In Need of a Vacation!

 Ahhhh!  So, can you tell what's on my mind lately??  Wakeboarding, surfing, tubing........Matt and Laura time!  I dreamed about the lake house we had growing up last night.  I miss it all.  Sooo, lets take a trip down memory lane shall we?  I also wanted to show Addison and Melody that Mommy and Daddy use to do such cool things!  We love the water and all water sports!  I'm sure y'all wouldn't believe us when you get to be teenagers, so this is your proof! 

The next few pics are on our honeymoon in Maui.  We were taking surfing lessons that morning and this guy took lots of pics for us.  That was the one thing I wanted to do in Hawaii!  I could have gone home after that!   It was a BLAST and so much fun to learn. 

I believe what this post really boils down to is a much needed vacation with my hubby!  This year has been so hard and exhausting.  I KNOW it won't be anytime soon, but we sure do look forward to it one day.  We can dream!

 These next pics are when we lived in Texas.  We got a boat a few years after we got married and loved it so much.  We made great memories on that lake and had a good time bringing friends out there.  We kept the boat a couple of years, then it was time to sell it!  I believe babies were on the brain!  Oh, who am I kidding?  Babies have ALWAYS been on my brain.  I could not wait to start a family.  I remember skiing that summer and thinking, "I better ski hard cause this will probably be the last time for awhile."  I knew skiing would be off limits for a preggo lady.

 Here we are sloleming.  We tore that lake up doing this!  It sure is one of the best workouts ever.

I love this of Matt!

 Taking a break from skiing and enjoying a little tubing.  We always tried tricks on this thing.  Usually ended in one of us flipping off.  Good fun!

 WAKEBOARDING!  Enough said! 

Enjoying the smooth water

 Matt loved to wear his hat at the beginning.  He quickly learned that wouldn't end well!  All kinds of things tend to fall of while skiing!!!! Such as.........wedding rings!!!  That's right.......He lost his ring during a bad fall:(  Didn't realize it till the next morning.  I remember he called from work and was so scared to tell me and so worried how I would react.  I didn't get mad cause there really wasn't anything we could do!  We just got him a new one (that was identical to his original).  The way I look at it is atleast he lost it while we were doing something fun!  Some fishy is now swimming with a very nice wedding band!

First day of school and EEG!

Melody, I still can't get over how early you picked up the straw.  It is second nature to you thank goodness!  This is what you look like on a typical morning during breakfast time.  Happy go lucky!

Here is Addison with her priceless "Silly Face."  Gosh, I can't seem to get a normal smile out of you these days!  We don't help things by laughing!  This is random, but in this pic you are eating your first bowl of Taco Soup and loved it!  I was sooo excited cause it is something healthy and homemade that you will touch!  I believe you were hooked on it a good 3 nights in a row. 

This was the week you started Pre-k 3 and we were practicing wearing your backpack.  You are totally into it and are very proud of the several ones you own!

I thought this was so funny- we have these temperature gauges in ya'lls rooms and you love to pretend it is a phone.  One day I caught you having a VERY in depth conversation with Totsie on it.  You were answering all kinds of questions and everything.  I just sat back and enjoyed the show:)

Here you are with your teacher Mrs. Blanchard.  We all LOVE her so much!  Matt and I are so very pleased and couldn't have chosen a better teacher for you this year.  This was the day that we met with her one on one just to let y'all meet and to talk about the injury and peanut allergy.  We wanted y'all to meet in a small setting rather than the first overwhelming day of school.  This way, she would be able to see your true self and actually know that you talk a TON and are super mobile!  We knew that the first few days you would be very shy and probably not want to do a whole bunch and we wanted to let her see that you are very capable of holding your own! 

Here we are getting your EEG done.  You have been on seizure medicine ever since the injury even though you have never had a seizure.  (It is just a precautionary thing).  The neurologist said before we wean you off, we have to do this test to make sure you aren't having any.  They like to sedate since you have to be still for 30 minutes.  Of course Matt and I went against that and said we would like to try no sedation first.  It is always worth a try!  We were so nervous and really thought it might be a waste of time! But you came through and with alot of patience and distraction tools we were finished!  The worst part was the setup.  Luckily I had your hair in french pigtails that day so it was easy to get to your scalp.  I have never seen so many wires in my life!  First they have to clean with an alcohol pad, then put a drop of crisco like stuff on your scalp, place the electrode on top and finally secure with tape.  Before they started all this mess, I could see your eyes were getting huge.  You were checking out all of the equipment and gosh knows what you were imagining.  I asked the lady if she could first do a few on me.  They were more than happy to and you watched the whole thing.  I think it helped you a little.  I think me talking you through the whole thing helped the most though.  I would describe every little thing they were doing but only in Addison terms.  That's the beauty of being able to go back there and be with your child through this.  Only YOU know what makes them tick and what makes sense to them.  After they secured all electrodes, they wrapped your head really tight in this white gauze stuff.  You were freaking out and as soon as I told you it was just like a washcloth at home, you were super calm.  You LOVE washcloths!  During the procedure, we watched lots of Dora on our laptop that we brought.  You cried so much at the beginning I think you finally wore yourself out and just gave up.  I of course was right there in bed with you.  We were all snuggled up and cozy. (well, as cozy as a hospital can be.)  We are still waiting for the results cause our Dr. is on vacation.  The tech said everything looked fine to her though.  We are excited to one day be done with this medicine!

This is only about 25% of the electrodes!

Here is a priceless pic of Daddy.  We were on our way home from Dallas getting your new braces.  We wanted to get them before you started school because these are less restrictive and you can move sooo much better in them!  I think you were ready to be home and being pretty vocal about it and all I could do was laugh.  What else can you do?:)  I don't think he found it as humorous!

Ahhh!  The owl cookies.  This was our very first late night school project for you and I HAD to document cause I know there will be many more to come!  Your class has an owl theme and on the first "practice day" of school y'all were going to eat owl cookies.  Mrs. Blanchard told us this and said we probably want to make our own since theirs would be from a bakery.  SOOO, not wanting you to feel left out, I frantically searched for owl cookie cutters.  Then, we searched the internet for some pics on how to decorate.  I have to say I was pleasantly surprised!  AND even better, you never knew the difference and didn't feel left out!  Now you want owl cookies all the time!

This was the first "practice day" of school.  Yes, I treated it like the first real day by documenting with pictures.  I just couldn't miss it.  I thought you looked so precious and you were in the BEST mood.  We had been talking to you about school alot over the past year and you were sooo ready to go!  We had signed you up for school in February and your accident was in March.  Throughout the whole recovery process, I was saying that we wouldn't send you to school this year and that we just needed to keep you home.   I wanted you to get well and essentially put you in a bubble!  We began to realize that wouldn't be the best thing for you.  You were recovering so fast and we knew you would have a blast with the other kids!  We wanted that for you and were so excited for you to make new friends and learn new things.  Sooo, it was a wonderful feeling walking through those school doors knowing what had happened just six months ago.  You are some kind of fighter!!!

Here's that silly face again!  I seriously can't help but laugh:)  I taught you how to make silly faces about 2 months ago and I guess this was the only one I could come up with.  I might teach you some new ones! HA!

Ok, this was the actual First Day of school.  You were wearing your sweet little frog smocked dress.  I had to do the traditional yard pics.  Seems like everyone has that first school pic in the yard!  I couldn't get you by the pretty flowers cause the sun was sooo bright!

I will tell you that the first day was great.  The "drop off" is something that every Mom dreads.  Either the Mom or child always ends up crying.  I dropped you off, gave you a kiss, told you I loved you and you did the same.  Your eyes were big and you were soaking up every little detail.  As I walked away I was watching to make sure all was well and you were perfectly fine.  I believe everything went so smoothly because we had already met with your teacher and you knew who she was and all about your new classroom.  I am so glad we did it that way.  Totsie kept Melody so that I could drop you off by myself and give you every bit of my attention.  It was just a special time.  I missed you a bunch in those few hours and was at the front of the line for pickup! 

This was Melody's first time to eat spaghetti.  Of course you loved it!  I am finding that I can put anything on your tray and you will for sure devour it!  Thank you, thank you, thank you for being the wonderful eater that you are!  Makes life a THOUSAND times easier!

GEAUX TIGERS!  This is your new LSU cheerleader uniform which you love so very much.  This was for the first game of the season and you are a big tiger fan!  We have done a fantastic job of brainwashing you girls! 

The pom poms are such an important accessory to you and you always walk around with it yelling, "Go Tigers!"  and "Tiger Bait" and "LSU LSU!"  Melody was very interested in your pom pom- I don't believe you had any intentions of sharing it with her.

Melody was ready for the game!  You have PLENTY of LSU gear, thanks to your sister!  I'm so glad everything has held up and is still in good shape!  I LOVE that y'all get to share clothes- we save so much money that way!!

Here you are with Papa learning to play the guitar.  This was your first time and you were sooo into it!  It is so obvious that you have a musical ear.  I LOVE that and how you start bouncing/dancing whenever you hear music or some kind of beat. 

More before school shots.  I thought these were so beautiful of you!  They really capture who you are- especially the profile shots.  I feel like "True Addison" really shines through in those.  Such precious times.  You are just full of wonder, curiosity, and pure joy!

At therapy they have hired a new Speech Therapist.  Now you will finally have someone consistent and we are so happy with that.  We have been wondering if you even need it though.  Other than a little drooling on your right side (when you get tired) your speech is wonderful and is even better than it was before the injury.  So, we asked the new therapist to do a full evaluation on you to see where you stand. WELL, our gut was right!  You language tested at a 5 year old level!  You have an awesome vocabulary and can carry on a great conversation.  She said she is still scoring you on your speech and that may be your weakness right now.  Sometimes when you get tired your speech slows down a bit and your words aren't as clear.  If you score below your age in that category, then we will keep you in speech.  You sure are doing amazing though!!!

This story is kinda sad but hilarious at the same time.  Totsie was feeding Addison lunch and I was folding clothes while Melody was in the playroom.  We hear you kinda fussing off and on but no big deal.  Mom kept wondering if I should check on you and thought something might be wrong.  I told her not to worry and that you were just being fussy and you would be ok.  Well, WHOOPS!  My mom radar was WAY OFF!  I walked in to find you totally in the book basket.  Completely stuck!  You had emptied alot of books and gotten in there and couldn't seem to get out!  Bless your heart.  AND your crazy mama just had to document it with some pics!  I think that made you cry harder but don't worry, I scooped you up right after that!

Happy 11 Months Melody!

*I know your birthday is tomorrow but I am just now posting your 11 month post!*

Oh sweet Melody Rose.........are you really about to be 1 year old?  I just can't believe it.  I can recall every single second of that amazing day you were born thanks to my crazy memory!  It seems like yesterday I was in that hospital bed yet it also seems like forever ago because of the difficult year we have had.  You are still the bright little star you have always been and have the sweetest, bubbliest personality!  Addison still thinks you hung the moon.  You are constant entertainment for her and I believe your bond grows more and more as you get older!  This pic is a typical moment in our house right now.  She just loves to hug on you and squeeze you at any moment.  You tolerate her and usually let out lots and lots of giggles when she does this wrestling move on you.

 

This is what you do while I'm in the kitchen making breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Poor thing.  It always looks like you're in jail!  You will stand there shaking the bars like, "Get me outta here"!  We have had this gate here since we came home from Dallas so Addison would have to stay on the soft floor.  It has kept you out of the kitchen a good bit too.  

Here you are watching Addison play on the coffee table and wanting to participate so bad! 

This past month you got tonsillitis.  Addison had it about 2 weeks before you and I guess it finally caught up to you.  I was hoping you wouldn't catch it and was all proud when it had been a week and you still hadn't gotten it.  I was swearing it was the breastfeeding that was keeping you healthy!  Oh well.  If anything, it has certainly bonded you to me!  You are one mama's girl!  Anytime I come home and someone has been watching you, you will just panick until you get to me.  That's when we see you crawl the fastest! You are a mover and a groover!  You still LOVE to nurse and that makes me LOVE it as well.  I just don't know if I can think about stopping.  Of course I will somewhere around the corner but gosh I don't know what you will do.  It is kinda sad to think about!  I also know you are my last baby and I'm just gonna hold on to certain baby things for as long as I can.  You like to wake up around 6 in the morning.  We could put a stop to this but we respond to you immediately so that you don't wake Addison.  Matt will go get you and bring you into our bed.  You get super excited to see me and will cry until he puts you in my arms.  I get all comfy with a thousand pillows and you just nurse away.  This will put all of us back to sleep until Addison wakes up around 7.  I always say you like to wake up early cause you know you can get that one on one time with me.  This is another reason I don't want to quit!  If you continue to wake up at 6, a sippy cup full of whole milk will NOT soothe you and put you to sleep!  This is gonna be a tough one:(
You went for your 1st dermatologist appointment this month.  I had noticed a little growth on the back of your arm since you were around 3-4 months old and decided it was time to check it out.  They had to do a biopsy and thankfully it turned out to be a plugged hair follicle.  Whew.  They of course had to numb it and then it took 3 people to keep you still while taking it off.  You were fine until they had to hold you down.  They tried to do this "mommy prep" talk and warn me that they have to numb it with a needle and it might be upsetting and all that.  I was like, "Ok, yeah.  Just go ahead and do it."  I don't think they were up to date on all we have been through this last year and how a little shot and tears just aren't that big of a deal.  I think my skin has gotten pretty thick!  I am pretty sure we know what real problems are and when to get upset now!

You are an amazing eater and will just about down anything that we give you.  You would much rather prefer table food over baby food and basically beg for anything we have.  So, I have recently started just chopping up lots of mixed fruits and veggies for you.  You LOVE them.  You also prefer cheerios over puffs.  I use to cut the cheerios in half cause I wasn't sure if you would choke on a whole one.  Well, you would have no patience to wait on all that and would just grab the whole ones and shove them in your mouth.  I guess you were trying to prove something to me!  I tried macaroni noodles on you tonight and you of course loved them too.  I believe your favorite part is when we take your tray off and all of the dropped food is now exposed in your lap.  You just start lapping it up as fast as you can!  I get worried that you might get sick because you will just eat and eat and eat.  Your favorites foods are bananas, carrots, green beans, cheerios, pears, and lima beans.  You love to share your food.  You will take a bite and then hold up a piece to my mouth.  If I take a bite, you will let out a big giggle.  Then it becomes a fun game for you!

I think you might be my dancer.  It is NO secret how much I love to dance and loved it growing up.  Anytime I sing or break out dancing (which is often), you will smile sooo big and start bobbing your head to the beat and totally mimick it!  I pointed this out to Matt the other night and it was not by chance.  You do this all the time now!

You are on the GO GO GO and VERY curious!  I think when Addison was this age she was more content with hanging out in the living room/kitchen.  Really wherever we were.  YOU on the other hand are everywhere.  It is pretty much your mission to constantly find new little undiscovered places and put anything and everything your not suppose to in your mouth!  You just want to make sure you aren't missing out on anything delicious! 

You are still only saying, "Ma Ma, Da Da, and Uh oh. "  You say, "Uh Oh" quite a bit and it is usually after you drop something or do something that you're not suppose to do.  It sounds so sweet and innocent.  Precious!  Sometimes you will repeat little noises that we say over and over.  You are all ears because sometimes we will say something (real simple) and not even think anything about it and then you will repeat the sound the best you can.  Wow- we've got 4 little ears listening to every word we say! 

You love to be outside and start kicking your legs really hard and get real vocal when I open the door to let the dogs out.  You love to crawl over to the dog door and peep out that little window that is just your size.  I think you could sit and stare outside all day long!  I can't stand for you to hang out right there though cause you find so many nasty, outdoor things to put in your mouth!  I try my hardest to catch you in time, but sometimes there's just no telling what it was that went in your mouth.  Seriously, the other day I caught you out of the corner of my eye and made a beeline towards you to scoop whatever it was out of your mouth.  By the time I got to you, you had thrown it out.  Guess what my surprise was?!?  A nice little caterpillar/worm!  WHAT!  It was like those little green ones but instead was brown.  I guess it had crawled in through a crack by the door.  At least you decided you didn't like it!  It totally freaked me out and made me want to cry!