Just because...

"I declare..."

On Friday, Brad and I leave to go out of town on two back-to-back trips. First, we will be going to Tempe, Arizona, for the UGA/Arizona State game. Then, we will be headed to Maui where Brad is presenting some research at a trauma conference. I know I should be overly excited about these trips, and don't get me wrong, I am very excited...but as my fellow mothers know, I am sad about leaving my little ones (and my animals) for so long...
I have no doubts that they will be loved on and cared for beyond measure by their grandparents...but just the shear distance away that I will be from them is tearing at my heart...
All this said, I am still breastfeeding my precious little Luke and am determined (and hopeful) to continue when I get back. I have been pumping like crazy and have over 2 gallons of milk to last him while I am away (you should see my freezer!). So my pump will be travelling with me in hopes that I can keep my supply up while I am away and possibly bring some back with me...at least from the first trip to Arizona. So in anticipation of this, I checked out the rules and regulations for travelling with breast milk on an airplane. Here's what I found...
-Up until about a year ago, if you were travelling with your child, you could carry as much pumped breast milk on ice as you wanted...if you were travelling without your child, you were limited to your 3 ounce bottle that must be contained in your lovely quart sized zip-loc bag along with your other liquids (obviously logic was not a part of making this rule...if your child is with you, you don't really have a need for the stored milk)
-Today's rule states that "breast milk is allowed in reasonable quantities exceeding 3 ounces and is not required to be in a zip-top bag. Upon arrival at the security checkpoint, you must declare these items for inspection"
After reading that, Brad and I couldn't help but envision some sort of ridiculous Michael Scott type scene at security...




I declare....BREAST MILK!!!!!

GO DAWGS!!!

I realize I am a week late in posting this, but things are a little busy and blogging is low on the list. Brad and I were very fortunate to be able to go to the home opening UGA football game against GA Southern. I don't even know when the last time was I actually attended a home football game. Brad's parents were kind enough to keep the little men while we went to the game. It was probably the hottest game I have ever been to, but it was fun and brought back a lot of memories from times past...when there were no little babes to tend to, tailgating was an all day event, and I was just a college girl cheering on the dawgs with her high school sweetheart....

Pre-game picture at the house (pre-make-up for Mommy)

At the game

Meanwhile...back at the house

Where did you get that shirt?

Two of a kind

I often look at Luke and Jackson and think

"Wow, they are so different."

But then I look at pictures of the two of them and think, maybe not....

(Jackson is on the left, Luke on the right)

My precious little blessings

A Toddler's Lunch...

Quesadilla in the shape of "dog bones", fruit snacks, applesauce, and a Capri Sun...

...oh, to be a 2 year old.

First Day Of School

Today was Jackson's first day of school. Today, he started 2K. I can't believe how much my little boy has grown! He is in the Zebra room (up from the Monkey room of last year's MMO) and is going Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9-12. He had a great first day, had no problems leaving Mommy behind, and is looking forward to going back. I am most proud because he went to school in big boy underwear and came home wearing the same pair I sent him in, which was still dry. So why does he still pee in his pants at home??? Here are some pictures from our first day.

hanging his bag on his hook

artwork...very obviously a red elephant

Happy Birthday Max

I miss you oh so much....

HALLELUJAH!

The Joys of Potty Training

Before you start to ask yourself, "Who is that? Is that Brad?" No, this is not a picture of Brad or anyone we know. I retrieved it from the web as an illustration for my story. This has been the summer of potty training. It has literally taken us all summer, but my stubborn little boy is finally potty trained....I think. It has not been easy, and has not been without a lot of bribery. Jelly beans, skittles, m & m's, marshmellows, prize boxes, trips to the mall to throw pennies in the fountain, picking out special big boy underwear, and yes, the big one...a BICYCLE. And by bicycle, I mean this.
Peeing in the potty was not a huge issue...but pooping is a whole different story. For some reason, Jackson just doesn't want to embrace the fact that poop goes in the potty just the same as pee. So for the entire summer I have been telling him that if he goes poo poo in the potty, he gets a bicycle. He knows this, even recites it to me and everyone he meets. But does that mean that he actually does it? No.
I finally decided that maybe if I actually purchased the bike and had it sitting in the garage to taunt him, maybe that would do the trick. Maybe the abstract idea of the bicycle wasn't enough to motivate his little 2 year old brain....but, no.
The worst part about all of this is that I have completley altered Jackson's definition and understanding of bicycles. Here are a few examples of what I mean:

- While reading a book before bed, I point to a picture of a bicycle and ask Jackson "What is that?" He responds with "That's a poopoointhepottygeta bicycle"

-We're playing in the backyard and Jackson sees Gus (the dog) poop in the leaves. He insists that I now have to buy Gus a bicycle.

And my personal favorite
-My mom, Jackson, Luke and I are all in the car waiting to pull out of a parking lot. A man passes in front of our car on a bicycle. Jackson says, very matter-of-factly from the back seat "Look, Mommy. That man went poo poo in the potty and got a bicycle."

My funny little boy :)

New look

Ok, so we finally have a new look (thanks Jennie!) I don't know if it will last, but we'll try it out for a while :)

Gifts from Heaven

Blogger help!

I need help from my fellow bloggers out there. I am desperately wanting to change the look of my blog. But I have a few questions:
-suggestions on where I can look for new templates?
-how do I upload a new template without losing all of the settings I already have on my current template (I have tried this once before, but realized that by changing to the new layout I had found, I lost everything but the text from my posts)

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Oh, and if anyone wants to take my kids so that I actually have time to do this, that would be appreciated too ;)

Skinny: adjective; ??????????

Isn't it funny and sad how your definiton of skinny changes over time? When I was in college, I always wished I was just a little bit skinnier. Then I had my first baby and realized..."hey, wait a minute, I WAS skinny in college." The baby weight started to come off, but I never really got back to being my 'skinny self'.' Then baby # 2 came along and I realized....."hey, I WAS pretty skinny after baby #1". So I'm sure that if God decides to bless us with another child I will look back and say "hey, I WAS pretty skinny after baby #2"....which is just really sad to think about, because if what I look like now, could one day be considered skinny to me.......YIKES!

DISCLAIMER: Before I get any seething comments or e-mails, let me just clear up that I do not find myself fat in any way....I just wish I were skinnier, and there's nothing wrong with that :)

Three little piggies....well, really ducks

Just about every day, we make a trip up to Wesleyan College which is right up the road from our house. It is a good way for me to get out of the house and get some exercise and they have lots of things that interest Jackson. There is a lake with ducks, turtles, and fish to feed, an equestrian center with lots of horses to look at, and lots of construction...which means lots of big trucks. But Jackson really likes the three little piggies you see to the right. Ok, yes, they are ducks. But Jackson has nicknamed them the piggies because they are ALWAYS hungry for our bread. The geese and other ducks that are there are hit or miss, but these guys never turn down a snack and follow us all the way around the lake when we are there trying to get more from us...Jackson finds it quite funny. Here are some pictures from our trip today.

"Mmmm...do I want to give this to the ducks, or do I want a bite?"

"Wait for it, wait for it."

"Catch it, catch it!"

"Ok, Mom told me to tear these into little pieces, but here you go big guy."

"Look Mom, I'm a college frat boy."

" Ok...can you get a close up of me with one of the ducks in the background?"

"Beautiful! Now just me...."

"Uh, Mom, that might be too close."

"Where did the turtle go?"

"Beh he is"

"Let me see if I can reach as high as the excavator."

"How about I just stand in the scooper"

"Ok, it's hot, let's go."

Semi Potty-Trained????

I really think Jackson is starting to understand this potty thing. He is asking more and more to use the potty even when he is wearing a diaper. Well, let me back up. With Luke being so little, it being so hot, and us not really having much money, we typically spend most of our days at home during the summer. So my potty training strategy has been to take Jackson's diaper off when he wakes up in the morning, make him sit on the potty first thing, and then he goes diaper free for the rest of the day. After observing him for a while I figured that as long as he had a diaper on, that was where he was going to pee. So I thought if there's no diaper there, he's more likely to use the potty. I was right for the most part...he only peed on the floor twice. And thankfully neither time was on the carpet.
So today, I decided to let him try out his new big boy underwear that he picked out at Target last week. He chose Lightning McQueen. I explained the importance of big boy underwear and how they were not for tee tee and poop. Sure enough, when he had to go he announced it as usual..."Mommy, I need go potty" I directed him to the potty chair, he pulled down his big boy pants (a skill that needs a lot of work as it took him about 3 minutes to get them off), sat on the potty and went! I cheered and made a big deal to which Jackson responded "Mommy, that's too loud" So I'd say that's a pretty big deal.
And can I just say that he looks so cute in his tiny little boy underwear. I took some pictures...but after careful review by Brad and I we decided that it was best not to post them for several reasons
1) our blog might get flagged for child pornography
2) to prevent Jackson from needing therapy when he's older

Cows and Kangaroos!

Today was Cow Appreciation Day at Chick Fil A. If you dressed like a cow, you got your meal for free. We are all about anything free here at the Dennis House, so we were there! Since we do not have any cow costumes on hand, we had to get creative by taping white cardstock to our black shirts. Although I argued that I shouldn't even have to dress up...the fact that I am lactating and you can milk me should be costume enough. We went with our friends, April and her son Catch and Katherine and her daughter Mary Kate. I think we might turn into chickens if we eat any more Chick Fil A!

He looks humiliated to be wearing this cow 'costume' but I promise it's just the camera angle

Jackson and Catch in their cow attire...Catch is the ever popular blue variety of cow

Mommy and baby cow at Chick Fil A

KANGAROO BOB'S!

We also visited Kangaroo Bob's this afternoon, which is an indoor 'jumpy place'. I promise we did not paint Jackson's face red...he just played that hard.

Jumping in action

Taking a break on the starfish

How do I get out?

Serious action shot...check out the hair.

Daddy and Jackson in the alligator mouth

Whew! I need some juice!