Thursday, November 3, 2011
Nov 3, 2011
I haven't had time to do a blog and hope too do one soon....but in the meantime, I have added lots of pictures to the Fall 2011 album! Enjoy!
Monday, October 10, 2011
October 2011
Yes, we are still here in case you were wondering! I can’t believe it has been this long since I updated the blog! Life just moves way to fast! Payton is now in football, which is twice a week, so we are trying to get in a groove of that with swimming, school stuff, plus the other house hold chores, etc and both working demanding jobs!
Payton is actually really enjoying football. We were not sure how he would like it as he doesn’t really like any sports that involve being too aggressive. But this is flag football, and he is the quarterback, so not too much aggression there! He can throw really well. We were pretty surprised. His team is doing really well and he really likes the other boys on the team and we really like the other parents. Justin started helping the first week and has kind of stepped up to be an unofficial assistant coach. He is loving it. He has actually adjusted his work schedule to be off for practices and games! He actually passed up tickets to an Iowa game because he didn’t want to miss Paytons game! We are heading to Iowa City this weekend though, but not until right after the flag football game!
Besides football, Payton has had a pretty busy and fun month! Earlier in September, he won a chance to ride in a local parade (the largest parade in Kansas) from the place that I get the kids hair cuts. He was so excited and felt like a rock star. He loves parades, and to be in one was even better! Then, later in September, I took Payton to see Taylor Swift in concert at Arrowhead Stadium. He was so excited! The concert was at night and we had the cheaper seats that were way up high, which made for a wind tunnel! So, it was pretty chilly! I was thinking that he would be one of the youngest kids there, but I was shocked, there were so many little kids. I think there were more kids then adults at the concert. It was a good show and he had fun! This past Friday, Paytons school went to the zoo. It was a trip that was supposed to happen in May that got rescheduled due to rain. So, I took the day off and helped chaperon. It was fun and I think the kids had a great time!
Easton also had an eventful month, but not in a good way! He had to have surgery, again! This is #3 for him! A few weeks ago, he was saying that his ears hurt. So I took him in and one of his ear tubes had fallen out (this is normal after a year or so), and that ear was infected. We already had a followup with the ENT doctor scheduled for two weeks later. By then, both tubes had fallen out, he had another infection, and it was obvious based on the audio tests and some other stuff that the doctor mentioned that he needed tubes put back in. He also recommended taking out his adenoids as well as sometimes this can help. They were able to fit us in that week, so I had to run around and make lots of phone calls to get ready for it. Mainly, I had to get approval from his cardiologist that he was cleared for the surgery. Surgery went great and we were back home in a few hours. He was a little groggy from the anesthesia the first day, but later he was back to himself! I stayed home with him that day and my mom was able to take the next day off of work to stay home with him so I didn’t have to miss anymore work then I already have.
Other then surgery, Easton is doing great! We are working on potty training a little and he is proving to be much more stubborn then Payton ever was! He is still a chatter box and loves to play with Payton. They actually play really well together most of the time and Payton likes to read to him and teach him things. He is also becoming quite the flirt, especially when it comes to Grandma! He has also started saying, “Ewww” if he sees something he considers dirty or gross. It is pretty cute!
Things are good here, but just a constant stream of activity that I know is going to get worse once they are both in school! That is okay though, we are having a great time doing it!
Payton is actually really enjoying football. We were not sure how he would like it as he doesn’t really like any sports that involve being too aggressive. But this is flag football, and he is the quarterback, so not too much aggression there! He can throw really well. We were pretty surprised. His team is doing really well and he really likes the other boys on the team and we really like the other parents. Justin started helping the first week and has kind of stepped up to be an unofficial assistant coach. He is loving it. He has actually adjusted his work schedule to be off for practices and games! He actually passed up tickets to an Iowa game because he didn’t want to miss Paytons game! We are heading to Iowa City this weekend though, but not until right after the flag football game!
Besides football, Payton has had a pretty busy and fun month! Earlier in September, he won a chance to ride in a local parade (the largest parade in Kansas) from the place that I get the kids hair cuts. He was so excited and felt like a rock star. He loves parades, and to be in one was even better! Then, later in September, I took Payton to see Taylor Swift in concert at Arrowhead Stadium. He was so excited! The concert was at night and we had the cheaper seats that were way up high, which made for a wind tunnel! So, it was pretty chilly! I was thinking that he would be one of the youngest kids there, but I was shocked, there were so many little kids. I think there were more kids then adults at the concert. It was a good show and he had fun! This past Friday, Paytons school went to the zoo. It was a trip that was supposed to happen in May that got rescheduled due to rain. So, I took the day off and helped chaperon. It was fun and I think the kids had a great time!
Easton also had an eventful month, but not in a good way! He had to have surgery, again! This is #3 for him! A few weeks ago, he was saying that his ears hurt. So I took him in and one of his ear tubes had fallen out (this is normal after a year or so), and that ear was infected. We already had a followup with the ENT doctor scheduled for two weeks later. By then, both tubes had fallen out, he had another infection, and it was obvious based on the audio tests and some other stuff that the doctor mentioned that he needed tubes put back in. He also recommended taking out his adenoids as well as sometimes this can help. They were able to fit us in that week, so I had to run around and make lots of phone calls to get ready for it. Mainly, I had to get approval from his cardiologist that he was cleared for the surgery. Surgery went great and we were back home in a few hours. He was a little groggy from the anesthesia the first day, but later he was back to himself! I stayed home with him that day and my mom was able to take the next day off of work to stay home with him so I didn’t have to miss anymore work then I already have.
Other then surgery, Easton is doing great! We are working on potty training a little and he is proving to be much more stubborn then Payton ever was! He is still a chatter box and loves to play with Payton. They actually play really well together most of the time and Payton likes to read to him and teach him things. He is also becoming quite the flirt, especially when it comes to Grandma! He has also started saying, “Ewww” if he sees something he considers dirty or gross. It is pretty cute!
Things are good here, but just a constant stream of activity that I know is going to get worse once they are both in school! That is okay though, we are having a great time doing it!
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Back to School!
Payton is now a 1st grader! He has been in school now for just about 2 full weeks and says that he loves 1st grade! He has some of his same friends in his class from last year. I thought that he would have some back to school nerves, but nope, he was ready to go! He said his favorite subject is math, which is no surprise to us because his brain seems to work in numbers! He even learned how to do multiplication over the summer and has started doing some simple division. This year after school we are sending him to an after school program at the school through the YMCA instead of having him go to the daycare that Easton goes to. (Payton will continue to go there over holidays and breaks, etc). This means at night I have to pick up kiddos in two locations. It has been a bit chaotic getting to two places, but I am sure we will get into a groove soon. Payton likes the after school program, but it has taken some getting used to from Easton. He is used to seeing Payton at his school everyday, so in the evenings when he gets in the van, he always says, "where P go?"
Even though we are having summer temps, with school back in session and school activities, it seems like summer is over this year. (But that means football starts next weekend!) Also, our pools all closed early around here last week for the season because of some virus that is going around. That is a big time bummer for us. The boys are both fish! They just love the water! Payton continues to go to swimming once a week and I think we will let him keep going for as long as he wants. It is one sport that he really loves to do and he is pretty good at it.
Easton is really starting to communicate like a mini person now! His new phrase is, "what you doin' mommy?" or "I comin" He really likes singing the songs that he learns at school and following Payton around. One funny thing about Easton is when he is mad, instead of throwing a tantrum, he just sits down and stares you down. Like if we are coming in from outside and he wants to stay outside. He will just sit in the ground right where he is and glare at us! Or, if he is in time out and you tell him to say he is sorry for whatever he did, he will sit there for ever and refuse to say it and just glare at us! It is actually pretty funny. We have to watch ourselves from laughing when he is being disciplined for something. He is a silly boy!
I finally scanned in Eastons 2 year pictures from June, so I uploaded them, and I also added a few more pictures to the Summer of 2011 part 2 album.
Even though we are having summer temps, with school back in session and school activities, it seems like summer is over this year. (But that means football starts next weekend!) Also, our pools all closed early around here last week for the season because of some virus that is going around. That is a big time bummer for us. The boys are both fish! They just love the water! Payton continues to go to swimming once a week and I think we will let him keep going for as long as he wants. It is one sport that he really loves to do and he is pretty good at it.
Easton is really starting to communicate like a mini person now! His new phrase is, "what you doin' mommy?" or "I comin" He really likes singing the songs that he learns at school and following Payton around. One funny thing about Easton is when he is mad, instead of throwing a tantrum, he just sits down and stares you down. Like if we are coming in from outside and he wants to stay outside. He will just sit in the ground right where he is and glare at us! Or, if he is in time out and you tell him to say he is sorry for whatever he did, he will sit there for ever and refuse to say it and just glare at us! It is actually pretty funny. We have to watch ourselves from laughing when he is being disciplined for something. He is a silly boy!
I finally scanned in Eastons 2 year pictures from June, so I uploaded them, and I also added a few more pictures to the Summer of 2011 part 2 album.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Unbelievably HOT!
It has been UNBELIEVABLY HOT this summer! The last 3 weeks or so have been at least 95 to 100 degrees actual temp and some days even hotter! We haven't been able to do much of anything outside lately. We usually get hot weather for a week or two, but not this early. The only thing we have been able to do outside is spend a lot of time at the pool! Luckily we have a nice one in our subdivision so we are there alot. Speaking of swimming, Payton has been doing great at swimming lessons. Tonight he swam the entire length of the pool! I was so proud of him I teared up. What kind of person cries a swimming lessons! A proud mama, thats who! I was pretty sure he could do it, but he was a little apprehensive. Now he is so proud of himself and knows he can do it!
Another way we stayed cool is by heading to Iowa this past weekend! It was hot up there as well, but not the 104 that it was in Kansas City! We have been wanting to spend some time with my dad, so we planned a weekend to go up do just that. We took him to John Deere commons and looked at the tractors and such. While we were there, we also went to Antique Archeology, which is the place from the American Pickers show. Justin loves that show, so he was so excited! We also went to the Bettendorf family museum. We were also able to meet up with some dear family and friends while we were there. We went to my cousins house and Payton was so excited to hang out with Allie! He adores Allie. He is normally pretty shy, but he just attaches to her and loves spending time with her.
We were reminded on this trip that Easton not only dislikes car rides, but after about 4 hours, he HATES car rides! He does okay at first, and then he hits a point where he is just done.
We are starting to get ready for back to school. Last week Payton we enrolled in 1st grade! He starts school in 3 weeks! So now we need to do some back to school shopping! So only a few more weeks of summer! Hopefully it cools off a bit so we can enjoy the summer before it is over!
Another way we stayed cool is by heading to Iowa this past weekend! It was hot up there as well, but not the 104 that it was in Kansas City! We have been wanting to spend some time with my dad, so we planned a weekend to go up do just that. We took him to John Deere commons and looked at the tractors and such. While we were there, we also went to Antique Archeology, which is the place from the American Pickers show. Justin loves that show, so he was so excited! We also went to the Bettendorf family museum. We were also able to meet up with some dear family and friends while we were there. We went to my cousins house and Payton was so excited to hang out with Allie! He adores Allie. He is normally pretty shy, but he just attaches to her and loves spending time with her.
We were reminded on this trip that Easton not only dislikes car rides, but after about 4 hours, he HATES car rides! He does okay at first, and then he hits a point where he is just done.
We are starting to get ready for back to school. Last week Payton we enrolled in 1st grade! He starts school in 3 weeks! So now we need to do some back to school shopping! So only a few more weeks of summer! Hopefully it cools off a bit so we can enjoy the summer before it is over!
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Month full of celebrations!
I haven't had a chance to update a blog lately because we have just been too busy having fun! If I had to sum up the past month, I would say it was filled with lots of celebrations! We started off June with Eastons 2nd birthday party! We held it at my moms again because she has a wonderful patio and back yard. It was supposed to storm all day, so we decided to move the party to the garage. It didnt end up storming, so we could have been outside, but thats okay, everything still turned out and the kids had fun! He had an Elmo themed party with an Elmo cake and decorations! Around that same time in June, Payton went to Camp Invention. He LOVED it! It was a week long and he got the opportunity to create and invent things and do science experiments. The last day was an inventors showcase where the parents got to go and see what they worked on all week. He is already asking to go back next summer, so we will have to find a way to be able to send him again.
The next weekend was Justins birthday/my moms birthday/and fathers day! I made Justin a baseball cake because we got him tickets to the Cubs/Royals series here in KC. Once the schedule came out months ago and he heard that the Cubs were coming to KC, he has been begging to go. This is the first time that the Cubs have played in KC in over 10 years! I know someone, who knows someone who has amazing seats in the Diamond Club. You get private bathrooms and concessions, etc. So, for his birthday, I got him these seats for one of the games! My mom surprised Justin with a Tiramasu cake from an italian restaurant! He loves tiramasu. It is his favorite dessert! She also got him a lawn bin. It sounds funny, but he has been asking for one forever and I thought they were more then I wanted to spend. In our city, you can use the paper bags for your lawn clippings, or you can buy from the city a bin that is similar to our garbage cans we have to use. Every time he would mow he would mention how much easier it would be if he had one of these bins! My mom was so creative and had it sent to our house so when he came home from work one night it was sitting outside!
The next weekend was the Cubs and Royals games! Justins brother, Jeremy and his girlfriend Katie came down to go to some of the games as well. Justin was in heaven! He got to go to all 3 games! I only went to two. On Sunday we took the boys and my mom to the game. It was HOT! We had a great time though. While Jeremy was here he made sure to make time to do Legos with Payton! I am not sure if he buys them for himself or for Payton!!
Then, the final celebrating that we had was the 4th of July. Due to Justins work schedule, we were not able to make our annual trip to Eastern Iowa. We were really bummed and Payton was pretty mad about it. So we made sure to do some fun stuff around here. One night we went to moms and cooked hot dogs and smores over the firepit and lit some fireworks. The next night we went and watching fireworks in our city. It wasn't the same as watching fireworks in Dixon, but we made it work.
It has been unbelievable hot here lately. I just saw the 7 day forcast and the lowest high is going to be 94. Next week it will be 98-100 degrees actual temp. We have been trying to stay cool by playing in the water and going to the pool. But some days it is actually too hot for that! Enrollment for school is already next week and in just a month Payton will be starting first grade! He has been busy doing lots of reading and workbook pages over the summer. Easton is now in the 2 year old room at school and becoming a chatter box! He now wants you to watch everything. He will yell mommy, repeatedly until you watch! So now I have two of them saying, mommy, watch!
I hope everyone is having a funfilled summer! I have added lots of pictures to the Summer of 2011 album.
The next weekend was Justins birthday/my moms birthday/and fathers day! I made Justin a baseball cake because we got him tickets to the Cubs/Royals series here in KC. Once the schedule came out months ago and he heard that the Cubs were coming to KC, he has been begging to go. This is the first time that the Cubs have played in KC in over 10 years! I know someone, who knows someone who has amazing seats in the Diamond Club. You get private bathrooms and concessions, etc. So, for his birthday, I got him these seats for one of the games! My mom surprised Justin with a Tiramasu cake from an italian restaurant! He loves tiramasu. It is his favorite dessert! She also got him a lawn bin. It sounds funny, but he has been asking for one forever and I thought they were more then I wanted to spend. In our city, you can use the paper bags for your lawn clippings, or you can buy from the city a bin that is similar to our garbage cans we have to use. Every time he would mow he would mention how much easier it would be if he had one of these bins! My mom was so creative and had it sent to our house so when he came home from work one night it was sitting outside!
The next weekend was the Cubs and Royals games! Justins brother, Jeremy and his girlfriend Katie came down to go to some of the games as well. Justin was in heaven! He got to go to all 3 games! I only went to two. On Sunday we took the boys and my mom to the game. It was HOT! We had a great time though. While Jeremy was here he made sure to make time to do Legos with Payton! I am not sure if he buys them for himself or for Payton!!
Then, the final celebrating that we had was the 4th of July. Due to Justins work schedule, we were not able to make our annual trip to Eastern Iowa. We were really bummed and Payton was pretty mad about it. So we made sure to do some fun stuff around here. One night we went to moms and cooked hot dogs and smores over the firepit and lit some fireworks. The next night we went and watching fireworks in our city. It wasn't the same as watching fireworks in Dixon, but we made it work.
It has been unbelievable hot here lately. I just saw the 7 day forcast and the lowest high is going to be 94. Next week it will be 98-100 degrees actual temp. We have been trying to stay cool by playing in the water and going to the pool. But some days it is actually too hot for that! Enrollment for school is already next week and in just a month Payton will be starting first grade! He has been busy doing lots of reading and workbook pages over the summer. Easton is now in the 2 year old room at school and becoming a chatter box! He now wants you to watch everything. He will yell mommy, repeatedly until you watch! So now I have two of them saying, mommy, watch!
I hope everyone is having a funfilled summer! I have added lots of pictures to the Summer of 2011 album.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Happy 2nd Birthday Easton!!
Happy 2nd Birthday Easton! Today is Eastons birthday! How is that possible!? It is unreal to me that he is two already. He is just the sweetest, happiest, funniest, most adorable little boy!
What an exciting two years he has had! When he was born with his bright red hair, we were not sure if the red hair would stay or what kind of personality would develop. But his hair has stayed and is more adorable then ever and he has a firecracker of a personality! He has changed so much since he was born and is really starting to resemble Payton.
What an exciting two years he has had! When he was born with his bright red hair, we were not sure if the red hair would stay or what kind of personality would develop. But his hair has stayed and is more adorable then ever and he has a firecracker of a personality! He has changed so much since he was born and is really starting to resemble Payton.
Couple of weeks old:
3 Months old:
Morning of heart surgery:
9 Months old:
1 Year old:
About 18 months:
His personality is just so cute! He adores Payton and calls him P. If Payton is not where Easton thinks he should be, he walks around saying , “Where P? Where P go?” He has just started say Thank you and Love you without prompting, so that just melts our hearts! Thank you, mommy, sounds more like, “Taat to, mommy”, but you can tell what he is saying. He is having an Elmo themed birthday party this year and if you ask him what kind of party he is having he will say, “Elmo pa-ee!”
Some other interesting Easton facts:
He will actually point to his crib when he is ready to go to bed! It is awesome! I will usually sit in his chair and read him a story, then he points to his crib!
He refuses to sit in any kind of high chair or booster seat because Payton doesn’t.
He can climb like no other!
He loves to eat!
He loves to go to Grandmas. When we pull down her street he gets really excited and starts to say “Na-ma”. He also pretends he is talking to her on the phone all of the time!
He loves trains and says, “I see Choo Choo” when we go by the railroad tracks.
He loves to play outside and when he gets up in the morning he will say, “Go ou-side”!
This last two years have really been an adventure!
We are all so incredibly blessed to be lucky enough to have him in our lives! Happy Birthday my sweet boy!
I will post more after his doctors appt later this week and his party this weekend!
Some other interesting Easton facts:
He will actually point to his crib when he is ready to go to bed! It is awesome! I will usually sit in his chair and read him a story, then he points to his crib!
He refuses to sit in any kind of high chair or booster seat because Payton doesn’t.
He can climb like no other!
He loves to eat!
He loves to go to Grandmas. When we pull down her street he gets really excited and starts to say “Na-ma”. He also pretends he is talking to her on the phone all of the time!
He loves trains and says, “I see Choo Choo” when we go by the railroad tracks.
He loves to play outside and when he gets up in the morning he will say, “Go ou-side”!
This last two years have really been an adventure!
We are all so incredibly blessed to be lucky enough to have him in our lives! Happy Birthday my sweet boy!
I will post more after his doctors appt later this week and his party this weekend!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Summertime = Schools out!
Payton is now officially a 1st grader. We already have gotten his end of year report card and teacher assignment for next year! He did great this year and is looking forward to next year. He is doing lots of reading and workbook pages so far this summer. The end of the school year is filled with all kinds of exciting stuff. (I think they were done with ‘school work’ well before the end of the year!) The Friday before the last week, Paytons entire school was supposed to go on a field trip the the Kansas City Zoo. I had arranged to take that day off to help chaperone, but it got cancelled due to weather. (Which by the way, we had a tone of wacky weather, tornados and all that the last few weeks! It was not fun sitting is a stairwell at work for an hour, or having the kids in a bathroom at daycare for 1 ½ hours!!) We were already thinking of heading to Des Moines the next day for a graduation party for one of my cousins, so we decided to drive west and spend the night and go to the Omaha Zoo on Sunday to make up for the fact that he didn’t get to go with school. Mom and Lindsey went along and we had a great time, minus some bumby weather along the way! Easton still refuses to sleep anywhere but home, so that got interesting, but all in all it was a great trip!
The next morning was Paytons Kindergarten Graduation! He was not feeling well at all from the car ride the night before and a bit of a tummy bug that Easton had passed on to him. But he went and made it through the day. I was so worried about him getting sick! I couldn’t even really focus on the graduation or get emotional or anything, I just kept watching his face waiting for a sign that he would get sick! The next day he seemed to perk up and be okay. That week he also had field days that Justin got to attend and on the last day I spent most of the day at the school for their last day parties! He loves his Kindergarten teacher so he was a little sad to not be able to see her this summer. Luckily he got the teacher he wanted for 1st grade!
On Memorial Day weekend we went to the hot air balloon festival that we went to last year and again the balloons didn’t launch b/c of weather! This is 3 different times we have gone to these festivals, and not once have they launched! I think we are jinxed! On Sunday we went to a huge Memorial Day celebration and Union Station and the Liberty Memorial downtown. It was awesome! It is something we will be doing again!
Now that school is out, Payton is going to the day care that Easton goes to (and he goes to after school) for their summer program. He is having so much fun! I feel bad that my kids don’t really have a summer like we used to where we were home and could do whatever. But I think he is having more fun there! Next week he is going bowling, swimming, to a movie, swimming again and roller skating! He is not there this week because this week he is at a camp called Camp Invention! We heard about it from school and it is a camp that he can go to to build, create and invent things! One the first day he learned about Thomas Edison. How perfect is that for Payton! He is only from 9-3:30 this week, so Justin and I have had to do some adjusting of schedules, but we have made it work. He really enjoys it so far, and he doesn’t even know anyone there!
Now that the weather is nice (well 96 degrees with a heat index of 105) outside, we have been doing a lot of outside stuff. We went to the pool and will probably be there a lot this summer! This week is Eastons 2nd birthday and party, so we are all gearing up for that next!
The next morning was Paytons Kindergarten Graduation! He was not feeling well at all from the car ride the night before and a bit of a tummy bug that Easton had passed on to him. But he went and made it through the day. I was so worried about him getting sick! I couldn’t even really focus on the graduation or get emotional or anything, I just kept watching his face waiting for a sign that he would get sick! The next day he seemed to perk up and be okay. That week he also had field days that Justin got to attend and on the last day I spent most of the day at the school for their last day parties! He loves his Kindergarten teacher so he was a little sad to not be able to see her this summer. Luckily he got the teacher he wanted for 1st grade!
On Memorial Day weekend we went to the hot air balloon festival that we went to last year and again the balloons didn’t launch b/c of weather! This is 3 different times we have gone to these festivals, and not once have they launched! I think we are jinxed! On Sunday we went to a huge Memorial Day celebration and Union Station and the Liberty Memorial downtown. It was awesome! It is something we will be doing again!
Now that school is out, Payton is going to the day care that Easton goes to (and he goes to after school) for their summer program. He is having so much fun! I feel bad that my kids don’t really have a summer like we used to where we were home and could do whatever. But I think he is having more fun there! Next week he is going bowling, swimming, to a movie, swimming again and roller skating! He is not there this week because this week he is at a camp called Camp Invention! We heard about it from school and it is a camp that he can go to to build, create and invent things! One the first day he learned about Thomas Edison. How perfect is that for Payton! He is only from 9-3:30 this week, so Justin and I have had to do some adjusting of schedules, but we have made it work. He really enjoys it so far, and he doesn’t even know anyone there!
Now that the weather is nice (well 96 degrees with a heat index of 105) outside, we have been doing a lot of outside stuff. We went to the pool and will probably be there a lot this summer! This week is Eastons 2nd birthday and party, so we are all gearing up for that next!
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