First Day of School - Part 2

Today this guy started 1st grade! Sunday night I started a tradition {I hope} of asking Trent a pre-school survey. I got a kick out of his answers!

1. How old are you? 6

2. What is your favorite color? Green. Really, really dark green.

3. What is your favorite food? Potato chips

4. What is your favorite TV show? Star Wars: The Clone Wars

My cutie!

{Photography fail - I put T by the front door but that meant he was looking into the sun!}

5. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween {candy and costumes for the win!}

6. What is your favorite thing to do with Mom? Cuddle up and snuggle and give kisses and hugs. {Be still my heart!}

7. What is your favorite thing to do with Dad? Wrestle

8. What is your favorite thing to do with Drew? Chase her, have her try to bite me, and wrestle her. {Yup, every night!}

Of course now she wants to pose!

{She's had 6 days of school and has requested this skirt 3 times.}

9. What are you most excited about for 1st grade? Nothing {Swell}

10. What are you nervous about for 1st grade? Nothing

11. What do you want to be when you grow up? A scientist or an inventor {And then he proceeded to tell me about how he was going to invent a car called a 'dork' that would drive for you and make you pancakes. Love it!}

12. What is your favorite movie? Nothing

13. What is your favorite toy/stuffed animal? Pink Stairs {His blanket}

14. What is your favorite thing to wear? Diapers {He all of the sudden is playing babies all the time, ha!}

15. Who are you going to marry when you grow up? My sister, duh. I already told you this. {Yes, he has said this before!}

16. What are you going to name your kids when you grow up? We can't have kids like you told me before. {He told me a few weeks ago they were going to get married, and I told him they couldn't because they have the same DNA. Don't you love our conversations?}

And drumroll...HE HAD A FANTASTIC DAY! He told me 'it was better than excellent!' Of course he saved it all up to be extremely stubborn at home after school, but we'll take that if it means a great day!!!

Currently

Current Book

My last book for the book challenge! {an animal on the cover}

I just finished it last night...still deciding what I thought.

Current Song

I finally got 1989 {thanks Kathryn!} - it's on repeat in the car. The kids love it too!

I also just rewatched a few episodes on HBO of the Foo Fighters Sonic Highways - where they traveled all over the country recording songs in cities known for their music scene {Nashville, L.A., Austin - shout out!}, and I downloaded the song they performed in Austin, What Did I Do?/God As My Witness. SO GOOD!

I am also loving this song by Shawn Mendes, Stitches. iRadio finally got me to buy something!

Current Show

Brent and I are still working on Mad Men, but we're nearing the home stretch!

Current Drink

I said that this week I was going to prep for Whole 30 and haven't...ha. But right now, I'm drinking iced tea. Yum!

Current Shame-Inducing Pleasure

DCC is BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!

Current Outfit

Work from home uniform - Target tee and denim shorts! [no make-up for the win!]

Current Celebrity Crush

Brent and I both agree that Roger Sterling is our favorite part of Mad Men!

Current Mood

Excited and anxious. I really want Trent to have a good start to school this year!

Current Anticipation

There is the littlest hint of fall in the air in the mornings. It might still be getting to 100 degrees a lot of afternoons, but fall is coming!!

Current Film

I mean it this time! The lady friends and I are getting an outing together!

Current Picture

Wearing Bubba's clothes as pj's and eating a frozen waffle.

Doesn't get much better in life for this little nugget!

First Day of School - Part 1

Hey Drew, let's take a picture! Today is your first day of school!

Can you stand still and smile for mama?

Or not! Happy first day of school to our little bit of sass!

As We Approach the Start to School...Deep Thoughts

Drew starts school this week and Trent starts in 1 week. {Yes, they go to the same school, but because Trent is starting in a new class, Lower Elementary which is 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grades, they stagger the starts, so he starts a week later.}

First day of school 2014 - weren't they so cute and little?!
And remember how much fun it was living in an apartment? [said no one ever]

I am really hoping that this year we can get into an even better routine than we had last year. It's been so nice having the summer off from a routine. For the most part, the kids have been able to sleep in, stay up late, watch too much TV, have few rules or responsibilities, but I think we're all ready to get back to reality {well, I am - not so sure about the kiddos}.

I want to get up really early {for me} - 6:00 AM. That's tough because Brent is such a night owl, so to spend time with him, I'm easily up until midnight a lot of nights. So I need to get to bed earlier so I can get up earlier! But Brent is gone usually before the kids are even awake, so I have to do everything in the morning myself, so it's super important to be organized - which is not a strength of mine {understatement}.

My goal is to get ready, spend 30 minutes getting my plan for work together for the day, and start breakfast for everyone - all before I get them up for the day.

I think it would be so beneficial to me to start the day off before everyone and get organized, and I want to get the kids up a little earlier to give them time to eat breakfast and play a little before rushing out the door.

I have this vision in my head of how I want to be as a mother, and I usually fail. I think I'm slowly getting to where I want, but I'm not there yet. 

So here's hoping for a good start to the new school year!

Five on Friday

ONE

I've seen this a bunch of times and crack up every time I do.

TWO

Eek! I'm going to start next Monday - anyone want to join me?!

THREE

Whoop! Our kids are staggering back to school {Drew starts next week and Trent the week after}, but I am beyond ready to get back into a routine. I have loved having more access to the kids during the day, but it has been also very challenging since we have been nanny-less for about 6 weeks.

FOUR

For Father's Day, Brent's mom bought a golf package for Brent's dad, Brent, and his brother to go play one of the more famous golf courses in the U.S. If you know anything about golf, you know about the 17th hole at Sawgrass.

FIVE

So this happened yesterday. {Ignore how tired and awkward I look - selfie pro, I am not.}

Show & Tell Tuesday: All About High School ME!

Who was I in high school? I cringe when I think about high school, but I think I had a pretty good high school experience. I wasn't super popular, but I was popular enough. I was involved in activities, had friends, met the love of my life...so it couldn't have been bad, I guess! But when I think about acne, bad hair, insecurities, studying/tests, fights with friends {and a certain boyfriend}...I wouldn't go back for anything!

I was in band {and played the flute}.

I had braces for about 18 months.

{I think this is one of the first pictures of Brent and me. LOVE}

Most of high school, my sister and I fought more than we liked each other.

We spent a lot of time with family - some of my happiest memories.

I cut bangs myself. {oops}

I ran track and ran the 400m dash and 1,600m relay. I equally loved and hated track - the meets stressed me out to no end, but I loved the competition.

My dad taught at my high school - I had him as my Algebra II teacher, and Brent had him twice - even the semester we started dating. Never thought about how awkward that must have been for my dad!

I went to my senior prom with the guy I would marry.

I was class President all 4 years of high school.

I was in honors classes and was a member of the National Honor Society.

I am still friends with friends from high school.

I rarely wore make-up, was just figuring out how to tame my frizzy/semi-curly hair, was pretty self-conscious, had more crushes than was crushed on...

I was {and am} a goofball.

I was vote Best Leader and Miss PHS at senior prom. Sounds semi-cool, right? Except Miss PHS was teacher vote. I couldn't have imagined getting in trouble, I would have been mortified.

I think that sums up my high school experience pretty well. A few friends from high school still read my blog {Hi Allison, Kelly, and Kathryn!}...did I do okay?

What was high school like for you?

Movie Review: Trainwreck

Allison and I have really been slacking on our movie game. I finally got around to seeing Trainwreck, and by now, if you wanted to see if you probably did. But I'm going to review it anyway. {grin}

Plot: Having thought that monogamy was never possible, a commitment-phobic career woman may have to face her fears when she meets a good guy.

Review: Really funny. Crude but really funny. I think that sums up how I feel about this movie. I really liked it...I think Allison liked it a little less - her favorite parts were LeBron James and a dance sequence {which I agreed were both great, but I liked more than just that}. The main character was kind of a terrible person for about 2/3 of the movie, so I think I would have liked it better if she hadn't been quite so awful {which I know was the point...but she was pretty terrible} but overall it was a good one!

Finally...Some Answers!

I've been blogging about our journey with Trent for a long time. One of the 'to do' items after his neuropsych evaluation was to get Trent tested for the MTHFR gene mutation. As with everything in the medical field, it took some time to schedule the test and then get the results. But we got official confirmation this week.... Drumroll please...

Trent DOES have the gene mutation! 

{I know it might seem weird that I could be excited about this, but when you've been searching for an answer for 3 years, it's such an exciting moment to have answers!}

The best way I can explain this is the MTHFR gene produces an enzyme that breaks down folic acid and when it doesn't work correctly, your body doesn't break down toxins appropriately and they build up in your body which causes stress on your systems and can cause them to shut down and not work properly. {I think this article explains it really well and also has a link to the approximately 60 medical conditions that have been linked SO FAR to this mutation. Infertility, miscarriages, autism, ADD, anxiety, increased cancer risks, depression, post-partum...} I'm just starting to really research it, but it's pretty fascinating.

When we met with this specialist a few months ago, after talking about Trent's history and her observing him, she told me she was 99% sure he would test positive for the mutation, and she started us on a protocol for him immediately. It's something you add to in layers, so we're doing 2 things for him right now, and he's responding AMAZINGLY.

I'm so optimistic and while it's a little frustrating to think about what we've gone through {and spent} and especially what Trent has had to deal with, I'm just relieved to finally feel like we're moving forward!

Movie night in the park with my little love

Drew: An Update

I thought it was high time to check in on my favorite little girl. It's hard to believe she's closer to her 3rd birthday than her 2nd. She is turning into such a big girl and so much has happened since she turned 2.

Statistically, Drew's still very small. She weighs about 23.5 pounds and is about 34" tall. Her hair is very thin and hasn't grown a ton {but I can finally do some fun, albeit messy, braids}. She wears mostly 12-18 month clothes, 24 month pajamas, and size 7.5 in shoes. She has some 24 month shirts but still wears some 9-12 month shorts - she is so skinny! We mastered potty training fully {except sleeping} in June - so 1 month shy of 2.5 - just like her brother!

We do have a bossy one on our hands! She knows how to pitch a fit when she doesn't get her way, but she is usually pretty easy to calm down. Her 2 big issues - getting her movies taken away and going to bed.

This girl is a water bug! She loves to go to the splash pad at our rec center, loves to play in our little pool in the back yard, loves to help Brent water the yard, loves to run in the sprinklers...she just loves water. And it's funny because she has since she got her first bath at 10 days old.

She loves to go to the park, loves to swing {and not in the baby swing!}. 

She is for sure my little snuggle bug. She loves to wear my shoes and play in my closet. 

Her best friend is for sure her brother, and Drew also loves to play with 'my cousins'. She loves her grandparents {especially her grandmothers}. I'm curious how going back to school will be in 12 days...she loves her teacher and has some good friends there, but she's been with me SO much over the past 2 1/2 months.

Drew is such a great eater! She eats tons of fruits and vegetables every day {her fave snack is a mix of frozen peas, corn, and broccoli, and she loves to pick tomatoes from her Pops' garden}. We also finally stopped nursing in June! That was a huge change for her, and she has cried many times over it, but she's doing fine.

Of course she also loves to have sugar - she definitely gets that from her mama, but we can ration it to her and she is totally fine.

Drew talks in complete sentences and LOVES to talk. She sometimes mixes up 'you' and 'me' - she is finally consistently saying 'hold me' instead of 'hold you' but will sometimes say 'excuse you' when she burps or toots. So cute! She says 'huh' for 'yes' a lot and will shout 'What did you say?' when she can't hear something - really funny.

Unfortunately has developed a love for electronics. Loves Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood, Elsa clips on YouTube, Care Bears, Mother Goose Club - We're working on the fits when it's time to turn them off - those are SO fun.

She is still sleeping in a crib. The few times she hasn't, it's usually a disaster, so I'm in no hurry to take her out! To combat the bedtime fits, we count to 10 before it's time to get into bed. Sometimes that helps. She'll usually say 'I want to rock a little bit' when I tell her its time to count, ha.

Drew loves singing - Some of her favorite are Hop, hop, hop like a bunny, Jesus loves me, I'm a soccer rocker, Swimming... Her version of singing is sometimes screaming at the top of her lungs, but it's still so cute.

She loves to pick her own outfits, and some of them are a bit...unusual... I love to see what her little mind picks - she gets on a kick of certain things {right now she loves some skirts Babs got her and her mouse shirt, she is still all about wearing leggings}.

Loves babies and stuffed animals. She is constantly carrying around stuffed animals or putting her babies in her shopping cart to go shopping {in the playroom}. She is such a little mama!

Loves to draw, color - loves using pens and loves to draw on herself. Knows she is supposed to only draw on paper but tries to draw other places - stinker.

She is such a joy!