Summer is beginning

There used to be this thing where the seasons would change gradually. 

Winter melts into Spring.

Spring jumps into Summer.

Then there is Oklahoma....

We don't really have Spring and Fall. Which is a shame!! Those two are my favorite. 

With Summer having quickly approached here are a few little updates thus far:

As I mentioned before in a previous post, Hadley is a reader. She loves to be read to or read to herself. She quickly memorizes books as well. You can read it to her once, twice, (at most) three times. By that point she will be finishing your sentences. Naturally, she calls this "reading by herself." (If you should know anything about Hadley it is that she can do anything and everything by herself!!) About a month ago, I began talking to her about the library. She instantly wanted to go right then and there. We couldn't at that time so we went the next day. I got her all signed up to have her library card. I showed her the section of books she could pick from. Her first trip she checked out eight books!! Read them all repeatedly. And was ready to go back.

Bubbles at cousin Shelby's house because the park was filled with the entire 4th grade of Bixby elementary.

Tea party in her Ariel mermaid dress

Hadley and Uncle Lucas at Aunt Leslie's college graduation. She did really well considering everyone hates graduations to begin with :)

Aunt Leslie and her nieces and nephew

Hadley playing with Aunt Cindy while everyone else takes pictures with Leslie

Hadley sitting outside at Aunt Leslie's graduation party. She found this little bench by herself and just sat there by herself. She was just happy to be outside in her favorite dress.

Daddy has been working a night shift for the last several months. It really isn't too bad, but recently I've started letting Hadley sleep in bed with me only if I know we have to get up early the next day. Lee insists I'm the only parent on the planet that actually likes to sleep with their child. That will come to an end as Lee's schedule is changing back to a day shift.

This is what happens when a two year old refuses to take a nap. She falls asleep in the chair while I work on the computer. This lasted a solid 45 minutes, at least!

Hadley has been asking for "pink cow boots" for the better part of a YEAR now! "Cow boots" are quite expensive. I don't even mean real ones that are intended for riding horses or the farm life. I mean just cheap, pretending cow girl boots. The cheapest I found was at Target for $27.99 - NO THANKS! Well, one day we were at Wal-Mart with Aunt Cindy looking at sandals. We went to another aisle and Cindy just so happened to find these "cow boots" on sale for $5! And wouldn't you know, they came in Hadley's size. What's funny is right before we found these, Hadley was just telling us about how she wanted "pink cow boots" for her birthday. When we found these and she tried them on she said, "I not wait 'til my birthday now. I want these!" LOL. For $5 you better believe I snatched them up. Of course, she insisted on wearing them to church in a full cow girl get up the next day.

Hadley found this wig at Nammy's house the other night. She put it on and began taking pictures of herself. She kept shaking her head back and forth. She has never felt so much hair before. It was hilarious!

Well that is Summer thus far...
I'm sure the rest of the summer will have a lot to offer.
It will also bring a time of change as we prepare for baby brother coming in the beginning of Fall
...or whatever we have of Fall.

Spring time 2014

Winter came and left. 

We moved into Spring time.

With warmer temperatures and lots of sneezing from allergies. Hello, Oklahoma!

One of the first warmer days this year, I took Hadley to the park. She loves to play outside, but our yard is filled with stickers in the grass. I can't take it. They are annoying and they get all over you. We have a local park that is just a few miles down the road from us. We try to go there frequently (time and weather permitting).

Of course to go with Spring time you also need some new sunglasses.

Quickly after upgrading to her big girl bed, Hadley potty trained herself through the night. I'm not joking. When we moved her into the big girl bed she was still wearing diapers at night. Usually at nap time as well (unless Lee would forget to put a pull up on her). We were about a week or two into being in the new big girl bed and she started waking up in the middle of the night. At first I thought, "Oh great. Here we go with the trying to get up and sleep in our bed." I was wrong. She was waking up because she needed to go potty. So I would take her and she would go straight back to bed. After two weeks of doing this consecutively, every  night, while in a diaper, I told Hadley that that weekend we would go buy a mattress cover for her bed (just in case) and new "night time panties." I wanted a cover to protect the bed for the accidents I knew would come later. I also wanted to get her training panties for night time since they are a little thicker. Well, much to my surprise, she never had an accident. She never had any problems getting up to go potty. Honestly, her first accident was just about three weeks ago (in my bed none the less, LOL).

Hadley has also discovered she likes wearing "big cozy shirts" to bed, like Mommy,  in the place of a pajama set. She found this "wow wow" truck shirt in her closet one night. She insisted on wearing the "Daddy truck" to bed.

I was getting ready one morning while Hadley was still asleep. I open my drawers to find this! Her blow dryer in the same drawer as my blow dryer. Her straightener in the same drawer as my straightener. Too smart for her own good, I tell ya!

Spring time is definitely more of her pace. 

She loves to be outside and playing.

She particularly likes to be out at her grandparents house trying to catch bunnies. She is never quiet enough. 

Go figure... 

Two year old, wild child. 

"Dora happy?"

WARNING: POST ABOUT POTTY TRAINING. If you do not wish to read the words "pee pee" and "poo poo" then skip on past this post and check back with me later :) 

Hadley turned 2 on June 13. It was a few days after that that we introduced her to her potty chart. 

She had been using her potty chair since she was about 13 months old. We never pushed the issue, but she was always so interested. 

After she turned 2 we decided to introduce the "potty chart." Every time she used her potty she would ask, "You happy mommy? Daddy happy? Dora happy?" She asked about Dora because she wanted to wear Dora panties. We told her that if she pee-pee'd in Dora that she wouldn't be very happy. So needless to say, we named her potty chart the "happy Dora potty chart." Every time she went potty she got Dora stickers. 

Again we never pushed the issue too much. Just let her become familiar with the potty, panties, and the excitement and praise for going. 

It was the first week of July when we were at my grandparents house and Hadley informed us she had to "poo poo."  We put her on the potty and she went! It was that afternoon when she got up from her nap that she started wearing panties. 

Now, let me say this: I had been advised numerous times to "just stay home for a few days so you're close to the potty." I read on Pinterest about the "3-day potty training." I attempt aspects of both these suggestions. It just didn't work for us. I didn't stress about it because I knew when she was ready she would let me know. So as I was saying, she let me know the first week of July. 

I decided that I wasn't going to "just stay home." I wasn't going to "pump her full of sugar and sweets so she would drink lots. Therefore, pee-ing a lot and associating the sensation of having to go." (per the 3-day method.) 

We decided to just let her wear panties and go on with life. As silly as I'm sure I looked, I carried around a beach towel with us everywhere we went. I covered her carseat with the towel while we were going places. (Which was a life saver on more than one occasion.) I would also use the towel for her to sit on while in a shopping cart, booster seat at a restaurant, and basically anytime she had to sit down. I looked like I was traveling to the beach everyday, but I'm telling you - it was worth it!!  

The first 4 days of potty training were the hardest for her. I say hardest, but they weren't bad. She never had any full blown accidents. She would just pee pee in her panties enough to feel the sensation of having to go. It was never enough to wet her pants or wet the floor. But after about 4 days she got it. 

Going "#2" was a different story. It took a her about 3 solid weeks for her to understand this part of it. LONG story short, it all came down to her not being patient enough. She would know that she had to go, but would just sit there and wait. 

I eventually started having to bribe her...with pop!  (Judge away, haha!) The reason pop worked is because she never gets pop. It was really good incentive. 

So we are going on probably 2 months strong of being potty trained. Well, day time potty trained. She still wears a diaper at night and for nap time. Again, I feel like when she is ready then we will know. She still wakes up from naps and night time with a completely soaked diaper. When she starts waking up less wet or even dry then we will try panties. 

But until then I'll leave you with pictures of the events :) 

2 years: little love letters

Oh Hadley girl, 

I just realized I forgot to finish writing your two year old love letter. But with raising you as a two year old, who really has time to blog an update? I mean, really...?!!

As of June 26, 2013 these were your stats.

-Growth:

*24.6 lbs.

*36 in. tall

*Wearing 24 months and some 2T clothes. Sometimes 2T can still be a little big.

*Wearing size 5 1/2 or 6 shoe.

-Eating: Eating is a pretty serious event to you. Some of your favorite things to eat are:

*strawberries

*grapes

*cantaloupe & watermellon

*bananas

*steamed cabbage

*applesauce pouches

*popcorn 

...Then the other junk like:

*french fries

*sausage pizza

*tacos

OH! and your obsessed with tea. Sweet or unsweet. Doesn't matter to you. 

-Sleeping: Not much has changed here.

*We are still start getting you ready for bed at 8.

*You like to sleep in when you can, but we usually get up to go to work at 8 am. 

*You usually go down for nap about 2 or 2:30 pm until about 4:30 to sometimes 5:30 pm. 

*When you can sleep in, you'll sleep until 10 or 10:30 am. On those days you usually will not take a nap. 

-Developments/Events:

*Your biggest development since turning two is you're officially POTTY TRAINED! (and all the angels, in the heavenly chorus, sang!) You have been going on the potty off and on since you were about 14 months old. But you never had a real interest in potty training and I wasn't pushing the issue. Well, about three weeks after you turned two, you told us you had to go potty and you went. That afternoon, after nap, we put you in big girl panties and you've been wearing them since. The first four days of wearing panties, you would wet yourself enough to feel it, then rush to the potty. You've been potty trained now for about a month.

*You're still wearing a diaper at nap time and at night, but your nap time diapers are becoming almost unnecessary. Sometimes, you've even fallen asleep for an hour or so and not had an accident. 

*We are too concerned about the night time diaper, as it can be a little harder for you to get since you're asleep. You'll get there.

Other fun facts:

*You're favorite television show(s) is The Fresh Beat Band and Dora.

*You can apparently count to 8. You've never done it for me, but you do it for your Aunt Cindy. I know you know number 1 thru 8, but I've never heard you say them all in order. You usually get to 6, for me, then clap and say "Yay! Hadley!" 

*Your favorite Bible story is Adam and Eve. 

*You know Mommy's name is Heather. You know Daddy's name is Lee.

*You know your last name.

*You also know the name of your town. Well, I'm not sure you know that that is where you live, but you can say the name. 

*You love taking pictures of yourself on Mommy's phone. Actually, on anyone's phone that you can get your hands on. 

*You watched your first movie at home the other day. It was Monster's Inc. You LOVED it. Mostly because I told you it was Daddy's movie. Now you want to watch it all the time. 

That's all I can think of right now. Currently, you're watching an episode of The Fresh Beat Band and eating some popcorn.

Since turning two, I can really tell you're growing up. You're acting more like a "kid" than a "baby," if that makes any sense. All you talk about is wanting to ride a school bus and go to school. Slow down, you're going to be grown up and going to school before you know it baby girl. 

I'll love you forever and ever! I promise.

Love, 

Mommy

I'll leave you with some pictures of the day we went for your two year old check up. This was the first time I noticed you really looked like a big kid.

 

6/26/2013: She is getting so good at taking pictures

 

6/26/2013: Being silly while waiting for the doctor

The Sickies

Because this blog is for me to remember stuff as Hadley grows older -- I'm playing catch up with some things that have happened around here, recently. Let's go back to May. 

 

In the middle of May (I believe the 17th?) Hadley girl began to run a slight fever. She was acting fussy, wasn't eating much, and was overall acting funny. I had a gut feeling that something was wrong. It was already five o'clock at night so I knew that there was no way I could get her in to see her personal doctor.

I slightly panicked. 

I've never taken Hadley to an Urgent Care before. Mostly because she really likes her doctor. She always has and still seems to now. I have never wanted to confuse her by taking her to anyone else. 

I had no choice. Like I said, "gut feeling." 

I took her to the Pediatric Urgent Care here in town. I was very impressed with them. Hadley thought it was a fun place because it was so colorful and "playful" for kids. 

When we were taken back to the examination room, we talked to the nurse and we decided that to go ahead and run a Strep test would be best. 

The doctor came in and she told me that the test came back "negative."

Say WHHHHAAAATTTTT? I thought for sure this is what she had. Luckily, so did the doctor. She decided that despite the test saying "negative," she was going to go ahead and treat it as if it was Strep.

Since Hadley had a fever she was obviously considered contagious. I took off work the rest of the week so we could stay home and rest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Me and Hadley playing while she was recovering from "Strep."

 

 

 

 

 

Two days after Hadley started her antibiotic she seemed to be feeling so much better. Thank God! She was still running a slight fever, but we knew she was also teething (all four, 2 yr old molars coming in!!). We didn't think much of it. 

Saturday morning Hadley got up and around. She was extra cuddly. She wasn't feeling 100% yet, but acting much better. I was gone for most of the morning with Zumba. When I got home I put her down for a nap. She took a decent nap, but woke up incredibly hot. She had a fever of 102.3. 

Something was absolutely not right. Something was very wrong. 

...again, gut feeling. 

Lee kept insisting it was just her teething, but said we could take her back to Urgent Care if I felt necessary. 

I couldn't kick the feeling of something was wrong so we took her in, again. 

The doctor look in her throat and jumped back. She looked at me and asked "Did you see that?!!!" I said no so she showed me. Hadley's tonsils were literally so swollen they were touching. They were completely cover in white pus with infection. 

They ran a Strep test again. Negative, again!!

They ran even tested for mono. Negative! 

Lee holding Hadley while waiting at the Urgent Care. She was so sick she couldn't even sit up.

After being there for hours (literally! We were there from 6 - 10 pm) they just chalked it up as "exacerbated tonsillitis." They changed her antibiotic. We hunted down a 24 hr. Walgreens Pharmacy. Got her medicine and put her to bed. 

She woke up in the morning fever free. 

This different medication cured her sickness and she was fully better within about three days. Hadley's personal doctor contacted me for a follow up. He said that children under 3 yrs old generally do not have tonsil issues. He said that since this has happened that we will need to keep an eye on her tonsils.

Speaking of check ups... I think I need to schedule Hadley's 24 month check up. 

...I'll get on that tomorrow.

They came early.

IHadley turned 2 years old a couple days ago. 

The sad part is not that she is getting bigger.
The sad part is not that she isn't my little tiny, baby, infant anymore.
The sad part is not that she is more independent and needs me less.
The sad part is that the terrible two's came.


.....they came EARLY.

Lord, help me.

I have things I want to write about and update y'all with. But someone needs to point me to the "needs more time" direction. 

The terrible two's are time consuming. 

I'll leave you with some self portraits.. By: Hadley 

Don't hold your breath.

I haven't written a blog post in so long, I don't know that I remember how to even write. My last post was in January and quite a bit has happened since January.

I intended to keep this blog as a journal to remember things that our Hadley girl does and says. To remember the things we do as a family. But I haven't kept up with it well, at all. I've just been living life and enjoying the memories. I just hope one day I don't forget ;)

Let's see. In February... (btw, I don't know how to spell February. I always misspell it. Spell check is always quick to remind me. Sad part is, my birthday is in February.)

*I got into a car wreck -- THE DAY AFTER MY BIRTHDAY, nonetheless. Don't worry: It was not my fault. The other people did have insurance. I was ok {minus the sprained ankle that still hurts}.

*Hadley wore her first pair of overalls. She calls overalls "papa's" because her Papa Ronnie wears them. Papa's are her favorite thing to wear if she has a choice.

*Hadley also rode a horse for the first time {the same day she wore her "papa's" for the first time}. She was supposed to be having "Daddy Day," but that quickly turned into a day trip to Locust Grove with her grandparents to go see her cousins and aunt and uncle. They have a few horse at their house. Hadley now loves riding horses. But when you ask her if she wants a horse she says, "No. Laun Laun." I guess she figures she doesn't need one because Aunt Laun Laun has a horse for her to ride.

*I started this thing called the L.O.V. {Lifestyle of Vitality} Challenge. It is a fitness/health challenge. It started Feb. 16 then I got into the car wreck Feb. 18. So The Challenge has been quite the challenge. From the car wreck, I got a sprained ankle with soft tissue tearing. It doesn't sound that bad, but it was horrible. So much so that I had to wear a walking cast {THE BOOT!} for almost two months. Then I have also been sick at least once a month since October. Long story short: I had pneumonia and no one knew. It was never properly diagnosed or treated. Doing The Challenge has been a real struggle for me. I wasn't able to start the way I wanted. I've been sick the entire time. I haven't gotten the results that I've wanted {which I do know is also because I haven't taken responsibility and changed my eating like I should have...Hello.}And quite honestly, I hate being as busy as it makes me. The Challenge involves: ZUMBA, Personal Training, working out on your own, food log conversations, cooking classes, guest speakers, styling sessions. I mean, really it's amazing. It really is. But I hate being busy. There have been many occasions that I want to quit. But I figure even if I haven't gotten the results I wanted or have had many set backs, the least I can do is finish.

In March...

*Hadley started sleeping on a pillow like a big girl.

*We had Easter. The Easter bunny brought Hadley a pretty nice basket of goodies. She got some: Bible story books, side walk chalk, a new Dora cup, stickers, a cookies&creme candy bunny, a stuffed bunny {who she thinks is the real Easter bunny}, a Dora hat, and a new pair of sandals for summer. Oh, and I can't forget, some caramel filled chocolate eggs. She had four of those stinkin' eggs before we even made it out of the door for church. I don't think she has ever eaten so much candy in her little life. After church we went to my grandparents house for lunch. She got to play outside with her cousin Grace and her new side walk chalk, which she loved!

In April...

*We had a Mommy/Hadley date and went to Chik-Fil-A, played, then went to Target. Baby girl loves Target :)

*April was also a pretty crazy month for our family. Lee's Great-Grandmother {91 years old} became very sick. She had a hernia on her side that was no longer operable. Periodically, the hernia would become infected and cause her problems. Daily it caused her physical pain because it was so large and heavy that it hurt her back. To make a long story short, her body became septic with toxins. She was in the hospital for about a week, but after a long battle with this hernia and Alzheimer's and dementia, we lost sweet Nanny Von. But because we know she had a relationship with the Lord, it was not hard to see her go. Of course, you never want to lose a family member or someone you love, but you don't want to see them suffer either. She went peacefully. I really feel like Hadley understood what happened. Maybe not to the full extent, but she understands. She tells me {almost daily} that Grandma {or as she says "Mom-Mom"} is with Jesus. She knows.

Now we are in May. So far...

*Hadley discovered that there is an ambulance truck at The Grand, in the Kids Club. She claims this truck to be her "Daddy truck!" She doesn't think anyone else should get to play with this truck. If they do she screams "HEY!! MINE!! Daddy truck!!!"

*Hadley and Helton had a popcorn party!

*We celebrated our 2nd {I guess, technically third?!} Mother's Day. "Hadley" got me a new iPhone. Bless her heart :) She made me a craft at church that she is very proud of, still today.

*Hadley experienced her first Zumba {or as she says, "MOOBA"} class. I was going to leave her in Kids Club, but she cried when I tried to leave her and I felt bad for the girl working because she was already supposed to be off work. I ended up taking Hadley with me to our meeting before Zumba. Then we went upstairs to Zumba. I'm not sure what she thought Zumba was because when we got there she kept asking for it. For the first two songs, she just sat on the mats in the corner. Then I told her that Zumba is a dance class. She said "ok" and got up and preceeded to dance the rest of the class. She was so hilarious. And so GOOD! She tried to do all the moves. When we left she was all sweaty and kept rubbing her legs saying "OW!" I guess she worked out pretty hard. She talked about Zumba the rest of the night and the next day.

*As of two days ago, I had to take Hadley to Urgent Care because she had been acting funny for two days. Then she started running fever. Then I saw white spots on her tongue. STREP! Now she is on antibiotics and is acting much better. I know strep is miserable so I feel bad for her :( We've been spending lots of time at home...playing and napping.

We are going on a weekend "vacation" next weekend to celebrate our anniversary. We aren't doing anything big or fancy. We are just heading to the city to visit some friends. We didn't do anything last year so we figured we could do a little something this year. Hopefully I'll update again soon. But don't hold your breath. You'll probably pass out before that happens ;)

An Ordinary Woman

I was recently contacted by The Aegis Element to write a little bit of my experience, thus far, with motherhood. The Aegis Element is a non-profit organization that provides care to women who have escaped and survived human trafficking. They aid in helping women recover, restore, and find their perfect skill set in order to reengage in society.

I'm particularly proud of and support The Aegis Element because it was co-founded by one of my nearest and dearest friends, Sarah.  Sarah is one of my very best friends from college. We had a rough start, but it developed into one of my most cherished friendships. I'm proud to call her my friend. But more importantly, I'm proud of her for following her passion and the plans God has laid on her life.

When Sarah contacted me, she asked me to talk about the relationship a mother has with their child. The feelings that come up when you know you are about to bring life into the world. This was the article: {You can also read it here on The Aegis Element's blog.}

***********

Before having a child of my own, I'm going to be honest, I never thought that much about the relationship between Jesus and his mother, Mary. To be really honest, I never thought about it. At all. She was a virgin. Immaculate conception occurred. She birthed the Savior of the world. It sounds crazy! Not be "belittle" the power of God, but don't all Bible stories sound a little crazy? Jesus healed the blind man. Jesus walked on water. Jesus, even, raised a man from the dead. So, of course (!!!) He was born of a virgin. It only makes sense.

But the more I think about it the more obsessed (if you will..) with the story I become. I mean, my pregnancy was planned. Of course, it was also part of God's bigger plan, but it was also a conscious decision to bring a child into this world. We prepared for this baby (girl). We painted her room. We bought her things to ensure that she had the best life we could offer her. We were excited. I cannot imagine how Mary, a soon-to-be-wed-but-nonetheless-virgin, must have felt. This was not in her plans! She must have been terrified. Even with the words, "Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God" {Luke 1:30, NIV}I would have still freaked out.

I cannot imagine carrying a child that I didn't plan, that was the Son of God, AND knowing that one day I would have to give Him away. She knew that Jesus was sent with a greater purpose. We are all were born with a purpose, but no purpose held such a great weight as Jesus' did. Jesus felt the weight of his responsibility. As it was recorded {Matthew 26: 38 - 39, NIV}, 38]"Then he said to them, 'My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.' 39]Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, 'My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will." He then asks again {Matthew 26: 42, NIV}, "He went away a second time and prayed, 'My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done."

As a parent, you never want your child to feel as if the "weight of the world is on their shoulders." Jesus did. He felt it. Mary felt it for Him. That's not recorded, but as a mother myself I feel that it's true. You stress when you your child stresses. You hurt when they hurt. You mourn when they mourn. And in that sense (also not recorded) I wonder if Mary and Jesus were ever mourning the loss of each other. They both knew what was to come. They both knew it had to be done. But with Jesus being just as human as you and me, I have to wonder if he mourned for his mother and having to leave her so soon. He obviously was concerned about her being alone when He said, {John 19:26-27, NIV} 26]"...'Woman, here is your son,' 27] and to the disciple (John) 'Here is your mother.' From that time on this disciple took her into his home."

As we go into the Christmas season, I find myself trying to put myself in Mary's shoes. As different as our situations were -- as mother's I know we have the same heart. She was just an ordinary woman who carried, birthed, and raised an extraordinary man.

hello, world.

Hello, blog-o-sphere! It's me, Heather...Hadley's mom.

No, I have not forgot that I have a blog.
Yes, life is still going 'round and 'round. Ya know, the norm.
But unfortunately, I've felt like I have nothing to talk about.

I couldn't even do a "weekly wrap up" because it would literally consist of "went to work, came home, made dinner, went to bed." REPEAT. Every-single-day. Really....I'm not lying.

I'm a creature of habit :)

Anyway -- I realized a few days ago that I haven't posted an update about Hadley since she turned one. Hadley's little love letters faded away. I decided to update with pictures {and with words, if I chose} because she obviously didn't stop growing!

In July we: played at the Splash Pad for the first time!

In August we: started working in the Kids Club. Hadley has made lots a new friends and has learned how much self control it takes to sit at the table and eat lunch, without being strapped into a high chair.

In September we: experience our first time out. Hadley is still working on "listening and obeying the first time." I repeat this phrase to her frequently. So much so that when she is about to do something she knows she is not supposed to do, she will look at me and say "OBEY!"

It October we: went to the pumpkin patch! Hadley enjoyed the people watching more than the pumpkins. 

Thanksgiving is coming up. Hopefully I will post more pictures soon :)