Vick's Vapor Rub

Emma got a bad cough this past weekend, where her "heart" began to hurt her from coughing so much.  To help "fix" her "heart," I rubbed some Vick's Vapor Rub on her chest.  That, coupled with her cough medicine, made her feel much better.

It's amazing what a little heart medication can do for one's cough, huh?

Drewbie Laughing, Take 2

I just can't get enough of his laugh.  There's nothing more precious than a baby's laugh.  Particularly when it's your own.

Ripped Toenail

***WARNING***
This post contains photos that may not be suitable for young children, those with a weak stomach, or those who question one's sanity at thinking it would be a good idea to post such gross things.

But I am slightly obsessed with it.

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that my big toenail was beginning to "lift up" from the skin.  So I had a feeling that I might soon be losing it soon.  Well, I was right.  It's almost fully unattached; it's just hanging on by a thread, in the lower left-hand corner of the nailbed.

Gross, right?

How did this happen, you may ask?  Well, I've been spinning like crazy for the past 6 months or so.  In my running shoes, I always wear my orthodics because I have a low arch, which gives me horrible shin splints if I don't wear them.  And after a few months of spinning, I was beginning to get these pains again, so I started wearing my orthodics in my cycling shoes.  After talking to one of the cycle instructors at my gym, I told him I've been wearing these and he said that's probably what caused my toenail to fall off.  Because my foot is elevated a few centimeters, it pushes my foot to the top of my shoe, causing pressure.

It doesn't hurt.  Never has.

And as I said, I'm slightly obsessed with it.  Gross? Absolutely.  Slightly cool? Umm, yes.  (I secretly feel like an athlete now.)

Good Morning Sunshine

On the rare occasion that Emma's in a good mood first thing in the morning, I attempted to get a morning picture of my two babies.  Emma was great; holding Drew and smiling.  Drew?  Not-so-great.  Little man just wanted to play and jump on the bed.  (check out his crazy bed head)

I Mean, Seriously....

...how cute is he?!?

Sticker Face

Emma never ceases to amaze me.  Even while she's sleeping. 

One of my favorite things to do each night, is to check on my babies.  And there's always something that makes me chuckle when it comes to what I'm going to find in Emma's bed or on Emma herself.  Case in point:

"Bite"

What can I say?  Drew loves to eat.  Anytime we ask, "Drew are you hungry?" he replies, "Eat."  Some of his favorites?  Cookie, apple, or bite.

Here's a video of him wanting a "bite" of my pudding.

Little Boy in a Box

My little man is just so much fun.  I can't get enough of him.  His little dimple and laugh are just too much for me to handle sometimes.  Oh, I just love love love him!

Step Into My World

I took this little video the other night.  Just a typical day in my world: Emma transforming herself into one of her many characters, Drewbie following right along with his big sis in "trying" some things on, Andy hanging out, watching some TV (or iPading).....all the while, the house is in complete disarray from the natural disaster that just rolled through.

And here's the Aftermath:

Tickle Me Drewbie

Break From Winter

Emma and I took a little break from the winter and went swimming at the gym this weekend. Even though I only lasted about 30 minutes (it seems the older you get, the colder you get), Emma swam away like a little fish for a couple hours!

Wrinkle Fingers!

A Conversation With Emma

Part 2, in the series.
The Set-Up: In my car, coming home from the gym last night. My workout got interrupted by Drew because he wouldn't stop crying. I don't like taking the kids to the gym's daycare with me on weeknights. Not because I don't like the daycare there....it's quite the opposite, actually. The ladies who work there are great, and they love seeing Emma and Drew come through the doors. It's just that I don't like taking them from one daycare to the next. But my workouts are very important to me and my favorite instructor teaches on Wednesday nights. And Andy had a work function that he had to attend last night.....

Me: Did you try to console Drewbie while he was crying, Emma?
Emma: Ummmm, I don't know. But I tried making him laugh. *she didn't know what the word 'console' meant....she pondered it for a second, but then realized she didn't have the effort to ask me what the word meant.*
Me: Oh, that's nice. See, you're such a good big sister.
Emma: I know.
*5 second pause*
Emma: And I'm pretty too.
Me: Yes, yes you are.
Emma: But he's not pretty yet, so he wouldn't stop crying.
*I kinda chuckle here. I know what she's meaning to say. She's inter-mixing her thoughts. Once Drewbie gets bigger and "stronger," he'll be able to control his emotions better. I'm trying to teach Emma that tantrums and crying make her look like a little baby. And one time she caught me saying that someone was ugly....but I was using it in the context of that person's actions. However, trying to explain this to a 4-year old is tricky. How does one try to explain that someone who acts horrible, can make them ugly?...when the only thing that a 4-year can correlate ugliness to is beauty?*

The Boys of Fall

Many of you know....I love football. And most of you are friends of mine on Facebook, so you've seen that I've posted this video before.

But man, I just love football. I love the smell of the freshly cut grass on the field, I love the sweat that pours from a players head, I love the sound of the cheering fans in the stands. I even love the sound the helmets make as they're crashing into each other. But most importantly, I love what football teaches our young men. The camaraderie that comes from a bond of young men. The fact that knowing that no matter how many interceptions you throw, or blocks you miss....you still stand with your boys in that huddle at the end of every game and you thank God for the game that you just played. Cause you know you put your heart and soul in it. You know so, because you left buckets of vomit on that practice field the day before, and the guy standing next to you left a fragment of his tooth out there as well.

But you don't complain because that's the name of the game. Instead, you just pound harder next time. You study and study and study until your eyes cannot focus any more.

You do so because you're a football player.
 

Like Mother, Like Daughter

I thought this picture was very ironic. I have a little habit of leaving my shoes all over the house. One of the traits I'm sure Andy just loves.

Looks as though I've passed along this little habit to Missy Lucille...

"The Game"

So I don't know if you've heard, but we lost our first play off game on Saturday. And man, did it suck.

I'm not sure why I personally took it so hard this time. But I did. In fact, I think I took it harder than last year's Super Bowl loss. (I mean, at least my second-favorite quarterback (and perhaps my son's namesake) and Purdue alum Drew Brees took home the Lombardi.) But this weekend's loss was a hard one to swallow. So much so that yesterday was one of the worst days I've had in a looooong time. I just woke up, knowing that football is now done for me. And what good is the rest of this harsh winter without a game to look forward to every weekend?!?

Forget the fact that we won our 7th AFC South title in eight seasons.

Forget the fact that we tied an NFL record with a 9th consecutive post-season appearances.

Forget the fact that we won our final 4 regular-season games to make the post-season, despite a slew of injuries.

Forget all those amazing accomplishments.

We lost a game that we could have won. And we let a team, who's led by the world's biggest JACKASS beat us. Rex Ryan got what he wanted the most: to beat Peyton Manning. No one, I repeat NO ONE who's as foul as he is deserves to beat Peyton Manning.

But he did. And he did it with the help of the Colts. I can't TELL you how many times Peyton decided to throw on a 3rd down and short, when he should have ran the ball. And how about that under thrown pass to Blair White late in the fourth, which, if caught, would have given the Jets virtually no time to run down the field for the last-second, GAME WINNING field goal?!? And let's not even begin to talk about Taj Smith running into the kicker, giving the Jets an automatic first down in the fourth quarter, giving them a second chance at closing out the game! Thanks, Taj.

So am having a hard time, swallowing our loss? Yes. Yes, I am. Will I act like I know it all, questioning the pros, thinking I could have won it if I was the coach? Of course.

I am a fan.

And that's what we do.

Busted Nose

Well, I guess I can't complain too much. After being a mom for over 4 years, I just had my first real "battle wound" from my children.

Yesterday, while horsing around with Drew, he came crashing down on my nose. I'm not sure what exact part of his head hit my nose, whether it was his mouth or his forehead or what....but what ever it was, it knocked me square in the schnooze. And man, did it hurt! At first I thought I had broke it, because I immediately turned over and felt some liquid coming from it. But, luckily there was no blood. Just a bunch of snot.

As for Drew, well he was completely fine. He started crying, but I think that was a reaction to my screaming. Because he stopped about 30 seconds later. As for me, though, I'm left with a very painful nose and an annoying headache. It's swollen, but nothing that a normal person would notice. I think it might bruise....I'm starting to notice a little darkness around my eyes. If it does, in fact bruise, it'll come later this evening.

So I should wake up all nice and pretty tomorrow.

Baby Center Update

As most parents do, I subscribe to Baby Center online, where they send you weekly emails about the progression of your child. Today's update made me LOL. Literally.

The email begins by asking, "Have you noticed your child playing with his genitals yet?"

And my answer? No, never!

HA!......are you kidding me?!? Once Mr. Man found out that he had a little knob down there, he hasn't stopped playing with it. Actually, he hasn't stopped pressing it. He presses into his little genital just as soon as his diaper comes off, or when he's in the bathtub. You'd think that would hurt, but Drew doesn't seem to mind. In fact, you'd think that he enjoys pressing his genitals.

Oh, so much more could be said. But I'll stop here. This is, however, a public blog. One in which he'll be able to see in 16 years. (Sorry, my man. Love you!)

The Gift Card Thief

So Emma has acquired quite the fascination with gift cards and/or loyalty cards. She's always had a "thing" for credit cards......you know those fake ones credit card companies send you in the mail? Well, she's always loved carrying those around, along with her "checkbook." But during the holiday season, she hit her peak with her love for the money. Shoot me now, right?

So one day during the holiday season, while shopping at Home Depot, she saw their gift cards hanging on a little display:

I mean, how catchy is this? To a little 4-year old's eyes this was like candy. She begged and begged and begged for me to get her this apron-card thing. Of course, I said no.

So the next day, after shopping with Dad, at--yes--Home Depot once again, Andy turns around in the van and notices that Emma has a new little present. She had snagged one of these gift cards from the display! The little thief!

Well, it didn't stop there. A few days later, as I was checking in on her at bedtime, I noticed there was a pile of Kohls gift cards tucked under her pillow. Apparently she had "borrowed" some from the store and was playing cashier in her bed.

And then, while at Dicks Sporting Goods, she had taken a handful of their loyalty cards. I mean---for the love of the Lord.

Emma, Emma, Emma. Never a dull moment.

It's Barbie Time!

Emma's really getting into Barbies now.  And that means that Drew is now--literally--getting into Barbies too!  (The Barbie crap that is constantly strewn about our house is just insane.  There may be a Barbie outfit on one of the steps, the convertible car in the hallway, and parts to the Barbie dining room set in the bathroom.)

Right now, Emma's really into playing "roles" with Barbie.  I'm either the gymnastics teacher or the baby.  And poor Drewbie...in a year or two, he'll be forced into a roll as well.  Although I'm not sure he has a problem with it....

Learning To Write

Over Christmas break, Emma gained a sudden interest in learning how to write. She's been "writing" her name for a while now. And by "writing," I mean she draws out the three letters of her name, but they're never really in order. Her "E" may be on the top of the page, while her "M" is all the way over on the bottom-left corner. So she's had an understanding of her letters, of course.....it was just never put together correctly.

Well, that---like potty training (for her)--all changed in a matter of a week.

She suddenly wanted to start writing letters to Grandma, Mommy, and Daddy. So I would write the sentences out, and she would copy them onto her own paper. It was so fascinating to watch, too, because it's like you could "see" her learning. And because we basically wrote the same letters to everyone, she now knows how to spell "LOVE" and "YOU."

Looks like Andy & I won't be spelling out words anymore.

Damnit. Opps. I mean, D-A-N-G-IT.