Enjoying Every Moment

The boys on Halloween 10/31/07

I find myself often so caught up in enjoying the boys I don't often take time to take pictures, journal, or video what is going on in my life and theirs. When the boys are grown up I will definitely be able to say I have taken them in and thoroughly enjoyed them. They are my pride and joy. So, today I am getting back to writing about them. It is amazing how kids grow up. You are just going about your day with routines, eating, napping, diapers, etc. and one moment you realize they have just grown up in the blink of an eye.

Titus is becoming so much more a little person each day. He is interacting so much more. For instance, Ron and I play this game where we take a marker or small object and blow it across the room with our mouths and Titus will try to stick the marker in our mouths to get us to do it again. Or we will act like we are eating whatever he has in his hand and he will try to get us to eat it some more. He is also so close to crawling. He is so much more motivated to move than Justice was. Now, he will get up on all fours and rock. He moves backwards very easily by doing the worm or scooting. Crawling is definitely around the corner. So far so good on sleeping through the night. We went a couple of weeks where I had to get up with him 2-3 times a night. Then, I switched his nighttime routine where he eats cereal at 7:45, bathe, play, nurse, rock then bedtime about 9:30. So, I am thrilled with the good sleep. I just function so much better and get so much more done. Titus is now 17 lbs. 11 oz., we took him to the doctor two weeks ago to look at some bug bites that had puffed up on his skin to whelps. He just reacts very badly to any bug bites. He has stayed very healthy otherwise managing to miss getting a bad virus Justice had for 10 days of coughing, hives, etc. I am very thankful for that. Titus is still very fidgety and sweet. His smile just lights up a room. He is very serious with his toys and really examines them. He loves to flip things over and over and figures out if I do this, then this will happen. He has great curiosity.

Justice is as active as ever. Right now he is really into trucks, rolling them in the kitchen or on the coffee table. He loves to spin the "wuh-ills." As you can see in the picture we have a little cabinet he fits into and he loves to climb in it and I will say "Where is Justice" and he says "A is." We still play ball all the time or read books. He gets so excited to point out the letters with such pride. His language is coming along better and better. He is becoming clearer in what he says. He will say "I see a truck" and it sounds more like "Iseea truck." He really runs the first few words together, but it is starting to get more clear. I love his enthusiasm for life and reminds me to appreciate the small things. He is so excited to run up to me and I scoop him up in my arms as he giggles and I kiss his puffy cheeks. After he got over his virus I took him to the Ear, Nose and Throat doctor and we are going to have his tonsils and adenoids removed in June because he snores and has some apnea spells when he sleeps on his back. So, we will have outpatient surgery for Titus' urinary issue in January and Justice will have inpatient surgery in June. Lots of fun to look forward to. Justice is also growing, he is 27.5 lbs. and nearly 34 inches tall. We are glad to see his growth progress to about the 8th percentile for height.

This is our first family Jack-O'Lantern--It has a heart, Jesus, and the cross. We liked the finished product. It is a little late to post, but we were pretty proud of it.

Fall and the Boys

Fall Weather has me and the boys outside most of the time these days. The weather has been amazing. Although we sure could use the rain and pray for it to come. We are doing well. The boys are fun and can wear me out at the same time. Titus I am pleased to report has slept 10 hours for two nights in a row, but as soon as I write this he will probably change. I hope not, I love the sleep. He is growing a lot. Chubby as ever. I haven't gotten a chance to get him weighed lately, but I am guessing around 18 lbs. He is one squirmy baby, he really wants to move. While we are outside though, he is just content to sit in that stroller and chew on the straps while I chase Justice around. Justice just runs around. He likes stomping on the water grates or picking up balls and throwing them at me to catch. Today I just sat Titus in the grass on a blanket with toys around and he played so well. Daddy carved our very first pumpkin for our family today. I will post a picture when I get a chance. We picked the pumpkin out on our trip to the Pumpkin Patch on Friday.

My mother, the boys, myself, and my niece and nephew took off for the pumpkin patch on Friday. It was a glorious fall day. My friend Jean and her son joined us as well. We played out front of the country store for the first hour. Justice rode a mini tractor and threw balls around while my niece and nephew enjoyed the inflatable park. We rode a hey ride up to a real pumpkin patch and picked out a beauty to carve and a little pumkin for Justice. Justice enjoyed seeing all the "punkins" and got to shuck corn and pick cotton. It was a blast. He also rode a train, sat on a bright red tractor, and saw some chocolate brown horses. What a day! He was exhausted and took a nap on the car ride home. It was all and all a great experience for him and he got lots of good outdoor time. I am all about getting him outside to enjoy God's beauty and keep him active and not sitting in the house all day.

Gift Giving Dilemma

The gift giving season is vastly approaching. With all the options and choices, it can be overwhelming to get started. The task is daunting. Where should I start? How much should I spend? How can I do this without stressing myself out? It is important to get yourself organized and ready for the shopping season ahead, so that you can relax and enjoy the meaningfulness of this time of year with family.It may sound simple, but the first task is to create a list of everyone you have to buy for. This way there is no chance you will show up at dear husband’s family get together and have forgotten his Aunt Pearl. It will also be helpful as you shop to know who you are looking for and check off the people you have bought for as you go. You won’t have to stop and think, “Did I get cousin Suzy anything yet?” Keep the list with you to have it ready to update at any time.Don’t be afraid to go with a signature gift. Many people are afraid to give the same thing to everyone on their list, but if it is something that is unique and will remind people of you, it is special. It is even better if you can have the gifts personalized as well. Classic signature gifts may include picture frames with a family photo, monogrammed soap or candles, engraved pendants on a timeless silver chain, or embroidered hand towels. The options go on and on and can be just as thoughtful.Pick out one thing or characteristic about each of the people on your list to single out for your gift giving. If your sister-in-law loves to cook, it would be great to go with an engraved Cherry Wood cutting board for her to use. If your Uncle is all about basketball, then splurge on tickets to his team’s big game. The niece that lives for fashion on your list might like a personalized shell pendant to add to her accessory collection. Narrowing your list to one thing about each person can keep you from looking at everything out there on wondering if each person likes each item you see.It is a good idea to keep in mind two questions “Will this person use this?” and “Will this person enjoy this?” Your husband might need a new pack of socks, but will he find it as enjoyable as the new release DVD he wants to add to his collection. Your mother may go on about how she needs a new set of knives, but an engraved mothers bracelet with a special message on the back may warm her heart and be more meaningful to her in the long run. Getting that full face grin and hearing the words “Oh, I love it!” is the aim and goal.You don’t want to be stuck in the middle of December and haven’t started on your shopping. Start early and be smart. Narrow your choices and have a plan. Shopping should be fun and not a cause for concern. With a few steps of strategy the gift buying can be joyful and a reflection of the warmth in your heart for your loved ones.Happy Shopping!Love EmilyRoseJewellery

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It's My Birthday!

Another year to celebrate how blessed I am in life. It is amazing to look over the past year of my life. I found out a week or so after my birthday that we were expecting a boy and that he had his brain issue. We had to wait 19 weeks until we received our miracle that he had been healed and no longer had any fluid in his brain. It was an amazing experience and I grew so much personally through it and am so much stronger because of that trial. Of course in my 25th year of life I was blessed with having my second baby Titus. Twice blessed with two wonderful bouncing boys. I couldn't be happier. My life is all about the boys. I was talking to my dear husband the other day about how excited I was that Titus had eaten sweet potatoes for the first time and thought how dull my life must seem to an outsider that I get so excited about these small things, but I don't care. My life is wonderful. I don't need fancy cars or a planner full of events to attend, I have my boys.

Speaking of the boys. They are growing up so much. Titus I would guess is around 17 1/2 lbs. I haven't had him weighed since a month ago, but I think that is about right. He is 7 mos. now and as adorable as ever. I love holding him. He is so lovable with all that chub to squeeze. His little face is so squnchy, if that is a word. He is scooting backwards now if he stays on his tummy. He rolls back and forth now and has been doing that for a couple of weeks now. He has also been sitting up independently for a month. He is thankfully back to sleeping through the night. He is still saying the same sounds "Buh" "Guh" etc. He is eating good, nursing still pretty often 2-3 hours, sometimes 3 1/2. He eats squash, pears, sweet potatoes and oatmeal cereal that I mix with breastmilk. He gets really excited at mealtimes. I fed him solids after "lunch" and near bedtime. His routine is crazy sometimes, we do the same things everyday, but it doesn't happen at the same time. He goes to bed usually around 10 still, but otherwise naps and eating happen at different times. We still give him his breathing treatments at night and that goes pretty well, usually calming him down. He loves to be held still, talked to. He is very much about exploring and playing with things. He likes activity. He wants to grab whatever is in sight, including some things his brother is playing with. He is now getting mad when something he is playing with is taken away. I just love this age he is at now.

Justice is becoming more and more a little boy. I love him to pieces with his independence and loving nature. He is so funny, he can be so independent, but he wants that love and attention. He runs up to me with arms wide open begging to be picked up and loved on, which I do emphatically. I love to shower him with love. He is still all about rocking to his "moo-kick" or music. His favorite songs are "Who Built the Arc" and "I am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N." He colors with his Color Wonder paper and markers. He is still an outdoors boy. When I put his clothes on in the morning he says "Go Side!" I can't put his shoes and socks on until right before we go because he knows that means we are going. He is also a tough little fella, he falls or bumps his head and pretty much everytime he says "Is kay" or "Its Okay." He is having a lot of trouble going to sleep right now and we have to put Titus in the pack-n-play in the living room at night because Justice isn't going to sleep without crying or making noise. It is pretty tough, we are stuck in our room once Titus goes to sleep. He is so much fun though, lots of energy and ready to discover the world around him.

I am blessed!

*the picture was taken when Titus was dedicated at our church on 8/26/07

Titus and Justice with Mimi and "Kitty"

Titus On the Move!

It has been awhile since I have blogged. I have needed to catch up. These pictures of Titus are actually from July. Aren't they cute! He is just so precious I could eat him up. He is such a sweetie pie. I call him my "punkin." We haven't had the easiest of times with him as I am sure he is teething. He is back to waking up in the middle of the night and won't go back to sleep unless he is nursed. It is also hard to get him to sleep at night. Thank goodness for baby Tylenol. I have to practically give him it each night otherwise he won't sleep and is so uncomfortable. Poor little thing! And, as the title of the post says, he is on the move. On Aug. 15th, he rolled from stomach to back for the first time. He was so proud to show us his new trick as we would clap and praise him emphatically. He is also scooting backwards, not fast by any means, but he will arch his back push his hands and go backwards. Justice was at least 9 mos. before he was doing this. You could put Justice in one place and come back and he wouldn't have moved. Titus though is really trying to go places. We had Justice and Titus' portraits taken at the end of July. They were adorable. We took them in overalls with white shirts. So precious! We had our first car trip with Titus too since my last post. Titus is not a good car rider, horrible really. He cried 90% of the way to Birmingham. What a mess! We had a good trip though visiting my brother. While there we had an appmnt. with a doctor to get ready for Titus' sugery he needs to correct a urinary issue. He has to have surgery in January. It will not be fun at all! It makes me nervous and I am dreading it. Well, I hope to post later, right now I am really tired. I am posting after putting Titus to bed and I am ready for some rest after a busy day with my two sweet boys.

Justice Turns 2!

Justice is 2 years old! I can hardly believe it! I have a two year old! We had such a blast throwing Justice his first official birthday party. Last year it was just family and very low key. This year we invited his play friends and their families and had a great, great time. The kiddos played and were very well behaved I must say. We had BBQ, watermelon, cake and ice cream. Everything just went so well. I couldn't have been more pleased. As I prepared for this party I thought about the many years ahead of birthdays and how I want each year for my kids to feel special and loved on their important day. I treasure them so much and want them to know they are a blessing to us. We don't go overboard by any means. I am not going to spend hundreds of dollars as some parents do. I think you can let your kids know what they mean to you in much simpler ways, but the depth is still there. One funny story from the party was when we started singing "Happy Birthday" to Justice, he just beamed with pride that everyone was singing to him and he held his fists in the air and shouted with glee "Bur-DAY!" and kept shouting it over and over as we all laughed. He was so cute. He was also all over the place. You could hardly get a good picture of him, but he enjoyed himself thoroughly. He didn't even stop to get cake and ice cream. We are truly blessed to have him here!
His favorite gift that day had to have been the baloons as you could see below. We also got him a play lawn mower, a play tent (he loved!), T'Ball set, punching blow up toy, and a coloring book with wonder markers. From Maw-maw he got a play cement truck, from neighbors Ayden, Josh, and Anna he got a bat and ball, a truck from Little Richard, Wendy and Richard, and from Jean and Lee Douglass he got Leap Frog Letter Magnet Set. Everyone was so nice to think of him!

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Oh MY!

We have had quite the July so far. Lots of activity and lots of stories. Justice in particular has kept us on the go and on our toes.

A couple of Saturdays ago, 7/14, Justice got up from his nap and I got a lovely surprise as I went to get my little boy up. He was covered in poop! Lately he has been sticking his hand down in his diaper, which I am told is a part of toddlerhood. The poop was in his hair, on his face and around his mouth (I don't want to think about why it was near his mouth). Well anyway, we have been trying to remodel, well paint and change a few fixtures in our bathroom, so pretty much every Saturday we have been working on it. We couldn't use it on these Saturdays including the tub and he desparately needed the tub. So, I had to haul him to our Shower and put him in the baby bath and scrub him down. Lovely afternoon! It didn't faze Justice at all, just lots of fun for mommy!

Titus has been laughing at mommy for awhile now, but hadn't laughed at Daddy until 7/15. We make sure and brainwash our kiddos from birth (or even while in mommy) to be Auburn fans, but really I think it is in their blood. Ron was talking to Titus and telling him "Auburn Tigers" and making the sound of a Tiger and with this Daddy got his first giggle out of him. It was the cutest thing!

I am calling Titus my hoss. I don't think of him as chunky as I walk around with him during the day, but then I look over at me carrying him in the mirror and I just look in amazement at my little hoss baby. On 7/19 he weighed 15 lbs. 7.6 oz. He is only in the 75th percentile for weight, but because he is so low in percentile in height it magnifies his chub. We are working on his rolling over, he can get to his side some now. But boy, he is good with his hands. He is a very grabby baby. Earrings, necklaces, anything nearbly he is after and tries with gusto to get it into his mouth. I am quite impressed with his ability to use his hands at his age like he does.

A not so good story from this past week, Sunday actually 7/22, Justice had a little accident. Daddy was cutting the grass and turned the mower off to dump the grass and turned to do it and Justice put his hand on the top of the mower and burned his left hand pretty good leaving some good size blisters that we have had to treat. You can't turn your eyes from kids for one second! Poor thing, we have kept his hand wrapped so he won't mess with the blisters and get his hand dirty to prevent infections. This is by far his worst injury.

We are busily planning for Justice's 2nd birthday. It is going to be a simple gathering in our yard to just enjoy Justice and celebrate our little boy.

Well, that is all for now. I am sleepy from a long, but good day with the boys and am going to call it a day. I will post new pics of Titus hopefully tomorrow. Blessings!

Sweet Babies

We are just moving along and growing around here. Justice is a month away from turning 2 and Titus is 4 mos. old now. We had Titus' doctor appmnt. and he is doing beautifully. He is 15 lbs. 5 oz. in the 75th percentile for his weight, only 3rd percentile for his length at 22 3/4 inches. The doctor wanted to measure him again after the nurse did to make sure it was accurate as he is so short, but Ron and I both are so the kiddos are just going to be little. Everthing else was great. He just gets cuter and cuter. Ron is getting more fond of him as he gets more interactive. It is hard for daddies since they don't get the bonding of breastfeeding, babies are usually more attached to mommy, and men are just more activity oriented and babies just aren't the first few months of life. But, Titus is starting to get to be more drawn to Ron. Titus spits and makes bubbles with Ron more than with anyone else. It is adorable! I love watching them together. Praise the Lord, Titus is now on a routine. I shouldn't have gotten stressed about it because I am sure Justice was the same way. Titus now goes down about 10 o'clock at night and sleeps till 8, what a blessing! I feel so rested! He naps well too, 1 1/2 hours in the morning and 2-3 hours in the afternoon and a short early evening nap as well. We are doing so good!

Justice is about the same. Not too much new other than every day he picks up more words and forms more sentences, he is such a sponge! I work with him on numbers, letters, and colors here and there. He goes through phases with what he is interested in; balls, Dora, Elmo, etc. We got him a Dora and Diego toothbrush that he loves and says, "I-go and Dora." I-go is what he calls Diego (Dora's cousin for those who don't know).

Events in our life--4th of July and visit with Ron's grandfather and Aunt Joy.

The 4th was on a Wednesday so we stuck around here. We pulled the blow up pool out and let Justice play. I got in the pool with him and we tossed around balls and Daddy would put the sprinkler up and shower Justice and he would yell "Is Rainin'" We BBQued on the front porch and made brownies and Ron and I put Justice to bed before the fireworks, he is a little scared of them right now. But, Ron and I watched them together.

The next day we went to the Lake and had dinner with Ron's grandpa and Aunt Joy who live out of town. It is so neat to have the boys around their great-grandfather. We had such a nice visit and grilled out steaks, yum! Titus took his evening nap and it gave us time to catch up with everyone. It is so good to see family.

That is about it for now. I am enjoying the afternoon doing lots of things I haven't gotten to do as my mother has Justice for night. Ron and I are going to watch a movie tonight since it is so hard to do that anymore as Titus sleep in the livingroom. So, be blessed!

Me and my Guys on 7/4/07

Day By Day

I love these two pictures of my boys. It is so hard to get Justice to cooperate with pictures sometimes. I am just amazed always that I have two sweet little boys that provide me with such joy! They are each so special. Titus looks at me like I am the most important person in the world. Justice brings me books, sits in my lap and waits for me to tell him a story. He also runs up to me and I give him the biggest bear hug as he giggles. These moments are the best things in my life and give such purpose and meaning to me as a mommy. This is my job, my first ministry, and my priority. I don't take it lightly. These are two precious lives that I have been entrusted and anyone who thinks the mom job is not work is fooling themselves. I am raising the next generation. It is a huge undertaking.

Being a mom of two little ones really requires you to take each day as it comes and not to get ruffled if things don't go as planned. I have to keep this in mind, otherwise the days that get a little chaotic would stress me out. I do have the days where I get stressed, but really pray through it. No matter what happens, at the end of the day I have two beautiful boys and a wonderful husband.

Titus is developing more and more skills. He is really grabbing at toys and pulling them to his mouth as you can see in the picture in his bouncy seat. He loves bright colors and will get all worked up talking when something grabs his interest. He is so funny, he will get his fingers in his mouth and just talk and talk to whatever it may be. He loves the lights and fan. His talking consists of sounds like "uh," "ah," "ah-goo," "boo." I love to hear his voice! Sleeping is still about the same as I posted. Last night it was down for bed at 10:30, up at 3:30, up at 7:30 and up for good at 9:00 a.m. So, we are not real routine yet. I just wonder where the nights of sleeping 7-8 hours are? They disappeared. Oh well, we will get there. I had him weighed on Thursday at the Nursing Support group and he was 14 lbs. 7 oz. He is a little short chub at 3 1/2 mos. Justice is growing more fond of him and excitedly says "Titus" when we bring him around the baby.

Just a Quick Check In...

I want to nap so badly right now, but I also want to do a little blogging. So, I will do a quick update on our goings on. Titus is all over the place with his nighttime routine. I was getting so exhausted last week when he wouldn't go to sleep until 11:30 or later sometimes. But, last night I got him down at 9:00 yippie! But, then he got up at 12:45 and 4:45 and finally up at 8:30. At least when he went to bed so late he slept 7-8 hours. I think he did that because he had worn himself out. I am sure we will get it down one day, so I try not to stress myself out. The boys continue to get a good nap together thankfully. Titus just gets cuter and cuter. He is a chubbo more than ever. He has the sweetest voice! Justice is a mess, so adorable and very destructive when he isn't watched like a hawk. He can just about say anything and proudly says it over and over, so it really makes you think about what you say. We had a good Father's Day. Daddy got a martial arts DVD "Hero," a 12 pack of Dr. Pepper, spicy peanuts, and 3 cards I picked out to be from each one of us. He liked it all. We went to church for the 2nd week in a row. I am glad to be getting back into that routine. I love going and get so much out of our SS lessons. Titus does great in nursery, Justice has a little hard time at the end when kids are getting picked up, I think he is worrying about where mommy and daddy are. So, I am probably going to have to get him early from now on. So, that is it in a nutshell. I hope to write more later, Emily

Anything and Everything

I cannot believe it has been nearly a month since my last post. I am just busy up to my elbows with babies, my website, and family. Everyone is healthy. Since my last post, Titus got really bad sick after that post for about a week. We were at the doctor on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Monday that week. He is now on breathing treatments 2 times a day. He is doing so much better now that we are doing those. He is breathing in Pulmicort, which is an asthma preventative.

Titus is growing up so much. He is 3 mos. old today! He is chunking up now to about 13.5 lbs. I weighed him on the 31st of May and he was 12 lbs. 15 oz., so he might even be bigger than that. I go back for his 3 mos. checkup on Friday so we shall see. He is in 3-6 mos. clothes now. He spent a lot of time in preemies and newborn clothes and very little time in 0-3 mos. clothing. It is really hard to snap clothes at the bottom because his thighs are so plump. He makes you just want to eat him up his is so plump and cute! He is responding so much to people. He laughs and coos. He gets so excited and kicks his legs and moves his arms when you talk to him. Sleeping is about the same as always. He wakes at least every 3 hours. Occasionally he will go 5 hours, but that is a rarity. I have tried letting him cry some, but he is persistent. We have a crib now that he sleeps in, usually just the first stretch of the night until I put him in bed with me since it is easier to nurse him and get some sleep at the same time. The crib is actually in the living room and he sleeps in there at night. We have a pack-n-play (portacrib) in Justice's room for him to nap during the day in. We don't want to put Titus in Justice's room for the first stretch of night because Justice usually has a hard time going to sleep and Titus sometimes doesn't go to sleep right away either.

Justice is doing well. He is talking so much more. He loves to tell us when he likes something he says, "I like it!" in the sweetest little voice. He also says "I so funny." He is just putting sentences together so well. He has also picked up the possesive tense by saying "My ball" or "my blakie" for his blanket. He is also getting more sure on his feet and runs pretty good. I have to get a little run going to catch up to him. With his development he is also developing obstinance as he is testing boundaries and trying to get independent. We have to really be firm with him about his fit pitching to get what he wants, especially coming inside after playtime. He is still into Dora, not so much Elmo right now. He will also watch Blues Clues and sometimes Diego in which he calls "I-go." We went to the lake for Memorial Day and this past weekend. He loves the water and it doesn't matter that it is cold. I think he gets a thrill out of the coldness of it. Boy, is it ever tough to keep him out of danger at the lake though. He isn't afraid of anything. Ron had to rescue him as he just dove right in one time. It really wasn't that big of a deal, but if Ron hadn't been right there it would have. We stayed with him the whole time up there. It was fun though. He loves to go "swinning" as he calls it. We took a boat ride the past weekend for Ron's birthday and Justice and Titus both slept as the boat motor lulled them to sleep.

Other events in our lives include Ron's truck dying. We went nearly 3 weeks with one car. It was tough not having a vehicle since Ron had to take my car to go to work. I was stuck at home. We have another car now for Ron and are working on getting a minivan since traveling is really hard in the corolla. We plan on going to NC this fall to see Ron's sister and it is going to be a real need if we make that trip.

Housekeeping is getting easier since we are getting more and more of a routine going. The boys sleep 2-3 hours in the afternoon and I am taking advantage. I would love to nap some, but I feel better with a cleaner house than napping. I get to sleep a little later in the morning, so that is helping. I am posting today because Titus actually woke up early from his nap and I got him back to sleep and couldn't put him back in the room with Justice as I didn't want to wake him up, so he is sleeping in the living room preventing me from cleaning it or the kitchen. But, I really wanted to get back to some blogging. I hope not to go as long again.

Mamaw and Titus at the lake

Justice at the lake (ignore the Bama chair, not ours)

Mommy & Titus Daddy & Titus

Chubbo Baby Titus Busy Justice

Back to the Doctor

I took Titus to his 2 mos. checkup this morning and it was a good thing we had this appointment as he was getting more congested and starting to wheeze the night before. But, Praise the Lord, no hospital this time, we were sent home with instructions to do breathing treatments 3x a day and come back on Friday to see how he was doing. At this appointment he was 11 lbs. 2 oz. with a dry diaper on and I don't think his height was accurate at 20 3/4 inches long. I think he is more like 21 1/4 like we had measured the week before.

Though he is sick he is still smily. We were sitting with the nurse and he was just a grinning at me and trying to talk. He loves to look at bright objects and he smiles and goos at them. What a sweet, sweet baby! I finally ordered prints of Titus and his birth announcement. A little late, but pretty good considering I am juggling two little ones. What a challenge it is. I think I get better at it though. We are getting into a pretty solid routine. And part of that routine involves both boys going for naps at the same time, for which I am so grateful. I can get a little nap and do some things around the house or hop on the computer like I am now. So, things are coming together for us.

Feelings and Stories to Tell

Here is my precious little Titus smiling for the camera for the first time on 4/27/07. He is a very smily little baby. He is really getting to be a talker too. It is so cute! He acts like he really wants to talk and what comes out is just plain adorable "Ah Goo." I love the first smiles and goos and coos. It is just amazing to watch these little human beings develop into little people and discover life and all it has to offer. Raising children allows you to go back and take a fresh look at the simple things in life like airplanes and bright colors that we don't notice anymore. Justice learning new words and repeating them over and over is like he has just figured out something akin to the discovery of a complicated mathematical equation. I love it!

I am amazed at Justice's growing up so much lately. He has now figured out how to open any lotion, makeup, bottle, etc. He can twist the caps off them now, open up the top to just about anything. For instance, today, I found him in the middle of the living room covered in my facial cream that has a top that twists. I didn't realize he could do that, but he sure can now! I have to tell you, right after this I was feeding Titus and he had the biggest poo-poo and it went out of his diaper. So, I had him on the changing table and he proceeded to pee and I covered him up with wipes and was picking him up (no diaper) and simi wrapped in a towel to get him in the baby tub to clean him off. As I walked to the kitchen he pee-peed again all over me and the living room floor since the towel I had put on him apparently did not cover him completely where it needed to. I just had to laugh, get in the bathtub with Titus since I needed a bath as well. I didn't mention Justice was in his high chair refusing to eat the pears I put on his table and still hadn't dressed him from the face cream incident so I had to get him down and put in Elmo to keep his attention while I tended to Titus and I. What an afternoon!

We are a growing bunch as well. Titus is now around 11 lbs. and 21 1/4 inches long at 2 mos. old. Justice is 24 lbs. and 31.5 inches long at 21 mos. I could tell recently Justice was growing a lot as he was eating like a pig and drinking tons of milk or "mulk" as he says it. Justice would wake up and whine for his "mulk" and drink sometimes 14 oz. at a time a couple of weeks ago. We got his hair cut yesterday (Ron had to literally hold him down to do so) and now he just looks like such a little boy and not even remotely like a baby. He is still my baby boy though. Titus also has caught another little cold. He is just having a rough little 2 mos. of his life with the RSV and now a cold. It isn't too bad, but I am having to torture him with suctioning out his poor little nose. He hates when I do it, but it has to be done to make him feel better.

Getting out with two has proved to be such a stress to me. This week I got out 4 out of 5 days and by the end of the week I was exhausted. I am going to try to stick to home more this week. I am glad I can get out with two. It is possible, but I am definitely going to be more selective about when I do it from now on. If it is necessary I will go, but if it can wait until I have someone to look after the kiddos or let Ron go instead. Especially as the weather gets hotter it is just very taxing to load two in and out of the car and carry them in wherever we go.

Well, overall we are good. I love my boys and am facinated with them each day and so grateful for their presence in my life. It is very sobering to me that they have been placed by God in my care. What a huge responsibility and high calling that parents have with children.

What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger!

In my last post I thought things were going to get calmer and boy was I ever wrong. Since my last post, things got even crazier. I woke up with Mastitus on Saturday, April 14. Mastitus is a breat infection causing the breast to be painful to tough, hot, and hard as well as giving you a fever and flulike symptoms. Since it was Saturday I had to get in touch with the on call doctor, which actually was my doctor and get an antibiotic. Thankfully, by Saturday night I was much, much better. I had also called Titus' pediatrician on Saturday because he was throwing up a few of his meals, congested, and starting to cough and wheeze some. Well, he just got worse and by Wednesday when we took him for his well baby checkup, he was put in the hospital for RSV, a respitory viral infection. He was on oxygen and breathing treatments. We were there until Saturday morning. Justice stayed with my mom. I was up at the hospital mostly by myself except for Ron visiting me for a couple of hours each night and I would go home for 30 min. or so. Since I am Titus' food source I couldn't be gone for long, although when your baby is in the hospital you really don't want to be away anyway. So, things are finally starting to get back to normal now. Justice is completely well since Thursday of last week and Titus is well on his way. The doctor on Monday couldn't hear anything in his chest and his oxygen level was great. I prayed that God would send us a season of health and joy. It was a very trying 2 1/2 weeks there, but God got us through and proved He loves His children and will provide the grace and peace to get through any circumstances. I am just so thankful to have two healthy boys right now and do not take any good day for granted.

On other notes, Titus is smiling so much lately. I love that look he gives me of just sheer wonder. He is really starting to look at toys now that are above him in his swing, baby carrier and playmat. He will smile at them and "talk." He is sleeping a little better now that he is feeling better. But, it takes him forever to fall asleep when he was up at his 9-10 o'clock feeding. He has to nurse for like an hour as he won't take a pacifier, I am the pacifier actually. Justice still doesn't pay much attention to his little brother. I am getting out more with both boys and it isn't too bad. Justice does pretty well anyway and as long as Titus is fed and changed we are okay. I still have not done grocery shopping and probably won't for awhile with both. Talk more later!

Back In The Sun

Sorry for the delay in a getting another post out. We have been dealing with the cruddies lately. Justice and Ron got bad sick since last weekend. Poor little Justice has really had it bad. Monday he woke up with a fever and it took three days to break. His nose has been a fountain of snot and continually coughing. I think he is is over most of it today and on the road to recovery. We took him to the doctor on Tuesday and he has been on an antibiotic, his 4th round since turning one. He is a trooper though. Not too much gets him down. He puts a smile on his face and plays through it all. So, we are heading back to normal hopefully. Titus is growing like a weed. As of a week ago he was 8 lbs. 13 ozs. He had gained 3 lbs. since birth. I am anxious to take him to get weighed next week. He was in preemies two weeks ago and is now almost out of his newborn clothes and we moved into size 1 diapers this past weekend. I can't believe it! His little arms are getting rolls and his tummy is just as round as it can be. Poor thing though, he has had so much gassiness and I am a little concerned about reflux. I will ask the doctor about that next week. He isn't spitting up so much, but he sounds like he is having some with some congestion, not cold like, gurgling noises, and painful crying around meals. On positive notes he began his social smiling on Sunday, 4/8/07, that was a blessing on Easter Sunday since it was so cold and we weren't able to go to church because Justice and Ron were sick. He is making more gooing noises. I just love it when he looks up at me gazingly, like I am the most important and amazing thing to him. There is nothing like it.

Updates on Everyone... I love being a mom of 2!

I just love this pic of Justice and Titus. He looks like a proud big brother. Justice will often do this thing where he names off the family members--Momma, Dadda,etc.--and now he says "Baby" too like he has accepted him into our family. It is so sweet. Tonight Titus started crying in his swing and Justice ran over to him and storoked his hair and said to him "Is Okay," how adorable is that! I love having two boys and am excited for the years ahead as they notice and get to know each other. Justice is like no kid I have ever been around, I know I am prejudiced, but I just think he is the best. He can now count to twelve and almost thirteen. His favorite numbers are seven and eleven. Often he will skip to eleven randomly. My mother keeps Justice a lot and when she talks on the phone with me she will say my name. Now he see her phone thinks that it is named "Emily" and says it over and over again when he sees it. Apparentely he likes my name. Really any names with 'L' he loves like my mom's dog is Lilly, his Mimi's dog is Lulu and his cousin in Luke and in particular he loves those as well as his favorite numbers. He loves to dance now and picks up his feet and spins around getting dizzy. He plays peek-a-boo in a cabinet in the kitchen, first pulling out the cereal boxes that are in there and climbs in. He is fascinated by planes and when he sees one he raises both hands in the air and yells "a pom." I just love him!

To the world of Titus now, he is just as special and I love him to pieces. I will often pick him up and just smell him. Oh, I can't get enough of that newborn smell and it goes away so fast. I just treasure these early days. Titus doesn't like to have on dirty diapers and gets real mad when he has one. Justice didn't care one bit. He has these two hour stretches occasionally when the only thing that soothes him is to nurse, a little hard for mommy and daddy really. Like today I was trying to bake something to take to a baby shower and he pulled one of these times. Not the best of timing, but in the newborn world it can come at any time. We have successfully taken him to Sunday School. Today he had his first bottle of pumped breastmilk during our Sunday School. I plan on giving him a bottle during church some. I don't want him to be a bottle baby. It was nice with Justice not having to wean him from the bottle. He went straight from nursing to a sippy cup. Titus is also taking the paci some, which is nice. In the car especially it is good to calm him down. I had a big first this week. On Thursday I took both boys to Wal-Mart by myself. It was very therapeutic and a big boost for me that I can get out with two in tow. Titus slept which made it a whole lot easier. I can do it!

We had our first big trip to the Lake this weekend to Mimi and Buddy's. Buddy is Uncle Ken. Justice was calling him Birdie for awhile, but we got him to switch since Uncle Ken wasn't too fond of the feminine name. Justice gave him this name because one day he was showing him the "birdies." We had a good time. Justice enjoys the outdoors so much. Daddy got to fish and momma got to socialize. Below is a pic of Titus and his Mimi and another picture of my Titus.

More later....

A little Update

Boy, it has been tough to get to the computer to do an update. It is definitely getting a bit more challenging lately for me. Titus is awake more and becoming more needy. He wants to be held most of the time, doesn't like the swing, and is more fussy. At first I thought he was going to be a breeze, but I think he is more like his brother than I thought wanting more attention. I love him dearly though and understand this is so temporary and to try and go with the flow. It is tough and I definitely have my moments of stress and meltdowns with baby blues. We will get through. Bright moments have been he is doing well at night, not having awake periods like he did. I am getting back in a routine with him and Justice. Justice is doing well, clingy a little, but well. Titus is a joy in so many ways that I can't describe, he is still unreal to me that he is here and healthy. We will all adjust soon. The first picture up today are of Titus and his Mamaw while we were at the farm on Saturday. Titus is an outdoor baby for sure. He is

usually at his best and calmest when he is taken

outside in the breeze. We had a great time. Next is a picture of Justice outside on the farm. It is hard to get pics of him as he is so busy. I love him to death. He is so adventurous and independent. He is still on the watch to see where mommy and daddy are at all times. This is comforting to me because at times he seems to be so indepedent that he doesn't care about mommy anymore, but he really does I know. The last pic is Titus sleeping in his carrier at Mamaws this Saturday. He is so adorable sleeping as all babies are. We are getting out more. Sunday we went to church. Titus went to class with us and Justice to nursery, where he was not a happy camper. I think he is having some separation anxiety. Well, this post is a little choppy, but it is a little update on where we are at in our chaotic, but getting adjusted life right now.

Me and My Little Guy

Well, we are rolling along. Titus will be 2 weeks tomorrow and it is amazing how time has gone by so fast these last two weeks. I can't believe only two weeks ago I was freaking out trying to get ready for him to come and now I have had him here for awhile. He is really adorable in every way, still as sweet as he can be, even at 4:00 in the morning gruntingly telling me he isn't going back to sleep and I will just have to deal with it. Nights are tough, but that is to be expected. The sleepless nights are worth it to get to love on him.

We took him back to the doctor on Wednesday and are glad to report he is back up to birth weight at 5lbs. 13 oz. and has grown half and inch at 18.5 inches long. His weight gain was really good considering most breastfed babies are still losing weight the first week. Justice lost 8 oz. his first week. Titus had a little jaundice, but not bad at all and have tried to give him some sunlight and his color is returning to normal. A nurse comes by the house on Monday to check him again. I am glad someone is coming here, taking him to the doctor's office wasn't fun with all the coughing children in the waiting room. I was paranoid the whole time there. But he is fine.

That is all for now as I am off to get him up. Be blessed as always! God is so good, I look at Titus often and just thank Him for bringing him here healthy.

At Home With Titus

This is the first post I am making since Titus has been home with us and wanted to share how he got here first off. Everything went really well on Monday with being induced. The day was long, but labor was actually short. We got to the hospital at 7 and they didn't do anything until about 8:20 and it was a slow go for about 4 hours, not much on the contractions at all. I was getting so frustrated that things weren't rolling along and thought it might be forever till he arrived, but that was about to change. Doc came in at 12:45 and broke my water and I was at 2 cm, 80% effaced. After that I flew and was begging for my epidural at 2:00 p.m. and finally got it a little before 3 since they had to give me fluids. Then, they had to give me more epidural medication because I could still feel quite a bit. After the extra dose I felt absolutely nothing, you could have cut my legs off and I wouldn't have known. I was ready to push by 5, but waited awhile for the doctor and nursery staff and 8 contractions later I had Titus at 5:53. I might have pushed 10 min. total. Very good all in all with the labor and delivery. After I delivered though I felt horrible soon after. I had miserable nausea, threw up 5 times and the shakes four an hour or so. The feeling returning to my legs wasn't real pleasant either. But, after that I felt great! The recovery process has been much easier this second go around. I only had 1 stitch and have been able to move around much better. We got home from the hospital about 7:30 on Wednesday night. It was a very quiet couple of days with Justice being at his Mimi's house for us to rest with Titus being home.

Titus has been absolutely wonderful. He has been such a sweetheart baby. He has taken to nursing so well and I am so relieved after Justice was so hard to get to nurse the first week. Titus has had no problems there. He sleeps, eats, poops, has some awake time, and that is about it. Not a fussy baby. I hope he continues to do so well. We are blessed! I just love him so, so much and after everything we have gone through with him I am that much more in love with him and so thankful to God for bringing him to us.

Justice got home on Friday night and hasn't had much to adjust to really. He has noticed Titus and tries to touch him, but he isn't very gentle so we really have to watch him. He has done well though and has shown no issues yet. He is really very independent so I don't expect too much in the way of jealousy. We are trying to keep his routine in tact which helps I think. I am just so nervous about handling the boys on my own soon. Ron took off while I was in the hospital and went back to work after we got home. I had no trouble keeping Titus home alone, but am concerned about doing it all myself soon. I think I will call on my mom to help out a few days next week till I get the hang of a routine going. Well, that is all for now. I will end by saying life is just so sweet these early days of babyhood and I am trying to soak up each moment because it goes by so fast and as I look at my 19 mos. old it is really amazing to think of him that little. Blessings!

Titus is Here! Yeahhhh......