Wednesday: A Day in the Life

2:11: Claire woke up. I put her pacifier back in her mouth. She screamed. I rocked her. She screamed louder. I nursed her right back to sleep. Ilayed her down. She cried. And cried. I think her teeth are giving her a fit. I brought the Baby Papasan and put it by my bed. At 3:00 she went back to sleep. I know this is probably not Babywise, or Happiest Baby on the Block, or any other great theories, but I gotta do what I gotta do.

6:44: Claire is hungry again. She nurses, and is back asleep. Hate I didn't get to see the newspaper guy zoom by this morning. Just kidding. Blake left for work.

7:15: Jackson woke me up...he has slept for 14 hours straight. Crazy. He wants to lay in the bed with me and me tell him stories about pirates. I do my best to become cognitively alert enough to form a plot.

TV time for Jack. Shower time for Mommy. Pretty sure we are going to have a pool day, so no need to fix the hair, make up, etc. Running shorts it is!

Claire wakes up for the day. We meander into the kitchen. Breakfast time. Eggs, applesauce, toast, and milk for Jack. Claire had cereal and applesauce. Jack ate every bite and wanted more of everything....all that sleeping must have made him hungry. I obliged.

One of the doctor people from yesterday called me back and made a doctor's appointment. Dishwasher unloaded. Load of laundry started. Kiddos dressed. Teeth brushed. Beds made. We played. We talked. We laughed. We smiled. I love them so much. They are my sunshines.

Claire nurses again, and goes down for her morning nap. I start another load of laundry. Emptied out my diaper bag to give it a wash. After Claire falls asleep in the mornings, I usually try to just have one on one time with Jackson...whatever he wants to do. Today, he decided we were going to have an indoor baseball game. He even brought me a pair of pretend cleats (ballet flats). We read books....he is still so obsessed with trains.

We made plans to meet Robin and Ben at the pool. We packed our lunch and waited for the princess to wake up. Claire woke up, and we headed to the pool.

Claire ate her lunch, Jackson wasn't hungry. We put on our SPF 167 sunscreen, and had an awesome time swimming. Jackson and Ben played pirates. Blake got off work early and joined us. Jackson ate a little lunch in between finding treasure and jumping off the diving board. They swam for almost 4 hours. FUN SUMMER TIME!

We got out of the pool....I printed off a few things for our Wednesday night class. Blake bathed Jack. I brought the kids home...they crashed on the way. Blake put them in their beds. I showered and got dressed for church. Claire woke up, and I gave her a bath and got her dressed for church.

I packed our bag for church. Woke Jack up to change his clothes...he had drank too much pool water...took care of the linens, and headed out to the door.

We taught our sweet little class. We taught about the sixth day of Creation. So fun.

I packed up the troops, we picked up Emily to spend the night with us.

Got home...Jack played outside with our neighbor for about an hour. Came inside..he still hadn't eaten dinner...fixed him some snacks...he announced he was "hitting the hay." For real, I don't know where he comes up with some of the stuff he says. He is so funny.

I nursed Claire, and put her to bed.

Started a load of laundry, loaded the dishwasher, and picked up toys.

Fixing to go read my Bible, pray, and read my devotion book.

The. End.

Tuesday: A Day in the Life

Claire woke up about 5:00. I sat down in the glider to feed her, and low and behold, the newspaper guy came flying down the street almost on que. For the past 8 months, he has been getting on my nerves. The speed limit is 20 MPH. For real. I put her back in the crib after she ate, and crawled back in the bed.

About 6:45, Jackson crawled in the bed with me, and Blake left to go to work. Jackson and I chatted for a few minutes, and I turned on the TV for him, and I got in the shower. He watched "Martha Speaks" and "Arthur," while I finished getting ready. I brought him his clothes, and he dressed himself while watching TV.

Today, the plan was to meet some friends at the zoo at 9:00. We were also picking up Emily (a family friend) from my parents' house, and she was going to go with us. After Jack and I were both dressed, I woke Claire up, fed her, got her dressed, and packed our things for the zoo.

I grabbed Jack cereal, a banana, and milk for him to eat in the car, and we were off...

I went outside...rain. Not ideal for the zoo. Just a drizzle, so I went ahead and picked up Emily, and ran an errand for my mom. By this time, the rain is coming down in buckets, and the play date at the zoo was rescheduled for Pump it Up at 10. Emily didn't sound too excited about the inflatables (she is 16), so we headed to Starbucks. She shares my love for coffee...We went through the drive thru, and headed back to my house. Pit stop at Publix, didn't realize we were low on milk yesterday.

I fed Claire her breakfast (rice cereal and banana mango), and Emily played with Jackson. I used to babysit Emily when she was about 2 years old...crazy seeing her playing with my kids! She played with both kids and watched "Horton Hears a Who, "while I unloaded the dishwasher, vacuumed, put away laundry, and picked up toys. I nursed Claire and put her down for a nap sometime during all of that.

I called and attempted to make 2 doctor appointments. I am sure offices have their reasons, but it annoys me to call and make an appt. and not get to talk to a human, and have to leave a message for someone to call me back to schedule my appt.

Lunch Time: Jackson had toasted cheese, fruit, and applesauce. Emily fixed her own lunch...I had a sandwich and a whole lot of cantaloupe....my FAVORITE fruit. I cleaned the kitchen, and then storytime.

I read Jackson a few books, and put him down for a nap. But, after an hour of resistance, he came back in the living room to play. We played Cars for a long while..I talked to a few friends...and texted with a friend from high school that had some good news.

Daddy's home. Love that part of my day! We chat, and I start dinner. Easy dinner...salads and baked potato (Blake) and sweet potato (me). We usually have that on the menu once per week (esp. in the summer).

Dinner is served. Jack is exhausted, due to naptime resistance, and falls asleep upright, whilst eating his apple. I take him to his bedroom...he has been asleep since about 5:30, and will most likely sleep until tomorrow. Claire has some sweet potato and a Baby Mum Mum....Blake held her, while I cleaned up. We both played with Claire, and had some time together. I hate when J falls asleep so early...Blake does not get a lot of time with him, but that is just the way it is, I guess. I wanted to go to the park tonight. Boo.

I took Emily back to my parents' house, Blake gave Claire a bath.

I watched Blake do "The Thirty Day Shred." I did not exercise today. Blake did a good job.

I put Claire to bed.

I did take a nice, hot bath.

I read my Bible and devotion. I wish I would do that first thing in the morning. If I move, my kids wake up...and Jack wakes up REALLY early anyway. Trying to figure that one out. Good reading tonight about protecting yourself from the enemy.

Claire woke up. She went back to sleep. She just woke up again. Ah, Blake got her. :)

I am going. To. Bed.

A Day in the Life: Monday

I fed Claire at some point in the early morning, maybe around 4:00...it was still dark outside, but I am not really sure what time it was. It was before the newpaper guy comes flying through (usually about 5:00) at about 60 MPH...I wonder if his boss knows he does that.

I came back to bed and heard Claire waking up about 7:30. I fed her, and Jackson came into Claire's room about 7:45. We all 3 went and snuggled up on the couch for a little while.

I got in the shower and got dressed for the day while they watched "The Cat in the Hat." I fixed breakfast for Jackson (scrambled eggs and fruit), and Claire had banana mango and rice cereal. I unloaded/ reloaded the dishwasher while Claire was content in the highchair and Jackson was eating. Jackson might have dropped some of his eggs in the floor, and I called Lady to come have a snack....

Then, Claire was ready for her morning nap. I laid her down, then got Jackson dressed. We read books and colored while she was asleep, and I worked on the huge laundry pile that had accumulated over the weekend.

Claire woke up, I fed her, and we all got ready to go to Publix. We went grocery shopping...so much easier now that Claire can sit up in the cart. Jackson usually does great at the grocery store, and he did today...but, he has began to notice all of the things that are available at the store that we typically don't buy...including toys. I love how all the merchandise is strategically placed at the eye level of a 3 year old. Clever.

We came home, put the groceries away. I fixed lunch...Jack had 1/2 peanut butter sandwich (which he finally likes!!), fruit, and yogurt...Claire had squash and applesauce. I unloaded/reloaded the dishwasher again.

Jackson was tired, and after a few disciplinary issues, he went down for a nap a little early and went right to sleep. Claire is teething, and fell asleep, but woke up screaming every time I put her down, so we chilled out on the couch for a little bit, and then she played in the floor while I had my devotional time.

Jackson woke up, Claire finally fell asleep. We played trains, and I put up some of the laundry.

Blake came home...yay! I started dinner while he entertained the troops. We had Simple Spaghetti, salad, and cantaloupe for dessert. Claire had cereal and sweet potatoes....I cleaned the kitchen, and Blake took Jackson outside to play.

Blake mowed the grass with a little help from the Jack-man and his very own push mower. Blake came in, I made my first batch of homemade bread...tasty.

I cleaned the bathrooms, and then Blake gave the kids a bath while I went for a run.

I came back from running, nursed Claire, and put her to sleep. Then Blake and I read books and had devotion and prayer with Jackson, and I layed down with him for a little bit.

Blake and I did a quick toy pick up, swept the floor, and laid on the couch and started watching Food Matters. But, we both fell asleep.

I think that is about it for today. I am thankful for these days when I really don't think I have accomplished much...when I start writing it all down, I guess maybe I did have a productive day! Love my Jesus, hubby, and babies. Love taking care of my hubby and babies...and so glad Jesus takes care of me. Thankful for these days....Enjoying every second. Hope ya'll had a great Monday!

I have some pics from today, but the computer is too slow tonight to upload them!

Nashville Zoo

Last Monday and Tuesday, Blake and I took Jackson and Claire on a road trip to see my BFF and her family. We had the BEST time, and took the kids to the zoo. They loved it....I have never been to the Nashville Zoo before. It is really clean and has lots of cool exhibits. Jackson even talked to one of the zookeepers, and asked some really good questions. He asked where the giraffes went when it started raining, and was curious about what they ate. He also liked the Golden Frog. They also had a really awesome playground. It started raining, and Jack didn't get to play too long. Great times with a great family.

Sunday Snapshots: A Day in the Life Edition

I have been reading Kelly's Korner blog for awhile...this week on Sunday through Thursday, she is posting "A Day in the Life...." just to document her days, for herself, to look back at during this season of her life. I am going to try to do the same...if I have time. :) This will probably boring for most people to read, but this is my blog, right? So, hear goes.

Claire did not sleep well at all last night/this morning. She woke up at 1:00 a.m. and would not let me put her down...I tried all the tricks....swing, Papasan, crib (yeah, right), Tylenol....and she just wanted me to hold her. I think she is cutting 4 teeth, and I hope she is not getting in ear infection. At 4:00 a.m., she finally let me put her in the Papasan chair, and we slept until about 7:30. Jackson got up, and Blake got him dressed for church. Blake and Jackson rode to church with Brad and Lydia. Blake has to be at church at 8:30. (That is why there are no pics of Jackson today).

I got up and got Claire and I dressed (My friend, Veryll, made this gorgeous dress for Claire...Thank you so much....LOVE IT!!!), fed, packed the diaper bag, made everyone's bed, and put Lady out in the garage in case it stormed while we were at church. We left here about 9:30. We got to church, and I worked in the nursery today.

After church, Blake took me to Starbucks and the cashier decided to treat our whole family to our drinks today. So nice.

We came home and changed clothes, and went to my sister in law, Jill's birthday party. We stayed a couple of hours, and came home so our kids could rest...they usually nap, but didn't today.

Jackson and Claire played and I finalized my menu plan and grocery list for the week.

I normally do not cook dinner on Sunday...we usually eat lunch with Blake's family, and today we had lunch for Jill's birthday, so Jackson ate a pancake and strawberries for dinner. Claire had sweet potatoes and banana mango. I cleaned the kitchen, swept the floor, picked up toys, dried a load of laundry, sliced a cantaloupe, froze 4 bags of blueberries, and sliced up a strawberry/blueberry mix for us to snack on this week.

Blake bathed both the kids, and I got them dressed for bed. I rocked Claire to sleep, and we read Jackson books, and now he is asleep.

I took a nice, hot bath, and am fixing to hit the hay.

Sunday is our day of rest. Tomorrow the real work begins. :)

8 Months Of Pure Joy!

She is 8 months old, and we are so thankful to be her parents. We are all still totally smitten by her, especially her big brother.

I am not sure her weight or height....thankfully, we have not had to visit the doctor's office in a few week, which means no ear infections.

Eating: She still nurses 6-8 times per day...around 1:00 am, 6:30....and about every 3 or 4 hours during the day. For breakfast, she usually eats cereal (oatmeal or rice) mixed with fruit. For lunch, a fruit and veggie, and for dinner cereal and a veggie. She also likes Baby Mum Mums. She loves sweet potatoes, squash, carrots, and green beans. Sometimes she likes peas, sometimes she doesn't. She likes the veggies better than fruit....her favorites are prunes (gag) and blueberries. She likes whole bananas cut into tiny pieces, rather than pureed.

Sleeping: Interesting, unpredictable, and a very light sleeper. She usually gets up at 1:00 to nurse...sleeps until 6:00, and then sleeps until about 9:00. She takes a nap about 10:30 and sleeps about an hour. Then takes another nap around 2:00 for about an hour, and will often take a little nap after dinner. She goes to bed about 8:30. She loves to be rocked and likes lullabies playing on her CD player...she is also very attached to her Bear Bear and this little pink blankie...it is so sweet. She also must have her paci to sleep!

Temperament: Still a super easy baby. She loves to be held, and doesn't like a lot of noise and commotion. She starts crying really loud if anyone raises their voice. I think it hurts her feelings! She also has started experiencing some seperation anxiety.

Other things: She is sitting up really well. She is showing some signs of starting to crawl...kind of scooting around. She has two little teeth. Loves to be read to. Can say "uh-oh", dada, mama, bubby (Jackson), hey. She is waving and clapping a little bit. She wears a size 3 diaper, and is still wearing some 3-6 month clothing, and some 6-9 month clothing. She has tiny feet...her shoes are still size 0 and 1.

We love our little Claire Bear.

Jackson's First Movie and Super Fun Play Date

Today was a good day to be Jackson Freeman! We woke up this morning and headed to our church to help get everything set up for a Cars Play Date/ Preview Party. Some girls at church put it together and it was so great. The kids colored, played Cars, then Blake read them a Cars 2 book, introducing the new characters. Love having some stay at home dad power...too bad he goes back to work next week. Dislike. Anyway, then the kids ate lunch and got to break a pinata. We all watched Cars, while eating dessert....Veryll even made cupcakes with each child's on them. So adorable...she also made T-shirts for them to wear with their initials (even Claire has a McQueen onesie)....it was a BLAST!

We left the play date and headed to the Theatre to see Cars 2. I don't want to give away too many details...I know many of my mommy friends haven't seen it yet, and I don't want to spoil the fun!

Like I said, it was a great day to be Jackson Freeman!