Happy Birthday Grandma/Great Grandma!!!!

My Grandma is the only person I know to have two birthdays. Literally she has two dates listed as her birthday. June 29th and 30th respectively. I believe the story was that it wasn't recorded correctly back in the day. Well whatever the reason I am just glad that I have the chance to say Happy Birthday to a dear Grandma and a very sweet Great Grandma. I remember lots of things about my grandma from growing up and the memories seem more special as I age myself. Funny, I remember always saying when I was young and at Grandma's house; "I wish I was older." She would always say "one day you will wish you were young, don't be in such a hurry to get old." Rings true now that I am well lets just say, a bit older. Grandma, you are truly special and I am glad that your day(s) was/were special. Here is a picture or two for you to enjoy. I will send you some pictures this week of the babies. We hope to see you soon. Take care and know we LOVE you! t

Wordless Wednesday

Owner of a Lonely Heart

Here I sit on a Sunday night, kids snuggled upstairs in bed, dogs worn out from some tennis ball action & I am lonely. Feeling lonely because my husband is traveling for work, again. Don't get me wrong, I completely support his position and admire him for working so hard in order to provide for our family. It's just, well OK here it goes...completely pathetic I am sure. My heart hurts when he is away. I don't feel 100% whole when he is gone....something definitely is missing. I L-O-V-E it when he comes home. This week will be a teaser week as he will come back tomorrow evening just to leave again for the rest of the week. Ugh! The agony I am already feeling. The time will however fly by quickly. I have two little ones and three with four legs that will keep me on the run and before I know it he will be home again. Campbell says it best; "Daddy Oh, Daddy Home."

Honey, if you log on and view the blog....I miss you, we miss you. Have a good trip. See you soon. XO!!!!

Me.

I saw this over at one of my favorite blog sites and just had to do it. It was harder to fill in the blanks than I thought it would be.

I am…a human “be”coming to understand myself.
I want…to give my children a sense of security.
I wish... I didn’t have to live with hypothyroidism and ulcerative colitis
I hate/strongly dislike… when people don’t turn into there own lane when driving.
I miss…being able to go outside and NOT be bitten by mosquitoes.
I fear…what I can’t control.
I feel… thankful for my life.
I hear…the dryer running.
I smell…wet doggies.
I crave…a soda every morning but don’t always get to have one.
I search…for God in every moment and in every direction of life.
I wonder…if my children think (will think) I am a good mother.
I regret…not always being as strong as God intended me to be in my life.
I love…God, my husband & children, my family & friends and animals.
I care…for others & how they feel.
I ache…when my husband travels (my heart)
I always...need to talk & feel heard.
I believe…in God.
I dance…with my children daily & wish I danced with my husband more.
I sing...when my daughter is on the potty, it amuses her.
I cry…at movies and sappy commercials.
I don’t always... get some where on time.
I fight…inner demons.
I write…in my children’s baby books & on my blog.
I never…want to live via a machine if I should be in an accident.
I listen…to my children even when they don’t say a word.
I need…to pray everyday to feel a sense of clarity and calmness.
I am happy... with my life; it is growing more joyous everyday.

Thankful Thursday

Thankful for imagination, smiles & liking mommy's homemade baby food.

Back in the Saddle & Texas size mosquito Bites.

So Travis is able to play again in his rain forest jumpy and his exersaucer. Most importantly I can carry him in the Bjorn again, thanks be to heaven on that one sister!!!! He L-O-V-E-S that thing!
We had to wait three long weeks after his surgery for him to do anything other than be held(his favorite thing to do), play on the floor (which he hates most of the time) or sit in a bouncy seat (which now he associates with eating so you know what that means...where is the food mom?). The time has inched by in my mind I can only imagine what he was thinking. This video of him isn't his most captive moment as I didn't think to get the camera right away and this is after he had been there for a while and right before nap time but at least he was happy to be back in the saddle again.

Texas is known for being BIG. So life here adjusting to really big BUGS has been not so easy for me. The worst part I feel are the mosquito's!!!! We saw a PBS program on mosquito's one time and they say there are attracted to a scent that your body gives off. Guess who is so lucky to have that sweet scent... Yep! Me. However, Campbell must have gotten the sweet gene from me because she was eaten alive yesterday and we weren't even out that long. YIKES!!!! So now I have to figure out how to keep her hands off of these Texas size bites.

Brother Naps, Sister Plays

Nap time around here, granted sleep around here is vital. I might be a sleep Nazi but I try to make sure my kids get all the rest they need. Well with two little ones 16.5 months apart nap times are similar yet so different. While I was pregnant (mid to late stages ) Campbell had decided to go to one nap a day. Never a strong napper we relish the time she is down as no nap leads to terrible temper and then a terrible evening witching hour. I was also use to the noise level being calm and quiet when she slept at least the noise I could control. However, now that there are two in the house and Travis having three nap times I have figured out that it is harder to control the noise level of an almost 2 year old. So mommy does what she can to make it some what quiet for him. Often this means spending time outside or in mommy & daddy's room playing and giggling.
Today we ventured outback and she instantly wanted to give the dogs a bath. Rounded up the pool and hose and started to play, play, play. It is funny how something as simple as water coming out of a hose can be so exciting. So as one child got the late afternoon nap he needed the other played & laughed to her hearts content. In the end mommy got what she wanted too. Big Grin!

Wordless Wednesday

true love

So I know my children love me and my husband. But it really is more of a needy love than true love. We meet their needs and they love us for that, that's the name of the game at this age. However, my daughter knows true love. You can hear it in her voice, you can see it in her eyes and most of all you can see it in her spirit. This love I am talking about is her love for her Nana (my mom). This little girl is just crazy for her and it warms my heart so much! It makes me smile when she asks for her, it makes my heart sing when they get to play with one another. Their relationship is real and definitely true love. However, they do have one obstacle in their relationship...it is long distance. I can honestly say that Campbell's heart grows fonder with the distance. I recently placed a picture on my computer as my screen saver which is a recent picture of Travis, Nana and Campbell and she is just wild about seeing her so clear and life like. I am already seeing the start of a great love relationship between Travis and his Nana. True love what joy it brings. I am so grateful that my children share this with such a wonderful person. Thanks Mom for loving my children so very much...even from a distance. Come visit soon!!!!

First Toddler Rain

So the other day Daddy and Campbell rode off on the bike to swim at the neighborhood pool. Apparently while there Daddy noticed it sprinkling and thought they should head home. Well the sprinkle turned into a down pour and a bike ride in the rain. This is Campbell playing in the rain that was running down the side of the house...yucky if you think about it but what can ya do.

Travis Aaron is 6 months today!!!

So today is the 6Th month marker for Travis. I can hardly believe that he has been with us already 6 months. He is getting so big and has the signs of a great sense of humor. Always laughing and smiling. OK, so maybe not all the time for you mommies out there....you know that they don't do it all the time. But seriously he is a great baby!! I am so in love with him, he is mommy's other man!

Life with adding a second child has been challenging but yet rewarding all at the same time. I have learned a lot about myself in the process. We have been dealt with some tough times since his arrival but when I compare it to others it really wasn't so bad, especially with our recent visits to Texas Children's Hospital. Our kids issues were so tiny but to us they were huge. We have been battling colds, seizures, and hernia surgery. Both kids were in the hospital for serious colds. Travis at barely 5 weeks and Campbell at 20 months . Travis had caught a cold from Campbell who had previously had croup about a week after he was born. One evening I was calling to book an appointment for the next day (follow up) and decided to call back and get him checked that night. I had this strong feeling that something wasn't right. Sure enough we were whisked off to the hospital for lack of oxygen in his system. We stayed the night and the whole next day. With Campbell she seemed to be sick for weeks on end from February thru first of April. At one point she had a seizure right in front of our eyes and in Lance's arms. Talk about scary. We actually thought she was dead at one point when I was on the phone with 911 because we couldn't see her breathing. Lance still gets tears in his eyes when he thinks about that moment. Needless to say the seizure landed us at two different hospitals and being admitted to TCH for an overnight and day stay. The trooper of that experience was Travis. Poor little guy had to stay in the hospital too seeing that he is breast feed exclusively....Daddy just couldn't take him home. The hospital was so nice to accommodate us with an extra baby. The rest of April was spent having an MRI and an EEG to see if they could find out why she had a seizure. All tests were perfect results and no explanation of why she had the seizure. We are just pleased that she is back to her happy and healthy self....now entering the terrible twos. May brought us surgery for Travis. With a hernia and a hydro seal. He ended up having a double hernia and a hydro seal. Poor little guy was put all the way under and was I feeling empty as a mommy when they took him back for surgery and I had to turn around and push an empty stroller....talk about feeling as if a part of you was gone. Luckily, two+ hours later he was back in my arms trying to feel normal again after being asleep with some serious drugs. He just had his post op visit and all looks as if it is healing well.

So that gives you an idea of how we have spent our last six months. And if it wasn't a child that was sick it was one of us coming down with whatever the kids had. But in the end the important thing is that we made it through and we are a healthy family today...at least for the moment.