Do They Get Any Cuter??

I'm thinking no!

My Wonderful Husband

I just felt the need to brag on my husband. Some of you don't know that my husband has worked tirelessly for the last 15 months opening a brand new golf club in the area. Patrick passionately and dedicatedly worked day and literally night to put this new club on the map. He was in charge of absolutely everything, though that was not explained to him when he took the job. He didn't care. He's a hard worker and a good man. He did everything from order the necessary office supplies like pens, papers, and rubber bands, to decorating the clubhouse, to hiring/training/releasing employees, and anything and everything in between. He got to work early and stayed at work late, and when the pipes froze in the ceiling and ruined the security alarm system, my husband even slept at that club every night for two straight weeks, with the exception of Christmas Eve but including Christmas night, to be on Fire Watch and be sure the club wasn't broken into or damaged. He did all of this at the expense of seeing and spending time with his family and friends, to the extreme of not being able to bring me and Baby Presley home from the hospital because his bosses were in town, and he did it all without complaining. Patrick's work ethic is second to none. To say as an employee that he is dedicated, passionate, and willing to go the extra mile would be an understatement.

But compare Patrick's work ethic to his love for his family and that all looks like nothing! My husband is encouraging, accepting, loving at all costs, funny, and friendlier than anyone I know. As a father, none (well, except for mine of course!) could be better. He adores his kids. He loves them more than life itself. Regardless of the stress he endures, when he walks into our home and he is with our kids, all is right with the world. He doesn't even need "a minute to himself" when he gets home--he goes straight to playing with the kids and helping out with them. When Patrick is home, I can truly put my feet up and relax.

Due to a bad economy and a boss' need to secure his own job (that's a wife's assessment!) Patrick lost his job two weeks ago. I hate this for him. Not because he nor I desired him to put in the long hours that he did, but because he loved what he was doing, regardless of the powers-that-be. This job loss has been bittersweet, because while we did lose a position Patrick enjoyed, Tucker, Presley and I got our beloved Daddy and husband back! I can honestly say I didn't even realize the toll this job was taking on him, because since he's been home I'm seeing a side of him I haven't seen in a long time. He's laughing again. There's so much laughter. A strained relationship between Tucker and Patrick brought on by such an absence of presence has been rapidly restored. As for our marriage--who knew how much communication could be lost when a spouse works so much! It's not that we stopped talking to each other, but that we didn't really have time, and I don't think we even realized it until these last two weeks that he's been home. I love my husband! I really, really do. He is, without a doubt, my best friend.

I'm so blessed to have a God that cares for me. God planned Patrick and I to be perfect for each other. And though times are stressful right now, I know that He's going to provide for us, and while I cling to Jesus, I'm overwhelmed to have Patrick by my side. He is the love of my life.

I just had to brag...

Presley & the Pink Bear

When Tucker was a baby my friend Carrie gave me the suggestion of taking a picture with him once a year with the same stuffed animal to see how much he grows. It was a really cute idea...that we've been really bad about. BUT, my friend Heather just gave me the idea to do it with Presley every month since they change so much the first year. So I've decided to try that, (and I'm determined to be better about taking Tucker's annual picture too!) and so here is Presley at four-months-old with her Pink Bear.

Off for "boy time"...

(Too bad the stinkin' camera took a fuzzy picture! Oh well!) :o)

Tucker's 4-Year and Presley's 4-Month Well Visit

We took both Tucker and Presley for their respective 4-year and 4-month check ups. (Yeah, that's right. We were six months late for the 4-year appointment!) Anyway, things went really well. Tucker walked confidently into the doctor's office, greeting everyone along the way. He hopped right up on the scale, let them measure him without fuss, answered the obligatory questions about what he eats (almost nothing of variety) and if he still wears diapers (no). The nice nurses came in at the end and asked him to lay on the table. He obliged. And then...they stuck him! Double whammy--a shot in each leg. Poor, poor baby! He just cried and cried--he never saw it coming! I hate that! He was supposed to get four vaccines that day, but ever since his first doctor's appointment Patrick and I have had a no-more-than-two-vaccines-at-a-time policy. So lucky for him he didn't have to get stuck again, but unlucky for him he'll have to make up those last two shots at his five year check up. But then, no more shots until he's eleven! Phew ;o)

Baby Girl also did really well. She got her two instead of four shots and she didn't like them, but I always nurse her right away and she calms down really fast. Unfortunately her little owies swelled up a little and she didn't really feel well or nap well the rest of the day. She was back to normal the next day.

Tucker weighed in at 38 lbs, which is exactly what he weighed a year-and-a-half ago at his three year check up, and he grew four inches. (Can we say 'active boy'?!) These stats makes him average for both weight and height. Presley on the other hand is now 15 lbs, 14 oz, and 24.25 inches long, which puts her at average for height and in the 90th percentile for weight! Oh, Sissy Girl! She's our little chunky monkey...which I just love! The doctor said we could start her on rice cereal and then on to vegetables. I think you only do rice cereal with the first baby, right? ha ha ha We decided to skip it and go straight for the veggies. We've started with yellow squash, which she seemed to like. We waited until night right before her last feeding, hoping it would help her sleep through the night. No such luck. So tonight we're going to mix in the rice cereal with the squash to see if that helps with Mission: Uninterrupted Sleep. I'll keep you posted...

Quote of the Day...

I just spilled my water on the carpet and Tucker said, "UGH, Mommy! You have ruined this world!"

Four Months Old

Today Presley Dallas is four months old! Tucker, Presley and I were at a playdate at our friend's the Roseberry's house today. As I was talking to Stacy about being a month late getting Presley's picture taken and needing to get that done, the best photographer disguised as a stay-at-home mom whipped out her camera and got this great shot!

What a lot of changes we've seen in Sissy in one month's time. For one thing, she has grown to adore her brother! Tucker is the one we can count on to always make her smile. And his adoration has grown stronger for her each day as well. My prayer for them is that they will be best friends for the rest of their lives!

She is still sleeping in our closet (gasp! I know!) but I have a feeling she'll be in her own room soon. We're waiting for her to start sleeping through the night. Last week she slept through the night four days in a row (T, W, Th, and F). On the fifth day (Saturday) we said if she slept through the night again we'd put her in her room the next day. Well, she must have overheard us because that night she woke up twice!! We were really frustrated yesterday, until we realized later in the day we think she woke up because we she's cutting her first tooth! I can't believe that! Tucker didn't cut teeth until he was 8 months old, so we never even thought to consider that she was teething. But last night we put our fingers in her mouth and you can just barely feel a top tooth cutting through. So unless our fingers are decieving us, top teeth are on their way!

While she's not in her room yet, she is out of the swing for naptimes. She still enjoys swinging, but her naps are lasting just as long now that she is in bed and not in the swing. She also enjoys her Bumbo seat, her baby Papazan chair, and her activity gym, and on a few occasions we've put her in her excersaucer which she is curious about. (She's still a little too small for it, but she seems to like the colors.) She also likes to just lay on the floor and play with a few rings and her duck, Mr. Waddles.

As you know from my previous post, this month she rolled over for the first time. Also, as from a previous post, she went to the pool for the first time this month, and she really likes the water. She's very calm when she's in the pool, and she just takes in all the sights and sounds around her. In general, she likes to be outside. She is also just beginning to laugh real, hearty belly laughs, mostly with Patrick, and also when you tickle her tummy. I think there's no greater sound in the world. :o)

For the life of me, I cannot get this girl to like her paci! She does like to suck on her hand a lot, and I am doing everything I can to keep her from becoming a thumb-sucker! Now that she seems to be teething she does seem to like the hospital paci again, at least way better than the Nuk brand (which was Tucker's favorite). I'm so hoping she'll start to like it--pacifiers were a life-saver with Tucker. Anytime he was fussy or upset I could just pop in his paci and life could go on!! Not so much with Presley Girl!

Today my kids are four-years-old and four-months-old. It's amazing that in just four years time my Bear went from doing all these little bitty things like Presley is doing to doing major big kid things. It just remindes me how fast it all goes by. What a treasure it is just to be a part of it!

July 4, 2009

We're usually in Denver for the 4th with Patrick's family, but this year we weren't able to go with Patrick's work schedule and Presley's apparent inability to sleep anywhere but at home! Thankfully my sweet friend Keelie invited us up to Gunter to come to their town festivities. Patrick stayed at home to spend time with Presley and put her to bed before a breakdown.

The event was precious! It was very "small town", so you know I just loved every minute. There was a big slide and snow cones, cotton candy, a fire truck (which Bear loved!).... It kinda reminded me of when Coppell, my hometown, was still small...though Gunter's much smaller than even Coppell was when I was little. One thing that reminded me a lot of growing up was from those second and third pictures--that was the "Cowplop Contest"! That's right--for all of you that are unfamiliar with this practice, someone builds a little corral, then paints a grid on the grass, and a cow is released. If the cow "does his business" in the square you picked, you're a winner, buddy! Woo hoo!! Good times ;o)

Tucker and his buddy Jonah were really funny during the fireworks. While we were waiting for them to start, some people were setting off a few tiny ones in the parking lot. Tucker and Jonah absolutely screeched with delight over these little fireworks, but when the big display began, they were almost completely silent! I'm assuming it was just a lot to take in :o)

By the way, earlier in the day I had Tucker and Presley in matching 4th of July-type outfits--they were so cute!! Unfortunately, Presley Dallas pooped all over her clothes before anyone got to see them or I had the chance to take a picture of them. I guess I'll only have that picture in my heart :o)

This is how Presley feels about Tucker...

All I ever have to do to get Presley to smile is bring Tucker into the room. She never takes her eyes off him!! Just recently we could tell that she was starting to recognize him and enjoy him, and now she absolutely adores her big brother :o)

Presley Rolled Over Tonight!

By the grace of God, I am home with Presley right now until school starts. I love it. I am with her for every minute of the day, unless on rare occasions she’s with my parents. In fact, I’d say that since she was born four months ago I have been away from her for literally less than ten hours.

Patrick, on the other hand, has probably only been WITH Presley for less than ten hours since she was born. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but opening a new golf course has him working harder and longer than he ever has before. In fact, I worry that once Presley starts sleeping through the night, Patrick could literally go days without seeing her, because she’s asleep both when he leaves in the morning and when he gets home at night. Today he put in almost a 15-hour day, and that’s not unusual.

Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been expressing to Patrick a little bit of concern that some of my friends with babies her age have started rolling over, and Presley hasn’t really ever even tried to roll to her side. So Patrick came home from work tonight at almost 8 pm, and I happen to still have Presley up. Patrick, Tucker, and I all sat down by the blanket Presley was laying on and we were just watching her and talking about our days. I left the room for literally less than a minute, and Patrick calls out, “Valerie, come here quick!” When I returned to the room, you guessed it, Presley Dallas had rolled over onto her belly for the very first time…and I had missed it!! I still can't believe it. I mean, how is it that Patrick, who is never with Presley, happened to be here at just the right moment to witness this “first”, while I, on the other hand, who is always by this child’s side, is away for the 60-second period in which this first happened?! Seriously!

Anyway, Presley rolled over today! Yea Presley! :o)