Long Over Due....

Ok so I'm way past due when it comes to blogging. I feel like life has just been beating us down. I don't even remember everything that has happened since my last post, but we've just been soo busy. Where do I start...

Easy stuff...the kids. Van is doing great at school. He can recite the Pledge of Allegiance all by himself. It's quite impressive to hear your 2 year old say the whole thing, almost brings tears to my eyes. One of his favorite activities now is to trace things. He loves to draw but can't do it really well so he decided that having mommy or daddy draw or write what it is he really wants, then taking his marker/pen write over it is just perfect. And you know what, he's pretty darn good at it. I know all parents must feel like this, but at times I just have to remind myself that he is only 2 and he's still so smart. He loves going to school now and he has friends and all the parents think he's just the cutest thing...its because he plays the quiet shy card every now and again and it just pulls all the moms right in. Such a lady magnet...

Onto my troublemaker...Ava. Wow, do I feel like her life is flying by. Just last night she decided to jump out of her crib. Can you believe it, just barely 9 months old and getting out of her bed. Van was just so content to do whatever it was that we let him that he never really bucked the reins so to speak...but Ava, oooh she'll be a tester. Today was the first day we heard an actual word from her, bye. She has been waving now for a couple of weeks and when Mike was leaving today she was waving bye bye and even though he had left, she couldn't stop saying bye bye. I was very excited for her. Now she's been saying it all day long...its just like any other new discovery. Let's see what else...she can stand on her own, although she doesn't like to do it for me because she just assumes I should be holding her all the time. She walks all around the furniture and she will put on a great chase crawling now. Sometimes she's so fast I lose her...its funny. She eats everything, well everything but bananas actually. She is a very sturdy girl, except for her tiny feet...I wish the darn things would grow already. If I'm not in the room, she is a pretty good baby. She's usually happy, playful, very determined, and just beautiful to look at. She has 2 bottom teeth now too and probably another one on the way. She knows her name and tries very hard to do anything her brother does including climbing in the bathtub all by herself. She loves to play in the bathroom and will get in the toilet any opportunity she gets. There are so many facets to this little girl now, I just can't remember them all.

Mike and I are keeping our heads above water. My dad was visiting with us last week, which should have been fun but instead we all ended up with the flu. Not to mention, just a few weeks ago Van had a pretty bad cold w/ chest infection too. So the flu came, hitting Mike first, lots of aches, chills, fever, ick. Then it hit my dad, myself, and Van all on the same day...tons of vomiting, fever, aches, chill, double ick. This was the first time in Van's life that he was actually vomiting, in a pot not to mention, and it was so pitiful. It doesn't matter how bad you feel, but as a parent it just breaks your heart to see your little one not feeling well knowing there isn't much you can do. Luckily for Van, his lasted about 24 hours. For me, the flu wasn't so gracious, 4 days later I was still struggling to gain my strength back. Not only that, but 2 days later I was dosed w/ a horrible migraine and poor Mike has been managing the kids the best he could, but I think he's just tired. And that's not even the worst of it. I've been dealing w/ this medical "mystery" now for 5 months and it has finally been diagnosed. I have a "huge" kidney stone lodged in my uteral track and have to have surgery next week...again, leaving Mike to man the house for a little while. Hopefully my recovery will be easy and I will be up very soon after my surgery, maybe day after and will be ready to go. I've got lots of family and friends around willing to help so hopefully that will take some of the load off of Mike.

Its really late and I'm very tired, probably off to bed. Sorry no pics this time, hopefully I'll get some up and posted soon...maybe even this weekend. Thanks for being faithful.

B