Snow Day!....or should I say Ice Day!

This is what it looked like outside of our apartment building this morning. It was very pretty, but it has caused so much trouble for people. Our county was declared in a state of emergency and there are 1,000's without power. Thank the Lord that we are not included in that group. Our power did go out for a couple of hours during the night, but it came back on. Nate already had vacation the rest of the week, but his clinic was closed today. So HK and Daddy got to play in the snow together.
They got all bundled up and dug out the sled. HK is practicing how to hold on.
Then she and Daddy went for a ride. This picture was taken right after Nate busted his butt. He was pulling HK and turned around real fast. As he took off again his feet slipped right out from under him and he fell flat on his back. I actually caught the whole thing on video. I think we could win some money on America's Funniest Home Videos for that one...and it wasn't even staged!

HK had a blast. Her Daddy promised her they could go back out again after her nap. She is actully asleep right now...so we'll see if they have adventure number 2.
Nolan missed out on all of the excitement this year...slept right through it. Maybe next year Bubba when you are bigger!
When they came in from the snow HK was eating an icicle that had been hanging over the front door. She said it was yummy. She was covered in snow because she jumped out of the sled and down in the snow with Nate when he fell on his backside. She thought it was great!

Hopefully our power will stay on and the main roads will get cleared so we can head to Eldorado tomorrow after lunch.

O Spring, Where Art Thou?

Warmer weather seems forever away, but we are ready!
I am ready to be able to walk outside with the kids.
I've got my indoor walking dvd, but it is getting old!
Today while I was exercising indoors HK discovered what was behind door #2...all of our VHS tapes...tons of chick flicks I might add. She decided that she needed to not only pull each one out, but also take it out of its case. I was right there exercising with my trusty indoor walking dvd. I watched the whole thing and honestly I didn't care. I thought...she's right here in front of me and I know exactly what she's doing. She's not trying to wake up Nolan or some other devious idea. So the VHS tower was built..."I build a tower for you Mommy." Thanks sweetheart.

Crawl all the way back and make sure not to miss any please!!!

While digging out the VHS tapes HK found one of Mommy's old cheerleading tapes. You know the ballgames...the ones that Dad recorded and zoomed in right on his daughter! So then she had to get out her pom-poms...which are my old pom-poms actually used in this old vhs tape. She also had to get her cheerleading skirt and put it on...it's a Saluki skirt. Saluki skirt, eagles pom-poms...whatever works.
Then of course she can't stay off of the activity mat when Nolan is on it. This time she told him...and I quote..."Ah sweetheart. I love you." Nolan cries in return because she is in his personal space. In return to his cry she tells him, "Sugar, it's okay. It's okay." I better make sure I don't call him anything I don't want to hear come out of her mouth!!!
O Spring...where art thou? We are ready for your presence in our lives!!!

Nap Update

Wednesday: no nap, played in bed for 3 hours
Thursday: no nap, played in bed for 3 hours
Friday: no nap, played in bed for 3 hours
Saturday: pulled out the pack-n-play, no nap, played in bed for 2 hours
Bath time was 6:30 and bed time 7 on these nights!
Sunday: pulled out the pack-n-play
She did sleep some...just not sure how long because Mommy had to get out of the house by herself. I browsed sale racks at the mall for winter clothes for next year.

I have decided that I will not torture myself if she chooses not to sleep. I have learned that you cannot make a child sleep. One day soon it will catch up and she will crash! I'll have to say that we have enjoyed the longer evenings since she had an earlier bedtime.

We'll see what this week brings...but I'm not going to sweat it!!!

Big Sister, Big Boss

This Little Brother has no idea what is in store for him as he gets bigger.
Hallie Kate loves him in her own special way...she will forever boss him.
He may be twice her size some day, but I have a feeling she will still boss him.
She already talks about the things she will show him how to do "when he gets bigger".

Below is an action shot of some of the love she likes to give him.
She also likes to wiggle his ears, kiss him, pat him, shake his arms...have to remind her often that he is fragile!


She even decided to join Nolan on the activity mat the other morning. She proceeded to show him how the bird flies. The first of many lessons by the big sister.

Thankfully HK waited until Nolan was off of the activity mat before she was decided to come up with her own creative uses for it. At one point she was a firefighter fighting fires and then she was riding on a train. I love seeing what her imagination comes up with each day. One of my favorite things she said last week was... "Don't say that Mommy or the monsters will eat you." She obviously didn't like that I told her we were taking a potty break. She has a weird hang-up about monsters lately!


Aunt Anita and Bekah stopped by last Friday.
Their visit was very much welcomed.
Nate was working until midnight that night. It helped our day pass much quicker.
Thanks for the visit!

Sleeping Beauty & Prince Charming

Last Thursday, as I mentioned, we went to the hospital to visit Brooke & Keagan. HK was just excited to see Kellen. As we got in the car, HK told me that she was "Sick-a-booty"...or Sleeping Beauty. She laid her head over on the seat with her eyes closed...and stayed that way all the way there! After I loaded both kids into the double stroller, she curled up and closed her eyes once again...still Sleeping Beauty. When we entered their room I told everyone who she was. So Prince Charming, or Kellen, woke Sleeping Beauty up with a kiss. Those two are a mess! After the Princess awoke, she then played with Kellen and his trains...a well rounded Princess!

Official Weight Check

Our friends, the Slaters, had their baby boy yesterday morning.
Keagan Gabriel was born at 11:08 and weighed 8 lbs 6 oz and was 21 inches long.
Keagan and Nolan are exactly 7 weeks apart.
Hopefully they will be as good of friends as HK and Kellen.
We went by this morning to visit. HK was so excited to see Kellen.
While we were there I took Nolan down to get an official weight check.
In his diaper he was 12 lb 2 oz.

Becoming A Gold-Mining Mom

This entry is a bit different than most. They are usually about my kids accompanied by pictures. Today I wanted to share some thoughts with you.
I've been feeling a bit disconnected and frustrated lately. I'm sure that might be a typical thing for mothers whose work is at home with their children during the winter months. My Mom sent me a Proverbs 31 devotional through an email today. It was exactly what I needed to give me a jolt in the opposite direction of giving in to these negative feelings. If you go to this link you can read what she sent me...http://reneeswope.blogspot.com/2009/01/becoming-gold-mining-mom.html. This was actually a link from the devotion, but this was the part that struck me the most.
You see, right now I should be taking a nap. Nolan, who is now 7 weeks old, is snoozing. Hallie Kate should be snoozing. She was put down for her nap at 1 pm. As I am typing I can hear her talking, singing, and moving around in bed...it's 3:30 now. She doesn't really have any reason to get out of bed because there is nothing left in her room for her to get down and get. You see I can't sleep knowing she is awake in her room. My mind wonders about all the things she might do if I fall asleep...will she pull her wooden letters off the wall and swallow the nails, will she wrap the cord on her blinds around her neck, will she poop in her diaper and in satisfying her curiosity smear it everywhere, or possibly empty her closet full of clothes into her bed with her. I wouldn't put much past her. Just today as I peek in the room she has put one of her socks over the round ball at the corner of her bed, twisted off a knob on the drawer of her trundle, and pulled down the canopy that hangs in the corner. I've shared in some recent posts some other recent frustrations. Then there is the part of having a newborn...many times I feel like as soon as I get done with one feeding, before I can turn around it's time for another one. I guess you could say that cramps my busy bee style. It's also frustrating because he can't reach up and kiss me on the cheek and say "I love you" when he's being scolded. He eats, sleeps, poops, cries, eats, poops, cries, poops, eats, sleeps...you get it. Occasionally there are those sweet smiles in return...but let's just face it...he is totally dependent without offering much in return right now. As sweet as he is...there are days that are frustrating.
There are days I feel as if I accomplish nothing. My house finally got a good cleaning for the first time in weeks...I'm very ashamed to admit that. Everyone said going from 1 child to 2 was difficult...I never doubted them at all. It's just figuring out how to do it and still have your sanity. With very cold temperatures, runny noses, and cabin fever and I am ready for a change.
The temperatures could warm up, HK could go to sleep for her nap now, and Nolan could sleep through the night...but my heart would not be any different.
My heart needs a change. The devotion referred to how gold is mined and that children, men, women are all developed the same way gold is mined. Several tons of dirt must be removed to get even an ounce of gold. But one does not go in looking for dirt...one goes in looking for gold.
The writer encourages parents to mine for gold in their children's mistakes...don't go looking for mistakes but the gold that is hidden there. I realized that I have not been very good at doing that lately. During the craziness of the new growth in our family my heart has not stayed as close to God as in the past. I've been trying to do all of this on my own strength and in my own wisdom. Big mistake! Thank goodness God is a gold-miner in my life...not focusing on the dirt and my failures but looking for the golden flecks. He desires to see Himself in me so that my kids will see Him in me. If I don't have a heart readjustment and get back into my time with Him than no matter how long either of my children sleeps or how well they obey...something will still be amiss in my life. It's so easy to get buried deep beneath discontentment and mommy discouragement and wonder if there is any gold to be found. But I know that God will show me the gold to be found and how to find it. What a difference for my children to know I am looking for the gold in their lives and not the dirt! I need to make my focus be more on their hearts and less on their habits (not take off their habits...but not obsessed with them). My Granny always told me, "Pretty is as pretty does". Our inner beauty forms our characteristics and attitudes which then effects our habits and actions. Knowing where to start...get myself back in the Word and spending time with Him. I cannot do this amazing job on my own. I daily need His strength and wisdom. Psalm 18:35 says "You give me Your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains me; you stoop down to make me great." In all of the readjustments and changes I'm making in going from 1 child to 2...I have to find out how and where my time with God fits in each day...because without Him I will be stuck looking for the dirt and wallowing in discontentment. Well, now Hallie Kate seems to be quiet and Nolan is crying...so I better wrap this up and hit the gold mines!

Weight Update

No...not mine. My weight is unfortunately staying the same and not going anywhere at the moment. Nolan and Daddy on the other hand are doing great. Nate has lost 13 pounds since Christmas and with our informal weighing at home Nolan is approximately 12.8 pounds. So Nate has lost the equivalent of Nolan. Me...I've hit my plateau...have another 10-15 to lose by summer if I want to be able to wear my clothes. Oh well...maybe some warmer temperatures might motivate me...but in the meantime will continue to try and stay warm at home.

All Smiles

Nolan is becoming all smiles! I love it. It's the first of many interactions that make those sleepless nights worthwhile.

Saturday Papa and Grandma Cathe came to visit. Grandma Cathe got Nolan to give lots of smiles!
Papa got a gourmet meal cooked by Hallie Kate. She fixed hamburgers and cookies!
Hallie Kate had a wonderful time with her company...she can't wait for them to come again.

HK and Daddy getting ready to go on their Daddy-Daughter date. They went to Donut Bank Saturday morning. This is something we hope to continue for a long time...something that HK will look forward to...not necessarily donuts, but the date.

Crack Down

Saturday brought the crack down on Hallie Kate. New baby syndrome has kicked in, but discipline and order still have to reign! From Hallie Kate's bed she can see out into the family room if she gets up and moves to the opposite end of where her head lays. She watches what goes on, plays around, jumps around, kicks the wall...anything but sleep. She will do this for hours literally...sometimes 3 hours before going to sleep. Then she sleeps late the next morning and then sleeps late in the afternoon and then isn't ready for bed the next night and thus you get the vicious cycle. Also...the peeing and pooping in the toilet has not been consistent so we have to find something that gets through to her. With both of these we feel as if we've tried a hundred options. So we are down to our last resort. The picture below shows how she finally fell asleep early Saturday morning after she woke up at 5:30. We checked on her twice and even rocked once...after that I was done...not falling for anymore sweet cons. So she screamed and cried until she finally gave up at 6:45 am. She fell asleep at her watch post at the end of the bed. If you look closely you can see that she is at the end and her legs are hanging down in between the mattress and bed. The only part of her that is on the mattress is from the waist up.

She then slept until almost 10 am.
The last resort...before her nap on Saturday we bagged up ALL toys in her room. We left the books on her bookshelf since they are part of bedtime routine. She had to help bag them all up. For some reason she seemed to enjoy it and told me thank you for helping her. So know I am questioning my plan. They are all bagged up and taken from her room. When she successfully sleeps in her big girl bed, pees in potty, poops in potty she can get a toy back. If she poops or pees in her pants she has to put one back. So far, Sunday evening she has not had to put anything back and has a few toys on her shelf. Even though she enjoys picking them out again...she doesn't really care about playing with them. I cleaned out my sock drawer tonight and she had more fun playing with the socks I was getting rid of then her toys. Go figure. We also moved her bed to the opposite side of the room so she cannot see out into the family room. So we'll see how the changes go. Hopefully for the better!!! At least clean-up time is very fast right now!

Mama Mia!

Thanks to Nana, HK has become a Mama Mia addict. There is a sing-a-long part on the DVD. So HK wants Mama Mia and Dancing Queen to play over and over. At times she dances and tries to imitate the actresses. Then at other times she is still as can be deep in concentration. She is trying to learn the words. She just about has the chorus of Mama Mia down and parts of Dancing Queen. She and Jack danced to these songs several times on Monday morning. She is definitely a dancing queen! I've got to find some sort of dance class for her!

Happy Birthday Aunt Ang!

Saturday the 10th was Aunt Ang's 25th birthday. We had a fun day. We met for lunch at Morellos...Nana, Grampy, Uncle Kent, Greatie, Aunt Ang, Mommy, HK, Nolan, and Aunt Ang's friend Kenny. Then we hung out the rest of the afternoon and evening at Nana & Grampy's. We had delicious Italian beef for supper and some yummy desserts.

Singing Happy Birthday to Aunt Ang. She is 25!

A close-up of Nolan just chillin' on Aunt Ang's lap at her birthday party. So...who do you think he looks like?


Aunt Ang and Uncle Kent with HK and Nolan


Aunt Ang & Nolan
Uncle Kent was forced to sit down and hold Nolan so that he and HK could calm down. They are a wild pair at times!

HK loves the Grinch!

This week has been a busy one!

My friend Tiffany Brannock came over Friday to see Nolan and brought lunch. HK totally monopolized her time! It was great to see Tiff and have a nice visit!

HK dug out her "puter" that hasn't been played with in months. She had to sit it on the computer desk in order to use it.
Sorry for the blurry picture!!! Nana came for a visit this week. I had to go back to the dermatologist and wasn't really wanting to take both kiddos with me. Thank goodness for Nana! While she was here Nana introduced HK to the song "Dancing Queen". Nana got the cd of Abba's Greatest Hits for Christmas. She and HK became Dancing Queens! I'm pretty sure the song played a dozen times in a row! HK loves music and dancing!!!

We went to the mall one day. The double stroller passed the test. I love it and have now thrown the box away! We found a Grinch t-shirt at JCPenneys. HK wanted to hold it, then try it on, and of course...then she wanted it. It was only $3. It was great entertainment while Nana & I tried on clothes. Nana gave HK the money so she could buy it "herself". She loves to do things "myself" or have "my own". She wore her Grinch dress as she called it the rest of the day!

Toilet Paper Trouble

We are finally starting to buckle down and get this potty training thing wrapped up. We started working during the summer. HK gets it and has had pretty good success...but we need just a bit better consistency. She is visiting Nana & Grampy for a couple of days. Little does she know that when she comes home we are buckling down and conquering this monster for good! We worked hard but slacked off from Oct-Dec...it's time to get down to business!
She has quiet an extravagant potty thanks to Greatie...it's a princess throne. It has a place for its own toilet paper which we do not keep there. However the other day she was sitting on the potty and just talking away...not in any hurry to potty. She wanted to know what the bar was for. So I showed her by putting toilet paper on it. I thought this might motivate her to hurry up so she could get her own paper. She kept procrastinating so I left the room thinking privacy might hurry it along. I was just a few feet away in the kitchen. I went back maybe 2 minutes later to find the picture below. I started to really get on to her...but had to stop and walk away because the desire to laugh overcame me! So keeping a straight face and not talking to her I took her picture.

I guess she realized I wasn't laughing and that she might get in trouble because she tried to hide her face from me.
We did have a talk about the use of toilet paper.
I also learned my lesson and took the toilet paper back off of her chair!

Growing Like a Weed

We did our own weighing of Nolan last night. Granted it will not be with the same accuracy as the nice little baby scales at the doctor's office...but it gives us a pretty general idea. So Nate stood on the scale first by himself. Then he stood on the scale with Nolan. The difference in the two weights was 10.2 pounds...WOW! He is 5 weeks old and weighs approximately 10 lbs...I can hardly believe it!

Adjusting to the Real World

Well, I guess the holidays are officially over. That means Daddy is back to work full-time and the help of relatives being around is winding down. So Mommy is starting to get a taste of what it is really like to go from 1 child to 2 children! There are moments I want to pull my hair out, moments that melt my heart, and moments that we are all 3 snoozing at the same time! I tried to prepare myself for the worst so whatever may come it might not seem that bad. Nolan had his longest stretch of sleep during the night this week and Hallie Kate got her first bloody nose. So there has been excitement all around! As I left to go to the grocery store this evening, by myself (yea!), I walked out the same time as my downstairs neighbor (we live in an upstairs apartment). We spoke to one another and he said it sounds like you have one upset. I left a screaming daughter inside...I explained to him that she was upset because she wanted to go to the grocery store with me. I almost caved in and took her because she told me that she wanted to help me and I quote..."You need me Mommy. You need me to help you!" That was pretty hard to resist, but all I had to do was think ahead 10 minutes as we arrived at the grocery store and her desire to help me was quickly replaced with the desire to make me crazy!

HK pulled out her "stacking blocks" this morning. We built a wonderful princess castle for her. HK sat inside of it while we had a birthday party. I had all of the princesses enter through the gate at the front and then HK took over from there. It is so great to see her imagination coming alive!


This is the bloody nose...she and her Daddy were playing with her new Princess golf clubs. Then they were rolling around in the floor. HK was a little to fast for her feet and then crashed into the couch...smashing her face at the bottom. She had quite the bloody nose and fat lip.


Thank goodness for Nana's Princess cold pak for booboos that she recently brought! She is delicately holding it on her nose and mouth. Oh the drama of a hurt little girl!


Uncle Kent and Justin came by to visit Saturday night. We went to Chuck E Cheese and then came back and watched Alvin and the Chipmunks. The next morning UK took HK to get donuts in her pjs. When it was time to leave HK was wanted to go home with UK...she had her coat on and was going to her room to pack her bag.
Our little guy just chillin' in the swing! He is filling out and growing so fast. It's hard to belive it's already been almost 5 weeks!

HK got a special ring for Christmas from Mommy and Daddy. We had to bribe her to get her to wear it. She did not want to put it on. Daddy told her she could watch Tinker Bell if she would wear it. She's actually worn it two days in a row now!

Some Things Don't Change

HK wanted to put the streamers on Grammpy's head and then comb it. She obviously enjoyed doing this last year as well. Those Grandpas sure are suckers...those little ones know how to get what they want!
Nana snugglin with Nolan while HK was styling Grampy's streamers during the parade on New Year's Day.

Happy New Year!

Nate worked in the ER on New Year's Eve. So Nana, Grampy, & Greatie came over for our own little party. We went out to eat. Then HK & Grampy went to the grocery store. They came back with popcorn, ice cream, & cupcakes. We played games & had lots of fun.

Nolan didn't quite make midnight. Not sure I did either!

I accidentally came across this picture on the computer this week. I cannot believe the difference one year can make. That was my sweet baby last new years & now she is such a big girl...and we have a new baby!

Bubba & Sissy...Happy New Year!
Happy New Year Little Guy!

HK wanted Grampy to be Santa and sit on his lap. That was surprising since she wanted no part of Santa this year.
HK & Grampy looking in the fire to see what they can find.
Nana taught HK how to throw the New Year's streamers complete with sound effects.
Mommy & HK enjoying the fire & seeing what our imaginations can see.
Greatie & Nolan just hanging out.
Playing Candy Land...what a great game for toddlers.