July 2019

Caught this trouble maker red handed! Pretty sure he was super excited to see a trash truck. I had to hold back from laughing so I could snap a quick pic and tell him to get down.

We made tie dye shirts with friends. Well, the moms made shirts while the kids played.

They were pretty thrilled though! Wilson's got some room to grow into his ;)

Kayla's been wanting a hair cut for a while. I've been warning Jacob that it was coming, because he didn't want me to cut it. I finally did it.

She's thrilled! And she keeps telling Daddy, "It's ok Daddy, I love my short hair."

Splash pad with friends!

A local church put on a big 4th of July event for the community. The kids enjoyed playing on lots of bounce houses and then they got some slushes while we waited for the show to start. 

Just like the other firework show, I felt like we had the best seats in the house. Ok, so maybe it was no different from anyone else, it was a great experience though!

And yet, some how Wilson fell asleep in the middle of it. Lol.

A few days before the 4th, Jacob's brother, Michael, sent me a text and asked me what our plans were for the long holiday weekend. We were in the middle of a bunch of responses from a group text from that side of the family, and Jacob was sitting next to me, so I showed it to him, thinking it was part of the group text, and said, "that's a weird text from your brother." Ruined it. Lol. I was still able to withhold information and confuse him. He mentioned to me a conversation he recently had with Michael about going to Kansas... so I actually almost had him convinced we might be meeting Michael in Kansas... until he pointed out that he would technically have to take leave. BUT I still had him convinced that Michael wouldn't show up until Friday, the 5th. BUT the morning of the 4th, I had gotten a text from Michael that he was pretty close... shortly after that I heard what I thought was a knock on the door and got a little too excited about it. Turns out it was just a noise that Wilson made on the kitchen table... and that's how I completely ruined Michael surprising Jacob ;) Michael showed up 10 or 15 minutes later and we still were able to enjoy a long weekend hanging out. Haha!

Wilson is the sweetest little boy... but at the same time, he's also pretty stingy with who he gives his love to. He immediately loved Uncle Michael though. (We haven't seen him in almost a year. Wilson wasn't even 2 yet the last time we saw him)

We've been meaning to try Bodacious BBQ ever since we got to Louisiana. We finally tried it out. It was pretty good stuff! They have a bunch of pig statues outside of the building and the kids love pointing them out when we pass by. Kayla was thrilled to get to see them up close and take a picture. Lol.

Ready to pop some fireworks!

We started off with a few that Michael had picked up on his way here. Then we walked down the street to a tent to buy some more.

Cute kiddos!

They had so much fun with sparklers, pop rocks, smoke bombs, bottle rockets, fountains, and more! Jacob and Michael turned into kids again shooting each other with Roman candles. I have a video of them shooting each other and you can hear Jacob talking about the briefing he had just had the day before about specifically not shooting fireworks at people..... Lol. And then Jacob handed me a Roman candle for a fight and I almost hurt him on accident.... Good times ;)

Dinner at Twisted Root. You don't have to twist our arms to convince us to go out to eat. Haha. Michael wanted to try a shake... apparently it was a really complicated shake to make. The girl kept asking him if he was sure that was the one he wanted. They were super sweet and brought the kids out someone cream while we waited for them to make the one Michael ordered.

He kept shivering from the ice cream. Poor, cute thing.

Got this picture one morning. Lol.

Cute kids!

She kept trying to see herself in the mirror while she brushed her teeth. It made me laugh!

Excited to see the Chick-Fil-A cow!! Wilson loved giving him a high five, but would not stand next to him for a picture. Haha.

Also, the one in Bossier just closed for renovations for who knows how long... and the one in Shreveport is closing in a few days for 2-3 weeks. How do you close the only 2 Chick-Fil-As in town!? 

Cow appreciation day 2019!! One of our favorite days of the year. Lol.

2018 & 2017

And here are some throwbacks... I love looking back at old pictures, especially when they're all similar, and seeing the changes!

2016 & 2015

 Dress up for dayssss. I love it!

He loves it when he gets on my back and I roll him off. Either that or when I skip around the house with him. Look at his cute face! I love to make him smile!

Being silly while Mom works out

We pass by the splashed on base every time we go to the gym, which is typically 4-5 days a week. They've been asking to go to the splash pad since it opened at the beginning of the summer... I finally got around to taking them... you know when summer was half way through.

They were just excited to play! Haha.

The sweetest cuddles <3

Seriously... I wish I could sleep through the gym! ;)

But of course that meant he didn't sleep that night... 10:30pm...

This view makes me happy. Jacob going on and on telling and showing me about car stuff. I love how much he loves it... Even if I'm tired and only understand half of it.

The kids got coupons from the library for some free Whataburger. The kids burgers were actually pretty big, and Wilson is a picky 2 year old most meals... So, I was super, super impressed that they both ate all of their food!

Wilson kept stealing my Dr. Pepper. I told him he had to give me a kiss every time he stole a sip... win-win situation ;)

I love when we all go run errands together. This is the best view <3

^^again.

With Jacob's work schedule, I've really been struggling with my own schedule. Because he gets home late, and I have a hard time sleeping with out him home, I stay up way too late every night. So we're both sleeping in late in the mornings. Thankfully the kids are pretty good about letting us... most days ;) And then I struggle with wanting to go and do things with him, or just sit at home with him. If we just sit at home I'm unproductive all day. Or I have to pick if we're going to get things done, spend time with Jacob, or do something with friends. Also, this is why most days all I feel like all I accomplish is getting to the gym. I guess that's better than if I didn't go though. I love that Jacob is home in the mornings... but I don't think I'll ever get our schedule mixed with his work schedule down... I just keep hoping he'll go back to working days soon. Lol. ;)

Anyways... So we didn't get to the gym until 4 or 5pm. Wilson fell asleep right before we got to base. He slept the whole time we were there, then wouldn't go to sleep at bedtime. It's been happening more and more lately.

He woke up when I picked him up to leave and he was still so sleepy mixed with a super bright sun outside. He's got the cutest little face in the 2nd pic <3

I totally peer pressure myself in to things.... I've been dreading potty training. Like I really, really despise it... But I happened to have conversations with a handful of people all at the beginning of the week about potty training and different techniques and tips. All of it made me realize that I was the one holding him back. So Wednesday afternoon, I put undies on him and was determined that we were going to just get it done and over with. Oh, and of course we had just bought and opened a huge box of diapers a day or two before.......

I blew up Jacob's phone with play by play updates all afternoon. He probably ignored them. Lol.

Some highlights:

"We've been to the toilet every 15 minutes for like the last hour and a half and 5 minutes before I was about to take him again... he pees on the floor. I don't know his bladder was that big."

I turned on Daniel Tiger on Amazon Prime and the first episode to play was a potty one. Perfect. Lol.

"I'm so happy I could cry" ... over pee. Such a glamorous life I live ;)

And then a few more texts telling Jacob that Wilson was running to the bathroom without me asking or prompting him. I probably scared/scarred him after he peed on my floor. Bless his heart. Haha.

I've been getting him familiar with the potty for a while now. I've randomly have him sit on the potty and try. Typically nothing happens. Any time he's woken up in the morning or from a nap dry, I've set him on the toilet. He has peed a few times that way. One time a few months ago, I did let him wear undies. I have no idea if he would have figured it out then or not, but he of course had an accident and I realized *I* was far from ready and didn't pursue it anymore.

Day 1 (although we started at like 2 or 3 in the afternoon) He peed in his undies twice that first afternoon. Totally expected. He had to do it and figure out it wasn't right and he didn't like it. I kept reiterating that with each accident... but I also really, really don't handle pee well which is why I told Jacob that I probably scarred him with those conversations about what happened, how he felt, and how that's why he needed to go in the potty. Bless his little heart. Haha.

Day 2 (the 1st full day) He actually did pretty well. He even pooped in the potty! (The day before he had already pooped in his diaper in the morning and never had to go again) We had a friend's birthday party at the pool... I'm pretty sure he just peed as he pleased.......... So that's cool.... He did pee for me when we left, but not before we left, when we got there, or a for quite a while after we got home. Overall he did pretty good that day though.

Day 3 was NOT good. I wanted to give up and put him in diapers and not even think about trying again for a long time. Somehow I stayed determined that we had come far and there was no turning back... no matter how much I wanted to. We went through 5 pairs of underwear that day. 3 poop. 2 pee. We have tile and wood all throughout our house. There is literally only one place we have carpet... the little rug in the toy room. The ONE place and he got it. Of course. I was so done that day. The bright side though was that even though I had been putting him to bed in a diaper the last 2 nights, he was waking up dry every morning.

Day 4 it clicked!! It was so glorious!!!! I really am convinced that he was just ready. No more accidents. I did keep continue to keep a timer going on my phone and asking him pretty frequently if he had to go potty. We actually got out of the house for a good while this day (Saturday). Previously, we just sat at home in front of the tv all day. It was so bad for everyone's moods, but I didn't want Wilson getting too busy with other things and having accidents. So all we did was watch tv, I keep giving him tons of watered down juice, and we did lots and lots of bathroom trips. We all needed out of the house this day. Even though I was still constantly taking him to the bathroom, he didn't need to go that often. He pretty much had it down and was able to tell me when he did need to go.

Day 5 was a Sunday. I was worried about taking him to church. Even though I didn't set timers on my phone, I took him to the bathroom to try pretty frequently. I was worried about him getting too busy playing in nursery. Although, he decided he didn't even want to go to nursery and cried and cried when he was in there, so I just had him in primary, with the older kids, with me. He did finally tell me he needed to pee as we were about to walk out to the truck to leave. The rest of the day was awesome.

And that was pretty much it. It's a miracle in my opinion. Hahaha. Really though, I think he was just ready to do it and once it clicked, it clicked. I started putting him to bed in undies Monday night and we haven't had an accident since. I am seriously so impressed with this kid!!! Also, thanks for sticking through and reading about our potty training experience ;) Lol.

No idea what the future brings for our family... but currently it's really bittersweet to be done with diapers!

I made him sit on the floor with a towel the first few days of potty training because I was afraid of him peeing on the couch. He was thrilled to watch all his favorite movies. It's hard to see, but he's got his little Dusty Crophopper toy, and a few others, sitting next to him watching Fire and Rescue. So cute. Lol.

Kayla was enjoying getting to watch movies all day long thanks to her brother potty training. Lol.

Celebrating our sweet friend's birthday <3

Playing "waterslides". Haha. It drives me crazy when they pull all the things out like this. (This wasn't that bad... but by the time I cleaned it up there were individual diapers, baskets of toys, and all the packages of wet wipes allllll over their room.) I bit my tongue and let them be kids for a while. Also though, this was the day of lots of accidents with potty training and I had a breakdown later in the day and locked myself in their room to clean it up (I stress out so much more when there are messes all around me). I was trying not to blow up on them though. Good times ;P

Smoothies and lucky charms... such a well balanced meal ;)

I had been giving Wilson so much attention with potty training. So when he fell asleep almost as soon as he laid down, it gave Kayla and I some much needed one on one time together!

My sweet girl <3

I kept asking her "what else makes you happy?" over and over again and I loved hearing all of her answers.

I wasn't expecting her to ask me the same thing. It made me actually stop and reflect. We needed this moment together!

So sleepy!

Wilson just saw this on my screen and said, "Mom! My no feet ones."

That's what he calls these pajamas. They are his absolute favorite and he asks to wear them every. single. night. Lol.

Happy to finally be able sit on the couch and not stuck on the floor on a towel. Hahaha.

His favorite part of running errands.

Smelling all the fake flowers. *sniff sniff* "oh how nice!" Lol.

Wilson is obsessed with these cars. I typically avoid them in stores because trying to walk away results in a good 30 minute tantrum ...because "I want the car at my house"...

If he's too tired at night, (Basically he can take a nap and not go to bed, or stay up and be way too exhausted by the time its bed time....) he's started having breakdowns. The last several nights it's been about pajamas. "I want to pick my pajamas. I want the no feet ones. I want you to pick. No! I want to pick". I'm so over it... Anyways, so he fell asleep, laying across the top of his bed, after throwing a fit about me putting pajamas on him. Kayla was super concerned and at one point I went in and she had moved his blanket up and over him. A little later I checked again and found her trying to cuddle him. Lol. She's so sweet. And she has to take advantage of it when he's sleeping because he doesn't let her touch him when he's awake. Haha.

For a kid that doesn't nap, this has been happening so often.

 Pizza at Sams is their favorite... and it means I don't have to cook a dinner that they won't eat for me. Lol.

I jogged with Kayla and Jacob walked with Wilson as they rode their bikes one morning. I had left my phone in the car, so this was snapped afterwards. This is my happy place though, doing anything and everything with my favorite people <3

Again with the lawn mowers. Haha. If he's upset about going to run errands, I use these as an incentive so he won't throw a fit. Works every time.

He just said, "Mom, can we go to that store?", when he saw this on my computer screen. Hahaha.

Kayla - excited to cuddle and hold her brother. Wilson - done. Lol.

Playing with trains

I decided I should get my camera out and practice using it a little bit. My photography skills are still a work in progress ;)

"Wilson look here! Smile! Say cheese!"

He was not having it. Obviously. Haha.

This is rare. I love sleeping cuddles!

Happy to have Mommy all to himself with Kayla asleep!

Jacob cut his own hair right before he went in to work. Wilson was not happy about it. He gets so upset when Jacob gets a haircut and he doesn't. So he was excited that I cut his hair. He loves it short like Daddy!

Cutest little fuzz head!! He was also happy to cuddle his porg because there was one just like it on his pajamas. And he told me, "Mom! Porg is like pug!" Ok then... Lol. He then wanted a picture with both of them.

He woke me up one morning to excitedly tell me about his train track creation. Haha!

Fun at sci-port, the local kids science museum.

^^

Wilson after eating some powdered donuts. Lol.

He was being too quite... I called out for him and realized he was playing in my bathroom. I went in there and he said, "look! I made the toilet paper big!!" He was SO excited that he had pulled out more rolls of toilet paper from the closet and refilled the stand for me. Lol.

I kept telling him if he went the whole week without a potty accident that he could pick a new toy. Of course he picked one of those little cars that he's obsessed with. I tried so hard to get him to pick a different kind, because we already have a beetle one at home, he was determined though! He is so thrilled with his new toy! And I'm just so proud of how big my baby is! ...And I've realized I need to stop calling my potty trained, soon to be 3 year old my baby and that makes me sad.

We typically don't eat any Mexican food restaurants in Louisiana. It all has sucked compared to what we're used to in Texas!! We decided to give Uneeda Taco a try though. I was surprised with how much I liked it. And I'm definitely coming back for that street corn! Haha!

The crayon says "outback" on it and she was copying it down, but wrote it backwards. She was trying to sound out what she wrote and I was really confused... until I realized what she had done. Lol.

Sometimes we like to drive around the neighborhood and see what people put to the curb before trash day. Jacob made a comment about even if he made tons and tons of money, he'd still probably drive around and pick things up. We've gotten a few lawn mowers, a wheelbarrow, and we just picked up a tv (although he hasn't tried to plug it in to see whats wrong yet.) We don't pick up a ton of things, but sometimes people just throw things out because they don't know how to fix it, and it's still perfectly good. It's nice having a handy husband around ;) Haha.

Jacob recently got a 3D printer. He's got a project he's working on (car stuff). It's fun to see him do it, and he's got a lot of interested people, so we're both excited to see where this goes... He printed the kids some little toys while testing it out and they are thrilled!!!