at pictures of Bailey at the same age, Liam looks exactly like a boy version of Bailey. He's also definitely marked by the strong "Heath chin", just like Bailey. His eyes are big and round, as are all 3 of my babies. If you look at pictures of my dad as a baby, Liam looks exactly like him. Overall, in my opinion, I see a lot of me in him, which is perhaps why he resembles my dad so much. I have always been labeled to look like my dad, and my sister like my mom. However, I love the fact that each one of my children has their own distinct look...yet there is no denying that they are all siblings!
This morning, I was calling Bailey to come in the bathroom so I could fix her hair. She didn't respond, so I went into the living room only to find her sitting on the couch drinking straight out of the milk carton! I have always bought organic milk for her, now that we know the benefits (didn't know all of this stuff when Lauren was little). So thank goodness she is the only one who drinks from that milk carton! I can't imagine where she would have learned this from... (hint, I don't even drink milk!)!!
On the way to daycare, she asked for sticks (I keep lots of packs of Newk's breadsticks in the car because she loves them so much). I told her no, we would have to get some later. Then, as we were crossing over Forsythe, she said, "No, go that way!" as she pointed to the right. Surely this 2 year old child doesn't realize that Newk's is that direction?!?! Then when I was putting on ChapStick, she said, "Mommy, I need makeup please". She put on the ChapStick and said, "Ooooh, I'm pretty now. You're pretty too, Mommy. Mommy, we are so pretty!"
So...I love my baby boy. Of course I do, right? But I mean really, I absolutely adore Liam. Heath jokingly tells me that I am obsessed with Liam. I am not really, but I do think I am a little overwhelmed right now with how incredibly different it is to have a boy. I love his big blue eyes, I love his adorable cleft chin, I love his NEVERENDING smiles, I love the way his face lights up when he sees me, I love the fact that sometimes all he wants is me to hold him! It is mind-blowing to me the amount of love that I can feel for another person.
Now, please don't get me wrong, I love ALL of my children EQUALLY. If I would have been a blogger in the past, I am sure I would have written the overwhelming feelings I had for Lauren and Bailey when they were babies. There is a just special kind of love for them when they are this tiny. Lauren and Bailey amaze me everyday with the things they are learning and doing, but they can be such stubborn little boogers sometimes! Just like the saying goes, "You spend the first 12 months of your children's lives teaching them to walk and talk. Then you spend the rest of their lives telling them to sit down and shut up!" LOL!
At this age, Liam just lays there and smiles and "talks" to me. I am so thankful for this new little life that we have been blessed with. Each of my 3 children was a very special blessing in their own way.
Liam has such a sweet spirit. He is so patient with his loud and sometimes rough older sisters. Most of the the time, they pretty much leave him alone. But they do love to hold him and "pet" on him and give him hugs and kisses...when THEY feel like it. Sometimes hugs and kisses from Bailey involve her putting her entire body on Liam, and Lauren is a little freaked out about changing diapers because of his "boy business". But no matter what his sisters are doing, Liam just keeps on smiling at them!
It is so funny to hear everyone's thoughts on who they think Liam looks like and why. We get lots of mixed opinions on that topic. If you look at pictures of Bailey at the same age, Liam looks exactly like a boy version of Bailey. He's also definitely marked by the strong "Heath chin", just like Bailey. His eyes are big and round, as are all 3 of my babies. If you look at pictures of my dad as a baby, Liam looks exactly like him. Overall, in my opinion, I see a lot of me in him, which is perhaps why he resembles my dad so much. I have always been labeled to look like my dad, and my sister like my mom. However, I love the fact that each one of my children has their own distinct look...yet there is no denying that they are all siblings!
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Halloween, Sickness, Straight A's & Sprinkles!
It seems like Bailey has stayed in trouble for the past few days. It started on Sunday when she decided for whatever reason that she didn't want to sleep during her naptime. This is very unusual, especially for a weekend day, because she usually takes a good, long 3-4 hour nap. We just left her upstairs in her bed, and she sang and sang forever until Lauren finally went to get her after she came home from soccer. The trouble was not that she didn't take a nap. The trouble was that she pulled down her curtains! I don't mean she just pulled down the curtain rod. No, she completely ripped the rods out of the wall, putting several nice size holes in the wall for Daddy to fix! Otherwise, we had a great Sunday. Lauren had soccer practice, and then went to eat lunch with her teammates afterwards...Eastern Empire Buffet (YUCK)...always a hit with the tweens!
October 31, 2011
Today of course was Halloween. Lauren and I made lots of treats for the daycare class party on Friday, so I think Bailey was a little confused as to whether Halloween was on Friday or Monday. The two little ones have had coughs for about 2 weeks now. When we first took them to the doctor, of course there wasn't much she could do because they basically had colds. But poor Liam has started wheezing very loud and his cough sounds terrible. I wanted to take his temp this morning, but couldn't seem to find the ear thermometer. We looked everywhere! Then it hit me that Bailey likes to play with that thing (obsession with sickness and medicine), so I asked her if she knew where it was. She was so excited and took off running toward my closet. She moved my hanging clothes out of the way to reveal her usual hiding spot, and sure enough, there it was! I made a big deal out of how proud I was of her showing me where it was...you know, for the next time the car keys are missing!
No fever for Liam, but his wheezing sounded terrible and I wanted to be sure it wasn't RSV, so off to Dr. Bivens we went this afternoon. She said the wheezing had definitely gotten worse, but with no fever or secretions, it wasn't RSV and there wasn't anything in his lungs. She prescribed ol' faithful Zopenex for breathing treatments. He is a little young for it, but hopefully it will stop all of this from turning into pneumonia. He weighed 15 pounds, 8 ounces today...solid as a rock! I went back to daycare to pick up Bailey, and she was so confused why "Baby Rim" was already in the car and not in the nursery. I explained that I took him to the doctor, and she then began telling me that she was sick (her nose hurt) and she needed to go to the doctor too...this lasted the whole way home.
So, Bailey's newest obsession is sprinkles. Because I love to bake (bake...not cook...bake), I have acquired quite a lot of sprinkles. I keep them in the bottom drawer under the oven...coincidentally, the only one in the kitchen without a childproof latch. Bailey recently discovered them and now tries to sneak them every chance she gets. One day I went to the restroom and couldn't find her when I came out. I called her name over and over, and then heard something moving in the pantry. I asked, "Bailey, are you in the pantry"? She answered, "No"! I opened the door, and there she was on the floor with about 10 bottles of sprinkles, shoveling the candies into her mouth.
Anyway, within 10 minutes of getting home today, I caught her in the drawer again.
Bailey thought it would be a good idea to put Liam's allergy eye drops in his mouth...spanking #2 for the day. I guess she thought she was giving him medicine. It scared us at first, but I don't think she actually got any in his mouth. After the usual dog and pony show of trying to get everyone dressed in their Tinkerbell & Peter Pan costumes and out the door on time, we headed to the neighborhood park to eat pizza and let the kids play.
We skipped the hay ride and took the golf cart since it was pretty cold and they were both still coughing. Lauren wouldn't be caught dead trick or treating with her parents, so she and a few of her friends dressed up as Siamese twins and Coach Chad took them trick or treating. Surely this will be the last year she wants to dress up!?! Liam was wrapped up in blankets, strapped into his carset in the front with Daddy. I rode on the back with Bailey and kept her covered with a blanket in between stops. We didn't stay out long...it was so cold, and Bailey didn't care one way or the other.
November 1, 2011
Lauren got straight A's on her first report card. Junior High...new school...much stricter rules and harder classes...nothing fazes this child! And we're talking HIGH A's. Her overall average was 97!! Surprisingly enough, school picture day at St. Fred's involved no drama this morning! I should have known as reliable as Lauren is that she would get herself up early enough. Then she asked me to straighten her hair, and there was no sighing or complaining or "Owwwww!". Heath didn't have any shampoo in the shower this morning...not because I forgot to buy some, but because Bailey dumped out the entire container in the shower last night. Another new favorite...dumping all of our bath products slowly down the drain. We had been trying to do Liam's breathing treatments without Bailey seeing what's going on because...well, you know if it's medicine she loves it. And the panda machine is her absolute favorite. I didn't get a chance to put up the machine this morning before she saw it. "I want panda"! So I let her have the little bit that was left from Liam's treatment (she still has a cough...can't hurt anything!), then she just breathed in the air when the medicine was gone.
I was in my bathroom getting dressed when I heard the door to the carport open, then close very quietly. My first thought was that Heath had forgotten something, but then I realized he was already at his 8:00 appointment. So I went to check it out, and immediately noticed Bailey was no longer on the couch. I opened the door, and there she was...squatting down behind my car with a bottle of sprinkles in her hand. How does this child think of these things??? Hmmm...if I close the door really soft and go in the garage, Mommy will never know I'm gone!
Bailey has bitten kids in her class twice last week, and again today. We have to get this under control or she could get kicked out...seriously! We've tried every punishment technique with no luck. Heath put her in her room tonight...no candy, no TV, etc. etc. Say a little prayer for chompers! She has to get over this soon!!
October 31, 2011
Today of course was Halloween. Lauren and I made lots of treats for the daycare class party on Friday, so I think Bailey was a little confused as to whether Halloween was on Friday or Monday. The two little ones have had coughs for about 2 weeks now. When we first took them to the doctor, of course there wasn't much she could do because they basically had colds. But poor Liam has started wheezing very loud and his cough sounds terrible. I wanted to take his temp this morning, but couldn't seem to find the ear thermometer. We looked everywhere! Then it hit me that Bailey likes to play with that thing (obsession with sickness and medicine), so I asked her if she knew where it was. She was so excited and took off running toward my closet. She moved my hanging clothes out of the way to reveal her usual hiding spot, and sure enough, there it was! I made a big deal out of how proud I was of her showing me where it was...you know, for the next time the car keys are missing!
No fever for Liam, but his wheezing sounded terrible and I wanted to be sure it wasn't RSV, so off to Dr. Bivens we went this afternoon. She said the wheezing had definitely gotten worse, but with no fever or secretions, it wasn't RSV and there wasn't anything in his lungs. She prescribed ol' faithful Zopenex for breathing treatments. He is a little young for it, but hopefully it will stop all of this from turning into pneumonia. He weighed 15 pounds, 8 ounces today...solid as a rock! I went back to daycare to pick up Bailey, and she was so confused why "Baby Rim" was already in the car and not in the nursery. I explained that I took him to the doctor, and she then began telling me that she was sick (her nose hurt) and she needed to go to the doctor too...this lasted the whole way home.
So, Bailey's newest obsession is sprinkles. Because I love to bake (bake...not cook...bake), I have acquired quite a lot of sprinkles. I keep them in the bottom drawer under the oven...coincidentally, the only one in the kitchen without a childproof latch. Bailey recently discovered them and now tries to sneak them every chance she gets. One day I went to the restroom and couldn't find her when I came out. I called her name over and over, and then heard something moving in the pantry. I asked, "Bailey, are you in the pantry"? She answered, "No"! I opened the door, and there she was on the floor with about 10 bottles of sprinkles, shoveling the candies into her mouth.
Anyway, within 10 minutes of getting home today, I caught her in the drawer again.
November 1, 2011
Lauren got straight A's on her first report card. Junior High...new school...much stricter rules and harder classes...nothing fazes this child! And we're talking HIGH A's. Her overall average was 97!! Surprisingly enough, school picture day at St. Fred's involved no drama this morning! I should have known as reliable as Lauren is that she would get herself up early enough. Then she asked me to straighten her hair, and there was no sighing or complaining or "Owwwww!". Heath didn't have any shampoo in the shower this morning...not because I forgot to buy some, but because Bailey dumped out the entire container in the shower last night. Another new favorite...dumping all of our bath products slowly down the drain. We had been trying to do Liam's breathing treatments without Bailey seeing what's going on because...well, you know if it's medicine she loves it. And the panda machine is her absolute favorite. I didn't get a chance to put up the machine this morning before she saw it. "I want panda"! So I let her have the little bit that was left from Liam's treatment (she still has a cough...can't hurt anything!), then she just breathed in the air when the medicine was gone.
I was in my bathroom getting dressed when I heard the door to the carport open, then close very quietly. My first thought was that Heath had forgotten something, but then I realized he was already at his 8:00 appointment. So I went to check it out, and immediately noticed Bailey was no longer on the couch. I opened the door, and there she was...squatting down behind my car with a bottle of sprinkles in her hand. How does this child think of these things??? Hmmm...if I close the door really soft and go in the garage, Mommy will never know I'm gone!
Bailey has bitten kids in her class twice last week, and again today. We have to get this under control or she could get kicked out...seriously! We've tried every punishment technique with no luck. Heath put her in her room tonight...no candy, no TV, etc. etc. Say a little prayer for chompers! She has to get over this soon!!
Monday, October 31, 2011
So, we have officially joined the world of blogging!
If you know me, you know there is nothing more important to me than my family. I love my amazing husband and my 3 beautiful children, as well as all of my other family members. I thought this would be a great way to share our daily happenings with our loved ones, as well as have a little written history of our family to share with the kids one day. These kids are growing up SO fast, and they all do something hilarious and sweet every single day. I don't want to forget any of these great memories.
I hope you will enjoy hearing about our life. There is never a dull moment. I like to say that since we have earned the "family of 5" status, our house is like a circus every day!
If you know me, you know there is nothing more important to me than my family. I love my amazing husband and my 3 beautiful children, as well as all of my other family members. I thought this would be a great way to share our daily happenings with our loved ones, as well as have a little written history of our family to share with the kids one day. These kids are growing up SO fast, and they all do something hilarious and sweet every single day. I don't want to forget any of these great memories.
I hope you will enjoy hearing about our life. There is never a dull moment. I like to say that since we have earned the "family of 5" status, our house is like a circus every day!
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