Week in Review: Trying to Beat the Heat

We have had a fun week. Since Monday was a holiday, David had the day off, and that always makes the week go by faster. It's been SO HOT here, so that's made getting out of the house a little more draining, but it hasn't slowed us down so far! :)

Sunday: We got ready and went to church and Sunday School. We came home and ate roast sandwiches for lunch, and I baked some cookies for a fellowship time we were having after church that night. The kids and I then took naps. I had to get up earlier than usual because we were going to church early so that I could help set up for a reception we were having after church to honor our graduates. David watched the kids at church while I helped set up tables and put out punch bowls and flowers. We had a prayer service that night, and a missionary spoke. After church, we acknowledged all of the graduates and then had a little reception for them. The missionary who spoke during church that evening was spending the night with us, so David left with him to show him where we lived. I stayed and helped clean up after the reception, and then the kids and I went home. We talked to the missionary for a little while (Aubrey talked his ear OFF. Haha), and then I put both kids to bed while David kept visiting. After I got both kids down, I came back downstairs and talked to David and the missionary some more. We had never met him before that night, but he was really nice, and we enjoyed having him. We went to bed pretty early that night.

Monday: This was Memorial Day, so David had the day off. He got up with the kids, and I slept in. When I got up, I took a shower and got dressed, and then we just hung out at home. The missionary was going to a cookout at my parents' house with us that afternoon before leaving town, so he hung out at our house all morning, too. He did run a few errands. After a while, Jude and I went to Target, and David and Aubrey stayed home. When we got home, I fed Jude some lunch, and then we loaded up and went to my parents' house. They were having a lot of people over, and they cooked pulled pork and ribs. It was all really good, and the kids had a BLAST. Several of their little friends were there, and they played outside all day. I think Aubrey had just hurt herself on something and was getting some comfort from Daddy.
The adults sat around talking and watching the kids. By the time we left to go home, the kids were FILTHY and exhausted. We bathed both of them and put them straight to bed. I did my Bible Study homework that evening got got on the internet for a while before going to bed.

Tuesday: I was hoping that Aubrey would sleep later after missing her nap and playing so hard the day before, but she didn't. I got myself and the kids ready, and we went to church for Bible Study. At first, Rebekkah and I were the only ones there, and it looked like no one else was coming, but others eventually trickled in :) We ended up having a good discussion. After Bible Study, the kids and I went to the mall to get some shoes for Aubrey. They were both really good, and we ate lunch at the food court Chick Fil A after we got the shoes. When we got home, I fed Jude lunch and put both kids in bed for their naps. Jude took a little while to go to sleep, but he finally did. While they slept, I wasted time on the computer. I managed to get a few things done like cleaning up toys, but there wasn't a lot that needed to be done since we had just cleaned the house before we had our guest. That's the best part about having company :) When David got home, we talked and visited for a while, and then Rebekkah picked me up, and we went to Book Club. We met at a restaurant and ate dinner, and then we had our book discussion. We had read Water for Elephants and we also saw the movie together, so we discussed both. We all enjoyed the book and thought it was much better than the movie. We had a good discussion, and after it was over, Rebekkah and I went to Borders to get coffee and look at books. I talked to David for a little while when I got home, and then we went to bed.

Wednesday: We were up bright and early, as usual. We went ahead and started getting ready because we were meeting Sarah Denley and kids for lunch, and I wanted to be on time for once. Jude went down for a nap while I got ready, so that was convenient. I told Aubrey to pose for a picture before we left, and this is what I got. She isn't into smiling on demand, but she really does smile all the time, I promise. Haha!We met SD and her kids at McAlisters, and we had a good, but rather short, lunch. The kids just got a little restless and decided it wasn't a good day for a long chat ;) Aubrey and Jude and I went to Target to get a few things after lunch, and by the time we got home, it was naptime, and I was about to have a HEAT STROKE. I can't get over how sweltering it is already. After I got both kids down for their naps, I laid on the couch for a while and cooled off. Ha! When the kids woke up, I did some laundry and then David got home. We got everyone ready and loaded up in the car to go to church. This was our last Wednesday night to have church before we break for the summer. We ate dinner and stayed for a while, and then we came home. We got the kids to bed, and then I picked up Rebekkah and we went to the gym. When I got home, it was bedtime!

Thursday: We didn't have any big plans for the day other than going to the grocery store. We had a lazy morning, and then Jude went down for a nap. I took a shower and got ready while he slept, and I made a grocery list. I got Aubrey dressed, and then we left when Jude woke up. We went to Hobby Lobby first. I was looking for stuff for Jude's birthday party, but I didn't find anything. This is a cell phone picture, so excuse the quality.

We went to Kroger next. Aubrey had to go potty as soon as we got there, and holding Jude and trying to help Aubrey on and off the potty without touching anything was kind of tricky ;) We did our grocery shopping next, and the kids loved riding in the race car buggy together. Those things are a PAIN to steer, but they keep the kids happy. (Another cell pic.)

When we got home, I got everyone fed, and then it was naptime. Aubrey and Jude slept while I finished putting all of the groceries away and then prepped dinner. I straightened up the house while they slept, too. Look at that hair trying to curl! :)

When David got home, he took them outside while I worked on dinner. He then grilled some chicken while I cooked inside. We ate dinner together, and then cleaned up the kitchen. Then, we all loaded up and went to get a snow cone. Yum! It was Aubrey's first, and she insisted that it was pink ice cream. Haha! We came back home after our snow cones and played until bedtime. When both kids were asleep, I changed into workout clothes, and Rebekkah and I went to the gym again. David and I talked for a while when I got home and then went to sleep.

Friday: We had a good, uneventful morning. I bathed Jude and then put him down for a nap. I took a shower, and then put Aubrey in the bathtub while I put on my makeup. I ended up having to wake Jude up so that we could go to lunch. We met Rebekkah and Carver at a new place that neither of us had tried before, and it was REALLY good but pretty nice. It was a lot fancier than the places we usually go for lunch with the kids, but they did pretty well. We had fun and then just came home after lunch.
Aubrey got a balloon at the restaurant, and she LOVES balloons. She insisted on hugging it while I was taking her picture.

Right before naptime was when "The Strawberry Incident" took place :( And in case you're wondering, Aubrey DID eat the strawberries when she woke up! At first, she wasn't too keen on the idea of eating them, but then I had the idea to drizzle a little honey on them, and she gobbled them right up! Whew! I have never been so happy to see some strawberries disappear. Ha! Anyway, the kids both took good naps. Jude took an especially long nap, which was nice, because his afternoon naps aren't usually that long. Jude was still sleeping when David got home, but he woke up shortly afterwards. We got ready and met my family for dinner at Five Guys. It was good, and Aubrey was so excited to be eating with "The Uncles." My brothers wanted dessert after dinner, so we walked over to a yogurt place and we ate dessert. After we finished our yogurt, we let Aubrey play in the little splash pad at the yogurt place. We didn't have her bathing suit, so her clothes got drenched, but she had a blast!After lots of playing, we changed Aubrey into some dry clothes, and David and the kids and I went to Target. When we got home, we put the kids in bed, and then David and I watched the movie Twelve Monkeys. I had never seen it before, and it was WEIRD. It was pretty good, though. It was super late by the time it went off, and we just went to bed.

Saturday: We had a very lazy morning. We all just laid in our bed talking and playing for a long time. Then I put Jude down for a nap, and David, and Aubrey, and I laid around some more ;) Then I took a shower and got ready. I was going to meet my mom and grandmother for lunch and some shopping, but there was a miscommunication about the time, and it ended up not working out for me to go because of when Jude would need to eat again (I didn't have a bottle for him). So, I just ate lunch at home, and then we put the kids down for their afternoon naps. David and I worked on some projects around the house that we've been wanting to do, and I worked on this post. When the kids woke up, we got them dressed and David took a shower and got dressed. We all went to dinner at Olive Garden. There was a wait, so while we waited for our table, I walked over to Payless. I found a pair of shoes I wanted, but they didn't have my size. Bummer! When I got back to the restaurant, we had a table, and we ate and then went to Lowes and Kroger. We put the kids to bed when we got home, and then David watched TV and I got online, and we ended up staying up too late.

Misc.

-I think it is safe to say that summer has officially arrived! The high here yesterday was 98, and I heard that it might get to 100 today. It's miserable already. Makes me a little glad that I'm not hugely pregnant like I have been the past two out of three summers! ;)

-Jude is really getting more and more hair, and I'm so excited because I think it's going to be curly! When we are outside and he gets sweaty, he has the sweetest little curls in the back. Precious! I really hope that his hair is curly, because I think it would be hard to figure out what to do with straight boy hair. I'm not a big fan of bowl cuts, and I don't want stringy bangs in his face. I know lots of little boys with straight hair that are super cute, so I know it can be done; I just think their hair requires a little more effort. So, if Jude had curly hair, that would be GREAT with me! :) Funny how I have analyzed all this, right?

-Speaking of Jude, the nursing problem has gotten better. I have been pumping a lot and giving him bottles if he starts biting when I'm trying to feed him. There are certain feeding where I just kind of know he is going to bite and that I will need to give him a bottle. The important thing to me is that he gets breast milk for a year, so whether I'm nursing him or pumping and giving him bottles is beside the point to me. Although, it is WAY more convenient to just nurse him! He had actually gotten better and wasn't biting much at all, but he's started back recently. He was up a few times last night, too, so I think he might be getting another tooth. Anyway, I think we should be able to keep nursing until he is able to have cow's milk. Now that it's June, that means that Jude turns one NEXT MONTH. That blows my mind.

-We haven't been doing any major projects around the house lately, but there are so many little things that I want to take pictures of and post about. I like to document what our house looks like often, because it's always changing, and it's fun for me to look back :) I'm thinking it's about time to tackle a project that I've been wanting to do since the first time I saw this house: THE BUNNY BATHROOM! I think I want to wall paper it, which is very intimidating, because I have NO CLUE how to wall paper.

-The other day after Bible Study, I wanted to run into the mall to get some shoes for Aubrey, but I didn't have the double stroller with me. I did have the umbrella stroller, so I decided to be adventurous and put Jude in the stroller and made Aubrey hold my hand. I was slightly terrified that Aubrey was going to bolt at any minute, but she did GREAT! It probably helped that I told her that we could go to Chick Fil A for lunch if she held my hand and obeyed while we were looking for shoes. Haha! Anyway, I felt proud of myself for getting two kids in the mall, trying shoes on Aubrey, buying shoes, going to the Food Court and buying Chick Fil A, and then eating the Chick Fil A all with only one stroller. And I made it back to the car with both kids intact! Haha ;)

-Jude's afternoon naps are so spotty. It's kind of frustrating. I'm currently listening to him fuss/cry, and I've already been into his room twice. Have I mentioned how excited I'll be when he just takes one nap a day? Yes, that will be nice.

-I really want to join a pool so that we will have something fun to do this summer in the heat. I'm trying to decide if I'm brave enough to attempt the pool with the two kids by myself. Decisions, decisions! I know any outdoor activity that doesn't involve water is pretty much out of the question until probably around November.

Jude finally went to sleep, so I should probably do something productive while both kids are napping! :)

Week in Review: Scary Weather!

I did an awful job of staying on top of this post all week. Meaning, I didn't stay on top of it at all. I wanted to just skip and not bother with it, and even though I'm pretty sure no one would notice/care, it would bug me, so I decided to write it anyway. The only problem is that I have a hard time remember back all the way to the beginning of last week. Haha! But I did the best I could, so here ya go:

Sunday: We went to church and Sunday School, and then came home and ate roast sandwiches for lunch. That afternoon was naps all around! :) (Except for David -- I don't think he napped.) We went back to church that evening, and it was good. David and the kids and I went to Jason's Deli and ate dinner after church. It was late and past the kids' bedtimes when we got home, so we put them straight to bed. The rest of the night, I got on the internet and watched TV while David did some stuff around the house.

Monday: We got up and got ready to go to lunch with Sarah Denley and Ann Peyton. SD's due date was the next day, so we decided we better have lunch early in the week to be sure we got one more lunch in before baby Graves made an appearance! :) We ate at Mellow Mushroom and had fun! The girls got a little restless, but that's pretty much par for the course these days ;) When we got home, it was naptime! Aubrey wouldn't sleep, and that made it tough for Jude to sleep, too. He finally did sleep, but I gave up on a nap for Aubrey. That evening, I cooked dinner and the kids and I ate and then watched Dancing with the Stars. When David got home, we talked for a minute and then put the kids to bed. Rebekkah and I then went to the gym. It was late when I got home, and so we went to bed.

Tuesday: We got ready for Bible Study when we got up and then headed to church. Bible Study was good, and I picked the kids up after it was over and then Rebekkah and I went to a consignment store. I found an outfit for Aubrey. I decided to be really brave and go to another store when we left that one. It was really pushing it because it was lunchtime and naptime, but I found a pair of shoes for Aubrey, so it was worth it :) We went home after that and ate lunch. I then put the kids down for a nap and did some things around the house. I got a text that afternoon letting me know that Sarah Denley was in labor! I was so excited for her and glad that we had gotten our lunch in the day before! Haha. When David got home, he took the kids outside and I fixed dinner for them. I had Bunco that night, and my mom came over to ride with me. We then stopped by and picked Rebekkah up and headed to Bunco. It was so fun even though I didn't win anything (as usual). When I got home, the kids were both asleep (Jude had taken a bottle -- amazing!), and David told me all about their night before we went to bed.

Wednesday: I really wanted to go see SD in the hospital and meet baby Graves, and Rebekkah was so sweet and offered to keep Aubrey and Jude for me so that I could go that morning. (I don't like taking kids to a hospital to meet a new baby.) So, we got ready and I took Aubrey and Jude over to her house. Aubrey was SO excited about going to Carver's house :) I then went to see Sarah Denley. Graves is SO precious, and it was so fun to hold a newborn and hear all of the birth details! I went and picked the kids up after that. As soon as I walked in the door of Rebekkah's house, Aubrey said, "Hey Mommy, I didn't obey Mrs. Bekkah." Ummm.... Haha! Rebekkah said she was pretty good ;) We chatted for a minute and then went home for lunch. I put the kids down for their naps and then got ready to go to church. We were going early because Rebekkah and I were meeting a bride who is getting married at our church to go over details. (Rebekkah is the wedding coordinator at our church, and I'm her assistant.) David met me at church and watched the kids. After the meeting, it was still a little early for church to start, so we all went onto the playground and played. David had a meeting at church during dinner, so I got the kids fed and then put them in the nursery. After David's meeting was over, Rebekkah and I left from church to go to the gym. David and I talked and did a few things around the house before going to bed that night.

Thursday: We were planning on having another playdate in the backyard pool with Rebekkah and Carver, but it was cool and overcast when we got up. Rebekkah and I decided to just go to lunch instead, so I took a shower and put makeup on. About that time, the sun decided to come out and it got nice and warm. Oh well :) Jude took a good morning nap while I was getting ready for lunch.
Aubrey was not happy about wearing this outfit, but she posed for me in spite of that ;)

I got him up and we left to go to Beagle Bagel. We had a fun lunch, and it worked out fine that we changed our plans at the last minute. After lunch, Aubrey, Jude, and I went to Marshalls and TJMaxx. Once again, I was pushing it on that afternoon nap ;) Aubrey wouldn't nap when we got home. Boo! Jude slept in his seat for a little while, but that was it. So we loaded up and went to run errands. We went to Belk and the other TJMaxx. Then we went to Target. I had told Aubrey that if she was good, we could go to Chick Fil A for dinner, so we did! We ate and saw the Chick Fil A cow and then went home. David was there when we got home, and we were happy to see him! The kids played on the floor and David and I talked that night. Then we put the kids to bed, and Rebekkah and I went to the gym. It was off to bed when I got home!

Friday: This was a scary day. We were expecting bad weather, and I woke up nervous and worried about that. Thankfully, Jude had time to take a morning nap before it really got bad, but then the sirens were going off, and it just got awful quick. I pretty much sat in front of the TV watching the weather all day. Rebekkah had said I could come to her house if it got bad, so every time the siren went off, I started getting us ready to potentially jump in the car and go over there (she lives about 2 minutes from me, and I HATE being home alone in bad weather). Thankfully, the terrible weather never came really close to us, but there was a tornado on the ground for a LONG time in a town near us. It was so scary! I am SO ready for tornado season to end! Every time I would think the bad weather was over, the siren would go off again. Ughh! I finally felt safe putting the kids down for naps that afternoon much later than they usually go down. I guess all the excitement wore them out, because they both slept. I straightened up the house while they napped. When David got home, we told him about our scary day and heard about his. We then met my mom and brother at a Mexican restaurant for dinner. My dad and other brothers were at a lock-in at our church with the boys from my dad's ministry. I think that was pretty wild! Haha :) After we ate dinner, we went over to my parents' house so that David could look at my mom's computer. She got a new laptop and needed him to help her set something up. We hung out over there for a while and then came home and put the kids to bed before going to bed, too.

Saturday: David had to go to his office for a little while that morning, and he took Aubrey with him. Jude and I hung out at home, and then I put him in his bed for his nap. I took a shower and got ready while he slept. David ended up being tied up longer than he expected, so Jude and I couldn't go anywhere because David had my car with both carseats. So my mom and grandmother brought lunch over to my house and hung out until David and Aubrey got home. We visited with them for a while before going shopping. Jude went shopping with the girls, and he was sweet. After shopping for a while, we went back home, and Aubrey was still napping. We finally had to wake her up, because it was getting pretty late for her to be sleeping. We got ready and went to get some dinner and then went to Kroger. We put the kids to bed, and then I got on the internet and read before going to bed that night.

This week, I'm praying for no bad weather!! Also, I'm hoping to spend some time outside. We are going to the beach NEXT WEEK and I need some sun! :)

Faith like a Child

We had some severe weather here on Monday. I know that's shocking [not!]. It's a storm a week around these parts ;-) You can only imagine how much I'm enjoying that. Anyway, the storms hit while David was still at work this time, and that's pretty much terrible in my book. The only thing I hate more than tornadoes/bad weather is being home by myself [with the kids] in tornadoes/bad weather. Ughhh. I really tried to remain calm and composed and act like an adult so as not to terrify Aubrey. I think I did a pretty good job if I do say so myself :-) Aubrey and I had some pretty cute conversations during the bad weather, and I wanted to "write them down."

At one point, the kids and I were sitting on the couch watching "the weather." I kept referring to it as the weather, so Aubrey thought the bad weather was on the TV only. I was on the phone with my mom, and I said, "Ahhhh, I just hate this weather!!" Aubrey went and turned the TV off, and I told her to turn it back on so that I would know what was going on. To which she replied, "But Mommy, you don't like it!" I thought it was so sweet that she was trying to turn it off because she heard me say that I didn't like it.

A little while later, I was explaining to Aubrey that some bad weather might come to our house and that it might thunder and rain and that we might even have to go sit in the bathroom. I told her not to be afraid though, because Jude and I would be in the bathroom with her and that God would be with us and that He was stronger than the bad weather. She then asked me where God was. I said, "God is everywhere. He is right here with us right now. Isn't that great?!" She looked around and pointed to the TV and said, "Is he right there in that weather?" I told her that He was there, too. I repeated that God is everywhere. She seemed to accept that and said, "Ok, Mommy." She was watching the TV real closely after that, and a minute later she asked me again where God was. I thought she was just repeating the same question I had already answered, so I went into the whole "God is everywhere even though we don't see Him" speech again, but Aubrey cut in and said excitedly, "OH! There's God!" I looked at the TV and realized that, when she asked me that question, they were showing some weather maps, and when she cut in, they had gone back to showing the meteorologist. It dawned on me then that Aubrey thought the METEOROLOGIST ON TV WAS GOD! Oh my goodness. That made me laugh in spite of my terror over the weather. I quickly said, "Oh no! That's not God, Aubrey. His name is David, and he is just a man." Aubrey replied, "Oh, his name is David like you call Daddy David." Haha! Well, yes. But she was right back to asking where God was if that man wasn't God. I told her that God was right there with us. She kept saying that she couldn't see Him. I tried to explain that He doesn't have a body and we can't see Him, but He is with us, and He can hear us. She finally just gave up and said, "I don't know where He is, Mommy." It was so cute, and I said a little prayer right there that God would work in her little heart and give her understanding and faith.

We did end up having to go into the bathroom for a little while, and I suggested that we say a prayer and ask God to protect us. I started praying, and Aubrey cut in and prayed too, which I love. After the prayer was over, Aubrey said, "God is going to protect us, but when my Daddy gets home He won't need to protect us anymore." Ha! I have no clue where she comes up with these things. I told her that Daddy was strong but that God was even STRONGER! :-)

Thankfully, we made it through the whole experience in one piece. And I think Aubrey is now thoroughly confused about where God is :-) I love having conversations like these with her, even though I feel like my answers to her questions are completely inadequate. Hopefully little seeds are being planted in her heart and those seeds will take root and grow one day soon :-)

Random Ramblings

-Yesterday was a fun day! Ashley was in town for a quick trip, and, since Sarah Denley is currently on bedrest, we met at her house for lunch. It was so fun and especially exciting, because Ashley announced that they got a referral that morning! That means they have a sweet baby boy waiting for them in Korea! We were so thrilled for them, and it was exciting to hear the news in person and "hot off the press." Fun fact: their baby boy and Jude are almost exactly the same age! :-) Anyway, we were joking yesterday about how every time Ashley comes to town, there is "baby news." Last time she was here, SD announced that she was pregnant with baby Graves, and this time Ashley had the baby news. I told David that the pressure is on for me to have some kind of baby announcement the next time Ashley comes. He said she better not be coming for a while then. Ha! I'm sure I'll wear him down eventually ;-) Haha!

-Today has been rainy and overcast, which is actually my favorite kind of weather. Except when there are tornado watches. Which there are tonight. Ughh. I hate spring in the South, because I can't even enjoy a good rainy day without worrying about dang tornadoes!

-Jude has been sleeping pretty good in his bed. He's been waking up at 3:20 the past few nights, though. It's a little tricky to get him back to sleep. That's still an improvement over how he was sleeping in our room. He was waking up several times a night then, and I was feeding him at least once. I haven't been feeding him until the early morning lately. Naps are still hit or miss, but they are MUCH more frequent than they were a month ago, so I'm trying to remain positive. I've learned that if Jude doesn't get his morning nap, I might as well hang it up for the day. That's tough, because if we do anything (lunch, errands, Bible Study, park), he will almost definitely not get a morning nap. Today we went to Bible Study, and he doesn't really nap in the nursery. He got a little catnap in his seat because we ran to Kroger afterward. I've pretty much spent the entire rest of the afternoon trying to get him to nap. I've tried letting him cry, rocking him, walking around with him, nursing him, and just letting him sit in my lap. He just finally went to sleep a few minutes ago, and I bet he'll be up in 20 minutes. It's frustrating, because he is SO exhausted he can barely hold his eyes open, but he just won't give it up when he gets overtired. Poor guy. Anyway, the sleep situation is definitely not perfect around here, but it's much improved.

-Aubrey makes me laugh so much these days. She is so vocal, and she's LOUD. We were in Target the other day, and a mother and a little girl walked by us. The little girl was wearing a cute little outfit and soccer cleats. Aubrey asked me VERY loudly why "that girl" was wearing boy shoes? Haha! The mom kind of gave me a dirty look :-/ Aubrey isn't the greatest at sharing. I think this is partly her age, and partly the fact that she doesn't really have to share her stuff with anyone at home (yet!). We've really been working with her on sharing, and anytime she does give a toy to Jude or something like that, we make a big deal out of it and tell her how great it is to share. So now, if another child has a toy that she wants, she thinks she can just go grab it and yell, "You need to SHARE!" at the child. Oh boy. So now, we're working on teaching her that SHE needs to share and not worry about other kids. This parenting stuff can be hard! ;-)

-I went to the gym yesterday for the first time in about 2 weeks. It wasn't fun. And I had to go by myself because Rebekkah is out of town, so that made it even worse. I need to crack down though, because we're going to the beach in a couple of months!! I'm SO excited about it! We're going with the Arants and taking all the kids, so that should be an adventure! I can't wait to see how the kids like the beach. Anyway, my goal is to be at least presentable in a bathing suit by the time we go. It's funny the way your goals change after having kids. I don't even expect to look good; I just don't want to look gross. Haha :)

-I guess I should go try to do at least one productive thing today before Jude wakes up. Happy Tuesday!

PS - So much for doing something productive. Jude was awake before I could even publish this post. Oh well!

Randomness

-We've all been a little under the weather here lately. We've just been passing a cold back and forth for what seems like weeks. I've never really gotten it, but yesterday I started feeling pretty lousy. I had a cough, and I just felt run down. I think the months of not getting a good night's sleep are just catching up with me. Jude has been sleeping worse ever since he was sick last weekend. I don't know what to do about that. I'm PRAYING that he will go back to only waking up once a night soon. Or, better yet, that he'll sleep though the night!! Anyway, David took the kids to church last night, and I stayed home and took a nap. Then we went to bed at 10:00, and Jude actually had a decent night. However, Aubrey woke up at 6:40 coughing :( I am feeling much better today after some rest, though. I'm ready for this cold/sinus bug to go away and stay away!

-It's been SO warm here lately. Yesterday it was in the 80's. It's great and beautiful, but I feel like I can't even really enjoy it because I know that warm springy weather in February is going to = tornadoes at some point. Sure enough, there is a chance for tornadoes tonight. I'm just trying not to worry too much and praying that nothing comes of it. The bad weather is supposed to be here late tonight/early morning (last I heard), and tornadoes anytime are bad, but I can't even imagine what it would be like to have to get the kids out of bed in the middle of the night to go take shelter in the bathroom. That would just be a nightmare. Of course, we'll do what we need to do. And no, I still don't have my storm shelter :(

-I think the time has arrived to potty train Aubrey. I can't believe it's even time to think about that. I've really been in no hurry, but lately she has started saying she needs to "tee tee" and she will go into the bathroom and take her diaper off and sit on her little potty. I guess those are signs of readiness. Ha! She has actually gone to the bathroom several times today with no accidents, so I guess we're officially potty training. I feel so clueless about how I'm supposed to go about it. For example, some people highly recommend pull ups and others say they are pointless and a waste of money. I guess we'll just have some trial and error.

-I've been making some small changes around the house. Nothing drastic! I'm on the hunt for a different coffee table and curtains for the living room/kitchen. I've brought SO many curtains home to try, but nothing has really worked so far. I'm trying to do this economically, but we have LOTS of huge windows, so that's proving to be a challenge. I would love to have them made, but that's just going to be ridiculous (as far as price). We'll see.

-Speaking of the house, several times I've started to take pictures of Jude's room to post on here, but I always just feel like his room is missing something. It just doesn't feel "finished" to me. I told David the other day that I kind of have regret that we didn't do the stripes in his room like I originally planned. I wanted to do a chair rail and paint very subtle, neutral stripes below it, but we just ran out of time before Jude was born. Now I'm thinking I might still want to do something like that. David thinks it's pointless since Jude is already 7 months old, and if our next baby is a girl, we would have to repaint the room anyway. (Sidenote: our next baby is not in the near future ;) But I think that if we painted stripes or something like that, we could leave them, because the walls are neutral. They would go with our girl bedding, or we could even use Jude's bedding for a girl. It's pretty gender neutral. We'll see how that all pans out ;-)

-Aaaad... I think that's enough randomness for one day. I'm about to go attempt naptime. It hasn't been going well this week (for either child), so wish me luck!

Week in Review: Another Winter Week

This week wasn't the the best as far as sleep goes. Jude had a little cold, so he didn't nap much at all unless I was holding him or laying down with him. He also slept in the bed with David and me a good bit because he would wake up congested in the night. He was a little more fussy than he usually is (he is normally the happiest baby), but overall, it was a good week, and I definitely can't complain!

Sunday: We got up and got ready for church. I was SO tired that morning and just couldn't get going. Jude had been up several times in the night (he was congested), and I eventually just put him in the bed with us so that we could sleep. Because of that, I just felt like a zombie all morning. In spite of the sleepiness, church was good. I helped teach the 2 year old Sunday School class again, and that was enjoyable. There sure are lots of cat fights in that room, though. For some reason, the kids always want to play with the same toy. Haha! After church, we went over to my parents' house for lunch to celebrate my brother Joel's 13th birthday. That was fun, and we had a great lunch!We ate cake and watched Joel open presents after lunch. By the time that was over, it was late afternoon, and Aubrey (and Mommy! :) was fading fast. We headed home so that she could get a short nap at least. I took a nap, too, but it was less than an hour and Jude ended up in the bed with me. I had to get up to get ready for church, but I did feel more rested even though my nap was short. David had to go to church early, so I had to get both the kids ready for church by myself. Whew, that turned out to be stressful! I had to wake Aubrey up, and she was NOT happy. She just screamed and cried the whole time I was getting her dressed, and Jude was screaming too. I about lost it, but I somehow managed to hold it together. Aubrey cried in the car but perked up after a while. She was happy to see David when we got to church but was heartbroken when he dropped her off in the nursery :( We went to church, and it was good. We picked the kids up from the nursery and had to wait around for everyone to leave because David was deacon of the week and had to lock up and turn the lights out. When we were finally able to leave, we went to Newks and grabbed dinner. When we got home, we watched the end of the Super Bowl. Aubrey loved watching football! We got both kids to bed and stayed up a while longer before going to bed.

Monday: After such a short nap the day before, Aubrey slept in until 9. That was so nice! Jude and I were up before that, but it was a good start to the week. Aubrey ended up being in a really sweet, happy mood all morning. We got ready and met Sarah Denley and Ann Peyton for lunch at Corner Bakery. When Aubrey saw them, she just kind of went nuts. She was SO hyper and wild. She was just laughing really loudly and throwing her crayons and just being crazy. I don't know what got into her, but it made it a little difficult to have a conversation with SD. It was still fun, in spite of my wired child ;) When we finished with lunch, we went home. When I pulled into the garage, I looked for my phone and realized I didn't have it. I started praying that someone had turned it in at the restaurant. We didn't even get out of the car at home -- we just turned right around and went back. I hated to unload the kids to run in to ask about my phone (it was freezing outside!), but I didn't have another choice. Thank God, they had my phone! We were able to go home and STAY there after that! Aubrey would NOT go to sleep for her nap. That's the downside to her sleeping late. Jude napped for 15 minutes. Ughh. I was determined that Aubrey was going to at least stay in her bed for a while, even if she didn't want to sleep. While she played in her bed, I cooked some chili for dinner. Jude was pretty fussy, sadly. Aubrey never did go to sleep, so I went and got her after I had gotten a few things done. After a little while, we packed up and headed to church. We got to visit with David for a little while, and then karate started and I fed the kids dinner. My mom and the kids and I made a quick run to Target. When we got back to church, David drove my car home and I drove his. (This way he is able to talk to Aubrey and spend a little time with her on the car ride home.) When we got home, David put Aubrey to bed, and I fed Jude and put him down. He ended up not going down easily like he has been lately, so I figured he must not be feeling well. I went and got him and held him for a while until he fell asleep, and I was able to transfer him to his bed easily. Rebekkah and I were planning on going to the gym that night, but she had a meeting that ended up running late, so we decided we would just go the next day. That meant that David and I were able to eat dinner together and spend a little time talking after the kids were asleep, which was nice.

Tuesday: We had Bible Study that morning, so I got up early to get ready before the kids were up. I was doing great on time, and then all of a sudden, time was just GONE, and I went into frantic mode trying to get out the door. Hate that. That always happens, no matter what time I get up. We did make it; we were just a little later than I had planned ;) I enjoyed Bible Study, as usual, and Aubrey and Jude had fun in the nursery. I fed Jude when I picked them up, and then Rebekkah and I went to lunch with our kiddos. We tried a new Mexican place, and it was good, but I will probably order something different next time. The guacamole was delish, though! After lunch, we headed home, and I prayed for a successful naptime. Haha! Aubrey did take a nap -- Thank the Lord! Jude took a nap, too... in my arms. He fell asleep, and I knew he would wake up when I laid him down. Since he has had a little cold and hasn't been sleeping great at night, I just wanted him to get some sleep, so I held him :) I watched TV while he slept in my arms. When both of the kids woke up, we played until David got home. I cooked dinner while David played with the kids, and then we ate together. It's always nice to sit down to dinner together!

Family meals are even more fun now that Aubrey likes to sit at the "big table" with us!

After dinner, Aubrey played, David cleaned up the kitchen, I fed Jude solids... just a normal night at the Howie house! :) After we got both kids to bed (Jude went down without a peep, thankfully!), I went and picked Rebekkah up, and we went to the gym. We made it to week 3 of the Couch to 5K program, which is as far as we got last time. Ha! Here's hoping we get further this time! :) I have to say: running on a treadmill is SO much easier than running outside!! (At least Rebekkah and I think so!) When I got home, I talked to David a little bit and got ready for bed.

Wednesday: Aubrey woke up at 7:45, which was disappointing, because she had been up until 10 talking in her bed the night before, so I really thought she would sleep later. Oh well! She was in a great mood, though, so that was a plus. We had an very uneventful morning. I had made a "chore list" for myself the night before, but I didn't get hardly any of it done because Jude was SO fussy. This is very unusual for him, and his nose was runny, so he must have just felt crummy. I spent most of the morning holding him and watching Aubrey play. I tried to put Jude in his bed upstairs for the first time to nap, but he wasn't having it. So no morning nap for Jude! I fixed lunch for Aubrey after the nap fail. I made her a "muffin tin lunch" for the first time, and she really seemed to like it:See the little hand trying to sneak some while I was snapping a picture??

I have no idea why she would eat more just because it was served in a muffin tin, but she did, so we will definitely be repeating that little trick! :-) After lunch, I gave Aubrey a bath, and Jude and I just sat in the bathroom with her while she played. Then it was naptime! I put Aubrey down, and she talked for FOREVER. I didn't think she was going to go to sleep. I fed Jude, and he fell asleep, so I put him in bed so I could go upstairs and tell Aubrey it was time to stop playing and go to sleep. When I got back downstairs, Jude was awake and crying. Ughh. He wouldn't go back to sleep, and since Aubrey had finally gone to sleep, I decided to lay down with Jude to get him to nap. He really, really need a nap since he hadn't had one all day! He went to sleep, and so did I! Not 45 minutes later, though, Aubrey woke up! Oh my goodness. I was not thrilled. I went to her room, and she was just whining and fussy, so I told her she had to go back to sleep. Jude was napping and I didn't want her to wake him up. She wasn't happy with this piece of information, but after some protesting, she did go back to sleep. I knew a 45 minute nap wouldn't cut it. Jude stayed asleep in my bed even after I got up, and he took the best nap he has had in a WHILE. I straightened up the house while they both napped and then David was home. It had started to snow outside, so I didn't know if we would still have church that night. The snow wasn't sticking, so we did have church, and I got ready while David held Jude. Aubrey woke up grumpy, but she snapped out of it after a while. I got her dressed, and we went to church. We had spaghetti for dinner and just visited after dinner. Rebekkah and I canceled our gym plans again because the roads were supposed to be getting icy. When we got home from church, it was bedtime for the kids and the parents went to bed not too much later!

Thursday: David didn't go in to work that morning since we had gotten a light dusting of snow the night before and the roads were potentially icy first thing in the morning before the temperature rose. That meant I got to sleep in! Yay! Jude and I got up around 9, and David and Aubrey were playing. We had an uneventful morning. David watched the kids while I took a shower and got dressed.

You turn your back for half a second and this is what happens... David caught Aubrey trying to cut up some grapes for herself. No toddlers are harmed during the taking of this picture ;-) Now that we know she will climb onto a chair, we've had to be more careful about things we leave on the counter that we THOUGHT were "out of reach."

Rebekkah dropped by to go through some of Carver's clothes that she loaned us for Jude to see if there was anything she wanted to consign for a sale that's coming up. Aubrey loved seeing Carver for a few minutes and cried when they left :( So sad! She was getting tired, so David put her down for a nap. I put some chicken in the crockpot for dinner and then fed Jude and he fell asleep. I decided to just sit and read a book and let him sleep in my arms. Sometimes letting him get a good nap is more important than getting things done around the house! David took a shower and got ready to go to work that afternoon. I was sad to see him go, but it had been nice having him home that morning. He was going straight to church for karate after work and then going to dinner after karate, so he wasn't going to be home again until late. Since it was so cold and David wasn't coming home after karate, I had decided that the kids and I would just stay home that night. When Aubrey woke up from her nap, we got ready to go to Target. Jude was down to about one diaper, so this was a very necessary trip! We had fun getting out of the house for a little while and just browsing around. We went home in time to eat the chicken I had cooked for dinner. Jude fell asleep in the car on the way home, which gave me a chance to get Aubrey's dinner ready. After we ate, we watched American Idol while I fed Jude solids. Then I gave both children a bath. By the time we finished that, it was bedtime! Bedtime never goes as smoothly when there aren't two parents at home. Jude cried the whole time I was putting Aubrey to bed. After I got her in bed, it was his turn! He went down fairly easily, and I cleaned up the house after they were both asleep. Then I sat down and got on the internet until David got home. It was late, so we went to bed shortly after he got home.

Friday: I got up before the kids because we were meeting Rebekkah and Carver for breakfast. I was able to get ready before the kids woke up. We still ended up being late, though, because I was trying to get Jude to nurse before we left. He's entered the stage where he is FAR too interested in everything going on around him to eat. We are going to have to start eating in a dark, uninteresting room (but what are we going to do with big sis?). Ha! He never really ate much, but we finally just had to go. We met at Chick Fil A, and I tried a spicy chicken biscuit for the first time. It was good! I fed Jude in the bathroom after we ate, and he was hungry enough by then to eat without looking around everywhere. After breakfast, we all went to two fabric stores. I want a new ottoman in my living room, and we really want to go ahead and get our curtains for our living room/kitchen. I got lots of samples that might work. By the time we finished shopping, it was getting late and approaching naptime! When we got home, Aubrey ate a light lunch (since she had eaten a big, late breakfast) and then went down for her nap. I held Jude for a while and then put him down. He cried and just wasn't giving it up. I went and picked him up, and he fell asleep immediately. I waited for a while to make sure he was really asleep and put him in his bed. He was awake within 5 minutes. Ahhh! I picked him up again, and he was just SO tired that I laid down in my bed with him for about 3 minutes until he was asleep and then got up. I was just desperate for him to sleep. He ended up taking a good nap in my bed. I don't know what I'm going to do about his nap situation. While Aubrey and Jude both slept, I went through some of their old clothes to find some things to consign. I also did a load of laundry. That was all I got accomplished before they were up, unfortunately. David was a little late getting home from work, and when he did, we got ready to go to dinner at the Arant's house. They have invited my mom over too, because my dad and brothers were spending the night hunting somewhere. We has so much fun over at their house eating and talking!

Future best friends! :) (We hope!)

These two are already best friends! They have the most fun together!

After dinner, we sat around talking, and my mom, Rebekkah, and I got to laughing SO HARD about something. I seriously couldn't breathe I was laughing so hard. The guys were laughing a little bit at first, but then I think they just thought we were off our rockers. Haha! It was super fun. We got home pretty late and put the kids straight to bed.

Saturday: Aubrey and Jude both woke up at 7:30, which was disappointing since they had been up late the night before. David got up with Aubrey, and I tried to get Jude to go back to sleep with me, but he wouldn't. I took him to play with David and Aubrey and then went back to sleep for an hour. Ha! When I got up, I got ready to go to the gym. Jude would not nurse for some reason, so I had to pump, so I was running late. Rebekkah came and picked me up, and we had a good workout. Second week in a row to go on a Saturday -- how committed are we?? ;-) When I got back home, David had taken the kids to run some errands, so I had the house to myself. That NEVER happens, and it was kind of weird. It was pretty nice to be able to take a shower and get ready in a quiet house. I got a few things done around the house and then just waited for David and the kids to get home. When they did, I fed Jude and we went shopping. We went to Chick Fil A for lunch with my mom and grandmother and then went to Belk and Pier 1. I found a rug that I ended up buying. I went home after that and unloaded the rug. Aubrey was just waking up from a nap when I got home, and she was not in a happy mood. David and I let her fuss for a while to see if she was still tired, but she didn't ever go back to sleep. When we brought her downstairs, she just wasn't happy. She finally perked up after a while. She's had a bit of a runny nose, so I'm PRAYING she isn't getting sick again!! We got ready after a while and went to Bed Bath and Beyond and JC Penny's. We ate dinner at Mellow Mushroom and then went to Kroger. We put the kids to bed when we got home, and I prepped our lunch for the next day and went to bed, too.

Going out with a bang!

So, 2010 couldn't just end quietly and peacefully around here. No, it wanted to go out with a bang. Or, in this case, a lot of thunder, lightening, rain, and a tornado. We had New Year's Eve plans with the Arants. We were going to grab dinner and then come back to our house to play games and hang out. The day had been very warm and windy. I knew it was supposed to be cold the next day, so I was a little worried about the weather all day. A warm balmy day followed immediately by a cold day almost always = Tornadoes! And maybe I've mentioned it before (just once or twice - ha!) that I'm absolutely terrified of bad weather. So, that evening as we were getting ready to meet David and Rebekkah for dinner, the tornado siren went off. I tried to stay pretty calm at first. Just because the siren is going off doesn't necessarily mean a tornado is coming toward you.

When we turned the weather on, though, my calm went out the window pretty quickly. The local station that we tuned into was having some technical difficulties. David said it seemed like everyone who knew what they were doing must have been off for the holiday, and the station was being run by interns that night. Ha! I don't know if the weather people were just stressed out because the wrong maps were being put up and their email kept popping up on the screen while they were trying to talk about the weather, but they were pretty much frantic. We should have just switched to another channel, but we didn't. At one point, one of the meteorologists was pretty much yelling, "This is a tornado EMERGENCY! Get your kids and your pets and go to your safe place immediately!!" To make matters worse, she also said that there was a large tornado on the ground, and it was headed right toward our neighborhood. Yes, she specifically mentioned our neighborhood. That wasn't exactly what I was hoping to hear when we turned on the TV.

The worst part was that from the time we first found out that the bad weather was coming our way to the time it actually got here was about 30 minutes. It was AWFUL just waiting, knowing it was coming. I didn't handle it well. I was freaking out. Poor Aubrey had no clue what was going on. I was really trying to hold it together for her, but I didn't do a very good job. She looked at David and asked, "Is her crying?" Ha! David did a great job of talking to Aubrey and explaining what was going on a little bit. She couldn't really understand why we were sitting in the bathroom surrounded by pillows, but she was SO good throughout the whole ordeal. She just sat there calmly and didn't seem to mind that her mother was acting like a crazy person and her baby brother was SCREAMING inconsolably.

Yes, Jude was screaming. That definitely didn't help my stress level. Poor baby was just so tired and hot. We were cramped into our little half bath (because it's the only interior room we have) and it was so hot and stuffy in there. He was pretty much laying in my lap so that I could protect him as much as possible, if need be. We couldn't hear the TV from the bathroom, so we really didn't know what was going on (probably a good thing). My parents were watching TV from their house and let us know when it was safe to come out.

Needless to say, we ended up being fine. Thank the LORD for His protection. We didn't even have any damage. Apparently the worst of the storm ended up missing us. As we were sitting in the bathroom waiting for it to hit, I told David that if we lived through that, I really REALLY wanted a storm shelter ASAP. He said he would look into it. I'm holding him to it. (Don't forget, Honey. Ha!) Spring is usually when we get the most tornadoes, so I think I'm going to need my hole in the ground by then. David is worried I'm going to sleep in the thing every night if there is a cloud in the sky. Nah.

I asked David after the fact if he was scared. He said he was a little nervous, but he wasn't really scared because there was absolutely nothing he could do about it. He said that if a tornado really came right to our house, it could pick the whole house up, including the slab. So, to him, there is no point in being scared because it's completely out of our hands. Well, the fact that it could pick our whole house up is exactly why I am terrified! It's funny that what caused one of us to be less scared is the very thing that terrified the other. Thankfully, I know that God is sovereign over all things, and that does bring me a measure of calm in situations like that. (I should trust more, though, I know!)

Just for fun, here is our little "storm shelter." (Yes, we still have those awful bunnies on the wall.)

Jude and I were under the mattress and David and Aubrey were right beside us with cushions ready to put over their heads. I had a major crick in my neck, but I wasn't about to come out of there until it was over!

To add to the drama, when we finally got ready to go meet the Arants for dinner, our street was FLOODED! We live in a cud-de-sac, and there was literally several feet of water in the street. We couldn't get our car out of the driveway without getting water in the car. So we had to wait even longer for it to stop raining and the water to go down. Thankfully, it went down quickly, and we did eventually get there. Obviously, we were pretty late after all that. We were honestly just happy to be alive and well, though!