Sonic Cup

I got a movie editing program for Christmas which makes me oh so excited!!! I have so many videos of Kaitlyn that I wanted to edit, but couldn't with what I had. So here is my first attempt at just playing around with it. I made the lighting a bit better, cut some of the video out, and added a snazzy (and very unoriginal) title. I was pretty proud of myself! :) I can't wait to actually know what I'm doing and make more movies!!!

And if you're wondering....this video was on May 16, 2009. It amazes me how small Kaitlyn looks to me now!!!

Yikes!

So I'm thinking that one of my New Year's resolutions should be to update this blog more!!! Geez! Christmas is just a few days away, which means I'm off work and getting to spend all day with K which I am loving!!! But the Christmas shopping really stressed me out yesterday...

Usually Kaitlyn has no problem shopping. She points to everything and yells, "Light!" (lately that has turned to "Bight" but oh well!) :P So yesterday we were at Old Navy and waiting in the checkout line. Kaitlyn was getting a bit restless, but was not crying. She was in her stroller and was getting kind of loud. She wasn't screaming out of anger or anything, but she was loud - sort of singing and sort of doing the over and over sound that she does when she is tired. So the lady behind keeps sighing a whole lot - and very loudly. I know that if I take K out she will just want me to hold her the whole time or put her down so she can explore - neither of which was a great option for me at the moment. So I just leave her in the stroller and she just keeps singing. Well then this lady says to her little boy (who mind you has to be like four), "I'm so glad I can take you shopping and you don't act like that." At this point I really almost turned around and said something, but I literally bit my tongue. But it didn't stop there. She kept saying things like, "Are you tired of shopping?" to which the little boy said no and the lady says, "Good, I'm so glad you can shop." I know what she was doing and she just kept at it. An older lady in front of me turned around and smiled at me and then talked to Kaitlyn a bit which made Kaitlyn happy so she babbled some more. Of course this made lady behind me sigh even more and I started to tear up out of frustration. But I never did turn around and say anything. As I got to the car after I had checked out I was still flustered. I was so upset that someone could be that rude to my child and me. Kaitlyn wasn't crying or screaming out - she was just making noise. It truly hurt my heart. I just hope that lady finds something that can make her heart lighter - especially at Christmas.

Anyway...I didn't want this post to be that negative....I promise the next ones will be happier! :) After all - it's Christmas time!!!

The Waiting Game

So Kaitlyn ended up sicker than I thought so I ended up taking two days off of work to take care of her. Her fever would not go away and I realized that where I may be the calm collected kindergarten teacher when emergency arise at school, I am not the calm collected mother by any means. I was freaking out! When K's temp got all the way to 104 I almost called 911, but managed to call the doctor's office instead. I was bawling on the phone asking them if I need to take her to the hospital. They told me I could come in at 4:45, which was not what I wanted to hear considering it was only 2:00. I was asking them if it was safe for her fever to be that high and they were saying, "Oh, it's fine. Just give her some motrin and fluid." Well no duh - I had been doing that for two days now. Of course I know they were just doing their job, but I wanted my baby to be okay. So I did what they said and then put her back to bed. All she wanted to do was sleep. So then I had to wait. I felt helpless. Here I was - her mother - and I couldn't fix it for her. I felt like I should be in the kitchen making something that would make this all go away. I could not sit still for anything. So I cleaned....and cleaned...and cleaned some more. There was some rearranging too - and some laundry. I was a machine I'm telling you. I had been doing the same thing each time she napped the past two days. I just felt guilty sitting still. Needless to say our house would be spotless if I worried all the time. :)

I just cannot wait until she gets a little older and can tell me what hurts her or tell her she must drink whether she likes it or not. This age and sickness scares me so much. I know I'm just another crazy mom being - well, a crazy mom, but I can't help it. It does make me understand my kinder parents a bit more when they are so worried!

But good news so far today - she has been fever free and drank two sippy cups of milk without a problem. I've also been chopping up some popsicles and she is loving that! I'm going to keep her hydrated one way or another! Thanks to everyone that has been praying!! Looks like she's well on her way to recovery!

Not So Fun Weekend

I cleared my camera of lots of pictures this past week because I knew I was going to take a zillion this weekend. We had planned on taking Kaitlyn to a pumpkin patch in Grapevine Saturday with some friends and then our church has a HUGE carnival called First Fest that was this Sunday. I love the fall and Halloween so I was just so excited to get Kaitlyn out in all of it. We couldn't last year because she was so little and on "lock-down" orders from her doctor.

Then Saturday morning came....

Cody woke her up and I was in the kitchen baking some muffins. Cody said when he woke her up her body felt really hot so he took her temperature. It was 101.6. Not good I'm thinking, but I fed her breakfast anyway because she was laughing and carrying on like nothing was bothering her. Then after breakfast I took her temp again - it was now over 102, so Cody called the doctor and off we went. Of course now I'm just about crying and thinking she has H1N1 or something worse. But the doctor tested for it and the test came back negative. He checked her ears, nose, and throat and they all looked good. So he said it was probably something viral in which case there was nothing we could do but wait it out.

So, no pumpkin patch or carnival for Kaitlyn. Number one she needed to get better and number two I don't want her to give this little bug to anyone else. She's been in the best mood all weekend though. Her appetite has been great, but she hasn't been drinking much which freaked me out because I don't want her getting dehydrated. We tried gatoraide, pedialyte, and even sprite. She didn't want any of it. So when she wouldn't even drink her normal water that she loves I started forcing it down with a syringe. Needless to say that didn't make her too happy, but it kept her hydrated! Today her temp spiked back up to 103.5, but after some Motrin again it went back down and has stayed down since. I'm still keeping her home tomorrow because I want to make sure she's better.

This just goes to show you have to roll with the punches. I can plan and plan all I want, but there is always going to be something that can kink it up. As for the pictures...I'm going to get some somehow. She will only be this small this year and I can't pass that up. There are several pumpkin patches that stay open until dusk so maybe one day this week she'll be better and the weather will be nice. I can't get the carnival ones, but she'll be in her costume on Halloween night. It does bum me out that we couldn't get all the cute pictures with our friends, but I am just so very thankful that she is going to be okay and it wasn't something worse than it is.

In her highchair as her costume waits for next weekend...at least I can say I finished it on time!

Even sick, droopy eyed, and in her pjs I think she's adorable!

Cadie's Birthday Party

August 29th was Kaitlyn's cousin's first birthday party. Cadie and Kaitlyn are only 13 days apart which will be fun for them growing up. Cadie's party was so much fun! It was good practice for Kaitlyn's which wasn't too far off! Aunt Heather also had fun making a cupcake bow to go with Cadie's cupcake themed party! :)Cadie had the bag opening thing down! :)"I got this mama!"Digging in!

Can you tell she missed her afternoon nap?Cadie's turn to get upset
Trying to get the bow back in

Such a funny picture!
She was loving that balloon!

Uncle Caleb

Uncle Caleb was going back for his sophomore year of college at East Texas Baptist University on August 27th. He came by the house to tell us all goodbye, so of course I brought out the camera to snap a picture (okay, two) of Kaitlyn with her uncle. We are so proud of him!!!

Photo Shoot...sort of

I have no knowledge of taking pictures whatsoever, but I still have fun playing around with my camera and photoshop. Here are a few that I took back on August 2nd. I really do want to take a class someday soon so I can actually know what I'm doing!

Her daddy made a face like this when he was a baby too. His parents called it his piggy face. :)

1st Birthday Invitation

I didn't really like the invitations that went along with the paper goods I bought for Kaitlyn's party, so I decided to try and make my own using photoshop. I used some digital scrapbooking software that I had also and these was the final result.

Dancing Outside

I was trying to take pictures of Kaitlyn outside for her birthday invitation(yes, it was the end of July and her birthday is in September, but I'm a crazy planner like that), but I never did get just the right shot. She was in such a good mood though and kept dancing her little sway dance the entire time. I just LOVE this picture because it is so her!

Food for Thought

So Kaitlyn's doctor said we should be giving her all types of food and letting her "play" a little bit so she can feel the different textures and what not. This is oh so very hard for me because I want to clean up every little bit as soon as she gets even the slightest bit messy. But I am getting better and I think this day was a big step. This was on July 28th and I let her have ravioli for the first time - well, the real kind anyway. She never really liked the toddler kind - it's just too bland. Cody said she looked like a cannibal in these pictures. Don't worry though - I took her right to the bath tub after lunch! And just in case you're wondering, the other little pieces on her tray are apples. :)

Play Date

Kaitlyn had her first real play date with kids that belong to two of my favorite people in the world. This was back on July 27th (I know, I'm horrible for just now posting these) Kelly and Melanie both used to teach with me when I first got my job. They were so wonderful and welcoming and even though they both moved to other districts now we still keep in touch. Mel has moved to Tyler so we wanted to get the kids together before she officially left. Her daughter, Hunter, is the other girl that was staying with Kaitlyn during the day at her sitter. So Hunter was really Kaitlyn's first friend. It makes me sad that they are leaving, but I know we'll keep in touch and have visits every now and then!This is Kaitlyn with Jacob - he belong to my friend KellyJacob and his mama Kelly

Hunter with her mama Melanie

Whoa!

Has it really been since July that I posted?? Wow. I'm officially a horrible blogger. But today I'm home sick and bored out of my mind so hopefully I can get some posts up. I love reading everyone else's too - I've been behind on that as well. I have such incredible friends and I love reading about all their adventures! Hopefully as school gets into more of a routine I can stay up to date on Kaitlyn's blog! We'll see.... :)

Did I miss the memo??

Okay, so when did it become okay not to show class? I must have missed that memo. I'm not trying to offend anyone here, but COME ON people!!! I was so appalled today as I was looking at pictures on facebook. The nerve of some people just really surprises me! I love to look at vacation pictures, wedding pictures, and of course kiddo pictures. But really - why do people like to post pictures from their wild night out...and I mean wild. Now, don't get me wrong - I love to go out and have a good time just like the next person. But be a lady for crying out loud! In dress, and please, please, PLEASE in your actions. And if for some reason you decide not to be so classy, by all means don't post it on the internet! Now I realize that I'm at a different place in my life than some people. I am a mom and wife - not a single girl out having fun. But back in my single days I still conducted myself with class. What kind of people are you attracting if you're not?

I realize I sound judgemental and I am sorry for that. But I am so embarrassed for some people. Treat yourself better than that! Have a little respect, but above all have some class.

3 Year Anniversary

Yesterday Cody and I celebrated 3 years of marriage! I cannot believe how quickly time flies now! He had to work, but in the late afternoon he called me and told me I needed to be ready to leave at 6:30. I asked about Kaitlyn and he told me that my mom was coming over to feed her dinner and eventually put her to bed, then Caleb (Cody's younger brother) was going to stay over while Kaitlyn was asleep until we got home. Wow - pretty impressed that Cody arranged all that.

Later Cody got home and found his gift that I had laid out for him. Since three years is leather I got him a leather travel bag and filled it with all sorts of silly travel things. I also got him a golf ball bucket and some practice balls since he likes to chip in our back yard. I made some golf voucher things too (yeah, I'm a dork) since I wanted to buy him some tee times, but I wanted him to pick out the places.

This is what he got me for the leather gift...

I really needed a case for my iphone since I use big mama purses now and it gets just thrown around in there so it was perfect! But then I opened it up and saw...

I literally gasped. It was so beautiful! He was so proud of himself and said, the three stones represent our past, present, and future. (I acted like I had never heard of that before...sorry if you read this honey!) I was not expecting that at all!!

So after I explained everything to my mom we left for Fort Worth. We had a little bit of time to kill before our reservations he said so we walked around which I loved because there was live music and the weather was finally cooling off. We walked around Barnes and Noble and Cody did everything he could to keep me out of the children section - which is so much harder now that I'm a mom in addition to kindergarten teacher! Then we headed towards the restaurant. We went to Texas de Brazil which I had never been to before, but have heard great things about. Oh. My. Gosh. It was sooooo good!!! The salad bar was amazing!!! It had all kind of cheeses that you don't see many other places (at least not anywhere we go normally) so I felt like I was in Heaven!! After your salad you turn this card over at your table and then servers bring all types of meat that can chose to get. They cut if for you right at your table. There was bacon wrapped chicken, filets, sausage, lamb, and so much more. It was some of the best stuff I have ever had! You also had mashed potatoes and fried bananas as sides. Needless to say we stuffed ourselves. Here are some pictures from one of their sites so you can see what it looked like.
Last night was just amazing, but what's even more amazing is that I can continue to fall more in love with Cody year after year. Of course our marriage isn't perfect - whose is? But I cannot see myself without him. He is such a great listener, supporter, and above all he makes me laugh. And I have watched him become the best daddy that a little girl can have and I am beyond blessed. I cannot wait to see what the future holds for us!!!

A Little Chit Chat with her Snack

This video is from June 14th. Kaitlyn was eating some watermelon and puffs. She was talking and talking and of course I had to grab the video camera. I have no idea what she was trying to say, but she knew! :) I have a feeling we'll soon be saying things like, "Kaitlyn, stop talking for a minute so you can eat!" Poor thing didn't quite have the feeding herself thing down yet either at that point, but boy you should see her go now! Yeah, someone can tell her to slow down with the growing up thing any time now!!

My Little Who

Last night as I was washing Little Bit's hair I made it stick straight up in the air. I had my phone in the bathroom with me and I just couldn't resist snapping a picture of this. I know she'll just LOVE it when she's older...haha! Some people on facebook decided she looked like Cindy Lou Who, and one said she looked like a Hershey kiss. Either way I think she's just adorable!

Remembering

I had such a bittersweet moment this past Saturday. It was the Hallmark Keepsake Ornament premier. If you read my baby blog you might know that this was a tradition that my grandmother did for every year since I was born. For each of her six grandchildren she would buy an ornament each year. I remember getting the Dream Book and circling my first and second choices. It was so wonderful because when I moved out of my parents' house I actually had ornaments for my tree.

My grandmother died last September. So there has already been a Christmas without her. It was sad to put up each ornament and realize that the person that was responsible for them being there was gone. I also bought the remembrance ornament that year in honor of her. But in July when the ornaments always come out she was still alive so I did get my ornament last year. It was the baby's first Christmas for Kaitlyn which I find just perfect being that it was the last one she ever gave me.

This year I knew that it would be hard for me to go through the whole process. But I went anyway - a tradition is a tradition and I know my grandmother would smile knowing that I was going. So as I walked into the Hallmark store I was really okay - just like any other shopping day. I went over the where the ornaments were. Then I saw her - a grandmother barely walking. She was with her daughter (I'm guessing) and was telling the saleslady exactly which ones she wanted...for her grandchildren. I got a huge lump in my throat and tried to fight back the tears. What a precious, precious moment that was, but it hurt my heart so much. I just wanted to hug her and tell her that what she was doing was amazing. And I thank God for allowing her to be there the same time I was. It reminded me just how special my grandmother was.

So as long as I'm alive and as long as there are still Keepsake Ornaments I'll keep buying them. I'm going to keep the tradition alive for Kaitlyn and hopefully even her own children one day. Then I can be that same special grandmother that started a tradition for someone else. But it all started with my amazing grandmother - Alice Jeanne Dixon.

Kaitlyn Jammin'

Kaitlyn loves to hit anything she can together, and sometimes she can get a pretty funky beat going. :) She got a sort of piano type thing for Easter, but it has too many other bells and whistles that interest her, so I bought her just a plain xylophone. The video is actually two videos together, so if you want to see her "singing" and you don't want to watch the whole thing move the time to 3:15. It cracks me up how when she's hitting it with her play mirror she changes her hands after each little bit!

4th of July

We had so much fun for the 4th!!! Kaitlyn did AWESOME in the car. Let me just tell you - that new toy trick was so great!! I bought a pack that had two things in it - a phone and a key ring with an alarm fob. Both had buttons and sounds so I knew she would love them. And I spent just six dollars for the both of them - very much worth it!!! I'm going to get her a little something like that the next time we travel since it worked so well the first time.

It was so good to see Cody's extended family. We played games, made ice cream, talked, the girls swam, and we even napped. (Which might have been my favorite part!) It was fun to have Kaitlyn there with everyone again. Most of Cody's extended family hadn't seen her since Easter and boy has she changed since then!! She loved Cody's Uncle Randy and his mustache! The only bad thing was the weather - it was so stinking hot!!! But thank goodness for the air conditioner!! When it was too hot to sit outside we just moved in. And really I could have hacked it out on the porch with all the fans, but the babies were getting too flushed. We didn't do fireworks or anything this year - they started around 9:00 and both girls were out before 8:00. But I can just imagine what next year will be like! They'll be running around and hopefully we'll get them to stay up to see the fireworks. But it's truly amazing to have family so close. I know it will be so good for Kaitlyn as she grows up.

Big Day!

Well tomorrow is a big day for us as a family. We will be leaving on our first official trip with Kaitlyn. We're going to Paris...Texas - not France. We're not that crazy to make that her first trip! :) And we don't have a money tree in our back yard yet. It's a little under a two hour drive from our house, so it shouldn't be too bad. But then again Kaitlyn's never been in the car for that long. (It was pretty darn close last week though when my mom and I had her and we got stuck on I-20 for almost an hour!) I bought her two new toys - one for when we head there and one for when we come home. Hopefully it will keep her interest!!

It also feels like we're packing the entire house to go with us! We're only going for the weekend, but we have to pack her pack and play, high chair, diapers, toys, bottles, clothes....ahh!!! I'm getting stressed just thinking about it! Of course Cody and I will need a few things too! Gracious! But once we get down there I know it will be great! I remember going to Paris last July as a prego and thinking, "Wow, next year is going to be so different." Ha! And Cody thought I took a lot of pictures then...he'd better get ready!!! :)

WISH US LUCK!!!

All Worth It

Today I decided to take Kaitlyn back to the zoo (yes, we've been before - no I haven't posted it on here yet, but I will and backdate it) :) June was members month and since I bought a season pass back in March I could get in an hour early on Mondays. I decided to take advantage of that today and it was so great! There were not that many people there and the zoo treated us so nicely! There were demonstrations being done, prizes, and they even gave out free water bottles and snacks. The lack of the crowd was my favorite thing though, well, that and it being early so it wasn't hot yet.

I still get a little stressed though taking Kaitlyn out by myself, especially somewhere like the zoo. I feel like all the other moms are pros and I'm still learning. Even the ones with babies, I feel know more than me. They move their strollers with such ease and I feel like I struggle. They take their babies out with no problem and I'm fighting with the straps. I know I'm crazy, but that's just what it seems like to me sometimes. So as I struggled to open the door to the penguin part of course there are lots of the "pro moms" in there. They all have their kids close to the glass taking pictures and what not and here I am with my little nine month old wanting her just to look in the right direction. There were two parts of the glass and I quickly took Kaitlyn to the one where nobody was that was a bit off to the side. Then something happened that made everything worth it. One little penguin came right up to the glass and looked right at Kaitlyn. She caught sight of him and laughed and smiled. Then the penguin open his beak and acted like he was talking to her. Kaitlyn was in love. And so was her mommy. I really almost cried right there. All the struggles with the stroller, all the "what do I get out/put it the car first" questions, all the "what in the world am I doing?" were all worth it for that one moment where my daughter was eye to eye with a penguin and loving every single second. I was only sad I couldn't get a picture. That's the bad thing about going with her by myself. Nobody is there to take pictures of the two of us. But I'll always have that memory in my mind.

And I'm not gonna lie. I also loved being able to leave right before 10:00 when the general public got to come in. There were so many people at the gate and I just strolled on by them to the exit. Maybe then I looked like a mom that knew what she was doing. :)


Here she is in front of the gorillas. I caught her at the very beginning of a cough, but we'll just say she was trying to do her gorilla impression. :)


Her favorite thing still seems to be the flamingos. She could stay just like she is in this picture all day and be happy I think. Maybe it's because they are more on her eye level. Who knows? But I did have to buy here a little stuffed one that "barks" at the zoo shop. :)