Why did we buy a toddler bed?

Sooo, we buy a toddler bed and Teeghun is all excited about it over the weekend; perhaps it was because we just carried him in and put him to bed on Saturday and Sunday evening. Monday...different story...he played for a while in his room after Steve did reading time. He told him good night and then Teeghun decided to play with his kitchen and workbench. It finally got quite and this is where I found him...I grabbed my cell phone and snapped the picture so it isn't the best quality but you get the idea. I laughed and asked Steve why we had bought him a bed...he likes to sleep on the floor!! I picked him up and put him in bed and he did stay in there the rest of the night. Last night (Tuesday) he did get in bed to go to sleep but when I got up to feed Tanner at 1:58 he was asleep on the floor beside the door...now let me explain the gate. We put a gate up across his room door so that we can leave his room door open but we also know that he isn't roaming the house at night. AT LEAST NOT YET! We figure that he will get smart on how to open the gate but until then at least we know where he is at night. Hopefully he will soon start sleeping in his bed all night.

The Sickies are in the House

Last week we had noticed that Tanner seemed more congested than he had been. He was coughing a lot more, was waking himself up coughing and coughing so hard that he was vomiting his formula. We called the pediatrician and his nurse advised us that there really isn't much that they can do unless he is running a fever. Friday we got a call from the daycare saying that Tanner seemed lethargic and was running a low-grade fever. I called and got him in to see the doctor on call Saturday morning (yes our pediatrician has Saturday and Sunday hours, which we found to be AWESOME!!!); he took one look in his ears and informed me that he had a terrible double ear infection! I felt awful, we had no idea, I had taken him in because of the chest congestion and the terrible coughing that he had been doing. Teeghun had six ear infections before he was nine months old and had to get tubes, so we are thinking that Tanner is on his way to this also. Dr. Adams also said that he did have some chest congestion that we needed to take care of; so we have enlisted Teeghun's breathing machine to help Tanner with his chest congestion. Steve & Teeghun are both sick as well as Tanner so I am popping multi-vitamins and vitamin C in an effort to not get sick!!

ANOTHER NEW BED

That is right! We bought Teeghun another new bed! Before Tanner was born we moved Teeghun into a queen sized "big boy" bed...He did really well, UNTIL WE BROUGHT TANNER home and then he decided that he didn't want to stay in his bed anymore. It would take 20-30 minutes EACH night to get him to stay in bed. Steve shared that this had become his prayer time! Well it all came to an end this weekend, we decided that we had to do something because his bed was so big that we had to have a stepstool beside his bed to help him get in and out of bed; about two weeks ago Steve walked around the corner to see Teeghun getting ready to swing his leg over the gate in his bedroom door to "escape" his bedroom!!! SOOOO, the stool came out of his room and then we became concerned that he would fall out of bed trying to get out. We started looking at toddler beds and decided that this might be a good idea...It is a much smaller bed but also lower to the ground to eliminate the need for the step-stool. Teeghun and Steve took down the queen bed and assembled the toddler bed on Saturday morning. He slept in it for the first time at his nap on Saturday; he seems to really like it. We think that he has fallen out of bed both Saturday and Sunday but he is so low to the ground that he just gets up and gets back into bed.

Here are pictures of him in his toddler bed Saturday night...

Pictures pictures pictures

WARNING PICTURE OVERLOAD :)
I have taken a lot of pictures in the last week so I wanted to share some of them with you!!!

We went to see Steve's parents last week and I took some pictures while we were there, we hadn't gotten any three generation pictures yet with Tanner so we made sure to do that while we were there. Ray has been itching to mow so Steve (and Teeghun) helped fill up the roller so that he could roll while he was mowing.









Last Wednesday we went out to my step-sister's house and had dinner. Teeghun loved jumping on the trampoline with Morgan & Chelsea. After dinner we did ear candling, if you haven't ever done this before it is pretty interesting and disgusting what you draw out of your ear....YUCK!!!











Teeghun acquired a "hand-me-down" house this weekend from Amanda & Olivia and he loves it! He was soooo excited when we took him to the basement to see it! He especially loves the doorbell!! Thanks for giving us this great house, he will get lots and lots of use out of it!!!









GG & GP gave us money for Teeghun's birthday and we used it to buy him a sand and water table. He loves it, he had so much fun playing with the sand and then he would take his pitcher over and pretend to get more water just the way that he had seen Dadda do! The kid amazes us, he doesn't miss anything!!!













We took time this weekend to bake cookies with Memaw, I am not sure how many cookies got made but a lot of dough get eaten :) YUMMO!!!

Two Months & Two Years

Teeghun & Tanner had doctor appointments yesterday; it was Teeghun's two-year check-up and Tanner's two-month check-up.

Both boys did really well considering our appointment was at 3:15 and we didn't get out of the office until 4:55!!!

Tanner's stats are:
Weight - 14 pounds 2 ounces (95%)
Height - 24 inches (90%)
Head size - 16 inches (75%)

At two months Teeghun was 14 pounds 10 ounces and 22 1/2 inches long so they are just about the same size. Tanner is a bit longer than Teeghun was at two months so we could have to tall boys on our hands!!!

Dr. Bollier said that he is growing well (obviously)!! We talked about his fussiness and his gas and he is thinking that the fussiness MIGHT be colic, but he wasn't sure on that he said that if it is colic that he should outgrow that between 2 months and 4 months. He is switching him to a different formula (Enfamil Prosobee) that is soy based to see if that helps with the gas problems. We started it last night at 5:15 and he took it really well but this morning he was about gassing us out of the house so we aren't sure if it is doing anything for his gas. We will use this formula until Friday and then call into the office to let them know if it made any difference. We apologized when we dropped him off at the daycare today because he is probably going to gas out all the other infants!! We asked about his gooey eyes and he said that it is a common problem with infants and that if they don't outgrow it by 9 months they will have him referred to an ophthalmologist but they won't do anything to unclog a tear duct until they are one year old and from what they were telling me about the procedure I am praying that he is over it by then! We will start cereal after his next appointment in June until then it is formula only. Then came the shots :( he had to get four shots and also drink a vaccine that they have developed since Teeghun was born for rotavirus.

Next was Teeghun...
Weight - 29 pounds 11 ounces (70%)
Height - 35 3/4 inches (80%)

He said that everything looked good, we have been off all breathing treatments for about a month and he seems to be doing really well! PRAISE THE LORD! He did encourage us to keep the machine and meds around because we never know when we might need it. (Don't worry I am thinking that we might need it for Tanner so that machine isn't going anywhere) :) HA!!

We talked about his development and I think that he can do most things on the list that was given to us. We also talked about potty training and he said that most kids aren't potty trained until they are 2 1/2 to 3 years old so we can work on it but that if he shows signs of frustration to stop and wait a bit longer. As mom and Wayne can attest to anytime we put him on the "singing potty chair" he will usually go and then wants to show EVERYONE what he did, so he knows what to do but doesn't necessarily come to us to tell us that he has to go. We will keep working on it.

Dr. Bollier questioned if we have a history of high cholesterol on either side of our families, we both laughed and said that we were sure that one of us did cause we seem to be "blessed" with everything on one side of the family or the other :) soooo, that meant a finger stick and blood test for Teeghun. He wasn't too happy about this but was pleased with the red crayon band-aid that he got so that made it all better!

Teeghun has been pacifier free to going on three weeks know, Praise the Lord it wasn't as hard to wean him as we feared it might be. He is adamant that Tanner needs to have his mama (pacifier) all the time, but he doesn't seem to miss his pacifiers and we are so thankful!!

I think that is all for this update :)
Hope you are enjoying the sunshine!!!

Operation "Take Away the Paci"

Ok, so Teeghun turned two in March and he still has a pacifier...GASP!! What terrible parents we are right!?!?! He doesn't really "need" the pacifier, he just thinks that he does. He hasn't had one at daycare since he transferred from the infant room, but the minute we would pick him up from daycare he would start asking for it; we had them in each vehicle and he knew where we kept them at home. It was starting to make a mark on his face and we were constantly telling him to take the paci out of his mouth so that we could understand what he was saying. SOOO, Steve determined that it was BEYOND time to get rid of it. I knew that he was right but I was seriously dreading what might take place if his "mama's" (that is what he called them) were suddenly gone; especially since Tanner has them! Sunday afternoon we were at mom's house and she doesn't let him have one there (see we are the pushovers here!!), so he sneaks up to the couch where I am feeding Tanner, swipes Tanner's paci and hides under mom's kitchen table!!! HE IS A CLOSET PACI USER!! HA! We decided that Monday morning we would take them away from him EXCEPT at bedtime and ONLY if he asked for one! Monday it was laying in his bed so we snuck it away and he never asked about it; when I picked him up from the daycare he asked about it but I got him distracted and he didn't mention it again until bedtime. Steve gave him one that night and since then he hasn't had one! YIPPEE!! Oh sure he has asked about it but then the ADD kicks in and he forgets all about it! Soooo, (KNOCKING ON WOOD), he hasn't had one since Monday night and one asked about it a couple times. HOPEFULLY we are about done with this phase; until it is time to break Tanner that is...

Wet Oatmeal Kisses

Things have been kind of crazy in the Miller house!!

Here is what happened a couple Saturday's ago in what can be described as no less than "The Saturday from HE&%!": Tanner is crying, Teeghun is crying they both want our attention. Steve and I are both running on little more than two hours of sleep from the night before. There is laundry to be done, floors to be swept and mopped. Teeghun is bored, so now he is getting into things that he knows that he shouldn't, just begging for our attention. Tanner is crying, I think that he has a bubble...NO NO TEEGHUN DO NOT DO THAT, PUT THAT DOWN! As I was expressing my frustration to my mom (via cell phone texting of course), she had these words to share (which as I type them make me cry yet again!)...
this too will pass and you won't have tubby time..or a little one to read to...or sippy cups...or bottles...or hugs and kisses and you'll give anything to have it back again. Trust me it goes really fast! Cherish those little hands and faces that lite up when they see you, those mama's and dada's...that belly laugh...all too soon he will grow up and be wanting your keys!!

Today in MOPS our speaker was talking about forgiveness and ended the day by reminding us that it is ok to ask our kids for forgiveness and to also forgive our kids. She said that the growing up years will be over way too fast to not forgive and forget. She encouraged us to enjoy these toddler years and not for one minute wishing them away. WAS SHE TALKING DIRECTLY TO ME? I felt as though I was the only one in the room!! She closed with the following written by Erma Bombeck...which of course made me cry! Enjoy!!!

Wet Oatmeal Kisses......

A young mother writes: "I know you've written before about the empty-nest syndrome -- that lonely period after the children are grown and gone. Right now, I'm up to my eyeballs in laundry and muddy boots. The baby is teething; the boys are fighting. My husband just called and said to eat without him, and I fell off my diet. Lay it on me again, will you.''

OK. One of these days you'll explode and shout to the kids, "Why don't you grow up and act your age?"
......and they will.

OR:

"You guys get outside and find yourselves something to do. And don't slam the door!"
......and they don't.

You'll straighten up the boys' bedroom neat and tidy -- bumper stickers discarded, bedspread tucked and smooth, toys displayed on the shelves. Hangers in the closet. Animals caged. And you'll say out loud, "Now I want it to stay this way.''
.......and it will.

You'll prepare a perfect dinner with a salad that hasn't been picked to death and a cake with no finger traces in the icing, and you'll say, "Now, there's a meal for company.''
.....and you'll eat it alone.

You'll say: "I want complete privacy on the phone. No dancing around. No demolition crews. Silence! Do your hear?''
.....and you'll have it.

No more plastic tablecloths stained with spaghtetti.

No more bedspreads to protect the sofa from damp bottoms.

No more gates to stumble over at the top of the basement steps.

No more clothespins under the sofa.

No more playpens to arrange a room around.

No more anxious nights under a vaporizer tent

No more sand on the sheets or Popeye movies in the bathrooms.

No more iron-on-patches, wet, knotted shoestrings, tight boots, or rubber bands for ponytails.

Imagine. A lipstick with a point on it.

No baby sitter for New Year's Eve.

Washing only once a week.

Seeing a steak that isn't ground.

Having your teeth cleaned without a baby on your lap.

No PTA meetings.

No car pools.

No blaring radios.

No one washing her hair at 11 o'clock at night.

Having your own roll of Scotch tape.

No more dandelion bouquets.

Think about it. No more Christmas presents out of toothpicks and library paste.

No more sloppy oatmeal kisses.

No more tooth fairy.

No giggles in the dark.

No knees to heal, no responsibility.

Only a voice crying, "Why don't you grow up?'' and the silence echoing,
"I did."

by Erma Bombeck


Here are a couple pics from this weekend when we took advantage of the beautiful weather...the last one is from our walk last night; we walked well over a mile and Teeghun didn't want to ride in the wagon at all, he pulled the wagon the whole time, but I love this picture of the two of them just walking hand in hand!

STREP IS IN THE HOUSE!!

That is right! We have Strep Throat in the house! UGH! As I was leaving work yesterday I got a call from Teeghun's teacher informing me that he had a fever and would be excluded from school until he was fever free for 24 hours (thankfully he is already fever free!)! She also told me that there were two cases of strep throat in the Toddler B room where Teeghun has been going a lot the last week and five total cases in the school. So I got him into the lab at his pediatrician's office to have a strep culture done. He did really good with them swabbing his throat and then five minutes later the suspicion was confirmed "positive for strep"! He is already on antibiotics so he should be able to return to daycare tomorrow provided that we stay fever free all day.

SOOOO, Tanner and Teeghun are home with me this morning, then I am going to drop Tanner off at the daycare and have some one on one time with Teeghun later today. I don't think that I am brave enough to try it all day on my own...

Here are some pics of Teeghun watching Bar Bar (Barney) this morning....

SIX WEEKS ALREADY?

Tanner turned six weeks old already! I weighed him on our baby scales on Saturday and he weighed 12 pounds 3 ounces with his clothes and diaper on...so he is definitely gaining weight!

Since he turned six weeks old it was off to the daycare yesterday for the first time...I cried from the time that I got up until I dropped him off and on the way to work too!! They said that he did great but it just isn't the same as caring for him yourself! When Teeghun started daycare I had the luxury of working 2 1/2 days and being home with him 2 1/2 days but unfortunately I don't get to do that anymore. I still struggle with working outside the home five days a week but for now that is what I am doing. I of course didn't put Tanner down all last night! We snuggled a lot!!

Here are a couple six week pics...
"Crooked smile"


Does this count as his first smile on camera??


Yes, he is spitting up as I take a picture...attractive don't you think?!?!


Big Brother had to get in on the picture action...