Day 86: Crikey

Our days seem to be getting shorter and shorter... Oy! Still it has still been an altogether pleasent day.



Today's positives:

1: Today we went out to the computer store. We happend to be half an hour early so we we went and sat in a near by resteruant and enjoyed a nice cool drink while we waited. Gracie got a big flower cookie which she happily gobbled up.

2: James managed to pull him self up to sitting, twice today.

3: Gracie has decided she likes to hug on to my leg and sit on my foot while im trying to walk. She thinks this is hillarious. Especially while im trying to do laundry.

4: James has gotten so good at sitting up he was able to ride around in a shopping cart for the first time today.

5: Gracie and I worked on her scrapbook some more this afternoon. Today's page was about her little brother. I love that she calls him Jay-Jay.

6: James enjoyed seeing cousing L for the first time in a while this afternoon. He was all smiles and giggles.



One more day until we get our "weekend". Roll on! Pics below.

Goodnight all
- Sophie

Day 85: It's Potty Time

Today started out a little rough but has improved as it went along!


Today's positives:

1: Gracie has used both her little froggie potty and the toilet today. Multiple times. We had been procrastinating with resuming the traning but I guess she decided she was ready. I am very exicited and proud of her.

2: Gracie fell asleep on her walk with the dog again. It seem's the stroller is her new favorite napping place!

3: James has been a little grouchy today, I am wondering if it's maybe teeth... We will have to wait and see. He continues to progress with mobility and communication though :)


Not too much to blog about today, I have still enjoyed my babies though. Hopfully there will be some fun times this weekend. Oh and Auntie Shay and Cousins A, G and L are comming home today. I can't wait to see them!!!

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 84: Renewed hope.

Today's post starts out with Matthews positives and ends with mine :)


Today's positives:

Matt's:

1. I took both kids with me when I walked the dog and it wasn't long before they both fell asleep. They looked adorable sleeping in their stroller.

2. We made Gracie a peanut butter and honey sandwich for lunch and she ate it into a semi circle leaving the inner crust. It's the same way both Sophie and I used to eat our hamburgers!

3. James rode on the rocking horse this afternoon and absolutely loved it! He even pushed the buttons to make it sing. 

4. Gracie was walking and didn't see James lying on the floor and almost stepped on him. When she noticed what she did, she leaned over and made sure he was alright and even gave him her blanket.

  

Soph's:

5: Gracie has been such a  help to me. I can now ask her to do simple tasks and trust her to get on with it. For example, I asked her to take her rocking horse in to her bedroom while I was cooking dinner and she did! It has made my life much easier.

6: I enjoyed dressing James in some of the new clothes we got in the big sale at Babies R us!

He got a finding Nemo little squirt turtle out fit which is VERY cute!

7: James also had his first hair cut today. I felt fine while we were doing it but as soon as I looked at my little baby I missed his funny pineapple hair. I did take some before pics but I have yet to get after shots so maybe we will post pics tomorrow. 

8: Gracie had me wrap her up in her blanket and snuggle this afternoon. I just love it when my little dolly wants to be babied a little :)

9: Another new way to be sneaky with the veggies! Gracie enjoyed eating veggie egg rolls today. A good source of protein too!

Well that's all for tonight folks. Today has been a pretty excellent and productive day!

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 83: Faithful

Sometimes life brings unexpected twists. Just remember to pray "Lord let not my prayer be how will you serve me but rather how may I serve you?". It's okay for things not to go as planned. Don't ever be afraid of change.


Today's positives:

1: It may not be a positive but it is rather funny (now), Gracie woke up the whole house by playing her little plinky toy piano! VERY loudly over the monitor. Teehee

2: We had to spend 2 and a half hours at the recruiters office this morning and both kids did fantastic. Gracie loves going there and playing with all the sailors. They both fell asleep for some of it. Gracie must have been very tired!

3: James had his first ride in his new carseat.

4: Daddy got to carry James around Walmart and said he really enjoyed it.

5: Gracie helped pick up all the toys in the living room and even sorted them in to their proper boxes and places. I was very impressed.

Random pics below.

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 82: Feelings

Today has been a very productive day, we got James a new carseat, a couple of Christmas presents to put away for the kids, and found a great sale to get James some much needed clothing.

Today's Positives:

1. Gracie walked over to Bay and put her arms around Bays neck. It was so cute, I only wish I had got a picture.

2. James sat on my lap and tried to have a conversation with me. I love his little babbling.

3. While Gracie napped I got to hang out with James without interruption (This is hard of late because Gracie has been a little jealous of James). We had tons of fun together.

4. When I took Bay for a walk Gracie went with us and we got caught in the rain. Gracie absolutely loved trying to catch the raindrops.

Well, that's about it for today.

Hope everyone has a goodnight.

-Matt

Day 81: It's Hammer Time.

Today has been a fun day. The rain let up just long enough for us to go on a walk and we even caught some frogs! It looks like the tropical storm will be hanging around until Saturday so it will be a rainy week which means we get to snuggle up inside :)

Today's Positives:

1: Gracie danced around the living room and went at it so hard she made herself dizzy and could barely stand up. It was absolutely adorable.

2: Gracie ate all her lunch and didn't even put up a fight.


3: While I was feeding Gracie her yogurt James kept eyeballing it so I gave him a little taste and he loved it!

4: We went out and caught frogs for our nephews and we even saw a snake!

5: James and Gracie played blocks together. Every time James dropped his block Gracie would go over and pick it up for him. I love how much my little ones love each other.

6: We had to go to Wal-mart and it was raining so Sophie scooped up James and ran him inside and I followed a little behind with Gracie. The whole way into wal-mart Gracie yelled "Jay-Jay" At the top of her lungs until we finally caught up.

7: I got to hold James while he slept for a while. It's the first time in a very long time that he has slept on me. I enjoyed every minute of it.

Well that about sums up today. It's been a great day with my family :)

Goodnight all.

-Matt

Day 80: Rain Rain Go Away

What a day! I must say bedtime will be a sweet moment but there has been plenty to be happy about.


Today's positives:

1: We were woken up VERY early by our lovely children so we went for a walk along the beach before the sun was totally up. It may not have ended brilliantly but it started out great!

2:  Gracie now knows what "cheeks" are. She ran around all afternoon pointing to them saying it over and over.

3: I made Gracie her own little scrappy scrapbook. I took some pictures. She loved sticking things in it and coloring, and she is a big fan of photographs! I am hoping to teach her the names of family members with it.

4: James managed to push up on all fours today. It won't be long until I have a little crawler!

5: I was singing to Gracie and pretending to have a microphone which she thought was funny. Then after I was finished she sang to me. It was so sweet and quiet she actually made me well up. :)

6: James has been carrying around a yellow teddy bear my Grandma made for me when I was little. It's nice to see him with it. His other favorite is a little yellow duck that quacks when you squeeze it. It seems yellow is his color!

7: Gracie did the actions to Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes with me today! Soon she will know all her body parts!!

Okay, today has not been a total disaster but I am excited for tomorrow!

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 79: Go Dog Go

Today has been a fabby day! The first one in a while where Matt hasn't needed to sleep for most of it :)


Today's positives:

1: James is getting so big! He has decided he likes to try and hang upside down out of his swing.. I thought it was an accident but then he kept doing it over and over and smiling... I think its pretty safe to say, R.I.P swing. You have been a good friend lol.

2: When we walked in to the nursery this morning, Gracie had taken all the blankets out of the cribs and piled them high on the rocking chair, climbed on top of them all and was reading books. Super cute!

3: We have found an advantage in having to read Gracie Brown bear Brown bear twenty times a day! Today she was flipping through the book trying to say the names of the animals. She now has cat down!

4: James had a chocolatey nibble of a kit kat bar... He was not very amused when Mummy took it away...

5: Gracie now says "eat, eat" and runs around with her high chair tray when she is hungry.

6: Our new book of choice seems to be "Go dog go"... Matt and I HATE this book but our little princess seems to love it. It was one of her Daddy's favorites as a child and he has fond memories of his Grandma reading it to him :)


In other news, we have some sad but mostly happy news to share.

A couple of weeks ago we bumped in to a lady on one of our daily walks. Sadly her doggie has been quite sick for some time and seems she may be passing on quite soon. We came to find out that this lady has kept a black lab in her home for the past 30 years. Matt and I had been discussing the fact we had some concerns for the best interests of Bay while he was away at boot camp so after much consideration we felt really led to pursue the re-adoption of our favorite little k-nine pal (not an easy decision as we really do love her). Well it turns out that this lady is interested in taking Bay and when we went to visit her home yesterday Bay was so happy to be there I had to convince her to leave with me! It looks like she may have at last found her forever home. I can't help but feel they will be a perfect fit for each other and God's hand was in it all.

I love seeing God work out all the little details when you follow his plan.

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 78: I love summer

Summer is so awesome. It looks like lots of nice summer plans are coming together :)


Today's positives:

1: We started out the day with a nice surprise skype chat with Great Grandma.

2: Daddy watched the babies by himself for the first time this morning. I think James was a bit of a naughty pickle for his Daddy teehee.

3: Matthew read about Noah to us.

4: Gracie decided to eat my lunch instead of hers. It was funny, I think my fork is was made mine look so much more appealing, seeing as we were eating the same thing!

5: Gracie climbed up on the couch with me and we snuggled up and took a nap together.


Matt is back to his regular work schedule now so hopefully time for some family fun again!

Goodnight all

-Soph

Day 77: Day Seventy Seven

Looking forward to life as normal tomorrow! Matt finally goes back to his regular work schedule YIPPIE!


Today's positives:

1: James had his first taste of prunes. He loved them and the dark goop looked like a very cute little beard!

2: The babies took it in turns to take naps today which made for a nice opportunity to spend some one on one time with each of them.

3: I had some sour patch kids today. I had to laugh because Gracie would bite off half, screw up her face, swallow,  throw the rest away, then repeat... Many gummys lost their heads today...

4: James has been sitting on the floor playing with his toys and Gracie and him have started playing together. I can see many fun games ahead! I love watching them be together.


We have had lots of laughs out of my two little lovelies today.
Have some fun ideas for tomorrow, lets see if I get enough sleep to bring them to fruition!

 Goodnight everyone

- Sophie

Day 76: Summer is HOT

Not a lot to say today...


Today's positives:

1: We had our usual nice walk. We enjoyed looking over the Halifax river.

2: James had a lovely bath this evening

3: Gracie watched Yo Gabba Gabba before bed. It's become a part of her routene she looks forward to every night. Very strange show but I love watching her dance along to it.

4: Gracie's new favorite book is Green eggs and ham. Can't say I will miss Brown bear Brown bear but after a few more weeks of this it may start to look appealing ;)

I am looking forward to getting some good sleep tonight!

goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 75: Beach Fun

Today has been so fun! I love our weekends :D


Today's positives:

1: This morning we packed up a breakfast picnic and went to the beach. We had a lovely time sitting by the ocean, eating together as a family. (pics below)

2: James enjoyed gumming on a bagel.

3: Matt taught Gracie the words to Big Ol Jet Airliner and they had a great time singing together. She even had the tune down. (apparently she started an encore in the bathtub this evening)

4: Then we went for a walk through the beautiful white sands and clear water. Gracie did a happy little victory dance which consisted of throwing her arms in the air, running in circles happily shouting "EGGS"

5: Then we went to the familyChristian book store and picked up a book to start a bible study with Gracie.

6: We took a nice long evening stroll through the local neighbourhood with our dog Bay.

7: We started the bible study. Gracie enjoyed hearing the stories and looking at the pictures.

8: Gracie did wonderful sleeping in her bed for the first time last night. She didn't get up until this morning.
Then when she took a nap, she slept and once ready to get up stood at the door knocking to be let out.

It's just been an all round nice day. Thank you Lord :)


Goodnight all

- Soph

 

        

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Day 74: Monday Monday

Today is the start of our weekend! 2 whole days of Daddy being home to play! Fun times :)


Today's positives:

1: We took the kids and dog down to Ponce Inlet, the beach for dogs. It was nice to feel the sand between our toes. The kids love to be outside!

2: James has been reaching and rolling over to play with toys.

3: Gracie found Matt's wallet, pulled out his debit card saying "Shoes Shoes". Maybe not a positive but very funny.

4: James has started to enjoy playing with bath toys. He has his favorite rubber duckie he likes to sit with.

5: When we heard James wake up this morning, Gracie ran to the bedroom to go get him.

6: Today we converted Gracie's crib in to a toddler bed. We both feel a little sad that our baby is growing up. She did very well. She only  got out of bed once and that was because we forgot to give her, her paci.

7: James ate two jars of baby food today at one time. Apples seem to be his favorite.

8: When Matt and Gracie went to walk the dog this morning she made him put a bow in her hair. She had 3 different people tell her how cute she is.

Well that's all for today.

goodnight all

- Matt n Soph

Day 73: Fathers day

Dear Gracie and James,


I keep this blog for you both because I want you to know how much Daddy and I have always loved you.
We share it with family and friends but this whole thing is really just for you.

Today is fathers day. Gracie your sitting beside me on the sofa, drinking your milk and James your across the room sleeping in your swing. I know this is normally about your funny little things and achievements but today is different. Today I want to tell you somethings you should know and always remember about your Daddy.

In the past two years he has sacrificed a lot for us. He moved away from a city he has always loved, put his dreams to one side and worked harder than you could ever imagine. Just to provide a good and full life for us.
He has been at every doctors appointment, pre and post natal, that he could be, held your hands when you where sad or scared, changed diapers, cleaned up puke, made late night runs for things, held you guys all hours of the day and night, sung to you, played hard and so so so many other things. Too many to list.
And now moving forward, he is going in to the U.S Navy, so he can go to college and get a good job so you guys will never need for anything, ever...

When he looks at you, I see a man in love. He lights up at the sound of your voices. He talks always about the future and how proud he is of you both.

Gracie, Daddy has always told me, one of the greatest moments in his life is when you where first born. They took you across the room to check you over and you grabbed on to Daddy's fingers and wouldn't let go for anything. When ever you cried as a baby, it was Daddy you always wanted. You loved him to sing and dance with you. Every time you see him you smile the biggest smile. Your such a Daddy's girl.


James, when you were born Daddy caught you. He gave you your first bottle and your first solid food. He was the first person you reached out to, to be held and you look at him in a way that I have never seen you look at anyone else. It's easy to see just how much you love him.


I am sure where ever you are now and whatever your doing, it's easy to see what a wonderful guy your Daddy is. Never forget where we have come from and even on the days you may not be getting a long remember just how much he loves you.


Happy Fathers Day Matthew. I love, respect and cherish you. I am blessed to be your wife and the mother of your children.


- Sophie

Day 72: 6 Months

Today James is 6 months old! I can't believe he has been part of our family for half a year now.

Today's positives:

1: We started off the day with a nice long walk to our local park. (pics below)
We stopped at Walgreens. Gracie enjoyed a nice chocolate marshmallow treat. Then we all had fun at the playground.

2: We did our grocery shopping. Gracie insisted on riding in the baby seat on the cart (the ones meant for newborns) and James wanted to be carried by Daddy so it all worked out!

3: Gracie learned the word cheeks today and ran around all evening saying it.

4: As I cuddled James to sleep he babbled away. I love that he is so chatty. I think he was telling me a lovely bed time story.

5: I almost forgot to add, Gracie went down the slide all by herself for the first time today and she climbed the rockwall ( okay that one had a little help)

We have lots of pictures from the playground this morning!

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 71: June 15th

Today I am left feeling, the best part of having children is watching them grow up but the worst part is how quickly it happens. One moment your little girl is gripping her Daddy's finger in the hospital room and the next she is swinging next to you taking your hand. I wish there was a way to pause time. I do feel like today has finally been a blog worthy day though. Lots of lovely things.

Today's positives:

1: Today started out nicely by skyping with Grammy. Gracie loves waving and dancing with Grammy. I think they are both as daft as each other :)

2: On our way out to run errands today, we noticed one of the stray cat traps in our parking lot had caught a opossum. Upon further inspection we got to see 3 little baby opossum's!! I know I am a nursing mother because the first thought in my mind was "Poor Mama opossum, with a brood like that she has got to be starving!" teehee. Gracie enjoyed seeing them. She would insist it was a kitty (kinda looks like my folk's cat Tallulah). It was all I could do to stop her trying to pet them. Thankfully they were set free back in to the woods this afternoon.

3: Gracie, James and I had fun out running errands. We went to Walmart and thankfully they had a double shopping cart. I love having them both sitting in one cart because we can laugh and be silly all around the store. We even stopped for a chat with a nice old man who enjoyed chatting with Gracie.

4: Our new project with Gracie is to teach her body parts. Lots of singing Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes. So far she can say eyes and thinks her nose is called "Beep Beep". 

5: We took the dog for a nice a stroll around the park this afternoon. Daddy slept in as he worked until 4am, but it was nice to spend some time with him before he headed back out to work.

6: On the way in from the walk Matt needed to carry up the dog food. Gracie seemed proud as punch to be his little helper. It was cute to see her run after him and try to help him up the stairs.

7: Daddy, Gracie and James all shared some apple sauce. (pic below).

8: Then we walked Daddy to work.

9: On our way back from dropping off Daddy, we stopped at the bench swings over looking the river. I had James in the Moby and Gracie sitting beside me. We sat for a nice long time swinging. The best part was when my little Gracie reached over and put her hand in mine and Jame leaned his head back in to me and we sat quietly together for a while.
Then Gracie started to talk (baby talk) about the things around us. We had fun watching a lizard do a funny little dance and puff out his neck. Spring time is fun to watch nature!

10: When we got home Gracie "read" stories to me and James. We looked at "Chocolate for breakfast" for a good long time.


Now both my little ones are tucked up in their beds. I have had such a lovely time with them today.
Looking forward to tomorrow!

Goodnight all

-Sophie

Day 70: June 14th

Today I can honestly say we did ABSOLUTLY NOTHING. Matt has to work 4pm till 4am so we decided watching T.V, eating and hanging out was going to be as exciting as it gets.


Today's positives:

1: Gracie James and I went to walk the dog. At the end of our parkinglot are a pair of blue land crabs. They came out for the rain and it was fun to watch them.

2: Gracie has been very very well behaved today.

3: James has been in a cuddely mood. Something I am definatly soaking up while I can.

4: Gracie really enjoyed our dinner which was veggie tacos. Finally got some veggies in my little lady.

5: I found Gracie sat stroking Bay this morning. They have become very good friends.

6: James enjoyed me reading Brown Bear to his this evening. I am pretty sure between both my kiddos I will be reading that book in my dreams :)

7: Gracie, James had I a fun time playing together on the floor this evening. We all laughed our heads off.


Well, I hope to make tomorrow a bit more productive!

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 69: Relaxed

Today has been a lot less busy and a lot more fun! We FINALLY got our oven fixed. Yippie! ( that has been the word of the day!) and it looks like our flea and tick stuff has worked. Thank you Lord!
We had to go and do yet more Navy stuff this morning. Guess I should get used to this but I hadn't thought the Navy would be so life consuming until AFTER Matt swore in... Still looks like the ball is rolling pretty quickly now.

Today's positives:

1: We had to wait half an hour for Matt's recruiter to get in to the office so we all went for a pretzel at Auntie Anne's. Yummy! Even James had a good ol' slobbery nosh on one.

2: The kids got to bed pretty late last night so they took a nice long nap this morning. Just in time for the guy to come and fix our stove. Thankfully it was all fixed by the time they woke up.

3: When they woke up we all sat on the floor and played duplo blocks. Even James wanted in on the action (pics below)

4: Matt has work today so the kids and I took the dog for a walk, it was pretty toasty hot but James took a nice nap and Gracie enjoyed pointing and waving at things.

5: James has now taken to pulling him self up to sitting in his stroller. In fact this morning I don't think he laid back once. He likes to get a good look around.

6: I'm not sure this is a positive but I found it kinda funny. I gave Gracie a bowl of grapes for her snack this evening and when she was finished I found she had eaten only half of every grape. I guess the first bite is the best.


Well it has definitely been much more relaxed today. Better go pick up the toys and then I think I will wind down the evening with some crappy telly!

Goodnight all

-Soph

Day 68: Final wipeout

Okay, Today has been the most crazy busy day so far.

We have pretty much done nothing but get our house half put together and the other half finished debuggin.

I have really nothing to write as it's 10.30pm at night and I still have a hungry hubby to feed.

I am pleased to report both babies are happy and in good health. Both have been well behaved and happy all day.

Oh and James pulled him self to standing in his bathtub tonight!!


Sorry to blog fail! Will resume posting as usual tomorrow.

Goodnight all

-Soph

Day 67: Debuggin

Today has mostly revolved around de-pesting our house! I hope it was worth all this trouble. We have had a whole lot of fun though.

Today's positives:

S: Today my lovely husband let me sleep in until 10am! First time I have pumped a bottle for James in a long time and maybe I should do it more often *wink*

M: The babies and I watched the Cat in the hat over breakfast. Gracie used Bay as her own personal chair and both seemed content with this.

S: Matt had to run to the recruiters office to sign yet more papers but when he got home we started the process of powdering the carpets. Thankfully James was fast asleep in my room and Gracie behaved herself. She was  very patient.

M: After we got done laying out the bug killer we had to evacuate the house for a while so we took the kids and the dog to the park for a picnic. Gracie enjoyed the fruit and chewy granola bars.

S: When we got home it was time to clean up the kids room. We put James in the Jenny jump up. He had fun playing with Gracie as he would pick his feet up and Gracie would push him like a swing.

M: We took the kids swimming. Gracie is a dare devil and enjoyed going under water. James is more cautious like I used to be.

S: When we got back from swimming we fed the kids then went for a nice evening stroll along the beach. It was very relaxing.


We decided to leave our room powder free until we can vacuum up the rest of the house tomorrow. Thankfully this stuff only needs 24hrs. It's still a little cloudy so we are having a big camp out in our room tonight. James in the pac n play and Gracie in our bed. Could be fun...

Well its been a long and busy day!

Pictures below. Unfortunately we didn't get any from today but I thought they were worth adding.

- Matt n Soph

 

Day 66: Mum Down

So I am going to admit that today  I pretty much get a big F for fail in the mother department. I guess I have caught the cold that my lil fam have had the past few days and felt pretty rough. So we really did nothing exciting.

Today's positives:

1: Gracie and Daddy walked the dog this morning.

2: James and I snuggled up in bed while Gracie and Daddy where out.

3: Gracie had all of her blocks out in the middle of the living room and enjoyed building stuff.

4: James has cuddled up with me on the sofa for most of the day.

5: James and Daddy went out to get dinner. Their first time going out alone together. I felt like my men went out to hunt and gather :)

6: We all went out to walk the dog together.

7: Gracie randomly ran over to me, grabbed  my face and gave me a big kiss. It was a rare and sweet occurrence.

James didn't get his hair cut today. Hoping to squeeze that in tomorrow. We have a busy day of de-fleaing the house, Matt signing more Navy papers and other errands.

Gotta  get a good nights rest!

Goodnight all

- Soph

Day 65: Lazy Day

Matt worked the day shift today and it has been raining all afternoon. I have been one LAZY Mama today.


Today's positives:

1: Gracie has been so good today. We didn't have a single meltdown until it got to around bed time.

2: I made breakfast and we walked it down to Daddy :)

3: The kids have enjoyed playing together today.

M: The babies where still up when I got home and in a fantastic mood. I enjoyed playing with them for a while before bed.

4: I painted Gracie's toenails pink. It's very cute!


Tomorrow I will be giving James his first haircut as his hair is crazy and sticks up in random tufts. I will take before and after pics!

Goodnight all!

- Soph

Day 64: Infested!

Okay, I am going to admit that I'm not feeling quite as perky as normal today. I am thankful that every unfavorable situation currently going on in our lives has a solution though.
We discovered a bit of an infestation with fleas and ticks this morning. Thanks to the wonderful lady at Lowes we now have an all natural solution. We cover our carpet in this powder and leave it for a couple of days then vacuum it all up. It is safe for the kids to be around and walk on and poses no threat to our dog. Oh and as an added bonus also works on roaches, silverfish and a variety of other unwanted house pests.

James is still under the weather today but pleased to say he is still chipper and playful.

Oh and progress is on the horizon with our oven. We have had promise of it being fixed by midweek. I can't wait!!

I am  grateful for hardworking Matthew who has been patient with me despite loosing my head a couple of times. He has also been feeling quite unwell and still pushing on through. Even helping me with James being up a lot in the night. Starting to feel the jitter of his upcoming departure. I don't know when boot camp is going to happen but I do know that I can't wait for it to have been and passed!


Today's positives:

1: I can say I feel very blessed to have two patient babies who have not made today difficult despite the fact they are not at their best.
2: I know this has nothing to do with my kids but, I am unbelievably grateful that my dog ate her flippin expensive flea meds and didn't just spit it out like I was afraid she would!

3: Gracie sat in her high chair and ate her dinner nicely no fuss!

4: James finally went in to a nice deep restful sleep. He needs it after not sleeping much last night and only taking brief naps today.

5: I am so grateful to have a toddler who loves veggies. Squash, carrots, peas, broccoli and so on!

6: Gracie threw her arms around James and gave him the biggest hug. :)


I am always surprised by how many good things I can remember when I stop and think!

Thank you Lord!

- Goodnight all

Sophie

Day 63: Jim Jam is sick

Today we went for a walk around the mall which was fun! It's been forever since I went for a rummage in department store sale racks!  Matt also went to work on  more  of his Navy application process. Looks like things could start rolling pretty quick now. We were told he should be going for his medical by the end of June! Yay!
Poor little baby James is not feeling too good tonight though. He caught Matt's cold and has been running a fever but has now gone to bed and hopefully will feel better tomorrow!

Today's positives:

1: We got Gracie a blueberry scone for breakfast and she loved it!

2: Grace took her little handbag too the mall and toted it all around.

3: James enjoyed strolling around the mall looking at all the bright colors.

4: We all had a nice family walk before Matt went to work.

5: When Matt went to work, Gracie and I shut the blinds and blasted Katy Perry and busted our best dance moves. She thought it was brilliant fun and I feel like it was a brilliant work out. I love getting to be girlie and silly with my daughter.

6: Me and the kids walked down to say goodnight to Daddy. We need to make the most of him before he leaves for boot camp.

7: I almost forgot to add that Gracie actually asked me to take her to the toilet today. She didn't manage to go but she sat there for quite a while. I feel like this is a big step in the right direction!

Well, today was fun. Hope my baby feels better, prayers would be appreciated!

Also, a family friend of Matt's is holding a funeral for their baby son, who was not much younger than Gracie, tomorrow. Please pray for them. I can't imagine how they feel. I know they have a strong faith that they are leaning on heavily and their little son has touched many lives. God be with them...

Goodnight all

- Sophie

Day 62: Rainy Day

Today we have had lot's of thunder storms and rain, I must admit I quite enjoy this kind of weather!
We even managed to walk the dog before it all started this morning. :)

Today's positives:

1: We discovered Gracie really likes eating grapes so I now have another fruit to offer her at snack time.

2: We got a new vacuum cleaner yesterday so after a very long and thoreau clean up of the carpet James had the entire living room floor to roll around on. He even rolled over to play with Gracie's toy minivan. It was nice to see him so mobile!

3: I have started to see results from using time outs as punishment. Today I asked Gracie if she needed to go in time out or if she was going to obey me and she actually stopped what she was doing. She wasn't very happy about it but she did listen.


4: Me and the kids went for a nice walk this evening.  I think it relaxed them ready for bed.


Not a lot going on in our house today. I think rain always makes things sleepy.

Goodnight all

-Soph

Day 61: ASVAB Day

Today feels like a giant step forward in Matthews up coming Navy career. All that's left now is his physical then he can swear in. This is going to mean so many great things for our family and open us up to some wonderful opportunity's. He is such a strong and loving man. I am very grateful to call him my beloved.

Today's positives:

1: I woke up this morning to hear Gracie shouting "Hey you" over the monitor.

2: James was in his swing playing with his penguin rattle, he got a little over excited and ended up dropping it. It happened to land directly beneath the swinging seat. Gracie, seeing what had happened and how upset J got, immediately leaped up and ran over to get it. She didn't rest until she had managed to grab it even though she took a couple of blows from the swing. J was all smiles when she gave it back to him and then she went right back to what she was doing.

3: This afternoon I laid a sheet out on the floor and sat James on it so he and Gracie could play. It was fun playing with them both together.

4: Gracie wiggled her fingers at James saying "tickle tickle" and made him laugh.

5: Gracie gave us lovely night night kisses.


Well that's it for tonight. Poor Matt has a cold so I think it's early night for us Eriks'

Goodnight all

- Soph

Day 60: I love Florida

It's been a very nice day here. We pretty much jumped back in to the norm. It's been nice to all be back together again.

Today's positives:

S: James is getting so good at rolling over I can't turn my back on him for a second. Today he almost rolled right off his changing mat.

M: I enjoyed blowing raspberry's on James's feet. It made him laugh.

S: James, Matt and I all had a nice long cuddle together on the bed.

M: Gracie kept bringing me books to read to her today. She loves stories!

S: We went for a nice long walk along the beach this evening. I carried James in his Moby and Matt ran around in the surf with Gracie. It was lovely.

M: Gracie gave me a goodnight kiss.


Well goodnight all!

- Matt n Soph

Day 59: Home Sweet Home

Tonight is just a very quick post as we just drove home from South Carolina.

Had a lovely visit with Grammy and Grandpa but very glad to see Daddy.

The children are brilliant little travelers and have done wonderful getting home. They didn't cry once until about an hour away from home and a 6 hour non-stop journey only took 7, they did perfect.

We stopped about 3 hours in and had a nice little car picnic. Gracie has a peanut butter sandwich and pretended to drive the car while I nursed James in the passenger seat.
It was a pretty uneventful car ride thank the Lord.

Took the dog on a nice walk this evening. Life back to normal :)

We are all heading off to bed now as its been a long day.

Will resume posting as usual tomorrow.

Thank you for a lovely stay Grammy and Gramps!

Goodnight all

- Soph

Day 58: Last Day At Grammy's

Last day in SC today. I was feeling a little nervous about the drive tomorrow but I think I'm past that now and back to feeling confident! Feeling excited to see my lovely Matt :)

Today's positives:

1: Gracie enjoyed a nice blueberry muffin from Grandpa this morning.

2: James and I had a lovely time sitting on the deck watching the world go by while Gracie took her mid morning nap.

3: Gracie has enjoyed picking out shoes for Grammy to wear today. Mainly her sparkly flip-flops.

4: We all laid out on the sofa's watching Veggie Tales making for a very relaxing afternoon.
 I think everyone fell asleep at some point.

5: Gracie had fun walking to the play ground and back. James enjoyed his ride in the Moby.

6: While sitting out on the deck Gracie enjoyed playing with Tallulah the cat through the window.

It has been a very calm day today.
Hope to post tomorrow but I do have to get back to Florida! Prayers for the drive are appreciated.

Goodnight all

- Soph

Day 57: Cakes and Finger puppets

Another pretty day in South Carolina. Feel a little sad as the week is coming to an end and I am having a lovely time but excited to see Matt.


Today's positives:

1: Thanks to my lovely Mum looking after Gracie this morning, James and I got to go back to bed for a while and take a lovely nap together.

2: Grammy and Gracie seemed to have had a lovely morning. They had breakfast together out on the balcony and watched the Wiggles.
My Mum also told me to add this: This morning while J and I were napping he woke up crying and as soon as G heared him she ran to the toy box and grabbed his rattle and then ran to the bedroom to try and cheer him up.
3: We took Gracie to Bakers Sweets for a cake. It had M&M's in it and I think she quite enjoyed it.

4: Mum took the babies to her place of work to pick up her check and maybe show them off a little ;)

5: We came home and had a nice afternoon of Veggie Tales and finger puppet making.

6:  Gracie was very excited when Grandpa got home from work.

7: I am very proud of Gracie for going to bed in a regular bed and not climbing out once! I think she may be ready for her big girl bed.

Hope everyone has a nice weekend ahead of them!

Goodnight all

- Sophie