Fun in the Sun!

Yesterday we went to Branson! We headed for White Water and finally made it! The craziest thing happened as soon as we got into Branson. The police had blocked off a huge main intersection and made everyone do a detour around it through some back streets. This took about 30 minutes, to maybe go 2 blocks! Turns out, there was a huge stand off with a guy in a motel. Apparently he was armed and wanted for murder in Texas! Crazy stuff!!! This started at like 6 am, and I think he finally surrendered around 4.

As soon as we got to White Water, Thompson headed for the kid's play area. And he had a ball!!! He played all day long and didn't want to leave. I had to ask the lifeguard to get him because he barricaded himself in a tunnel. ha! Brycen enjoyed his day too! He made his way in the lazy river. We bought a little floaty thing for him to sit in. He splashed in the water and just kicked back. Then he got tired and I thought he was going to fall head first into the water. So I picked him up and carried him the rest of the loop. He then played a little, had a bottle, and then took a nap in his stroller. He slept the rest of the day! Thompson, Brittany, and I then went and got a sno cone! It was yummy! Thompson also had some dipping dots. I will have to say that I am a little peeved at White Water though. For years (I mean, atleast 15+)  they have had a "landlubber" pass. This is geared towards adults who do not ride on the rides and prefer to sit in the lounge chairs or just float on the lazy river. Well... apparently they got rid of it this year. And for this momma who has two babies and does not ride rides, I was a little peeved to say the least. It was about $20 for a day pass. Now, we have to pay $40+ for a day pass. You can bet your bottom that White Water will be receiving a complaint from yours truly! Oh, and they took out the dressing rooms too! Now they just have one big common area for changing. Hello? Can a girl not get a little privacy???

Nana and Brycen

Brycen and I

After we got the shaft from White Water, we headed to Harrison. We ate at one of my favorite restaurants ever! Neighbor's Mill I always get the salad sampler that has a serving of chicken salad, caesar salad, I sub my fruit for tomato basil soup, and you get a muffin. (Yes, I am one of those fruit subbers! Ha!) Tonight, they didn't have my muffin (chocolate banana) so I got their fruit scone. It was amazing! It even had an orange glaze over the top. Delish!!

My tired boy

Then we headed down the road to visit my aunt and uncle. I have the fondest memories of their house growing up. My sister and I were talking about the old white swing that hung from their tree in their yard. I keep thinking about the house from when I was little. I remember my cousin, Linda's room, watching "Wee Sing" videos, and the way their kitchen was. Then we headed to my mom's house that she grew up in. Her brother and her recently acquired the house after their step mother passed away. They are working hard to get it back in shape. My mom hadn't been in the house in over 30 years, and I know that she loves being back there.

We definitely had a great day! I love spending time with my mom and sister. They are both such a great help with the boys. I think my sister just likes practicing for when she has some kiddos! :) I have decided that since I am done having babies (ha!) that when she has kids, they can be like my surrogate children. My older sister, Tara, does that with my boys and I think it is so funny. You get to love on these babies and then give them back to their mommas when the day is done! I think Tara may be on to something... :)

Today, has been really low key. My nephew, Jude came up to play with Thompson. So the boys played outside, riding tricycles and tractors (power wheels, not the real thing ;) ). We then ventured to Sonic for a drink and came home and cooked dinner.

Robert got his new class of students yesterday. He is actually having to take a motorcycle class today til Friday. Yes, I said motorcycle. Unfortunately, I am one of those wives that gave into her husbands never ending begs and pleads to get a motorcycle. (I know that I gave in just so I wouldn't hear about it anymore!) So all the way back in April, Robert got him a motorcycle. I didn't say anything to anyone, besides my dad, for the shear fact that I didn't want to hear about it. Yes, I know they are dangerous. I realize this. But, I am not the one driving, I don't have to be reminded of that fact. So with the kind words of encouragement "You better be careful, watch out for the crazies, and you better not leave me alone in this world raising 2 babies", he got what he wanted. Ugh. I hate saying that, but whatever. I am over it. I am just thankful that he is taking a safety course to help better him as a rider. So without further ado... here is Robert and his new ride.

I took this picture back when he first got it, we were still in 29 Palms.

Hope yall have a good evening! I will add more White Water pictures tomorrow!

Arkansas!

We are in Arkansas! Whoo hoo!

The plane ride went amazingly smooth. I brought my laptop and let Thompson watch a movie on it. He didn't make a sound. We only had 1 bathroom trip and there wasn't any screaming fits and hitting momma! I was definitely a happy camper. And I bet our neighbor passengers were pretty happy too!

Friday, my best girlfriends and I went to Fayetteville to do some shopping for party supplies for my cousin's bachelorette party! First we made a stop at Rick's bakery and had an awesome lunch! I am in love with their strawberry salads (They're AMAZING!!) and am so sad that they are taking vacation this week. And then we stopped by BLISS Cupcake Cafe and got a little treat! I might have gotten 2 cupcakes while I was there and ate the 2nd one at like 10:00 at night, but who's watching, right? ;)

We found some great stuff for our FIESTA! The party was Saturday evening and we had a great time! We played a few games, ate some great food, and gossiped like a bunch of women do!

Sunday, I spent the day with the kids at my sister's pool. Thompson is swimming like a fish! He is even jumping off the diving board and sliding down the slide. (We will have to get pictures next time!) After staying out there for a few hours, we came back to the house and relaxed. I got a sun burn, but luckily it doesn't hurt.

Today, I stayed around the house and my nephew Jude came by to play. A 5 yr old, 2.5 yr old, and 6 month old will wear a gal out! I was constantly answering questions (most of them for the 100th time!) and making the boys something to eat! If you don't know... boys eat a TON!!! Tonight we tried out a new restaurant in our town. It's pretty tasty! The battered mushrooms and homemade strawberry pie are definitely things I should not know about. ha!

Tomorrow we are headed to White Water! I am praying for a somewhat relaxing day. Brittany is going with us, so at least I will have an extra hand if needed (which I am almost POSITIVE it will be!).

This is random, but definitely neat... last night I figured it up that my sister, Brittany, and I are 2 years and 72 days apart. Guess what?! Brycen and Thompson are 2 years and 72 days apart! Is that not odd? I just think it is the coolest thing ever! (Yes, I am a dork but that's ok!) :) Happy Tuesday!!

It's Tuesday for sure!

Today has been a crazy day, so far, for me! I woke up fed the kiddos, and then argued with Nissan on the phone for 30 minutes. A crazy headache later, I feel like I could shoot fireballs! Ha! Tuesdays always seem like a crazy day.

I stayed up WAY too late watching "Fried Green Tomatoes". Oh, how I love that movie. I haven't seen it in years, and got sucked in when I saw it starting at 11:00 last night. Oops. But I did fold some more laundry while I was watching. :) Not to mention it was RHWNJ night. Oh. My. Word. I love the show, sadly I will admit. I think it is hilarious. Danielle is certifiable NUTSO! I love Jacqueline, Dina, Caroline, and Theresa. I was sad to see Dina leave last week. I thought the scene with Albie and Caroline was heartbreaking. She is such a good mom! She seems very supportive and such an inspiration. Did anyone watching "Watch What Happens Live" afterwards???? If I could I would have punched Danielle in the face multiple times. She gets on my nerves worse than Kelly from RHWNY!! And that says something. I am ready for next week and ready for the reunion. I hope those women tear her apart! (That is awful to say, I know, but I don't care! She needs to be institutionalized!)

We might get to go to Toy Story 3 tonight. We were supposed to go last night, but a certain 2 year old didn't take his nap like he was supposed to... So, he didn't get to go watch the movie. Hopefully he will listen today! ;)

I also need to go grocery shopping to stock up for Robert while I am gone. I am already dreading the plane ride. This time we will have a short hour layover. So hopefully this will break up the crazy, screaming, kicking, 50 bathroom breaks, throwing toys at the random strangers in the front, plane time! ha! So if you are on the Southwest LA flight to Tulsa on Thursday, bless you! And come help me! :)

Just to leave you with a little something... I laughed so hard at this one!

Things to do!

Today I have accomplished quite a bit. I have a lot of things that need to be done before we leave on our trip Thursday. Eesh!

I had a MOUND of laundry that needed washed. I have done 2 loads so far, and have about 2 left. I did two loads of dishes. I forgot to tell you how our dishwasher story ended... I went and bought a new dish soap. We have always used Cascade liquid, well I bought the tablets the other day at the store hoping that it might help. WOW!!! My dishes were clean. Because our water is so hard here, it leaves a residue on the dishes. So, they invented this stuff to help with it!

Oh, this stuff is amazing!

Well, I ran out of it the other day and the Commissary was out as well. So, finally on Sunday they had some! YAY!! My dishes are clean again. (I am a pretty big dork, yes I know! Ha!)

Then I had the daunting task of hanging pictures. I hate this. Seriously. I hate making decisions about something that will potentially be staring at me for a few years. Robert and I moved the couch yesterday onto the "big wall" and put the loveseat on the "smaller wall". Which then, I had to move my enormously big, extremely heavy wall mirror. After about 30 minutes of sweating and griping, it was hung. I hung another wall picture and 2 sconces in the living room. At the mid-landing (???) of my stairs I hung 3 pictures of the boys. I have a pretty big space at the top-landing (???) to hang the rest of the boys' pictures. I will probably take this on tomorrow.

I also need to hang all of my wall decor in my room as well as Brycen's. And then... I WILL BE FINISHED!!! The only thing that I need to figure out is what I can put on the walls in the play area. They are really bare and need something. I don't want anything too kiddish, but I don't want something to grown up. So, I will have to be on the lookout for something.

Something I have been putting off is the Pioneer Woman reading. I know that once I start, I always get so wrapped up in everything Pinoeer Woman. She is amazing! I am love with her cooking and have started browsing her recipes again. Thanks to her, I am sitting here drooling over the thought of a blackberry cobbler! Yum! I am thinking about purchasing her cookbook too. When I get some free time, I want to sit down and read her story she wrote about her and her husband "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: Chapter by Chapter, by Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman".

So, I did try 2 new recipes this past week. I made the CHICKEN ENCHILADA RING that Kelly posted and the CHEESEBURGER PIE from the Dinner Bells blog. I honestly had mixed feelings about both. I liked the enchilada ring, but wasn't crazy for it. The cheeseburger pie was too "eggy" for me. It reminded me of a quiche. I am definitely not an egg eater so I kinda just picked through it. So this week, I am on the prowl. I am sure I will find something yummy to make from the lovely P.W.! ;)

Happy (belated, oops!) Father's Day!

I am incredibly blessed to have an amazing father. As I got married and had children of my own, I have realized just how wonderful of a man he is. Believe it or not, I wasn't always the best of child. I know that I gave my dad his fair share of gray hair's, to say the least. But he was always was there to guide me and encourage me. I am so grateful for him. And I am so grateful that the boys love their Papa just as much as I do! The other day, Thompson was talking to Papa on the phone and my dad asked him if he was ready to come to Arkansas? Thompson then started to ask me, "I want to go to Nana and Papa's house!" over and over and over. I was telling my sister about it later that day, telling her what Thompson said. Well he heard me talking as I said "I want to go to Nana and Papa's house!" And he ran up to me and said "Me too, how fun!!" It was the cutest. Of course I had to tell Mom and Dad the story. :)

And I am so proud that they boys have such an amazing, hardworking father too! Robert would give anything for them, and they are so lucky. Yesterday, Robert and Thompson headed upstairs and were up there for quite a while. I started wondering if Robert fell asleep or something so I headed up to check on them. I found them both laying on Thompson's bed just talking. It was the sweetest thing ever.

Life's Blessings

Well sweet baby Cohen passed away yesterday. My heart is broken for his family. A death of a child is probably the HARDEST thing anyone would ever have to deal with in their life. I can't even begin to fathom what the family is feeling. I pray that I never have to.

When I was pregnant with Thompson, at the 20 week ultrasound, they diagnosed him with a 2 vessel cord. Usually the umbilical cord has 3 vessels, each that deliver food and oxygen to the baby. Thompson just had two. This could potentially be a major problem with the growth of the heart and kidneys. And of course I go home and google anything I can about it. (I would definitely not reccommend this, btw!) After scaring myself to death, I called my doctor. She was so sweet and was really positive. She explained everything again and told me to try not to worry. They monitored him monthly by ultrasound. When T was born, they took him away to do ultrasounds to make sure that everything was accordingly and thankfully it was.

When I was pregnant with Brycen, I had quite a few scares. One night when I was 25 weeks, I started to bleed. I went to the Labor and Delivery and they hooked me up, did an exam, and basically told me that they didn't know why I was bleeding. I was scared to death. All of the thoughts that race your mind, all of the worries just seem to consume you. Again, at 28 and 29 weeks I had started bleeding again. Each time I went to the Emergency Room. Each time, I prayed and prayed that he would be fine. Still, to this day, we have no idea why I had those episodes. I am so thankful for my two healthy boys.

Yesterday, I was having a pretty bad day. I had written my blog and not long after, I read the news about baby Cohen. Everything that I was feeling just didn't seem to matter anymore. I went to bed with a heavy heart. I was feeling guilty for acting so selfish. I prayed for peace for the Marshall family. I prayed that through their loss, they will find the joy in the life of baby Cohen. Babies are so special, their little lives touch so many. They change hearts.

So instead of dwelling on all the things that I feel are not going right in my life. I am just going to count my blessings.

One of my favorite Bible verses is Proverbs 3:5-6, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths."

We may not understand God's way of doing things. It is not our place. But if we put God first in all that we do, he will provide our path.

Please watch this video. It is one of my FAVORITES!!! The song is amazing and is so real.

Casting Crowns "Praise You in This Storm"

I was sure by now,

God, that You would have reached down

and wiped our tears away,

stepped in and saved the day.

But once again, I say amen

and it's still raining
as the thunder rolls

I barely hear You whisper through the rain,

"I'm with you"

and as Your mercy falls

I raise my hands and praise

the God who gives and takes away.

Chorus:

And I'll praise you in this storm

and I will lift my hands

for You are who You are

no matter where I am

and every tear I've cried
You hold in your hand

You never left my side

and though my heart is torn

I will praise You in this storm

I remember when I stumbled in the wind

You heard my cry to You

and raised me up again

my strength is almost gone how can I carry on

if I can't find You

and as the thunder rolls

I barely hear You whisper through the rain

"I'm with you"

and as Your mercy falls

I raise my hands and praise

the God who gives and takes away

Chorus

I lift my eyes onto the hills

where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth

I lift my eyes onto the hills

where does my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth

Chorus

Why does my Friday feel like a Monday?

You know the mood you get when Monday rolls around? Well I am in that funk today, well I guess I have been in it all week. I don't think it is anything certain, just a bunch of little stuff that seems to be getting the best of me. I am feeling guilty about staying home and taking care of the boys (I know, I know!) Honestly, I don't like the thought of anyone, either than myself, taking care of Brycen because he is to me still a baby. I know that I am very fortunate to be able to stay home with them, but part of me feels like I need to get a job. I honestly feel like I am not contributing enough to the family. I feel guilty going back to AR so often and I feel guilty for spending WAY too much money while I am there. And then I am here in Oceanside. I am trying to meet new people so that way we have people to invite over to the house and do things with. You know, be sociable! ha! But, it isn't working out too well. I went to a playgroup today. We went swimming at the pool and Thompson had a blast. I met a few women, but none that I really clicked with. Is that weird? You know when you find a friend and it just "clicks"? These were nice girls, they had children Thompson's age and they looked like decent mothers. (I am sorry, but I refuse to be around people who will not take proper care of their children! It is amazing some of the people I have met out here that just let their kids run wild in our neighborhood and don't even care to check on them!! It irritates me to say the least!) But none of them I could see being a long term friend. We are going to church on Sunday. (I know, finally!) I have picked out 3 different churches to try, but I am really hoping that we find a great church this weekend. I want a bigger church, something that offers children things to do. A MOPS( Mothers of Preschoolers would be great!) group or something like that. I know that I am just feeling down and it will just take time.

Another thing that has really gotten to me is Baby Cohen. He was born last week and had several heart defects. He has already undergone so many surgeries and my heart is just breaking for him and his family. The latest report was that they have basically told the family that he will not survive. I know that God is the ONLY one in control. I pray for a miracle for this baby boy! Please, please pray for this family as well.

6 Month Check Up! :)

I got up this morning bright and early. I got ready, got the kids' clothes laid out, bottle fixed, breakfast made, and then finally woke up the boys. We had an 8:05 appt. at the Naval Hospital which is about 15 minutes away. I had planned to leave the house at 7:30, but we left at 7:40. I still wasn't too stressed.

Until...

I realized that I had forgotten my ID in my jeans at home. We were already 5 miles away, so I had to turn around and go back to the house and get it. We live right next to an elementary school and traffic was HORRIBLE!!! Especially since it was the last day!

I made it to the hospital at 8:10 (give or take a minute or two!) and ran up the ramp with the kids in the stroller. The lady at the desk said that I barely made it before their "10 minute no-show policy". Well thank goodness for the 10 minute rule! Ha! So we get checked in and Brycen is weighing in at a whopping 17 pounds! That is in the 50th percentile. His height is 27.5 inches, 90th percentile. His head size was in the 75th percentile. The doctor was amazed at what all he could do. He showed her how he likes to get up on his hands and knees and rock back and forth. She told me that he was really advanced for his age developmentally in a lot of areas. That is the best thing a mother could ever hear! It just makes me so proud that he is a healthy boy!

Then the bad part came... SHOTS! Poor guy. He didn't cry too bad. He got 2 cute Garfield bandaids and was good to go! He has had a big smile on his face all day, you wouldn't even know that he had gotten them.

Right now the kids are sleeping and I am thinking about taking a nap too! ha! :)

Here are some pictures of the boys from this morning.

My dishwasher has not been too good to me lately. It hasn't ever worked right and they have "fixed" it once already. So I am waiting on them to figure out what they are going to do. Just to make sure it really wasn't working, I hand washed this glass and then put it in the dishwasher. This is what the "sanitized, clean" glass looks like.

Ummm... I don't think I will be drinking out of this glass anytime soon!

Do you ever have those days???

The ones where your heart feels like it would explode? The ones where you just sit there and cry and thank God for all that you have? Today has been one of those days!

Tonight, I had put Brycen to sleep and was waiting to take him to his bed. I started looking at different blogs and stumbled upon THE RUMLEY FAMILY. It caught my eye because she had such a cute little boy! As I was reading her story, my heart felt like it would explode!! I just sat here crying and crying. I am so thankful for my family. We have 2 healthy baby boys and there is nothing more in the world that I could hope for.

Robert always kids me saying that I favor Brycen over Thompson (which I don't, it's just a joke). But tonight when I was in the middle of my reading, I heard Thompson knocking on his door letting me know that he needed to go to the bathroom. I ran upstairs and opened his door. He ran to the bathroom and when I asked him if he was ready to go back to bed, he just said "Carry Me" and held out his hands. I grabbed my baby boy up and tucked him back in bed. Moments like that just melt my heart.

I came back downstairs and saw my other baby boy just snoozing away in his swing. His face is just so pure, so innocent. I say this everyday, but I truly wish that my babies would just stay babies. They grow up too fast. The thought that Thompson will soon be 3! has hit me so hard.

Today, Robert and I were talking about how he left for Afghanistan when Thompson was 6 months old. When Robert left, Thompson was just learning to sit up by himself and was in the early, early stages of crawling. We are so thankful that he will be here to experience this with Brycen. Each day in your child's life is so precious. I couldn't imagine not being there for my kids. I couldn't imagine what Robert felt and so many others have felt to have to leave their children for months. It's heartbreaking.

There is nothing I want more than to spend each day of my child's life hugging them, kissing them, singing with them, making them pick up their toys, telling them to stay out of the kitchen 50 times, etc. Like I have said, each day is so precious and it's a day you will never have back.

So now that it is 12:15 in the morning, I need to get to sleep. We have Brycen's 6 month appt. tomorrow bright and early at 8 am! :)

Almost Heart Attack!

Today, I went to the TMO (Travel Management Office) to finish our claim for moving. We did a Partial DITY (Do It Yourself) so we will be paid for the amount of weight we moved ourselves. We had went to the office when we first got to Camp Pendleton, but we didn't have both of the vehicle's registrations so we had to come back at a later date. Well factor in Robert's month of work and my trip to AR, June had definitely rolled around. I called up there last week and found out that I could finish it by myself without Robert. Well, last Thursday I went and they said that they would call me and so forth and I could come finish. Well they never called so I decided to go in there today. I gave them our paperwork and as the guy was scanning over it, he says "You do know that you had a 45 day limit on this, don't you??" Ummm...no, I did not know that. I then started doing what any normal person would do, I cried. And cried. He then started to look it over again and said "Well hey! You didn't receive any money up front, so you are good to go! There isn't a time limit on yours." I could have fell over. The thought of having money basically fly out the window by a matter of days just made me sick. I thanked him for noticing that minor detail and he told me that we should receive payment within 4-6 weeks. Whew.

But, that still doesn't help the fact that I STILL cannot find my UPC from cell phone box to mail in my rebate! This makes me SO mad! I know that it was on the kitchen counter. That was until I cleaned! I must have thrown it away or something because it is no where to be found. I could get sick over this one. I know one day it will show up and I will have to relive my anger all over. Ugh. Not fun.

Sorry this was such a downer type post. But sometimes a girl has just got to vent! :) I am, however, cooking a great meal of pork tenderloin, green beans, and rolls for dinner. I am using my recipe from THIS post. Also, I am trying better to budget myself and I have started to plan out meals for the week ahead. This way I can write down the ingredients I need from the store and not have to make so many trips each week. Problem is that I always seem to make the same meals. So, I have challenged myself to try a new recipe each week! So, if you have any new recipes that you love, please pass along! This week I think we are going to try the enchilada ring that is on Kelly's recipe blog. It looks yummy and it is a great new way of using chicken!

And I might, just might, make the coconut cake too! ;)

Oh, and this is my poor husband today. He isn't feeling too good and he fell asleep like this on the couch!

And here are a couple of pictures of Robert and I from the dinner we went to this weekend!

We had a great time together!

Oh, and a big congrats to the hubby! He shot "Expert" on the rifle again, so now he will receive his 4th award for that! Whoo Hoo!

Definitely a random, late night post!

I know I am not the only person that randomly thinks about odd things.

So...

I thought I would list some of my randomosity (is that even a word???)

* I know my husband has worked many hours this past week, month and when he came home today and went to sleep on the couch, all I could think about was how mad I was that he is going to make me sit here all night while he snoozes!!!

* I later told the husband to go ahead and go on up to bed. His reply- "Well I don't want you to be mad I at me." I kindly replied that "I already was and it wouldn't make a difference!" Ha!

* I bought a new air freshener yesterday

I loved it at the store, but the more and more I smell it, it reminds me of the nasty smell of tanning lotion after leaving a tanning bed. Eww...

* Today, on Facebook, I saw some nasty pictures of some sort of fungi that came from a spoiled capri sun. I was so grossed out (I mean nightmare worthy!) that I went and put the four new boxes of capri suns in the garage until I have enough nerve to let Thompson drink them or donate them to someone who wants them. Again, eww...

* I wanted Joe's Crab Shack so bad for dinner, but the aforementioned sleeping husband caused me to eat this for dinner:

and

* I started Jilian Michael's 30 Day Shred on Wednesday and haven't been able to move since. Needless to say, I haven't done Day 2. Ooops.

* I hate that Brycen is already growing up so fast, but I can't wait to plan his first birthday party!

* Speaking of parties, Thompson has declared that he wants a "Batman birday cake". He tell me this everyday and has for over 2 months! Secretly, I hate batman and would much rather have a Toy Story or some other theme besides Batman.

* I lost the top to my cell phone box. You know, the one you need to mail in for your rebate... there went a $100. Ugh.

* I sent Thompson to bed an hour early tonight because literally it was coming down to me pulling my hair out.

Ok, I think I have probably bored you enough :) Tomorrow, Robert and I are going to a "Mess Night". Have no clue what it is besides the fact that if I get up to use the bathroom during it, they fine us money and make fun of me. Sounds like a joyous event! Hope you all enjoy your weekend!!

Happy 6 Months Brycen!

I know I say this every month, but WOW! You are already 6 months old!!

You are changing more and more each day. I can already picture the little man you will one day be. You are in awe of your big brother. Anytime he is in the room, all of your attention is on him. It's the craziest thing. Every morning he wakes up, he has to go and check on you to make sure you are ok. If you cry, he is the first to tell me. If you wet your diaper, he is right there bringing the diaper. He loves you so much.

On to stats...

I weighed you the other day and you were 17+ pounds! Whoa! We will get your official weight when we go to the doctors next Wednesday.

(I love how it looks like he is doing the water sprinkler!)

Your height is somewhere around 27+ inches. Again, official on Wednesday.

You are wearing anything from 6-12 months in clothes. You are so long that you need bigger sizes. You are wearing a size 2 diaper and size 2 shoe.

You are drinking about 4 bottles a day and 1-2 packs of Stage 1 baby food. You LOVE the fruits and sweet potatoes, but could care less about any other vegetable!

You're sleeping great these days! You go to bed around 10 at night and will usually sleep til around 9 or 10 in the morning. PTL!!! You take about 2 naps a day. You have one big nap (About 1-2 hours) and a cat nap in the afternoon.

You love your jumperoo and bumbo seat. I have been putting toys in front of you and you love to play with them. You do love your brother's trucks and he loves to take them from you when he sees you with them. :)

You are now sitting up by yourself! What a big boy! You are already trying to crawl. You will get up on your knees and hands and push like you are going to go. So cute! I have a feeling you will be a low crawler like your brother started out doing. You can definitely make your way around the room by rolling or scooting on the floor.

You cannot sit still at all. Your legs have to be moving 90mph the entire day. I can already see a future of me having to chase you down all day long. Goodness, and I thought your brother would give me a run for my money!

You are definitely a momma's boy! You light up everytime you see me. (Trust me, the feeling is mutual.) But, you are so fascinated by your dad. You will sit there on his lap and just stare at him. When he notices you looking at him, he will smile at you or talk to you and you just laugh and smile. It's so cute to watch.

I still think your hair is going to be light. For Jude's sake, you have "grown" some more hair since we were in Arkansas.

I just know that you are going to get a tooth any day now! Your brother cut his first one when he was 6 months and 1 week. We will have to see about you!

I want to go ahead and apologize to you now, Brycen. I know that everything you do, I compare you to your brother. Well Thompson did this at this age. Well Thompson weighed this much when he was this old. And so forth. I'm sorry! Your dad reminds me all the time that you are not Thompson and that you have your own schedule. I know this. But I kinda just use him as a guide. I promise not to fret if you aren't on "his schedule" with anything. I know that you are your own little man. I guess it would be kinda boring if you did everything the way Thompson did!

I love you, baby boy! Happy 6 months!!

4 Years Ago Today...

I was doing this...

It honestly seems like ages ago. I was so young, so in love.

Robert had just started his Marine Corps career.

At one point, it was still just the two of us...

We have been through 2 deployments...

Two times of saying "I'll see you soon."

Two Homecomings

We've spent an anniversary together...

We've spent Anniversaries apart...

We have been so lucky to have been together for most of the most of the major holidays!

We have lived in two different towns, 4 different houses.

We've had two beautiful baby boys!

We have been each other's rock and a motivation to succeed!

Four years later, I am still so in love, but have definitely grown so much as well.

We have been through a lot, a lot more than many young couples. But I would definitely not change it for the world. My marriage has made me who I am today. This man that I married is every bit of everything that I had dreamed for in a husband. He has loved me unconditionally, he has been the best father to our children, and he has been a leader for our family.

We are definitely not perfect. We have always said that we fight hard, but love harder. Oh, how that is true.

I know that that passion is what is going to get us through the years ahead. (Not to mention that we are about the most two stubborn people you will have ever met!)

Who knew that my first crush at age 13 would be the man I would someday marry? I am so thankful for the chance of meeting up in life again.

I am so thankful for the chance at a lifetime with this man.

Happy Anniversary Robert! Love you!