Monday, December 20, 2010

Christmas Picture 2010


Sometimes I think I should start in August trying to get a Christmas picture! Next year, I just may do that!

These smiles were a result of a brownie bribery. I guess that's why Collins isn't smiling!

Newest Child of God


Yesterday we had Collins christened at St. Michaels. He was a little fidgety at first during the service but once we went to the front he just stared at everyone. He didn't quite like the water over his head but calmed down quickly once he was patted dry. We had a big crowd to witness the baptism and then we all came back to our house for lunch. It was a great day but not a lot of pictures were taken. I'm embarrassed to say that not one picture of David and I with Collins or with the godparents (Al & Elizabeth).

Grandchildren Shot - Banks(3), Hughes(5), Anna Banks(10), Collins(11wks.), Bryce(8), Emma(7), and Lucius(3)

"Seriously, Mom, what am I doing in this gown?"

This is a family christening gown and has the initials of everyone that has been baptized in it monogrammed on the bottom. Above are Banks' and Collins' initials.

I love that sleeping babe - he was exhausted!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Crustbreakers Weekend


This past weekend we went up to York to go to Crustbreaker's annual Christmas party. We always love to get dressed up and go have fun so we make sure to always be available for this party. We ended the night with a Wii competition of ski jumping and slalom.

Traditional Group Family Shot - Andrew, Deyna, Mrs. Pat, Dr. Dave, Me, David, Jackie & Neal

Picture at the Party


Picture before the party.

Kate and Banks enjoying some pizza before the babysitters took over.

Me and Mrs. Pat


David and his mom


The next day we visited the new children's museum in Rock Hill so the kids could run out some energy. The kids had a blast.

Pirate Banks and Pirate Kate

On the way back from Rock Hill, we stopped at GiGi's house to visit. She fed the boys cookies, milk and candy canes. She also got to see Collins for the first time and held him the entire time we were there.



Group shot with the grandchildren before we left. This is the best we could do.
Charlotte (1), Collins(10wks), Hughes(5), Banks(3), and Kate(4)

Christmas Lights - James Island Co. Park


Last week we ventured to see the Christmas lights at James Island County Park and, baby, it was cold! We met some friends to eat mexican before going and then we all headed over.


Banks, me and Hughes on the "train". Santa had to break out their new winter coats a little early. I think they did the trick and kept the boys warm!


The boys with their marshmallows. Of course, we didn't want to roast them. We just ate them like that. Collins barely made the picture. It was too cold to get him out of his seat.

The first ones in line to see Santa after his break. It was a good thing too because I think about 40 people followed us. This was the end of the night so we were glad to get our picture and head back to the heated car.
Me, Hughes, Conley & Chandler

Both boys went willingly to sit on Santa's lap - amazing! Banks said he wants a batman toy (shocker, not really) and Hughes wants lots of dinosaurs which he has but I'm thinking he means real dinosaurs. We're just not getting the extinction part yet. They both told Santa that Collins wanted a baby toy & diapers.

Below is a video of the boys singing Jingle Bells while sticking their heads out the sunroof while looking at the Christmas lights. They sing loudly and proudly!


Cookie Decorating


You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!
Banks, Conley & Hughes

We're #1!

War Eagle!

Collins - Two Month Check-Up


Collins got an outstanding report from Dr. Geils. He usually sleeps pretty well at night only waking once. He continues to be an excellent nurser unless I eat something that he doesn't like. So far, he doesn't like vegetable soup (to much cabbage), tacos, and anything with a little spice.

Length: 23 1/4 inches 50 - 75%
Weight: 12.8 pounds 75%
Head Circ: 41.5cm 90%



He continues to eat every 3 hours during the day. He likes to be held and always gives great smiles. He will talk to you if you give him a chance and he likes to sleep in the car seat (which is where he sleeps at night). After Christmas, we're going to make the big transition to his crib.

Friday, December 3, 2010

Bath Time Fun


While giving Collins a bath, Banks decided he wanted to hop in. Collins looked at him strangely at first but soon loved having a brother in the tub with him. If you notice on Banks' chest & arms, he colored himself with a marker so he desperately needed a bath. Of course, in the bottom picture it looks like scratches but I promise it was just marker.


Look at that smile! Collins loved it.

(I hit something on the editing tool bar that made the color in this picture much more saturated. I couldn't figure out how to lower the intensity.)

New Floors


During the renovations from the flood we decided to change the color of our floors. Below is a before picture along with two after pictures. I love the dark color!

The den with no furniture before being ripped out.

Now, our new floors!



Thursday, December 2, 2010

Collins - 8wks.


Collins is doing great. I can't say he's a regular 6-7 hour sleeper at night. We've seemed to regress to every 4 which is a huge disappointment to me. I'm looking forward to those 6-7 hour nights again. He's much more expressive and talkative day by day as well as having more awake time during the day. He's still eating every 3 hours during the day and I'm trying to push it to 4. I feel like all I do is nurse and I'm sure my brothers think so too after spending Thanksgiving with me.

The boys continue to dote on him and love to show him off. Hughes loves it when he smiles at him and Banks loves to show him his Batman toys. We're working on not getting in Collins' face especially with all these colds & runny noses going around.



BecBec & Collins



Thanksgiving 2010


We had a great Thanksgiving down at the creekhouse with my family. The weather was perfect and there was a ton of food. The boys thoroughly enjoyed all the attention especially from Anna Banks, Emma & Bryce not to mention the extra boy to play with (Lucius).

Banks and Collins ready for The Iron Bowl.

My boys

Gotta love that sweet face

Our babysitter Anna Banks - she was a huge help on Friday and Saturday!

Emma and Banks horsing around.

Of course, you can't not go shopping on Black Friday if you're with Becky soooooooo we left the creekhouse at 2:45am - yes, you read that correctly. Michele, mom and I left the creekhouse at 2:45am to get to Target at 3:30am. We weren't even close to being the first ones in line. Target didn't open until 4am and we probably had at least 300-400 people in front of us. I figured since I was up nursing anyway I might as well jump in the car. Now, this was Collins first Black Friday shopping trip (and probably the last) but he did great. Somehow being so far back in the line did not stop Becky from snagging one of the 46 inch tv's that Target had advertised. Mom can always find the deal!!! I got most of my Santa shopping done. We hit Toys'r Us afterwards and then had to fuel up at IHOP. After that it was about 10am and I was toast. Collins and I came back to the creekhouse to catch some naps before The Iron Bowl. Mom and Michele hit a few more stores.

And, what a way to end a Black Friday but with your team winning The Iron Bowl!!!! We had a great time watching it on the porch on the new tv down at the creekhouse. It is truly an experience to watch an Auburn game with Bull (Little Bill) not to mention the roller coaster the game was. We were all smiles the 2nd half and lots of celebration ensued after the clock ticked down.

It was a great weekend spent with family.


Monday, November 15, 2010

Too Cute Not To Post


1. I was upstairs. Collins was downstairs in the swing and had started crying. I came down the stairs and heard Hughes singing "Happy Birthday" to him. It melted my heart. Hughes then saw me and told me that the song would make Collins happy again. He ended the song with a jubilant "I love you Collins".

2. I asked Banks if he wanted to feel Collins. He told me "mama, I can't feed Collins. I got no elbows."

3. Hughes asking me what Santa was going to bring Collins. I responded with diapers.

4. Getting in the car one night after Financial Peace Collins was crying. Hughes said "it not monsters, Collins. It's just me"

5. Banks has been quite needy these days with lots of tantrums and yelling. One morning he told me to "stop talking" when I was reprimanding him. I said "excuse me". He said " stop talking please". At least he tried to use his manners - does one right cancel out a wrong?


Thursday, November 11, 2010

Gimme a Break!


In the last week, we've had double ear infections, sinus headaches & now the stomach bug. Hughes and Banks are definitely giving us a run for our money.

Last week, Hughes woke up in the middle of the night writhing in pain. I felt so sorry for him because the Tylenol was just not cutting it. I stayed up all night on the couch with him watching Inspector Gadget - yes, you read that right. Inspector Gadget. Now, he loves it and requests it all the time. Thank goodness for Netflix! Of course, these ear infections would come after his first cold after his tubes falling out. I'm not totally convinced that we don't need another pair of tubes but time will tell.

The sinus headaches are all me and have seem to have subsided.

Now, Banks has the stomach bug. And you know what that means - who is going to get it next? This is Day 2 - yesterday was the "bottom end" portion of the stomach bug. Today he woke up at 5:30am and had thrown up in his bed. Great. Thankfully, I wasn't productive yesterday and didn't get to change the sheets like I had planned.

But, on the bright side, Collins has given us 4 nights in a row with at least a 6 hour stretch (one night was 7 hours). So, at least one son is giving us peace of mind!

Monday, November 8, 2010

Collins - 5wks. old


Oh My - Check out this Cutie!



At 5 wks. of age, Collins:

slept for 6 straight hours last night - woohoo!,
eats every 3 hours during the day,
is an excellent nurser,
does not like to have his diaper changed,
is recovering from his first cold (thanks to his big brothers),
sleeps in his car seat at night,
went to church for the first time yesterday and was perfect,
had his first bottle of formula - didn't quite know what to do with it,
gave me a smile (I don't care what the baby books say, this was not gas),
started to find his voice and is cooing,
morphs from looking like Hughes to looking like Banks, and
is loved and doted on by his big brothers!



Sunday, October 31, 2010

Happy Halloween 2010


Tonight we trick-or-treated in Barberry Woods. The night started off rough with Hughes refusing to come out of the house and join the cul-de-sac pre-trick-or-treat party. Everyone in the neighborhood was invited to bring some healthy snacks for the little ones to have before they began their candy quest. Hughes refused to come out. He refused to wear his mummy costume. In fact, he refused to wear anything. So, he hung out in the house in his underwear while we were right outside in the front yard hanging out with great friends.

Right before we took the group picture, I went inside and asked him one more time to please join us. He said, "okay". I didn't make a big deal out of it and he was fine the rest of the night. He wore his pterodactyl costume from last year.

Banks, on the other hand, was ready to go from the word start. He loved the party, he loved his Batman costume, he loved everything!

After every house of receiving candy, the boys would yell out "mom, it worked" and then it was followed by Banks' yahoo. Collins and I made it half-way around the neighborhood before he needed to eat so David finished the route with Hughes and Banks.

It turned out to be a great night!

Group Shot - this is 1/3 of the children in our small neighborhood

Wyatt, Conley & Banks

Conley, Wyatt & Hughes

My Three Sons
Banks (Sweet Pea), Banks (Batman), Hughes (Pterodactyl)

Cutie Patootie!


I love this little guy!


He's doing pretty well with his sleeping at night (4-hour stretches, an occasional 5-hour stretch). He likes his bottom patted and loves to look over your shoulder. He is also mesmerized by the ceiling fans when they aren't moving. He's starting to grasp objects when they touch his hands (i.e. my hair, my finger).

Today, Collins was laying on the couch and we were in the kitchen. I peeped in the den to check on him and Banks was letting Collins suck on his finger. Oh Geez! Who knows what kind of germs were on those fingers??

The big brothers love Collins to pieces. Banks always wants to hold Collins, constantly gives him hugs and then kisses him wherever (sometimes shoulder, sometimes foot) and tells him he loves him in a whisper. It would melt your heart if you could see it. Hughes tries to make him laugh with his slap-stick comedy routine of hitting his head and pretending to fall down.

Thanks Ashley & Brad for the cute outfit!


Pumpkin Patch


We ran out to the pumpkin patch yesterday to get Round #2 of pumpkins. The gnats were awful and we just weren't feeling it. The boys got a snow cone and then we picked out our pumpkins. It was kind of uneventful except for the fact that I dropped Hughes' melted snowcone which sent him crying and then we were done! Oh, and the kids were dressed like ragamuffins which made for great pictures!


Hughes with a "joker" grin. He was saying "Happy Halloween".

Banks picked out a small one for Collins.

Collins slept through the experience. His head is about as big as his pumpkin!

Banks playing with his Halloween stickers. Thanks Dawa!

The end product.
Two freshly carved pumpkins now flank our walkway - 0ne batman and one scary.

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