This and that...

-Ayden is finally feeling better after a 2 week bout with a sinus and ear infection. He is on day 7 of a 20 day round of antibiotics, so hopefully this bug will be gone for good!!



-Mother's Day Out ends for the summer in 2 weeks. For this reason, I will be going back to working primarily weekends again.



-Chris has 14 vacation days he has to use before October, but we have no big vacation plans this year. We plan on spending several days in Mena riding 4 wheelers and swimming, and hopefully taking a weekend getaway to Hot Springs just the 2 of us. (Surely someone out there would like to babysit?) :)



-I have a big and exciting week next week...Tuesday night, we are going to see Brad Paisley and Sugarland in concert!! They will be in town for the Wal-Mart Shareholders Week. I cannot wait! I am a huge Brad Paisley fan, I have had several dreams already that I get to meet him and his wife Kimberly. I told Chris he needs to pull some strings and make this happen :) Then, my BFF Melissa and her daughter Lily Kate are coming to stay with us for 4 days!! I haven't seen them in over a year and am absolutely ecstatic about seeing them!

-Weaning Ayden from the binky (see previous post) is NOT going well. He lost it in the bed during the night last night and I got to see first hand what happens when he doesn't get it back right away. We usually each have an extra one in our nightstands for when this happens, but last night we didn't. He literally sobbed when we told him it was "gone gone" This lasted almost 30 minutes before we finally turned the light on and found the blasted binky. That experience told me I am not ready to go to bed without the bink!

-If you ask Ayden if he wants to sit on his potty, he says "okay" and runs to the bathroom excitedly. He sits down for about 5 seconds and that's it. No results yet...

-Temper tantrum throwing is at an all-time high(for Ayden, that is :). He has no regard for when or where he throws them, or who might be watching. He has thrown some of his best fits lately at restuarants and in Wal-Mart. Fun times :)

-Ayden is starting to understand cause/effect and consequences to some extent. In other words, we are able to bribe him into doing something (take his medicine, lay down for a nap) by promising cookies or bubbles :)

-He still gags and vomits when we give him fruit or vegetables. He eats blueberry pancakes and applesauce and drinks apple juice. That's it. So I have started adding a liquid vitamin to his juice. What else is a mother to do? LOL

-He can point to and name just about any animal or object in a book. My "What to Expect the Toddler Years" book says a 21 month old should be able to name 4 things. He is definetely exceeding this!!

-He is also awesome at puzzles. His Mother's Day Out teacher says he plays with puzzles and books more than anything else while he is there. My little brainiac :)

-I am already planning his 2nd birthday party!! It will be in Mena the weekend after his birthday (thanks to the annual Batesville trip that Chris, my dad, and brother take). I am excited about choosing a theme because he is into so many things this year! He loves trucks and tractors, firetrucks, Blues Clues, and Elmo just to name a few things. And hopefully this year it won't rain and we can swim!!

Growing Gunner!

He is up to 20 pounds, just a few pounds shy of Andy! He is all-puppy-energetic, playful, and rotten, but oh-so-cute! Andy is not pleased that this annoying new creature is now getting bigger...and in another week will be bigger than he is!!

Look how chubby he is!

The Binky Saga...

As you all well know, Ayden loves his binky, or "bunk" as he calls it. A few months ago, we started cutting him back to only getting it at naptime and bedtime, and that went okay for a short time, and then we gradually regressed and now are back to him having it in his mouth at least 50% of his awake time, if not more. It didn't used to bother me, but now the mere sight of that thing blocking my beautiful little boy's mouth is driving me insane! Not to mention when he "mumbles" around it. It has become a common phrase in this house to say, "Ayden, take your binky out when you talk." Which he will, long enough to tell us what he needs, and then back in his mouth it goes. Sooo, all this to say, I am now on a mission to get rid of that thing once and for all. I decided today that he would not get his binky until naptime. I took it away as soon as we got up, and it went okay for about an hour. Then the screams of "Wanna Bunk! Wanna Bunk!" started. So I decided to try a trick that many of my friends have suggested-cut the tip out of his binky so that it won't feel right in his mouth. When I handed Ayden the altered binky, he put it in his mouth for a mere second, took it out, examined it, and handed it back to me, saying "No". Then he went about his merry way! I couldn't believe how well it worked... For about 20 minutes anyway!! Now, in the last hour, 3 binky's that have been missing for weeks have suddenly "re-surfaced". Chris and I had a feeling he was stashing them for when this time came!! So I am now in the process of collecting these binky's and hiding them, which I can tell you is not going well. I guess I could cut the tip out of all of them and just be done with it...but I am not sure I am ready to commit 100% to no binky at all, even at naptime and bedtime. But I am the one complaining about it, so maybe I should be the one to just suck it up (no pun intended) and end this binky saga once and for all...

Fun in Mena!

Ayden had a blast this past weekend seeing all his grandparents in Mena! Pappaw had a new swingset ready and waiting for him when we arrived! Ayden was ridiculously spoiled by all his grandparents this weekend, I have seriously never seen a child so adored by so many people! Here are a few pics from the weekend...

Pappaw's boy!

This kid loves operating heavy machinery!

Time for a 4-wheeler ride!

I think I can handle this by myself...

You know you have a comfy carseat when...

Your child climbs in it for a nap even when it's not in the car!!

Cute pics!

Wearing daddy's hat and flip-flops

New bubble machine!

Pictures worth a thousand words...

But I will try to sum them up in just a few...

Pics #1-3: Gunner and his playful puppy paws got

a little too rough with Ayden...there were lots of tears,

but red rainboots made it all better :)

I'm sure the scratches had nothing to do with the fact that

Ayden was trying to ride Gunner like a horse...

Gunner won this battle, but we will be more
careful next time!

Pics #4-6: The aforementioned red rain boots and a matching slicker have become

Ayden's favorite aparrel, regardless of the weather conditions. He will

take them off when he is ready, and no sooner we have learned!

Pic #7: Ayden's first time at Chick-fila playland. He loved climbing up into

the tunnels, but once he got there, I heard an echoed "Momma?" I thought

I was going to have to go up and get him, but luckily he

figured out how to climb back down!

Pic #8- Just a precious little boy in a precious little hat :)

Ayden and Tanner

Christy and Tanner came up today for a lunch and playdate. Believe it or not, we haven't gotten together like this since November! The boys had sooo much fun, they ran around, squealed, and played non-stop the whole time they were here. Tanner even taught Ayden a new trick-how to turn the lights on and off :) They are finally at an age where their 4 month age difference doesn't make a big difference. We had a great time and can't wait to visit their house (and pool) next time!

Playing nicely together

Blue-eyed Tanner just turned TWO!

Ayden had so much fun!

Riding the horse and train together

Getting caught jumping on the bed!

Silly boy!

Gunner update!

Gunner has been quite the good little puppy his first week in his new home! He has had only a couple of accidents, and both on the tile at the back door on his way out. Of course we take him outside every 2 hours or more and he stays in his crate unless we are watching him. He is soooo sweet and playful and has a very healthy appetite! He is up to 13 pounds...I guess we can expect him to gain about 87 more!

Happy Mother's Day!

Here's wishing a memorable and joyous Mother's Day to all you fabulous mothers who read my blog (including my own mom!) I can't say enough how grateful, blessed, overjoyed, and in awe I am to be Ayden's mother. Motherhood is everything I hoped and dreamed it would be and more! The smallest things--such as Ayden saying a new word for the first time or how he sometimes wraps his arms around my neck and squeezes so tightly for seemingly no reason at all--absolutely overwhelm my heart with happiness each and everyday. I can say without doubt that my own Mother's love and selflessness throughout the years plays a huge role in my ability to be a good mother. I know I'm not perfect (and who among us is?), but I can say without hesitation that I am a good mother. The mother most perfectly meant for Ayden. All you mom's out there take a moment today to say that about yourself- you deserve it!

Here are a few quotes about motherhood that I found very enlightening and so true:

“You don't really understand human nature unless you know why a child on a merry-go-round will wave at his parents every time around - and why his parents will always wave back.” - William D. Tammeus

“Making the decision to have a child - It's momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”- Elizabeth Stone

“A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.” - Tenneva Jordan

“There is no way to be a perfect mother, and a million ways to be a good one” - Jill Churchill

And of course, my all-time favorite quote:

"Before you were conceived I wanted you. Before you were born I loved you. Before you were here for an hour I would die for you. This is the miracle of life."- Maureen Hawkins

Riding the Cub with Daddy!

Chris took Ayden on his first ride on the lawnmower this afternoon! He LOVED it! (Don't worry, Grandma, the blades were off!)

Early Mother's Day gift!

Today Ayden gave me my very first Mother's Day gift from him! (compliments of Mother's Day Out) :) I got a precious poem with his handprints and a potted flower, how sweet!! This special gift also came with Ayden's first negative report card. After every day at mom's day out, Ayden comes home with a report card. They always say things like "So happy!, Such a good helper!, Plays so nice!" Well today, his report card said he was "not himself, tearful, and aggressive with friends" YIKES. They also said he coughed all day, which he has been doing for several days now, a dry, non-productive cough. He has not been sleeping well because of this, hence the crankiness! So anyway, I have diagnosed him with allergies and started him on children's Claritin, hopefully this will get him back to his normal self, which is rotten enough as it is!! :)

Ayden and Gunner play outside!

This afternoon we took advantage of our first non-rainy day in awhile to play outside! Gunner had a blast chasing Ayden, and vice versa--they absolutely LOVE each other! There is just nothing cuter than a boy and his dog, who's AKC registered name is "Ayden's Gunner Boy" :)

Meet Gunner!

It's a Boy!

Yes, that's right, we have a new member in the family! I know it's a surprise, but actually we have been thinking about it for awhile and today the opportunity presented itself! We are now the proud owners of a beautiful 8 week old male yellow lab! We decided to get a another dog for several reasons:
1. We wanted to get a puppy to grow up with Ayden and have heard that labs are great family dogs.
2. To take some of the pressure off poor 8 year old Andy. He is just not up to playing with a toddler all day!
3. We have always been a "2 dog" kind of family and finally felt ready to get another dog since losing Jack last August.
4. (And possibly the biggest factor at play today) To temporarily fulfill my increasingly strong urge to have another baby. (This is why we got Jack, our 2nd Jack Russell Terrier, and it actually worked!) We are hoping to add another baby to the family in 1-2 years, but in the meantime I have this cuddly puppy to raise, and I am sure the combination of a new lab puppy and a toddler will keep my mind off babies for awhile!!

Ayden is about 50% in love with him and 50% jealous of the attention the new puppy gets from his mommy. Andy doesn't seem to care at this point!

We are still undecided on name, so for now, meet Puppy! Wish us luck training this little guy!