Stop and smell the roses

N has been fever free now for a while, and we were glad to see that pass. Unfortunately he's still quite a crank and has now developed a rash on his upper body. I took him to the doctor today and she said that he has roseola. The good news is that he's no longer contageous and B and I shouldn't catch it since it's something kids under the age of three get. (Your body develops immunity to it as a child.) I'm just really hoping that he's back to his normal happy ways, sleeping through the night again, and eating normally tomorrow. The rash should be gone in the next couple of days. If he's in a good mood tomorrow, we might just take a trip to the Children's Museum. Thanks for keeping him in your prayers.

Here's a pic of the little guy's back. Hopefully it'll be gone soon. Luckily it doesn't seem to bother him at all.

hot-hot-hot

Happy Memorial Day to everyone!

I feel as if I really struggle to find time to blog lately. I have to remind myself several times that I need to post again before I get anywhere close to actually doing it. We've been enjoying our long weekend though. I've finished a book I've been reading for several weeks and started a new one. B and I shipped N off to his grandparent's house for a night away from us. This was the first time that I have ever been away from my baby boy overnight. I missed him a ton, but it wasn't quite as hard on me as I expected. He seemed to have a good time and even got to spend some time with Grandpa in the tractor. He couldn't be away from Mom though without giving her at least a little bit to worry about. Sometime Saturday he started to run fever. (He never would have gotten out of the house if I'd known.) By yesterday afternoon when we got home with him it was 104.7!!! We took him into a Pediatric Express place at a local hospital. Turns out that he's got a viral infection of the throat. Viral = mom and dad you're just going to have to tough it out. We thought he was doing pretty well this morning, but woke up from his afternoon nap with another high fever. Ugh! If it's not gone tomorrow we'll go see the pediatrician. Hopefully that won't be necessary though. Right now he's quite adorably sleeping on the couch and can stay there as long as he's quiet and comfortable. Keep the little guy in your prayers. As much as I love all the cuddle time, I want my boy to feel well.

If this was a cartoon, they'd sparkle

I was looking through the hundreds of Will pictures that Matt and Lindsay had been keeping all to themselves, and I found this cute picture of him. So often the little man is so serious. Luckily, I was able to meet him last week and find that he knows how to have fun from time to time. This picture makes me think that he's planning some serious trouble for his mom and dad! I have to say congrats to the little guy also; Mom, mine not his, informed me that he's getting his first tooth! What a hug accomplishment. Guess that explains all of last weeks gnawing and drooling.

Speaking of teeth, B and I went to the dentist today. I love going to the dentist. There is nothing better than feeling your clean, smooth teeth just after a cleaning. The hygienist told me how important that flossing is, but I sure do hate it. Maybe I'll try once again to get into the whole flossing habit, but only time will tell.

Go brush your teeth!

Happy Wednesday Everyone!

The Natural State

I've been slacking on the blogging over the past week but not without good reason. N and I just got back from a week long trip to see my parents and siblings. Yeah, unfortunately B had to stay at home and work. There was a lady from church going down, and she didn't want to make the drive alone. She loves N and asked if we wanted to keep her company. It was a perfect situation for me since she wanted to drive the whole way there and back.

We had a great visit with everyone. Matt, Lindsay, and Will flew in a few days after I arrived. It was great to finally meet Will. I spent some time at work with Mom, and also went out to lunch with my former youth leader. Dad worked from home quite a bit, and I loved having him around so much. Mom took a day off work which was great. I got to see several different friends and their children. It was perfect on Saturday when everyone was over and Mom and Dad's for dinner!

N did fairly well with the traveling. That long in the car would make any child scream a little. He just doesn't seem to like napping in the car as much now that his car seat faces forward. I miss the days when he would sleep as long as the car was in motion. That made for some easy trips! B still doesn't think he need a dvd player for the car, but he might change his mind eventually. You can only watch N arch his back and throw a toy while screaming so many times.

I'm glad to be back at home now though. N was definitely ready to be home a couple of days before we actually headed home. He reached a point of only wanting myself or Grandma. We're working to get back into our normal routine around here. He was thrilled to see all of his toys and familiar surroundings.

He's still not walking. I was afraid he would start to walk while we were away from B for 8 days. He's proven a couple of times that he can take a few steps, but he just would rather crawl. He gets mad if you try to make him walk without help. I know he'll be walking in his own time, and I should enjoy him not walking. I'm just anxious for my kid to learn such a big thing.

Okay, that's enough for tonight. I think I'd rather go to bed than post pictures now. I'll try to get around to it in the next few days. If you really want to see pictures you can link to my parents site and find close to 300 there.

Tuesday Times

N has been hard at work the past week and a half. After figuring out that he can stand unassissted, he's been practicing quite a bit. Twice now, once last Wednesday and again last night, he has taken 3 steps before plopping down on his bottom. He would still rather be holding onto the tip of someone's finger. He'll walk long distances so long as he has that one fingertip. Cheer him on and hopefully he'll be a champion walker soon. (I'm tired of the anticipation and waiting.)

I just want to say that I have one heck of a little sister. She is something speacial. I feel so lucky to have a sister like her. I tell you, she's just amazing! I don't know what I would do without a sister like her. Everyone should have their very on Tork. (When contemplating what to blog about, she told me I should blog about how great she was. It doesn't sound too fake does it???) :)

I don't wanna grow up. . .

I've spent a lot of time lately thinking of just how fast my little guy is growing up. Just this weekend he began to discover that he can stand on his own. He doesn't seem to fully realize what that means, but I'm sure he'll soon figure it out. Once he gets a bit more confident, those first steps should be soon to follow. I'm actually really hoping that he starts to walk this week. (or at least is taking his first steps)



He doesn't like to fall asleep while I hold him anymore. I was craving holding my sleeping boy in the worst way last night. I finally decided I had to hold him even though he'd gone to bed about 2 hours before. I was able to get him out of his crib without waking him and held him for 15/20 minutes before I went to bed. It was the nicest and most peaceful thing. He's such a busy guy that I don't get to share many of his peaceful moments with him.

Drastic Changes

Before: After:
We tackled landscaping last weekend. Thanks goodness it's done!!!!! We didn't build a 10 foot wall (Everett!!!), but we did exactly what we wanted. It seems to add just enough. It's hard to tell too much of a difference from the pictures, but we have gotten a ton of compliments from people walking by and our neighbors. One neighbor said he priced getting someone to do what we did and the estimate was $800!!!! I now understand why though. Getting that bottom layer of stones level on the ground and with one another is horrible. I've forgotten any future plans I might have had to use these in the backyard. Did you notice the cutie at the door in the picture? Now I just need to get more flowers to fill it up!!!

An up-close look at the stones we used (ignore the dying tulips):

We've been having some very summer-like weather the past 2 days. (Highs of 90!) I thought it would be a perfect time to let N try out his new sprinkler. The first attempt to get him to play failed, becuase he was way too tired. After a rest, he was ready to give it another shot. This time he was willing to play as long as the water was turned on very low. I think in time, he'll get very use to it and have a ton of fun.

Just Like Summer