Top 10 Tuesday

I haven't done this Meme since the first time I played along!

As far as I can tell, there is no "set" thing to post about, so I am going to go with my top 10 favorite pictures, right now.

8/5/2006 Our Wedding

10/18/2009 Luke's Birthday

10/19/2009 In the hospital with Luke

10/19/2009 Mother-Son connection

Memorial Day 2011 At Tom & Peggy's house

September 2011 

8/8/2011 Vincent's Birthday

8/16/2011 Newborn Photos

11/6/2011 Smiling while talking to Mama

100 Days of Gratitude-Day 7

November 7-My mom & dad!

Mom & Dad drove in today so Dad could go to a doctor's appointment.

I love them so much & am so thankful for them.  :)

I really LOVE seeing them interact with my kids.  They both dote on them so much and just truly enjoy the time they get to spend with the kids.

As much as I know it hurts him, my Dad continues to get down on the floor to play whatever Luke desires and Luke loves every minute of his Pap's attention.

Today they played trucks, tools, trains, more trucks, more tools, potato head, and jump-jump.   Luke certainly has the attention span of a 2 year old and his Pap tolerated it really well!

I hope Luke and Dad's relationship stays as strong as it is now & that they continue to be best buddies!

Mom has the magic touch with Vinnie.  Ever since he was born, she can get him to sleep.  She got to snuggle  him for the best part of an hour today & he just loved napping on her chest!

100 Days of Gratitude -Days 4, 5, & 6

November 4- Good medicine/health insurance

I'm thankful that we have good insurance & that I can get medical advice, help, and treatment as often as I need to.  The third round of mastitis in a month kicked my butt, but at least I was able to talk to my doctor and get the medicine I needed!

November 5- Doing fun things with my family!

On the spur of the moment, we decided to take Aaron and Luke to Bounce House in Virginia Beach! They had a blast, even though we didn't stay more than an hour & a half!  It was an expense we probably shouldn't have made, but it was worth it to see the boys enjoy their Saturday afternoon!

November 6- Lazy days at home with my boys

I skipped church today since Tim had to run sound.  I've been up since 7:30 and it is now 9:45 am and we still haven't done anything!  In fact, Luke is completely naked, Vinnie has a diaper & onesie on, and I am in my pjs!  :)  We've been playing & having a lot of fun together though!!

100 Days of Gratitude -Day 3

Nov. 3-Day 3 of 100

I'm thankful for my husband who loves me!

I got slammed with another case of mastitis yesterday.  I hate that & I am hoping Dr. M can figure out why I keep getting it (3 times in 1 month) and do something to help me.

I ended up calling Peggy to come over after work because Tim had homework that needed done.  She was a huge help & I got to take a nap.

After dinner, Tim put Luke to sleep while I put Vinnie to bed.  Then Tim gave me a back rub and rubbed my arms and helped me pump.  I had aches and pains all over my body and I was just NOT feeling good and the only thing I can take is tylenol, which doesn't help much.  Tim was patient and loving and helped me not feel so bad.

I don't know what I'd do without that man!

100 Days of Gratitude -Day 2

Nov. 2--100 Days Of Gratitude

I am thankful for good friends!

We had dinner with the Johnson family last night.  I started a pot of sauce at noon for our 7:15 dinner & it was DELICIOUS   I also had bread sticks (frozen from a box) and salad (from a bag) as part of our dinner.

We had a great visit & really enjoyed just relaxing together.  I didn't feel the need to make my house spotless before they arrived because I know they love us unconditionally and wouldn't judge me for the pile of pots & pans I haven't found time to scrub. :)

It was about 9:00 when they headed out, which is a bit late for us to be just starting our bedtime routine with Luke & Vinnie, but it was such a nice visit that we weren't in the least bit upset.

I can't wait to get together with them (and our other friends!) soon!

2 Year Old Check-Up

Tuesday, October 25, 2011 was both boys well-baby visits.

Our appointment was at 1:45 and we got there about 20 minutes early. (go me!) 

Luke fell asleep on the way over & then stayed asleep while I put him in the double stroller.  (It was our maiden voyage.)

We got Vinnie's part of the check-up done while Luke napped & then it was time to wake him up & have him weighed.

He was 32.5 inches tall and weighed in at a measly 23.5 lbs. I thought for sure we'd see some weight gain in the months since Vinnie was born (since Luke is now nursing several times a day/night) but was shocked when he hadn't grown AT ALL in that 11 weeks.

I mean I know my  milk is fatty---Vinnie is chunking right on up.

So, Luke's stats according to my internet research are:

Length for Age: 3-5%
Weight for Age: 5-10%

According to this website.

This site's calculator puts him in the 7.5% for height and the  4.7% for weight.  

The doctor said that since she didn't have Luke's records (just another way Nansemond Pediatrics sucks) she couldn't tell me how he was trending, but I assured her those numbers were good for Luke, since he wasn't even ON the charts at his 18 & 12 month well-baby visits.

He is clearly a healthy & intelligent little boy, even if he is a little peanut.  He is growing (he was 29 inches at 18 months) and is just going to be skinny like his daddy & short like his mommy.

They do not use the gigantic, million question diagnostic for growth & development that Nansemond uses, so we just went over his general behaviors and he got the a-okay from the doctor.  Since he just graduated from occupational therapy a few months ago, I already knew he was on track with all of his skills.

Baby Center

Child's Age	Mastered Skills (most kids can do)	Emerging Skills (half of kids can do)	Advanced Skills (a few kids can do)
19 months	Uses a spoon and fork Runs Throws a ball underhand Enjoys helping around the house	Understands as many as 200 words Recognizes when something is wrong (e.g., calling a dog a cat)	Washes and dries own hands with help Points to picture or object when you call it by name May know when she needs to pee
20 months	Feeds doll Takes off own clothes Dumps an object in imitation, such as throwing garbage away	Learns words at a rate of ten or more a day Can walk up stairs (but probably not down)	May start exploring genitals Draws a straight line Names several body parts
21 months	Can walk up stairs Able to set simple goals (e.g., deciding to put a toy in a certain place)	Throws a ball overhand Kicks ball forward Stacks six blocks	Names simple picture in a book Can walk down stairs
22 months	Kicks ball forward Follows two-step requests(e.g., "Get your doll and bring it here")	Does simple puzzles Draws a straight line Names several body parts	Puts on loose-fitting clothes Might be ready for a big bed Understands opposites (e.g., tall vs. short)
23 months	Names simple picture in a book Uses 50 to 70 words	Opens doors Sings simple tunes Takes more of an interest in playing with other kids	Talks about self (likes, dislikes) Asks "why?"
24 months	Names at least six body parts Half of speech is understandable Makes two- to three-word sentences	Talks about self Arranges things in categories Can walk down stairs	Begins to understand abstract concepts (e.g., sooner and later) Becomes attuned to gender differences Learns to jump

Luke can do everything on that chart, except for sing tunes.  He doesn't sing with words, just kind of hums along when we sing or if a song is on the radio.


Here's a great check-list by the Child and Adolescent Services Research Center...and Luke is on track with them as well! 


Luke didn't get any shots, since they didn't have his records and that is fine by me!  I'm willing to delay as long as I can and only get the ones I  have fully researched. :)  

Happy Halloween!!

I LOVE HALLOWEEN!

Seriously, its my favorite holiday.  Most people have a Christmas village---I have a Halloween one. :)  

So, our celebrating began on Saturday when I had to make cupcakes to donate to Seton House, for church.  I like making cupcakes and am excited to donate some more this month. 

Here is the cupcake Aaron got to help decorate:

And here are the cupcakes I donated:

Sunday was just a church day and we didn't do any celebrating, besides dressing the boys in their Halloween clothes.

On Monday, I had Grayson and Spencer all day.  Frankie came over to help me out with them, which was a life-saver.

Without Frankie's help I never would have finished my sewing on the "Monkey On My Back" carrier cover or Luke's Buzz Lightyear gloves & boots.  

The day was very stressful for me & I had little patience with the nonsense of three little boys (Vinnie is an angel, always) so I would have gone crazy without Frankie's help.

Around 4:00 we started getting ready to go.  Vinnie was of course the easiest to get dressed.  Here is his little monkey costume, that I bought at the thrift store for $4.00!!  (It's a Carter's costume.)

Vinnie was 12 weeks old on his first Halloween.

His eyes are so red because we are ALL fighting a head cold. 

 And in action in the baby carrier:

 These are the Buzz Lightyear boot covers I made for Luke.  His costume was a hand-me-down so we had to hide a few imperfections (it was too short) and make it personalized.

 I also made cool gloves for Luke.  I took a pair of purple gloves and cut the wrists off, then I cut the fingers off of a pair of white gloves.  I slipped the purple gloves inside the white ones and sewed them together.  Wallah--purple tipped, white space ranger gloves!

The final touch (and coolest part) of Luke's costume was the Buzz Lightyear ski mask I found at Wal-Mart for $6.00.  At first he wouldn't wear it, but when the boys wanted to then he was all about it. (because you know 2 year olds--they hate sharing)

Luke had a blast pretending to fly like Buzz.  He was 2 years and 2 weeks old on Halloween.

We were supposed to go to Greenbrier Mall to trick or treat from 5:00-5:45 and then over to Central Baptist Church for Trunk or Treat, but I wasn't ready to go on time, so we just went to McDonald's for dinner, then Food Lion, and finally to Trunk or Treat.

 They had a Bounce House.  Luke had 2 or three turns, each 2 turns long (bc he was the youngest kid in there    & they let him stay in) and loved every minute of it.  I really think one of those for the back yard would be a worthwhile investment for us!

 Luke was NOT a fan of waiting in line though, so when it was time to trick or treat he got bored, really quickly.

I didn't get any pictures of him wearing them, but my friend, Liz, lent us a pair of Buzz Lightyear wings for Luke to wear too...he was SO cute!  

We ended up heading to the van by 7:15 and being home before 8 pm.  (I had to nurse Vinnie before we could leave.)  

I enjoyed our celebration & dressing the boys up.  I can't wait until next year! I told Tim my "resolution" for 2012 is to actually put up all of the decorations we own!