TN Aquarium and Helen Keller

We decided to take a family vacation over a 4-day weekend. Matt, Joshua, and I drove up to Birmingham after work on Friday to see Grandaddy (Matt’s dad). The next morning Mommy met up with her godparents to go to Tuscumbia for the Helen Keller festival (I’ll explain why at the end of the blog) while Joshua and Daddy explored Grandaddy’s lot for a new house and then drove to Huntsville to see Grandottie and JerryPop. Mommy had a great time visiting with her parents, sisters, godparents, Denise and Shirley. We toured Ivy Green (Helen Keller’s birthplace), Wilson Lock and Dam, and Pope’s Tavern (a Civil War site). I got to reminisce with my family about trips we made here growing up. Also we got to celebrate Mom and Dad’s 39th anniversary and Mary Rose and Brian’s 37th anniversary. Joshua and Daddy got to spend quality time with Grandottie, JerryPop, Aunt Morgan, Uncle Jason, and cousins Sammy, Gracie, and Nick. On Sunday, Mommy, Daddy, Grandottie, and Joshua headed to Chattanooga to visit the Tennessee Aquarium. Joshua really got into watching to fish and telling them “bye bye fishes” when we moved on to the next exhibit. He hugged the glass to ooh and ahh over all that he saw. Matt and I were so pleased that he seemed to have a great time. On Monday we went swimming at the pool, wished Grandottie and JerryPop a happy anniversary, and then headed back to Bham to have dinner with Grandaddy and wish him a happy birthday. We returned home on Tuesday to relax before heading back to work. It was a great trip and we enjoyed seeing everyone soo much!**The story behind Ivy Green** When we were growing up, mom used to take her 4 girls to visit her friend Elaine VandenBurgh and her 3 kids in Florence, AL. The V's had twin girls the same age as my twin sisters and a little boy the same age as my younger sister. Let me first say there is not a lot to do in NW Alabama, especially when you are looking for inexpensive fun. One of the places our moms used to like to visit was Ivy Green, the birthplace of Helen Keller. This wouldn't have been so bad if we went once or twice, but we went a lot over the years. It went from educational to torture in a short time. Steph got really proficient at reenacting HK at the water pump and telling HK jokes to the point that mom said "If you can't act any better than this, we just won't go." To which Steph (and us) replied "Thank you!" Another place we used to visit was Wilson Lock and Dam to watch boats go up the TN River. In hindsight this was really dangerous considering we kids used to entertain ourselves by sticking our heads, arms, legs, over the edge to pretend we were falling in to freak out the outnumbered moms. Keep in mind we would have been ages 9, 9, 9, 9, 7, 5, and 5. It made for good memories and a nice place for a picnic lunch.Steph and Chad's dramatic reinactment

Another Ear Infection

Joshua has another ear infection in both ears. He’s been a sickie lately with goopy eyes and a runny nose, but it appeared to be a cold and there was no fever and the ped’s office called in some eye drops so we watched him. Matt and I noticed Joshua tugging a little at an ear when he was going to sleep and waking up in the morning. I asked Joshua in the morning “Does your ear hurt?” to which he nodded. I really thought I had a breakthrough in figuring out the ear infection and even Matt was excited so I decided to test my theory. I asked “Does your nose hurt?” Then Joshua nodded and touched his nose. Then I asked “Well do your toes hurt?” And he responded by touching his toes and saying “Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!” and looked up at me and smiled. So much for my breakthrough, it apparently was a game. I still took him to the ped’s office and found out both of his ears were rotten so besides prescribing a shot and antibiotics, the doctor also gave us a referral to the ENT who will likely want tubes in his ears. We will go in a couple weeks. I’m a little sad because I know it will be traumatic for Joshua, but it will be good when he is well. The pediatrician was really nice and gave Joshua a Thomas the Train sticker. Joshua waved and gave him a hi-five. The shots were not too bad and the nurse gave Joshua a sucker. He apparently didn’t have any hard feelings abut the shots and waved and told her “bye-bye” when we were leaving.**Side note: This picture was taken a few days later when he was feeling better. It's just such a fun picture, I wanted to post it.

Father’s Day

Happy Father’s Day! Joshua, Baby #2, and I are blessed to have such a wonderful husband and father. Joshua adores his daddy and talks so much about him that Baby #2 can’t wait to meet him. Something Joshua always does when we are backing out of the garage on the way to work/daycare is he waves to the house and says “Bye bye Daddy!” and blows him a kiss, even though Matt is inside usually putting the dogs in their room and locking the doors. Another sweet thing Joshua does in the afternoons is any time my phone rings he asks “Daddy call?” and then wants to talk to him. He’s always a little disappointed if it’s someone else. Then as soon as he hears Matt open the door when he gets home, Joshua runs to the front door chanting “Daddy home! Daddy home!” It’s quite the reception! Happy Father’s Day Matt! We love you!!

First Fight

As part of our morning routine, after I woke Joshua up, I held him in my arms and gave him a sippy cup of milk to drink. While he was drinking he was leaning against my tummy at just the right spot and his brother kicked him. First he just cut his eyes to the side to glare at my tummy (did I mention he's not much of a morning person?). Then the baby kicked in the same spot again. This time Joshua, still drinking from his sippy cup leaned in to push back. It cracked Matt and I up. And so it begins...

Busy Days/ Joshua Stories

We have been busy the last few weeks. Joshua and Mommy have both been sick. And Mommy and Daddy have been busy preparing for baby #2. I think we've been too tired to come up with a nickname, but I guess there is time. Most of that preparation has really involved fixing up a big boy room for Joshua. I am in my third trimester and overall am doing great, though I'm pretty tired. Joshua is growing and learning so much. He likes to point at mommy's belly and say "baby" and give his brother a kiss. He also loves to say "Yea Alabama! Roll Roll Tide!" His favorite two books, which have each been read at least 500 times in the last month are 2 Alabama books. Now for a few Joshua stories... **Umm, for the record, we don't usually potty in the living room, but this was when the potty was brand new and Joshua really wanted to try it out, while reading an Alabama book.**

Something he recently started doing was getting picky about what "bites" he would eat. When Matt and I were feeding him cereal, we would offer a spoonful of cereal and he would say "Not that bite" and he'd point to the cereal "That bite!" So we'd spoon another bite of cereal and often times he would eat the bite and other times he'd look at it and say "No, not that bite, that bite!" and he'd point at the cereal. Of course there is no way to reason with him and say "It's all the same." We were just glad he was eating some breakfast.Yesterday I was on the floor reading books with Joshua and he needed a diaper. I told him "Do you want a diaper? Help mommy up." Usually he likes to "pull" me up and feel so proud of himself, but yesterday he walked a few steps in front of me and shook his finger and said "Get up Mommy!" It wasn't the friendly tactic I was hoping for - more like a drill sergeant.Over the weekend Matt and I were working on some projects around the house and watching Joshua. At one point I slipped off to go to the bathroom. Joshua didn't notice at first, but when he did he came running. Normally I leave the bathroom door cracked so he can come in and sit on his potty if he wants to, but this time I shut the door. Obviously he wasn't expecting it and ran into the door. When I opened the door he was sprawled out on the ground crying with the sippy cup, football, and stuffed animal he was carrying nearby. I said "You're okay." But he kept rubbing his head and saying "It went boom! It went boom!"

Visit with Grandottie and Jerry Pop

Grandottie and Jerry Pop came for a visit over the weekend. It started out a little rough with Joshua getting sick Thursday evening. He turned out to have bad ear infections in both ears. Thanks to a shot, oral antibiotics, and lots of TLC and snuggling, he bounced back quickly. We got to go to the beach which was great because we enjoyed seafood and the view. This may be a doubly nice treat as the BP oil spill looms in the distance and could spoil the beach and the sea life. Hopefully it won't come ashore. Joshua took awhile to warm up to the ocean but enjoyed the sand. Saturday evening we went to a 25th Anniversary party for Matt's cousins, the Edwards. It was great to see them. I realized that the last time I was in Crestview I was pregnant, but it was with Joshua.

Joshua enjoyed showing off for his Grandottie and Jerry Pop. He especially liked chanting "Jerry Pop! Jerry Pop!" He tried to eat his weight in crab claws. It was a great trip.

Time Flies!

Life seems to be going by so fast these days. Joshua is becoming more vocal and learning to express what he's feeling. And Baby #2 is constantly kicking and squirming. I'm not convinced he sleeps yet! Here are a few Joshua stories (get ready to say "Awwwww!"

Whenever I ask Joshua "Where's the baby?" He lifts my shirt to kiss my tummy.

Several weeks ago I realized that while we practice the alphabet, colors, and body parts at home, we've never focused on numbers. Anyway I lined up some toys and said "Look Joshua, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5" as I pointed to them. He gave me a look and then said "6, 7, 8, 9, 10." I was shocked! I guess they practice that in daycare.

Joshua really likes listening to music. Whenever we are in the car and the new Train song "Hey Soul Sister" comes on, he says "Hey...hey." along with the chorus. Also the other day "Sweet Home Alabama" came on the radio and he said "Alabama" every time he heard it. Finally his favorite song to sing to is "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." He changes it up though, sometimes he sings the actual words, sometimes he sings the alphabet, and sometimes he sings a never ending Mommy song where he says "Mommy, Mommy" over and over to the tune. Yummy, donuts!

Mother's Day 2010

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers I know! We went to Birmingham for the weekend. Friday was actually such a nice (and slow) day that we decided to leave work at lunch and head to Birmingham. It was a pleasant drive and while Joshua was napping, Matt and I took some time to make our inaugural name list for Baby #2. The list is pretty lengthy, but it’s a start. I spent most of Saturday hanging out with my sister Stephanie. We went to lunch together and then got pedicures. I love my hot pink toes! Joshua spent time with Grandma, Grandpa, and Granny (my grandma) and then went to the park with two of his aunts and Grandpa. From the pictures the twins texted me, it looks like he had a great time! That evening mom and grandma cooked a wonderful dinner which we all enjoyed. After church on Sunday we went to Matt’s sister’s house and celebrated Mother’s Day with Matt’s family. Joshua really enjoyed eating strawberries after lunch. Joshua also had fun playing with his cousins. Thanks to Alec and Eli for letting Joshua drive your remote control car off the sidewalk over and over and over… It was a very special day and I received sweet cards from all my boys - Joshua, Baby #2, Hardy & Ridley (our dogs), and Daddy. Thank you!

Two First Communions and a Wedding

I don't like Longhorns! Get me off of this cow!

My Little Cowboy!

Joshua went on his first plane ride on Friday. Mommy and Joshua flew to Dallas, TX for cousins Hannah and Ben's First Communion and for cousin Colin's wedding to Taylor. We met Grandma, Grandpa and Aunts Celeste and Elaine out there. One thing we learned about Dallas/ Ft Worth is that the traffic is awful all the time. Grandpa was a real trooper being our chauffeur the whole time as it stressed me out just riding in the van! On Friday we went to the historic Fort Worth Stockyards where Joshua got to sit on a longhorn and watch a "stampede." (Several show longhorns are marched down the street by cowboys in full gear.) Joshua much preferred the longhorns in their pen where he called them cows and "moo-ed" at them. Hannah and Ben looked very nice and grown up at their First Communion. We were so proud of them! The wedding was held outdoors and it too was beautiful (welcome to the family, Taylor). On one last sight seeing trip we went to Dealey Field to see where JFK was assassinated. I took Joshua's picture on the grassy knoll. There was an interesting museum which told a lot of the events on Nov 22nd and presented a good deal of evidence and while they ultimately conclude there was a lone gunman, call me a conspiracy theorist - but I still think there had to have been at least two.

My sweet baby boy!

An Update on Joshua

Joshua is such an amazing little boy that is growing and changing so fast! I wanted to share a few stories about him before I forget them and replace them with new ones. Joshua is getting really good at singing the ABC's. I really didn't think he's be doing that for awhile. Anyway, as if that isn't enough Joshua sang to me the other day "Twinkle, twinkle little star, A B C D E F I." Now even though he skipped a few letters I was so impressed that he fit it to the tune. He's also putting longer sentences together and learning to negotiate which means mommy and daddy are in trouble. His first instinct when you offer him something is to say "no" even if it's a cookie, and then immediately say "I want that cookie now, Daddy." Of course he butters you up by always saying "thank you" whenever you hand him food. He enjoys putting his "prayer hands" up and saying "A-men!"
At night when we are getting ready to go to bed, Joshua likes to crawl around pretending to be a frog. He says "ribbit, ribbit." He also loves taking his vitamin and brushing his teeth.

Joshua likes to fake sneeze. "Ah-ah-ah-CHOO!" One of the things we do is sneeze his clothes on and off. It makes a simple task fun. Mommy and Daddy get into it and sometimes sneeze our shoes/ clothes off too. Ha! Enjoy the pictures. They were taken at the Strawberry Festival in Loxley.