30 Reasons

As part of my 30th birthday gift from Zack, he gave me a black box filled with papers, 30 small papers. He told me that the box contained 30 reasons why I am the best. I was to open one everyday for 30 days. This was a very sweet and thoughtful idea. So, here are the reasons why my wonderful thinks I'm the best.....and they are not listed in order of importance :-)

1. You're a wonderful teacher, both to kids, our kids, and me.
2. The way you raise our kids makes my heart feel warm and fuzzy.
3.The goofiness that you sometimes show surprises even me.
4. You seem to have endless energy when entertaining the kids.
5. Your organizational skills are admirable.
6. You're the most beautiful Mom I've ever seen.
7. You are a great friend to all of the people who take the time to reciprocate the feeling.
8. You put up with me and my craziness.
9.You're a detective in disguise. Nothing gets past you.
10. You keep in touch with everyone, family & friends.
11. You never ask for much, but deserve the world.
12. You know how to entertain the kids in any situation.
13. The way you give hugs is always comforting.
14. Low maintenance is your mantra.
15. Your baking is top notch.
16. You allow me to have guy time even if it isn't convenient.
17.You try to, and enjoy some, listening to my eclectic music.
18. Your writing ability in the blog is both humorous and well written.
19. I admire the fact that you want to be a stay at home mom (again).
20. You make me a better person.
21. You never miss anything, especially with your lists :-)
22. I love that you're a reader, even if you don't have time for it.
23. Your laugh, or a variety of them, is contagious.
24. Because you married me!
25. You take interest and support me in my work and hobbies.
26. You could be a lawyer, but chose to become a teacher. It's because of you're passionate about it.
27. The photographs that you maintain and organize keep memories close.
28. You make compromises for the family and don't ask for anything in return.
29. Like a true Italian, you won't and don't take 'stuff' from anyone. (Ha! this makes me laugh because that is his nice way of saying I have a temper and an attitude)
30. Family, happy, mad, or indifferent, is everything to you.

I'm sure (wink, wink) he could come up with more. This was a wonderful birthday surprise that meant a lot to me. Zack is the stars to my moon, the meat to my potatoes. LOL! I love him and appreciate the time it took for him to put this box of 30 little papers together.

I love you babe!

Collage

I see collages on other blogs I read and have been yearning to learn how to do it. Thank you to my friend Ashley, I now know how. This is my first one and I used a bunch of photo's from the last few months as a test drive. I'm crossing my fingers that it loads correctly. Yipee! I'm excited.

Sunday Sweeties

Transition Week Update 2

Emersyn: Emersyn is doing well in her class. The majority of the days, her teachers had her down to 2 naps a day. Now if you know my little girl, then you know she is a sleeping beauty. She took 4 naps a day, cat naps, in her other class. She is exhausted when she gets home from the adjustments to her schedule. She has adjusted to her new teachers and new friends. All but 2 kids in the class are crawling, including Emersyn. My hope is that peer pressure will kick in. We want her to crawl so bad. The classroom she is in backs up to the playground. So if I'm outside with my class, I can see her through the glass door. Her teacher positions her so she can see me. Her latest trick is waving, so she waves every time she see's me. It's awesome!
I'm pleased with her transition.

Dylan: Dylan's new class is right next to mine. I love to see him in action, learning, playing, interacting with his peers. I peak in on him occasionally. He moved up with one of his close friends, Reagan, who has been on vacation. Dylan likes his new class, but has been lonely without his old friends. He has transitioned well but has been very introverted. I'm hoping once Reagan gets back he will bounce back to his usual self. I'm also hoping he makes some new friends. Only once last week he cried and asked to go back to his old class.

I took some pictures of the kids at school this week. I included one of Dylan and his old teachers. He loved them.

Whats In Your Make-Up Bag?

I bought a new make-up bag last week. As I was cleaning out the old bag, Dylan said "Mommy, what's in there?". As I listed the contents, I realized how much stuff I had that needed to be thrown away. It also got me thinking, "what's in your bag?". It reminded me of those dumb bridal and baby shower purse games. So after I cleaned out my make-up bag I decided this would make a good blog topic.

Items in my make up case:
-Hair bands
-Tweezers
-Nail Clippers
-Cuticle Scissors
-Eyelash curler
-Bronzer brush
-Blush brush
-Safety Pin
-Blush
-Bronzer and a back up in case I run out
-(2) Eye liners
- (3) Multicolored eye shadows
-Foundation
-(2) Cover up's
-(4) Different types of Mascara
-Lip pencil
-Lip pencil sharpener

What's in your make-up bag??

A Moment

Do you ever have 'ahh ha' moments? A moment that puts a smile on your face, makes you feel all warm inside, a sense of accomplishment.

Today while looking at my babies, I had a great big 'ahh ha' moment.

Together, Zack & I created these beautiful babies!!!!!They make our world turn. They belong to us!!! How did we get this lucky?!?

Potty Trained!

I am happy to announce that Dylan is potty trained! Goodbye diapers!!!!

This process had been delayed many times for many different reasons. As Dylan's 3rd birthday started to creep up, it was time. He's a late bloomer! Better late than never I guess. So when Dylan started telling us he was peeing, we decided it was time. No turning back. At the beginning of November his teachers and I worked together with him. He wore underwear all day, with exception of nap time and bed time. At first he had many accidents. He would either wait until the last minute to tell us he had to go, or wouldn't tell us until after he already went. Laundry was my daily hobby!
After a few weeks he got the peeing down, but refused to poop in the potty. In a kids perspective I guess that can be scary. We consistently used pee- pee and poopy treats to promote using the potty. Yup, let's face it... Bribery at its best. Dylan got M& M's of all kinds, starburst, yogurt raisins, Nerds, suckers, and more that I just can't think of. So basically, if you use the potty I will sugar you up!!!! Bad parenting!!! But honestly would carrots work? Probably not.
After weeks of rewards and reminding him to go potty, he finally got the hang of it. He started telling us when he had to go, pulling down his own pants, and SUCCESS! We eventually transitioned to diaper-free naps. He has been waking up dry in the morning so this weekend we tried underwear at night. So far, so good! We are very proud if him. It took awhile but he did it!!! He is officially potty trained and diaper free!!!

I'd have to say, potty training is not fun. That is one part of parenting I can honestly say I didn't enjoy. The end product is rewarding, but the teaching, the clean-ups, accidents, running to the potty, and all that potty training entails is just not for me.

1 down! 1 to go!

Transition Week Update

Well, this week has been totally opposite of what I thought it would be. I 'thought' the kids would be transitioning everyday and it would be a normal week. Normal in the Henry house, who was I kidding?!?

We kicked off our Monday morning with Dylan sick. He has a cold, a mild case of pink eye, and a double ear infection. He is on antibiotics but continues to be grumpy and emotional.
He missed his first transition day, but has done well Tuesday and Wednesday. As of Friday he will officially be in his new class. I think he will do fine. He is a sensitive little guy and his new teachers are tough, so time will tell.
Emersyn hasn't transitioned at all this week. 9:30 is when the children move to their new classrooms. It seems that Emersyn likes to nap at that time, therefore she sleeps through most of the transition time. Today would have been her first full day in the new class 9:30-3:30, then back to her old class for the remainder of my work shift. BUT she now has pink eye, double pink eye to be exact! So she will be out of school today and will return tomorrow. She hasn't spent much time in her new class so I'm a little worried about how she'll do. She doesn't do well with the unfamiliar face. Her new teachers have tried to say hello to her but she gives them a stone cold stare.

I started with a chest cold/congestion a few days ago. Pretty much everyone is under the weather. Zack stayed home with Dylan on Monday, which means I'm home today with Emersyn.

This week hasn't gone as I planned, but then again, when does it ever?!?
Life is constantly keeping us on our toes. Hopefully by next week I'll be able to report back on the progress of the kids and their new classrooms.

Transition Week

This upcoming week both kids will be transitioning to new classrooms. Kids tend to move based on age, development, and space availability in the room.
Dylan turns 3 in February, so he is moving because of age. Developmentally he is ready too! Especially now that he is potty trained, with exception of nights and the occasional accident. He loves his current teachers, so this may be a slight adjustment. He will be in the classroom next to me :-) so I can peek in on him whenever. He will do great!

The baby room is filling up fast with newborns, which means its time for Emersyn to move up. The room she's moving to is the older infant room. All of the babies in there are crawling. Emersyn isn't crawling yet, so maybe being in this new room will entice her to move. Peer pressure! She is very comfortable with her current teachers. She does have a bit of stranger danger do I think this transition week might be harder on her than Dylan.
I'm sure... I know that both of them will be fine. If they aren't, they will eventually adjust and I'm in the building which is always a plus!!!!

I'll be sure to update at the end of the week on how their transitions go. It will be a week of new things, new friends, new teachers, and hopefully it will tucker them out do they sleep well at night! :-)

Stay tuned.....

Emersyn is 8 months

Dear Emersyn,

Today you turned 8 months. Time is going by so fast. I can remember the day you were born, as it felt like yesterday. You are the twinkle in my eye, the other half of my heart, the moon that lights up my sky. We adore you more than you know. You are one loved baby! You are a mommy's girl and I love it. It has been a gift to watch you grow over the last 8 months. I look forward to what you have in store for this upcoming month. Daddy, Dylan, and I love you more than anything. Happy 8 months!

Love, Mommy, Daddy & Dylan

Ladybug Happenings:

- Says 'baba' ,'wawa' without meaning. She loves to laugh and hear herself scream until she is red in the face. After yelling loudly she laughs.

-She thinks it funny to pull your hair. That must be her sassy side coming out.

- With clothes on she weighs 21.6, so I'm guessing she is slightly over 20lbs. She is solid as a rock with a few chubby rolls here and there.

- Her eyes are still blue and we are hoping they stay that way. Her hair is growing like crazy. We aren't sure what to do with it. We are in the process of trying new things as you will see.

-She has the beginning mechanics of crawling, not quite there yet.

- A mommy's girl at heart! Is beginning to cry when I leave the room or go out of sight.

- She is very aware of the dogs. She loves to look for them, especially Niko who tends to camp out under her high chair.

- She is a moose. She is eating baby food, formula, and table food. Today alone she ate bread, yogurt, and a small portion of a grilled cheese sandwich. Oh, not to mention her baby food. Yup, this girl loves to eat.

-She loves to snuggle and give kisses.

- Bath time is one of her favorite things. We are hoping she will be a swimmer.

- She has qualities of both Mommy & Daddy. I think she gets her sassy side from me...eek

- Loves to nap, and continues to sleep through the night.

- Chews on everything, but still NO TEETH! We have late teethers in our house.

This month I chose to take her picture in an outfit I wore when I was little. Actually I'm not sure if it was mine or my sisters. Either way, the dress is over 25 years old. My mom passed it down to me when I was pregnant with Emersyn. I thought it would be cute if she wore it for her pictures. The dress is a 12 month dress, but our little girl is growing so fast I wanted to make sure she got in it. As you will see, we were trying out a new hair do. I'm not sure if I like it yet. She still wears headbands but her hair is getting so long, its beginning to be in an awkward stage.

Who's 8 months? Me? No way!

The sticker didn't stay on very long. We'd pull it out of her mouth, stick it back on her shirt, she'd take it off, and put it back into her mouth. The ongoing cycle.

What is this crazy outfit you put me in? Can I eat it?

This is THE DRESS that Lisa and I wore when we were little. I'd say it go its money's worth.

I love this smile! The best toothless smile ever, worth a million bucks!

Oh I forgot to mention....the bubbles, the spitting, the raspberries. Emersyn thrives on making noises with her tongue. She actually likes to compete with other babies.

I laugh when I look at this shot. When she does this, we say SOOOOO BIG! She always smiles after and then does it again.

At this point, she is much bigger than her bear. We've been using it to measure her size. This was taken right after trying out the new hair do for the first time. I still have mixed feelings.

And this my readers is my heart and soul. I didn't think I could love another child like I love Dylan. Boy I was wrong! This little girl melts my heart on a daily basis. I can't wait for her to wake up in the morning, and I love to watch her sleep. She is more beautiful by the day and lights up any room she is in. I just can't seem to get enough of her. LOVE THIS BABY GIRL!!!!

Happy 8 months to my sweet little ladybug!!

Year of Birthday Parties

As Dylan and his friends approach 3, the birthday parties kick up into full force. It seems 3 is the year everyone starts having 'real' parties. Inviting a bunch of kids, eating cake, and giving out goodie bags. Whew!
In December Dylan went to his friend Caleb's party. He had a blast and continued to talk about it for days. It was held at Little Gym. That's where we are having Dylan's 3rd birthday party.

Then yesterday Dylan went to his friend Ava's party. Girls had to dress like princess' and boys like princes. Dylan wore black pants, a vest, and a tie. He looked like a stud! Snow White was there reading stories and making balloon animals. It was very cute.

Next up is Dylan's party. He is into Cars and Lightning McQueen, so that will be the theme. I'm sure there will be many other parties this year.

I uploaded some of the pictures I took from both parties. Enjoy!

Like Mother, Like Son

I have tried really hard to not pass down my quirks or pet peeves to Dylan. For example, I hate when my shoe laces are tied and the loops touch my leg. Yes, it's weird I know. Dylan has that same problem now. He throws a fit about it.

This brings me to clean hands. I grew up hating my hands being dirty. As a teenager, I would wear those yellow latex gloves to clean dishes. I still have a pair that I occasionally wear. I'm better about it now that I'm an adult. I have to be. I have my own kids, I taught Kindergarten, and now I work with 3-4 year olds. I get my hands dirty daily. Dylan somehow 'inherited' this problem. I've have reassured him since he was 1 that it's okay to get his hands dirty. Whether he's eating, doing a craft, or playing outside, he hates getting his hands dirty. If he barely has a crumb on his hand he yells " My hands are dirty, get me a napkin please!". Or heaven forbid dog hair get stuck to his hands. (sigh)
The child is a smaller version on me!!! Aahhhhh! I've worked hard to make sure he doesn't 'inherit' my weird issues. I don't mind him being like me, just not those things. Apparently it's not working.

I got this note attached to a craft Dylan did at school. Yikes! It's funny and not so funny all at the same time.

Turning 30!

On December 29, 1981, a little bundle of joy entered the world!....Yup, that's me!!!

I think I was an ugly baby. HA! My mom obviously disagrees. These were the only two childhood photos I could find at the moment.

For a year now I've been anxiously awaiting the big 3-0. Some people dread this birthday, while I was looking forward to it. Every year we travel back from our Christmas vacation on Dec. 29th. This year I was fortunate to be able to spend the majority of the day with my family in Buffalo. We left in the evening to drive back to NC. I had a great day relaxing with family, the best way to spend a birthday. I wanted to have a big party when we returned, but our funds just wouldn't allow it. I'm not sure what this year has in store for me, but I'm hoping great things will happen.

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

Emersyn Update

Today we celebrate Emersyn being 5 months post-op. I can't believe my baby had skull surgery. Sometimes it doesn't seem real. I occasionally look back at the pictures we took during our hospital stay, and I am amazed at how far she's come.

Emersyn & I traveled to Duke hospital today to meet with the pediatric neurosurgeon. Dr. Grant is the amazing doctor that fixed our beautiful baby girl. I was anxious to hear what he had to say about her progress, hoping it would all be positive. When Dr. Grant walked into the room Emersyn smiled at him. Keep in mind she has an early case of stranger danger, so it was comforting that she smiled. It was the smile of " Hey, I remember you!" Maybe she did remember him, or maybe he was lucky to get a smile out of her.
Dr. Grant took one look at Emersyn and stated how great she looked. Her head shape is rounding out, the bump on her forehead is smoothing out, her incision is healing well, she's meeting her milestones, and the soft spot is still present. WAHOO! I was relieved!
He felt around and said everything feels like it should. It's important that a soft spot is present. We don't want her skull plates closing to fast or she'd have to have surgery again. Let's not think about that....
So, the next appointment is scheduled for June. At that point a CT scan will be done to give us a more detailed view of her skull. If all goes well we will only go back yearly vs. every few months.

Today was a success! We are off to a great New Year!

Christmas Recap

Christmas is our favorite time of the year. It is also a very busy time. We celebrated our North Carolina Christmas the weekend before we traveled to Buffalo, NY. Then once we were in Buffalo, we celebrate with our three families, my parents, and both sets of Zack's parents. It is always fun, busy, and exhausting. We had a wonderful time visiting with family and friends. I have so many many pictures, I thought I'd do a mini recap.

And so this is Christmas..................

This was a once in a life time shot. It's so hard to get them both smiling and looking at the camera. This was taken on the morning of our "NC Christmas". Dylan, Emersyn and I walked down the stairs together to find our presents from Santa. Daddy took home movies to capture of moment.

Dylan got a few games, Lego's, and a leap frog tag from Santa. His stocking was filled with goodies too, but those were a few of his bigger gifts.

Emersyn was more interested in the wrapping paper and tissue paper. Mmm Mmm good!

My Aunt Patty bought her this dress. She posed so well for this shot. Hmmm....another baby that likes the camera!

Fast forward a week.....We left for Buffalo the Thursday before Christmas. We drove through the night THINKING the kids would sleep. We ran into bad weather and had kids who took turns freaking out in the back seat. Needless to say, I sat in the middle of them most of our 13 hour ride and didn't get much sleep. Oh the fun.......

We were glad to be in Buffalo. We stayed with my parents. They had a train set for Dylan to play with. We spent a lot of time playing on the carpet with this train. Emersyn was amused as the train went round and round.

Uncle Mike loving on Emersyn! For a guy that is afraid of a poopy diaper, he sure is a great Uncle!

Aunt Jenn (Zack's sister) was in town. This was the first time she has met the kids.

We spent Christmas Eve morning with Pops and Nana (Zack's Dad & Stepmom). Dylan loves playing lego's with Pops.

This little guy is the best present life has given me! Along with his sweet little sister.

Our bath time in the sink tradition. Emersyn had a blast taking a bath. She could sit up, eat bubbles, splash, and see everyone. Can't get enough of those chubby arms!!

On Christmas Eve, we went to Zack's Mom and step dads house. Dyan spent much of his time playing with Uncle Ben (Zack's brother).

Christmas Day was spent at my parents house. In the morning there was wrapping paper flying everywhere, so many gifts were being opened. Dylan was in his glory because Santa came to Grandma & Grandpa's house too!

Little Ladybugs first Christmas. I'm usually the one taking the pictures, but I really wanted a picture of E & me!

Dylan was sleeping when we took this picture. He is the missing link :-( Uncle Mike & Aunt Lisa loved spending time with the kids.

Mike & Michelle(my brother's fiance).

Dylan loved opening gifts so much, he was very willing to help everyone else.

We even got a visit from Uncle Travis and Priscilla! They traveled all the way from California. We don't get to see them very often, but when we do it's always a fun time!

I love this picture! Emersyn wasn't to sure of Travis. She warmed up after awhile. Their faces are priceless.

Dylan was sharing his popcorn with Daddy & Uncle Travis. Travis is one of our best friends. He was in our wedding and the three of us lived together in California. Travis is so awesome, we want our kids to call him 'Uncle Travis'. So while he doesn't have any blood relation, we consider him a brother, near and dear to our hearts.

Ta-da...here it is folks....this is officially where Emersyn gets her big mouth from! I'll be framing this one for sure!

Had to stick this one in there! Mr. & Mrs. Henry enjoying a night out without the kids.

Grandma Claryce (Zack's Mom) with the kids.

Dylan couldn't get enough of Uncle Mike. After we came home he said " I love that Uncle Mike"!

Grandma & Grandpa (my parents) with Dylan. Emersyn was sleeping. We just couldn't seem to get pictures with both kids in them. Someone was always sleeping.

Oh wait....yes we did. This was one of two shots with both kids.

We had an awesome time visiting family and friends. We got so many wonderful gifts and are appreciative of the generous people in our lives. I took many, MANY photo's while we were there. I obviously can't upload them all, so I had to be selective.

We hope everyone had a terrific Christmas & a Happy New Year!