Ahhh, spring is finally here

It is I, the absent blogger, here again to try to do a little catching up on the happenings of our life these past few weeks.

We’re all doing great for the most part. We’re so glad the winter weather is gone and now if only it would stop raining long enough to enjoy the warmth of spring. We have tried to enjoy being outside whenever we have the chance. Nicholas has a new bike and basketball hoop courtesy of some great finds from the Children’s resale I did a few weeks ago.

That ended up being a pretty good day for me. I got rid of a lot of the kids stuff including quite a bit of their clothes and made about $300. The only things I bought were the two toys for Nicholas – I’m trying to remember they have plenty of clothes and not go overboard this season again!

Hannah’s enrolled for kindergarten at Royal Redeemer. She has an assessment in June which I’m sure she’ll soar through. She’s doing really well with reading on her own and some basic math too. Her handwriting is getting so much better and she loves to practice it on dry erase boards. She’s signed up for safety town too this summer. I started buying her some uniform clothes as I see some good deals……I’m so very excited and sad at the same time for her to be going off to school in a couple of months. Amazing how fast the time goes and how quickly they become so big!

I missed blogging about Easter, so we’ll use this post to do the catch up on that. We colored eggs the night before. Nicholas didn’t stay interested in the activity for too long and since he put his hand in the entire cup of blue dye, we decided it might not be his thing!

Hannah however, had a blast. She loved to do the coloring and decorating of the eggs. We had quite a variety of colors and decorated eggs.

We woke up Easter morning to Hannah saying, “I saw an egg! The Easter Bunny must have been here!” We went downstairs to see their baskets on the table and then she and Nicholas were off to find all of the hidden eggs. Nicholas was of course, much more interested in the grass from his basket! Hannah took a while to find this last hidden egg!

They opened a couple of gifts after the egg hunt.

We missed going to church unfortunately since we had to get ready to meet everyone for brunch. Hannah was beautiful in her new Easter dress and Nicholas is such a handsome little boy in his outfit.

And a family picture, which are a bit tricky to take these days!

We met Dad, Julia, Susan and Will for brunch. It was good, but Nicholas wasn’t so into eating or sitting and allowing me to eat much, so it seemed a little rushed this year. We had a little mixup with the valet parking too, but it was a nice morning together anyway. We headed home to get a quick nap and then went over to Dawn & Jack’s for a little while. The kids always have a blast over there, especially since Aunt Dawn always has new toys for them!

I decided once and for all that I’m done carrying around the rest of this baby weight and need to get in gear and get back in some sort of shape, so I started to go to zumba classes. It’s amazing how uncoordinated I felt that first time! It’s been a while since I moved like that! It felt good though to start to get a little exercise in. I’m going to go at least once a week and maybe twice if we can figure out how to fit it into our schedules.

Hannah had her first sleepover on the 30th. McKenna and Allie came over Saturday afternoon and they all played so well together. We made pizzas for dinner and then they watched a movie in a tent that Tony made for them and then were pretty good about going to sleep by 10:00. They all slept in their sleeping bags in Hannah’s room. McKenna and Allie seemed to sleep just fine, but Hannah wasn’t used to sleeping on the floor or with other people, so she didn’t sleep as well, but she had a great time!

We made waffles for breakfast and they played some more and then went home around noon on Sunday. That was a fun experience! They were all so good though, so really, it was pretty easy!

Nicholas just isn’t getting better and unfortunately, last week we dealt with more lingering issues with whatever he’s got going on. He was really restless on Sunday night, like whimpering and just really uncomfortable. He started getting a real yucky nose on Monday and then by Tuesday evening, he started getting gross discharge from his eyes too. I kept him home Wednesday and called the doctor again. This time, they just called in an antibiotic for him instead of having me bring him in again (good thing - that would have been the 4th visit). We started the z-pack on Wednesday night and it seemed to start clearing up his nose and eyes by the next morning, except the poor little guy looked like he was punched right in both eyes when he woke up. They were all red and swollen.

This picture from Thursday morning really doesn't do justice to what he really looked like.

By Friday morning, he was looking much better and his eyes weren’t running anymore. He took his last dose of medicine Sunday evening and we’re supposed to give it at least another week to clear things up. I think it cleared up his infection, but then yesterday, he was running a fever. The doctor said if he’s not better this time, we’ll have to go see a specialist. Not sure what kind, maybe a respiratory or an ENT? He goes for his well visit on the 20th, so we’ll probably decide then unless he’s still experiencing fever or if the infection comes back. It’s mostly this cough that has hung on for over 3 months now…..please go away!!!!

Tony got a new lawn mower that he’s really excited about and we finally signed on our refinance, so we’re super excited about the financial plan we’re going to start working. Hopefully, we can get things in order to get into a new house within a couple years. I’m hoping it won’t be too late to build in the new development across the street from us, but if for some reason it is, we’ll find another opportunity I’m sure! Things are really going well for us all around and we’re so very grateful for everything. We just need to get Nicholas feeling better and then we can enjoy this spring and summer to its fullest!

Nicholas had a fun 14 month old day!

Nicholas is 14 months old today! He's such a big boy and I describe him as sweet and sour. He can be such a sweet, lovable little boy and can be OH SO ROTTEN too.

I forgot to post about him last month during my blog lacking month, so I'll try to catch up to include his up to date stuff.

He's just about 26 pounds - loves to eat which helped to get him that way. We sometimes have to say no to crackers or else he'd eat them all day! It was funny the other morning, he went downstairs and then was climbing up the stairs with a box of Cheese-Its in one hand and a box of Vanilla Wafers in the other! Too funny! Wish I had my camera for that one!

He has all of his first year molars now. They came in on the top first and the last one came in while we were on vacation. He's now cutting the eye teeth on the bottom, so right now, he's got 12 teeth.

He has perfected his walking and running and now is jumping - he can get a little bit of air under his feet! He LOVES to dance, like seriously loves music - he hears music and gets his groove on!!! It's awesome!

He is saying a few more words, waves hi and bye, does about 5 animal sounds and nods yes and no in usually appropriate responses.

He is really great - and then comes his rotten side........oh, this boy can be nasty! He can throw a fit like no one else I know and has a mean streak when he's mad. I'm not sure what gets into him sometimes, but I'm quickly realizing that I'm going to have to parent him differently than I have with Hannah. Such a challenge raising a boy, but such a joy too!

I fear that we'll take our first trip to the ER this summer with something broken or lots of blood - he likes to play rough! We'll try our best to keep him safe and in one piece.

Here's a few pictures from today

Check out those teeth!

So I stayed home with him today, not for his birthday, but because he has had this cough for over 2 months and it seems to be getting bad again. Last month, I took him to the doctor after his cold lasted 2-3 weeks and he had a double ear infection. I took him back just before vacation because he was still coughing and I wanted to make sure his ear infection cleared up. It did, but now, two weeks home from vacation, and he's still coughing. He had a bit of a fever this weekend, so I figured something isn't quite right and I wanted to take him for another doctor visit. So we got there today and his ears looked fine and his lungs sounded OK, but the doctor said there was something that sounded a little off in his cough and wheezing. He suggested sending him for a chest x-ray.

Do you know how they take a chest x-ray of a 14 month old? They use this barbaric looking contraption called a Pigg-O-Stat. The child sits on this little seat and his legs go into the holes of the bottom and then they (3 adults) strap these plastic things around his little body with his arms up over his head and only his red, screaming (scared) little face sticks out from the opening at the top. All the while the mother stands on the outside of the room with tears streaming down her face. And then they finish, release the scared screaming child. As I calm him down and reassure him he's fine, they come in and say the films weren't clear because his legs were kicking so hard and we had to do it again. Oh, poor Nicholas! This time, I help to get him in quickly and stay next to him with a lead apron and one lady holds his legs, I stay at his face and we finish quickly.

I guess this thing was a good idea, but it was awful! I wonder what kind of kid they used for this picture? Surely not a 14 month old kid that needs a chest x-ray!

So even with not-so great films, our Doctor didn't think there was anything worrisome about them, and decided to try a steroid medicine for 5 days to see if we can clear up the cough. Hopefully it works out well.

Another thing about our day together today, Nicholas was watching the Wiggles as I did some work at the kitchen table. Here he is dancing to the music.

So then after a few minutes, I looked over at him and see this

I guess he was tired and decided it was time for a nap!

I took Hannah to gymnastics tonight. It was sure easier without taking Nicholas. We got home and he was playing in Hannah's room like he loves to do. This is one of the things he likes to do with Hannah's dolls and their crib.

I guess he is still a baby after all! Despite him getting so big, so fast, he's still my baby!

Alive and Well.....vacationed and refreshed!

So the old blog was totally neglected last month - sorry!!! I guess it was a combination of being too busy and not really having much to blog about. I also realized that I didn't take a picture almost the entire month - awful, I know!

So anyway, we just got back from our annual spring break vacation to Hilton Head. The weather was terrific, the trip was relaxing and enjoyable, but of course went way too fast.

First, we celebrated Tony's birthday the day before we left - March 31st (his actual birthday). We went to Red Lobster for dinner with Laura, Aaron and the girls since he always gripes about not being allowed to go there. Unfortunately, Nicholas ended up with a tummy ache and cut the dinner a bit short. It was actually OK though because once again, it wasn't that great of a dinner. Tony finally agreed with me that Red Lobster really isn't all that great. He opened a few gifts when we got home and then the kids went to bed and we finished packing for vacation.

We worked on Friday, April 1. I got out around 3 and got gas and finished packing the car. Tony got the kids and we dressed them in jammies and packed everyone up and headed south. We drove just over 7 hours into Jonesville, NC and stayed the night at a hotel. The kids did really great. Hannah watched movies and Nicholas just hung out. He only got fussy when he tried to go to sleep because he couldn't get comfortable. We unloaded for the night and of course by then, the kids were wide awake. Hannah went to sleep easily, but Nicholas was different story. I think we finally fell asleep around 2 am.

We got up, showered, changed and had breakfast and finished the drive for another 5 hours or so to get to the vacation house. We stayed in a unit we stayed in a couple years ago. Mom and Randy were already there and so they helped us unload and we just hung out in the condo that night and made pizza for dinner. We took a quick trip to the beach. I had hoped Nicholas would be a little intimidated by the ocean, but no such luck....he headed right for it! I wondered if that would be a sign for how my week would be!

Sunday morning, we got ready and went out to breakfast and then Mom, Hannah and I went to the beach for the afternoon.

Hannah spent her time at the condo watching TV, playing with her barbies and playing on the computer. She's getting quite good at computer solitare!

Nicholas played with his toys, the stroller, the box and shoes - he is so interested now in trying to put on his shoes! It's funny!

We went to Lands End Tavern for dinner Sunday night.

Monday, the guys golfed and we took the kids to the pool. It was pretty cold in the water. I tried to get Nicholas to go in, but it was just too cold. Hannah had no problem getting in though! She splashed around the baby pool and even got Grandma to go into the big pool with her for a while to swim around.

Nicholas was quite content playing with beach toys on the side of the pool

and then decided to take a snooze in the stroller for a while in the shade.

We grilled burgers for dinner in on Monday night and then just hung out in the condo.

Tuesday's weather wasn't the greatest earlier in the day. Tony and I took Hannah to lunch at Sante Fe

Then we took both of the kids to the playground at Harbour Town. Hannah can finally pump her legs right on a swing.

Nicholas wasn't quite sure if he liked the swing or not.

He LOVED the slide though!

They had fun racing down together.

And for the record, that blue thing on him is a dog leash! I forgot the child harness thing at home and I looked all over for one down there, and the only thing I could come up with was an actual dog leash that velcroed around him and had a leash on his back - it worked!!!

We grilled out for dinner again and then had some Hilton Head friends over for some drinks that evening. Here is an attempt at a picture of me and the kids, however, Nicholas isn't so into picture taking these days!

Wednesday the guys golfed again and we took the kids to the beach. It was warm down there, but a bit windy and unfortunately the sand kept blowing in Nicholas' face. So I let him walk around a while and then he finally figured out that playing in the sand was fun - it felt neat on his hand alas!

So then I got him seated with Hannah and they played for quite a while together.

We laid down for naps and when Hannah woke up, she was running a 101 degree fever. I was so worried she'd be sick the rest of the time, but luckily she was doing better after some Advil. Tony and I went to dinner together that evening to our Japanese place. I was ready to go out after, but surprisingly, he just wanted to go back to the condo and hang out, so we did. Hannah's fever broke that night around 1:30, so luckily, she was fine in the morning.

Thursday morning, we got up and took the kids to Lawton Stables to see the horses and other animals. They enjoyed the animals for sure -the horses and there was a deer that was wandering about to pet.

Hannah had her pony ride again this year. She loves it!

I took Hannah to the pool for a little while that afternoon while Nicholas napped. Then we all got ready for dinner at the Old Oyster Factory.

Today was proof to me that it can be fun dressing a little boy ! Isn't he adorable???

And the big boy with his favorite big sister - they're awesome!

Here we are at dinner

And Hannah with a clam shell!

Tony and I went to the Salty Dog that night for a few drinks after the kids went to bed. It was so nice to be outside on a warm evening!

Mom and I took the kids to breakfast on Friday morning while the guys golfed one more time. After that, we headed to the pool again. The water was much warmer and Nicholas enjoyed splashing around the baby pool this time and didn't mind his life jacket at all.

After that last day in the sun, we all cleaned up and did our family photo session....brief this time since Nicholas was even more uncooperative than Tony!! We were able to get a few good ones.

And then we had one last dinner out at the Salty Dog. We ate outside and listened to the one-man-band guy singing. After dinner, Nicholas was in awe of the singer guy and just danced and danced by him. It was awesome! The guy sure got a kick out of him!

Then we had to head back and pack up for home. We left just before 9:00 Saturday morning and drove straight through, stopping for lunch, a couple pit stops for gas and potty and then again for dinner. The kids did so great in the car all day. We hit some really bad fog in Virginia and horrible rain through West Virginia, but made it home easily by 11:00.

It was a great week - so nice to not think about work and have a taste of summer. It was even more enjoyable to come home to an 80 degree Sunday! We did a bunch of spring cleaning yesterday and the kids played outside. We're so glad it's finally spring here and so enjoyed our spring break vacation again.

Back to reality now and hopefully not so neglecting of the blog....it's hard to write such long posts!