Remembering to reflect

Over the last few nights, Charlie has decided to go back to being a newborn. He is literally waking up every two hours on the dot. I know he's not waking from hunger - he just wants the comfort of being in his mommy's arms. Last night was pretty brutal. He woke at 2:30 to eat and was up again at 4:15. I decided to try and let him self soothe himself, which I quickly realized was not going to happen. So I then resorted to the pacifier and Charlie looked at me like I was a crazy woman. He couldn't understand why I wasn't picking him up and comforting him. It broke my heart into a million pieces. This went on until 5:00 until I couldn't take it anymore and picked him up. He nursed for only a few precious moments and he was asleep again.

It wasn't until I was feeding him this morning after he woke that I had a revelation. He was staring into my eyes while eating and I paused to reflect on the fact that he is growing so fast. He will be six months next week and I can't fathom how so much time has already passed. He went from being a blob in my arms to this active, alert baby. Before I know it, he'll be cruising around the house, eating regular food, and ultimately sleeping through the night. As much as I'll adore getting a full night of sleep again, I will miss nursing him. I will miss this closeness I share with him in those dark, quiet nights.

When they say to enjoy every moment because it goes so fast, they weren't kidding. It seems that time goes faster with each day. I think it's because as moms, we're so focused on getting through each day, we forget to just pause and reflect. Sleep can be replaced... this short amount of time with my little boys can't. I need to remember to stop sometimes and savor these days when my babies are just that - babies.

Time for a new name

Okay, I have put this off for far too long. I started this blog without knowing what I wanted to call it. I didn't want to continue putting off writing just because I didn't have a clever name for it. Well, I think it has officially become time to rename the blog. The only problem? I still cannot decide what I want to name it.

So I'm asking for help from my loyal readers. I need some tips and suggestions on what to name this bad boy. Just a few notes about myself: I'm a stay at home mommy to two little boys, love taking care of my home and family, and truly relish in the fact that I'm a mom to boys. So c'mon readers - it's time for a game of NAME THAT BLOG!

P.S. Is is completely and utterly lazy that I'm relying on the help of other people to name my blog??

Glacier on my mind

There are two locations in this country that are my favorite places on the planet: Disney World and Glacier National Park. Throughout my childhood, we made many trips to both of these places and the memories have stuck with me as I've grown. It's funny - I find myself wanting to share the same experiences with my own children now that I'm a mother. Since Jackson was born in 2006, we have made one trip to Disney World for his first birthday and two separate trips to Glacier.

Now that summer is quickly approaching, I find myself constantly dreaming of Glacier. We missed our trip last summer since I was pregnant, and let me tell you - I really missed it. And as my little boy gets older, I want him to experience everything it has to offer. All I can think about are the gigantic mountains that tower over you, the green forests, the thousands of rivers and streams, and the peacefulness that overtakes you the moment you arrive.

My poor dad is in a quick scramble to try and find us a cabin to rent for a week this summer. Almost everything is already completely booked. He has found one place that looks absolutely incredible, so my hopes are high that we'll get to go this year. I feel like I need it. I need that escape to God's most incredible creations.

Anyway, I found myself browsing through some pictures from our trip in 2007. Jackson was only 18 months old and we had the best time. I'm praying desperately that we'll be back again this August.

Babies & Baptisms

Well, I survived my very first road trip with two kids and it wasn't too bad! We packed up on Friday morning and headed for Seattle to attend my nephew's baptism. The trip there honestly felt like it took forever, only because Jackson was in the back seat asking "Are we there yet?" every thirty seconds. Now I completely understand why so many parents joke about that infamous question!

We had a great weekend with Monica (Bert was in Portland to celebrate his birthday). We attended an awesome auction at their church on Saturday night where I even won a cool clock to help Jackson learn how to tell time. Bert got home late Saturday night, so we were able to visit briefly with him - I hope to get to see him more next time!

It was so much fun seeing Charlie and Scarlett together. Miss Scarlett is only two months younger than Charlie Boy, so it's going to be a blast to watch them grow up.

Little Miss Scarlett

My Charlie Boy

Just cousins hangin' out

And finally, we got to attend the amazing baptism of my wonderful nephew Jaeden. It was such a special experience and I am so thankful that I got to be there. He is such a sweet little guy and means so much to me. Here's the video of one of the most touching moments in my life:

Is the Tooth Fairy around?

This is a serious warning to anyone out there who neglects their teeth or fails to keep every six month dental appointment. DON'T DO IT.

I am not kidding, I have been in the biggest nightmare of my life over the last few days. It actually all started last week when one of my molars decided to basically shatter. The dentist had been telling me for years that this tooth would eventually need a crown. Well, that day had arrived. So I got in for an emergency appointment where they did the beginning stage of crown preparation. They put a temporary on and told me that my crown would be ready sometime after the twentieth. No big deal, right? Wrong. The following night while eating some ice cream, the temp literally just popped off in my mouth. I called the on-call dentist and he instructed me how to put it back on. It was a pretty traumatizing experience.

The next day, I started noticing some pain on the other side of my mouth. I didn't think too much of it, just thought I probably had a nasty cavity that I would get taken care of later. This pain got worse with each day, to the point I was popping Tylenol Extra Strength every six hours to get through. I had a scheduled cleaning yesterday morning. The night before, I was up sobbing because it truly felt like my tooth was about to explode inside jaw.

The moment the dentist took a look inside my mouth and at my x-rays, I could immediately sense there were some big problems. Turns out that I need to have a root canal done on the painful tooth, a deep cleaning where they have to numb my entire mouth, and three cavities that need to be filled. He drilled into the bad tooth and cleaned as much of the infection out that he could, sealed it up, and sent me home with a prescription for super strong antibiotics and an appointment for the root canal on Monday morning. I have had two root canals in the past and I'm not going to lie - I am dreading this appointment.

Anyways, the lesson in all of this is I will never again neglect my dental health. I can't believe I went two years between cleanings (and throw in a pregnancy as well!). I literally feel like my teeth are just giving out on me. But the dentist assured me that this can all be reversed if I take care of my teeth from here on out. Believe me - brushing, flossing, and dental appointments will begin taking top priority for me!

So boys and girls, brush and floss your teeth and please visit your dentist every six months! Take it from me - I would never wish this experience on even my worst enemy.

Just a bunch of sickies!

I wish I had some grand elaborate excuse for not updating the blog lately, but I really don't. Every day I tell myself that I must take the time to write, but it just never seems to happen. Precisely what I did not want to happen with this blog! So I'm setting a goal to write at least three times a week, if not more. I can see you all shaking your heads with doubt, but I'm determined to prove myself as a solid blogger. Alright, alright... you're right - we'll just see what happens!

Our household has recently been nailed with sickness after sickness. Just when I start to believe it's finally over, it starts all over again. It always starts with Jackson (what do you expect, it's his first year of preschool!), then it gets passed to every single one of us one by one. The most recent illness has been brutal. Jackson started with the cough and Charlie wasn't far behind. I ended up bringing Charlie Boy to the doctor last Thursday because his eyes were oozing with green goop. I kid you not, it looked like his nose had gotten lazy and passed it's job onto his eyes. Turned out he had an ear infection and an infection in both eyes. As we were leaving the doctor's office, I noticed my throat was feeling sore and my head was beginning to hurt. By the time I had finished getting Charlie's medicine at the pharmacy, I literally felt like I had been hit by a freight train.

On Friday, Eric came home from work and mentioned that he was feeling a little achy, but he wasn't too worried about it. By Saturday, he looked like death. Seriously, I have never seen him so sick. He attempted to go to work, but was sent home. He got up early on Sunday morning to work a 16 hour shift, but got sent home that day as well and ended up in Urgent Care. He had severe strep throat, almost to the point of being sent to the hospital because his tonsils were so swollen. His throat was almost closed up. So he took his sick leave and has been recovering over the last few days while I have attempted to keep our household running and keep the kids from getting any sicker. I'm so thankful that he went to Urgent Care and was taken care of. He was so incredibly sick and I don't ever want to see him like that again.

So needless to say, it's been pretty miserable around here over the last week. But today was an amazingly gorgeous day and it revived our spirits quite a bit! We spent the afternoon in the backyard, raking up old leaves and cleaning all the patio furniture. I could literally feel us welcoming spring. It's supposed to be 74 degrees on Friday and get this - EIGHTY ONE DEGREES on Monday!! We're definitely planning on a motorcycle ride sometime this weekend.

Here's a quick clip of our Charlie Boy - he's growing so quickly and so much fun to be with:

Talk about Easter blessings...

Yesterday was Easter Sunday. A special day to remember when our Savior was risen, as well as a day to partake in friends, food, and egg hunting. Yesterday was not our typical Easter - yesterday we were all truly blessed.

Our dear family friends, the Browns, have known my parents for more years than I even know. I truly consider Norris and Paula like a second set of parents. They have known me from the moment I was born and have always been a big influence in my life. Jackson even says "Grandma Paula" and "Grandpa Norris."

Norris is a pilot and flies his own small private plane. They travel a lot over to Seattle and Portland to be with their children and families. Yesterday morning, Norris had flown his youngest son back to Seattle after this Easter weekend. We were sitting in church when we received the word that his plane had crashed on his way back to Spokane. I will never forget the feeling I felt in the pit of my stomach when I first heard the words, "Norris's plane crashed." My eyes immediately welled up with tears and I had a hard time catching my breath. It felt like someone had punched me hard in the stomach and I couldn't recover. For what seemed like eternity, no one really knew anything, other than the fact that he was alive and being treated. We didn't even know where he was.

Miracle of all miracles, he was OKAY. He crash landed his plane in a field and walked away with barely a scratch on him. Talk about full proof evidence that God was absolutely watching over him. It's hard to stop my mind from realizing how quickly he could have been taken from our lives, but I haven't stopped thanking God over the last twenty-four hours for keeping him with us. My mom has always told me what an amazing and careful pilot he is and this just proves that.

Thank you God for resting Your hands on Norris and helping him guide his plane to safety. Thank you for keeping him safe, uninjured, and letting him walk away with a most miraculous story to share with us each Easter in the years to come!