Has it really been 3 years already??!!?

Our "little" boy turned 3 today!!! (Well...I guess not technically until 11:26 tonight) It rained really hard last night and was still raining this morning so we found things to do inside most of the day. The day started with mommy making Greyson some fresh muffins (egg-free!) and then after getting ready, we headed out to get 3 year pictures taken. We spent some time walking around the mall to stay out of the rain and made sure to throw some pennies in the fountain...one of Grey's favorite things to do on a rainy day! Then we headed to the Friendly Center to meet Daddy for lunch at Poblanos where the waiters put a HUGE sombrero on him, sang Happy Birthday (to "Panchito"!) and served him ice cream! After a short nap :-(, we had some fun at the kitchen table with PLAY-DOH!! After giving sister a bottle, we went to the grocery store to pick out a snack for Greyson to share with his friends tomorrow at school....Oreos! (This week is his last week!) Daddy was already home when we got here so we ate dinner...leftovers...and then Greyson and Daddy put on their swimtrunks and headed out to wash daddy's car! After getting ready for bed, reading some books and getting water, Greyson headed off to dream land!

Greyson, we love you so much!! You are the most special 3 year-old that we know. At your last measuring, you are 41" tall and 36 lbs. (this is subject to change at your 3 year appt!) You are wearing 4T clothing and size 10 shoe! You are long and lean just like your daddy. You LOVE John Deere tractors and LOVE riding yours in the yard, driving it like a pro! You love trucks, cars, firetrucks, Thomas the Train, Elmo and you LOVE to talk all day long. You are affectionate and LOVE to have your back scratched. (Mommy can never say no!) You adore your sister more each day and are the best big-brother and helper EVER! You try to make everyone meeting you for the first time think that you are shy, but it doesn't take you long to warm up. You are a true JOY! We love you so much doodlebug and can't wait to see what the next year of this adventure brings!!!!

CH..CH..CH..Changes....

Em has found her toes....anything in reach for her to shove in her mouth!!! She is teething horribly. At less than 4 months, she already has her bottom right tooth with the bottom left not too far away. She also is completely rolling over...she finally got that rotten arm out from underneath her!!! But she can't roll back over to her back yet so her time on the floor is usually short-lived because she HATES tummy time!! I also cheated a little and started her on some rice cereal just at dinnertime a few weeks early...and...she loves it!!! Well, after her first few bites. Enjoy the pics!!!

Craft Time!!!

On this day we made "collages". If you look closely you can see that Grey spelled his name...I guess it is too early for him to understand about reading/writing from left to right!!!!! P.S. His mouth is blue from a sucker!!

Puppets!!!

For our craft one day last week we made puppets out of paper lunch bags. Grey's favorite part was adding the pom-pom nose!!!

The bib says it all....

Well....we met with Dr. Duckett today who I LOVE. He is just the most down-to-earth, frank, honest doctor that we have ever worked with. I love how he doesn't feel like he should sugar-coat things or hold back any information because of wondering what Preston and I "can handle". So to sum it all up, in the words of Dr. Duckett, "she has a serious problem...she has significant bilateral reflux...but we're going to fix it...and if this is the worst problem she ever has...she's in good shape." Did I mention I love Dr. Duckett?? At about that point in the appointment, I got a lump in my throat and almost got teary but I held it together....and in my true melodramatic self, I started telling him about everything that I had read and what about this? and what about that? and what about Greyson? and what about me? (It is familial in most cases) and once his head stopped spinning, (and probably mine too) he answered all of my questions and calmed all of our fears. Here is the "gameplan" in a nutshell: finish out the antibiotic for her current UTI, continue the antibiotic prophylactically once-a-day, check her urine in 4 weeks, watch her for "breakthrough" UTIs, repeat the ultrasound in 3-4 months to check her kidney function and to just keep an eye out for deterioration and then repeat the "dye test" at 1 year, next March. All of this is subject to change depending on how she does with infections, antibiotics, etc. during the next 8-9 months. Once she is a year old, we will most likely have any remaining reflux corrected with an endoscopic procedure called "deflux" which is actually an outpatient procedure. Preston and I breathed a HUGE sigh of relief that any procedures won't be done immediately and that she will have time to get a little older. We also feel totally confident in Dr. Duckett, who, did I mention I love? Thanks for all of the thoughts and prayers...we appreciate them all!!!!

Puny McPunster....

Miss Emery has a sick little girl lately. Since discovering her first urinary tract infection just two weeks ago, we have learned that she has urinary reflux which is a malfunction of the valves in her ureters. It is measured on a scale of 1-5 and she has reflux level 5 on her left side and level 3/4 on her right. We are meeting with the urologist to investigate our/her options. Most likely, because of the severity of her reflux, she will need surgery to repair it. Sometimes with levels 1-3, it can repair on its own but we are not thinking that that will be an option for her. While we are sad that she has this, we are also thankful to her doctors for being proactive with testing because long term reflux can cause kidney damage that at times can get severe enough to require kidney transplant. Preston and I are cautiously moving forward with appointments trying to absorb all information so that we can be sure to make the best decision for our little girl. I am very anxious about the idea of surgery because Emery is so young. However, besides any scars, she is so young that thankfully she won't remember anything! Because of fevers, she has been sleeping A LOT and actually has been so puny that she hasn't needed to be swaddled to sleep. She can just about sleep anywhere you put her...even in her floor "gym". Please pray for good decisions, great doctors and a quick recovery for our family....especially Emery!!!

Fun on the porch...

This day we decided to make a paper chain. I cut the strips for Greyson and showed him how to use the gluestick. Then I showed him how to feed the new strip through a link and then stick it together to make a new link. He was so proud of himself and really did a great job of keeping the glue on the paper!!!! Afterward he reported that his chain looked like a snake...what an imagination!

This is what happens when....

your little boy tries to "shave" without Daddy's help!!!!

One, Two, Bead...

Greyson really enjoyed making bead necklaces on this day for all three of us. (Sorry sister, you have to wait until you are a little older) He did a great job identifying colors and feeding the plastic string through the beads. We did a purple and yellow one for daddy to start learning about patterns! Daddy was a great sport and even wore his necklace to work all day the next day! Next we might try bead keychains!!

Crafty!!

Because it is SO STINKING HOT in the afternoon, I have tried to do some sort of craft with Greyson in before or after lunch instead of being outside. We try to get out in the morning from about 9:30-11:30 and then head in. We have made some pretty cool stuff. I am trying to use the crafts to teach him things like drawing shapes, using a gluestick, counting, matching, patterns, and work on his fine-motor skills....like holding a pencil, scissors, drawing a line with a ruler, feeding string through a bead, etc. I realize that some of these things may be a little advanced for him, but he really is doing a good job trying and it doesn't hurt to practice, right?? Here are some pictures of the "koozies" that we made. The foam letters were stickers and I did help him with the spelling. He loved getting to surprise his daddy with his very own koozie when he got home! Great job Greyson!

Before and After

Little Miss Emery loves her floor gym! (WHy do I keep calling her "little"...she is 14.5 lbs and 26.5"...BIG Miss Emery!) Today, I put her down to roll around and kick and went in to the kitchen to help Greyson with a little craft we were working on. Well....when I can back...she wasn't exactly where I had left her! Little Scooter-girl! She'll be off and running before we know it. Can you guess which is "before" and which is "after"?

He fought the Oreos....

and the Oreos WON!!! The proof is on his face! Man, this boy LOVES Oreos!

Happy Father's Day!

This year was Preston's first Father's Day as a father of two! WOW how life has changed since we got married almost 6 years ago...in every sense of the word!! Our children ADORE their father and he adores them too. I am so lucky that my children have such an AWESOME father! Happy Father's Day honey!!! I love you!

VBS

Greyson, Emery and I spent the last week in Henderson so that Greyson could attend VBS. At first, I didn't know how he would do leaving me, but he ended up doing really well! I was so proud of him. He made a craft every day which he loved and got to play on the 2 "playgrounds" (swingsets) that the Church had. On Friday night, the children had a little program for their parents and he got up on the stage in front of everyone...he didn't sing or do any hand motions...but he got up there and looked cute nonetheless. :-) I'm his mother, aren't I supposed to say that? Here he is during the program last Friday night.

Little Miss Emery

Isn't she beautiful?? Emery is now 3 1/2 months old and she is such a happy little girl. She is smiling and talking all the time. When she isn't, it's because she has her hands in her mouth to help soothe her gums because she is teething horribly!! She HATES tummy time which is getting frustrating but sits up with support from the Boppy. Go figure. She is just a stubborn little girl....which obviously must not run in this family!!!! She ADORES her brother and smiles everytime she catches him in her view. He can do anything and she smiles!! We love you sister!!!

Seriously...

this boy LOVES tractors. It is amazing how he can manage to find a tractor no matter where we go. Here's Greyson in the play area at Alamance Crossing in Burlington. Isn't he cute???

Doodlebugs!!

One of Greyson's best buds is Sawyer. One Friday, we met him and his mother there and got to hang out. Here is a cute picture of Sawyer and Greyson as insects. They have the best time together!! We also got to see a peacock with its feathers fanned out while walking around in the outdoor mini zoo. It was so cool!!! We can't wait to hang out with them again!

High Point City Lake Park

The park in Jamestown is pretty cool. This is actually the park where Greyson and Daddy went fishing right after Emery was born. They have an awesome playground that we have visited several times. We have been waiting for the rides to open and they are cool too. We visited the park yesterday and rode the train and the merry-go-round. Greyson had a good time and LOVED the train. (We have been checking out the train parked in the tunnel for winter's keeping since March.) Mommy liked the train because it was the only way to get a breeze!!!! We will be visiting the park more this summer for sure!

How could I ever think THIS would be EASY!?!?!??

The other night, I tried to sit down and have Preston take a picture of me with me "chillins". What a feat!!! Greyson started out wanting to hold his sister (who is actually getting almost too big for him to hold!) and then when I wanted to get in on the picture taking, he decided he was done. Then after Emery and I had taken about 15 pictures of just the two of us, he tried to squeeze his way in. Well....three's a crowd. We'll try again some other time.