Random things

Luke loves his Hulk glasses and likes to wear them all the time so I knew it would be relatively easy to get him to keep his new glasses on. He's just so cute!! He still likes to wear the Hulk ones so he puts them on OVER his other glasses- it's really funny.

Oh and I forgot to mention in my previous post that I cut Cameryn's hair shorter. I don't have a really good picture but she wanted me to take this one of her and our cat so I thought I would post it up anyway. Actually you can probably see the haircut better in my last post.

Here is just silly picture of our cat playing fetch with her favorite toy. I took these two while Luke was playing with her, throwing it into the kitchen while she chased it down and brought it right back to him so he would play some more. So cute!!
Yes another dorky cat picture, oh well.

These next ones were taken by Cameryn. I laughed so hard when I was uploading my pictures from my camera to my computer and I saw these ones. Look at his sweet little face cheesing for the camera right in his face.

Oh WHOOPS!!! How did this picture of my butt get in here?? HAHAHA!! Not bad for never having time to work out- hahaha- I crack myself up!! Oh and Cameryn took this one by the way.

Always playing catch up

Again, I haven't really been in the mood to blog. But there is a lot that happened that I would like to catch up on.

Cameryn's birthday party went really well. I don't know why I was so stressed!! Well, actually I do since it looked like it was going to rain all that day and we were having the party at a park, plus I invited WAY too many kids. It was a really great day though and everyone seemed to have a blast. Cameryn was so excited to have all those people there but she was still so shy with everyone. Unfortunately, we were in such a big hurry to leave the house to run our last few errands since the party was at 11:00 am that I FORGOT MY CAMERA!!!! I was so mad and my mom didn't know where theirs was either. She was so sweet though and went out to buy me a disposable one so I could at least get the pictures developed later. So I don't have any pictures of the actual party, but I do have one of Cameryn wearing her favorite gift of the day.

Cameryn is really enjoying her preschool too. She loves to go and always has a lot to tell me when I pick her up. I only wish that it was more than twice a week now. If I'd have known she would love it that much, I might have looked around more. I wasn't really even going to put her in one though so I'm glad she at least has this one. She is so cute with her little backpack on with nothing in it but a folder and a change of clothes (just in case). She is always so excited to see me and Luke come to pick her up. Actually I think she is more excited when my mom picks her up on Wednesdays. That is the only day I work now during the week so my mom comes out to my house to watch the kids and take Cameryn to and from preschool. Yesterday she asked me why Gramma didn't pick her up and when I told her she would next time she got all excited.

Luke also seems to like his alone time with me or Gramma. He always wants to go to the park or to his friend, Landon's house. Mike and I have friends that live on our street that he has known since high school (maybe longer, I can't remember) and they had a little boy about 6 weeks after we had Luke. It's really nice to have a close friend who also stays home with her little boy to hang out with all the time.

So onto my other news about Luke. He had another appointment with his eye surgeon/doctor the beginning of this month. I really loved the doctor that did his surgery and that I had seen since he was 4 months old. But she moved to a practice that was closer to where she lived so I've been having to take him to the other doctors that I don't know- still in the same practice but I really miss his other doctor. Anyways back on topic now- as most of you know, he had eye surgery a year ago this September (13th to be exact) to correct an eye problem. He had/has intermittent strabismus (ohh I'm so knowledgable and technical- sike!! I had the doctor write down the name since I always forget what it is actually called) which really means that his eyes would cross sometimes and it needed to be corrected with surgery. His left eye was his stronger eye so I would patch that eye for about an hour everyday to force him to use the right eye. Well his surgery was successful in that his eyes don't cross anymore but they are still not straight. His right eye moves outward occasionally and his left eye moves a tad bit up.

So at his most recent appointment, the doctor wanted to dilate his eyes again to check and see if glasses would help at all. They had done this at his first ever appointment and came to the conclusion that it wouldn't help then. So she put the drops in his eyes which he did not like but he is such a sweet patient boy that he calmed down as soon as I was holding him close again. We had to wait another 30-45 min while the drops worked. She checked his eyes again and recommended he get glasses. He is a bit too far-sighted (interesting fact: the Dr. told me that kids are all far-sighted when they are little but Luke is too far-sighted- weird huh) and he has a slight astigmatism on both of his eyes.

I didn't really understand what all that meant but I went to get him fitted anyways. A guy who goes to my church works at the office they recommended to get him fitted for the glasses. He saw me sitting in the waiting area and came out to talk to me about Luke's glasses. He has been helpful throughout the whole thing with Luke actually but especially while I was there. He looked at his prescription and explained the whole far-sighted thing to me so I could actually understand it. He said that this is not a permanent thing for Luke (most likely). He said the glasses will help his brain to not have to work so hard to focus on things close up then far away and back and forth ALL the time which is what Luke's brain and eyes have been doing. He can focus since kids brains are still developing and they are more adaptable and doesn't have real vision problems but his brain just has to work harder. This will just help his brain relax a bit and work on making his eyes straighter instead of all this constant focusing and refocusing.

He was so cute trying on his glasses!! I liked this one pair that were thin rimmed and brown (to match his hair of course) with the cable ear piece to it stays on more securely but Luke really liked these blue pair. I figured since he was going to have to wear them all the time, I should let him pick out the ones that he likes so I got the blue ones. The optician (the guy that fits the glasses) was really nice and funny. Luke was having so much fun with the kid glasses that he started pointing at the adult glasses. The guy goes and gets him a pair to try on and Luke was laughing at himself in the mirror the turned to Cameryn and said "Tamen, look at me" then they both busted up. It was so cute!!

Mike went and picked up the glasses the day of Cameryn's party and he's been wearing them ever since from when he wakes up, to when he goes to bed. I didn't really like the glasses once I saw them with the actual lenses in them but they are growing on me. He is cute no matter what so I don't worry. Mike was kinda mad at first that I didn't get the other glasses cuz he thought the blue ones were dorky, but Luke is the one that has to wear them. Boy those glasses get dirty though. I have to clean them constantly because he is such a messy boy (what boy isn't). He is going back to the eye doctor in December for another evaluation so I'm hoping these are helping. It sucks though because kids grow so fast but they need to have snug fitting glasses too so I really really hope that this is not a long term thing cuz glasses are expensive! My friend did have his office give me a 20% discount though, so YAY!!

Okay so here are a few pictures of Luke with glasses and some of him and Cameryn playing outside.

Four year old preschooler

Yesterday was Cameryn's birthday and today was her first day of preschool. She has been excited since Luke's birthday for her birthday to come. She was so good all day and couldn't wait for Daddy to come home so she could open up her presents. We wanted her to have stuff to open on her actual birthday since we can't have her party until Sept 13th (2 Saturdays from now). We are having a bigger party than normal with her little friends instead of just our family. I'm excited and nervous for this. It seems like so much more to do and I want it to be fun for the kids.

She got to open up her presents from Mike's parents on Monday. They got her a Leapster2 with a Princess cartridge. She has been loving that and plays on it really well. She also got a lot of winter/ school clothes. We got her a backpack and a folder, a Barbie nightgown, a dress for her first day at school and a few small toys. She was very excited about the nightgown and backpack especially.

She woke up so nicely today and was so excited to wear her new dress. I had to continue to talk her out of putting her own toys in her backpack and lots of other stuff that was not necessary. I took some pictures and put the kids in the car.

It only takes about 10 mintues to get there which is another plus with this preschool. I dropped her off and had to drag her attention away from the dressups to say goodbye. Luke and I played at the park and went to a friends house for the remainer of the time.

Cameryn was so happy to see me and tell me all about her day. She was a little upset that she didn't get to use scissors today but she did get to use glitter so alls well.

It is so nice to see her happy for what seems like a really long time. She is slowly getting better about not being a punk most of the time and I have really enjoyed these two days of relative peace from Cameryn.

So here are a few pictures from her two special days. I will post the pictures from her party when it happens. Keep your fingers crossed for me that I can pull off a fun party for about 12 little kids!!

This was me trying to say goodbye while dragging her attention away from the dressups, shoes, and play kitchen.

Luke at the park while waiting to go pick up Cameryn. He loves his Hulk glasses as you can see. He wears them all the time. He even took them to church this past Sunday. But hey, if it helps me to leave him in the nursery and go to my class, I don't care what he brings.

Pics from Harpers Ferry

Me and My kids went with my mom, my sister Kathryn and my brother Devon to Harpers Ferry the Friday before school started back up. Kathryn and Devon had slept over at my house the night before to watch the kids so Mike and I could go to the movies. My mom called about when she could come and pick them up and I suggested Harpers Ferry for the afternoon. We made up a quick picnic to take with us and just drove out. We ate our little lunches and then played in the river some. Kathryn was trying to not get to wet while wading out to the big rocks but slipped and fell in anyways. The water felt perfect though so she wasn't cold or anything. If you stood really still, the minnows would come and nibble on your toes, it was really funny. Cameryn didn't want to get in but Luke came in with me and got in just to his knees. They both had fun throwing rocks into the water.

After the river, we all walked (including my kids) up the stone steps to the top of Harper's Ferry overlooking the rivers where there is an old graveyard. The kids had fun running around and looking at all the old grave stones. Cameryn liked to pretend to "read" them and was telling us some interesting stories that were "written" on them.

After climbing back down all the stairs (this time with Luke on my shoulders- I didn't have the patience for the slow climb down), we got ice cream cones in the little town. It was a very nice afternoon and my kids were so worn out and tired. They went to bed really good that night!!

Kathryn after falling in the river.

Cameryn throwing rocks and shells. Devon chilling one of the big rocks.

My handsome boy watching minnows in the water.

Kathryn watching the minnows on her toes. I love this pictures of Devon in a tree!!

"Boss" and Devon climbing rock walls. Bamma with Luke and Cameryn watching the climbers.

Two cute kids!!

I just like these pictures!

Cameryn "reading" a story to Luke.

Singing

Here is a cute video I took of Luke singing his first song.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Don't you love when he jabs his finger at the camera when singing "to you". So adorable!!!

Beach Trip

I really don't know how this keeps happening to me BUT somehow part of this post got erased and I was so frustrated that I put off finishing it again till this weekend. Anyways, I tried not to make it to long since I added so many pictures.

We went to Ocean City, MD last weekend. We left on Friday night at about 10:00 (I had a work party that I had wanted to go to) and got to Ocean City about 1:30 with a few stops in between so we made really good time going that late at night. My mother-in-law, Robin, rode down with us and kept me company while I drove the last half and Mike slept in the back. We stayed with Mike's family; Aunt Shirley, Aunt Vicki, Grace, Ben and Ben's girlfriend, Jenny. They had been there for over a week and invited us to come stay with them if we wanted. Mike, me, Cameryn and Luke all slept in one room with Mike and Luke on the floor on a blow-up mattress and me and Cameryn in the bed. Unfortunately we got woken up early so I was so tired all day but it was still fun being on the beach. I haven't been to Ocean City in about 10 years.

We spent that whole first day on the beach and boy did Cameryn have fun. She played and played and played. She dug holes for herself and buried everyones feet. She ran down to the water (always supervised of course) picked up handfulls of sand to throw in the water and then run away from it before it could get her wet. She had almost everyone take her into the water with them and had so much fun especially with her Daddy. Ben, Grace and Jenny started building this huge sandcastle which Cameryn had fun destroying later. She was so busy all day.

Luke, on the other hand, would not have anything to do with the sand. I was all for making him get used to it but everyone else picked him up and sat him on chairs or their laps. Somehow it didn't occur to me to go get Cameryn's crocs for him to wear, but I'm an idiot sometimes. He spent most of the day sitting on Aunt Shirley's lap or in the chair next to her and he talked and talked.

Everyone came in between 4-6 and got ready to go to dinner. Cameryn and Luke both fell asleep in the car on the way to dinner. I guess it's exhausting at the beach even when you do nothing but sit all day. Luke woke up when we got there and ate a ton of pizza but Cameryn somehow stayed asleep. I figured she would wake up when we sat down, but not so. Then I had to go to the bathroom and handed her off to Aunt Shirley thinking she would wake up then, no again. She slept all through dinner in a loud restaurant. I took her back to carry her to the car when we were leaving and she whimpered in the car cuz she wanted to go home to sleep. She screamed a little when I put her pj's on and then made her go to the bathroom but as soon as I laid her down in the bed, she was out. She slept 13 hours that night, poor little tired girl.

We went to the boardwalk on Sunday after packing up the car and Robin bought Luke a little outfit and Cameryn a pretty dress that she picked out herself. We left at about 12:30 to go home. We stopped shortly after though to eat lunch before Luke fell asleep. Somehow with 13 hours of sleep Cameryn was still tired and she was the one to fall asleep. Luke stayed awake the whole 4 hours home and all through traffic too.

It was a fun weekend but I would love to have more than one day at the beach, it's just not enough!!

Luke with Vicki in the waves.

Luke's spot for almost the rest of the day, there or right next to Aunt Shirley on the chair.
Cameryn with Robin digging a hole for her to get into. I love her cute face!!

Ben and Jenny starting to build a big sand castle for Cameryn. She had fun getting into the big hole they dug and then she had even more fun stepping on all the castles and the whole outside of it, too bad I missed it cuz I fell asleep.

Here he his again with Aunt Shirley, talking up a storm I'm sure. He talks so much now it's crazy.

Luke playing with Grace while we were waiting for everyone to get ready to leave for dinner. He had so much fun with her and kept saying, "Grace, chase me" though of course it sounded more like "Gace" and not Grace.

Poor tired Cameryn on the boardwalk. She really wanted to go home. She wanted to carry her own dress though and wouldn't let me carry it with my stuff, not like it was heavy.

I couldn't get her car seat to recline though I really tried. I would have had to take her out first and then do it. So she was stuck like this.

Luke awake the whole time!!! Little punk. He was complaining right then about wanting to get out of his seat.

Maybe an artist

Looking at the two pictures, does anyone else think Cameryn did a really good job drawing the one eyed monster from Monsters Inc., Mike Wazowski?


I've posted some of the pictures she's taken with my camera but I should start putting up some of her cute pictures that she draws. Most of them are typical kid pictures with a head and the arms and legs coming out of the head but every so often there will be a really good one.

I love my little girl. She is so creative and she loves to make up stories to tell to me and bring me pictures that she has drawn for me or other people. She also comes to me occasionally with pictures to send to Ezra out on his mission. Oh and speaking of missions, Ezra is now out of the MTC and in Uruguay!! Please remember to keep him in your prayers.

Anyways, maybe I'm over reacting since she's my daughter but I really do think that the picture above is pretty good. Oh well, what is a blog for if not to brag and show off our kids most of the time, while complaining about them the other times. Haha, just kidding about that part.