Merry Christmas & Happy New YEAR!

Well, I hope all of you had a fabulous Christmas! We sure did! MY GOODNESS! This was the year of the kitchen appliances for me. I got a Toaster Oven and a KitchenAide Mixer! YES! I also received gift certificates to some of my favorite places!! YEAH! Bob received G.C. also and money! :-) Decovin, well, he made out this year! He got a really cool MEGA FORT from Jeff & the family and he got a really cool dump truck with contstruction hat from G'ma & G'pa and a Savings Bond also! He also got a Little Tykes Workbench from Aunt Christy. He received numerous other toys and clothes also! It was a good year!

Bob & I celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary today. We decided to have a short getaway to the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Crown Center. Mandy offered to take baby boy for the overnight for us and we took her up on it like hotcakes to syrup! Thanks again Mandy & Judy for watching D! We really really appreciated it! We got home and unpacked and have pretty much just been REALLY mellow! I am so tired and really ready for my bed! I haven't slept in it since the 17th of December...so needless to say, I am ready!

Oh, forgot to mention that while staying at Jeff & Marianne's last week, Decovin has taken off walking...must have been trying to keep up with Katrina! They were super cute together! He also learned how to climb up stairs while we were there also which is kind of funny b/c Katrina learned to climb up our stairs in San Diego at the exact same age as D...it was all in reverse! So cool! Oh and we decided to turn his car seat to front facing today also...he is 3 weeks away from the "actual" turn around date, but he has met the weight limit since his 9 month check up...so we figured since we had to move the carseat from Judy's van to just turn it around so we didn't have to fickle with it again in 3 weeks...he is such a big boy!

Anyway, we hope you all have a Happy New Year and all that jazz. Leave me a comment if you have time...I miss those! :-)

Little Baby, Semi-Toddler & Toddler

Boy have I had my hands full and washed several times! I can't tell you how many diapers I have changed in just the past 2 1/2 days! OH BABY! I was supposed to have some relief show up later this evening but she will not be coming until tomorrow morning...hopefully bright & early. It will be quite helpful to have another watchful eye on 3 little ones! :-) This has definitely opened up my eyes to what it would be like to have multiple children...we'll see...haha!

Well, I better go!

P.S. I stink! I need to shower.

Ho Ho Ho!

Decovin had his first meeting with Santa Claus at Zona Rosa shopping center at an event called "Breakfast with Santa"...he was neither excited or scared...but rather really exhausted! He still looked super cute in his santa outfit I got him. He is such a cutie!
He is still working on walking but he doesn't do it consistently. Only when he wants to. The most he has taken consecutively is 7 steps. He will be zooming around in no time I gather...once he builds up enough confidence. I am still searching for the perfect shoes for him. I don't want them to be too heavy or stiff...the search continues. I know that letting him walk around barefoot (or in socks) is best as it helps develop his arch, but when we are out and about it is nice to put him in some shoes. Anyway...the quest continues.
We just got home from my in-laws this weekend. We had Christmas early with them as we are spending Christmas day with my side this year. Decovin received lots of clothes, books and toys! I agree with Stacy...stores should give out punch cards and after so many purchases, you get a toy box! haha! Bob got a Carhart jacket, book light, Bathroom Reader book (full of useless facts, he loves them!), and gift certificates to Sears and Lowes. I received a year subscription to US Weekly...my favorite magazine!!, gift certificate to NY&CO, some movies, & money! It was a good Christmas! We took lots of pics and I will try to upload them today or tomorrow.
Next weekend is my G'ma & G'pa Long's dinner...Bob will not be able to go as I am going down on Thursday for my Bunco party and we don't want to drive back and forth to pick him up...my sister graciously offered to go and get him, but I am not sure what we have decided to do yet. Then next week, I will be babysitting my brother's kids for the week as Marianne's parents are leaving on the 18th and they won't have any babysitters that week before Christmas. It should be fun! I am actually only worried about my son being the handful...haha! Christy will join me late Wednesday to help me out for the remainder of the week though...that will be nice! :-)
Well, I will try to get some more pictures out for you all to see. :-) Love to all and to all a good Christmas...hehe!

P.S. Decovin now has 5 teeth and can wave "hi"...but only when he wants to...go figure. haha!

He walked!!

Bob got stuck in the traffic mess on Thursday...it took him 4 hours and 50 minutes to get home from Kansas City...it was SLOW going the entire way home! Poor guy...I felt so bad for him.

I came down to LaCygne Tuesday night so that I could go to Bunco on Wednesday night but they ended up cancelling it so I didn't get to go and then I couldn't go home either...stuck...I plan to leave on Sunday early morning.

Friday night, I put together mom and dad's xmas tree and decorations. It looks much more festive here and will be more fun on Christmas Day...they usually don't go through so much trouble with decorations these days so it was up to me if we were going to have a festive arena. I think it looks good...we put the tree in the dining room for a couple of reasons, 1. we didn't have to move any furniture except for the table and chairs, 2. this way we don't have to fight Decovin wanting to constantly tug and play with it.

On a more fun note, Decovin got to meet Santa for the first time today. He was so tired by the time he got up there he didn't want to smile for his picture...he didn't cry though...he was just too tuckered out to smile...the picture still turned out cute though. Katrina didn't like sitting on Santa's lap...she cried the whole time, poor thing. But she still sat on his lap with McKendra...she just didn't like it...wonder why Santa is so scary at that age?

So that is all that has happened thus far...I plan to finish decorating my house when I go home Sunday. I got so far as putting up the tree and then had to leave and haven't been back to finish it yet...**sigh** But I love to decorate the tree so it will still be fun!

Decovin took his first stepS...not a step...stepSSS! He took 3 steps 4 different times this evening for the first time...he is amazing! Oh and he is also doing imaginative play...if you take a play phone and pretend to ring it then say "Hello" in a higher pitch voice, he will take the phone and start jabbering in high tones...like we do! SO CUTE!!! I love him!

Gotta go, baby boy just woke up from his nap!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

Oh the weather outside is frightful...HELLO! 12" of snow anybody? Yeah...that is what we got...and a lot of deeper snow drifts...tennis shoes are NOT ideal for this weather...I had to borrow dad's boots (which, as you can imagine, were WAY too big, but what can you do?) just to get to the cars! CRAZY...oh well, hopefully it won't be too bad for our drive up to Zona Rosa for breakfast with Santa Clause tomorrow morning...we will be leaving at the butt crack of dawn!

Oh well...we are still having fun inside as much as possible...Decovin has been a hoot and has a new face...we call it his "Doh!-face" since he says DOOOOOHHHHH when he makes the face...it is too funny....

The next one is when he just got out of the bath and I had lathered him up with lotion...he gets all spikey...time for a haircut? You tell me...

Move over Turkey, Christmas is on its way!

So we spent the entire Thanksgiving weekend with Bob's folks. We had a good time and ate WAY too much! Per usual! Decovin had some turkey, ham, chicken & noodles, mashed potato & gravy and he got passed around to the whole family...gave me a nice day off...I don't think I even changed a diaper that day! whoo hoo! He was SOOO good the whole day too, didn't cry once! He was such a trooper.

I made a new cake recipe from one of my Pampered Chef cookbooks and it was a HIT! Everyone loved it! It was rather tasty if I do say so myself. It was a Mocha Cappuccino Cake...YUM-O (too much rachel ray!)! I also made sweet potato casserole, a recipe from my good good friend I met back in college. It, also, was a HUGE hit! :-) My mother-in-law, who hates sweet potatoes, LOVED IT! YEAH!

I was sad not to see my family though, mom was sicker than a dog and I didn't want to expose baby boy to that, so we stayed put. However, about 30 minutes before we are getting ready to leave, my stomach starts cramping up and I end up in the bathroom for over an hour and then when we leave we no sooner got to a gas station and I had to run in to their bathroom (barely made it!), then we stopped at my sister-in-laws house to get some drugs and for me to use her bathroom! It took us over 3 hours to get home...we originally intended to leave at 7:30, didn't walk out of the his parents house until closer to 8:30, but we didn't actually leave the KC area until closer to 9:30...putting us home just before 11pm! It was a long evening. Oh well, what can I say?! It was still a really good weekend...

Stacy, I was going to ask you, are you having a b-day party for your babies? If so, when, where, time? I need to start planning ahead...haha! My weekends are getting fuller and fuller! I hope we can make it, whenever it is...

Oh and if you are not sitting down, please do, you will never believe what I didn't do! I didn't take ONE picture the whole weekend we were there! NOT ONE?! I don't know what came over me! Anyway...TTFN!

Ohhh Baby It's Cold Outside!

So I went grocery shopping today on base and I forgot how much money you can save just by shopping there...only problem is, they don't have EVERYTHING I always need so it creates two stops, but I am really thinking about making it a regular habit from now on...especially for the baby foods...quite a bit of savings in the long run. So...

When we arrived at the commissary it was pretty cold and blustery but when we left HELLO!!! The winds opened from the depths of hell and unleashed their fury! I could barely hold onto Decovin and I was trying to get him to bury his face in my shoulder but instead he kept facing the wind and sleet-like rain and kept gasping! I hated that! The bagger lady had to jog slightly to keep up with me...I tipped her so I hope she wasn't too mad! :-) It was one of the few times I was thankful for those baggers b/c as I was buckling in D she had already unloaded my groceries into my trunk and I was on my way! Thank goodness! Decovin did get to wear his mittens and super cute hat that latches under his chin to keep the hat on. He looked uber handsome...:-)

So I called Bob on my way out and asked if he had eaten lunch yet and I offered to pick some up and bring it in to him. I wanted to go anyway b/c they just moved into their new office today. It is much more roomy and clean looking than the last one. Oh and the toilet doesn't reek of nasty butt funk! That's right the I said "Nasty Butt-Funk" and you can quote me!

Well, I guess I will be seeing you all, or most of you anyway, on the 25th for Thanksgiving...anyway...here are some pics of D that I just had to share!

Oh and...

Decovin went to the doctor yesterday for his 9 month check up...he is healthy! He is 20.3 lbs, 28.5 inches tall and has an 18" noggin. All in all, they said that the measurements were all about the 50th percentile...

They didn't have any flu shots available yesterday when we went so we have to check back in Mid-November...the nurse practioner said to check after Thanksgiving...so we shall see...

I totally voted!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's back to work I go

So I have been home a full week now and I forgot how much I was responsible for at home...being at home, I had Christy or Mom that I could just simply ask: "Do you mind watching D while I go..." Well, now I don't have that luxury and I have to time everything just right so as not to leave D in a room by himself for too long...not that he minds (generally) but I just know that if I leave him in a room for too long something will get knocked over or pulled or touched that isn't supposed to be. So I tried the pack-n-play for awhile...and that works SOME days but not often...he does not like to be confined for too long...so everything is a juggling act anymore...but I am getting back into the swing of things...Decovin adjusted almost immediately and loves that he has so much more open crawling space to explore...he already broke our only lamp that was left and we have had to remove everything off the tables and up high so that he doesn't grab them. We are still working on the stereo equipment...he hasn't quite figured out "no." Anyway...

Mom and Dad came up yesterday and met us at Powell Gardens and we had a really nice afternoon. It is a gorgeous chunk of land and even though everything was not in bloom, it was still beautiful...we plan to return in the Spring when it is in full bloom...should be GORGEOUS!

Today is a lazy day, I am going to work on some xmas gifts and Bob went to clean the basement and the garage...Decovin is napping and it is pretty quiet in here...I know it won't last long...so I better go enjoy it while I can. This is D's "Lean Back" picture and the "Whaaaaat's Uuuuup?" Enjoy!

I'm home!

I know my mom is sad that I left, and I am too, but I am also so happy to be at home. You forget what it is like to be in your home with free reign over the place, etc...I cooked spaghetti tonight and it was yummy! I got to use my pots and pans...the little things that get me excited...haha!

Tomorrow we are trick-or-treating with Decovin and taking him to see his grandparents and most of his great-grandparents...should be a fun night...plus, we get the candy...heh heh heh!

P.S. Our grass looks dead...what can I say? We are not grass/garden people...**sigh** Oh and our wall managed to at least survive the hard rains, but dirt is still washing away REALLY badly and still flushing our driveway...GRRRRRRR What the heck?!

I went goth...yeah! lol!

So what do you think...I have had mixed reviews...but personally I love that it is shockingly different...I'm just sayin'

Overly Nervous First Time Mom...

So I started to get nervous about Decovin's first cold on Saturday as he started to tug at his ear quite a bit...I am thinking: "Great, here comes the ear infection!" So instead of just waiting it out, I thought to myself, I will take him to the ER (b/c I am no where near Whitemant AFB to get him checked out by his Primary Care Manager) and make sure I am being proactive...well I get there and check him in and of course he was happy as a lamb and flirting with all the nurses who were going goo goo over him and even put in the computer system: "Smiliest Baby" and all the nurses came into his room to check him out...of course he obliges...the doctor comes in and checks him over and says that he is fine and that it is probaby from teething and just to keep giving him tylenol and nasal spray for the stuffy nose...after he leaves another nurse comes in and asks if she can take him around the nurses station to show him off...I was like, "Ok"...I am sure they were secretly inside rolling their eyes at the "First Time Mom" who doesn't know anything! They were all nice enough and just doted over D but still, I was embarassed. We left with a couple of stickers and mommy's pride crushed a little bit...haha!

Decovin attempted his first step on Saturday...I wasn't in the room but Aunt Christy and Grandma were...they got to see it. He hasn't attempted it again, but I am sure it won't be long.

On a more positive note, mom is done with radiation for now and possibly for good (check her blog for full details) and so that means D and I get to go home to daddy! Bob is very excited to have us back and I am too...mom will be sad to see us go, but we will be back to visit at least once a month! :-)

Bob has some good news also...beginning November 1, he will no longer be a recruiter, he will now be an assistant Nuke coordinator. Basically he will be in charge of persuading those that are pre-qualified to become a Nuke to join the Nuke program like he was in. He will have less stress and hopefully will actually enjoy his job again. YEAH!

Oh and have I mentioned that Jeff and Marianne are now living in KC, MO? It is very nice having them so close, and fun to see Decovin with his cousins! I know they will all be friends...it is also fun to actually make plans with them too! So exciting!

Last weekend Decovin got to ride a tractor for the first time with his Pappy Plummer. It was cute to see him on there with him...I think Pappy had a good time too.










Stace: I am not sure why everyone stopped blogging as much...it makes me sad too...even though I am just as guilty...maybe we can kick it into gear again?! :-)

Hmmmm...

Well, I have either a head cold or an allergy cold, either way, I am blowing my nose so much it is raw and my head is FULL of snot still even after all the blowing and sneezing...
I was trying to avoid Decovin for fear of giving him the cold but I am not sure I suceeded...this afternoon D woke up from his nap and sounded snotty and his nose was runny the rest of the day...but he was also cranky like his teeth were hurting him so I gave him some tylenol and that helped for a bit...so I am not sure if the runny nose is due to teething or from catching whatever I have...either way this is Decovin's first "cold"...he made it 9 months...so that's not too bad.
He is trying to stand on his own and gets braver and braver each day...he is also getting better about "learning to fall" without hurting himself...he seems to know to curl his body upon landing...most of the time...I try not to react either way except with a "YEAH, you did it!" Oh and that is the other thing...I think Decovin has learned to say "I did it"...if you ask him to say it, 8 out of 10 times he will say it...or at least it sounds just like it...not sure he KNOWS he is saying it but it sure sounds like it...if anything he is at least mimicking(sp?)...cool huh? He tried "Pa, Pa" the other day and said it at least 3 or 4 times...it was cute. He also says "Ma, ma", "Da, da", and "Nana". I can't believe he is 9 months old already...CRAZY! Where has the time gone?

*Plans for Halloween* *Topsy Turvey*

Plans for Halloween include one cute bumble bee and some candy for me! :-) Hahaha! I couldn't resist putting it on him early! He is so cute! There is even a little stinger on the butt! I can't wait to show him off! :-)

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Topsy Turvey...last night, Christy left at 9pm, mom went to bed at 9:30, and Dad stayed up past 10:30! There must have been something in the water...weird!

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P.S. I decluttered my mom's bathroom Monday! It was 3 trashbags full of removal...the office is what truly scares me though...wish me luck!

He sat up!

Decovin pulled himself up to his knees all by himself today! It was SOOO cool! He is so amazing...pretty soon he will be pulling himself up to stand! How they grow! He also has 3 teeth now...the 4th is working its way out also...
We are currently baracading everything in sight from him! He crawls to EVERYTHING! It is quite the task to keep him contained! :-) Bob better get the baby gate ready for when we return!

Crazy Busy...

I arrived at my parents house on Friday night...we attended the LaCygne Fiesta...yeah...exciting...really...NOT! We entered Decovin in the Baby Contest and he got 2nd out of 2! He was robbed! Oh well, I have decided that I can't enter him in any more contests...too much drama...and I don't want to be a "pageant mom"...EVER! So there you go...

I had to go to the DMV to get our tags for our new car yesterday and I figured it would be 20-30 minutes tops...yeah right! 2 hours later, I had my tags...yeah, fun! I met mom and dad at the Olathe hospital to wait for dad to have his heart monitor removed...it was also supposed to be an "in and out" procedure...but his turned into 6 hours...he wins! Anyway, the finally released him around 8pm...then we ate at Chili's, mostly b/c I needed a place to feed D...then we made it home by 10! I was TIRED!

I had to get up early today again to be at Christy's to wait for the furniture people to deliver her couch, etc...then tomorrow I take mom up for her first round of radiation...then back home to go to BUNCOOOOO! Thursday is no better...up for radiation, meet my friend who is giving me some clothes for D, then drop off D at Aunt Taba's house then off to the Dinner Theatre...Then Friday, up for radiation, and then I am going to World's of Fun with Mandy (my dad scored tickets from work)...so busy, busy, busy!

Well, that is all I have for now...

11 days till Autumn!

So today is the perfect day for opening the windows! I am actually almost chilly! I love when you can open the windows...it means that fall is here! I am bummed to find that it will be in the 80s the rest of the week, but today...today it is only in the 60s! I love it...this, this THING! :-) (Reference for Christy)

Decovin actually made his first successful attempt at moving forward...it wasn't actually crawling b/c he wasn't on his knees...but he would have done the military proud with his commando crawl! :-) WAY TO GO D! It was so cute, he actually made it to the toy he was wanting...his other, more effective method, of rolling is quite humorous...he just steam rolls everywhere...and to all the places he shouldn't be, you know...near the Entertainment Center with all the sharp corners and metal fixtures, near Bob's computer cords, etc...it's uncanny how they know they can't have it, yet go for it everytime anyway! Too funny! I am up and down a lot with him now...maybe that should be my motivation to lose weight...hmmm...anyway...here is a "nanny nanny boo boo" face for ya:

Fun times!

So Mandy came to stay with us this past week and we had a blast! Her and Judy showed up on Monday and they both spent the night...Tuesday Ruthie, Stacy and kids came over also and we had a grand time! Wednesday we ran a few errands but nothing exciting...but Thursday...well, Thursday was different!

We started out our day at the Amtrak station...arriving 30 minutes prior to our departure time as per the suggestion on the tickets...well...it would have been no big deal waiting around if it were just the two of us but unfortunately a female shows up, with a horrible case of verbal diarrhea! She started dropping the f-bomb at 8:30 in the morning! HELLO! Mandy and I agreed that there should be some form of rapport developed between individuals before the f-bomb can be dropped...especially b/f morning coffee! Oh MY! So she continues to drop cuss words left and right and then asks to borrow a girls cell phone so that she can call her grandma to let her know the train is going to be late. Well, she was nice and let her borrow the cell phone...what seemed like 20 minutes later, she was finally done...but not after YELLING and CUSSING at her grandma first! YIKES! Anyway...we board the train and off we go...we stop in Jeff City to catch a bus to Hermann...they took us the most bass ackwards way through the hills of Missouri! Seriously, they could have stopped the bus, shot us all and they wouldn't have found the bodies for weeks! It was a bit scary! Anyway...we get to Hermann and Mandy & I are the only two that get off the bus...haha! They must have thought we were a bunch of winos! :-) YES! Anyway...we proceed to walk over a mile uphill to Stone Hill Winery and we only had time for a taste test b/c our train was so late getting in and we had to give ourselves enough time to get back to the train station to catch our train back...well, we did eat lunch there and then walked back toward the station and found another winery and had some more taste tests...we each bought two bottles of wine and then we got back on the train...we had a really good time...on the train back there were some other interesting characters...more verbal diarrhea, etc...really funny stuff...oh and there was a kid who totally tried to buy a beer and when asked for his ID he said..."I thought you didn't have to show ID on trains?" What a doofus! HAHA! Anyway...we ended up talking with this girl who was studying for her medical boards...the same one that Mandy just took...so they went back and forth with the where did you go to school at, etc...then we just chatted about whatever for the rest of our trip back to Warrensburg...she was totally nice and we had a good time! It was fun! All in all, it was a weird day but fun...or interesting, one of the two!

Oh and Bob had Decovin all day except for two hours when he had to have his boss's wife watch him for a bit while he went to a meeting...his first babysitter and I have never met her before! I was a bit nervous but he came home alive and well...he is cute as ever!

Dart boards are fun, budgets are not...

So Bob finally hung up our dart board that has been in storage for over 4 years b/c we never had a good place to hang it...well it is up now in our basement and Bob and I must have played 10 times or something! It was SO much fun I forgot how much I love playing darts...Thanks Jeff & Marianne for that board...it is AWESOME!

Budgets suck! When reducing your income and gaining an expense (a BIG expense) budgets become a necessary evil...oh well, we will adjust! I just hope we can shake it after we get our spending habits under control...lol!

Well...all for now!