Superdad and Luke's Check Up

Well, first of all, I have to say that Stephen has been such an amazing dad and husband, especially this past week. I had plans Thursday night, a hair appt on Saturday, went shopping on Sunday, and went to Sipsnstrokes on Tuesday night and he watched the boys without complaining at all. (not that he would complain to watch his own children, but that's a lot to ask of him, with him working all day and being busy on the weekends as well.) On Sunday when I came home, he had cleaned up the house a good bit. That was super sweet, b/c as anyone with any kids, especially small ones, knows, it's super hard to keep the house clean for more than a min. On Tuesday, when I came home from sipsnstrokes, he had cleaned up all of the dishes, put them away, cleaned up all the toys, the kitchen, the den, did a couple loads of laundry, and even folded them! And did I mention he had chocolate chip cookies waiting for me? =) (He brought them home from work that day, but hey, they're still chocolate chip cookies!) So I wanted to give a big thank you to him for being a super dad!

Luke is officially 4 months old (this picture is a couple weeks old). We went to the Drs for his 4 mo check up and Elijah's 2 yr check up. Elijah is 50% in height and weight - completely avg! Luke is 50% in weight and head, and 25% in height. It's funny b/c Elijah was always 50% in weight, but he was always tall for his age, so Luke's a little chubbier looking b/c he's shorter - which is so cute. Everything looked great with both of the boys except the dr was a little concerned w/ Luke's head shape, so we had to go to Children's to get a skull scan. After a long morning, it turned out his skull is forming together just as it should. yeah! If you haven't seen him recently, his head kind of bulges out a little bit in the back - it's not hugely noticable, but it concerned the dr. Luke favors looking to his right and it appears that has caused his head to form a little funny. His brain is all good, but his head's shape is not quite round. Elijah's head was funny shaped for a while but his turned out round once he was able to sit up, so we hadn't been concerned. But the dr wants us to make sure his head is looking up completely straight when he's on his back for the next 2 months and hopes that will solve the problem. If not, we'll have to go to a specialist to get a special helmet for him to wear to kind of pressurize his head to fix his problem. So he's not enjoying not turning his head, but he's going to have to learn to adapt b/c we don't want to go down the helmet road, as cute as that would be. So alls well for now and hopefully we're on the path to getting his head fixed up. But he's as sweet and bubbly as a baby could be - talking a ton, rolling, smiling, sleeping great! We're really thankful for 2 great boys.

Saving Money

Okay, so since I’ve been a stay at home mom, particularly with two kids, we’ve had to watch our budget & try to save as much as possible. The Lord has provided a lot of help to us, like me teaching aerobics again and different ways we’ve been able to save money. Well, my friend Holly introduced me to www.proverbswife.blogspot.com and www.southernsavers.com and we have saved SO much money pairing up coupons with buy one get one free deals and what not - everything purchased at publix. It gets me so excited - I grew up shopping all the time for clothes and bragging to my parents how much I “saved” them, so I guess I’ve had to change from clothing shopping to grocery shopping to satisfy my craving for a good deal. But this week, I just had to share what we’ve bought…

4 pkgs of Pillsbury Simply Cookies (all natural), 3 lb bag of gala apples, 1 International Delight Creamer, 2 pkgs of Green Giant Steamers frozen veggies, 2 pkgs of Green Giant boxed frozen veggies, 1 Multi Grain Cheezitz, 1 white posterboard… 31 cents total!!!
4 pkgs of Green Giant boxed veggies, 2 pkgs of Solo heavy duty paper plates (48ct), 1 box whole wheat Mueller’s pasta, publix all natural peanut butter… 86 cents total!!!
Arnolds Honey Wheat Bread, 2 pkgs of Country Crock butter, 1 pkg of reduced fat cheezitz, 3 lb bag of gala apples, publix all natural peanut butter, publix milk….8.12 total
And we’re going back this afternoon for purchases that will probably resemble the first two listed.

All of those purchases were made w/ coupons I printed online from these websites. I try to do all of my shopping on Sun & Mon to get the publix penny item (which was peanut butter this week). We try to break up our grocery bill into 10 dollar increments (to get the penny item) and go as many times as necessary on Sun & Mon to stock up on the penny item. This week we kind of slacked on that, so we only got 2 penny items, but normally we get like 4 or so, which can be great when it’s toilet paper or tortilla chips or something really useful. This week, we made out big time w/ the $4 off 4 general mills products coupon, found in the publix circular in their store - we were paid to buy the cookies and green giant veggies, since we paired them up w/ that $4 off coupon and individual coupons.

For example, we bought 4 pkgs of Green Giant frozen veggies 3 for $5 - we used 50cents off coupons on each, which publix doubles, so we got $1 off each box. Then I had one 50cents off 2 boxes (they sometimes allow you to use more than one, which worked today), so that’s another $1 off. Then we used the $4 off GM coupon. So just for the veggies alone, we got paid nearly $2.34!
I would highly recommend checking out these websites and trying it out for yourselves. I get so excited when I get a good deal!!! Hope you do to!
FYI- These deals end after today, so if you want to get them, make sure you check out the weekly ads for whatever date through Nov 3 b/c they probably have this next weeks’ ads (wed thru tues) posted already. =)

Fall Fun

Fall has been fun so far! We went &tailgated at the Alabama/Tennessee game where we got to hang out with some friends from college, including one of Elijah’s little girlfriends, Meredith Eller, as well as with Uncle TJ & Poppy. If you ask Elijah what we do on Saturday’s, he’ll excitedly tell you “Alabama football game” and can cheer “Roll Tide” and “B-A-M-A Bama All the Way” at the top of his lungs. I guess you could say we’re raising him right. =) We went to the pumpkin patch as a family on Sunday and had such a fun time! We rode the choo-choo train, went on a hayride, and Daddy & Elijah figured their way through a maze. It was a gorgeous day & we had a blast. I took the boys back on Monday, when it was less crowded, for Elijah to bounce on the inflatables, play the games, & get his face painted.

For Halloween Elijah is an Alabama football player and Luke is the football ~ the perfect pair! We joked about doing these costumes last Halloween before we were expecting Luke. My mom made Luke’s sweet little costume, which we have gotten so many compliments on! Wednesday was our church’s Trunk or Treat, which was the first time Elijah was able to experience trick or treating. Last year he just rode around in a wagon with his pal Jonah. He ran from car to car & really liked getting candy (which he’s only been allowed one piece of so far!) He was so good at running from car to car that, when we stopped for a few minutes to work our Sunday school classes’ car, he ran off without us. I was tending to our classes’ candy & holding Luke and Stephen was grabbing a paci for Luke. Within 2 seconds, Elijah was gone - Stephen went one way and I went the other. It was such a zoo there that he could have been anywhere! After which felt like forever, probably 10 min or so, I got back to the car and Stephen had Elijah in his arms. Our friend Clay found him running, quite far away from our car… It was the worst feeling in the world, not knowing where he was. We said so many prayers that night - of worry and of thanks. So it was definitely a memorable night to say the least.

Tonight we’re going to carve and paint pumpkins and then tomorrow’s the big night! Halloween’s so much more fun with kids!

Pumpkin Patch & Trunk or Treat Pics

More pictures and stories to come shortly!!!

We got the flu!

(I don't know why everything's underlined! Sorry!) Both Stephen & Elijah have had the flu… On Sat, Stephen tested + for it & Elijah didn’t, but had the same symptoms that Stephen started with, so they treated both of them for the flu. Stephen’s had his pitiful moments, but we think we caught it early enough w/ Elijah that he mainly just had a cough. We lysoled everything and Stephen wore a mask around Luke in hopes that he wouldn‘t get it. But Stephen and Elijah made the most of their sicknesses - building forts together and hanging out in their pjs (Elijah). While it was fun having Stephen home from work, I’m glad he’s healthy again! I’ve been taking tamiflu , so hopefully that will keep both Luke and I from getting it as well. So please pray for our household to get and stay healthy.
Luke is getting huge! He’s nearly 13lbs and is getting so active! He's getting in the groove of eating, playing for an hour and a half or so, and then sleeping. He is smiling a ton and can hold his own in a conversation (just “ahh”s and “goo”s for now, but words will come all too soon enough!) He and Stephen seriously talk up a storm together! It's so cute! He had been waking up in the 5am hour for a while, but for the past week he has slept from 9:30ish til 6:30-7:30. Yeah!!!!! We’ve been praising God a lot for that!
Elijah's been saying the cutest things lately! When he goes to sleep now, if I carry him up, he'll say "I love you forever?" meaning he wants me to sing the song from the book "I'll love you forever." Too sweet! Bedtime has been so weird this past week. We don't know if it's his meds or what, but he plays in his bed for nearly 1 1/2 hours before falling asleep. He'll go from rubbing his eyes before bedtime to jumping up and down in his bed the minute you close the door. You can just see the excitement in his eyes when you lay him down to sleep. His new thing is "I want some" If you have something, he wants it. He's getting to know his numbers really well and we've been working on days of the week. He colors pictures of footballs and crosses and books and then we glue them to a calendar so we know when we're going to watch football and go the library and so forth. When you ask him "what do we do on Saturday?" he says "Football game!!!" He's a huge bama fan. You just say "B-A-M-A" and he screams "Bama All The Way!!!" He spent the night with his Grammy a few weeks ago and came home to tell Daddy "War Eagle." Stephen said "Go to timeout" Elijah got all sad and Stephen had to console him saying he was just playing. Then I came downstairs and said good morning to him and he said "War Eagle!" I said "no sir" in a joking manner and his eyes welled up with tears and he got so hurt! We have to work on joking around with him... but he learned his lesson. =)

Luke is 2 Months Old!

Above is Luke on the left and Elijah on the right, both at 2 mo old.

Luke is now 2 months old! At his check up, he was 11 ½ lbs and 23in long. He was 50% all across the board. He gained more than 4 lbs in 6 weeks, which is better than they expect, so yeah for Luke! He goes to bed around 9:30 and wakes up, on average, one time at night; then he is up by 6:30 or 7:30. He is starting to eat on a 4 hour schedule and getting into a routine of eating, playing, and then sleeping. He is lifting his head up like a strong boy, pushing all the way up on his forearms. He’s starting to coo and pay more attention to his toys and surroundings. He's been having the sweetest little conversations w/ his daddy. Where Luke doesn’t talk near as much as Elijah, he makes up for in loudness. =) However, he has a little tender cry at times that’s pretty sweet. He has had several playdates in the past few weeks. His girly friend, Karidyn, has come over. She's kind of sweet on Elijah, but we'll see what happens there. ;) His friend, Walker, has come over for several playdates. They're only about 4 weeks apart and his mom, Michelle, is just a few houses away, so they'll be good buddies.

We’ve had a lot of fun experiences these past few weeks. The boys went to the McWayne Center with Poppy, Aunt Kristi, Uncle TJ, and Taylor. Taylor and Elijah had a blast playing together and exploring all around the McWayne Center. It was great for kids their age. We also met up and tailgated in Tuscaloosa for the first home game. Elijah loved the atmosphere and is a big fan. He’ll just yell “Roll Tide” out of n where, and if you say “B-A-M-A” he will respond with “Bama All The Way!” Those two cheers woke me up the other morning. =) Stephen went to Colorado for 4 days and left me to tend to the boys on my own. It was a good few days with the boys – no real crazy moments – but I was so thankful to have my sweet husband back home. God made us a team for a good reason. =) While he was gone we went to the library for a 12-24mo old storytime class. It was superfun!!! 30 min of nonstop activities – songs, stories, dancing, and a snack. He was so cute clapping and yelling “yeah!!!” after most of the songs. It was very structured, so it was great for him to practice following directions from someone other than mom and dad. We’ll definitely be frequenting this class from now on. While Stephen was gone, Elijah painted a few “masterpieces” for his Daddy’s birthday. His rendition of Happy Birthday is hard to beat ~ “Happy – O to you!...” We also had our Sunday school play group at Pump it Up. Elijah had so much fun playing on all the bouncy toys and running around like a wild man.

Our days seem so short and so long at the same time. Stephen and I were talking about our “jobs” and how they’re trying at times and so rewarding as well. They’re both roller coasters. I made the comment that at least he gets to get off his roller coaster at night. He joked and said that he gets off his roller coaster and then hops on mine. =) And he reminded me that while my “lows” can be trying, my highs are way higher and more special than any high he could have at work. It’s so true. The little smiles and silly moments I get with our boys can erase the most recent meltdown in a heartbeat.

Luke's Room... Sick Boys... Funny Stories....

Here are pictures from Luke’s room. We decided to paint the room with an accent wall and do the whole blue and brown theme. It’s funny to see Elijah run into Luke’s room b/c he starts yelling all of the letters he sees on the wall. His Aunt Beth and Uncle Jay got him that sweet little vinyl wall art above his bed: “I see the moon and the moon sees me. God bless the moon and God bless me.” It took us several weeks to get it done, but it’s finally finished.
This past week has been a little crazy. The Lord so sweetly reminded me that, although Elijah has been acting like a big boy, he still is quite the little one himself. Last Wednesday morning he woke me up crying from 5:30 on. I try to make a point not to get him out of bed until after 7, but I got him up a little early & brought him downstairs. I was going to read him a story, but by the time we sat down, he was asleep in my arms! I can’t remember the last time that happened and it felt so sweet just holding him like that. We cuddled for almost an hour together on his daddy’s chair while he slept. It turns out that he had a cold, which Luke caught as well. It lasted a couple days with Elijah and several more with Luke…poor things. But we're basically all clear of the colds.
Life’s been a little adventure with Luke spending more time on the ground. If I turn my back for 2 sec, Elijah has his arms underneath him, attempting to pick him. I have made many a dashing sprint to get there just in time to support Luke’s head before Elijah’s got him airborne. Luke is doing a good job lifting up his head. He actually enjoys tummy time! He rolled over for the first time from his belly to back Tuesday!! I thought it was a fluke, so I put him back on his belly and he did it again and he's done it a couple time since then! So he was 6 wks and 4 days old. He also smiled for the first time Wednesday!!! It was so sweet!!! He’s sleeping anywhere from 3 to 5 hours a night, which is pretty good. It’s a lot easier handling getting up at night the second go around, since we understand that this truly is just a temporary thing. Hopefully a full night’s rest is just around the corner. He’s been a very even tempered baby, but he’s also still sleeping quite a bit. I hope that he stays nice and laid back even when he’s up more often… we’ll see!
Elijah’s been quite the character, as always. He’s got some new dance moves on him - he can shake his little booty so cutely! It’s on our to-do list to get it on video. He’s been watching the track and field world championship (or something) on tv with his daddy, so now we hear “Guys Run Fast!!!” all the time, meaning that he wants to watch the guys run fast on tv. We were driving in the car the other day and he saw a guy on the side of the road that looked like a runner and he yelled “Guys run fast!”
His time in time-out is increasing a bit, but he’s able to tell us what he has done wrong, which helps when I forget after the 5 min he’s been sitting there! Yesterday he was in time out and I asked him “what do you say?“ When I expected him to say “I’m sorry,“ he said “I pooted…scuse mees!!!“ Talk about trying to keep a straight face! He’s starting to talk more in complete sentences now - “I dropped my paci,” “Daddy eat cereal too?” “Oh no! Donald Duck fall down!“ My grandmother fell and is currently in the hospital with a fractured back and a small blood clot that they’re trying to dissipate, so please keep her in your prayers. Elijah wanted to say the blessing again at breakfast this morning, so I asked him who does he want to pray for and he said “Gram Gram.“ So we prayed for her and then for the next several hours, he would say out the blue, “Gram Gram fall down… feel better…“ He’s a bundle of fun and so amusing… There’s never a dull moment in our house.