A Whole New World

Egg Nog Latte

2011-12-09T14:22:00.003-05:00

About 2 weeks ago my dad brought me an egg nog latte from Starbucks, because my dad knew that that day I needed it. I will always remember and be grateful for the special coffee. A start to the support my parents always give us.

That day while helping my mom decorate their Christmas tree and waiting for Johnny to get out of school Shawn called me on my parents home phone. He had news that turned our entire world upside down.

The Army decided that a unit in Fort Bliss Texas needs Shawn more then the unit in Fort Stewart Georgia, or us. That unit in Texas is headed on a deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan early next year. In one short morning our family went from planning trips to Disney world and the sunny beaches of Georgia to pure panic and anticipation of separation....again. This will be Shawn's third deployment, and at the end he will have spent 3 years of his life in the dessert. Although the first two deployments where not easy, Shawn and I are adults and able to understand that it won't last forever. This will be the first time he will have to be away from his kids. We know kids are strong and resilient and really too young to remember this when they grow up, but it doesn't make the thought any easier. Shawn will miss them and they will miss him. We have plans of recorded stories and video blog updates so that the kids can see him and hear him, and that is keeping me from falling apart.

We don't know a lot of details right now, we are still waiting for some official word to come it. It will happen fast in 2012 so after quickly deciding that me and the kids can't sit in Texas alone (33 hours away from any familiar face) while Shawn is gone and some longer talk about renting a house my parents street, both Grams and Pops offered us their own home. They have taken me in twice making separation and deployment easier, but this time there are three of us, and still my parents did not wait a second to offer us a place to live, support and daily help in the lives of a 3 year old and a 1 year old. They love those kids and they love us too!

We are finding "hidden blessings" in this dramatic turn of events. We have learned to appreciate each other again and living our daily lives as a family. Daddy holds his kids tighter and kisses them more often and I struggle to keep tears out of my eyes. Shawn will have the chance to do school on line and get in better shape down range then he can here. I have the same chance. With my parents to help with the kids and my brother and his family across the street (all who have more then given offers of support) I too can focus on school and maybe double up on classes and get done faster, as well as use the gym right down the street and finally ditch these 60 pounds of baby weight. Biggest of all we have a chance to save money and build a base for the rest our lives. A chance to make up for finical mistakes all young people make and really provide for our children.

I can't imagine how difficult this would be with out my parents gracious love. I feel so well taken care of! My warrior husband headed off to war to protect and provide for us. He has honor to continue his commitment to our country despite how much this will hurt him. My parents never have a second thought to take care of me and my children, no matter how hard it might be to have two young children ripping their house apart day and night. There are not words of thanks for these people I am so lucky to be blessed with as family.

2012 will be hard for the Branson family. We know it is scary, but the kids will not. This will be the fun year they lived with Grams and Pops. We are working very hard so that they never feel the stress of it. Daddy is going on an adventure to the dessert.

Really Cute Dennison Babies

2011-11-19T20:48:00.002-05:00

Grams and Pops are amazing Grandparents. There is nothing more important to them then these 6 little children. They spend their days watching Samantha and or Lily, picking Jack up from school, helping me with anything, and their evenings are filled with special time with Ella, Wyatt, or Piper, planning holidays, hosting holidays, creating special moments and memories and now preparing to be foster parents! They have no "free" time, but I know they wouldn't have it any other way!

Hey Johnny hold on to your sister... and he does :)

Six little sweeties all in a row. Ella 7 years, Jack 3.5 years, Wyatt 2.9 years, Samantha 2.5 years, Lily 18 months, Piper 13 months.

Some times kids will be kids!

And some times they will be perfect! All those beautiful babies, cousins, sisters, brothers and all are friends!

Excited and Scared

2011-11-06T23:16:00.002-05:00

We receievd official word this week that our family will be moving the Fort Stewart Georgia in February of 2012!! We are very excited for this new possibility of new adventures, but we are scared of leaving friends and family here in Maryland.

Although this blog as been pretty inactive in the past year it will become more active as we move away and loved ones left behind will want to stay involved and up to date. I won't have a choice but to update, so fingers crossed that I will :)

With the move and Christmas we are all pretty revved up and everyone is happy and healthy. Lily is using a lot of words, including "please please" when she wants something. Johnny is asking questions and figuring things out like the very intelligent little boy he is. We are all very happy and looking forward to the holiday season.

Caramel Apples

2011-10-18T23:12:00.004-04:00

Mommy did all of the hot work. Johnny stuck the sticks into the apples (then Momma straighten them after the first time the stick popped out of the apple while in the pot of caramel) then Mommy rolled the apples in the caramel and the kids had a blast dumping some sprinkles onto them.
"Look what I did Momma!!"

I just love it when she smiles like that, melts my heart! Check out those 8 teeth!

YUM!
I can't count the millions on pictures I have of Johnny smiling like this, and I treasure each one!

Ahh I think I see a bath in our immediate future!

I love this fall tradition and I think the kids loved it too! Daddy has been gone for 12 days at training, so we have been keeping busy and only a few days till he comes home!

Lily Dancing and Being Cute

2011-09-14T16:02:00.002-04:00

My beautiful ballerina!

Lily has taken to dancing and sometimes singing! It is just too adorable not to video tape.

She mostly just shakes that baby Branson butt, and I love it!

We Will Never Forget

2011-09-11T23:37:00.003-04:00

I was a junior in high school, it seems like a whole different world to me now.

It was any other day, we had not been living in Maryland long, my mom was still unpacking boxes. My dad was still in training for his new government job and was scheduled to tour the Pentagon that day, but for some reason told only me that he wouldn't be there until the afternoon. It is still odd in my head how clear my dad was in telling me something I didn't care about, as a cranky teenager.

Some time in the morning rumors started to circular about a bombing in New York, but how did that effect us a few hours away? Then I walked into Ms. O's class, which is my computer course and the news was on the television. No one talked to each other, all we did was stare at TV. When it came on that a plane had also hit the pentagon, I had one moment of panic and then a deep breath that I KNEW my dad was not there. But my poor mother did not have that knowledge and she could not reach my father becuase training did not stop and he didn't even know about the attach until lunch. Even though he wasn't released from training he drove home, he knew his family needed him.

This is what made my generation what it is. Both Shawn and I joined the Army AFTER 9-11. We knew what we where getting into, but we had pride for our country and wanted to protect it from this, our home, our way of life!

I will never forget sitting with my parents in the basement for hours watching the news. As a teenager I sat quietly with my parents praying in my heart not knowing what the world would look like when the dust settled.

We Will Never Forget!

1st Day of Pre-School

2011-09-09T22:57:00.000-04:00

So it might not be actual preschool, I think it is technically nursery school, but all Johnny knows is that he is going to school, like Sid the Science Kid and he is a big boy!

Mommy made special shorts and an embroidered shirt to mark this special first day!
Look Out Pre-K here he comes!

Along with his special toddler sized back pack!

That Mommy made even more special with his name and triceratops!

Even Lily was excited for Johnny to go to school, she got a special supportive little sister, first day of school outfit.

On the drive to school, Johnny had to check to ensure his giant pencils and crayons where right where they should be.

We even took some brownies to thank his new teachers in advance for all their hard work this school year.

Walking down the hallway. I don't know if you can tell, but when Johnny gets anxious or is thinking really hard about something, he plays with his ears, he was anxious but ready for this day.

Once we got into the classroom and hung up his back pack he was ready for his sister and Mommy to be on their way. I asked him to give Lily a good bye hug and he picked her up from behind and swung her around.

Before I even thought of leaving he was wrist deep into learning!

And though I know he loves me, he did not really need me their any more :(

I cried as I walked away. I remember very clearly being hugely pregnant with Johnny when I would pick up or drop off Ella to this same school. It is so strange to be back with Johnny who is now the same age that Ella was when he was born!

Lily and I went to Grams and Pops house, since they live less then 10 minutes from the school and we live more then 20. These two days a week that Johnny will be in school is a perfect chance for Lily to get some time with Sammi and Grams and Papa.

It wasn't long before it was time to get Johnny from school, and boy was he excited to see me!

That smile really makes me feel wonderful! I might actually be doing this parenting thing right for once.

I left Lily with Grams and Pops and took Johnny to a special first day of school lunch, just him and me to McDonalds.

We sat and talked about school for a while. He sang his ABCs, ring around the rosies and the name song for me. Though he couldn't remember his teachers or new friends names quite yet. We will get there.

After lunch, back to Grams and Pops house where we found a congregation in the bathroom, Sammi went pee pee on the potty! Yeah Sammi!!! But I think she wanted us out

And then some Grand kid crazyness, I think my mom handles it well!

And finally some calm hugs and good byes.

What a day! I am so glad he enjoyed himself, I know we are setting him up to love learning for the rest of his life!

Pre-School Meet and Greet

2011-09-07T16:14:00.001-04:00

Everyday since we bought Johnny's backpack he has asked me if he could go to school. Finally a day came when he got to go to school and meet his teachers and new friends.

And this was his reaction to seeing his new classroom!

And it didn't take long for him to dig right into all of the toys

His teachers also made the rounds to meet and talk to all of the kids.

Lily made herself very comfortable in the classroom, you would think she was starting school.

Here is Johnny's other teachers introducing herself.

Johnny meet lots of friends, and played with this little boy for most of the visit, but when I ask him who his friends are he can't tell me their names.

Papa, Grams and Sammi came to meet the class too, we are a family who supports each other!

Look at that big boy standing in front of the calender all ready for his school to start!

Some time feeding all of us lunch.

And then some time playing Daddy.

He is so excited to go to school, it took a lot of work to get him home after the meet and greet!

Johnny Sings his ABCs

2011-08-31T16:23:00.002-04:00

3 years and 5 months old and my super smart monkey boy can recite his ABCs!!! Yeah he knows the song, but he can also recognize and name each letter!!!

He starts school in one week...he is ready!!!

Wordless Friday

2011-08-26T08:31:00.001-04:00

"I'm going to college"

2011-08-25T08:08:00.004-04:00

Mommy (who is being called "Mother" this morning) was sitting on the couch knitting when Johnny , with an arm full of squishy toys, came up to her.
"Good bye Mother, we are leaving now"
"Where are you going?"
"We are going to college, both of us."
"But I don't want you to go to college."
"Don't worry, Mother, college is right here."
Johnny then walked over to the library corner of the living room and sat down in the chair calling for his sister to join him in college.

For the last 20 minutes he has been walking back and forth from "college" with an arm full of squishy toys (stuffed animals) telling me that he is home and then that he is leaving again. His sister still refuses to follow him to college.

One day he really will leave for college and I want to remember this moment, when college is just the other side of the room where the books are, and the most important things he needed to take were his sister and his stuffed elephant.

Lots of Park Pictures

2011-08-24T16:34:00.006-04:00

Another summer day and it is beautiful outside, so why wouldn't we head to the park.

I feel like I haven't been taking enough pictures of so we took my camera with us and didn't stop using it for more then an hour.

I am constantly surprised how old, big and capable Johnny is, he is growing far too fast!

On our walk to the park someone told us that Lily was a little ray of sunshine!!! Her eyes have been glowing lately and I become mesmerized by them very often.

One of Johnny's best friends live very close to the park and when he caught sight of her headed to the park he ran full speed for her!

He was so happy to have a friend to play with.

Morgan and her family will be leaving for Germany soon, and that is the life of an Army brat.

We still have some summer left, and it is wonderful!

Earthquake?

2011-08-23T09:41:00.002-04:00

That is right we had our own east coast earthquake today!!! Crazy right? It was a 5.8 and lasted less then 3 minutes!! The center was DC but it covered more then 20 states. It was very strange, but made us giggle and woke the kids up from their naps.

Playing Camp Out

2011-08-19T18:54:00.003-04:00

We have gone camping 3 times this summer and the kids LOVE it!! They both sleep well in a tent and look so cute running around dirty and shoeless in nature. Johnny loves it so much that he has started to play "camp out" where he gathers flash lights, blankets, pillows and his sleeping bag and pretends he is outside at night.

Lily also really loves her brother, who she now calls "YaYa" and when he gets on her level she is all over him and the two of them just kind of roll around and laugh.

They are just amazing and wonderful children, I am so lucky.

Getting Ready for School

2011-08-16T16:50:00.004-04:00

Yes, you read that right, Johnny is preparing for his first year of Pre-School!!!! Scary right? 3 and half years ago school was the last thing on my mind, it seemed like a million years away. But Kindergarten really is only 2 years away and we wanted to make sure our smart little boy has every opportunity to succeed!! So 2 days a week for 2 and half hours a day Johnny will be learning and playing and sitting in a class room like a big boy.

Mommy and Johnny have spent the summer learning everything we can. We focused on colors, shapes and letters, but this week we started on tracing and writing! He loves doing his work books and earning stickers for each page that he completes.

Yesterday we got the packet from Johnny's school with his official start days and school supply list, so today we headed to Target to get him everything he would need.

Mommy made a "toddler" sized backpack, but it proved to be too small to hold everything the school wants to send home every day, so Johnny got to pick out a new back pack. This camo one was our first option.

But in the end this is the back pack he choose, Mommy is going to put some dinos and his name on it with the embroidery machine.

Johnny was so excited to get his crayons and glue sticks and fat pencils that he carried it all around in a shopping basket by himself as we walked around the store.

And just becuase Lily is adorable, here is she, smiling the day away as she always does.

Yes I am ignoring the fact that I am super behind in my blog posts. I have decided to just pick up and move on. I love blogging for my kids and this is their baby books, but the over load of back posts that I want to do was just keeping me from getting back to this. So I will back date birthdays and our recent vacation, but that is it, sorry!

Lily Gives Kisses!!

2011-07-15T12:59:00.002-04:00

It is just so adorable to get kisses from a smiling 13 month old with only two teeth sticking up at you. You ask Lily for a kiss and she makes the noise we make "mmmmmuha" and puckers her lips together, then gives you a little smile. She is the sweetest little thing!

4th of July Ironbirds Baseball Game

2011-07-08T11:28:00.000-04:00

I always really look forward holidays, 4th of July is one of those that I love! Aside from fireworks, cookouts and summer fun I treasure the pride I feel at knowing I a free American and those words mean more then I could ever type here.

This year I made matching outfits for the kids. I want them to always feel special, in one of a kind special holiday cloths.

This year for 4th of July we went to the local minor league baseball game, the Ironbirds, we have gone often and my parents have season tickets and have for 10 years! We got special event tickets with a hotdog, chip and soda buffet and special seats to see the after game fireworks.

Though we always have fun at the games, the Ironbirds are not a good team, so we spend a lot of the game time at the children's play area.

Johnny LOVED this giant slide! and was fearless going up and down.

We had new friends from church with us, Isabelle is 2 years old and her and Johnny walked around holding hands and wanted to sit next to each other all the time.

The two even went down the slide at the same time!

We did watch a little of the game as the Ironbirds lost, again.

I wanted to get a good picture of Lily in the dress I made her, but the little firecracker did not stop moving and kept running away from me!

Johnny loves his little sister!

Eating some peanuts and cracker jacks! The kids also had cotton candy, deep fried Oreos and a funnel cake....hey it is a holiday :)

As the time hit 9:30pm the game ended and we got ready for some fireworks! The tickets were worth the great view we got the fireworks alone.

Nothing blocked and we had to look up almost right above us.

Last year Johnny sat on my lap staring at the fireworks in awe, but 1 month old Lily slept through them, so this year I really wanted Lily to see the fireworks. She fussed a little at the beginning, but them settled against me and watched intently.

It was 10:30pm before we got home, but we were all having so much fun that we didn't want to stop. We pulled out the glow sticks and poppers and had a little extra crazy kid fun!

Both kids slept with their glows sticks that night :)

Random Wednesday

2011-07-06T17:30:00.001-04:00

I just emptied my camera and found some great pictures of my strange little kids.

This pink container holds Lily's downstairs toys, and apparently is a great cave to "hide from the monster." Lily is the monster and Johnny runs from her and she laughs as she chases him.

Lily likes to get into the cave too, even monsters like to hide.

In the past month since she turned one, not only has Lily stopped crawling and started to walk all over the place, she has also become a climber and the shoe basket is no longer a way to keep her out of the kitchen.

Johnny loves Wonder Pets, and the Wonder Pets love celery. Usually when Johnny watches Wonder Pets he asks for celery, but one day he realized that celery is not yummy and he wanted to throw it out, so we made ants on a log!! Celery with peanut butter and raisins, it was one of my favorite snacks as a kid and Johnny loves it too.

Samantha comes to play once a week or so, and she is always disappointed when she gets here if Lily is asleep. Here Sammi is showing Lily how much she loves visiting her with a big tackle hug!

My mother also recently sent a bunch of pictures from her camera and my dad's fancy phone.

Last week "Jack" got to go to the local Ironbirds baseball game with Papa, just the two of them having some time together.Papa started off by getting him a new shirt and hat for the season! Isn't he adorable? He loves the hat now and every time he sees it he tells me "that's from when I went to the baseball game with Papa."

And of course some fun time in the kids area!

And some cotton candy, Johnny had a blast, and can't wait to go back!

Papa comes over a few times a week and takes the kids on a walk, he loved Lily relaxen in her stroller, feet up and all.
Last week we visited Grams and Pops house from some kiddie pool fun, first we wanted to empty out the pool and clean it out, Johnny was very quick to tell us that he was a big boy and he could help us, so he did.

He also wanted to fill it up, and had as much fun filling it as he did playing in it.

And then a little later, Johnny wanted into the hammock and Samantha wanted in with him.

One last point of my strange little kid, he literally snatched the can of green beans off the counter and ran into the living room to eat them, right out of the can cold!

Wordless Friday

2011-06-24T19:36:00.003-04:00

I know I am really behind with the blog :( I have a lot of pictures and a lot of events to put up here really soon!

Our Cupcakes One Year Pictures

2011-06-21T14:17:00.003-04:00

Video of Walking Lily

2011-06-13T17:22:00.003-04:00

She is getting so old, so big!

Birthday Morning

2011-06-13T15:35:00.012-04:00

Mommy has been planning and looking forward to Lily's Birthday for more then a year. I wanted Lily to have a day just for her!

We started the day with some presents!

Good Morning Birthday Girl!!! She was a little confused, but when everyone else around her was excited, she got excited.

And headed into her new tent for presents.

Her first gift, she needed a little help getting it started.

And that is where her always reliable brother came in to save the day.

I wonder what it could be? Oh it is so exciting.

It is a doll!! Lily's first Cabbage Patch!! Doesn't it look just like her?

And matching lily dresses that Mommy made!

Johnny picked out the next gift to be opened. It was his gift for his little sister.

A cupcake bank that he decorated himself!!!

More gifts to come!

Her first purse, complete with make up and cell phone.

Lily started to lose interest in presents, especially when she saw Daddy laying on the couch, she had to go visit him.Mommy made this outfit and bow just for today and I am so happy with how it came out.

Her next present was one that we looked for a lot. We wanted a perfect cupcake charm and necklace. I ended up having one made for her.

Eventually it will go on the charm bracelet she will get in a few years. For now we will get a good picture of her in it soon.

After presents it was time for some yummy special birthday breakfast!

Bacon and chocolate chip pancakes what could be better?

YUM BACON!!!

Bacon and chocolate can only keep your attention for a short time when new toys are in the other room.

The two of them where in that tent for 40 minutes! It was a great gift.

Her Cabbage Patch was also a favored gift, she hugged her and carried her around.

Even taking a few little steps with her in her arms.

It was a great start to a great birthday!
More pictures to come.

My Young Cousin

2011-05-31T16:55:00.002-04:00

My Cousin, Andrew, died of a self inflicted gun shot wound this morning.

He would have been 22 in August.

I wish I had known him better, but I think everyone would say that. I remember him as the last time I saw him, right after Lily was born, he was so excited about life. He is a child in my mind, so young to be gone. I am taken back at how much I hurt, I didn't really know him but I just wish it was Monday again, I just wish he was still here.

Lily's First Birthday Party

2011-05-30T17:00:00.015-04:00

Our Lil' Cupcake is turning one!!! We wanted to really celebrate her life and the blessing that she is to us. So we invited we all of our friends to our house for a cookout and some fun under the sun!

Aunt Cookie, (Lily's Godmother) and Uncle Ron drove down from Ohio for the party. Don't they look so cool? Mommy tried to remain calm and stress free as the party approached, but that didn't really work, Mommy always gets stressed out, she just wants everything to be perfect for her babies. But wonderfully our family came over to help us prepare!

Papa helped too! and Doesn't Lily Bean look amazing in her special fairy outfit. Mommy and her friend Jennie made it.

Lily Bean and her God Mother!

It was really hot, and Lily was leaving glitter where ever she went, so she changed into a sepcial outfit that Aunt Cookie got for her.

Oh she is just so adorable!
and sweet! That is the same hat that Samantha wore on her first birthday.

While Lily was being adorable, all the kids where playing on the new bouncy house. Grams and Pops helped Mommy and Daddy buy it for her party so we can keep using it for parties and anything else!
LILY'S FIRST STEPS!During her party Lily did something amazing, that we have been waiting for...she took her very first steps! She stood up on her own and took three little steps for this bottle of bubble that Aunt Natalie was holding.

She kept doing it!

She really wanted this hotdog that Jennie was holding.

Lily Loven her Papa!

And the kids loven the roller coaster!

Then it was time for some cake. Mommy made a big cupcake for smashing purposes and them some normal cupcakes that spell out "Happy Birthday Lily"

Happy Birthday little cupcake, she couldn't wait to get to her cake.

Really digging in! Up to the elbow.

This was my favorite part of the day, she loved her cake and the attention she got. She is was so sweet and happy the entire time!

More fun in the bouncy house!

It felt like a chaotic carnival and every kid was crazy and happy, what a wonderful feeling.

Big brother Johnny was telling everyone that it was his baby's birthday, he was so happy to do the paint this cupcake bank for his lily's birthday gift.

Everybody loved coloring the banks to take home!

Lily and her best friend, Anna. These two and are 16 months apart and attached to each other whenever we get together.
Lily Jean had a wonderful time at her party!!! Thank you to everyone for the sweet and special gifts! She is certainly spoiled!!!

Lily's First Steps

2011-05-29T19:58:00.004-04:00

Today was Lily's first birthday party. A bunch of friends and family, some sun and some fun! During this fun Lily was standing up in place without using anything to pull herself up on, a lot. And with family around her she took some little steps towards a bottle of bubbles her Aunt was holding! She took a few more little steps towards a hot dog later!! My little girl is growing up! Though we are exhausted, we all had an amazing time!!! Pictures to come!

Random Happy Branson Pictures

2011-05-16T10:41:00.007-04:00

I am sorry that I have recently let the blog fall by the wayside. We have been happy and busy and taking tons of pictures, but they just sit on my camera. Well not any more!

Last week a old and dear friend came down from Michigan to visit her family and came to see us as well. This her daughter, Kat, whom she got the wonderful surprise of being pregnant with her the day I was due to have Johnny, the two are just 8 months apart! They had a great afternoon playing and reading together! We miss them now!
That same day we got a great surprise that Grandpa George (who is a cross country truck driver) was delivery a load near us and wanted to stop and see his Grandkids. It has been 9 months since we have seen him and you wouldn't have known it at all! We look forward to his next visit!

Johnny has been finding his own little personality lately. Last week while watching Wonder Pets, an episode came on that asked for help in saving an animal. Johnny got very excited and very serious! He ran around to find his cape and settle in to help save a humming bird and celebrate with some celery.

Recently the weather have been beautiful day after day and Papa brought over some sand for Johnny's sand box. He spends most of every day out there (as I open all of the down stairs windows and listen to him talk to his trucks) He makes a huge mess, but loves it so much and gets so upset when it rains and he can't go outside.

Last week Daddy made the mistake of setting Lily's yogurt on the table just a little too close to her. She is a very grabby baby and wants everything she sees, she is so curious!

She got a hold of that YoBaby and it didn't take long before it was just everywhere, I mean EVERYWHERE!

But messes are worth it, when they come along with that smile!

Johnny's sense of humor has been developing lately, especially this very subtle underwear humor. When you are watching him put his cloths on he always puts his underwear (and pants) on backwards the first try and just looks at you giggling. This morning we got dressed in comfy cloths underwear on under his shorts, then a few hours later I looked at him and got very confused.

The funny little guy had taken his shorts and underwear off in hiding and put his underwear on top of his short! He waited for me to notice and just laughed and ran away from me. Every time I look at him I giggle and can't bring myself to make him put them on right, what harm is he doing and it sure did brighten up my day!

Bubble Fun

2011-05-12T12:04:00.000-04:00

It is a beautiful day, so we all headed outside for some bubble time!

Daddy is great at making big bubbles, and Johnny is great at popping them

Her First Birthday is Sneaking Up On Us

2011-05-11T15:58:00.001-04:00

This year has flown by!

11 Months

2011-05-04T09:16:00.008-04:00

I have again gotten caught up in life and lost track of time. My baby doesn't seem to be baby like any more, Lily Jean is 11 months old! Her birthday party is in the works!

Her perfect little personality is coming out more and more every day! She likes to lay back and put her feet up.

She has also become extremely mobile. She doesn't seem to know that she can walk, so she won't take those first steps. But she crawls like a champ and very fast!

She is always into everything! You can't keep anything away from her.

She has also grown to love being outside as much as her brother does and will spend hours in this swing if we let her.

Samantha comes to visit us once a week, so we get an entire day with her! And Lily LOVES her. She sqwells and jumps when she sees her and is always pulling herself up on her, which Sammi could do without.

Like I said, she is into everything and one of her favorite toys is this laundry basket! She is in and out of it all day long, I don't have the heart to put it away, since she loves it so much.

I feel like Lily is so unique. Every day is a new adventure and she remains as the happiest baby ever! She goes and goes without a second thought. She is also the wigglyiest baby ever, she is NEVER still and the only time she will cuddle is in the middle of the night.

There is nothing she can't eat, even with only two little teeth. But she LOVES bananas and hard boiled eggs. The pediatrician gave us the go ahead to start letting her ween, which is great becuase she has very little interest in bottles or formula any more. She will suck on it for a few minutes but never takes in more then a couple of ounces. So we are offering her a sippy of Organic milk at each meal and water or juice sippys in between. I only give her a bottle is she is fussy and I think she needs the comfort to help her sleep. She still hasn't gotten the hang of sippys and will suck out too much water into her mouth and then it ends up all over the front of her. We keep trying different cups, she will get the hang of it.

I am always looking for the words to descibe Lily Bean Jelly Bean. She has such energy and spirit. She smiles at every single person she sees and if they don't see her or don't smile back she makes cute little cooing noises and smiles more to get their attention. No matter what she is wearing (though Mommy still loves dressing her up for any occasion) she is the center of every room and has compete strangers ohh and ahhing over her. I wish I could record the hundreds of people who tell me how beautiful she is.

Beauty and shear adorablness are not Lily's only gifts. She is also so so so smart, she is almost too good to be true. She tries to repeat every word she hears. And can say Momma and Daddy and knows who we are. She also says bye bye very clearly and waves to go along with it. Conventional toys do no interest her, but give her a piece of paper and she is completely happy. I can see her, and this perfect little blessing, I have to take a step back and wonder how I was so lucky to be so blessed with such an easy and happy child, again!

Proud to be an American

2011-05-02T07:49:00.003-04:00

I want my kids to remember today,
I want them to be proud to be Americans,
proud to be the children of soldiers

"Today, at my direction, the United States launched a targeted operation against that compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan," Obama said. "A small team of Americans carried out the operation with extraordinary courage and capability. No Americans were harmed. They took care to avoid civilian casualties. After a firefight, they killed Osama bin Laden and took custody of his body."

Osama bin Laden is dead! At the hands of U.S. Special Forces justice is served. 10 years after the attack on the American way of life which started this war that their Daddy has fought in twice. The leader of Qaeda and organizer of the 9/11 attachs on the New York Twin Towers.

Remember children what occurred in your life time and what made Mommy and Daddy's generation who they are.

Easter with Our Family

2011-04-25T20:49:00.018-04:00

There are few things more important then family, especially during holidays. As a military family we are more then blessed to be living less then a half an hour from our family. We know there will be years that we won't get to spend Easter with them, so we saver each moment of the years that we are together.

After baskets and breakfast we got all dressed up and headed over to Grams and Pops' house to take them to church. We have been planning Lily's First Easter outfit for months! I think she is beautiful and she makes the dress perfect. Mommy knitted her sweater and made her bow, because I love making her cute stuff.

Lily's cousins have the same dress as Lily, so that they can all match and be even more adorable!
"Aunt Nenni" also made Sammi and Ella's sweaters and bows, why not?

While we where at Grams and Pops' house they gave the kids their Easter gifts. Johnny was so sweet and excited.

That is my handsome perfect little boy. He got a St Christopher medal. St Christopher is the patron saint of children and travelers, so perfect for an Army brat. It is a tradition in our family, Papa has one and gave one to me and my brothers each at a special time in our lives. Papa gave me mine when I started a new high school in a new state in my junior year. It is a memory I treasure, just like Johnny will treasure this special gift.

Lily got a bunny purse that held a tiny silver bracelet

strung with her birthstone (pearl) and engraved with her name.

Her little bracelet is so precious, I hope that at her birthday pictures we can get some adorable pictures of it, since I didn't get a great one.

These kids just love their Grams and Pops, I don't know what we would do without them. They make these holidays so special and enrich the kids lives every day!

Lily also has a thing for their beast of a dog, Brutus. She spent the morning chasing him around the living room as he tried to escape her, she was sure it was the best game ever.

I have come to truly enjoy church, especially on these holy days. We attended mass at St Margaret's Mission. It was hot and crowded, but I enjoyed the sermon about fresh starts in this Easter season and spring.

After mass we headed outside and found these great flowering trees to take some pictures under. It was close to 80 degrees! So everyone stripped down a layer to be more comfortable.

Johnny loved being in the tree, I think he felt big, looking down on all of us. But no one was comfortable with him up there, hence Daddy's arm under him at all times and in every picture.

Johnny has also started a new thing of picking flowers for the women in his life. He picked some and right away wanted to give them to all of us, then he wanted to give some to Samantha and Ella, but they were not with us. So we took some home for them. He is the most loving child I have ever known.

He also loves his little sister so much!

She is just so beautiful!

We took off her tights, sweater and shoes to help her cool down, and I think it makes her look even sweeter!

Later in the afternoon everyone headed to our house for an egg hunt and dinner. This is our third year hosting and I love it, we get better every year. All the girls where great in their matching dresses. We did really miss Wyatt and Piper who stayed in Ohio this year. Wyatt has a little suit just like John Roberts and Piper has a rose petal dress too.

This pictures makes me tear up a little, he is just so handsome! Old and sweet, my big baby boy.

The sweet boy who loves his cousins was very happy to hold every one's hands. His best day is when he has his cousins around him to play.

You get the best pictures when they don't know you are taking them. As soon as we sat down to take the picture Ella asked to hold Lily. She is an amazing big cousin, always taking care of the little ones.

After a quick wardrobe change the kids descended on the back yard to hunt out the Easter eggs. The Easter bunny was asked to really hide the eggs this year so the kids had to look for them and not just pick them up.

The Easter Bunny also told Mommy and Daddy that he wanted to get the kids a swing set, but that it wouldn't fit in a basket. So Mommy and Daddy handled that for the Easter Bunny and found a great swing set that they got a great deal on. Of course now nothing else fits in the yard.

I always forget just how old Ella is. This year she will be 7 and headed into first grade!

It felt so wonderful to watch the kids running around and hearing them giggle and yell out every time they found an egg. They shared with each other and pointed out the easier ones for the smaller kids. It felt perfect.

Samantha didn't care so much for the egg hunt after just a few minutes , when she saw the swing set!Eventually Sammi got down and gave Lily Bean a chance to swing, I think she liked it just a little :)
Dinner was wonderful. Ham, potatoes, home made mac and cheese (my Gramma Nancy's recipe), fresh green beans, and crescent rolls. We all just ate and talked, even after we had finished eating some people got up and some of us stayed and talked and people just came and went and it was relaxing.

While the adults had home made apple pie home made carrot cake (Natalie made them from scratch!) Lily got to have her very first chocolate! I like making these things special by including them in a holiday, Johnny had his first chocolate on his first Valentines Day. At first Lily did know what to do with it, I had to put it in her mouth and let her taste it before she dove in.

It didn't take her long and she completely devoured it! I was worried she would get a tummy ache, but she is my daughter and was more then fine.

While Lily was eating chocolate and the adults where talking, the other three kids just played together, no problems, they where just happy to be together and needed nothing else. They played waiter for a while, serving these cupcakes to everyone.

Another holiday behind us and some more very precious memories made!

Easter Morning

2011-04-25T15:55:00.011-04:00

As usual I have taken far too many pictures so I will have to split up our Easter into a few different posts. Prepare for cuteness over load!

The Easter Bunny tried to down grade the amount of toys and candy this year, but couldn't. Maybe next year we can stay inside the basket (which you can barely see here)

Johnny was very excited and a little surprised. Each and every item he pulled out of the basket was the most exciting item he ever saw.

It also took Lily a few minutes to realize what was going on and what was for her.

The Easter Bunny got Hungry Hungry Hippos just because, but it turns out that he had wanted it forever!It was after Johnny had pulled out a few of his toys that Lily dived into her stuff.

And first was this ceramic cupcake topped with a bunny.

Dinosaur train!

At this point it was all just a jumble of the kids playing with their new toys. I was very proud and happy to watch them enjoy Easter. Johnny took out one toy at a time, showed his excitement, put it gently to the side and moved on.

Mommy and her camera are always interesting and must be investigated.

He was very interested in what Lily got and helping Lily look through her basket and keeping her interested. He is a great big brother!

They shared a lot of what the other got. Lily got four containers of bubbles each one smelled like a different fruit.

Three foot long gummie snake! He got TWO!! The day after Easter he ate entire one so quick we had to serach the house to make sure he didn't just leave it some where.

This was the moment that he realized there was a lot of candy in the basket. This bag of bunny shaped mash-mellows was the greatest thing EVER!

Then he started to bring Mommy all of his and Lily's candy, for "later."

Lily's "big" part to her Easter basket where these cupcake matching shapes. The top and bottom are a certain shape, like star, moon, circle...

She thought they where very yummy, Silly Lily those aren't real cupcakes!

I swear that I did not stage this picture! Lily got a bunny bowling set, here she was sucking on some bunny ears and holding the bowling balls....she is just a little strange and a LOT cute!

Peeps, that was the one candy he chose to eat, and he scarfed it down.

YUM Animal crackers help her not to realize that there are fuzzy ears on her head.

The morning felt like it was over quick, but both beautiful children loved their baskets and Mommy and Daddy beamed while watching them and sharing these wonderful moments of memories made.

And then we got dressed for church....many many more pictures to come!

Keep You Safe

2011-04-22T11:45:00.002-04:00

Keep You Safe
by JJ Heller

Quiet your heart
It's just a dream
Go back to sleep

I'll be right here
I'll stay awake
As long as you need me

To slay all the dragons
And keep out the monsters
I'm watching over you

My love is a light
Driving away all of your fear
So don't be afraid
Remember I made a promise to keep you safe

You'll have your own battles to fight
When you are older
You'll find yourself frozen inside
But always remember...

If you feel alone facing the giants
And you don't know what to do...

My love is a light
Driving away all of your fear
So don't be afraid
Remember I made a promise to keep you...
Safe

My love is a light
Driving away all of your fear
So don't be afraid
Remember I made a promise to keep you safe

Easter Bunny

2011-04-16T18:18:00.003-04:00

Happy First Easter Lily Bean!!! She just loves the Easter Bunny, grabbing at him and staring at him, he was the most intersting thing ever.

We are spending the week end in Ohio with Uncle Chuckles, Aunt Chel, Wyatt, and Piper. Having a blast!!! It is also Piper's first Easter, everyone was so good.

A few Beautiful Days

2011-04-11T19:29:00.006-04:00

Finally the cold is starting to subside and the warm spring weather is starting to emerge...but only after it storms and is gloomy. Last week we had our very first beautiful day of the season and Lily finally got to go to the park!

She loved the wagon and being so close to Johnny, she just giggled at him the entire trip.

But the grass was a new sensation that she wasn't so sure of.

We got her to give a little wave for the pictures (which my friend Leslie took, thanks!)

But she never really took to it.

Meanwhile, under the slide Johnny was making friends, as he always does! He is great about clinging to friends he has already made (Morgan) and jumping on the chance to talk to this new little boy whose name I don't know.

But the three of them could not be separated!

Lily Bean loved her first swing ride and would have sat their for hours as long as I would keep pushing her.

And Johnny was off showing us all that he is no longer a baby!

It was a full week before we had another warm and sunny day to enjoy outside. After a trip to the park Johnny was red faced and worked up so we pulled out the sprinkler and let him have some fun!

He was also covered in dirt and mud so I didn't bother to change him, and he didn't want to be changed.

He had sprinkler fun for 45 minutes before the spring breeze made it too chilly and he had to come in. But I know he will sleep great tonight and I look forward to many many more warm and beautiful days.

School

2011-04-04T20:01:00.004-04:00

Johnny is now 3, which means he is old enough for certain preschool programs. We believe there are few things more important then education, so Johnny is already enrolled in a wonderful program though the YMCA. Starting in the fall Johnny will be in school for 2.5 hours twice a week. I am constantly taken back by how efficiently he learns, while I was focusing on his colors, he was busy learning his letters! I am nervous as a mother for him to be under someone else's control for two days a week, but I am also so excited for him to truly start his education and for him to be on a path for success for the rest of his life.

Under his inspiration I began looking into finishing my bachelor's degree. I earned my associates degree in Psychology back before I married Shawn and worked on my BA on and off over the last 6 years, but I never focused the way I should. I was inspired to show my children just how important education is, that college, no matter how you do it, is not an option.

I have been looking into on line or distant learning universities since I would like to continue to be at home with my children as much as possible. I applied to one university that had a good psychology program and after some issues I learned that it wasn't the school for me. Then after some thinking, praying, and talking to friends and family I decided that it was time to change my major. My life no longer lead towards the need for information on psychology, now my children are the most important thing in my life. So how could I not want to know how to teach them and do everything I could for them? How could I not want a degree in early childhood development? It was prefect! And the moment I settled on that decision my soul felt at peace. It was like I was called to get my teaching degree. It will take a little longer and be a little redundant, but I can't see enjoying or being successful at any other career.

Today is the first day of my classes at Grand Canyon University . A private Christian University in Arizona with a purely on line Early Childhood development program, GCU, has been very welcoming and helpful. I feel like this huge new chapter of my life has started and I am very excited to see where it leads me!

My Own Beautiful Cherry Blossoms and a Wonderful day!

2011-04-03T08:26:00.003-04:00

We are lucky enough to live just 2 hours from our Nation's Capital! So we try to take advantage of public transportation and get up to DC as often as we can. This week the National Cherry Blossom festival started! Although the forcast wasn't great, we decided to suck it up and get as much out of our Saturday as possible. (this is going to be a very long post!)

We where all really excited to get out of the house! We told the kids we where going on another mystery train ride to see some pretty flowers.

There where booths all over DC celebrating the Festival, here the Coast Guard was handing out coloring books, though Johnny wasn't sure about the huge sea otter.

We got off the Metro down by the water where there was suppose to be a lot of fair type stuff, but most of it was too adult and we wanted to see flowers! so we started walking. On our walk we ran into the fish market. I can't believe I have never been to a fish market before.

It was really amazing to see all this fresh sea food right by the water where it was caught!

Maybe a little less amazing but pretty cool is the squid and octopus!

We did very seriously consider buying some fresh shark (or shrimp the size of your thumb) but we didn't like the idea of taking fishy fish on the metro and then the hour long car ride, so one day we will go back with a cooler and some ice. I don't like sea food but this stuff actually looked pretty good!

It was raining and a little cold when we got off the Metro but it cleared up quickly and became a beautiful day! Lily was so happy and adorable that nearly every 10 minutes someone was telling us how cute she was or stopped and asked to take her picture.

After a solid 30 minutes of walking we made it to the Cherry Blossoms!

Most of them where white, it looked like marshmallows! and the vast sea of them was breathtaking. The 12 years that I have lived here (on and off) I have never made it up to see the blossoms, I am so glad we made it this year.

Although we couldn't get a cruise for all of us to ride the Potomac and see the trees, Johnny and Daddy got a paddle boat and headed out on the water.

Johnny just loved the water! and Daddy paddled his heart out to show Johnny all the trees.

While the boys where out Lily and I walked along the water and took some pictures of the trees

And Lily being adorable, as usual and smiling at every person she saw. But I wanted pink blossoms to take pictures of her, I dressed her to match pink Cherry Blossoms.

After about 30 minutes of made paddling the waves started to get ruff and the clouds started to form so the boys headed in and it was a good thing since then it started to hail! We thought we would make it to a museum before the clouds opened up but we did, so we pulled out the umbrellas and found a little corner under some furn trees to wait it out.

It was cozy and we where not the only ones who had the idea. It didn't last long and soon the sun came out again. We talked about going home, but I wanted to find some pink blossoms first!

And then we found them! Down by the Jefferson Memorial! Aren't they just beautiful?

After the rain it did get a little cold, so here is Johnny pretending to shiver :) it wasn't that cold big boy.

And smelling the blossoms

I think he really did have a good time just looking at the trees, I wish I knew what was going through his mind? If he could take in what these blossoms mean or if he was as over whelmed with happiness as I was having us all together and enjoying this time.

I think Lily got it! She was her perfect self all day!

I wanted pictures of the kids by these blossoms, I even dressed Lily to match (One very sweet woman called her a Little Blossom!) But it was hard since most of the blossoms are above even our heads.

So Daddy held her up and she shined like she always does!!

After seeing the Jefferson Memorial and being interviewed by an Airforce photo journalist who was doing a story on the Festival and the weather we started to head back to the Mall and see what else we could see.

We found an open spot on the bridge and stood to take in the view for a few minutes. I was so impressed with the kids who didn't need to keep going, Johnny was just as happy to stop and look at the water as he would have been doing anything else.

After Lily's mini photo shoot with the flowers we bundled her back up and buckled her into the stroller. She sat there content as ever for the next 3 hours! She NEVER fussed or complained and just smiled and played with her feet! I think she enjoyed watching the people all around her and giving out smiles.

Shawn and I enjoyed walking and talking about our country and letting the patriotic feeling run over us so we headed into the National History Museum to see what Johnny would like to see and what else we could teach him today. I hope he have a passion for learning and a pride in being an American.

What was the first thing Johnny saw? this train! He RAN for it and was in shock!!!

He wouldn't look at me, just at the train, that is fine big boy, this engineering is what it mean to be an American!

He loved the transportation part of the museum. Cars and trains and boats of all kinds, he rain from one to the other non stop.

He was nearly in shock by this huge train.

Then we got into some stuff that was a little more modern and found this Werner truck. Grandpa Bob (whose name Johnny has) drove a Warner truck in the 70s in downtown Cleveland. It was his dream job! and every time I see a semi I think of him!

Johnny was determined to see a helicopter so we headed to the Air and Space museum, on the other side of the Mall. We always see this Castle when we are DC and Johnny wants so bad to go in it, but it is hard to explain to Johnny that it is not that kind of castle.

We finally made it to the Air and Space museum and Johnny forgot about wanting to see a helicopter when he saw planes and "rocket ships." But it was nearly 7 pm and though he wanted to see everything he was running from item to item and becoming more and more frustrated that he couldn't get into any of these planes so we headed home after getting him a little rocket toy.

Lily was still as happy as could be just chewing on her toys and smiling as soon as she saw the camera, what a perfect little girl.

The day could not have been more perfect! Hail and rain and all! I love my person Cherry Blossoms and I promise to always help them bloom!!

We got home around 9:30 pm! It was all worth it.

Another Trip to John's Hopkins

2011-03-31T21:30:00.007-04:00

I have mixed feelings about John's Hopkins, as I think most parent's do about children's hospitals. The last time we where there Johnny had his burn and I still feel horrible about that, but they did an amazing job and that was the first time I felt like he would really be okay after the burn. He does not even have a scare! and it hasn't even been a full year!!!

Today we headed back to Baltimore to John's Hopkins Children's center, this time for Lily to see a Urologist.
Again I have mixed feelings about the hospital. The nurses and doctors are very informative and nice, but we waited for 45 minutes after our appointment time to get in to see the urologist. The good news is that he told us nothing we didn't already know, but that is also the bad news. You always wish we had more information.

The vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) diagnoises was confirmed. Grade one (the most mild form) and on the left side only! She will be on the daily lose dose of antibiotics until she is two, when she will need to have the VCUG test again to be sure she has grown out of it. If she hasn't we will wait until she is 4 to test her again, and it won't be until she is 5 or 6 when we will consider a surgical repair, and even then if she isn't having multiple UTIs or complications we could still wait till she is even older. There will be a 70% chance that any of her children will have this reflux issue, she will need to remember this when her kids are born (wow isn't that a strange thought?) We will also need to keep an eye on Johnny since he has at least a 40% chance of having this same issue, though unlikely since he has yet to have any UTIs. We will need to watch for urgency, dribbling or wetting pants now that he is potty trained. Right now it isn't worth it to put him through the diagnotic tests.

She will need one more test in the next month, where some slightly radioactive liquid will be injected through an IV ( Mommy is very much not wanting to do this test) along with some slight sedative and will make her drowsy but not knock her out. Then they will take an hour worth of pictures with a special camera to watch her make urine and insure that her kidneys have no scars from this last UTI and that they are functioning properly.

All in all not a bad trip to John's Hopkins and I will always recommend it as the best children's hospital I know of!

The Day He Turned Three! Part 1

2011-03-22T14:57:00.008-04:00

I don't know how this day came around. Three years have passed in the blink of an eye. John Robert is the sweetest and smartest little guy! He constantly amazes me with how quickly he learns and how freely he gives him love to everyone around him.

As Momma likes to do, all of his presents are ready for him to wake up to, so when he wakes up in the morning he knows that this is HIS day!

It took him a few minutes to realize that everything was for him. The first toy he reached for was this riding horse which talks and making galloping sounds.

He also got a special party hat with his initials on it. He loved that his high chair "was all decorated"

Then he went to town opening the rest of his presents from Mommy, Daddy and Lily.

including a special kid proof digital camera that he can throw and drop and won't break!

Aunt Natalie called to sing Happy Birthday to him!

And Johnny right on opening his presents, he loved his dragon families.

Then Johnny got to his big present...dress up cloths and costumes.

Already to take on the world of dragons as a viking.

Johnny then decided what he wanted for breakfast...green blueberry pancakes! He scarfed it down!

Lily enjoyed watching Johnny open his presents and was very excited about her first St Patty's day.

This is just the start :)

Johnny'sThree Year Portraits

2011-03-13T16:29:00.004-04:00

My baby is just 4 days away from being three years old. It has been the best three years of my life!

Every day he amazes me more and more!

Even while sitting in the smoking lounge

And giving out meaningful advice on what kind of juice is best

This year his favorite toy are his hot wheels and their case. He can play with them for hours on end!

As a special treat Lily wanted to show her brother how excited she is about his birthday! Mommy and her friend Jennie made this dress.

And a tie for the birthday boy to match.

They touch my heart by loving each other as much as they do.

This picture is my favorite picture that ever was taken, it made me cry.

She Pulled Herself Up!!

2011-03-09T13:30:00.003-05:00

She has been trying for weeks! Getting one leg and then the knee stuck and falling over! But she did it!

She was so excited, and let our triumph yells and giggles!

Nine Months

2011-03-03T12:39:00.001-05:00

As usual I have no idea how this milestone stuck up on me! My tinnie tiny baby who could barely life her own head is now crawling all over the place and trying to pull herself on everything in sight! Nine months have flown by in the blink of an eye!

Lily Bean remains the Happiest Baby EVER! She gets winny when she doesn't feel good, but she always has a smile for anyone who looks in her general direction. One evening we where on a trip through the craft store and every person who we walked by stopped and commented to her and made her giggle!

She is at a wonderful playful stage, and cannot be contained. She gets around by scooting, low crawling and hand and knees crawling. Nothing gets in her way and she spends her day following Johnny or Mommy around the downstairs.

She hasn't managed to pull all the way up on her feet, but she does regularly get up on one foot and one knee and then rocks in place as she tries to get that other foot out from under her. Last week she was trying to hard to get up that she fell right into the table and bit her lip with her two tiny teeth. Poor baby looked like she was in a fight. But she healed quickly and is not afraid to keep trying!
She is pretty stable when we put her holding onto the table, she likes it better standing.

Along with her two little teeth on the bottom front, her hair has been sprouting out! Still a medium blond that looks red in certain light and is so fine and soft! I can't wait to put it in pig tails!
Oh so happy! I just love that face! She has my father's eyes! Those smile lines that make your eyes so big and happy!!! She also has her father's checks! Those chipmuck checks, that constantly look like she is smuggling acorns!

Lily is babbling more and has a solid "Dadada" though a "mamamama" comes out some times too.
I love this picture because you can see her mouse cons and her "L" bow, not to mention she is giving a hint at her abilities. She goes from crawling to sitting to turning herself around and anything your mind can imagine to get herself into trouble. She loves chasing the broom, no matter where I store it, and she loves crawling down the hallway just to have me chase her. When she hears me coming she throws her legs and arms around like she is swimming and giggles hysterically!

The more I write about my little Cupcake the more I smile. She is such a joy and we can't imagine life without her! Though we have tons of memories from before she was born, my entire life seems like both of these kids are at every event! I can't picture anything without them in it!

She started proteins recently, eggs! And she loves them, she is eating a lot more solid foods and mostly less formula and mushes, just whatever we are eating gets cut up smaller and put in front of her. She has three bottles a day and one a night, but she never finishes them and prefers solids. She has also started juie, heavily watered down, and using a sippy cup. Though the one we use is shaped a lot like a bottle, she just loves to chew on the top.

I just love her!

Finally a Family Day in DC

2011-02-27T21:57:00.010-05:00

It has been a rough few months, with illness after illness, we have been canceling play dates and outings every time some one comes up with a fever. Finally on Saturday no one had a fever so we headed off to DC.

We didn't tell Johnny we where headed to the Smithsonian to see dinosaurs, we told him it was a Mystery Ride on the train. That made the train ride itself an exciting event. Every time we stopped he would ask why and get excited whenever we went into a tunnel!

Lily handed it just fine, no fussing or yelling, though it wasn't as entertaining for her.

Once we walked toward the building Johnny remembered where we were and got really excited! I regret that we waited so long to bring him back. Here he is teaching Daddy about the Triceratops.

Again Lily Bean was just a great little girl, hanging out in her stroller and smiling at everyone who passed her! Here she is faking a smile for the Momma with the camera.
It was like Johnny had been coming to the museum everyday! He wanted to climb the stairs just so he could see EVERYTHING at once!

Moving on from the dinosaurs, we headed into the Ocean Hall. Real tropical fish could have kept his attention for hours.

There she is, she is eventually released from the stroller, but not yet.

Johnny started to get a little tired, so he was given the keys to the Daddymobile (hehehe) He would point to where he wanted to go and then tell Daddy when to stop. I am not surprised that he went right for the giant tortoise shell. It also didn't take long for him to start asking "What's that?" and telling us when he knew what something was!

This was a great surprise that Mommy loved! Seven cases of crocheted sea coral! Over 4000 pieces all donated by crafty people from all over the nation! It was breath taking and very beautiful!

They even had one woman who had done some of the work there with pieces for the kids to touch.

Johnny was excited too!
It was in the Hall of Mammals that Johnny discovered the information boards and the buttons that made the noises that the animals made, he was amazed and ran to each one.

Yes it looks like he is learning about our history and cave paintings, but really he was playing shadow animals with some other kids :) he does a great shadow duck...qwak qwak. That is my creative boy!

Johnny is having some stomach problems again, so after these things, he started to get really tired and ask about going home, so we thought it was time for his first IMAX....3D Dinosaurs! Daddy went in with him, while Lily took a nap with Mommy. Daddy says that Johnny talked through all of it, explaining what was going on. He got a little scared when the dinosaurs attached, but it was 3D who can blame him!

I had Lily wrapped to me while she slept so we went to see the National Collection of Gems. I love seeing the many different gem stones in all the different states. Here is the Hope Diamond. It is in a new setting since the last time I saw it, and I like the old one better, when there where diamonds in a circle around it. But it is still very beautiful!

Lily woke up and finally got a chance to see a few things herself. Shee was very interested by the amethyst, right at her level! But mostly she was nearly part of the display, since while she was sitting there everyone stopped and ooooed and awwwed at how adorable she was!

While the boys saw their movie, Mommy got a special souvenir for Johnny. His very own fossil! A Trilobite, more then 520 million years old.

He was excited, though he can't really understand this yet he knew it was a dinosaur. He really is a very appreciative kid, even gets excited for new cloths! For now it goes on his dresser and one day it will be the greatest gift ever.

He stayed as long as we could, then got back on the train to head home. Some how Lily lost 3 binkies in the museum and train station, so she had to chew on her sippy cup on the way home. It was all less dramatic then I expected.

All in all another great day with our wonderful little family. Knock on wood everyone stays fever free!!

Vesicoureteral Reflux

2011-02-25T22:42:00.004-05:00

Lily Bean has fully recovered from her urinary track infection, but it is not normal for a 7 month old baby to have a UTI. Her provider at KIRK thought we needed to do some tests to make sure there wasn't a reason for the infection, so she put in for a renal ultrasound and a VCUG (voiding cystourethrogram.) It was very scary taking my tiny baby to have invasive tests and the thought that something could be wrong with her was a little over whelming. As we walked through the hospital every person who saw her smiled at her and stopped to talk to her tell me how beautiful she was. She was such a big girl!

We did the ultrasound first, but the technician couldn't tell me anything about what it looked like. I took that as a good sign, if her kidneys looked bad wouldn't the tech freak out and get a doctor? The VCUG was the test we where scared of, she would need to be catheterized and have some contrasting liquid put into her bladder and then have X-rays taken as the liquid flows through her bladder and the tubes that connect everything. It went as smoothly as it could have, she cried a while, then fell asleep, then fussed a while.

The big news came when the technician saw something on her pictures and got a doctor. After he looked at them and took a few more he came back to tell me Lily had reflux. It took me back a minute, reflux? she stopped spitting up months ago. But that was just me breathing out after the stress of the tests.
Lily has grade 0 vesicoureteral reflux on one side. Basically a small amount of urine is flowing back up the tube from her bladder to her kidneys. It is not happening all the time or when she pees, but every once in a while and low pressure, so it is not flowing hard or far, but some urine is refluxing. If we don't treat this, or had not caught it she could keep getting infections and/or cause damage to her kidneys. The good news is, now we can go see a urologist and she will most likely out grow the problem when her urethra grows and fixes whatever defect she has, which she was born with. The most common way to treat this is to give her a low level of antibiotics every day and do another VCUG until the reflux problem is gone. Giving her antibiotics everyday comes along with it's own set or risks for Lily Bean, but constant UTIs can cause permanent kidney damage, and well she can't live without those.

So this is where we stand. Monday we will get the official report from the hospital and get our referral for the urologist to set up Lily's treatment plan and get more information. I am trying to gather information on our own, on her new situation, and start the praying for this to be simple and not cause any further problems for my precious little Lily Bean.

Interestingly when I was a toddler I had similar problems. My mother said I was always damp, leaking even I didn't need to pee. This is a congenital defect (more common in red heads for some strange reason) giving siblings a 37% to also have it. I had an outpatient procedure done when I was 3 and I never had any problems outside of that. So smooth I don't even remember the problem, except that I got a candy bar after the procedure.

Hey there big brother! Just got this cute picture of Johnny today and wanted to share it.

What Sharks Eat

2011-02-24T18:45:00.002-05:00

Johnny in the back seat of the car with his huge toy shark.
The shark bites Johnny's finger
Johnny tells the shark "Don't eat my finger"
Johnny speaking as the shark "But I hungry"
The Johnny asks the shark "What do you eat"
The shark says "Fingers, Dragons, and Lilys!"

When we tried to explain to "the shark" that he couldn't eat Lilys becuase she wasn't food we just got a long "WHHHYYYYY?"

Wordless Wednesday

2011-02-16T03:34:00.006-05:00

Valentines Day

2011-02-14T13:50:00.008-05:00

Growing up I was never left out of Valentines day. Just because I was too young to be in romantic love didn't mean I wasn't loved. My father always had something special for me, a new pair of earrings or candy and even one year my first cell phone, and it always made me feel wonderful. (This year my parents got me some decorative pink pearl jewelry and some cupcake kitchen things, they got Shawn a very nice new sweater and Johnny a Hot Wheels carrying case and some new cars and Lily some puffs and framed picture of them with her.) I always want Lily and Johnny to know they are loved and feel as special on Valentines Day as I do.

We took some special pictures in out special outfits for our Valentines.

Reaching out for Love.

Standing like a big girl! Mommy made the skirt and bow and ordered the special cupcake Valentine's Day shirt.

That smiles continue to take my breath away.

For this picture I asked Johnny to give me a hug! He gives the BEST hugs EVER! Johnny's shirt says "Johnnysauris!"

Yesterday we made some red heart cookies to take to Daddy's work and give to all our friends, Johnny LOVED IT!

When we started decorating he was so careful, making sure that the sprinkles and icing went right where he wanted it too.

But by the time we where done he was having so much fun that the sprinkles went everywhere!

After we finished the sugar cookies Johnny went to bed and Mommy couldn't seem to stop baking, I had fun baking like I hadn't in so many years! I made huge heart shaped cookies for Grams and Pops, and Shawn. With as much fun as I had baking them, Johnny had decorating them this morning.

I also had the kids special Valentines gifts all ready for them to wake up to. I had really wanted to get the dragon and unicorn pillow pets for them since before Christmas, it was perfect for Valentine's Day. Johnny had his first chocolate on his first Valentines Day, but he was 11 months old, Lily is just 8 so she didn't get any chocolate, but she did get a singing book that tells her that we love her more then anything.

Johnny was shocked and very excited! He scarfed down a large chuck of his candy and carried around his dragon all morning.

Lily was similarly shocked and happy :)

Mommy woke up to some of her favorite chocolate GODIVA! and some new perfume :) yeah me

After getting dressed and taking Shawn to work we drove to Grams and Pops house to take them their special cookie heart and some valentines cards. Of course Samantha is with Grams and Pops all day so we took her some special Elmo bows that I made and she showed Johnny where all the treats where.

At Grams and Pops house my camera became too full of pictures and I couldn't bare to erase anything so we have no more pictures.

In the afternoon we took lunch to Daddy at work and shared some cookies and Valentines with his co workers. Everyone loved seeing the kids in their special cloths, smiling and being sweet! It was a wonderful visit.

For Dinner...HEART SHAPED MEAT LOAF!!! Daddy and Johnny's favorite!

Johnny had three serving of meatloaf and two servings of potatoes and green beans!

Firework

2011-02-13T23:25:00.005-05:00

There is a new Katy Perry song out, called Firework,
It is a simple and yet inspiring self esteem building pop song, I avoided it for a long time since it seems to me that it must be every teenagers anthem(I don't think there is a teenager out there that never thought down on themselves or that the world was ending at some point,) and well I am not a teenager. But there is something about this song that gives me energy and some sort of boost, it is really great for workouts.

This evening I was listening to the song and flipping through some recent pictures of the kids and I realized....my kids will be teenagers one day....oh crap! (Thankfully I have 10 years to learn how to deal with teens! )

But for now I can remember what it was like to be that age and know that the day will come when my kids will relate to this song as well, and now I can't listen to Firework without crying and thinking of 14 year old Lily and 16 year old Johnny...so I want them to always know that those beautiful colors are in them, I CAN SEE THEM! Those fireworks blind me everyday and I can't wait to see them light up the sky of this world! They will do amazying things one day and they will blind the world with their brilliance.

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting through the wind, wanting to start again?
Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Like a house of cards, one blow from caving in?

Do you ever feel already buried deep?
Six feet under screams but no one seems to hear a thing
Do you know that there's still a chance for you
'Cause there's a spark in you?

You just gotta ignite the light and let it shine
Just own the night like the 4th of July

'Cause baby, you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go, oh
As you shoot across the sky

Baby, you're a firework
Come on, let your colors burst
Make 'em go, oh
You're gonna leave 'em falling down

You don't have to feel like a waste of space
You're original, cannot be replaced
If you only knew what the future holds
After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Maybe you're reason why all the doors are closed
So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road
Like a lightning bolt, your heart will blow
And when it's time, you'll know

You just gotta ignite the light and let it shine
Just own the night like the 4th of July

'Cause baby you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go, oh
As you shoot across the sky

Baby, you're a firework
Come on, let your colors burst
Make 'em go, oh
You're gonna leave 'em falling down

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
It's always been inside of you, you, you
And now it's time to let it through

'Cause baby you're a firework
Come on, show 'em what you're worth
Make 'em go, oh
As you shoot across the sky

Baby, you're a firework
Come on, let your colors burst
Make 'em go, oh
You're gonna leave 'em falling down

Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon
Boom, boom, boom
Even brighter than the moon, moon, moon

Okay so after I posted this and went back and watched the entire music video I started sobbing when they showed the woman giving birth and sparkling. I realized that that woman was me! (It might be really late and I must be emotional) I realized that my kids and becoming a mother was my ignition and that Lily and Johnny make me bright and sparkle! I am amazyed, I have tried to think what I can do for them and give to them, and all this time they have done something amazying for me. They have brought out the best in me and shown me that I more then I ever thought I could be, becuase I am their mother.

I kept trying to think that I was too old to find personal meaning in a pop song, but I no longer care :) and wow how sappy and self satisfying is this post, sorry!

Definitely Strep Throat, Maybe New Teeth

2011-02-09T08:39:00.006-05:00

Yep that is right, our home is officially infested with strep! Johnny had a cough for the past few days, but yesterday he seemed to loose his voice and when asked, he would tell you that his throat hurt. So after a very bad coughing fit, Johnny not being able to eat a crescent dog (one of this favorite foods,) and Grams suggested it might be strep so Momma took him to Patient First.

One quick swab and a look down his throat and strep confirmed, antibiotics given. We got orange juice and cough drops and antiseptic spray and he seems to be doing okay. His energy comes in spurts, where he will be running and crazy for 15 minutes and then crash. He is being so polite, always saying thank you and please, even though it must hurt to speak. Last night while waiting to see the doctor, Johnny sneezed and said "Bless Me." He is just so sweet and strong with this entire thing, I love him so much. This morning he even went poop on the potty all by himself, then he wiped himself! We where all excited and proud.

The Bransons are quarantined, as we try to not spread this to Sammi and Ella or our friends, Johnny had to miss gymnastics today :( But he is entertaining himself just fine with some Hot Wheels that Papa brought to him yesterday, he carries them around in anything he can find.

Lily is working on some teeth! Her two bottom front teeth are starting to pop up, you can just see and feel the top of them!! I noticed them in the check out line at the craft store this week end, I had everyone in line excited! So she has been a little fussy, but still a happy smile when ever you look at her!

She is fully recovered from her infection last week, however the clinic wants to test her kidneys and bladder to see why a 7 month old got a UTI, it is not normal. Last Friday when she went in for her follow up they wanted to take another urine sample to make sure the UTI was gone. They catheterized her...it was a horrible experience and that paired with the fact that the only pediatrician the clinic had retired, has us seeking approval to find a pratice off post. One of the tests has her being catheterized again, but this time by a professional else where. We are hoping to get approved and get another pediatrician quickly so we can get a second opinion, but from what I have read the test are standard for a baby who gets a UTI.

YUM YUM Teething ring and some beautiful eyes!

On the go again, she still hasn't gotten up on all fours to crawl, but she gets around just fine and very fast anyways. Check out the rainbow legwarmers!!! I finally found an outfit to match them :)

We cannot win, I don't know where all this sickness is coming from...we don't go anywhere and this all makes me want to leave the house even less!

Showing Our Life, Feeding our Kids

2011-02-04T13:19:00.006-05:00

So over at Kelly's Korner Kelly is doing a new round of Show Us Your Life, so I thought I would join in. Every Friday she asks her readers to share a different area of our lives. This week she wants to know what we feed our kids! I thought this was a great opportunity to share Lily and Johnny's eating habits.

Johnny will be three years old in just 6 weeks. He is VERY big for his age, fitting into mostly 5T cloths and size 10 shoes, so his appetite has always been large, but what he likes to fill that appetite with changes every day. His best meal is breakfast and he will eat all morning if we let him. He starts with oatmeal or waffles, fruit and milk. But because he has had regularity issues his oatmeal or waffles are fiber added and his milk is lactose free. I have noticed that this gives his poo the best consistency and keeps his regular (you know he will hate me for this one day :) After breakfast it doesn't take him long to ask for granola bars (Haaa ba) and chewies, his favorite snacks. Also he gets an "ice cream" if he poops on the potty. The ice cream is actually frozen GoGurt, which I find he can tolerate once every couple of days.

Lunch is usually quick, since he doesn't want to slow down long enough to eat. I found that lunch meat or hard boiled eggs are a great protein that he will scarf down. I also must add that his father has taught him that ketchup is great with everything....and now Johnny likes to dip his hard boiled eggs in it! His lunch sides are usually pickles and goldfish or applesauce. Johnny also has always been a very thirsty child, he LOVES apple juice, but I tend to put in a splash of juice added to his water and that is enough for him. He hasn't used a sippy cup for months, but loves silly straws in his plastic Backyardigans cups.

Dinner for Johnny is something that we are still working on. When I make a meal for everyone it is usually simple, lean protein, a vegetable and potatoes or rice. Sometimes when Johnny has had too many snacks or is tired or worked up he just won't eat or keeps asking for something else, anything else. So we are focusing on making sure he sits at the table until everyone is done eating and to eat what he is offered. But sometimes it feels like a losing battle :) He LOVES meatballs or meatloaf, green beans, mandarin oranges and noodles, those are things I KNOW he will eat no matter when I offer them to him.

Lily is 8 months old and in the midst of learning how to feed herself and trying new thing but is still dependent on formula bottles for her nutrition. We chose to use organic formula when Johnny started it and tried to feed him as much organic food as possible for that first year, so we give Lily the same benefit. Children are hitting puberty earlier and earlier these days so we try to keep as many chemicals away from the kids to give them a pure start in life. We where lucky to find that Walmart has a name brand formula, Parents Choice, that is half the price of the name brand formulas, making organic formula actually affordable.

Lily starts her day with half a banana cut up so she can feed herself, and mixed in with some organic puffs. She does a pretty good job, but 1/3 of it still ends up as Minny Mouse food. So I use the other half of her banana to mush up and mix with some oatmeal rice cereal, she smiles with each bit!
I don't buy canned baby food, I like to buy fresh organic produce, steam it and mush it up in our Magic Bullet, put in some ice cube trays and freeze it. So lunch is usually two cubes of a vegetable (carrots, broccoli, squash, cauliflower...) mixed with some rice cereal and some more puffs or organic yogurt melts on the side.

For dinner I like to include her into what we are eating, as long as our side safe for her that is what she gets. Mostly peas or green beans that I cut small and let her feed herself. This is when she usually gets her favorite snack...Mum Mum! That is what she eats while I make dinner.

I recently bought this chicken for Lily's first protein! Some baked chicken with a little bit of rosemary! I can't wait to give it to her!!

I feel very lucky that both of my kids are good eaters! It is something that I am always thinking about, like how many veggies Johnny had today or what will Lily's next new food be...but I am also the one who taught Johnny to dip chocolate animal crackers in chocolate icing! YUM! As healthy as I want them to be, I also LOVE sharing special things with them and baking with them!

Lily Low Crawl

2011-02-01T16:39:00.006-05:00

Lily has been low crawling a little at a time the past week so I thought it was time to officially document it!
So we took the binky away and tried to coax her to get going. She never has trouble getting around, rolling and throwing herself and sometimes you just turn around for a second and she ends up on the other side of the room, you have no idea how she got there.

She got a little fussy, so we changed her and then I remembered how I got Johnny to do his crawl for the video....Puffs, his favorite baby snack! So we pulled out the Mum Mum, Lily's favorite snack, I think she might be hungry.

Johnny loved "playing this game"

But is a sucker for his baby sister and gave in, taking her Mum Mum to her.

Snow Pile

2011-01-30T07:44:00.002-05:00

It isn't often that Daddy actually asks me to take a pictures, he get annoyed with my camera more often then not. So when Johnny and Daddy where out side for more then an hour and hear "Jen get your camera" I jumped into action.

and this is what they did. Each with their own shovel they made a pile of snow as tall and Mommy.

Climbing the mountain with Daddy their, as always, to make sure he is safe.

Daddy was very proud and Johnny was very excited, he had to be bribed inside through his shivers and the setting sun, with the promise of hot chocolate.

Pumpkin Pie

2011-01-28T12:25:00.003-05:00

When Johnny and I went upstairs to get Lily from her nap this morning and he started giggling and jumping around and calling Lily "pumpkin pie"..."You get the pumpkin pie, pumpkin pie pumpkin pie" I asked him why he was calling her pumpkin pie and he said "she is yummy yummy yummy you put her on the table."

Lily is Johnny's Pumpkin Pie!!! SO CUTE!!!

Lily Update!

2011-01-28T09:28:00.002-05:00

She slept through the night and ate a full normal banana breakfast! We still have 7 days on the antibiotic, and a follow up appointment at the end of next week, but I think we all feel better seeing this today!

Urinary Track Infection and a Febrile Seizure

2011-01-27T10:30:00.004-05:00

We have had a horrible night.

Lily baby has been sick for the past week. She threw up on Monday and then developed a fever that night. With the stomach flu going around we assumed it was that and gave her Tylenol and fluids. We took her to her pediatrician on Wednesday when the fever wasn't going away. The Dr ruled out her ears, nose, chest and all of that. We discussed that her urine had smelled strong and the possibility of her having a UTI. But Shawn and I where very hesitant about having her catheterized to get the sterile urine sample that was needed. Her blood work was no help since her white blood count was borderline high, so we decided to wait another day and see if she could kick it herself. She had a difficult Tuesday night, but her fever was staying around 100 on Wednesday and she started to eat more, so we became confident that she was getting better and decided not to put her through being catheterized. Yesterday she really seemed to be coming back to her old self, smiling and playing and sleeping.

At 3:30 pm her temp was 100, so I gave her some Tylenol and put her to bed. At 4:30 pm we took her temp again and she was normal, but at 5 pm everything changed. I was holding her and she started to shake, shiver as if she was cold, but she wasn't cold at all. Her pupils got big and her breathing got rapid. Without thinking too much I wrapped her up and was off to the ER leaving Shawn and Johnny at home. At 5:30 the nurse took her temp and she was up to 104! They gave her some Motrin. It did not take long for the doctor to see us. He was very kind and spoke of his own daughter, he assured me that what had happened was a febrile seizure, a slight seizure "common" in sick small children. Not a lot is known why these happen, the best theory is that growing brains don't know how to deal with rapid raise in temperature. About 30 % of all children have these seizures and only 5 % of those are bad enough to cause damage or death. The other 95% are harmless, just scary. She will have NO lasting effects from the seizure and it does not mean she will have a seizure disorder or anything else like that. She is at high risk of having another one at some point in her childhood, but she should grow out of it by the time she is three. The Doctor was very calming, and informative.

After the seizure was put behind us the dr said the main thing he was concerned with was the cause of the fever and why it was lasting so long. He again ruled out the ear, nose, chest etc. Then the Urinary track infection theory came back, she had all of the symptoms and there was no other cause that we could see. We needed to rule it out or finally have a cause we could fix. So I agreed to having her cathed and doing the test. This was the hardest part for me, I know that sounds strange, but until then I was running off of adrenaline and then it all came crashing back. I had put this test off for two days because I didn't want her to be invaded. I felt horrible. I called my parents and Shawn and started to try and get Shawn to the hospital with me, but the snow was starting to come down at 3 inches an hour...it was a blizzard!

Two sweet female nurses came in and took the urine sample, the simple and fast procedure was not nearly as bad as I had imagined it would be. Lily was wonderful through the entire thing, cried only a little at the beginning and was then fine. By this time her fever had dropped back down to 100.4 and she was playing with her feet and talking to everyone who came to see her. They said the test would take about 30 minutes. I started to get really anxious as Shawn worked with our friends on post (thanks again Clark Family) to get a ride. He was on his way when the doctor came back in and said they had confirmed that Lily had a UTI. She would be put on an 10 day antibiotic, but she should start to feel much better in 2-3 days. He couldn't tell me how a baby gets a UTI, just that girls get them. "They sit in their poop" he said. No matter how fast you clean them, their urethra is just so close to the other end, bacteria is bound to get where it shouldn't. Again since she is so young having her first, she is will be at a higher risk to have more in the future. We will be taking some special precautions, like putting her under running water after a poopy and give her more water to wash out her urinary track more.

Once we knew we would be on our way home shortly I called Shawn and had them turn around. The roads they where traveling had yet to be cleaned and it was slow going. I knew that we would be waiting for them to get here after we had already been released. I was so scared something would happen to him too. I should have calmed down, but I felt like I needed to wrap up everyone I loved in a big blanket and carry them around. Shawn wasn't happy about it but I told him I didn't have time to wait for him to get there, I needed to be on the road before they started to freeze. It took me 45 minutes to do a 15 minute drive. Lily talked and cooed for the first 10 mins and then fell asleep. At every red light I put my hand on her until she pushed me away. We made it home, to get stuck in the drive way. Shawn came out and shoveled and got the car into the car port while I held Lily and let her sleep in my arms.

To add to this GREAT night the power went out at 8:30 and housing didn't know when the storm would even let them start to work on getting the power back on. So we got all the blankets together that we could and Shawn held Johnny and I held Lily and we went to sleep, trying to keep the kids as warm as we could. Thankfully the power came back on at 10! Lily still had a rough night, she threw up curdled formula and was restless, but her fever has been 98 and she played with Johnny for a while this morning. I can't shake the panic or fear still, she seemed like she was getting better yesterday, playing and eating and smiling and then her fever spiked. So I won't be comfortable until she is done with the antibiotics and see her pediatrician again. I still have more questions, like checking her kidneys for damage or WHY this happened at just 7 months, is there something more serious going on?

I am also settling into my guilt, for not breastfeeding longer (there are studies that say it could have helped protect her from UTIs), or for not switching her to Motrin sooner, or taking her temp rectally, or for not okaying the catheteriztion test sooner, for not taking Shawn with me to the ER.... but there is no way to erase that guilt, and I don't want to. The kids deserve the best, not just the best we can do, but the best...period. And that is what we will always strive for, for this NEVER happening again.

Surprise, SNOW!

2011-01-26T12:09:00.004-05:00

The forecast last night was that it would rain all morning, noting special, just chilly rain.

This is what we woke up to...SNOW!!! Schools are closed, as well as Johnny's gymnastics class, though Daddy still had to go to work.

So this is how we started our day...Jammies and a Dinosaur movie.

Even Minnie Mouse got comfy.

But it didn't take long for Johnny to get cabin fever and sweetly request to go play in the snow and I just couldn't say no,

Even when he chased me inside with a snow ball.

It has been a few months since he played in the back yard so Johnny went right to work gathering up his outside toys.

Cleaning off his slide.

And using his sand toys to move the snow all around the yard.

He was outside, with Mommy keeping watch from the back door, for a solid hour before he got tired and the snow got sloshy.

Lily has been sick for the last few days, high fevers, vomiting, lack of appetite, and major fussyness. We started to get worried about something serious like a UTI, but after two sleepless nights she is finally starting to get back to her old happy self.

Wordless Friday

2011-01-21T10:47:00.002-05:00

First Day of Gymnastics

2011-01-19T18:22:00.004-05:00

Johnny is finally old enough to start "Learning Through Movement!" A low level gymnastics class that focuses on teaching 2.5 -3.5 year olds to listen, follow directions and take turns while they get to do fun gymnastics and play!

As we left Johnny and I talked about listening to the teacher and being nice to the other kids. He was so excited and kept asking who his teacher was.

His teacher is Miss. Suzie and his class only has 5 kids in it. At the beginning of class they have to pick a color block that will be their color. They have to sit here and wait for their turns and go back to the block between activities.

They would have a few activities to do in order, roll down the mat, walk to and bounce on the trampoline, climb over the big mat and through the doughnut, then roll down the other mat. I was very proud of Johnny! He stayed on track and did exactly what he was suppose to do without running off or messing with any of the other super fun stuff. He stayed and listened very well until right at the end when they all sat in a circle to stretch, he sat in the circle, but didn't do the activity the teacher was doing. I think the did very well for his first class.

Then after he went and sat in his yellow spot! He did good with his color most of the time, and always went back when the teacher told him to.

He loved doing this "crayon" roll.

Then jumping on the trampoline.

and walking on the balance beam.

It was hard for me to get pictures through the glass, but he had the biggest smile here and was yelling "LOOK MOMMA!" He really enjoyed himself and I can't wait for him to go back next week.

Chuckie Cheese Fun

2011-01-16T09:17:00.007-05:00

This past week Johnny has been going through the post Christmas neediness. He has been very cuddly and wants us to do everything with him, he has a ton of pent up energy so we thought we would splurge and take a family trip to Chuckie Cheese.

This is not our first trip and won't be our last, so I tried to limit the pictures I am posting about it, but that is hard, we had such a fun time together.

We ate dinner before we got there so there was no need for pizza, JUST TONS OF GAMES!

Thanks to Grams and Pops for letting us break into their token stash, we used them all. Johnny played constantly for 2 full hours.

Quickly Johnny started to like the games that gave tickets more then just had a game. So our goal to earning as many tickets as possible started. It was really just fun to see how many we could get.

Just a little at a time....

Or maybe more then a little.

Even Lily got in on the excitement!

Lily tried the little games, and like the slide, but we where scared she could fly right off.

Her favorite game is still Daddy! He makes her smile and giggle no matter what, as soon as she sees his face. And Daddy loves to make her smile!!

Johnny also went back to the little kid toys, but he was nearly board by them, and I feel like he looks a little silly on this tiny carousel.

So in the end we earned 646 tickets! We where all VERY proud and excited to get to the counter and see what Johnny could get. Then Shawn and I took a long look at all the junk we could buy at the dollar store. It was a small moment when I was sad that Johnny wasn't going to get anything "good" for all of our "work" when I looked at his shinnying face and realized it had nothing to do with what he got, but how much fun we ALL had TOGETHER earning the tickets and playing games.

We picked out this Chuckie Cheese water squirter! Can you see that smile? It was like someone handed him the world.

Chuckie Cheese Water Squiter- 500 tickets
plastic spider- 100 tickets
2 silly straws- 40 tickets
plastic snake- 6 tickets
2 hours of hearing Johnny giggle like a mad man- PRICELESS!

and an ice cream cone to make this day the best day ever! (can you see Daddy kissing Johnny's head? I just love it when he does that)

This is one of those day I will remember in 15 years when they are slamming doors and storming to their rooms. My babies, I love them more then anything in the world.

A Snow Day!

2011-01-12T17:50:00.004-05:00

Maryland got just enough snow to close down schools. So really this shouldn't have affected us or been like any other day, except that Mommy got very sick last night. The Army, to our shock and amazement, let Daddy take a day of leave and come home to take care of us. So we had Daddy all day and a fresh layer of snow on the ground!

Lily and Mommy didn't really need to be outside for long, but we did anyway. Poor Lily was all bundled up and couldn't move...at all! Nor could we get her to bend in the middle, hence the awkward picture.

Daddy moved all of the snow from the drive way into one gigantic pile for Johnny to play in. I wish I had taken a video, his laugh was just outrageous and very contagious.

Then Daddy decided to teach Johnny how to build and throw a snowball.

That's right, get Daddy!

Or Daddy will get you! I don't think Johnny stopped laugh for a single minute!

Good shot big boy!Lily's first real snow, I am not sure she could even feel it in that suit.

But Daddy thought he would try something else to get Lily to like the snow....

BABY SNOW ANGEL!!! Johnny wouldn't lay down, he was getting very cold.

And the cure for a cold toddler, a cup of nice warm (not hot!) hot coco!!!

Despite being sick it was a nice day :)

Puzzle Fun, and more

2011-01-11T15:16:00.008-05:00

He might be crazy, but he is mine!

Did I mention that I love the crazy? Look at those eyes!!

Johnny loves puzzles right now, him and Daddy always spend time just the two of them right after he gets home from work, Johnny looks forward to it all day.

Shawn was teaching Johnny how to put the puzzles together, finding the corners and edges, then matching colors and pieces that go together.

Of course Johnny picked it up fast and didn't want to stop. He wanted to keep taking them apart and putting them back together.

Alllll done! So proud! He was almost amazed by the pictures that formed when he put the pieces together, like he didn't expect to see a lion, a hippo, or a giraffe and kept telling me that they where there so I would believe it.

While Johnny and Daddy put puzzles together I was on the phone with Grams to get a special surprise. Meet Minnie Mouse. My parents adopted this tiny fuzzy dog about 3 years ago and have trained and cared for her. Shawn and I have talked on and off about getting a dog for a while, we didn't want more poop in the house, God knows we don't need any more poop in the house. But Minnie Mouse is fully trained and really good with the kids. She is going to stay with us for a few weeks and if we all settle in together she can be our dog!

She doesn't want much, her bed, some pets and to know where the people are (she follows me around the house) I really love having her here, and so do the kids!

Now that Christmas is over and everyone has their warm weather knit stuff I have a new season to knit for, Spring! I am making this Crayon Caddy for fun, this sweater for Johnny's birthday, this sweater and this hat for Lily's 1st Easter, and this one for Johnny to match her. I love knitting!

We are hoping to get some snow tonight and maybe have a snow day tomorrow! Wish us luck :)

A Week Full of Growing Up

2011-01-07T14:46:00.004-05:00

At the beginning of this week I posted Lily's 7 month update, but in the past week Lily has really changed and made some developmental leaps that I didn't want to leave out.

She can easily get up on her hands and knees and rock back and forth, she could start crawling any day!

She has started to refuse being swaddled. Any time we swaddle her to go to sleep, she breaks free before falling asleep. So bye bye Swaddler! She can also easily put herself back to sleep, I have heard her cough then talk to herself a little before just going back to sleep with no help from her parents.

She has officially gotten rid of her swing! She just won't sit in it, but tries to throw herself out of it head first, and if that doesn't work she just yells! We have taken it out of the living room and reorganized the furniture so she has more free room to get around on the floor. What a big girl!

I didn't want to leave Johnny out, but he has been sick for a few days now and has spent his days like this, watching movies and drinking juice. Here is hoping no more vomiting, fevers or running noises and a nice quite week end.

Lily Covered in Carrots

2011-01-05T19:07:00.002-05:00

So I don't mean to post everyday, but the kids seem to do something cute everyday.

This evening Lily didn't want to finish her carrots, so what does every good mother do? Let the baby play in them.

Getting messy is just so much fun.

This is the fun of being a baby, you can't cover your self in carrots as an adult.

My happiest baby can't be happy all the time.

A Picture A Day

2011-01-04T10:27:00.002-05:00

In the new year I thought it would be fun to do a 365 blog, a picture EVERY DAY of Johnny and Lily together. There are 27 months and two weeks between this brother and sister, right now Lily is Johnny's favorite toy and he makes her smile and giggle like no one else can. They will grow up as each others first friend and they will impact who the other will grow up to be! There are few relationship that will be as important as this relationship between brother and sister.

365 Branson Kids

Lets see how long I can keep it up, already I am missing a picture for the 2ed and 3rd.

Lily is 7 Months Old

2011-01-03T09:20:00.001-05:00

Another month gone and Lily is another month older. It has been a busy month and Lily keeps growing through it all. So lets see if Mommy can figure out just how much she has grown.

She gets around very well now, rolling and scooting and never stopping! She can/will no longer be contained. She hates all of the baby gear that keeps her in one place. She loved her swing at one point and now will not sit in it for more then a few minutes, she longs to be free and mobile

She loves her big brother! When ever she is on the floor, which is often, Johnny is right there next to her. They especially love playing nite nite and peek a boo. Johnny can make her laugh like no one else! and she makes him laugh just the same.

Johnny had been doing very well with being gentle with her, he learns quickly that he has to take care of her! He gives her her binky and brings her her toys, but he shares is more often then getting her hers.
Mommy continues to LOVE dressing her up. This month I found a little extra time to make her a this little poncho, it SHOULD last her a while. We have also been working on being more stable while sitting, less wobbling and less falling down.

On New Years Eve Lily gave up her carrier and climbed into her convertible car seat! I think she likes sitting up better and now Johnny can reach her, sometimes all you hear is the two of them giggling back and forth.

That little bit of blond red hair has started to really come in, at least enough for Momma to clip a bow right into her hair, and she left it alone! Plus she looks extra chimpmunky here, so cute. She also babbles "Dada" and "Papa"

And yes Lily's feet are yummy, just in case you where wondering. Lily's daily eating is starting to become more regular. She has three meals, and three bottles every day. She loves her puffs and her Num Nums, but she has started to feed herself anything she can! Green beans and potatoes mostly.

And here she is January 3rd 2011, 7 months old and closer to her first birthday then from her birth. She is more wiggly then ever, grabbing at whatever is within reach and never stopping. She brings happiness to anyone who sees her and will smile at each person a special smile just for them. She can be particular, but if you give her want she wants she will giggle and hug you and her sweet heart will be shown bright on her sleeve.

High Hopes for 2011

2010-12-31T07:30:00.001-05:00

At the end of every year I think about how great the next year will be. I usually make a list in some random note book of all the things I am going to do, then I promptly lose the list and forget all my plans. This year I have no choice, there are children depending on me to make life as great as possible and give them every opportunity for a wonderful year. It isn't fair to them for me to fail at anything. So here is my list for 2011, if I put it on the internet I can't ignore it :)

*Lose 60 pounds to be healthier, have more energy and like the way I look
*Give up soda, even diet isn't good for anyone
*Get to the gym 4 times a week, usually right after the kids go to bed
*Knit and create a stock, make a small profit off of my Etsy shop
*Pay off our debt!
*Start a workable budget!
*Start a saving account!
*Go back to school!
*Focus on reading to the kids and teaching them skills for school, Johnny may even start a preschool program at the Y.
*I will never forget it, but I want to add it, the most important thing we will ever do is to make sure our kids know how much they are loved! That is something I think about everyday, that is something I have no doubts of!

It seems like I have taken everything I should already be doing and put them on a list to do next year, but I feel as if this year things will finally come together. No moves or new babies, just life. Also most of these are already in progress, like the diet and school. We have a great life and everything we could ask for, so now it is time to grow up a little more and really take life by the horns!

Family Pictures

2010-12-29T15:38:00.004-05:00

The last time the Dennison clan did pictures was 4 years ago and the only grandchild that we had was Ella...now look at us :)

We are a good looking family

I had been wanting a nice family picture and picture of our kids together since Lily was born. So I was so happy to get these!
"The girls" Ella 6 years, Samantha 18 moths, Piper 6 weeks, Lily 6 months

"The boys" Wyatt 2 years, Johnny "Jack" 2 years 9 months

Grams and Pops and their Sweeties

I cropped Johnny out of a picture of him and Wyatt becuase this angel face was just too funny.

Even though getting all 6 kids to sit and smile was a challenge I think the entire photo shoot went very well and the pictures turned out GREAT, we even had fun! Thanks Grams and Pops for organizing this and thanks to Thomas, Natalie, Charlie and Michele for bringing your families and looking so beautiful!

I wanted to note that you don't see a lot of Lily's trade mark huge smile in these pictures. Lily had not had a nap that day and she had been really off her schedule for 3 days straight, really not getting nearly enough sleep as she needs. Lily is an amazing baby and any other baby as off as she was would have been screaming, Lily just wasn't smiling as big...we are so lucky! I will always be thankful and proud when I see these pictures.

All Night!

2010-12-28T08:25:00.002-05:00

Just a quick extra post today. Lily slept ALL NIGHT! She went to bed at 7 pm without fussing at all and we did not need to go into her room until 6 am! (6 am was when Shawn came home from work and I woke up in a panic)

The past week was so chaotic, though wonderful, and Lily has been exhausted. Lets hope we can keep the momentum up and Mommy can keep getting the solid 8 hours she got last night, I feel great! I haven't sletp like that in a year!

Yesterday we pulled out Lily new tea set (thanks Grandma Sharon) and Johnny, Boris and Morris joined her for a tea party, though Johnny insisted it was coffee.

So happy!

One of Lily's new Christmas outfits. I can't help myself! Someone joked that Lily is Mommy's most expensive toy ever :) I love dressing her up!!!

Lily has decided to grow up! She hates to be in her swing for more then a few minutes, she also doesn't want to sit for long. She throws her self to the floor and starts to roll and scoot everywhere. She has always been a "wiggler" but now she is starting to get into everything and everything goes into her mouth!

One last fun thing...baby cupcake KNEE SOCKS!

Santa Came!

2010-12-27T13:00:00.000-05:00

He was here!!!! We knew we made it on the nice list, but we must have been very very nice!

Johnny's stocking
Lily's special First Christmas stocking

Mommy and Daddy's stockings

Wow Santa must have been very hungry!

Ready for Santa

2010-12-27T12:11:00.007-05:00

You can't forget to leave cookies for Santa, or carrots for the reindeer. But this year we started a new tradition, we made our own magical reindeer food to help the reindeer keep flying!

Lily really wanted one of Santa's cookies.

But Johnny made sure all the cookies and carrots stayed on the plate.

Here is our special yearly family ornament...the FOUR happy reindeer, complete with names.

The other extra special ornament we got this year was Lily's first Christmas ornament. I couldn't find one I liked, so we took this cute cupcake snow globe style and Grams wrote very nicely on it for us.

All ready for Santa to come! The kids went to bed quickly and quietly!

Christmas Eve, Tradtions Carried On

2010-12-25T18:10:00.011-05:00

This Christmas we stayed in Maryland, which was very strange for us! Usually we head to Chicago or Ohio, or both. But this year we stayed home to have a calm Christmas with my parents and brothers. We where able to do more traditions and even start a few.

The morning of Christmas eve we filled the house with the sounds and smells of Christmas. We watched every Christmas movie we could find. Johnny finally started to like The Grinch (cartoon), he got worked up when the sleigh full of toys almost feel down the cliff, "he drop the toys, no one get toys." And was very shocked when the Grinch was able to pull up the sleigh again.

We also made some cookies! Can you guess my favorite Christmas movie?

The "fart cookies" are a family specialty! Santa loves them.

One of my favorite memories from my childhood is our Christmas Eve parties at my Grandparents house. All of my Aunts and Uncles and Cousins would get together to eat some pizza, chicken, and jojos and exchange gifts. My parents took over this tradition so that we can share it with our kids. Grams and Pops have a stocking for each Grand kid (that is 6 now) and they filled it to the top with toys and gifts that they took a lot of time and thought to pick out just for them! Each stocking comes with a special big gift for each kid as well and an envelope for Mommy and Daddy.

There is nothing more important to Grams and Pops then these kids. They would do anything for them and treasure each moment they get to spend with them.

Another special tradition from my childhood was the new and really nice outfits we would have for this Christmas Eve party and church. My mother would often make mine with matching ruffle socks and hair accessories. So this year I tried my hand at making Lily's bows so that they would go exaclty with her dress. This is as far as it lasted, she yanked it off of her head and ripped it apart...next time more hot glue.

After a quick hello to Grams and Pops and making sure that all 6 kids where in the house (not an easy feat these days) everyone headed downstairs to dig into their gifts.

Johnny's first was this little triceratops that moved its head and growled, he carried it around like a baby. Here is Johnny's special outfit, he loved the reindeer this year so we got him a funny reindeer tie and some nice Levi jeans, I am not allowed to put bows in his hair.

And the wonderful chaos began! 6 kids opening 6 sets of presents and playing with tons of new toys.
Wyatt was just so cute! He got new tools, and this saw and goggles where the best! We where all surprised that he kept the goggles on, but he wanted them on and they stayed that way for most of the night.
Johnny's big gift was Boris the Tyrannosaurus from Dinosaur Train. He is the main dino is a set that Johnny asked for this year. All of the dinosaurs talk to and with each other when they sense the others are near. It is very cool! I remember that my Gramma Nancy had 13 grand kids and every year she would get each kid a gift for $25, she always knew the perfect gift! You always felt special when you opened that gift, like she knew you and you of all the grand kids best, but everyone felt like that!

Johnny also got his first Hot Wheels! He (and Daddy) are very excited!

I am not the only one who loves taking pictures of our families.

See the apron Grams is wearing? Each adult girl got one this year with our Aunt name on it (none of us are called by our real name, I am Aunt Nenni, then there is Aunt Natnie and Aunt Shell.) This is another tradition my mother is carrying on. Her mother, Gramma Nancy, would always get each daughter and daughter-in-law a matching gift.

Lily's stocking was filled with Little Button toys. Little Button is this round faced, pink checked teddy bear that reminds Papa of Lily. There is an entire line of toys that go along with this teddy bear and Lily got them ALL. She also got some great cupcake cloths and pink bedding.

Lily is such an amazing baby. In the busyness of the day she only got one short nap and was completely thrown off her routine. But she did not cry at all or become fussy, she just became cuddly and sweet.

Lily got this great little pink car as her big gift! She is such a big girl sitting in it and turning the wheel.

As the evening began to wind down my camera battery died and the two boys dug into the plate of homemade buckeyes (thank you Natalie!) They are so sneaky and sweet!

I really treasure these days. I got a chance to sit around and talk to my brother Thomas about school and my sister in law Michele about our famlies. Natalie made some very delicious food and Charlie played with kids. I am lucky to have the family I do and be able to have friendships with my brothers and their wives.

It was a wonderful family filled start to the week end Christmas extravaganza.