....and we went to the ER

Christmas came and went and we were still sick! Our house was full of fun toy and apparently germs. Someone has been sick in our house since December 10. This time Shawn was the lucky one that didn't get some sort of ailment like the rest of us did. A few days after Christmas the kids and I packed up and visited College Station while Shawn headed to Hamilton. The morning we were supposed to leave Max was running fever and had a terrible cough. Shawn took Max in to see Dr. Knapick. He diagnosed Max with upper & lower respiratory infection and prescribed him a slew of drugs and benadryl for the cough.
I figured he'd get better soon and I didn't want to be alone with sick kids so we headed to CS. I had planned to have lunch with Maritza and her good friend Kelly at Wings N More. I gave him 2/4 medicines he was given since he was throwing them up....nice. He had also had 2 breathing treatments that day for his wheezing. Since Max wasn't feeling well I left him with my mom and Maddie and I went to pick up the girls. We had a good lunch, but I was worried about my little boy, but I knew he was in good hands.

When I got home Max was VERY drowsy because of the benadryl and he was running a fever. On top of that he was struggling to breathe, his poor chest was working so hard to breathe. Boy did I feel like Mother of the Year! We decided to take him to the ER since we don't have a dr. in CS. Luckily Elizabeth was there to go with us. She was such a great help. She provided a good distraction for me because I was a little freaked out. Long story short he was given 2 breathing treatments and a steroid and they made sure he was okay. I was glad we took him and by the next day he was back to normal.....well sort of

Christmas 2010

Madeline's first Christmas

We had a wonderful Christmas. Our little family enjoyed a quiet evening at home on Christmas Eve. I made pozole and it was yummy. Half of our Christmas tree lights went out, but lucklily Shawn got it fixed that evening. Max and Maddie enjoyed looking at the tree and playing with us. We let Max stay up later than normal, but he was out by 10pm. Maddie slept all night in her crib, Merry Christmas!
The next morning we woke up, had pigs n a blanket for breakfast and opened presents. For lunch we had my family over and Tia Rosalinda, Jaime, Elizabeth, Rosie and Joey. WE had lots of good food and fun playing the Wii some more!

Christmases

Christmas started early for us this year. We had our first celebration with the Terral/Kendrick/O'hara bunch the first weekend of December. I didn't take too many pictures, but I did get some of Carter and Madeline. It was so fun to see them together since they are only 3 weeks apart. I love that my kids have cousins close in age. Max had a ball playing with his uncles and his cousin Isabel or as he says it: Ee-bowl.

Carter & Maddie 5 months

Our next celebration was Shawn's company party. We were lucky enough to have my parents and my Aunt Amy and cousin Jessica come in to help with the kids. Thanks so much!! The party was fun. I was so excited to dress up, I even wore my 3 inch heels!! It was at the Houston Country Club, which is in a very ritzy part of town. We had cocktails and hor d'oeuvres, a fabulous meal and all you can eat dessert (including Bananas Foster). Its no wonder I haven't lost a pound! We danced a few songs and it was so nice to have some time alone --well as alone as you can get at a company party. Good times!

Then we went to the StrollerFit X-mas party. This party was more intimate, but so much fun. We had drink, dinner, dessert AND a really fun white elephant exchange. Shawn had a great time meeting the other dads of the group.

Our next Christmas will be tomorrow. I am making Pozole for dinner and we'll watch movies and maybe play some games. Then we'll head to bed early so we can wake up early Christmas Day for presents and a big lunch. We are looking forward to having family over for some of the fun. Will post pictures soon.

Another first...the flu

Max was sick last week with a cold, then Maddie started having the same symptoms. We haven't been to play dates or stroller fit in about 2 weeks it seems. Well, instead of her getting better, she started running fever and her cough worsened. To take a precaution I took her to see the doctor. We weren't able to see Dr. Nguyen, so we saw Dr. McClintock.
I had that feeling like I was a paranoid mom and they would just tell me to give her fluids and Tylenol as needed. When they told me she had the flu I couldn't believe it! I have never had the flu and neither has Max. We both got the vaccine in 2009. I guess we were so busy this year we didn't get it, but we should have. We will for sure next year.
Maddie is doing relatively well, but her cough is terrible! She is running a high fever, so I am giving her Tylenol. Last night she slept with me and was pretty much up all night. Needless to say, I am exhausted. Max wanted to join in on the fun, so as soon as I got Maddie to sleep around 4am, he decided at 4:30 that he wanted some time with Mommy. Shawn and both went to get him, but I took over since I can generally get Max to go back down. When he sees Daddy all he wants to do is play. Looks like we are having a day full of coffee for Mommy and cartoons for Max. Ugh! Oh, did I mention I was sick too....awesome. This too shall pass....hopefully soon.

22 months to the Max!

Our little boy is feisty, funny and imagintive and he LOVES to push boundaries. He is 22 months now and he is really coming out of his shell. He loves to play with other kids, although he doesn't always like to share his toys. He loves to repeat everything and he tries his best to communicate with us. We can decipher it for the most part, but sometimes we are left guessing. He also loves to go to the park and "pay". He often asks for "Jacken" (Jackson/Jaxen), two of his little buddies. He calls himself Mack.

A few of his guilty pleasures:

He still loves his binky, which he affectionately refers to as "cha cha". He is obsessed with Little Einsteins (tein teins) and Diego (Day-go).

Loves climbing on anything, lately its the kitchen chairs and table

He loves to "hide" in this corner. Here he is being silly with my old reading glasses. I promise the prescription is not strong. He just randomly put them on and went about his business of playing and tearing up the living room. He was so cute!

My nerdy baby!

Climbing....again. Max and Maddie have both had colds this past week. Max loved chicken soup.

Little X-mas party

We had fun at the Strollerfit Little X-mas party, here are some pictures

Madeline is 5 months today!

What can I say, my girl gets cuter and spunkier by the day. She's been with us for 5 months and she lights up our life! I think her brother is even starting to really love her too. She loves to roll both ways. She finally found her feet and she likes to play with them. When she isn't happy she isn't shy about it. She likes to hang out in her jumper, bouncer or the bumbo, but mostly she likes mommy to hold her. She can kind of sit up and she uses her hands like a tripod. She laughs at certain things, especially Max.

She nurses about 4-5 times a day and eats rice cereal. She had sweet potatoes for the first time this week and she really like them. She naps about twice a day and cat naps when we are on the go. She was doing such a good job sleeping in her crib until Thanksgiving. So lately she sleeps with me when I can't get her in her crib. I'm not complaining though, I love to snuggle with my angel.

5 month picture

She surprised me and dove forward!! I was impressed how she put her arms down and just laughed!

Breakfast with Bubba. she tries to reach so far it looks like she is jumping out.

Moments like these.....

make it all worth it!

21 months

On Thanksgiving Day 2010 Max will be 21 months. I have been looking through his old pictures quite often lately. It's so fun to look back and see that he has always made the same faces and grimaces. He has always had a spunky personality and he loves to laugh. He really enjoys exaggerating his laugh and being silly. He has such a tender heart and I love it when people say he's a Momma's boy. What Mom doesn't want their little boy to adore her the way we adore them? Tantrums are in full effect. The books say to ignore the behavior, but sometimes its hard. If we yell at him for making a bad choice, he gets his feelings hurt. So we say we are sorry for reacting that way and give him a hug. I know the best way to discipline him is to explain why he shouldn't do things instead of just saying "no". But its tough when you are short on time and cranky. No excuse, but I am trying to work on it. Max is such a picky eater. I find that I cannot give him snacks because he will not eat at meals. It's hard, so I try to have healthy small snacks to give him. He seems so skinny to me, but he is healthy. Here are a few more things he is up to.

Max loves playing with his little sister. When she cries he brings her the paci or pats her. It is the sweetest thing to see. He is such a sweet big brother, crossing my fingers that lasts!!

In the past week Max has used the potty (#1)....TWICE! I know it doesn't seem like much, but he has asked to use the potty. Our pediatrician said that realistically we should start at 24 months, but it was possible that we would be training Max and his little sister at the same time since boys take a while. We bought one just in case he showed interest. We are not going to push it, but if he asks we'll help him. Oh, and he likes to take off his clothes sometimes and say "nayki" (LOL). So I'm thinking he'll get really good at ripping his diaper off if he wants.

Most of his friends from our moms groups are all turning two. These parties are so fun! He really enjoys running around, climbing and jumping. Also, I love getting ideas for his 2nd birthday, which is only 3 months away. This is from Grace's birthday party at Gymboree.

Max and his older cousin Isabel goofing around at Cheddar's.

His new favorite cartoon is Little Einsteins. He is a little obsessed!! When it comes on he screams "Tein Teins" an he loves "Ra Ra", aka Rocket. I found some DVD's and a toy rocket on craigslist for just $30. Pretty good deal if you ask me!!

A few firsts...

I look at my sweet "purdy purdy" and I can't believe she's all mine (well okay, I'll share with Daddy)!! She's had a few first lately. She had her first rice cereal and she liked it. Of course she spits it out more than she swallows, but she gets better at it every time. She usually squeals from excitement. She loves food, just like her mama!!

more, more, more

mmmm

She is getting so strong! She does little push ups to see what is going on. She likes to sit up and look around, but she needs support. She giggles sometimes, you really have to act silly to get a laugh from her. She has the most precious smile and gets so excited when Max talks to her. She also loves to play with her hair. It is the cutest thing to watch, she just pulls at it. She is a pretty amazing sleeper for her age. I generally put her in her crib between 8:30-9 and she sleeps until 7 most mornings. Hallelujah!!

Haciendo pucheros...Sometimes she gets all sad and just wants me to hold her.

Happy girl!

Starting to push up

She loves to play with her hair....so cute

We love our jammies

I would say one of the best things about staying home with my babies is our mornings. I love being able to let them sleep until they are ready to get up and then lounging around in our jammies. It doesn't happen everyday, but I absolutely love it, and I love them!! I will cherish these days forever because I know one day we'll be on the go, rushing to get to pre-school. {tears}

Sliding

Trying out all the slides...

Then climbing up...

Winning Streak

I've been dressing the kids in their Aggie gear on game day for the last few weeks, and we've been winning. Believe me they will be wearing their maroon on November 25, 2010 to BTHO t.u.!!!!!!!

Dewberry Farm Take II

I had big plans for pumpkin patch pictures in October, so I was thrilled when Groupon had a half price deal. Of course, things came up and we never visited. This past weekend was the last weekend we could use it. Being a penny pinching mommy I could not let it go to waste, so off we went!

It turned out to be the perfect day. The weather was nice with some sun and clouds. Max had fun running around and playing on the jumping pillows. The corn maze was boring. The food was way too expensive. The toddler spot and farm were hits with Max. Madeline mostly napped in the BOB. All in all it was a fun day. Once we got hungry we left, I didn't feel like paying $5 for french fries!! We enjoyed some barbecue in Waller then we headed home.

Riding the bike tractors

The girls relaxing and watching the boys play

Vaca lechera y el cochinito!! haha

Riding the cow, but longing to play on the jumping pillows

Cleaning up after the farm