Spa Morning

Who needs a spa when you have a doting father/husband! This morning I woke up and painted my left hand (which is easy to do since I am right-handed). While I was waiting for them to dry, Bennett came in and asked for her nails to be painted. Steve volunteered to do them for her. She chose pink for her hands. However, once she saw how pretty her hands looked, she wanted her toes done too. So she propped her feet up and he painted them red, purple and a few green.



Since Steve did such a good job with Bennett's nails, I asked him to paint my right hand. They all look perfect, and we didn't even have to leave the comfort of our house. Nice!

Biking

Every young child deserves the opportunity to ride a bike. Unfortunately, we don't have a good driveway to provide that, so the children have learned to improvise. Since we cleaned up our basement back in December, there is a large enough space for them to ride their bikes down there (which is perfect on those cold or rainy days).

Our other location is the library parking lot (which is practically across the street). Preston has gotten so brave and loves to pedal as quickly as he can down the slight hill there so he goes fast. He gets going so fast, his little feet fly off the pedals and he wobbles some (which makes us a little scared), but he recovers and keeps going! Our goal is to keep practicing through the spring, so we can try taking the training wheels off this summer.

Check out our daredevil! His tongue is always hanging out of his mouth, so we have to keep telling him to keep it in his mouth (so he doesn't bite it off)!

Bennett, on the other hand, is not quite sure of herself outside of the basement. She is confident and does well on the smooth concrete basement floors, but the minute she wobbles a little outside, she gets scared. She road around a little this morning, but she just prefers to watch Pres.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Today is Valentine's Day, and though Steve is out of town...he gave me a great gift - The Kindle Fire! I look forward to reading my first book on it! Unfortunately, I have been feeling under the weather (again). I got the mother of the year award this morning when I turned on the TV for the kids, laid out their breakfast and went back to bed until school started. I know it is pathetic but I was feeling awful! I told Bennett I wasn't feeling up to attending her party today, but she lost it so the guilt set in and I went.


Shortly after I arrived, my fever broke and I started to sweat profusely (seriously...sweat was running down my back and into my pants). I felt awful! I told Bennett I had to go, but she started to cry again, so I hung out in the corner for awhile longer so there wouldn't be a scene. Finally, I was able to escape about 15 minutes later. When I got home, I drank some water and started to feel a little better. So I decided to do what any logical person would do...sweat more by heading to spin, right? I definitely didn't give 100% to the class, but it felt good to sweat a little more and feel my head drain some. After another shower, I started to feel even better. Thank goodness for the Z-pack, day 2 is finally kicking in for me!

Regardless of my little illness, Bennett had fun at her party! They had a craft, enjoyed a story, and ate a cupcake.

Preston's school party was yesterday! He has a large class but he only talks about four other kids: Banks, Whit, Luke and Lucy. These five kids were in the same class last year where their bond was formed. After two years together, they are thick as thieves! Before his party ended, I tried to get a photo. Someone wasn't looking or was moving around each time, so this is as good as it gets. Just by looking at this, can't you tell how these kiddos can be mischievous? They are a hoot!

Lucy is Here!

I am excited to announce the birth of my newest niece....Lucy Ann Banta! She was born today, February 6th....on my father's birthday, as well as my late grandfather, Lynn Banta's birthday! She weighed in a 7 lbs 8 oz and is just perfect!

Shannon is doing well, and is thrilled to finally meet the little girl that has caused her to spend many hours each week in her OB's office. Since Shannon has had high blood pressure issues, as well as sporadic low amniotic fluid, her OB felt it would be best to deliver Lucy a little early. Due to some medication Shannon received right before delivery, little Lucy had some breathing issues after delivery. Thankfully, once the medication wore off, the problems went away.








The kids and I went up to meet her this evening. Her small, perfect body brought tears to my eyes. She slept the entire time we were there tonight, but it was still love at first sight.



She is adorable with some dark, soft hair and big cheeks, which are perfect for all of the kisses I know she will be receiving! Big siblings, Christian and Henley couldn't be more thrilled, as are cousins, Preston and Bennett! In fact, they both held the baby and talked about her all night after we left. Bennett kept saying how cute she was, and how she can't wait to visit her again. Fortunately, she'll have the opportunity tomorrow when our family returns (with a real camera for better pictures). We love you Lucy, and are so happy that you are finally here!

Date Day with Bennett!

At the beginning of the year, I set goals for myself, and one of those was to take each of our kids out on a date each month. Finding time to spend with just Preston is easy since he doesn't attend school everyday. However, Bennett is a little tougher since she goes to school five days a week and we're generally together as a family over the weekends.



Last week, Preston and I had our date, so it was Bennett's turn this afternoon. Since Steve usually only works half days on Fridays, it was a perfect day to sneak away for a little "girl time." We started off by getting her haircut at my salon (since her last haircut was AWFUL). She has never had her hair washed, only sprayed down and cut. So she was so excited to be treated like a big girl and have the whole experience. Of course, she became a little antsy during the styling process, but she was overall a good girl.



Following her salon appointment, we treated ourselves to ice cream and then a quick visit to the zoo. Sadly, Bennett hasn't been to the zoo in ages and had never seen the lion cubs. She heard from Preston earlier this week how much they had grown, so she wanted to see them before they were full-sized. Our zoo has also welcomed a baby Oraguntan, but unfortunately she and her mommy, Lipz, were not in the exhibit today.







Though our winter has been very mild thus far, the zoo has many exhibits closed. Couple that with our late in the day visit, we didn't get to see much. Regardless, it was fun to just hang with Bennett and talk to her without Pres or anyone else around. Our children totally thrive when they get that special one-on-one time (like most kids I imagine), so it was a fun afternoon!

Cold Season is Here!

It is mid January, and the weather has been varying from upper 60s to below freezing temperatures. So it is no wonder that we all have stuffy noses and a cough. Poor Bennett still hasn't mastered blowing her nose, so if it doesn't drain out, she is swallowing it. Therefore she has been very congested and has a nasty cough. Unfortunately there isn't much you can give a child under 6, so it has been very persistent.

Tuesday, I sent Bennett to school and Preston and I had a "date day." We went to his choice of gym nurseries (so I could get my workout in), and then we went to lunch at his favorite...Micky Donald's (that is how he pronounces it). Since his diet is still limited, he loves the change-up of food. However, he enjoys his happy meal so much more if we can eat there. So, we ordered and sat down for a quick lunch. After picking up Bennett at school and then napping, he awoke and threw up.

After stripping him down and cleaning up the mess, he complained that his belly still hurt. I taught him to go to the toilet to throw up, and he did several more times. After a quick bath, he crawled up in my lap and fell asleep. Then Bennett started a coughing fit, which led to her running to the bathroom and unloading her whole dinner. Sigh....

Needless to say, they both stayed home from school yesterday to rest. Pres continued to not eat and Bennett continued to cough. While they napped I disinfected the house, hoping to rid this house of any and all germs. I got them down early for bed, and thought all might be better today. However, I became worried when Pres was still asleep after sleeping 12 hours. So I went to check on him and he was awake lying in his bed. When I asked him if he was okay, he said "yep." But as soon as he stood up to come downstairs, he vomited again. Sigh......

Anyway, I sent Bennett off to school and Preston and I are holed up in the house again today. Looking forward to Steve getting back in town so I can have a little relief, and for this bug to MOVE ON OUT!