My Big Girl!

Mallory Jo is growing like a weed! I have never seen a baby grow so quickly! She is now wearing six-nine months clothing...and she is only three months!

She is also hitting all of those milestones! Tonight, she kept rolling and rolling. This week, she has seemed to gain so much more control of her head and neck. I swear, she will be sitting at the table with us in no time!

And did I mention her personality? She is so sweet! She smiles and smiles. I love to hear her laugh.

I LOVE You....NOT

You know, all siblings have that love-hate relationship going. Faith and Cameron DEFINITELY have it going. For the most part, they play separately. They play in the same area, but with separate things...well....except when  one happens to have something the other wants and that's when the trading I've spoken of begins. Sometimes the negotiations are peaceful and sometimes they are rather brutal. Let's see, I've witnessed headlocks, biting, pinching, hair pulling, and the classic tantrums that result in arms swinging and legs kicking. Yep, these kiddos can fight.

There's not doubt that they love each other, too.  I've often wondered if they would be protective of the other or if they would miss the other if one was gone. I think the answer to both of these things is yes. Cameron often looks for Faith in the mornings. We walked into her room one morning, and she was not there (she had already gotten up with Cody). You could tell that Cameron was confused and upset. He had this pitiful, puzzled look on his face. When we took Cameron to the cardiologist, Faith could hear him screaming in the back. My mom told me that she was all in a tizzy in the waiting room. She took off to the exam rooms to find her brother!

So, I think it's like this: Faith and Cameron can kick, hit, pinch, wrestle, and scream at each other all that they please....but that's it...no one else is allowed!  Take a look at these pics....clear indicator that it is a love/hate relationship!

The headlock....

Kiss and make up!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Cody's birthday was last Sunday. We had a BUSY weekend! Saturday, Cody was gracious enough (on HIS birthday weekend) to keep the kids all by his lonesome (well....with SOME help from YaYa) while I volunteered in Madison with the Extreme Makeover Home Edition. We then had his birthday party with my family later that night, and we celebrated with his family on Sunday. It was a tiring but GREAT weekend. Here are some memories...

Cody requested a cookie cake from me. Oh, how I was pleased to purchase that! I offered to make a dessert of his choice, but he preferred a bought, cookie cake. Good news for me! When I brought the cake home, I explained to Faith and Cameron what it was for. They were all excited. They kept going to the counter and saying, "Da-eee (daddy)!" We had to give it to Cody early!




I LOVE the icing!



Mmmmmm....

At Pat and YaYa's, we had lunch and then hit the pool (well...Cody and the kids...I wasn't embarrassing myself). They had a blast. Mallory Jo was a sweet little one, too. The kids were even able to play with cousins Brady and Darcie Kate!

Make a wish daddy!

Faith with her daddy

Cameron trying to float!

 Mallory Jo hanging out with Nannie

It's hard to get five kiddos in a picture!

The Big Brother and the Big Sis

Faith and Cameron LOVE Mallory Jo. If she cries, they get all in a panic, running to find pacifiers or bottles. They pet her and talk baby talk. It's the cutest thing. I am so proud of them. They have really stepped up. Being babies themselves, I could have only imagined how they would behave once MJ was born. They're angels, however. Cameron kisses on MJ constantly.

In this picture, Cameron is trying to brush MJ's hair and Faith is diligently applying lotion to her legs. I think that MJ enjoyed it!

A Mother of Five

Oh, I am so sorry to disappoint. If you got super pumped by the title, I am happy to say, "NO! We are NOT expecting twins again!!!" Although I am sure that would be a GREAT topic of discussion, it is NOT the case....thank goodness!!!

No, this post is a rather reflective one....

So, those of you that know us, recall that we suffered two miscarriages before we had the twins. It was a very trying time.  Unless you have experienced it, you can never imagine what it's like. It's a roller coaster of emotions. You are filled with grief and sadness. You then go through a period of blaming yourself..."...if only I had..." Then, and this emotion was probably the very worst, pure anger and jealousy. I could not understand WHY this was happening to me over and over. I did not want to look at or see any other pregnant woman. I did not want to be around newborns. Oh, how I prayed about having such terrible feelings. I knew that it was so wrong of me, but it was uncontrollable. Anyway, that's how I felt for a short time. Then, I was blessed with the twins....

I have not had much time to think about the miscarriages since the twins were born. Of course, it comes to mind on the dates when I found out that I was pregnant (with those that I lost) or when their predicted birthdays roll around. I think about it when others I know are forced to face the same tragedy of losing their baby. The emotions are still there. You think that, oh, I'm okay with it, now. Then, you hear of someone miscarrying or see it on television, and you cry, and cry.

Which brings me to WHY I am writing this post. I am reading the BEST book: "Heaven is for Real." It's great. To sum it up, it's a true story about a little boy, who, while fighting for his life, had a brief visit in Heaven. When he recovered, he began to tell his mom and dad things that they KNEW he would have never known unless his story was really true: He had gone to Heaven and come back.  One day, the little boy announced to his mother that he had TWO sisters. The mother thought he was greatly confused, since he really only had one. The little boy insisted that he had TWO sisters, because, in his words, "You had a baby die in your belly, mommy." Of course, the mother (knowing of her previous miscarriage), was shocked.  Her son continued to tell her that it was a little girl, who looked like his other sister. Then (and this is one really GOT me), he said that his sister said that she couldn't wait to see her mom and dad in heaven.

What a beautiful thing!!! We have two little ones just waiting on us in heaven. Of course, I always thought this would be the case, but this book really CONFIRMED it for me. It's such an inspirational book! Very uplifting and encouraging. READ IT!!!

Bubbles and Buuuuggggssss

The other night, the entire family went out on our back porch to enjoy the evening. Cody and I sat there with Mallory Jo while Faith and Cameron played away. This is one thing that I LOVE about living out in the country. We are surrounded by nature with a beautiful view, and we don't have to worry about pesky neighbors. Don't get me wrong, sometimes I wish that we DID live in a subdivision for the extra company and the thoughts of our children playing with the neighborhood children. Those thoughts are often fleeting, however. As my husband puts it...and I am sorry Cody...."I want to live somewhere that I can pee off of my back porch and not worry about anyone seeing me!" Well, I won't be peeing off the back porch anytime soon, but those are Cody's sentiments, and, he got his wish. I don't think he will have to ever worry about anyone spotting him....just not in front of the children, okay, honey??? :)

I digress...like I often do. ANYWAY. We spent a great afternoon on the back porch and we had some blog-worthy moments.

Faith and Cameron LOVE to blow bubbles....or at least try. They often stick the bubble wand in their mouths or press their lips together trying desperately to blow some air. Therefore, I'm usually the one blowing the bubbles (and I must admit that I LOVE it, too!). Bubbles is one of the words that both Faith and Cameron can say. They often tell you, "Bub-Bells," (that's how they say it), and want you to immediately drop what you are doing, to blow bubbles.

Bugs have also become a fascination of Faith's.  She loves to look for bugs and often picks up crumbs off of our floor (and there are quite a few of those right after meals) and call them a, "Buuuugggg." Yep, she drags the word out. It's so darn cute. I think that she is going to have a great southern accent. She already says, "Haaaayyyy!" in the mornings when we get her up. My little country girl. Anyway, on this evening, she spotted a bug...a real one. It was outside the screened porch, but she had the most fun talking to it. She jabbered and waved at it, telling it, "hey," and "bye."  It was great!

Mallory Jo loves the outside, too. Her daddy held her the whole time. I said that he had two of his favorite things. Take a look at the pic. Haha! He is making a silly face.

Vacation=A Learning Experience

Before we had Mallory Jo (or the twins for that matter), people always said that it would be difficult to get out and do things. In fact, some said that we would be stuck in the house for quite some time. Well....duh...I KNEW that loading up three children under 18 months would prove to be a GREAT task....and proves to be each time we go to the grocery store, family gatherings, shopping trips, etc. HOWEVER, I have also been determined to not let it tie us down too much. Of course, we don't go and do like we likely would with ONE child, but I think that we do fairly well for ourselves. That's why I began to plan a vacation to Myrtle Beach around late May. For the most part, I think that people thought we were either crazy, stupid, or in denial for taking the task on. Myself, however, could only be excited about the trip. Before our herd was born, I often worried about being able to handle all of these children. Now...I am rarely EVER concerned that me and Cody can't take it on! BRING IT!

As confident as I am, I am also very humbled to say that each trip/adventure is a learning experience. Our Myrtle Beach vacation was like no other vacation that I have ever taken. We had already taken the twins to the beach once before (when they were around nine months), but this trip added a new little one to the gang and the twins are busier than ever. New situation=new things to be learned. So, I've decided to make a list of all the wonderful things that I gathered while experiencing our first family vacation as a family of five....hopefully not our last....hehehehe!



1. Rent a U-haul: Yep, you read it right. The Yukon XL that we recently purchased still isn't big enough!!! Thank the Lord that my parents travelled with us, and we were able to throw some things into their vehicle. Let me paint a picture. We were loaded down with three suitcases, beach bags filled with toys, swimsuits, and towels, the baby swing, the bouncy seat, booster seats for the twins to eat lunch and breakfast in, bottles and sippy cups galore, two boxes of size 2 and size 4 diapers (and don't forget the swimmy diapers), cameras, bed rails for the twins, the pack and play for MJ, about 10 bags of groceries, which included all of the twins favorite snacks and MJ's formula, and the list could go on and on. By the time I had packed it all up, I was exhausted. Its' funny. For the first year EVER...I didn't pack 50 million outfits and pairs of shoes for myself. I went with a bare minimum for clothing and ONE swimsuit. MY how things change...hahaha!

This really doesn't paint a great picture. This is Faith and Cam...very TIRED of the riding as you can tell. You can see the swing up to the roof  in this pic! For next year's vacation, we are in the market for one of those things you hook to the top of your car for extra storage.....GEEZ!

2. Don't bring toys....the luggage cart will do!: So, I thought that I would bring a FEW toys for the kids to play with in the room. I brought several books (one for each night at bedtime) and one thing for each child. Well, that was a dumb idea....except for the books...we really used those. When we got into the room, the toys were a thing of the past! I turned my back for two seconds, and there THEY were....having a ball on the luggage cart! Those little monkeys!

3. Don't rent an umbrella unless you KNOW that you will use it!: Okay, this was REALLY dumb of us. I recall on our ride to the beach that I said, "If the kids like the beach, we will rent an umbrella." So, why did we rent one before we stayed out there more than fifteen minutes? I do NOT know. We rented the dang thing for three days...a whopping $75!!! The kids liked the beach, but they wanted NO part of the umbrella. They preferred to stay on the "hard" sand right by the water....and that was for a VERY SHORT TIME. Therefore, we wasted our money!!! This is the only evidence that the thing was used. MJ came down for a brief visit, too!

4. Bring two of EVERYTHING. Well, for the most part, I did....just not for the most important thing for playing on the beach....the bucket. In my defense, the toy pack that I bought DID have two buckets. Just not two LARGE buckets. Faith and Cameron both wanted the BIG bucket. It was one of the few things that entertained them on the beach. They fought over it...A...LOT. At least I brought two shovels, though!!! Same size and same color...ha! Notice that Faith loved to drink the salt water.

5. Go to restaurants that have balloons....hey, who said Hooters wasn't kid friendly??? Okay, so I was not THAT enthused that our family dinner would be spent at Hooters. We were trying to find a place that had great hamburgers. When we couldn't find the specific restaurant, my family whipped into Hooters (we had to caravan every night....my family, my parents, and my sister's family). Yep, my children's first trip to Hooters...FINE FAMILY CUISINE. However, by that point, it was late, the kids were hungry, and any place would do!  I must say that the kids (well...Faith and Cameron) did not do particularly well at the restaurants. That was strange because they normally do. Our friendly Hooters waitress brought them balloon, however, and their faces lit up! They had a ball!

6. Designate a photographer: So, I didn't get many pictures at the beach. I am extremely disappointed in that. When you have your hands full with three kiddos, you really don't have room to hold onto a camera, too. Therefore, if you are with your family, make sure that you designate SOMEONE to take pictures!!!

7.  Only one person on each horse!!!: So, I just HAD to take the kids to the fair! IT WAS A MUST! I didn't care if they could only ride a couple of things. Our first ride was the carousel. The kids were TERRIFIED of the horses at first. So, I hopped on a horse with Faith and Cody hopped on a horse with Cameron. They were okay with that. After the ride got started, however, the ride stopped. We were told to get off the horses and stand beside them. RIDICULOUS! It worked out, though, because they were no longer scared of the horses and they wanted to ride it several times!

The top picture is the first night we rode it, and the second picture is of the second night.

8. You might just need some alcohol. Now, I am not a drinker...AT ALL. This trip, however, might lead a person to drink. I must confess, that I had one! I got SO tickled at Cody. My parents were going to the grocery store for us and he told them, "I might just need some beer for this trip!" So, my parents went right to the store to pick up baby needs and alcohol for Cody....HILARIOUS!!!

9. I need a vacation after our vacation. Yep, you heard me. I'm pooped. Don't take our need for alcohol and our pure exhaustion as an indicator that our vacation was AWFUL. We didn't have a BAD trip. We actually had a good one. I think that it was VERY successful. It was just stressful. I've never been one to go on vacation to rest...that's just NOT me. Vacation, in my book, is a time to do all the things that you don't always get to do. I want to get up early and hit the ground running. I want to stay up late at night. The days need to be filled with FUN things. So, I'm not exhausted from the early mornings and late nights. That was nothing out of the ordinary. It was just the stress of it all. Getting everyone ready for the beach, pool, or evening activities was nothing less than a chore. Getting them and then loading them all in the car was challenging. Keeping everyone happy was impossible. Stress=exhaustion.

10.  You'll laugh about it when it's over.  It became too funny when every picture I snapped with Cody in it he looked totally disgusted! I'm sure if Cody was the one taking the pictures, my look would have been similar.  As mentioned before, the trip, at many times was stressful. We would work SO hard getting ready for the beach, gathering toys, rubbing in lotions, packing bags, etc. Then, we would make the haul there to have the babies be totally unhappy. We would plan a trip to the aquarium with the thought that all would LOVE it to get there and have one scream the majority of the time. It was discouraging. On the way home, however, I asked Cody what he truly thought about the trip. He told me that the trip had been stressful and he was simply exhausted. However, he shared the same thoughts that I did. Seeing the kids faces in the kiddie pool, was priceless. Watching them smile and laugh on the carousel, was priceless. Watching them play on the beach (although brief), was priceless. Although the trip was tiring and stressful, it was well worth it. We had definitely made some great family memories! Those moments that seemed so awful during our stay no longer seem so awful. We are already laughing about them and looking forward to our trip next year!

This is one of those pics where Cody looked disgusted. It was only about the millionth time that the kids turned over the bucket and he made his way to the water to refill it...hahaha!

Other pics of our trip: