Not Possible!

It amazes me how much Riley's vocabulary increases daily. Mind you, she is only two going on five years old. Just yesterday I asked her to sit at the table to eat her lunch. This is her response:

Mommy: "Riley, I need you to sit down at the table and eat your lunch please."

Riley: "That's not possible! I need to finish playing first."

Mommy: "Possible? I think it's 'possible' that you will go to time out if you do not cooperate. I need you to say Yes Ma'am!"

Riley: "Yes Ma'am." (as her eyes were rolling in the back of her head)

Oh my. She can be a fire cracker at times!

Milestone

I'm not talking about Jackson this time. However, he recently dropped his last feeding and is getting approximately 12 hours of sleep at bedtime. I just love this baby phase. Actually, I love getting sleep!

This milestone has to do with Riley. I started potty training her a week ago today. So far she has been accident free for the past two days and has pooped in the potty.

It was really by accident. I was in the right place at the right time. Yesterday, she was retreating to a corner and I asked her do you need to go poop. She said, "pee and poop". So, I put her on the potty and she did exactly that. It was that easy. I couldn't believe it.

She was rewarded with three M & M's for that one!

I am very pleased with her progress. She still doesn't go on her own, but at least she is getting the hang of it. Until then, we'll continue using the "pee pee timer" as long as it takes.

Successful Day

A few weeks ago I attempted to potty train Riley around the same time she came down with an infection. Thankfully, that has cleared up and we are potty training....again.

I've known she has been ready for sometime now, but her determination actually surprised me. She doesn't waste any time while she is on the potty. She hops on and goes about her business and gets off to wipe, flush and wash her hands. Apparently she has better things to do than to hang out in the bathroom all day long.

So far she has peed in the potty 6 times and has had three pee pee accidents. Her pull up was dry when she woke up from her nap as well. She hasn't pooped yet, but hopefully that is not too far behind. (no pun intended) : )

A successful day??? I think so!

Summer Fun

We had so much fun at the lake this past weekend. Here's a few pictures to help capture our time with Grandma and Grandpa.


Floating on the water and enjoying a Seadoo ride with Grandma.

We love boat rides with Grandpa. Grandma and Jackson were hanging out at the lake house.

Grandpa and Jackson relaxing on the dock.

First Day of School

• Today is Campbell's first day of school. I knew she was a hard sleeper, but I didn't realize just how much until today. Considering she and Riley share a room now, I had to be extra quiet when I woke her up. I shook her for a couple of minutes and she wouldn't budge. So, I had to resort to a cold wash cloth. Finally, I got her a wake enough to come down from her bunk bed. Once she was up she was raring to go.

• It was such a peaceful morning and she was all smiles. Not one bit of hesitation at all. Pure and simple....she was ready!

• I love you my sweet girl!
  

Kindergarten Orientation

Thursday night was Kindergarten Orientation. It was very interesting to see how the first day was going to play out for Campbell. Her new school is extremely organized and they seem to have their act together. I am thrilled about her new teacher and I have heard some wonderful things about her. I'm confident she will be a good fit for Campbell's personality.

School starts on Monday. My little girl will be getting on the school bus for the first time. Not only is she going to have fun, but she will be gaining some independence as well.

My sweet Campbell is growing up way too fast......

Beach Trip

We had so much fun on our beach trip. We had some wonderful family time with the help of Diane and Ron. Brent and I actually were able to have a date night and take the kids to play putt-putt. I can't forget the never ending line to Build - A - Bear. I think we'll stick to the one at the Valley View Mall instead. The rest of the time was spent at the pool or beach. I think the kids preferred the pool to be honest with you. They could only take so much sand in their swim suits.

The kids can't wait to go next year!

No Answers

We took Riley to see an Urologist this morning for the test results from her VCUG. When we arrived he looked at me like I had three heads. He wasn't aware of Riley's history and obviously didn't prepare for our visit, let alone the test results. He gathered as much information he could, but he didn't tell me anything that I already knew.

Needless to say...I was not happy. I felt like this appointment was completely unnecessary.

After I got home and discussed it with Brent, I called the doctor back for some answers. Ironically, he wasn't in the office this afternoon and his nurse assured me he would call me tomorrow.

In the meantime, Riley is scheduled for a 6 week follow up appointment to make sure everything is still normal.

I am so over doctor appointments!!!

4 month check up

Jackson had a good check up today. He weighs 15.3 lbs and is 26 3/4 inches long. He is 95% in height and 60% in weight. It looks like he is going to be a big boy!

Here's the stats on the girls when they were four months old:

Campbell: Weight - 13.2 lbs, Height - 23 3/4 inches
Riley: Weight - 12.5 lbs, Height - 25 inches

They are all so different, but I love them all the same!

Update on Riley

I have to admit, Riley definitely has more patience than I do. We had to wait an hour to be seen for the ultrasound. Unbelievable! The appointment itself took only about 20 minutes and then we were ready to go home to play the waiting game for the test results.

The following morning Riley's Pediatrician called with the test results at 8am. Thankfully, her kidneys were clear, but they found a cyst on her bladder. The next step is to see an Urologist and then possibly inject dye through a catheter to see what is going on in her little body. She will obviously be put under so it will not be traumatic for her.

After I received the phone call from her doctor, needless to say I was a little shocked and concerned all at the same time. However, through trials and tribulations, I have found comfort knowing God is in control. He is always faithful and surprises me in some of the most unique ways. At breakfast, Campbell started singing a song out of the blue. It went something like this.... "Jesus is good all the time, yes he is, yes he is." She was repeating it over and over even before I hung up the phone. Right then, I knew everything was going to fine.

We leave on Aug. 8th-15th for our family vacation to Myrtle Beach, SC. As a friend stated earlier in the week, "what a good thing to have coming up!" I couldn't agree more!

Sick Little One

Riley has had a fever of 102.5+ for the past three days. She has been completely miserable. So, I broke down and took her to the doctor yesterday. Turns out she has a urinary tract infection. It really didn't surprise me considering she would cry in pain every time I changed her diaper. Unfortunately, at her appointment she wouldn't pee in a cup so the medical staff had to do a catheter on her in order to get a urine sample. Thankfully, it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. She didn't like it, but at least it was quick and got the job done. We should have the test results in a day or so to find out the root cause of this infection.

Just to be on the safe side, I am taking Riley to a local hospital today to get an ultrasound on her kidneys. Considering it's not normal for a two year old to have this type of infection, it's better to be safe than sorry. The doctor isn't extremely concerned at this point. Basically he just wants to rule it out.

On a positive note, last night Riley was actually laughing and playing with Campbell for the first time all week. It was such a beautiful noise. That must mean the antibiotics are doing its job!

Thank you for all your prayers. Keep them up because they are working! I'll keep you posted as soon as I have more details on Riley's condition.

Quote of the Day

After dinner I asked Riley what she thought daddy did all day at work.

Her response:

"Play with Barbies"

Riley's Getting Ready.....

to potty train!

She has been asking on and off for the past couple of months to go "potty". Of course, nothing would come out. It was basically just a game to her.

However, last night and this morning she actually peed in the potty on her own. We have a couple of obligations this week, so by the weekend we should be ready to get into potty training mode. Out with the diapers and in with the panties.

We are going to Wal-Mart today so she can pick out her own pair of panties. Oddly enough....I'm actually looking forward to it.

Salem Fair

We had a wonderful time at the fair last night. Riley thought she was just as big as Campbell and rode all the rides with her. Jackson stayed at home with Nana, but maybe he will get a turn next year.

VBS

Campbell attended Vacation Bible School this week and loved it! Everyday she would come home sharing the bible stories and singing songs that she had learned earlier in the day. I just love knowing that she is learning about Jesus in such a fun way.

During lunch today I asked Campbell on a scale of 1 to 10 how much she liked VBS. Her comment was, "more than 100!"

She is already looking forward to going back next year.

The joys of motherhood

With children, you have to expect the unexpected at any given moment. That became a reality for me when I was at Dollar General today with Jackson and Riley.

Jackson was in his Bjorn carrier and Riley was walking along beside me down the isles. While we were looking at books I heard a SPLAT and felt something wet on my feet. I looked down and Jackson had pooped all over the store floor!!! Considering this was going to be a quick trip, I didn't think I would need his diaper bag.

I stand corrected.

Conveniently, to the right of me was an end cap of baby wipes. I grabbed one and ripped it open as quickly as I could and started cleaning up the floor. Riley wanted to get in on the action and together we had it knocked out in one minute flat.

We went up to the check out counter to pay for our books and the container of wipes without missing a beat.

The next stop.....home to change a messy diaper.

Oh, the joys of motherhood!

Swim Lessons

We have started swim lessons again this year. This year we are taking them at Hollins University. I really like this place better because it is a much smaller class. Thankfully, Campbell is really showing more interest this year than last. At least she will completely submerge her entire body under the water now. She will be a little fish swimming under water before we know it.

Rolling Over

Jackson hit yet another milestone today. He can roll from his back to his belly.

I went in to get him out of his bed this morning and he was on his belly. He didn't care for it too much, but he sure did look cute doing it. He is such a big boy!

Smile

Dance Class

Campbell has always been on the shy side. She can sometimes get a little clingy when put on the spot. She has such a sweet spirit about her and I wouldn't change a thing. We try not to push her into anything until she is absolutely ready.

We figured this out when we signed her up for softball practice. She enjoyed it as long as Brent was by her side the entire time. So, we decided maybe she simply isn't ready for an organized sport at this time. We are going to wait until she asked us to do something. Then we will know that she is ready. When she puts her mind to something, there is no stopping her. That is the perfectionist in her. (She gets that from her daddy)

Imagine my surprise when she asked me if she could take dance class. We explained to her that we could not be on stage with her. She was fine with it as long as we were in the audience watching her. I was shocked!! Thrilled, but shocked.

So, I guess I'll need to start looking into some dance classes for the fall. This is going to be so much fun!