Prayers Appreciated

Well, with a birthday comes a pediatric well-check which is scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday) for both children.  I'll be curious to see where we are on any of the charts - but to be honest, I'm just thankful that we are on them!  They will each get 4 shots so that should be fairly interesting!

The past year has been pretty healthy for both Ian and Bonner and for that, I am so very thankful!  A teacher friend told me that she strips down when coming home from school during the winter/flu months to help stay well; we started doing that 2 years ago and I really think it helps.  I also think that it's great that my children don't suck their thumbs like I did :-)

While I certainly appreciate your prayers for the visit with the pediatrician, I would really like to ask for your prayers for Ian as he has his annual cardiology appointment on Thursday.  While I certainly do not expect any issues with the visit, I would be lying if I said it wasn't on my mind.  I am sure he will have the standard EKG and another echo; I am prayerful that God will give Ian a sense of calm so that he can stay still for both!  It might be time to schedule a sedated echo for better pictures or even a CT scan as they like to do those every few years.  We will just wait and see.  But as I prepare my heart and my mind for the visit, I give great thanks for the past 4 years of tremendous healthiness!

I will take some pictures at the visit and update with the results as soon as possible!  As usual, thanks for the prayers, the love, and the support!

July - 4th Birthday

To actually remember Ian and Bonner's 3rd birthday, I had to go here to read about it ... everything was so fresh last year and just so strange.  So this year, I wanted it to be nothing but fun and all about them!  And for those of you that know me well, when it's my birthday, it's got nothing to do with a "day" but rather a "month" so we have been celebrating alot - the leftover cupcakes for dessert tonight prove it!

The children were with Stewart on the morning of their birthday and that was really hard for me!  But they were home around lunchtime and we kicked off our time together right away!

Just what he needed ... more Toy Story toys!

She is all in to Minnie Bowtique right now and thoroughly enjoyed getting the Birthday Minnie!

I just love this picture of my little Minnie Me :-)

He might like this gift the best - the Jake & the Never Land Pirate ship, Bucky!

We went to dinner that night with my parents, my brother, his wife, and the baby.  We had fun celebrating 4 incredible years.  (And, yes, these are little miniature cupcakes, but they love them!)

They decided on a Dora and Diego birthday party with their friends.  We were back at the pool because it's so much fun and pretty easy.  I counted 29 children in the pool for our party which was crazy, but it was a blast.  Now that most of their friends can swim and they love going off the diving board, there were children everywhere!

"Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday to you!"

 "Happy Birthday, dear Bonner!

Happy Birthday to you!"

Make a wish :-)

"Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday to you!"

 "Happy Birthday, dear Ian!

Happy Birthday to you!"

Your turn to Make a Wish!

From the Mouths of my Babes

Ian-isms

• We were over at a friend's house and they had a trampoline.  Ian got on it very cautiously and then turned to me and asked, "Is this stable?"  (Uh, did he just use the word "stable" correctly?"
• Ian rolled down his window one day while we were saying our prayers.  When I asked him why, he said, "So God could hear us!"
• While eating some potato chips one day, he looked up and said, "I'm a chip-eatin' machine!"
• I made Ian a hotdog that looked like an octopus.  He immediately bit off the legs and then said, "Look, mom, now it's a jellyfish!"
• "Mom, I was talking to Buzz Likeyear and he can't come to my castle because he has a galaxy to save!"
• At Target one day, Ian told me, "I want these 2 dinosaurs for my birthday."  He looked up and said, "God, can you please give these to Santa?"
• Me: "What are y'all doing?"  Ian: "Just being quiet like a church mouse!"
• We were driving somewhere one day and we actually saw some bamboo-like foliage outside the window.  Ian asked me, "Mommy, is that bamboo?"  I replied, somewhat shocked, "Yes, how do you know about bamboo?"  Ian said, "I was watching Diego at my castle and it was about pandas.  That's how I learned it."  (Of course)
• I was wiping Ian's bottom with a wipe one day and he said, "Ooh, mommy, can you hot it up?"
• Me: "Ian, can you please go see what Bonner is doing?"  He checked on her, came back, and said, "She's smoking!"  Me: "Smoking what?"  Ian: "Smoking some chalk!" (I assume that she was using her erasers to make quite a smoking mess)
• "Dog starts with D but Baxter does not"
• Ian asked me one day, "Mommy, what's inside your body?"  I replied, "Lots of things like your heart, your tummy."  He quickly interrupted and said, "Your eyeballs, your wrists, Gods is in your heart, your tongue!"  Then Bonner said, "Ooh, mommy, I know what's in your body - your imagination and an idea!" (I was speechless by then!)
• I was trying to get Ian dressed one day and it was a shirt that had his name on it.  He said, "But, mommy everybody already knows my name!"  Bonner said, "Not the Chinese people!"  (Hmmm, no idea)
• Me: "Where did you learn that story?"  Ian: "I learned it at Bible School!" (aka church)
• While at the beach, we were at the end of the busiest boardwalk on the beach and Ian said, "Mommy, I need to tee-tee." Before he finished actually saying that, he said, "Oh, that's right, mommy, you told me I could just tee-tee in the sand." He walked exactly 3 feet and tee-teed right in front of several precious teenage girls who could not help but just laugh.
• We heard some sirens one day, and Ian said, "Maybe they are coming to get my toy of the tree!" (Again, no idea)
• When picking him up from Stewart one day, he stared at me and just took it all in.  He then said, "Mommy, I love your necklace; it's very pretty!  I love your shirt.  I love your earrings!"
• We babysat our cousin one day and Ian was sneezing.  Me: "I wonder what's making you sneeze, Ian."  Ian: "Maybe I am allergic to baby Waverly."
• Me: "I think I'm ready to get a pet puppy."  Ian: "Mom, we don't need any more pets; we already have pets."  Me: "Oh, we do, Ian?  What pets do we have?"  Ian: "We have fish, frogs, and moths!"
• Bonner: "An apple a day keeps the doctor away" to which Ian replied, "An apple juice a day keeps the nurse away!" 

Bonner-Lingo

• After drinking some lemonade one day, she sighed and said, "Now, I am refreshed!"
• "Jessie, let's lay out on the beach and relax!"
• Bonner: "Ian, can I babysit your little pony?"  Ian: "She doesn't need babysitting."  Bonner: "Okay, well, then I'll just pony-sit."
• "You are beautiful, mommy.  You are not old!"
• "After I put these shoes away, I'll put 'these ones!'"  (exactly what I say - these ones)
• "Mommy, what does step mommy mean?"  (that one stopped me in my tracks)
• "Mom, I'm going to ride my tricycle and give you some quiet time!"
• "Ian, we don't have our shoes on so our feet are necked!"
• "Mom, I'll make a swell princess!"
• Me (in front of Aunt Taylor): "Bonner, let's calm it down a notch!"  She continued being loud and said, "Aunt Tay-Tay, I can't calm it down a notch because we are playing!"
• Me: "Bonner, what do you think you want for your birthday?" Bonner: "Barbies, mommy!"  Me: "Oh, I thought you already had some Barbies; your princess barbies."  Bonner: "No, mommy, I want some big girl Barbies." Me: "Okay, well, we will have to see what they have."  Ian interrupted the conversation and said, "Well, they only have boy toys at Toys R Us!"

Lots of Catching Up

Man, time flies when you are having fun ... isn't that what they say?  Well, I can't say that the past few weeks have been fun, but we have survived and are somehow better for it.  And with that, we turn the page to a chapter in our lives; in fact, for us, it might just be a totally new book - who knows what God has in store for us?!  But for now, I'm just going to catch up the blog.  No idea as I type right now how many entries it will take, but I am getting back in to the game and am super excited about it!

Here are a few more pictures from May!
Ian has finally gotten into dressing up and I just love this picture of my "Buzz Likeyear" - wings and all!

In addition, they are absolutely hooked to my iphone and how easy it is to take pictures of things.  They have mastered the process, but you never know what you are going to get ...

Sometimes you get 3 of almost the exact same picture in a row...

Sometimes you get a blurry first shot and then ...

 a really good shot - of the same thing, of course!

 And then sometimes, you just get a totally random shot that actually has a little bit of photographic genius!

For my birthday, I decided that I wanted to put the camera down and pick up a paint brush so some of my best friends and my mom went to "Design with Wine" and painted our favorite sand box!

July - Pre-Birthday Fun

July really seems like a lifetime ago and it's not even under my belt yet.  It was a month of emotions - happy, sad, confused - but even in the midst of the craziness that finalizing the divorce brought on me, we had fun!  I personally have just been trying to keep one foot in front of the other and am thankful that I have tripped several times but not fallen completely flat on my face.

It's hard to believe but we didn't even make it to the neighborhood pool but one time in June and it was for a Swim Team party to support our friends on the neighborhood swim team.  So, the beginning of July, we hit the diving board.  Last summer, Ian went off the diving board over and over and over again ... so I was a little surprised with this result when he got up there the first time this summer.

But I was thoroughly impressed with Bonner's approach since I really don't think she went off the diving board a single time in 2011.

July 4th involved a pool party at a friend's house but I cannot believe I did not take one picture :-(  On our way home from that, though, we called our trusty neighbors, the McBrides, to see what mischief they were getting into and they were still up for visitors.  And, of course, Jane had sparklers and hot pop things so Ian and Bonner were in awe.  They loved the sparklers and the popper things that you throw at the ground!  We are truly blessed to have the greatest neighbors in the world - I call on all of them time and again and each and family continues to embrace us!

The children also went to SummerQuest "camp" at their school for 3 days in July.  I hate for them to forget all about school so I like them to be able to go there during the summer just to keep the surroundings fresh in their minds.  The last day of camp, they were having a bike parade ... I had planned on getting Bonner a bike for her birthday (the McBrides mentioned above have already given Ian 2 bikes so he's good) and she loved the one I picked out - Strawberry Shortcake!  It even smells like strawberries.

 Ian had no desire to ride a bike so I took his little car that you just steer and it goes.  That didn't last long either but at least he got it decorated!

Bonner is very much into not only taking pictures but having her picture taken ... she gets goofy looks and says, "Mommy, will you please take my picture?"

 Here she is wearing a pair of my sunglasses!

 She put alot of hairbows in her hair and then insisted on a picture!

 Here she is watching Disney on my iPad ... my oh my ...

"Look at me, mom!  I can touch my nose!"

We went to a birthday party for a sweet friend in June and Bonner got a Fancy Nancy book in her goodie bag ... well, she finally wanted to read it and this is what she learned from the book :-)

Speaking of "having fun", these 2 are so silly.

Next up, birthday fun!!

A Letter from Mommy

Dearest Bonner and Ian,

I write this letter to you tonight with the heaviest of hearts!  Tomorrow is a big day for your mom ... and, admittedly, for you two as well.  It's a sad day as I feel overwhelming grief that I have failed you!  I have failed to give you a home with 2 parents living under the same roof; I have failed to give you a "normal" childhood; I have failed to keep your security in tact!  I know you know that what you are currently going through is not the way families are supposed to be ... and it hurts me to no end when you ask me, "Mommy, why doesn't daddy live here anymore?"  It pains me when you ask me, "Mommy, when are you and daddy going to go together again?"  It kills me as I have cried myself to sleep many a nights over the past 14 months not because of my pain, but the pain I feel for you both in having your innocent little world upended.

I remember thinking back when I was trying to come to terms with God about Ian's heart condition ... I kept asking, "Why?"  Not really "Why my child?"; but simply "Why?" in the context of "What are You using this situation to prepare me for, God?"  I always thought it was so that I could be a supportive mother to other mother's faced with the same circumstances!  However, now I wonder if looking death in the eye with my child wasn't preparing me for the past 14 months of an emotional rollercoaster.  But, I want you to know that God has been with me since the beginning of the end of my marriage to your father.  He has given me a counselor to help me talk through my pain; He has given me a support group that has not waivered; and, He has given you to me - and believe it or not, in the midst of the unknown, you two have provided me great comfort with your continuous love, hugs, and kisses!

Bonner, when you say to me, "Mommy, I have something to tell you - I love you!" my heart simply melts.  If there were tears in my future, your love replaces them with smiles.  Ian, when you say, "Mommy, hugs!" and come running over to me for a tight squeeze, I am reminded that you only know unconditional love and I am so thankful for that!  I know that God, through the Holy Spirit, our family, and our dear friends will continue to shower us with love!  I know that our circumstances are not any that I would have wished upon us; but, I am thankful for the opportunity to remind you each and everyday that no matter what tomorrow holds, God is among us! He loves you, Ian; He loves you, Bonner!  Please do not ever forget that!

I love you more than life itself; I would do anything I could for you and that's what makes divorce so sad ... because I just couldn't do enough to keep it from happening!  I am sorry that you are now a statistic; I am sorry that the chance of you having happy marriages "until death does you part" just dropped considerably; I am sorry that I have caused you to have to be resilient ... for all of these things, I am deeply sorry!  If I could change it, I would; but, I know that God has a plan for the 3 of us!  We have been blessed beyond what we deserve; He has not forsaken us this past year; in fact, He has continued to draw closer to us!

I will always be here for you and hope that when you are the right age that we can talk about this time in our lives with open and honest communication!  I pray for you each and every day - that God will continue to watch over you, keep you healthy, keep you happy, and keep you close to one another!  I am so thankful that you can walk this journey together as "two peas in a pod"; you are never alone and for that, I am so thankful!

Love Always,

"Your Favorite Mommy"

June IV - Great Trip to the Zoo

We picked a fantastically beautiful day in June to go to the zoo with some friends.  All the animals were out and about and moving around like crazy.  We took some pictures and some videos ... enjoy!

Pretty sure this giraffe has a baby in her tummy :-)

I must admit that I have never seen a giraffe get the leaves right at her feet ... pretty interesting!

Even the grumpy OLD turtles were moving around!

And, of course, the smelly pig is always ready for a handout!

The kids were trying their darndest to get the giraffe to come over closer to them!

And, I must admit that I have never heard monkeys sound like this nor have I ever been this close to monkeys moving around so much!  They were having so much fun "showing off"!