Sad looks don't get you anywhere

Is that not the saddest face you've ever seen? This is the look I got when Mamaw and Papaw were leaving. The little guy's expression just breaks my heart. He is definitely Papaw's boy. He wanted so badly to go home with Papaw. He stood by the door, cried, and had a little tantrum when they left. Poor baby boy. :( Maybe he'll go up and visit for a weekend soon. He loves this picture, though. Everytime I show it to him, he has a big smile on his face and cries out "Papaw!!"

Your crib or mine?

Naptime has become sort of a chore around my house. Ever since the girls came home from NICU, they were incorporated into our schedule. Naptime is at 12:30pm. Period. No ifs, ands, or buts. Mommy needs her Y&R time....alone. The girls took right to it (hallelujah!) and Colton kept it up until last month. All hell broke loose last month. He started bucking naptime (and bedtime, but I digress, this post is about naptime). I tried everything....CIO, door closed, door open, different time, getting up early, going to bed late, before lunch, after lunch, rocking, laying on the floor with him, in my bed, etc. etc. Nothing was working.

At my wit's end, I finally laid on the floor one day and he fell asleep. Now, it took him 20 minutes but he fell asleep. I was ok with that. I happily gave up 20 minutes of Y&R to get him to nap. It's now starting to take a bit longer. First, 20 minutes. Then, 35 minutes. Today, I missed my whole show. :( Thank God it reruns at 7pm. Hopefully, this is just a phase that he outgrows because we are NOT giving up naps at the age of 2. I refuse. Colton and Carly shared a moment in his crib today. Don't they look so happy and well rested after naptime? Who would want to give that up?

Happy Birthday, Colton!

*Sniff sniff* No, no, I'll be okay. I'm sure every mom gets a little teary-eyed when their baby turns 2 years old. It's a rite of passage and another sign that I'm getting older. Hahaa!

It seems like only yesterday when I found out I was pregnant with him and yet it seems like a lifetime ago. I would have never dreamed I'd be sitting here almost 3 years later with 3 beautiful children.

Colton's current obsession is Cars by Disney. Of course, we feed into his obsession completely. He has a Cars chair, Cars pajamas, and Cars...well, cars. We got him a Cars cake and his present were almost soley Cars related. He got a great Cars lunchbox complete with stickers and crayons and a Cars nightlight from his favorite babysitter, Amanda, and her hubby, Brian.

And it wouldn't be a perfect cake without Lightning McQueen! He could have cared less about blowing out the candle. He just wanted the car!!

He dove into the cake soon after I took away the car. This kid loves chocolate! I'm sure we're going to regret the sugar high later. :)

He also got a Cars table and chairs from Mamaw and Papaw Bingham. Perfect for eatin' time and playtime. He sat down and was such a good boy when we ate pizza.

Other gifts from Mamaw and Papaw include watercolor paints and book, a Turn 'n Learn Frankie, and a Color Wonder Coloring Book with markers. His Aunt Angie and Uncle Roger bought him an AquaDoodle. I can't wait to open it and play!

His cousin, Kirsten, bought him a box of chocolate candy. Let me tell you, he dug into that one! LOL It was so sweet of her. :) Scott and I bought him a Cars sleeping bag with matching pillow, a flashlight, and a Cars tub to put his toys in. I'm sure I'll be using that more than he does.

Grandma and Grandpa Shuster sent a card with quarters in it. He had such a great time putting them in his crayon bank. He kept asking for more money. Hehee! Smart kid, huh? He also got a Tickle Me Elmo from them. He was scared of it, at first. Now, he's good with it.

And as promised, I got a picture of Amanda and Brian. They were kind enough to join our family in our birthday celebration. I can't wait to do the same when their little man makes his big entrance. He should make his debut sometime in June. Hoping he won't hold off 'til July. How mean for mommy. Hehee! They're the cutest little couple and I'm so happy to have them as friends.

Sisters

I never had a sister when I was growing up and I always wished I had. I used to dream of being best friends, playing together, going places together, hanging out with friends. The typical things that most sisters do, or what I imagined they'd do. In fact, I remember being mad at my mom and dad when they brought my baby brother, Travis, home from the hospital. I specifically told them I wanted a little sister. Not realizing at the time that my parents had no control over that aspect of a new baby, I was a bit miffed for a long time. Travis turned out to be an okay little brother, I actually enjoyed him sometimes. :)

My hope for Keira and Carly is that they enjoy and love each other as sisters and especially as friends. I've been told they'll always have a playmate and keep each other occupied. I hope they keep each other out of trouble as opposed to getting each other in trouble. If they're anything like me, I know that Scott and I are in for long nights and lots of worry. I think as long as they can keep each other laughing like they are in this picture, they'll be okay. And so will we.

Mommy and me (x2)

Sadly, this is my first picture with the girls since they were in the NICU. Mostly because I'm the one behind the camera, but also because I was having a hard time losing my baby weight. I was diagnosed with postpartum depression when the girls were 2 months old and was on an anti-depressant for 4 months. It made me gain weight terribly. I felt better, but the weight gain was kinda counterproductive. Being fat does not equate to being jolly. Maybe Santa can pull that off, but I can't. So, in the last 5 weeks, I've managed to get down to my pre-pregnancy weight....the girls', not Colton's. Hehee. Got a long way to go to get THAT body back. :)

It's absolutely pitiful

when a 6 month old gives you the look of "okay Mom, that's enough pictures for today." I shoulda listened to her. :)

I think we might be dealing with jealousy issues

Either that or Colton simply refuses to give up his toys that he has clearly outgrown. I'm not sure how or even when he got into this jumperoo (you really can't turn your back on him for more than 2 seconds!) Keira and Carly have been using the jumperoo and exersaucer for about a month or two now and as you can see, Colton has not been too pleased with the idea of sharing. I honestly thought we weren't going to have to deal with any jealousy on Colton's end. However, since his toys are now coming around for a 2nd (and 3rd) use, it has become apparent that my little man is a wee bit jealous of the babies.

Amanda and Brian

Amanda is our on-call babysitter and Brian is her husband. They're newlyweds that live down the street from us. Coincidentally, Amanda is from Kentucky. She and Scott have tons to talk about (people, places, and things) because they grew up in the same place. They are expecting their first child (a baby boy!) in June. Yay!! They came by today and played with the kids. Carly found a particularly comfy spot on the floor leaning on Brian's leg. Next time, I promise I'll get pictures of Amanda and Brian. Hopefully, she'll let me do some maternity photos!

The bruiser

My son and my husband were playing a little too rough last night and my poor little boy ended up with a massive gash under his eye. He took it like a champ and even let me put a bandaid on it after I lubed it up with antibiotic ointment. The bandaid lasted a few minutes. Then he figured out it was sticky and he wanted it on his shirt instead. Kinda like a badge of honor. :) He's feeling fine, although today it's a bit more blackened, scabbed up, and puffy. Goodness gracious, it looks like we beat our child. Of course, this would happen right before Colton's birthday. I'm sure those are gonna be lovely pictures. My poor baby boy.

Last day of freedom

Work has instituted a "uniform" scrub policy beginning February 2nd, 2009. Apparently by doing so, it will increase our patient satisfaction scores. All nurses will be required to wear navy blue Landau scrubs that have been embroidered with our hospital logo. We will no longer be able to express ourselves or show individuality in our choice of scrubs. No more fun cartoons, no more pretty tops, no more festive jackets. Phle! Whatever.