M&M Playday 9\3\09 (21 photos), by Julie Smith

I'd like to share my Snapfish photos with you. Once you have checked out my photos you can order prints and upload your own photos to share.

New Curtains

Thanks to Pop Pop and Nana, our playroom windows are sporting some new fun curtains. I found them at Wal-Mart, of all places, after searching online and on location at over a dozen places. These babies are playful, colorful, and very bold. Perfect for the playroom! They have kind of a circus feeling and just make you smile every time you see them. :)



Hannah really likes them too.



Here they are with a broader view.



I just can't get over the fact that Chad and I got so bold with this room. He and I are usually wallflowers with our color choices. Lots of fall and desert-looking colors. I guess there's hope for us yet!

Rain Rain Go Away

We are approaching the end of a long week around here. It has been raining for days on end and we finally got to see some sunshine this afternoon. The kids got their flu shots on Tuesday. Oh, what fun that was. The nurse went down the line and all three got stuck in the leg. We had plenty of screams to share, but they got over it quickly after learning that they had earned a sucker, sticker, and prize.

Rebecca was a bit fussy and I thought it was the shot plus some light allergies. Wednesday morning dawned and it was obvious she had a cold. Yucky. So I had to miss my second week of Awana as a Sparks leader. Bummer. Today she was really sick and tonight Hannah had a hefty fever and Zach had a low grade fever. More yucky.

So now I am going to miss the Awana conference on Saturday and probably church on Sunday. Don't get me wrong. I'm so thankful this is nothing serious. It's just a disappointment. The highlight of the day, which is helping me cope (wink, wink), is I got to go to Wally World all by my onesie and fill the cart to my heart's desire plus I got to go to Office Depot and purchase my new desk. PLUS Chad ordered my new computer this week. I am purring and making biscuits. (Only cat lovers will understand that one!) This was all healthier than me eating a bag of Oreos, but a little more expensive . . .

I'll Take the Nothing Please

I was getting ready for church yesterday and as usual time was in short supply. Chad advised the kids they needed to finish supper so they could get dressed for Cubbies. As has been the case for several days now, Zachary fussed over his food and refused to eat it. Chad told him it was "that or nothing." (When my mom reads this, I am positive she will laugh and nod because this is a phrase that was intertwined with my entire childhood.) Well, Zachary got up and started looking all over the island. Apparently, he wanted to try this new delicious sounding food called "nothing." You just have to laugh!

Lazy Day

We are actually having a lazy day today! For the first time in months, we have stayed home all day and gotten to do whatever we wanted. For me that included laundry, mopping, and other such random chores. But I am still quite happy about that. Even as I type this I am waiting for a woman to come purchase one of my Craigs List items. She lives in Gunter, but was supposed to be here several hours ago. I am learning not to count my chickens before they are hatched.

We had a terrific week. Had school Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The kids seem to be enjoying the curriculum. I know I am. AIG's preschool curriculum has a wholistic approach and all the subjects are centered around the Bible verse and/or story of the day. Fantastic! We have 1-2 hours each school day and Hannah seems to be digging it. Zach even joins us sometimes though he prefers to just practice with his scissors. :)

We had a Mommy & Me play day here on Thursday. There were four moms and 12 kids. Wow! Then I got to go to a sewing class at Joann's that night. Very fun!

Overall it was a terrific week and I made a lot of progress on tons of things. I still have so much to do after getting back-logged during my pregnancy and of course after Rebecca was born, but I am starting to see the progress now. Before it always seemed like more was coming in than was going out! I even got me email Inbox down to 231 items. Woohoo! Laugh if you like, but I'm breathing sighs of relief all the same. :)

Blast From The Not-So-Distant Past

I was going through some old emails (yes, I have over 300 in my Inbox waiting to be fully handled) and I came across this adorable photo Chad took in April with his phone. Notice the white toy boppy in the bottom right? Too cute!! Just had to share!!



And Rebecca is on the mend. Her fever broke Monday night. Thank you for all the prayers! My poor baby definitely needed them. She is still a little grumpy and needy, but most assuredly better. :)

Sickly Baby Girl

My sweet little Rebecca woke up with a fever this morning. She looked and sounded pretty pathetic so I stayed home with her while Chad and the other two kiddos went on to church. I'm glad I kept her home because after she woke up from her morning nap her fever had spiked to 102.4 and then she just laid on my chest completely still with very shallow breathing for a long time.

I have been alternating Tylenol and Motrin all day to keep the fever under control. She looks and sounds so weak and it just breaks my mommy heart. This I-wish-I-knew-where-it-came-from virus better scadoodle as fast as it arrived. Our only outing this week was to Chick-Fil-A for lunch on Saturday. I have some strong suspicions. Would you please pray our baby girl heals quickly?

I'm Still Here

I'm still here. It's just been oh-so-busy lately. Chad and I have had various meetings at church, he has been working some on his "night job," and I started homeschooling on Monday. I have also been learning how to post items on Craigs List and sit by a very silent phone. Oh well.

Here are some pictures from the last few weeks.

Having lunch at Paw Paw's birthday party.

I think Rebecca is going to keep Daddy's beautiful blue eyes.

Hannah's hair is getting super long. She is such a good helper to mommy.

I attempted to get the girls side by side, but Rebecca made ready for her escape when I moved my hand from her side. I'll keep trying.



And forget about a picture of the boy for now. For a few months now he has been running any time a camera comes into view. I promise he is still here. :)

Girls Night In

Amy and I made a kid swap on Monday, her taking Zachary and me taking Keely. While the boys had fun with cars and trains, watching Wall-E and, well, being boys, our house became very girly. By the night's end, the girls had played dress up, squealed in delight I don't know how many times, giggled about everything and nothing in particular, and located everything pink in the house.

I had a roll of sugar cookie dough, so they also got to be sugared up and decorate 15 cookies.



There's nothing quite like eating sugar cookie dough off your fingers.



One of Hannah's yummy treasures.



Keely enjoyed squishing her cookie into the sprinkles. Then she would eat the extra dough off her fingers. Smart girl!



Notice the predominate color? They turned out soft and yummy and we all had a good-night cookie.

And then there was the morning after . . .

Hannah refused to smile for me and just sat staring at the TV either with her mouth open or with a grumpy grimace. Nice. But over all, all four of the kids had a blast and we plan to do it once a month.

Rebecca's 9 Month Appt

Rebecca had her nine month appointment on Monday. We were a little delayed because of her shot schedule. She weighed in at 18 pounds, 13 ounces. Her growth has slowed considerably, just like Hannah and she is now in the 37 percentile. Her height is still up there though at 29 inches (81%) and her head circ. is 17.5 inches (54%). She got one shot including her first flu shot. Hard to believe we are preparing for that season already.

We had one issue to deal with. I had noticed a thin film over her vaginal opening and the doctor confirmed that she has labial adhesions. Upon researching, I have found that the condition is very common in baby girls. Though it usually resolves itself by puberty (and often by age 6), the doctor prescribed an estrogen creme to urge it along. We will have to contend with it reappearing for several years and it will make her more prone to UTI's (absolutely no bubble baths for her!), but she should have no side effects. It doesn't seem to bother her at all, but I still feel better for talking with the doctor about it.

Her hair is growing very rapidly lately and I am trying to find a hair style that works. Are these two styles cute or what?

"Abecca" (Zachary's name for her) is crawling and cruising around. Saturday night she started saying "da da da" and Daddy was over the moon. She still just has two teeth but that doesn't stop her from eating EVERYTHING you put in front of her. She has developed a bond with a pink puppy that barks when you squeeze the belly. It's in the first picture above. Thanks to whoever gave her that because it is a huge hit. She hugs it tightly every time it is time to sleep. So stinkin' sweet!