Ahoy Matey

This is what I have been up to this week!

I have been allowed the privilege of being the VBS director this year. What an amazing blessing! We just completed day 4 and I am seriously pooped. One more day then we have a program Sunday night. The theme is surrounding the Veggie Tales movie The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything. We are learning how to be true heroes for God. Such fun!

Hannah and Zach have been attending and they are just having a blast. When they see me coming they get so excited. "It's Mommy pirate!" Too cool. Rebecca has been hanging out with some other little ones in the volunteer nursery. She has not appreciated losing her ritual morning nap but has taken a few cat naps throughout the week in someone's arms or the swing.

I get to drive back to Denton on Saturday to return my very cool outfit which was rented from Rose's Costumes. It was so worth the drive!

I promise to catch back up next week. For now I am going to enjoy this amazing week and sleep when I can!!

First Dentist Appointment

I finally got around to taking Hannah & Zach to the dentist this week. I had been shopping for one for some time and finally found a new pediatric dentist in Prosper. It baffles me that I chose the week that Chad would be gone to do this, but I did it anyway! All three kids came in tow and off we went to Roberts Dental Ranch. It was so nice with murals on all the walls, a super friendly staff, and two age-appropriate play areas with two TV's playing kid movies.

I was very surprised when the kids also got to pick out the movie they wanted to watch while getting their teeth cleaned. They have a flat screen TV suspended on the ceiling above the exam table and the kids listen with wireless headphones! Hannah chose The Little Mermaid and Zach chose Madagascar. First they attempted to get x-rays. I held each of them individually in my lap and they put the vest over the front of us. Hannah only succeeded on getting the top teeth. Zach was much better and he got the top teeth and partial lower teeth.

Hannah was a little freaked, but did fairly well. No cavities. Her teeth are great and the gap between the front teeth will probably disappear when the adult teeth come in. You could see them on the x-ray and they look nice and straight. Dr Roberts even told me they will probably come in first in about 18-24 months. She got a new toothbrush, travel sized toothpaste, dental floss, a princess floss pick, and pink egg timer. Plus she got a green balloon, Ariel sticker, and a clapper toy. Wow, huh?

Zach was much better. No cavities, but his teeth are riddled with overbites and underbites like his Mommy's former teeth arrangement. Like Mommy, he will most likely have braces down the road. From the x-ray, which looked great, his bottom teeth will most likely come out first in 2-1/2 to 3 years. Zach also got a new toothbrush, travel sized toothpaste, dental floss, Buzz Lightyear floss pick, blue egg timer, green balloon, and two bouncy balls which he immediately bounced down the dentist hallway.

We go back in six months. Dr Roberts said he likes to see them six months after their first teeth come in, so Rebecca will also get her own appointment at that time. Unless Daddy comes with us, I will bring her separately. Not a glutton for punishment, thank you very much!

Missing My Man

I am going to pause and lament for a moment. Chad left on Sunday for the church mission trip in southern MO and I have been solo with the kids since then. I have been stuck with them and haven't even been able to leave the house for two days. I had plans. You know I always do. But they have all been thrown out of whack and I have been in survival mode.

You know it's bad when you put The King and I on and sit two feet from the TV so you can focus on the movie and ignore the kids fighting. Yes, I admit that I did that tonight. Tomorrow I am going shopping for several hours with all three of them. I might come home with three kids. Then again . . .

Oh how I miss my wonderful husband. I miss seeing him around the house, horsing around with the kids, gathering up the trash for Thursday trash day, watering all the outside plants, rubbing my aching shoulders, and just giving me that "You can do it" hug that goes such a long way. Come on Friday and get here!!

Papaw's

I am seriously behind on my posts again. It will take me a few days to report on the last few weeks. We went on a family vacation, leaving on June 29 to Brookhaven, MS. We stayed with Chad's Papaw a few days then drove on to Destin, FL where we had rented a house within walking distance of the beach. Today, I will just talk about Papaw's.


For the first time in awhile, we had a nice relaxing stay with Papaw. No one was contagious, the weather was great, and there were no lit pilot lights. Hannah and Zach were able to sleep in a bed by themselves so Mommy and Daddy were finally able to sleep in the same bed again. Just to keep things a little lively, Rebecca joined our room in a pack-n-play. She became the root cause of my lack of sleep, but that's to be expected.


On Tuesday, Lori and Addison came and played all day. It was so much fun getting to visit and watch the kiddos. Here is a sweet picture I caught of Addison.





The kids all got to ride with Daddy in Papaw's golf cart a few times. They rambled all over the place and Mommy got a little break. Ahhh, sweet bliss.





Papaw discovered that Zach is still quite ticklish. This was a rare moment to catch Zach laughing in a picture as he is suddenly very much against having his picture taken.




I think this is a neat perspective pic that I got of Lori and Addison on the porch swing.




My happy country boy.

Papaw and Rebecca really bonded this trip. She was so tickled every time Papaw came into view. He doesn't usually like to hold the little ones, but he seemed to get a kick out of Rebecca.

Papaw and the girls.

We attempted to get a picture of Papaw, Chad and the kids. This is the best we could do!

We stopped back through on Sunday, but it was mostly just to say howdy to everyone including Billy and Judy whom we got to visit with briefly, sleep over (okay, I slept WAY over - again thanks to Rebecca), and head back home. Chad did manage to pick at least 8 quarts of blueberries. We brought those home and they are being put to good use in the juicer from Pop Pop and Nana. Yuuuuummy!

We look forward to our next visit to Mississippi. The older the kids get, the less stressful it is for Mommy. Maybe if I didn't have a child who had electrocuted herself, another who is fascinated when he has blood running down his legs, and another who has just learned to crawl, I wouldn't panic so much in non-childproofed homes. Some day I will look back on all this and laugh. Some day.

We Have Teeth

Rebecca got her first tooth yesterday. She has been fussing over it for many many weeks. I could see it but it didn't seem to be going anywhere. It finally broke through yesterday morning. This morning, she was fussing again. Wouldn't you know it. The neighbor of the first tooth is also about to break through. Why do my kids always teeth when we go on vacation??

Table Food

Rebecca is really digging table food now. Check out one of her first real meals on Father's Day.

Zach's 3 Year Appointment

I got the privilege of taking all three of the kids to Zachary's 3-year appointment on Tuesday. He did fantastic with his hearing screenings and passed without a hitch. The vision screening had to be skipped because he completely freaked out by the flashing lights aimed at him. Poor little guy. No shots at this appointment. Thank you sweet Lord. Here are his stats:

Weight: 32 pounds 3.2 ounces (51 %)
Height: 38 inches (57 %)

I glanced back at Hannah's stats and she it literally just a smidgeon taller and heavier than him. Amazing. No wonder I get asked if they are twins all the time - seriously!

Almost There

Do you mind if I brag on myself for just a moment? Okay, here goes. Only five pounds to go until I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight. Woohoo!!!!! As some of you may recall, I boo hooed after passing the 40 pound mark with Rebecca so I am super pleased that I am close to my goal after 8 months. Now the pre-pregnancy figure? Well, let's just say that three babies in three and a half years have taken their toll. The Magic 8 ball says "No bikinis recommended." So unless there is some personal trainer in my future, this is just the way it's gonna be for awhile. :)

Remotely Clean

Has anyone else had a preschooler who tried to help you clean by running the remote control under the water? I removed the batteries and dried it, but water still flies out every time I shake it. Thanks for helping Hannah.

Snacking

You know it's time to just go to bed when you are reading an article about healthy snacks in your Parenting magazine and you look down to see that you are snacking on Nestle Tollhouse chocolate morsels . . . handfuls at a time.