Need. More. Hugs

Saturday night we had gone out to meet Brent, Jessica and Reagan for dinner. It was a dinner I had looked forward to all week, to sit and relax and chat with family. Just as the food was arriving to our table, Lucas started crying. My boys may be two and there may be three of them, but they have (in my opinion, anyhow) pretty decent manners when we go out to eat. We knew something was wrong with the little man. He just kept holding his ear and telling us "owie". I called the boys Dr and she agreed his ear infection was still lingering (even after 10 days of amoxicillin 3 times a day!) and called in a prescription for some Omnicef with orders we come in Monday to see her.

Luckily, Jessica is a prepared mom and had some baby Tylenol to gave Lucas -easing his ear pain until we got home. The rest of dinner was a blur, Luke wouldn't leave my lap and my perfect grilled Tilapia with a parmesan crust was quickly shoved in my mouth when ever I had a free hand to do so. Luckily, Don had the brilliant idea to order a scoop of ice cream for the boys and things quickly got back in the swing of normal for us. Everyone finally sat in their own chairs and dinner resumed.

Sunday evening, Don and I were watching a movie while the boys were happily playing in the living room around us. Wyatt started acting a bit sluggish and pulling at his ear. We popped some numbing drops in, making a mental note to also make an appointment for him on Monday as well as Luke. The Dr verified what Don and I thought, and both Lucas and Wyatt had ear infections. Jax was not thrilled when Don took the other two to the Dr's, leaving him to help me cook dinner. He got over the frustration with the promise of "candy" (a pinch of dry Fruity Pebbles in a bowl) and played in the sink with water while I cooked dinner.

Their little personalities are really coming through with the new vocabulary they pick up daily. Jaxon is a little negotiator, always asking for "one more time, Momma" when I tell him when something is the last one, or last time. Luke repeats everything he hears, and is still working on mastering the ABC's. He is a proud little guy, so when one of his brothers pitch in to sing the abcs, Luke will stop or tell his brothers "no abcs!"trying to claim it as his own. Lucas seems to have the best ability of conversing, when he wants to.

Wyatt doesn't say much that we understand, but he loves to read books over and over and over again. His current favorite is one the Smith's got him for Christmas. Something about peek a boo with Elmo and Grover. A Where's Waldo of sorts. He reads this book at least 12 times a day, lugging it around to whom ever has a minute to sit down and go through it with him. Wyatt is also very vocal about which cars or trucks he wants. He seems to be a shy talker, but he has lots of opinions for sure!

Hopefully, in a few days everyone will be feeling better. Don and I need to finish painting over the orange in our stairway and finish the flooring in the little nook the boys now have. I am looking for great toy storage ideas if anyone has any they'd like to share...

Hugs make you feel better

We have been getting back to our normal life this past week. Everyone is feeling so much better and appetites are up, we have taken a few trips out the the grocery stores/Costco, etc. At Costco, Don took Jax to order a pizza while I kept the other two with me. After about 5 minutes, I see Don and Jax catch up to us and Jax got so excited to see us again. He screeched a little and just ran up to his brothers giving big hugs, all three hugging at the same time has to be the sweetest thing I have ever seen. Now I know what people meant by them getting love from each other as well as from the adults in their life.

Last night we ran to Target before dinner so Don could grab a video game. 99% of the time, we let the boys walk in the store. Usually it is without an problems, but little by little they are getting a bit more stubborn about leaving the toy sections. Last time we had all three sitting in a temper right outside the toy aisle. They just didn't think they were ready to leave yet. We just let them ride the crying out, we knew there was no use trying to argue and demand they get up now. Don and I just kinda nervously laughed a bit and after a minute knelt down to give them a hug and pick them up. They quickly got over it when we distracted them with the colors in the store, but had we been angry about it, it would've only gone down hill very fast.

Today we had plans to go to the mountains and show the boys some snow, but we have misplaced our winter gear and had to have a change of plans. Instead we told the boys we would go to the playground. Jax kept telling us he wanted to go to Home Depot, but when we gave him the choice of Home Depot or the playground he would choose the playground again.

All three were thrilled to be back at the park! They wanted to try all their favorite things, the see-saw, the stagecoach, they even climbed up the rocks for the first time! It was great to see all three of them feeling so much better, even Wyatt did not cough after running up and down the grassy hills.

Jaxon is a hoot to watch run. He likes to run very free form. Sometimes kicking his feet out to the sides behind him, sometimes holding his arms up to his chest like a little chicken, laughing like a maniac from the freedom he feels. When he runs down the hills, he has this huge smile that is so contagious to anyone close by. That kid has such a beautiful spirit. You can not help but be touched by him.

Here is a quick video, enjoy!

Mm-mmm Good!

Cooking is not my strong point. Not even close. Sometimes I cook things and it is bad enough we throw it in the trash and go to Taco Bell instead. Seriously -it has happened three times in the past year that I can think of.

I am working on improving my cooking skills and tonight I scored big time! The other day, Michele turned me on to The Pioneer Woman, who in turn had a delicious recipe on her cooking site. The recipe was so easy and done within 45 minutes. I only used 1.6 lbs of meat and still had enough for probably 6 sandwiches easy. DELICIOUS! If I can do it, you can too. Check out the site yourself and find some fantastic yummy food!

More Guitar Hero

My house is strangely silent. No more company, no more rushing around to work on the living room, no more coughing kids. The boys are in bed right now, they fell asleep as soon as their little heads hit the mattresses. Wyatt has a new stalling tactic every time he goes to sleep. He will whine a bit and when we ask him what is wrong he tells us he has a "owie toe". Once I kiss it, he says "Tank you, momma" and will lay down to go to sleep.


I have the guitar hero songs stuck in my head. We rented a few other versions of the game, and I have to say they don't hold a candle to Rock the 80's version. I recognize most of the songs on the 80's game and it really makes the game more fun.


The other night my sister, Mom, and Dad came over to play domino's and Guitar Hero with Anne, Katie, Don and I after the kids went to bed. We would rotate domino players while some were trying the Guitar Hero so we all (except my dad) got to rock out. I think the night was fun for everyone and I was glad we got together like that while Anne and Katie were here.


And yes, I know that I have gone on long enough about what is only a video game. Seriously though, how many video games can take the respectable people in the top photo and turn them in to this...

Guitar Hero

My cousins Anne and Katie are in town this week. They are so awesome that we don't mind they brought the cold with them from Buffalo. The boys are still a bit off, but have really warmed up to them. Luke remembered Annie from last time and RAN into her arms after only a few minutes. Jaxon and Wyatt have managed to charm both of the girls, even though they have been whiny and very argumentative.

Last night after we went for our crepes, Anne, Katie and I went to meet Leigha and TJ up at a casino for Bingo. None of us won but we had a pretty good time. Leigha is feeling better and goes in for a stone removal and a smaller shunt this week.

After bingo, we came home and finally took Don's Guitar Hero (80's version!) out of the box. He had gotten it for Christmas and with all of the living room work we had going on, we hadn't the opportunity to open it yet. Don and I tried the tutorial and Annie was so patient and encouraging to us while we learned it. Finally we put it on game mode, albeit on the easy level and rocked out. Don left us at about 11 and Annie and I stayed up until midnight beating the first level.

Tonight I will have to take a video of Don's dance moves while he plays. We are planning on a guitar hero tournament of sorts, so I am thinking we have a fun night ahead of us!

Feel Better Friday

Today I woke up and felt better. Suddenly I had a kick in my step and I was feeling the need to be productive. Just as the boys were eating breakfast, I heard the garbage truck! Joy of all joys for the boys! They scrambled out of their chairs at the breakfast table and ran to the door for a peek at their buddies and the huge garbage truck.

Since we were outside, I decided that it wouldn't hurt to start taking down the Christmas decorations that were still up. Wyatt looked like Michael Jackson's child all covered up with his little hoodie up and his big, dark shades covering his little face. The boys all had some match box cars and were happy driving them around on our tiny rock ridden front yard while I unplugged all the extension cords and wound them up.

About an hour later we all went back into the house, feeling so refreshed by the fresh air and sunshine. Next was lunchtime and naps, yee-haw!

Tonight, everything is seeming to go back downhill. Jaxon has been in a fantastic little mood all night, but I can feel the rustling in his chest when he breathes. Wyatt is stuck like glue to Don or I and poor little Luke was so tired he would just lie on the floor with his blanket. Both Wyatt and Luke are still coughing badly and Don is starting to be affected by the cootie, too. Making matters worse, I feel the rustle in my chest and can not shake it. Even after using a dose of the nebulizer and coughing as much as possible to loosen it- it is staying put. So late tonight, when we are working on the living room, I will have to desert him to go to the 24 hour Quick Care we have brought the boys to a million times before. Hopefully they can give me something to knock this right out and we can have a fresh start on Monday.

More Cooties

We walked away from the Dr's office today with SIX prescriptions. The boys have been diagnosed with bronchiolitis (what Lucas had only last month). Luke is also now on Singulair since this is his second respiratory issue within the past few months. Jaxon had a wart froze (we are 99% sure he picked it up at totnastics!) and has a prescription for that as well as even more arbuteral for the nebulizer.

I am hoping we are on the tail end of this thing since they have been sick since last week. Hopefully it will all be gone by the time my cousins come out next week!

Wyatt Breaks Out

As I am sitting here on the computer, I hear a noise behind me. I know immediately what the noise is and go straight to the boys bedroom door just as it slowly and quietly closes. I squat down on the floor and wait for the little face. Sure enough, the door slowly opens and Wyatt is looking right at me. "Hi, Mom" he quietly says. I tell him "Wyatt, this means we need to zip you up for now on". Then he slowly closes the door again.

I open it to find him climbing up to Jaxon's crib "Hey G-ax". Once he sees me he scrambles to get under Luke's crib while giggling like a mad man.

Now he and Jaxon are zipped in their crib tents. Wyatt is not a big fan, he is even a bit scared, I think. I am making an effort for the zip up not to be a punishment, but just the way it is.

They are still telling each other their sorrows and I am sure Luke has nodded off by now. All three are still sick and I was lucky enough to get two appointments back to back at the Dr's office this afternoon. When I told them I had three that needed to come, they answered my prayers by telling me to bring in all three. Whoo hoo! I would have loved to do that anyway, but would have felt sneaky and rude trying it.

My mom saved me by coming over this morning. She has so much on her plate right now between Leigha in the hospital, watching Rea and trying to help me all in the same day. Not to mention the excitement and cleaning her house for family that is coming in town this week. Hopefully I can take the selfish-less that she is showing this past week and use it as an example when I really need to draw on some strength. We love you Mom and really appreciate all you do!

Ccc-cooties

No matter how hard we try to avoid it, the germs always make their way into our house. I am thinking shopping carts are the culprit. From Walmart/Joann's or Home Depot, they got us!

Don and I have have been working on the living room at night. Last night we were up until midnight, but we got the drywall up and it is finally looking like progress! Unfortunately the late hours are catching up to us and Don overslept this morning by about 2 hours. Lucky for him the new contract (signed in June) says they can still work if they come in late, vs the old one that stated if they were not clocked in by 6:45 they had to go home.

Even though I was thankful he could go to work still, I have to admit I was not so sad about him being able to stay at home with me today. The kids are sick, I am sick and it would have been nice having an extra pair of arms for the boys. Usually my Mom would come over, but she has Reagan and we really don't want Rea to get sick, too! The boys all want to be cuddled and although I have figured out a way to lay on the couch and hold all three, I feel guilty that I can't give them a bit more attention when they don't feel well. So having Don home today really wouldn't have been a bad thing. :)

My sister has been in the hospital this past week for a terrible kidney infection. It was in the beginning stages of going septic, so she has been in for 4-5 days now. They are waiting for her to go without a fever for 24 hours before she can come out, but last night she spiked again, so she gets at least one more night in.

Hopefully the next few days will be better and everyone can start healing from the inside out.

On a happier note, here is a cute video from last week.

This is Jaxon playing with a hand puppet that quacks. It took some serious effort to make his hand clasp together enough to work the duck, but he did it!

Make Over

I really dislike my house. The rooms are small, the house is small, the backyard is small, and worse yet, the kitchen is just about non existent. We bought our house during the big "boom" here in Vegas. The upside to this is we made a killing off selling our old house. That money went towards the down payment for this house and paid for our two rounds of IVF. Our cars are paid off and we are doing okay, thanks to the boom.

Unfortunately, house prices skyrocketed so much during this time that we are in a house that is 60 sq ft smaller than our last house. This 60 ft actually feels like 500 due to the difference in layout and a generous foyer when you walk in my house.

Now that the boom is over and the bubble has burst, we are stuck. Our house has been on the market over one and half years of our 3 1/2 years we have lived here. We had it on the market when the boys were born and then again when they turned one. Apparently everyone else dislikes our house, too.

We have decided if we are stuck here, we need to make it more space efficient. The past two nights Don and I have been waiting until the kids were in bed to start pounding out the wall underneath our stairwell. It is getting hollowed out in an effort to gain another 25 sqft of kids area. Granted it is less than 4 ft tall, but it really helps to lengthen the living room area so we don't feel so boxed in.

Last night while Don was removing studs from the walls/floor I started preparing the walls for primer. The orange is coming off our wall and being changed to a lighter green/grey color (inspired by the matchbox). The tinted primer is on and it looks awesome! The whole room is softer and the lighter color really does give the illusion of more room. Once all our work last night was done, we removed all the blue tape, vacuumed up any mess, and moved the kids toy shelf back in front of the hollowed out wall.



This is our livingroom today after working late last night. This morning when the boys walked downstairs they started giggling. They knew something was different, but it took them a bit to figure out it was the wall color. "Wall go?" "Blue wall?" they asked with big smiles on their faces. It will be interesting to if the energetic orange color coming off the wall makes a difference in their energy level throughout the day, now that the walls are a nice soothing color instead.

Holiday Catch up

The boys loved their Christmas presents! We didn't open our presents until the evening of the 26th, there just didn't seem to be enough time. We had gotten the boys some Leap Frog activity centers, matchboxes and more instruments. They fuss about who plays with what, but it is all starting to even out now.

A couple days later, we got another package in the mail from Don's parents. They boys loved having "more presents" and Lucas couldn't wait to tear into them. His favorite phrase lately is "help me". Not in a nice way, mind you, but in a little man demanding voice. For a child who has been so easy and low maintenance, he sure is making up for it now. I think he is so used to doing his own thing (since he has always been fairly good and not needed much redirection) that now when he is doing things that need redirection, he is not sure why I am trying to clout any authority over him. It is an adjustment we are working on. He is head strong like me, so I know butting heads is futile. But I am the Mom and "I said so". LOL

Grandma Vicky and Poppa Don got them a couple of cute Little People sets that the boys really enjoy imagining with. When it was time to go to bed, we told the boys the little people were tired, so Wyatt lined them all up on the couch lying down and ready to sleep. Such a sweet guy! They also received tee shirts that say "I'm your Huckleberry" -a well known phrase any Tombstone fans will know.

After the boys went to bed last night, Don had a chance to set up a huge track my Mom and Dad got the boys. It is five stories high and thankfully doesn't take up much floor space. I wish I would've gotten their reaction on video. Their little eyes popped open and it was so hard to get them to go eat. Luke told me, "No hungry!" Jax said, "No eat!" However, Wyatt sat at the table with his bib on, ready for his food!

The toys most sought after seem to be the ones from Aunt Leigha. There are three CAT trucks that loudly say, "Caterpillar!" and make engine noises. Since there are three different trucks, the boys sometimes fight over which one they want, but are usually pacified after a few minutes of trading them back and forth. They definitely love the trucks though!

They are thrilled with the toys they have and I think it is unlikely that they will forget what a present is now!