Lady Ellice

We pulled into the McDonald's parking lot to return a red box.. "Mommy, I think we should go into the Old McDonalds, buy me a pink drink, and when I am done let me play on the playground." Being in a hurry, I said "I will think about it while I return the redbox." I get out of the car return the red box and get back in. "mommy, did you think about it? did you think about how wonderful it is for me to play on the playground." Me: "for ten minutes" Laurana: "okay, ten minutes..after I get my drink mommy." we go in get a drink, and while we are standing in line she starts dancing hten announces to everyone waiting to get thier food. "I get ten minutes (holding up correct number of fingers).. not five minuites (five fingers)." I guess she wanted to make sure I didn't forget the deal. Of course she did all of this while wearing a pink polkadot dress with a poofy skirt, cause she had insisted that she was a prince...

Cause this Princess has her own sense of style So my daughter is more like me than I realized.  Tonight she didn't want to go to bed so she "had to go potty" I found her there twenty minutes later (I got distracted by her brother who was crying and has been sick) sitting on the potty reading a book.  I said "Whatcha doing".  "Shhhh mommy, go away I am reading..I can read here I don't have to go to bed." Wow, I remember a time in school when I would get up and go to the "potty" to read cause it was past my bed time and well they can't say you cant go to the potty. :) It has been a funny kind of week.  Wed. was my 34th birthday.  I came to the realization that some how in everything that has been going on in my life, that i don't have a great opinion of my own self worth.  I feel as if I don't meet expectations, that I am not good enough.  Brad was very wonderful to sit with me while I cried about this, only to...

So for Brad's 40th Birthday we had a surprise party.  I am pretty sure he knew about it ahead of time, but he played along because he loved me.  We had a great group of friends here (Eric and Phyllis Fuchs, Mike and Sonya McDonald, Nana and Papa, Kenneth and Tiffany Banks, Brittany, David, Adeline,and Bella Mauck, Jordan and Sean O'Doughnah(yeah i can't spell), Andi Moore, Mike Gabbard,).  If he knew he acted well surprised.  There was strawberry shortcake, and some other great foods.  We watched an 11 minute movie of brad's life (way fun, wish the sound worked better when projecting to the TV).  then everyone broke up and played games.  It was the kind of party Brad loves.  Not just sitting around talking to each other, but with a plan, and activities. I am so Proud of my husband and his 40 years.  He is smart, talented, and the love of my life.  I think he is a wonderful father.  He plays with the kids even though...

4th of July Fireworks I love my family.  I guess I have not been a very good Blogger this year.   Let me see if I can get a little more on-line. Today is Friday before Brad's birthday.  I am trying to have a surprise party for him tonight.  I am not very good at this.  I feel like I am completely not ready.  But I figure it will most likely come together at the last minute. In Brad news.  He is still at the school in Winchester he is still a teaching assistnat.  He still wants to be a stay at home dad and writer.  Hopefully in the next few years we will be a ble to get there.   Jareth and mommy at the 4th of july shindig In Laurana news: she is now 3, procotious.  She talks up a storm, is cute as a button, but a little whiney.  Her best freind is Bella Mauck. She loves to dance, and sing.  And she loves Disney Jr. In Jareth News: he is 1 year old now.  He is working on walking.  He stands really we...

Not a great week for me. Alot of mean words that were flying around the room got directed my way. both at work and out of work. Not from Brad. :) people who are upset and mad at other people and I just happen to be in the way. SO while they did hurt my feelings, and make me cry, when I took the time to think about it I realized that I was just collatoral damage. My goal this week is to keep my head down, spend time with my family and friends and enjoy my life. the kids are great. LAurana is a joy every day. In the picture she put paper towels on her and Jareth's heads and said "we match mommy, do you want one" I told her no but took the picture. Brad has been super helpful this weekend. and My firends have been great. this coming week we have PT 3 days, Teacher's meeting on Tuesday, PASS meeting on WEd, an Acdemic team scrimmage on Thrusday. WE will be home by 6:00 each day but since we leave at 6:00 am that makes for a long day. Also trying to be good ...

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!! welcome 2012. My plan, try to remember to blog more and post more pictures and videos. we shall see. Wonderful new years eve, went to bed, daddy woke us both up for bubble grape juice, tinkerbell tea party, watching Dick Clark's rocking new years, and dancing. Earlier in the day Laurana dressed up as tinkerbell, hair and all. Jareth who is teething and not been in a great mood slept through the whole thing. oo

Okay so I haven't posted in a while. Ellice: Life for me has been pretty hectic. My job working with students with emotional behavior disorder has been very busy. Never a boring day. Pray for me every day. We also got a new principal at the beginning of October. That has not been easy. there are some improvements but change is never easy. On Dec. 16th I had surgery to replace my ACL (that's in the knee). This was a worker's Comp surgery that I couldn't ahve last year when I got injured due to the fact that I was pregnant with my beautiful (handsome as daddy just informed me) boy Jareth. I still can't walk yet and it is very hard to do anything. I can't lift jareth. Laurana and I have been home together for 24/7 for the last week and to say we are alittle tired of each other might be an understatement. AS for the year: I feel like it has been a good year, I have a job that I love most days, two children I love all the time and a husband...

So things here have been good. I feaked out a little about getting my house clean for a party last weekend and my parent's this weekend; eventually i realized that I work full time, have two children, and alot of other commitments to try and keep my job and two sick kids this week.. and well I did my best and went from there. My parent's visit was great( more pictures to follow) they came by friday night night and met jareth. Laurana gave Oma a hug, but was still a little leary. Argyle had gone golfing so there were less people there. which was nice. then they went to dinner with Evan. Saturday morning mom and I spent a great time to gether we hit khol's, Starbucks, and meijers. then I ran to walmart for those two or three things that meijers doesn't have. then home for pizza with the family. Laurana loved seeing oma and opa. then to bella's birthday party. Laurana loves the play ground now, she is not terrified of the slides and such like she was about tw...

Today is the tenth anniversary of 911. I remmber where I was. I was teaching at Clark Co. Chrstian school. It was my first year teaching. My kids left to specials and I was grading papers. we had filled hte head masters office with black balloons for his 40th birthday and thought it was a great day. Then he came to me to get the one TV in the school, someone had called and said something happened. we plugged it in and they were showing the penegon. I said "that's not the world trade center that looks like DC" and a title flew up to say that the plan had crashed there. then we watched in horror and the second plane flew into the other tower. the kids (high schoolers) and I watched it the rest of hte day. it was a hard lesson for kids who had thought themselves safe and thier country above that terror. Today at church we sang patriotic songs, honored our first responders and had a picnic. It was fun, Laurana didn't even cry when I dropped her off. Came home and I went t...

Looking back through older posts, I jsut realized that Jareth is sleeping just like laurana was at this time. in fact he is sleeping a little longer in the night and has been since school started. God has really taken care of us each and every month. Money is always tight, but some how we always have food, formula and diapers. I have a wonderful husband who takes great care of me and the kids, does dishes and never makes me take out the trash. Laurana is cuter than a bump on a pickle, and talks like a champ, and Jareth is a good natured baby. I also realized that I use to put down what we did all week and I liked going back and reading that so I shall attempt to do so again. Starting with last week. Monday: I had a confereces/PD all day. It was intersting learned some new things and did some data stuff. Ate lunch at chedders, and enjoed being with other PASS coaches. then home and to Bible study. Love my girls. as always prayers all around. home to brad, and panicing about the pay chec...

So looking back I realized that when Laurana was this age she too use to wake up in the middle of the night, not at a feeding time with nothing wrong wtih her. I would let her cry for 5 minutes or so and she would drift back to sleep. she was always rested and happy in the morning when i did get her up to feed. this went on for a few days and then she stopped waking in the middle of the night and slept from 9:00 at night til 6:00 am. Jareth however I have been going in and giving him a pacifier and trying to settle him every time he wakes up becasue I am afriad he is going to wake his sister. I think it might be hindering him. he is getting use to me coming in when he cries and is not sleeping well at night, despite the fact that he is not hungry, clean and swaddled. I think I might have to just let him cry it out a little and see if it helps. Laurana is a pretty hardy sleeper now I think she will be fine.

things here at fort Gullett are going well. we can make ends meet although barely so that is good . the kids are both healthy and lively. Laurana is unfortunatly going through that really rough cry dramatically over every little thing phase, but we are working on it. Jareth has started cooing, and smiling and laughing real big when you talk to him. He is in a very happy mood so long as he is not hungry. I do think he is going through a growth spurt. He had been eating on 4 hr schedule and to day every 3-3.5 he has started crying for food and taking 4-6 oz so he must be growing again. work is going great, I love my job and I love my kids. I found out that I am going to have the ACL replacemnt surgry from workers comp in Dec. so as to try and limit the number of day I have to be out. Laurana is coming home from daycare and telling us about her day... "I colored...I played with Teegan, I went down the pink slide... I went down the pink slide again, I ate food, I went down...

SO the week before school started I got rehired to the position I was in last year. I will be teaching children with severe behavior disorders. It is lots of fun, never boring, and a challenge that I love. you have to love these kids or get a different job and I love these kids.. most days. :) Laurana and jareth started a new daycare. the one laurana was at last year didn't have room for jareth so we had ot move them both. they are now at HArvest Daycare in richmond. so far we are very pleased. It cost us alot more to send two and 4 days a week but we are pleased and daddy and mommy can both work for now. Jareth has really grown he was 11 lbs 10 oz at his 2 month check up today. he is bright, eats well, sleeps well (though not all night yet), and smiled at me for the first time to day. I love my little boy. Laurana is growing as well. she was 33lbs when we went into day to get her medicine for her ear infection. she was sad casue she wants to go...

JAreth So far he is doing great. he continues to grow, and is working on getting on a schedule. He still doesn't sleep through the night but that is okay. He feeds at 12:00 then is up around 4:00-6:00 ( I say around but he is up for two hours no matter what i do wide awake.) then he sleeps til 8:30.. that is when his day starts. He still has red hair, and his eyes are still that grey color. WE have noticed that he eats way better than laurana did but she slept way bettr than he does. Also she drooled when she ate, he spits up alot and some times at a distance of about 4-5 inches. Laurana She loves her baby brother. She wants to "get him" out of bed for mommy, and often we have to find nice but safe ways for her to help. Ironically even after she "pats" his head harder than mommy likes he looks for her if she walks away and cries if she leaves while playing with him. She is growing more vocal everyday. Her latest thing is she loves to have tea parties. She loves ...

hates when people make me feel inept. thanks to the dr. I feel bad about things I know were going well. Jareth is eating like laurana never did and then the dr and now I have added a bottkle and he is not eating as well. well to can play that game. I have taken most f the bottles back away and he is eating better. I also am not going back to see the ped on tuesday, I am goiubg to wait until friday to give him tome to gain a little weight and to be get adjusted. so poop on them, giving me doubt. stinking drs they just want extra co=pays anyway.

So we went in yesterday to get Jareth's weight and do his 2 week check up. He weighted 7.3 which is not up to his 7.11 birthweight. We went in prepared that they might tell us to supplement his breastfeeding with the occasonal bottle (like we had to do with Laurana) however he also has taken to breast feeding way better than Laurana ever did. He is latching on nursing for 20 minutes a side and Ican feel the difference before and after he nurses. it feels like the breast is beng emptied. so then teh dr. walked in. " there must be a disconnect" she looked at me like I was crazy when I said he was nursing, told me that he must not really be nursing right. Told us to go see a lactation consultant, to start giving him formula cause "you might not really be producing how much milk you think" asked me if I had been drinking water and eating (like I was starving myself) then said I needed to rest and asked if I was getting any. Brad said we were both pretty tired and s...

Daddy's in my life. are wonderful I am married to a man who is an excellent father. he plays with laurana makes sure she is as safe as well. he is proud of his son, and teaches her every chance he gets. My own father was a strong hard worker who loved me and although he use to eat all the cheese thought only of keeping me safe and helping me grow remember "it is not that he doesn't trust me it is that he doesn't trust every other man out here." I remeber my grandfather's with joy. I still have a penny bracelet from Papa and know some of my best songs from Grandpa.