Round Up

I am not sure what has been going on lately that I have left out, so bear with any repetitions!!

* L went to his first camp this summer. It was a 4-day church day camp for 5-8 year olds. I had originally planned on sending them both, but thought this could be his special thing since his sister has had many activities of her own this summer (swim team, cooking class, science class).

I was really proud of him. He seemed a tad nervous the first day, but enjoyed the week. It was an all day thing from 9-3, which included swimming, bible stories, crafts, sports, lunch, etc. He slept well each night!

I especially loved that another mom from church drove the kids there and back every day in her 15-passenger van!! The camp is about 45 minutes from our town, so that saved me huge chunks of time each day! It also allowed me to spend time with my dtr and baby that week.

Nervous, but working hard to listen!




Excited to start his first day with swimming!


Showing off his camp t-shirt and little souvenir!


* My dtr has finished her commitment to swim team for the summer. I think she enjoyed it most of the time! I hope both her and my son participate next year. My son has already signed up for flag football in the fall. I think we might get her back into gymnastics/dance as they continue to seem more of an athletic fit for her despite trying other things. I would still like to add some form of music to their enrichment, but still checking into that.

* My MIL kept the baby on Tuesday afternoon so I could take the kids swimming. Our good time got interrupted with the Tragic Pool Incident of 2009! Thankfully, it wasn't The VERY Tragic Pool Incident!! My son made it to the bathroom but not the toilet. Wet bathing suit + p**p x 5 year old's attempt at self-cleaning before Mommy could arrive on the scene = GROSS. I brought the swim suit home in a plastic bag, but couldn't bring myself to deal with it. I can say without hesitation that I feel no guilt by tossing it in the trash.

* VBS this week. Usually my time to drop kids off and enjoy some free time. I especially felt compelled to do that this year since I just had a sweet baby 2 months ago. Again, I was not feeling guilty whatsoever. Then I made the misstep of listening to one of the girls say that she had signed up for two responsibilities. Big ones. Decorating AND snacks. I offered to collect money and purchase snacks. Apparently, at Small Church USA that also means being fully responsible for all aspects of VBS snacks-gathering donations, purchasing food, finding snack volunteers, set-up, hand-out, and clean-up. Silly me for not realizing that! It went well though. I received generous donations. Enough to purchase snacks this year and probably next year as well. In past years, they use the money for other related children's activities, but I chose to start a VBS snack fund instead. I was able to enjoy good conversation with the few that volunteered. I also felt good about the snacks we provided this year. We had a 4-day VBS with snacks that included fruit, cheese cubes and pretzel sticks, popcorn, and yes cookies! I am sure I threw some ladies off by not asking for cookie donations, but hopefully the kids got a healthier version of VBS without cookies everyday!

* I had to take the boys for check-ups on Wednesday. L had a 5-year old check up and B had his 2-month old check up. L is 45" tall and 47.5 pounds. Sister better watch out because he is catching up FAST! B is 24" tall and 12.7 pounds!! I have a 2-month old that is 2 feet tall; that just sounds crazy to me! Anyway, both were deemed healthy and happy which makes Mommy happy!

* At the end of next week, the kids and I are traveling for 6 days to see family and friends Oklahoma. Most of my visits home involve just family and a short turnaround of time. I decided to enjoy a longer visit at a slower pace this time! Despite having family around to help, you might still pray for my sanity as I travel with the three kids!

* A few days after we return, we all head to the big city for a stay at a hotel and a baseball game as a late birthday celebration for L. The baby and I will skip the baseball game, but hopefully we can all enjoy the pool while there.

* The last of my travels for summer will find me and the kids in Dallas to visit friends that haven't met B, a GNO, and extra hugs for one of my dear friends who is moving to the other side of Texas from me. :(

* Coming home from that trip will leave us with 2 weeks before school starts on the 24th! No doubt those 2 weeks will keep me busy with getting us all organized and ready for the new school year, but I hope it will mean a smoother road to travel once school starts.

Stacey

If you're happy and you know it, say Bob!

I just received excellent customer service and wanted to make sure everyone knew about it!

In case you didn't know it, Mardel's is having a 1-day sale with 20% off quite a few things; educational, kid's, school supplies, homeschool supplies. You can make your purchase either online or at a store near you.

Which is what I was trying to do when it got complicated.

The closest Mardel's is 45 minutes away.

And I wanted to use 2, $10 gift cards that I had received eons ago (my previous church gave them as teacher appreciation gifts one Sunday).

I started to make my purchase online until I realized that I couldn't use my cards.

So I called a store, hoping to use my cards, but knowing I probably couldn't take advantage of free shipping. You can get free shipping with online orders over $25.

The first store, the one closest to me, would not do phone orders.

The second store, the one in the town I use to live in and go to church in, ROCKS!

Not only did Bob, the store manager, agree to do a phone order but he also ran my gift card numbers through as well.

Yes, I had to pay shipping, but it was worth it to receive the customer service he provided.

I got 20% off all but 2 of the items I ordered and got to apply my $20 in gift cards.

In the end, I saved an extra $10 off my discounted order.

But best of all, I got to deal with someone that cared enough to make the effort for a customer!

So, if you need to order from Mardel's, may I suggest the Mardel's in Lewisville, TX.

Tell Bob I said "Hi!".

Stacey

S*P*A*R*K*L*E

We watch fireworks every year, but I think this is the first year that my kids have actually experienced fireworks.

Bad Mommy!

Well, really, bad Daddy! He likes to poo-poo our potential fun all the time!

We watched the town's big fireworks show the Sunday before, so it was just a day for hanging out, eating, and waiting for dark. We surprised the kids with a few simple fireworks.

Sparklers were a big hit, of course!


A sparkler duel!


These next two pics crack me up! I caught them both jumping in mid-air after hearing the "explosion"!

Waiting for the "explosion"

Tank races

More sparklers!




Love their faces! Daddy was showing them poppers. Simple fun.


Chillin'

The fam

My little firecrackers!

The day wouldn't be complete without a visit from the Firecracker Fairy! Thanks to my friend Tracy (and her mom!), I have known the FF for many many years! A got a neat wooden bead bracelet-making kit and L got a Superman dvd.


Stacey

Amazing love

I was super busy on Friday and Saturday which left me with no time to get this done in time for theme week!

Here is some Sunday baby love!

It is truly amazing how these little bundles grow and change in just a few short months.

Two months to be exact!

All the pictures from this week have watched him grow in May and June, so it is even fun for me to peek at them again knowing how he has changed even more in July.

His fancy church outfit....and his worried look!

One of his favorite activities! He would stay there until the water turned cold, just like his sister. I can see my water bill going up more in coming years!

Post-bath happiness.


Mommy and me.

Tough guy.

Checking out the ceiling fan before the big game!

It should come as no surprise that I advocate lots of active tummy time early on. :) Here he is practicing his tricks!




Posing!



I love this picture! While many people will quickly comment that he looks like his brother, this picture confirmed that he does indeed have many of his sister's qualities. They share the same face shape and eyes while he also has his brother's dimple. Bottom line is that they all pretty much look more like me, including the signature chin! While big sister was more petite and big brother was way heftier at this age, they all look alike!


I offered to try again so Daddy could hope for one that looked more like him.

My offer was rejected!

Stacey

Sleepy love

I could take pictures all day long of a sleeping baby.

Why is that so fascinating?!

My little guy loves a good nap in the wrap!

I am not sure why his brow is furrowed. He is probably wondering why I am disturbing his nap with picture taking!



My daughter took these pictures for me. I was having a "I am totally in love with my baby right now" moment as I watched him laying there on me and wanted her to preserve the moment for me. I had just finished feeding him....can you tell?!

That mouth melts my heart.



Booty-in-the-air sleeping is some good sleeping!



Just another sweet napping picture.


I love watching his feet when he sleeps. When I am feeding him, I will hold his little foot in my hand, amazed at its perfection.



Stacey

Sibling Love

The kids have really been (mostly) great with B.

Of course, my daughter takes her "mothering" role quite seriously. She will play with him, soothe him, hold him, and help with diapers and bathing. I still have to use caution with her though; she believes her skills are greater than I do right now. Her favorite thing is to stand up while holding him so she can do the baby bounce or mother sway motions! She is a huge help during those times when he needs some attention, but I need a bathroom break or other such things!

My big boy is really trying to be a helper as well. He doesn't always have the soft touch I am needing for baby care, but he loves to entertain him and will hold him for me when I need my hands free for a few minutes. It is easy to see that he adores his little brother. That is if you ignore the occasional bops on the head he gives him!! :)

Personally, I think they love him so much because he doesn't wake the house at night!

I caught sister off-guard, but I love how baby brother is just hangin' out with big sister.

Who doesn't want their baby being cared for by a super hero....aka big brother!

Sniff sniff! L used to be that little too!

This is just one of example of all the times I am trying to take pics or video of the baby and big brother wants in on the action.

It ends up working out in the end!


Stacey

New love

I can't even believe that I am saying this, but my precious little man will be 8 weeks old on Thursday!

He is perfect in so many ways! Since I am working on a little montage about him for later this week, I won't spoil it, but I will share 5 golden words every mommy wishes to speak....

He is a good sleeper!

Thank you, Jesus!

Almost from the first week, he slept well at night even while sleeping during the day. I couldn't believe it. These days, he typically goes to bed between 9 and 10 PM, waking once some time between 3 and 5 AM. And even then, he simply eats and dozes back into la-la land. We have had a few off nights, but I can count them on one hand.

This was his first week home.


You can already see here how long he started out! He only continues to get longer!

Can you ever get enough pictures of a sleeping baby?!!


This was taken one day around week 4 when I caught him finding his thumb. I wish he would find it more, but he loves his pacifier.

In fact, these were his exact words regarding the matter.

(OK, sorry, but I totally cracked up when I caught this picture. I thought it was too funny and hope not to offend!)

Stacey