Our Life....in pictures

The goings-on of the holidays can be a little hectic, as we all know. So the easiest way to update is to tell the story in photos...So here we go....

We had our cell group Christmas party. Yummy food at Cantina Loredo and great company. We are really enjoy our cell group, even though I think we have only been there once (due to all the Nov sickness). The people are great and we look forward to starting up again after the holidays.

Brad and Britney

Kamara and Aubrey

Here's our tree and mantle. I really like how they turned out this year.

Beckham and I made a cake for Josh...Me looking more preggo than EVER!!!

We had my family Christmas celebration this past Saturday. We go with the "total mayhem" approach, meaning we pass our gifts and let the kids go CRAZY!! It's always really loud, really chaotic, but REALLY FUN!!!

Here's Papa showing Beckham how to work his new tools

Beckham tinkering with all his new stuff

Daddy and Beckham

All the kids waiting for the presents to be passed out

Kyleigh, Cameryn, Marin and Beckham

And here are some cute ones of Beckham taking a bubble bath...

So there ya have it. We are ready for Christmas for sure!! I can't wait to see Beckham on Christmas morning!! I am looking forward to spending time with family, and I am REALLY ready for some time off!!

We hope everyone has a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!! Blessings to everyone!!

Where has the time gone???

I can't believe it has been so long since I have posted anything. November was an eventful month, and not for all good reasons. Let's back up a bit...

Halloween was a lot of fun this year. Surprisingly, Beckham really got into it this year. We went to a "trunk or treat" at my in-laws' church then trick-or-treating on Halloween night. He went up to every house and knocked on the doors, said "trick or treat" and "thank you" to every person. I was such a proud Mommy!!



Then we had a Halloween party at the Coleman's house. It was so fun to see all the kids in costumes, and Leslie did an awesome job as hostess!! As you can tell, Beckham was having a little fun. I love this picture of all the kids and moms!! Too FUN!!


Then...the sickness hit, and hit hard!! Beckham was first. He started out with the yucky nose and fever. I took him to the Dr. on Monday, and he said it was viral and gave him nothing. Well by Thursday he was no better, so I took him to the Acute Kids Care and sure enough, he had his very first ear infection. I am not complaining, we made it almost 2 years before the first one, so I think that is pretty good. As you can tell by the pictures, he was pretty pathetic, but still pretty cute!

After some antibiotics and ear drops, Beckham was back to his sweet playful self. Josh got it the following weekend, and I shortly followed. After a week of antibiotics, and a little rest, I was ready for Turkey Day!! Josh was feeling better, but sadly relapsed the Friday after Thanksgiving...cough, fever, runny nose, etc... the day before we were going to celebrate Beckham's 2nd birthday. Bummer!

But life goes on, and we celebrated Beckham's birthday anyway. I know, his birthday isn't for another month, but both of our whole families were in town for Thanksgiving, so we decided to celebrate a little early. Plus, December 29th is a really bad birthday. We may make a Thanksgiving birthday party a tradition.

Sunday after Thanksgiving, we decided to drag out all of the Christmas stuff. We haven't put a tree for 2 years, so I was anxious to get it all out and bring a little Christmas cheer to our house. I had forgotten how much stuff I have!! Plus we bought a new pre-lit tree when we moved into our house 3 years ago, so this is only our second time to put it up. I LOVE THE PRE-LIT TREE!!! It was SO easy!

So after the decorating hubbub, Josh took a little trip to the ER. Turns out he had a case of pink-eye on top of the other crud. Great...I wonder when Beckham will get it?? Well, about 4 days later is the answer to that. Actually, we took him back to the Acute Kids place Wed night, and the Dr. said it was a sinus infection that was going up into his tear ducts. So another round of STRONGER antibiotics and we were on our way again. The pink-eye showed up Saturday. That meant antibiotic eyedrops were added to our list of medicines. Have you ever tried to put eye drops in a 2 year old's eyes 3 times a day??? Let me tell, pray you don't ever have to. He HATES it!!

And now we are caught up to today... a few of us moms took our kiddos to see Santa Claus. We have planned this for months. So we all met at Northpark Mall, because they have the BEST Santa there, and wouldn't you know it...Santa was SICK!! Does Santa get sick? I guess so. So, they were nice enough to let us use the set to take some photos. It wasn't the same, but it was something. Then we headed over to the Galleria to see Santa there. As I predicted, Beckham thru a wall-eyed fit!! So not the cutest picture with Santa, but oh well, it's a memory. I will try to post that later.

So there ya have it, the latest with us. As far as baby news goes, all is well. I am measuring exactly where I should, and so far, no complications. I am praying it stays that way!! I am so excited for March so I can meet Kerrington, but I am savoring every moment with Beckham right now before my time is divided between 2 kiddos.

Getting political

Folks, we are 1 week away from may be the most historical and important election most of us will see. I am one of "those people" who has always seen voting as a privaledge and a responsibilty. So even if I disagree with the candidate you choose, VOTE!!!

Now, if you are on the fence or undecided, PLEASE visit this link. I hope it helps you make a good, informed decision.

Name and Bedding

SO, being that we have had several weeks of 90% chance of having a girl, we have been talking names and nursery a bit. I tried my hardest to look at little boy stuff as much as I looked at little girl stuff, but honestly, it wasn't even close. I always seemed to end up on the pages with pink WAY more than the pages with blue. But I figure I have had 2 years with blue, a little wishful thinking pink never hurt, right?

We also discussed a few names, but we always came back to the same one, so our little girl's name will be...KERRINGTON ELIZABETH!!!

We have also picked out bedding. I wanted something that was shabby chic-ish. Pink and girly. I love old looking things, and I have planned for YEARS to use my old china tea cups, saucers, plates, and tea sets. I just love the thought of it! Josh likes the more modern looks, the pink and brown, clean lines, new. So after looking at ALOT of photos on line, we chose this one. I think it's a good compromise.

Her colors really are BLUSH AND BASHFUL!!!

Yep, the Dr. confirmed it today...WE ARE HAVING A GIRL!! And she looked perfect on the sono! What a huge blessing and a BIG sigh of relief!! Not the girl part, the healthy part. But I am SO thrilled it's a girl! I can't wait to meet her!

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE!!!

Please, if you are planning on voting for Barack Obama, or if you are undecided on who to vote for, listen to this conversation with Dr. James Dobson and his guest today on Focus on the Family. I hope it will make the impact on you that it did on me.

Happy Anniversary!!

October 9th Josh and I celebrated 4 wonderful years together. We waited until the weekend to do the actual celebrating part, but it was worth the wait! Our plan was to go to an afternoon movie, then to dinner, and home early enough to put Beckham to bed. Well 2 out of 3 ain't bad! We missed our movie because I, as usual these days, was running late. Pregnancy has made me so scattered brain, I am late all the time now! At least that's what I like to blame it on.

So instead we did a little shopping around town, then dinner. We went to our FAVORITE restraunt, THE SILVER FOX. If you haven't been there yet, I can't say enough good things about it to convince you to go!! The atmosphere is great, the service is wonderful and the food is to die for!!! It is owned by the same guy who owns III Forks (also really good), but I like the atmosphere better. We only go once a year for our anniversary, so we go all out...lobster tail, filet mignon, and the BEST macaroni-n-cheese in the world!!! GO, go now! And we were home early enough to put Beckham to bed! Thanks to Aunt Amy for babysitting!!!

I know I said last time that I would have Fair pictures, but pregnancy brain strikes again, and I accidentally deleted all of our pictures. I am REALLY bummed by this! But we had a great time. We intended on eating our way thru the Fair, as everyone does, but we ate 1 corny dog each, and we were full. But we did have the fresh lemonade and the root beer on tap. YUMMY!!

In baby news...we have our appt on Mon to see whether we are having a boy or girl. I am still hoping for a little girl, but I am ok with a little boy too. I am just thankful that this pregnancy has been so great. Yah, I was super sick at the beginning, but I have carried this pregnancy for 18 weeks, and so far everything has been really good. I am feeling really good lately, still tired, but what's new? I haven't gained any weight yet, but I starting to show for sure now. I still feel little flutters, but still get fearful in between appts, so for peace of mind, I have rented a fetal doppler so I can listen to the heartbeat between appts. It's probably being TOTALLY paranoid, but I am ok with that. My peace of mind is worth it. So, I will post more when we, hopefully, know for sure what we are having!! THINK PINK!!

Thank you

Thanks to all of you who gave me such great advice and words of "experienced" wisdom on the whole crib-vs-toddler bed debate. We have decided to go ahead and make the jump to the toddler bed in a few months when Beckham turns 2. We thought economically it would be the best,(we can use it for the new baby when the time comes too), and if we do it around his birthday it should give us a few months to get him acclamated to the new bed. That is our prayer anyway.

This whole process is another one of those bittersweet times when you are so excited that your child has reached another milestone in growing up, and yet it makes you a little sad that they are growing up so fast. I know I say it all the time, but Beckham just get's bigger and bigger everyday. Not in size, we are still going on for weight checks, but everyday is something new. Talking, understanding, playing, etc....I LOVE watching it!

NEW BABY UPDATE: All is well. I go in for another sono in 3 weeks and we should have a definite on the gender of this little one. I am starting to feel little tiny movememts, but I think if this were my first pregnancy I would have no idea that's what I was feeling. Still haven't gained any weight, but I starting to show a little bit. Regular pants definetly don't fit anymore!! More in 3 weeks...

And STATE FAIR pics soon to follow.

POLL

So as Beckham gets older, I often ask myself "who does he look like more?" I see so much of Josh in him, but when I look old pictures of myself, he looks alot like me too. So, take a peek at the pictures and decide for yourself. There's no right or wrong, but I would love to know what y'all think.

OK...

Experienced moms, I need your help. Josh and I are trying to decide whether we should buy a Beckham a "big boy bed" and use the crib we have for the new baby, or buy another crib and keep Beckham in his crib as long as possible.

My initial thought is to buy a bed for Beckham and use the crib for the new baby. It's probably the most cost effective thing to do, and part of me thinks having 2 cribs is a little unnecessary. On the other hand, Beckham has never crawled out of his crib, and with as short as he is, I really don't think he will be able to crawl out for awhile. So by putting him a big bed, I am afraid, will only allow him to get out in the middle of the night and come in our room to wake us up. NOT FUN!! He will only be 26 months when the new baby is born, so I also feel like he will have plenty of time before he has to be out of a crib.

SO has anyone else been here? I don't think I would buy a brand new crib, I would try to find one at a consignment sale/store. And if I could find a convertible crib at a reasonable price, then both kids would have cribs that would eventually be toddler beds then big beds. But is have 2 cribs dumb? HELP!!

My Little Sickie

So Friday morning, Beckham woke up with a runny nose and a sneeze. He seemed to feel ok, but runny none the less. We hung out for a while with my Mom and sister, went home ate dinner, all the usuals. He was in bed by his normal bedtime, and it seemed to be shaping up for a great evening to spend some time with my hubby watching a movie. Well, not 2 hours later, and probably 30 minutes into the movie, we heard screams coming from Beckham's bedroom. Not what any parent ever wants to hear, especially while trying to snuggle on the couch.So we got him out of his bed and sure enough, he had that "I don't feel so great" look on his face. So, after a dose of Tylenol, we did like any parents trained well by their child would do, we put him in bed with us, and we all retired for the night. Saturday morning he woke up (after I got barely any sleep after kicked all night long) and he still wasn't looking like he felt so hot. No fever, snot was clear, so nothing major, but still yucky. So we settled in for a relaxing morning of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. I had to take some pictures because he looked like SUCH a big boy!! He laid on the couch covered up with his blankie, and quietly watched TV. It was too cute!! Even Buddy climbed up and took a little snooze with him.



When did my son get SO grown up?? I am TOTALLY loving this age, but everyday I realize a little more that he's growing up so fast right in front of me. These are days I will never get back, so I am trying to take them all in as much as possible. He's almost 21 months old. That is SO close to 2. We have been working on "how old are you Beckham?" and now he's already saying "2!" It breaks my heart a little more everytime he says it! I don't want to be reminded of it. And with the new baby coming, I am beginning to feel a little guilty that he won't be getting 100% of our attention. I know parents go thru this ALL the time, and kids adjust alot easier than we usually give them credit for, but I can't help it.










New Baby update: I am 14 weeks today, and I am starting to feel normal again. I am only a little nauseous when I wake up in the morning, but that is usually gone in an hour or so. I am getting my energy back too! I even felt so good today, we all went on a family walk in the beautiful weather after work. I go in 2 weeks for a regular check-up and back to the high risk Dr. on Oct 20th for the definitive ultrasound on whether it's a boy or a girl. I CAN'T WAIT! I am going witht the 90% chance right now, but have this feeling that the 10% chance it's a boy is going to be the reality. I guess we'll see in a few weeks...