tiny "tudes"

Random thoughts about my "Tiny Tots":

My tiny tots are growing up every single day!  I am convinced they are both going on 13 years old though.  Kamryn is very into telling me "NO!" as she includes the stern finger point!  She tries to put Azzi in her place when Azzi does something she should not do.  Kamryn gets in trouble herself but it is hard to yell at her because she is hilarious!  The personality she is forming is comical.  Scares me a little to be honest....kinda feel like we may have a class clown on our hands!  She loves following her brother's lead.  It is constantly monkey see, monkey do around here.  Kamryn is not talking near as much as Graham was at this age but she is trying so hard.  Some of my favorite phrases or things she "clearly" is trying to say are:  "Uh oh, spaghettios!" sounds like "Uh oh, say-yo"- "thank you"--sounds like "tay-tee"...."Oh Toodles!" (from Mickey Mouse).......words: dada, mama, bubba, papa, nana, Azzi, ball, puppy (buppy), blue, yellow (llello), hi, hello, bye, bye-bye, no, ok, hot, apple.........She brightens my day!  Rarely ever does she wake up cranky no matter what the circumstances are.  Generally, she is also very easy to put to bed.  Tonight...cutest thing ever...Kamryn and I were saying bedtime prayers and when I said "and God bless those who are sick"...Kamryn instantly said, "ah-choo!"  LOL...I always say "God Bless You" when she sneezes so that is what she associated that moment with :)  I thought it was cute.

Graham is enjoying preschool and is a social butterfly.  He had a couple rough weeks awhile back...constantly getting in trouble...we pulled him out of gymnastics....started a new behavioral system at school and he has been very successful!  Last week, he started CrossFit Kids and really enjoys it!  I love hearing him talk about CrossFit and showing me things he learns.  We have bear crawl races in our basement...do burpees, squats, push-ups etc.  He does very well :)  I am speaking like a true mom, but I really am proud of him.  He has his extremely ornery moments, but he is very polite and sure to thank people for nice things they do for him.  I know he is very loving and caring...always has a hug and a smile for me!  Along with all his sweetness,  he is also developing an attitude.  Does not like to be told NO, although he hears it frequently.  Talks like he is a grown man...seriously, the vocabulary he portrays just blows me away.  He talks about "vehicles" and the "exhaust" they put off...looks outside and says, "it's a nice day out, look at those beautiful leaves mommy!"  If Kamryn or I dress up for church or a wedding for example, he almost always says, "you look pretty in your dress!"  or "I like your dress!"  He talks about "helicoctors" and their "propellers" (he doesn't say the 'p' in helicopter).  These are very few of the things he says but what cracks me up is that he struggles to "breakfast" and it comes out as "breax-sticks"...and almost everytime he talks about breakfast, he follows the word with " I can't say it"....ha ha...so cute :)

I will stop boasting about my children and go to bed....Figured if I don't write comments such as these, I will forget all too soon.  I love their innocense :)  Until next time, our journey continues...

the Kids

Once again...an eternity has passed since my last entry.  We have been incredibly busy growing up around here!  Graham is finally doing better with preschool.  Right now he can recite the "Before Meals Prayer" "Angel of God" and "Pledge of Allegiance."  It is so fun to hear his little voice say those amazing things!  He has been doing great with potty training as we have wished the pull-ups a permanent fairwell!  I tell you what...once you erase one set of diapers and a container of formula from your grocery list, it feels like you have been given a small pay raise! 
Graham started going to "Happy Handstands" gymnastics class on Mondays/Wednesdays.  He had been asking me almost daily if I was going to sign him up for "mynastics" (that is what he calls it) so we waited until he turned 3 to get him going.  Graham really enjoys the class but we have not been too successful earning our stamps.  After each class is over, the kids are instructed to line up and go sit down on the balance beam with both hands on top of their head.  The coach walks down the line with her rubber stamp and ink pad.  If the child was a great listener and did a good job, they get two stamps.  If the child has some work to do in the listening department, they get 1 stamp.  Day 1:  Gabe and I watched alot of the class.  Every class, the kids start off by running laps around the gymnastics floor.  Next to the floor, there is a regtangular shaped trampoline that basically lines the whole South wall.  As all the kids are running their laps, Mr. Graham decides he is going to run on the trampoline....The coach attempts to stop Graham but as the coach gets to the end Graham is on, Graham runs to the other end.  This happened a few times before the coach finally caught him.  Proud parent moment right there.  NOT.  After their warm-up they sit down and do some stretches.  Graham decided that stretching was not really what he wanted to do so he was going to walk around through the other groups.  This class is for 3-4-5 year olds so they are all in small groups. When the first class was over, the coach gave Graham one stamp.  He looked at his friends and noticed they were all getting two, so he asked why he only had one.  The two coaches looked at each other and she gave him another stamp!  Both Gabe and I witnessed this and at the same time "shouted" "Come on!...He didn't deserve that!"  She responded, "I know but he is so cute!"  We told her not to give him two stamps unless he deserves it next time :) It took some work but he has finally managed to fall into the routine along with his fellow gymnasts.  He is the only boy in his group.  I drop him off and then leave but I do try to watch at least 10 minutes or so of the class.  Graham EARNED 2 stamps last Tuesday for the first time!!!  And then Thursday I took him to class...he refused to walk in...wanted me to carry him...refused to let me put him down...refused to take off his shoes....I had had to wake him early from his nap and that did not go over so well.  Needless to say, we left.  We shall see how this week goes :)

As for Kamryn Louise....she continues to be a social butterfly as she tells EVERYONE she sees, no matter where we are, "HI!" or "Hello" but hello sounds more like "Hel-whoa!"  She is also saying, Dada, Mama, Papa, Nana, Azzi, bubba, "tank tee" (her version of thank you), "more" (prounounce 'Moh!", signing more, please, and thank you.  Her other favorite word is "NO!"  She hears this quite a bit.  Kamryn still enjoys splashing in the toilet bowl, Azzi's water dish, eating Azzi's dog food, chasing Azzi with whatever food she has in her hands, pushing Graham's buttons, playing with her little tyke basketball goal, and getting into her mama's purse.  She is not a girly girl yet.  The instant I put a bow in hair, she rips it out...looks at me and does a cackly laugh.  Is "cackly" a word?....She melts your heart by giving you this special puppy dog look and sticks out her hands opening and closing them wanting you to hold her!  This is hard for anyone to resist!  As onery as she is becoming, we love her to pieces!  Graham and Kamryn absolutely adore each other.  They get so excited to see each other when they have been away from one another...even if it is just 5 hours or so.

Well, I suppose I will wrap up this post.  Time to wake up Graham so we can get ready for Gymnastics...as the journey continues.........Good day :)

Baby boy...

If you just read the title and thought we were expecting again....Hell no...

My baby boy is not a baby anymore!  He started preschool last week!  I did great about not crying but it helped me tremendously that he walked right on in to class and got right to work on the puzzle he was assigned to.  He has to be to preschool by 8am and that is when he is usually used to rolling out of bed.  Having to rev up our schedule a little bit has been a challenge for all of us.  Some day...some day, I might feel like a mother that is actually on top of things.  For some reason, I feel like I used to be organized but maybe I wasn't????

Kamryn has been a joy lately....she is cutting two more teeth.  She never cuts one at a time, it is always two at a time.  Bless her little heart but holy crap she is feisty!  I say this everyday, but we are in for a treat down the road by golly!  I still love her to pieces and wanna squeeze her everytime I see her :) 

I can hardly make it throught 2pm anymore as I am thoroughly wiped out!  I've been working early mornings, up by 4:15am and that doesn't help matters.  The kids definitely test every ounce of my patience but they still melt my heart.  I just hope and pray everyday that we are raising two respectable/respectful children...kids who will be able to make smart decisions and learn from their mistakes.  It is a crazy world we live in.  Anyways, I will try not to stress too much about that now.  I will let the journey continue and enjoy the ride :)

Graham's first preschool gathering.  They attended school for 1 hour on Aug. 9, 2012.

My babies are growing at a rapid pace...much like anyone elses but it is still so hard to believe, amazing to observe, and fun to be apart of........most of the time.  It is absolutely insane how much life comes full circle once you have kids.  Funny how things that your parents did when you were young, made no sense what-so-ever, or were hard to accept.  Suddenly, years later, I understand the oh so frustrating response of "I am your mom, that's why!"  I have found myself using that line as of this week.  Graham is into asking a million questions, which by the way, reminds me SOOOOOOOOOO much of my brother at his age.  He is definitely inquisitive which I think is a great thing but I can only answer his questions in so many ways.  Kamryn is watching Graham's every move and likes to be just like him.  If she is anything less than a Tom Boy, I will be so shocked....can't say I would be surprised if she stays a Tom Boy because I was/am the same way.  She loves, loves, LOVES, to test the waters!  NOTHING phases her.  When Graham used to do something such as play with an outlet or the electronics and I would yell NO in a stern voice...he would crumble and cry.  Kamryn....when she does those things and I yell NO...she turns her head and laughs and then does it again.  These two little munchkins are so different yet so similar...bizarre.

Graham will turn 3 on August 8th and then attend his first preschool session...a one hour rehearsal so to speak...on August 9th.  Last week was enrollment and guess what?!?!?  I FORGOT ALL ABOUT IT!  Great mom right here folks!!  Anyone want to compete for the awesome mom of the year award??  Bring it on!  Geezz....seriously.  I had the 9th firmly planted in my head as the day I was going to take care of all that stuff, which we can no problem, but the "official enrollment day" was July 25th.  I will get my act together and be prepared to have a preschooler in the house!!!  I will.  I will!  Prior to attending preschool, Graham is supposed to be potty trained.  We have been working on it and I have not forced the issue all along.  I figure he will do it when he wants to anways.  He has done really well!  We are on day 2 of consitant training!!!  Other than the pull-up we used over night, he used 1 all day yesterday, and has used 1 today!  whew whoo!!!!!!!  Little miss Kamryn Louise has taken to going potty in her potty chair every night before taking a bath!  It's a start!  We sing a potty song, start the bath water, and whoala!

Kamryn is walking/running all over the place.  As of yesterday, she is officially 13 months old!  While "hi" is her favorite word, she says momma, dadda, azzi, bye bye, NO, and her newest word: APPLE!  She has said banana a couple times but not real consistant with it.  Her current hobbies are:  playing in Azzi's food and water, turning off the tv or changing the channel, unraveling toilet paper, and splashing her hands in the toilet bowl water!  Great stuff right there!  She has totally bypassed the baby food stage.  I can honestly say there is not one type of "baby" food that she liked.  She would eat carrots and sweet potatoes but not much.  She is pretty much eating whatever we do.  Her obsession is the yogurt melts and little munchies...they pretty much resemble cheese curls.  Recently, she has discovered her love for Cookie Crisp cereal with the milk!  I am impressed with her ability to use her utensils!  She does a great job using her fork and spoon but she still uses  her fingers.  She is definitely the messiest eater of her and Graham (was that proper English?  probably not...).

Well I better go wake up the kids from their naps...actually I will only wake Graham.  We have got to get him to bed earlier at night!  I have already let him sleep longer than I had planned.  So long for now...and the journey continues...

Brief birthday update

My baby girl is now one year old!  She turned one June 28th!  Kamryn decided to start walking the week prior to her birthday and now she is constantly on the go...as if she wasn't already.  We had a small party with my family on her birthday (Thursday) and then a bigger party on Saturday.  She wasn't too sure of the presents as far as unwrapping them.  She looked at them like it was ridiculous to stuff tissue paper in a bag and would run off.  The morning of her big party she got sick.  She is also cutting 4 new teeth at one time right now AND had her 1 year shots on her birthday....happy birthday, right!?!?  Poor girl!  She would knaw on cardboard right now if I'd let her.  Sunday, Graham went to the park for a picnic with Gabe's parents and they brought him home b/c he wasn't feeling well.  We ended up having to take him to the ER.  Long story short, he was overheated...had heat exhaustion.  My best friend Ann, also Kamryn's Godmother, came with me to the hospital.  We had some pretty interesting moments but for the sake of Graham's pride, I will put them in his baby book instead of world wide :)  It is getting late and this isn't the most entertaining post.  I feel like anymore I am just slapping down some details while I have a few minutes but hey, I guess that is better than nothing.  Time is going by so fast...so cliche' I know, but holy smokes...I am trying to treasure every single moment of the baby/toddler days...there are a few moments I could do without, but then I guess I wouldn't truly appreciate the sweet moments as much :)   I am so blessed...and the journey continues...

Busy busy right now.  Basketball camps last week and our team camp this week.  I am getting more personal training clients and basketball students. Next week I am going to begin teaching more CrossFit classes.  Lots of great things going on for me.  I have put myself in an awful routine of going to be late and having to be up early...I am working on trying to break this habit.  Here is a post that I put on Facebook at 6am this morning....

So I had a late night...up early b/c Kamryn decided she was hungry. She woke me up while I was dreaming of a CrossFit WOD: 6 min time limit (which was erased after we got started) partner WOD of jump into the pool belly flop style and clap your hands together under water upon landing- measure the highest splash!, 1 rep- then your partner has to pull you out of the water with a rope...after they pull you out, they jump in - forgot to mention that there are 3 big ass Orca's (whales) in the water. We had to pick a whale- put a red towel up on the deck of the pool for their distraction I guess and we had to polish the Orca with tar! The tar did not disperse in the pool either...miracle, I know. The first one to completely polish their Orca and pull that partner out of the water with the rope, wins. This was an incredibly large and deep pool :)

You can see why I need to break this awful routine I am in!

My kids are doing well.  Kamryn is taking one step but doesn't want to take anymore than that.  On three different occasions she has literally jogged in place then taken a couple steps...crazy!  As far as language, we are working on several things.  I feel llike Graham was a lot further along by now but I have to remember she is 11 months old.  She says "Hi!", "Dada", "Azzi", and she has said mama before but rarely does.  Today she has said it several times!!  I think she is holding out just to spite me!  Kamryn is turning into a feisty little soul!  She knows what she wants let me tell ya!  If she wants something and doesn't get it, she will clinch her fists, turn 10 shades of red, and grunt as loud as she can.  Nice huh?!!  She loves to roll her mini basketball back and forth!  Although I believe she does a few things just to spite me, she is still a little girl after her mama's heart!  One thing that she doesn't act too interested in right now, is books.  If they are short and have big pictures...she likes them, otherwise, she has better things to do!

Graham is still his curious little self.  Very inquisitive...his wheels are constantly turning!  He loves making Kamryn laugh!  Quite often, I think Graham wants Kamryn to grow up really fast or he forgets her age b/c he plays with her like she is another little boy.  Gotta keep my eye on him!

Gabe is playing "Handy Manny" and is building a storage shed in our backyard.  We decided to save some money and have a DIY project.  With any luck, the shed will be finished by Christmas.  He is doing a great job!  He has done the whole thing by himself.  He has had a friend come over and help him for an hour or so to heave crap on the roof....I have helped hold a couple wall segments up while he nailed them in, other than that....it's been his baby. 

Well enough for now....I better get this house whipped into shape and I have workouts to plan for.  Have a good day....and our journey continues!

Graham and Kamryn...brief stories

I have to post this little conversation/moment with Graham today.  Like I mentioned in the Prescott Update earlier, Graham is getting excited about potty training.  Tonight before his bath I asked him if he needed to go potty?  He said he did.........
Me:  Go ahead and get your diaper off and go potty and I will be right back...
Graham:  "I DID IT!!!!"  (flush)

With pee on the seat (and I am sure it's probably on the floor) he was pretty proud of himself and very excited.

Graham:  I gotta go poop.
Me:  Ok well lets put the lid down and you can go.

He sits down and attempts to go but nothing is happening....

Me:  Keep tryin' bud, you can do it!
Graham:  Oh no!!!!!!  My poop and pee are not working!  They are all out!

All I could do was laugh :)

We had a great night!  After Kamryn went to bed, we put together the United States puzzle.  He likes to play dumb and quiz me now like I always do to him.  For instance he said, "hmmm where is Missouri?" and he looked around and pointed at a piece that was white side up.  I said, "possibly, I don't know" (b/c I really had no idea!).  Sure as heck, it was Missouri!  Then he would say, "let's see, Kansas goes here"  and he would put it where North Dakota goes then he got a big smile on his face and asked, "is that right?!?!"

I started talking to him about the state capitols so he is interested in those now.  Give us some time...he will get them figured out!

I am anxious to see what Kamryn does.  Right now she is not that into books....when I tell her no in a stern voice, she just looks at me and either smiles or laughs.  Graham used to get startled and cry!  Her temper is starting to show up as is Graham's.  I am sad to say they get that trait from their mama....I am working on it, I promise!  It's only when I get competitive....generally.

Until next time...the journey continues!

Prescott Update

Time is flying by too fast!  I know that is so cliche' but it's the truth.  Kamryn is days away from being 11 months old.  Last week she took her first steps and they were not walking steps. I thought at first that it was a fluke but she has done this 3 or 4 times since then.  She runs in place and then kind jogs a couple steps, then she is done :)  I can't catch it on video either which is sad.  She is saying "hi" and "thank you."  She says mama and daddy also.  Whenever I hand her a bottle or snack...she says "ank ew"......that is close enough for me!  When we talk to people on the phone she grabs the phone and holds it to her ear and says "HI-eye-eeeeeee"  It is a long pronounced hi and I love it :)  In the mornings, I walk into the kids' room and she is standing in her crib and ready to greet me with a high pitched, "HI-eye-eeeeee!" 

Graham loves Kamryn to pieces!  He is a good big brother...has his moments but for the most part is good with her.  Graham is so excited for preschool next school year.  We keep telling him that the only way he gets to go to school is if he is potty trained.  He has been doing a great job from about 5pm on as far as going potty in the "big boy potty(BBP).  During the day he is too busy for that idea.  He has started his mornings a few times lately, by going to the "BBP."  Last weekend while Gabe was at work, Saturday night I took the kids to church.  As we walked in to the church, I pointed out the window to the preschool room and Graham said, "I get to go to preschool now because I just went potty on the big boy potty!!"  He is not quite understanding that we mean he needs to go in the BBP at all times :)

Gabe is loving the NCRA!  He has a great crew to work with and his schedule is really pretty good.  Fortunately, he works nights for two weeks and then switches over to days for two weeks as opposed to switching between the two during the week.  Recently, we decided it was be helpful to have a shed in our backyard.  After lots of research we decided that instead of buying a shed pre fabricated that we would build one ourselves.  Let me rephrase that...GABE would build it :)  He has it all framed right now and it is looking great!  It will be so nice to get alot of stuff out of our garage!  Aside from that project, he is also busy mowing yards.  I miss helping with our yard jobs but it is hard right now with the kids so little.


As for me, I made a minor career change.  For 7 years now I have been employed by the Hess Fitness Center at our hospital.  I loved the job and the people but it was time for me to give something up.  I was getting tired of working here, there, and everywhere.  I'm working at the YMCA now and have been for over 2 years.  I really enjoy it.  At the end of April, I went to Leavenworth Kansas for a CrossFit Level 1 Trainer Certificate Course.  Great experience!  I had the honor of working with Lindsey Smith, a CF Games competitor.  She helped me figure out how to kip my pull-ups!  I strung 4 reps together!  Since then, I have worked on them but it hasn't felt as easy.  I got to teach five classes last Friday and loved it!  It will take time for me to settle in to my style with the sport of fitness.  It's good stuff!   Has definintely changed my life for the better.  I have 6 kids that I work with one-on-one for basketball so that keeps me busy also.  I feel so blessed to stay home with the kids quite often but still get to work at jobs I love and enjoy!
Let the journey continue...

Benny the Barger

Life has been insanely busy but I guess anymore that is the name of the game.  Kamryn is officially 10 months old already.  She is walking along side of things....stands freely once she lets go of something...she is saying "hi" along with mama and dada.  We have finally reached the stage of getting her to eat baby food.  Now, she likes to do the "motor lips" once you put the food in her mouth and food flies everywhere.  Graham laughs hysterically and eggs her on.  Once Graham laughs, then Kamryn starts laughing.  It is frustrating to have food spit in your face but at the same time, adorable hearing the kids laugh together.

Graham is beginning to understand the "big boy potty."  He is starting to grasp what the urge to go feels like.  Last night he went twice by himself while Gabe was  here.  Today, he went all by himself while it was just me here.  I asked him if he had to go potty and he said no....then he said yes and before he ran into the bathroom he told me, "you can't be Benny the Barger!"  I told him that I was not barging in, I would just be trying to help him!  He ran into the bathroom and shut the door so I thought, 'fine!'  I got Kamryn rounded up and finished the minimal things I needed to do to get her in bed.  I walked over and stood by the bathroom door and her Graham go potty!!!  I opened the door, quietly and slowly, and he flushed the toilet.  He had taken his step stool out of the cupboard and pulled it over in front of the toilet, took off his pull-up pants, and went pee standing up!  It felt like we won the Kansas Lottery!  Hot damn that was exciting!

There is a brief update on the kiddos!  Gabe is on his first series of day shift this week and that seems to be going well!!  I went to Leavenworth this past weekend for the CrossFit Level 1 Training and loved it!  Now I am waiting to hear if I passed my test or not.  It's been a rollercoaster of events the last couple years but things are starting to come together at the Prescott Palace.  I truly feel like God has led me to this opportunity with CrossFit.  I hope I can find my coaching style and go with it...and help to better and change people's lives!  It's great stuff....I am so blessed!  The journey continues...

Tortellini

Despite the fact that Graham is testing every single ounce of my patience, he still cracks me up with the thoughts that run through his mind or just simple responses he shares.
This afternoon I had a couple kids that I trained for basketball and I had set stuff out for Gabe to make supper.  When I walked in from my sessions, the boys were sitting at the table eating supper.  I asked Graham if he was eating his cheese tortellinin and he replied with "NO mommy I already ate my tort-a weenie!"  He was serious as a heart attack and it was all I could do not to bust ouf in laughter! 
He rattled of some more one liners today but they are not coming to me at this point.  I am exhausted and ready for bed.
And the journey continues...

Easter

What a beautiful Easter Day!  The weather was perfect!  We went to church last night.  The kids hunted for their Easter baskets this morning and then we went to Nana and Papa's for lunch.  Graham was more into Easter this year and was so excited when he found his goodies!  Kamryn of course didn't have a clue but she crawled like crazy to get to her basket wants we pointed her in the right direction.  Jared and his girlfriend, Brittany, were also at my parents house.  Dad smoked a pork tenderloin.  Mom made a roast, vegetables, mashed potatoes. and a fruity nutty fluff type dish....all of it was awesome!!!!  After lunch, we went out in the yard and found Easter baskets that my parents had hidden.  We played catch with the frisbee for awhile and then went inside for some DQ ice-cream cake that I brought!  I had given up ice-cream for Lent so I was excited to eat some today!  The boys went fishing this afternoon while Kamryn and I hung out at home.  I should have went outside but we rearranged our bedroom yesterday and I wanted to do some more organizing.  All in all it was a great day! We are so blessed!!!  This is a real brief and to the point entry but I wanted to get a little bit in here.  May the journey continue....

So there we are...."we" being Graham and I ....standing in line at Dillons to pay for formula.  Graham is standing right next to a cooler full of pop and he asks...rather loudly I might add..."Mommy is that daddy's beer?!?!!"
No Graham...that is 7-UP!  I KNEW my grocery store moment was coming soon!  More to come I am sure....and the journey continues.

more pooh from the palace...

I feel so blessed that I have a husband who is ok with letting me stay home during the day with the kids but it is no walk in the park like some people envision.  Mr. Graham Wesley is testing my patience from every possible angle there is.  Kamryn is still a sweetheart but she is definitely starting to show some attitude.  When she doesn't get her way, she grunts and growls at me.  She clenches her teeth and her fist and shakes...and growls.  I can't get mad about that because I did the SAME thing once upon a time!

Graham is doing a terrible job of listening lately.  He cannot stand to not constantly be heard while I am trying to have a conversation with someone else.  Instead of patiently waiting for a lull in the conversation,  he butts right in.  Because of his obsession with drums, EVERYTHING is a drum so he is constantly trying to drum on something or play some other instrument be it real or imaginary. 

Potty training is a work in progress.  We are not forcing the issue because I know he will not do it until HE wants to.  We have been forming a habit of going potty in his big boy body before he gets into his bath.  He has been consistant in going potty!!!  Tonight was epic!  He went before getting into the tub but afterwards after drying off, he went to his room then ran back in saying, "MOMMY, I HAVE TO GO POTTY!"  He ran in and sat down....sure enough he pottied!  Then he got a look on his face like he was trying to pass gas, then PLOP!  It sounded like he pooped but I was not sure.  He got up, stuck his head in the toilet, "LOOK it is a 'rock poop!'  I pooped!  That's so silly!!!"     lol, oh my gosh it was priceless :)

Getting him to sleep whether it is a nap or bedtime....just about takes an act of Congress to do so!  Tonight I fed Kamryn and laid her in her crib then read Graham a couple books.  When I left and told him good night, neither one was asleep but Kamryn is great about putting herself to sleep and Graham, well I knew he wasn't going to sleep immediatley.  I start getting ready for bed and turn the monitor on.  Occassionally, I was hearing a banging noise.  I didn't do anything b/c some times he hits his foot against the bed rail or taps on the head board.  After awhile I thought it sounded a little different.  I walked in the room and thought Kamryn was rolling around so I walked over to her crib and BAM!  Graham grabbed my feet!  Hallejluaia holy crap!  If I didn't about piss my pants...the little @#$* was under her crib!  He had hauled a blanket, his pillow, and some stuffed animals under there like he was going to campout!  Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
Since that episode, it has been a little quieter but I am waiting to hear/see what happens in a little bit.  Will he come up with something else or actually sleep?

The journey continues.....

Like Butter....

Well I must admit that Graham is cracking me up today even though I feel like he is mocking me.  For instance:

Scene: in the kitchen, I'm making lunch...in walks graham. He is playing with a small tape measure. While trying to pull tape out, he couldn't very well so I helped him pull out the tape and clamped it so it wouldn't go back in. He started pulling hard on the tape to get more out while it was clamped and I said :wait graham, don't do that". About that quick he manages to get more tape pulled out so I said, "nevermind". Graham replies:(in a high pitched but regular tone voice) hey mommy its alright, calm down mommy. Stop acting like a baby, its ok!". .........ok you tell me, was he mocking me?!

 

His little mind is rolling all the time...I voice recorded him today for 8-minutes just listening to him telling stories and such.  He was jumping all over the place between actual events and fiction.

 

Because it is such a gorgeous day, I asked Graham if he would like to walk to the park and feed the ducks??  Graham's comment:  NO! We can't feed the ducks at the park.  That's no fun!  ...........I thought it sounded like a fun idea!  That little stink.

 

Graham:  I'm gonna go be right back and wash my hands.

Me:  "ok"

Graham: (talking to himself...in a high pitch voice)  "Ok, that would be great!"   (again, in my opinion mocking me!)  Once he gets in there he hollers with the water on full blast:  "I'm washing my hands!  I'm washing my hands together, right mommy?"

 

As for Kamryn, she is lying at me feet , on her stomach, kicking her hands and feet like she is a fish out of water...just babbling away with a 100-102 degree temperature.  Actually that is what her temp was this morning.  We have been able to keep it under control with Tylenol and Ibuprofen.  She ate sweet potato puffs for lunch!  That was exciting...usually she spits anything out that touches her tongue but she is slowly adapting to the idea of putting food in her mouth.  She is not drinking much today.  She did drink alot first thing this morning...now she is slowing down a bit.  Hopefully she gets over this cold soon.  Graham is slowly getting over his as well.  We are not used to being sick around here so it's frustrating!

 

Graham is running low to the ground around the house saying, "Spider Graham!".....now he just stopped and sat down, opened his legs so Kamryn could crawl to him and said:  "Come to me little missy!  You wanna play with blocks"  he told me, "she likes blocks"   Graham just told Kamryn:  "Maybe you can have a surprise.  It is called birthday cake.  It's my birthday.  My birthday is August 8.  My birthday is August 8 mommy.  But somebody took my balloons away...."  I could go on and on but this is an example of how random and rambly he is today.

 

Well I suppose I better go, Kamryn is army crawling on the tile floor in her dress and chasing the lego blocks as she throws them out in front of her!  And the journey continues.....

Brief State Tournament review

What a weekend!  This past weekend the McPherson High School girls made it to the state tournament.  We played our first round game verus Girard.  They had a phenomenal point guard who scored 31 points but we have the Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year on our team, Katelyn Loecker.  Kate scored 32 points, had 4 blocked shots, I think 11 rebounds, etc.  Our team played really well giving us the right to advance to the semifinal game as we beat Girard by 18 points.  Friday, we played Bonner Springs.  Both of us were 23-1 going into the game.  It was a tight game all the way through but we won 49-40.  Saturday we played in 4A State Championship game versus the undefeated Holton Wildcats.  They had a 51 game winning streak coming into the game.  Talk about a defensive battle...it was intensely amazing!  Our halftime score was 8-7!  We ended up winning 34-27.  We did not get to shoot any free-throws until 3 minutes to go in the game!  We were 10-11 from the FT line in the final 3 minutes!  We scored almost half our points in the closing minutes to win the game!  It was such an exciting time!  When the buzzer sounded there were tears of joy from almost all of us!  It brought me back to my playing days that's for sure.  Our girls worked so hard and are so deserving of the title.  I told Kamryn..."just wait girl, 15 years from now, this could be you!!!"  And the journey continues....

Here we go again...

Once again I have let too much time slip by without making an entry.  It has been very busy at our house.  Basketball season is flying by....for ME, but I know Gabe is ready for it to be over.  Our final regular season is tonight versus Ark City.  It is our senior night and Think Pink night so it should be fun!

Graham is still fluctuating between sweetheart and pistol pete!  Some of the things he is doing right now will hopefully just be a small two year old phase. 

The other night while we were getting ready to eat supper Graham was wound for sound and did something to upset Gabe.  Gabe asked him if he needed to go to timeout.  I told Gabe to chill and that maybe he needed to take a time out.  Graham chimed in with:  "Yeah Daddy!  Stop acting that way.  Now I'm gonna give you last chance Daddy or you go to time out!"

I was laughing my pants off and had to turn around!  Obviously, he has heard those words a few times before!

We have all battled colds the last few weeks but last week, when Kamryn started coughing really deep...sounded like it was really settled into her chest, I called and got her a Dr appt.  When we got there, we had to weigh Kamryn before going into the Dr.'s room.  She weighed 16lbs 14oz!  That was with all her clothes on though.  She was all dressed up in her hot pink and purple tights, jean skirt, and nice shirt.  Anyways, as I took her off the scale, a secretary next door standing at her counter, saw Kamryn and said (in a high voice)  "Hey sweetie, how are you?!"  Kamryn looked at her and went, "grrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!."  She totally growled at the lady!  The secretary's co-workers asked what that noise was and I heard her say, "It was that little girl!"  Needless to say, I was a little bit embarrassed and apologized which the workers didn't care.  As soon as we walked down the hall and entered the room, Kamryn belched like man!!!!!!  I was like, Oh My Gosh!!!!!!!!!  That's my girl!

Kamryn is pretty fascinated with her hands.  She loves to clap and just learned how to wave.  We still can't get her to eat baby food.  She looks at me like I am nuts when I try sticking the spoon in her mouth but we are going to continue to work on that.  Her laugh is so contagious...better yet, I love it when Graham gets her to laughing b/c then they both laugh.  Children's laughter is the best sound ever!

Last night, Kamryn was in her walk around toy and I was in our bedroom...I all of a sudden heard her cry so I hollered out to Graham and asked him what happened.  I came out in the living room and he was laying ON TOP of the back of the couch, which he knows is a no no.....

Me:  "Graham Wesley!  What did you do?"
Graham:  Smiling yet trying to hide his face, "I pinched her!"
Me:  "Ok, lets go to time out."

A couple minutes later when I went to get Graham out of timeout, I asked him to tell me why he was in time out and he said, "Kamryn."

Me: "What did you do to Kamryn?"
Graham: "Pinching"
Me:  "Are you going to pinch her anymore?"
Graham: "No, not yet!"

And the journey continues.........

Well Kamryn decided to wake up at 345am so I thought I would sneak in and give her a pacifier then jet out...uhm no, she was wide eyed and bushy tailed. I picked her up...started out the door and here comes Graham "Wait for me!" and he sprints out the darn door. I set Kamryn down in the living room and she started "rippin' em" like an 80 year old man, so I was like awesome, she just totally shit her pants...I changed her...she was just gassy and wet. Gabe gets up and helps me by changing Graham....meanwhile I brought Kamryn back to the LR and was making her a bottle...I came out to a lovely stinch...definitely loaded her pants this time. I take her back to the bedroom...Gabe is fighting with Graham to lay still to change his diaper...he gets it changed...leaves the room to take the diapers out to the trash, comes back and Graham had stripped down, took his diaper off and all...that's how it all started. Gabe went back to bed. Graham finally fell asleep at 545 and Kamryn went to sleep at 615.

A few hours later, after our power naps in the early morning, I was changing Kamryn and needed to get something off the dresser shelf so I turn around to get it and Kamryn and flipped over and was doing the worm across the room....looked like a fish out of water moving along at 30mph.  She suddenly stopped and yep....she started peeing on the carpet.  Awesome.  Get that cleaned up...get her going again.  At this point the whole day is running together so this sequence of events may not be perfectly in order.

Graham had a descent day after the chaotic morning.  He wanted to help me make chicken and cheese quesadillas for lunch so I thought that was great.  He pulled a chair over to the counter from the kitchen table and said, "I want to help you!"  I figured it was easy enough so why not.  He grabbed 1 tortilla out of the bag and put it on his plate.  I told him to grab some cheese and sprinkle it on.  He was taking tiny bits of cheese out of the bag and was sprinkling the cheese on so I thought he was doing good....I will go ahead a go to the fridge and get something real quick...come back over and he had dumped the entire bag of shredded cheese on his tortilla.  Looked like a mountain...who wouldn't like 2 cups of cheese in one quesadilla?!?!  No big deal...cleaned it up...reduced his cheese mound and then he put some chicken on and whoala...we had lunch. 

Back to Kamryn and her diaper adventures...she had another stink bomb so I was changing her and she decided to practice her karate kicks and kicked out of my hands while I was holding her legs up and there ya have it folks...pooh on the carpet!  For the love!  All I could do at this point was laugh....it was like a stinkin circus today.  Speaking of "stinkin".....

Yesterday, Graham was in the kitchen trying to move a folding chair that was against the wall and Gabe asked him what he was doing....Graham said, "I am trying to move the chair.  I am trying to move this STINKIN' CHAIR!"  Looks like I overuse the word stinkin' but at least I am not dropping F-bombs!

At lunch yesterday, Graham and I were eating and visiting and I was thirsty so I grabbed my cup of water with my left hand and took a drink.  Graham said, "Hey!  you need to be careful!  Hold your cup with two hands mommy!"  I am telling you what, this kid better pay attention this much in school!  I have a hundred other stories from this week already but I am about to pass out from exhaustion.  Until next time...the journey continues.....

Brief update...

This will be a brief update:

Sunday, February 5th, Kamryn started saying "ma ma ma ma!"  Needless to say, mommy was/is thrilled!  She is a super speedy army crawler right now.  It actually looks like a very skilled version of "the worm" dance move but it works for her.  She cut two bottom teeth at once right as she turned 7 months.  We are having a heck of a time trying to get her to eat rice cereal.  I have mixed it with bananas....tried it with green beans....tried it so that it was the same consistancy as her formula.  She is not buyin' what I am sellin' so to speak.  For now, I am putting the cereal in her bottle.  I know she will come around....little stinker!

Graham is still his onery/sweet self.  Yesterday when he woke up, I went into the kids' bedroom...he was all smiles sitting on his bed.  I walked over and gave him a hug and told him that I loved him and he said, "I love you to pieces!"  That just melts my heart :)  I went out to the kitchen to get some cereal for him....got him in his seat...gave him his bowl of cheerios...and walked across the kitchen to make my breakfast and he said, "come join me!"  If I remember right (I think that it was in the same conversation....my days are running together) I told him that I would join him after I got my cereal ready he said, "that sounds like a plan!"

Well, that is a brief update from the Prescott Palace....the kids are waking up so I better go get them....and the journey continues!

What a busy weekend!  I had my first experience as a coach in the Mid America Classic Tournament in the McPherson High School Roundhouse.  I have had many amazing experiences in there as a player....as a coach it is still exciting and rewarding a different way.  We set individual and team records but best of all, we brought the trophy back to the Roundhouse!  We beat Hays High for the championship!  Because I am tired and ready for bed...I won't go into a lot of detail, unfortunately.

Tonight as we were getting ready for bed, I told Graham that he needed to put ME to bed tonight.  He said, "OK!!"  All excited he said he wanted to read me a book.  We both got our pj's on and he picked out a book.  He told me that I needed to come lay down in my bed.  So...I got under the covers but wasn't laying down and he said, (while pointing and shaking his finger at me) "Now this is your last chance!  I am going to read you this story!"  Laughing out loud, I said ok, but have I been bad?  I don't remember what he said to that but I thought it was a funny little scene.  When I told Gabe he started laughing and pointing to himself.  Apparently, Graham has heard that line a time or two, huh?!?

Kamryn is officially 7 months old as of yesterday!  I can hardly believe it!  She is army crawling like a champ.  It will only be a matter of time before she figures out how to use her knees.  Kamryn is such a happy baby!  She thinks Graham is hilarious.  Listening to the two of them giggle together is the best sound in the world!

Time for bed..........God willing...the journey continues tomorrow :)

"Fruit Ropes"

Last week when I went to Dillons, I decided to try the "CLIF Organic Fruit Ropes" for kids and then an Organic Fruit leather for myself.  Graham LOVED them!  Well I only bought 2 so they did not last long.  He has been asking for more on a daily basis.  I had told Graham on Friday that we would go to Dillons to get some more....we made it to Walmart but not to Dillons.  So yesterday (I really am getting to the story here!) I got my list together and went shopping on my own.  It was 8:45pm or so when I got home...I got out of the car to bring the groceries in the house.  I heard the big wooden door to the garage start jiggling...and it was Graham...he got it open....pushed and held the screen door out with one hand....standing there in his pj's...he hollers out:

"HEY!...Did you go to Dillons?"

Laughing, I said  "Yes I did."  He replied,

"Did you get some FRUIT ROPES?!!"

Again, laughing I said, "Yes I did." 
He shut the screen door and cheered...

Yay, she got fruit ropes!!!!! 

After his celebration, he pushed the screen door open again and said,

"Come on in!!"

and he held the door open for me.

Maybe you had to be there and I do wish I had him video taped at that moment...it made my day!  And the journey continues...

Sat down on Graham's bed to read a book to him and Kamryn.  I noticed Kamryn must have dropped her pacifier....I saw it in the middle of the room so I asked Graham if he would please go and get it for me.

Graham says:  "I will look for it."

Then he chucks it at  me...it hits the bed...not even close to my hand and then he says "Nice Catch!"

He must get his smart bottom comments from his daddy!

trash man

The hurried scene at our house after we arrived home from the YMCA....

Me: Oh we gotta hurry!  The trash man is coming and I need to get the trash can set out.  I unbuckled Graham and got him out of the car.  Then I ran and got the trash can and got it to the curb in time as the trash truck was 3 houses away.

Graham:  Woo, that was close one mommy!
Me: Yes it was!
Graham:  Is trash truck taking our stinky diapers?  He picked them up and "frew" em in the garbage truck!
Me:  laughing, yep he took your stinky diapers!

more convo from today...

We had a home game tonight versus Newton.  The freshman played at 4pm, JV at 6pm, and the Varsity followed at 7:30pm.  That makes for a long afternoon but we won all three games!  Anyways, I was drinking a ton of water because I was hungry!  With back-to-back-to-back games it is tough to eat much in between and you go to the bathroom when you can if needed.  Well I was really needing to potty when I got home :)  If this is too much info for you....I don't know, stop reading I guess but anywhoo....I had to go really bad and Graham ran into the bathroom and then he came back out and said,

"there ya go mommy!...I got it ready for you!" 

 He pointed to the toilet in his bathroom...so proud of himself...he had lifted the lid for me :) 

I started laughing and told him thank you.  I sat down to go potty and he came in with me...sat down on the bathroom rug and struck up a conversation with me.  He goes,

"hmmm what did I do today?"  he tapped his chin and cheek with his little pointer finger on his right hand and said, "let me think...hmmm." 

 I couldn't help but laugh again.  He cracks me up!  Almost every night before bed, we have our routine that we do....brush teeth, read stories, get a drink if needed, say prayers, and then lay in bed and talk about our day.  He was anxious to talk about his day :)

Little miss Kamryn Louise is learning to army crawl!  It is neat and fun to watch her because she is so proud of herself.  She laughs while she is trying to crawl or figure out how to get from point A to point B.  Tonight she actually got up on her hands and knees and rocked back and forth but then went back to army crawling.  My hands are now incredibly full instead of just full :)  Every morning, I look forward to walking into the kids' bedroom to see their smiling faces!  They are so full of energy!  I absolutely love it!  God has truly blessed Gabe and I with two wonderfully healthy kids....may the journey continue...

dialogue from this morning

Obviously, I have not been able to keep up around here let alone post all that has been going on at the Prescott Palace.  This morning there was alot of good dialogue going on so I posted a few of the conversations that I could recall.


G: Uh oh, what just happened?
Mom:  I don't know, what happened?
G: My tummy growled!

Mom:  Darlene is coming this morning!  What are you going to do with  her?  Are you going to show her the train track you and daddy built last night?  It's pretty cool!

G:  (with a very serious look and response-normal tone)  No, it's not pretty.  The train track is not PRETTY.

Mom: OH...Ok, my bad.


Kamryn was playing on her tummy near Graham's puzzle.  She is very interested in everything right now and as you would guess, almost everything goes from her hand to her mouth.
She was so excited that she army crawled over to Graham's puzzle...she picked up a piece...a big discovery ya know!

Graham:  No Sis!  Lets move this out of your way. 

what else......

One of these days, someone that is really desperate for money, will install a hidden camera in my household and watch the circus act that seems to routinely happen......it could probably make some sort of tv show.

This afternoon, since it was absolutely gorgeous outside, I got this bright idea that I was going to take the kids for a walk right around their nap time...you know help get them to sleep so I could carry them in to their cozy little beds when we returned and then I would have some time to myself to get caught up...well Kamryn fell into my trap but Graham, not so much...he was wide eyed and bushy tailed the whole time.  I told him that he needed to try to take a nap so I put him in his room, shut the door, and the door to his closet....so I thought.  Kamryn and I chilled on the couch for an hour and I figured Graham would eventually sleep...when I went in there to check on him, he was sitting behind his bedroom door, (so I had to work to open the door) wearing his new "monkey boots/rain boots" with the closet door wide open and things piled everywhere....the room REEKED (how do you spell that word?).  While I was changing his pants, Kamryn was patiently awaiting her turn.  I finished with Graham and started changing Kamryn's wet diaper, when Graham says, "I gotta go potty mommy!  I go sit on the big boy potty, right"  So I'm like, ok be patient!  and am also thinking...holy balls when is the confetti going to fall from the ceiling b/c I have been waiting for him to have the motivation to do this!  I get Kamryn finished and take Graham to the bathroom.  He strips down completely...I'm like whatever trips your trigger there kiddo!  He sits on his potty, then stands up next to his potty, takes the foam ring off the potty, starts straddling the potty, puts the foam ring back on the potty, sits down, stands up...hear's Mickey Mouse on the fricken tv and says, I'm done!  He didn't do squat!  We get him dressed again and he decides he wants to go outside.  Meanwhile, Kamryn is happy as a lark in the living room, sitting up like a big girl, playing with her toys..........I get Graham outside and have the screen door open so that I can see and hear him....I get Kamryn a bottle ready b/c she is about to knaw off  her arm...I go to pick her up in her cute little Iowa Hawkeye dress and her tights...her back was wet.  REALLY?!!  I take her to the room, take off her tights, and she had a surprise for me...all up her back...by the time I got her dress off, she had pooh on her arms, up to her shoulder blades, she had put her foot in the diaper,........for the love!  As I start to clean her up, I remembered I had Graham outside........I hurried to the kitchen door to check on him and he was playing fine outside...visiting with our neighbor...I run back to the bedroom- get Kamryn out of her diaper and decide that she needs a bath.  I let her sit on her changing pad (which was on the floor) and I went across the hall to start her bath and get it ready...and I walk back into the room...at first glance, I was like 'what the heck?!' she wasn't on her changing pad....I got into the room and see that she had potentially leaned a little to far forward and rolled onto her belly and some how scooted over to her dresser and found a tag on the floor...there she was...chillin' on her belly, chewin on the tag, and there she was in a puddle on the carpet!!!!!!  She whizzed all over the floor!  UNBELIEVEABLE!  I got a towel, cleaned that mess up, checked on Graham, life was good, got Kamryn in the tub and cleaned her up, then finally I fed her a bottle......somewhere in this mess I had forgotten about the damn chicken breast that I thrown on the George Foreman for a cassarole I was gonna make for supper b/c I am such a Betty Crocker...I put Kamryn in the high chair and decided she could practice holding her own bottle while I diced up the boob on the grill!  thank God I didn't burn the dag gum thing...I finally got the cassarole finished and in the oven so I could eat with the fam before heading to basketball practice.  Graham came inside...Gabe came home shortly after that...we ate and I headed out the door to the garage only to miss a step and pert near fell on Gertie the Grand Am but caught myself!  At that point, I had to laugh so I poked my head in the door and said (just like Graham would) "I'm OK!"  
I came home from practice and Graham and I were having a conversation and he goes, "what happened in the garage mommy?"
I said, I slipped on the step.
He started laughing his 2 year old butt off and then sweetly said, "I'm sorry."
That little stinker!
I don't know...ya'll probably had to be here to see the humor in this but it was literally one thing right after another....and the journey continues!