Dog times Two... Craziness!

Well, Ronnie finally convinced me of something that I never thought I would do. We got 2 dogs. Not one, but 2! What the heck was I thinking? They are adorable & very good for puppies. They rarely bark & lounge around for the most part. That is, when they take a break from peeing & pooping. I just wish the snow would melt. We went to the shelter to pick up a puppy. The kids were begging for 2 dogs, but I had my limits. I filled out the paperwork & paid for our new dog. The $100 included all his shots, neutering, & deworming. Seemed like a bargain for such an adorable puppy. As we were walking out the door, the shelter begged me to take his sister. She was crying & they didn't want to separate the two dogs. She said she would give me the girl for free. Ugh. I gave in & now I have 2. Their names were Mickey & Minnie & my mom would have loved the kids forever if they would have left the names unchanged. However, the kids had a different idea. They are now called Midnight Moon Roberts & Carley Marie Roberts. I have tried to give these puppies away, but my dear little kids have cried & made me feel like a monster. Even my husband wants to keep them. So, the puppies will stay unless we find out if they happen to be allergic. They have been sick since we got them & I took the kids Monday to get tested for allergies.

On another note, the ironic thing about the puppies are that Carley is a mini Gracie. She's more active, likes to chew on things, & just has more energy. She doesn't like to be told no. The boy dog is a mini-Ronnie. Midnight gets his feelings hurt if you tell him no. He's very laid back & likes to chill most of the time. Maybe he'll take up video games! I think I'm softening a little in my old age...

Pictures - I'm behind on blogging... What else is new?

Ronnie played his first Upward Basketball game today & he made a basket! He is doing a lot better than he did last year. He's got experience & knowledge & is one of the leaders of his team. What a difference one year makes! If he has a passion for it, he could be really good. I just can't tell if he has the passion for it yet! FYI - bad mommy didn't bother to take a camera. I promise to get pictures of the next game. Gracie was overwhelmed by the crowds & noise & sat there beautifully with her Pops & watched the game (or should I say cowered in fear on Pop's lap.)

Becky suggested to me that we put our rental house on Craig's list after 3 months of nothing from our Realtor. She posted it for me on Monday & on Thursday night, I had a call from a very interested prospect who may even wish to buy it. The Realtor was too busy to make arrangements to show the house, so I took them there today & they were very excited about it. I am praying this works out for both them & us. I would love someone with their enthusiasm to live in the house. It is very sentimental for me since it was Ron & my first home & Ronnie was born 1 month after we moved in. We have a lot of great memories of the house, but I am ready to move on! They have 2 young children who loved the backyard & enjoyed the big room downstairs to run their energy out! I owe Becky bigtime!!! Becky, you should become a realtor. You've done more in a week than our Realtor did in 3 months. We need prayers that this could go through so we can get back on track with our finances & alleviate the extra stress of figuring out where the mortgage payment is going to come from.

Gracie is receiving Speech, developmental, & behavioral therapy through First Steps. She's starting to lessen on her behaviors & I have started putting her on time-outs as needed. Surprisingly, she will sit down without getting off the couch & will calm down quickly. I never would have imagined that! She's still not really trying to talk, but that will come eventually. She has some strange sensory issues that will take some time for her to get used to, but it's kind of funny. The therapist brought play doh & she didn't like it at first, but finally played with it. The 2nd time she brought it, she put it on a vinyl mat on the floor. Gracie was afraid of the mat, so she wouldn't touch the mat. She reached over the mat to get the play doh & ran away from the mat to play. If I don't laugh, I suppose I would cry, so I do see the humor in it. A behavioral therapist comes on Sunday to make some suggestions for us on how to work with her tantrums & screaming - both which are probably a result of her being unable to talk. I'm open for suggestions from anyone because I haven't found something that works. Anyway, long-winded blog here, so on to the pics...

Ronnie used to think Gracie didn't like him, but she adores big brother!

Ronnie put on Tiffy's boots & did a dance

Gracie loves my laptop, so this is the next best thing for her!

Hulk hands to match the hulk shirt...

Cousin Courtney's old chair. Gracie loves to recline in it!

Really not much to say here... Ronnie - do you love those boots???

Gracie, Toots, & a bunch of Laughter

Okay, so Gracie has a couple of new things that just make me laugh out loud. She has discovered her farts. She finds them to be hilarious. Everytime she toots, she laughs hysterically. Of course, the rest of us are laughing at her because she's laughing, so it just makes for a funny time! Gracie is also really into tickling people on their belly. She has to lift their shirts to do it, which can be a bit awkward. This morning, Gracie lifted her shirt & took her baby doll's hand & had her baby tickle her belly. Gracie then laughed as if it actually tickled! That just really made me laugh. That makes up for the new thing she learned recently - climbing out of her crib! I swear she is giving me gray hair (underneath all of that blond hair dye). Anyway, I do have new pictures to post, but haven't downloaded them yet. I'll add pictures soon. I was just watching Gracie's baby tickle Gracie's belly & had to share. Too funny!

Christmas updates

We had such a nice Christmas holiday & it's sad that our holidays are ending. I enjoyed having the kids home with me, but it's back to school on Monday. Gracie had her tubes, & she's having some difficulties adjusting to the sound now that she hears better. She continues to tug on her ears & has an ear infection again. Ronnie has the flu, but the good news is that it didn't turn into strep throat. That's great since he had his tonsils out. Ron & I have been recovering from the flu as well & were fortunate to have time off to recuperate. I'm off to join the kids playing on the Wii. Such an exciting day for me...

I LOVE my babies!

Gracie's new ball pit

Gracie & Auntie

Ronnie left a note for Santa, "Santa, do you know Jesus?" He was thrilled to learn that Santa did, in fact, know Jesus!

Santa, I've been GOOD!

Making Cookies

Gracie really gets into her cookie making!

Yea Gracie!

Gracie got tubes on Friday & is doing great. I dreamt last night that she was talking so clearly & said the pledge of allegiance to me! When I got up with her this morning, I tried to get her to say her name & realized it was just a dream. Oh well. A funny thing happened at the surgery center. If you understand my competitive & sarcastic nature, you will appreciate this. There was a mother there with her very young child & she taught him how to say "Anesthesiologist." We heard this tiny little voice say that big word. Seriously! Ron & I looked at Gracie & I said, "Say it Gracie." Nothing! Then I lowered my standards a bit & said, "Say Momma." Nothing. "Okay, how about Dada???" Nothing! Oh well.

Gracie was so wonderful when we went to get her tubes. She had to wait for over an hour & she did fine & didn't cry or whine at all. She didn't like being awakened from her wonderful, gas-induced nap though. She was a bit grouchy afterwards, but has been doing great since then.

In other wonderful news, I have wrapped most of my Christmas presents & am feeling ready for the holidays now! Woo Hoo! Merry Christmas Everybody!!!

Tiffany was in heaven with all those babies to play with!

Countdown to Christmas break & Tubes...

Tiffany gives me the countdown every day. "Two & 1/2 days & there may be a 2 hour delay tomorrow!" She is so excited for Christmas. I haven't wrapped a single gift & Christmas is in a week! Where did the time go??? Gracie is getting tubes in her ears this Friday. Ronnie had it done twice & I know it's very minor. That doesn't stop me from the worry & fear that something could go wrong. Anytime a baby goes under anesthesia, it's scary. I just hope & pray it helps her feel & hear better than before. She's trying so hard to talk now & said "Yes" today. Every word is a milestone for her & I love hearing her talk. She has been laughing all day & just has the sweetest personality. When she gets in trouble, she will kiss you & that is supposed to get her off the hook! Sadly, it works most of the time with Mommy. Ronnie & Tiffany love to play the Wii every night. We play Wii fit & Mario Kart. Gracie thinks she's a big kid & she wants to do everything they do. So, she's now hooked on the Wii. I tried several times to upload a video of Gracie doing step aerobics, but I'm having technical difficulties, so I may try again in a later post. Pray for Gracie on Friday morning at 6:30am. Ronnie will be happily missing his last day of school before Christmas break & will be staying with Grandma & Grandpa!

Kind of blurry, but aren't they cute playing Mario Kart together?

Screaming times 2.5 hours! Yikes!

Well, I took Ronnie & Gracie to the ENT on Tuesday. Gracie wasn't thrilled to be there. That is actually putting it mildly. She screamed (the kind where she throws herself on the ground) for 2.5 hours. Yes, that's correct - 2.5 hours while we WAITED for a hearing eval. The regular person who does the hearing tests called in sick. They had someone else who came from another office, but they were so backed up that we had to wait for an eternity. By the time we left, I was in tears with her. The nurses suggested that I walk her up & down the halls to get her energy out. We tried that, but all it accomplished was to allow the other offices to hear her cries. I guess it was a smart suggestion for our doctor, because they couldn't hear her screaming from down the hall. By the time we arrived home, it was almost 6pm. Our appointment was at 3:10. She was so exhausted that she fell asleep in my arms & all of my frustrations melted away. (Until she awoke at 10pm & wouldn't go back to sleep, but that is another story...)

The hearing test showed that she had some hearing loss, but they attributed it to fluid in her ear & they think it can be corrected with ear tubes. Initially the doctor suggested more antibiotics. I calmly (but loudly to be heard over the screaming) stated that I could have received antibiotics from the pediatrician. I was here for something else because 4 rounds of antiobiotics couldn't clear her ears, so I wasn't interested in a 5th round. Yes! He agreed & we have our appointment scheduled for 12/19 at 6:30am. If all goes well, this could potentially help her with her speech. She has her first speech therapy appointment on 12/9 & we will see how that goes. Well, that's about all that's new for now. On to the pictures...

Gracie was pointing at the laptop, so we all did it. It was funny at the time...

Tiffany & Ronnie are so fun together!

Ronnie & Daddy on his birthday! Ronnie got Daddy a Wii game (that was on Ronnie's Christmas list!)


Silly boy!

Ronnie & his webkinz eating dinner

Gracie loves to play on her computer. She sees me on my laptop & imitates me!

They took this. Aren't they cute?