A Day At The Zoo

What an amazing summer we are having!! We have been so busy that we aren't keeping on schedule very often, but we are having so much fun! I've started going to jazzercise three times a week at 9:15am, which is right smack-dab in the middle of Mallory's morning nap. So, that has been a challenge, but I've just tweaked things a bit and she does fine. The kids love playing in the play room while mommy "dances". And I'm really enjoying it too!

We've been to the zoo twice already and are planning a few more trips! Thanks to Mee-Maw we have a family membership and can now go whenever we want! The awesome thing about that is that we can go for just a few hours and not feel like we've wasted money paying to get in. It's been great. And Levi absolutely LOVES the zoo. He talks about the zoo and the animals ALL the time!! He will tell you all about the animals, where they live, what they do, and if he got to see them or not. He's pretty into it. We are going tomorrow with Aunt Nicole and cousin Izzy and we are looking forward to it!

The kids are growing so fast! Levi is saying soooo many grown up things, it's crazy! Sometimes it feels like I'm talking to a teenager! The other day he was telling me a story about Izzy and he started by saying Lailah, and then he said, "no, not Lailah. She wasn't there, she was at her house. Izzy...." It was hilarious! Mallory is growing fast too. She is really doing well with baby signs. Today I didn't realize she was hungry when I was trying to get her to take a nap and as I was rocking her, she sat up and gave me the sign for "milk" and I couldn't believe it! Then I realized she hadn't had her bottle and then it all clicked! She's so smart! Then at dinner I turned to her and asked her if she wanted more without doing the sign (I usually always do the sign when I say the word) and she started doing the sign! I was amazed!! She is babbling all the time, and I mean all the time! She has 7 beautiful teeth and she has a gorgeous smile! I just love my babies!!

Cabin In The Woods

We went to Red River Gorge in Kentucky last weekend with family and it was fun!! Here are the pictures to prove it!! :) (Katy I was thinking of you when we drove through Louisville!! Next time I want to meet up!!)

How Could I Forget!?!?

I completely forgot to mention in my last post all the cute things Mallory is starting to do! How could I forget the fun, cute stuff?!?! Just this weekend she started shaking her head "no". I didn't think she really knew she was saying "no", but coincidentally her head shaking usually is happening at a great time to say "no"!! It's pretty cute.

Yesterday she started giving me kisses. So now when you ask her she will lean over with her mouth open wide!! Sooo precious!! And lastly, she will play peek-a-boo while changing her diaper. I love that her personality is really showing!!

Mallory's Update

Mallory is now 9 months old!! I can't believe I'll be planning her first birthday party here pretty soon! YIKES!! Time really flies by!! She is such a joy to have! She is babbling and saying "da da" all the time. She will occasionally say "ma ma" but it's really rare. She is pulling herself up on her knees all the time and she's into EVERYTHING!! Plus, she puts everything in her mouth so I have to watch her carefully.

We went to the doctor last Monday and received a good report. Mallory weighs 16lbs 13oz which is only in the 14th percentile. She is 27" tall, which is only in the 36th percentile! I have some people comment on how chubby she is, but really she's a little thing! Her head, however, is a little on the larger size...according to the percentiles anyway. She is in the 90th percentile for head size! So I'm still calling her my little lollipop!! ;) Thankfully, she didn't have to get any shots at this appointment and everything went smoothly. Well, she did have an ear infection from the cold she's had. We are almost done with the antibiotic, but I didn't even know she had one. She wasn't showing any symptoms. She was a little irritable and had trouble falling asleep a few times, but that's it. Her top two teeth are coming in right now too, so I thought it was just that.

Big brother Levi is doing well also. I asked the doctor about potty training tips and she just said to not push him and let him just decide he wants to pee on the potty one day. Now, if I heard this advice before kids I would have thought it was crazy and would shake my head and say "my child will be potty-trained early and I won't let him/her decide when to be trained." Oh how motherhood changes a person! I truly believe that I will save myself a few gray hairs by just waiting on Levi. Every trip to the potty leaves us both in tears! And I feel like I've tried just about everything. The stressful part is that he KNOWS what to do and when he should be doing it. :/ Which totally drives me crazy!! And I don't really mind changing diapers, in fact I like that it's somewhat on my terms and my schedule. Once he's potty-trained I'll have to drop whatever I'm doing to run him to the potty. What I hate most about him being in diapers is BUYING diapers!!!!!!!! I'm tired of it!!!!!!! I don't mind buying Mal's diapers, she's still a baby! But Levi knows what to do and still refuses. Oh well, one day. Hopefully one day soon.

Here's my pretty little girl today playing with her big brothers toys. She's such a happy little girl!

My Loves

My babies are my life!!!!! Sometimes that is the most wonderful thing to me in the world!! Sometimes it feels like a ball and chain!!!! That's just usually when I've had my fill of it or when I have something else that is tearing me away from them. This past week it was the latter. I was so blessed to be the Matron of Honor in my cousin's wedding. It took a HUGE chunk of my time (and energy), but it was well worth it. I stressed mostly about how Scott was dealing with the kids though, most of the time. They survived, but my house didn't!! I'm STILL cleaning up the house!!! My kids were desperate for my attention after being away from them for 2 whole days. I loved being with them and missed them dearly. It's good to be back with them. I love my babies!!!

For the first time I put Mallory's hair in pigtails. It was funny explaining the difference in a ponytail and pigtails to Levi. ESPECIALLY, when he's REALLY into animals and pretty clever when it comes to those things, but he caught on.

We are going away this weekend to a cabin with family. I'm looking forward to doing nothing but being with my children. I miss them even though I'm always with them. Interesting concept.

PS Getting a good picture of Levi these days is like pulling teeth!!!!!!!!!

Lailah's Birthday

Last week was Lailah's birthday "party" at my house. We had ice cream again, like we did for Shooter's birthday and I gave both kids their presents. We weren't able to go to their birthday party because of all the stuff we have going on, but at least we were still able to celebrate at our house! :)

Mr. Big Stuff

Lately, Mallory thinks her big brother is awesome!! She wants to play with all of his toys and be wherever he is! And she laughs at most of the things he does! Here's a cute video of Levi making her laugh in the bathtub!