One of those moments....

The morning routine at our home usually has us husseling about. We are on a strict time schedule that allows for little time to do other stuff other than get ready and out the door. The other morning, Trevor awoke with the older two. As we went through our routine he sat quietly in a chair still half sleeping. I was helping Cassidy with her hair when Trevor starts hollering, "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy". Rather than have a yelling match back and forth, I hurried out to see what he needed. When I got to him, he looked up at me with the cutest little face, grin from ear to ear, and said, "I like you Mommy". Now how could I resist that?! Sometimes it takes a two year old to make you stop and enjoy the moment.

What Fall is all about....

Trick or Treat.

Is it clean?

I want to go hunting too. I'll shoot a big one.

Head first.

Look mom!, I caught myself a horse.

Along with the cooler air, comes leaves to play in, pumpkins to carve, trick 0r treating, and unfortunately colds. Trevor caught a cold and was feeling a little frumpy on Halloween. His carefree smile and rambunctious personality were hidden as he stayed pretty quiet and somber. However, that didn't mean he was planning on missing out on any candy. Most of which he couldn't eat anyway. We have a few homes we go to that prepare a special treat bag just for him. All dairy free. Bless their hearts.

Homework with a little help.

Works for me. How about you?

Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Look at me! I'm wearing my big boy underwear.

But, I think they are funnier on my head.

Since returning from Disney my next project to focus on was potty training Trevor. Not near as fun as Disney, but in the end probably just, if not more, rewarding. Being able to say we are completely down with diapers feels awesome. Once he decided I wasn't giving in it was only a matter of days and this little task was mastered. I am happy to report that he is staying dry during nap time and at nights right along with it. Alleluia! Mission accomplished.

Enjoy...a "few" photos from Disney.

The Year of A Million Dreams....

Walt Disney World! What can I say? We had a spectacular week packed full of rides, characters, parades, entertainment, fireworks, 3D shows, swimming and the list goes on and on. It all started with the plane ride. First time flyers are always interesting. Getting through security is a lot more work with three children! Trying to get everyone's stuff in the totes, plus taking off shoes...not to mention all the questions of why, why, why. "Just keep moving"...seemed to be my favorite phrase of the day. Our plane ride was uneventful. All went well. No complaints from me on that. We were picked up by a Disney motorcoach and taken to our resort. We opted to stay on Disney property - The Grand Floridian. A beautiful resort. Cassidy would have spent the entire week in the pools had we let her. It was amazing watching what they got excited over. For instance...the little "Geco lizards", the pools, the white sand, the duck that made his home in our pool....I know what you're thinking....the same thing I was. What! This is Disney - you know, Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy, etc. Don't get me wrong, they loved that too. We were able to hit all four of Disney's parks along with part of one day spent at Blizzard Beach (an amazing water park). It's obvious my children love water. They wanted to know what day we were going back to that park. The water slides were a blast and we enjoyed playing in the tidal wave. Trevor stayed on the very outside edge and would try to jump the waves as they came in. He thought he was so cool! A few of our highlights...Spencer loved Space Mountain at Magic Kingdom, Cassidy loved Splash Mountain and Trevor loved the carousel. Bryan and I braved all the rides with the kids, taking turns of course, because Trevor couldn't ride the big ones. It worked to the advantage of the kids because this way they got to go twice right away. We lucked out with the crowd. The parks were quiet. There was no waiting in line. We walked right on the rides. (Thank goodness - considering Bryan's patience and love for crowds). It could have had something to do with Hurricane Ike. Most people don't head for the storm ~ we just prayed it went another way. Our guardian angel was listening. (Thanks, dad!) The day we went to Animal Kingdom turned out to be another blessing. We were presented with Mickey ears from Disney park employees. These are "The Year of A Million Dreams" that were produced just for the parks to hand out. You can not purchase them. It turns out they are good for more than just your head. Later that day we hit Holleywood Studios (MGM) and the Tower of Terror. Here's my thoughts on that ride...I did it, I can say I did it...I will never go on that ride again. Spencer went twice...once with Bryan and then turned right around and went with Cassidy and I. Well, we are not sure if it was the ride, the food we were eating, a virus or what...BUT....after leaving that park Spencer got sick on the bus ride back to our resort. I could tell he wasn't feeling well, but kept praying he would make it. Nope! So guess what, Bryan & I sacrificed our Mickey ears. Turns out they make great puke bowls. Note to all bus drivers...garbage baskets are essential. Oh, life with kids. Never a dull moment. I enjoyed the fireworks and parade at Magic Kingdom. It is an amazing place to visit. If you ever get the chance - GO FOR IT! It truly is a MAGICAL place.

The boys.

Before we headed to Disney, the boys needed haircuts. They got the same cut and Trevor was so proud to be like his big brother.

Stay tuned for photos from Disney. We had an awesome time!

Miss you !

Forever in our hearts.......

I can honestly say this has been the longest summer of my life. It was draining both emotionally and physically. Which, I hopefully explains the lack of my blogging. At the beginning of June Dad's health started failing. We were told to "prepare" ourselves for time was limited. How do you prepare yourself? How do you watch a loved one slip away? Every moment of every day was consumed with thoughts of Dad. We knew he was fighting a losing cause. His body was tired and wearing out, but his mind was still sharp. That we were thankful for. He enjoyed having family around him, telling stories that would create these great big belly laughs. I was able to spend Father's Day with him along with the rest of my family. Dad was in great spirits and relished in having the whole family with him on HIS day! Dad would have great days and we would all rejoice, but bad days would sometimes follow. Heaven became a little sweeter on August 3rd....but my world crumbled. I am grateful for His peace and know that Dad did not suffer. I am also positive we now have our very own, one of a kind ....."Guardian Angel".

Results are in.

Trevor's allergy tests are back. Here are the main three. His peanut allergy went from a level 4 to a level 0. (No longer any concern with peanuts - I always thought one couldn't outgrow a peanut allergy. Go figure). His beef allergy went from a level 4 to a level 3. We give him beef all the time. On occasion he will get a few pepper dots on his chin. Nothing serious. Plus, he really likes beef. BBQ's are one of his favorites. His major food allergy...MILK. He went from a level 5 to a level 4. "YIPPEE"! The number count went from 18 to 7.75! Don't get me wrong, he is still severely allergic to milk & we never leave the house without his Epipen; however, if the numbers continue to decline...maybe, just maybe by the time he hits school age he will have outgrown this. Keep praying. We are headed in the right direction. GO TREVOR !!

Happy "Golden" Birthday Trevor !!

The Super Soaker
Time for cake
Whoa....fire!
Nothing to it.
Bring on summer!


Trevor turned 2 on the second! We celebrated on Sunday. Which was a picture perfect day. Trevor was liking all his presents and truly enjoyed his chocolate cake and frosting. (All milk free, of course). He might not have had the prettiest cake (decorated by yours truly), but it was cake nonetheless. I believe his exact words were, "Mmmmm, I like it!" He also has figured out how to run his super soaker squirt gun and seems to enjoy getting us all wet. I'm not sure if that was a good idea yet or not. Spencer helped pick it out. He too, enjoys the squirt gun.

We go in for his 2 year checkup this Friday. They will check his numbers again for all the food allergies. Pray for great results. We attended a graduation party on Saturday and he got something (still unsure what or how) and he had a reaction. I was glad we were close to home. We gave him Benadryl right away which kept it from getting too far out of hand. Poor kid. Every outing puts me on pins and needles. Especially at his go-getting age.

A learning experience...

There are some advantages when they grow up. However, I like to mow so I hope he doesn't take over this job all the time.

You can stay...but only "1" night

The little guy needed to be rescued. He ended up being so much fun for the kids, he stayed 9 days. We finally had to give him to a farm that has a bunch of fowl running around their yard. We've visited him to see how he's doing. He's grown like crazy!

Welcome to....the crazy zone

As you can see...Cassie is NOT green.....hmmm....
This stuff was oily & not easy to wipe off...poor kid.
The instructions are to drop a few into the water, not
the entire container. OOPS!


Our latest toy. Pray for HOT temps. soon!

Trevor loves his brother's big bed.
Hopefully, he's learning great reading skills.

I've often looked at other families and thought to myself...such a peaceful home. The children seem to be low-key and well behaved. Which brings me to my house. Loud and crazy. So, I have to wonder...are these other families really that peaceful or is their home the same loud, crazy, chaotic circus that goes on in my own? Did we happen to just 'catch' them at a peaceful moment. Because, YES, our house does have peaceful moments too. It's when everyone is sleeping!

We do exist.....

I am sorry for not being better at this. Life can be so hectic. I keep thinking to myself that I need to update this and then never get it done. I have a hard time working on the computer at home when I spend all day on on at work. However, that should not be an excuse. The kids have so much going on this last month. Seems like we are trying to jam everything in before this school year ends.
These last few weeks have been a very trying and tiring time for me. Trevor has decided to become very opinionated and difficult to work with. There is no reasoning with him. I am waiting patiently for this phase to end and keep hoping and praying there is an end to this madness. I decided to chat with him last night about his behavior and all I got for an answer was, "I don't know mommy." My thoughts exactly.
I will post pictures soon. Watch for the green monster. It was a Cassidy move all the way.....stay tuned.

My monthly update....

Weeeeeee.....
Yep, that was fun!
The proud hunter.

Aaaa...life is good!

We are still keeping busy. I have yet to figure out where the days go. We spent 3 days in the cities with Bryan's work family. The kids stayed with us the first night at the hotel to get their swimming in. Then they went to Auntie Linda's house for two days packed full of fun and excitement. I think we were all exhausted by the time we came home. It was nice to visit with adults without having children interrupting and pulling on your clothes. Although, it was extremely difficult for me to stay up past my bedtime of 10pm.
Spencer experienced his first "big kill". He is a true hunter. It took him about 20 minutes to tell me the whole story. I asked him if he felt bad for killing such a cute creature. He simply replied, no. I'm still trying to figure out how he managed this with only a BB gun, since that is all I've approved of him shooting. Hmmmm....need to chat with his father on that one.
Daylight savings time has once again done a number on us. It's 7pm on Sunday night and the kids are enjoying the neighbors sliding hill. ".....but mom, it's still light out. We don't have to come in yet." Trevor did come in about 15 minutes after being outside, jumping with joy. His comment was this, "Senser, hill, slide, fun, Senser, slide, fun!" That "Senser" would be his big brother whom he adores.

Me time.

Warm temps, tons of family, continuous laughing, little sleep and loads of food. Who wouldn't have fun? That was my whirlwind weekend in Texas. All my brothers and sisters were able to attend my nephews wedding. You can about imagine the noise. We are not the quietest, but we all get along so well, that the laughter never stops. It was great to spend time with Mom and Dad again. My nephew had a beautiful outdoor wedding. It was well worth the trip, and the hugs you get when you get home make it worth even more.

Warm temps are wonderful

and with the help of two dads great things can be accomplished. To tell you the truth, I think the dad's had a great time with this creation too.