Fall is in the air..

Well fall decorations are in the air anyways! The temperatures really have not come down quite that much yet. (as you will be able to tell by E in a short sleeve dress and crocs ;)

Today we headed down to the Botanical Gardens and they were getting everything set up for fall! It was gorgeous! Onces the leaves start changing it is really going to be picture perfect!!

 As you can tell from the pictures we finally have some sunshine back in the south!! We have been drenched with rain for going on 5 days straight. This momma does not do well with being stuck inside that long.

We enjoyed being outside and soaking up the last bit of warmth that Summer had to offer.

We will def. be heading back to snag some fall pics in the next few weeks!

Happy Thursday Everyone

A small start...

This weekend I did a photoshoot of a very sweet, tiny, and cuddly six week old!

This little boy was one great little model.

 He may have even been..

a very small start..

 of something much larger...

that is yet to come...

 here in OUR paradise!

Stay tuned!!

PS: No! We are not expecting a sibling for Miss E.. yet ;)

Do YOU?!?!?

I had some questions and I was just wondering if I was the only one. Surely I am not alone.. so dont leave me hanging!

Do you: Like to cook?
No I dont! Please tell me I am not the only one. I want nothing more than healthy meals for my family BUT every afternoon I start to get the "dinner time is coming" itch. I start getting all flustered about what to cook and the agony of having to cook usually during the girlie's whiney part of the day. When I do feel up to cooking I feel like I cook the same thing over and over and over (you get the point!). Dont get me wrong I cook at least 4 days a week.. but that does not mean I dont kick, scream, whine, and throw a small tantrum every.single.time ;)

Do you: Get really excited for a night with out the kiddo then they leave and you sit and think "now what am I supposed to do?!"
I do! Just today E and I went and ran errands with my mom. We had a great day. Just had lunch, piddled (I dont mean piddle like kate means it.. I mean just kind of hang around ;) around target a little bit (found a few really cute Halloween shirts for the munckin) then came home and hung out. I got her stuff packed up and sent her out the door. I sat down read a few blogs, facebook stalked a few folks, tweeted, then I looked around and said "now what?" I know.. its crazy right?!

Do you: Love decorating for every season in your home?
My hubby thinks I am nuts. As soon as a season begins to change so does my home. I dont go drastic but I change a center piece on my dinner table, put a few decorative pieces on the mantle, put a flag outside.. ya know those type things! Please tell me its my husband.. I do not go overboard..right?

Do you: Try not to spoil your child(ren) but spoil them accidently (on purpose perhaps..) anyways?
I try so hard to not let E have this only child spoiled rotten type life. The truth is though she is spoiled rotten. She is not spoiled in a way where people outside of the home think she is a spoiled brat.. but her needs are def. met a little over and above what is necessary. I just cant help it sometimes. If I see something I know will bring a smile to her face I want her to have it.. I do not really over induldge in the toy dept. but the girl loves clothes! So I guess its not as bad that she NEEDS clothes on her back.. right?!

I am sure there are many more.. I will prob bring this type thing back in another week or so. Sometimes it just helps to know that I am not the only one.

So spill your guts! Are you guilty of any of these?!?

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Wednesday Friends!!

Maybe a smidge overboard ;)

What a wonderful weekend it was! The weekend started off with a bang. I became a godmommy for the second time. 

 Isnt she the most perfect peaceful baby girl! My heart just melted the first time I held her.. little C will def. be a wonderful addition to the crew :) Her big brother is doing fabulous with her as well.. dont have a pic of them together yet but I will work on that for ya... your welcome ;)

After Spending some time up at the hospital on Friday and early Sat. am.. I decided to take E out on a little adventure to our local museum's nature trail. She was excited and I was ready with my camera in hand. I have not been able to take an "official" 2 year shot yet so I was determined before she was like two and a half  to get some good shots of her!

She has never been so cooperative with me...ever!

I dont know if it was that she was being so cooperative or if that there was just enough people around to kind of distract her and let me get some pics.

Either way... I am very pleased with they way they turned out



Somebodys a little tree hugger ;)

One of my fav's of the day..IF I had to pick ;)

Ok I think I may have gone a little overboard with uploading all these pics.. but I just could not help myself!

Ok.. thats it! Promise ;) Now its your turn.. which one is your fav? I am going to try and get a few of these printed and placed around my house. After all.. I take a trillion pics of her and the most recent ones out are of her 1yr photo shoot! Can you say slacker!

Let me tell you what else is going on though! My friend Courtney over at One Mom's Perfect Imperfections has been doing something a little extra for me! I have sent her a few of these pics and she has done some remarkable editing to them! You see I have PSE8 but it just aint my thang.. yet ;) I knew I had some quality shots and I wanted them to reach their full potential. I called in the pro to see what she could do! She def. did not let me down.. you can check out what she did with them here (she also did a few of my apple pickin' shots)!! She has her own Etsy shop these days.. she sells all her prints that are on her blog (except the kiddos!) and in her store. Be sure to swing by and check them out you will be glad you did!

Well now that I have gone like wwwaaayyy just a smidge overboard and posted a ton of pics I think I will go and spend some time with that little girl. No telling what we will get into today :)

Happy Monday everyone. Hope it is a start to a great week!

Good To Go

Today was E's two year check up.. she turned two back at the end of Aug. but she had been sick so much that I wanted to wait until she was fully recovered before getting her shots and everything.

Her appointment went really well. They said that she was doing great developmentally. She could do everything on the little questionaire I had to feel out so that made me feel good that she was up to par on everything that she needed to be doing plus a few extras :)

I still have a shorty on my hands. She was only 20th percentile for her height at 32 1/2 inches tall and 50 percentile for her weight at 25lbs. So short and stocky pretty much. Even though she looks to me like she has thinned out a bunch over the past few months. Doc was not concerned at all though!

The doc did hear a very small heart murmor in my E. She said that it is pretty common in young children and most of the times they outgrow it. So for now we will just keep an eye on it and make sure it does not become an issue!

I just wanted to update ya on the girl and let ya know we were good to go! So nice to finally be able to take her to the well side of the doc's office!

Tomorrow I will become a godmommy for the second time!! I am beyond thrilled :) Seems like we have been waiting forever for Claire to make her appearance! This time tomorrw she will be here and I can not wait!

So if I am not around much this weekend know I am getting baby snuggles, taking care of my bestie, playing with the new big brother, or loving up on my own little E!

Hope everyone has a great night! I am going to be having my dad over for dinner :)

Love,
Tyler

A Post With Some Good News...

Finally! A post with some good news and it involves my dad. Something I have not been able to write about in quite a long time.

Yesterday I took dad to his doc appointment. (Thanks to all your encouragement I went and so was glad I did) Dad was very excited I was taking him.. I mean to the point when we got home he said I had fun doing that with you today.. just shows it is the little things!

Anywhoodles.. I got totally side tracked. The appointment today went pretty good. No we did not have a miraculous healing or anything drastic but when you are battling this battle any small amount of good news is a huge deal!

They said that his bloodwork looked pretty good. His platelets had gone up alot his billirubin had come down (practially nothing now! No jaundice at all!!) Liver enzymes looked good, kidney function good. So a check in all those departments. They even said he put on a couple of pounds. Still only 119 but alot better than 114 a month ago!

The doc did finally give us a stage for this mess. He said stage 3A which means a tumor larger than 5cm BUT it has NOT spread to any other organs! I know a stage 3 is not great news but its better than a stage 4.. can I get an Amen LOL!

The other good news is they said he could begin treatment again!!!! I know chemo is never a good thing but at least it is something to try and stop this stuff from growing any further and maybe even shrink it a little bit.

So with me putting on my polly positive face I would say that is good news all around! Thank you so much for all your encouragement and prayers!!! I can not thank you enough.. you girls (dont think I have any guy lurkers out there ;) are seriously awesome! Many ((((hugs))) to you all and please keep those prayers coming. We still have a very long way to go!

Love,

Tyler

Apple Pickin'

Yesterday was Derek's day off so we decided to head out and do something a little different.

So we rode out to the apple orchard. This was kind of a long drive but everyone was all smiles!

She was so excited to be outside and somewhere new that she would not even stand with Johnny Appleseed for a picture ;)

Once we got started it was on! E was not afraid to battle the limbs and the dirt to find that perfect red apple!

 

Everyone was excited when they found that yummy apple! ;)

E started the morning with hairbows but as you can tell that did not last very long

Emma made sure the ones she picked went in HER bag. She was very serious about her bag of apples. It was soo funny.

I loved just to stand under the trees and look up. It was gorgeous! Pictures just don't do it justice.

This is prob my fav. picture of the day. I love those little hands so much!

Towards the end the exhaustion started to set in but over all it was a wonderful day...

 with picture perfect weather!

We had a great time. I think we might go back in Oct. for the end of harvest festival! Hope this post was a little more enjoyable since I remembered my camera ;)

Happy Tuesday everyone!! Hope it is a great day.

Sunday Snipits

If there is a blog hop for a Sunday Snipit post would somebody please let me know.. I really need a day to kind of sum things up ;) If there is not one then I will just kind of claim stake to this as my post on Sundays!

This has been a crazy and wild weekend! So crazy and wild that I dont have one picture to show for it!? I am getting slack with my camera.. I need to pick it back up and get to snapping.

Friday was my first meeting at MOPS. Actually our church has changed the name of it to have a little more flexibility with the program but the same concept. I really enjoyed the fellowship with other moms. We did not really dive into anything yet just kind of laid out what to expect the fall/winter season and met everyone. Really looking foward to what lies ahead. E really enjoyed her part of the deal. She came home with a huge smile on her face, a sucker in one hand, and art work in the other. The teacher said she danced during worship..which really surprises me because up until now she has been pretty shy during Sunday School. Her teacher also said that Emma has a little bit of a mother hen in her. When the class was getting ready to head to the "lighthouse" (where the preschoolers worship and have a skit and stuff on sundays) Emma was frustrated because everyone was not cleaning up their mess before leaving the room. Yes I am OCD and try to clean up one room before we go to the next. Really dont realize how much that has rubbed off on her. I guess that is not a terrible trait to have though.. right?!

Saturday we pretty much just had a chill day. It was sooo needed. I turned up the radio and did some heavy duty cleaning while E cleaned right beside me. She did have the occasional play room break of course ;) It was so good to just be home and not really have anywhere to go. We got alot done and actually kind of enjoyed it!

Today was football day!!!! It is a tradition that after church we always go down to mom's wearing our team colors and watch a whole lot of football. I wont be able to explain moms outdoor set up to you (maybe I will take my camera next week and try to show ya) but she has a huge deck area then it kind of steps down to a smaller deck area. Off of the smaller deck there is a tiki bar area. It has a huge flat screen TV in it and bar stools. It is a great place to spend the day outside and watch the game. She also has quite a bit of land (we have NONE..hate it) So the kids can run and play with out me worrying nonstop about a road. E was so filthy after playing that I had to give her a bath to even get her home.LOL  So fun!

After a fun filled and crazy weekend we are home, the baby is in the bed, and we are about to watch yet another football game ;)

How was your weekend? Did you do anything fun?



PS: yes I realize how boring a post with out pics can be.. promise to take my camera with me tomorrow! We are going to an apple orchard and will be picking our own apples and seeing some farm animals.

A Day To Reflect

I can not believe it has been 9 years since that terrible day!

I was in high school. We were in the middle of a class change and everyone was chatting in the halls while making a quick stop by their lockers to grab books for the next class. Among all the hustle and bustle I hear rumors that a plane had hit the WTC. At first I thought "yea right... what are they talking about" then dismissed the chatter as just a rumor. The more time I spent in the hall way and the more chatter I heard I realized that there must be some truth to this. I picked up my speed and hurried into the next class.

I told the teacher what I had heard and asked her if we may turn on the TV for just a minute. She agreed. I turned on the television and grabbed a seat at my desk. As soon as the picture came into focus I saw the second plane hit the building. I was in shock. A blanket of silence fell over the classroom and spilled over into the hallways. We sat and watched as we tried to figure out exactly what was going on.

The news that this was not an accident speared me like a knife. I was young and did not fully understand but I did grasp the fact that somebody had intentionally drove planes into two building killing thousands of people. As we watched the building crumble into piles of ash and  the people run through the streets tears began to pour down my face. The fear continued to grow as I heard about the pentagon and the plane in PA.

We watched the news the rest of the day at school. Everyone suddenly beamed with love for one another and love for our country! It was amazing to see as we all became united as one.

I will never forget that day. I will never forget the fear and panic of that day. I will never forget the pride for my country and the love for my family I felt that day. I will never forget the sacrifices men and women in uniform make EVERY.DAY to keep us safe here at home...

I will never forget!

Decision time!?

Nobody in my family really reads this blog..other than my mom (Hey Mom!) I try and keep my blog as an outlet. A place to vent where I dont have my family and friends all upset over something I said or did. Sometimes I wish they did read but for the most part I am happy with the fact that is it just me and my imaginary bloggy friends ;)

So here is the predicament I am in. My dad has been down in FL all week this week. He has had PET scans, pain management appointments, primary care docs etc. etc. All of the appointments were bascially just maintenance appointments except for the PET scan. Which in case some of you dont know is a scan that will show everywhere the cancer is in the body. It will show if the cancer has progressed further or if it has stopped growing. It really will tell alot about the future and what is going on with him. Scary stuff!

So instead of having the scan read down in FL he is bringing a Cd of the scan home and have his oncologist here read it (he is in the middle of getting all his docs moved from FL to NC..long process!) The problem lies in the fact that is appointment is Friday morning. My aunt who normally goes with him will be out of town.. so guess who she called. ME! I know you are thinking..well duh.. you are his oldest child, his daughter, you should be able to go with him and help him through this appointment.

Can I be honest here? Call me selfish, inmature, cry baby, wimp or all of those things combined and I will own up to it. BUT I am scared to death to go to this appointment with him. What if they tell him he has x amount of time left to live. Or what if... I dont know! I dont even know what the what if's are I just am scared. I dont want to go to this appointment. I am his baby. I want to sit in the floor in a ball and just cry at the thought of going with him. Maybe I am sheltering myself to much from the reality of what is going on. Maybe I am nieve(have no clue how to spell that) and think if I run from it that it will go away. Truth is I know it wont go away but I prefer to hear the news from a family  member who knows how to break things to me in a gentle way. Not a doctor.. they are usually cold and blunt.

I know I need to grow up and quit being selfish. I know he would rather be with somebody he loves and hear the news gently himself. Why am I whining? Its not about me.. its about him. What he wants, who he wants to be with him. And if it is me he wants then maybe I just need to man up and go with him!??

I dont know. Just please be in prayer. Not sure what will happen. Not sure yet who will go with him or exactly what the appointment will hold. I am going to spend the next day in deep thought and prayer. Praying that God will either give me a peace of mind to go to the appointment or an angel to step in and say they want to be the one to go with him.

Have I told you how much I hate cancer! It is a terrible terrible thing!

This little girl....

This is E doing her "nice" face..whenever I ask her if she is ready to get up and be nice..for some reason she will touch her cheek and say "nice" (who knows?!)

This little girl.. ya know the one I gush over all the time is driving me absolutely bonkers this week! Just being honest here.  It is like she turned two and had this instant attitude change and I am not sure we are going to be getting along very much longer ;)

It is so bad right now that I am afraid to go out in public! We went fall clothes shopping for her the other day and she was nothing short of terrible. I was one of "those" moms and was not even sure what to do about it. I kind of felt like if I took her out of the store then she was getting exactly what she wanted but on the other hand I felt terrible for every shopper in there that was having to listen to her scream. Not to mention all the looks from people who thought that I could not manage my child because she was acting out. UGH..it was so embarassing and so maddening (not sure if that is a word..but it is today..ok!?)

So I think we will stay indoors for a few days and work on our behavior. The wierd part is at church and places they say she is the most laid back easy going child in the room. Now either they lie to me or she has split personality.

I am open to any and all suggestions here. What do you do when your kids act out in public.. whether it be shopping or restaurants (we have had both incidents this past week)? I know she is two and 99.9 percent of this is age appropriate but that does not mean it doesnt need to be corrected..right?

Please help before we go on house arrest!!!!!!!

Weekend snipits

Hey everyone! I hope y'all are having a wonderful long holiday weekend. We certainly enjoyed ours. Derek had to go back to work today but we still had a great weekend.

Saturday we went back to our local botanical gardens. They have a butterfly conservatory this time of year and it is gorgeous!! (yes I forgot my camera! Can you believe such a thing? Dont worry we will be going back..soon!) It is also very interactive for the kiddos and they loved it. E got to help release one of the butterflies after it had emerged from its cacoon. So neat to see and she loved it. After she got to touch one she spent the rest of the time in the conservatory saying "get it get it" She wanted to catch them all ;)

On Saturday evening we headed down to my dads. (more on him in a few days.. but please be praying he is having some fluid retention and other symptoms that are scary. He has several app this week so I will let you know when we find out exactly what is going on) He had a big pot of beef stew on the stove all day and wanted us to come and eat. While visiting I decided to have a little photo shoot with miss E. I have not done her official 2 photo shoot yet but these will do for now ;)

Somebody is a little cheese ball isnt she? Now I am going to have to work on catching natural smiles so I can see her eyes ;) She is a silly girl!

Sunday we went to church and then came home and enjoyed a little R & R. It was a nice way to wrap up a busy but fun weekend.

What did you do this weekend? Hope it was wonderful.

Talk to you soon