Sharing Love

 For you are fearfully and wonderfully made...

Psalms 139

Makayla Ann - September 2008



Mason Allen - September 2010

"On the night you were born, the moon smiled with such wonder that the stars peeked in to see you and the night wind whispered, "Life will never be the same."
Because there had never been anyone like you...ever in the world.

The above is an excerpt from a book that was given to me as a gift - "On the Night You Were Born" by Nancy Tillman.  Most definitely a book that fills me with emotion and almost makes me cry every time I read it.

With each child, we question how we can possibly love the next one as much as the first.  How do you share your love?  That was my biggest fear when I was going to have Mason - how could I possibly love him as much as I love Makayla

But...

...It just happens.  You bring your children into this world and you love them beyond measure.  They are perfect for your family and there is nobody else like them in the world.  I love Makayla and Mason deeply and I want to remind them everyday how strong my love is for them - how much they mean to me and the special things that each of them bring to our lives. 



Wal-Mart Aisles

Tomorrow marks a week that Makayla has been wearing big girl underwear...and she hasn't had one single accident...yet.

• I get so excited to pick her up from daycare to see if she is wearing the same pants that I dropped her off in.  So excited, that the last 30 minutes of my workday usually consists of thoughts that only include Makayla and underwear.  If she does a good job using the potty at daycare, then she gets a peppermint patty - something she loves.
• One night this past week, Makayla and daddy went down to our bed to watch basketball and Makayla fell asleep while wearing her underwear.  When I went down to bed that night to move her, I had a nice, wet, warm spot on my side of the bed.  I couldn't help but laugh at ourselves.
• Makayla likes to go potty by herself and often times asks us to leave the bathroom.  She also likes to wipe herself and doesn't understand why I wipe her butt when she ALREADY did.  I can't help but wonder what goes on in the bathroom when she asks us to leave.  Hopefully nothing too scary.

Potty training has been easier than what I expected.  We explained the potty to Makayla and let her take it from there.  We didn't push her to potty train and we let her be the one to make the decision of when she was going to use it 'full-time'.  She's done wonderfully and we couldn't be happier. 

To celebrate her accomplishment, we took Makayla shopping at Wal-mart.  She got to pick out any toy she wanted for doing such a good job.  She walked up and down the aisles over and over again.  She touched and played with every single toy that was in reach.  Out of all the toys she could have picked she ended up with a doctor kit, a Mr. Potato Head, and a spider. 

I was kind of bummed.  I was hoping she would go with a Bop-It or an Alphie!

Listening to Mason's heartbeat.  The whole time she was working on Mason, she was saying "Oooh Bubba.  It's okay Buddy.  Good job, Brother Mason".  I'm so happy that they have each other.

Looking to see if there is a potato in Mason's ear - something her grandpa's taught her. 

Band-Aids

Makayla with her baby after she gave him band-aids.

Just a reminder that the yellow text is Kevin writing.

Today Tracy took Mason to the Dr. to get his 4 month shots.  After he got his shots in his legs they put band-aids on his legs.  Makayla has been very worried about Mason getting his shots all day since he got them.  Tonight she brought a roll of tape up to me and wanted me to give her 2 pieces.  When I asked her why she needed the tape she told me because her baby got shots.  Sure enough Makayla took the tape and put them on the legs of her baby.  Makayla placed them where she saw Mason's band-aids on his legs.
I just love how motherly Makayla is with her baby dolls.  She really pays attention to what Tracy and I do to take care of them. 

i heart faces: Innocent Wonder

Look at everything as if you were seeing it either for the first or last time.

Betty Smith

 Makayla's world is fresh, new, and beautiful.  Everything she looks at and everything she listens to is exciting and good.  She observes her surroundings with such intensity, soaking everything in - watching in wonderment, gazing in awe.  

I'm trying something new.  There are a few photo challenges throughout each month at http://www.iheartfaces.com/  Each photo challenge has a different topic.  This week's topic is

 Innocent Wonder.

 Check out the website!!I'm #752.  Take a look and leave a comment.  

Simple Memory

“The little child, when it sees a star sparkle, stretches out its dimpled arms; it wants that star.  To want a star is the beautiful insanity of the young”

Last spring, late into the season well past sunset, we took a walk down the street to the park.  The three of us;  mommy, daddy, and Makayla. 

I can still feel the night.  I can still smell the night.  It was a warm spring night, but still enough chill in the air to wear a sweatshirt and to cover my little girl with a blanket in her stroller.  The night smelled of the earth waking up – dirt, grass…life.

We got to the park and started to swing.  That’s how we entertained ourselves that night.  We swung on the swings.  It was so refreshing and felt so free to swing back and forth as the night air brushed against my face…and to have a million starts staring down on us - amazing. 

It’s something so simple, yet something I don’t think I’ll ever forget.

 Spring, swings, stars, and my family. 

I can’t wait to do it again, but this time we’ll have Mason to join with us.

What’s your simple memory?  I know our lives are made up of many simple memories.  I'd love to read what your simple memory is.

This and That

Due to being on-call for work, it's been a low-key stay at home type of weekend.  I am thankful for my weekend call because that forces us to stay in town, stay at home - get caught up.




Our vacuuming Princess.  Makayla is in the stage now where she always  wants to help us do everything.  She wants to help clean, cook, take care of Mason, feed the cats...everything.
"Be glad of life because it gives you the chance to love, and to work, and to play and to look up at the stars"
-Henry Can Dyke



We took Mason for his 4 month well baby visit last week and he is weighing in at 12lbs, 13 ozs and 25 inches tall.  Makayla was just a few ounces heavier than that when she was 6 months, so to us - Mason is a big boy!

"Sons are the anchors of a mother's life"

-Sophocles

Makayla has learned to peel her own bananas, which is a good thing because now she is asking to eat them more often.  However, if she finds out that we even tried to get it started for her by breaking off the tip, then it's the end of her world.

"The sight of you...is as necessary for me as is the sun for the spring flowers"

-Marguerite of Valois

This is one of Makayla's best friends, Mike.  Look at her tiny hand squeezing the back of his neck.  It feels good to have a grip like that from a 2 year old.  I love this picture!

"Everyone was meant to share God's all-abiding love and care; He saw that we would need to know a way to let these feelings show...so God made hugs"

-Jill Wolf

This is Makayla eating hard, uncooked macaroni noodles.  A new snack that she recently discovered that she likes.  I think it is the crunching of the shell - like candy and ice...Oooooh, her poor teeth!

"...a man hath no better thing under the sun, than to eat, and to drink, and to be merry"

-Ecclesiastes 8:15

"Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!"

-2 Corinthians 9:15   

Making Tents

Thank you Makayla for making me laugh. 

Not a day goes by that my daughter doesn't overwhelm me with her intelligence, amaze me with her imagination, or provide me smiles and laughter.

If Makayla has been upstairs playing and it has been dead silent for a few minutes, I know that something  has a strong  hold of her attention. I'll always call up to her and ask her what she is doing.  She usually responds with "noooothing", which that answer never fails to make me grin.  Tonight, after a few minutes of silence, I yelled up to her and asked her what she was doing.  This time she responded with "making tents".  I snuck upstairs to watch her make tents and this is what I found...

Now, seriously...

She really was making tents!!

It's things like this that I love about my daughter.  I know that everybody with a little kid gets to experience things like this, but I still feel lucky.  I feel so lucky that I get to be Makayla's and Mason's mom.  I feel so lucky that I get to go upstairs to my bathroom and find panty-liner tents. 

Hearing the babies heartbeat for the first time!

Makayla's baby monitor AKA Heartbeat monitor

Okay, this is Kevin and I am going to take a shot at doing my first "blog".  You will know when I do my posts because I am going to use the color yellow for all of my posts. 

Tonight I came home from work to a very excited little girl.  She went upstairs to play in her room with her baby dolls and whatever else she could find to play with.  So Mason and I went upstairs to check and see what big sister was up to.  When we got up there she was playing with the buttons on her baby monitor.  Mason and I let her play for a little bit as we talked and played on her bed.  Makayla then said "Daddy I listen to baby's heart."  As she was saying that she put the baby monitor on her tummy so I could listen to the baby's heart also. 

Makayla is so smart!

I know that my posts will not be as well written as Tracy's, but I am sure they will be pretty entertaining. 



Listening to the baby's hearbeat. Such a proud little mommy!





Toes, Art, and Baby

Our biggest accomplishment today:  Clipping Makayla's toenails.  

Makayla hates getting her toenails clipped, so I bribed her with Sprite and Nerds, but to my surprise, those treats still did not do the trick.   It was a  long 3 minute ordeal with screams, sweat, and tears.  When we were all done, she proceeded to tell me that her friend Hazel likes to get her nails clipped and then wanted to call daddy at work to let him know that we clipped her nails, as if it was no big deal.  Earlier this evening, we went to Wal-Mart and Makayla got to pick out her own nail polish so we could paint her newly clipped nails. 

While we were at Wal-Mart picking out nail polish, we also bought art supplies -

Glitter, Glue, and Scissors...oh joy!



There's something very entertaining about watching a little one cut. I think it's all the concentration that is expressed through the eyes and mouth. 



Her work of art and  Daddy's the lucky one.  He gets to take it to work.

So, after painting toenails, cutting triangles, and spreading glitter, Makayla ended her night by eating a twix and drinking milk.  I'd say that's a good night.

...and by the way.  She still has a baby in her belly.  When I went to take her out of the carseat when we got back from Wal-Mart, she said "Shhhh, baby's sleeping" and rubbed her belly.

Pretend Pregnancy

By the end of my pregnancy with Mason, Makayla was pregnant, too.  She would rub her belly, talk about her baby, and cover her belly up with a washcloth in the bathtub to cover her baby up with a blankie. 

Like mother, like daughter.  Makayla wanted a baby in her belly because mommy had a baby in her belly. 

Once I had Mason, Makayla was done being pregnant.

Well...last weekend, we went to a baby shower for my cousin and ever since this baby shower, Makayla has been pregnant...again.  She walks (or waddles) around the house rubbing her belly talking about her baby.  Sometimes when I hug her, I have to be careful that I don't squeeze or scare her baby.  She talks about going to the hospital to have her baby.  She's very into having this baby in her belly. 

Last night, Makayla was playing "doctor" with her cousin Kyleigh.  Kyleigh was the doctor and wanted to help Makayla "borned" her baby.  The girls were on the couch and Kyleigh pulled a baby doll out from behind Makayla's back and we made a big deal about Makayla's baby.  I thought maybe that would be the end of Makayla's imaginary pregnancy. 

This is day 3 and Makayla woke up this morning still talking about her baby.  She even took a princess blanket to daycare with her this morning for her baby. 

Makayla's imagination is very good and we have had A LOT of laughs these past few days, but I'm hoping that she'll be able to move on from this pretend pregnancy soon. She's so serious and real about the whole thing, it's starting to make me nervous...

Please Take Your Time

One of the best things about being a parent is to watch your children progress, excel, and succeed.  Every little thing your child does is remarkable and seems, at that moment, to be the most amazing thing in the world. 

The past 28 months of my life have been filled by my children’s “firsts” and accomplishments.  The following is just a fraction of what has made us so happy and giddy, proud and amazed:

·         The first time our babies smiled when they were sleeping.  It doesn’t matter that it was within the first few hours of them being alive or that “the books” say that it was from gas.  They smiled.  That’s all that mattered.

·         The first time our babies smiled for real and knew who and what they were smiling at.

·         The first time our babies slept through the night.  Even if was just a 6 hour stretch, by golly – they were sleeping through the night!

·         When they laughed out loud for the first time!  Whatever it was that caused that big belly roll, we kept on doing it – over and over again, no matter how goofy we looked.  A baby’s laugh never gets old.

·         Hearing those first words.  Even when nobody else knows what they are saying, they are your baby’s first words and they are crisp and clear to your ears.

·         Any physical accomplishment for the first time…you practice and practice and practice, then one day it’s achieved!  Grasping a rattle, rolling over, sitting up, walking…

·         The first time your child says “please” or “thank you” all by themselves without having to be told.

·         Our newest accomplishments – Peeing on the potty and learning our ABC’s.  We’re going to be excited next week when Mason gets to taste solid food for the first time.

Like I said – this is just a teeny example of the things that excite us.  Every day there is something that one of our kids do that amaze us and make us look at each other with wide eyes and a big smile. 

Tonight was different, though.  As I was watching Makayla play, I was thinking to myself – please take your time.    It is fun to watch the kids grow and learn new things, but I don’t want them to grow up too quickly.  I want them to take their time growing up.  The days are long, but the years are quick – too quick.  Before I know it, they’ll be all grown up with families of their own.  I need to soak in the time I have with them now.  I need to cherish every second, every minute of them being children – my babies. Mason can take his time crawling and Makayla can take her time being fully potty-trained.  Eventually, Mason will wiggle and squirm to get out of my arms and Makayla will wear underwear.  In the meantime, I need to enjoy the spot where we are at.

So, Makayla and Mason – please take your time growing up.  We have forever.   

My Mason - 4 months

When I Lay In Bed At Night

When I finally get to lay down at the end of the day, it usually takes me quite some time to fall asleep because my mind just starts racing.  It's full of the things I did during the day and the things I need to take care of throughout the week.  I start thinking of how lucky I am and everything good in my life.  I start thinking of how blessed we truly are, which then makes me completely focus on my babies. 

I can't imagine my life without Makayla and Mason.  They are everything to me.  They are a good thing to fall asleep to at night as I slowly drift into dreamland.

Here are some things that I love about my babies.  I'll probably randomly be sharing lists of *Things I Love.

• Whenever Makayla wants to tell you a secret, it is ALWAYS "I love you".
• I love how Makayla offers me her blankie whenever she thinks I may be sad or a have a boo-boo. She never hesistates to share with me her favorite thing, her security, her comfort.
• I love how I can kiss my babies over and over and over again...and that they love it as much as I do.
• The way Makayla says quesadilla, adios, and gracias. She even knows to speak spanish when we go to the local mexican restaurant.  The things that make a mommy proud.
• The smell of Mason's breath.  I used to love Makayla's breath, but then she got all of her teeth...That's one of the very first things I did after I gave birth - smelled my newborn's breath.  It was virgin breath.  Something that will never be again. 
• How Makayla thinks each and every blemish on my face is a boo-boo. She looks at me with pain in her eyes and talks with concern in her voice.  She is always so sympathetic and often times kisses my "boo-boo".
• The feel of their soft skin - cheeks, arms, legs.
• How Makayla calls our suitcases our diaper bags. Why not?  It makes sense to her. 

These are only a few things that were running through my mind tonight, but I'm sure I'll be sharing more lists in the future, for this is my life and it's what is on my mind all of the time!



Look what I found...

Every single day, I run across something, or accidently find something that makes me smile and sometimes cracks me up.  It's the little things like a pile of cheeseballs and pieces of a poptart next to the cat's plate because Makayla wanted to share her food with Chief and Rascal...

Well, the other day, I found this:

And if you already didn't know, my daughter has an obsession with gum.  Obession, Addiction, Fascination.  Call it what you may, but the girl LOVES her gum. 

When I picked it up to throw it away, I heard something inside of it. I opened it up and this is what I found:
















Makayla's Secret Stash of Chewed Gum!  To keep a collection of your chewed gum is such a strange thing to do, and at the same time too funny.  I'm impressed with her collection and didn't dare throw it away, so I gently laid it back down exactly where I found it. When it's time for her to get rid of another piece of gum she knows where to find her container...but I hope this isn't a sign of a bad habit!! 

Ahhhhh, the life of my 2 year-old.

Girls and BOY Weekend

Kevin was lucky enough to spend a weekend in Kansas City to watch the Chiefs in a playoff game.  He was joined by his dad, brother, nephew, and a couple of friends.  All 6 of them stayed in a really small hotel room, ate good barbecue, watched football in really cold weather, and hopefully walked away with great stories to tell and unforgettable memories.

In the meantime, back at the homestead, the kids and I stayed very busy.  We had a slumber party on the living room floor Saturday night with lots of blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals.  We stayed up late and watched Minnie’s Rainbow and other various Mickey Mouse shows.  We ate graham crackers and drank apple juice.  It was a good time.

We started our Sunday out by Makayla exchanging sweet words to Mason - "Good morning, Buddy!  I missed you!  You're my friend" and eating cinnamon ‘n sugar toast while Mason chugged a full bottle of milk.  “Nummy in my tummy” is all Makayla could keep saying.  She loved it, but didn’t even end up eating half of her toast.  We spent the rest of the morning swimming in the bathtub, flying high in the sky, eating pizza and drinking tea, and  100 million other things.  It’s crazy how many activities you can go through in such a short time with an imagination of a 2 year-old. 

Flying...

...Flying

…I did find it quite humerous that Makayla was putting mushrooms on our pizza, but insisted it was macaroni.  No matter what I said, it was still macaroni and probably forever will be.  Macaroni pizza probably sounds  and looks a lot better to her than mushroom pizza.

After drinking our soup through a straw for lunch, we laid down to watch the Chiefs game and look for daddy on TV.  After searching for daddy for about an hour and watching the boys throw a football, Makayla gave in to her sleepy eyes and took a nap.  Whew! 

As the kids are napping, I’m quickly writing this so I can hopefully get a few chapters read in my book before one of them wakes up.  I’m just thrilled that they are both asleep at the same time!!

I love how I usually feel that I will never get ‘caught up’ in life and that my house is a mess 6.5 days of the week (and when I say a mess, I mean a mess that proves my home is a happy home and a home that is lived in with children).  Sure, there are times when I think it would be nice to have a couple of days to re-group and ‘relax’, but honestly, I may have forgotten how to really relax…but that’s okay.  As a friend told me, life is filled with mixed blessings.  I may dream of a day alone watching movies and taking a bubble bath, but sooner than later – I’ll be wishing for these crazy days filled with laughter, tears, and a messy home back.

ABC's and Twinkle Twinkle

Makayla's singing debut: 

Her stage is the bubble bath and she takes it away.

She starts out with ABC's and beautifully seques into Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.

*Notice towards the end of the alphabet (around W or X) she gets a little taste of bubble in her mouth and has to restart a couple letters prior. 

Before playing this video, you may want to pause the blog music by scrolling to the end of this page and hitting "pause" on the player.

The Reason

Just because I don't already have enough to do, I'm going to start giving some time to blogging.  I thought it would be a good idea, not only for family and friends to keep updated on our children and life, but for ourselves.  We LOVE our children, the things they do, and the things they say.  We also LOVE capturing life's little moments through pictures.  What better way to put the stories and pictures together than this blogspot -
Sugar and Slugs.

A story here, a story there
A picture here, a picture there
A quote here, a quote there

P.S.  Not only will I be blogging, but so will my husband, so....



What are little girls made of?

Sugar and spice and all things nice.

That's what little girls are made of!

What are little boys made of?

Slugs and snails, and puppy dog tails.

That's what little boys are made of!