2 Weeks

Lil' Owen has 2 more weeks until his poor lil' skull goes Snap, Crackle, and Pop.  

It seems that so many of our conversations go, "After Owen's surgery" or "Once Owen is back to normal...".  We (really, not so much Cory...just me) are super anxious to get his surgery here and done already.  We know he is in great hands with the best pediatric craniofacial plastic surgeon and neurosurgeon around.  However, I am beginning to feel nervous and just needing to get the show on the road.  I am not one for not knowing what our future holds.  So when I think of 2 weeks from today...all I know is Poor Owen is going to be post-op, in the ICU, and bandaged with his eyes swollen shut.  I am hoping and praying that he will be in good spirits, calm and pain-free.  

So...that's it.  Two more weeks until the reconstruction day.  Then the 3-7 days at the hospital.  Then things should be several steps closer to being "normal."  But as time grows closer to the surgery & I can't help but to grow more worrisome. In times of worry I try to remind myself of Luke 12:25 which several years ago when I was worried about something Cory gently placed in my heart.  

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

So I continue to struggle with the fruitlessness of my worries and anxiety.  I know, all I can do is pray, trust in the Lord and follow the doctors' orders.  After all Philippians 4:6 says.

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God

Sprinkles Galore!

Bethany and I baked cupcakes today.  From Scratch. We made these cakes here from this site.  They Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes.  They required 6.5 sticks of butters, 2 1/4 c of brown sugar, 3 c of powder sugar and tons of other gooey goodness.  Seriously, these suckers took me several hours to make and I am sure they will take several days to work off.  But man they are delicious!

Well, while we were in between steps, I took a break from stirring, licking and adding calories to check something online (no, actually I wasn't on Facebook).  Anyway.  When I turned around. This is what I found.




Seriously. How fast can that kid move? I wasn't zoned out that long. But remember this has happened to use before. Remember the Goldfish incident or the Pudding disaster?  But at least she had the sprinkles in the neat lil' cupcake holders.  Too bad that didn't last too long.  What you missed was the dumping of two containers of said sprinkles on the floor. Then she proceeded to nibble away!  That girl! I tell you what, it is great I bear only 1 child at a time. I don't know what I'd do if I had twins! :O)

Pools and Public Potties

We went swimming today.  I have to say it was an absolute blast.  It was just me and the two littles. I wasn't sure how it would turn out...after all I was completely out numbered. But with Bethany being such a pretty good listener and familiar with the pool, I thought it would be worth a shot.

So here we are at the pool...

You'll have to excuse the quality of the pictures & lack of decent pictures. I was proud to manage to keep track of the two of the kiddos. There was no way I was gonna bring the camera too far into the pool. :o)

Anyway.  The pool we go to was indoors and has a fantastic kiddo section. Bethany loves it. You can see a glimpse of it in the background of Owen's picture. 

When we got in the pool, Owen became ridiculously clingy.  Bethany is the clingy one...not Owen. I was a bit surprised when he started holding on to me for his dear life.  I then realized this was his first ever trip to the pool.  Being the poor 2nd child he is, I didn't even realize the specialness of this trip for him.  You know, I clearly remember Bethany's first time in the pool and was so excited for her. *sigh*  I already am short-changing our second born.

Bethany had a blast going around the playground structure in the kiddie area.  After a while, we ventured out into the big pool (after I put a flotation device on Bethany to aid in my carrying her).  There is an awesome lazy river at this pool place. Bethany loves going around it. Owen was okay with this process. He probably could've done without the water spraying and dumping on him from the different contraptions.  He shrieked the whole time we went around. But I think it was an this-is-a-huge-room-and-everyone-is-loud-so-I-can-be-loud shriek, not a holy-cow-I-am-scared-to-death shriek.

One of the highlights of our field trip was that Bethany went potty at the toilet at the pool.  What's that you say? You don't understand the significance of this event?   Oh, let me tell you. She will only use one potty. It is her little potty with the nice cushy seat.  Oh yeah, we have two potties with cushy seats...but she will only use this one.  This girl has one particular tushie.

Anyway...at the pool she said she had to go. SO we went to the jon.  While in the jon I was trying to wrangle Owen (who still CAN'T WALK & must be held), while trying to coax her to use the jon.  She was in pain...doubled over...had to go.  But refusing to go on that big toilet. She wants her potty.  She starts screaming. Loudly. Very, Very Loudly.  Really, any reasonable adult outside the bathroom should've reported the commotion. It was ridiculous.  However, somehow. She started going on the toilet. Success!  We did it. We used a potty that wasn't our own overly cherished throne.  

We suit back up, wash hands and head back in the pool.  Then get this...10 minutes later she wants to go again!  Ha! Isn't that awesome!  So back we went to the family locker room.  Then this annoying lady (notice not a lady with family...just lady) goes in the potty we needed (the one with the chair for Owen to sit as we work on using the potty). Annoying Lady takes FOREVER in the potty. Hello! There is a woman's locker room you should use lady...not family locker room!  It turns out she is using it for a dressing room to change her outfit and even do her make-up. (even though there were three empty dressing rooms that she already passed to get to the potty).  But after the girl is done, Bethany does her business again! Sweet Success!!!

Hopefully, this is the beginning to our voyage to use Public Potties any- and everywhere! I am hoping that since we managed to jump over this hurdle, we can tackle the whole going #2 on the potty hurdle. Then we will be set, only having to do it again for the Little Man in a year or so.

Try to Escape

What do you mean it is too hot to go outside? It looks nice...
Come on. We wanna play. Perhaps, I can climb out this way.

Nope that doesn't work. Maybe I can find a way down here.

Shucks, I guess we are stuck inside. Who needs to play outside in the 90+ degree weather anyway?

{Almost} Wordless Wednesday

"I am going to be a teacher tomorner (tomorrow)"

Party @ the Park!

This weekend we had a party at the park for my two favorite kiddos.

It was HOT! Really, Really, Really, Hot!

But so were the slightly-ironic-in-the-sweltering-heat-underwater-themed decorations...check it out.

Aside from having great decorations, we had our some pretty wonderful guests.
They were really, really cute as you will see in Owen's BFF Bryan.

Bethany had a great time playing with everyone and pretty much losing her weight in sweat. The poor girl looked as if she's been swimming.

Owen managed to stay a lil' cooler by munching on random snacks that he sweet-talked anyone and everyone to hand to him.
The absolute highlight of the party was when Bethany's "Favorite Friend" arrived. She was looking forward to have her long-lost playmate around.

They became pretty much inseparable...even while posing with the fish cake.

and eating their first ever fun-dips!
but....two seconds after that last picture...an out-of-no-where gust of wind came. This wind knocked over full cups of soda, whipped the stacks of plates in the air like nothing, blow over bowls of chips and ripped the fun-dips out of the lil' girls hands. This storm. Came. Out. of. nowhere! We hastily packed up and headed back to the safety our house for present time.

Even though the party went from 90+ degree weather to hold-on-to-the kids gusts of wind...it was still a great way to celebrate the birthdays of the two best kiddos around. They deserved to be the center of attention for a lil' while...even if the party ended all to suddenly.

Besides...they didn't seem to be too scarred from the abrupt and dramatic ending to their party.

Testing...1...2...3

Seems that we are testing how things work around here. We are testing limits, testing patience and testing our parents'abilities to forgive. I know. She is pretty adorable. Do I really mean she is testing the limits. This one? Oh heck ya!

This potty training business is more than learning where to put the poop and pee. It is more about asserting independence and making her voice heard. Believe me. We hear it! So does half of the metropolitan area. The other day we had a melt down. Code Red Meltdown. It was insane. Cory heard the meltdown. From outside. Under the deck. Yeah...it was one of those meltdown. The catalysis of this meltdown was good ole #2. We won't get into specifics of that situation. But what my thoughts were during and after the crisis-of-the-century.

She was a screamin', a kickin', a throwin', the whole nine yards. It was frustrating. I just want what is best for her. She needs to learn the valuable life skill of pooing in the potty. There is absolutely nothing wrong with my intentions. Yet she fights me. Repeatedly.

I sat there. During her tantrum. Thinking about what my options are: spanking, yelling, grabbing her, sitting, singing, praying, soothing. I decided to sit, pray and soothe her. I ignored the screaming, validated her feelings and explained my desires for her. Then I wondered.

How often are we kicking and screaming through life. Through what is best for us. Poor God. He just looks at us and shakes his head. "Really," He must think. "Really, you are throwing a fit over this."

But what is amazing is that He forgives. He lets us throw our tantrums. He lets us deviate from the desired course. Then, when we are ready He welcomes us back--with open arms--always.

How amazing is that! It was those thoughts that pulled me through the tantrum. She will come to the realization that pooping in the potty isn't the end of the world. She'll turn around. I know it. I will not (even though it was hard) hold a grudge or be upset with her because of the fit. As soon as the ability to hear returned to my ears and the screaming, kicking and all was over; she became my sweet, clingy, wanna-eat-dinner-on-my-lap lil' girl again. Just like that. She flipped the switch.

We do that too. All too often we screw up, then out of the clear blue we have a change of heart and then we want to be good with God again. And you know what the amazing thing is...we are. We are always good with God, when we truly, sincerely want to be.

If God's forgiveness is for those who ask for it. Even those who do the most horrendous of offenses; then why shouldn't I forgive my lil' one for her tantrums and snits. After all. He already has.

Potty Perks

Wii are using everything we can to get Bethany to see the value in using the potty.She's noticed there are some perks in being a big girl with the potty. Some of the perks include: candy, yogurt from McDonalds, and stickers.
One major perk is the Wii.
If you know anything about Bethany's Daddy. You know that is a pretty major deal! :O)

1 year, 1 month, 1 week, 1 day old

Owen is 1 year, 1 month, 1 week and 1 day old today. I really think this has to be one of my favorite stages to go through with my children. They are constantly absorbing everything that they come in contact with and they catch you off guard when they choose to contribute to the world around them.

Overall, Owen is still pretty mellow kiddo. Here is how you will often find Owen:
So deep in thought. He just listens, observes, absorbs with such a sweet, closed-mouth smile across his face.

Occasionally, you can get one of these out of the lil' lad. You've really done something special to get a full-out smile out of the boy. It is pretty adorable, so I don't know why he keeps it to himself. But if you go in to pick him up from nap time, let him go crazy on the couch, or swing the camera strap side-to-side, you know...one of those times of things, then you will get this smile out of him.

He is also absolutely adorable when he hands you his toys. He is such a good boy and loves to share, pick up his toys, and feed others. How could you refuse that face?

His fine motor skills are pretty good. He loves stacking his buckets, blocks and train pieces. He will move things back and forth to practice putting them where they fit.

As of today, Owen has 1 month exactly until his surgery to correct the craniosynotosis. Our goal (well, my goal. It is evident that Owen doesn't share this same goal as I do.) for Owen was to have him walking before his surgery. He has one more month to perfect his movies. The lil' stinker doesn't seem to be in a hurry.

Sure he has taking some steps. He cruises like crazy. But he just doesn't seem to interested in walking. There is something about crawling that's got him going back for more. Perhaps it is an addiction. Is there Crawlers Anonymous classes we can sign him up for?

I've given him the pep talk for walking. He is fully aware of the fact that I want him to be a well-established walker after his surgery; that-a-way, I don't have to worry about him bumping his head on everything imaginable. Seems like that large noggin' of his always manages to find and make friends with the coffee table, chairs, walls, etc. He has butt heads with every piece of furniture in our house, it seems! So it makes sense to me that he should seriously invest some time in his walking skill; so when he is done with his head-boggling, skull-cracking surgery he will be done with the toppling over stage. I don't think it is happenin'.

Overall, I am totally ready for the surgery. Not worried. Well. Not crazy worried. I just want it done. I am not meaning to wish the next month of our life away. But I am so ready not to have this on my mind all the time. I guess it isn't on my mind 100% of the time. Potty Training the big sis still occupies a crazy ridiculous amount of my brain cells. By the time his surgery hits, the potty training should be totally perfected & all we will have to worry about is how to cram Owen in to a protective bubble so no over-helpful big sister hurts the lil' lad too much. It is good to know, though, that we are still in God's hands. So no matter where we are: presurgery, during surgery, post surgery--all we have to do is go to the Lord and ask for strength. That will do more good than any plastic bubble I could ever manage to find.

Looks like a job for....

Super Girl!

She is adorable, she is proud, and she is a Super Hero! Off she goes to save the day!

Perhaps, she can help this young man with his car.
Nothing is too hard for SUPER GIRL!

Bethany's Birthday!

Bethany's birthday came with much anticipation from the 3-year-old. It is the first birthday she knew enough to be excited about! Look at that face as she opens presents first thing in the morning from Daddy, Owen and I.
Even Owen was super excited about his Big Sister turning 3 years old!

Bethany loved, no I mean, LOVED her Dora backpack!

The birthday girl did take a long enough break to pose with her lil' brother. Before going outside to play.

Cory and Owen even shared some love on Bethany's birthday.

Since we didn't want to leave the house while we are still trying to figure out the whole potty, thing. We had our first ever picnic in the backyard. Please ignore Bethany's and my faces. I don't know what we were thinking...by truly we were happy.

Owen loved his french fries....well...until he decided to throw all of his food in the grass for the birds.

After the picnic, it was cake time. Bethany requested a Dora cake! She really wanted a "hot, fire candle" on her cake. She was a pro at blowing it out.
At the end of the day she played in her p.j.'s, Super Girl cape with her Princess Castle from her Big Grandpa.

It was a super fantastic Birthday. She loved her presents, the attention and picnic & cake. I loved the fact that she did so well on the potty! She is making great progress~

Her and Him

Here is a little about her and him.

Her:

Well, she has been visited by the Underwear Princess and all her diapers have disappeared! In exchange she got a few gifts from the U.P.
She has been working on Potty Training. Here was step 1: over coming the fear of sitting on the jon. Yup...she is fully clothed...but it was a step in the right direction. She's also showing off the Dora phone the U.P brought her.
Day 3 of Potty Training: After a couple of fits and tantrums...she's getting the hang of it. She is slowly making improvements. She now will stop what she is doing when she feels the urge and grab my hand to head to the jon. We've had three good pees in the pot. No #2's yet. But that will come...I am sure of it! :O) Look how big she is now!

Him:

He is such a goober...look, we finally found a hat that fits over that head of his...

Bethany and I made a house out of some cardboard. Owen loved it! :O)

She even made a door for him and her dolls to go through.

Surprisingly, he fit through! :O)

He also enjoyed swinging this evening. Bethany earned sometime outside when she went potty. She really wanted to bring the lil' man along. He loved it!

We even found some visitors while we were outside. This two were taking a break when we intruded. I think the lil' one was learning to fly. Eventually they left. But remarkably, they let Bethany climb a few rungs on the ladder without even moving. It was crazy!

Wish us luck as we continue to Potty Train. The goal is for her to be well on the way before Owen's surgery (which we still don't have a date). Ultimately, she needs to be "independently trained" by preschool in August. That's a scary thought! :O)