Lunchtime!

Are you gonna eat that??

Another Sunday - Another Picture Attempt

This time I decided to take a picture inside where it was cool, hoping that I would capture the "perfect" pose. No luck this week, but I am getting closer!! It is really hard to get a decent picture of 4 squirming kids (2 of them being 1-year-olds). I am hoping to get a good, wall-worthy picture of all 4 of them together before Kendall goes to college!

I have a bit of "new baby photo" syndrome. I have been taking a lot of pictures of Presley, but not of my other kids. Of course, she is the only one that doesn't scream and run away when I pull out the camera............yet!!

I'm the new sheriff in town!!

Carson singing and dancing to High School Musical

Carson really wanted to be on YouTube, so here he is in his big debut!!

Made in China

Kendall doesn't like this shirt. She said "Presley wasn't made in China. She's a person, she was born in China!!"

Carson's Preschool Graduation

My big boy graduated from preschool on Thursday. Now he's on to kindergarten on August 11!! I am so proud of you Carson!!

Plate Lickin' Good!!

Anything left??

Got it!!

No need to wash this plate Mom. I cleaned it good!!






Wow! This place is great!!!





Summer is hard work!!

2 Weeks In - What a Difference!!!

We have been home for 2 weeks now and everything is really smoothing out. Yesterday I was able to vacuum and mop the downstairs, clean the half-bath, do laundry, and pick everything up!! I worked too!! Presley is doing so much better. She is crusing now!! When she is standing up holding onto the couch, she can turn herself around and then lean against the couch. All she has to do now is get brave enough to take those steps by herself. She doesn't scream as much when I leave the room unless she is really tired. She still doesn't sleep a lot, about 9 hours at night and 1-hour nap, but I'm sure that will get better as she gets more secure and is able to put herself back to sleep when she wakes up. I took all 4 kids to Walmart today and they were great. Not that I want to do that all the time, but at least I know that I can do it and survive!! The only problem we had was that Carson was NOT happy that he couldn't sit in the 2-seater shopping cart. He didn't understand why Presley couldn't sit in the basket with the groceries and he let out several of his very loud high pitched screams once we were inside the store to let all other shoppers know that he was unhappy!! That is not why he isn't in any of the pictures today, he is at one of his girlfriend's (Naomi) house.

Picture Attempt

I attempted to take some pictures today before church. As you can see, it didn't work so well. Keep in mind, however, that it was already 101 degrees outside and we were only out for about 4 minutes!! I guess I will have to try again next week and maybe by wintertime I will get a decent picture of all 4 kids!!

Busy, Busy

We have been busy settling in here. All things considered, it has gone quite smoothly! She still likes me to hold her, but I can put her down for longer periods of time and sometimes she actually wants to go in her exersaucer. Which is a good thing, because I started working (I work from home) a week ago! It has been tough, but somehow I am managing. Once Presley is mobile, it will help so much. I can tell that she is very independent, but still doesn't want to be far from me. Once she can walk, she can just follow me around and keep tabs on me in the house.

The good news is that Presley does NOT have a cleft palate. She has a wide cleft lip with an alveolar notch. That means she won't have to have surgery for a few years. She will have surgery when she is 4 or 5 to do a lip and nose revision. The doctor said it is best to wait as long as possible because the outcome will be better. So she suggested waiting until she was 4 or 5 and is more aware of her appearance. Then before her permanent teeth come in she will do a bone graft to her gum that is missing. I forgot to ask, but I am assuming they will put in some sort of teeth where she will be missing teeth. We are so happy she doesn't have to have surgery for a while!

One place I have found that she is very happy to sit by herself is the highchair!! The girl LOVES to eat! This is a new thing for Derek and I. Our bio kids are all in the 10th percentile and below and aren't huge eaters. The only downside I can see about the eating is the pooping! Presley has 3-4 poopy diapers a day, big ones!! Is this normal?? We don't know!!

Kendall's Funny Teeth

Kendall lost one of her front teeth. The other front tooth then kind of slipped over and now she has one tooth almost in the middle of her gums. It looks quite funny. The remaining tooth is very loose, but not ready to come out yet.

POOPER SCOOPER

After Derek picked up all of the dog poop, Landon decided he would be just like Daddy and do it himself. He went all over the yard pretending to scoop things. Don't worry, as soon as he was done he went straight to the tub!!

Preschool Jumphouse Field Trip

A Few Pictures

People have been asking for more pictures!! I only have a few and they really aren't that great, so I will try and take some more today. I will also write an update when I get a chance. Things are going really well and Presley is starting to settle in!