First Swim

Zachary, Carlee and I went to the pool today with some friends. It was so nice to be outside and not hot. I have been looking forward to this Summer because Zachary would be one and would be able to handle the heat and the water (unlike last year when he was a newborn). I got a little floaty for him to sit in so I could be hands free for Carlee if I needed to. However, she showed me today that she can handle the pool all by herself. The lifeguards were very attentive and as I understand helped her when she went under. I must have had my back turned, but she was okay. She met some little girlfriends while she was there and basically stayed attached to them the whole time. She went down the slide sereval times and made sure everyone knew she was having fun by screaming with excitement. So cute and girly! Thanks Erin for catching her oh sooo many times. Carlee kept things interesting by having an accident in her swimsuit right before we left. Fun times! I'm just glad she was not in the water when it happened. Zachary was pretty tired by the time we got there, but he sat in his tube for a little bit and then fell asleep while I was holding him. I layed him on the chair and he crashed for one hour. Thanks for the pictures Erin! He thoroughly enjoyed himself at the pool. It was a fun day!

Memorial Day Fun

Carlee enjoyed some of the day outside playing in the sprinkler and on her trampoline while daddy grilled some burgers. She was a little hoot with the water. She would get a big gulp and spit it out like a fountain and then laugh. What is Memorial Day without grilled hamburgers? We have it every time. YUMMY! We loved having daddy home for an extra day.

Zachary chilled in his highchair, while I got the fixin's ready for lunch. We had some homemade choclate chip cookies for dessert. It was a blessed day!

Sweetness

These two.... sometimes they love each other and sometimes they don't. More like sometimes Carlee doesn't. Zachary always looks up to Carlee and wants to be right next to her. We captured a shot of them giving kisses to each other in the bath tub last night. It was so sweet! Zachary laughed every time and wanted to do it again and again. So Cute! These are the moments that make it all worth it.

Summer Fun

Is it Summer yet? The heat is here and the pools are out. We spent Friday over at a friends house having fun outside in the water. We had a great time with all our friends. Carlee was so excited (as seen in the picture above). I believe her exact words were, "this is so much fun," or "this is so great." It was hilarious! Zachary wasn't too sure about the whole outdoor pool thing. He had fun though. We are very thankful that the pools will be opening soon. I know we will be spending a lot of time there. Daddy will be joining in the fun this Summer because he will be getting off work at 2:30 everyday. YEA!!

A Happy Ending to a Hard Day

(Yes, my husband said I could post this picture)
Zachary having some carrot juice with daddy. I know.... can we say, "Health NUT!" Too cute!
Mondays, seem to have this hardness about them. Greg goes back to work and I am by myself again, feeling outnumbered. Today was one on those days, I do not care to relive except for the last hour. That's when Super Dad came to the rescue. Greg put on Carlee's flower towel after bath time and zoomed around the house just to make me smile and laugh. I broke out of my sadness and exhaustion and laughed hysterically at my man. I love him.... this is why I married him and he is the greatest thing ever. I'm glad I have a second chance tomorrow. Grace grace grace for today. Thank you Jesus!

The Difference between Carlee and Zachary

I have been thinking about how my two are completely different. Not just because they are a girl and a boy, but because they are Carlee and Zachary, first and second born. Here are just a few things that blow my mind about my two.

Carlee, who is not only all girl, but so much girl that she loves to pick out her clothes, to get her hair done, play dress-up and tea party, put on mommy's make-up (with help), she loves shoes, glitter, soft fuzzy frilly things, to cuddle, to suck her thumb, to sing (and has memorized probably 50 songs), to dance, to twirl, to get her toes painted, to read, and to do things all by herself. She a mini "Me." She will cry if her feelings get hurt. She can not stand loud noises, but loves to turn the music up in the car when listening to "Shackles." She loves to make a mess, but can't stand to be dirty for too long. She runs or skips everywhere she goes. She will sit still and watch movies (Zachary has yet to watch a 30 minute Baby Einstein). When she gets hurt, she gets embarrassed and angry. She is very sensitive and can't handle being in trouble. She is cute, fun to be around, social (her first word was, "Hi."), 3 going on 13, hilarious (she tells me funny stories all the time), special and unique. She is a daddy's girl. She's Carlee and she's our daughter.

Zachary, is ALL BOY!! He likes noise (the louder, the better). He loves the vacuum (Carlee did not like the vacuum when she was small). He loves balls and already knows that the ball goes in the basket (he will make a basket out of any type of circle). His first word was, "Go." He is a boy on the move and as determined as they get. He will test the limits and press boundaries. He is fearless and hard to hold still (he will dive out of my hands thinking he will fly). He loves the water and has always enjoyed bath time (Carlee cried every time she took a bath for 3 months). He loves his mama. Zachary loves to eat and only wants to eat what Carlee is eating. He adores his sissy and stares at her like she is the most beautiful thing he has ever seen. He makes so many noises and sounds. I did not have to teach him how to blow bubbles with his mouth or suck out of a straw. He hits, and bangs on everything. He will bite you especially if he's teething. He gets into the kitchen cabinets, the toilet and climbs into small places. Zachary does not like being confined or straped down. He is his daddy's look alike. Cute, precious, and fun. He always keeps me guessing and on my toes. He is Zachary and he is our son.

Both of these kids are so different, but they are so great! Some days I feel like I am split personality. Sweet and gentle to Carlee and aggressive and blunt with Zachary. No wonder I feel like I am about to loose my mind some days. I love our kids and know that God designed them perfectly and completely. He will give me wisdom and discernment for each one as they grew and change. Being a mom of two has definitely rocked my world and has left me feeling desperate and in need of God everyday. There are days I just don't think I can manage, but through Him I am able to accomplish the day. It will not be perfect and I will make mistakes, but it is all good and blessed because of Him.

Mother's Day

Greg got creative and put chocolate Dove candies (my Favorite) to spell out Happy Mother's Day! An edible card... I loved it! It was an enjoyable weekend, despite Zachary running 102' temp. Greg, took care of the kids on Saturday, while me and my sister got a pedicure and went shopping. I think we were gone for 4 hours (it felt like 10). Sunday, we had Greg's parents over for lunch (Jason's Deli catered). It was delicious... I'm glad I did not have to cook. Later that evening we went to Northshore Park for a prayer and worship gathering. Zachary got prayed for and is doing much better today. Thank you John and Rachel for your prayers. I felt like I got fully initiated this Mother's Day with sick kids, but that is just a life of a mom. Thankfully, this to shall pass and we will be up and running again soon. God bless all you moms out there. Good job on raising great kids!!

Melissa's Baby Shower

This past weekend, we threw a shower for my best friend Mel at my mom's house. We have been friends since high school. She is basically my second sister. I love her so much and am so excited that she is expecting her first baby. It's a boy! I am looking forward to meeting this little man. She got so many great gifts and was thoroughly blessed. What a fun evening!

New Friend

Last week, Greg's old roommate- Steve and his wife Johanna and their son Caleb (2 months old) spent a couple of days with us. We had a lot of fun hanging out with them and talking about our kids. Zachary and Caleb were hilarious when it came time to take a picture together. They were all over the place. We had a great time with you guys! Hope the rest of your trip went smooth.

Carlee's Car Wash

Saturday, Carlee spent most of the day outside in her swimsuit helping Daddy wash the car. I remember doing this as a little girl and oh how I loved getting wet and having fun with my dad. It was probably a good thirty minutes and the car had still not been touched. All I heard was Greg laughing hysterically at whatever Carlee was doing behind the car. At this time, he told me to get the camera. She had been taking two sponges and dropping them into the bucket of bubbles and laughing at all the slashes she had made. As you can see she got it on her hair, swimsuit and all. By the time she was done, she was covered in suds. It was so funny to watch. Carlee spent the next hour inside the bucket just hanging out watching daddy do all the work. Who needs a swimming pool?! I'm so glad Carlee can be completely satisfied in a bucket of bubbles and laugh and play like this is the best thing ever. I love this girl!

On a side note... I taught Carlee her first bible verse last week from Psalms 150:6 "Let everything that has breath, Praise the Lord." At the end of the day, I asked Carlee at the dinner table if she could tell daddy her verse and she said, "Let everything hold their breath and Praise the Lord." We all laughed so hard!!

11 Months

Where did the baby go? Zachary is pretty much a little toddler now. On the move and into everything... he is bruised because of his fearlessness. Just today, he got a fat lip from falling off his car. He is all boy!! This month has had it's share of ups and downs. It all started when Zachary bit me while nursing. I can not even begin to tell you how much pain I was in, but thankfully it healed and we got through it with God's help. Two weeks after that I developed an infection from the bite and now am in more pain. Thank the Lord for antibiotics! So the weaning process has officially begun and we are about to say good-bye a sweet memory. I am so thankful God has enabled me to be Zachary's source of food since he has been born. What a gift nursing is and a special time to bond with my darling son. It's really one of the only times Zachary is completely still. It makes me cry just thinking about how much I will miss this precious time with him. However, I do look forward to being a free women again. Whoever said, "Boys love their mama's," is right. But, oh how I love him too. He steals my heart. He's been pretty attached to me lately and seems to have a melt down every time I walk into the room. The separation anxiety is beginning. As you can see from the first picture, Zachary is eating bite size pieces all the time now and it's all he wants. If I even think about giving him a jar of baby food, I better have some bite size pieces of something on his tray to go with it and even then I have to sneak the baby food in. It's a good stage, but it always throws me for a loop when babies go from breastfeeding all the time to sitting in a highchair eating regular food and drinking all throughout the day. Praise Jesus for healing Zachary's cough! It is finally gone after 6 months. One thing that helped was giving him Acidopholus (this is a pro biotic and you can get it in a powder form at HEB). It is something I began sprinkling on his food to help build his immunity and it has helped. Also, praises for Zachary sleeping through the night now. He will sleep from 8pm until 7am. It is great!! I am a new woman! Carlee still adores her brother and she really enjoys holding his arms and pulling him around the house on his tummy. I can't even believe I let them do this, but he loves it and laughs the whole time. They also love to chase each other. Carlee will run down the hall back and forth as Zachary crawls as fast as he can trying to catch her. He laughs, she laughs while saying, " This is so much fun!!" It is hilarious and happens at least three times a day. Have I told you that Zachary's favorite spot in the house is the toilet. Yesterday, I found his basketball in there and before that his paci (yea, that was sterilized real good). He loves the potty and I've actually had dreams of him potty training because of all the adventures happening in the bathroom. I guess I need to get used to keeping all the doors closed. I never understood why people do that, until now. There are so many differences between my boy and girl, I am thinking about posting that on my next blog entry. So stay tuned!