The Simple Things In Life

Filters...

2012-01-31T10:48:00.000-06:00

I'm a firm believer that people, like water faucets, should come with an automatic filter. One with more instant filtering against the spewing of verbal stupidity than one's conscience provides. We have all misspoken at various times and unintentionally had something come out we didn't intend. This isn't due to ignorance or thoughtlessness Minor slip-ups are things like saying, "She's adorable" to a baby dressed in an outfit reading "Mommy's Little Boy".

The filters I'm talking about would eliminate remarks like the following. Remarks made without much thought that generally lead to upsetting someone unintentionally:

1. I'm sorry about your _______. At least they're in heaven now.Them being in heaven is not something to say "at least" about. A loved one being in heaven is a glorious, wonderful thing. Twenty four hours after the death of a close loved one, knowing that they're in heaven isn't as comforting as hearing that loved one's voice again. Or hugging them one last time. In time those words are comforting, but sometimes just leaving it at "I'm sorry for your loss. We are praying for you." is a much better way to go. Scratch that.... if you're not sure what to say, "I'm sorry for your loss. We are praying for you." is the perfect thing to say. In fact, "We are praying for you." can be said at any point and be completely comforting and appropriate.

2. Wow. You look tired."
If these words come to mind, just say "OH MY. YOU LOOK LIKE CRAP."

3."When are you guys going to have another baby? You need to try for a girl!"First, how do you know they're NOT trying? If they are (and there were times we heard this and were trying without success) all that saying things like this does is make couples even more emotional and sad about the fact that they haven't peed on a stick and seen a plus sign. Second, why do we NEED to try for a specific gender? Are they saying if you had a house full of boys you're not legit until you have a girl?

4. "You do Natural Family Planning? What?!"
Don't ask if you don't want to know what it is. Don't look at us like we're crazy when we explain it to you. Don't say things like "What happened" when you find out we are expecting after we've told you that NFP is 99% effective in pregnancy achievement/avoidance. 'What happened' is that we made a decision together, as husband and wife, to try to get pregnant.

5."You're PREGNANT? How did that happen?"Really.... You're over the age of 13. You have children close to age 13. Does someone need to explain to you how it happens? If so, we have bigger problems than your lack of filter. Next time just say "Congratulations".

6. "You're expecting! Were you guys trying for a girl?"
No, we weren't. We were trying for a baby. In all honesty with our second one we read the book "How to Choose the Gender of Your Baby". We tried it. It didn't work. This time around we were trying for a baby. We were trying for a sibling for kids #1 & #2. We were trying for another member of our family. Should there be a #4 or #5 or #11 I assure you every time from here on out we will be trying for whatever baby God feels is the perfect fit for our family.

7. "I hope it's a girl." "I hope it's a boy." "I REALLY hope it's a girl." "I REALLY hope it's a boy."All this does to a couple expecting their child is make them realize that it really matters to you what they're having. Saying this puts the thought in the back of the mind of the parents to be: "Now we know that if the baby that we have is born a different gender from that which you REALLY hope we have, you're going to be slightly disappointed.... just the teensiest bit less enthused about the new arrival than you would have been if it were what you had REALLY hoped for." Guess what, babies aren't a Christmas letter to Santa. You don't get to say what you really want, keep that to yourself. Really. Keep it to yourself. Just tell Mom & Dad that you REALLY REALLY can't wait to meet their newest blessing. That you REALLY REALLY hope that the pregnancy, birth and baby progress smoothly and that the end result is a perfect child of God. That's all mom & dad want to know or worry about.

8. So is this your last one? That's up to God. Really. It is. Ask the couples you know who have had more children after their tubes were tied, or a vasectomy was had or the doctors told them they couldn't have any more children. God's a hell of a lot smarter than any physician or medical procedure. He's God. He's cool like that.

9. Wow! You're going to have your hands full!
Guess what... we all have our hands full. We're all busy. Our lives are all hectic and crazy. There's never enough hours in the day. NEVER. With another child in the house our hands will be full of countless more blessings. We're going to be even busier making more memories. Once you're already crazy, what's a little more crazy? We just think of it as the sprinkles on top!

10. Anything about how not sick or not miserable you were during pregnancy to a woman whose ribs, abdomen and body hurts from throwing up every day for 4.5 weeks. A woman who has thrown up 18/18 months of pregnancy with her first two children. I cannot be held liable if: I lash out against you; consider running you over while driving my van and balancing a puke bucket on my lap; or throw up on you out of spite. I am glad that most women don't hate being pregnant. I am eternally grateful that not every woman has to go through this. If they did, those pushing for zero population growth would certainly have their way. Also, please, do not remind someone after they have been puking for several hours "You asked for it."

I'm sure I could consider installing a filter before blogging, but then I'd have to take the filter over my mouth off, and we all just saw how THAT can work out.

Three

2012-01-27T08:37:00.000-06:00

Where there once was 2, 4, 8, and 40 there will now be 3, 5, 10 and 50! Confused? Maybe this will help...

Baby #3 is due August 30th!

About 6 months after Tate was born Gabe and I agreed that our family just didn't feel complete. Several months ago we decided it was time to start trying for baby #3. Since we practice NFP, and were able to easily conceive both Connor & Tate we assumed that the third would be just as easy- Not so fast, my friend!

It took several months of trying only to end up frustrated and disappointed. Finally the week before Christmas we found out there would be a third child in our house! We were thrilled beyond words and decided to keep the pregnancy a secret until we went to the doctor and confirmed that everything was healthy and viable. The ultrasound above shows that one, healthy baby growing away.

Seeing as I've been as miserably sick as I was with numbers 1 & 2, we're taking it as a good sign.

We told the kids by sending them on a scavenger hunt throughout the house. They were shocked and excited when they got the final envelope revealing a letter and ultrasound picture saying "Here's a picture of your new brother or sister in Mommy's belly".

Connor was shocked when he read it!

Tate was showing us there was not a baby in his belly.

Jumping up and down "We're going to be big brothers!"

Happy 2012

2012-01-04T08:02:00.000-06:00

2011 is gone, and 2012 has arrived. I don't have anything against any particular year and I feel the same about 2011. There were many highs and lows over the year and many things that changed us. Here are some of 2011's monumental happenings:

January 2011: Gabe and I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary.
February 2011: We learned that David had Stage 4 cancer an began praying and preparing ourselves to accept whatever the Lord had in store for us.
March 2011: Spent Spring Break in Bristol. Tate got his hair trimmed for the first time. Connor started baseball.
April 2011: Connor's baseball season was in full swing and he was loving it. Gabe turned 35 and was received in full communion of the Catholic Church. I was confirmed at the same mass.
May 2011: Kindergarten came to a close for Connor. It was sad to say goodbye to his wonderful teacher, and yet we knew the year ahead would be just as wonderful.
June 2011: Tate turned 2! I can't quite express how much I love that little stinker. He steals my heart. I can't remember what our family ever did without him.
July 2011: Gabe was home to do some fireworks for the kids. We made homemade ice cream on the 4th and celebrated living in this great nation.
August 2011: Connor started first grade. He's such an intelligent boy! He loves to read, study things and learn. I hope he continues to feel this way about school and learning.
September 2011: Gabe and I ran the Warrior Dash together. It was fun and challenging and I was proud of us for doing it! Can't wait to do it again in 2012.
October 2011: Connor turned 7. It's hard to believe our honeymoon surprise has already turned 7. He is such a tenderhearted, caring boy. He's full of energy and enthusiasm and I wish I could just bottle it all up and save it. Oh how we love our first born!
November 2011: A very emotional month for us. On November 15th David lost his battle with cancer. His funeral was on November 18th, which was the 6th anniversary of Barbara's death. Talk to your parents. Tell them how much you love them. My heart is so heavy knowing that Gabe won't ever hug his biological parents again or hear their voices. Try to treasure those moments because they don't last forever.
December 2011: Advent brought such healing to us. As we were working through our grief we were preparing our hearts for Jesus. We enjoyed a wonderful Christmas program by Connor's entire school. We were blessed with a joyous Christmas and Santa spoiled the kids!

It's easy to dwell on the negatives that happen over the course of a year. The things that break. The repairs that cost money. The stresses. The heartaches. But in the midst of all of it their is joy, laughter and love. Praying you are able to always see the joy, laughter and love in your life in the midst of the trials.

The Second Half of 2011

2011-12-14T09:42:00.000-06:00

I don't know if I have any readers left. I've been the worst blogger of 2011! Here's quick recaps and photos of the highlights.

1. Connor started 1st grade in August. He has a wonderful teacher, is learning a lot and recently won his class spelling bee! He's made great grades and we're really proud of him. He ran cross-country this year at school and played soccer here in town.

2. Tate is growing like a weed and is just as smart as Connor. He's extremely verbal and much like his mother doesn't really ever stop talking! He was potty trained before his 2nd birthday (YIPPEE!!) and still hasn't figured out that he's not 7 years old. He's right behind Connor no matter what he's doing and they play very well together (when they're not ready to kill one another).

3. Gabe & I have been running and working on getting in/staying in shape. In September we participated in the Warrior Dash as part of my birthday celebration. The event lived up to its hype and we were thrilled to share the craziest freakin' day of our lives together. In October we also got a new dog, Lola! She's a wonderful 5 year old chocolate lab and the kids are crazy about her! (We must just be crazy for adding a new 'kid' to the mix!)

4. In November we said goodbye to Gabe's biological dad, David. He fought a long hard battle with cancer and on November 15 his battle ended. We have been so thankful for everyone's prayers and support.

5. It's now December 14th and I'm addressing Christmas cards and putting the finishing touches on presents. I love this time of year and the magic it brings. I love this season of Advent. O come, O come Emmanuel!

For the rest of 2011 and all of 2012 I'm setting a goal to blog twice a week. Let's see how well that works out!

Back Home Again in Indiana...

2011-07-08T17:01:00.000-05:00

It's also been a month since we ventured out of town to visit my family and see my youngest brother graduate from high school. I've struggled with missing out on so much of him growing up and playing sports. We were blessed to be able to listen to his football and basketball games online the past few years. They live in the same city that I grew up in and every time we go for a visit, I love to take the kids to places that I loved and associate with my own childhood.

We took them to Columbian Park, which features a great playground and a zoo that is free to the public. A few years ago they totally revamped the zoo and it's much nicer and cooler than it ever was when I was a kid! We had frozen custard, Arnie's Pizza and a McCord's Vanilla coke. Nothing like being at home!

Colin graduated with honors and it meant a lot to all of us to be there. We are so proud of him! It was GREAT to be back home again in Indiana.

Game Ball

2011-07-08T15:47:00.000-05:00

Baseball ended a month ago, but with summer vacation we've been so busy I haven't had a chance to blog. Connor's team ended the season 7-2 having lost their season opener and the weekend we were out of town for my brother's graduation (also known as the weekend when only 8 of the 12 kids on our team were in town). Either way they had a great season and had a ton of fun!

Here's a blurry, shaky video of his 2nd at bat of the game!

Connor ended up winning the Game Ball following their win on that last game too!

We concluded the season with a pizza party and trophies at Gabe's work!

Projects 1

2011-06-11T12:26:00.000-05:00

I've been busy with several projects around the house. (Which may be part of the reason I'm a bad blogger). Nevertheless, here is some of the ways I've spent my time recently.

1. BUNK BEDS:
Purchased for $30 at a yard sale last fall. They were ugly early 90's stain that was scratched and covered in various stickers and such!

2. My second project was a second raised bed for our garden. After purchasing one for $40 at Sam's, I knew I could make one for cheaper than that when I ran out of room in the first. I found the plans online and went to work! I was THRILLED with how it turned out!

3. The third project is by far my favorite. After coming across some wooden pallets someone was getting rid of, I broke them up and sanded the pieces. Using some of the pieces to build sawhorses, I set aside the slats for a much bigger project. After a few trips to Lowes for lumber and stain, this was the final project. I completed it all while Gabe was at work, with only a little help from him when we were destressing the pieces- a good stress reliever :) He was shocked that I got it all done by myself and I was proud of the results. I've definitely gotten the building bug! I need to purchase a few more tools then I'll be good to go on my next project!

End of Kindergarten

2011-06-11T11:37:00.000-05:00

Connor finished his Kindergarten career about 2 weeks ago. All in all it was a GREAT year. We were blessed with a wonderful teacher who far exceeded any expectations and desires I had hoped for his teacher to have. She was a teacher, a disciplinarian, a friend, a mother, a playmate, a disciple, a role model, a constant, prayerful, powerful force in Connor's life this year and we are forever grateful to Mrs. C for being who she is. Thank you to her and Mrs. D- her amazing aide for making this year so great!

The last weeks of school were full of fun. We had a field trip to the zoo with their 6th grade prayer partners! I couldn't believe how well the 6th graders in my group really took care and watched over the Kindergartners! Such good little role models for these young boys!

We also had field day far superior to any field day I had ever experienced! I was able to volunteer and help with the events and Gabe and Tate got to come along and join in the fun!

Sister coaching her 2nd graders to victory!

Teachers/Volunteers vs. 8th graders

The majority of the school! LOVED the colored tees for each class!

Finally, we were able to have a end of year pizza party with Connor and his fellow kindergartner! It was so much fun and a great end to the school year!

Daddy's Birthday!

2011-05-08T21:32:00.000-05:00

Gabe's birthday was a couple of weeks ago now, and as has been the norm, he had to work. We decided long ago that given his industry, having a birthday off (whether his, mine or one of the kiddos) was probably too much to count on, so we just try to make it so we're able to at least have dinner and cake together!

Knowing daddy had to work, we wanted to still make sure he had a special day from the start. For several days the boys and I worked on signs to adorn the walls after Gabe went to sleep. At about 1:30 a.m. I got up, hung the signs and even woke Connor up so he could see our surprise for daddy. He sleepily smiled and said, "I know Daddy will love my sign." (Daddy Did).

Virtually every year that we've been together I have surprised Gabe with a cake (and sometimes balloons, candy, breakfast, coffee, etc.) at work. This year was no different! Since his mother passed away I have made him a red velvet cake *from scratch* using a recipe I received in her recipe cards. Connor helped me top it with sugary letters to celebrate daddy! We dropped it off with a birthday card midway through his day just to brighten his spirits!

When Gabe got home we ate a delicious lasagna, opened presents, sang "Happy Birthday"and ate a delicious birthday cake with some ice cream! We had an AWESOME day and can't wait to do it again next year!

Play Ball

2011-04-03T16:44:00.000-05:00

I've been looking forward to spending summers at the ball field since I found out I was pregnant with Connor. This phase in our life officially began yesterday, at our very first Opening Day! Connor played a really great game! With one ground out, one strike out and a single he was all in all thrilled, as were we! So proud of our boy!

Batter Up!

2011-03-19T08:42:00.000-05:00

We signed up Connor for his first year of baseball this year and he is loving every minute of it! We're trying to focus on teaching him the fundamentals and reminding him to just have FUN!

We're so proud of Connor and how well he is reading! He read his first real "chapter book" this past week all by himself! His school is participating in a reading program with the Nashville Sounds. For every 4 books he reads in a 2 week period he earns a prize until he reaches "Home Plate"! This week Tate felt the need to join him and read along with him! Love when these boys love each other so!

O Breathe on Me, O Breath of God

2011-03-13T22:59:00.000-05:00

Today I stood and watched as my husband and hundreds of fellow candidates and elect who attended the Rite of Election of Catechumens and Call to Continuing Conversion of Candidates Who Seek to Complete their Conversion this afternoon at St. Henry. As we prepared to exit the celebration, this hymn was sung and struck such a chord with me at this time in our lives. I pray the words touch you in the same way they did me.

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
fill me with life anew,
that I may love the things You love,
and do what you would do.

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
until my heart is pure;
until my will is one with Yours,
to do and to endure.

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
my will to Yours incline,
until this selfish part of me
glows with Your fire divine.

O breathe on me, O breath of God,
so I shall never die,
but live with You the perfect life
for all eternity.

All Tater Ladies

2011-02-11T17:37:00.000-06:00

First, Tate is in underwear in this video. Why? Because he's trying to potty train himself and thinks tat underwear are fun. We're obliging a little bit, here and there, but going through multiple pairs a day is getting a wee bit old. (Notice the pun?!)

Second, we were watching Glee and Tate started to Boogie Down. It was hilariously cute so we had to find the music online so he could dance and we could record it.

Three, this video alone pretty much sums up why I think this kid is so stinkin' adorable.

Snow Pictures

2011-02-10T11:28:00.000-06:00

We've had a LOT of snow this year- for this neck of the woods anyway! As we're enjoying yet another snow day at home I thought I'd post pictures of our past few snow days!

Weekend Fun

2011-02-02T19:17:00.000-06:00

We had an AWESOME weekend this past weekend. We drove to Nashville not just on Saturday, but Sunday too! Saturday we went to Adventure Science Center with the boys and met Gabe's brother Ben for lunch. Then on Sunday we hit the zoo and got to see the baby meerkats! Enjoy the pictures!

Happy Anniversary

2011-01-23T21:56:00.000-06:00

Happy Anniversary to my best friend and love. My life is everything it is because of you.

Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, it is not pompous, it is not inflated,

it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury,it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. If there are prophecies, they will be brought to nothing; if tongues, they will cease; if knowledge, it will be brought to nothing. For we know partially and we prophesy partially, but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away.

When I was a child, I used to talk as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I put aside childish things. At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known. So faith, hope, love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is love."

Christmas 2010

2011-01-09T21:58:00.000-06:00

Christmas was amazing! I realize that I'm delayed nearly three weeks in posting about it, but we've had a LOT going on. We followed tradition and spent Christmas focusing on the reason behind the holiday and focusing on family. Keeping things in balance isn't always easy when you're married, working, stay at home parenting, raising kids, being kids, going to school, driving to and from school (you get the point). This time of year always makes me slow down and take the time to appreciate these things more.

On Christmas Eve I awoke to a glorious sunrise. It was too gorgeous not to snap a picture.

That afternoon we went to the family mass at 4p.m. at our church. We were able to sit in our normal second
row pew, and Connor and I were able to sit and pray the rosary together before mass began while Gabe kept Tate company in the car as he took a pre-mass nap! It was a wonderful start to the holiday. We came home and ate a delicious lasagna for dinner.

After dinner we baked cookies for Santa, and sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus while enjoying a chocolate mousse birthday cake! Following dessert we opened our Christmas PJs and got ready for bed.

Then it was time to read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas and Luke 1&2 from the Bible! Cookies were left for Santa and reindeer food was left for Rudolph and company, then it was off to bed for the boys! Per tradition, Gabe and I enjoyed some wine, coffee and "It's A Wonderful Life" before heading to bed. Before bed, however, we let the dog out and watched as the first snow flakes fell!

We awoke to a white Christmas! Not only were we surprised with snow, but Santa also came and apparently the boys were VERY good over the past year. Not only were our boys spoiled by our family and kind friends, but the elves at the North Pole were busy working on surprises for them.

After all was said and done, the living room looked as though massive amounts of presents were unwrapped and even more chaos was unleashed. Truth be told, I wouldn't have wanted it to look any other way. I pray in this new year that you and yours all cherish, remember and live the spirit of Christmas each and every day of the year.

I'll Be Home for Christmas... Sort of

2010-12-22T20:44:00.002-06:00

Friday afternoon at the end of Connor's half day of school we loaded in to the van and headed out of town and drove east. We knew it was going to be a whirlwind trip. We knew our time with everyone was going to be cut very short. We knew we'd breeze in as quickly as we'd breeze out, but I also knew that my husband NEEDED this visit home. It'd been nearly 3 years since we'd made it to East TN and while we all miss our family there, Gabe especially has been longing for home.

Unfortunately we couldn't locate our camera card when we stopped for dinner with RM & L so we have no pictures of the great meal we had or the great people we shared it with. (Guess that means we'll need to do it again!)

We pulled off of I-81 at about 9:15p.m. Friday and had to stop at another place we'd been missing like crazy. Ahhh.... pure yummy, fattening, deliciousness!

Then we stopped for a brief visit with D&R&K before finally climbing in to bed. After not much sleep that night we got up and prepare for another day crammed with catching up with family and loved ones! We saw J&M and my bestie, Leah & her daughter Lo!

Then piled in to the van to head over to Great Granny's to see more of Gabe's family and have a mini Christmas celebration with them. Seeing his mom's side of the family is always emotional because her sisters look SO MUCH like her. We miss her always, but especially this time of year. It was another short visit with his aunts and uncle and cousin and Granny, but again, a little bit is better than nothing.

Then we took the boys to go see the lights at BMS. What a beautiful sight it all was! After a quick dinner we went back to D&R's to celebrate Christmas!

Sunday morning we were up early and headed to the cemetery to spend a few minutes with Gabe's mom and Grandad. That was HARD. Heartbreaking. Christmas was definitely her season and leaving a Christmas card at her grave site was nearly more than I could bear. Gabe and I both shed many tears as the boys played in the last remaining bit of snow around her headstone. I wish she was here to see our boys and hear their laughter. I wish I could take away the ache in my husband's heart over her not being here. I wish she could have had more time to be a grandmother. She would have made the BEST grandmother. Becoming a grandmother was without a doubt the greatest thing in her life. I'm glad she was able to receive that gift even if the time was cut too short.

In true Gabe & Steph fashion when we went to leave the cemetery we discovered the dog had locked us out of the car! With it running. A quick call to our Roadside Assistance and 20 minutes in the cold later, we were back on the road. Before heading back home we had one final stop to make: Aunt Nancy & Renee! WOW! That's a lot of visiting in a little bit of time, and it was worth every ounce of chaos!
Now we're all missing family, both family we saw and family we haven't seen in too long. Christmas is in 3 days, and we move in 1 week. Move? Yep. More on that next time.

Snow Day

2010-12-14T00:03:00.000-06:00

We had our first snow day! We all went out for just a few minutes to enjoy the snow that had fallen! Tate wasn't sure what to think when the snow wouldn't come off of him!

Over a Month....

2010-12-11T12:44:00.000-06:00

I'm sorry. I know it's been over a month since I last blogged. I keep wanting to. I keep sitting down with the thought "I should blog" but for some reason I haven't been able to stay focused long enough to do it!

We're in the swing of things with the holidays and I nearly let Thanksgiving pass by without blogging all that we are thankful for. This year we did something different which is sure to become a tradition for our family. I purchased a "Thankful Tree" from Uppercase Living. We made little leaves to add to the tree and a couple of times a week or whenever the mood hit us, we wrote down something we are thankful for. Here's the list we compiled.

Sunny Days: Daddy Mama: Tate Wife: Daddy

Friends: Connor Tate: Connor Daddy: Tate

Love: Connor Family Movie Nights and Tickle Fights: Mommy

Dog: Connor Food: Tate Family: Connor

Toys: Tate Saint Rose School & Church: Mommy

Jesus: Daddy Health: Daddy Faith: Mommy

Forgiveness: Mommy Mr. Larry & Mrs. Peggy: Mommy

Home: Daddy Games: Connor

"I met you, Steph. My life wouldn't be great without you!": Daddy

Saint Michael because he defends us in battle: Connor

Time with my family: Daddy Life: Connor

the Godly friends we've made keeping us on track: Daddy

Love: Mommy Date Night In: Mommy

Sweet Babies: Daddy Everyone involved in the RCIA process: Daddy

God: Connor Presents: Connor Connor Singing: Tate

Our New Van: FAMILY Guidance: Mommy Skills and Talents: Daddy

Memories: Mommy Family Dinners Together: Mommy

The Eucharist: Mommy The Plan God has for Us: Mommy

Mrs. Carney: Connor Poppy: Connor Sports & Games: Daddy

Trust: Connor Gabe becoming Catholic: Mommy

God's Mercy: Daddy Good Wine: Mommy Motivation to get Fit: Mommy

Two days before Thanksgiving we attended a program at Connor's school. You can see the video here if you haven't yet. Connor did an outstanding job!

Our actual Thanksgiving was wonderful! Gabe's brother, Josh and his wife, Mana came to spend Thanksgiving with us! They were kind enough to watch the boys while Gabe and I ran the BoroDash Thanksgiving Day race! It was a 4mile race, and my first ever race! We had a great time, stayed together and enjoyed it! Gabe's been awesome in encouraging me with trying to run and get fit! Thanks Honey!

After the race we cooked, ate, and had a great time. Per tradition, Thanksgiving Night, we erected the Christmas Tree and decorated it while watching Polar Express! We are very blessed! Thank you Lord for blessing us so.

Connor

2010-11-03T09:13:00.000-05:00

A lot has been going on since Tate got his helmet off! Our family was sick that entire week. Connor had some sort of flu bug and Tate had Bronchitis. Tate was kind enough to share his germs with me which rendered me feeling crappy on Connor's birthday. I believe I lit the candles for his birthday cake with my head laying on the kitchen counter!

We were surprised when my Mom & Dan called on Connor's actual birthday to tell us they had flown to town to surprise us! We hadn't seen them in almost 3 years so it was a great surprise!

What's better than turning 6? Losing your first tooth the day after you turn 6! It popped right out, barely bled and the tooth fairy came that night! What a great weekend!

The Best Day

2010-10-15T07:55:00.000-05:00

It's quite possible that yesterday morning was one of the 5 best days in all our lives. We had Tate's appointment at Vanderbilt with his Dr. At the appointment we had 6 weeks prior we were warned that his forehead still wasn't where it needed to be and there was talk of both a second helmet and follow up appointments and a slight possibility that surgery could be in the future if the deformity wasn't completely resolved. We left that appointment feeling beat up and slightly discouraged.

Going in to see the Dr.

Waiting for the Doc

Yesterday morning we arrived at his appointment and were shocked beyond belief when the Dr said, "His forehead is PERFECT." We couldn't believe it. He then gave the best news, "The only helmet your son will need to wear is one he wears if he chooses to play sports!" You could have knocked us over with a leaf! It will still take up to 18 months for his face to completely follow suit but we have been told and were reminded yesterday that the eye sockets follow the forehead; the cheek follows the eyes; and the jaw will follow the cheeks. There is a slight deformity/flat spot on the back of his head but it will not affect the way that the skull forms, and it will be difficult to be noticed under all of his hair!

The hands of a genius!

Hats off to you Doc! Thank you for everything!

We have been through a lot of stress, heartache, worrying, praying over the course of the past 9 months since his condition was first noted, and the past 7.5 months since he got his helmet. We've cried and prayed on many occassions throughout the journey. Yesterday we only had prayers of thanksgiving and rejoicing and tears of pure joy! So many people helped us make this happen for our son. There was so much help and support and prayers and we couldn't have done it without all of you. Thank you for loving our boy (and us)!

No more helmet!

Fall Break Recap 1

2010-10-11T10:13:00.005-05:00

Connor was on Fall Break starting after school last week. On the last day of school (Tuesday) they did a Living Rosary and Connor was chosen to be a bead and prayer leader. It was amazing and beautiful and we were so proud! The kids piled in to the gym and all of the lights were off. The children who made up the beads of the rosary stood and after they prayed their bead a candle was lit and they sat down. It was absolutely stunning and a wonderful way to kick off Fall Break.

We headed North early Wednesday morning on our way to Indiana. My baby brother is in the middle of his Senior Year of Highschool. We've never seen him play in person and wanted to cheer him on! We decided this was the perfect (possibly only) opportunity.

We knew we'd need to make a few pitstops on the way to heelp break up the trip for the kids. The first stop was a HUGE surprise for Connor. Over the years we've made several trips past Dinosaur World and Connor has always wanted to stop and check it out. We have never had the chance to until Wednesday. We didn't tell him what we were doing or where we were going. He spotted the sign as we drove down the interstate. When we got off the exit he couldn't believe it. I thought he was going to die when we pulled in!

We had a blast going back in time and walking with the dinosaurs. It was a beautiful day, and great for the kids to get out and walk around. Plus Sadie was able to join us! To see all of the pictures you can go here!

Field Trip

2010-09-30T22:27:00.005-05:00

Connor had his first field trip this week. I've been looking forward to being able to chaperon field trips since I started staying at home with the kids. I always wanted to be the mom who got to go on all of the trips. Connor had no problem shattering that dream for me. Three weeks ago when the permission trip came home I excitedly asked if he wanted me to go with him. His response, "No, I'll just go by myself I think." Feeling completely deflated I probed, "But there will be other mommies and daddies there." His response, "Maybe Daddy can just go".

Daddy went. And they had a blast at the apple orchard. He got to ride on a school bus for the first time- a VERY BIG DEAL! Then they learned all about apples and apple cider and apple trees and apples! Connor's favorite part? "Just holding Alicia's hand the whole time."Yep. He has a girl friend. Apparently this girlfriend is quite the catch. The boys in Kindergarten are all completely fascinated with her! Tuesday, she chose Connor and he followed her around like she was a princess. While I find it hysterical and adorable, I almost ran in to the car in front of us in the pickup line when I saw the pair holding hands after school this week.

One More Candle and A Trip Around the Sun

2010-09-25T20:14:00.004-05:00

Monday marked my birthday, the big 2-7! It occurred to me quite often over the past few weeks and in the days since that I'm getting closer to 30 all the time. I used to think 30 seemed to be an age where you were old and responsible and settled. Little did I know that it's just another number. The more I really think about it, the more I realize that I've been responsible and "settled" for quite some time. When I look at my friends that are the same age that haven't had children or gotten married, I'm so thankful I'm not in their shoes! I love my life. I love my family, my boys, my husband... I'm so blessed!

Gabe had to work on my actual birthday (literally all day long) so we celebrated over the weekend. On Saturday we loaded up and headed to the zoo! We had a spectacular time and enjoyed a picture perfect day! I love how birthdays remind you of all of your blessings and of all of the people who love you and that you love as well!Thanks again to everyone for showering me with love on my birthday! The phone calls, Facebook posts, and birthday cards were all so kind and such a wonderful reminder of how blessed I am! Thank you all for making me feel so loved!

September

2010-09-12T21:02:00.006-05:00

We're 12 days in to September. Two football weekends down. Too few to go. (Why can't football season last as long as baseball season?) We've had an interesting couple of weeks. Connor is still doing amazingly well at school! His weekly folder came home with the words "AWESOME" next to it! WOOOHOOO! He still loves to play and be silly with his brother but he also has such a great love for life in general!Tate is running now. He doesn't walk, he runs. He wants to be moving constantly which keeps us on our toes. It also makes things like grocery shopping, waiting for Connor in the car line, sitting in church, eating dinner, etc. VERY interesting! The boy wants to M-O-V-E! He continues to delight us through all his antics.We left his appointment last week (Sept 1) with Dr. Kelly feeling sad. We're at the 6 month mark. Tate's had his helmet on for the 6 months they told us he'd need it. The bad news is, we're still not where we need to be with his skull, and time is running out. The older he gets the less flexible his skull gets and the more fused his skull sutures get. The other downside is that he's nearly outgrown his helmet. We normally return to Dr. Kelly every 4-5 weeks. This time Dr. Kelly told us to come back in 6 weeks. We're praying that Tate's head has improved, because if it hasn't we may need to get a new, 2nd helmet. Which may or may not correct everything the way it needs to be. As I couldn't hold my few tears in and Gabe was also upset and emotional, Tate just smiled and played and laughed. He wasn't quiet, but he didn't have any total meltdowns while we waited for his appointment (which was running over 2 hours behind)! Below is a picture of him RUNNING to Dr. Kelly's office!He's just so stinkin' cute..... and rotten.

Connor

2010-09-03T16:36:00.005-05:00

Here we are three weeks in to the school year and Connor LOVES Kindergarten. He LOVES it. We're so proud of him! He's had two days where he ended up in timeout (one trip to timeout each day), other than that, he's been AWESOME!

We struggled with making the decision regarding where to send him to school, and ultimately decided that we would make what sacrifices we need to make in order to send him to Catholic school. We live our faith and want our children to be surrounded by it while they are away from home as much as they possibly can be. The daily conversations we have with Connor after school only reaffirm that our decision was the correct one.

Every Friday the children attend mass. The first Friday of each month is "First Friday" where they have Eucharistic Adoration and each class takes time in to sit and keep Christ "company". When we picked Connor up from school on Friday it was an awesome ride home. We asked him what his favorite part of the day was and he said, "Going to mass." Then he said, "We went to church 3 times today. Once for church. Once to sit and talk to Jesus and keep him company and pray. Then one more time to go to the Benediction and Father put Jesus' body back in the.... what's the word... oh yeah, the tabernacle." Gabe and I both got teary eyed! How proud our boy makes us!The entire school environment is one of such positivity and love. The school principal Sister Marie Hannah already knows Connor because he quickly remembered her name. She also makes a point to ask about Tate every time we're there, and offered us prayers and encouragement both before Tate's last visit to the doctor and afterwards when we were feeling slightly discouraged. Where else could you ever experience such a thing in a school system? We are very blessed that we were able to make this happen for him. I hope and pray we are able to send all of our children, however many there may be, through Catholic school!

Honesty.

2010-08-21T11:45:00.002-05:00

This is an honest picture of my kitchen at 8 p.m last night.

This is an honest picture of my bed/bedroom at the same time last night.

This is honestly what my house looks like. And to think, I'd actually been cleaning much of the day.

Have you ever noticed when you fill out an application for something, be it a library card or a mail in rebate form or papers from your child's school there's a spot that says "Employment Status" or "Current Employer" or "Job Title" or something along those lines? Sometimes there's boxes to check:
[] employed full time []employed part time []currently unemployed []homemaker

Or there's that infamous blank line where you're supposed to write something regal like: Chief Examiner of Snotty noses. Oh. I'm not supposed to write that? Crap. Sorry, Nielsen Surveys.

It occurred to me yesterday what my sister has been saying all along: Every day is Groundhog's Day. Yep. I'm talking about that movie. Yep. The one where he wakes up and it's the same day over and over:

Wake up. Chart. Brush teeth. Brush hair. Throw something that resembles an outfit together. Kids up. Diaper changed. Shower started for kid #1. Shower timer started. Milk poured. Breakfast made. Kids eat. I grab left overs. Pour coffee. MUST HAVE COFFEE. Remind big kid to put on clothing. Specific clothing usually. Clean helmet. Clean up breakfast. (ok, maybe that is put on hold) Load in the car. Drive to school. Pray the day goes well. Drive home. Or Drive to Run Errands. Come Home. Unload. Change Diaper. Child down for nap. Realistically get breakfast cleaned up. Laundry. Dishes. Wipe something: nose, butt or counter or all of the above. Usually all of the above. Child up from nap. Change Diaper. Lunch. Clean helmet. Play with kid. More Laundry. More Dishes. Kid tired, time for nap. CRAP. Kid #1 has to get picked up in a bout an hour. Nap delayed. Workout with tired, clingy, kid climbing on you while Jillian Michaels beats you in to submission. 3 MINUTE SHOWER. (Yes, I have mastered it TR! And yes, I do shave my legs in the 3 minutes.) Get Dressed. Drive to school. Pray the Rosary on the way. Pick up Kid. Pray the day went well. Drive home. Try to get kid #2 in to crib without waking him up. Fail at trying to get kid #2 in to crib without waking him up. Change Diaper. More Laundry. Cook Dinner. Homework. Eat Dinner. More Dishes. Play with kids 1&2. Kid #2 in bath. Change Diaper. Clean helmet. Kid #2 in bed. Play with kid #1. Kid #1 in bed. Clean up dinner. Put away laundry. Make lunch for Kid #1 for tomorrow. Clean up making lunch mess. Try to figure out what the hell I did all day.

Honestly, do I check facebook during the day? Yes. Having only met a few people in this town, FB and email is the way I stay in touch and on the go with my friends and family. Do I have the tv on throughout the day? Yes. I enjoy the background noise and usually have it on while folding or cleaning. Do I actually sit still on my tuckus and watch it? No. Do I sit and eat BonBons? No. But occasionally I get scraps of leftover lunch from one of the kids and a lukewarm cup of coffee. Do I cherish going to the bathroom after the hour of 10 p.m? Yes, it's likely the first and only time I've gone pee without an audience of some sort. Do I wish I could make phone calls after 11p.m? Yes. It's likely the only time I will be on the phone and won't interrupt the conversation by saying "NO." "Wait until I'm off the phone". "Just wait one minute." "Please stop being so loud." "Stop following me".

On Sunday we were at mass for the Solemnity of the Assumption of of the Blessed Virgin Mary. As we read Lk 1:39-56 and I wrestled with Tate trying to get him to sit quietly, and reminded Connor ~~for the 30th time~~ to pay attention, I sat thinking, "Did the blessed mother ever have to wrangle her children during her time of prayer or worship all while under the watchful eyes of those around her?" Then, "Did the blessed mother ever lose her patience after cleaning a room, exiting to clean the next only to discover while cleaning the second room the first one was completely destroyed again?" Then, ""Did the blessed mother ever feel like she was the last bit of peanut butter in the jar?" You know, you need to make 2 sandwiches and have enough PB for one, so you spread it on both sandwiches spreading and stretching it much further and thinner than it was ever intended to go...

I've realized how much I've changed in the 6 years since we found out we were expecting Connor. I've always been highly competitive. I've always been overly ambitious. I was at one point in time classified as an intelligent, successful person. Nowadays I measure my accomplishments by things like getting the yard mowed while still tending to two children. I measure my failures by the times I've lost my temper. Lost my patience. Lost my mind. Did I get the clothes ironed today? Totally missed getting the trash down to the street for pickup. Yep, I didn't make a hot breakfast for the family this week. Didn't I just freaking wash these clothes? There went my coffee on the floor that I've been meaning to mop for 3 days and haven't, guess I will now. Or, "sweet, we made it to school 5 minutes before the bell rang."

Truth be told I've given quite everything I was and am to my children and husband. I'm not really complaining, I'm just being honest. I love my life, but struggle with the fact that for myself, and most mothers, it's not really "my" life. It's me giving to my kids, my husband, my family, my church. I love it. I love the hugs and kisses. I love the memories, the photos, the experiences. I love the laughter. I love the meals around the table ~~when everyone eats without being threatened with no dessert.~~

I try to look at paying bills and running errands as a blessing that we have the financial means of getting and paying for the things we need/want. I try to look at the grass/dirt/mud/lunch stains on the clothes as one of my boys experiencing something fun or delicious or adventurous. I try to look at the sink full of dirty dishes and the counter full of clean ones as a sign we've had food to eat. But I've often failed to try to do things for "me".

I rarely just do something because I want to. I buy clothes usually when I absolutely need them. I don't often make trips to the store to pick up a new shirt just because I felt like it. I've rarely ever gone out with girlfriends for a girl's night out because I feel guilty that I'm supposed to be at home with the family.

There's many things I've wanted to do, but have never made the time for because I've been giving my time to my kids and husband. Until now. Nothing stings quite like your 5 year old saying, "Daddy works and you're just a mommy right?" Yep. Just a freakin' mommy!

Now before anyone thinks I don't acknowledge or appreciate what my husband does for our family. I am well aware of all of this. I know how hard he works and how much he gives to us. After all, I'm home with the kids taking care of all of the things we have while he's working hard to make sure we have them. The difference is that the world heralds the working man and over looks the woman behind him.

I'm being honest here. ~~While we all know that I've got the "mother of the year" award in the bag,~~ (even I can't say that straight faced), I am a good wife. I'm a good mother. I'm not perfect. I'm not a perfect wife. I'm not a perfect mother. I was listening to a song that said "You've got to love yourself if you can ever love me." I have decided that if I don't take time to take care of myself, to make time for myself, to do things for me in my life that I'm never going to be more than a "good" wife and mother.

In the past month or two I've started working out. Working out regularly. In my house in recent days/weeks I can honestly tell you that I've said the following: "This is MY 30 minutes to work out. Talk to me before. Talk to me after. Do not talk to me during. I will not pay attention to you." Yep. I'm being harsh.

I've also gone and gotten a pedicure. Connor was in school. Gabe walked around Best Buy with Tate. People raved at the pedicure place about how nice it was for my husband to watch our son so I could treat myself. Silly me. I thought they were his kids? No one raves that I've watched them for the past nearly 6 years. I appreciate him working so I could pay for my $25 and 45 minutes of pampering. I thank him for that. It escaped my mind to thank him for spending time with his son!

Thanks to the encouragement of friends and my older sister Christi, I've decided to start training to run the Country Music Half Marathon. To sweeten the goal, my sister is going to run it with me! I'm going to show my kids that I may be just a mommy, but I'm just a mommy who set a goal and is going to achieve it. I'm going to take time away from washing, drying, folding, ironing. I'm going to have my husband cook dinner occasionally. I'm going to fork over a decent amount of money for good running shoes. And, I'm going to allow my house to look the way it did at 8p.m. last night a little more. Even if it means that I'm up until 1:30 a.m. cleaning up what I've put off throughout the day.

Toddlin' Tate

2010-08-17T21:45:00.000-05:00

Hard to believe he's only been walking for a week, isn't it?

Milestones

2010-08-16T11:43:00.000-05:00

Well, we did it. We survived it. He thrived. I cried. (Only a couple of tears). Gabe got misty the night before. All in all it was great! Wednesday night Connor picked out which of his various uniform shirts he wanted to wear, and we laid his clothes out for the next morning. While he slept we got the house decorated with signs Congratulating and Encouraging him. We woke up early on Thursday and I made Sopapilla Cheesecake for breakfast. After a delicious meal and several pictures we made our way to school.

We got there, met his teacher, unpacked his backpack and let him get comfortable, then we came back home! It was a half "drop in" day for the Kindergartners. Friday was the real deal, including mass!

As we sat through mass listening first to the new principal, Sister Marie Hannah, discussing this year's theme, “…Behold, I make all things, new." Revelation 21:3 and later during the homily when Father Mark assigned the kids their homework for the year: "PRAY. PRAY DAILY." I knew we had made the right decision in sending him to St. Rose. The anxiety, emotion, "leaving the nest" heartache I was feeling left me, and I felt completely at peace. What a special gift, to have a loving, nurturing, spiritual environment to shape Connor throughout his school years! We are BLESSED! He is BLESSED! After school he had a huge smile and talked almost an hour non-stop about how much he loved school and all that they did! Have I mentioned that we're SO proud of him?!

Not to be outdone with milestones and firsts, Tate followed right along suit. It wasn't emotional enough to send our oldest out to school, our youngest had to show off skills while his brother was away! Enjoy the laughs (and tears) we shed throughout the last week!

Faith

2010-08-08T21:18:00.000-05:00

"Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen." Hebrews 11:1

This began the second reading at mass today. I felt like it was a reading meant just for me. Just for my ears and heart. Just when I needed it most. God's kind of funny that way, I guess.

Truth be told I've felt my faith be tested many times over the past months and years. Before Gabe and I made the decision to try for another baby, I was so overwhelmed and full of anxiety. I had great friends supporting us and encouraging me, reassuring me as my pregnant belly grew, and even through labor while Tate gave us more than one scare. Those same friends and family members have supported us through the journey with Tate's health. While we waited impatiently and scared for his CT scan and results hey all reminded us to have FAITH, to keep FAITH.

Over the years with Connor we've felt our patience, our tolerance, and hearts and faith all be tested. We've struggled to make the right decisions regarding things ranging from which doctors to choose to what extra curriculars to allow him to participate in to what he can watch on television to where he should go to school. We've struggled with bedtimes, nutrition, discipline, potty training, helping him adjust to missing friends and family. Time and time again we're reminded to have FAITH that the decision we make is the right one, the one God is leading us to.

Now here we are, having our FAITH put to the test and God reminds us "Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen." I was looking at my beautiful little Tater Tot this morning before mass. Holding him, trying to keep him quiet (he's cutting his four "canine" teeth- NOT fun), and as I was looking at his sweet face I sat thinking, "I cannot wait for the day we walk in these doors with Tate not wearing his helmet." I saw myself beaming with pride as we would make our way to our seats in the second row. I saw the people around us smiling and sharing their joy with us. All of us celebrating Tate's total healing.

It was a magical moment, as yesterday I shed tears when I saw Tate crying when his helmet was off being cleaned. With his emotions running wild and tears falling you are able to see where his forehead is still deformed. It was heart wrenching. I asked Gabe, "What if even after all of this time with the helmet on. his face still ends up being deformed and causing problems with his eyes and everything." Gabe's response was, "We have to have FAITH that God is in control and that he's leading the doctors and that he's going to be okay." This morning God revealed his presence in the matter. He made me realize that He is present in that which I am hoping for, even though I have no proof that it will happen.

Likewise, we're preparing for Connor's first day of school. REAL school. ALL DAY LONG SCHOOL. He'll be in kindergarten. He'll be gone from 7:45-3:10 every day! He's growing up. We struggled with the decision of where to send him for school, how to pay for his school, the thought of homeschooling, the pros and cons and everything involved. We kept being told, and kept telling one another we had to have FAITH that we were making the right decision.

Now, here we are, T-3.5 days and while I'm a bundle of nerves and emotion (and so is Gabe) Connor is cool as a cucumber! I've never seen someone so excited for the first day of school. He's bouncing off the walls with enthusiasm. He got a postcard from his teacher in the mail and was jumping up and down as he read the entire postcard by himself. He's ready. He's showing us everyday how ready he is. He's evidence that having faith makes that which we hope for reality! What a profound gift!

During My Workout

2010-07-28T18:59:00.000-05:00

I've been doing the 30 Day ~~Death~~ Shred for the past few weeks. Admittedly, I've not worked out every single day, partially because we've been quite busy of late. But I've done about 14 days or so of workouts. Everyday I swear to myself that Jillian is an evil vile ~~human~~ being. Over heard during today's workout:

Connor: "Mommy, do you feel like you're going to die?"

Me: "Yes."

Connor: "Good Job Mommy."

life for the past month

2010-07-27T12:35:00.000-05:00

Life for the past month has been busy! Enjoy pictures!

Happy First Birthday Tate

2010-07-01T07:49:00.000-05:00

I can hardly believe that last Friday Tate turned ONE! He's a one year old now! We had planned on taking our little monkey man to the zoo to celebrate his birthday, but since mother nature was attempting to kill us all with 90+ degree days, we decided to stay at the house and just spend some time with our dear friends from Clarksville! We had a wonderful day and it was SO GREAT to spend the day with our friends that we love so much (and that love our kids so much).

Hugs and kisses from his Godmother!

To see all of the pictures you can go here.

Mommy Fail

2010-06-21T16:08:00.000-05:00

I started the morning out feeling fairly well about things. Gabe had to be at work at 6, I was up at 5:30. The coffee pot was programmed and brewing when I opened my eyes. The boys slept semi-late. (Tate until 6:30; Connor until 7:15). Connor has Vacation Bible School this week at St. Rose so he'll be kept busy all week long, and I get some one and one on one time with Tate!

While driving to VBS Connor said from the backseat "I hope I make friends at VBS. I don't have any friends in Murfreesboro. I wish we didn't move."

As tears ran down my face beneath my sunglasses all I could say was, "I'm sorry honey. I know you miss your friends. I miss my friends too." It just made everything inside me hurt.

I dropped him off feeling certain he would have fun and meet friends and enjoy the day. Connor has always been the quick to adjust kind. His first day of preschool, after having only had a babysitter 6 or 7 times (at age 3) he said, "Mommy, you can go now" as I choked back tears. I knew when I returned today he would be beaming ear to ear like he was is first day of preschool. I knew he'd be crying because it was time to go home.

When he saw me at pickup, however, he had tears, they just weren't tears of not wanting to go home. He was just sad. He walked up and tears just streamed down his cheeks. He said he was sad he didn't get to go on the playground. Mommy instincts are telling me it's more than that. When everyone sang and danced to the new songs they learned, Connor stood in one place. Not smiling. Not moving. Not saying the words. He didn't say the bible verse. He just stood looking so sad. Certainly this isn't just over a playground! He didn't even smile when I asked if he wanted to have a happy meal for lunch!

I'm so sad and full of guilt. How is he THIS sad, and I haven't seen it? He's been doing things that are uncharacteristic of him, but we just assumed he was testing his boundaries. I've never seen a child full of such sadness. His tears haven't been in fits or tantrums, just slow rolling tears down his face. I'm hoping when school starts he'll make friends. (I'm hoping when school starts that I'll make friends). I know that this job and promotion were good things for our family in the long run, but right now I just feel like we've failed our son. He misses his friends. He misses his family. And I miss my happy, carefree boy.

Slip Slidin' Away

2010-06-13T20:04:00.000-05:00

It has gotten extremely HOT lately. The weather is hot, humid and WHEW. While I love that it's warm out, poor Tate is on the verge of melting wen we step outside (and let's face it- I'm right there with him). We've been trying to have as much fun as possible while staying as cool as possible in the midst of it all.

We found out about a place called the "splash pad" that offers a FREE fun place for the kids to run around and get wet! It's really cool and I'm admittedly jealous that they didn't have anything like it when I was a kid.
Please note, rear end in polkadot bikini, does NOT belong to me : )

On Tuesday we took the boys to the pool and Connor was back to swimming like a fish in no time! Tate loved the water too! I think he REALLY loved being able to take his helmet off and splash around.

Today it was another scorcher so I put out the slip 'n' slide for the first time. Tate wasn't slipping or sliding but he was having fun! Connor was slipping AND sliding and also having fun! Tate was worn out and has been sleeping for 30 minutes. Connor insists he's not tired, but I've caught him yawning about 5 times!

Tate "NO".

2010-06-07T10:51:00.000-05:00

I think we're in trouble.

STOP. PRAY.

2010-05-28T09:54:00.003-05:00

STOP everything you're doing and PRAY. NOW. PRAY. This is not a suggestion. What are you praying for? I'll tell you what I'm waiting for: A miracle.

I want to tell you about an amazing little boy who is part of an amazing family.

Jacob is a 4 year old little boy who was diagnosed a couple of years ago with pulmonary hypertension. To put it in basic terms, the blood pressure in his lungs is way too high. He wears a backpack 24 hours a day that acts as a continuous pump of medicine, etc to his heart. In short, it keeps him alive.

Every 10-12 months Jacob goes in for a heart catheterization. This is done for diagnostic purposes to let the doctors know how things are going internally with Jacob. In the past he's had issues with the anesthesia, this combined with being a heart/lung patient makes things more complicated.

On Monday he went in for a heart cath and there were complications afterwards. The doctors could not get the cath site to stop bleeding. Four year old Jacob has been on life support since. He's undergone blood transfusions, and while there was a short time where things were looking up, things have taken a turn for the worse.

His body is retaining fluid and causing swelling. They've begun a mini dialysis on him as well as implanting a port to act as a drain. They cannot get his body to stop retaining fluids, nor can his blood clot and stop bleeding. He's being given a constant flow of blood products to get things under control as he's losing body fluids through nearly every opening.

He's continues to remain on life support still and things are not looking good. The one positive sign is that he is squeezing his mother's finger when she talks to him and showing some signs of response when the doctors agitate him.

As I said, he's from an amazing family. Dana & AJ waited a LONG time before they were FINALLY blessed with the birth of their first child, Jacob. Jacob also has a brother that is roughly a year younger than him, his name is Sammy. AJ is in the Army, stationed at Ft. Campbell. He came home last weekend on R&R from his deployment. It is a miracle in itself that he is home right now, as he's missed several procedures in the past due to deployments. Dana is a strong Christian woman, full of amazing faith and heart. She's inspiring and beautiful inside and out. She's a kind friend and knowing their family is a privilege.

PRAY HARD for a miracle for this baby. He IS a baby, only four years old and fighting for his life. Stop what you're doing. Stop and pray. Pray for a complete and miraculous healing.

2010-05-24T00:55:00.000-05:00

It's nearly 1a.m and I'm listening to the quiet of my house. Well, maybe that's not entirely true. I mean, the tv is on keeping me company. As is Tate's baby monitor, quietly humming it's static sound. Then there's my snoring husband next to me.... but, as far as this house goes, this is quiet.

I'm thinking about my boys and my life and how it has all changed so much over the years. The past few months have been difficult, and it's possible that more difficulties are in our midst, but the truth is, I'm very blessed. I have so much love for my boys. I thank God for them, I thank God for trusting me with them. I pray I am worthy of receiving the blessing that they are. Here's some pictures of life with the boys recently, from Tate's first spaghetti to playing miniature golf to Tate standing to Lowe's Build & Grow clinic to our trip to Adventure Science Center.

Connor

2010-05-22T16:14:00.005-05:00

Connor is FINALLY back in to the swing of things with soccer. Today we had our first game in a month. His game on 4/24 was stormed out with severe weather. Then, on 5/1 the flood hit and the entire soccer complex was under about 7ft of water. Until this point there were no fields that were playable. Now, only one of the fields is currently playable so we played at a different location today. Gabe had to miss the game due to this little thing he calls his "job" so I videoed what I could while dealing with a very unhappy and not feeling well Tater. Enjoy! (ps- sorry if this makes you motion sick!)

Sorry the quality isn't better on the video. I'm trying to change it for you.

2010-05-12T21:29:00.003-05:00

I'm sorry for the lack of blogging. I've been under the weather with some sort of perma-cold that just won't go away completely! We've had a bunch of interesting things going on here and I'll do my best to catch everyone up on things in our life in the next few days. But since the last video was such a hit, here's two different videos of Tate. Tate who is now a puller upper! Just see for yourself!

Part 1

Part 2

Talkative Tater

2010-04-28T01:06:00.000-05:00

Tate has started to jabber.... a lot. He gave me an earful during bath time tonight. (Turn up your speakers)!

Zooper Day

2010-04-15T23:53:00.000-05:00

On Wednesday we headed down to Vandy to visit with the CFS regarding Tate's plagiocephally. The appointment went extremely well and the doctor noted that he is definitely showing improvement with his helmet! We were sent to the orthotist for adjustments and tweaking and sent on our merry way!

We enjoyed a picnic lunch of peanut butter & jelly sandwiches and some other yummies while we drove to one of Nashville's hidden treasures: Las Paletas! We stopped and had 3 of the most delicious popsicles ever made! Connor got a creamy chocolate chocolate chip. Gabe got adventurous and had a pineapple chili popsicle, (His quote of the day: "I've never eaten something frozen that made my mouth and tongue burn from heat!") and ~~Tate~~ I got a canteloupe popsicle! Tate had no problem helping himself, and I believe he ate more of the popsicle than I did!

Sweet Canteloupe Face!

After the popsicles we headed to the zoo, where we are now members! We had a blast as a family and it was one of the best days I can remember having. Both boys were well behaved and I know we were making all sorts of memories! Connor woke up this morning asking if we could go back today. I think it was a successful trip!

To view all of our pictures go here.

What A Wonderful Week

2010-04-14T21:33:00.000-05:00

Last week was a wonderful week of gorgeous weather and lots of fun! Last Tuesday Gabe had the day off and we spent the day just having fun as a family. There are a lot local attractions we haven't had a chance to try out yet because we've just been too busy to attempt until now!

Our first stop was a reconstructed Southern village meant to represent the way our city originally was. In a way it is an outdoor museum of Southern life "back in the day". We walked around and took pictures outside since the buildings are still closed from the winter.

After we left there we drove a few miles up the road to the Battle Field where we toured the site of a battle from the civil war. We ate a delicious picnic lunch then walked through the cotton field, looked at some old cannons and just had a blast!

This week was awesome, and this week shaped up to be even better...... but you'll have to stay tuned for that.

Super Soccer Saturday

2010-04-11T00:52:00.000-05:00

It's time for Soccer Saturdays again and today was the BEST SUPER SOCCER SATURDAY we've had! Connor is playing in a new league, in a new town, with a new coach and new team and he's a cool as a cucumber! He's one of the more "experienced" players on the team, and all of his hard work paid off today! He scored his very first goal! (And the only goal for his team!)

He was so excited and we couldn't be more proud of him!

Daddy & Tate Watching

He Shoots

He Scores!

Running through the tunnel after the game!

He is Risen!

2010-04-06T09:06:00.000-05:00

We had a WONDERFUL Holy Week as a family enjoying the beautiful weather, and the beautiful sacrifice made for all of us by Him on the cross. Gabe and I both completely agree that as much fun and joy comes with the secular celebrations regarding holidays, it is of the utmost importance that our children understand the "Reason for the Season". On St. Patrick's Day we read of St. Patrick from the Catholic Encyclopedia of Saints. At Easter we discuss the way we mourn and reflect on His Death on Good Friday. Then how we celebrate His rising, destroying death and giving us the gift of eternal life!

Saturday night we grilled steaks and ate a wonderful meal. Before eating we opened our Resurrection Eggs and read the accompanying readings. We colored Easter eggs before going to bed that night as well as making Easter Story cookies!(doing the accompanying Bible readings as well). We concluded the night with a fire in the fire pit!

On Sunday we got up and went to church filled with joy and hope and LIFE! After rejoicing for our Risen Lord we came home and the boys got their Easter Baskets! Connor hunted for Easter Eggs and Tate just enjoyed trying to eat the plastic eggs! After spending a wonderful afternoon as a family we concluded the day by making Resurrection Rolls and eating a wonderful meal.

To view all of our pictures you can go here.

Records

2010-04-03T13:25:00.000-05:00

I haven't had much of a chance to brag on my husband of late, but he's doing an awesome, RECORD SETTING job with the new restaurant! The first week they not only did the highest opening week sales on record for his company, they also set the highest one-week total sales on record!

Not to be out done, the following week they beat the first week's record by over $3,000! We're SO proud of him! Hope you can all get down to check it out soon!

SPRING!

2010-03-24T08:42:00.000-05:00

Yesterday provided us with gorgeous afternoon weather and blue, sunny skies. We spent the morning running a couple of errands an enjoying time as a family. We returned home and the three boys played outside while I got lunch together. Tate sat happily on a blanket watching as Gabe & Connor played and chased one another.

Gabe had to go in to work and close shortly after we finished lunch, but the weather was too nice to keep the boys inside all night, so after Tate's nap we headed back out! We walked down to the playground where the boys had it all to themselves. I reluctantly put Tate in the baby/toddler swing not sure how he would feel about it. You tell me? (If you look closely in the middle picture you can see his 2 teeth popping through!)

Connor loved helping to push him in the swing and REALLY wanted Tate to be able to go down the slide with him. After we finished playing we continued our walk and made our way home. Both boys loved being outside and so did I. Today the high is supposed to be 74 and I'm hoping for another day of fresh air and fun.

I'm Just Sayin'....

2010-03-17T22:41:00.001-05:00

Tate got his helmet on Friday and while the appointment itself was far better than anything we imagined or expected, this has been far from easy. Tate did wonderfully during the fitting, never crying or getting aggravated during the 3 hour appointment. (We did get a break half way through, but could you sit perfectly happy and still if someone putting a helmet on and taking it off of your head for 3 hours?) HE didn't seem phased in the least.

We came home after the appointment and Gabe went to work. Earlier that morning I had allowed myself a lengthy, hard cry while driving to the grocery store. Gabe and I held it together throughout the appointment on Friday but as we left Gabe said, "I could cry right now if I'd let myself". We were all doing fine until bedtime on Saturday night. Tate had to sleep in the helmet for the first time.

To say it didn't go well would be an understatement. After putting him in bed he cried for about 30 minutes. I got him up, fed him, tried to rock him and laid him back down. After another 20 minutes of crying he finally fell asleep. He slept soundly for about 2.5 hours. Then he woke up shortly after 10:30. After a diaper change, feeding and cuddles I laid him in bed, and he ~~cried~~ screamed for about 15 minutes, rolling and thrashing his head against his crib rails. It was horrible. I got him up and held him and sobbed with him for the next 3 hours. It was about 1:30 when he finally fell asleep. I called Gabe at work asking for reassurance about our treatment decision. It was heart breaking. Nothing prepares a parent for what I went through with him that night.

The last few days have been better, but he's still not sleeping well. Thankfully there's no tears, and screaming fits. Just lots of tossing and turning and waking up .

In all of this I've learned so much about people, and it's only been three days, so here's the low down on my thoughts:

*People are different, not any of us are made the same. Why do adults keep staring at my child? How on earth will their children ever behave any differently when they're not wise enough to turn away and stop staring as though our son is a freakshow? STOP STARING. I'm just sayin'.

*I realize that teenagers are the epitome of all things cool, classy, sophisticated and awesome. Knowing this I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised by the behavior of some ultra cool girls at church on Sunday. Except, I was, I was surprised to the point my eyes welled up with tears that flowed down my cheeks during communion. Since our family sits in the second pew, it is not easy to miss us. It was just the little boys with me on Sunday since Gabe didn't get home from work until 5:15a.m (with the time change) and we left the house at 7:55 a.m.. After I had received communion and as we were making our way to our pew, I watched in shock/horror/disbelief as one teen nudged another in line for communion and pointed in our direction. The shock/horror/disbelief morphed quickly in to heartache, sadness and anger as the pointing turned in to full our snickering and then laughing. The one was shaking trying to gather herself before receiving our Lord. As tears fell slowly from my eyes, I prayed for Him to help me through this. Do NOT LAUGH at my son. I am momma bear, hear me roar. Mess with my son, I kick your @$$. I'm just sayin'.

*I know my son is cute. Please don't stare at him and then say, "He's got the cutest eyes." I know he has great eyes. It doesn't take three minutes of staring, a couple of whispers to the person you're with, and getting caught by mama for you to notice he has great eyes. Or a great smile. Or is "just so cute". I know you mean well when you say how cute the helmet is, but it is not a fashion accessory, I had great HATS for accessories. HATS that will be too small for his head when this process is over. Forgive me for sayin' that I don't find the helmet cute.

*Gabe has told several people that I'm "having a hard time with it." The fact of the matter is that we're both having a hard time, but Gabe hasn't really been around to see it and deal with it as much as I have. Today was his first day off and home with us as we went through the day. It was the first time he had to clean the helmet. The first time he had to wrestle around and dodge from getting head butted by the plastic battering ram. Really, one of the first times he's had to put Tate to bed wearing the helmet. Imagine sleeping with a football helmet on your head. Imagine looking at your child wearing a football helmet as you lay your child down and thinking about how uncomfortable it would be. Is your heart breaking? I'm just saying that this is the way I feel at every nap time. At every bed time. Every time he wakes in the middle of the night. Every time I think about this happening multiple times a day for the next 6 months.

*I'm just saying I HATE THIS. I HATE ALL OF IT. I HATE not seeing Tate's hair and curl and stroking it throughout the day. I HATE not being able to cuddle with him and put his cheek next to mine. Or easily wipe his face after a meal. I HATE not being able to kiss the top of his head throughout the day. Or kiss him on the forehead at bedtime. I HATE feeling helpless. I HATE hearing him cry at night. I HATE laying him down in bed and not being able to make the sign of the cross on his forehead and instead having to do it on his nose. I HATE IT. I know it could have been worse. I know that we're blessed that he's as healthy as he is, but I'm just sayin' my heart hurts and is full of sadness. I'm just sayin' my husband is sad and full of worry and heartbreak too.

*We're being prayerful and know that He will get us through. We know we are being prayed for and over and we feel those of you lifting us up. I'm just saying that one day this will be done and our lives will go on, but for this moment in time our load feels heavy, just like our hearts. I wish we had the resilience that the boys do. Connor said to me on Sunday, "Mommy, I just love Tate's helmet, because he is cute and his head will get better." I know his head will get better. I know this is a bump in the road, and we're headed in the right direction, but I'm just sayin' this stinks.

To see all of the pictures from the helmet fitting go here.

Connorisms

2010-03-17T01:27:00.000-05:00

Connor says some of the strangest, funniest, sweetest and off the wall things. Here's a taste of what you could have possibly heard around our house lately:

*(After burping): That kind of sounded like a sound a pig makes. That's why I'll call it a Pig Burp.
(What the Heck?!)

*"Mommy you're the best mommy I ever had. Daddy you're the best Daddy I ever had." Connor, we're the only mommy & daddy you've ever had. "Yeah, you're still the best one though."

*"I think one day me and my wife will live somewhere like where we want to and not where you want me to. Like wherever I want". Well what if your wife doesn't want to live where you do? "Well, we will live where she wants, OF COURSE."

*Connor, why don't you play with Tate for a little bit? "I don't think I want to. He doesn't play right."

*Connor, do you want to say a prayer for baby Tate with Mommmy & Daddy before his appointment? "Um, we prayed for him last night." (In the tone of complete and utter annoyance).

In semi-related news, we found out really GREAT news about Connor on Friday. Not only was he accepted in to St. Rose school for Kindergarten next year, we were also COMPLETELY BLESSED with a letter informing us that we had received the Tuition Assistance we had requested to help aid us in the cost for tuition. The school and the curriculum they offer is truly amazing and knowing he will be attending this school and grow in his faith was the blessing of good news we've needed of late!

Dear Tate

2010-03-11T11:50:00.000-06:00

Dear Tate,

Tomorrow is the big day. The day we get your helmet. The day I'm dreading. The day my heart is breaking over. I've tried to live life for the past several weeks, and especially for the past 9 days, as though tomorrow isn't truly reality, more or less a terrible recurring dream. I've tried to avoid thinking of it, but who am I kidding? Every time I look at your sweet face those thoughts creep in to my brain and undeniable twinges of sadness, anxiety and guilt come over me.

I've told your Dad a couple of times that I think I would have been more prepared for this had it happened to Connor. Not that you're my favorite. Not that I wish that it had happened to Connor. Not because Connor is accident prone (however maybe we should invest in a helmet for him too). Maybe we would have been more prepared since Connor had a rough and shaky beginning. By age two months he had been hospitalized, released, and hospitalized again. He had undergone a spinal tap, poking prodding, IVs, etc. and all while Daddy was preparing to go to Iraq and Mommy was flying solo.

By your age, 8 months, he had been on medicines for his severe GERD. He had done Esophageal pH monitoring, an Upper GI Series, and an Upper Endoscopy. He was "healthy" but had spent a lot of time going to the doctor and specialists. Our extended family was being plagued with illnesses and health issues. By the time your big brother was your age I had become so accustomed to rolling with the punches I found myself prepared to receive less than perfect news every time we visited a doctor. You've only been to the doctor for required preventative care appointments- Weight/Height/Immunizations and we were out of there. I wasn't prepared to roll with the punches this time, and after that January visit, I felt like I was jumped in a back alley and sucker punched.

Yesterday you awoke from your nap with your first ever fever. Your temperature was 101.6 and after Tylenol and Motrin I finally got it down to 99.2, of course this was after you were awake from 10pm to 1:30a.m. This morning, you still have a fever. No other symptoms. Just a fever. I can't help but wonder if this is your way of telling me that you're feeling anxious, worried, scared, nervous, uneasy, upset. Maybe it is? I know I am feeling all of these things and more. Rest assured child, you are not alone.

I'm worried for the way that people may look at you. Will they stare? Will they comment? Will they ask inappropriate questions? Will I be able to restrain myself from harming them if they do? Will I have the words to tell them that there's nothing WRONG with you? Will I be able to keep from crying every time someone looks at you with sad eyes or eyes of pity or looks of "Thank God it isn't My Child"?

I've tried to bottle my feelings of overwhelming guilt about this. Mothers tend to internalize and become overwhelmed with guilt whenever anything happens to our children. In looking at photos, this condition (while far less obvious then) was present in you as a newborn. In discussing with Doctors, I'm learning more and more that while sleep positioning (and overall positioning in general) play a role in this, so does fetal development in the womb. When I spoke with the CFS I told him about my low lying placenta. I shared with him that you were head down, with your head cushioned upon my placenta in all 6 ultrasounds performed from weeks 17 up until your birth at 37 weeks. The way it almost seemed as though you were using it as a pillow. This could have begun the process of your plagiocephaly. I keep wondering what I could have done differently while you were inutero.

Then there's the days where you fell asleep in your car seat while I was running errands. I didn't rush to take you out of it. Or rush home so I could remove you. I finished what needed to get done and then I took you home. Was that to blame? Or when I had my gallbladder surgery- I wasn't able to hold you as much as I wanted to those first few days. Was that the culprit? Or maybe if you weren't such a steady sleeper that slept through the night at such a young age. Maybe we should have woken you up more to reposition you? Connor never liked his swing, you loved yours and would play in it constantly. Maybe I should have limited your time there? I DON'T KNOW. I'm struggling because I just don't know what I should have done differently. Maybe nothing, but I can't help but think that somewhere, someway, somehow I failed you.

I hope you know how much I love you and how overwhelmingly sad I am about this. I never for one second wanted or imagined anything in life being harder for you or your brother. I never imagined you having to go through something such as this. My heart is broken for the misconceptions people may have about you. Will they see you as I see you? As a healthy, special gift from God? Or will they just see you as a "special" child? I think a mother's love is the nearest thing to Godly love. We see our children as perfect, just as He overlooks the bad things we do and loves us and sees us in His eyes. I pray people will always see you through MY eyes.

"Mommy Troy" (your Godmother) wrote this as a prayer request while your loving Godfather was away. It stuck out to me that she said she didn't want to wish away the time, but wanted to try to make the most of it. That's what I'm struggling with. At this point in time, you're only 8 months old and to think that you'll be wearing your helmet for 6 months (3/4s of your life span!) feels so very heavy and daunting. I don't want to wish away the next 6 months of milestones and firsts and life, but 6 months is.... 6 months.

I cried knowing that last Sunday was the last Sunday for 6 months I will spend rubbing your hair as I try to coax you to sleep during mass. I've have found tears stinging my eyes when strangers comment on your cute little curl that wildly sticks up right now. After tomorrow afternoon no one will see your cute little curl for 6 months. I'll only see it for a few minutes, three times a day.

I've shed tears when I've thought about this summer. Knowing I can't take you to the pool to swim with your brother because your helmet can't get wet. I've cried thinking that in all of your first birthday pictures we'll be celebrating with you wearing your helmet. I thought of getting everyone helmets instead of party hats- maybe that will ease my sadness when the time comes. I'm just so sad for you and for this experience.

I know it could be worse. I know it could have been MUCH worse. I know that and feared that. I am thankful every second that it wasn't worse, but as I explained to someone: Telling someone that broke one of their arms, "It could have been worse. You could have broken both of them." Doesn't take away the stinkiness of having a broken bone in the first place. Knowing it could be worse doesn't make me hate it less. Doesn't make me more okay with it. Doesn't make my heart stop from breaking. Knowing it could have been worse makes me say extra prayers of thanks, but doesn't stop the thoughts or emotions that come about for better or worse.

My sweet son, I pray you feel the overwhelming love I have for you and the joy you have flooded my life with. I pray we get through these next six months unscathed and you come out with the cutest little Tater Head there is. I pray that we are making the right choice for you. I pray I have not let you down. I pray I can make you proud over the next six months, and the next 600 years. Most of all I just pray for you. I pray that I am worthy of the blessing and gift you are to me, your daddy and your brother.

I love you my sweet boy.

Love,
Mommy

Tate's Helmet Casting

2010-03-02T22:10:00.000-06:00

We had Tate's appointment for his helmet casting this afternoon. After getting online and seeing this, Gabe and I were both feeling heartbroken and full of anxiety. We arrived at the appointment and filled out all of the paperwork and got rolling. Kudos to Eric, the AMAZING orthotist, who made the experience a million times better than we ever imagined it would be. Tate didn't cry at all. He got ma and yelled for about 10 seconds when I had to hold his hands down and keep him from putting his beloved fingers in his mouth.

They will use the casting to create a mold which they will fill with another plaster to create a true to life "statue" of his head. Then they will use that to create the fit for his helmet.

We go back NEXT Friday, March 12 for the fitting of his helmet. Thank you again for all of the prayers, they have been a comfort for us. Thank you all for EVERYTHING. Knowing we're not alone makes this much easier to go through.

Lessons

2010-02-26T20:38:00.000-06:00

I've been busy teaching this week. No, I haven't gotten a "real" job. I'm not substituting somewhere (other than at home for Daddy) and we're not technically homeschooling. That being said, I've still been doing a lot of teaching this week!

Last Saturday and Sunday we were blessed with incredibly gorgeous weather in the lower 60's and the little boys and I took advantage of it! On Saturday we took a long walk through the neighborhood (a little over a mile long walk) with Tate in the wagon and Connor and I pushing. Connor played on the neighborhood playground for a bit before coming home too! Then we got on it and I started teaching him to ride his bike without training wheels!

In C'ville we had a long driveway that was unfortunately gravel. While our house sat on a cul-de-sac, it was all uphill and way too hard for Connor- or anyone- to learn how to ride. I decided this week that there was no time like the present and we got to work. He's still not turning well but he has learned how to fall far more gracefully!

On Wednesday I started working with Connor to teach him how to tie his shoes. I cannot believe how quickly he seemed to grasp it. He's gotten it down semi-well. I still have to help a little bit, but I think that given enough practice he'll have it "mastered" this week!

As for Tate, I've been doing sign language with him, like I did with Connor as a baby. I've been trying to teach him "more" and "milk" for now. He's surprised me by starting to say "mo, mo, mo, mo, mo" between bites of his snack. We all know he doesn't like to wait for his bites. And, just be aware that saying the words "All Done" or "All Gone" will ignite a high pitched scream of pain and extreme suffering from him. Silly boy.

The boys were in the bath the other night and I did have another teaching lesson with Tate. The child does not believe me when I tell him he can't attempt to stick his toes in his mouth while sitting in the bath tub. He ended up sticking his entire face in the water about 7 or 8 times. Then he'd look up completely surprised and shocked that his face had gotten wet. Then he'd smile. Apparently my teaching methods are failing there. When I was almost finished without his bath I snapped a few shots of his head. Several people have said they couldn't really see the deformation. With his wet head it is more prevalent. We go to have his helmet cast on Tuesday. Maybe someone can teach me how to hold it together then. Then again, maybe not.

Sigh...

2010-02-17T21:36:00.000-06:00

We are back from our appointment with the Crainio-Facial Surgeon. It was informative but not quite as positive as we had hoped. Walking in to the appointment I was overcome by my emotions. Looking around the waiting room in the office there was at least 3 or 4 infants wearing their helmets. It took everything in my power to not break down completely.

After meeting with the Dr he told us that he "strongly recommends" that we pursue Helmet Therapy to correct Tate's plagiocephaly. We were given a lot to think about over the course of our brief (15 minute) appointment. It was all a little completely overwhelming. We were told to take a few days to think it over, then we need to call and set up an appointment to get the helmet ordered.

As for the helmet, Tate will be required to wear it a minimum of 23 hours a day. It will need to be removed a couple of times throughout each day to clean both his head, as well as to clean the helmet itself. You can imagine how much perspiration, etc will accumulate under the helmet and on his head during this time. To actually cast the helmet will take 2-3 hours according to the staff at the Dr's office. Then they send the dimensions off and the helmet will arrive 7-14 days later. He will wear the helmet for approximately 6 months and we will need to visit the Dr's office every 4-5 weeks to have the helmet readjusted as his head grows and hopefully rounds out.

Right now we are waiting to hear if miraculously the helmet and treatment/adjustments will be covered by insurance. If it isn't, it isn't, and we move forward. The treatment is expensive, and half of the cost for the helmet is due before they make the cast of the helmet, the remaining cost for the helmet due when they do the first fitting. Ya know because money trees grow and replenish in a matter of 7-10 days, right!?!

Unfortunately, insurance companies often deem this as "cosmetic" and therefore, deny the pre-determination. What they fail to realize, however, is that it stretches beyond cosmetics. In Tate's situation currently the right side of his forehead and his right eye socket and cheek are recessed while his left cheek is slightly larger than the right and his forehead/eye socket projects further outward. Over time these *could* improve. They could also get worse- much worse- to the point where he could have substantial facial deformities. It would be difficult to get glasses to sit on his head correctly. Wearing hats would be difficult. Vision and jaw alignment issues could arise.....

After very prayerful consideration we've decided the best option for Tate and his future is to go through with the helmet therapy. Thank you for praying for our family. We kindly ask for continued prayers as we go through these next weeks and months. It's amazing how many people have been praying for us, and you prayer warriors are the reason we have gotten through. We are very thankful that Tate doesn't need surgery, but still very anxious and worried and overwhelmed. We will keep everyone posted.

Silly Boys

2010-02-16T17:37:00.000-06:00

Some picture of my boys being silly.

This is his reaction between bites of food.

Connor feeding Tate

My fingers are yummy aren't they mommy?

Snow Day

How Are You?

2010-02-16T16:43:00.001-06:00

I had a professor in college who gave an entire lecture regarding this question. Why do people ask it? Do they really care? Does the person calling trying to sell me cable service I already have really care how I am when they ask? People expect you to say "fine" or "good" and move on to whatever they have called or emailed or messaged about.

Usually when asked I say "We're fine." or "We're good" and go about the rest of whatever sort of conversation follows. For the most part, I suppose, we are "fine". I mean, when I look at the important things, we're relatively healthy, if you forget about the situation with Tate's head. We've got a house that is much larger than our previous house in a larger neighborhood. We've got plenty of food to eat and clothes to wear. We've got great shopping available, which has given me ample opportunity to score some really awesome deals.

Truth be told, however, when someone asks "How are you" or "How is it going?" I would love to say, "I don't love it here." I miss everything about "home". We've been here nearly two months and thus far we've not met anyone. I've tried repeatedly to invite Gabe's coworkers over to join us for dinner, or a get together or to watch the Super Bowl. (I've even showered, brushed my teeth and shaved my legs- I'm *that* desperate for some sort of interaction!) and not one time has anyone come close to accepting the offer. Gabe says not to take it personally, but how would YOU feel? Today after the 6th week in a row of extending the offer only to have it turned down I've decided not to offer any more. I mean, really, who needs friends?

Oh crap. I do. I NEED some sort of adult interaction. Some sort of bond with someone that I can discuss daily happenings with. Someone who can offer direction when I'm feeling lost. Someone who understands the stress of raising children. Someone to share a cup of coffee with. Or a bargain with. Or anything with. I'm not crazy enough to think that within 2 months of moving I'd meet my BFF, but to at least know the name of a next door neighbor would be nice. Right?

And my kids need friends. Connor hasn't had a playdate in weeks and weeks. Thankfully we've made two trips "home" where he was able to play with friends for a couple of hours, but he went from being in a great school that he adored and being surrounded by friends, play dates and excitement to being at home constantly with Tate and I as his only playmates. I mean Tate can chew on toys like it's nobody's business and I can play games and read and do crafts, but at some point I have to actually do other things around the house.

Today Connor was sleeping when Gabe left for work and last night Tate was sleeping when he got home. Thankfully today Gabe was able to feed Tate his apples and oatmeal this morning before leaving for work as he'll likely be in bed either before Gabe gets here or shortly after he gets home if I do everything I can to keep him awake.

There's always church right? Well, not so much. Not yet anyway. ~~We have~~ Tate won the hearts of some of the older parishoners that sit around us. And both the boys and Gabe & I have been complimented on the great behavior they display during mass. Things are not the same though. I miss that Deacon Dom would make an effort to give Connor a five or a handshake as he walked out in the recessional. I miss the ProLife community and the work we were doing there. I miss walking in to mass and seeing smiling faces around us. Faces that knew us and knew our children and our family.

Before anyone jumps on me or assumes that I'm anything but appreciative of this opportunity or the work my husband does, that is not the case. Right now, when you ask me how I'm doing, "I'm fine." Inside my heart is sad for my sweet son Connor who misses his friends and playmates and school. Sad for Tate who is missing Daddy and doesn't understand why he is only here for 30 minutes in the morning and 30 minutes at night, if at all. Sad for the friends we're missing and wishing we could be around more. Sad that I'm not able to enjoy this more. Sad that I don't know if others realize the sacrifice that families make so one member can chase their career or dreams. So, that's it. I'm fine. I will be fine and the boys (all three) will be fine. We may grow to love it here, but right now we're fine.

Update on Tate

2010-02-06T19:56:00.000-06:00

Thank you to all of you wonderful prayer warriors. I was preparing to write an email about our morning and let everyone know that we had gotten Tate's CT Scan done today. Everything at Vanderbilt went amazingly well and we couldn't have been more happy or impressed with the staff that took care of our boy. We were told when we left that it would take 24-48 hours to get the results to the pediatrician, and not to be surprised if we didn't hear anything until after the weekend was over. Imagine my surprise (and anxiety) when the phone rang at 2:15 on Thursday!!

The CT Scan results showed that Tate does not have Crainiosynostosis, which means he will NOT need to have surgery!!! The scans showed that none of the sutures in his skull have begun to close prematurely. The CT Scan also confirmed that he DOES have Plagiocephaly on the left side. We have an appointment on February 17th with a crainiofacial surgeon at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital. He will determine what treatment course we should take and whether or not Tate will need to wear a corrective helmet to reshape his skull. Currently the plagiocephaly is not putting any pressure on Tate's brain, which is also wonderful news.

Thank you so very much for all of the prayers, we have felt them surrounding our family and lifting us up. We ask you to continue storming heaven with prayers that Tate may be completely healed and for the continued guidance of Gabe and I while we make decisions regarding his future treatments and care. Thank you all! We love you and are so blessed to have each of you in our lives.

Tate

2010-02-04T10:58:00.004-06:00

Today was an emotional day at our house. We spent the morning at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital with our sweet baby Tate having a CT Scan done. Last week we were given some upsetting news when we visited our new pediatrician. The following is a copy of the email we sent out. At the time we had little information to go by and didn't want to alarm anyone or be bombarded with questions, because we didn't really have any answers. In all honesty, right now we don't have any more information or answers and we won't until we get the results back from the CT Scan.

At Tate's well check last week, after checking everything out, the doctor pointed out that Tate's head is somewhat flat on one side of the back of his head. When looking at him the doctor also showed me that his ears are asymmetrical- one of them sits slightly forward on the face in comparison to the other. I've joked about Tate's head shape and blamed my husband for it (as Gabe has one ugly shaped head- he'll even admit it!) The doctor, however, believed there may be more responsible for the shape of his head and referred us to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital for a CT Scan.

Right now, there are three possible causes for his abnormalities. They are as follows:

1. He's just got a funny shaped head. This is obviously our wish, but is not the most likely explanation.

2. Plagiocephaly: He has an odd shaped head that is caused by more of a positional or physiological cause. Since babies are supposed to be laid on their backs to sleep and spend much of the first months of their life laying down or in some sort of a swing or carseat type structure, the soft areas of their skull can flatten out over time. It can also be misshapen while in-utero. If the CT scan reveals that this is the cause of the abnormality, they will form a plastic helmet for his head that will reshape his skull over time. He would need to wear the helmet nonstop for 2-?????? months. It just depends how severe the deformity may be.He may grow out of it, but it will depend on the severity and whether or not the deformity is putting pressure on his brain, causing shifts to his facial features, eye sockets, jaws, etc.

3. Craniosynostosis: This is by far the most upsetting and scary cause. This means basically that the sutures of Tate's head have closed prematurely. Typically the skull of an infant is not fully formed and grown together until about age 2. (Think baby soft spot). If he has craniosynostosis it would mean that the bones in his skull that eventually grow together, had grown together too early causing his head to be malformed. Should this be the diagnosis, he will require surgery which would basically open the skull where it has grown together and they will use plates and screws to help reshape the skull and hold it in place so the brain can develop. The CT will be trying to rule this out. A diagnosis of this could mean developmental delays, seizures, blindness or mental retardation, but if it has been caught early enough the doctors would be able to reshape the skull and we may be able to avoid any damage to his brain.

Of all of the options we are praying for option number one or two for obvious reasons. Right now we are very emotional and I have certainly cried my share of tears today. We are playing the waiting game as of now. The waiting is agonizing and we're trying not to play the "what ifs". I'll share what the Dr told me today. If you're interested in more information, avoid "googling" it. Visit either: www.webmd.com www.mayoclinic.com or www.aap.org/ and type in the conditions. You'll find accurate information and it's as much information as Gabe and I have for now.
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We had the CT Scan today and everything went extremely well. They got him in very quickly, he was given an oral sedative- Pentobarbital- and after rocking him he was asleep in about 10 minutes. The actual CT Scan took less than 2 minutes and I was able to stay with him throughout the entire process. They stimulated him to wake him about 10 minutes after the scans were done. I was able to nurse him and we were discharged about 30 minutes after that. We arrived home at about 11 a.m. and we are back to waiting for the results. The results should be in to the pediatrician in about 24-48 hours. With the weekend just around the corner, unfortunately we may not hear anything until Monday.

We will keep everyone posted once we have results. Please pray for our sweet boy. As I said in the first email we sent out, we pray for God to hold him in the palm of His hand and heal him where he is broken. Pray that we will make the right decisions regarding his treatment. Pray that the Great Physician will guide the hands and minds of the earthly physicians taking care of Tate. We have FAITH that God will get us through this time. Now, enjoy some pictures of Tate from this morning.

Here you can see where his head is misshapen.

Little Builder

2010-02-04T05:40:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago we took Connor to Lowes for the Lowes Build & Grow Clinic This great event is held twice a month and is totally FREE! Connor got a great apron, a set of safety goggles, a wooden checker board to build and assemble, a certificate of completion, and an Iron on badge to add to his apron! Very Cool! We can't wait to go back and complete another project.

Firsts

2010-01-21T17:04:00.006-06:00

Since moving, there's been a lot of firsts for our family! Here's some of them:

Gabe's First Day at the New Store:

Tate's First Cereal:

Tate's First Oatmeal:
Tate's First Bananas:

Today we made Tate's First Peas! Connor and Tate both helped. Well Tate stayed in my arms and Connor helped puree everything down.

Since moving, there's been a lot of firsts for our family! Here's some of them:

Home Sweet Home

2010-01-18T22:44:00.007-06:00

Finally, we've got almost everything unpacked and we've stated to get pictures hung and making everything more "us". Last night after the boys got in bed, I finally got a few minutes to take some shots of the new house. Connor's room looks a bit like a disaster area, but since both he and Tate were sleeping when I took pictures of their rooms, I didn't worry too much about it!

God Bless Connor!

2010-01-09T20:55:00.006-06:00

Remember Connor's Baptism? Chances are, you probably don't. Why? Well, Connor's baptism had no fan fare as it was done when he was 8 weeks old, hospitalized with a terrible virus and a fever of over 103 Degrees. Gabe wasn't present for it and all in all while it is important and sacred, it's not the most joyful of memories.

At Tate's baptism, while talking with our wonderful friend Regina (aka: the other half of our favorite Deacon) I told her how Connor had only received the water baptism and not the full Rites and how Gabe was at Ft. Bragg preparing to deploy and wasn't there to witness it. Not much else was said about it and we celebrated Tate's baptism and had a wonderful afternoon/evening.

Later the next week at our ProLife committee meeting, Regina came to me and asked if we would be interested in having Connor receive the rest of the Baptismal Rites given to him. I was completely caught off guard and overcome with emotion knowing how much my boys were thought of by our church community. With the chaos that ensued over the whirlwind of time between Tate's baptism and Thanksgiving and Christmas and the move, I wasn't sure when we'd fit it in.

On Christmas Eve, I was completely humbled and again, overcome with emotion when Dom stopped us after mass and asked if we would be able to attend the 5:30 mass on Saturday. We were already planning on attending, but when Dom offered to perform the Baptismal Rites for Connor so Gabe could be there and so that he would preside over the ceremony before our move... there were no words. After mass on Saturday, December 26, "The A Family" blessed us once again. Not only did they take time away from their son and daughter in law who were visiting from out of town. Not only did they take time away from Regina's mother who lives with them, but they made time for our family and to be a part of such an amazing and special event in Connor's life.
We could not begin to thank them enough. We are so blessed, and we miss our Immaculate Conception family so much.

Christmas Recap

2010-01-05T11:45:00.001-06:00

I must admit that I struggled to really get in to the Christmas spirit this holiday season. Maybe it was because our house resembled a disaster area. Maybe it was the boxes upon boxes of Christmas decorations that remained unopened in the attic. Maybe it was that I was just so exhausted and stressed that I let that overwhelm my usual joy and excitement for the season. I'm sad that this season passed me by and that I wasn't able to throw myself in to it as much as I would have liked. That being said, we still had a wonderful holiday season with Christmas Eve and Christmas Day being spectacular.With the impending move we altered some of our typical plans, and created a multitude of memories. Usually on Christmas Eve we head to the Christmas Eve Family Mass. The past few years we have arrived about 50 minutes early in order to insure our getting our normal seats. This year was no different, it was merely enhanced when we were able to sit with our dear friends The R Family! The church looked amazing!
During Mass Father Theo invited all of the children to come up and see Baby Jesus lying in the manger. The entire church sang "If you're happy and you know it" and "Happy Birthday" to Jesus during the homily. He even reminded the kids that one of the best ways to make Jesus happy was to listen and obey their parents! (Something tells me more than a few parents dropped something extra in the offering when he said that!)After mass we spent the best evening we've had in a very long time hanging out with The R Family. We made a bunch of homemade pizzas, ate dinner, the kids all put on their Christmas PJs, the big boys and I baked homemade Chocolate Chip cookies for Santa and the adults all enjoyed great conversation and wine! We were blessed to have Father Charles join us midway through the evening. After his arrival we got out a birthday cake for Jesus and we all sang to celebrate! We left late that night with full bellies, hearts and souls. What a perfect Christmas Eve!After we got home we read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, left Reindeer Food out for the reindeer and tucked the boys in to bed. Then just like every year, Gabe and I brewed some coffee and watched "It's A Wonderful Life".

Christmas morning brought such a sight! We finally woke Connor up at nearly 9a.m. and when he stumbled out of bed he couldn't believe his eyes! Our boys were DEFINITELY blessed this Christmas. (As was our entire family). We spent the rest of the day as a family enjoying one another and playing some Bakugan with Connor. Then it was back to the grind, trying to finish up the packing.
To see more of our Christmas pictures, you can go here. (WARNING: It's a lot!)

Run, run as fast as you can...

2009-12-22T09:07:00.004-06:00

You can't catch us, we're the gingerbread fam! After Connor's incessant pleas to build a gingerbread house, I finally obliged. It wasn't that I didn't want to, but let's face it: we've got just a tad bit going on in our lives right now. In all, I'm really glad we did it. It was a lot of fun for all four of us, and it looks delicious!

Santa Claus

2009-12-20T21:15:00.004-06:00

After our house hunting adventure, we stopped at Opry Mills on the way home so I could make an exchange on something I had ordered, and since the boys were both SO extremely well behaved, we stopped and let the boys see Santa Claus. It was a special treat for Connor who had been waiting to talk to him and share what he was hoping to get. Not only did Connor get to share his heart's desires, he also was sure to tell Santa how great his little brother is and he asked Santa to bring him something good too! You can see our Santa picture Here.

Later in the week we wrote a letter to S.C. as dictated by Connor. Once again he was sure to ask Santa to bring Tate presents and toys to play with. Imagine Connor's surprise to get this personalized message from him! He wanted to watch the video over and over again with Tate. Watching the joy and magic that lit up his face was priceless. Even Tate wanted to join in the fun of watching it!Stay tuned for more of our Christmas adventures!

Christmas Time Is Here

2009-12-18T21:41:00.003-06:00

On Wednesday we attended Connor's Christmas Program at his preschool. He is always more than cooperative, and sings his heart out. This time was no different. The first thing he does is pan the audience to look for us, and without fail he always yells, "Hi Momma" whenever he locates us! (You'd think we were buried way in the back as opposed to the 2nd row!)

The 4 year old class sang Little Drummer Boy and each of the kids were able to play their own drums. It was completely and totally adorable and the kids had a great time. Daddy even left work for a couple of hours to attend. Connor was so excited!

It was hard walking out the doors of the Christian Preschool for the last time. His teacher of the past two years gave him a huge hug and bid us farewell. Mommy was admittedly sad. We've been very blessed in our experience there and it makes me so sad to think that after Christmas break he won't be attending school there any longer. It made me sadder to realize this was the first of many difficult goodbyes in the weeks to come.

Thanksgiving #2

2009-12-01T22:04:00.005-06:00

We hosted Thanksgiving this year for our wonderful family. Josh & Mana (Gabe's younger brother and wife) joined us bringing their dog Ava. Ben, Gabe's youngest brother also brought his girlfriend Nicole. We extended invitations to some of Gabe's co-workers, though they were unable to attend. We were, however, thrilled to have Auntie Tarrah join us. Tarrah is the sister of Tate's Godparents. She has been a wonderful help to her sister and brother in law while he was deployed an since his return. She's also helped us with Connor more than once. All in all we had a house full, and it was a perfect day.

We cooked a 25lb turkey, 8lbs of potatoes, a huge green bean casserole- courtesy the Remick family recipe, a huge broccoli cheese casserole, a big pot of noodles, dressing, turkey gravy, rolls and 3 pies! We polished off a large portion of the food, but I know I wasn't the only one excited about our leftovers!

As is tradition, we followed our Thanksgiving meal with a trip down to tour the lights at Christmas on the Cumberland. While the entire group may not view the lights as something as special as Gabe and I do, they obliged us with a stroll along the river anyway. We came home and put up the tree, although the actual decorating had to be put on hold due to Connor's crashing on the couch!It was a great time, and now we're all just trying to get prepared for Christmas and our move that will follow just 3 short days following Christmas. Wow! December should be crazy.

Thanksgiving #1

2009-12-01T21:52:00.002-06:00

Thanksgiving has come and went. I love the holiday. I love how it brings everyone together. I love how it is the ignition of the holiday season. I love how we all gather around to reflect on life's blessings.

Truth be told, I don't understand why we've been blessed as much as we have been. To some, I know our house is not much to look at, to us, it's our home. Our walls aren't covered in fancy tapestries, they are covered in photographs of memories we've made. We don't have all stainless appliances or a 10 range stove, we do have meals made of love daily. We've not got 15 bedrooms, rather 3 small bedrooms that house the beds we tuck our children into. We have a car we affectionately call Gimpy. Gimpy is 16 years old, and was my first car. She isn't much, but she gets us where we need to go when we need to go there.

I've got a laundry room with a mound of laundry that serves as a reminder of the clothing we've been blessed with. The messy kitchen means we have full bellies from the delicious meal we cooked and ate this evening. I paid the water bill yesterday because we've been blessed with indoor plumbing. We have two very healthy children. We have a marriage and relationship that I struggle to find words to describe.

We have so very much to be thankful for. What are you thankful for?

God Bless Tate

2009-11-10T07:46:00.006-06:00

Sunday marked the most important day of Tate's life thus far. After making the decision regarding who we wanted to be Tate's Godparents we eagerly anticipated his Godfather's return from a 15 month tour in Afghanistan. We spent those 15 months in constant prayer over the entire R family. We rejoiced when Kyle retuned safely home on September 24 and have been looking forward to the day we could baptize our child and welcome him as a member of the Catholic Church.

Finally, this Sunday we were able do just that. We were so very grateful when Deacon Dominick agreed to do Tate's baptism, even though it meant his rushing home from a Deacon Retreat to perform it after being away all weekend. Dom has a very special place in all of our hearts as he's baptized Troy and Kyle's daughter Zoe, his wife Regina has become very close to us as a member of the ProLife committee, and Connor thinks that he is the greatest thing since cartoons! To top it off Troy's sister, Tarrah, (or Auntie Tarrah as all the kids call her) joined us and was able to take pictures of it all.
It was an amazingly special day to us. We had hoped our families could have been present for this special day, but understandably they were not able to make the trek here. We capped off the afternoon with a wonderful cookout at the R house. Our boys all got to play and burn off energy. The adults got to relax somewhat and enjoy hanging out without having to worry about rushing somewhere. It was a perfect day.

Sunday night we joked that their family would be stuck with our family for life life. To be honest, I wouldn't want it any other way.

Halloween

2009-11-09T18:42:00.007-06:00

We had a wonderful Halloween weekend here last week. We carved pumpkins, roasted pumpkin seeds and had a wonderful time making memories.

For months Connor talked about wanting to be a clone trooper, only to decide the week of Halloween to be Iron Man instead. Tate was Darth Tater, I mean Vader. We went trunk or treating at Spring Creek, where I attend MOPS. Then on the drive home we hit up the houses on our street with their lights on before heading home to watch the Notre Dame game!

5 and 4 Months

2009-10-28T18:43:00.004-05:00

I give up on coming up with excuses for my lack of blogging. Most days I consider it a success if I'm able to get both boys dressed and fed! Things have been so wonderfully busy, and part of that has to do with Gabe being out of town "working" this week. ("Working" is in quotes you'll notice, but that's another post for another time!)

This weekend we had a BLAST! Saturday we celebrated one special 5 year old boy with his birthday party! The force was with us as we had a Star Wars themed celebration at a local arcade! The party was made complete with all of our friends and his friends in attendance. He's at such a wonderful point in life where most of his friends are still the children of our friends. The party was a hit for kids of all ages, and has inspired the adults to plan a parent's night out so we can enjoy the arcade ourselves! To cap the day off we had a second party to attend to celebrate another friend's third birthday! Sunday marked Tate's 4 month birthday. I am trying to wrap my head around the idea that he is a four month old. I'm not sure how it happened. Wasn't he only one week old yesterday? Despite my earnest pleas, he is growing up and changing right before my eyes. I am trying to soak it all in and appreciate each and every moment we have with him at this stage. Before I know it, we will be celebrating his fifth birthday. Thinking about that makes me so unbelievably sad.

I took the world's cutest Tater Tot to the doctor yesterday for his four month check up and shots. He was the best little boy. He weighed in at 14lbs 13oz and is 25 inches long. He's at the 49th & 52nd percentiles for height and weight respectively. Practically perfect in every way.

The Boro

2009-10-19T18:27:00.004-05:00

After hearing about our impending move we've been slow about going to check out the new area. While we're all thrilled for a great promotion and exciting adventure, it's also sad and scary to be saying goodbye to our life here in the 'ville.

Finally on Thursday we made the hour and a half long trip down to check it out and take it in. I have to admit, that I was very pleasantly surprised. We left here at 10 and had made it there by 11:30. Connor was very interested as to where we were, where we were going and when we'd be there. Tate was the PERFECT traveller and slept the entire trip down and back. When we arrive, this was what we found!Our first stop was the site for what will become the new O.C. While the building was locked for obvious reasons we got to peek into windows and look at the location. Currently the outside is semi-rough looking as the building site has been vacant for several months. About 90% of the foliage will be torn out and redone, and a patio will be added as well. (The star will also go.)

After leaving the building site we drove across the street to grab some coffee from Starbucks, then we were off and driving across town to check out more of the town. I had been in contact with the parish that will become our new church when we move and had spoken with a wonderful woman, the head of admissions at the school about possibly taking a tour. We were hopeful that we would like the school, but weren't sure if we would or not. We had talked about it and decided that if we didn't like it, we'd then have to put more focus on finding a house in the best school district.

We spent over an hour taking a tour of the school. We saw the kindergarten class rooms. The lunch room and cafeteria. The playground. The gym. The music room. The art room. The library. The science labs. The Spanish classroom. We saw the start of a class, and prayed with the students when they switched classes. We were informed that at the start of EVERY class the kids prayed. We visited on a day the school was having a pep-rally, so the kids weren't in their normal uniforms, and were all very excited. We were given a packet of information and registration forms.

We left and we both loved it. We L-O-V-E-D it. When we walked outside I asked Gabe what he didn't like about it, and he looked at me and firmly said, "Nothing." We're keeping out fingers crossed and saying lots of prayers that financially we can swing it. We've decided that it is by far the best thing we can do for the boys, and know that it will fall into place.

After grabbing a bite to eat, we drove around town some more and found some promising locations to look for houses. We will be contacting a couple of different people in the next week or so and to get some help in finding the best house for us.

All in all it was a wonderful afternoon and throughout the day Connor said 6 or 7 times, "I just love it here." What a wonderful phrase to hear from your child as you prepare to turn his world upside down!

Happy Birthday Connor!

2009-10-16T21:03:00.004-05:00

We are now the proud parents of a five year old! The time passed so very quickly, it doesn't seem as though it has been five years since we brought him into this world.

We've had a wonderful, amazing day celebrating with him today. He was quite disappointed last night when he heard that Daddy had to work today. We decided to take him to Daddy's work to get a bite to eat for lunch. When we arrived he had a huge bundle of balloons waiting on the table for him. After Connor and I ate lunch, Daddy surprised us and was able to get away an hour or two early and left with us! What a great treat!

We let Connor decide where to go to eat for dinner and his pick was Logan's. He ordered shrimp and a baked sweet potato! Such a good eater! They called him down to the middle of the restaurant to shout out his birthday with a Logan's "Yee Haw". He grinned ear to ear walking back to the table!

We came home for a Darth Vader birthday cake, some mint chip ice cream (his choice) and presents! It was a wonderful day! Happy Birthday to our sweet big boy. We hope you know how much we love you and just how special you are to us.

Updated Photos

2009-10-06T18:45:00.004-05:00

I'm sorry for the slow moving blog posts. I was under the misconception that when school started things would slow down for us- HA!

School is going well for Connor and so is soccer. He's staying busy and having fun. I find it difficult to comprehend that he'll be 5 years old next week!

Tate is growing so quickly these days! He's still smaller than Connor was at this age, but he's just as cute! We put him in his Bumbo seat for the first time yesterday and he loved it, and looks HUGE and grown up, but I SWEAR it's just the chair. My baby is certainly not growing this fast!

Bittersweet....

2009-09-25T09:47:00.002-05:00

And we ain't talkin' chocolate. We've recently been given some very exciting news, that of course comes with some bittersweet feelings. We can finally share with friends and family that Gabe will be the new General Manager and will be opening a brand spankin' new store in Murfreesboro!

This is something that has been in the works since Tate was a few days old. We didn't find out the final answer until just recently.

The current plan is for Gabe to be pulled out of the C'ville store in December. At that point we'll be packing up the family and making the move to the Boro. While we are thrilled for this opportunity, we need prayers for our family and the decisions to be made regarding housing, schools, etc.

After 3+ years here we've developed a family and such a strong, loving and wonderful support system. It will be very hard on all of us to say Goodbye to our life here. Please pray for our family as we go through these changes. I know we'll be fine, but prayers are what will carry us through.

Thanks to all of you! We love you!

Saturdays in the Fall

2009-09-19T17:42:00.001-05:00

Hot cup of coffee, College Game Day on ESPN, Soccer and Football... oh how we love Saturdays in the Fall! We have a definite routine around here on Saturday mornings and I'm thrilled that today Daddy was around to enjoy in the routine of it all!

Today was Connor's first soccer game of the season. Of the 10 kids on his team only Connor and one other kid have played soccer before, so it wasn't neccessarily a stellar performance but was still fun to watch.

All in all things have been good here, but very very busy. The boys are doing wonderfully! Connor and Tate still play well together and love each other a whole lot. Life is going really great here these days!

And because it doesn't look as though we'll ever have daughter to put hairbows on, we have to share a picture of our pretty little girl and her haircut.

Back To School

2009-09-08T09:31:00.005-05:00

Today marked the first day of preschool for Connor. At this point it's become "old hat" for him. I am still trying to hold on to the nostalgia of it all an capture every moment, while he is ready for me to drop him at the door without coming to a complete stop!

Conversations

2009-09-01T23:35:00.002-05:00

Today was a day filled with the following conversations:

Connor and Mommy:
C: Are we still going to play at Jake's house today?
S: Yes.
C: Are you just going to leave me there and you go some place?
S: No. I'm going to stay and spend time with Ms. Lacey.
C: But you can leave and I will just stay there.
S: No, it doesn't work that way.
C: Fine. I guess you can stay.
S: Thanks Connor, that's awfully nice of you.
C: Yeah, I know mommy.

Moral of Conversation: I can dress, feed (even if it was an oatmeal breakfast cookie thing on the go) and drive him to a friends house and if I give him no other option I'm allowed to stay too.

Stephanie and Sister Christi:
We were talking about the whole working mom/stay at home mom. And how stay at home moms think their better because they don't work. And how working moms think their better because they work and take care of their family. The conversation went like this.
S: I don't think I'm better because I stay at home. I think I might lose it completely if I worked. I don't get how you do it! How do you manage to go to work and find time to go to the grocery store and run errands and every thing else? I went to take my recycling, go to Walmart and Kroger and it took me almost 4 hours with both boys. I don't know how you do it.
C: I go after work or try to run and get it done during my lunch break. Or we have to go on the weekends, which stinks because it cuts in to family time.

Moral of the conversation: You can stay at home with your kids and spend an entire afternoon running errands and getting groceries and everything else. Or you can work and still spend an afternoon or several early evenings running errands and getting groceries. Seems fairly even keel to me. Argument of the century solved?

Tate and Mommy:
S: Tate I love that you know how to smile and coo, but party time begins at 11a.m. not 11p.m.
T: coo.... laaa.... babble.... cooo.... smile... coo.... smile
S: Tate, really, we should go to sleep now.
T: Hiccup....smile....coo.... cooo.... hiccup....smile... coo.... smile
S: You're so stinkin' cute.

Moral of conversation: When you're two months old and cute as a button, it doesn't matter that mommy is operating on 5 hours of sleep and has a headache. Or that daddy is just getting over a 24 hour bug, you smile and you're in like Flinn.

A Public Service Announcement a la Stephanie

2009-08-31T09:24:00.007-05:00

This is a PSA to anyone who has never had children, raised children, or been a parent of any kind:

Please keep your thoughts, opinions, parenting suggestions, dirty looks, heavy sighs and remarks to your self.

As annoyed and upset as you may be by the sound of a child crying I guarantee you that the parent of the child that is crying or throwing a fit is far more upset and possibly more annoyed.

When a child under the age of 18 months or so is crying, chances are strong that they have a need that needs to be met. Imagine being hungry with no way to make, cook, buy, order, open, pick up or cal in something to eat. This defines every meal period for any child under 12 months of age (for early talker for late takers we'll say 2 years of age roughly). So they cry. As parents we deduce they are hungry. As non-parents you deduce they are a disruption. Dare to imagine how you'd react to sit in your own pee or poop?

As for those older children who throw obnoxious fits in public? When you are ready to open your mouth, remember the last time you got cut off in traffic or found out that you drove across town to discover that the store was out of what you came for. Your fits are none the prettier. Trust me.

I know it's very hard for some people to begin to process breastfeeding. As a proud nursing mom, let me explain something to you. That milk you reached into the refrigerator to get this morning- it came from a cow. A cow boob to be exact. Baby bellies cannot digest cow milk. So they get milk from their own "cow". However, this cow's name is MOMMY. When you are out in public strolling by drinking your latte or diet coke or bottled water, do not stare at a mother who has herself covered up and is nursing her baby. Ironically you and the child are doing the same thing, only the child's beverage of choice doubles as a perfectly digestible, completely balanced, and nutritional meal. In a restaurant and witness this "lewd" act? Remember that at least the nursing baby is quiet when they're eating. Unless you'd rather you make your comments about a screaming baby. In which case, refer to paragraph 3.

While I know that children are inquisitive and curious and it can be somewhat of a burden to smile back at a child or say "Hello" when they say it to you. I won't begin to describe how long it would take you to answer a question like, "What's your name". Try to remember that questions are how children learn. Also remember what lengths you go to trying to get the latest dirt on celebrities or to gossip or hear gossip about your friends.

I also understand that a child fidgeting, kicking around, moving around, talking, or daring to behave like a child can be somewhat frustrating. I know that children moving around at a table or on a plane or in a movie theater is the ultimate annoyance. I realize that adults never fidget around or send text messages while eating a meal or watching a movie. You'd never hear some one's cell phone ring loudly or answer and talk loudly while in a restaurant.

Finally I realize that parents, especially with parents of more than one child or parents of a young child carry a large amount of loot with them. This is not to invade upon other people's space or make anyone inconvenienced. It is however a requirement to have things like a wallet, diapers, diaper wipes, changes of clothing, snacks, etc. in order to help prevent all of the above listed behaviors and occurrences from happening. Overlook my loot and I'll look your over priced bag that is larger than my diaper bag. Please do not stalk me for my parking space as I try to carry all of my loot out to my car from a shopping trip. It will not make me go faster. Giving me dirty looks and rolling your eyes at me as I try to load my gear and children and groceries in the car will not make me move any faster. In fact it is likely I'll move slower.

A wise friend once said, "I was a great mom before I had kids." So as you go out in the world today, tomorrow and every day until you have children reflect upon this. And when the blessed day comes that you become a parent, then you can put all of your thoughts, opinions, parenting suggestions, dirty looks, heavy sighs and remarks in to play. And watch the reactions of the people you used to be.

Family Fun

2009-08-23T21:56:00.005-05:00

Last week we finally settled in to some sort of a normal routine. While surgery was almost 4 weeks ago, and Gabe's been back at work for the past 3.5 weeks since, we just hadn't been able to really settle in to things until now. Two of the past 8 weeks Gabe worked 6 days to make up for the extra time he had to take between Tate being born and me having surgery. Then there's been doctor's appointments and playing catch-up.

This week we had none of that. We were able to fill Gabe's two days off with our normal activities. We ran a few errands as a family, played a 4 night long game of Monopoly, brought dinner to a very dear friend and took a trip with the boys to Chuck E. Cheese. Connor has been put through the ringer this summer and we really wanted to give him a chance to burn off energy and have some fun "being a kid". Mommy and Daddy both played too and Tate slept through the entire adventure!

In other news Tate turned 8 weeks old and Tuesday will mark his 2 Month Birthday. Yes, you heard correctly. Little Man Tate is already 2 months old. The time has passed so very quickly due to all the excitement and at times I'm filled with guilt that I wasn't able to love and cuddle and spoil him like crazy. I know he's no worse for the wear, but internally I beat myself up over it and for the stress and emotion it caused poor Connor. I'm so thankful for my amazing boys. I love them so much and am very blessed to get to share my life with all three of them.

Speaking of amazing, when was the last time you saw an 8 week old that was THIS cute?

My Big Boys

2009-08-15T19:59:00.004-05:00

My boys are growing up so quickly! While I'm in denial that Tate is 7 weeks old and will hit the 2 month mark in just 10 days, what I'm about to report is just as surprising!

At the beginning of the summer I wrote, "We joined the pool this summer as a way to give Connor something to do. We're working on teaching him how to swim, and so far it's going really well. He can swim wonderfully across the pool with his floaties on. He's not quite as confident about swimming without them, but he's working on it and getting better."

When I wrote that I never would have imagined that he would turn into a fish by summer's end! Two weeks and a half ago Gabe took Connor to the pool while Tate and I stayed back at the house. Gabe called as they were leaving the pool saying, "You will not believe what your son just did." Apparently after coaxing Gabe to jump off of the diving board he asked if he could do it himself.

While Gabe was treading water below the board, Connor jumped off the diving board, into the 12 foot deep water and swam unassisted to the side like he'd been doing it for years! He then spent the next 40 minutes doing it over and over again! Disappointed to have missed it, we returned a few days later so I could catch him in action!

All summer long Connor stared at the water slide at the pool asking repeatedly if he could go down it. We told him if he learned to swim well, without our help, and without his floaties that he'd be able to go down it. Since he had learned to swim without wearing floaties and was able to swim from side to side without any help we let him. On the last day that the pool was open Connor spent several hours going down the slide over and over again and jumping off the diving board with all of the big kids!

Our other big boy is 7 weeks old and has learned how to smile! We love his BIG, toothless grin! And LOVE that he can't smile without lifting his tongue up to the roof of his mouth! He's really growing and has the best personality! Another "best"- he's sleeping through the night! He falls asleep between 11-12 at night and is waking up between 5-6a.m. He's spoiling us!
All in all, life is going great and we are wonderfully blessed!

August Already?

2009-08-04T11:20:00.007-05:00

I am in disbelief that it is August already. Is it really? Surely, this is a mistake! While we didn't go anywhere or "do" anything this summer, I can't think of any summer that was as full of action as this one!

The boys are doing outstanding. Connor still absolutely adores his brother. I keep waiting for him to get tired of his new toy, but he hasn't- yet. I truly enjoy watching Connor fall as much in love with Tate as Gabe and I are. At times he is almost suffocating in his love for his brother. I find myself saying "scoot back" and "that's enough kisses" quite often. Connor has also decided that anytime Tate is getting his picture taken, he also needs to have a photo snapped! It really is funny!

As everyone knows, I was so worried about the dynamics and relationship between the boys and what it would be like. I'm so relieved by what I see. I know that they'll have their moments when they are tattling on one another and don't want the other one around, but I hope and pray that they're always close and loving. Gabe is so close with his brothers, and I'm close with my sister- hopefully that will be modeled and our boys will pick up on it and can say the same thing when they're our age (and throughout).

Tate is still just absolutely wonderful! I REALLY missed being able to hold, cuddle and nurse him while in the hospital. (I missed Connor like crazy too!) It was really hard not to be able to snuggle him and bond with him. The positive is that he got to spend a lot of time with Gabe and the two of them definitely were able to bond with one another. It was harder on Gabe to return to work this week than it was after Tate was born or after his vacation was over. I wish everyone could have seen the way Gabe cared for the boys and I. He's an amazing man!

I laid Tate down for Tummy time on Saturday morning and snapped some pictures. I then left the room and was trying to get a few dishes done. A few minutes later I walked in and he was laying on his back! I called Gabe to tell him that we had both missed this "first"! So that night we let him have more tummy time and voila- he did it again! He's hardly rolling over, and it was much more fluke than deliberate action, but either way it was exciting and I DID catch it on film!

So, it is August already and Connor will be starting back at preschool in just a few weeks. I'm feeling so much better today than I was a few days ago. While I'm definitely still sore when I move around or start to do too much, I'm no where near as swollen or in as much pain as I was. I'm hoping that by the end of the week we can get outside and play more.