The "Tail" of Two Pillow Pets

Hope and I enjoyed the rare opportunity to go to the mall by ourselves Saturday. It wasn't for the best of occasions... I had to do the dreaded maternity swim suit shopping. Not good for one's self confidence. Hope was very helpful though, insisting that every single one was beautiful and that I needed them all. After that, we walked to Hallmark and found they had Pillow Pets. Let me back up to say that Hope has asked me for a Pillow Pet every single day for the last 3 months. She sings the commercial, she wants to look at them online, she drools over her friends' Pillow Pets at school. She wanted the unicorn soooo bad. I had planned on ordering one and that being her big sister gift when Emmy comes. But, seeing it in person, she was just squealing she was so excited. Then she said, "Mommy, if you buy this for me, ALL my dreams will come true!" Sold. She does know how to word things so that I cannot say no. She carried it through the rest of the mall, just so beside herself excited.


We went home and Noah was asleep, but she gladly shared her story about finding the Pillow Pet and carrying it through the mall. John asked her if she dropped it on the floor and got it dirty at the mall. She said, "Well, it's machine washable!" Clearly, she has seen the commercial too many times.

Fast forward to Sunday morning. Noah woke up around six. He ate some breakfast, and then was playing in the living room quietly and watching a morning show. I went back to my room and laid down. He was back and forth between laying down with me (he loves a good snuggle!) and back to his toys. Then, he comes in with Hope's new Pillow Pet and in his deepest grumbly voice he says, "PILLOW PET?!" I wish I had it recorded because so much attitude was packed in those two words. It was like he was saying, You got HER a Pillow Pet and Not ME??? John and I both laughed so hard. I had no idea he even knew what one was. So began Noah's attachment to the purple unicorn. We got up and loaded up the car to go to Jennifer's lake condo for the day. Noah wouldn't let Hope touch the unicorn the whole way there. He held it, and bless her heart, I know it wasn't easy, but she let him. Then, every few minutes he would shoot her this look and grumble, "My Pillow Pet." Just to aggravate her. I couldn't help it, it made me laugh so hard. I had tears. I know it doesn't seem funny reading it, but coming from this sweet boy, it was cracking me up. I kept reassuring Hope that I knew it was hers and she tried her best to let it roll off her back.

Here is the only picture I took at the lake. Ooops.

So today, we were out with my mom and I told her the whole Pillow Pet drama. She said, "Well, we have to go to the mall and get him one." So, we did. We took him and let him choose between the two boyish ones they had, the dog and the panda. He could not decide. Mom put them both on the floor to see which one he picked up. He picked up both in one smooth motion. After several more minutes, I think we just ended up taking the one he was holding onto the tightest. The dog, or the "foof" (woof.)

Yes, he is pretty happy with his "foof" Pillow Pet, but he is happiest when he has both.

Emmy needs your help

Emmy

Baby Emmy is just about 10 weeks away from being here. She is so sad because she has no middle name. Okay, she probably isn't, but still. Our problem is that both Hope and Noah's names have tons of meaning for us. Hope is from Jer. 29:11, a scripture we hold dear, her middle name Louise was my grandmother's name, and my middle name as well. Noah's first name means peaceful one which is what we prayed for him, and Red is John's dad's initials. (Try to forget for just a minute that I tried to change his name to Charlie after he was born...) Emmy, however, is a name that we both just love. We have loved it since before Hope was born. We considered it for her, but we would have named her Emily and called her Emmy. Now, I am just a fan of naming her what we will call her. For her middle name, I am looking for some meaning. However, John's favorite middle name, Love, might be a bit much for me. I have a few I toss around, but none of them are "the one." Suggestions?

Oh, and my original thought of not naming her till we see her? Not happening. I need a name. If she is born and I think she is not an Emmy, we will change it then. Soooo... help me!

Texas, here we come (again)

That's right, we are going to try to be Texans one more time. John has a new job, which is such a blessing, although it comes at a pretty crazy time in our lives! What most of you probably know, although I have always been hesitant to put on the blog is that John travels EVERY week. He leaves Monday mornings and gets home Thursday or Friday nights. He has been doing this for more than 3 years. It is the reason we moved back to Arkansas so that I can be near my family while he is away. Which has been wonderful. But, my kids need their daddy. It has really affected Hope this last year, and we always hoped that we would have a more stable situation for her and Noah (and now Emmy!) before she started kindergarten. Well, funny how those prayers get answered sometimes. We will be moving probably days before kindergarten starts for her. John's new company is being kind enough to let him work from Little Rock until the baby comes. Which means.... the days of me being a weekday single mom are OVER!!! Wahoo! So, while there are lots of mixed emotions, we are both confident that this is the right move for our family. I have kind of felt like John is just a weekend visitor, and I know it is extremely hard for John as well. And I feel like it is the hardest on the kids, especially Hope. She is so excited that her daddy will actually be at home to read her stories at night, not just on the computer. So, when is the big move? Good question. Emmy is due August 8th, and kindergarten starts on the 23rd, so somewhere in between there! Like I said, it's a busy time!

Angel Baby Collin

So very sad to hear of the loss of sweet little Collin Marsh today. I just don't understand. Please pray for his family. http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/collinmarsh

TWO!!!

My boy is two. I just can't believe it. Here is what's up with Noah these days:

• He weighs 22.6 pounds. Below the 3rd percentile. He is still a runt. Actually, he even fell off of his curve this time. I feel like he might have lost a bit of weight this last week though while he has been sick. I have always thought Noah was quite a bit bigger than his runt sister, but I just looked back at her two year stats... she was 22.5 pounds!



• He is talking up a STORM. Just all of the sudden he strings things together. My favorite things he has said this month make me smile. When we were getting into the very hot car a couple of weeks ago, instead of saying his usual, "Hot, Mommy!" He said, "BIG Hot, Mommy." And another, when he was climbing onto my bed, his leg slipped between the mattress and the rail. He yelled out, "BIG STUCK!" Funny, funny.


• He is annoyed by his sister quite easily. She just wants to play with him, but it drives him batty for her to touch him or anything he perceives to be his.


• Still loves food. Almost any kind of food too. But no broccoli. I don't understand this. I LOVE broccoli. But my kids won't touch it. He is known to yell out his drive through requests while driving down the road. If you pass by the donut shop, McD's, or a pizza place, you can expect him to demand, "DONUTS!" "CHICKEN" or "PIZZA."


• Elevators are called "Push it"s. He wants to ride the "Push it" at school every before we go home. He also knows there is a "Push it" at the doctors office, and lets you know as soon as you pull into the parking lot.


• "AWDEEDOE" Took me a while to figure this one out. It means "Open the door."


• No longer takes a bottle. I know, people, I know. Way over due. But, he was so sweet to lay in my arms in my morning and take his bottle. He only wanted one in the morning. He has traded it in for a sippy cup of (WAY DILUTED) tea. Heaven forbid we run out of tea first thing in the a.m.


• Still hanging on the the pacifier. I know I need to eliminate it soon before the baby comes, but, well, we are going to Dallas soon, and I am not doing it before those 12 hours in the car.


• Has discovered Thomas the train. Brings back memories of sweet Keller and Clay. Happy that I have my own Thomas fan now.


• Still loves anything with buttons. He has more fake phones than most kids, but he loves loves loves them. He scored a Buzz Lightyear phone this week while we were waiting to check out at the grocery store. It has gone with us everywhere since.


• Has no clue that he has a baby sister coming in 3 months.


• Still sleeps like a champ (when he is not sick!) I really need to transition him to a bed before baby, but really, why am I messing with his awesome sleep habits? I don't know what to do. Although he is a climber, he has not yet attempted to scale the crib. And he really loves it. Help!