big decisions and the sweetest thing

So, I never knew just how BIG certain decisions would seem to a mother of 2 young boys..such as... should I let my child go to preschool yet and where?

We are currently coming up on registration time for mother's morning out/ preschool for the fall... We have been very happy with Jayce's 2 day a week 3 hour program for mother's morning out... In fact, this has been the only way I've been able to get to the grocery store and run any necessary errands for the past year or so... and somewhat keep my sanity... BUT, sadly... this time has come to an end... and the program he is currently attending only offers a 5 day a week... still half day... preschool for 3 year olds... our church also has the same type program... There are certainly other places in Florence which have a 2-3 day program, but we really would want him to either stay where he is, or go on and start at Florence Christian, as we know that is where he'll attend later... I hate to have him move and then move again a year later... Jay and I had a very long talk last night... about our mixed emotions of not wanting to let go of him 5 days a week... yet feeling like he is probably ready to enter this stage of life... I am feeling guilty because I feel like I should be that mom who can entertain and teach and meet all her child's needs at home, without sending him anywhere else at age 3... but I am realizing that I cannot do this all the time for Jayce. He LOVES to be with other children, and to be very busy... and he is constantly saying to me throughout the day, "what we gonna do mommy?" Sometimes, he even says this as we are doing an activity I have planned to keep him entertained... he still gets restless! And, having Gabe now, my attention often cannot be on him and so I feel like he does need the structure that a preschool setting would provide him... At the same time, my heart breaks with this realization, knowing that from here on, he will be in school... and not my little stay at home buddy...and this makes me sad... really, just the fact that 3 years have flown by make me sad... and this really seems like a big step towards him growing up... I know I have to face the fact that he can't stay little forever... but it is so hard for me for some reason...

Anyhow, we have decided to send him to our church's preschool program... 5 half days a week... We really love the emphasis they put on scripture memorization and all the biblical teaching that will go on at F.C. as well... Hopefully we are making the best decision, and as I told Jay, if it does not work, we can certainly always pull him out, as he is still young and we will have that option...

The sweetest thing Jayce has ever said came out of his mouth this evening...Gabe is going through a growth spurt and has been crying every few hours, which we are not used to around here... and in trying to calm him down, Jayce held his hand and said... "It's ok brother. Jesus is with you." We have been telling Jayce this lately, b/c he is all the sudden waking up at night, screaming for us, I am thinking with night mares... and we told him that he does not have to be afraid, to ask Jesus to help him and to know he is with him. It was such a good feeling to know that our little boy really seemed to understand that as much as is possible for a 2 year old, and that he wanted his little bro to know that too... children truly are a gift from God.

I'm posting pictures from today after church... yes we bribed with a lollipop...
I was so excited to dress the boys alike today, as we only have a few coordinating outfits! Gabe's was actually Jayce's from when he was a baby... and I'd found the coordinating outfit from pattycakes consignment in Jayce's size, yea!

catching up AGAIN!

SO, I have been so slack lately... not really, just at blogging... Jay was out of town for a week last week, so at least I do have a good excuse... I have a whole new appreciation for single moms... I do not know how they do it... boy am I thankful for my husband!

So, we are still potty training... and it is still definitely a PROCESS... some days better than others...
I'm posting a few of those pictures I took from his first day pottying in his little potty.

cute things Jayce has said lately

he calls hush puppies "hush dogs"

he will put his arms around my neck and say, hold me mommy, take care of me mommy (so sweet)

he has told me that he needs to go to work and when I asked where he worked, he said up in the trees with the monkeys... still has a monkey thing

he can be so sweet at times, yet turn around and say something so violent... so I've decided to cut out the scooby doo he's been so into lately... all the ghosts and "creepers" are getting into his little head too much I think... for example... the other night he said, I love you Gabe... then one second later said Gabe I'm gonna pull your head off now!" So, we still definitely can't leave them alone...

Jayce is VERY particular these days about how he wants things and different preferences and dislikes... for instance... he asked me to bring him a chapstick from the store... but not just any chapstick, it must be blue... and the same for gum, a certain color... and if it were not... we would definitely have a melt down... so we try to do our best to accomodate his "needs" within reason... and sometimes we just have meltdowns... but I must say I've become so much better about just ignoring them and not letting them get to me.. If at all possible though I like to limit those melt down to the home setting, which means that I try to keep him out of all public areas right now, other than nurseries... Gabe and I do just fine currently running errands by ourselves during mothers morning out!

Jayce is loving to answer the phone and often grabs it before I can get to it, as I've often feeding or holding or changing Gabe... so he grabs it and says "HELLO! one day last week... and starts asking "are you having a good trip in Las Vegas daddy? Are you going to bring me a tractor and 2 cats? (this was his request... I told you, very particular)... he goes on and on and I'm thinking it's definitely Jay... I finally get to the phone and find it to be a surveyor for the election... it was quite funny... i just let him keep on talking and they didn't call back... imagine that!

What Gabe's up to...

LOVES to roll over and is SO PROUD of himself when he lands on his other side!

We tried solids about a week ago and he loved his cereal that first night but ever since, wants nothing to do with it... he makes a face like it's the worst thing he's ever tasted!


He CACKLES (spelling?) like a BIG BELLY LAUGH each time that I kiss his little neck. That is definitely his tickle spot and he LOVES to watch Jayce do anything... especially dance and be silly around him!


He is still being swaddled... which I did not know was odd until over my girls weekend my friends were all in disbelief about this... I can't stop it... I am afraid he'll wake up and I kind of want him to stay baby baby as long as I can!

We're still breastfeeding although I've needed to supplement with one bottle a day since I returned from my girls weekend as he's seemed extra hungry and won't take solids... plus we want to keep up his bottle feeding skills!


I will post some recent pictures, hope you enjoy!

potty training

So, I have the best pictures of our potty training over the past few days, but my camera is really acting up... AND I can't get my pictures downloaded... does anyone have any recommendations on a nice digital camera without much delay that is reliable... this is my 2nd kodak that is dying on me basically within a year...I can't spend a fortune but if anyone has any ideas, please email me or comment!

anyhow, we are starting to potty train again... lately I have been home so much, between the me, then the boys, and Jay all being sick... and now back to me again with my 2nd bout of mastitis... I figured I might as well make the most of this time stuck in the house... and try to accomplish something... so we started letting Jayce wear big boy underpants around again... he had been really interested up until Gabe was born... and had actually been pottying pretty regularly till then, then he wanted nothing to do with it for quite some time, so I took my mom's advice (who had 3 boys) and said that boys were slower in this department and rather than pushing him and getting into a power struggle, wait until he was ready... So, I was doing that... and now it seems he is ready... He has gotten quite excited about pottying, especially because his reward is 2 m and m's, which he calls (lm and lm's)... he has done really well with sitting on his little potty (or big if we are upstairs) and reading his little magazine and tee teeing... he gets so proud and loves to help me empty it out and wash hands and of course get m and m's! We are so proud of him and he loves to tell me after I tell him that, "I'm proud of you too mommy!" It is too cute... I'll post pictures as soon as I can of him reading his little magazine on the potty, it is too cute!

His favorite toys to play with since Christmas are his new Dr. Kit... and he has had plenty of practice with that with our whole household being sick lately... he loves to take our temp, give us shots ("I'm gonna make you cry now he says and gives us a shot) and prescribing "med med." He also is very quick to get us bandaids when we tell him we do not feel well... This morning I was laying on the couch and he came over and just started rubbing my head and saying go back to sleep mommy... it was the sweetest thing! His other favorite thing to do these days is play with salad tongs... he LOVES the things and would rather run around picking things up with those than do anything else... it's kind of strange, but hey, he's alot more coordinated with the things than I am...maybe he'll be a surgeon???


Jayce has been very sweet with Gabe lately and keeps telling him he'd better "keep his hands out of his mouth or he'll get sick" as many of you remember we had to work on this with Jayce forever... and he's not understanding why Gabe can't seem to keep his own out of his mouth too...

One last thing I wanted to write before I forget to, lately when I lay down with Jayce a few minutes before his nap... and he's chattering away, I tell him he has to be quiet and go night night or I'm going down stairs... he is quiet for a minute and then he'll say "I love you mommy." Now, is he smart or what... how can I get mad about that and leave right after that... he knows too, he does it every time, and just gives me this big grin... then he proceeds to sing an upbeat little tune... I love you mommy, I love you mommy, I love daddy too, I love daddy too, I love Gabe too, I love Gabe too, I love me too.. I love me too.(this is the funniest part).. that is for sure... he is definitely 2!

Catching up!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Years! I have so much to update the blog on... I'll start with Gabe's 4 month checkup, which was practically a month ago... as he just turned 5 months on the 1st... His stats were wt. 16 lbs, 2 oz, ht. 26.5 inches... his height was the 95 percentile and weight 75th.... Dr. Whitehead said he is right on target and when I called him chubs... he said he's not chubby, his weight is actually what we'd expect for his height... either way, he's going to be a big boy!

We had a wonderful, but very busy holiday! We started out with a brunch with one part of the McLaughlin family and then the McLaughlin family ornament exchange with the other half 2 nights before Christmas, then church and a "free day" as Jay's mom called it the next day and Christmas Eve was a bday lunch for Aunt Donna and then that night, we do our gift exchange with the immediate McLaughlin family, and then ALL stay the night and see what Santa has brought the next morning! Very busy, and SO much fun, but never any rest! It never fails that Jay and I NEVER sleep on that christmas eve... I guess we're too excited about Santa coming too! The boys were so much fun this year! Jayce loved all his gifts... big things were a train set (for he and Gabe) from nanny and grandaddy, and a little red bike and table set with chairs from mommy and daddy... Gabe got lots of little odds and ends... and too will use that table and chairs here shortly! Gabe was an angel over Christmas and everyone commented on how well he did! We just carried his moses basket from place to place and he stayed on his baby wise schedule throughout all the festivities... which totally amazed me... I remembered being really off schedule with Jayce over Christmas when he was so little.. but Gabe is SO easy going... He slept great! Jayce spent Christmas eve night with his cousins... all 6 of them in one room chaperoned by Uncle Jim... God bless him! We were attempting to get Jayce to sleep in the bed with us, and stop crying so he'd not wake up Gabe... and he kept saying "I want to sleep with my boys"... it was so cute... his Aunt Liza came and rescued him and he ended up sleeping really well with them! We headed to Chapin the day after Christmas and spent that evening and next day with the fam there! It was so great to be with everyone!

a few highlights...

At our Christmas Eve Brunch, I look over to see that Jay's aunt and uncle had removed Gabe's socks after mentioning to me several times how tight they were and that they thought they might be cutting off his circulation...I'll actually include a picture of this...

Gabe ROLLED OVER on Christmas Day!

Jayce gave mommy a busted lip by running and jumping in my lap and slamming his forehead right into my lip Christmas morning...

Gabe took a BOTTLE and mommy and daddy got to escape to Hilton Head 2 days after Christmas for 3 NIGHTS! Thank you mimi and papa for giving us a free place to stay and keeping our boys!


Jayce serenaded everyone with Frosty the Snowman and twinkle twinkle!

Jayce had a blast painting with his cousins and mimi in Chapin!


We LOVED LOVED LOVED being with family and friends over the holidays and SO enjoyed this Christmas with our little guys!