Trampolin Fun

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Gonna Be A Heartbreaker

I just wanted to comment on how nice of a son I have. Kyle seems very pleased with the progress he's made in learning the value of owning something, being responsible & helping others. On his way home from school on Tuesday Kyle brought a friend over so that he could help him fix the chain on his bike. Later that afternoon, I went to check on Kyle while he was outside playing with the neighborhood kids. I found Kyle in our neighbors driveway with a bike turned upside down and he was working on the chain. I said "Who's bike is that?" He said "Taylor's, the little girl from across the street." This little girl is too cute. She's in kindergarten. Taylor and her older sister are always outside watching Kyle play with the boys. I always wondered if Victoria (older sister) had a crush on Kyle or if she was just curious about what those boys did all the time. So, it was a bit funny that Kyle was helping to fix the bike. He's going to be such a great young man, father and husband one day. He's a great kid, I'm so very lucky! Here's a few pictures of him helping out the neighborhood girls.

Kyle's Bike

Today Kyle rode his bike to school for thefirst time. He was so excited. Apparently walking isn't as cool or as fun. And it definitly takes less time. I'm so proud of him.
Melanie & I also enjoyed Kyle's new found treasure. Check out the picks.

What A Steal! Kyle Bought His OWN Bike

Duane, Melanie and I were out for our Saturday morning walk. Just like every Saturday there are tons of garage sales. And nobody wants to go to, except for me. I just like to browse. I like to see what other people try to pawn off on their neighbors. Obviously if it was of any use at all they wouldn't be getting rid of it right? Sometimes that's the case, sometimes not. That's the best part about going garage sale shopping...You never know when you'll see that ONE THING. Today was that day. Duane & I spotted a boys 20in. bike for sale for $8.00. It was actually in pretty good condition. The seat looked like it was set on fire, every nik and crany was rusted, the tires were flat, & there were 5 inner tubes just dangling on the handle bars. The paint looked pretty good-silver, black, and red. All it needed was some TLC and a kid who REALLY wanted a bike. But hey, for 8 bucks that thing could be brand new! We walked home empty handed. When we arrived Kyle was watching TV. Looking bored as ever. We told him about the bike and he was gung hoe. "Hey I have 8 bucks!" We then proceeded to tell him all the TLC that bike was going to need. And that in the long run it would actually cost about $40.00 total (which would be Kyle's left over birthday $). He still wanted to check it out. One hour later Kyle & Duane came back with Wal-Mart bags full of stuff, and a rusty old bike. By the way, Kyle talked them down to $5.00! All three of us helped give that bike anew start in life. But, the best part is Kyle WANTED that bike, Kyle fronted the money and Kyle eagerly helped do the work. And when it was all done KYLE was PROUD! That made me feel very good and proud to be his Mom.
Now for all of you that don't know...On the second day of school Kyle had his bike stolen. He had a lock on it, but did NOT lock it up. He wasn't too distraught over it because he just assumed we (Duane) would buy him a new one. That bike was only 1 year old. And it wasn't cheap. And the attitude that Kyle had towards the bike was absolutely ridiculous! I was shocked. That was not the kind of kid I was trying to raise. Anyway, we found the bike and the kid who stole it. He lives in the lower income apartments a few blocks from here. Just before we confronted the kid, I observed him riding the bike. He was trying to do "cool" tricks, riding around, laughing with a group of friends...enjoying "his new bike." Well, we confronted the kid, made sure it was Kyle's bike, and then just as we should have just taken the bike away I told the kid he could keep it. I tried my best to be motherly and give him and his friends a lesson in honesty (which I know something about). And I let him keep the bike. Kyle was upset, confused and Duane too. But, if you could have seen that kid's face riding that bike, how much fun he was having...I don't know. It just seemed like the right thing to do, and teach my kid a (2) valuable lessons. 1) Be thankful/appreciative
2) Lock up your bike
So we gave the kid the key so no one could steal it from him and off we went.
Since that time Duane and I have debated about whether we should get Kyle a new bike, either as a Christmas gift or whatever. Well, that garage sale answered our question. See, you never know when you're going to find that 1 thing. Enjoy the pictures. Kyle worked very hard. We're very proud of him, and we love him.
So, this is what he had to buy to fix up the bike. 1 tire, a seat, a new lock/key and a can of WD40

It's Potty Time!

I bought Melanie a potty chair. Right now it's just a toy, but soon, we will be attempting to learn all the ins and outs of going potty! How fun!

Happy Halloween/Harvest Baby Wearing Photos

It's becoming quite cool in the mornings for our walks. So I've started "wearing" Melanie in our Mei Tai on a more regular basis. Just yesterday we experimented with trying her on my back. It was more comfortable than I thought it would be-it's like wearing a backpack. I love how Melanie plays with my hair and wraps her arms around me. She seems to like it when I gallop! I guess it's just a more fun/easier way of giving a Piggy Back Ride.

Not So Bad of A Night

Yesterday our day started off well. Melanie woke around 8:45AM, she was in good spirits. The first thing she said was "outside." So cute! We got ready for our morning walk. We rang our neighbors door, and off we went. We had a good day. In celebration of her cold we made homemade Chicken Noodle Soup. Although she didn't want any, I'm sure she appreciated the idea. Ya know, if i wasn't nursing Melanie, she would probably be in Intensive Care right now from dehydration and weight loss. She hasn't had anything to eat/drink for 4 days now. Poor baby.
Our night went much smoother too. She only woke up 4 times! And when she did, she was able to nurse and fall back asleep right away. Hooray! Since she slept fairly well last night, our day today will probably be even better and and her cold will be on it's way out.

Melanie's Bad, Bad Night

My poor Melanie! Last night was the most awful night we have ever had-more awful than her first few nights at home when she was born. Melanie is dealing with a cold. She started showing symptoms of it the evening of her Yellow Jacket sting. She has a tight chest when she coughs, phlegmy cough, fever during the night, and a runny nose. She went to the Dr. on Monday so we could confirm it was a cold instead of a reaction to her sting. Thank goodness it's not related.
Anyway, since Sunday I have been giving her Tylenol for her fever. And she seemed to be doing OK. But, we ran out of the Tylenol, and since I prefer to use Motrin anyway-I bought some. At 6:50 PM last night I gave her the Motrin. At that time she was very tired. She fell asleep about 7:15, and at 7:45 she was back up. I tried laying down with her and nursing her-but she was AWAKE. About 8PM I just let her play. She was obviously very tired. She would lay herself on the ground, cry if she bumped herself, etc, etc. About 9 I tried again to lay down with her and nurse-she was up. Talking, kicking her legs, rolling around. 9:15 I laid her in her crib & let her cry for 15 minutes. Awake. Tried to nurse her again-AWAKE. To make a long story kind of short, I put Melanie in our Mei Tai carrier,walked around my block 5 times-she's talking, crying, pointing, waving, crying, crying, talking-AWAKE. I tried to nurse her again-she REFUSED. I put her in the car seat and drove to Wal-Mart and back-cried, cried, cried. When we got back I told Duane "I think she's having a reaction to the Motrin. She's hyper, and very awake." I tried to lay down with her again and nurse her-AWAKE-talking, crying, crying, rolling-AWAKE. I put her in her crib again-this time I let her cry for 30 minutes. I have NEVER let Melanie cry for more than 10minutes since she's been born. It breaks my heart to hear her cry, any baby cry like that. But, I did it. I thought that maybe she was overly tired and needed to let off some steam. Nope. It didn't work-AWAKE. I tried to console her because by now she's shaking and sobbing-she can't nurse, she doesn't want me to sing, she doesn't want anything. Nothing works. I try to nurse her-she can't she's all stuffed up. I took a warm shower with her and sing Old McDonald while swaying side to side and caressing her back. I'm not sure, but I think she fell asleep on my shoulder. We get out, I throw a towel around us and now I don't know what to do. She's not crying anymore-if I put her down to put a diaper on she'll wake up and cry, if I don't put a diaper on her she'll eventually pee and we'll have a mess to clean up in the middle of the night. I took a chance and didn't put a diaper on her. Instead I put another towel on our recliner and sit down with her to rock. Remember-I don't have clothes on either-just a towel is draped over us-but she's calm and (hopefully) asleep on my shoulder. After a few minutes her breathing changes-she's deep breathing-She's ASLEEP! I get up, and take her to our room-I'm afraid to let her go-I don't want her to cry anymore. We climb into bed and I attempt to relax sitting up with her on my shoulder. Well, that's really uncomfortable. I attempt to lay her down in the bed, so I could lay down-she stays asleep! Whoo hoo! I get out of bed, put some clothes on and climb back into bed. Shortly after I get comfortable she wakes again. I try to nurse her-she can't-still congested. I sit up and rock her and sing Old McDonald again and asked Duane to get me a diaper. She's crying again so nows a good time to put one on. So this is how the rest of the night went. Melanie finally went to sleep about 12. But, constantly throughout the night she woke up. That poor baby wanted to nurse so bad and be consoled but her stupid nose wouldn't let her! I think the next best thing was for us to be tummy to tummy, chest to chest, and she could hear my heart beat, while I rocked and sang Old McDonald. At about 6AM her nose was clear enough for her to nurse. Prior to 6AM, she didn't nurse or have anything since 9:15PM. That's a long time for her. At 6:45 I put her in her crib because I had to get up to help Kyle get ready for school. And if I left her in my bed, if she woke up, she would fall off the bed. So I braved her move. It's now 8:32 and she has been resting peacefully since. Let's hope and pray our day-HER DAY-is better.
By the way, I constantly sang Old McDonald because that song can go on forever with the different animals you choose to sing about. That was the only song I could think to sing-I was becoming delirious too. Also, I think I'm right about Melanie having a reaction to the Motrin. I looked it up online and confirmed it in my drug guide-there is a small, usually a rare chance-1 in 1,000 that INSOMNIA can occur with the administration of Ibuprofen. Who knew that my baby would be that 1?! I guess we'll stick with Tylenol.

Melanie Can Sign Cheese!

Here she is...signing "Cheese!" It's so cute how she puts her hands together! This video is from about a week ago. Since then she can sign it even better. How amazing is "Baby Sign Language?"

Pumpkin Patch-Celina,TX

We went to the "Big Old Pumpkin Patch" in Celina today. We didn't get a pumpkin though. I already bought 4 from Wal-Mart. But, the idea of the Pumpkin Patch was there. The afternoon started off great. We fed the goats, the sheep, and a Texas Longhorn,(at least I think that's what it was). We played with pumpkins, climbed on hay bales, went on a Hay Ride, walked through the pumpkin patch, and ate a hot dog. On the other hand, the afternoon was disrupted and cut short due to a Yellow Jacket stinging Melanie on her right fore finger.
There's a lot more to this story. However, out of respect for my husband I had to remove what I previously wrote. He's a great guy and I was just mad.
Anyway, enjoy the pictures of the pumpkin patch.