Bad evening

I had an eventful and interesting evening last night... in which I can laugh about now, but last night, I wasn't laughing.

Ryan was out of town last night... so Kayson and I got home and played a little bit, then I decided that dinner at Wendy's would be great. So we pulled out of the garage accidently hitting the button too quickly and the garage door went back up. I thought to myself "No big deal...", so I hit the button again... nothing - the lights flashed and the garage door wouldn't go down... Weird. I tried it a couple more times. I then tried the actual main button, still nothing. Damit!! I pulled out the manual and read a little... not going to lie - that was completely foreign to me!! I called Ryan... his suggestion was the same thing I had tried... So Kayson and I sat in my car and I just stewed... wasn't sure what to do. By now it was 6:20, we are starving... so I left, leaving the door open!! I drove down 92nd Street... and soon enough, I realized I was going too fast and was welcomed by a West Des Moines cop. PERFECT. This just tops the night!

Handing over my registration, license and insurance... Kayson and I waited. Kayson thought saying "Uh Oh Mommy" would help the situation. ha... like I said, I can laugh about it now!! What seemed like 20 minutes later, the cop came back giving me 4 warnings. THANK GOD - but 4... 4 warnings?!?!? What?!

1. Speeding - Slow down Maam.
2. Failure to give Notice of Address/Name Change - this relates to my name showing as Banta on my registration. I tried fighting it, but ended up just being quiet. (I called on this today to Dallas County - the nice lady said the cop was in the wrong, and my title shows Banta, so that's why my registration shows Banta). Whatever!
3. Display of Sticker (Tag) - there is a portion ripped on my tag (my fault, I guess!!!) and
4. Failure to Display Sticker (Tag) Blocked by Plate Frame -- I have a Hawkeye frame thingie over my license plate... apparently that's blocking too much of my tag. OMG!! Again, irritated... but giggling about it now. I think it's even more funny that when I called the Dallas County lady, she laughed and said "Honey - next time you get picked up for that - you tell that cop to call me!" Too funny.
Ok... so lesson learned! ;)

So... after sitting and dealing with that very 'friendly' cop, Kayson and I were on our way... I ended up going straight home and making fish sticks for dinner! Wendy's would have been so much better!!

Ok... so now moving on to our garage door that is STILL open! I called a couple neighbor guys to see if they had an brilliant ideas... both were very willing to come help/look at it, but no answers unfortunately. We were able to close it manually, so K and I were safe. (Thanks to Eric, Rusty & Jon!) So a repair place was called this morning and they'll come look at it this afternoon.

Whew!! Last night was not a great evening for me!! However, the Hawks pulled off a great win for their bowl game. Great job! I'm sure Ryan is happy!

Family Christmas'

Kayson is still a little sick - not near as bad as he was on Thursday. He's fighting this awful cough... (Going to take him to the doc in the morning just to check on it). I can say tho, it seems better today - it's starting to 'loosen' up, and he's in better spirits, so that's good!

We made the trip to Clarion Thursday afternoon... beating the snow. It was a good drive and we just lounged around for a day and a half, which was great. Kayson kept Grandma & Papa Paul SUPER busy... telling them to do a lot of things!!! "Come Papa, Come Draaama" They played and played and talked and talked. My parents got a TON of snow it seemed (I can't even guess how many inches, but it was a lot!) We played outside in the snow a couple times - even attempted to sled. It didn't work so well because the snow was so light and fluffy, but Kayson got the feeling of it, so that's what counts. He did pretty good! We were all worn out by Friday afternoon!!!

Here are some pictures from the Hardy side Christmas:

Dadda & Kayson

Hope & Eden just LOVE Kayson! They are so good with him.

Us getting ready to go play in the snow... I made the picture B&W cuz that made me look less BAD! ha. ;)

Sledding... well, Dadda pulling Eden & Kayson!

All bundled up!!


We then returned to our own house late Christmas Eve night... We woke up at home for Chistmas morning & Kayson's birthday. It was nice... just us... we opened gifts and just played... Then Ryan snow-blowed the driveway and some other neighbors' driveways... super nice of him. Then the Taylor's arrived... Kayson napped and then Blair & Martina arrived...

We all were ansty to open the presents (cuz there were SO many!)... we dug right in... Kayson did great, got some amazing gifts and so did we. We were very lucky (again) this year... it's wonderful to have such great gift-givers in the Taylor family (and Hardy family too!). We ate an amazing dinner and then just lounged around and watched Kayson go to town on all his toys. He can't play with one thing for more than about 2 minutes - he just moves from one to the other! He's SO busy and confused as to which toy he likes the best!!

Here are some snapshots of the Taylor Christmas:

Papa Mike got him a motorized big bike... this picture was the first picture of him on it, and he hasn't been on it since. He's scared of it, as of now. It's so cool... so I'm really hoping Kayson will change his mind about this gift too (just like the remote control fire truck!) Stinker!

This was the hit present of the birthday/Christmas gifts - a MOW-MOW!!! He loved it and still does... has went back and forth with that thing all day long!

A dancing Mickey Mouse!! He sings the Hot Dog song! ;)

As you can see, we had a very, very wonderful holiday... we are more than blessed this year. We are so lucky and so is Kayson. He has no idea!!! Thanks to both of our families for everything!!! Lots of love out to them!

My Baby is 2

Happy 2nd Birthday to our beautiful son, Kayson. It's really hard to believe he's 2... he's not a baby, he's all boy - all toddler... talking up a STORM!!!

I sit here... in the quiet, kinda. Mike, JeanAnn & Ryan and watching "A Chrismtas Story" (Ryan's favorite movie), and Kayson is napping... I sit here... with a tear in my eye (not letting anyone see it)... Kayson is 2. He says he's 2. It's amazing. The whole thing is amazing. I think back to two years ago - at this time, he was born and I was 'recovering' or maybe getting stiched up (some things are a blur!), but I know Kayson had arrived and everyone was ooohing and awwing over him... of course, he was perfect and healthy. He still is.

I just want to say Happy Birthday to our wonderful son. He may challenge us every day, but he sure does bring more smiles than challenges... He's a blessing, he's awesome, he's fun, he's perfect. I wouldn't ask for anything else. We love you so much Kayson.

This is Dadda & Kayson - heading home from the hospital.

Merry Christmas to all of our families and friends. Blessings to all of you.

Sick... and our Plans

Kayson is sick. Just in time for Christmas/Birthday. Figures.

He's been coughing pretty bad since Monday... and Tuesday the faucet from his nose starting running like crazy... and now he is running a fever. Can we catch a break here?!?!? Sorry - I'm very frustrated and sad that he doesn't feel well... and it seems to land on some important times and when we need to travel. That just makes me sad...

We, along with everyone else in the world, have a VERY busy couple of days and weekend planned ahead of us. The plan is to head to Clarion tomorrow late morning... we'll spend time with my family until Friday evening. The plan is to head back to DSM around Kayson's bedtime, so we can all be home for Christmas Day. Ryan, Kayson and I will spend Christmas morning opening our gifts and birthday gifts for him... just the three of us... I'm really looking forward to that. Christmas Day afternoon we'll be joined by Mike & JeanAnn and Blair & Martina... we'll do a nice dinner at the house and opening our family gifts. Again, looking forward to just being at our house and hanging out... it'll be nice to not travel much!

I hope everyone out there has a very safe and happy holiday with family & friends. Blessings to all of you.

Pictures to be posted later in the weekend! ;)

2nd Birthday Party

With Kayson's birthday falling on Christmas, I continue to worry how he's going to respond to that when he gets older... so we are doing are best to make sure he knows he is special and deserves a special day just for him. He got that today. Our immediate families made the trip to us today... for some presents, food and fun. Kayson of course didn't sleep well last night, so he was a little owly at first, but things got better once everyone was here...


We did realize that opening presents this year, compared to last year, is much different. We can't really 'hurry him along' and just open the gifts all at once, simply because he wants to play with each gift now... that's hard. We tried to move quickly so then he could just go at all the gifts later once they were all opened... it went fairly well, just different! Next week will be interesting with Christmas gifts and more birthday gifts.


Here are a few shots of his party.

Trucks and more trucks! He also got a semi that is full of little match-box cars... so cute! He also got some puzzles and books and a Thomas the Tank Engine lunchbox!


This picture shows how Kayson is scared of a toy that he got. Papa Mike purchased him a soft fire truck remote control car... it's awesome... and Kayson is scared of it!!! We played with it a little more tonight, he's still not a fan, but he'll get there...



And the cake and ice cream... he loved it when we sang Happy Birthday to him!!! And Dadda helped him blow out the #2 candle!

All and all, the party was a success. After everyone left, we all napped... we needed it. A party wears us out!!! Tonight Kayson's been pretty good - a little overwhelmed by all the toys... not sure which one to play with!! He does have a little cold now... and a cough. I sure hope he kicks this soon - we have another super busy weekend ahead of us.

Taylor Christmas 2010

The Taylor Family Christmas was held Saturday evening... we gathered at a hotel conference room this year. With Martina being pretty much 9 months pregnant, everyone travelled to Des Moines. I'm not going to lie, it was wonderful not having to travel far this year!! We met up late afternoon on Saturday... and began eating right away... there were two tables full of food - snacky foods... and then we ordered Jimmy John's for our 'meal'. We had a great time just hanging out, opening gifts and talking... I had a good time! Most of the kids got in the pool later in the evening... we didn't let Kayson know about that, simply because of his ears... and the fact that WE didn't want to be in the pool!

Here are some photos.
The Taylors - Us and the Mike Taylor Family. (How cute is Martina!!??!) ;)

This was what we saw from Kayson 90% of the night... at the table grabbing food. And remember it wasn't healthy food - it was snacky, junk food!!! Only for adults! ;) He also learned how to open the coolers full of drinks!

All the grandkids... and great-grandbaby!

One of the great toys he received - A Chugginton track with Co-Co, Brewster & Wilson! He loves it!

Tubes - Part 2

We had our checkup for Kayson's ears on Friday... everything is looking good, the tubes are doing what they are suppose to, doc was pleased. We'll go back in a month for another checkup, then I hope to not have to go back for many, many months!!

Now I think we are fighting a little cold/cough... oh, one thing after another! ;)

Five Question Friday

1. Do you regift... and if so, do you have a regifting horror story around it?
I don't regift... if I end up not liking something or it just doesn't work out - we'll just put it in a pile for a garage sale or take to Goodwill.

2. Do you know what you are getting for Christmas this year?
I know what my Mom is getting me... simply because I was with her with I picked everything out - I put it in her cart and she bought. ;) That's kind of nice!! A nice change! Otherwise, I've given ideas to other people, but I don't know for sure what I'm getting!

3. Who brings the most gifts in your family... you or Santa?
Me! Now that I think about it - I don't think Kayson has a gift that's from Santa... besides his stocking!! I'm assuming that's ok for this year! ha.

4. What store do you love to buy jeans from?
Jeans. Yuk. I have such a hard time finding jeans that I like (without spending an arm and a leg). I have larger thighs (people say that's stupid), but I do... we call it the "Hardy thighs"... and I have long legs. Finding jeans that'll work around that is a task in itself... I don't like jeans that really stretch out - if my butt is saggy by 8 am, that's not good. ha. So to answer the question - I would LOVE to buy jeans from the Buckle, but that's too pricey... right now, I have a couple pairs that work from Maurices and Target!

5. Christmas meal? Big, All out Meal or Snacks & Appetizers?
Big meal. Both sides of the family like food! Actually, we (the Hardy's), typically plan our time together around food and dinners... We'll have a nice large meal for the Taylor side, then for the Hardy side we typically do soups and tons of sides... Yum.

"Home Momma... Let's go home"

This week Ryan is in Kansas for work... he did the drop off for daycare on Monday, but it's my turn yesterday, today and tomorrow. Yesterday, I wasn't prepared for Kayson to melt-down. We talked the entire way to daycare - looking for buses, talking about Riley, Hailey and other friends, talking about Dadda at work, etc... the second we pulled into daycare, tears were running down Kayson's face and he was upset. WHAT?!?! I was stunned, I was confused... I didn't know what to do or think. We talked a little and basically all I could get out of him was, "Let's go home Momma, home... peeese." Now - put yourself in my shoes - HEARTBREAKING!!!! Of course I would love to go home and take him with me!! We finally got into daycare... still sad and crying. I thought to myself once we get to his room and he sees his friends, he'll be fine... right? No - not at all... it was awful. We had several teachers coming in wondering what was wrong with Kayson (cuz he's always so happy at drop off)... of course, that then makes me feel even worse!!! After 15 minutes, the director just finally took him and they walked around outside of Kayson's room - distracting him while I left. It just made me sad... tears fell the second I walked out the door. About 20 minutes later, I got a phone call from the director telling me how he was fine now... it did take him about 10 minutes to calm down and want to go back to his room... the rest of his day was normal for him.

Moving on to this morning... I was prepared this morning for the melt-down. I prepared myself to see the tears and be ready to just leave (as I know it made it worse to stay that long yesterday)... we got to daycare and again, the second we pulled in, Kayson was upset. The dropoff was quicker today, however... as I left within 3 minutes... I checked in, and Kayson was fine... of course. I knew he would be.

Ryan and I talked this morning about it... and it's obvious that his routine was off. He's use to having Dadda take him (Ryan's been around for a couple months), that makes a difference. We also need to start saying that 'Dadda is traveling for work and will be back soon'... rather than just saying that Dadda is at work. Because then I will say I have to go to work - and Kayson may be thinking I won't be coming back... since Dadda doesn't come back for a couple days or a week. We didn't realize that Kayson would pick up on this so soon - he's obviously smart and knows what's going on... it's all about routine with kids... and he's off this week. MAYBE tomorrow will be better - maybe it won't. But at least we are prepared for this now...

Oh the things a parent has to think and worry about!!

Lazy, Cold, Wrapping & Snow

It's been a lazy Saturday... and I love it. We've all taken naps... Kayson's still sleeping (3 hours in!)... it's cold and windy out - showing our first real snow of the year. It's slick out too. I've gotten all the present wrapping done (of the gifts that we have). We still need a few more, which I hope to finish up this week! (Cuz that's really all the time I have).

The details of our tree

The view out our front door... the sidewalk and driveway are covered in ice... YUK. We aren't going anywhere!

Kayson's doing well with the tubes... We did see some drainage in one ear Thursday and Friday, but today it's looking good... All good signs. We do go back Friday for a checkup, so I'll post then. All and all, he's been doing well - he's still thinking that it's cool to wake up in the middle of the night... (not cool for us), but we'll get through it.

He is the Boss.

Ryan will be traveling this coming week. It'll be first time he's travelled in months... and I'm not looking forward to it. It's been awesome having him home - things just go smoother... so I'm really hoping that this coming week goes fast! We'll miss Dadda.

According to the Hallmark Santa coming out of the Chimney --- 13 days & 7 hours til Christmas.

Five Question Friday

1. Do you open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day?
It's different every year. This year we'll be opening gifts on both days, with two different sides of the family. When I was growing up, my sisters and I would get to open 1 gift on Christmas Eve night... then the rest were opened on Christmas Day. That was always so much fun! Kind of gave us a 'taste' of what was to come! ;)

2. What is your favorite Christmas candy/cookie?
My Mom's sugar Christmas cookies. They are the BEST - and she puts awesome frosting on them. I'm not a big frosting person, but the frosting Mom puts on them is just perfect. ;) LOVE THEM!

3. What is the worst Christmas gift you've ever recieved?
Oh... I've got a good one. When I was married the first time, my Mother-in Law at the time gave me this Christmas sweater. It was a red cardigan with snowflakes on it... and it had these huge buttons on it. It was awful. Bless her. ;)

4. What Christmas song do you love?
"Oh Holy Night"
I also am liking "Last Christmas" - my niece, Eden, knows all the words and she sang it one night when I was with her and it was precious. ;)

5. How many trees do you put up?
1. And it's gorgeous... we got a pre-lit one last year and it's perfect. LOVE IT!

Tubes - Part 1

Kayson's ear tube surgery was this morning.

We arrived at the surgery center this morning at 6 am. Early and man, it was cold out! We filled out paperwork, signed tons of papers, paid a large bill and waited... We then were moved to a 'pre-op' room... a small room for us and Kayson - to be happy in for over 30 minutes. Hmmm... this could be interesting! He did well... we talked about lots of things, we read books, Kayson took my shoes off several times - trying to 'ties' them! The 30 minutes went quickly.

Then... it started. The anesthesiologist and nurse came in to briefly talk with us... and swooped Kayson away. Yes, he was doing everything in his power to get away from that nurse... crying and screaming. Wow - that hurts a parent. Ryan and I then moved back to the waiting room... and had a short wait of about 7 minutes. We met with the doctor then - we were told the surgery went fine, however, he was very concerned about the amount of puss that is in Kayson's inner ears. He's concerned that the tubes will need to do their job even more than normal in order to not get clogged by that puss. Typically the doc doesn't want to have a follow-up visit for a month - we get to see him next week. I'm sure it'll be fine (at least I hope!), but Kayson's in good hands... Following the consult with the doc, we waited some more, then we could see Kayson. He was crying and full of the shakes and just not himself... he was then doing some screaming and arching of the back - that type of thing... Ryan got instructions from the discharge nurse, while I tried to calm Kayson... which was very difficult. We 'recovered' for about 10 minutes... then headed home...

Once home, we thought he would just be ready for rest... he wasn't - he was still out of sorts and just upset. Didn't want anything but to be held... after about an hour - he finally fell asleep in my arms (which was so sweet). He's resting now... Ryan's at work... I'm blogging, checking work email... and will now rest a little too.

Tubes - Part 2 will come later.

Five Question Friday

1. What's on the top of your holiday wish list and why?
Gosh... nothing is on the my list for this year - nothing of importance really. If I had to choose and money wasn't an option (as we've talked before) - I would choose a new SLR and/or a new car! ha. Pick one. ;)

2. What is your favorite Christmas gift from the past?
I remember when we got a VHS!!! Santa always hid our gifts under the pool table... for some reason (we had a fireplace and I always wondered why the gifts weren't by the fireplace!)... but my sisters and I opened a VHS and we were SO EXCITED!!

3. If you had to do life over again, what would you be when you grow up?
An architect for sure. I would love to plan and design homes... I remember as a kid buying those home books with thousands of home plans in them... I would look and look and start creating my own on paper... loved it!

4. When do you put up your tree?
The weekend after Thanksgiving - whether it's that Friday or that weekend, it goes up at that time. And I love it - it's so pretty!! ;)

5. What is your favorite holiday?
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I love the food - the turkey, the mashed tators, the pies... and it's just a really great time to be with family and be so very thankful of what we have.

Shopping Day!

Today has been a planned shopping day with my Mom and sisters for a couple weeks... the plan was to get my nieces & nephew done... and a few other things off the list... and maybe a few things for myself... The day was a great success!!! We had such a great time... I met my Mom & sisters in Ankeny around 9:30 this morning... we shopped til about 3 pm and everything is off the list for my nieces & nephew. I'm so glad!!! We had a nice break - doing lunch at Buffalo Wild Wings. Just an overall great day.

This morning before meeting up with them, Ryan and I took Kayson to consult with an ENT. The results from that are.................... tubes will be going in next Wednesday! YEA! It's the best choice for Kayson and for us. More to come on that.

We got our holiday cards today too, so I'll be mailing those out shortly... and I even am throwing around the idea of putting together a holiday letter. We get some great holiday letters each year, and I'd really like to try it. So it might be a surprise to some of you! ;) I got some more Christmas decorations up at the house this afternoon too... the house looks really nice! It'll be very festive for our company on Friday night!!

Back to work tomorrow!

More...

We had a great time with the Taylor side for Thanksgiving on Saturday... we spent the day with Ryan's family - aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents and even Great-Grandma Ann. Always nice to see them, great food... and the house is full and loud!! Kayson had a good time too...

All and all, we've had a super nice holiday weekend... it's been wonderful having a couple extra days at home and just doing whatever. We've kept busy enough, but not too crazy, so that's awesome!

Here are a few snapshots of our Kayson lookin' so snazzy in his vest. ;) and notice his red mark on his cheek --- it's a pimple!! I'm not lying... full blown pimple with a little whitehead on it. REALLY!? Today it wasn't a whitehead, it was just red. Weird if you ask me! Maybe WE stress him out! haha. ;) (I thought about 'fixing' it in Photoshop, but figured I had better leave it... for proof!)



Speaking of stressing people out... Kayson's been doing that to Ryan and I today! Boy - he's pushed our buttons today and just been naughty all day... here are a few examples - throwing his fit (hitting his head on the floor), pulling decorations off the Xmas tree, pulled a stocking off the mantle, swinging his blanket enough to hit me... and the dogs too at one point... we've had a rough day!!! (that's just a short list!) And all of those things happened while he gives us that evil look in his eyes with a grin and just does it, knowing he shouldn't. Knowing how much I hate getting back to work after a long break, we need the routine. I'm surprised we don't have more pimples to show for it! Gotta love the little guy. ;)

We hope you all had a great holiday break. Now... moving on to shopping!! YUK!

Great Holiday & 23 Months

So far, the long, holiday weekend has been awesome. We headed up to Clarion Wednesday afternoon... just in time to beat the freezing rain and slick roads... I was very thankful for getting there safely and being in the warm house with my parents. Thanksgiving Day we celebrated with my sisters and their families... having a great time. Playing, eating WAY too much, spending some alone time with my sisters and two oldest nieces and eating some more. It was a great day... and Kayson had a blast with his cousins.

This morning we lounged around at the farm for awhile, had lunch and then headed back to DSM. Kayson had a nice long nap, which he needed (since he didn't sleep well at all at the farm)... Tonight after bed, we put up the Christmas decorations... our brand new pre-lit tree is up and beautiful. I HEART IT!! We didn't finish everything, as I'd like to do some other holiday type stuff around the house... but it's a start and I love it thus far! It's great knowing we have another two days for our weekend... tomorrow we head to Diagonal to celebrate with the Taylor side. (I didn't take many pictures the last couple days... but here are a few.)

My boys. Aren't they handsome!?

With Cousins Lindsay & Eden


In the midst of eating so much, Kayson turned 23 months on Thursday. 1 more month and he's 2. It's crazy... but also so realistic... and sad! Our baby will be 2 - he'll be a toddler!!! and man oh man... he is all trouble and naughty! Here are somethings our 'baby' is doing:

• Repeating EVERYTHING. Including the word shit which was accidently said a couple weeks ago. ;)
• Putting 3 words together now... it's awesome... conversations go so much smoother now!
  With the conversations going so well - he can tell us what he's going to do next... so we have a little better warning as to what he's going to do! ha.
• Starting to count...
• Really starting to know his colors... (each week gets easier and easier for him)
• Wearing 2T stuff... still has shorter legs, but long torso...
• Wearing size 7 shoes.
• Loves putting his hat and gloves on when we leave...
• Loves his 'softies', however, really grabbing on to the larger recieving blankets from the baby days... still so sweet.
• Climbs onto everything... but still not clued on to how to climb out of his crib. THANK GOODNESS!
• When he's mad, he bangs his head on the wall or floor... (this is the terrible 2 coming out of him). It's not a fun sight... hopefully he'll figure out that it hurts and he won't do it again!
• Loves to give hugs/lovin's and kisses. Scratch that --- not liking the hugs & kisses lately!!!
• Loves to HIDE with Dadda... Dadda hides and Kayson finds him... it's hilarious!

There's much more I'm sure... but I'm realizing it's 11:30 pm and I'm pooped! I hope everyone has had a fantastic Thanksgiving holiday.

Yet... another one.

The 6th ear infection has arrived in a matter of 12 months... Unfortunately, I don't think Kayson even got over the one he had 2 weeks ago! So... we will be consulting with an ENT soon - we'll hopefully get a call and an appointment set up in the next week or so...

I have no mixed feelings about this - tubes will be the best option for us and for Kayson. It's time.

..............................................

I hope everyone has a safe and very happy Thanksgiving holiday. I'm thankful for many things this year - the same things each year and a few new ones too.

• My wonderful husband, Ryan
• My beautiful son, Kayson
• Our awesome families - parents, grandparents, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins...
• Our amazing friends - old and new
• Our jobs
• Our home that keeps us safe (we've been in for 1 year now!)

I could list the silly things, but that's not necessary this year! Blessings to you all!

Footed PJs

We did footed PJs for Kayson when he was little last winter... then it got warm and the shorts and t's came out... now that it's getting cold again, we pulled out the warmer PJs. I thought I'd try the footed ones again... man, I love them!!! PJs are my "weakness" when it comes to buying for Kayson. He's just so damn cute! Here are a couple pics.



and you may notice a scrape on Kayson's nose... he fell at daycare last Friday... it started as just a little red/brown spot, just looked like it was going to heal really nice... well, now it's a scab. Poor little thing! and of course this would happen when I'm planning family pictures this weekend!! ha. That's ok - those blue eyes make up for it. ;)

"Dadda... Dadda..."

I heard a lot of that this weekend... "Dadda... football... Dadda... work... Dadda... John... Rust... Dadda... Papa... truck... work... Dadda" It went on and on. This little boy LOVES his Dadda. ;)

We had a good weekend... even tho Ryan wasn't around much at all. Saturday, Ryan and Mike made the last trip to Iowa City for the season... disappointing loss for the Hawks. That just stinks. While they were gone Saturday, Kayson, JeanAnn and I headed up to Nevada to spend the day with Martina. She's at about 33 weeks and is getting ready to have Baby Boy Taylor here. (I am too!... anxious!) We played a little and then while Kayson was napping, we organized baby clothes and unloaded stuff, did some laundry and just got her a little more prepped. It was fun... and nice to be with her for a day. She'll be a great mom! We got home late - nearly 7:30 and Ryan and Mike got back around 8:30... so Kayson saw Dadda for about 45 minutes (keeping him up late so they could play and talk).

Today, was another day without Dadda around. Him, John & Rusty (two neighbors) installed insulation in the garages and the north walls... great idea, but super long process!!! Ryan felt bad for being gone literally 12 hours... YUK. It's done and hopefully will help a ton this winter! That's key! When Ryan walked in the door tonight (around 8), Kayson was excited! They talked and read books, it was so nice to see... I think Kayson had had enough of me! ha. ;)

Now the weekend is over... big bummer, but it's a short week ahead of us. We are looking forward to the holiday this week... I'm ready for a little break and ready to be with my family.

.... couch, here I come. ;)

Five Question Friday

1. What Christmas song do you loathe?
I don't have one in particular - but I don't like the fast ones, for some reason... I really like the slow songs. My favorite is "Oh Holy Night".

2. Do you and your significant other cuddle at night or sleep on complete opposite sides of the bed?
Hmmm... Ryan's not a big cuddler, but once in awhile we'll lay in bed and just be quiet and watch TV... then I'll snuggle up to him... otherwise, we are separate.

3. Have you ever had surgery?
Just oral surgery - wisdom teeth out. I've been very lucky!!

4. When do you typically have your Christmas shopping done?
Typically I try to be done by the first of December... but it rarely happens. I'm doing pretty well this year so far - just need to finish up my nieces and nephew, which I'll do on the 30th and then get a few more items for some others... I am doing well!

5. If money was not an issue (and you HAD to choose something), what would your ultimate luxury item be?
That's a good question! I could choose a lot of things... a new luxury car... or a luxury home... but I'd probably choose a new SLR Nikon camera. That's some big bucks, so that's what I would choose (plus it's cheaper than the car or the house!)

Counting

We've been working with Kayson on counting... I know daycare works a lot with him too. Over the past few evenings, he's been doing really well and repeating the numbers... this morning, he was counting and it sounded something like this:

"Wonnnn, Toooooo, Fiiiiive, Niiiieeen." haha... not too shabby with no help from us! ha. The "9" is hilarious, he really drags it out! We'll keep working on it!!!

He also knows that he will be Tooooo, which is a ton of fun!

Our Monster & Weekend

I attempted a photo shoot of our monster Saturday evening... with the great help of my niece Hope. As you can tell from the pics - he's wild. You can just see it in his face... naughty!

We had a nice weekend... Saturday I went Christmas (and just general) shopping with my neighbor (and new friend!). Moving into this neighborhood has been great - for both Ryan and I. We just both feel very comfortable with all the people around us, that's such a nice feeling. Anyway, Nikki & I shopped for about 5 hours... and had a great time! Saturday evening my Mom & Dad and niece, Hope visited. We had a ton of fun... Kayson just loves Hope and Hope loves the fact that he loves her! ;) Sunday we did a lot of nothin! I had a short photo shoot in the afternoon... between some laundry and even a nap, we just lounged around... which was nice. I think we all needed it.

It's Monday night already... crazy how fast the days and weekends go by... Ryan and I have some fun shows to watch on Monday nights. One of them is "Mike & Molly" - hilarious, if you haven't seen it yet... and while we were watching, I said "Doesn't it feel like we JUST watched this?!?" Ryan agreed... time flies.

Ryan has taught Kayson something funny... "Kayson - what does Momma say?" and Kayson responds with "Blah blah blah" haha... I'm sure you all are laughing. Naughty Dadda and Kayson! That's my monster... ;)

Five Question Friday

1. What is the most physically painful thing that's ever happened to you?
This is kind of funny to me... simply because I've had a baby (with an epidural), but the labor part BEFORE the epidural --- that would be by far the most painful thing. I had back labor... and that hurt, but the pain I experienced in my 'bottom/crotch' area before the epidural was unbearable. I don't wish that upon anyone and can't imagine pushing my son out WITHOUT the epidural. I can only hope that I can experience the love of epidural again when we have another child. ;)

Another thing that's painful was my sprained ankles I would get in volleyball in HS. Ouch.

2. How much sleep did you get last night?
Not much - and not because of Kayson! YEA! However, I had VB last night at 9:30... getting me home around 10:45... and then giving me at least 45 minutes to "wind-down"... I think I finally fell asleep around midnight - so about 6 hours last night. Yawn.

3. What is the last movie you saw in the theater?
I have no idea. Pathetic huh?! Um... let me think really hard here... ... ... yeah, I got nothing. I know we've been to one, but I just can't remember... it's been TOO long! We have a couple movies sitting at home that I'd love to watch, but we just don't!

4. What do you wear to bed?
Wow that's personal... what if I told you I wore a nighty every night?? That would obviously be a lie. ;) I wear shorts and a t-shirt every night. I go comfy.

5. Do you return your shopping cart to the corral or leave it wherever in the parking lot?
I return it to the corral.

Just a little of this... and little of that...

• My allergies are in an uproar tonight. WTF? It's almost mid-November and that's really irritating! My eyes and nose itch like CRAZY and I'm sneezing... OMG.
• I've had a couple good, but very busy days at work this week... actually pretty buried with work. I like being busy (as I hate twiddling my thumbs), but when "it rains, it pours"... that's what myself and some of my co-workers are dealing with lately!
• I got my flu shot today... it included the H1N1 part too. Kayson has his shot too... now, do we think Ryan will get his?? (My guess is no.)
• JeanAnn purchased the Hallmark gift for Kayson - you may have seen it on commercials - it's the santa coming out of the chimney and it counts down the days, minutes and even SECONDS til Christmas Day. 44 days til Christmas & Birthday. YUK. That's not much time!
• Speaking of Christmas - we've made our plans for the holidays. Where we will be, when we'll be home and who will be visiting. (We, the 3 of us, will be home on Christmas morning alone, exactly what I hoping to do). I'm thrilled that we got that part out of the way, now the weather just needs to corporate!
• My dogs need a bath and haircut bad. I need a haircut - oh - I have an appointment tomorrow afternoon! Whoo hoo!
• We tried some Pediasure Strawberry drink for Kayson - a little something extra (and 'special') for him... to give him some more nutrients... and he likes it. Whew!
• I'm still working out... however, I'm not seeing any more lbs coming off... it stopped after 2 pounds. REALLY? Seriously? Why does 5 pounds have to be nearly impossible!??!
• Kayson, Ryan and I played catch tonight (with his big bouncy ball)... he did really well!
• We removed the gate from the top of the stairs. That's big. Kayson's done really well with that as well... he knows to sit on his bottom when he/we go down... but tonight he wanted to "wal" (walk). He held the rail and my hand... did good. We just need to watch him and he'll really get the hang of it. But now my dogs really roam!! Guess I'll be doing some more training for them!
• My evenings seem to last forever now that it's dark at 5:30. Which isn't a bad thing.
• Ok, I'm done babbling!

Much Happier

We have a much happier little boy now... 4 full days into the medicine and he's better... happier... still not eating all that great, but much better.

In fact, last night he was wild. I was gone for about an hour or so, and when I came home, Ryan and him were laughing hard... Ryan was tickling him. It was hilarious... he was so lovin' it! Kayson and I then played pretty hard and took a bath and he literally talked the ENTIRE time. That is just amazing to me! When I was getting him dressed, he was trying to open the bottle of lotion saying "I do it, I do it!"... and when he did, he said "I did it!" so loud, it was awesome! He's putting 2 or 3 words together now and that's huge... I love it!

He also remembers SO much... last Friday night there was a kid movie on TV with a panda bear... and Ryan was watching it (thinking Kayson would sit and watch it)... he didn't... however, last night when we were looking at books, he pointed to the panda bear, said "Bear" and then "Dadda" and pointed to the TV. He KNEW exactly what he was saying... again, awesome!!!

Longest day!

Man... it was the longest day today. A great day, but LONG. This daylight saving thing really threw us for a loop... Ryan and I both didn't sleep well and were up early (because it felt like it was earlier than it was). And then it gets darker earlier, so our evening has felt like forever! ha.

Between morning and tonight, our house was full of guests. I hosted a baby shower for Martina today. Lots of prepping and planning, but it went so well - we had a great turnout - Martina & Blair got some wonderful gifts for the baby - lots of laughter - and just plain fun for everyone. I loved it - I loved hosting! Martina is doing great with her pregnancy and looks awesome... makes me want to be pregnant again... for just a little bit. ha. Then it goes away! ;) (Not ready for #2 yet)!

This afternoon after the guests left, Ryan took care of some 'winterizing' things around the house... he put away Kayson's outdoor toys, stored the bike that I never ride, covered up the mower for the season, and is planning on doing some other stuff in the coming weeks too. I hate to think about the cold weather, but it'll be here before we know it!

We picked up a winter coat and snow pants for Kayson this weekend. (It's cuter than ever!) We'll also try to find some snow boots soon too. This afternoon the weather was beautiful, so he was outside for nearly 2 hours straight... and I thought to myself - "What are we going to do when it's snowing and so cold!?" I guess we'll put the snow pants and all on and play in the snow! YIKES!

Kayson's ear infection seems to be doing better with the meds... however, this medicine makes his appetite non-existant and he has awful messy diapers. At least he doesn't mind taking the medicine, he'll say "MMmmmm" after taking it. :)

It was a great weekend... I'm wiped out and hoping to sleep better tonight!! I'm anxious for it to be lighter in the morning for us... but will be an adjustment for the 5:00 darkness. Have a great week!

1 Answer

We made a trip to the doctor this afternoon to get Kayson's flu shot. I had the doctor check his ears... ear infection. So... that's one answer to all the troubles we've had over the past week. Of course, I feel bad that I didn't take him earlier in the week... but I can't fuss over that now. Meds are in him and we hope he sleeps tonight...

Midnight Snack --- Literally

We've had a rough couple weeks with our Buster. He's been a bear during the evenings - almost every day for two weeks. We finally figured out that he's hungry... he's growing... he's TIRED and just being a boy too! Our evenings consist of him whining and not playing... and going to the pantry door about every 20 minutes. That gets old! ha. He's been eating his dinners fairly well, but seems to be starving afterwards and especially right after daycare. After doing some talking with daycare and some re-arranging things at home... we've decided to give Kayson an additional snack at daycare around 4 pm. (The whole class gets their normal snack around 3 pm after naps). We are hoping that additional snack will hold off the crabbiness and wanting to eat the second we walk in the door at night. So far - so good... we've done this for 3 days now and it's going well... he's still hungry, but he actually sat and played the other night! (He hasn't done that in weeks)! Anyway, last night was a different story - he had his additional snack, then when it came time for dinner, he didn't want anything to do with it. Pretty much all he ate was a banana. I had VB, so Ryan was in charge... when I got home, Ryan said he was awful - crabby, whining, crying all the time... just not himself. Bed came early once again because he's exhausted...

12:30 am Kayson wakes... crying and kicking - he was mad. He didn't want to be rocked, didn't want anything to do with me... he was warm too, so went went to the kitchen and I gave him motrin... and he saw a cereal bar on the counter. "Bar bar... eat eat". Really!?!? I gave it to him... he ate the whole thing along with a sippy of milk. Poor kid was starving. And he went back to sleep and probably would have slept til after 7 this morning.

Once again, Kayson throws us for a loop from time to time... keeping us on our toes and trying to figure out what he needs. Being a parent is the hardest thing I've ever had to do, but so rewarding too... cuz this morning he talked and talked about "Momma's coat... brown, Dadda's coat... black, Kssnn's hat, goves". All the tiredness and worries go away when I hear and see Kayson learn and grow like he is.

Five Question Friday

1. Take your pick --- date night, girls night out, or night out alone??
Date night with my husband. We don't get a lot of alone time... just because that's the way it goes right now... we are busy and tired... and that's ok. But if I had to choose, I would definiately want a date night... dinner and a movie would be great (a movie we could agree on!). ;)

2. Can you touch your nose with your tongue?
Not even close!!!

3. What is your favorite flower and why?
Gerber Daisy. It was the first flower that Ryan gave me way back when... he said it was HIS favorite and all of the sudden it became mine too. I don't think I've ever gotten roses from him... it's always gerber daisies.

4. Would you rather have a house on the beach or a cabin in the woods?
Wow - that's a tough decision... because there are pros to both! I would probably choose the house on the beach... even though I'm not a big water person, it still is beautiful and relaxing. I know Ryan and I LOVED being on our honeymoon, so that would be nice.

5. If you won the lottery, what is the very first thing you would do?
Pay off our house... and buy me a new car! I could go on and on with what I would do with that money... I would do some selfish things for myself and my family, but would also give some to charities and other needed places...

Do we have a temper??!

I may have pushed it tonight... but either way, Ryan and I saw a side of Kayson that was interesting to say the least!

After picking him up from daycare... we went to the grocery store. (We do this from time to time, and he typically does really well). We hit HyVee, I walked fast and talked and talked with him telling him everything we were picking up, etc... just like normal. Kayson wasn't having it - didn't really think it was cool today. I hurried along - I think the trip was about 20 minutes... if that, not too bad. Little did he know, we needed to make another stop! We headed to Fareway... why do you ask?! Why another grocery store?! Fareway has these amazing fajita mixes already put together, all you have to do is fry them up! That trip was quick, but when we went to get back in the car - I had a screaming child who didn't want in his carseat... didn't want anything to do with me or the car or the seat... if we could have walked home, that would have been what we would have done!!! After some quiet time on my end - just letting Kayson have his fit... I finally got him buckled. (Now I know what it feels like when I tend to stare at children who are having fits... how embarrassing.)

We got home... finally. Like I said, I know I probably pushed it... but unfortunately, there's only certain times that work to get things done... and today was the day we needed groceries and he was being dragged along! So... we are home... and the whining continues and the tempers and the screaming and the throwing himself on the ground and the crying. Wow... Ryan and I felt like we tried everything... what a stressful feeling and also sad. I felt bad - he was tired, he was rubbing his eyes while he cried... nothing really made him happy. Finally after dinner and some more crying... he sat with Ryan for a little bit and looked at some books... bath came early and so did bed. I sure hope he sleeps well. Ryan and I are wiped out!

Nighty night.

Introducing...

our little Train Conductor. I said in a previous post, Grandma JeanAnn had brought Kayson some overalls... just like Great-Great Grandpa wears. He had a pair when he was little and we loved them... and these are just as cute! After making sure they fit - Ryan and I decided that we should use them for his Halloween costume... including the Thomas hat he has. It was perfect, and he didn't have a fit wearing it! ;)

Two other important people/things to introduce. Saturday afternoon, Kayson and I went to Clarion to take the Hardy Grandkid pictures for this year. We have two new additions to the Hardy family.

Meet Co-Co (chocolate lab) and Pickles (yorkie).

Co-Co appeared on my parents farm several months ago... followed Dad around for a couple days... slowly making her way in and having Dad fall in love with her. Dad, being the responsible one and not sure if they really needed a dog - took the dog up to Belmond to stay at the vet and see if anyone would claim her. If no one claimed her in 2 weeks, he would take her. 2 weeks later, she has a new home on the farm. She's a beautiful lab... and SO SWEET. I heart her. ;)

Pickles is Eden's new puppy... she's all puppy and SO cute. It brings back memories when Quincy & Murphy were that small.

Brrr!

It's COLD in the mornings!!!

Five Question Friday

1. If you could be a fly on any wall, which would you choose?
OH... haha... that makes me laugh out loud. I have this conversation with a couple good girlfriends a lot!!! I would love to be a fly on the wall in MULTIPLE places... probably because I'm nosy!!

I'm the type of person that loves to learn from people... so I could choose a lot of walls... One in particular would be the White House... I'd love to see how things work there, and how life is for the President and his family. In general - people's homes to see how people live and communicate, etc.

2. Do you budget your Christmas shopping or just get it done without budgeting?
Absolutely!! We try to keep each person's gifts in a decent range - say $50 or less. We have a lot of people to purchase for, so we typically keep it under $40, but are ok if we go up to $50 or so. Christmas is expensive, but it's also a great feeling to see someone open a wonderful gift we've given... family & friends are super important to us (obviously), so that feeling over powers the spending part.

3. What is the craziest fad diet you have ever done?
None. I don't diet, I'm lucky. Before having Kayson - I ate whatever and whenever I wanted... I worked out regularly and I stayed thin. Now that I've had a baby... it's harder. Things are different, my body is different. I've tried working out and typically fail - meaning, it doesn't last very long. I get bored. However, over the past month, I've done REALLY well with the working out. I'm actually really proud of myself. I've ate a little better (not as big of portions), and I'm actually seeing some results - on the scale, but not on the body. That'll come... I hope!!

4. Is there a TV show that you have seen every episode/season of?
Oh yes -- FRIENDS. One of my favorite shows... I was super sad to see it be done.
And as for current shows -- Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy.

5. What one song always pulls at your heart?
When You Say You Love Me - Josh Groban
That song was introduced to me about 4 years ago... and was used in a wedding I was in and now they are divorced. That's the first part that pulls at my heart... the sadness... and then the happiness is that the words are beautiful and it actually reminds me of Ryan and I - what I feel when he tells me he loves me... such a warm, nice feeling... I can only hope that Ryan feels the same way when I tell him I love him.

Cold Start for Ryan

Ryan is in MN for some of this week... Just got a phone call from him and he didn't sound too 'awake'. He proceeded to tell me that the hotel they are staying at didn't have any hot water today... OMG - Brrrr and not fun!! He said it was the fastest shower he's ever taken!!! AND to top it off... he was walking outside into the SUPER windy conditions and there's snow on the ground. Again - NOT FUN. ;)

Don't bring that crap home with you honey!

22 Months & Other Stuff

Holy cow - another month... another number to Kayson's age. 22 months old today. Yesterday we got his hair cut again - he does SO well for Aunt "Ce-Ce". And man, does he look so handsome. She really cut it short and it looks SO good!!! (I'll get some pictures this week).


We had a great day yesterday... a few errands were ran, a great nap was taken, and we played hard. It was nice to be home and just hang out with Daddy being home. Kayson talked and talked - he out-talks us by far! ha. We worked on colors and numbers and so many things... and he soaked it all in and repeated several of the things. One big thing was he put two words together (a couple of times yesterday). That's big. He said "More Please". Ryan and I both looked at each other and just smiled... what a great feeling!


Um what else:

• I finished my baby shower shopping for Aunt Tina. I picked up the most perfect gift yesterday for Baby Taylor... and I simply can't wait to give it to her. It's perfect and means a lot to us (even Ryan!)
• I love my laundry room... Momma's Art looks so nice!
• JeriAnn Ritter says today is going to be the warmest day for a long time... I'm prepping myself for the cold weather to start. You all know - I hate the winter - I hate snow - I hate ice. Ryan and I have been talking about getting me a different vehicle for awhile now, and now that the winter weather is approaching, I'm really hoping that works out. We'll see... wish money wasn't a worry all the time! We (or maybe I should say, my accountant husband) are just very money-consious people. Anyway, I'm not really ready for the cold!
• Kayson slept so well all weekend - great 3 hour naps both days, and slept in both days... Last night, he was up 3 times in the middle of the night and then ready to go at 6 am. Stinker!
• I've mentioned that Kayson is 22 months old today - however, I have stopped really saying that 'month thing' out loud. If people ask how old he is - I now just say "He'll be 2 on Christmas".

That's it for now... We finally decided what Kayson will be for Halloween... thanks to an outfit that JeanAnn purchased for him. Little did she know, we would use it to build a costume! More to come on that later in the week!

Saturday Fun

Saturday, Ryan & Mike headed over to Iowa City for the football game... disappointing loss for the Hawks... big bummer.

While they were gone, Kayson, JeanAnn and I hung out all day. In the morning we did a few errands - looked around at Toys R Us, did a Target run and had a quick lunch. Kayson took a 3 hour nap, which was wonderful! (He's been acting so tired on the weekends - I think daycare wears him out!!) JeanAnn did a couple errands while he was napping - I layed down for about 20 minutes... then did a few things around the house...

When Kayson woke up, we baked some sugar cookies! Thanks to Grandma JeanAnn for the idea and all the 'stuff'. Kayson did so great - helping roll out the cookies, patting them down and sprinkling the sprinkles on. It was so cute!! Thanks for the fun JeanAnn... he loved it, and this can be a "Grandma thing" and not a "Momma thing"!!! ;) Here are some pictures!

Five Question Friday

1. Who is the better cook - you or your spouse?
Hmmm... I honestly feel I cook well, but Ryan does too... he does certain meals, and I do certain meals... we share the love in the kitchen.

2. Are you adventurous in the kitchen or stick to the recipie?
I stick to the recipie. I'm too scared that I'll screw something up!!!

3. How often do you talk to your Mom?
Oh... this week, I've talked to her probably 5 times... but last week, it was just 1 time. It's kind of random!!

4. Is your second toe longer than your big toe?
It is! I've heard that means you are intelligent! ;)

5. Do you dress up for Halloween?
I don't... not something I'm interested in... but I sure do like to hear stories about adults who do dress up.

SOLD!

Exciting news at the Taylor household tonight... well, exciting, but also a little sad (for Ryan). We sold his Monte Carlo tonight! He bought the car new - back in 1999. He's had a lot of memories with that car... it's been a great car actually for him. When we found out we were pregnant, we got the Tahoe and the Monte sat. It sat in storage at my parents farm for awhile, then Ryan's Dad drove it for awhile, then it sat some more... and just about a month or so ago he went to drive it to Minnesota for work, and it wouldn't start. DAMN. So after another couple weeks, he took it in to get it checked out... $600 later we have a new battery and alternator... Wowza. That night Ryan said "We probably should sell it."

Jump ahead to last night.

Around 9pm, Ryan put the car on Craigslist. This morning he had 4 or 5 responses asking about it and wanting to see it. After back and forth with one guy, him and his son came to test drive it tonight... and drove away with it... and we have cash in our pocket. The $600 will be paid off and we have some for left over... Ryan says maybe that could go towards something for me. ;) We'll see about that!

Either way, it's sold... and that was easy. I hope it's a great car for that kid for another several years...

Art

Kayson loves to color with crayons/markers, etc... the 'art' time doesn't last long, but he likes it! I originally started calling this time 'Craft time' and I think at daycare, they call it 'Art'. We've had some 'art' projects around the house lately... This is proof of some of our weekend art.

In my previous post, I mentioned that I painted our laundry room. Well, in the midst of painting, I hear Kayson and Daddy talking... and Kayson kept saying "Momma Art, Momma Art". The word art doesn't come out all that clear, but as he kept saying it... we finally figured out what he was getting at. Momma was doing art - Painting! It was so sweet! Even a couple days after I was done painting, he would walk into the laundry room and say "Art".

Room is now a slate gray color - really pretty with the white trim... and an added touch of Uppercase Living (which was a pain in the rear to put up!) But I love it!!

We also did art outside. Kayson pulled out the chalk and we drew and drew on the driveway. This is Dadda drawing Kayson... Dadda then drew Momma, and Kayson attempted to draw Dadda. It was pretty fun.

Good!

Great weekend thus far.

Friday evening we decided to enjoy a High School football game. Ryan's brother, Blair, coaches middle school football in West Marshall... and he also helps with the high school games... we've gone to watch them in the past, but didn't go last year... We really enjoyed it, and Kayson did too.


Today has been a full day of this and that. I decided that I was finally going to paint our laundry room... I started when Kayson went down for his nap (which ended up being only an hour and a half!!), but continued throughout the rest of the afternoon, and finally wrapped it up tonight. I will do some touchups tomorrow... I'm really pleased with it...


Kayson and Daddy played HARD while I was painting... and I would take breaks too, and we all would play hard. With the short nap, he did get pretty crabby late this afternoon... so bedtime came a little early for him.


It's nice having Ryan home... he laughed and laughed with Kayson today and that was so nice... and Kayson showed Dadda how much he talks!! Each day words get clearer and clearer and Ryan was able to really see that today.

Side note:

Blair & Martina gave Kayson this shirt. Perfect for when Kayson meets Baby Taylor for the first time. ;)

Running Late

When it's just me and Kayson, we run late. Period. I can't get out of bed... and I HATE waking Kayson up! So putting aside those excuses... we just plain run late in the morning - apparently there's more to do in the morning than I think there is!

This morning I actually felt we were doing pretty good... I was all ready, Kayson was eating and not fighting me, the dogs had pottied twice. As I was taking the dogs to their kennell, I hear Kayson hollaring for me... As I walked up the stairs, I see Kayson with his plate on his head. One would think - that's just fine, he's being funny... little do you know - that plate was full of syrup from his pancakes and syrup. OMG. I then hollared at him... and he says "No No" back to me... I take the plate off his head... and there was his nice clean hair all soaked in syrup!!! There was no way I would be able to just use a washcloth and wipe it off... So... I put him in the bathtub and washed his hair. That was probably the fastest bath he's ever had - 2 minutes top - enough time to wet his hair, soap it up, rinse. STINKER!

Five Question Friday

1. What is your favorite Halloween candy?
Well... first, I'm not a HUGE candy fan. I'll eat it, for something different - for something sweet, but just not often. I'm also not a fan of chocolate. However, if you have a Kit-Kat to offer me, I would eat that. I know, weird... there must be enough of that 'crunch' in there, that it passes over the chocolate. Either way, if I eat candy, it makes me unbearable thirsty for more water!

2. Do you fold your socks?
Yes, I do... roll them together.

3. What is something you wish you would have been warned about?
Now that I'm older, I never really realized how easy I had it when I was a kid/teenager... I had no worries back then, I thought I was invincible! Just like every other kid these days... growing up was/is hard still...

4. Where do you like to go to relax?
My quiet time includes watching some of my shows that I've DVRd. I typically watch these late at night - in bed when it's quiet. That's my time.

5. What are three words you would use to describe yourself?
Maternal - now. I've always loved kids, but never quite imagined how it would really affect me and change me... and now that I'm a mom - I love it. I love the challenges and the fun.
Funny - Some of my closest friends would say I'm funny. I don't tell jokes, I just sometimes have funny stories to tell... and I guess they think that's fun and funny. ;)
Friendly - I want friends, I want to know people, I want to learn from people - so I'm friendly in general. (or at least I hope people think that!)

So many things to say!

Kayson talks all the time... pretty much non-stop. If there's a time when he's not talking, I'm worried. ha. At bedtime tonight, we did our routine, and after reading... he asked me to "Rock" him. Of course I will. "Sing" I sang a little... Lord - thank you for us being the only ones in the house tonight! "More... Rou Rou" (Wheels on the Bus go Round & Round), so I sang a few more songs... Then we talked about other things like - "NiNi Boo" (Night Night Books), "NiNi Yight" (Night Night Light), "Dar" (Dark), "Winnie", "ELLLLMO", "Dadda Wor" (Dadda Work), "Moo" as he points to the sky (Moon). Then we jumped to "Truck", "ChooChoo", "Aipane" (Airplane). He talked for nearly 8 minutes (I watched the clock) while I rocked him and just helped him along with the words and his thoughts. Unbelievable how much he knows.

Ryan is travelling this week... so it's Kayson and I ridin' solo. Tonight we fed the ducks at the Jordan Creek pond. I tell you what - those ducks/geese/whatever they are were HUNGRY. They came SO close to us while we were throwing bread... almost too close for my comfort actually! I should have had my camera - it was crazy!!

Hope everyone is enjoying this great weather!!

Cracking up!

It's Sunday... blah!!! However, we had a great weekend!
I was busy with two family photo shoots over the weekend. One family included 6 adults and 6 young boys - BOYS - from the age of 8 to 1. I was sweating. ;) I also hosted a Tastefully Simple party for one of my closest friends... I had a great turnout, that included some little ones too... so the house was full of people and noise! I was exhausted by the time it was over! We've kept busy and just happy this weekend... Kayson's been wild and fun. I'm guessing it's the weather - and being able to be outside again... which has been great. I'm sure the nice weather will be short lived, but we are enjoying it now!

Here are some fun pictures from the weekend... and the last two are Kayson cracking up... thanks to Dadda.