The Battreals

A sneaky boy and his chockate

2012-02-18T22:53:00.001-06:00

Today Miss Maddie and I went on a little trip to Target for diapers and formula and left the boys at home to watch the Razorbacks. When I got home Jim told me that Landon aka Mr Sneaky wanted a piece of the chocolate that his Mimi gave me for Valentine's Day. It was all tied up in a cute little bag. So, they shared a piece and then Daddy tied it back up. Landon wanted more but Daddy said no. A little while later Landon had disappeared and so had the chocolate. Jim hollered for him and got no response. He hollered again...nothing. So, he went back to Landon's room to find him sitting on his bed and when Jim came into the room Landon shoved something under the covers, looked up at Jim with his hands up and said, "I don't have anyfing in my hands". Jim looked under the covers and found the bag of chocolate! He asked Landon what he was doing and Landon said, "I wanted some chockate but it's all tied up with rope!". I'm pretty sure all daddy could do was laugh at his sneaky little boy! Haha!!!

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Busy Bees, Promotions and Mom Guilt

2012-02-16T22:58:00.002-06:00

I'm so behind in blogland! I still need to blog about Landon's third birthday, MK's baptism celebration and Valentine's Day! Maybe I will have some time during our three day weekend. Jim and I are both off work for President's Day. We are looking forward to spending time at home with our favorite kiddos and we are going to have the Battreal's and Hankins' over for a belated birthday fish fry celebration...and on Monday we are having some friends over for a pre-fat Tuesday get together! Jim's excited to make some of his famous gumbo!

In other news...I got a promotion at work! I generally don't post much about our careers except as they pertain to our kiddos...but since this is sort of a family journal and I'm excited about it I thought it deserved to be mentioned. I was promoted to supervisor in the IT Service Management group! I wasn't really sure I wanted to be in management but I had a little time to kind of test drive the position and decided that I really liked it so when the supervisor position was posted of course I applied. I hadn't written a resume in more than 7 years! I can't tell you how happy I am to be able to say that actually. I'm so thankful that I have found a company and career that I enjoy so much that I honestly haven't ever considered looking for a different job. So, I had to write a resume and interview for the supervisor position and after twoish weeks...that felt like an eternity...I got the news that the job was mine! I'm really enjoying it so far and I'm excited about this new chapter! I'm also thankful that Jim has a career that he loves and is fulfilling to him. He loves geology and is really good at what he does! Of course there are days when we would both prefer to be home with our kiddos but as I've mentioned before we have lots of help from family and we appreciate our time together. I hope that we are able to instill healthy work habits in our kiddos and that they always know how much we love them even though our careers require us to be away from home during the day. I dislike the sagas that I read on the Internet about the difference between working and stay at home moms. It's an over discussed argument with no clear winner. I've avoided this topic on my blog since I don't particularly care to read about it on other blogs...but again, this is sort of our journal. My views are mine and ultimately I feel that each family has to do what they feel is right for them and make the absolute best of their individual situations. I don't like the talks of "mom guilt" and feel that it's not fair to assume that working moms or stay at home moms should feel guilty about their choices. Guilt is associated with wrongdoing. I don't think either decision is wrong...so, guilt shouldn't be a factor...and if it is, it's likely a change needs to take place. I have a good mix of working mom and stay at home mom friends and we all face challenges. It's how we face those challenges that really matters. There is no such thing as perfect or the perfect situation and I don't think either choice is "easy". Some days I would love a go at being a stay at home mom and some days I'm really glad I'm not...and I don't feel guilty either way.

...and Landon is such a good helper!

...and this little gal is sort of popular at our house.

PS...I only posted about this topic because I know only family and a handful of friends read my blog. I've read posts on other, popular blogs about this topic and some of the comments are shockingly mean and hateful! I just don't get it.
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Maddie Kate is 3 Months Old!

2012-02-04T08:20:00.001-06:00

Maddie Kate is growing and changing every day. She is becoming more aware of her surroundings and is developing the cutest little personality. She is a daddy's girl - he can get her to smile so big and he can really get her talking - which is just about the cutest thing ever. Landon is so sweet with his baby sister! He thinks she's cute and like to give her hugs.

Sweet Maddie Kate

2012-01-30T22:13:00.001-06:00

Have you ever seen a cuter baby girl? I know I'm a bit biased (and clearly behind on her 3 month post) but look at this face! Ha!

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Landon is 3!

2012-01-27T21:22:00.001-06:00

Where does the time go? Where? How is it possible that our favorite little guy who is not so little anymore is 3 years old!? I will do an official 3 year blog complete with milestones and such later but wanted to go ahead and wish our dude a happy happy birthday in blog land. Daddy and I both took today off work to hang out with the birthday boy. Landon woke up right around the same time he was born 3 short years ago and asked if he was 3! We gave him his first present right away...a "basketball hoop"! He was so excited and we put it together immediately! He played with it a lot today! We took MK to Nana and Papa's and took Landon to lunch. He requested in this order...ketchup, french fries and chicken nuggets. So, off to Chick Fil A we went! He ate a good lunch and had fun playing in the play place. After that we went to the park to play with his favorite cousins and then we went to sonic for a happy birthday milkshake! When we got home he had some iPad play time and a "cheese tia" for dinner! We had a great day with our big 3 year old! Tomorrow is his party and we are looking forward to celebrating with all of his little friends!

Present time!

Shooting hoops!

He got a card from Mimi and Papa! He also got a card from Aunt Judy!

I attempted to get a fun picture of him with my phone...they were all about as bad as this one!

He ate french fries!

He enjoyed the slide at the park!

And he played with Hannah!

Happy Birthday Landon!

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Happy Birthday Dear Landon

2012-01-26T18:52:00.002-06:00

Tonight I thought it would be fun to get a birthday eve video of Landon. It was cut short by his answer to my last question. Boys!!!

YouTube Video

In case you missed it...Buzz Lightyear and PooPoo Man were on his cupcakes. Nice.

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Messy Monday

2012-01-23T20:57:00.001-06:00

Landon finger painted today! He loves to finger paint and we don't do it often enough because mommy and daddy have an aversion to ginormous messes...but he loves it so maybe we will start doing it more.

Because really, spaghetti is messier and we still let him eat. Ha!!

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Landon's First Basketball Game!

2012-01-20T23:12:00.001-06:00

Last night Jim took Landon to watch UALR play basketball. Jim's been wanting to take him for a while and we were a little nervous about whether or not Landon would sit still and behave. Almost 3 year olds aren't exactly known for doing either when you want them to, right? Ha! Landon was so excited but I think Jim was more excited to spend some quality time with his little boy. They had a great time!! Landon behaved and aside from being a little freaked out by the loud band music when they first got there he thought it was pretty cool! They shared nachos, popcorn and a sprite and Jim said at one point Landon leaned over and said, "Dada, I really like this!". Jim was one happy daddy! I took a picture of my boys on the way out the door and Jim sent me a few pictures from the game. I'm so happy that they had such a great time! Landon was excited to tell me all about it when he got home! MK an I enjoyed our girl time too! We ignored housework and laid in bed watching tv. A good night was had by all!

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College or braces...but not both

2012-01-19T19:31:00.001-06:00

So, in addition to saving for college it looks like we may need to start an orthodontics savings account. You know Landon has extra teeth and MK is a thumb sucker!! We are surely destined to drop some dollars for braces...or maybe MK will be as cool and I was and will "get" to wear a bionator. I'm not sure that's how it's spelled or if they even exist anymore...but that's sure what lots of years of thumb sucking got me! Can you use a 529 college savings fund for braces?

Kids...study hard cause you will need a scholarship else you will go to college with crooked teeth or an overbite or you'll pay for your own college with the money you'll make serving fast food and charming customers with your beautiful, "orthodontic enhanced" smiles. I kid. Sort of.

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"Nannon Taterhead"

2012-01-16T21:48:00.001-06:00

Yesterday we got Landon's Mr. Potato Head...aka Taterhead out and Landon decided he wanted to be Taterhead! Silly boy!

I clearly don't have much time to blog these days since I'm back to work but once we settle into more of a routine I'm sure I will be back in full swing! Some things we are looking forward to are my birthday trip to the horse races, Landon's 3rd birthday and party at River City Gymnastics and Miss Maddie Kate's baptism (yes, she was baptized in the hospital...but Msgr will still perform a ceremony and of course our sweet girl needs a party!).

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Wooooo Pig Sooie!

2012-01-07T19:29:00.002-06:00

MK helped call the hogs during the Cotton Bowl! I'm pretty sure that's why they won!

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Maddie Kate is 2 Months Old!

2012-01-06T15:41:00.000-06:00

Okay, technically she's 10.5 weeks...but we've been a smidgen busy around here...and you know what they say about the second kid, right? Yep, it's true. Sorry MK.

Miss MK had her 2 month checkup on Tuesday. She's doing great!! She's developing right on schedule and already growing up so fast! Here are her stats:

11 pounds 11 ounces (62%)
23 1/4 inches long (73%)
15cm head circumference (22%)
0-3 month clothes - but is starting to get a little long for some of these!
Size 1 diaper

Maddie is such a sweet baby. She rarely fusses - but if she's hungry and you're not quick enough with the bottle LOOK OUT! She's starting to show us a little bit of what we suspect will be a red headed temper. When the girl is hungry she wants to eat...now! She eats 3-4 ounces of formula with 2 tablespoons of cereal about every 3-4 hours during the day. The longest she's slept at night is around 6 hours. We are still getting up between 1-3am each night to feed her. We aren't on a really strict daily schedule...we just kick of the feeding schedule when she wakes up in the morning. She sleeps a lot during the day but is really starting to stay awake for longer stretches. She's a talker...as if she had a choice, right? She coos and gurgles and smiles and laughs and its warms my soul. She is so strong and really seems to like tummy time! She can also sit in her bumbo for short period of times. Our girl is such a blessing and we love her so much!! Even her big brother seems to like her okay for now...we'll see how that changes when she becomes mobile, has an opinion and wants to play with his toys.

The End of the World

2012-01-04T22:09:00.001-06:00

The Mayan's predict it to be later this year...a week or so ago I was sure it was going to be today.

Today I started back to work. And the world didn't come to an end. It wasn't so bad...I didn't even cry. I dropped the kiddos off at Nana's and when I got to the office (with a giant Starbucks in tow) it almost felt like I had never left. After sorting through 3700+ emails, most of which were junk, I decided it's just not that bad. I like my job. I Iike the people I work with. MK gets to hang out with Nana and Papa instead of going to a daycare, Landon goes to school and even though I think I might enjoy staying home I know that it's not our reality and I'm thankful for a job I like and a family who is happy to help. I feel happy that Jim and I understand that quality time is more important than quantity and we definitely strive to make the most of our time together as a family...and I think we do a pretty good job most of the time!

Thank you to Nana for hanging out with our kiddos, to Jim who let me have a good night's sleep before my first day back and to all my friends who checked on
me today!

PS. I think the Mayan's are full of crapola.

PSS...I think we have a couple of cute kids...cute kids who will likely be scarred for life for things like not getting an easy bake oven or not getting to go see New Kid's on the Block in concert far more than having a working mother. Right Mimi? Ha!

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Christmas 2011

2011-12-31T16:06:00.002-06:00

We kicked off the Christmas season in Kansas right after Thanksgiving. We were so happy that we were able to visit Great Mama and Papa, Aunt Lindy, Uncle Carl...and Pocky and Uncle Chris were there too! About a week after we got back from Kansas Maddie Kate got sick so our plans changed a bit and if it weren't for some very helpful elves I would have never gotten all my shopping done! Thank you Aunt Meredith and Mimi! I had literally made out my list of gifts to finish buying and things to complete for Christmas the very day miss MK went in to the hospital. You know what they say about life...it's what happens while we're busy making plans! We were just so thankful that Maddie Kate got better and that we were home in plenty of time for Christmas. We spent Christmas Eve with Nana, Papa and the Hankins. We had a fantastic Christmas Eve dinner and then we all went to Christmas Eve mass. Our family takes up nearly an entire pew these days! Luckily we went to the "children's mass" so we were all able to sit together and not have to go to the cry room. Landon was worn out from a fun day of playing and actually slept through most of it...that's actually the real reason we were able to avoid the cry room. I'm sure of it! Ha! On Christmas morning we woke up to see what Santa brought and then we headed back to Nana and Papa's to open presents there! When we got home Mimi, Papa, Aunt Judy and Uncle Chris were at our house and we got to open MORE presents! Talk about lucky! We had a wonderful first Christmas as a family of 4 and we feel very blessed to have such wonderful family and friends to spend it with.

Great Mama and Papa's tree is decorated with pictures of me, Uncle Chris, Landon and MK!

Anxiously awaiting present time!

All of the stockings Mama has made...this year with Maddie Kate's!

First present...Christmas PJs!

MK got new pjs too! Landon is so sweet to his baby sister!

Showing off her timmy time skills!

Elmo reindeer!

This year's family picture in Kansas!

Sweet Great Mama and Maddie Kate

Ornery buddies!

Great Mama and Papa with their favorite great grandkids!

Back home we cut out and decorated cookies!

Landon thought this was so much fun!

Yummy!

One night we took the kiddos to look at Christmas lights. Before we left Daddy read Christmas in the Manger to Landon.

Maddie Kate got dressed up to go look at the lights!

This mommy sure does love her kiddos! We had so much fun looking at lights! Landon thought it was "so cool" and we even got hot chocolate while we were out. Of course he didn't drink his...the kid just likes white milk. Silly boy!

Jesus is in the manger! It's Christmas Eve!

The stocking were hung!

We left cookies for Santa!

Landon asked for a Spiderman!

Maddie Kate didn't ask for much so Santa had to surprise her!

Santa left Landon and MK a note! Wow!!!

Check out the adorable bed head! Landon got Spiderman pjs on Christmas Eve!

Landon was so excited that he tried to pick up several presents at once!

Santa even had Spiderman wrapping paper!

What's this? A slinky!?

Opening presents is fun!

What's in my stocking?!

Whoppers! "I must eat them all gone!"

Christmas morning is awesome!

Landon got a harmonica from Santa! Dada helped him learn to play!

He got the hang of it in no time...notice the pjs are missing...yep, he peed em.

Maddie Kate needed some help opening her presents.

She was really excited...as you can see.

She opened her eyes...just barely...when big brother opened her new Sophie!

Uncle Chris and Landon passed out presents!

Wow! More presents!?

Buzz Lightyear!!!!!!!!!!! "Ohmydoodness!"

Maddie Kate got this cute bib from our neighbors. Her Nana got her a cute bib too but I forgot to take my camera to Nana and Papa's. Papa got some fun pictures so I'll have to update this post when I get copies of them.

After the excitement was over we watched Toy Story 2...twice of course...with Buzz!

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

2011-12-25T21:00:00.001-06:00

Landon had my phone earlier today and as you know he likes to take pictures. Well, he figured out how to take videos and as I was looking through his handy work today I found this!!! Sooooo cute and hysterical!!!

YouTube Video

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Jingle Bells!!

2011-12-21T12:04:00.001-06:00

YouTube Video

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A collage of self portraits. by Landon

2011-12-17T02:40:00.001-06:00

Landon likes to play games and watch videos on my phone. Yesterday in between games of Pop and Count and Angry Birds he found the camera and took some pictures of himself.

And my personal favorite

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Sweet Smiles!

2011-12-15T19:38:00.001-06:00

Our sweet baby girl has been all smiles today!

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RSVP or Cheeseburgers "not in" Paradise

2011-12-15T12:07:00.001-06:00

RSVP has a new meaning at our house this holiday season and it's RSV is the PITS!

Last Tuesday, December 6th Maddie Kate was a little lethargic and had a little cough. I didn't think much of the lethargy and sort of attributed the cough to reflux since we thought we were battling a potential milk allergy. I had taken her to the pediatrician the day before and her cough wasn't a concern and RSV wasn't either since she didn't have any noticeable secretions (read snot). We changed her formula and that was that. So, Tuesday evening MK just wasn't herself and had spit up most of a bottle...still thinking reflux, I just sort of overlooked it but then started noticing that she was kind of having trouble breathing and was retracting a little. I called the after hours nurse and they told me to just keep an eye on her and go to the doctor the next day if she wasn't better. A little while later I thought she felt a little warm so I used a new quick read thermometer to take her temperature. The first read was 100.4 but the thermometer wasn't quite working right. I took her temperature with another thermometer we have and it was below 100 but MK just wasn't herself and I just had a strong sense that something was really wrong. I went ahead and called the after hours nurse again and she suggested that we go ahead and head to the ER...I was a step ahead of her and was packing a bag while we were talking. She said that she had to tell me to go to the closest hospital which for us is Baptist. I thought we should probably go to Children's but I was scared to death by this point and just wanted to get someplace fast! It was after 11pm so I left Jim home with Landon and MK and I headed to the hospital. It was snowing really, really hard at this point so I was having trouble seeing and missed the exit to Baptist. I'm certain our sweet Jesus had the wheel. So, we headed towards Children's and I had to pull over once because I thought MK had thrown up and I was afraid she had choked since she was so out of it. She hadn't thank goodness. I was terrified!! We got to Children's and rushed into the ER. They took her temperature (still under 100) and weighed her and then sent us to a room. The nurses came in and started their evaluation and that's when it got a little crazy. There were several people in and out and they had to draw blood, get a urine sample and a few other things. At that point they weren't positive what was wrong and told me they may have to test for several things including meningitis. I felt awful and helpless...and I hated seeing my baby laying there struggling to breathe. They took her to a bigger room and brought in the x-ray machine for a chest x-ray. At this point I was praying it was only RSV! Everyone was so nice but they had me scared to death! A short while later they confirmed that our girl had RSV and they sent us to the PICU. Talk about scary! We got settled in our room and I was able to rock her for a while...and I didn't sleep at all! Jim got there early the next morning and the doctor that saw us that morning told us not to be surprised if she got worse before better...but she was already doing better by then so we decided not to believe him. Our nurse, actually a girl that Jim knew but hadn't seen in years, really thought we would be sent to a regular room that day or the next and we were so relieved. Our relief was short lived...the doctor was right. Our girl started getting worse and by mid-morning on Friday she was so bad there was a little talk of putting her on the ventilator. At this point they had already put in a feeding tube that bypassed her tummy since having a full belly from a bottle put too much pressure on her lungs...and taking a bottle made her too tired anyway. We were able to avoid the ventilator and everyone there was very reassuring in telling us that she was going to be okay but that it was just going to take some time...seeing her look so pitiful and hooked up to lots of things was hard! Monsignor Malone came to visit us on Friday and since MK hadn't been baptized yet we decided to have him baptize her while he was there...and guess what he used!? Her daddy's bottle of aquafina!! We thought that was pretty funny and were happy to have our girl baptized. We will do a ceremonial baptism without the water later...after germ season. Ha! So, by Saturday she actually started improving and by Sunday we thought we were going to a regular room but she started breathing a little hard again so they sent us to intermediate care. We spent one night there and they weaned her oxygen way down and on Monday we went to a regular room! I can't remember exactly when they took her completely off the oxygen but her oxygen saturation stayed up without it and they continued the breathing treatments they had been doing since early on. By Tuesday they had her feeding tube out and by Wednesday she was ready to come home!! She has a runny nose, a cough and snores a little but is otherwise healthy and we had a good first night back home!

And I'm glad to be back home and away from the Children's hospital cafeteria! I found comfort in cheeseburgers, french fries, cookies and gallons of diet coke...I surely need to detox and stick to salads and fruit for a while...after the holidays of course.

Maddie Kate,
You gave us quite a scare. Don't do that again. Next time you need a break from your crazy brother let me know and we will go shopping instead, ok? We love you so much and we are so glad you're okay. You are a very lucky girl blessed with family and friends who love you and have said countless prayers for you to get better. We are lucky too! We couldn't have made it through the week without the love and support from everyone. This holiday season we will remember the families at Children's who won't be home for Christmas and we will pray that they will eventually go home healthy and happy.
Love,
Mommy and Daddy

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Yay! We are home!

2011-12-14T15:05:00.001-06:00

MK is so happy we are home and I sure can't wait for her big brother to get home from school! I sure have missed him!!!

What's that you say? We are going home???

Yipppeeeee!!!

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Bottles and breathing...and Stella

2011-12-13T17:59:00.001-06:00

Maddie Kate is off the oxygen, taking bottles and feels much better!!

Her pulse-ox monitor isn't turned on and we don't have any other scary monitors beeping! Woohooo! I think (but don't want to jinx it) that we are on our way out of this place! Our fingers are crossed that she does well tonight...I have a feeling I may never sleep again for watching her every breath and overanalyzing her tone, color and alertness! This has been such a scary experience but pales in comparison to what other families here are going through. I saw a guy I recognized from college in the cafeteria a few nights ago and long story short...their 2 1/2 year old daughter Stella is battling a brain tumor that has spread to her spine. They are dealing with this after having already lost a baby 4 years ago. I can't even begin to imagine what they are going through and my heart breaks for them and the other families going through the same or similar situations. Our girl still needs prayers...and while you're at it please, please say a prayer...lots and lots of prayers for Stella!

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Moving on up!!!!

2011-12-12T13:56:00.003-06:00

Yesterday after I had already posted the "poop blog" we moved over to intermediate care! Yay! Definitely a step in the right direction...and now I just got word that we are moving to "the floor"!!! "The floor" is our last stop before we bust on out of here and take our sweet baby girl back home! Yay! Woohooo! Our girl is doing so much better and we are so very grateful!!

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Well poop...we're still in the PICU

2011-12-11T08:39:00.003-06:00

So, I can't say I normally use the word poop to express frustration in place of a more colorful 4 letter word but today I will just say it. Poop!!!!! Because our girl is still in the PICU...and because it presents a great opportunity to share a Landon poop story! As you've read we are potty training. And we've drug it out far too long...live and learn. I don't like messes and can't get motivated to nix the pull-ups. I don't think he is quite ready anyway. He poops in the potty every time. Apparently pee peeing in the potty is much more difficult for our guy. Either he can't be bothered to stop what he is doing to go or he hasn't quite figured out how to stop from going when the urge strikes. Or maybe its because he knows he can get away with going in his pull-up. Anyway, we will get there. I have complete confidence that he will be pee peeing in the potty before his freshman year of college. At least. Meanwhile, he likes to make "big" poops and one day I was "coaching" him and told him to make a "greeaaaat big giant GIgantic giiiiiiiiinormous" poop! He thought that was just hysterical and kept asking me to say it over and over. Then he started calling his big poops "inormous". Haha! Well, over Thanksgiving in Lavaca I went to Fort Smith to have lunch with the girls. When I got back Daddy informed me that I should probably stop making a fuss over poop size because during lunch Landon was bothered by the little potato chips he was given and asked for a ......... "inormous poop sized chip"!!! Fantastic!!!

Keep praying for our girl! She is starting to improve but we are still in ICU. This RSV stuff is really no fun at all.

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PICU and B-I-N-G-O

2011-12-07T21:29:00.001-06:00

Our sweet baby girl has RSV and is in the pediatric intensive care unit at Children's hospital. I will write more about it later but if you read my blog we sure could use some extra prayers. She is going to be okay...it will just take some time for the virus to clear up.

Meanwhile, Landon is such a smarty! He picks up on things so fast and impresses us daily by doing something we didn't know he could do or by saying something we didn't know he could say! He loves nursery rhymes and children's songs and Bingo is one of his favorites...remember the video of him dancing to it? Well, now he can spell it!!

YouTube Video

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Santa!

2011-12-06T15:48:00.001-06:00

On Saturday we took the kids (it's weird to be able to say "the kids". Ha!) to Breakfast with Santa at Children's hospital. Landon got to call the North Pole while we were there and he also got a bag of reindeer food to scatter out on Christmas Eve! Maddie Kate slept the entire time! That's what she does best. She even slept on Santa's lap! Landon was all ready to tell Santa that he wants a Spiderman and "Rio with the monkeys" but didn't get a chance to actually tell him. He was a little disturbed by this and was even more disturbed that he didn't actually get his Spiderman right away! We told him that he has to wait for Christmas!

This is a picture of their picture with Santa. We didn't get digital files this year and I wasn't impressed with the quality but it was a fundraiser for a good cause.

We can't wait for Santa to come to our house!

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Humpty Dumpty and Tummy Time

2011-11-30T18:11:00.001-06:00

Landon says his nursery rhymes even when he has an ear infection and cough! The kid cracks me up!

YouTube Video

MK did some tummy time today and boy is she strong!! Look at her ornery brother on the background!! Ha!

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Thanksgiving in Lavaca

2011-11-27T08:36:00.001-06:00

Aunt Judy taught Landon how to play cards. He can count the shapes like a pro now and will be playing in the World Series of Poker in no time!

Mimi's iPad is the latest obsession. One morning Landon woke up and came in the living room and asked, "Where is everybody? Where is Mimi, where is Papa, where's my daddy. Where is the iPad?". Im rethinking my Christmas list...I had asked for one but I fear I will never see it and/or that it will create an almost 3 year old monster! However, he sure was quiet a few times while playing Angry Birds. Hmmmmm....

Landon got to ride the "big fracor"!!

Miss Maddie Kate enjoyed her first trip to the farm and even turned a whole month old while we were there!

She also helped us cheer on the hogs. We are sad that this precious outfit and giant bow didn't bring the piggies more luck!

Of course Landon had to show Mimi how to play Angry Birds...she didn't already know how you know.

Luckily I tore him away from the iPad long enough to help set the table Saturday night!!

We had so much fun in Lavaca and now we are off to "Tansas" to see Great Mama, Papa, Pocky, Uncle Fwis, Aunt Lindy and Uncle Carl"!

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Thankful

2011-11-22T19:16:00.000-06:00

There isn't really much to blog about today but I thought I'd post a few pictures that we've taken over the last couple of days. We are looking forward to Thanksgiving in Lavaca this year and then we're off to Kansas to visit Great Mama and Papa! I know a little boy who couldn't be more excited! His Mommy and Daddy are pretty excited too! We are very Thankful for our wonderful family and especially for our newest addition.

Not sure what they're looking at but I thought Landon's expression was cute...poor MK!

This picture cracks me up! Her expression is so funny and she is so strong! She's been holding her head up pretty much since birth and she can already roll over from her belly to her back!

Maddie Kate's 3 Week Photo Shoot

2011-11-18T15:48:00.000-06:00

I can't believe that Maddie Kate is already 3 1/2 weeks old...and at the same time it seems like she should be older. She just fits right into our little family and we are enjoying her so much...she has already changed so much!

Happy Halloween!

2011-11-17T17:00:00.002-06:00

Landon had a great Halloween this year! He dressed up as one of his current favorites...Sheriff Woody from Toy Story! He and daddy went trick or treating with the neighbors and then came home and passed out candy! Mimi was here visiting so she and I stayed home with Maddie Kate and passed out candy until the boys got home and took over the candy passing out duties - which may have been one of Landon's favorite parts of the evening!

Sweet Little Punkin!

Ready to go!!

First treat of the night! Almond Joy! YUM!

The Johnsons came by and look at Miss Audrey! Is this the cutest costume you've ever seen?!

Our New "Normal"

2011-11-16T17:06:00.000-06:00

Who decides what normal is anyway? My friend Andrea once gave me a book of little funnies called "Normal Is A Setting On The Dryer". So true. I dry my clothes on normal all the time. Ha!

So, what does the new normal look like for the Battreals? Well, let me tell you that if it weren't for Mimi who came to visit and cooked us yummy casseroles for the freezer, for Nana who is a tremendous help, for my friend Emily who set up a meal train for our friends to bring us dinner and for Jim (aka best daddy ever) our normal would be complete chaos instead of just a little chaotic.

Maddie Kate is 3 weeks old already and of course she's not sleeping through the night yet - and I sure don't expect her too...but I'm sleepy! Aside from being nocturnally challenged, our girl is just about as perfect as they come. She does what all babies do - she eats, she sleeps...and we change a lot of a diapers. She's pretty much on a 3 hour schedule and after a few weeks of worrying about her weight gain - or lack thereof - we have pretty much totally switched to formula. The same thing happened with Landon. Nursing just doesn't work for me and no matter how many times I told myself and everyone else that I wouldn't be upset if it didn't work again I was upset...as in, I cried at the doctor's office when they told me she hadn't gained enough at her two week check-up. I'm over it now though and she's getting what she needs just like her equally perfect (if not ornery) big brother who is adjusting pretty well for a kid who's life has been totally changed. He hasn't really been phased by the whole baby sister thing. We've had a couple of minor threats of big brother breakdown but nothing major. One morning Jim got up extra early to give me a break and he was holding the baby. Landon got upset and said "NO Dada! You give that baby to mommy and you hold me!". He was serious! A couple days later I was holding MK and she was fussy. Landon said, " Her wants her mommy". I told him that I was here mommy and he said, "NO! You MY mommy, her wants her other mommy!" He was over it quickly though - and most of the time he loves on her and wants to hold her. It will be fun to watch them interact as they get older.

Here are a few pictures from our first few weeks at home.

Landon got a Big Brother present!

Precious tootsies.

First photo shoot!

Zoe's handling it okay too considering she's suffering from a whole new level of neglect.

I sure wish Miss MK would sleep in this precious cradle - sadly, she much prefers her car seat.

Proud big brother!

Landon read his sister the book that Aunt Lindy and Uncle Carl sent! She loved it.

Hi Pocky

2011-11-12T17:17:00.001-06:00

Hi Pocky, this picture is for you! Haha! Don't worry, we don't put bows on Maddie Kate every day. Just sometimes.

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Happy Birthday Maddie Kate!

2011-11-05T15:45:00.001-05:00

Miss Maddie Kate arrived at 9:34am on October 25, 2011. She weighed 7 pounds 13 ounces and was 20 inches long. She is healthy and happy and her daddy and I are so happy she's here.

We got to the hospital at 7am after dropping Landon off at his Nana and Papa's. When we got to the hospital we checked in and they took me to a labor and delivery room that she would have been born in had I not been scheduled for a c-section. I had to sign a gazillion papers that freaked me out - something about all the risks associated with anesthesia and surgery - kinda gets to a momma! I met the anesthesiologist and turns out we have a mutual friend and kids that are around the same age. Small world! She is super sweet and knowing her helped calm my nerves a smidge. They monitored the baby and said that I was actually having contractions but I couldn't feel them. Around 9am they wheeled me off to the operating room. I was SOOOOOOOO nervous and the OR did nothing to make me any less nervous. It was so sterile and cold and there were a lot of people in there doing various things and talking all around me...and the operating table was seriously way small...and I was way huge. Getting from the bed to the table was not fun - neither was getting the spinal block. However, once it was in and started working I started to relax - and then Jim got to come in and that made everything better. UAMS is a teaching hospital so every time anyone did anything to me they were teaching someone how to do it - so, there was a lot of talking going on and it was kind of weird. I don't know how long it took but it wasn't long after they got started that we heard our sweet, precious, beautiful baby girl cry. And she was healthy and perfect and I cried right along with her. Jim got to cut her umbilical cord and then they wrapped her up and brought her to my face so I could kiss her sweet cheeks. It was one of the neatest moments of my life. After they got me all sewn up they wheeled me off to recovery and I got to see Maddie Kate again. Our families were able to come back to meet her too and I was so happy that everyone was there. They had a hard time getting my temperature to come up so I had to stay in recovery a little longer than usual. They also had a hard time getting the "gunk" (that's surely a medical term) out of MK's lungs and that was kind of scary - but she was fine. We had several visitors come meet Maddie Kate and her big brother came to meet her the day after she was born. I'm pretty sure he was just as taken with her as we were from the beginning. He's really surprised us with how well he's handled becoming a big brother. We came home from the hospital on Thursday the 27th and we've adjusted well so far. More about our first days with Maddie Kate to come!

Waiting...waiting...waiting. The waiting turned out to be the worst part in hind sight. Thank goodness!

Spinal block in - oxygen mask on! I didn't like that mask!

She's here! Her daddy cut her cord - okay, so the doctors had to do the first cut but Dada got to do the second!

Pure happiness!!!

Meet Mary Madalyn Kathleen Battreal!

Proud Daddy!

Sweet girl.

Big brother meets his baby sister!

Headed home to start our life as a family of 4!

Today's the day!

2011-10-25T09:00:00.003-05:00

Dear Mary Madalyn Kathleen,

First, you're probably going to hate your name...I mean, really, 3 names? What parent does that to a child? Sorry kid - we do. Your brother is stuck with 3 names too. Hey, at least you have a super cute nickname.

We just can't believe that the day we'll finally meet you is here! We are so excited! Your big brother is excited too - but I don't think he fully understands how his world is about to change. He's a pretty cool kid and he's going to be a great big brother! Sure, you'll fight and pester each other and you'll drive your mommy and daddy crazy...in fact, your brother is driving your dad crazy right now - see, I'm writing this the night before your birthday and scheduling it to post on your actual birthday - and right now your daddy is giving your brother a shower. And boy is he acting crazy! He's being silly and carrying on like a madman! And you know what, we wouldn't have it any other way...you know why? Because along with all the craziness comes lots of hugs and kisses and snuggles and love. We love you so much already and we are saying extra prayers that your birthday goes well and that you arrive happy and healthy.

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Here's what mommy looked like the night before you were born!

Maddie Kate's Nursery

2011-10-23T08:30:00.002-05:00

We put the finishing touches on Maddie Kate's nursery this weekend and I'm so excited to share a few pictures! I am so proud of how this room has turned out and I had so much fun putting it all together...after I decided on a fabric, that is. If you know me at all you know that I stress over really, reeeeaaaalllly, unimportant things...and I can't make a decorating decision to save my soul...and in this case, the stress and lack of decision making skills centered around fabric. Totally, ridiculously, utterly unimportant fabric...and that was after I had already stressed over whether or not to have her bedding made or buy pre-made. Big life decisions here...I tell ya! Anyway - after I finally found fabric I loved I had a lady at the paint store Pocky uses help us pick out paint colors and then Pocky came to visit and painted the nursery. I love the colors and the room came together just perfectly when MK got the most precious blankets in the mail from her Great Mama. I love them so much and I can't wait to bundle our girl up in them!

So, lots of silly stressing later - here is MK's nursery!

My awesome friend Amy painted these for MK's nursery...aren't they perfect?!

MK's first doll! She comes out of her Snuggy Bunny and is just the cutest thing!

My sweet friends threw me a "sprinkle" and here is the adorable invitation...also made my Amy!

Close up of the bedding...the bird fabric was the first "big" decision and I LOVE it!

I love how the polka dots look with the birds.

Here are the precious blankets that my sweet Mama made for MK.
I'm taking the pink one to the hospital to bundle MK up in to come home.

I just love it - and Jim says it's the nicest room in the house. He's kinda right...so, our girl is a smidgen spoiled already. And I thought I wouldn't be good at this girl stuff...maybe there is hope after all!
We can't wait to meet you Maddie Kate!

PS...

Maddie Kate,

Your big brother and your Daddy worked hard putting things together! Here they are working on your chair!

Motley's Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-22T10:04:00.000-05:00

Last weekend we took Landon to the pumpkin patch! We had such a great time!

Landon fed the animals at the petting zoo!

The Johnson's were there and Ryan helped Landon out with the pet food!

Landon found lots of pumpkins!

Hi Mommy and Daddy!

This slide is fun!

Look how tall I am!

WOW! Pig races!

Look at 'em go!

Landon kept saying "oink oink" and Audrey wasn't too sure about this picture thing! Aren't they precious though!?

Chasing birds!

Look how big Maddie Kate is!!!

Landon wanted to ride the "cow choo choo" all by himself!

Mommy and Daddy were nervous!

Landon wasn't!

Here they go!

And here they come! He loved it!
For some reason watching him ride this by himself made his Mommy a little sad. He's growing up so fast! I'm afraid I'm going to be one of those silly, emotional moms who gets all teary watching the big moments of her kiddos growing up! Sorry kids. It will be embarrassing...maybe I'll get it together before I embarrass you too bad! I doubt it.

We can't wait to meet our new little punkin!

Landon picked this one out to take home!

On the way out he rode this fun horsey swing and mommy bought some fudge!

The Tooth Story - Part 2

2011-10-20T09:54:00.001-05:00

The week after Landon lost his tooth we took him to see the dentist. They took an x-ray and confirmed what we already thought - the root was still there and it had to come out - and that would require surgery. So, the next Monday we took Landon to see a different dentist and we thought he'd be having the surgery that day. Turns out the dentist we saw prefers to do surgeries on kiddos Landon's age at Children's so...no surgery that day. We scheduled the surgery for Wednesday. We had to be at the hospital at 12:30 and since my friends at work had planned a baby shower lunch that day I had to meet Jim and Landon there. When I got there Landon was already wearing his Children's Hospital pants and shirt and he was watching "tb". Dada said he had been so good since they got there! After I got there we met with several different people and answered a gazillion questions about our little guy's health and then we met with the anesthesiologist. We all knew this was going to be a minor procedure...but he's our baby and surgery is scary. Then, we waited....and we waited...and we waited some more. We took Landon down to the playroom for a while and he had fun playing with the toys. Finally around 3 they took him back for surgery and Jim and I waited in the waiting room. We were told they had blocked an hour for the surgery so we sort of expected it to take that long. We were surprised when they were done less than 20 minutes later! The dentist came out and told us that everything went well and he gave is the root of the tooth that he took out. When we got to go back and see Landon in recovery he looked so cute and kind of sad all at the same time...he was just sitting in his bed and then when he saw us he got super mad! He did the same thing after he woke up from having tubes put in his ears. He wanted his IV out immediately and he cried and cried. We got him settled down enough to get him to the car and he was just fine by the time he and dada got home. A few hours later you would have never even known that we had spent 4 hours at the hospital! He was jumping off the ottoman and running crazy like normal! He's pretty tough and we kinda like him...and I was sure to say extra prayers for the families at Children's who are there for far more serious issues than we experienced.

Landon couldn't have anything but water or apple juice the morning of the surgery so I bought him this super cool Spiderman apple juice! He thought it was the best special surprise ever!

Hanging out in his hospital pj's.

Landon got a milkshake on our way home! That's the second one this week! He's going to be spoiled for sure!

Mom! Quit taking my picture! You're interrupting Charlie Brown!

Nana and Papa brought Landon some balloons to make him feel better! Landon loved them!!

By dinnertime our little guy was fine...he had 'acaroni and cheese" and kiwi.

And he left the root of his tooth out for the tooth fairy!!!

Here it is Tooth Fairy! I want a Woody doll this time!

This morning Landon found this! WOW! $20!!! I guess the tooth fairy leaves extra if you have to have surgery!

I wonder if she also pays hospital bills? Ha!

This is the conversation I had with Landon this morning after he discovered what the tooth fairy left him...

Me: "Wow Landon! Look! The tooth fairy left you $20! That will surely buy you a Woody doll!".

Landon: "NO! Dat's not money!

Me: "It's not? Then what is it?"

Landon: "Dat's not money! It's a...aaaa....it's a ticket!"

Me: (Trying not to laugh - clearly he hasn't grasped the concept of paper money...

which is probably a good thing. ) "Okay, well tomorrow we'll take your ticket and go buy you a Woody doll!"

Landon: "otay"

A tale of the Tooth Fairy and a Big Boy Bed.

2011-10-17T20:27:00.001-05:00

Friday, October 7th was a big day for the Battreal's! Mommy headed off to work leaving her boys at home to do "man" stuff all day...and "man" stuff on this particular day included putting together Landon's big boy bed! We weren't really sure it was the right time to make the transition because Landon was quite content in his crib and had only climbed out one time. However, considering his baby sister is going to be born via c-section and I won't be able to pick our little man up for several weeks we decided to take the plunge! And we're glad we did...he's done GREAT in his new big boy bed! The only trouble we've had is changing his nightly routine - we are routine people who don't fare well with change...pair that with the fact that we (especially dada :) ) love to rock our guy to sleep and it makes for a difficult time expecting Landon to just "go to bed". We'll get there. He's only fallen out of bed one time and it was early one morning. We heard the dreaded "thump" followed by "what the heck just happened" screams! Poor guy. He was fine - nothing a little snuggling couldn't fix.

So, back to the day of "man" stuff. After Landon's big boy bed was put together...complete with his dada's Pluto sheets that his Nana has saved all these years...Landon ran into his room, tripped over his rug, fell into the hard side of the bed and knocked his already loose tooth "looser". And it bled. Badly. I wasn't here for all the fun but dada called me right away to fill me in. After the bleeding stopped dada saw that Landon had bitten his lip pretty bad too. Poor guy! There wasn't a whole lot anyone could do...and apparently there is not a single dentist in the metro area who works on Friday. Nice. We didn't think a trip to the emergency trip was necessary, so after some TLC and a popsicle dada got Landon down for a nap - and when he woke up he told dada that his tooth hurt and asked him to "get it out"! Dada may or may not have sterilized the needle nosed pliers to give it a shot - but just couldn't bring himself to do it! So, Landon did what any normal "twoahalf"year old kiddo would do and he pulled it himself, handed it to Jim and said "here you go!". And he was fine. And the tooth fairy came to visit on his very first night in his big boy bed!!!

Yay! I have a big boy bed now! Mommy picked out my quilt - it's awesome.

Pillow fight! Thanks for saving my daddy's Pluto sheets Nana! I love them!
See where my tooth used to be?!

What, you don't pick your nose? All the cool kids pick their nose...everyone knows that.

My giant mommy read me Mouse Paint on my first night in my big boy bed!
Nanny Gayle made me this Razorback pillow and I decided to put my tooth in my Razorback coin holder and then tuck it away in this pillow so the Tooth Fairy would find it! It worked! Thanks Nanny Gayle!

Wook! The Tooth Fairy left me some change - and then my mommy took me to buy a new "Buzz Whotyere" toy! I like this Tooth Fairy lady!

Part two of the tooth story coming soon!

Let the countdown begin!

2011-10-12T02:27:00.002-05:00

So, it's 1:41 in the morning. Why am I awake? I have no idea really but I'm wide awake...as if I've been asleep for hours! Could it be that half pint of ice cream I ate before bed? (Don't judge. I've done pretty good this pregnancy so I decided I "deserved" some chocolate fudge brownie. Truth be told...I planned on eating the entire pint but didn't. So, there! Ha!). Maybe it's the preggo insomnia that so many of my friends have suffered from that I've thankfully missed out on? OR maybe...MK woke me up to prepare me for what's to come in two short weeks? Who knows. I should probably make good use of being wide awake and make Landon's lunch for school or something...but I will probably just lay here and listen to my baby daddy snore. Loudly. Ha! Sorry sweetie.

So, the countdown. We have two short weeks left before becoming a family of 4...which is a concept I clearly haven't quite grasped considering I told our doctor that I was looking forward to having next week off work before "becoming a family of 3"! He quickly corrected me and I was sort of caught off guard. Not sure if it was because I hadn't really thought about actually being a family of 4 or if I was shocked by my less than amazing math skills. Either way it hit me...we will be a family of 4. In two weeks! Or less. I secretly hope she stays put til the 25th because I really am looking forward to having a week off work before her arrival. I want to spend as much time with Landon and Jim as possible before the craziness of having a newborn hits us. MK, we can't wait to meet you and Landon, we know you're going to be a great big brother!!

Now, preggo insomnia or after effect of too much sugar be gone! I'm already not a morning person and my co-workers don't need grumpy Katie my last week before maternity leave!

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Maddie Kate: 36 Weeks!

2011-10-03T21:07:00.001-05:00

Maddie Kate is 36 weeks old in my belly. It's scary to think that if she decides to come as early as her brother did she'll be here in the morning! Like, TOMORROW MORNING! Luckily I went to see Dr. Wendel today and it looks like she'll be staying put. Which is good! However, I'm working on packing my bag this week and her room is just about finished. I'm waiting on a few more things before I take any pictures to post.

Today at our Dr. appointment MK's heart was going strong at 142 bpm and she's still breech. Here's what What to Expect When You're Expecting has to say about our little girl:

Forget your aching back (and everything else!) by trying to focus on your baby, who is now about six pounds and 20 inches long, with soft bones and cartilage to allow a safer journey through the exit door. Most of her systems (from circulatory to musculoskeletal) are ready for prime time, though her digestion system — which has done only practice runs so far — will kick into gear as she takes her first suckle at the breast or bottle.

I'm still feeling great...for the most part anyway. She's still really high and I'm afraid her head will have an indention from jamming it up in my ribs! My feet and ankles swell some by the end of the day but overall I just can't complain. Next week is my last full week of work before I start maternity leave. I'm looking forward to having some time off before she gets here...did you hear that MK? No matter how uncomfortable I get you feel free to stay put until October 25th!

Here is the 36 week belly - complete with a horrific hair day.

This is what a working mommy of one looks like after a long day and a trip to the grocery store...heaven help me when I become the working mommy of 2! According to my friends who've recently joined the ranks of parenting two I better "get ready"! I think karma is biting me for telling Landon's delivery story to too many pregnant women...now it's my turn for the horror stories of having two kids...I would be lying if I said I wasn't super nervous about the whole thing! I'm SO nervous. I'm excited too - and luckily I happen to have the best support system. I'm very grateful and excited to meet our girl!

Breakfast with Luke

2011-10-02T07:42:00.001-05:00

One day last week Landon and I met Luke and his mommy Marie for breakfast before school at Panera. The boys had so much fun playing and I really enjoyed watching them interact. They are growing up so fast and I'm so glad Landon met "Wuke" at school and that Wuke's mommy and I have become friends! I hope we can have another playdate soon! This is such a fun age even though it's by far the most challenging so far!

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Terrible Twos: Part 2

2011-09-28T20:05:00.002-05:00

Okay, our kid is seriously the sponge they say all kids are. He picks up on everything and somewhere along the way he must have heard a grownup say "I don't have time for this" because during bath tonight as Jim was drying him him off he said point blank "I not have time for dis". Then when Dada was trying to get him dressed and apparently didn't do something just right Landon said "Jiiiiiiiiiiiim!" Ha! Then he came in the living room where lazy mommy had her swollen feet up and I took some pictures of the kid we will henceforth refer to as Mr. Terrible Twos. Except of course when he is super sweet like this. :)

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They don't call 'em terrible for nothing!

2011-09-27T10:44:00.001-05:00

Landon,
You have entered the terrible twos. Any behavior before today that we "thought" was the terrible twos pales in comparison to your behavior over the weekend

You. Are. Rotten.

Totally rotten dude. You were horrible at church. Horrible enough that I missed communion to take you outside. We had two birthday parties for your sweet friends Audrey and Madeline on Sunday and at Audrey's party you almost pushed poor Harrison down playing with balloons, you slammed their door twice and you rang their doorbell during present opening time. We left early. At home you were just about as bad and we sent you to your room by yourself 3 times. That seemed to do the trick for a little while anyway. You hated it and one time after you came out you told me "I was freamin" (screaming) "I was cwyin" as if you wondered why I didn't hear you or come rescue you.

We are praying this is just a phase and we started reading a book that Dr. Wendel recommended called "The New Parent Power!" We know that this too shall pass and one day we will look back and laugh but right now you're wearing us out little guy. So, to quote you, "Top it" (stop it)!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy Battreal

PS. You weren't horrible all weekend...on Saturday we took you to the World Cheesedip Championship. Your dada was in Hog Heaven...you know, he kinda loves cheese dip. A lot. You acted pretty nice there and you were even kind of nice when we went to watch the game at your friend Jeanette's house. Let's not have a repeat of Sunday ever again, okay?

You and Kate had fun playing with the black thingies in the turf!

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"I'm gonna run around and fall down and hurt myself!"

2011-09-20T08:30:00.016-05:00

This is what we heard all day when we told Landon we were going to a birthday party at the field where the Razorbacks played the weekend before. He had apparently watched football with dada and caught on to the "falling down" aka tackling and decided that he would do just that when he got to play on the field! He had so much fun! When we first got to the party he found a football and threw it and then he'd fall down and roll around like he had been tackled. Then he ran for 80 yards non-stop! The kid has some energy and I wish he'd share...sharing is not his strong suit these days.

Here are a few fun pictures from our friend Will's fun party!

Down - Set - Hut!

Hey Samantha, what's that thing?

Fun with my dada.

CHEESE from the locker room!

We totally plan on getting a picture just like this when Landon pays for the Razorbacks! :)

Go Deep Guys!

Tackled myself!

Funny for your Monday!

2011-09-19T08:43:00.001-05:00

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Smartypants #2 and Razorbacks

2011-09-15T10:24:00.003-05:00

Jim has been teaching Landon the difference between left and right for a while and Landon caught on pretty fast. This morning as I was getting him dressed I told him to put "this" leg in and he said "that's my right leg" and then pointed to his other leg and said "that's my weft". Such a smarty!

In addition to the smartiness he is also full of orneryness. Yesterday the neighbor kids came over and Landon was apparently not up for sharing his toys and according to his dada he acted very ugly. Not a proud parent moment. Landon was not impressed to come inside when it was time and threw a giant fit. When we walked in the door he ran to his room and slammed the door!! Nice! Glad he didn't see me laugh!

In other news Landon had so much fun tailgating last Saturday! We had a smaller than usual crowd while he and I were there so he had fun running around and playing "beanbags". The kid can beat me at Baggo! He's pretty good! Apparently the crowd picked up after Landon and I left. I'm just glad I was there to eat one of Jim's famous peppers and to visit with a few friends. Go Hogs!

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Smartypants and sassy toddlers.

2011-09-13T20:35:00.001-05:00

"Nannon Battrul" is quite the smarty pants lately and has just been cracking us up on a daily basis.

Saturday he was acting up so I said in my sternest voice, "Landon Battreal I'm going to count to 3! Do you know what happens after 3?". He said very matter of factly, "4?" Nice. I had to give him credit though and it threw me off so badly that all I could do was say, "well, yes, you're right". Luckily that was enough distraction to change his behavior...briefly anyway.

Last week Landon's Pocky was here and on Tuesday he and I went in to wake Landon up. Well, I guess he had had a long night because when I said, "Good morning! Time to get up!". He fired back in his perfect I'm going to be a teenager someday voice, "LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!". The way he said it made me laugh so hard I almost had to leave the room!

Tonight I asked him if he was ready for supper and he said, "Yes Mommy Battreal".

He has learned how to say his abc's! We have been working on them for a while and he finally got it! Last Thursday night he just spouted them out in his favorite growl voice! I got him on video but could only get him to go through S on video because he was too interested in watching it after I recorded it. He can say them all the way through Z though!

YouTube Video

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33 weeks and 2 days...

2011-09-12T20:26:00.000-05:00

I missed the 32 week belly - I tried to get one every 4 weeks for comparison but it just didn't happen this time. So, here is the 33 week 2 day belly...it's huge and she's way up in my ribs. They're her monkey bars and she's practicing her swinging to make all the other kids on the playground jealous.

We've made progress on the nursery this week and I can't wait to get a few more things so I can post some pictures. It's turning out so cute!

MK's Birthday is set!

2011-09-09T10:52:00.001-05:00

Miss Maddie Kate's birthday is set for October 25th...unless she decides to come early on her own! We can't wait to meet our baby girl. Her favorite pastime these days is having dance parties in my belly. She is soooo active! I love it and it annoys me at the same time. Isn't that awful? Sometimes I think all her dancing is going to make me seasick. Still, it's reassuring that she's doing okay in there. I will post a picture of the 32/33 week belly tonight. Fair warning. I'm huge. I mean really ginormous. She's surely going to be a 20 pounder. Haha! Okay, not really but my belly is definitely bigger than what I remember it being at this stage with Landon. I will also be posting a few pictures of MK's nursery soon! Pocky has been here painting this week and we love how it turned out! He is helping Jim and Landon pick up her chair and chest of drawers right now! I can't wait to see them when I get home!

In other news...Landon had his first sonic "nelkshake" last weekend and he was a big fan!

His tear in this picture must be a tear of joy because he loved it! Ha! Actually, his eye waters almost all the time. Poor kid. We've had it checked out and there just isn't any major reason that it waters unless it's an allergy.

Happy Friday!

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Lazy Sunday!

2011-09-04T10:48:00.001-05:00

This is what our day looks like. The Wonder Pets and pajamas.

We have also watched Thomas, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Diego. Lazy, lazy, 32 weeks pregnant LAZY mommy!

Daddy went hunting this weekend and will be home today. I have a sneaking suspicion he will also be in a lazy dazy mood too so poor Landon is going to get his fill of the ol tv today. Maybe we will go outside or go buy some new paints this afternoon so his brain isn't totally fried by the end of the day! At least he's having grapes and a yogurt smoothie drink for a snack, right? No reason for lazy day to be unhealthy snack day! However, mommy sure would like some french fries! Ha!

Happy lazy day!

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Fishing with my boys.

2011-08-31T22:03:00.001-05:00

A couple of weekends ago Jim took us for a boat ride and let Landon do a little fishing. Landon was SO excited! He loves the boat and LOVES to fish. We didn't catch any fish that day and it was HOT but we had a fun time and Landon enjoyed driving the boat. After Landon was done fishing and driving he and I came home to fix supper and Jim stayed out and fished a little longer. Landon had been asking where his daddy was. Right before he went to sleep Jim came in and Landon went to see him at the door and asked him to rock him. Dada said he was too dirty so Landon got Jim's ever-present towel, wiped his dada's arms and said, "you clean now dada"? It was so sweet. Landon is quite the daddy's boy lately. Even tonight as I was rocking him he said "I notchu boy, I daddy's boy". Made me sad and happy all at the same time! Ha!

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Testing. Testing. 123.

2011-08-17T13:30:00.001-05:00

Im testing a feature that will email my posts when they're published since a certain dada's office has blocked blog sites. Boo for blog blocking!!

To make sure pictures go through here is one of Landon reading the "funny papers" while enjoying his favorite grape Popsicle.

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First Day of Pre-School and Potty-Time!

2011-08-16T21:23:00.001-05:00

Landon started school today and he moved up to the 2 year old class! He's growing up so fast! His dada and I took him to the open house last Friday to meet his teachers and to see his new classroom. His teachers this year are Ms. Sandy, Ms. Sarah Jane and Ms. Karin. We sure will miss Ms. Sally and Ms. Sonja from last year but we are looking forward to another fun year of school and we know his new teachers will be great! His buddies Luke, Liam and Murphy are in his class again...and he said Reagan is also in his class! Whew, glad the girlfriend made it into the same class! I need to meet this girl. Nana said he did great this morning! He went right in and found Liam and started playing. When I picked him up from Nana and Papa's this evening he said he had fun at school!

The last few weeks I've been a lazy momma in the mornings! I haven't have to get his lunch ready, pack his bag with labeled diapers, remember his rest mat or have him to Nana and Papa's earlier than usual...so, this morning was an adjustment for me too! A good one though...I like routine and since I tend to be deadline driven I like to "have" to be someplace at a certain time...AND we would have made it on time today had Landon not "hid" under the kitchen table to fill his diaper instead of going on the potty.

Speaking of the potty - aside from the "hiding" this morning Landon is making excellent progress potty training! We introduced him to the potty weeks ago and Nana has helped a lot! He started out getting M&Ms as a reward and now he gets Hershey Drops at Nana's! She's way cooler than us - we sometimes forget the candy prize! A couple of Sunday's ago he just decided he was ready and told us 6 times that he "had to go potty" and each time his diaper was dry when he got there! He's even gotten up on the potty by himself without our help a few times since and he went on the potty at school today! I took him to Target a week or so ago and we looked at big boy underwear! I told him that when he started going on the potty more consistently that we'd get him some and he picked out the Thomas ones! For now we're sticking with diapers and pull-ups. Yay for potty training progress! The goal: to have Landon completely potty trained before Maddie Kate gets here - momma is too cheap to buy two sizes of diapers! No pressure Landon - but you may only have around 9 weeks left. Keep up the good work!

We tried to get some "first day of school" pictures this morning...but Landon takes after his dada and isn't too fond of being on that side of the camera - he would much rather see every picture right after you take it and can't really be bothered to give me a good smile! Here are a couple of our attempts!

His backpack had two packs of wipes in it and was pretty heavy...he was not impressed that I made him put it on.

Since this morning's attempt wasn't great I thought I'd try to get some more pictures tonight...

He's ornery...

Just a little...

After his ornery photo session though, he had a bath and then he and I listened to and sang along with some fun nursery rhymes on the computer. Before that I sang a song to him that I've been singing to him since he was a baby called "A Bushel and a Peck" by Doris Day...I first heard it on the movie Julie and Julia and it just sort of stuck in my head and I've been singing it to him ever since...and tonight...after I sang it to him and he said "do dat again momma" a couple of times HE SANG IT TO ME complete with his arms around my neck and I wanted to cry from the sweetness...

And now, back to the orneriness...

Edited to test a new email feature for Landon's favorite dada. :)

Maddie Kate: 28 weeks!

2011-08-08T21:09:00.005-05:00

We had our 28 week appointment today and the bribery brownies I made worked - we got to see our girl again! It's a good thing too because I had forgotten to make them and remembered AFTER I was already in bed - yes, I got out of bed at 10pm to bake!! Totally worth it for another sneak peek!

Maddie Kate didn't want to cooperate for pictures but we got a few good ones. She's changed positions and is now in what they call the "frank" breech position...meaning she's in a U shape with her head on my right side by my ribs and her feet up by my left ribs. Landon was also in this position I think! I know he was breech but I can't remember exactly which position he was in. MK's still a mover and a shaker in there and here's what Baby Center say's she's up to these days (aside from building a jungle gym in the womb):

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

Here is our girl! We got a couple of 4D shots - but again, she didn't want to cooperate and she had her hands and feet up by her face the entire time and no amount of prodding her would make her move! Stubborn little thing...Mimi and Aunt Alison think that MK already looks like her big brother! According to the ultrasound tech who measured her she's already weighing in at 3 pounds 2 ounces and is measuring over 29 weeks - which is consistent with what my belly is measuring. My fluid looks great too which is super great news and the reason I took bribery brownies - I want to make sure she's floating around okay in there!

Here is the 28 week belly! I'm feeling a bit large and in charge - and although this is one of my favorite preggo outfits I'm wondering after seeing this picture if it's the most flattering!? Cardigans are sometimes perfect and sometimes they're not...who cares - I still love it.

Happy 4th Anniversary!

2011-08-05T14:28:00.001-05:00

On June 23rd Jim and I celebrated our 4th anniversary and I want to share a little bit about why I think he's pretty great.

Happy anniversary to my husband who...

keeps the lawn looking spectacular and enjoys doing it,

leaves me surprise Starbucks cash in my car,

leaves me sweet notes,

is the best daddy a kid could ask for,

humors me and agrees to stop 37 times on the way home from vacation for random produce and treasures,

buys cheese dip and blames it on the cat,

is "kinda" patient when I ask him a gazillion times if he likes the fabric and paint I've picked out for our daughter's room,

helps me clean up all sorts of messes (and does dishes AND his own laundry)

takes Landon to do the grocery shopping and is a pretty darn good cook,

went to every single RCIA class with me when i decided to become Catholic and takes us to church every week,

...

and is the best husband, friend and teammate I could have ever hoped for!! Happy 4 years sweetie and here's to many more!!! I love you!

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Dance party to beat the heat!

2011-08-02T19:30:00.004-05:00

So, as you know it's HOT outside. We are very blessed to have air conditioning in our house and cars and also to work indoors. I really feel bad for those who have to be out in this and for those without air.

At our house we have decided that staying in the house is our best bet (and we are thankful for levelized electricity billing!). Okay, well Landon and I, the 7 months pregnant momma, have decided to stay indoors. Jim's outside laying sod in the backyard and planting a new pencil holly in our front yard because the one we got last year didn't make it. Silly boy!

To stay entertained (and to burn a few pregnant momma chocolate calories) Landon and I had a dance party in the living room! Check out this kid's moves.

YouTube Video

Bless his heart, he may have gotten his rhythm from his daddy. Haha!!!

Also to stay cool we brought Landon's trike inside for him to ride. The cat is so not impressed with this idea. Landon keeps chasing her yelling "out out eber yuuu arr come at yu wike a pider munky". Yes, his daddy was channel surfing one day and landed on Talledega Nights and taught our first born to say "I'm going to come at you like a spider monkey". You're impressed. You know you are.

I will die of he says it at school! I will die. Parents of the year, right here folks! Hey, at least we put a pillow on the corner of the side table in case he hit it! That counts for something, right?

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Swimming with Luke and Ella!

2011-07-29T22:31:00.001-05:00

Tonight Luke and his sister Ella came to swim with Landon! Luke and Landon are buddies from school and will be in the same class again next year. His mommy and I have become friends and we enjoyed hanging out with their family tonight! We can't wait to do it again soon! Here are some pictures from our fun evening!

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Ready or not...I "twoahalf"!

2011-07-27T20:29:00.001-05:00

During bath one night this week Landon and I worked on counting. Apparently playing hide and seek with Nana has taught him well! I helped him a little to get to 10 and was surprised with what he said after!

YouTube Video

Landon,
I can't believe that today you are two and a half! Seems like you've been two and a half for a while because for several weeks now when we ask you how old you are you say "I twoahalf!". You're such a cute little stinker and we love you so much!!! We have enjoyed watching you grow and learn and we can't wait to see how you transition from an only child to a big brother. We know you will be great! I hope that you always know how much we love you and how proud we are of you. You're at a challenging age for sure and you're teaching us both a lot about patience and understanding and we would have it no other way. One of your latest "funnies" is that when someone says something to you that makes you think they're calling you by a different name you say "No, I Nannon Battrul". It so funny! You are just talking up a storm and you are so smart! Your little imagination is really starting to take shape and you surprise us every day with the things you comprehend.

Happy "twoahalf" birthday big guy!!!!!

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Favorites from the beach!

2011-07-18T23:12:00.000-05:00

WHAT???!!!!

2011-07-14T21:28:00.001-05:00

You mean I'm having a baby sister!! HOW can this be happening?

Haha!! This picture absolutely cracks me up!!! It might be one of my most favorite pictures of all time. He's such an ornery little toot! We had our 24 week appointment with our doctor today and we got to see Maddie Kate again! I asked to have another ultrasound because I wanted to make sure there was enough fluid in there...since I had low fluid with Landon it makes me nervous. We were so happy to get to see her again and an attending physician did the ultrasound. He was very thorough and said that she looks great! Here's what she's up to this week according to Baby Center:

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts her at just over a pound. Since she's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), she cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but her body is filling out proportionally and she'll soon start to plump up. Her brain is also growing quickly now, and her taste buds are continuing to develop. Her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help her air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. Her skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

Here are a few of our pictures from today. The top one is her foot and the next two are profile shots...she didn't want to cooperate for good pictures...we didn't care. We were just happy that she's doing okay in there!

I can't believe that we have less than 16 weeks left until she's due...we still have a lot to do but I know it will all come together and we are enjoying our last few months as a family of 3 as we prepare for our new addition.

Our little fish!

2011-07-10T18:20:00.001-05:00

We are home from the beach and today we went to Kate's first birthday party at our pool! I didn't get any pictures of the birthday girl but I wish I would have! She was adorable on her big day and you should have seen her eat her cake. She loved it!!! MK loved it too...she and I shared a giant piece with dada. It was from our favorite bakery!!!! Mickeys!

Landon has definitely gotten the hang of swimming and kept asking everyone to "watch this!". Check out our little guy's swimming skills sans water wings!!!

YouTube Video

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Beach Vacation 2011: Day 6

2011-07-08T16:13:00.001-05:00

On Thursday the guys played golf in the morning and we played on the beach. When the guys got home we went to Appilachicola for lunch. Appilachicola is known for having the best oysters and Jim loves raw oysters! I like them any way but raw. Grody. We had oysters rockefeller, some sort of baked oyster with cheese and bacon and the guys had some raw oysters. I had a grouper sandwich and it reminded me of eating at Schooners on Panama City Beach growing up.

This is the place where the guys had their fish cleaned. Robert's. It was close to where we had lunch...tiny little shack. Robert must like to keep his overhead low...smart business Robert!

After lunch Jim, Landon and I took a walk on the beach looking at "egulls" and seashells. It was a perfect way to end our vacation. Now we are headed home! This morning as we were packing up Landon said "I don't want to go to my home. I want to stay at this beach house!"

Here he is this morning feeding "egulls" and wearing his new Cape San Blas "how to be a true pirate shirt". The kid's into pirates! He's been saying "aaaargh mateys" and "I walk the plank" all week and it cracks us up! I was so excited to find this shirt. It's perfect for our little pirate.

We had such a great time on our first family beach trip with Landon! We can't wait to go back after Maddie Kate gets here!

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Beach Vacation 2011: Day 5

2011-07-07T19:06:00.001-05:00

Beach time

Grocery store...again! Ha!

Souvenir shopping

Awesome dinner

Movie

Worn out. :)

Here is a video of Landon swimming in the ocean!!! We most definitely have a beach loving kiddo!!!

YouTube Video

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Beach Vacation 2011: Day 4

2011-07-06T17:01:00.001-05:00

I didn't get too many pictures today. I think we finally hit beach vacation relaxation mode...well, as much as mommies can while watching over kids! The older girls are easy and Landon has been pretty good but vacation with a toddler isn't exactly "relaxing" except during nap time! Which is when I generally post these blogs. BlogPress is a handy little app on my iPhone that makes it so easy!!!

The guys got up early for a day of deep sea fishing and LeeAndra and I stayed at the house with the kiddos. We picked up the place and spent a lot of time on the beach and Landon and I took a long nap. Very nice.

Around day two of this trip it hit me...I'm a "real" grown-up. Guess what I was doing when I had this revelation???

Unloading the dishwasher.

How did I get old enough to be the one unloading the dishwasher while on vacation instead of my mom?? Also, I remember on vacations growing up it seemed like the moms had to go to the grocery store at least once a day for one thing or another. Guess what...we've been every single day too! I feel so old!!! Funny the things that make you realize your age!!!

Here is a picture of Landon on the beach today!

And here is the 7' tiger shark that Brad caught!!!

The guys caught over 200lbs of fish and had 130lbs cleaned. good thing we brought an extra cooler so we can get them home!

I think the big ones are mackerel. The guys cooked mackerel last night and it was fantastic!!!

Today is Uncle Chris's birthday!!! Happy birthday Uncle Chris!!!

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Beach Vacation 2011: Day 3

2011-07-05T19:03:00.001-05:00

Monday morning we had plans to go to a 4th of July parade on St. George Island about 45 minutes away. Brad and LeeAndra had been before and said it was tons of fun and that there are water gun wars between the people on the floats and the crowd. It's also a big SEC crowd, usually with a lot of Georgia fans! We planned to leave at 10:15 but since the house we are in can't decide whether its on central or eastern time we didn't end up leaving until 11. Luckily we made it and found a great spot to watch the parade...we still aren't sure what time it is most of the time. In our bedroom downstairs my phone changes to central time. Upstairs it's eastern. Crazy house! Who cares. We're on vacation, right!

You saw the car in the last post...and the Razorback was a hit!

Landon and dada had their Razorback gear and water guns ready!!

We saw a lot of "boat floats"!

Landon liked to spray them! He really got into it! Such a big boy!!

There were a lot if golf cart "floats" and a patriotic guy!

I have more pictures from the parade on my nicer camera. I will post those later.

After the parade we spent some time on the beach!! Landon gets braver everyday and wants to swim by himself! Of course we don't let him but when the water is calm he has fun swimming between his dada and me and he has fun standing out where it's calm...he doesn't like the crashing waves much.

Here's Jim and dada waving from the water!

This is our little setup on the beach.

Landon had fun playing in the sand!

There were a gazillion fish around us today and the girls caught some!

Maddie Kate is having fun too!

Playing on the beach wears a kid out...cheeto break!

We had spaghetti for dinner and this was my view while cooking. I could get used to this!!

Another gorgeous sunset!

And 4th of July fireworks on the beach!

We are having a great time!!

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Beach Vacation: Day 2

2011-07-04T10:32:00.001-05:00

We got to Cape San Blas a little after 1. This is our house for the week!

After lunch we headed out to the beach!!

Landon wasn't too sure at first but he loved it in no time!! I think we have a beach baby on our hands!!

He and dada played in the sand and he and I went for a walk chasing "egulls" and collecting seashells!

We watched a beautiful sunset from the screened in patio and cooked a big pot of fresh shrimp! Then we had cake and homemade ice cream for LeeAndra's birthday!

Landon slept in this morning and now we are off to St.George Island (after a small debate over what time it was) for the 4th of July parade!!

Here is a sneak peak of our car for the parade!!!

Happy 4th of July!!!

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Beach Vacation 2011: Day 1.

2011-07-03T09:33:00.001-05:00

Our vacation is off to a great start! We left yesterday morning around 8:30.

Landon was ready to go!

YouTube Video

Dada and momma were ready!

We had snacks

The car was loaded!

And we were off!!!!

In south Arkansas dada made up a new game! Count the irrigation wells that are running! Not quite the license plate game. Ha! We saw a high boy (some sort of weird looking farm equipment) and two crop dusters!!!! Landon thought those were pretty neat and since we saw the high boy and crop dusters at the same time Landon got confused and now thinks crop dusters are called high boys! Ha!

We stopped in Jackson at Chick-fil-A for lunch and a play stop for Landon. He did really well on the trip and we didn't have to break out the new DVD player until after our stop. We are pretty sure he thought watching Nemo in the car was about the coolest thing ever!! We got to our hotel in Mobile around 5:30.

Landon helped bring in the luggage.

And he spotted the pool immediately so of course he and his dada had to swim first thing! Landon had a major swimming breakthrough and swam (with arm floaties) the entire length of the pool by himself!!!!!! I didn't get any video or pictures but will when we get to Florida! Dada and I were so proud of our little guy!!!

After swimming we had a little picnic in our room! We ordered pizza and watched tv until bedtime!

We woke up around 7ish and now we are back on the road! We didn't wait to break out the DVD player this time! Barney is blaring in the background as I type and Landon is being quiet. Funny how that works!

More from the beach later!

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Our weekend and Landon's first boat ride in 2011!

2011-06-26T21:54:00.001-05:00

We have had such a great weekend!! Friday night we took Landon to the pool. His friend Livi was there and they had fun playing! At one point they had every single chair in the baby pool area in the pool!! Then we got our favorite, US Pizza for dinner. I love fun summer Friday nights like these! On Saturday we went to Jim's cousin's kiddos birthday party and got to see some of his family that we don't see often. I always enjoy going to this annual party!

Saturday night Jim and I went out to eat for our anniversary. We went to Vesuvio. We hadn't been before and some of our friends had given it rave reviews! It was really good! Can't wait to go back when I can enjoy a glass of wine with dinner! Afterwards, we went to Best Buy to get a DVD player for the car for our upcoming vacation and then to Shakes for a concrete! Date nights sure have changed for us and I'd have it no other way!

Today, we took Landon on his first boat ride of the year! We went to the river and Landon had a great time! He wanted to go fishing so bad though! Next time! I had kind of forgotten how much I enjoy being on the water and now that we have Landon it's so much more fun!!!

So, there is our random weekend recap! We hope you all had a great weekend!

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Nice and warm!

2011-06-20T19:45:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks ago Landon started saying his bathwater was nice and warm! Cracked me up and had to get it on video tonight! Notice the spaghetti face!!!

YouTube Video

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"Regan Battreal"

2011-06-17T09:13:00.002-05:00

Yesterday on my way out the door after work I got a text from Jim asking if I was close to home because Landon wanted to hide from me. So, I texted Dada when I got close and when I got home they were hiding…when I found them Landon got SO excited. This age really is so much fun most of the time. So, after I found them we sat down to have a little chat about our days and Dada said, “Guess what! Landon’s teachers told Nana today that he has a girlfriend!” “What!? Really?” I asked, “is it Ava?” – because he’s talked about Ava before and Ava is really cute…Landon chimed in with, “no, it’s Regan!”. I died.

“Landon, what is Regan’s last name?”

“Regan Battreal. I wuv Regan” and he said it with a goofy grin that only a toddler in “love” could grin…

I DIED!

PS…Mom, I texted while I was at a stop sign. Keeping it safe as always!

Star hitter!

2011-06-15T18:57:00.001-05:00

We bought Landon a t-ball set several weeks back...but he is so over t-ball and ready for the big leagues!!!

YouTube Video

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Maddie Kate

2011-06-13T21:20:00.000-05:00

I just love our little girl's name and I can't wait to meet her! Today we had the "big" ultrasound and to be honest, we were a nervous wreck. I hardly slept and Jim was anxious too...so, we both sighed a huge sigh of relief when we heard these words from our favorite doctor, "the baby looks great!" I know there are so many families who don't always hear those words and I'm saying extra prayers for them today - I can't imagine. I'm also saying extra prayers that Landon's baby sis, "MaTate" will continue to look great in there so she can come out and play with her big brother soon (but not too soon MK, your brother is in a hitting phase...we'll work on that before your arrival)! Ha!

During the ultrasound Maddie Kate was a busy girl! She was moving all around and wasn't quite a fan of having her picture made. She measured 20 weeks and 2 days...which is exactly how far along I am...quite the perfectionist already! She weighs 12 ounces and she's just an adorable little thing! Here are a few ultrasound pictures. The printer at the doctor's office was broken so we got a video...I had to try to take pictures with my phone while the video was playing on my computer!

Here is her sweet profile and her hand is coming up to her face.

Another sweet profile. We love her.

And here she is shaking a finger of disapproval at us for trying to make her move for a better shot!

Here's the 20 week belly! She's really growing! Thankfully I'm still at my starting weight. I lost 3 pounds in the first 12 weeks but it's all come back since! Last Monday I wore my regular clothes to work - by the end of the week there was no way! So, I'm pretty much all about maternity clothes right now...my budget is not happy!

Landon wanted in on a picture!
The daybed in the background is the latest addition to our front room which will be the "playroom/guest room/office". I got a few pillows today after work to get started but I want several more! I love pillows and I love how our house is coming together. I can't believe we've lived here almost a year!

Happy Monday!

Pirates like baked beans!

2011-06-03T21:48:00.001-05:00

YouTube Video

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Wions, Tigers and Bears, OH MY!

2011-06-01T22:49:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago we decided to take advantage of the spring-like weather (although it was cold on this day!) and take Landon to the zoo for the first time! Dada and I were very excited to take our little guy to see the animals- actually, I think Jim was more excited than Landon...such a fun, sweet dada! Landon LOVED the zoo and we can't wait to take him back...even after what happened when it was time to leave - which is captured in the following pictorial journey of our day! :)

First stop - the bird house.

Look at this weird little guy! I'm not up on my animals so I have no idea what this guy (or girl?) is.

Next stop - the alligators and a juice break! Sadly, I didn't get a picture of the actual alligators!

Wook Dada! It's a efant!

Here she is hiding! This is Ellen. Sadly, her 60 year old friend Mary passed away this year.

Wet's go find the grafs!

These two were in an argument! They kept pushing each other out of the way!

Move outta my way!

It's a wion!

Cool! A nocerous!

Landon didn't care much about the zebras but Mommy loves them!

I can't remember what this is but I swear when we asked Landon what he was he said "antlope". Maybe it is an antelope but I think it's some other African animal.

The otters really put on a show while we were visiting! They swam all around and jumped off of their platforms. Landon loved them!

Big ole bear!

More bears!

Landon liked the bears!

We rode the train!

Hey guys! This train ride is fun! Choo choo!

We saw flamingos!

Ducks and fish!

We fed the fish...

Saw these turtles just hanging out!

And this is Landon when we told him we had to leave...he threw down his hat, gave a pouty face and then threw a fit which included laying down in the parking lot.

And this is where Momma wanted to be - two year olds can be embarrassing!

Landon, we're glad you had a fun time. We enjoyed taking you to the zoo and we can't wait to take you back!
However, if you act like you did last time when it's time to go home we may let you stay and live with the monkeys!

"Gain a child...lose a tooth"

2011-05-18T20:50:00.003-05:00

Yep, that tale is apparently as true as the one that predicted the gender of BB2 because while I was pregnant with "Mr. Big Brother To-Be" I lost part of a tooth and had to wait until he got here to have it capped.

The cookies and brownies I took to our doctor appointment worked!
We got to see our baby on tv and it turns out the Old Wives were right...
IT'S A GIRL!!!!

So, even though we were "not so secretly" hoping for a boy we couldn't be more excited about our precious baby girl. Landon's even okay with it - even though when we told him we were going to call her "Maddie Kate" he said, "No, Bubby!"...but he knows he's going to have a baby sister and he already calls her "MaddieTate".

Here are a few fun pictures of Mary Madalyn Kathleen Battreal at 16 weeks!

She's not shy in utero - this is the first thing we saw! Let's hope she's a little more modest on earth!

Sweet Profile!

Waving to us!

Hand under her chin in deep thought - probably wondering how she can convince her momma to eat more chocolate...which seems to be her favorite food already!

She has her hand over her mouth in this one - surely blowing us a kiss!

Such a poser already with those hands clasped under her sweet alien chin!

Mary Madalyn Kathleen, we can't wait to meet you and since you'll probably read this someday we want you to know that we couldn't be happier that the Old Wives were right...but please, pretty please leave the girl drama in the womb - your momma isn't ready for it!
We love you,
Momma, Dada and Big Brother Landon

And here is the first belly pic! We took a gazillion pictures but between the shadows all over our house and my new too-short hair cut I wasn't loving any of them...so, the first belly shot is a faceless one! In this picture I'm wearing maternity clothes...but just like with Landon almost all of my regular clothes still fit and the maternity ones, while comfy, don't stay up well! Maybe Maddie Kate is telling me to eat more chocolate so I'll fill out the belly panel - only I know that eating chocolate would only backfire and there are no panels in the hiney and thighs of maternity wear!

BB2: 14 weeks 4 days.

2011-05-04T21:55:00.005-05:00

BB2 is over 14 weeks now and we're in the second trimester! Here's what's going on with him...yes, I said him.

"Growing by leaps and bounds, by week 14 of pregnancy, your baby is leaping and bounding. He (okay, or she) is on the move constantly - and those movements are a far cry from those jerky twitches of last trimester. They are now ballet-like, smooth and fluid. Your baby could be starting to sprout hair and eyebrows are filling in too!"

So, of course, we want nothing more than a healthy baby but we're kinda pulling for BB2 to be a boy. Never mind that his heart rate is super high and in the girl range, I'm craving sweets and ALL of the Chinese gender predictor charts point to girl...all the little kids in the neighborhood are boys, we have boy stuff, we know what to do with boys, and after all, Landon has requested a brother named "Bubby". His Mimi and Nana would prefer to buy pink. Since our doctor and his nursing staff can be bribed with baked goods we'll definitely be taking a big ole box of cookies or some other baked good to our 16 week appointment hoping for a sneak peak at our little one.

We haven't started taking belly pictures yet...and although I think I might have a smidgen of baby belly, I'm not too sure if it's a result of leftover Landon weight, cheese dip and chocolate or actual baby. I'm not wearing maternity clothes yet...but maybe we'll start with the pictures in the next couple of weeks!

However, since no post is complete without pictures...here are a few fun ones!

Dino Landon!

Rooooaaaaar!

Look out kitty...I'm a dinosaur!

Landon and Hannah jumping on the bed...luckily neither fell off and bumped their head!
These two are cute little messes together!

A few weeks ago we dined al fresco...it was so nice and we love our new backyard!

*Edited to add that I should really proof read these before posting them so I don't have to edit a gazillion times.

Easter...one more time!

2011-05-04T21:29:00.000-05:00

Okay, I totally forgot to post pictures of Easter morning in my last post! So, since I've already described how Easter morning went with the basket from the Easter Bunny (E.B) and the egg hunt and all...here are some pictures from our very, very early morning!

Mr. E.B. brought Landon all kinds of goodies including toys for our trip to the beach in July!

Momma and Dada gave Landon this book of blessings.

Wow! Cool! Thomas Eggs with real trains in them!

Chocolate Bunny!
Since Landon doesn't care much for Candy his Dada has helped him polish this off...

Oh look! E.B. didn't leave momma out! She loves these!

Dada got a Reece's Bunny! E.B. is awesome!

Cool! A "chocate chiken"

First egg success....a Reece's Cup!

Let's break to open this thing!

Candy at 7am...why not?! I'll tell you why...because Momma and Dada knew he wouldn't really eat it! However, from the way Landon acted at mass his tiny bites must have amounted to some sort of sugar overload! Needless to say we didn't get any fun family pictures from Easter morning. Sad.

Nope - nothing in this egg...moving on!

Easter Continued...

2011-04-30T12:09:00.001-05:00

We had a wonderful Easter! Landon woke up super early...like 5:30 early. Needless to say, we were done with the Easter basket excitement and egg hunt before 7:30 so we were able to enjoy a relaxed morning before church. Landon enjoyed hunting eggs but learned at this Easter party at school that sometimes the eggs have treats in them! Well, that's all he was concerned with while hunting eggs at our house. If the egg didn't have anything in it when he shook it he threw it back down and tried another! The Easter Bunny had put Reece's cups in a few and when he found one he'd unwrap it, take a tiny bite, say "I do wok it" and throw it down. He likes the idea of candy but the kid just doesn't love it. Crazy, I know! We went to the 10:30 Easter service to celebrate the real reason for Easter and man, was it packed!! We hung out in the cry room as usual and Landon was the show off...as usual! He rolled around on the floor and everything...yay for 2 year olds! One of these days Jim and I will get to hear mass again...I just know it. Where is that nursery sign up sheet again? After mass we went to the Hankin's for Easter brunch and had a great time with family. Then we all came home and took a big nap to recover from the early morning and big brunch!

The week before Easter we took Landon to have his pictures made with the bunnies...and this year his cousins came too!! They also had baby ducks! We got some really cute pictures of the kiddos despite the craziness of trying to get pictures of 1, 2 and 3 year olds...poor Mary Haven had to deal with all these babies! She's such a good sport and the best big sister every!

Dyeing Easter Eggs with Landon!

2011-04-24T19:51:00.000-05:00

Pretty colors!

Gotta stir the orange!

Wow Dad!

Dada, you're so cool.

And silly!

Look out Dad, I'm about to make a mess here!

Told ya! Good thing my Easter outfit is pants!

No biggie - messes are just part of it dada.

Momma helped too!

Dada snapped this one and Momma was impressed by his photography skills!

Trying out the wax crayon...yeah, it didn't work.

Stickers aren't for eggs...they're for my nose!
(PS - during mass this morning Landon shoved 2 stickers up his nose!!! So not fun!)

See wook! This one is perfect for my head!

Cool Dad!

Easter Eggs 2011!

Happy Easter!

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-23T13:48:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday we went to an Easter Egg hunt hosted by Landon's friends Audrey and Harrison. It was so much fun! Audrey and Harrison's mommies helped with the details and the snack table was absolutely adorable! All the bigger kiddos really enjoyed hunting eggs and the smaller kiddos enjoyed playing and having their pictures made.

Before the event we explained how Easter Egg Hunts work to Landon. We didn't practice with our own eggs - we just told him that you take your basket outside and look for eggs. When you find one, you pick it up and put it in your basket and then go look for more! Well, I think our brief explanation worked because as soon as he could get out the door he took off running and grabbed up lots of eggs! When there weren't any more to hunt he threw the ones he had in his basket out and hunted them again! We can't wait for the Easter Bunny to hide eggs at our house for Landon to hunt tomorrow!

Super cute treat table! Isn't that the cutest idea for using Peeps!?

Landon's first egg! That's Harrison and his daddy in the background.

Alright, let's go find some more!

Wook! I see more eggs by the tree!

Hunts over...time to throw em out and hunt em again!

This is SO much fun!

Do you think there are any more over there!?

All the kiddos (and mommies and daddies with their cameras!)

Juice break!

Hey! There's more eggs!

Sorry Kate and Audrey...I need this one!

Okay Kate, you can have it back.

Let me dooown...I've got eggs to hunt!

Happy Easter!

Sweetness

2011-04-20T22:13:00.003-05:00

Landon is just growing up and changing so fast and he amazes us daily with the things he does and all that he's learning. Because this blog is my journal, scrapbook and Landon's baby book all in one I want to be sure and include all the sweet and funny stories we have to share about our little guy.

So, tonight after dinner and bath I let Landon watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse while he had his "ba" aka evening milk while I did a few dishes and folded some kitchen towels. He's usually pretty easy to get to sleep but some nights are definitely more challenging that others. Well, he had been pretty wound up tonight so I kind of expected tonight's night-night time to be a challenge but it wasn't! I told Landon it was time for night-night and that it was time to go to his room and his said "otay" in his sweet little voice that melts my heart and trotted off to his bedroom like a big boy! We rocked for a couple minutes and then I put him in his crib and I haven't heard a peep since. Nights like tonight are good for a parent's soul! With all the challenges that come with parenting a two year old, the sweet "otay Momma" moments just melt my heart and make me forget all about the challenges.

Speaking of challenges...this morning while we were getting ready for work I heard a loud noise come from the living room. It sounded like something had fallen. Next I hear Landon's footsteps coming down the hall and him saying over and over "sowwy momma, sowwy momma". I thought, uh oh! What's happened? So I asked Landon to show me and he just kept saying "sowwy momma" and led me into the living room where he had knocked over a huge cup of water. Such a mess! As I was cleaning it up he said, "I go to time out?" Bless his heart! Of course he didn't have to go to time out and I felt bad that he thought I would be so upset. He knew he had done something wrong though because we have told him not to mess with cups and I was proud of him for coming to me to let me know what he had done. Again, his sweet little voice saying "sowwy momma" totally made the hassle of cleaning up the mess less of a hassle. Maybe he's got us right where he wants us...maybe we're suckers...or maybe we kinda love our sweet little mess to pieces. I'm going with all of the above!

*edited to add that a "ba" is not a bottle!!! It's a sippy cup...the name "ba" just kind of stuck for his night-night milk. We don't call daytime drinks "ba's"! :)

BB2: 12 weeks and heartbeats!

2011-04-19T17:06:00.001-05:00

On Saturday BB2 hit the ripe old age of 12 weeks “in utero” and this is what the ever handy “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” site has to say about our little fetus:

By now, your baby weighs a full half-ounce and is about the size of a large plum. Most of his systems are in place, though there's still plenty of maturing to do. For one thing, his fetal digestive system is beginning to practice contraction movements necessary for eating, and his bone marrow is busy making white blood cells — weapons against germs once he's out of your safe haven. The pituitary gland (at the base of the brain) has started producing the hormones that'll enable him (or her) to make babies of his (or her) own in a couple of decades or so.

Jim and I went to see Dr. Wendel yesterday for our 12 week check-up and we got to hear our baby’s heartbeat! It was going strong at 174 beats per minute and it was just the sweetest sound! If you’re into old wives tales then you might say I’m growing Landon a little sister…but I don’t think I buy in to those. Speaking of Landon, yesterday I asked him if he’d rather have a brother or sister. He said “broter”. I asked him what his baby brother’s name should be and he said very matter of factly, “Bobby” or it may have been “Bubby”. Either way…pretty cute. I don’t think Landon truly understands that he’s not going to be the sole center of our universe come October but then again…the kid’s pretty smart so I best not put anything past him!

Bibs...who needs em!?

2011-04-19T13:57:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure why…maybe it's cause we're lazy or maybe we just love spray n wash and want to keep them in business…whatever the reason, we can't seem to be bothered to use bibs. It's not that we don't have em…we've got lots. Cute ones. And I have no idea where they are. Maybe we'll do better with BB2! Or maybe not.

More about "Pish"

2011-04-17T19:33:00.000-05:00

A couple weekends ago we set out on a quest to find some pish for Landon to feed! We got all ready, got in the car - then halfway to our first stop we realized we had forgotten pish food. Since you can't really feed the pish without food we stopped for a loaf of bread at Walgreens. Armed with good old fashioned white bread, we went to three different places and guess what...there was not a single pish to be found! It was a really windy day and the water at all three places was kinda murky. We had fun despite not seeing any pish and can't wait until Landon gets to see some this year! As you can see from the previous post, he's got his pole ready! I know we'll see lots of pish at Great Mama and Papa's house in a few weeks and we'll get to eat em too!

First stop...someplace on Lake Maumelle where there are lots of sailboats!
Pishies where are you?

Maybe they're at the end of the dock?

None here at Pinnacle Park either!

Last stop...Maumelle Park.

None here either...next time let's bring different bread dad!
I don't think they like the white stuff - think they're watching their diet and prefer the double fiber like we get at home!

I'm "Pishin"!

2011-04-13T09:28:00.001-05:00

Look out! We've got a "pisherman" in the house! It's a good thing too because Landon comes from a long line of fisherman. It's in his blood. He loves it. Dada bought Landon a Spiderman fishing pole a week or so ago and to say Landon loves it would be an understatement! He's pretty attentive when he wants to be and figured it all out after watching Dada cast and reel (or is it real?) a few times. Before he got the new "pishin pole" he would pretend to cast and reel and then he'd bend down and pick up an imaginary whopper and say "Wook! A BIG pish!" He can't wait to go "pishin" at Great Mama and Papa's house next month! He'll say "I go pishin' at Mama and Papa's howse! He's very excited and so are we!

BB2: From Pea to Prune

2011-04-05T11:51:00.003-05:00

In the post announcing our big news BB2 was the size of tiny sweet pea. Last week I went for an “unofficial” ultrasound and our precious sweet pea had grown to the size of a prune! Seeing this sweet little prune with his/her tiny fluttering heart made me one happy momma!

I went for an “unofficial” ultrasound because my symptoms had kind of disappeared and “google” says that sometimes that can be a sign of a miscarriage. Darn you google! I know I should feel happy and extremely blessed to be one of the few woman who just feels pretty good during pregnancy – and deep down I do, I promise. However, sometimes a little nausea can be reassuring that everything is moving right along and since I had quite a bit of nausea in the beginning I got worried when it just seemed to disappear overnight.

The joke’s on me now though…because one symptom that hadn’t quite bothered me in the beginning is now bugging the you know what out of me. Exhaustion. I’m lazy ~~and Jim might say kind of grouchy.~~ I may or may not have let Landon watch hour(s) of tv on Saturday while I was glued to the couch/bed. Around 4, after he’d had a nap and enough of the Wonder Pets, “Bobot”, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse we finally got around and went to get him some new shoes…and he apparently has giant feet. The shoe salesman told me that his feet are as big if not bigger than most 3 year olds. I’ve been shoving his size 8 ½’s in a 7 for far longer than a good momma wishes to confess. Poor kid.

Ps…one symptom that hasn’t magically disappeared is my crazy food aversion to all things “tangy”. I can’t eat pickles, wing sauce (tried this last night when Jim made wings for the National Championship), any kind of candy that’s even remotely sour, etc. It’s the weirdest thing ever! I don’t remember having any food aversions with Landon…I do remember craving Special K early on with him and with this one I have a definite craving for Cheerios and I’m craving sugar more with this one too.

Landon's 2 Year Milestones

2011-03-28T11:45:00.003-05:00

31 pounds (83%)
35 inches long (67%)
head circumference - 20 (93%)

Here are just a few of the fun things he's up to these days:

He wears 2T/3T shirts and 2T pants and shorts. I think he’s built just like his dada!
On his 2nd birthday he was wearing a size 4 diaper. We’ve moved up to 5’s since.
He’s still a GREAT eater…his very favorite foods are cheese and "bwue"/"gwape" sicles.
He also likes beef ravioli, cheese ravioli, yogurt, macaroni and cheese, hot dogs, ham, turkey, carrots, bananas, kiwi, strawberries, melon, and lots of other things.
He has more words than we can count. He also has several two or more word phrases. One of his latest phrases from just this past weekend is “it’s my turn now”. He said this while I was playing Skip-Bo with his cousin Shawna and her friend Taelor who were here visiting! He also says “cool momma” when something is cool. His little voice is the sweetest thing and we love hearing him say new words and phrases all the time.
He can name several animals from his animal book and can also make their sound
He likes to work puzzles and is pretty good at them!
He can count to 3 – and does so every night at bath time. Oooone, twooo, freeee, GO!
He knows a few colors. bwue, wed, ellow, onge and geen
He loves his “vroom vroom” and rides it all over the house and outside
He takes one nap in the afternoon for about an hour and a half
He loves preschool! The friends he talks the most about are Luke and Liam.
His favorite shows are Dino Dan, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Dance-a-lot Robot and Wonder Pets
He loves to read and one of his favorite books is “Goodnight Moon”
He really likes to listen to the radio in the car and before we taught him to say “radio please” he would scream until we turn it up loud!
I have no idea how many teeth he has…the one that was knocked loose is still hanging in there!
He loves to feed the kitty and can just about do this all by himself
He loves to play outside…and especially loves the water hose and blowing bubbles

And last but not least…he’s going to be a BIG BROTHER!
We are excited to announce that Baby Battreal #2 is due on October 29th!

BB2 is 7 weeks and 1 day old in this picture so as you can see he/she has some growing to do! We are so happy and feel so blessed!

Landon's Birthday Party at The Wonder Place!

2011-03-20T21:52:00.002-05:00

So, last year Mother Nature was not my best friend when she sent heaps of snow and ice which caused us to move Landon's party from a Saturday to a Sunday...luckily it all turned out great and Mother Nature redeemed herself this year by sending absolutely gorgeous weather for his 2nd birthday party!

We had Landon's 2nd birthday party at The Wonder Place. The Wonder Place is a super cool place here in Little Rock that has tons of fun play things for kiddos. They have different party themes to choose from. We chose Little Picassos which was an art themed party and the kiddos got to paint as their activity before cake and ice cream.

Landon and his friends had a super time playing...and everyone but Landon seemed to enjoy the cake and ice cream. He threw a fit when we started to sing Happy Birthday and brought him a cupcake with a candle to blow out. Apparently the kid isn't fond of being the center of attention! He didn't get that from his mommy who sometimes forgets that the world doesn't totally revolve around her! Ha!

Here are a few fun pictures from our fun day!

I made a photo banner using a picture from each month from the year Landon was 1.

Party Favor Cookies from our favorite baker in Lavaca!

Landon's Birthday Banner that my friend Erin made last year.

Cupcakes!

No cake momma!

Pwease can I just go pway some more!?

Landon had a run-in with a box earlier in the week and had a boo-boo on his eye.

The Wonder Place is cool!

Best buddies playing in the water!

Wow! How does it do that?

Wow Dada! This thing is just really neat!

Dinner anyone?

Livi and Evelyn were there.

Lily came too!

Luke came with his mommy, daddy and brothers Sam and Jack all the way from Springdale!

Neighbor Ben came!

Baby Kate was there!

Audrey came with her mommy.

Sweet Madeline!

Cousin Asher!

Mary Haven brought her new iPod Touch...she's the coolest big kid ever!

Burke!

Bubbles!

2011-03-01T20:26:00.000-06:00

Landon LOVES bubbles! Last week we broke out a new bottle and it wasn't long before they were in a puddle on our back step. The remains stayed on our back step for a while and every time Landon saw them he'd say "bubboos gone".

So, since I'm the coolest mom ever I bought the kid some more "bubboos". The spill proof kind. Sunday afternoon we gave em a try and had a little photo shoot at the same time. I took something like 170 pictures and these are the ones that turned out...and I'm pretty proud of them! I'm really starting to love photography and I especially love the new lens that Santa brought!

These spill proof "buboos" are cool!

Show me some bubbles!

Cool!

Woohoo! 2 Bubbles!

Let's chase em Momma!

Wonder if I can touch them!

Yep, I can!

I'm going to try to catch another one!

Juice break! Blowing and chasing bubbles is hard work man!