Pages

Monday, August 27, 2012

And they're off & running...

First day of nursing school and full-time Samuel care:



Of course, Sabrina didn't want to miss out! Samuel did NOT know what to do when Daddy came to get him up. That's officially the first day we voluntarily got the boy up, pretty much ever. (He's an early bird usually. really early. ) Hoping they have a GREAT first day!

Sunday, August 26, 2012

The Lovely Mademoiselle Laura Katelyn

You may have met her at Samuel's first birthday. Well, as Sam as grown, so has she! Miss Laura is an utter delight, she is healthy and strong, so fast, and so determined. She reminds me of Sabrina in her quick decision-making and self-direction. She has such confidence, and knew this was her home to enjoy, introducing herself to lots of new toys & experiences. We were so delighted to have her, Janna, and Chad over. Although the kids are fast approaching 2, Miss Laura & co really stayed close to home except for special events given Laura's health situation. She was born with Hirschsprung's disease: http://www.lpch.org/DiseaseHealthInfo/HealthLibrary/digest/hirschpr.html

Although she has successfully endured 3 surgeries, I do ask for you to continue to pray for Laura and her family. There are still challenges afoot and ahead. We pray most of all that she can avoid stomach illness and future fissures/blockages of her intestines. Thank you!!!!

With the serious stuff addressed, I can share her gorgeous, amusing pictures!

And a reminder, you can click on any of these images to bring up a film strip of larger, easier to see photos!

I just wish she and Samuel could have fun together...

Or that she'd smile every once in a while...

Ok, yeah, I know, she's PRECIOUS!

And here's one of those rare collaborative all in moments to end on (and snap fast!)...

We can't wait to see the wonderful family again. We kept the kids up late because everyone was getting along so well & having fun. Ah, good times...

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Ketchup!

I always think of the Pulp Fiction joke, the Mama tomato walks back to the lagging baby tomato, then stomps it and says "Ketchup!" But how sick is it to think of stomping your baby into puree if you are a tomato? Really wish I could get that dumb joke out of my head. Alas, I think it will be stuck with me forever! ;)
Anyhow, we are now fast approaching the end of August. I seem to remember losing track of July. Oh, and what a month to forget! Don't want to! Here are some highlights:
1. July 4th with GG, DDaddy, Hanna, and Jeff. BBQ, slip and slide, bubbles, and fireworks under the stars. Simply doesn't get sweeter. So glad our a/c went out for a mere $900 and we switched venues to their place! Well, that might not be ALL true, but glad for the second half of that - that part IS true!
2. Then came the family plague. A plague is a "severe and potentially deadly bacterial infection." Ok, ok, I'm exaggerating. But this thing had some potency, and latency, that meant 4 of 6 dropped to it. Yuck. We also got exactly zero of our big plans for Philip's birthday & their visit done. Boo hoo. Next time, I promise...! (If they ever come back, there were some dirty duties covered by my loving in-laws. We REALLY appreciated the fact that they didn't bail out to a local hotel when things got rough!) Anyhow, we got to have GG for an extra couple of days and that was good. Sabrina was a bright point too. Although sick, she showed us an incredibly sweet side. Fortunately, she hasn't been really sick since she was about 9 mos. old! She really didn't have a memory of sickness, ever. But now that's done, and we are happy to report she is completely factual when sick, not a whiner or complainer. State what happened, that you are SO much sicker than Daddy, and move on. Cuddle a lot. She was very endearing and loving. And a little pale, but she bounced back FAST! Thank you, Lord!
3. We loved celebrating Sally's birthday.
The table was set...
The guest of honor was ready
The dinner guests didn't mind the occasional "airplane" maneuvers of Philip trying to feed Samuel.
The guests pause to smile at the camera We enjoyed wonderful chicken curry, prepared by Mag, and delicious sides by her & Auntie MJ. Everyone was so glad to be together.
We are so happy to have Uncle Robert in our family now. A certain blonde 4.5 yo thinks he's pretty cool. Poor Robert expects to have a little lady sitting in his lap most of the time when he comes by!

Saturday, August 4, 2012

I can EMBED Videos now!

I have wasted some time the last couple of days trying to figure this out. And, as always, it was a SIMPLE answer. HTML instead of 'compose.' If you have/want to blog, I can tell you how to get all your videos in. It's so funny how the littlest things can derail you. And, if you are me, you can't stop until you've figured out WHAT THE HECK THE PROBLEM IS!!! :) All good now. I can (torture) delight you with kid videos now. Heehee!

Friday, August 3, 2012

And the promised video!

Just a regular Thursday night, but...

since Sabrina's swim lessons finished in July, it's a great night, because we are all at home.  Philip made beef stroganoff & salad, we had a quick dinner, and then to the backyard.  We set up the slip n' slide, and the kids went to town.  Memorable moments:

1. I am always the wicked stepmother, or wicked queen.  So young to be typecast, I know, but I fear it is true already.  Tonight I was pleased, for a change of pace, when I got to play the mean housekeeper at Mistlethwaite Manor, to Sabrina's Mary of 'The Secret Garden.'  It all started when Sabrina quoted the movie out of the blue saying, "Where there's a key, there must be a door!"  Then we were off, and Philip & I may have used the occasion to make our servant Mary rub our feet.  Not saying that was a part of the original script, but it was in our version.  Perhaps it was taking advantage a bit, but I'm pretty sure it was worth it.  (Gotta start 'em young!) And Sabrina is always looking for orders when she is playing the part of the unfortunate ragamuffin.  Torturous foot rubs seemed appropriate.

2. Samuel really tried out the slip n' slide tonight... See pictures/video below.  The funny thing is he would crack himself up just by running towards the slide from the fence, and have to deal with his giggles and stop running before he could go for it.  It's great to have a kid who gets such a kick out of...himself!  He also entertained us by going bananas on the trampoline, saying "jump, jump, jump,"  and also taking it upon himself to practice T-Ball.  He never stops unless he's sleeping!

3. Finally, Sabrina ran the gamut on future life plans tonight.  Upon discussing that she wasn't allowed to say certain phrases to grown-ups, aka "Hush up" and the like, she made several proclamations:
         a. I wish kids were in charge right now.
         b.When I get older, I'll let my kids be in charge.
         c. I'll let them do anything they want.
         d. I'll never get married because my husband will be respectful.  (Upon further questioning she explained that this meant her husband wouldn't go along with the kids being in charge, therefore he would not be wanted.)
video to come, problems with upload!


Chuckling on his way to the slide







Hand talking...







All in all, it was a pretty successful evening.  So blessed to be living this life of ours!!

Blowing you a kiss...