Ellie Jane

Ellie Jane..floor cleaner, dryer sheet snatcher, toy destroyer...she's also known as Ellie James (Ellie Jane), Ellie Gore (Ellie Girl) and Nixon insists you call her Ellie Fire Dog!  She's so demanding that most days I'd trade her in, but the boys love her beyond measure and that's good enough for me!

Ten Things Tuesday - Funny Stories

I haven't done a "Ten Things Tuesday" in a while, so I'm going to do one this week, but it's going to be ten funny things my boys have told me lately.

1. We were trying to explain to Landon who the President was, so we had to call him our King for him to understand.  Jokingly, we said, "Yeah, the king took all our money, so if we want to buy a new house, we can't go on the airplane this summer."  He wanted to know when we were getting a new king!
2. A couple of weeks later, while giving baths, he looked at me and said, "Mommy, can you make a bunch of money and just not tell the king about it?" 
3. Chris was trying to explain to Landon that he had to go to work at his school and that they pay him to work there.  Landon was confused and said, "But I don't get paid for my job at my school."  Chris said, "You don't?  What's your job there?" to which he replied, "I'm the line leader, the door holder, I hold the clipboard..."  Too cute!! 
4. Nixon informed me he wants to be a pig when he grows up.
5. The boys know they don't get a snack unless their supper plate is clean.  Last night, we had just sat down at the dinner table when Yo Gabba Gabba came on. Nixon started climbing down and said, "I know I won't get a snack." 
6. Nixon saw my tattoo the other night.  He said, "You got a stamp?"  I said, "I sure do baby."  He said, "Because you're a good listener??"  Haha...I laughed so hard!
7. Landon saw a picture of me and Chris on our honeymoon.  He asked me where him and Nixon were.  I explained that they weren't born yet and he said, "But we were in your belly, right?"  I just agreed and he said, "Well, your belly wasn't fat."  Not thinking, I asked if it was now but luckily he said no.  Then he proceeded to ask me when we were going to have another baby.  I asked him when he wanted me to have one and he said, "In two days."  That's that!
8. While going by the baby section in Target, Nixon saw some car seat toys.  He said, "I want one!  I want one."  I said, "Boy, those are baby toys.  You don't need those."  to which he replied, "But I'm your baby."

Well, I thought I had ten stories in me, but I'm drawing a blank..guess I need to write them down when they happen instead of waiting around!

Everything You Wanted to Know...About Nixon....

Well, I couldn't do a post about Landon without doing a post about my baby boy, Nixon.  I found out I was pregnant with Nixon on January 10, 2007.  I hid the pregnancy test in Landon's pajama drawer so that Chris would see it after Landon's bath.  Well, that backfired!  Chris went right around it and kept on trucking.  When I asked him if he saw anything in that drawer, he said, "Yea, what's a thermometer doing in there?"  The second pregnancy was definitely different from the first.  I thought that meant that this time I was having my little girl I've dreamed of, but Nixon was just proving to me that he's 100% different from Landon! 

We decided on Addison Grace for a little girl name and the boy name was proving to be harder to come up with.  I absolutely loved the name Lincoln, but Chris wasn't going for it.  Chris loved the name Trot Nixon, after his favorite former Red Sox player.  I couldn't imagine naming my little boy Trot, so we were at a standstill.  Finally, around month 7 of my pregnancy, it clicked. I told Chris that I would agree to name our little boy Nixon if he would let me have my middle name of Asher, which was a name I found during a Bible study while I was in college. 

I only gained like 20 lbs. with Nixon, but I felt as huge as I had ever been!  My due date was set for September 19, 2007 and I was glad because for some reason, I just didn't want an August baby. August 31, 2007 was my half day at work.  It was a Friday and I remember being in so much pain that day.  I had been having Braxton Hicks contractions for a month, so it wasn't a big deal, but these were "stop you in your tracks" kind of contractions, so I stayed a little late at work finishing up some things and told the girls at work when I was leaving that I really didn't think I'd be back on Tuesday.  When I got home, they just seemed like they got worse, and I told Chris, I really don't want an August baby!  Crazy, that was what was on my mind!  We decided to go to the mall to pick up some final things and to try to walk it off if it was Braxton Hicks.  They didn't seem to be going away, so we called Chris' parents to meet us to pick up Landon in case I had to go to the hospital in the middle of the night.

Later that night, things seemed to calm down and I was feeling crazy for sending Landon off when obviously nothing was happening.  The next morning, Chris & I woke up and cleaned the house.  No pain.  We went shopping at the Outlets.  A little pain.  So, we decided to walk a loop around the outlets (parking lot and everything).  A little more pain.  Then we went to Mucho Mexico to eat lunch.  Maybe we should call the doctor.  Wal-mart to walk around.  Okay, definitely time to go home and call the doctor.  The doctor wanted me to come in and get checked.  The nurse told me, "No, nothing's happening right now."  The doctor came to check and said, "Yep, definitely in labor."  Me..."I'm agreeing with the doctor."  The nurse continued to argue with the doctor, in front of Chris and me, that she didn't think I was in labor.  The doctor then put the nurse in her place about who attended medical school.  Quite comical if you're standing in my place!

We arrived at 3:30 pm, I was admitted at 4:15 pm and Nixon arrived at 10:02 pm on September 1, 2007 weighing 8 lbs, 7 oz and 21" long!  Good thing he came 3 weeks early! 

I didn't get the "baby blues" as bad with Nixon as I did with Landon.  I was just very overwhelmed having two children to care for!  It was very different, making sure both boys  needs were taken care of.  Around one month of age, Nixon developed colic.  He would start crying around 7 or 8 at night and would cry until around 10 or 11 when he gave out.  It was pitiful.  We would get in the car and ride him around until he fell asleep.  Then, magically, around 3 months, it just went away. 

From Day 1, he's been the boss of the house.  He knows what he wants and when he wants it.  But then, the next minute, he'll look at you and bat those little eyelashes at you and you forget everything!  He loves to cuddle, even to this day.  He's definitely not scared of anything, and that scares me! He never meets a stranger and his independence is unreal, even at this age.  He wants to do everything that Landon does and looks up to his big brother. 

Despite his small (and by small, I mean short) size, he's not scared of older kids and always takes up for himself and Landon!  I love my little boy and I know one day, he's going to do great things!  Here's a list of favorites:

Food:  Pudding
Color:  Green
Number:  7
Sleeping Toy: His "Baby" when he was younger, but we had to retire that, so now it's Mr. Elephante

Cartoon:  Backyardigans
Loves to: Dance..especially when he goes to the potty
Most used saying:  "I sorry..I not meant it" and "Hold you me"
Girlfriend:  Kylee

Wants to be:  Spiderman
Sport:  Football

Everything You Wanted to Know....About Landon...

My oldest boy is quite possibly the sweetest boy you'll ever meet.  I found out on November 11, 2004 that I was pregnant.  When I went for my first ultrasound, December 13, 2004, I found out that I was pregnant with twins.  For most people, this would probably not be the best news, but I was estactic.  I had always dreamed I would have twins, but unfortunately, it was not to be.  The doctor told me that the babies were 6 days apart, according to their size.  So, we went in on December 26, 2004 for a second ultrasound.  It was at that point that I felt like my world came crashing down.  Only one of the babies had a heartbeat.  One of my biggest fears, of course, was that something would happen to Landon also.  But my little boy is a strong one!  I just knew from that exact point that it was a little boy. 

We had decided on Christopher Landon if we had a boy and Emma Grace if we had a girl.  Unfortunately, right after I found out I was pregnant, one of our friends was killed in a car accident.  He was actually instrumental in introducing Chris & I.  His name, some of you know, was Brandon Everette Penny.  It was at his funeral that I told Chris, if we do have a boy, I want to name him Landon Everette, after Brandon.

My whole pregnancy after that, went great.  In fact, Chris was the one with all the morning sickness!  I only gained 24 lbs the whole time I was pregnant.  His due date was set for July 24, 2005.  But, on July 12, 2005, I went in for one of my checkups.  I remember Dr. Mellon asking me if I had "Triskadekaphobia (Fear of the number 13)."  I replied of course not, I was born on the 13th.  After clarifying that it was not on July 13, but September 13, my induction was set.  That night, I had my last meal, Japanese, and went to a church softball game.  We were so excited, we hardly slept at all.

The next morning, we drove our couple of blocks to the hospital and checked in.  I had a bet going with the nurses, Chris, and my friend Amy in Alabama (who had just had a baby 5 weeks earlier) that I would be done by lunch.  She laughed since it took her almost a whole day!  But at 11:56 a.m., my bundle of joy arrived weighing in at 8lb, 6 oz and 21" long.  I was on Cloud 9 until around check-out time, when the "baby blues" hit me full force.   It took me a full two weeks to get over that and it was so weird how it happened.  It left just as easily as it came.  One minute I was sad and the next I was just happy to be in my role as a new mother. 

Four, almost five years later, my little boy is still the highlight of my life.  Although, now he has to share that spotlight with his more feisty, demanding, little brother.  One of his teachers told me a year ago that he's very "sympathetic to others, always knows when one of his friends is sad or feeling left out and tries to correct it by paying attention to them, even when everyone else is doing something else."  That made me feel so good.  I know that I've done a good job as a mother, but when you get affirmation from an outsider, it just makes your day.  It's hard to explain unless you're a mother too I guess. 

It's hard when you're in the midst of dirty dishes, clothes that need put away, bills that are due, and the endless lists of wants from everyone to sit back and enjoy these moments with your children.  But they are sure to pass, just like they do for every other parent.  So to remind me at some point when I'm old and grey, here are a lists of Landon's favorite things, according to Landon...

Food:  Bread
Number: 5
Color: Orange and Red
Best Friend:  Britt and Jase
Sport: Baseball and Basketball
Sleeping Toy:  Bear that we bought when I was pregnant and Mr. Puppy

Cartoon:  Wow Wow Wubbzy
Loves:  Olympics...especially Bobsled
Baseball Team: Red Sox
Football Team: ECU Pirates
Basketball Team: Tarheels & Hawks
Thing to Say: "May-be" and "Ohhhh Mannn"
Wants to be: Power Ranger

Ten Things Tuesday

1. It snowed this past weekend.  It was my favorite kind, pretty, fluffy and fun to play with, but gone the next day.
2. Nixon slammed his finger in the door at school yesterday.  When I asked him what happened, he said, "Kylee close it in the door."  When we saw her mom in the hallway, he proceeded to tell her that Kylee did it.  But then they kissed and made up...literally.
3. When I showed up at school, I asked Nixon (after I kissed his finger), "Does it feel better now that mommy's here and I kissed it?" to which he replied, "No".  Oh well..at least he's honest!
4. Landon went to the dentist for the second time last Thursday.  He did much better this time.  They actually did the whole cleaning without him crying..well, until they did the suction!  But once they let him just swish and spit, he was fine.
5. Nixon goes for his first visit to the dentist with me and Landon in August.  That should be interesting!
6. I laid my wedding rings down on the floor on Sunday night when I was putting Nixon's pj's and lotion on.  I completely forgot about them until Monday night when I went to do the same thing.  Unfortunately, when I saw them on the floor, there was only one.  Apparently, Ellie has eaten my engagement ring, but she left the wedding band.
7. When Chris was walking to his car this morning, he saw something shiny on the ground.  Thinking it was my wedding ring, he checked it out.  Apparently, Ellie likes all my jewelry.  He found an earring that I didn't even know was missing!
8. For Valentine's Day, Chris and the boys made me homeade V-Day cards and Chris bought me a gift certificate for a hot stone massage.  I can't wait to redeem that one!
9. Landon asked me tonight when we were going to have another baby.  This is the first time he's mentioned it in a few months.  He did not like the fact that it takes at least 9 months to get one.  He wanted one in two days!
10. I've found a few more shows that I just have to DVR every week.  "My Name is Earl" and "Cougartown".  They are both hilarious!

Further Proof...

(As if I needed any) that my baby is growing up into a little man...he, for the first time ever, wrote out all of his Valentine's himself!  As if I wasn't proud enough, when he got the ones back from all his friends, only him and one other little boy in his class had done this!  I'm so proud of my baby boy..he's going to be so smart when he starts school next year!!

More Snow!!

Well, this Saturday, we had our second big snow of the year.  I don't know if I ever remember it snowing twice in NC in one year!  Maybe it has, but I just don't remember..I definitely have "Mommy Brain" that I swore I would never have!  Anyway, this snow was actually the kind I like..it snowed, and is pretty much gone the next day.  When we woke up Saturday morning, Chris fixed our "traditional" snow day breakfast of cheese grits and sausage.  After that, we went outside to build "Wally".  Chris had also bought the boys a sled on Friday afternoon, so we took that around the yard a few times.  After that got boring, we took our sled down the road to slide down the hill on the side of Hwy 70.  The funny thing is, Chris & I always laughed at people who went sledding beside highways/interstates, but it was so much fun!  Enjoy the pictures!!