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Making a fresh start on a new blog...

Big Green Red Tractor

I had one thrilled little boy today!

Daddy called and asked if we could bring him out a water cooler where he was out spraying fields. Sebastian and I drove out to where he had instructed and Sebastian watched in awe as David mixed his water & chemicals and loaded the tractor. He asked if he could ride with Daddy on his tractor. David explained to him that his field was really far away from where we were and if he went that he would have stay on the tractor for a long time because Daddy couldn't bring him back. Of course, Sebastian didn't care and was eager to jump up in the driver's seat. So my little guy climbed up in the tractor with Daddy and he finished spraying the fields that afternoon. He rode for about an hour or two. David called to say that they were about to leave the field, so I grabbed my camera and headed to the shop.

Sebastian was grinning ear-to-ear. You couldn't wipe the smile from his cute little face. He jumped down out of the tractor like he owned the place and strutted over to me and told me all about his afternoon. He was so proud of his accomplishment and I was one proud Mama!

Splashin' Good Time

Tomorrow is my oldest nephew, Tristin's, birthday. [Happy Birthday, Sweetheart!!] I can't believe I have an 11-year-old nephew!?! In celebration of his birthday, we had cake & ice cream at my sister's house and all the kids played in the pool. I was massively loud and crazy with seven kids + the adults jumping in & out and playing outside. All in all though, it was an amazingly fun time with my family.

One great thing that emerged from all the water fun was Sebastian's love of the water. I was so proud of him. He so badly wanted to dive in the water and swim from one side to the other and be thrown around like the other kids, but he was still too scared...at first. My nieces, Jayden & Kinlee practically stayed under the water, swimming from side to side all day. After things cooled down and the party was starting to subside, Sebastian started getting a little braver. He began holding his nose & his breath and sticking his face under the water. Once he got the hang of it, he would let me and his aunts throw him back and forth across the pool or he would "dive" as he kept saying across the water from one person to the next. He was exciting to see him so excited about the pool. He is just going to be so much fun this Summer!!

Wrapping up the season

Sebastian played his last tball game of the season today. He was overjoyed that he wouldn't have to play again this year. He & tball have not been the best of friends. I'm assuming, based on conversations with other parents, that this is perfectly normal and that he may still develop a love of the game when he is older -- I certainly hope so.

Not surprising, he does love to bat. He bats lefty as does his father, so it's harder for me to work with him on his swing, but we manage. All of the kids bat off off the tee, which is different than we've seen played in the past. Seems that last year they were pitched to and the tee was only pulled out unless they couldn't hit after 3 tries. This was definitely new for him as we have always just pitched to him.

Outfield was a disaster! He hated it and the warmer the weather got, the more he hated it. Most of his games were played at 6:15pm when the sun was absolutely horrid in the outfield. And I just want to add that 6:15pm is about the worst part of the day for Sebastian. He's cranky after being at daycare all day and he's hungry. Bad combination when you need him to be cooperative and a team player.

Tball consisted of 3- and 4-year-old boys & girls and we certainly had the 3-year-olds. I believe that the majority of the team was 3, including Sebastian, who had never played ball before. It was challenging to say the least. We had some heated fights over the ball more times than I can count, but it was so darn cute to watch. This was all pretty new to him and he was playing on a team where he didn't know anyone. I think that overall though, he was great and had fun - which is all that really counts. And, of course, he got an awesome trophy which made all those hot games worthwhile! Trusting that next year, he'll be a little more experienced and playing with kids that he knows, so he can have even more fun on the ball field.

Recap

I am really, really behind on blogging. The nicer the weather becomes, the less time that I want to spend on the computer. The weather has been crazy lately - from cool to warm and windy with some showers and thunderstorms mixed in. Typical Southeast Missouri weather - haha!

Sebastian has been growing like a weed lately, it seems. We have had a few nights of really bad "growing pains" where he has been awakened with leg & foot cramps. More often lately than ever before. I have heard of "growing pains" before, but I honestly thought they were a myth until I have had to deal with Sebastian. I've heard many stories lately that have helped eased my mind, because I was really getting concerned with Sebastian screaming and crying at all hours of the night. Thankfully we have made it through this most recent growing spurt and hopefully won't have any more sleepless, miserable nights for awhile.

I guess I should mention that I have a daughter-in-law now (lol)!! Apparently, Sebastian has been getting married at daycare. He came home from school one day and as we were talking about his day, he casually throws out that he and Addison (4-years-old) got married. I said, "huh? You got married?" He says, "yeah, I'm the Daddy and Addison's the Momma!" WELL, THAT'S WONDERFUL! HAHAHA!! I explained that he and Addison shouldn't be getting married because Addison's Daddy probably won't like it if she gets married. He also informed me that he kissed Addison. I informed him that he better not be kissing anyone at daycare because kissing girls isn't nice. He says, "Yes it is nice!" OH MY! I made sure Ms Kristal knew about the newlyweds. I think there may be some domestic violence issues, already, in that relationship as Sebastian also told me that he put Addison in jail. ;)

I hope everyone had a great Easter. We sure had a blast! Sebastian (and Sammy) sure did get great baskets from the Easter bunny. I guess we were just having so much fun that I completely forgot to take a picture of the baskets, but believe me, Sebastian and Sammy were pretty happy. We spent lunch at David's mother's and spent the afternoon with my mom and all Sebastian's cousins. They hunted eggs and then played kickball the rest of the afternoon. EVERYONE had fun - adults and children alike. It's a wonderful feeling to have such a great family to spend holidays with. We are truly blessed.


Well, we have lots more to share, but for another day. Calling it a night, sleep well! Gonna leave you with a recent pic of Sebastian that I just adore - soooo defines him - he was mad at me and told me that he wasn't my best friend anymore!

Brown-Eyed Beauty

I had the pleasure of taking Easter pictures of my nieces & nephew last weekend for their beautiful Mommy. Jayden absolutely adored the sweet little bunny and I got the most amazing pictures of her. She is gorgeous and fun and high-spirited anyway and then throw her love of animals in and I don't think you could go wrong. I fell in love with this photo! I think it completely encompasses Jade's character.

Jade, you truly are irreplaceable. I love you with all my heart and hope that you always keep your sweet innocence and save-the-world attitude.

Sebastian's New "Big Boy" Haircut

Sebastian

...is our firstborn, our last born, our one & only little boy

...he looks just look his Daddy with an occasional expression that screams "I'm my Mama's child"

...he has the most contagious laugh I believe I have ever heard

...has the perfect blend of golden blond and red hair that seems to be in harmonious layers, eyebrows & eyelashes to match, of course

...loves the color green (have I mentioned that before?)

...is a big fan of Pinocchio right now and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

...still sleeps with his snowman blanket (he used to call wankwie, but can now say blanket) but also switches up for different patterns, same textured throws, though

...cannot say disgusting

...loves pancakes or waffles for breakfast

...likes to crawl in your lap spontaneously and say [while stroking your face], "I love you, Mama (or Daddy)! I love you so, so much that my heart is full (or my heart aches)!" He varies between the two phrases.

...says he's going to be a doctor and drive a tractor like Daddy when he gets big

...is very affectionate & the caretaker when I'm not feeling very well. Will often check my vitals and say, "It's worse than I thought!"

...sprints across the living & kitchen floors racing Sammy every night since we brought Sammy home

...always tell us before he goes to the bathroom, even though we always tell him to just go

...always has to be told to turn off the bathroom light

...likes to play with his tractors on our bed

...loves to dance with me

...meets me at the door running every single day that he goes to daycare. I always scoop him up, hug him and ask, "Did you miss me today?" If I get distracted, he puts his hands on my face as if to have my full attention and says, "I missed you today, Mama!"

...has never spent the night away from home. I have had to be away at training on two different occasions, just overnight, but he was at home with Daddy.

...is three-years and four-months-old today

...is a huge helper in the laundry room. His laundry duties include sorting, folding washrags & dishtowels and pouring in the laundry detergent, fabric softener, etc.

...is scared of crickets like his mom. His Daddy is mad at me for it, but what can you do?

...repeats anything & everything you say whether you are speaking to him or not; usually in the correct context -- sometimes good, most times very bad

...his favorite get-out-of-trouble quote, "I wanna be good now!"

...loves to sing. Some classic favorites are Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star; You are My Sunshine; ABC Song; I Love You, You Love Me and any country song which includes the word "green" and/or "tractor" -- Big Green Tractor and She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy. The list of music goes on...and on and on. He also likes to make up songs.

...is loved more than he could ever know!

Spring Weather

Today was another usual day around our house except it was wonderfully beautiful outside. We spent the afternoon outside, running and playing at Ma-maw's house. David's great-niece, Elizabeth had a birthday party today and Sebastian felt all grown-up, picking out a birthday present. He picked out some very girly pj's (because she's a girl) and a baby doll (again, because she's a girl ya know). He was pretty proud of himself when he gave it to her. I think it's hysterical that Sebastian's Ma-maw has a grandson & a great granddaughter the same age. I was happy to get to enjoy my camera & the sunshine in a t shirt and jeans. Sebastian even took time out of his very demanding Saturday to cheese it up for me.

No, David!

Not my Baby Daddy!!

I'm talking about David Shannon. He is an author & illustrator of many children's books. Currently, Sebastian's favorite author. We discovered the series of "David" books a few weeks ago and Sebastian wants to read them a dozen times every day.

The books are about a little boy, you guessed it, named David and all his mischievous naughtiness - coloring on the walls, tracking mud on the carpet, etc. David is rowdy & rambunctious and goes from one unruly act to the next while mom is shouting in the background, "No" and "Don't".

I, personally, don't care much for David. He is an unattractive little boy with pointy teeth, who gets in trouble on every page! (I know, shame on me, but David is a little demonic-looking.) Sebastian loves it, though, and it has been a great series for him. First of all, the little boy's name is David which is seriously hilarious to Sebastian since Daddy's name is David. There are few words and Sebastian has them all memorized. The illustrations clearly depict the story, so he thinks he is reading it to me. Although there is not a lot of actual reading, each page opens up a whole new convo about what David did, why it was wrong and what the right thing to do is; so there is definitely a lot of interaction. David & I both enjoy reading them with him. I love it even more when he reads it to us because the story gets a lot more colorful. I have laughed so hard I have cried.

I have to give the David books two thumbs up. Sebastian adores them and even though David's appearance creeps me out, we'll keep reading about all the trouble that David gets into. At least until he finds a new set of books to fall in love with. The last set up books he loved was the Mr. Men books and that love lasted a long time. I guess out with Mr. Men and in with bad David! ~

The Doctor Is In

One of Sebastian's favorite things to play is doctor. He calls himself Dr. Dye (the name of his pediatrician). He pulls his out his little doctor's bag, full of all his needed supplies to diagnose & treat you on the spot - he even does house calls! David & I have been treated by Dr. Sebastian Dye about a billion times. We are so excited that now Sebastian has a new patient - Sammy Sassafras!! Sammy had to have a check-up last night and as always, the doctor said, "it's worse than I thought"!! If anyone has ever watched Olivia on Nick Jr., she plays the doctor to her friends when they have itchy feet and when examined, she proclaims - "it's worse than I thought"!! The doctor said that Sammy was so sick that she needed to go to Dr. Dye's real office for some shots, he couldn't fix her. Better luck next visit Sammy!!

Pat-a-Cake, Pat-a-Cake Baker's Man

Yesterday was Sebastian's Valentine's Day party at daycare. I asked him what he wanted to take to daycare and he replies, "a rainbow cake". I tried to talk him out of it, but he was gung ho about baking a rainbow cake. So Thursday night we gathered up our recipe and all of our ingredients and jumped in. We decided since it was a Valentine's cake that we would alternate green pink & purple instead of rainbow colors. (Yes, it took a lot of convincing for the cake to be pink & purple instead of green. I might have bribed him.) Sebastian is very hands on; he wants to do everything himself. I did my best to let him do as much as possible on his own as long as it didn't hurt him or someone else. Here's some pics of him all ready for a long night of baking. He's an awesome egg breaker, I must say!!
After we baked all six cake layers for our Rainbow Cake Valentine's Cake, they were cooling on the table while I tried to clean up. Unbeknown to me, Sebastian was secretly eating one of the pink layers. When I finally noticed, I asked him if he had been eating the cake and his big bottom lip puckered out and he said he was soooo sorry. Luckily he only ate part of one layer and we still had 5 more to use, so no harm done (and that cake was so moist & good that I couldn't help but nibble on a few bites myself). We finished assembling the cake and he decorated it with a whole bottle of sprinkles the next morning before we left for the party. Below are a few pics of the finished product. I'm not even in the vicinity of a good baker, but I thought our cake turned out pretty decent (and I heard it was pretty good).

Love =

Weekend Review

We promised Sebastian some time ago that we would paint his bedroom green. He specifically wanted apple sucker green, which is his daily sucker of choice from daycare. My mom decided to try to match his sucker to some paint samples and surprisingly, the best color match was called "apple green"!! P-E-R-F-E-C-T! So we painted this weekend. Apple. Sucker. Green. I wasn't too sure about it at first, but I totally love it. He made a good choice. Maybe he can help pick out paint for my bedroom~
The day we painted, Super Bowl Sunday, I totally spaced and forgot that we had planned for Sebastian & all 6 of his cousins to make pizzas. Oops! So my house was in disarray from moving out all of his furniture & toys and we had a kitchen full of kiddos getting flour & pizza sauce everywhere. It actually worked out pretty well because it didn't take any time at all to paint his room.

After everyone went home & the messes were cleaned, Sebastian and I attempted to go to sleep. Unfortunately, he was up & down most of the night with terrible aches & pains in his calves. When I say terrible, that's what I mean -- waking up screaming that his legs were hurting, tears flowing. He seems to feel much better today. He's been coughing a slight bit & running a very low-grade fever off & on so I've been drowning him in liquids so he doesn't dehydrate. (I read that could be a cause of these Charley Horse-like leg cramps.) It was a good day to sleep in with him because my hands were aching something fierce last night after an afternoon of painting.

Well, I need to sign off for now as I have to go back to work tomorrow. It's still snowing up a storm here so hopefully we'll be able to play outside again a few more good times this year. Good night, sleep well!
Don't ya just love the mismatched frog/dino jammie ensemble??

Snow Much Fun...

Yesterday was the first big snowfall of the year. I was totally psyched about Sebastian being old enough now to really enjoy the snow. He was definitely in snow heaven today. I attached a robe to a tube and pulled Sebastian all over the yard in near knee-deep snow. I laughed so much at him trying to walk in the deep snow drifts all around the house. He would take a few steps and fall face first into the snow ahead. Sammy pranced around at our heels. I thought we had lost her a few times when she had fallen in our deep boot prints in some pretty deep drifts. I love seeing the piles of boots, scarves & gloves, coats & hats piled at the kitchen door waiting for another trip outside. We made some snow cream which Sebastian refused to eat -- so, of course, I had to eat his bowl ;)! Today was one of the funnest days ever. We hope everyone had as much as fun as we did today. Tomorrow we're gonna see if we'll be able to pack any snow enough to make a snowman (or woman)!

Snow Bunnies Puppies

I don't know about Sammy, but Sebastian thoroughly enjoyed the snowfall today. He just couldn't wait until tomorrow to go make a snow angel. I came home early from work today and the first thing Sebastian wanted to know when I walked in the door was, could he go out and make snow angels!?! I said, "of course, but we can't stay out long" because it was still snowing like crazy and the wind is super fierce.

I think we spent more time getting dressed...thermals, clothes, pullover, coat, scarf, hats & gloves and boots - whew!

He loved crunching through the deep snow and walked around making paths everywhere. He wiped the snow off anything he could find and laid down in the middle of the drive and made a beautiful Sebastian Angel in the Snow! Hopefully tomorrow we can play more without the blizzard of snow around us.

My Dearest Sebastian,

Today is Monday, January 25th. It's not a holiday, a birthday, or any specifically important day. It was just a normal day like most other Mondays around our house. You spent the day with Daddy today because 1) my schedule is different because of some work-related training this week and 2) Daddy's at home because there isn't much work around the shop right now. You requested this morning to "not go to school" and to "stay home with Daddy", so it was a change in pace for you today, too. I missed you so much today while I was at work, like I do everyday. I think that you & Daddy had a great day - toys were scattered around & you were eating dinner when I came home. You had lunch at Mamaw's house, which is always a wonderful treat. You & Daddy made a grocery run today & came home with mostly just snacks. It was a good day. When I walked in the door you ran to me and I scooped you up like I do most days at daycare and you said, "I missed you while you were at work, Mama!!" You say this every single day when I walk in the door, whether at home or at daycare, and I never ever get tired of hearing it. You are the greatest joy in my life and I hope that everyday is filled with good moments like these. You are already fast asleep in your bed now, hopefully having wonderful dreams. I am heading to bed as well, but before I kiss you goodnight & whisper I love you in your sleepy little ear, I wanted to write you a quick note about how happy that you make me - everyday. You are such a perfect, loving little boy and I am a super lucky Mama to have you in my life. Sometimes days seem to fly by without significant time spent doing the things that you love like reading books or building castles, but I hope that you never forget that I love you every single second of my day. Every.Single.Second. Every.Single.Breath. I love you! I love you! I love you!! Goodnight sleeping angel, I can't wait to see you in the morning!!

Love, Mama

Puppy Love

Sammy has really adjusted to having a new family. She loves Sebastian and I love seeing how much fun they have together. She has really developed a personality, so we decided to give her a middle name. Sassafras really fits her perfectly. She loves chasing Sebastian around the house. I sometimes think Tigger would be a fitting name the way she bounces around the house. She has taken to potty training like a fish to water. She has had very few accidents since we brought her home. I am really thankful that David has been on top of her potty training and almost always is the one taking her outside. One thing that we have really had to adjust to is putting our shoes away. If you leave shoes around or leave the closet doors open, she will have them pulled out & chewed up in no time. She is a shoe-aholic! She also likes to steal blankets, pillows & stuffed animals right off of the bed. {Well, mostly just Sebastian's bed since she can reach it easily.} She has a little basket that we have been trying to get her to sleep in, but she loves the couch throw pillows best. She runs around like a puppy on crack after we bring her in from her outdoor playtime. I think one of her favorite things to do is to chase Sebastian around the yard or jump around under the trampoline when Sebastian is jumping. She hasn't really figured out what a leash is for and mostly just tries to chew on it when we go for walks. We don't get very far and you have to practically drag her along then pick her up and carry her. She's already spoiled rotten. She likes to take a bath, which is really good but she wants to chew her hairbrush when she is being brushed. She is very loving and is a great lapdog, which David just adores. I think she has bonded the best with him since he takes her outside and feeds her and she sees him the most during the day. I love how excited she is when we get home and Sebastian has been rushing to the door because "Sammy misses us"!! Her tail is always wagging like crazy, so I guess she is pretty happy with her new family & home. Sebastian doesn't still doesn't like it when she barks, but luckily she's not a big yipper. She's a pretty great little addition to our family. I think we'll keep her!

Big Brother 'Bastian

No! We are not pregnant. We decided to join the rest of the pet world and get Sebastian a puppy. I have baby fever super bad and, well, my hubby DOES NOT. I told him that it was either a baby or puppy. He chose a puppy. My sister, Stephanie, recently got her kiddos a Miniature Schnauzer named Bella. We immediately fell in love her. Luckily she still had two sisters waiting for happy homes, so we quickly scooped one up.

I took Sebastian to the owners' home to pick out which puppy he wanted. Both puppies that were left looked identical except for the size. I think Sebastian made a good decision in the puppy that he picked. She was one of the biggest of the litter and very calm. The other pup was shaking like a leaf and scared to death. Our little girl nuzzled right up to us and kissed Sebastian on the nose. I think it was love at first sight! She sat/slept on Sebastian's lap the entire way home. Sebastian is pretty proud of his new little friend.

Daddy helped us decide on a name - Sammy! Sebastian loved it immediately because Sammy starts with an "S" like Sebastian. She is still checking out her new home and doing a lot of puppy sleeping. We are going to go this weekend and stock up on puppy pleasures. I am so excited about our new addition.

UPDATE:
We gave Sammy a middle name - Sammy Sassafras - it is a pretty fitting name for her.

Perspective

2010 has definitely had it's ups & downs so far. Sebastian & I started out sick, which doesn't sound like the best way to start a new year. David hasn't been working very much because of the cold weather, so our already tight budgets have been s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d. My hard drive that MOST of my pics were on killed over ~ I don't want to even talk about how I am completely at fault I am, on multiple levels, for not having them backed up "correctly".

But the thing that puts all that other stuff into perspective...

I recently found out that a very close friend of mine, my sister's best friend since forever - practically our other sister, was diagnosed with a type of thyroid cancer. She is a super-strong woman, though, and I know that she is fighter. She survived the death of her father way-too-soon, she survived the birth of her 4-year-old triplets born born at 26-weeks and she WILL survive this. Keep her & her beautiful family in your prayers, please!

Valentine's Project

I love working on projects with Sebastian. Whether it be painting or cleaning or learning; fun projects are a great way to bond and spend a cold, dull afternoon. I am always scouring the web for new, fun ideas. During one of my searches, I came across a fun activity for Sebastian's daycare. I really hope they try it. I know a bunch of parents who would be thrilled to get this from their little girls &/or guys.

Instructions / Details:

Either trace or have your child paint their hands & leave a print on construction paper. [I traced around Sebastian's hands with white paint.] Cut out both hands. Measure their hug - the length from hand-to-hand of their outstretched arms & cut yarn to that size. [We used streamers because 1) the first thing Sebastian did was wrap it around his neck and 2) we didn't have yarn & streamers were easy access!!] Attach both hands at each end of the yarn/ribbon/streamer. Write out the poem below & attach it to one of the hands...[I just wrote the poem on the back of one of his hands because it was easier.] A Valentine Hug to You! Wrap these hands around you whenever I'm away, so you can have a hug from me anytime of day! In our example the daycare provider mailed the hands to the parents to receive in time for Valentine's Day.

I attached a picture of our finished "hug". We did this project really fast before dinner, so it's just the bare minimum of what you could do. I think that we will try it again before Valentine's Day for Sebastian's grandparents and really get creative decorating -- maybe go crazy with some glitter haha!!




{Sebastian wasn't jiving with the traditional "Valentine" colors. He's going to be one ecstatic fella on St. Patrick's Day! Go GREEN! It's his f-w-aaaaaa-v-o-w-i-t color!}

My Boy in Black Green

I'm a PUDDLE JUMPIN'

FAST RUNNIN'

DIRT DIGGIN'

FROG CATCHIN'
DOG CHASIN'

TRACTOR LOVIN'

PERFECT 3-YEAR-OLD LIL' BOY

Can you guess his favorite color?