Go Baby Go

Well its official, my almost Derby baby is out of the gates and running. He is now mobile. For weeks now, he has been perfectly content with scooting and sliding across the hardwood floor that is located throughout our house. He had no traction, so when he attempted to crawl, his legs would slide out from under him and flat on his belly he would go. Eventually he learned how to get himself up on his hands and knees and do the infamous baby rock. I knew we were getting close and he has finally figured it out. John swears he did it a couple days ago, but I saw what he was referring to and I would not consider it a crawl. Yesterday was the first time I have seen him truly crawl. I have had the camera sitting out ready to go for days now, so as soon as I sensed it I grabbed the camera and captured the moment. So without further ado...here he is:
Yes, that isa chain that my sons are playing with, did I mention we were a little red (it was passed down from their Dad)?





I also have a cute clip of my cute little redneck singing one of his favorite country tunes.






Last but not least, my little giggle box:






Hope you enjoy my video frenzy!

My outlet

When I started this blog at Amber's request, I planned on writing about all the funny and interesting things young children do in a days time. However I find myself using it almost as an outlet to vent about all the difficulties I have had to face since having a second child.
Chase was such a happy baby. Other than the typical teething episode, bumps and bruises, or the one stomach bug he got, the kid never really cried. He never got sick until his first birthday. He began sleeping through the night early on,and other than rough patches while teething, he has always been an awesome sleeper. He is wild and rambunctious, but what young boy isn't? All in all he was truly a wonderful baby and is a good kid.
I know that everyone tells you no two kids are alike, but I never imagined just how different two could be. Other than the first couple weeks of life, Cole has been a challenge to say the least. He does have a very strong personality and can show his temper quite often, but all that aside, the biggest challenge is how sick he has been. The list is ever growing.
Around 3 or 4 weeks, we discovered Cole suffered from colic. Anyone who has ever dealt with a child with colic knows that you feel as though life could not possibly get any worse. When it is 3am and you have been pacing the house with a screaming (not crying, screaming) infant for hours, you start to understand how some people with no support system and no outlet, go crazy and hurt their poor innocent children. It is hard, very hard. Never in my life have I prayed as much as I did during those long nights.
Once we started to feel like we might be getting somewhere with the colic we learned Cole suffered from reflux. This helped explain some of the screaming after he ate and why the moment we laid him down, he would wake wailing and tossing around as though he was in severe pain. Eventually with medication, we felt we were getting somewhere with that as well. He even began sleeping until about 4 am every night. Things were looking good.
I believe our next hurdle was his first ear infection. After that, I lose track of the order becasue it all seems to be one ongoing illness. Following that ear infection, he added RSV, croup, and 3 additional ear infections to the growing list of illnesses. Since Christmas, my dear Cole has been to see the doctor at least once a week, sometimes twice.
As a parent, it is the worst feeling ever to watch your child suffer day in and day out and not be able to just fix it, I have had to give him medication daily now for 7 months of his 8 months on this earth. I cannot imagine what parents dealing with such larger issues must go through. I realize I am truly blessed with both my boys, but I am ready to see my baby feel good and possibly sleep through the night at least once.
Our most recent visit to the MD was yesterday when we learned that cole had the fourth ear infection that I mentioned. I will be calling an ENT this week to set up an appointment although our pediatrician said we have to have one more ear infection. I feel sometimes Mom knows best, even if I don't have MD after my name.
I am included photos of Mr. Pitiful. Please pray for my sweet baby that soon, very soon, he will feel much better and that we can both get some much needed (8 months worth) sleep!

Better Than Sex?

I decided to try something new this Christmas and I found a cake named the "Better than Sex" cake. I had heard people talk about it before but had never tried it myself. I found a recipe that sounded good and sent my dear husband to the local grocery to purchase the necessary ingredients.

Now to decide where to take the cake. In my family everyone, including grandparents and both my parents, has been divorced and then remarried at some point. Some call this a blended family, I often describe it as "disfunctional". Whatever you choose to call it, sadly enough, it is become more and more common these days. Anyhow, due to my blended situation and the fact that I adopted a whole new family through holy matrimony; who thankfully are as nonblended (notice I did not say nondisfunctional) as they come, we had a total of 6 Christmas gatherings to attend. I decided on gracing the Kellogg family (Grandaddy Bob, Shawnee, Aunt Kristin, and whomever her guest of the year may be, this year it was a freshly aquired boyfriend named Nick) with my cake.

As I was making the cake, I had to phone my father and inform him, "Dad, this is going to be good, really good." I tried to explain to him how good this was going to be, but he just kept telling me abot his new "electronic gadget of the week" as he often does. So, I proceeded to complete my cake and place it in the fridge as directed.

That evening, we carried the cake among the 1000 other items that are required for a family of 4 with 2 small children to attend dinner at Dad's. Most of us, well all over the age of 17, enjoyed a delicious bowl full of chili that Dad had prepared that day. The rest, those under 17, were either too worried about when we were going to open a present or had eaten McDonalds right before Christmas dinner.

After dinner we proceeded with opening the presents, which is such a thrill when a 3 year old is involved, they get so excited! Once we had all gotten our presents and inspected our new loot, we all headed outside to surprise Chase with a John Deere electric powered tractor. Of course he was thrilled and rode through the chilly night on his tractor for an hour following its unveiling. This could be an explanation of why we have been battling croup and a cough for over a week following Christmas as described in a previous blog!

Eventually it got late, and kids got tired, so we packed the car with the now 1020 or so items that we had. As we were preparing to walk out the door, I remembered the cake in the fridge. Duh! Most said they were full or weren't a cake fan. I explained that I had worked hard and wanted everyone to at least try it. So we all, except John (VERY VERY rare) and "new beau Nick" got a piece of the cake. Although Nick did not get a piece of cake, he asked Kristin for a bite of hers and then proceeded to devour the rest of it. Suddenly everyone is ranting and raving about how this is the best cake they have ever tasted and they are getting a second helping as most often do during the holidays. John regretted that he only had a small piece left to eat once we got home and he tasted it.

Of course I was proud because I had made the cake, but pride aside, this is truly the best cake I have ever tasted! We decided to refer to it as the "Best Cake Ever" since we were among children (aka Chase) who would definitely tell their preschool teacher about the fact that they had cake at Christmas that was better than sex. So, call it what you want, you MUST make this cake and make it often because although it is not the healthiest cake you will ever make, it is truly THE best cake you will ever make.

Read directions all the way through first or you will mess up the chocolate chip step.

Ingredients:
1 german chocolate cake mix
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
caramel topping
12 ounces Cool Whip
3 heath bars, crushed


Directions:

Heat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour 9 x 13 inch pan. Prepare cake mix as directed on package; pour into prepared pan. After 10 minutes of baking, sprinkle with chocolate chips. Continue baking until cake is done.

While cake is still hot, poke holes in it with handle of wooden spoon. Pour sweetened condensed milk over cake; let cool. Top with caramel sauce, then whipped topping. Sprinkle with candy bars.

Cabin Fever at Sea World

Christmas was wonderful as always. I enjoyed seeing family and friends that I have not seen in a while. However, as the days progressed my boys started to get sick. Cole was doing his infamous ear tug and Chase was coughing, so the day after Christmas we found ourselves sitting in the germ cess pool aka "sick waiting room" at the pediatrician's office. Cole checked out fine, but Chase was diagnosed with croup. So, we filled his prescription and headed home. That evening, Cole also developed croup. For those unfamiliar with croup, it is a cold like virus that causes swelling around the voicebox so that whenever the kid tries to cough, or talk for that matter, they sound just like a seal. So, with two sick kids, it sounds like Sea World around here.

Cole progressively got worse and due to his young age, I was asked to bring him back to the MD, I am sure it was so they could receive another $15 copay. In addition to determining Cole had croup, they also pointed out that he has 5 teeth coming in at once on the top. Again, for those unfamiliar with kids, that translates to no sleep for Mom. I was told to keep both boys home since they were still contagious as long as they were coughing.

So, here we are over a week later and the cabin fever is hitting us hard. Chase has tested me beyond believe, how he has survived, beats me. Cole has spent most the day whining and most of the nights wailing. Chase has watched more television than a young boy should be allowed in a year, but sometimes that is the only way Mommy can shower, nap, or just regain some sanity! Between the pitiful moments, we have had some fun moments as well. Aren't we a bundle of fun?

Ho Ho Ho

 
My little angel, nothing to blog really, just loved this photo and felt it needed to be posted! I am so proud of this photo, it is probably my favorite that I have done! Enjoy! 

All in a day's work

John works for a landscaping company. He is outside most all the time performing manual labor. The other day, he was working on moving a tree with another guy who was driving a skidsteer. Kind of like a miniature bulldozer meets forklift looking deal. Here is an example:

The guy driving the skidsteer must have been smoking crack because he somehow managed to run into my 6'7" husband standing in front of him. This caused John's ankles to lunge forward in his boots and then he proceeded to scream like a girl and fall to the ground much like a massive tree from what I understand.
Of course he hobbled around that evening and had to go the next day and obtain xrays. Thank goodness no breaks, just sprains.
Have you ever seen Misery where Kathy Bates decides to break James Caan's ankles by hitting them with a mallet? That is the image I get when looking at John's ankles. The flash really takes away from the real discoloration of his ankles, but medical photographer I am not.




This is pretty close to "Paul Sheldon's" face as "Annie" hits them with the hammer. My son the actor!

Where did my baby go?

Oh my. I know it is such a cliche, but man time really does fly. Three years ago today Chase Alexander entered our lives and forever changed them. I have never met another child like Chase, and I don't say that because he is mine. He is the sweetest and most devilish child all wrapped up in one. I will not lie and say he is the smartest, but he is smart for his age.
Last night, he layed in our bed all snuggled up watching a Christmas cartoon and when I slipped in next to him, he rolled over and said I love you Mom as he proceeded to kiss and hug me, those moments make your heart melt.
I have also gone from Mommy to Mom, which saddens me. I am not ready for my first baby to become a boy. He requested a train birthday theme this year, so I stayed up until 4 am making him the Thomas train cake he requested. I was so tired the next day, but seeing his face light up took care of the bags under my eyes. I am pretty proud of the way it turned out, so I have included a photo.




His birthday party was a success, of course he racked in numerous toys that he did not need but has quite enjoyed.

My house is a constant mess and I can't begin to tell you the last time I balanced our checkbook, but knowing how quickly the years go by make it all okay. So please, feel free to come by anytime and visit, maybe even relieve me for a moment, but please overlook the dust bunnies and the fingerprints all throughout, I am too busy watching my boys grow to worry about that stuff. Maybe later.

One last quick thing my now 3 year old did to make me laugh:
On Monday we met up with one of Chase's "girlfriends" Abby for lunch. Since we have not seen her in a while, and she was treating him to a birthday lunch, I asked him what he wanted to wear. I pulled out his John Deere shirt and his Harley Davidson shirt thinking one was sure to be a winner. Much to my surprise, he chose a sleeveless polo sweater over a white turtle neck with khackis and brown dress shoes. When we arrived, Abby had also chosen to dress up for Chase, she was adorned in her favorite Minnie Mouse dress, gloves, and mouse ears complete with the bow. Three year olds are so funny!

Ameba and the soap collection

Amber Scott, aka Ameba is one of the most amazing and unique people that I ever have and ever will meet. Growing up we were always known as being a bit different. Truth be known, Amber was the unique and creative one and I just copied her ideas and claimed them as my own or "our" idea. Sorry Amber. Anyway, one thing that made us unique was our soap collection. I am not talking just a bar or two of Dial. Amber and I would beg our parents to take us to the mall so that we could go to Crabtree and Evelyn at the end of every week so that we could spend our hard earned cash on soap. As I was going through a box in the garage yesterday, I stumbled upon a box that contained the above mentioned collection. I will post photos, and yes, that is Bart Simpson the soap character.






I also stumbled upon a sweet Easter egg that Amber created for me and it was still fully intact.




Ameba thanks for all the memories! Sheba and Ameba BFFE

Kids never fail to embarrass us

This blog cannot be appreciated without a photo, so I am going to try my darndest to make it happen.
Chase Alexander is definitely one of the greatest joys of my life, but man is he full of exciting moments. Just yesterday we attended playgroup at our church nursery as we always do on Wednesday since I organized the group over a year ago. The other Moms whom I have become great friends with laugh/cry along with me because of the many trials Chase has put me through. Just as playgroup was ending, I was attempting to get Cole fed and in his carseat so thatwe could leave. My friend Michelle was doing the same with her daughter. I would have never imagined I could sit with another woman as our breasts were exposed and not be completely bothered by this, but yet, here I am doing it all the time. Don't get me wrong, you will not find me in an airport whipping out my boob for all to see, but occasionally I can be found on a park bench with my blanket and child in tow. Sorry, back to the subject...
While Michelle and I are gathering our youngest, our oldest are running and playing together. When I enter the foyer area to leave, I discover my child and his playmate have successfully brought an entire Christmas tree and all the trimmings to the ground and were quite proud of their work. God had to be present at that very moment because Chase is still alive today.
This blog turned out to have nothing to do with the photo I will attempt to post, but the photo should give you a chuckle and a glimpse into a day in my life. This was shot while we got our family Christmas photo made in my "studio downstairs.
Enjoy!

I am thankful, really I am

I began my day by participating in a 2 mile Turkey Day Fitness Walk. My original intentions were to run, but a week with a sick child and a couple days of me lacking motivation, put me a little over week behind in my training schedule. Plus, I walked with my stepmom who walks but doesn't run. Although she walks as fast as I run. She is trying to convince me to participate in the upcoming mini marathon, but I still doubt my abilities.

Today I also had the first Thanksgiving dinner at my house and it felt so good! I was so proud to see everyone packing on the pounds thanks to my hospitality!

I am thankful for so many things, mostly all the same as others; God, friends, family, my home, my good health, etc. I am however finding it increasingly difficult to be thankful for being the mom of a young infant. You see, my beautiful young infant who is close to 7 months, still does not sleep more than 3 hours at a time. This is really taking a major toll on me since I am the only person equipped to calm his screams in the wee hours of the night. I spend many a night in tears wondering what I can do differently (other than allowing him to scream hours on end like the pediatrician suggest). I am not against letting a child cry some, but there is a point where enough is enough and it becomes cruelty, and this child of mine is more than capable of reaching that point.

Please pray for/think about (whatever your beliefs bring you to do) me and this situation. I know that both poor Cole and myself desperately need a full nights rest on a regular basis. I welcome any reasonable humane suggestion to aid in this goal!

Hope everyone had a wonderful turkey day.

Clueless

Amber has forced me into unknown territory, blogging. I have no idea what to say or how to go about saying it, so I will simply use this as chronicles to my crazy life. Writing has never been a forte of mine, so bear with me!

That is something I have always admired about Amber, her ability to write and with such wit at that. I think it all began when we wrote our "Young Authors books for Ms. Kidd, I am pretty sure Amber received an award of some description, me on the other hand, Ms. Kidd often just shook her head when dealing with me, as did most adults.

You will have to excuse any typos that may occur, Chase Alexander, the spitting image of his mother, felt the need to remove the space bar from my laptop one day, so I have to hit a circle the size of a pencil eraser with precision to achieve a space. It gets so frustrating, especially since I am a bit of a perfectionist and feel the need to correct it every time no matter how small the mistake.

Well it is 2am and my next waking is only 2 hours away, so I am off for a cat nap.

Heres to you Amber, Enjoy!