We miss you Burman Family!

I watched T's kids while the movers packed them out. It was great to have one last chance to let the kiddos play. Although Ashley keeps asking for Kamdyn to come over for dinner or night night.


The girls all decided it was so hot they needed to lay down and rest so they made a big bed on the floor and rested.



Bailey and Kamdyn loved our bouncy horse. They kept playing on it all afternoon.

We will miss you guys!!!

Turtle River Picnic

So we managed to take advantage of the wonderful weather lately about a week and a half ago and packed up a picnic lunch to eat at Turtle River state park. We had a blast. We walked some trails, drove around, picked a spot and had lunch! It was quite fun.


Ashley really enjoyed the chance to run freely without mommy yelling, "stay in the yard" "too far" "Ashely....". She was able to pick up sticks and run and overall had a great time!

I think we picked the wrong stroller to bring along as some of the places were quite bumpy. Oh well!

As we are not the most outdoorsy people we did have a little problem with bugs while we were eating our lunch. We made it pretty quite and planned for next time to do all the prep at home instead of there!

Oh and a quick update on Mike. He is doing better. He's back at work but is still pretty sore. He is not taking his meds at work because they make him really sleepy. But overall he's doing better.

Ouch!

Yesterday Mike tore a muscle in his back while stretching. He had just woken up and stretched while laying down and heard it tear. We couldn't get seen on base so after 2+ hours of waiting for a nurse to call back I called furiously and got him a referral downtown. He was so bad he couldn't sit nor lay down so he was stuck standing in one spot.

The doctor at urgent care diagnosed him with a severe muscle strain and prescribed a crap load of meds. Now we have another dr. appointment today on base so they can see him and decide if he needs to be on a profile or light duty. Duh the poor guy can't drive because he can't turn his head. Hopefully they understand how much pain he is in. This is so not fun!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Okay, so here are the pictures of the rain that caused our basement to flood for the 4th or 5th time this season.

I have to call housing now because the drywall they put up the day before (yes, just one day before) is now molding again. I think I am going to have them cut off a couple inches off the bottom to make it so it doesn't happen again.

I honestly have not seen this much rain since the time Ellen and I were heading to a meeting on base and the roads were so flooded we had to turn around in the church parking lot.

"winni pooh"

So all day Ashley has been asking for her "winni pooh" which I thought meant her pooh bear. Nope, I was so wrong! About 5 this evening I realized she was asking for her swimming pool. She was so upset when I said no because of the time and the weather. Poor girl, next sunny day for sure.

Pool time!

We finally broke out the plastic pool this week. Ashley loved it. I filled it in the morning (only a couple inches) and after her nap it was almost like bath water. The only bad thing were the skeeters! Yuck I hate those things.


Ben loved watching Ashley splash around in the pool. He started giggling when she was trying to stand on her head....didn't catch a picture of that one, darn it.





My aunt Vickie gave us this chair on our last visit home. It is perfect for the kiddos. Two cup holders and a neato little pouch for extra stuff below. Ashley loves sitting in it in the house.



So we have tried peaches, carrots, mixed cereal, and grape juice and he likes them all! And best of all he actually drank the grape juice from a bottle. I am hoping he will get used to the bottle that way and maybe one of these days I can actually get a sitter without worrying about him going hungry....

The latest Air Force Aid Society Scholarship Recipient

Whoo hoo! I just got a letter in the mail stating that I was selected for a $2,000 scholarship from the Air Force Aid Society. Now between my financial aid and scholarships all of my schooling should be covered! What a relief. I actually forgot that I applied for this scholarship so it was really surprising to get that envie in the mail! My bachelors might finally become a reality!

Daddy's off to 7-level school

Daddy left today for 7-level school. We have been so spoiled that he has been home for over a year straight! We were loving it but now I am out of the swing of deployments and stuff. He'll only be gone for 10 or so days but I still feel like I don't know what to do with myself. (And to keep myself from going crazy caring for the munchkins. So we went to the gym this morning and took a walk to the park this afternoon.


Poor kids. Mommy wasn't paying attention to the temp and I over dressed us all. It was windy and overcast out so I decided long pants for us all. Wrong choice mom! It was over 80 out and humid, long pants were the wrong choice. Oh well.


It was fun to get out of the house but oh my goodness playgrounds are so scary for parents. Ashley has no fear and is climbing up everything and running around. There are all the gaps and poles and toy things that are designed for bigger kids. I must have looked like a fool chasing her from one area to the next to keep her from running off the deck. I swear at each playground on base they need to have a big one for the big kids and a smaller one (not as tall with few gaps to fall from).

But as you can see Ashley enjoyed herself! We met up with our friend Laura and her little girl Katie and had a good time. Plus I got in some mommy talk, which was definitely appreciated.

Climbing the big slide. Eeek!

Now Ben was the easy one. He stayed put!

The mysterious disappearing tooth

So Ben's mysterious tooth disappeared. I know I am not crazy! Mike saw it, I saw it and another lady at the FSC saw it! I have no clue where it went as it was just about to break through the skin. I could feel it and see it but now it's gone. Hmmmm, interesting. So now I have to see if I want to keep my appointment on the 7th or if I'll look like the crazy woman who thinks her kid has a tooth when he doesn't! Oh well!


Ben loves playing on his tummy but will only stay that way for a few minutes. He usually ends up drooling so much I have to change the blanket.





The first cracker...So today I was eating some saltine crackers and Ben was really acting interested so hmm I handed him one I figured what the heck right. He seemed to enjoy licking it the most. He took a few nibbles and then had some really confused looks when he had chunks in his mouth. Overall I think he got about a quarter of the cracker in his mouth and the rest of it ended up in a soggy mess. So much for rice cereal as a first food.

A canine tooth, already!

Holy moly, so the past few days I have noticed signs that Ben was teething. Lots of drool, chewing on anything and everything, and overall crankiness. So yesterday I shoved my finger in his unsuspecting mouth to feel around. What did I feel? A tooth! But not where it should be not a front tooth, nope, not Ben! He is cutting his first canine or eye tooth. Ashley just cut hers like 4 months ago. I called the pediatrician to double check and they recommended that I call my dentist to see what they thought. So I called my dentist and she said that it is VERY unusual and although nothing may be wrong they want him to see the pediadontist. Hmm this should be fun. I will update when I know more. We have to see the base pediatrician. first so we can get a referral because Concordia doesn't cover them when they are so young. Lovely, this should be an event.

Benjamin

Ben napping on mommy's bed. He loves cuddling!




Alright, I have heard some complaining about me not posting any pictures in like 5 days....holy moly, sorry mom. Here you go.
Caught red handed! Or at least that's the look he gave.


Ben's first grass experience.

EGGS-celent

This is what happens when you are feeding the baby....I told Ashley that for breakfast we could have scrambled eggs. But I had to feed Ben first. So I am sitting on the couch feeding him and crash...she is repeatedly saying "uh oh, broken now, eggs". Not only do I get to clean up 8 smashed eggs but I get to listen to crying/whining toddler who now does not get eggs for breakfast....poor girl

All done!

Well I just finished up my last homework assignment for this term. Yeah! It is a relief to have it all done and a few weeks off. My next term starts on June 4th, so I have 2 weeks to relax and try to get some stuff done!!!! (yeah right)

I took Ben for his 4 month check yesterday. He is doing great. On the doctors scale he is 17lbs 4oz and 26 1/4 inches long. He got 3 shots and an oral roto-virus vaccine. I have never heard him cry that loud or sad sounding before. Man that pulls at a mommy's heart strings. Otherwise they said he looks super healthy and said that we can start him on solids anytime between now and 6 months. I think I will wait a little while but that will be fun.

I switched him out of his infant car seat because he is officially too long so we'll see how he likes it on our next trip out. I already miss the bucket!

Ashley's poor little earrings (well, actually just the holes) are infected for the first time. I put some cheap, cute earrings in the other day and apparently her ears didn't like them. Mommy feels bad again! I took them out and now don't know if I should put the good ones back in so the holes don't close up or if I should leave them out until her ears clear up...any input?

picture time!

Ben has just started enjoying his tummy time. Before he would just scream as soon as I put him there but now he'll hang out for a while with a smile!

Here are the kids this morning. Ashley decided she wanted to hold Ben (doesn't happen all that often!) so I jumped at the shot to snap a pic.

It's crazy there is only 7lbs difference between them.

were better now!

What a smile!!!!!

Chilling out watching TV while mom put away the laundry.



As you can tell Ashley is now back to her usual self. She is much better now. She is still down 2 lbs but is eating like crazy so I don't think it will take her long to gain it back. (don't I wish that was my problem...)

Next week is my last week of classes so my life will calm down for a little while. I just finished up 2 papers that are waiting for Mike to proof read. At least they are out of my hands now!

Today we tried out the Johnny jumper and he really liked it. He stayed in for about 15 minutes and was able to touch the floor even at the shortest settings. I think those things are made for doorways that are 10-12 feet tall not 8 ft like in base housing (or most places for that matter).

Ben will be going in on next Thurday for his 4 month well baby. I am excited to hear what they say. But not so excited for the shots part of it.

A sick kid is no fun

Ashley's got the stomach virus. Yuck. Poor girl has been sick all day long! I guess I have been pretty lucky as this is the first time I have had to deal with puke! And boy is it no fun!

Holy cow

Ok, so I was just on the phone with my big sister and was chatting about the kids when I mentioned that Ben was almost 17lbs and 25 1/2 inches long. ding ding ding (the bell in my head chimed) His car seat only goes to 26 inches and 20lbs. Holy cow! I can't believe we are going to have to switch him to a convertible seat already! I love the bucket for the fact that he can stay sleeping when I run errands or go to the gym....no fun! Okay, enough complaining now. A quick thanks to my friend J who gave me a convertible car seat for Ben to use!

3 months already!

Wow, I just can't believe that Ben is already 3 months old! Time sure does fly by! He is doing really well. He weighs 16lbs 8oz at his last appt. and is 25 1/2 inches long. Sure is a big boy.

He is such a good sleeper. He generally sleeps for a good 6-8 hours at a time during the night. What a change from the last one :)


So yesterday I drug up the exersaucer from the basement, took it outside and sprayed it down with the hose, and then Ben got to try it out. He is still a little too wobbly for it but seemed to like it for a few minutes. Ashley on the other hand has been climbing in and out of it constantly. I gave up trying to keep her out of it. I figured give it a few days and it will lose it's charm....well, hopefully. She like to play ring-around-the-rosies in it and then falls down and the seat catches her. Silly girl

Easter!

Ashley and Ben hanging out in the kitchen while mommy makes dinner.

Ashley got to color Easter eggs for the 1st time. She really enjoyed herself!


Especially when she realized that when you smack 2 eggs together they crack!!


The hunt for the Easter basket! I just realized that most people hide the baskets. We had never done that when I was younger. Mike and my friend T both confirmed that I am the wierd one. :)

Helping with Dinner

Ashley got her first chance to really help make dinner. It was a lot of fun! She ate most of the toppings before they even made it to the pizza, but we still had some yummy vegi pizzas for dinner!

Teachers Pet

Whoo hoo

Three gold stars for me! I just got back my essay exam that was due last week and got 100/100! Here is the comment my instructor left for me!

Awesome! If you want to practice a title page and abstract in APA style you will be ready for publication.

Publication....not sure about that one but it was pretty good to hear. Go Mandy!!!
Okay, now I will go stick my nose back in my book, I know, I know I'm a dork!

Easter bunny time

We went and saw the Easter bunny last weekend. Ashley wouldn't even go near him and even when I forced her to sit with me she wouldn't look in his direction. I thought it was kinda cute with both kids looking opposite directions. hehe

Guess who slept through the night last night, yup Ben! I couldn't believe it when Mike's alarm went off this morning. I just hope that it continues, boy wouldn't I be spoiled!!! Ashley didn't sleep through the night until way later. Let's knock on wood for this one!