Tubes in Donnie's Ears

Yesterday morning we took Donnie to have tubes put in his ears.  We were at the hospital at 6 am and they took him back at 7.  We were in the recovery room for about 10 minutes and the doctor showed up.  It took less than 15 minutes to put the tubes in his ears.  When he woke up they said I could go pick him up and the first thing he said was "Daaaadaaaa"  while trying to hold his head up.  He was still pretty out of it so I sat with him and gave him a juice box.  He chugged the juice and when it was empty he threw it and started screaming.  They brought him another one and he was still mad so he squeezed it all over us.  Then he was mad about the thing on his toe that was monitoring his pulse.  To make it worse all he wanted to do was walk.  He kept screaming "walk" and squirming to get down.  It was just a few minutes and they let us go home.  It was a quick and easy visit.  His tubes should stay in for about a year.  Hopefully we don't have to deal with any more ear infections and I can have my happy little boy back...it's been a while.  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos (unrelated to ear surgery).

First Day of School

This morning was Cadynce's first day of school.  She was so excited this morning when she woke up.  We were busy all morning getting ready until it was time to leave.  When we got to school I signed her in, cleaned her hands, then she finds her name tag to give to Mrs. April and tell her good morning.  I hardly even got a kiss good-bye from her...she was ready to have fun.  The kids are free to play with whatever they want for about an hour.  There is an art room full of all kinds of stuff (paints, play-doh, crayons, markers, stamps) and they are encouraged to do whatever they would like.  There is a bigger room that is full of different activities, toys, and imaginary play.  They have snack time, chapel time, and outdoor play before meeting with just their class of nine kids and their teacher.

While Cadynce was at school, Donnie and I got to sit and read the same book over and over and over again without any interruptions.  He kept saying "ith.  ba-ba" which means "Sis, bye-bye."  We then went to playgroup, and he got to have some play time with the other little ones.  Soon it was time to pick up Cadynce, and Donnie was so happy to have his "Sis" back.  They giggled at each other the whole ride home.  When we got home Cadynce said, "thank you for taking me to school Mommy."  View Album for more pictures. (I wish I had control over the order of the pics in the album...they are not in order).

Labor Day Weekend

What a long weekend!  I'm not sure why it seemed so long because Don was out of town until Sunday afternoon.  Sunday night we went to the 11th annual Labor Day weekend party that a co-worker of Don's has each year.  There were so many fun things to keep all the kids busy (bounce house, slip n slide, pool, and video games).  They had lifeguards on duty to watch the kids while swimming, and also hired people to do the cooking and serve drinks.  It was one awesome party and we all had fun.  We took Cadynce with us and decided to have our neighbor come over and watch Donnie.  We thought he would be too young for the fun and he would be miserable if he went...that was a good decision!!  Two 12 year old girls asked if they could take Cadynce with them to play and they kept her busy the rest of the night.  They carried her everywhere, and they took really good care of her.  I think they had just as much fun as she did.  We stayed until Cadynce was cold and wanted to get dressed (about 10 o'clock).  She ran her mouth the entire ride home asking how strong is God?  Can God pick up a house?  Is he strong enough to pick up a car and a building at the same time?  We laughed for the whole 25 minute car ride home.  That little mind isn't so little sometimes!

Monday night we had several of our neighbors over for a "Bring Your Own Meat to Grill" party.  We brought our grill to the front and everyone brought their own food and cooked it up. We sat in front of our house and enjoyed hanging out with our neighbors for a couple of hours.  We've got some great neighbors and we're constantly making excuses to make them come and hang out with us!  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for video.

Preschool Open House

Today we took Cadynce to see her school and to meet her teacher.  All they did was play for about an hour and Cadynce did not want to leave.  Her two favorite things were play-doh and the play kitchen.  She instantly claimed a baby doll as hers and she spent a lot of time cooking and feeding her baby.  Her teacher is Mrs. April and she is great.  We are so happy with this school, and we can't wait for her first day next Wednesday.  I will be the stalker mom who takes a picture of every moment of the day.  View Album for more pictures.

Let's Get Wet!

Donnie is 15 months old today!!  I decided to take out all the sand from the sand table and fill it with water.  As you will see, Donnie loved it so much he climbed right in.  That's not exactly what I had in mind, but he has had an ear infection for over a month now so he deserved a little fun.  It was a like a bath on stilts!  Cadynce wasn't all that into it because it required getting her hands wet, and when her hands were wet she couldn't open the door, and when she couldn't open the door she couldn't get inside to dry them on a towel...waa...waa...waa!  View Album for more pictures.  Click here for videos.

A Busy Weeekend

We had a busy and very fun weekend.  We started Saturday with an early meeting at church (with free child care), we went to a birthday party, and ended the evening at a high school football game.  We spent a few hours on Sunday at Sea World enjoying the waterpark, and then we enjoyed some much needed rest time at home.  Sunday night we had another meeting at church, and after the meeting they had food and live music so we hung out and listened for while.  View Album for more pictures.

Don's Birthday Celebration

I LOVE birthdays!  We tried to make Don's day a very special day.  Last week I attempted to take a picture of me with the kids to frame and give Don to take to work.  It went as I expected, but we got a few good ones.  I told Cadynce that it was a secret and we were not going to tell Daddy.  Don came home from work, and the first thing out of her mouth was that we took pictures for his birthday.  The morning of his birthday we got up early and had a nice quiet breakfast together.  Later in the morning, I took the kids to see him at work where we surprised him with balloons, cookies, and his present.  He was very surprised.  When we got home Cadynce and I made him a chocolate birthday cake.  When Don got home we went out to eat and then came home to enjoy the cake we made.  We lit a candle and Cadynce sang Happy Birthday.  It was a fun day.  View Album for more pictures.

Trip to Austin

We drove up to Austin Saturday morning to stay with our friends Jeff and Kelly.  We had a short delay after Don stuck his finger in Donnie's mouth and made him throw up all over himself.  (Donnie apparently was trying to eat a wipe).  I ran in Wal-mart to buy him a new shirt and shorts.  Way to go Daddy!!  We got to Felker's and got ready for the pool.  We swam and ate lunch then went back to the house for nap time.  The little guys napped while Cadynce and Aiden watched a movie.  That night their babysitter came over and we went to listen to a Texas Country band play.  Don and I did a lot of dancing, and I think we fit right in making fools of ourselves.  Sunday morning we had breakfast then just let the kids play for a while before heading back home.  We always have so much fun with the Felker's and the kids always play so well together.  View Album for more pictures.

14 Months Old

Donnie is 14 months old and the cutest little boy I've ever seen.  He is getting quite a vocabulary using 19 words (I won't say how many Cadynce was using), and he knows 15 signs.  I want to emphasize that he KNOWS 15 signs...he refuses to use them.  I think he's pretty tall right now.  Every time he's standing eye to eye to a little kid I always like to ask how old they are, and all of them have been 18 or 19 months old.  I like to imagine him at least 6'3".

 He decided to really fight back yesterday when Cadynce took a toy from him while we were at the park.  She grabbed it out of his hands and he hit her with both hands as hard as he could, then he grabbed her shirt while she was trying to get away.  All we could do was laugh...we have been waiting for this day.  Donnie has been tossed around, sat on, pushed to the ground, kicked, pinched, and a whole lot more (by Cadynce of course).  Donnie has become a tough kid in the last 14 months thanks to his big sister.  Even after all of that, he loves his big sister.  He wants to do everything she does and he loves to just be with her.  He loves to swim, loves animals, and loves to play outside.  He would stay outside all day if it wasn't so hot.  He is an awesome little guy and melts my heart with every smile.

A Good Week!

My mom came and spent a week with us.  We had a good mix of hanging out and staying busy.  She played a lot of doll house with Cadynce over the week and told a thousand stories.  Some of the fun things we did this week included a play/musical, The Snake Farm, and the dinosaur display at the museum.  Don and I also got to enjoy a few date nights along with a late night walk around the neighborhood every night.  It was a fun week and we enjoyed the company.  View Album for more pictures.