2/29/12

Thatta girl

Guess who went to sleep in her swing at 10:00 and just woke up for the first time at 2:00? Holden Eloise Bennett. I don't want to jinx it but have we possibly gotten through the hardest part?


2/27/12

Out and About

Little miss thing and I went shopping today. Davis is back at school, Bennett was working, and we were just doing girly things together. So much fun. Here are some pics I took this weekend. I love seeing her in different clothes. I especially like this little outfit. I sort of wish I had one in my size.

P.S. I think Davis has been a little spoiled lately- with a new baby sister and being sick so much. Tonight he walked in after school and said "I want a pwesent..." Ha.




2/26/12

God and People

God works in people.
And it's amazing when you see it happen.

I had all but reached my wit's end on Friday- Holden had screamed in pain all day, wouldn't eat, wouldn't sleep, wouldn't even allow me to set her down. My mom came that night to help and seriously I am so thankful. I now think that listening to a baby scream for hours at a time could replace waterboarding as torture. It's mentally exhausting- and on top of that- you feel horrible because it's so obvious she is in pain.

Anyway- that night, after trying everything from new bottles to gripe water to new formulas, to voodoo, some cool things started to happen. People came out of the woodwork- out of nowhere- to offer their support, whether in a kind note of encouragement or an offer to help me out.

Davis' sweet nanny, Carrie shot me a text saying "I read your blog. It sounds like you have your hands full. I'm in town for the weekend- can I take Davis to the park or the gym tomorrow?" 10 minutes later I checked my facebook and got a note from another friend I haven't seen in a long time, just giving me encouragement, letting me know that she survived an acid reflux baby and that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and seriously another five minutes after that I got a text from my other friend Carrie saying: "Hey, we know Davis is out of town, would you like us to pick you up for the wedding tomorrow? We want to." They live across town. I am totally out of their way and then some.

I seriously just sat and cried and felt so amazing. And thankful. And it reminded me that sometimes it's easy to feel like you can't see God working...but God works through people. And people have to be open and willing for it to happen. And when it does happen, it's pretty neat, I think.

So happy Sunday and thanks again, friends.

Oh, and p.s. I took Holden to the doctor again yesterday (three times, one week, a new record) and they said that a couple things could have happened- 1) her AR could have gotten worse- it usually peaks around 6 weeks
2) her increased dosage hasn't kicked in yet

So we have to wait and see how it goes until Tuesday- but if it doesn't get better then we'll try new formula (maybe soy) or new medicine. I am already seeing improvement though- of course, now that her daddy is home. :)

In the spirit of being there for people- here is a fun song I've been enjoying lately. Click HERE.

2/24/12

Photos

Geez, I'm really unimpressed with my photography skills after looking at these, but I am super impressed that I have any pictures at this point. Period. I've been a little busy. By the time I get her birth announcement out- I can just use the backside for the invite to her 1st birthday party.

I call this shirt "apple bottom" for obvious reasons.

Looking JUST like her brother at this age, just in a girly shirt.

I mean seriously, sometimes it's like deja vu. Though clearly she is more feminine.

Caught mid-mouthful.

Always in his helmet.

Always making this face.



This is a good snapshot of this week. Davis helping me with Holden, so I don't completely lose my mind, covered in spitup, on a conference call.

Perma-bib lately. I feel like if she could, she would laugh every time I put a fresh outfit on her.

And don't worry that her neck looks like it might be permanently damaged- she's SMILING!

A few other things. I'm able to write this post right now because Davis is with Nikki. Whom, he informed me earlier is "Mine Mikki". Thank you NIKKI! Fact: I did say "Please don't bring him back until it's time for him to go to bed." He is feeling great today and is sick of being inside. As am I, but whereas I just secretly think about throwing things and ripping books apart, he's actually doing it. So he needs to get out. Maybe Nikki could start taking him running? Or to Camp Gladiator? I'm going to talk to her about this.

Also, a sweet friend of mine, that I don't see too often, but love, texted me today and said she was going to bring me a meal tomorrow. Out of the blue. Six weeks in. I almost cried. Not because I'm hungry (I mean I am- I had two nuggets today and a 4 hour old waffle) but because I know she reads my blog and I know she was just thinking of ways to help me. And that makes me feel like a million bucks. I want to be that kind of friend. Thank you Laura.

Love...

Is getting up with your daughter at 1:00 a.m. and then again at 3:00 a.m. while she feeds her daughter...to help, or even just to chat in the dark.

Thanks mom.

2/23/12

Relief

Went to the doctor this morning...brought Holden because all of the sudden yesterday it seemed like her meds were not working. She was in pain and spitting up everything she ate.

Dr. brown took one look at Davis' throat and said it was Hand Foot Mouth. I could finally see his blisters and I felt so sad for him. Big red and white blisters on the back of his throat. Poor guy. Dr. B said he should be fever free tmw or Saturday for sure. And when I asked about how this could affect Holden, she said as long as they weren't swapping spit, she would be fine. First sigh of relief.

Then I told her about Holden and she said, "let's weigh her. She's probably outgrown her dosage. Happens all the time." And sure enough, she is now nine pounds, two ounces so she needs an extra dose at a higher volume each day. Second sigh of relief. Though I sure wish someone had told me to prepare and look for that change.

There is light at the end of this tunnel. And Honey and Nikki are going to help me this weekend while Bennett is out of town. He is going to a resort today, the reward trip for their team's success. I went last year. I joked that if I went this year, I would skip all the dinners and breakfasts and sleep until my spa appointments. :)

2/22/12

Pico's Barfing

Really, would it surprise anyone if I said I looked out the window and Pico was barfing, or his head fell off or something? It wouldn't surprise me. In fact, one hour after my last post on perspective, I got a call from Davis' school telling me one of his teachers is out with the mumps and many kids have a fever virus. Seriously? Who gets the mumps anymore? Anyway, that's not what this post is about, like I said I am TRYING to have a good perspective.

This post, instead, is about funny things Davis has said today that have kept me laughing and from running away to Mexico to live alone, in silence, selling silver by day and drinking tequila by night.

Davis says "Pico's barfing!" instead of "Pico's barking" which cracks me up for obvious reasons. Today Pico was really going to town outside so Davis looked at me with big eyes and said "Pico's barfing. Hard."

While reading, I often ask him different questions, so today I pointed at two farmers and said "who are they?" thinking he might say "farmers". Instead he said "they are mans..."

And finally, I asked him what two cows were doing, and he paused for a bit and then very seriously said "pooping." I laughed so hard because he has never said that before and after looking at it again I could see that he had studied it and one of the tip of one of the cow's tails, which was brown, was right behind the others butt.

Laughing to keep from crying. :)

Perspective

Well, Davis is sick. Again. We have been to the doctor 7 times between the two of them, in the last six weeks. This time it was out of nowhere. We went to Fred to see my grandparents and play with Kirsten and Andy. Davis was as happy as a clam and then all of the sudden in the afternoon he started sobbing and spiked a crazy fever. He threw up that night and has been miserable ever since.

We went to the doctor and simply by process of elimination and the fact that he was already 8 days into an antibiotic for his ear infection, she said it was viral. Boo. And I am really just hoping a) that Holden doesn't get sick and b) that it's not hand foot mouth again. He has a little sore on his tongue, but nowhere else. Hoping it's unrelated. HFM is certainly the worst.

But I will say this. As you could probably tell...I was wallowing a bit last week. Just about feeling like all I did was feed Holden and hold her upright all day. Well. This. This situation, dealing with a miserable toddler who just wants to be held all day and cries for 30-60 minutes straight at a time, all the while trying to feed Holden and keep her upright so she doesn't spit up, so I don't have to start all over again. This. Makes last week feel like a cake walk.

And I am kind of relating this to the sermon at church Sunday. Granted, I get that I don't have real world problems...but it has been hard and I have felt sad and tired and tested. And the sermon was about what we do with hard times. Do we praise God because inevitably we are learning and growing through them...do we thank God even? It makes total sense that we would. I mean who wants to stay stagnant vs. learning, growing and becoming our best selves? Not me. But it's easier said than done because we feel like we deserve better. I deserved a perfect, enjoyable maternity leave. At least during the day, right? I mean, I won't get this time back, it has a finite end. I am not a stay at home mom and I will go back to work...so this is it, in some ways.

So I am trying to learn and I certainly have new perspective.

When Katie was here I was telling her how I was lacking confidence. Feeling like I would never be able to manage two kids while Davis is traveling. I mean, I was losing sleep over how I would get them up and out the door, while also getting to work before 10 for goodness sakes. We, together, as a family of four have been averaging about two hours to get out the door. Seriously. Her eating, alone, takes 90 minutes. So I have been terrified. Of failing. Of letting people down, of being less than great at work. And this last few days has made me realize that it will come together. I can do it. My perspective has changed, I am still nervous, but gaining confidence...and it had to get harder for me to get here. So I guess I am thankful for that.

I am such a grown up these days. Ha.

2/18/12

Up and Down

Its amazing how many feelings one can have in a day. Just last night, or really this morning, I was panicking about going back to work in six weeks. I just didn't feel like I would ever be ready. Today, I have had a really rough day. I am so glad to be home on maternity leave, but that doesn't mean it's easy. As of yesterday, I have quite literally done the same thing, night and day, day and night, for five weeks. That's a lot of time.

So while I am just not sure I will be ready to go back in six weeks...I am also having a hard time. Even though I know my life will get back to normal and she will eventually sleep. more. Even though time is actually flying by.

It's weird to feel so many different things at once. And also so normal, I think.

Oh blog, remind me to tell you about Katie's visit. We talked ALL day, when we weren't laughing our heads off. Love her.

2/17/12

I Take Back

Saying that Holden always goes right back to bed after every feeding.

OH. MY. LORD. Girlfriend didn't sleep a wink last night. I don't know what was going on but she just couldn't get comfortable unless she was sleeping in my arms or on my chest. Which is sweet. For about 15 minutes.

So the thing getting me through today is that Katie is here from Ohio. Yahoo! That, and coffee.

Separately, a few funny things Davis has said lately:
- He asks for "geen fuit" a lot (pears, that is)

- He says "I have a BM" when he has pooped his pants.

- He is obsessed with trying to scratch my freckles off- I have to tell him that that gives me an "owie" and then he thinks that my freckles are owies.

- He says very loudly and sternly: "Don't go in Steet. Car. Will. Hit. You."

- He tells us things like "Want putzels. In. A. Bowl." or "Want appa-juice. In. A. Cup."

- The other night Davis was acting crazy and he pushed over the trash can. All the trash fell out so Bennett said he had to pick it up. As he was picking it up, he saw some pretzels. Imagine his surprise, finding his favorite treat in the trash. "Putzels!" he said, as he rushed to pick them up. Bennett and I were dying laughing as I tried to tell him that those were stale pretzels I had just thrown away. They were yucky, and I would get him some fresh ones. He paused and looked at the pretzels and then said "Yucky poo poo diaper putzels." Ha.

That's all for now, folks.

2/16/12

Valentime's Day

I love Valentine's day. I don't care how commercialized it is. I think it's great. I love candy. I love hearts. I love pink and red. I love little treats. So it's a great holiday for me.

And Davis loved it too. He had a few Valentine's in his cubby when I picked him up, so he was very pleased to have a heart shaped lollipop to suck on on the way home.

Valentine's Day was a good day for Honey too- Bennett took her to lunch at Jack Allen's and gave her tulips. I hope Davis grows up to be as sweet and thoughtful as Bennett.


That night, Bennett and I went to dinner at Quatro Gatti, this really great Italian restaurant on Congress. He kept checking his watch through dinner and I couldn't figure out why- but it was because he had tickets to Bob Schneider's valentine concert. It was AMAZING. He knows me well. Such a fun treat.

Also, to prove that love really is in the air, B proposed to Courtney last night and we all met up at the W for a surprise celebration. It was so much fun- she had NO IDEA. I got to help B set up yesterday, which was really exciting. We're so thrilled for them. This is a pic of us before going out last night. Thanks to Honey for watching the kids two nights in a row so we could celebrate. We are so thankful for her.


Oh wait- I can't forget that Davis made me the cutest little red and green wooden box with the letters "DB" on it for Valentine's day. Thank you Bennett and Home Depot. I'll snap a pic later.

Hope you all had a great Valentine's day- but that you don't wait for it to celebrate those you LOVE. :)

2/13/12

Sunday Serenade

Some quick pics from this weekend and a video of Davis singing. Passionately. With his whole heart.

Playing with Trucks!

Davis makes this face ALL. THE. TIME. It's usually when he is saying "no" to something or is just generally displeased with something. It's pretty funny.

Little miss thing- hanging out in her diaper. Just relaxing.


Video here. (Actually click the word "here" and it will load). Turn your volume on.

Things to do at 4:00 a.m.

1) drink a glass of crystal light
2) think of jokes for Ricky Gervais
3) scan pinterest
4) feed a baby
5) eat three spoonfuls of "happy tracks" ice cream you wish corky and b had not left in your freezer
6) ask yourself if its too weird to do yoga or some sort of workout since you're up anyway, and your eating habits are clearly in the can.
7) read cnn.com
8) tear up watching j hud's tribute to whitney
9 contemplate ordering some jewels from qvc
10) sing kelly clarksons latest hit, and your new 4:00 a.m. anthem, "what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger..."
11) eat more happy tracks
12) think of new ice cream names. then nail polish.

2/10/12

Sneak Preview

Carrie, from Sweet Louise Photography, came to our house today to take pictures of Holden. I think she got so many good ones. I cannot wait to see them- she does such a nice job and of course- these will be my first REAL pictures of Holden. Carrie sent me a little preview and it's making me even more excited.

If you missed the post before this (and care) I covered my parent / teacher conference for Davis, along with some pictures from his classroom.

Parent / Teacher Conference

Nothing makes you feel more like a parent than going to a parent / teacher conference. Davis' was Wednesday and I was super impressed with his teacher, and all the details she knew about Davis. We had a lot of great discussion- but for recording's sake, I'll break it down like this:

1) Davis is the quiet one in the class. WHAT? HOW? She said he is "the observer", which is funny because that is how everyone has described me when I was little.

2) He is also incredibly independent. They do little activities all day and Davis will come over, see what they're doing, maybe engage for a little bit, and then very often he will head on over to a table nearby and do his own thing.

3) He LOVES boy things- trucks, cars, legos, sandboxes, and so therefore he finds himself hanging out with Max and Leo a lot, as they like those too.

4) He is strong willed. The teachers rated the kids skills and capabilities on so many different categories and activities and his teacher told me that she would take specific things to Davis to see if he could do them so she could accurately fill the page out...9 out of 10 times, he would do the activity, no big deal, and then move on. The way she put it was "He's really only going to do what he's interested in, when it comes to activities." She said this might be because he is bored, it might be a phase, or this might just be his personality.

5) His vocabulary has picked up like CRAZY. Lately, he says stuff like:
- I need to work on it.
- I need you to help me.
- This is a good song.
- I see a lellow (yellow) bulldozer!

6) That Davis is the only Koala that still has a pacifier! AHHH. I had to coax this information out of her- I guess she didn't want me to feel judged. So she recommended not sending it for school- so I've done that the past three days and he is fine. Now at home, that is a different story. He thinks he needs it for bedtime. I'm fine with that for now. I've got bigger nighttime problems. :)

7) He is happy. Though he is independent likes to do his own thing- he is smiling and thriving and happy. And this, I can tell, from the fact that now he runs into the class without EVEN HUGGING ME. WHAT?????

Davis reminds me so much of me when I was little. I wonder what Holden will be like. By the way, things are going better with her acid reflux. Not perfect, but better. I took her to the doctor today for a follow-up today. They showed me all these techniques and suggested some rice cereal in her milk to make it thicker. Also, I didn't know this, but the meds take about a week to kick in, so I'm hopeful there.

Here are a few pictures from Davis' teacher of the last month. The kids have gotten so big- it's unreal. When Davis walks in they say "HIIIII, Davis!" And when I walk in to pick him up at least one or two of them will say "Davis' mommy!" Little friends are so fun.

Playing with "Tato Heads".

Paz, the new girl. Could she be any cuter? We pretend she is Davis' girlfriend. Every day she has on the cutest little leggings, boots, skirts, and always a bow in her hair.


Bicycling.

Legos!

The Chinese New Year Dragon parade.

Dancing in music class.


Bongo day.

Davis' classmates getting messy with shower cream. I am guessing this is one activity he probably avoided. Ha.

Playing trucks with Max and Leo. I pretend they are saying things like:
"Hey- what did your mom pack you for lunch? I'll trade you one oreo for two graham crackers." or "Did you see the car on Paz's shirt? She really gets it."

More trucks.

Hope you are having a good weekend!

2/7/12

This is a Test...

Davis with Strep.
Holden with Acid Reflux.
Paired with our general lack of sleep.

I get it. This is a test. And I might be failing...
Ugh.

Bucket Head and Super Dad

So last night took a crazy turn. All of the sudden, at Holden's 9:30 feeding, she couldn't hold anything down. Nothing. And she was in such pain, writhing and arching her back, screaming and crying. It was as if we had switched formula or something. We called the nurse line and they said to take her straight to the ER since she is so small. Ugh. So, Bennett, who shall moving forward be called "Super Dad" took her to the ER around 12:00 a.m. (We waited and tried to feed her again before taking her- but to no avail).

He was there until 7:30 a.m. and after hours in the waiting room, several X-rays, and a few more trial feedings, they confirmed that Holden has acid reflux and gave her medicine. For the next day or so we have to feed her about 1/3 of what she was eating- but almost every hour. YIKES. I'm just glad that we know what's wrong and can fix it. I just fed her- and granted- it's only the 2nd feeding since the medicine- but she wasn't in pain and she didn't spit up...so here's hoping.

As for Davis, I took him to school this morning and his class was on the playground. Lately when I take him and they are on the playground, he opens the gate and RUNS off. I literally have to shout "Hey Davis, I'm leaving, I love you..." Ha. Today I was talking to his teacher when he ran off, so afterwards, I walked over to see what he was doing and he was standing alone in the sandbox with a bucket on his head and the biggest smile on his face. He looked at me and said "Helmet."

I looked at Logan, and he said "He does this every day" and smiled. I know he is pretending it's a fire fighter helmet- but the best thing is that it's about 8 inches wide at bottom and about 12 inches high- so tall and narrow. And it's pink- which makes it even more awesome.

My two boys- Super Dad and Bucket Head.
And I guess Holden could be Pukey Burpy.

The adventures of Sam, Super Dad, Bucket Head and Pukey Burpy. Happy Tuesday.

2/6/12

All in A Day's Work...

I tell you what- at the end of the day- I've got nothing to show for myself these days. And yet at the same time- I have no time to do anything other than what I'm doing. I know, taking care of Holden is doing a lot. Definitely know that. But it's a funny feeling- sitting, watching Glee most of the day while feeding her, and next thing you know, it's 5:00 p.m.

It really is taking so long to feed her. About an hour for each feeding, lots of stopping and burping and giving her a break because she seems so uncomfortable. Then on top of that, after you feed her, you have to hold her upright and pat her back for almost another hour. See- now you know where my time is going. I called today and talked to the lactation consultant- then made a dr. appt for tomorrow afternoon...they think she might have acid reflux. I was actually relieved to hear that. I would rather know and figure it out than keep up the way it is. It's not horrible...but when you wake up at 2:00 a.m. to feed her and don't finish till nearly 4:00, knowing all the while that you have to get back up at 5:00 to start again, it's pretty exhausting.

I felt a little sad for myself this morning. Really I was just so tired- everything seems dismal. And I'm tired of sitting in the same chair for 75% of the day...with Davis I would take him all over and feed him wherever- but when it takes two hours- that is a long time to sit somewhere. When she gets a little bigger- we're going to get more mobile. For now- I'm just hopeful that the doc has the perfect solution tomorrow.

In the meantime, here are some pictures from today. And while it looks like they were all taken at one time, within a span of about five minutes, they weren't. That should give you an idea of what our day was like. She looks a lot like Davis did as a baby to me.

Sleeping...

I call this her shocked "I can't even believe that!" face.

More of the same...

And I hung the radishes back up. To change my view.

Oranges and radishes in this house.

2/5/12

A Firefighter, That's Me!

We talked a lot about going to the fire station last night- so it was no surprise when Davis asked about it upon waking up this morning. We got everyone packed up and headed out to the fire station to meet Captain Cosby- who had welcomed us to come any time when we talked over the phone on Friday.

It felt funny to not have an appointment- but I jumped out at the fire station and rang the bell. This hulky firefighter opened the door, looking sort of like he had just rolled out of bed. I told him I had talked to Cosby, mentioned that I had a little boy in the car, and asked if now was a good time. I wish the scene had been on candid camera. It was that awkward. He looked at me like I was from Mars and said "Captain who?" Wrong station. When I asked about getting a tour there- he awkwardly let me know that it wasn't a good time. They were about to have a shift change. Some heroes...

So I got back in the car and since Bennett and I both forgot our phones- we just drove to the next station in the area. On the way- we laughed so hard I cried because in some way- I was expecting the fire station experience to be like the Barney video. They welcome you in- fire station chili is cooking on the stove- the fire station dog is there to greet you- and the friendly captain makes you an honorary fire captain after breaking out in song. In reality- not so much. The second station was even more disappointing- and frankly- I wasn't so impressed with their level of physical fitness. To put it nicely, I'm not sure who they could have saved...

So, we almost went home. It was about to be nap time and Holden was due to eat any minute. But instead we tried one more station. It was a haul and I was sure it wasn't the right one. We pulled up- and it was the most legit station by far- but when I rang the doorbell, no one came. And it was pitch black inside. I turned around to head back to the car and a very disappointed aspiring firefighter. But right before I got in- a young guy popped his head out- and asked if he could help me. I told him the whole schpeel- expecting to get a crazy look- but this was Cosby's station!!! And the guy was more than happy to give us a tour.

We pulled around- and he and three other guys came out in uniform- excited to see the smallest fireman in his little fire helmet. They seriously could not have been nicer. They let us in and as we stood there and looked at Davis, with his jaw dropped to the floor, more guys came out to chat and show us around. They let him climb in the trucks- they turned on all the lights- he got to try on their helmets- and they even went and pulled out a jacket with the name "Davis" on the back so he could take a picture with it. As Baby Bop would say- these were REAL HEROES.

It was priceless- watching Davis look at them in such awe- making sure that he had his helmet on the whole time- just like them. It was everything I had hoped for and honestly- Bennett and I were pretty excited and impressed by the whole thing. Those trucks are HUGE. And they were sparkly clean, with all the pants and helmets lined up around them- ready to go- just like the movie. Such a fun morning.








2/4/12

Happy Boy

I forgot how sweet and easy Davis is when he feels well. I really did. He's two, sure, and he has his moments...but those days when he was sick really almost put me over the edge. He was so crabby and frankly, not very fun to be around.

He was sick for two weeks- so in my mind- the attitude was more about his age than being sick. How happy am I that he is a completely different little man now that he feels better? He is so sweet. He loves his baby sister...and is always bringing me her things, patting her on the back, trying to sit right up next to (on) her, and says things like "check on baby..." and then he wiggles his little booty into her room.

We've had a really fun day today. This morning I got up with Davis while Bennett fed Holden and we played and then went to the store. He really enjoys the grocery store. Talks about it all the time. Then when we got home, Davis took him to Home Depot for the monthly kids workshop. It sounded like they had a blast. I've been wanting to take him for a while- but just never made it happen.

Today they made and painted something (not sure what, I think it's going to be a Valentine's gift), then Bennett pushed him around on one of those big dolly type things, they stopped by the popcorn lady and picked up a treat, and then Davis sat on all the "mawn mowers". My grandparents gave him a little john deere tractor for christmas- so he always starts with the john deere riding mowers.

Then we took naps- all of us- two+ hours...so amazing.
Then played and played, pretended to be fighter fighters (fire fighters), made hoses out of tinker toys, and finished the day with Bob the Builder. What a day.

Tomorrow we are headed to the fire station for a little tour. Davis might pass out with excitement. I've been wanting to do this for a long time- and finally called this week. Captain Cosby could not have been nicer.

And Holden? She's been busy too- girlfriend gets out and about. Last night we went over to B and Courtney's for a cocktail and then tried out this new burger bar in the Warehouse District. One movie quote came to mind- Reese Witherspoon saying "You have a baby? In a BAR???" Ha. Good times, though, and she slept through the whole thing.

Hope you are having a good weekend too.

2/1/12

What I Love Wednesday

1) The Sandlot- best movie ever. "You're killin me, Smalls!"

2) That Holden always goes back to sleep after feedings. Davis never did this- and that is why I dreaded the nights and felt so out of sorts all the time.

3) Fresh flowers

4) Bennett's forts




5) That I found about 6 variations of this picture on my camera this morning. Thanks Bennett.

6) This sweet little face, sans spit up. (She spits up a lot.)

7) That Davis' class got a couple firefighter helmets. Logan told me Davis just couldn't even take it off yesterday- and when I dropped him off this morning- he grabbed one the second he walked in and just lit up with joy. It was amazing and ridiculous, all at the same time.

8) My iPad. Bennett really spoiled me this year for my birthday- and I feel so fancy and special as I peruse things on my iPad. I'm especially thankful for it when I'm feeding Holden and watching Glee on netflix on my iPad at 3:00 a.m.

Separately, things I'm praying for:
a) that my maternity leave time with Holden will be just the right amount, before going back to work. that i will feel ready, somehow.

b) that i don't get trapped in the lies the world tells people. that i remember what's important. that i keep top of mind the things i walk away from church feeling so convicted by.

c) that davis gets over the six month's worth of monthly sickness daycare has brought us.

d) that my back-to-work care solution for Holden is perfect and easy. I WANT CARRIE BACK. Carrie, if you're reading this, please consider coming back to Austin for the summer!!!! :) (Holden can't start at Davis' school until August)