"The apple doesn't fall far...."

Lately I have gotten so many comments where people are FINALLY saying "He looks so much like you!" If you cover up his eyes which are absolutely no doubt his daddy's beautiful almond shapped eyes-he looks exactly like me-he has my nose, my lips, my cheeks, my shapped head-everything but the eyes! At least that's what I think...you can have your own opinion but I like finally saying after 18 months that he looks like me! :) In my eyes "The apple really doesn't fall far from the tree-even if it's a different gender!" :)

Me at 2 years old:

Landry at 18 months:

"Memo"

Just like most little boys his age Landry LOVES fish!! His new favorite is a little white and orange fish name "Memo" aka "Nemo!" My parents have bought him one these fake aquariums that scrolls round and round and that is what helped spark his love for fish.
Well a few weeks ago when we decided to go to Gatlinburg for a quick weekend trip we both just knew we had to take Landry to the Ripley's Believe it or Not Aquarium. It turned out to be a perfect day to go b/c it was drizzling rain but the bad thing was everyone else decided it was a good day to go as well so it was a little crowded. Landry didn't know the difference but a stressed Mommy and Daddy sure did b/c we were the ones trying to chase this little one around all those people. We actually took the stroller in thinking he would ride in it but boy were we wrong! He wanted to stand up with his nose to the glass! Austin and I had been to this aquarium about 6 months after we got married and were very impressed with how nice it was. So we were even more excited thank usual b/c we were looking forward to going back and experiencing it again through Landry's eyes! Let's just say it was a lot more fun this time around!! Wouldn't you know as soon as I try to take the first picture the battery went dead so I had to take pictures with my cell phone so please excuse the quality! Just as we thought he LOVED it. He had so much fun and he walked doing his little lip smacking noise he does for fish the whole time we were there. Although we bought him a stuff clown fish that looks like "Nemo" in the souvenir store I think his favorite of the day was the jelly fish.
They were by far my favorite pictures that turned out. Lucky for this little boy we are going back to Gatlinburg in a few months with Nana, Pops, and Grandma so he just might get to see all those fish one more time!
I will say as a side note that Landry has on his UT jersey that Austin bought for him b/c it was a game day. I don't normally let him wear that stuff out in town but I allowed an exception this day since we were 45 minutes from Neyland Stadium and his daddy was going to the Oregon game later that night. If you know me you know I am big on dressing Landry like baby as long as possible especially when we go out in public. I feel that he will have the rest of his life to wear team jersey's, bluejeans, and T-shirts(ect.) and I won't be able to get him in onesies and jumpers forever! I want to keep every part of him as babish as long as I possibly can! (That's just my opionion though!) :)

Birthday Surprise!

With me working PRN at the Surgery Center these days it gives Landry a wonderful opportunity to visit and spend some quality one on one time with some of those special people that he loves dearly. Yesterday was Grandmas birthday and Nana had the day with Landry so she decided to drive to Paris and surprise Grandma with a visit. Grandma was SO excited to see him and said it was the best birthday surprise ever! Beverly sent this picture to me at work on my phone so I just had to share it. Just look at that smile she has on her face! :) Landry is so lucky to have such a wonderful family. I asked him when I got home from work who he went to see and he said "anma." Happy Birthday Grandma we love you and Landry had a blast spending the day with "anma"!

Allergy Test

Last week Landry went to see an Allergy doctor to see if something he was allergic to could be causing his Asthma attacks. The doctors have finally gave in and are calling his attacks inhalation allergy induced astham. I couldn't have asked for Landry to be any better during the appointment. The nurse came and in and gave him a total of 32 yes you read that right-THIRTY TWO shots in his back. She gave them 8 at a time and the only sound he ever made was a tiny bit of a whimper with the last 16 but never a single tear came out of his eye. He just looked at me with sad eyes and didn't understand why they were hurting him(this made me want to cry!) They had to wait 20 minutes and reevaluate see how his back responded to the shots. As I'm sitting there looking at his back I keep seeing little red dots pop up and I knew the results weren't going to be good. The doctor came back in and kinda smiled at me and said "Well he is definitely allergice to a lot of things!" He is allergic to 23 of the 32 things they tested him for-talking about breaking my heart! I want to take all these nasty allergies away for him and make him healthy and his lungs strong. They explained to me that he was allergic to so much that when he would breathe in these allergens he is allergic to his body's automatic response is for his lungs to swell since he is inhaling them. He gave me a LIST of things to do to try to minimize his attacks. Here are just a few: Vacuum the house daily, wash his linens weekly, heavy linens in his room monthly, no going outside when grass is being cut or when anyone who lives around us is cutting their yard, dust the entire house weekly-and the list goes on and on. As he is sitting there telling me all this stuff I am shaking my head "yes I understand and I can do that" but in the back of my mind I am thinking "When on earth am I going to get all this housework done every single week?! But I WILL do whatever it takes to keep my baby healthy so I will find the time no matter what! They can't tell at this point if this is something he will struggle with his whole life or if he will outgrow it but my preayer is that he will outgrow this! So I am asking you to also please continue to pray for Landry and his lungs to outgrow this asthma I don't want him to struggle with this his whole life!

Late update

Where has to time gone?? Yes I realize it has almost been a month since I last posted. Let me tell you it's hard trying to sit down and post b/c the times I do actually get to have free time is becoming very limited here lately. Here's a quick update on Landry's life right now and some of the things he is saying and doing:
His speech has REALLY taken off lately. Every day he will mock something I say and I didn't even know he was listening. This is keeping me on my toes. I don't say anything I am ashamed of but there are a few of those words that I don't want my 18month old saying and then start repeating. For example last week I had just let Sadie our house dog outside to go potty. We got a nice 6 foot privacy fence about 6 months ago for her so she could get some energy out and run around and play without being n a leash. Well we have a few rabbits that have decided to make their home "SADIE'S BACKYARD"-this was not a smart move on their choice! So now she is more obsessed with chasing rabbits in our yard then going to the bathroom. Yes this is a huge problem! So anyways I had just let her out to go potty and 5 minutes after she came back in she went to the bathroom in my house. I was not a happy camper to say the least-so I got angry and said "Stupid dog!" well little did I know he could try to repeat those words and out of his little innocent mouth I hear him saying "upid og!" WHAT!! Where did that come from!? So needless to say I have to watch my temper and be more careful with what I say-it's good for me though I'm not complaining. Here are a few other favorite things he says right now:
response to "are you hungry?" "MMMMMMMMMM!"
walk into a restuarant- "MMMMMMMM!"
"Peas" with a HUGE grin on his face = Please
Nathan= "naaaa naaa" Dont worry he says it differnt from Nanna!
Aunt Baleigh= "Beee"
sees a truck= Dad-oooooo and he carries out the "ooooo" since Dado drives a truck he thinks all trucks are Dado's
25lbs 6oz as of last week when he went to allergy doctor- this will have a post of its on coming soon.
loves reading!
Says his prayer about 5 times before eating-I caught myself the other night about to tell him that was enough but then the verse about "faith like a child" popped in my head and realized I shouldn't tell him to not pray even if he does it 30 times before he eats!
Trying to say 3 syllable words like butterfly, and Olivia a good friend of his(yes i know that 4 but it only comes out 3)
Loves drinking from a straw
Not a great napper here lately-not too sure what that's about b/c he has always been and excellent napper!
He will walk around the house and point out all of Mama's shoes laying in the floor and all of daddy's shoes and he knows who's are who's

These are just a few of my favorite things lately but as any mother I could go on for days about all my favorite things b/c that's pretty much everything he does. I will have more post soon with some pictures-I promise!

Hospital Retreat

Well unfortunately Landry had another breathing spell this past weekend. He was retracting(stomach muscles pulling inward) with each breath he took and was wheezing a pretty bad and his rescue inhaler wasn't working for him this time. So the doctor felt it necessary for us to admit him to the hospital. So we ended up in the hospital for a day and a half so they could give him breathing treatments around the clock and watch his oxygen saturation. He wasnt feeling or sounding good at all when we got there and it broke my heart to see him in that hospital crib with the little hospital gown on that just about drug the ground bc it was so big on him.

I will just go on a bragging blog here for a minute and just say he was the BEST patient on the unit. He thought he was at his very own retreat all weekend. Not only did we think he did so good but the doctor on call that weekend said the same thing as did ALL the nurses that took care of him around the clock and the respiratory therapist that were in and out of our room every few hours all weekend. They would have to go get each other with each shift change and say "I'm sorry I just had to show them how cute and sweet your little boy is. I just have the best patient ever and they are so jealous!" He stole the show and somehow became the center of attention even on a pediatric unit at the hospital-he always seems to get attention somehow! ha! I was really worried about my little guy all weekend! I was anxious at how he would do with them coming in the room ever 2 hours during the night to get his vitals and give him his medicine but he was a champ! He slept right through all the commotion Saturday night and never knew they came in his room-it was another story for Austin and myself though! Thankfully he is doing much better and they let us come home yesterday. They put him on 4 different medicines for the rest of the week and will now on will be on a preventative medicine for 30 days to hopefully keep this from happening again since this was his 3rd spell since July 4th weekend.
They still can't officially diagnosis him with "asthma" b/c he isn't old enough. But they all but came out and said it was asthma and there is something that is triggering these episodes either an allergy to something or just random attacks. But once again they can't officially say what his allergies are b/c he isn't old enough for testing yet. This is very Frustrating-I just want to know what's causing my baby to not be able to breathe and get rid of it and make it stop! But in the mean time we will continue his medicines and try to prevent another one from happening. I took these pictures with mt cell phone while we were there so the quality isn't the best but I wanted a few shot of our little man this weekend. Please notice his little booties/house shoes he has on in these pictures! they are so cute on him and he LOVES them! Nathan got them for him when he went to Guatemala last month!
This was the last picture I took before we left the hospital-as you can tell he was feeling much better!

San Antonio and Gulf Shores

We have had a very busy August so far-hence the no blogging. The first weekend we went to San Antonio for a good friend's wedding. Austin was actually in the wedding so I was so excited to go visit this city b/c Austin grew up there for several years while his dad was in the army and lived on base at Fort Sam Houston. I LOVED being able to go see the house he lived in, the trees he climbed, and the bush he would "run away" to when he got in trouble. There's something about seeing it that made me feel like I finally know that part of him! There's not much I don't know about Austin considering we have been together since I was 12 years old but now I know that part of his life a little better now and I loved hearing about his life as he remembered it there. I was very impressed with the Fort it was MUCH bigger than I thought it would be and it was very nice and everyone kept their homes and yard looking nice. San Antonio was such a beautiful city! I was very impressed and would be up to going back there again one day!! I really didn't know what to expect going in but everyone kept saying how nice the city was and they were right. The River walk was beautiful and it felt like someone from Opryland Hotel went and saw the river walk and said "Lets make this into a hotel in Nashville Tennessee." There were several times I truly did feel like I was walking in Opryland Hotel. Here are just a few of my favorite shots from Texas

Here's a picture of the Graymere Youth Group from 1999 that made an appearance at the wedding
This is the street Austin grew up on while living in San Antonio

The river walk is so pretty!

Austin in front of the actual house he grew up in-I wanted to go knock on the door and ask if I could look around but Austin axed that idea! haha!

The hospital my wonderful father-in-law did his training at while in the army

Austin and I in front of the Alamo!! He had to give me a quick refresher of the story behind the Alamo when we got there. I am actually starting to enjoy history and learning about it. Unfortunately, I really don't remember much from high school-due to lack of interest at the time(I was more of a science student) so Austin is my personal history tutor b/c he is a HUGE history buff. I think it's safe to say my sister-in-law would be proud also!



After we got back from San Antonio we only had 2 short days to get laundry done, re-pack, clean house and get rested up before we left for our Gulf Shores annual trip! I look forward to this trip every single year. I grew up going to Gulf Shores every single summer and sometimes we would go twice in one summer. We used to go as one big family-(cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents) but as the years have gone on life is a little more busy, schedules are little more tight, and work just gets in the way of vacation(ha!) so this year we were only expecting it to be Me, Austin, Landry, Amber and Nathan. Last minute my mother and daddy and granny and her sister decided to join us half way through the trip so they came down and joined us for the last few days of our trip which was a good surprise- I Love family time!



I will be completely honest I was DREADING the drive like CRAZY!!! My sweet little boy has a history of not being the best "car rider." He does not like to be strapped down unable to move as he pleases. I had even looked on Southwest to see if they flew to Gulf Shores but the closest I could get was Panama City and from there to Gulf Shores it still would have bee a 3 hour drive. So I decided to suck it up and take the bulls by the horns and just try to make it there without any HUGE meltdowns. He has gotten a TON better than he used to be in the car now that he can face forward and see out but I was just worried about him being strapped down that long. The main thing we struggle with now in the car is him having a toy in his hand and him chucking it across the car! (Just as a side note: The throwing thing is a constant struggle in every part of his right now-any suggestions on how to stop this would be appreciated)I know that he is a boy and it's very confusing as to what he can and can't throw for example we allow him to throw: soft plush balls inside the house, Sadie's toys when he is playing with her, soft rubbery balls we have for him outside. What is isn't allowed to throw is: his sippy cup when he is done with it,his shoes or any shoes for that matter at Sadie's head(poor little Sadie-good thing she is a good natured dog), corn on the cob across the dinner table(yes this has happened), his food when he is full and done eating, mommas cell phone in the toilet(yes this has also happened), TV remote controls in the trash can without me watching-so as I said before...suggestions???) Anyways back to the Gulf Shores driving adventure.





So Amber and I left home at 5:00am-with my nerves coiled tight and my patient pants on and what did my precious little boy do??? Once again proved me wrong!! He was so well behaved, didn't throw one fit, was content as could be the whole way down there-a little sleepy at the beginning of the trip but once we got Chick-Fila chicken biscuit in his stomach for breakfast he was good as gold the rest of the trip. We were able to make amazing time on the way down there b/c he slept for 3 hours in the car which was almost half the trip! What a relief!! He did just as good on the way back as he did on the way down there. Portable DVD players are my new best friend to say the least!!




When we got to the beach we had to let him test out the sand and water. This was the first few pictures I got of him heading to the sand.

He wasn't a big fan of the sand being on his hands and feet at the beginning but he eventually warmed up to it and had fun building a huge sandcastle with momma and daddy. He loved to go out in the ocean as long as you held him but he didn't like it one bit when the sand would wash away under his feet when a wave would come. I think hands down we could all say Landry's favorite part of the trip was the food each night! I have never seen him put so much food down in my life. I guess building sand castles and being in the heat all day made him work up an appetite. We had a great trip and I am already looking forward to our annual trip back to the beach in 2012!

.."weep with those who weep"

About 3 months ago some good friends of Austin and I (Abby and Zach)found out they were pregnant. Everything seemed fine and there were no signs that something was wrong until they went to the 5 month appointment to find out the sex of the baby. Abby told me she would call and tell me as soon as they found out if it were a boy or a girl. As soon as I saw her name pop up on caller ID I immediately grabbed my phone and answered by saying "Weelllll is it a girl or boy!!??" I immediately hear on the other end of the phone a sobbing cry. They had gotten some bad news at the appointment and had been told the baby only had 1 kidney and the only kidney it did have was failing and wasn't working properly-so pretty much the baby was in kidney failure on top of that there was very little amniotic fluid so that baby wasn't going to be able to grow and move the way it should. They were unable to tell the sex of the baby from any ultrasounds b/c the baby's bladder was so distended since her kidney was failing. To say that our hearts broke from them-is an understatement. We felt so helpless and didn't know what we could do or say to help. They went to Dr after Dr-specialist and specialist and they all told her the same- "I'm sorry there is nothing we can do to fix or heal your baby. If and that's a BIG if it survives the birthing process then it will die shortly after. They reassured her the baby would be in no pain. They said she had 3 options. 1. aborting the baby immediately 2. continue to carry the baby and delivery it when the time came naturally 3. inducing labor now and delivering the baby now at 20 weeks. Abby immediately told the Dr. aborting the baby was not an option for her and as hard as it would be she would continue to carry the baby until it was born even though she knew she would continue to grow in closeness, love and feel each movement. This past weekend with a broken heart I am sorry to say that at 30 weeks Abby delivered a beautiful little girl named Laina Celeste. She survived the birth and Abby and Zach were able to hold her for about an hour. She passed away while in her mother's arms and went to her Father in heaven. Abby is such an inspiration to me! These past 2 months have been a complete nightmare for them and I can't even begin to imagine what they are feeling or going through. I do know that my heart breaks and aches for them! I pray for peace, comfort, and strength for them during this time. Not only for today but for weeks, months, years to come. They have experienced what very few people will ever experience and that's losing a child. I know the hurt, anger, confusion, guilt, heart ache and pain I felt when I had a miscarriage at 8 weeks so I can't even BEGIN to imagine what she is feeling after carrying that baby for 7 months, delivering her, holding her in her arms, feeling her breathing, and seeing her heart beat. Romans 12:15 sums up my week this week. "...Weep with those who weep." I have found these verses comforting-Psalm 18:2 The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.2 Corinthians 1:3-5 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 5For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. Please pray for this family with me they need our prayers right now! This is an actually picture of precious Laina's feet in her sweet little baby booties Abby sent me.

The West visit

Martha, Chris, Nora and Wyatt came down last week for a full week. Landry had a blast playing with his cousins and we enjoyed every second we spent with them. He wasn't too sure about his mommy and daddy holding someone other than him and to be quite honest he didn't like having to split the attention 3 ways either. I'll throw him a bone and give him a little credit b/c he was just coming out of an respiratory illness and then an allergic reaction to medication. So I will say that the first few days he wasn't in the best of moods b/c he wasn't sleeping through the night due to not feeling good. But I will say by the end of the week he did much better and warmed up to the idea of sharing attention and toys a lot. Our main problem was he wanted to throw EVERYTHING in sight and this included a whole corn on the cob while sitting at the dinner table, wooden blocks, dried leaves onto Wyatts head while trying to take pictures outside and anything else he could wrap those fingers around. Lets just say he was dying for attention!

We did a lot of fun things with the kids while they were in including going to the children's museum here in town, swimming, and many dinners and playdates. We are plan to visit them sometime this fall/early winter and can't wait to see them again!