Life lately

Holy moly, where did December go?!?  Between keeping Brooks, Carter getting brochiolitis (which we are still fighting), football playoffs, Christmas presents/decor/baking/wrapping/activities and Graeme my month has flown by and I don't think I have kept up very well at all.  I need to upload all the pictures off my cameras and then I have a whole list of things to catch up on.  Just what New Years Eve in front of the TV is for, lol! I'm living on the edge!

Carter's last picture of 2012 as I was putting him to bed tonight:

No more pictures, Mama! 

Matt had his wisdom teeth removed on Friday afternoon after YEARS of his dentist telling his they needed to go.  He was always in-season during his visit so he never made an appointment (that, and he really didn't want to get it done) so this was WAY overdue.  He was in quite a bit of pain this fall so, as much as he fought it, this procedure couldn't wait any longer.  His back left tooth was on a nerve and growing into his jaw bone (instead of growing up-and-down his was growing front-to-back) so he had to have it done at the surgeon's office instead of the dentist office.  

Playing with Mase Mase

I have some funny pictures and videos of Matt after the procedure but my marriage vows prevent me from posting them on this here blog.  ;)  His recovery has been a little rough- we're worried about the nerve since he still doesn't have feeling on the left side of his face.  He was running a slight fever yesterday and still hasn't been able to eat anything besides milkshakes and soup.  He doesn't have any bruising but the swelling on the left side makes him look like he has a big dip in his mouth!  We're ready for him to feel better!  

First bath in the real bathtub!

Carter is still fighting his bronchiolitis that's hanging around.  I thought we kicked it and stopped his breathing treatments last Sunday but by Thursday he was back to coughing and wheezing so we're still attached to our breathing machine.  And today we realized that he probably has Fifth's Disease.  It's not a real disease, just a fancy name for a rash on his cheeks.  We haven't seen the doctor but Sara recognized it and, after a little Googling, and 99% sure this is what he has.  I feel awful because I thought he looked cute with his little red cheeks, but it turns out it's really contagious with little ones.  And with Graeme in the PICU we have to be super careful with what's passed around between all of us.  The good news is that it doesn't seem to be phasing him and Aquaphor has helped with the redness.

Sweetness!

And we will have a SEVEN month old in a few minutes!! Crazy!  

Christmas Card 2012

One of my favorite parts of the Christmas season is going to the mailbox everyday and opening everyone's Christmas card.  My friends were on the ball this year and got their cards out early, but I'm just glad ours made it out BEFORE Christmas, lol.

I had a hard time figuring out our cards this year.  The pictures came from a photoshoot we did with the McDaniel's a few weeks ago that I just LOVE! We can thank Perfectly Posh Photography for those :)  I think nothing stuck out at me because I just keep going back to last years card.  Nothing will beat that :)

Here is our card this year I made on Shutterfly and scored 50% off on:

Front:

Back:

I hung our cards up in the kitchen this year over our window; I actually have more but I'm out of clothespins.  I wanted them to be displayed somehow and this is all I could creatively come up with...ribbon and clothespins! Oh well, it will work and it was free!! 

Happy birthday, Daddy!

Happy birthday to you,

happy birthday to you,

happy birthday dear Daddy,

happy birthday to you!

Semifinals: Katy vs Cibolo Steele

WORD AROUND TOWN IS THE TIGERS ARE STATE BOUND!

Last Saturday Katy beat Cibolo Steele 45-33 in the Division II Semifinal game to advance to the state finals! Yay!  Whoo hoo!! So proud of my Tigers!

The game was played in Waco at Floyd Casey Stadium and since Little Man had brochiolitis we stayed home and watched the game on TV.  This was my first ever game to miss.  Ever.  It didn't help that I came down with the same cold Carter started off with which then turned into a sinus infection so we were both feeling pretty beat.  By the grace of God the game was televised (that never happens) or I would have been really tempted to make the trip to Waco.  I'm so glad we were still able to cheer on our Tigers from home! 

Katy jumped to an early 21-0 lead and just when I started to breath a little easier the Knights tied it up going into halftime.  Eekk!!  We've never been tied at halftime all season and Carter and I were really stressing! I KNOW Matt had to have been biting all of his fingernails off trying to make adjustments at halftime.  

In the end the Tigers prevailed in order to advance to the STATE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME!!  We will play the Cedar Hill Longhorns on Saturday at Cowboy Stadium in Arlington.  Carter and I are hitting the road early tomorrow so we can see/meet Emily, Ella and Eva! I'm so excited!

*sidenote*

Cedar Hill beat Jeff's Chaparalls from Westlake to make it into the finals.  If Jeff's team had won we would be playing each other on Saturday....crazy!  I hate to see Jeff lose but it would have been terrible for one of us to lose to the other for state.  

*sidenote*

I'm 50/50 on what I'm more excited about this weekend...playing for state or seeing Emily.  This will be the best weekend ever! 

Graeme Lee McDaniel

Our newest nephew is here!! 

Graeme Lee McDaniel was born at 9:43am on 12/18/12 weighing in at 5 lb 6 oz and measuring 18.5 in! He was 6 weeks early and just as handsome as he can be! If I didn't know better I would think I was staring at a baby Mason all over again...they are twins!

Graeme's heart is hurting so he is down at the medical center being cared for by a wonderful team of doctor's.  Please pray for Graeme, Stephanie and Robby over the coming months as they love on their baby boy and get him in tip-top shape.  We are hoping that Stephanie is discharged tomorrow so the whole family can be together and her and Robby can stay by Graeme's side.  In the meantime we are all split up caring for Graeme, Stephanie and Mason with all of us taking on different duties.  It's a busy time, especially with Christmas and football going on, but there's nothing any of us wouldn't do for each other...especially our newest family member!

Carter can't wait to meet his little cousin and show him the ropes with Mason.  I'm sure it will be no time at all until the three of them are taking a tractor ride with PawPaw :)

Regionals: Katy vs Cy Ranch

I feel the need to get this posted before today's game against Cibolo Steele.  I'm missing my first football game ever to stay home with my sick Monkey, but thankfully the game is on TV.  GO KATY!  GO DEFENSE!! 

Last Saturday Katy played Cy Ranch at Rice Stadium for the Regional Finals and WON 70-21!! Whoo hoo! 

The game was a hot one (in December, ugh!) but thankfully we snagged some seats at the top underneath the shade.  Carter Man slept almost the ENTIRE GAME! He has never napped for that long; I'm telling you he LOVES the loud noise and excitement of the games!  So much so that he has to fall asleep to handle it all, lol!

To be honest, I haven't really been that nervous for any games this season until this week.  Obviously you don't get this far into the playoffs without being a little nervous, but now it seems like every time I think of the upcoming game my heart beats a little faster and my hands start to shake.  I know this game means a lot to so many people, but I just have to believe that it means more to the players and coaches than anyone else.  It would be terrible to get this far and lose so I know each loss would hurt worse and worse than the last.  At this point you have to just buckle down and do what you need to do to win the game, because losing would just be too devastating.

Good luck to my coach today! Good luck to the players and prayers to all of the fans for a safe trip.  GO KATY!! 

There Are No Words

I was planning on posting about our game against Cy Ranch from last weekend, but in light of today's events I can't even think about football.

Praying for all of Connecticut tonight, especially for Sandy Hook Elementary and all the people involved.  My hearts breaks and tears have been on my face all day as I sit and watch the coverage while rocking my baby.

I simply cannot imagine this horror, as a teacher or as a mother.

Please continue to pray for our sweet Carter, as well.  We were back at the doctor today with very labored breathing and a very scared Mama.

Bronchiolitis

My baby boy has come down with a case of Bronchiolitis- a severe form of Bronchitis. It started on Saturday with a runny nose that turned into a cold and now this. Dr K gave us a breathing machine that we have to use every 4 hours until he gets better. We also have to monitor his breathing since his airways are so constricted. Talk about staying up all night watching your baby sleep/ breathe! This is absolutely the worst feeling in the world.

Please pray for our baby- that his breathing stabilizes and the breathing treatments work. And also for me and Matt as we have the same cold that Carter had.

Tractor ridin'

After Stephanie's shower last Sunday I looked around and around and couldn't find my baby.  I knew he was is someone's arms somewhere, but I still felt uneasy not knowing where he was.

This is where I finally found him.

 Pretty sure he's asleep in this pic

The boys are going to have so much fun at Nana and PawPaw's!  Soon Mason will be driving Carter around!

2 Weeks of Brooks!

Whew...we survived!

2 weeks ago my mom had eye surgery to repair a macular hole that had formed in her right eye.  All is fine and dandy now, but for the past two weeks her recovery has involved lying face-down all.day.long.  She couldn't read, lay on her back or right side, or do anything that would cause the gas bubble in her head to press against her eye.  Misery! I did 3 months of bed rest and this two week recovery she had sounds WAY worse!

Since my mom and dad keep Brooks during the day Brooks and Laura came to live with us while my mom was recovering.  It was so nice to get to spend so much time with Brooks during the day- I feel like I never get to sit and just hang out with her anymore.  And Laura was always home for dinner so I always had someone to eat dinner with at night (besides Carter!) and watch TV with and just talk to.  And I got a glimpse of what is must be like for moms of two kiddos! Let's just say now that I have a little perspective I think my job with Carter is easy compared to what it could be!

While Brooks was here I feel like we were constantly busy.  We had an activity in the morning everyday, either playgroup, the library, the park or church.  Lunch was always interesting trying to introduce Carter to carrots while feeding Brooks something she would eat, feed myself and make sure Brooks' lunch didn't all end up in Cooper's mouth.  In the afternoon's we usually went back to the park and attempted naps.  I say attempted because Carter always napped but Brooks was hit or miss.  On days where they were both asleep at the same time I felt like SUPERWOMAN!

You can barely see her, but Carter, Cooper and Brooks are all asleep

Brooks is at such a fun age and would say some of the funniest things while she was here.

• In the morning Laura would bring Brooks in my room before she left for work and Brooks would start talking in her sleep.  Most of the time it was "Mommy" or "Caillou" but sometimes she would throw "Mickey Mouse" in there just to throw us off.  At first I thought she was awake but really she was just sleep-talking.  
• When she would wake up for the day the very first thing out of her mouth everyday was "Baby Carter?"  She always had to check on Baby Carter and give him a kiss and pat his head.  Such a sweet girl...she's going to be a good mama one day.
• For meals I would put them in their high chairs next to each other and Brooks always would reach over to hold Baby Carter's hand.  GAH...melt me! 

• Girl LOVES to sing but she really only knows "Happy Birthday" and "Rock-a-Bye Baby."  So we sang HB to Brooks over and over, and RABB every time Carter would start to fuss or cry.  
• Since she calls Carter "Baby Carter" I quickly got into the habit of calling him Baby Carter and still catch myself saying it now, even though she's back at her house.  
• She repeats EVERYTHING she hears.  Everything.  Especially when you drop Baby Carter's spoon on the floor spewing carrots everywhere and say "Oh, crap!"  ohcrapohcrapohcrap...
• When we would drive around she would always tell me which houses had Christmas lights.  You could always hear her in the backseat saying "Christmas lights...no Christmas lights...Christmas lights..."
• She started saying "Oh my gosh" and uses it perfectly in context.  Like when I was bathing Baby Carter one night she climbed up on the counter to watch and could just point and say "Oh my gosh!" over and over.  Or when there was a blow-up snowman in someone's yard she would yell "Oh my gosh, SNOWMEN!"  Probably not something a 2.5 year old should say but it was so funny I had to laugh every time.
• Girl is obsessed with playing at the park.  We live really close to a little playground next to where our mailboxes are and we would have to drive by there everyday.  She was constantly asking if we could go to the park and I could pretty much bribe her into doing anything I asked if I promised that we could go to the park afterwards.  Mom of the Year.
• She loves the Katy Tigers almost as much as she loves going to the park.  We went to visit Matt at work several times while she was here and as soon as we turned into the KHS parking lot she would always yell "Oh my gosh, KATY TIGERS!"  "Uncle Matty!"  "Ahhh!"  
• She made me really thankful that I have a little boy.  Getting her dressed and hair done in the morning was the most stressful part of my day everyday.  I'm so glad that I don't have to worry about bows and leggings and tangles and pigtails.  

Now...to catch up on all the stuff I didn't get done in the past two weeks!