Winter BBQ

We had BBQ the other night when the weather wasn't too bad.

The girls had a lot of fun!

Madi and Cassi love to be out in the snow...but Elsie has been pretty weary of it.

We finally got her to go out and she loved it!

Porter wasn't sure about being left inside.

Then they roasted marshmallows...

And Porter got mad....so...

I bundled him up and we went out, for a little bit.

We all had a really fun night!

New cut for Cassi

Usually you don't cut such pretty curls...unless the kid has cut their own hair...

Well, she didn't cut her hair, but has made a new habit of chewing her hair...so there was a whole section in the front that was chewed off, so I decided to try and even it up...

She had enough to donate the pony tail...she was very excited about that!

Just a little fun with the pony tail...Porter is balding on top...we thought we could help him out.

Very cute Cass!

No More Caffeine!!!!!

Porter just took his very last dose of caffeine!

He will stay hooked to the apnea machine for a little longer, a couple weeks or so, to make sure he does good without the help of the caffeine.

So hopefully once he is off the caffeine, he won't have the reflux, which means he won't have to take the medicine for it, which is making his tummy not feel so good!!!

Lets just hope now that he won't go through withdrawls...I have heard that could happen...

Our Christmas Day

Doesn't she just warm your heart???

The big girls got bikes...

so we thought it would be fun for Elsie to dress her walker up a bit. She's got a basket and tassels, all she needs now is a bell!

Elsie loves Dora...but even more so, she LOVES 'Backpack'.

This is for sure her very favorite present. It hasn't come off yet.

Dad didn't get much...mostly because he got his BBQ a few months ago.

But he did get some new ski boots and this helicopter.

He seems to like it so far.

(I caught him making helicopter noises while flying it...he's just a little boy in a mans body!)

Madi loves to sew things.

She asked for sewing stuff this year...she got a whole treasure box full of sewing stuff and material. She is very excited!!!

Too bad we are covered with snow here!

Cassi has been riding her new bike around the house all morning!!!

This is what Porter did all morning. What a cutie!

I finally got my new -25 degree winter snow boots!

Love 'em!

Merry Christmas!

From us, to You!

Merry Christmas!!!

Fort Matthews

The girls headed out with Dad again to shovel the sidewalks and have some fun in the snow.

They ended up making an igloo!

Hard at work

Turned out pretty good...and I am sure it will be there until spring!

Poor Elsie stayed inside. She isn't feeling well.

But she got to watch hours of Dora...nothing better than that!!!

And no post is complete without a shot of the little man...
Yes, he is balding a bit...but still cute as a button!

I did it!

So everyone knows that I don't function very well without my hubby.

So I call today a real accomplishment!

Brent was on shift today, as well as last Sunday.

Last Sunday it was an easy decision to slough church.

This week was different. I felt bad sloughing the Sunday before Christmas.

So guess what???

We went!

I made it to church, with FOUR kids, all by myself.

To top it off, I was early!!!

(Even early enough to snap a picture of them!)

I know, I am a dork. But really, things are hard for me without my amazing husband who is always there to help me out. He is definitely the better and stronger parent.

When we got home the girls shoveled the drive-way...such good girls.
Cassi lasted for about 5 minutes.
Madi stayed out there for a long time, and I went out to help her once I got Porter and Elsie down for their naps
She is a good little worker.
We got it all cleared...too bad it is supposed to snow tonight and Dad won't get to see Madi's hard work!!!
Oh well, I am sure she will be happy to help him in the morning.

He's One Month Old!!!

I cannot believe Porter is already a month old!

But I also can't imagine the time when he wasn't here.

Funny how that works.

In Porters short month he has managed to prove two main things to me.

1. Boys are stinky!

2. Boys are loud!

When I say stinky, I mean stinky.

But really, what boy isn't stinky???

And by loud I don't mean he cries a lot, cause he doesn't.

He is actually a very good baby. But when he cries, he is about 10 times louder than any newborn baby I have ever heard. I noticed it first thing in the hospital. But hey, it is a great thing...his lungs are working awesome!

This little guy is so great. We just love him so much.

We had to take him into the doctor yesterday because he has been spitting up a lot.

We wanted to make sure he was gaining weight.

He is. He weighs 9 lb. 10 oz. now.

But he has reflux.

And it is caused by the caffeine we still have to give him. Poor kid.

So we got some medicine for that.

He will take the caffeine for another week or so, then we will keep the monitor on him for another couple weeks to make sure he is breathing fine on his own without the caffeine.

I can't wait to get rid of that dang monitor!

The girls are still in love with their brother.

I am sure they always will be!

Some of Porters favorite things...

*He LOVES to take a bath. It puts him in a trance. It is pretty cute!

*He likes to be in his swing.

*He likes his binky.

*I can tell he is gonna be a very curious boy. He loves to just look around and take it all in.

*He likes to toot, a lot!!!

But he hates getting his diaper changed.

Porter is just perfect for our family...

it is so fun to see him grow and develop his personality, but it makes me a little sad too!!! I am not sure I am ready for him to grow up, move out, and get married...

My favorite things about Porter:

*He has a little wrinkle on the inside of his right eyebrow when he scrunches his eyebrows together. It is so dang cute!

*I could get lost in his eyes.

*He is gonna have nice strong hands like his Daddy.

*I love that he is already so much like his Daddy.

This poor boy doesn't have a chance! I am gonna be smothering, and overprotective.

But I have every right, don't I?

Amazing Elsie!!!

We just wanted to do a post of how awesome Elsie is doing.

When we first had Porter she would get jealous when I would feed him. But then she turned it into her own "therapy" time and she would walk from me to the ottoman and back to me, and again. She was very proud.

Well, today Brent was working with her and he got this on tape. I think the best part about this tape is that when she gets to the tree she actually changes her direction. That is something we haven't even worked on yet with her physical therapist. The distance here is about 12 feet, by far the farthest she has ever gone. And look at how controlled she is. I am just so proud of her and her hard work. I am sure it won't be long until she is walking all over the place by herself!

Our sweet Madi

Madi had her school Christmas program yesterday and she did such a great job. She sang all the words, knew all the actions.

And doesn't she look pretty!

Madi, we love you and you did such a great job!!!

Oh Christmas Tree

It was Elsie's turn this year to put the star on top of the tree.

You can tell by her face how proud she was.

So the tree is finally up...

Christmas shopping, that is another story!

Crazy Kiddos!

I know, I know...I do have other kids...and I will talk about them too...

But here is a sweet little profile of my little man. Look at that perfect nose, that perfect shaped head, those curious eyes...oh I love him!

Elsie has been funny lately...She loves when Porter is in the swing...she will climb up to him and just look at him face to face...very sweet, but also possibly dangerous...

Well, yesterday Elsie wanted to try the swing out for herself...She thought it was pretty great!

We also got a little snow yesterday...and are my girls weird or what!!! Check out Cassi with her tank top and bare feet! Crazy!

We woke up this morning to snow.

Madi and Cassi wanted to go out at 7:30 a.m. I told them "NO WAY!"

So they went out at about 8:30, at least the sun was up!

Well, Elsie didn't really like it...

But the big girls did!

And what do you have on a cold snowy Sunday morning...
Well, snow cones, of course!
They dubbed these snow cones 'Snowman's blood' (a.k.a Tigers blood!)
Goof-balls!

Tanger has also been a big fan of the snow!

For Grandma...

Just thought Grandma's would want to see some more pictures of the little man!

He is doing so good. He has been a little stuffy the last few nights, but he is still such a great baby!

We love this little guy!!!