Hello Handsome!

Thomas is 4 months now! (He's actually 4 months, 1 week and 3 days- but who's counting?) Wow does time fly or what??!

I got this little outfit for him in January and I kept saying, he can wear this now! No one believed me though! Well here he is one month later and he really fills this out well! The little pants are starting to get snug around his tummy.

So, I've never been really good at doing a "here's what baby's doing" report but here goes my best shot!

At 4 months Thomas is really showing his personality. He's laid back but playful. He loves to stare and observe everything. He gets fussy but usually it's only when he's ready to eat and I don't get to him fast enough.

Month 3 was a bit rough for him. He started having colic-like behavior. He would be up all day wanting to be held and he wouldn't really nap well. Finally, I asked the doctor if he could have reflux and/ or a small food sensitivity. Sure enough, it seems like Thomas has both! I have been working on narrowing down what foods tend to make him fussier. It's a bit tricky to do but I think I've figured out that chocolate is one big culprit. I believe my little cake balls really did him in (I really only had a few bites...) So, I have found out that even just a half of a Reese's cup will make him a little fussy! Sometimes a girl just has to have her chocolate though! As for the reflux, it's pretty mild so I'm just taking it a day at a time.

Thomas took his first bottle last week! I had some milk saved up for him, but he never really could get the hang of the bottle. Typically babies won't take a bottle from their mommies but so far, he's only really taken the one I offered. Boy did he enjoy it! :)

Speaking of his eating... I was told that we could go on and start feeding him solids. It's really important for me to nurse Thomas as long as I can, so I want to hold him off a bit. Introducing solids is the first step towards weaning. I'm not sure how long we'll nurse... I'll let him tell he when he's ready. For now, he's a bit sensitive to things I'm eating and he's content to nurse, so we're delaying solids a bit longer. Although, that probably won't fly much longer for my little piglet!

At his last doctor's appointment he was 25 1/2" long and weighed 15 pounds 7 ounces! Although, that was a few weeks ago and I'm just positive t

hat he's hit another growth spurt!

Thomas HATES his tummy time!! I'm not going to lie- I've been absolutely terrible about giving it to him! I'm a big baby and can't stand upsetting him when I don't have to though! The last time I really tried to "enforce" tummy time, it ruined his entire day! Instead, he prefers to spend his time sitting up or standing! He's actually gotten pretty good at sitting up! He'll sit propped up for a bit! I know it won't be long before he's sitting on his own!

Thomas is a great sleeper! His third month was a little different. He started taking shorter naps during the day but then he'd sleep all night. It's a little difficult not having time to myself during Anna-Kate's naps, but I can't complain because I am getting to sleep all night! He normally will fall asleep around 8 or 9 and he will wake up around 5 or 6 to eat. Then he goes right back to sleep for another hour or two- depending on how loud big sis is! Lately his naps have gotten a little longer during the day though- about two hours long!

Derek and I just are so blessed to have such a beautiful baby! (Well two!) I'm so grateful that Thomas is such a calm, laid back little guy! The last month was tough but we got through it and hopefully we can avoid most of his fussiness by adjusting my diet! I'm so grateful for him and Anna-Kate. They have taught me so much about love. Anna-Kate is absolutely the best big sister ever! She loves to hold and kiss on him!

Our life would be pretty boring with out children!!

I'm So Blue-hoo-hoo...

I don't know what to do!

Anna-Kate got sent home with a note a few weeks ago saying that she hit two children! Not only that but one was with a doll and the other was with a bucket! So, after getting a few words of wisdom from my Grandmother I decided to look for a video on sharing. I found a Veggie Tales movie on love. It talks about loving your neighbors, family and God.

Anna-Kate especially loves the Madame Blueberry story. She's really gotten into singing the little song too! The other day I decided to break out the camera and guess what- you're very lucky because she didn't belt the song at the top of her lungs! She got a little camera shy, so you have to listen closely to actually hear her sing it. I think the funniest part are her expressions!

Here are a few pictures of Anna-Kate and Thomas enjoying the movie together!

Bee My Valentine

I have been reading some really cute food blogs. My favorite treat blog is bakerella.com. If you have not checked her out, you should stop reading this and look around her blog. Well, maybe check it out after you read this post. :) Bakerella makes lots of goodies, but the thing that really stands out in my mind are the cake balls. I had never seen such cute little things and they didn't intimidate me too bad! So, for Thanksgiving I made two sets of turkey cake pops. They were really cute, but probably not the easiest for this first timer.

A couple of weeks ago I started planning a Valentines treat to send my sister. I instantly thought of the cake pops. I checked out her blog for some ideas but I decided that I wanted to try to make bumblebees.

First, I made the cake balls. I used a dark chocolate cake mix and just some standard chocolate icing in a tub. You can find Bakerella's directions here. While I waited on my cake balls to be ready to dip, I made the faces of my bees.

My sister loves Junior Mints and since they are flat, I thought that they would make perfect faces! Then I just used some halloween sprinkles I had in my pantry for the eyes. I used white chocolate to secure the eyes. I also used the white chocolate to draw the mouths on with a toothpick. (Toothpicks are your friend when it comes to cake balls.)

I just played around making the faces, trying not to worry about the imperfections!

I had 2 very good helpers!

What happens when you run out of black sprinkles?? The eyes get colorful and you get creative!!

When I told these bumble bees they were going to Nashville, they were starstruck!

Not convinced? Neither was Thomas...

Okay, now onto the cake balls! So, I pulled the cake balls out of the freezer and melted my chocolate. Then dipped them according to the directions and immediately stuck in the wings. (I didn't do the wings on my first few ones and they cracked when I put them in after the chocolate hardened.) The wings were just sugar hearts. Derek actually spotted them!

Don't worry about the mess around the cake balls. Bakerella suggests using a toothpick to score the bottom of the cake ball so that it breaks away from the chocolate drippings easily.

Now, I let mine cool before I added the yellow "stripes" and the heads and stingers. I found that worked the easiest. I melted white chocolate and then I added yellow food coloring to it. When I added the food coloring it changed the texture of the chocolate, but it was fine. I scooped the yellow into a freezer bag and cut the corner off. I was able to pipe the stripes on. If I was more patient, I think my stripes would have looked better. I was just so excited about how cute they were looking that I went quick. I think the imperfections make them cute...

Okay, okay, those are messy stripes but let's not dwell!

Moving on, all that's left is to attach the head and then the little stingers. I used chocolate chips for some whimsical stingers. Or just because that's what my husband suggested and I didn't want to hurt his feelings... you pick. Either way, they were a cute touch. I used my leftover chocolate to stick the heads and stingers on and for some minor repairs.

That's it!! If I can do it, anyone can! I think they are adorable. Derek thinks I got a little too into them when I wound up having a little story for all of them. Hey- it happens!

Excited about Nashville! Opps, looks like I need to fix the red-eyes! :) hehe...

Okay, maybe a little carried away, but I couldn't resist!

L.O.V.E

Blurry, but here you can see the little stinger!

How can you resist??!!

I know I couldn't...

Mmmm... so good!!

So good my 2 1/2 year old chocolatier snuck into the fridge to eat one while I was in the shower!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!

Snow Day Pictures- Round 2!!

I thought this snow was absolutely beautiful!

Reagan loved the snow too!

Where was Thomas during all of the snow??

Relaxing in his wing chair!

Anna-Kate always wants to hold him... he's really thrilled about it this time

I love his expressions!

Anna-Kate wanted in the pictures too, so she pulled her chair up next to his! They both suck their thumbs :)

Sweet Big Sister

Thomas is starting to hold his toys now!

Thomas was really mad at me, not her. He didn't like this pose!

Well, we've had a fun 3 days of snow! I think Anna-Kate is ready to get to school! This week was supposed to be her first week going 3-days, but the school has been closed! Friday is her Valentines party! She's really getting big!

Thomas is just getting over his first ear infections. I found out last week that he also has reflux. It's not as serious as Anna-Kate, but it's definitely started to bother him lately. I've been really looking at my diet, but I can't seem to find anything consistent that would make it worse. His skin has also had a few little dry spots, so I'm beginning to think he might have a food sensitivity. I started a food log today so that maybe I can narrow down what could be bothering him. I hope that maybe I can figure it out and we wont have to keep him on medicine. Either way, I am holding off on the solid food until I get everything figured out. I'd hate to start introducing solids with him being so sensitive to things. I'm hoping for some answers. We've had a tough month with Thomas! I know that he's ready to feel better too! Here's one last picture of my happy boy last week!!

Snow Day Pictures- Round 1!!

Our house! Please excuse the garbage... it was trash pick up day!

Looking down our street!

Our shed in the backyard!

Anna-Kate stepped outside while I took a few pictures this morning

And then she went outside once Daddy got home!

It's pretty late, but I just had to post a few pictures from our day! I'll try to get some more tomorrow and put them up too!

Well, we made snow cream and stepped outside for a bit! Derek started a snowman, but we had to go inside with Anna-Kate! I think we'll try to finish it tomorrow though.

I just think the snow is beautiful! We're still getting lots of snow right now. I'm hoping that it keeps up enough to keep Derek at home all day tomorrow and play with us!!

Global Warming??? Not Here!!

I grew up in Searcy. I have a fairly good grasp on the climate trends of this region and I must say I am stumped. A little background: Growing up, we had a good snow every couple years. Most years we had flurries but no accumulation. We had a couple good events where school would get cancelled or delayed but for the most part, snow was an every other year or so thing.

The last year has been without a doubt the most active in terms of winter weather that I have seen in my life. We had a major ice storm in the winter of 08-09. I was present for the 9-inch dumping in Lepanto last year. And in 2010, Searcy has had 3 major snow events.

I love snow. I love to watch it fall. I love big flakes. I love hard driving snow. I love soft light floating snow. I love dry powder. I love wet packed snow. I love snow.

Now that you understand my love for snow you can put yourself in my shoes. We had a nice lingering snow just after New Year's that lasted a couple of days and delayed work for me. It was dry with big flakes and some hard winds...fun.

Last week we had a 4 inch snow that was also dry and covered the roads. Missed work again!!

Late last week, weathermen were saying another round was coming, but I wasn't buying. They said wintry mix and that's code for cold rain. But nonetheless, this morning the ground was white. as the day progressed, I kept waiting for the temperature (which was hovering around freezing) to go back up and melt it all away. Yet the temp kept dropping. Still the snow fell and by lunch the roads, which were covered in slush, were beginning to turn white. Looking outside now I am greeted by the biggest snow flakes I have ever laid eyes on. They are falling fast and hard. They are wet too which makes them stick to everything.

We closed early at work so I am preparing to venture out and brave the roads to get home to my loving family who has spent the day taking pictures of this glorious and unexpected event. Be sure to check back for those later.

Snowmen and Sinus Infections

Well it has been a rough winter to say the least. I'll wait while the northern readers attempt to contain their laughter at us hicks in the south. Ok, I know that cities south of the Mason-Dixon typically shut down for flurries but we have had a fairly active winter this year.

Early January gave us a good hard snow with several inches of accumulation. I love watching snow fall. I especially love the really big flakes and the wind blowing. Snow never lasts long here so we like to enjoy it while we can.

Over the next couple of weeks we dealt with what we hope is the culmination of the illness we have all suffered these last few months. Anna-Kate had been developing an increasingly bad cough and then we noticed what looked like pink-eye. Off to the doctor she went. She was a big girl for Dr. Eddie and he said she had bronchitis, pink-eye, and a double ear infection. I was shocked that it was that bad. She was sick, no doubt about it, but she was pretty calm about it all and did little complaining. She stayed mostly on the sofa the next week while she recovered.

We have all been cruddy the last few months with one thing or another. I think it's the same virus that keeps coming back stronger in each of us and then gets passed on to the next one. Seems like we may be over the worst now though.

Anna-Kate was better just in-time for the second half of our January book-end snow storms. We got an overnight ice followed by 24 hours of snowfall. Gorgeous. We had our first experience sledding and it became fairly obvious that Anna-Kate is not as big a fan of snow as I would have thought. She was ready for it to melt!!! Maybe she'll learn when she starts going to school full-time (twice a week now) and understands the rarity of Arkansas snow days.

Not sure if we have many pictures of our adventures but if we do Nicki will post them.