Kreager Park

Friday, the kids and I headed to Ft. Wayne.  I had to pick up my bridesmaid dress that was altered (and looks good!!), so we made a day trip of it and headed to a local park/splash pad.  This particular park is called Taylor's Dreamland and was designed with special needs in mind.  They even have turf grass for kids with allergies... special swings... equipment for kids of all abilities and a water splash area.  The park was SO much fun!  There were plenty of things to keep Caylee entertained, it was super clean and safe and there were TONS of kids.  I only got mad at one kid (and told him to behave) because he kept knocking Caylee down-- 3 times and purposefully!  I don't know where his parents were, but I didn't care- it was mean. 

Anyways, Micah also got to swing while we were there... he went back and forth between having fun and being scared to death.  He's definitely a baby :)  We will definitely be going back to this park with Matt soon! 

 His scared to death moment... look at those clenched hands! 

 This is a light game that the older kids really liked, but she wanted to join in.  These things are in a large circle and they flash green or red.  You hit them (whatever color you are) and get points.  It had fun music that went with the game.  Pretty awesome!

 I love this InstaFrame App by the way... when I take tons of pics on my phone I can consolidate in cute ways... I'll be using it a lot from here on out... especially since I take so many pics!  As you can see in these pics Micah is sitting alone!! Just 5 months and he sits by himself for short periods... I say short because the minute he gets distracted or wants something he tumbles right over... but he's pretty strong and can definitely do it.... this is great news, it means the spitting will begin to ease up! Now... if I could work on him not getting distracted.... hmmm... :) 

Water Day!

It has been raining around here for a bazillion days!!! Ok, not that many... but it sure seems like lately we've had more rain than sun.  Today was super sunny this morning though!  AND warm... a double bonus! 

I took the kids outside and we had a water day.....

Which turned into an ACTUAL water day bc after naptime it POURED rain outside (thunder and lightning too)... I have had enough of staying indoors, but luckily today I pulled out the giant tent and we read tons of books inside.  It ended up being fun :) 

 

 

We even ended our day with water from the nice long baths the kids took!  Micah is too big for his infant tub, but not big enough to sit in the regular tub... sooo... I moved the infant tub to the big tub and they were able to take a bath together.  Worked great for me and they thought it was fun.... lots of splashing and laughing.  Today was a much more enjoyable day, despite the crazy weather!

Have you ever....?

Have you ever asked God to take a picture for you?  Sounds silly, I know, but I have...

Let's back up a little...

Being a stay at home mom is H.A.R.D.  No one said it'd be easy, but some days no one tells you just how hard it is.  And to be quite honest, some days, there are no major reasons for it to be hard, but everything combined just seems to make it hard.  Yesterday was one of those for me.  Both kids were whiny.  It was gray outside.  Micah will not stop spitting up on me.  The house was (is) a mess.  The dogs were muddy.  I don't feel good.  Caylee was extra clingy and not being super nice to Micah.  There had been tears all morning.  I was just plain tired.  It was finally nap time....

I put Micah down first.  Then I put Caylee down. 

Peace. 

Or maybe not... Micah started crying in 10 minutes.  Not the normal-I-can-let-him-keep-going- type of cry, the screeching-you-better-get-me-now-or-else type of cry.  So I went in to get him.  Calmed him down (finally) and tried again, nope... the minute I moved the screech came back.  Fine.  It had already been half an hour, so I just decided he could come lay down with me.  Good idea!  He feel fast asleep.... 15 minutes later Caylee decided to wake up (after only being in her room 45 min).  This is B.A.D.  I had just laid down with Micah and gotten him calm.  He's a roller anyways, so I can't leave him on the bed.  Caylee NEEDS more than 45 minutes of rest.  Ugh...  upstairs we go (Micah too).  She didn't want us to lay with her.  Fine.  I went to the recliner chair, she crawled up, Micah woke up, screamed... HERE WE GO AGAIN!  Ok... finally, get Micah resettled and sleeping in my arms.  And then it happened... the moment I asked God to take a picture for me... P.E.R.F.E.C.T. P.E.A.C.E......

Micah was asleep in my arms, Caylee was sitting next to me holding Micah's hand and laying her head on my shoulder.  All was quiet.  All were asleep.  It was that moment that I prayed for God to take a picture and put it in the house He's building for me in heaven.  It's those moments that help get me through a really hard/long/frustrating day.  It's those moments that remind me of God's grace and peace in complete chaos. 

I'd like to say our day was all roses from there on, but of course it wasn't.  Neither had taken ideal naps and were still cranky, it started to rain so getting outside wasn't going to happen (again!) and of course the house was (still is) a mess.  BUT.... that perfect time... that's what helps... that's what made me smile yesterday :)  I know God has that picture too :)

And since I obviously didn't get a picture... here are two... with a few lyrics from "It's a Wonderful World"-- one of my favorite songs and it plays on the kids Pandora channel all the time...

5 Months!

Our little man is 5 months old!! (yesterday- July 4th).  Crazy how time flies (thankfully too- I love seeing him grow up!)

This month we started new meds- Prevacid- for his GERD.  The first day it helped!  He slept better, was less fussy and overall happier.  Some days he spits it up or doesn't seem to get as much and those nights are definitely longer.  But overall, he's much better....  we noticed he also doesn't scream as much in the car! (Branson will be our trip to test that theory, but he did great in TX and on the way home from airports)

Our newest challenge with him is his bed flipping.  He can roll all over the place during the day.  Due to his GERD, his bed is at an angle at night.  Put these two together and it's not a good combination.  He just started flipping to his stomach at night and decided that sometimes he doesn't like it.  Sometime he prefers his belly.... but the nights he doesn't can be long.

He's in all 6 month clothing.  He still loves chattering to Caylee.  He will try very hard to get something out of reach- I just know he'll crawl earlier than Caylee.  He started eating cereal with a spoon... we'll have to slowly move to veggies and fruits bc it might upset the GERD more.  He still won't sit on his own, but is getting better for very short periods.  Caylee was sitting by now, so I'm hopeful he's not too far behind.  I am really tired of cleaning spit towels all the time!!!! :) 

Micah still loves being held, standing up and having lots of attention.  He always wants to know where Caylee is and is happiest if she's near. 

I didn't get pics that were as good as last month, he wasn't much for smiling (except the few at the park yesterday).  However, Caylee has a little congestion and I noticed he had a little too- maybe just doesn't feel that well.  These pics were taken by the wheat field next to the house....

And some pics with Daddy....

Parade

Yes, the parade was TERRIBLE (as mentioned previously).  However, I did take some pics, so here we go!

Before the parade...

 Everyone stood for the flags... 

 She's so pretty :)  Love her hair!!!

 He was happy...  until the sirens came...

 Eating candy...

 Isn't her hair SO pretty!!  Those sweet curls are natural!  I love it :)

 The Mayor of Van Wert... funny...

 Kinda waving to people as they passed... not super thrilled...

 Both bored... we left early (well, after 45 minutes of parade/watching cars go thru/parade/etc)

4th of July!

 Started off the morning relaxing in bed... Micah only slept in til 6:30 and Caylee slept in til 7:15... Oh well... one day I'm sure we won't even be able to get them up!

 Headed to Van Wert for the parade... it was TERRIBLE!  Caylee did get some candy, but they didn't entirely close off the road, so they'd let cars through in between floats-- it was taking FOREVER!!!  Micah did fine until the sirens came through... he HATED them!  Poor guy..

 

Headed to the park for some playtime and watched a little All-American baseball while we were there :) 

Ended the day with a fire and some s'mores.  Caylee liked them a lot and Micah just hung around. 

June wrap up/ into July

Just a few pics from the end of June and beginning of July...


Love this pic of Caylee eating cookies and Micah trying so hard to get to her... too funny :)

 So cute together!

 Still happy after 3 1/2 hours of house hunting!  Yep... more on that in another post.

 We have a bed flipper... yep... he flips CONSTANTLY in bed.  We are trying a new set up now so he won't suffocate on all that stuff that was put in place to keep him upright because of his GERD.  We'll see if it works....

 New WASHING MACHINE!  Woohoo!! Mine has been a disaster for a LONG time... LOVE my new one :)

 Micah had his first bite of cereal with a spoon (not in his bottle which he's used too)

 Fun in the sun (or warm clouds mostly)... loves the water hose and I love those messy ice cream hands :)