A Day Fille with Nothing!

Our family just got home from spending a crazy busy weekend in Iowa-filled with lots of football and lots of fun-but also with lots of driving, lots of late nights, and lots of unhealthy food. Usually when we get back from our trips, I immediately unpack and get things back to normal...but last night I was just too tired, and this morning when we all finally woke-up, I decided to change things up a bit! My boys both got loads of sleep last night and woke up happy and snuggly and sweet...soooo...instead of rushing around like crazy trying to get things done, I decided that today would be a great day to spend just being with my kids. Hayden has been accusing me of cleaning too much lately, and not "just playing", so that's what today is all about: playing, snuggling, reading, and simply having a fun day together.





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Mommy-Hayden Date

So, for the past few weeks, we've noticed that Hayden has really been NEEDING some Mommy time!!! On this day, we had planned on going to see a movie...but at the last minute, Hayden decided that instead he'd just like to go out for lunch and chat! And that's exactly what we did!!!! It was so great to just hang out and talk like we used to do...it was good for both of us, and seemed like a great way to start our week together. Both of my boys are total Daddy's Boys, which I truely do love, but it's also nice to know that Mama still ranks up there too!!!

(below: Hayden and I splurged and enjoyed a Freckled Lemonade)

Lunch of Champions

While he doesn't get them often, Hayden LOVES Kid Cuisine days!!! It doesn't matter how much time I take to prepare a healthy, balanced lunch for him...absolutely nothing beats rubbery "chicken" nuggets, hot chocolate pudding, and gelatinized mac and cheese. Certainly a lunch of champions!!!


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Always Tomorrow...

Ahhh...another fun weekend is coming to a close. I can't believe that this was our last in March 2010!!! It seems like it was just LAST spring...when we were all getting used to the Morehead 4!!! Hayden was just fully potty trained, Jackson was tiny, and Jason and I weren't sure we'd ever get another full-night's rest!!! It's amazing how much has changed in the past year!

One year ago, on a night like tonight, things would have looked much different. I would have spent the majority in our bedroom, snuggled up with Jackson, nursing and dozing while Hayden and Jason would have spent the evening playing race tracks and wrestling. One year later, we spent the evening as a 4-some, playing downstairs...a bit of Mario, while Hayden and I snuggled, Jackson climbed on everything in sight, giggled at everything Jason said and did, and eventually started waving-a sure sign that it was bedtime. Instead of it taking, well, all night to feed him and get him to sleep, it took a little rocking, some milk and a few songs...then down he went, and we won't hear from him again until the morning. Amazing. A year ago, after going thru our bedtime routine with Hayden (teeth brushing, vitamins, reading, prayers, snuggles and talking about our day), he would have gotten up AT LEAST 3 or 4 times, snuck downstairs, and we would have to drag him back up 3 or 4 times and start all over. Now, we go thru our routine, say goodnight...and we're done. Again, amazing.

At the same time, these things...these milestones, that we thought were SO exhausting, SO never ending, SO HARD...are SO temporary. And while those things were all of that...along with those milestones came amazing feelings. Feelings and moments and emotions that are gone now for good with our two boys. They are growing so quickly. Every day I wonder where the time has gone...how it's possible for Hayden to be on the fast track to 4, and for Jackson to be 13 months already. I miss that baby smell from them, I miss them fitting just perfectly in my arms, I miss holding them while they sleep, and those perfect little gummy smiles. I miss the cooing and their little fingers wrapped so sweetly around one of mine.

Don't get me wrong...I love this time with them too. I am thankful each day to be a mommy to a 3 year old and a 1 year old. I love Hayden's humor, and how it sounds when he calls me Mommy. I love Jackson's giggles and his wide-mouthed-tongue-sticking-out-slobbery kisses. I love that they will both still sit so sweetly in our laps and snuggle at night, I love that they both adore books, and that both still think Jason and I are the most amazing people in the world. I love watching Hayden peice things together for himself...and I'm even seeing that in Jackson now!

All I'm saying is that, as a Mommy, it's so important that I remember to take the time...even when I don't think there's any time TO take, step back and take a mental picture of what's happening NOW. Not to take it all for granted and think that the next day (and the next) will bring the same things...because they won't. Each day with these boys is precious. Each is unique and special and amazing. Tomorrow brings new. New memories, new amazing moments, new frustrations....just NEW. Tomorrow my boys will be a bit taller, a bit older, a bit wiser, and a bit closer to being men and our time together being over. Everyone always says it, and I know how cliche it sounds, but time goes so darn fast the moment you give birth to your first child...and I'm just taking a moment to remind myself that before I know it...it'll be tomorrow yet again.

An Afternoon at the Park

We managed to squeeze out a few nice days in March, so of course we spent some time with friends at the park! It was so great just being outside with the boys and our great friends enjoying the fresh air. Jack even got to try out the slide and the swings...but we're still pretty sure his favorite spot was his stroller!!! We also noticed that Hayden was getting a bit more daring...and didn't ask for nearly as much help from us. (a little bittersweet!) Our babies are growing!!!

Our Little Fishy

Jason and I have been trying to find some activities to get Jackson involved it, since it seems like, up to this point, he's just been along for the ride to all of Hayden's activities. So, after a bit of research, we signed our baby up for his very first swimming lessons at the Liberty Community Center. It's been so much fun for me to be doing this with him, and while, he does become easily distracted whenever he sees Daddy and Hayden watching from the side...if I can keep him focused, he does such a great job!!! I am seeing so many differences between my 2 boys already...there doesn't seem to be much fear in our youngest, which I am both thrilled about, and a bit scared. While I completely understand that Jack isn't going to be swimming on his own after a session or two, I have been loving watching him get excited about something that is revolving entirely about him.

This is Jackson's favorite part of his "lessions"...jumping in from the side!!!!

Surfin' on his boogie board

Swimming Partners...doin' the "lazy boy"

St. Pattie's Day

This year, Hayden was on spring break for St. Patrick's Day, so I thought it would be fun to fill our day with lots of green...green craft projects, green food, green clothes...and a bit of green beer later for Mom and Dad!!! The boys and I had such a great day together, and I was so excited to spend the day with my 2 favorite leprechauns!

Sunday Morning

I'm sure I've posted something about Ginger Sue's in the past, but we always have such a great experience there, that I feel I have to mention it again!!!
We found this fun little breakfast/lunch place shortly after moving here, and I have to say that it's high on the list of our favorite eateries in the KC area. Always really great food (the pancakes are amazing, as is the Cobb wrap), and the service is great too!!!
And the best thing about it is that we always have a great time there as a family!!! Some of our best conversations of the entire week happen in this quaint little place, while the boys are coloring, and we're sipping our coffee.











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Lady Killer

Jackie's Godfather Andrew got him THE MOST adorable shirts for his first birthday...and this one says it all!!!! (I'm certain Jason thinks he needs one in his size too)



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The Boys

Taking a cue from a friend's blog, I thought it might be fun to jot a few "fun facts" about each of the boys! Starting from youngest to oldest:

Jackson:
•just turned 13 months old
•is cruising like a little speed racer...and actually took his first two steps today...from Hayden's chair to his bed
•prefers to only eat bananas...although I can sometimes sneak in peas, cheese, hot dogs and manderine oranges (where did my good eater go?!?!?)
•he has been taking swimming lessons with Mama, which has been fun! he gets very excited when we're putting on his trunks
•still only working with 4 teeth...keep thinking more are coming...but nada!
•he LOVES his big brother, and follows him around constantly...
•his absolute FAVORITE place to be is the bathtub...when he hears the water running he starts trying to pull his shirt off
•he says dada, hay, mama, ni ni, nana (for banana, sorry Mom), mmmm (milk)...he also barks when asked what a puppy says, and says vroooom while playing cars.
•he's a BIG pointer...which is how we know what he wants
•he's a total climber...and is always getting in and out if their short chairs and on and off the fireplace

Hayden:
•is 3 years and 9 months old
• has a chore chart, and is now earning a small allowance
•goes to school 2 days per week, for 3 hours...and loves it!
• he has made some great connections with friends and some parents, which is amazing for me to see.
• he absolutely adores scooby doo, and honestly believes that "the gang" is coming for a sleepover soon! he even has the sleeping arrangements planned out
•he has learned how to write his name, and is perfecting the other letters as well
•his favorite thing to do with Daddy is play Mario
•he has been searching for signs of spring, and is thrilled when he sees robins green grass, and flowers
•he has been great about playing with his brother, and is always looking out for him
•he's still a snuggler, and daddy and i love it!
•his favorite food is chicken nuggets or mac and cheese...but he'd still rather do just about ANYTHING rather than eat.
•daddy and Hayden have been going out for donuts and to lowes for a building workshop twice a month. they love it, and he's very proud of his accomplishments.






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First Cookie

Yesterday, after a full weekend at home, we loaded up the boys and took them out for lunch. We chose Red Robin, as it's Hayden's favorite...(as long as the "big red bird" isn't there). We all enjoyed our meals...but I'm absolutely certain that Jackson's favorite course was dessert!!! He's his Mama's boy for sure!!!



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Movie Night

So, we've started a new tradition at our house...twice a month we're spending Saturday evenings watching a fun kiddie/family movie and popping some popcorn. As everyone knows, we're a bit of a tv family, so we thought this would be a fun way to spend some time together...while doing something we ALL enjoy.

Aware

Okay, so I am well aware that it's now been 2 weeks since my last blog update, and trust me, I have loads to share!!! It's just that finding the time to sit down and do it hasn't been available lately. But please don't give up on me...I WILL get in here SOON and promise to get some fun pictures and stories posted.

...it just won't be tonight...because, while I'm aware of the fact that I need to do this, I'm also aware of how late I was out last night, how extremely exhausted I am today, and I am aware that Idol is on tonight. Holla!

Fantastic Day!

While I plan on coming back with a bunch of detailed posts recapping our day and our past weekend, I just had to post about the most fantasic day I've had with BOTH of my boys in a long time. For all of you who have or have had a three year old little man in your life, I'm sure you know all too well about the trials and tribulations that are faced in our household on a daily basis. I don't mean to sound negative here...98% of the time, Hayden is an absolute pleasure to be around. I truely love every day that we get to spend together, and I'm fully aware of how lucky I am to get to spend ALL of his moments with him...even the...not-so-fun-ones.

The reason I'm writing about today specifically is that today was one of those amazingly fun days...one of those days that is chock full of moments that make me fully aware of WHY I always wanted to be a mommy. Hayden was so sweet today...he was full of kisses, I love you's, and snuggles. He was helpful, he listened, he thanked me for things, and was a wonderful big brother.
There was a moment, while we were at Target this morning, where we were holding hands, skipping thru the store, and Jack was sitting in the cart giggling. It was such a perfect moment!
I love my boys with my whole heart every single day...but today I might have found just a little extra space to love them even more!

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One Smart Cookie

I realize that there have been many posts in the past discussing poop...so why not add another!!! This one stars our baby genius Jackson (yes, we've been blessed with multiple baby genius's)!
Hayden's brand new trick is...every time he poops, he sticks both arms straight out in front of him and pulls on one of his sleeves. The motion is something like he's trying to get his shirt off. I know, this is very strange, and I have no idea why he's connecting the two things...pooping = pulling shirt off in his little mind...but I love that we now have a signal...and strangely enough, I couldn't be more proud!!

A New Nickname for his Baby Brother

Almost every second of almost every day I feel very blessed to have these two amazingly sweet, smart and very funny little boys! Today was no exception...and while there were three or four seconds of my day that were completely devoted to figuring out how to go about trading them in for puppies...I totally regretted those thoughts after hearing Hayden (repeatedly) refer to Jackson as "his Little"! It's a fairly new thing, but has completely replaced his previous nicknames of Baby Huffington and Fat Jack. This one is my favorite by far...and if it's possible it may have made me love him even a little bit more!!!!




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A Wonderful Doctor

We all know what a Hypo I am...I worry about ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING when it comes to illness or even the THOUGHT of illness (which usually turns into me or one of the kids having said illness), so the need for a thoughtful, understanding and thorough doctor is a MUST for our family. Luckily when we relocated to Liberty I was given the name of a doctor that a friend (who is also very "cautious") had all good things to say about. When I called to schedule an appointment with her, I thought that she only saw women for our fun "women stuff", but it turns out that she is also a family doctor.
Since we moved here, I became pregnant...which she saw me thru, had a c-section...which she was there for, and she has seen me, my boys and Jason thru COUNTLESS illnesses...and even was there for us thru a miscarriage. She takes my calls in the middle of the night, on the weekends, ALWAYS. She is always calming and understanding...and I always come away from our "talks" much less panicked.
I'm sure she's well compensated for all of the above...but something I'm sure she's not compensated for is the heart that she shows. She calls to check on us, she kisses up my kids when we're there, and she's hugged me thru many stressful times.
Here's an example:
This past week, our entire family was sick with colds. Of course, as is usually the case, Hayden and I were hit the hardest...but we were all feeling miserable. On Monday Jackson had his 1 year check-up, so we thought, while we were there, we'd have her check the rest of us out too. After examining us, she said that it was "just a cold" and that it needed to run it's course. On Wednesday, Hayden had suffered thru 2 days of 104+ temps and was starting to sound funny when he was breathing...so she wanted me to bring him in to run some tests. Thankfully all the tests came back "normal" and he just had to wait the virus out. Today is Friday, and I just got off the phone with her...but this time, it was HER calling US to check in on Hayden and make sure that he's doing better. I've dealt with many, many doctors over the years...even ones that I've liked...but I've never dealt with one who has shown my family so much HEART...and that is what really makes a Wonderful Doctor in my book.

A Typical Morning

Every morning Hayden comes into our bedroom, wakes us up, and promptly asks for a "toon". ...and who are we to deny him such a simple pleasure?!?!? However, when King Hayden starts requesting breakfast in bed, we have to draw the line...most of the time!!!

iPhone

Apparently there's even an app for this!!! I'm seriously addicted to this thing...and I wonder why I'm constantly needing to recharge!
...on with the blogging...


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Always Regrets

As hard a I try, I almost ALWAYS miss getting a photo with someone important...and this time was no different. You'd think I'd learn...one of the biggest regrets I have is never getting a picture of Jackson with my Grandma before she passed away. Unfortunately, Jackson had very little time with her...and now I'll never be able to show him a picture of her holding him...and it's so sad because in the little time that they had together, Grandma and Jack had formed a bond, and Grandma seemed to absolutely ADORE him. I guess the stories will just have to suffice.

Thankfully I have many, many pictures of my grandpa with my boys...but on this particular trip, I don't think I got ANY with Grandpa and Jackson. Sorry Jackie...but Grandpa WAS there...and here's proof:

Grandpa doin' what he does best!

Grandpa and Hayden...

I also don't want to forget Jackson, Grandpa worked and worked with you and finally taught you to clap your hands when he said "patty cake"...it was so cute...and he was SO proud!!!

February 19th, 2010-Jackson's First Birthday-Day!

Nana and Papa lovin' on the birthday boy
Siblings...man...when did he get so TALL!!!

Mommy and Daddy with the birthday boy!

the fam...

Mom and Jeannie

Jackson and Mommy

Still Best Buds-raiding the m&m's!

Papa trying to get in on the cake...imagine!

Yummy!!! He did much better with his "practice cake" than he did with the real one...silly boy!

Jackson and Aunt Jeannie

Yes, we had a party on Saturday, February 20th...but we had a little mini-party at our house on his actual birthday too!!! Lucky for Jackson, some of his favorites just happened to be in town to help us celebrate!!! What a fun night we had!!! Thanks for being here Noels, Grandpa, and Woodrich Family!

Rubber Duckie...Jackson's 1

As I do every single year, I agonized over the "theme" for Jackson's first birthday party...and after lots of thinking, researching and more thinking...I decided to go with Rubber Duckies. I remember planning Hayden's first birthday, and I actually struggled because there were SO many things that he liked already. (of course, we ended up going with something he had ZERO interest in at the time...but it was cute!) But with Jackson, he doesn't show much interest in specific things, ie: toys, cartoons, books, etc. After thinking about it tho, I realized that the highlight of everyday for him is BATHTIME...and what could be cuter than duckies, right!?!?! So duck hunting I went...and ducks I found!!! I'm a little disappointed that I didn't get any photos of the party ROOM completely decorated, but let me just say...there were ducks galore! Jackson had a ball playing with the balloons we had blown up and scattered across the floor to resemble bubbles...he had lots of his little friends there, his Nana, Papa, Uncle Brandyn and Great Grandpa drove down from Iowa. His Godmother Jeannie and her family came from Nebraska, and his Godfather Andrew made it down in a snow/fog storm from Iowa. We felt so blessed by all of the people there who love our little guy and who WANTED to be there to celebrate with him. Thanks to all of you for making it such a fun celebration!!!

I was one proud Mama!!!
Well, we tried...little stinkers!

Our sweet boys...they're both absolutely precious!

Daddy and Jackson..

Jackson and Uncle Brandyn...just keepin' it real

The First Year...GONE!!!

I know, it's SUCH a cliche, but I absolutely CANNOT believe how fast Jackson's year went. It really does feel like he was just born yesterday...I can honestly still FEEL the emotions of being a brand new mommy again. But at the same time, I can barely remember a time before Jackson was a member of our family. He is THE MOST amazing little man...he's sweet and lovey, he's laid back, and he loves nothing more than to snuggle and be played with. He has a beautiful smile, and eyes that melt my heart. I'd say, for the first 9 months of his life, he was 100% go with the flow...truthfully, there were many times when both Jason and I would just forget that he was even there...and then all of a sudden we'd panic and realize that he was just chillin'. He must have heard us say that one too many times, because around the 9 month mark, our little man gained quite a little personality. He's a silly little guy...he loves to point to tell us what he wants, he loves to play in toilet water, he loves to eat bananas...and most o f all, he LOVES...more than anything...to play with his brother and to get some Hayden attention. We are having so much fun with this little man...trying to take it all in and enjoy him and all of his little moments as much as we can.