More of Stratton!

Another pic to see how strange his hair is growing out to look...

Easter happenings...

Mom reading bedtime stories to the boys...

Easter morning, trying to get a picture with mom and the boys...didn't really work...

Beck refusing to sit still, but he looked so stinkin' cute in this outfit my mom got him. Can you notice he just got a hair cut too? lookin' good!

Kylie very excited to wear her easter dress. She had me straighten her hair, which makes her look so much older...

Trying to get a pic of the three kiddos before leaving for church. Beck wanted no part of it, Stratton looks quite scared, and you can see ky's eye is healing, but you take what you can get =)

I swear it doesn't look like any of my children are in the least bit related....

Classic Beck cheese face...

Kylie on Easter morning checking out her new zoobles she got...

Beck very excited about his backpack of playdough items...

Three weenies veggin' on the floor Easter morning...

Playin' in the puddles, we've had some crazy storms around here lately...

Splash!

Now I know this is a horrible picture of strat, but you can see how odd his hair color is right now. The roots are so much lighter than the ends...

Where to begin? Kylie went in this past Friday to have her second, and hopefully last, eye surgery. This time the doctor only worked on the right eye, since it was the only one that suffered from the Brown's syndrome created from the previous surgery. The operation took place at a different facility than last time, and I actually stayed home with the boys. Although my family would have been more than willing to help us out, with the memory of the last surgery still fresh on my mind, I knew I couldn't go and not make Kylie nervous with the sheer terror I was feeling. And good thing I didn't go, because I broke down in tears more than once throughout the morning waiting to hear from Jason. Anyways, the surgery went SO much smoother than last time! The facility was much more kid friendly, the staff was awesome, and they switched up Kylie's meds ahead of time so she woke up much calmer than she did after the first surgery. The doctor is very optimistic that he did what he needed to do, although we won't know for sometime the final results. Although I am happy that we have once again made 'progress' I'm not nearly as thankful as I should be...right now, I just want it to be done, FINAL, ALL BETTER. I want the doctor to look us in the eyes and say she's perfect and he doesn't need to see her again. Oh well, I just have to keep telling myself 'baby steps'.

Beck is becoming more of a terror every day. He has started to slap himself in the face every time you say no to him or tell him to stop. I know it is out of frustration, and apparently a very common issue young boys have, but sometimes I have to laugh because its sorta funny. Jason, on the other hand, doesn't see the humor in it at all. One thing is for sure...i think we're in for a tough next year with him. He is just as stubborn as Kylie, if not more, and has twice the temper. Doesn't that sound like fun? As much as he makes us laugh each day, he also makes us want to pull our hair out!

Strat is Strat. Nothing new on that front. We've been bottle feeding him breastmilk for about two weeks now. And I think its really starting to help his stomach issues. He's just such a lazy nurser that he actually takes in less air with the bottle. I've been mixing a little bit of formula here and there to try and introduce the idea, there's no way I can pump this much everyday for much longer...its driving me INSANE! Right now I'm pumping at 8 am, 2 pm, 8 pm, and 2 am...yes, I said 2 am, after Strat wakes to eat at night I have to pump because I need to make sure I keep producing milk in case he doesn't do well with the formula. Aside from that, he's growing like crazy...still. I'm finding it hard to change his diapers because it seems like his leg rolls even have rolls. I had him in a 9 mo. onesie yesterday and it fit him perfectly..the boy isn't even 10 weeks yet!!! His hair is deff. lightening up quite a bit which is really funny. It makes him seems like he has some major bald spots and a really bad dye job, but really its just his roots growing out almost blonde.

Anyways, we hung low most of the weekend, running a couple errands here and there, letting Kylie recoup, and going to church on Sunday. Kylie had her first post-op appt. on Monday and the doctor is very pleased with her progress so far. She's actually farther along than he thought she would be at this point, which is nice to hear. However, she does have a burst blood vessel in her eye which is causing her actual cornia to be puffy and glassy. The doc said this isn't a big deal and it should go down along with the rest of the redness and swelling. She headed back to school today and I think she'll be just fine!

Here are a couple random pics from the last week or so!

The proof is in the picture...

In an earlier post I shared Beck in one of his 'cheese' faces and talked about how he decides to smile every time I take out the camera...just in case you didn't believe me, I wanted to share a couple more shots, now none of these are very good pictures, but you should find an ongoing theme...

Beck w/ sissy's bike helmet on...

Beck and Strat just waking up from naps.

Beck....just being BECK.

Beck and Ky before church...

While playing in the play room...I think I can actually see his brain through his nose in this picture....

Now, I know I'm bias, but i think I have a pretty cute kid....can't really prove that when this is the face he gives me anytime I try to snap a shot....nonetheless, the pictures make me smile! =)

Pics of Strat...

A very tired boy resting on mom...

All decked out in his UNC gear...

Sleeping peacefully...

Hangin' w/ the BEST sister ever!!!..

My man...

Best Super Hero EVER!

Alright, maybe not the best (he sleeps a lot on the job) but def. the cutest!

Stratton getting to meet his friend Miles who is exactly two weeks older (another member of the 'big boys club')

Miles looks like he's a little jealous of Stratton's full head of hair here....hehe

5 going on 50...

It seems like just yesterday I was having one of my first conversations with Kylie about God. It took place at a time in her life when she didn't seek deeper understanding or search for more concrete answers when left unsatisfied with vague ones.

She was three and it went something like this....

Kylie: Mommy can you put these earring on my potato head so she can be beautiful like God.

Me: Baby, does God wear earrings?

Kylie: Yes, she wears beautiful gold ones.

At the time, I just left it alone. God is beautiful and if she turns to God as an example of beauty, I must have been doing something right...we'll just ignore the technical errors =)

Over the years the questions have transformed to some of her following conversations starters:

-Mom, how does God see us and we can't see him?

-What did God make the world out of?

-Is Jesus God?

-How do you physically GET to heaven?

-Will I see Bustie (my mom's old dog) in heaven?

-How can you eat food in heaven if there's no silverware? (no idea where this one came from either)

-Where do you sleep in heaven if you live in clouds?

Fast-forward a couple years and enter our kitchen when she overhears me telling my mom that we would pray for my Great Uncle and Aunt who are both very ill. Kylie asked me what I thought to be a very profound question coming from a 5 year old. She asked me when we pray for stuff, do we always get what we want?

I paused for what must have seemed like an eternity to her, trying to figure out exactly how to answer. The truth is important...No is the correct answer. But would she understand the explanation behind it? The idea that God knows us and has a plan for us that is way better than the one that we have? My uncertainty came from a fear that No as an answer would cause discouragement. What do you do when a child asks a question in which the answer is way beyond her years?

Kylie has always been a deep thinker and her desire to understand how the world works is one of her best qualities that I cherish deeply. And I LOVE her curiosity in regards to Faith, and I so appreciate all the opportunities she gives me to teach her who Christ is...but man, as a mom, sometimes you wish you could just hit the pause button and think it over for a little while. But, life doesn't offer such a button, and if you're curious, my round-about stuttering, stop-start of an answer eventually lost her attention and she interrupted to ask a completely unrelated question. But thinking about it tonight makes me realize how fast my baby girl is growing up.

We registered her for kindergarten last week, and in a couple months she'll be out there in the world, learning and absorbing from people other than her family and close friends (really, picked by us at this point). This is a scary thought. I can only hope she keeps coming to us for answers, and more importantly, I can only hope that I can find the answers fast enough to satisfy her never ending desire and curiosity to learn.

One things for sure, I think I'll be ready when and if she ever asks that question again, but truth be told, I know the question will be different.

The questions are forever changing...and once again I'm realizing that Kylie teaches me just as much as I teach her...and for this, I'll always LOVE HER!

And just for a stroll down memory lane...

Kenz's bday and more...

Taking an early morning walk down the nature trail near our house...

Love these two weenies...

Ready for his close up...

This past weekend, we had the good fortune of joining our friends in celebrating Makenzie's 5th birthday...petting zoo and all! Kylie had a blast and Beck, although a little uncertain, had a good time as well!

Deep in conversation with Aaron's mom...

Kylie on the hunt for another animal to hold...

Beck, not so sure about holding the animals...