Where Has My Baby Gone?!?!

...because this cannot be her...

She started pulling up to stand while on vacation...

She now does it everywhere!

She is also almost too big for her infant seat.

 I also

love

doing her

hair!

She is indeed

growing way too fast!

We had beautiful weather today!

Is this really November?!?!

  Gorgeous!!

I am still working on part two of my Florida post. I am trying to pick through (literally) hundreds of pictures! Ha! Hopefully I'll get it finished soon!

Also, if anyone is wondering why my daughter has a sock on her hand...it is because  (as you can see here) my daughter has a huge obsession with her thumb. Huge! Big! NEVER leaves her mouth.

Due to this it sometimes becomes blistered and sore and the only way I can get it to heal is to keep it AWAY from her by covering it! lol

First Snow

Florida Vacation Part 1

**Update** Not sure why it published so funky. Hopefully I can get it fixed soon!

Last week we took a MUCH needed vacay! We spent seven FULL days in warm sunny FLORIDA! I did take my laptop, which turned out to be a GREAT portable DVD player for the kiddos, but I didn't really use it much other than to look at and edited pictures. Which, as you can imagine...I have HUNDREDS! lol This is the reason for my blogging absence and also the reason I just now published Monkey Man's birthday post. Now I am just forwarning you...this post WILL be long. And FULL of pictures. It may interest you, it may not. But this post is just me. putting down memories. for my kids. Or at least what I remember. HA! So here we go....

Thursday night after we celebrated Monkey Man's B-day we prepared for the long drive south. With stops it ended up being 18 hours! But because we left at about 11 at night the kids slept for a good portion of the trip. Then we had DVDs and Leapters and crayons and stuff so the kids were pretty well occupied. We stopped for meals and potty breaks and let the kids stretch their legs and they did very well. We were very pleasantly surprised to find we have three little travelers on out hands. :)

We reached Orlando about 5pm on Friday. We were all so tired that first day that we just checked into the hotel, ordered a pizza, gave baths and went to bed. We all slept for about 12 hours!! It was the most sleep I have gotten in a LONG time. It was just what we all needed and we were refreshed and ready to go.

Saturday morning we woke up, got ready in the room and then went downstairs to eat our continental breakfast (which turned out to be a smorgasbord of every breakfast food you could think of). We made the mistake of sitting by the window looking out to the pool. Yeah BIG mistake. Our kids have never been to Disney. They had NO idea what was  in store for them. So no matter how many times we told them that we were going to Disney that day and could not swim right at that moment, they were not pleased. I admit the pool was awesome. It had a waterfall with a waterslide that went right through it. It was lined with stone. It was beautiful...and VERY tempting. But we had more fun things on the agenda that day!

After breakfast we headed for Animal Kingdom! This park was not there the last time I was in Florida so Hubby and I had never been there. It was amazing! It was like a zoo/amusement park all rolled into one. After we parked the car we rode the tram to the park. Tigger threw a fit made it known that he did NOT want to ride the tram and said it was "scary." Needless to say he thought it was pretty cool when he was actually ON it. We entered the park and looked at all the animals at the front of the park and then headed for Dino Land USA.

The kids loved it! I rode a little dinsour ride with the boys and then Hubby and Monkey Man rode this...

As you can see it did scare Monkey Man just a little but he talked about it NON-STOP for the rest of the day!

While they were on that ride I took Tigger (we were advised not to take him on it because he was still so young and after seeing the picture of MM I am glad we listened!) and Olivia to a shaded area and fed her lunch while we waited.  Tigger kept himself occupied by climbing on the wall beside me and playing in the dirt! :)

The boys wanted to play games as well but for $2.50 per person per game it wasn't worth it. So we just casually strolled past the games and then headed out to eat lunch at one of the little Dino restaraunts. It was pretty cool. The entire restaraunt kind of looked like a makeshift camp and there were archeological supplies and props everywhere.

Then after that we made our way to the Asia side of the park and went through the Maharajah Jungle Trek. It was set up like ruins of an ancient palace inhabited by wild animals and it was truly incredible.Then we walked through Flights of Wonder where we saw different and unique birds flying around. Also really cool although the kids didn't much care about the birds. lol

 After that we got our fast pass tickets for Kilimanjaro Safari and then Hubby and the boys took the train to Rafiki's Planet Watch. Thinking this was a "ride" and not knowing there was a whole other area to the park on the other end, my husband didn't actually get off at Rafiki's Planet. I was waiting with a sleeping Olivia and he knew I would be expecting them back soon so they just stayed on the train and rode it back. Fortunately the boys were very easy going and were none the wiser. They just thought it was cool they could go on a "train ride." Ha! Oh well we will know better next time.

Then we walked the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail where we got to see many awesome animals including the MOST photogenic gorilla I have ever seen. I SWEAR he was posing for me! Ha! :)

Then we found a GREAT spot to sit back and watch the parade. We were right up front and several characters walked right up to the kids and they just thought it was the best thing ever!

After the parade we were due back at the Safari and thanks to those nifty little fast passes got in pretty much right away. Thank goodness because it was getting to be the end of the day and dinner time and the kids were starting to get unruly and aggitated and I think a longer wait would have been almost unbearable. I think I can honestly say that this ride was one of the highlights of the day! It was so much FUN!

We rode in an offrode jeep and the premise was that we were trying to stop poachers and reunite a baby elephant with it's momma. The boys had fun seeing all the different animals and looking out for the baby elephant. The tour guide was HILARIOUS! And there were parts of the ride where we had to go over some "rickety" bridges and one had crocodiles under it and was simulated to make you think the bridge was collapsing. I thought  it would scare the boys but they LAUGHED! lol

When the Safari was over we went back through Asia where we had fast passes for Expedition Everest.

This was a REAL roller coaster that Monkey Man rode with me!

You can see by the look on his face that he was TERRIFIED. When I saw that picture I instantly felt sorry for taking him on it. He kept saying "Mommy that ride was REALLY scary!" :( Mother's guilt set in BIG TIME! But...after awhile he started smiling and at one point said "Mom you and I rode on the SCARY ride huh?!?" He was soooo proud of himself! That helped me to feel a little bit better but when asked if he wanted to ride it again he quickly answered "No!" lol

I quickly fed Olivia before leaving the park and on the way out we saw Micky and Minnie! Then we headed back to the hotel, got takeout from Fridays (yum! best pasta I have EVER had) and went to bed early!

The next day started the same way. Got up, got the kids ready, ate breakfast then this time we headed to Magic Kingdom. We rode the tram, which Tigger was excited about this time around, and entered the park. For some reasom the Monorail wasn't running so we had to take the ferry. Normally this would have been fine. Fun in fact, since the boys LOVE boats and thought it was pretty cool. However, it was a little breezy and cold that morning. In fact if I remember right Florida had almost record lows that night but anyway...It was COLD. The kids were getting a little cranky and it wasn't the best start to the day. Fortunately once we got into the park it was quite a bit better.

When we got there they had music playing and some of the characters were dancing in the street. Monkey Man got to meet Mr. Incredible! He wasn't too sure what to think about it though. ha!

We danced in the street for awhile and then headed for Tomorrowland where we went to the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor.  The wait was only like 10 min. so it really wasn't bad except for the fact that we got all the way in and then Tigger decided he had to go potty (even though we asked him before going in) so Hubby took him back out through the crowd (we were at the head of the line right in front of the doors) and to the bathroom. The cast did let them back in which was nice, but they couldn't find us so we didn't get to sit together. Hubby did tell me afterwards though that Tigger liked it. Monkey Man REALLY liked it.  Monsters Inc has always been one of his favorite movies and he laughed almost non-stop! (Basically the monsters do stand up comedy and interact with the audience with the goal of making the audience laugh and filling the laugh canisters for electricity.) It was hilarious!

We ate lunch where a really weird alien creature (almost like Chucky Cheese...but worse...much much worse) sang on a stage then we used our fastpasses for the Buzz Lightyear ride where we rode in little round spaceships and tried to shoot things with lazer guns. Both boys liked it but Tigger liked it especially.

**On a side note I have to say that my poor second child, bless his heart,  is so clumsy. He fell in the parking lot going into BOTH parks and scratched his knees pretty badly and then the poor baby fell getting onto the Buzz ride. Which wasn't entirely his fault because it was one of those rides that doesn't stop to let you on and you walk on a moving belt to get on the ride. Yeah that was fun. (sarcasm) I had his hand but I also had Olivia strapped to the front of me in the snugly, my camera and my purse in the other hand, trying to get all of us on the ride (I mentioned it was moving right?) and before I knew it Tigger was on the floor. He was fine, in fact he laughed it off but I was a nervous wreck. lol

We also rode the Carousel of Progress. This is basically a revolving theatre and you revolve around a stage with simulated characters and you start at the turn of the centery and then everytime you revolve it jumps forward a decade or two until you get to present day. It was interesting for the parents. Not so much for the kids. Olivia got fussy and ended up falling alseep on my lap and the boys just weren't into it at all. To be honest if we had known exactly what it was and if there had been a wait we probably wouldn't have done it. But as it happened we were walking by and it was completely open and they were about ready to close the doors so we figured why not?

Then Hubby took the
boys on Tomorrowland
Speedway while I sat
with Olivia who was
still sleeping. Although neither
of them could really see over the
wheel they thought it was
awesome that they got to
drive a "racecar." lol

After that we made our way to Mickey's Toontown

where we got to walk through Mickey and Minnie's houses

and Hubby and the boys rode

The Barnstormer.

Then the boys and I rode the Teacups and by then Olivia was awake so we got to ride more as a family. We rode It's a Small World, which Olivia LOVED (her eyes were huge and she smiled the whole time!:), ate pizza for dinner at Pinocchio Village then saw Mickey's PhilharMagic. The last was a 3D movie and seeing the boys reactions cracked me up! They would jump and scream when something came out from the screen and then reach out and try to grab it! I got more enjoyment watching them then I did the movie! Ha!

When the movie was over we made our way to the front of the park to buy our tickets for Mickey's Halloween Party. It cost extra and went from 7-12am. So we wanted to see how the kids were before we bought the tickets and they were still going strong so we decided to stay and I am so glad we did!!!

After buying the tickets we made our way back up through Mainstreet. It was getting dark and new people were coming in for the party so it was pretty crazy. There were cast members everywhere greeting people and handing out candy bags. Everyone was dressed up and the castle was lit with different colored lights. It all seemed so magical.

Then we had a little mishap. We decided to run into a shop to find a sweatshirt for hubby (I mentioned record lows right?) and we were in the store for maybe two minutes when Tigger points to his feet and says "Look Mommy!"  I looked down to se my son's BARE feet. He had kicked his sandels off somewhere and anyone's guess was as good as mine. I asked him where he took them off and he of course couldn't (or wouldn't) tell me. He would tell me he did it in the store and then he would say in the street. So I handed Olivia to Hubby and picked Tigger up and start backtracking to try to find them. I went ALL the way down Mainstreet and back and....no shoes. I went back to the store and asked if anyone had turned them in and they hadn't but told me to try the lost and found at Townhall. By this time Hubby was looking too and I was sooo worried I would lose him in the crowd of people. So we went BACK to Townhall only to see people lined up out the door for Halloween tickets and I was ready to just give up and buy him a new pair. Well I decided to ask someone at the store one more time and this time they actually got the manager who got on his little headset thing and asked if anyone had found them. Fortunately one of the cast members HAD found them in the store. But....they took them down to the lost and found at Townhall. So...back down Mainstreet we went, fighting the crowd, only to wait in the HUGE line at Townhall and finally get his shoes back.  Geesh!! The whole ordeal cost us about 20 min.! But anyway...moving on....

We get back to the castle in the middle of the park just in time to see all the Disney Villians come out to sing and dance and act like they were taking over the castle and the park. It was spooky enough for older kids to really get into it but it wasn't too spooky for the little kids. Then we headed out to trick or treat at Disney! It was awesome. There were candy stations throughout the park and we had a special map to let us know where they all were. Most of the rides were still open so we went on The Pirates of the Caribbean (which I have to say has changed ALOT since the last time I was there)  and then just as we got out the fireworks started so we stopped and watched those. Monkey Man kept saying "Mommy I LOVE fireworks!" It was sooo cute! Also Olivia had been asleep on the 4th of July so she had never seen fireworks! Her eyes were so big I could see the reflection of the fireworks in her eyes! It was probably one of the most meaningful moments for me in the whole trip! I don't think I had ever mentioned it on this blog before but when I was pregnant with her and right in the middle of all the complications I was having I had a dream. In my dream we were at Disney World and I had a baby girl (we hadn't yet found out what we were having in real life) in a sling in front of me. Somehow I knew she was a girl even though she was facing away from me and I couldn't see her face. All I remember about her was her dark hair and I was in a shop look for a pair of pants for her in size 12months (which is exactly what she is in now). That's all I remember about the dream but it had given me so much hope at the time. Add that dream to the fact that my water broke at 24 weeks right before the fireworks started on the July 4th 2008 and it was so surreal to be standing there...at Disney...with my baby girl strapped to me...seeing the reflection of the fireworks in her eyes...and I was completely overcome with emotion. It's a moment I really remember for the rest of my life.

By then it was getting REALLY cold. I had Olivia bundled up in the sling in front of me and then my jacket around her so she was fine (in fact after the fireworks she completely conked out) but the boys were getting really cold. We made our way back up towards the Dumbo ride because they had cried earlier that day to ride it but it was a 30 min wait. So we told them they could ride it later. Well by the time we got there it was FREEZING and Tigger had crawled into the back of the stroller, covered up with one of Olivia's extra blankets and fell asleep. The wind was picking up and Monkey Man started crying that he wanted to go home and go to bed. It was past 10 at this point (way past bedtime) and we new that being up on the ride it would be even colder. So in the end we decided to skip it and Hubby took Monkey Man on SnowWhite's Scary Adventures instead.

After that we headed back to the hotel. Fortunately the monorail was running on the way back and we didn't have to ride the ferry. That would not have been fun!

The next day (Monday) we got up and ate breakfast again. We checked out of the hotel and headed for the second leg of our trip which turned out to be just as amazing as the first!

To be continued....

Happy 5th Birthday!

We got back from a week long vacation a few days ago and I so meant to publish this before we left. That is why it is dated for the 15th when well...it's NOT actually the 15th. lol Why does time have to go by so fast anyway?

I cannot believe my baby is five! I know that it sounds so cliche and unoriginal but true all the same!

We did our traditional birthday celebration. I again did not take pictures on his actual day. My bad! I'm hoping the trip we were planning for Disney was enough for him to forgive my scattered brain on his special day! Besides, how many kids get to trick or treat at Disney the weekend after their birthday anyway?!?! (Vacation post coming very soon!:) He still got to pick out his own gift, restaraunt and treat so he had a good time and it was all good! :)

The night before his birthday I took him to the store because I knew I wouldn't be able to take him one-on-one the next day. He chose an ambulance and a helicopter for his gifts.

It didn't take him long to pick them out either. He's way more decisive than his momma! lol

He also picked out sugar cookies with orange icing for his treat that he would take into school and then he picked out cupcakes with orange and black icing with bat rings on them. The store had so many cool halloween deserts. But no.... he wanted the ones with the bat rings. Because you know the bat rings make them taste better. ;)

The next day, on his actual birthday, I picked him up from school and then we all went out to eat and then again my mom and siblings came over for cupcakes and gifts. We even had a special visit from my aunt and her son who were in town from Texas. It was great to see them and celebrate Monkey Man's birthday with them!

Then after they left we finished some last minute things, packed up the car and headed south!

Monkey Man,

My first born. The love of my life. My soulmate. Happy Birthday! You are such a blessing and gift to us. Our family would not be complete without you! You are the sweetest little boy I have ever known. You take such good care of your little brother and sister and you have such a kind and innocent heart! You were the one who made me a mommy and I am so blessed to have you for a son!

We love you so very much!

Happy Birthday Tuesday

In honor of Tuesday Fiona Whitt

October 11, 2006-Janurary 30, 2009

Happy Birthday Sweet Angel!

Blossom

Then the time came when the risk it took

To remain tight in a bud was more painful

Than the risk it took to blossom.

-Anais Nin

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

God has been working on me

Pushing me from my comfort zone.

In many ways.

All I can do now

is sit back and watch.

As He draws forth from me

What He wishes for my life.

And my experiences.

"Goodbye September"

I don't think I have had a month go by so fast in all my life! There have been so many things I have wanted to post and write about and just didn't have the time...or the energy...to put them into words. (Thus why it is the 6th of October and I am just now posting this. ha!)



We are in the process of some major changes in our lives. Things that I can't talk about yet. But God is good and He is at work. I cannot wait to share the new journey He has us on, but right now nothing is for sure and there are too many variables. All in good time though. His time! ;)



I already posted about our trip to the lake. Wow! Was that amazing! It was beautiful and one of the coolest places I have ever been. We hope to make it a yearly trip from here on out.



Let's see. What else happened this month? Hmmm...oh yeah. What didn't happen this month?!lol



Hubby and I celebrated seven years of marriage on the 7th. We spent the day, childless, in Cleveland. :) We cruised the city, ate at the Hard Rock and walked around Tower City. We got to see some of the planes from the air show soaring over the skyscrapers. Man are those things loud!



I nursed Olivia for the last time. :( I made it to 14 months and she weaned herself so I have no regrets. But it still makes me sad to think that part of my relationship with her is gone. I will definitely miss it! She has also started the army crawl and scooting herself across the hardwood floors. It's so cute! She is so close to crawling! I keep thinking it will be any day now. Her therapist is coming every week now instead of two weeks and I think that is helping.



Our oldest started preschool. So far so good!



We celebrated Tigger's 3rd b-day and had a combined party for the boys on the 26th. We had it at the gym where I used to work coaching gymnastics. There was over a dozen children who showed up. They ran, jumped, climbed and played until their hearts content. Their parents thanked me for wearing them out! Ha!



We also had fundraising and a Walk 4 Babies event. All proceeds went to the hospital where Olivia stayed for 11 weeks in the NICU. I couldn't have been more proud to be a part of something so special and extraordinary. Walk 4 Babies raised almost $50,000 for the hospital that I, in part, owe my daughter's life to. It was an awesome experience!



I also cut off 12 inches of hair for Locks of Love!!







Olivia only had three doctors appointments this month! That was a nice change. She had her 12 month eye exam, and she passed! She had an appointment with her orthopedic doctor. Foot looks good so far. There is still a possibility of surgery when she is about three, but we will just have to wait and see. She also had another hearing test. This time, however, we didn't go to the hospital that had done them in the past. Her pediatrician actually referred us to an ENT who has an audiologist in office. What a blessing!!!! It was one of the most amazing experiences God has given me yet. Not only did we have the most amazing audiologist who actually took time with Olivia (we kept getting a "refer" with a certain tone and she said she knew it was just the probe so she tried like five times before getting her to pass) but as it turns out she had twins at 27 weeks. She too was told to terminate her pregnancy, but because of her faith chose to carry her babies and now they are both happy HEALTHY three year olds. We talked forever! We exchanged stories, we talked about God's goodness and about our little miracles. It was the most incredible thing! Not only did Olivia pass her test, but I met a kindred soul. Only God knows if we will ever meet again but I will always remember that day and how God chose an ordinary day to give me such an awesome blessing.



We also had our County Fair this month. The kids rode all the kiddie rides, saw animals and Mommy and Daddy got their fair food. It was divine! :) We were also blessed by a little old man who was walking up behind us and just as the kids were being little devils misbehaving, this dear old man looked at us with the wisest eyes I think I have ever seen and said "This is really the best time of your lives. I promise." Needless to say it put things into great perspective and for the rest of the day I can say I thoroughly enjoyed being with my kids. Not that I didn't already, it's just...well...perspective. I looked at the day with brand new eyes! I wonder if that sweet man will ever know how God used him that day. I hope he does!



Monkey Man had another appointment with a different neurologist. I wasn't comfortable with the first one we saw, so I scheduled one with my neurologist and I am so glad I did! (If you don't know what I am referring to click here.) The first doctor took a very lighthearted approach to everything. He said the angiomas weren't causing our son's delays and actually kind of brushed off the angiomas all together. Although this approach was refreshing, it just did not feel right. (Thank God for intuition!) According to my doctor, the first doctor couldn't have been more wrong! There is a good possibility that an angioma is causing these problems. He also gave me some really scary statistics. He said that only 25% of people who have cavernous angiomas will go through life without experiencing symptoms. At least 75% will have trouble at some point in their lives. He said my son is at the age where it's time to find out if he has them or not. He said it would be better to know before symptoms start if he does have them, and after much thought and prayer my husband and I agree it's time. So....what the neurologist recommended was for me to have genetic testing, since we know I have them, to find the gene responsible, and then since my kids have a 50/50 chance of having it, look for that gene in all of my children. If they don't have the gene then we're clear. If they do...then we will have MRIs done to see how bad it is. Prayers for this part of our lives would be greatly appreciated!



Well I think that is about it. Well...except for that other thing. You know the one I can't speak of yet? ;) That has taken a LOT of our time too. Once things are more certain and when I feel led to I will share. But all in good time my friends. All in His time!



As my son came home from school last week singing.... "Goodbye September."