#100

This is my 100th post. I intially started blogging because some of my friends were doing it, and I, SO, enjoyed reading about their daily lives. It's fun sharing that connection with others. Then, blogging turned into an online journal about the kids and my life. Melanie S. posted a while back about a website that publishes blogs. I decided to dedicate this blog to my three kids and hope to publish it someday (maybe when they graduate from high school or a special event like that). I did the whole journaling thing with Karson along with the baby book and also with Isaac. Miles, unfortunately, only has a few hand written notes in his journal, but I have done well with his baby book. I find it's much harder to write things down than to type them out. Things seem to flow easier on the computer. I still plan to hand write some events in their individual journals, but for now, blogging is quite easy. Thanks to all my friends and readers who have made this such a great way to interact with one another.

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I received this email forward a while back and can concur that as the mother of three children, every bit of it is true!!!

"THE BIRTH ORDER"
Your Clothes:
1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.
2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.
3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE your regular clothes.

Preparing for the Birth:
1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.
2nd baby: You don't bother because you remember that last time, breathing didn't do a thing.
3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your 8th month.

The Layette:
1st baby: You pre-wash newborn's clothes, color-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby's little bureau.
2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.
3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't they?

Worries:
1st baby: At the first sign of distress-a whimper, a frown-you pick up the baby.
2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails threaten to wake your firstborn.
3rd baby: You teach your three-year-old how to rewind the mechanical swing.

Pacifier:
1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the floor, you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.
2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the floor, you squirt it off with some juice from the baby's bottle.
3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt and pop it back in.

Diapering:
1st baby : You change your baby's diapers every hour, whether they need it or not.
2nd baby: You change their diaper every two to three hours, if needed.
3rd baby: You try to change their diaper before others start to complain about the smell or you see it sagging to their knees.

Activities:
1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics, Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.
2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.
3rd baby: You take your infant to the supermarket and the dry cleaner.

Going Out:
1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter, you call home five times.
2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a number where you can be reached.
3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call only if she sees blood.

At Home:
1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day just gazing at the baby.
2nd baby: You spend a bit of everyday watching to be sure your older child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.
3rd baby: You spend a little bit of every day hiding from the children.

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Sweet Karson is our # 1 but has had to adjust to life with two younger brothers. For a while she was the boss applesauce (as Judge Judy would put it), the first grandbaby and great grandbaby on BOTH sides of the family. For now, she's an excellent big sister and one awesome daughter.

Isaac is our # 2, the "middle" child. He's content all the time and perfectly happy from sun up to sun down. Yesterday after Karson's game, he took his shoes off in the car on the way home. I immediately starting smelling the worst stench EVER and soon realized it was his feet. Boys, boys, boys. He's certainly our most stylish kid and always keeps us laughing with his comedic antics.

Miles is our # 3, the "baby". These days I find that he is NO LONGER a baby, but an 18 month old toddler with a mind of his own. He loves mowing the yard. I'm thinking about drawing up a contract (with his handprint) for when he is 16 years old stating that he will, in fact, mow our yard free of charge for all the rides during the first two years of his life. Not sure how that will fly with him, but I know I can get his consent now??? Isaac wanted to rock him this morning before church in the LazyBoy. Matt put Miles in Isaac's lap, and you could barely see his BIG brother. In fact, Miles started doing all the rocking. He and Isaac are two peas in a pod. They share clothes, toys, a room and loud squeaks for about the first thirty minutes of their bedtime.

My life is grand, and there is no one to thank but our wonderful Heavenly Father who showers down loads of blessings!!! Happy 100 blogging buds.

The Graduate

Karson graduated from Greenwood Park's EEP program tonight. The first half of the program consists of the children acting out the nursery rhymes they've learned throughout the year. Karson has talked about being a "roll over girl" for the past month. She got to wear her pajamas and sing "Five in the Bed"....and the little one said, "roll over, roll over". She kept telling us that she was the # 2 roll over girl which meant that she was next to the "little one". In other words, she got to roll four times. BIG STUFF, I know. There is a brief intermission after the nursery rhyme segment allowing the children to get out of costume. When they returned, they sang all their seasonal songs, quoted their memory verses and received their diplomas. I snapped some photos from the night which is always eventful with two younger brothers to entertain.

The brothers....raisins, nerds, Skittles, M&M's can do wonders for Miles. I try to find the tiniest things for him to snack on and remain still (if that's even possible at 18 mos.).

Karson and some of her roll over buddies.

We took Karson to her choice of resturant prior to the program. To my surprise, she chose Pizza Hut. Isaac wanted Red Lobster (me too). However, the brothers were banned from this outing since tonight was all about our spectacular daughter. The boys tagged along with the grandparents.

Family photo minus one.

Her family is SO proud of her. I think she was more excited about her blue graduation bear.

She started flashing the peace sign. Not sure what brought this on. Maybe she was relieved to graduate, peace out!!!

Full of Love

For my three children who made me a mother, a big thank you!!! Matt wrote a bulletin article about me this morning that I have to share =). I have the most considerate husband and am thankful that God brought us together.

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"Reflections on Mother's Day" - by Matt Deaton

I have been a dad for a few years now, and there is one thing that I have come to accept: I will never be as important to my kids as Tiffany is. Never. I know my kids love me, but they look at her in a different way than they look at me. There is a bond between them that goes deeper than I can possibly have with them. I suppose it is because they grew inside Tiffany's body, she gave birth to them, and then for the first year of their existence she was their only source of food. It is like Karson, Isaac, and Miles instinctively know that the person who cares about them the most in the world is the person who sacrificed her body and went through a lot of pain to get them into this world.

That's why mothers have such an important place in this world. We listen to them like we listen to no one else. If you are a mom, be thankful that God has given you the noblest and most significant of all jobs. Use the God-given influence in your kids' lives to help them love God and other people. Jesus said there is nothing more important than that. If your mom is still living and/or you are married to a mom, go out of your way today to let her know how important she is to you and how much you appreciate all she has done for you. And most of all pray for her regularly, because that is the most powerful way you can help her do the most important job in the universe.

Maybe Mother's Day is difficult for you. Maybe it is because your mom is not here anymore and you miss her. I encourage you to receive these words of Jesus today, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." (Matthew 5:4) Maybe Mother's day is difficult because you had a mother who was not a good mom. I encourage you to ask God for the strength to forgive her. God will help you, and this could be the best Mother's Day ever, as you begin to enter into the freedom of forgiveness. Whatever we are dealing with today, all of us need to hear these words from God: As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you." (Isaiah 66:13) There is no comfort better than that. Happy Mother's Day!

One Cool Dude

Isaac decided to make a major life decision this week. He changed his name from Isaac M. Deaton to Isaac O. Deaton. He wanted to author a book which has increasingly become one of my children's favorite pastimes. The title "Monster Truck: All of 'Em" by: Isaac O. Deaton. Since it hasn't been released to public yet for purchase, I'll go ahead and type it out:

Page 1: Monster truck Blue Thunder
Page 2: Monster truck O' Deets
Page 3: Monster things on monster trucks
Page 4: Monster truck things in your cell phone
Page 5: Monster Truck Jam in circus cafe
Page 6: Monster truck O'Deaton run over the cars
Page 7: It calls Monster Truck O' Deaton jams
Page 8: Monster truck in the circus

I know what you're thinking...where and when can I get a copy of my own??? Soon, my friends, soon!

Calling all Divers

Who needs a flea market when you can go dumpster diving with me? If you're ever in the Plano area and see some CRAZY woman out toting around unusual objects, chances are, it's me. Like I said in a prior post, I love to walk. I don't seek out treasures on trash day but have periodically found them.

Here are some of my fun finds:
I found this slide over by Glendale School when we lived on 15th Street.


I found this chair when some neighbors had moved out and pitched everything (moves are the best time to find treasures). I had FULL intentions on painting it and making it look cute which hasn't happened yet.

I found one of those plastic turtle sandboxes. We used it as a shaving cream pit last summer. I gave it to my mom who now uses it as a sandbox.

I found a hula hoop which was pretty warped, but Karson still had a good time with it. We eventually had to toss it.

This big blue bin was a super find to house all of our balls and outdoor gear.

I found one of those HUGE Honeywell air humidifiers. It looked like it was in good shape. I loaded it in my arms and hoisted it home--in the rain--only to find that it didn't work. SHOCKING, I know, but I still wanted to see.

I had to save the BEST find for last. This week I found a box turtle. It wasn't in the trash piles but a neighbors yard. I guess it had been washed up with the rain. I didn't want to lug him/her (who knows) around for my entire walk, so I left. I was thinking...seriously, how far could it move in 30 minutes??? Turtles are QUICK little suckers (they've been given a bad wrap on their speediness). When I retured to the neighbors house, he/she was gone. Before I started snooping around the property, I knocked on the door. When no one answered, I turned around and noticed the turtle had buried itself in the mulch under a shrub. When I tried pulling it out, he/she started swinging its arms and poking its head out. Aaahhhh! I had about a 1/2 mile to carry this thing and didn't want to drop it. Finally, I got it out of the mulch and toted it home. The kids had spent the night with their uncle Andrew so I had to find a way to contain my mini-Carl Lewis until they arrived. Our lovely recycle bin became his temporary home.

I knew the turtle would especially tickle Karson. She lost her pet snail "Snaily" on Friday. She accidentally cracked the shell and told me she threw it in the trash. I fished it out and put it outside. I don't think it died but am certain it was relieved to FREE from the mason jar. I explained to Karson that we could not keep the turtle because it's not happy being with people. There is no telling how many others have possessed this thing. I imagine he/she has spent most of its life being trapped in boxes. Karson understood and we let it go on to the next capturer =). The turtle moved quickly and got out of the yard. SO, for those of you living in Plano, you may soon find a box turtle roaming around your property. Give him a big hug from his friends on Plainfield Court.

Preschool Photo Session

Ms. Melissa DeVries did a fabulous job on Greenwood Park EEP's spring photos. I had to showcase this photo of my 2007-2008 bunch. There are times when I question my decision to work part-time as a preschool teacher, but I, honestly, get a great deal of satisfaction from it. This job has allowed me to be with my children who get to attend EEP for free while receiving a paycheck that goes into our "fun money" account (a.k.a. an envelope of moola in the underwear drawer). I have also formed some wonderful friendships with the ladies I work with, the parents that allow me to influence their kids, and the precious preschoolers who truly understand how to live in the moment. Years back I read the book "Making Children Mind Without Losing Yours" (I started reading LOTS of disciplining books when Karson was about 15-18 months old), and I feel like this title appropriately states how I feel in this chapter of my life.

On My Mind

I felt a post coming and although this will be a lot of nonsensical nothings with no clear point, I wanted to write. We're gradually getting back into the swing of things at home. As you can tell, Miles is feeling much better. He's almost finished his antibiotic and is getting used to his breathing treatments. I want to say that I really appreciate our pediatrician Dr. Chris Smith. I believe he had just started at Pediatric when Karson was born and we selected him to treat our children. I'm not sure why I believe that other than the fact, he looked young and seemed reserved. TODAY, however, I am grateful for our choice. Dr. Chris has true concern for my family. He spends a lot of time caring for my children, and I have even talked to him on the phone--WOW. A few weeks back when Miles had a breathing episode, I took him in to see Dr. Chris. At the time, Isaac was having some terrible eye problems and I was telling him about them. And, guess what, he gave me a prescription for Isaac w/o seeing him. I mean, really, the man cares, and I feel lucky having him as our physician.
School is winding down (only two weeks to go). My mother keeps our children on Tuesday and Thursday while I'm at preschool. This week she is in Washington D.C. with my grandfather and uncle visiting some relatives there. SO, I had to make other arrangements for the kids. Isaac has tagged along with me to school. All I can say is, OH MY! We call Isaac our delicate flower. He wants Matt or I in his eyeline at all times. There is no running back into the house to grab something when Isaac is outside or in the car. He absolutely loses it! I love his tenderness and need for us. Karson and Miles aren't that way at all. Isaac is sensitive and a people pleaser. HOWEVER, he will do anything for a laugh. He makes up words, falls down and acts silly in an attempt for a chuckle. Mom was watching the kids a few weeks ago and some neighbors came over to play. Isaac was performing his shinanigans, and the older child looked at mom and said, "Is something wrong with him?". You can imagine how fun Tuesday was for me. He had an audience of 10 at preschool to practice his comedic skills on. I had NO expectations since he had never been to preschool before, but it was a BUSY day for me trying to contain him and manage a class. He LOVED being there and was ready to go with Karson on Wednesday. That makes me happy.

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I've been reading through a couple of posts that include new exercise routines that people have started. I love to walk, not sure if I have ever mentioned that. I could walk all day but am usually limited to 3-4 miles for time purposes =). I recently read an interesting article in April's Good Housekeeping that I wanted to share with those of you in your early to mid-30's and struggling with weight loss or maintenance. I've noticed that the things I used to do to keep weight off are no longer working. I realize that's mainly because of metabolic changes, and this article was super insightful. Here's the link: http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/advice/boost-metabolism-lose-weight?click=main_sr