For my sweet Porter

To my sweet, handsome lil' man...

Your 1st birthday has come and gone and I can't hardly believe it. We have had a year full of ups and downs for sure. When I first looked in your eyes I would like to say you had this huge smile on your face but unfortunately you cried. :) I think deep down you must have known I wouldn't be able to see you for the rest of the night. That was one of the hardest things I had to hear in my life. The doctor came in and told us that you were a tad bit early and your little lungs just weren't quite ready. Then came more terrible news...I wouldn't be able to see or hold you until the morning. Your dad was so awesome during that time. I will admit, I did not keep my composure like a good mother should. Your dad went down to see you as soon as the doctors would let him and he videotaped and took plenty of pictures of you so he could bring them to me. When it seemed like eternity, I finally got the OK to be wheeled down to you. You were the most beautiful little boy I had ever seen. You were holding my finger and you knew mommy was there because your vitals suddenly started getting better. I didn't get much sleep for the next few days and I called the NICU nurses every chance I got to make sure everything was looking up. Your daddy and I had to sneak away from Emma a few times a day so we could come see you and hold you. And thanks to your nana, namaw, Aunt Kristy and a bunch of others, we were able to do that. It was a very long 10 days, but you finally came home as healthy as can be.

You were the best baby ever!!! Just look at those sweet cheeks. This was your PLEASE STOP TAKING MY PICTURE MOMMY face. You loved to be held by whomever. You would simply snuggle up to them, especially Emma. You NEVER cried. You loved to go visit your nana & pop, namaw & tapaw!!! Plenty of spoiling that's for sure!!

We have had the best year getting to know you and love you more every day. Some of the things that I love about you:

1. You love to rub your ears or anyone's ears and hum while you go to sleep.

2. You squeal with excitement when you swing.

3. Your whole face lights up when you see your sister.

4. You help us get Emma up in the morning because trust me NO ONE wants that job.

5. You love getting your hands into everything including (and I'm not proud) trashcans, toilets, cabinets, and girl's hair!

6. I asked Emma what her favorite thing about you. Her reply, "when I go boo and he starts to laugh. Oh and when he plays peek-a-boo with me in the tunnel nana got us."

7. The way you shake your head no-no at me. :) And the way you try to make the same noise that I make with my mouth.

8. The way you chew (not suck) on your fingers.

9. The way you want to play with Emma no matter what she does to you. :)

10. The way you run to me and your family with your hands in the air in such excitement!

These are just a few of the things I can think of. We have a ton of great memories and we are going to make TONS more buddy! We especially look forward to the t-ball, soccer, and football days ahead!! God is good!

I love you so so much!
Mommy

Happy 5 Year Anniversary!

It was mine and Scott's 5 year anniversary last weekend. Unfortunately, we were all infected with the RotoVirus. It was not the way I had planned on spending that day, but as parents you got to do what you got to do. It has been such an amazing 5 years. There are so many things that make me love him as much as I do. Here are just a few of them:

1. He is the BEST dad in the world. He loves Emma and Porter with every fiber in his body!

2. He makes EVERYTHING fun!

3. He is there at the end of everyday to be a dad.

4. He is PASSIONATE!!

5. He is my best friend!! (I know it sounds cheesy!)

6. He cooks and shows Emma a few tricks around the grill.

I love you Scott!!

Now for a little update on the kiddios. Emma is doing great! This medicine she is taking seems to really work for her arthritis. She never complains and she is getting ready for her 1st of hopefully many Dance Recitals. I CAN'T WAIT!! She loves to dance and loves her dance teacher. Emma will be starting pre-k 3 in the fall at Nativity and I can't believe it. She is such a big girl now and I think I'm gonna flip out the 1st day of school. She is supposed to stay little. :( She is so funny. She stayed the night with my mom last night. My mom told me the funniest thing. She asked her if she wanted a snack mid-morning and my mom showed her a small pack of Ritz. Emma said "yes I do want a snack". A few seconds later she said "no nana. I want to eat something healthy." My mom said "sure, I have bananas or apples." Emma replied, "no I need a cookie. That's healthy." :) She got to play with Riley and Reed while she was at Nana's house which she can't get enough of her cousins! She loves them soooo much.

Porter is doing great as well. He is getting so big and hit so many milestones since I wrote my last blog. He is saying dada, mama, baba, bye-bye. He even waves his little hand. He is crawling everywhere and walking around holding tables. He is the sweetest thing ever. He just smiles at everbody. He did develop acid reflux from the virus he had last week so now we are trying medicine (Zantac) to help him keep bottles down. He loves going to spend the night with Nana too. His favorite thing to do is swing. :) He makes this awesome sound when swinging and laughs the whole time.

The Little Things in Life

I am sorry it has taken me awhile to post again. Shame, shame! I promise to keep up with it more often.

I usually talk about my kids, but I have to tell a story about my wonderful husband! I have had a tough week at work and I've been taking it out on him unfortunately. On Wednesday, I woke up and started my routine of getting myself ready for work. I grabbed the bottle of multi-vitamins, which I had graciously taken from Scott a couple of months earlier, and noticed something scribbled on the bottom of the bottle. Scott had written "Life is Good! Porter is on his way!" And he dated it. That was all it took to make my week so much better! I love that he had no idea anyone would ever see it. What an awesome husband and daddy he is!! It's the little things in life that make it all worth while.

Well, the kids are slowly and surely getting out of all the sickness this lovely season has brought us. We are down to Porter having an ear infection in the right ear. I am 95% sure doc is going to recommend tubes. They did help Emma so much though. Porter has accomplished so much over the past 2 weeks. He started crawling and pulling up all in the same week. It is so much fun to watch him explore. And when I say explore, he is a BIG TIME explorer. It's so funny how different boys and girls are from one another. He is such a busy body. I am going to love this!!

Emma has been doing great with her arthritis. She goes back in May for her next checkup and unfortunately has to have all the blood work done this time. She got in trouble last week for something and Scoot and I were having the serious parent talk with her about how we expected more from her, etc.  I finally said I think I'm gonna have to take something away from you. She looked at me with the saddest eyes and said, "OK mom. Just not my shoes please!" How sad is it that out of everything she has (toys, baby dolls, movies), she picks her shoes to keep. :) WOW!! Scott is not going to enjoy his American Express bill when she gets older. We both busted out laughing when she left the room. She is too funny.