Just life

I love times in my life that are like this. Slow and easy-going. Believe me, there is plenty to do but both of my little ones demand so much of my attention that I usually can't get more than a load of laundry done a day. I've just started giving in :)
Today was one of Jimmy's days off so we bundled up the babies and took a walk around the park at the beach. Here is Hollin searching for her paci :)

Everything was going great until we stopped for lunch. I have moments where I envision all four of us going out together and then sitting down for a nice lunch before we go home and get started with the daily grind. I was talking to my mom today about this stage of life that I'm in. I want so badly to take my kiddos somewhere and to have a good time, but nine times out of ten, it ends up being a really stressful experience.

Harper was into everything and we had to scarf down our food. He had a haircut scheduled for 2pm, so we left the restaurant and headed to the salon. He had a complete meltdown and we had to leave without the haircut.
Yes, it was stressful and embarassing, but I can't be too angry. He usually naps from noon until two and if I don't keep him on schedule, I have his attitude to deal with. After a nice nap, he was a much happier little boy!

Back to my point. This winter has been SO mild and we've been taking a lot of walks and spending time outside.

(Harper was a little sick here.)
We've been relaxing..

and playing around with the fireplace even though it's not really been all that cold.


I hope to start getting a few more things done around here as the babies will allow :) Harper's room is the closest to being "done", so I hope to share pictures soon.

Happy Tuesday!

Harper-isms at 18 months and a little catching up

So, we are finally here. We've reached the point where when someone asks how old our little boy is, we can say, "A year and a half." I can't believe how quickly this time has passed!

We took him for his 18 month checkup and here are his stats:

Weight: 25lbs 8oz.

Height: 34.5 inches

He is in the 95th percentile for height and the 50th for weight. The Dr. suggested that we put him back on whole milk rather than 2 percent because in her words "he could stand to put on a little weight." She was not concerned about his weight and said that it was genetic by taking one look at Jimmy.

Here are a few photos of Harper in one of his new shirts before heading to the Dr's office:


(This is Harper's new smiling style... scrunched nose and open mouthed.)


Harper waited for his lovely Hep A and Flu shots.. poor guy.




Once he calmed down from said shots, I gave him my sunglasses and that seemed to lift his spirits a little.


Here is what lil man is up to these days:

~ He hugs anything if you ask him to.

~ His diet is growing. In addition to cucumbers and most fruits, he tried yogurt tonight at Jimmy's dad's house.

~ He is very affectionate with the ladies. (And it begins.)

~ He is bobbing his head to music. Gangster-style.

~ He adores the "Gummi Bear" song when I pull it up on YouTube.

~ When Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is on in the mornings, I'll ask him to go hug Mickey, thinking that he will go hug is stuffed Mickey, but he hugs the TV.

~ He is really into hide and seek.

~ His talking is getting there. That was my main concern at the doctor's office and she assured me that all is well and it's hard to gage what is "normal" at 18 months. She also assured me that his limited vocabulary is not because he is not in daycare.

Yesterday, once Jimmy woke up from his coma-induced sedation dentistry, we ran out to Home Depot and picked up supplies to repair Harper's bite marks on his crib. We are going to be transitioning him to a toddler bed very soon, so we want to do the repairs as part of the process.




This morning, we got an early start and headed to Jimmy's follow up dentist appointment. It looks like he only needs two more appointments at the most and his cavity-filled mouth will be as good as new. We are going to look into some whitening for him once all is repaired and he will have a gleaming new smile!

After his appointment, we headed to Target for milk and to look at some toddler bedding. All I could find was the overly-boyish cars and trucks stuff. It was super cute, don't get me wrong, but all of his existing decor is "nautical" and I want to stay with that look.

We left Target and went to Chic-Fil-A to kill some time before his 11:00am haircut. I tried and tried to get a picture with Harper, but he prefers daddy since he is on vacation this week. I get no love.





Harper was in desperate need of a haircut and boy did he get one today. Jimmy always gets the say with his hair, so he asked for a little to be taken off the sides and back, even though Harper's "bangs" touch his eyebrows. It's a cute look though.




We've had a very busy week with Jimmy being on "vacation." We had planned months ago to head to Sea World in Orlando, but with our renter vacating out of nowhere recently, those plans came to a screeching halt. I am HAPPY to say though that our house is RENTED AGAIN!! The tenant was supposed to move in on October 15th, but actually moved in today. Even though Sea World didn't work out this time, we still have plenty of opportunities to plan for it again!

Til next time....

Back in the saddle again

We all left Cherokee this morning at around 9:30 and finally made it back tonight at 7pm. The drive isn't nearly that long, but traveling with a 16-month-old, potty breaks, food breaks and for-fun breaks certainly took up a lot of time. I haven't taken many pictures in the last 2 days just because I didn't want to be flashing a camera in my family's face during our short visit day before yesterday. I rarely see them and didn't want them to think I was insane. After that visit, we didn't see anything new, so there was no need to take pictures.


I have to interject this little milestone, so that I can remember. We stopped at McDonald's late this afternoon where Harper began inhaling french fries as always. I was eating my Southwestern Salad when I looked up and my child was DIPPING his fries into the ketchup!! I looked at him and said, "Are you serious?" It is beyond me that he will try new foods for everyone except me! My dad took a video on his phone and sent it to me, so it is documented. Crazy kid.

Tomorrow, I'll be heading back not long after Harper wakes up. I'm soooo ready to go home and see my hubby. Harper and I miss him dearly :) I'm also ready to get Harper and myself back into a routine and get busy on my schoolwork. I feel like I'm getting off to a slow start and want to make sure I keep up with all of my reading and assignments. I've definitely got to get on a schedule with all that I'm juggling this semester, so I'm just ready to get there.

All in all, I had a great time at the mountains and my mom and dad made it really easy and fun for Harper and I.

As far as this weekend, we don't have much planned. I definitely will have some cleaning and laundry to do when I get back and then Jimmy is working a contract tomorrow night. Sunday, we plan to go to church and then I'm not sure what's on the agenda for the rest of the day. I'm sure we'll find something to get into.

Goodnight!

Vacation days 2 and 3

Yesterday, my folks and I headed out to the Blue Ridge Parkway. I wasn't sure what kind of weather we would be dealing with, so I brought my snuggie. It turned out to be a prop for many of our pictures.




It turned out to be a very spiritual experience..haha. Sorry, another bad joke.



Here are a few of my favorite photos from the parkway:









After we returned from the parkway, we grabbed a bite to eat and headed back to the hotel where we had to switch rooms. I had unfortunately discoverd mold on the outside of the A/C vent before we left, so dad called and got us switched to a new room. We hurried to pack all of our things and move them to the new room before my mom's cousin Vickie came to the hotel for a visit.. We all went down to the hot tub/pool area and chatted for awhile. We headed back, changed clothes and went downstairs to the amazing buffet they had for dinner. I had to eat quickly because Harper was so exhausted, he was not himself. He actually fell asleep while lying on my chest like he did when he was an infant. It was really sweet.

Vacation Day 3
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Today was the day I was most looking forward to, because my dad and I were scheduled to go on a white water rafting trip. If you had asked me 5 years ago to go white water rafting, I would have told you to get lost. For whatever reason, I'm up for new challenges in my old age..haha. They even have a zip line that I would love to come back and try. My mom wasn't able to get any pictures of us manuevering the rapids AND babysit Harper, understandably. Luckily, the company has a photographer who captures several photos toward the end at the most swift rapids. They'll be on their website in a few days and I hope to get one. I had a smile on my face and didn't look terrified, so I'm proud of that. Our guide's name was Taz and he was your quintessential mountian hippie. Stained teeth, a long, white ponytail and a slow, wise way of speaking. He has been guiding for 28 years and knew everything about the rapids, the history of landmarks and the foliage. I really enjoyed listening to his explainations and corny jokes.

Here are a few photos after we changed clothes. I brought clean clothes but, like a dummy, forgot to bring dry shoes. I had to walk around in wet, squishy New Balances for the rest of the day.





We grabbed lunch at Subway and in the very same building, there was a TCBY. If you don't know what a TCBY is, it stands for "The Country's Best Yogurt." There used to be one in my hometown mannnnnnny years ago, but they up and left. Once I spotted the place, I HAD to get my old favorite; vanilla yogurt with wet walnuts. It was heaven, I tell you.


We headed back to the hotel where we tried to get Harper down for a nap, but he wasn't having it. I took him to the pool, where he acted up (only for me) as usual. It had been a long, tiring day for all of us, so my patience was wearing a little more thin than usual. My mom and dad were nice enough to take him out and about while I finished up some inital school work for the semester. We've hung around here tonight and my dad and I played Super Mario Brothers on the Wii for awhile.. I am the last one awake :)

Tomorrow, we are going to visit cousin Vickie again at her mom's house where they will be providing lunch. It should be a good time!

Cherokee People

Cherokee TriIIIIIIbe....... I'm channeling Tim McGraw. Get it? I'm sorry, I know that was bad. If I was at home, my husband would "boo" me.

We arrived in Cherokee NC yesterday for a week of sight-seeing and gambling. So far, I've won 100 bucks, but I've also lost quite a bit. Bummer.

Here are a few photos from our trip.


Here we are at Bojangles, doing Harper's "mean face." He wouldn't do it, so I just looked stupid.


Here he is with a sucker, trying to pop his little ears as we ascended. He realllly enjoyed that sucker.


This was the first mountain I saw!


Getting closer.....


We're here!



Just a few pictures looking down from the 2nd floor balcony to the 1st floor.



Here we are at breakfast this morning. Harper was nice enough to share some of his french toast with me.




After breakfast, Harper could barely keep his eyes open. We had planned to go to the pool, but I thought a nap would be best. I sent mom and dad down to play at the casino and Harper and I slept from 10:30am til 1:15pm!


Once we were up, we went to the pool for a little while. He amazingly LOVED the hot tub.



Here is my new one-piece that I talked about in my last post.



We headed back and got ready to go to dinner.




We went to the Jarrett House just a few miles away and I got the baked catfish. Very yummy!




Today was pretty relaxed and nice. Tomorrow, we will be driving through the Blue Ridge Parkway and I hope to get some great pictures!

I'm having a good time, but I miss my hubby. If you are reading this BB, I love you and miss you!

Good night.