25 Years

What will it be like to be married to Lincoln for 25 years? Hmmm...

My Great Aunt and Uncle renewed their wedding vows today for their 25th wedding anniversary. We made the trip to STL to watch the special ceremony after church and eat a "reception" style lunch with many of their friends and family. It was very encouraging to see a couple (well up in their years because they were both married before) share such a public love with each other. It was so awesome to see them WANT to reaffirm their love for each other in front of their children, grandchildren, brothers and sisters, nieces and nephews, friends, and most importantly, God. So many couples these days (well, those who actually stay married) are just going through the motions. They just stay together because for their kids, or because that's what's comfortable. Not because they are in love with each other. Really Sad.

Although I'm not sure Lincoln and I will ever renew our vows, I hope that 21 years from now a younger generation can look at us and feel the same way I felt looking at Mr. and Mrs. Bill Albright today.

Congratulations!

Words to live by...

I got a box of Dove Chocolates for my birthday from one of my girlfriends. Not only is Dove my favorite chocolate, the extra perk of the "words of wisdom" on the inside of each wrapper just makes them all the better. When I worked in an office I had a few of the wrappers actually posted on the wall above my computer. Silly, maybe to keep a candy wrapper, but I really think that whoever comes up with these 1-6 word phrases are genius. Hunter has greatly enjoyed helping me finish this particular box of chocolates and he is also thrilled when he unwraps one and waits for me to "read the words".

I hope that next time you eat a piece of Dove chocolate you'll take time to stop and ponder the message...maybe it's meant just for you!

Proud of Kara

I am very proud of my sister.  She has followed her dreams and has begun her career as a stylist.  She is very talented!  On her first day of work she already had 6 appointments!  Not only is she the best friend, sister, and aunt, she's also the best hair dresser ever!!  :0)  

Idiot...

Does anyone else hate it when they look like an idiot?  Especially when it's someone else's fault?  I realized today that this is one of my faults.  I get so mad when I do something that makes me look dumb just to find out later that I wasn't informed of plans or information ahead of time.  

It's totally silly...I'm sure I'm the only one who thinks I look like an idiot, but I think it comes from my overly obsessivness with planning ahead of time.  I HATE to run late, I hate to change plans, I hate to not know what's going on next week.  Whew.  I'm complicated.

What a Week...

This has been a wild and crazy week in the Redburn household!

Monday: Fairly Normal - Lincoln worked, Vanesa came and helped me babysit...but there were 3 Bad Things:
1. My new cell phone came in (it's pink and pretty!), but as Nesa put it together for me she realized that the sim card was set for Lincoln's number, not mine. After calling Customer Service I was told that I would have to go to the nearest At&t store to resolve the issue. Of course this means an extra trip to Rolla when we have been really trying to save gas!
2. One of my normally very happy mom's dropped their baby off that morning and were NOT happy - I was afraid she was upset with me over something.
3. I misunderstood one parent and gave their child the wrong dosage of medicine! This I'm ashamed to admit, but it's the truth.

Happily - all 3 things got resolved that day!
1. I bit the bullet and went to Rolla and got the sim card switched out no problem - now I have a working phone again! (And I got to pick up Applebees for dinner while I was there!)
2. After the parent was again very short and not happy when she picked her baby up, I emailed her to make sure everything was okay and she wasn't upset with me at all, there were just some other things going on in her life. She actually thanked me for my friendship - not at all what I had feared!
3. After a rushed phone call to the Dr. I found out the medicine was just for heart burn and spit up, nothing that could hurt the child at all! Praise God!

Tuesday: My Mom's 50th Birthday and Kara's 1st Day of her new career! I got a phone call from my mom at 6:50 a.m. telling me that my sister was getting ready to be rushed into emergency surgery for her appendix! Of course all of the kids were coming, but I could NOT miss seeing my sister before she went in for surgery, so I jumped out of bed, got dressed and made some phone calls on my way to Rolla. Vanesa came over to help Lincoln with the kids! (She really is a lifesaver, and I am SO SAD she's back at college already!) Anyway, I got there just in time to see Kara, give her a hug, listen to the surgeon explain what was about to happen, and hold her hand as they gave her the anesthesia.
Mom told me that my Dad (whom I've not talked to face to face in almost 6 years) was coming to the hospital as well. Great. Happy Birthday to Mom huh?! First her daughter goes in for emergency surgery, and then she gets to spend hours sitting in the hospital with her ex-husband?! On a positive note - the visit with him went very well. I feel like God has been preparing my heart for about 6 months to let go of the anger toward him...and now we were thrown together like this. Maybe, just maybe we can have some sort of a civil relationship. I know that it'll never be like it was before, but maybe we can have something, slowly, who knows...only God!
On top of all of this, Lincoln's best friend from college, Caleb came down for a visit on Tuesday. I was sad I didn't get to visit with him very much, but after I got home the boys were able to go golfing together and I prepared a popcorn shrimp, mashed potato, and fruit salad dinner for us all to sit down together and enjoy.

Wednesday: Lincoln had his second ortho appointment. We had to make our first major payment, luckily God had blessed us with some extra cash this past month, so it was there to pay without putting it on the credit card! When he got back from that he took the kids up to the hospital to see Kara. She got to go home Wednesday evening. We had bible study at Renauds and the kids were at our house. It was their first night with the new babysitters. They all seemed to do okay.

Thursday: This was a fairly calm day. It was my sister-in-law, and Cody's birthday. I actually got to talk to Cody for a few minutes, which was great because conversation has been scarce since she's had the twins. My whole family went to Pizza Hut that night, then I went with Kara to the Queen Pageant Practice for her to give a presentation on Stage Make-Up.

Friday: TGIF! Today was pay day, yippy! More money went back toward the ortho payments, which I just am happy that we are able to pay for without putting it on the credit card! We also figured the bills again and realized that we are going to be able to pay all the bills with Lincoln's paychecks and the babysitting money can just be for gas, groceries, etc. Yippy! Hunter with with Grammie for some special time and then Mom, Kara, Gma, Lincoln, the kids, and I all went to the Diner for dinner. Came home and went to bed EARLY! :0)

After quite the eventful week I'm glad that it's the weekend. It's just me and my kids at home, Hunter is playing the Wii, Graysen's playing with blocks, and I'm blogging. What a great morning!

My Quirks Part IV: Discipline

Yikes!  Such a touchy subject!  I'm going to keep this one short.  Let me just say that personally I am a fan of distraction, re-direction, and time-out.  Don't get me wrong.  Hunter has had some swats on the bottom in his 4 years.  But never before the age of 2.5, and only with us asking him to stop the behavior, then getting a warning, then the swat.  It's never our first reaction... because it would be out of anger that I swatted him if I did it the first time the bad behavior occurred.  We all know that's not the right way to "spank" your children.  

I don't know really what to say on this subject except that I totally agree that every child is different, and something different will work with each child.  This is also true within the same child.  What worked with Hunter 6 months ago is no longer working.  

I also believe that the punishment should fit the crime (which is why I'm against spanking for the most part).  So...if Hunter pushes Graysen down...you're more likely to see me walk by and push him down than to give him a spanking.  If he colors on the wall with crayon...he has to help clean it off.  If he spits his food on the floor, he cleans it up.  Of course there are situations like talking back that we do the time - out routine.  Actually, currently it's "Go to your room and pick up until we tell you to come out" (which is 4 minutes from the time that he actually starts picking up).  He HATES to pick up...and didn't mind sitting in time-out anymore, so this is the new punishment.  

I have to say that since I've started babysitting I've been encouraged to see that my child is not the only one who misbehaves.  Do any other moms begin to feel that their child is the only one who doesn't listen?!

Under Dog

I was just pushing Hunter on the swing outside and he asked me to run under him. It brought back so many memories of my Dad giving me Under Dog's when I was growing up. I can just hear him saying "you want an Under Dog?" "Yes!" I would scream and away I would go, so high in the sky I felt like I was flying!!! I hope that Hunter will look back on his childhood with the fondness that I do mine!

My Quirks Part III: Nursing

Alright - so there was a flurry of thoughts coming to me in between these "parenting" entries, but I'm back...sorry I'm so hard to follow sometimes!

I am a huge fan of nursing. I mean breastfeeding. Whatever you want to call it - I wish everyone would do it. This is something that no one can recreate. You know if they haven't been able to figure that out...it's some GOOD STUFF! :0) It's free (minus maybe a pump purchase), and soooo much healthier for your baby! Have you read what formula is really made out of?! Yikes and Yuck!

I understand there are circumstances in which nursing is not an option. I'm not bashing those people for not nursing. I had to quit nursing my son at 9.5 months because I had a miscarriage the medicine they gave me in the ER completely dried it up...overnight. Who I am questioning are those who give up because it hurts. (Trust me, I know it hurts, I literally sat and cried silet tears for 6 straight weeks with Hunter). Those who don't even try because they're afraid of the effects on their body (and image)....please - time to give up the selfishness and become selfless - that's what parenting is all about!!!

I wish people would quit thinking that it's a "hippy" thing to do! Holy cow...there are a lot more "hippy" things to do than feed your baby what God intended for them to eat!

I favorite book on nursing is called "So That's What They're For!" It's a easy read packed with information, tips, and laughter! I didn't read it until after I was already nursing Hunter, but I would recommend it to anyone who is pregnant!

I think that sticking with nursing takes a great deal of support. If you don't have the support of your husband, mother, best friends, etc. it will be very, very hard. There were countless times when I would call my mom and she would sit on one side of me and Lincoln on the other while I was feeding Hunter crying. Bless their hearts, for that commitment and support I owe them forever!!!

Mostly - I push you all to just give it a try, it's scientifically proven to be the best food for your baby and God created you to feed them (obviously). Those should be reason enough!

"Should I Die Before I Wake, I Pray to God My Soul to Take"

If I were to go on to Heaven before my kids are grown, here are some things that I want them to know about me:

1. I love to travel. I enjoy every facet of it, from planning, to getting there, to exploring once I'm there.

2. I love to learn about other cultures...specifically their views on marriage, men and women's roles, religion, parenting tactics, and the arts.

3. I love to lay with your Dad. Anywhere - feeling his arms wrapped around me brings me more comfort and security in this crazy world than anything else. Please find this before you marry...

4. I Love to read. It's a great escape and a way to expand your mind and heart.

5. I love listening to song lyrics. Although it has to have a good beat, it must also say something of worth for me to really love the song.

6. I love you kids more than anything on earth. I want you find to what makes you happy - whether it be people, arts, sports, religion, whatever it may be, immerse yourself in it.

7. I want you to find the peace on Earth through Jesus Christ that I have found. Nothing else in life will be more important, more impacting than this one single thing.

8. I want you to be proud of yourselves and understand your self-worth. If you find you're not proud of what you've done with your life - that's okay, don't beat yourself up over it...just change it. God is the ultimate forgiver!

9. My family (Mom, Dad, and Kara) helped to mold me into who I am. I had the best upbringing - we all four loved each other very much. I feel like your dad and I are creating the same type of family - one that is dependent on each other, who will support each other through thick and thin. I pray you will also create this with your family.

10. Even though I did not have a relationship with my Dad for much of my adult life, I loved him very much. I never stopped loving him and being grateful for the raising that he did for the first 19 years of my life. I chose not to have a relationship with him because I wanted the best for you kids. I wanted to only surround you with positive influences, people who you could look to to show you the right way to go in this world. When you get older there are going to be enough negative influences, I didn't want to start your life with them. I believe that had he stayed the same man of God that he was at one point he would've made the BEST grandpa in the world! I know he would've been very involved in your lives and interacted with you every day. I can still, sitting here, picture what it would be like for him to be wrestling with Hunter and playing blocks with Graysen. I know he was looking forward to grandchildren and loved and prayed for you before you were even thought of. I hope you understand that I pray every night that our relationship can be reconciled and you all can have that great individual in your lives someday. I worry that this is something that you will hold against me someday, and I hope that you understand I was only doing what I thought was best for you.

Where Would You Be?

Last night I was afforded the opportunity to imagine who I would be if I were not me. Odd as that sounds, I was able to go to Rolla by myself for almost an hour and a half before meeting up with my girlfriends. I took my notebook with me and was given some self reflection time. This is what I wrote:

Tonight I listened to Martina McBride's song "Where Would You Be?" and it got me to thinking - where would I be, where would I go, who would I love if I were without Lincoln? Now granted, our life is totally different now with kids than if I had never married. But...this is who I think I would be if I wasn't married:

I think I would be the girl who moved away from family to try to find herself. I would go to a city where there were lots of options in the art world. I think I would go to Panara (or a similar coffee shop) and sit outside with my headphones on listening to a wide variety of music (rap all the way to classical) with her laptop or pen and paper working on choreography or exploring her thoughts, while drinking an IC Moca. I can see myself attending live music shows and art exhibits on a regular basis. I might work at a Dance Studio or in the public school system. I wonder if I would've lost my self esteem when it comes to attracting men if things wouldn't have worked out with Lincoln. Maybe it's the married factor, maybe it's the extra weight from kids - either way, I can't imagine that any man other than my husband would find me attractive. Odd as it may be, I believe that if I hadn't married Lincoln I would've either married one of 2 of my best friends from HS, or never married at all. I would love my nieces or nephews when they arrive and devoted myself to them entirely.

I'm a huge fan of comfort.

The Ordinary, The Comfortable

For those of you who are married...my question is: "How do you "keep the spark"? How do you step outside of that comfort zone that is created when you marry? Lincoln and I have agreed to read one marriage enrichment book together each year. This year it's "The Four Seasons of Marriage". We are huge fans of "The Five Love Languages", which we will probably ready every year on top of our other book. We have found that our love languages have already changed in the four years that we've been married...but that's a whole other blog in itself!

We attended a marriage seminar this past year at church that gave us wonderful information, encouragement, and ideas. Our favorite is the "Light the candle". They suggested that one person light a specific candle when they are "in the mood" - the other has the option to accept, reschedule, or reject. Although we don't have a candle, we have developed our own "signal" (of which I won't share because that seems like too much info!) It has helped a lot!

What else do you do? It seems hard to me to come up with ideas because Lincoln is not good at love letters, etc. (I on the other hand obviously enjoy expressing myself in written words!)

Any ideas anyone???

Hooray For You!

I just bought a new children's book with this title by Marianne Richmond. I think it is wonderful! It rhymes, but is a book simply full of celebrating each person as their own individual. This would be an excellent book for any age. Although I bought it in hopes of boosting Hunter's self-esteem and reading rhymes to Graysen, I plan on reading this book myself on the days when I don't feel adequete. The days that I feel fat, slow, ugly, like a bad mother, wife, or friends, the days when I don't feel like I'm contributing to this world as God intended. I honestly think it will help to pick me up...overall, a great addition to any household!

My Quirks Part II: Childbirth

I believe in Natural Childbirth!

Yes, I'm one of the crazies out there who don't take any pain meds when giving birth. I'm honestly not sure where this practice began, but here are some of the things that I believe played a role in making up my mind.

One of my very best friends (since 8th grade) got pregnant our junior year of High School. This was a life changing event for me. One of the things that I did to help prepare me for the birth of her wonderful daughter was to write my research paper for my AP Comp and Lit class on child birthing options. I wanted to know what she was going to go through, and what better way than to spend months on end researching and writing a 25 page paper over it?! (Little did I know that this would in NO WAY prepare me for seeing her in labor or going through it myself years later!) During this research I read all of the pros and cons that go along with natural birth, medicated birth, epidurals, cesarean sections, water births, etc. At the time, I was totally convinced that I was going to do a water birth. I thought it was awesome, and the best option for introducing my baby into this world.

My mother and mother - in -law both gave birth to all of their children naturally. My mom has always taught me that childbirth is a temporary pain. You know it's going to end...and when it does, you have the BEST gift ever given to you here on earth.

I am a Believer. I believe that God created women's bodies with the capability to birth children. I also believe that He made them to take care of pregnancy losses. When I had my miscarriage I wouldn't let the doctors do a DNC until my body miscarried on it's own. I believe that sometimes God works miracles, and I wanted to give Him the time to work it if it was in His plans to do so that time.

My husband and I have also chosen to have private births. Just him and I in the room (with the nurses and Doctor of course). I would love to have my mother and sister experience the birth of my children with me, but I have found that there is something very emotional about meeting your child for the first time with the one and only other person that helped create it. It is an amazing bonding moment just to have your own little family.

All of that said - I encourage all of you who are pregnant or who are hoping to become that way to do the research. Find out what the medication (IV or epidural) can do to your baby, and decide...is the short lived pain (yes, even my 20 hour labor I consider short lived) worth bringing your baby into the world in the way it was intended to? I decided it was - and I'll never regret it!

**I want to end this post with a reminder that I am really using this blog as more as a journal for my children. In fact, I print each of these out and am keeping them in a binder for them. I'm hoping that when they get older they will find my thoughts and outlooks on the world interesting. That it will give them a window into who I was at this age.

My "quirks" as a mother...

As I re-read my posts in the past, I have talked about my children a lot. I realized that I have not talked much about my views on parenting, or my parenting style. I had a request to blog about my recent adventure to Rolla's first World Breastfeeding Day (I will get to that soon), and so, I thought I would start a new "daily" post, each day (for awhile) addressing a specific issue that I find important in parenting.

Please know ahead of time that I am well aware that not everyone is going to agree with me. Some may think I'm "out there"...others may think I'm judgemental. Please, I'm begging you...don't! I will make it perfectly clear when I'm talking about something that I am judging others on...most of the time I am just going to be stating how I choose to raise my children. If you choose otherwise - great! Whatever works for you and your family!!! :0)

Let's start from the beginning - pregnancy!

I know that not every pregnancy is planned...but there are options. First of all, if you are not able / do not want to take care of the baby that you are carrying...please do the responsible thing and give it up for adoption. Give the child a chance! Did you know that your babies heart is beating before you even know you're pregnant?! So yes - I'm against abortion. I'm not ashamed to say it. On the other hand, this does not mean that I do not like anyone who has ever had an abortion! (In fact, one of my very best friends in college had one when she was much younger). I know everyone makes poor choices and can repent their sin and regret the decision. Everyone can change.

My pregnancy with my son was not planned. My husband and I were not married yet. (although our wedding was in the planning stages for the following August). I was SHOCKED when I found out, much more upset by the news than Lincoln (he was thrilled, very excited to be having a child) - but after 24 hours the news had sunk in and I was excited as well. It's everything I had ever wanted, just wasn't when I had planned it. (and for those of you who know me well know...I am a PLANNER!) Lincoln and I were lucky that my family was extremely supportive of us and encouraged us all the way. I'm sad that not everyone's families can look at the fact that a baby is a baby and whether or not it's coming into the world under "the perfect" circumstances, they should be excited...what's not to be excited about when it comes to a baby?!?!

I believe in giving your child the best chance possible to develop healthy and happy.

I think that you should be taking your prenatal and folic acid (before you get pregnant if you're trying...) and should continue to take them the whole pregnancy. If your body doesn't need that much, it will dispose of it...they're never going to HURT you!

I believe that if you are trying to get pregnant you should be "religious" about praying for God's timing in this event in your life and for your future baby and your marriage. Marriage takes a hard hit when you get pregnant and have your first child. It's an adjustment that no one could possibly be prepared for. Any marriage, no matter how strong, will go through downs during this time.

I believe that you should act as if you are already pregnant (give up caffine and alcohol, etc.) if you are trying. You know there are 4-6 weeks when your baby is developing before you even know you're pregnant!

I believe that you should be eating healthy and resting as much as possible. (This means lots of fruits and veggies and no caffeine or alcohol!) No, I don't say this to get pregnant women out of housework, continuing to work outside of the home, etc. Pregnancy is hard on your body to begin with...and I think most of us know that if we're physically tired, we're normally mentally and emotionally exhausted as well. I'm a believer in the idea that your baby develops the temperament that you have while you're pregnant (this is one of the places where you might think I'm "out there"). I've seen too many kids whose mom is a laid back, chill kind of lady who are also that kind of kid...and then the kids whose mothers are high anxiety, high emotional, high activity who are exactly the same!

I believe in getting medical care from the start - and continuing for the entire pregnancy. This is not to say that I don't think Douala's, etc. aren't wonderful - and a terrific addition to your OB's care!

I believe in reading and talking to your child in the womb (also rubbing your tummy in a counter clock-wise motion - this I believe brings a positive energy to the baby). This also applies to the father / siblings / grandparents / aunts and uncles, etc. I think that if you take time to talk specifically to your child they will feel the love that you have for them earlier on, which will develop a healthier baby, mentally and physically. I think that it shows that you are willing to take time out of your schedule already for this child who will become a life-long love of your life!

I believe in reading all the information you can get your hands on...for every pregnancy! This will help you make more educated decisions about the way that you will act during your pregnancy and how you will handle your childbirth and raising your children. I was amazed at how the information changed between each of my pregnancies...so even if you've done this before...read again - this child is just as worth it as your first one was!!!


Tomorrow's subject - childbirth! :0)

4 Years Old!

I simply can not believe that my little boy is 4 years old. I'm in shock...amazement. I know everyone says "it seems like yesterday". Well, I can't say that it seems like yesterday - we've had A LOT happen in our lives in the past four years - it doesn't seem like it's been 4 whole years!!

Birthdays are very important to me. Growing up our birthdays were made into a big deal. Afterall, it's the ONE day out of the year that is truely just about YOU. It's not Christmas, which is about Christ, it's YOUR birthday! My parents always used it as a way to celebrate us, as their children, and as the person that we were that year. I loved it. There was always a big build up, a huge day, and then yes, usually a slight let down the day after. :0) But...the let down is totally worth the fun in the days before! I've also always had an obsession with celebrating on the day of. No matter what day of the week...I want to celebrate my birthday on August 26th. (I'm the same way with anniversaries, etc.) Obviously growing up it wasn't always possible to have my birthday party on that day, so - all the better, the party was the weekend before or after, and we celebrated all the days in between the two events! :0)

This was the case with Hunter's 4th birthday this year. We decided that he was still too young to have his actual birthday without a birthday party beforehand, so we chose August 2nd to have his party. We also decided that he was old enough to have a little kids party (up until this year we've had a huge BBQ and invited all of the family and friends...we're talking around 50 people each year). But this year I knew that he was ready for a smaller, more kids centered party...and I was as excited as he was! We brainstormed for months in advance, researched on the internet, and finally decided on the Power Rangers Training Camp theme. Amazingly enough, he's been obsessed with Power Rangers for a little over a year now. He became interested in them shortly before his birthday last year (although we had a dinosaur party). He told me after his 3rd birthday that next year he wanted a PR's party, but I didn't dream the obsession would last this long - well, he proved me wrong, and got what he wanted!

We knew that since it was a party just for the kids we had to keep it much smaller than in years before, so we decided to go with the kids that he plays with on a regular basis. In attendence this year was the kids out of our families, (Baylee and Ganon Ambrose, Ally and Mya Krueger, Libby Fuhring, and Hayden and Keaton Renaud) small group that he plays with every Wednesday while Mom and Dad are at bible study (Emma Cook, and Annastyn Covey), and our playgroup friends - (Ryan Spurgeon, Riley Slowensky, and Noah and Miriam King...Juliet Mattingly couldn't be there, she was with her dad this year). Even selecting these three groups of friends there were lots of kids there!

In preparation, I put on Power Rangers music in the background and set up 6 Training Stations: for those of you who are not PR savvy, you may have to look up some of the terminology I'm getting ready to give you! ;0)

1. Be Prepared: a station where they decorated their very own tracker phones (made ahead of time out of florist foam covered in tin foil). I had lots of foam stickers for them to use. I also had PR coloring pages and crayons on this table.

2. Search: They each had to find the 5 jewels of the Corona Aurora. (A big bucket filled with play sand and lots of river rocks spray painted the 5 Power Rangers Colors) Their jewels were theirs to take home with them.

3. Teamwork: Clear the rock slide! (I laid a picnic table cloth down and dumped a huge pile of legos out. Then had 4 buckets for them to sort the legos by color - red, blue, pink, and yellow...four of the PR's colors.)

4. Defeat the Bad Guys: Knock those bad guys down! (I made masks for several of Hunter's stuffed animals and set them up on a table. Then gave each child bean bags and let them knock them down!)

5. Strong: See how strong you are by throwing water balloons! (This started with the children seeing if they could hit the fence and break the water balloons, but they got bored with that and soon began to throw them at a moving target - Charlie!)

6. Brave: Walk the board over the river of alligators! (I got a 20 ft. 2x4 and put it across my mom's above ground pool. The kids walked from one side to the other - holding Lincoln's hand - with floating alligators all around them!)

After they all completed the 6 parts of the Power Rangers Training Camp they became real Power Rangers! I had made the girls pink and the boys red t-shirts with the Power Rangers logo on it and gave them each their official Power Rangers shirt and 1st place ribbon.

Later in the party I gave them each a treat bag with a few small toys in it and let them fill the rest of their bags with candy from the pinata. So...they had their "jewels", t-shirts, ribbon, tracker phone, and bags with toys and candy in it to take home. As a parent, I hate it when I take my kid to a birthday party and they have to just sit there and watch the birthday boy or girl open all of their presents and have nothing to play with themselves. It's very hard for young children to understand this, so I wanted our guests to have something special for themselves!

They all swam, played on the swing set, ate cake and ice cream (made by Kelley King), did the pinata, and had lots of fun!

Sunday and Monday were quieter days with just one present per day, but Tuesday was his actual birthday! Of course we had to have another fun filled day! I had scheduled to not have any of my babysitting kids, so we had a full family day to ourselves! Hunter slept in until around 9:15, and then we got around. The day was whatever Hunter wanted to do...so we dropped him and Graysen off with Grammie and went to exchange one of his Power Rangers (he got two of the same at his party). While we were there we got him the other one that they had, so now he has three, and also bought him his first real baseball glove! Came back and he decided he wanted to go to Chuck E. Cheese! Yippy! I love going to Chuck E. Cheese and it was Lincoln's first time! So, at 1:00 Lincoln, Hunter, and I left for STL. We got there, played 100 tokens worth, won 303 tickets, got Hunter's prizes, and came back home. We had plans to play mini golf with Grammie, Charlie, and Aunt Sissy after dinner. We went swimming in Grammie's pool and it started to thunder. Unfortunately our put put was getting rained out. Hunter decided on grilled hot dogs, french fries, and applesauce for his birthday dinner. It was pretty tasty. After dinner we had a dance party in Aunt Sissy's bedroom and then had more cake (a Spiderman decorated huge chocolate chip cookie) and ice cream.

It was a good day. It just doesn't seem possible that I have a 4 year old little boy. Luckily I still have 2 years until school!

The newest stage...

Well - Graysen is offically at the "hardest" stage to put to sleep...according to ME! ;0) Up until now she has had a bath, got rubbed down with lotion, PJ's on, nursed, and gone straight to bed. Whether she was asleep or not. For the last few months she has fussed for two minutes at most when I lay her in her bed.

That's all changed. Now she's Miss Independent!

She just realized a few days ago that she can also sit up, crawl around, and pull up in her bed! She must've thought that stuff was only for the rest of the house up until then. Now we follow the same bedtime ritual, except when I lay her down there is no more fussing for two minutes before falling asleep...it's sit up before Mom can even leave the room, and then stand hanging on the rail and scream bloody murder for as long as Mom will let me! For the most part if Lincoln goes in and just lays her back down she will cry for a few more minutes and then give it up....but...

Not tonight.

She cried for an hour (with two "laying her back down" sessions in there). Finally I just got her out of bed. I know - big "No-No". But she just wore me down. Yes, she won. She is currently standing at the recliner talking happily to Hunter who is playing Wii Football. (A new part of his nightly ritual. lol) I know she was tired because she fell asleep in the car on the way home. Of course she woke up when I got her out of the car seat, so I went ahead with the nightly ritual thinking she would just go back to sleep when it was time...nope, no such luck.

Maybe I'm weak. I don't know. I try to remind myself that there are lots of women out there who would stay awake with their babies for days if they could just have them. I know this is true because I would stay awake with Claire forever if I could just have that time with her.

So...thanks for listening (reading) to me vent for a few minutes and letting me talk myself back into sense. I have two beautiful children who are both (currently) happy and (semi) healthy. I need to not stress over what time we get to bed and rather cherish the hours I have with them while we're awake.