a very random post as usual

We have had a busy weekend! Yesterday I went and got my hair done, and I got to bring the kids with me. My sister does my hair, and at her work they have a daycare, so they will watch your kids while you get your hair done! It is super nice and clean. My sister takes her daughter there so Natalie was so excited to play with her. She usually freaks out if I try to leave her with anyone, but she just ran in and started playing with Makaylah and all the toys. Landon had fun too!

Today we went to Jenifer's (same sister as above) house and played some more. Natalie even used the big potty twice at her house! Then we came home to do lots of laundry. Tomorrow we are going to my mom's to visit with my other sister who is home visiting from Springfield! I can't wait to see her. My mom and two little sister's are in Joplin shopping for prom dresses today! I remember how fun that was! I miss high school sometimes! Oh wouldn't it be fun if we posted pics of our prom dresses! I'll have to drag some out.

A favorite baby thing for today is...

Parent Choice baby formula! It is much cheaper and Landon likes it just as well as the Enfamil, and it doesn't make him constipated!

Crying it out!

I am not a fan at all of the cry it out method. That being said, it is the only thing that has worked for us! Natalie started out her life sleeping on my chest for the first 3 months. I was deathly afraid of her heart condition and it was the only way I could sleep. I was afraid she would stop breathing. I know this is a terrible place for babies to sleep, but thats how we did it. We moved her to her own bed when she was 4 months old and she did ok for a couple of months. After that, she was up every 2 hours all through the night and she would scream and cry when we put her to bed. So, for almost a year Trenton and I suffered though the nights. We would sit in her room with her reading to her and singing to her until she went to sleep, then we would slip out unless the door squeaked and woke her up, then we would have to start all over. Well at her 18 month check up I told the doctor about her terrible sleep habits and she said, " Well stop getting up with her, you don't have too". I thought, sure what ever, you don't know this child. She actually learned how to make herself throw up so that she could get up and get a bath. The doctor said to put her to bed tell her you love her and leave, let her cry for 5 min and then go back in and lay her down and don't speak to her, then go back every 10- 15 min and lay her back down so she doesn't think she was abandoned. Trenton and I had to promise not to cave in and rescue her. After about 5 nerve racking days of screaming, something magic happened... We put our little princess to bed and she didn't make a peep! Its been like this ever since and she is 22 months now. Also this was a blessing since we just had Landon! So, the advice today is to not be close minded to anyway of parenting, you might just be surprised what works for your child. Oh, and we don't use this method with the baby until he is way older and it becomes necessary. I am hoping he will be a great sleeper like his cousin Makaylah!

I love these diapers!

Pampers swadlers are the softest diapers ever, and they kind of smell good too!

Here is also a pic of the wipes my sister said she loves. I just started using them too and they are great and soft.

New Mom Advice

Alright, I am not entirely sure how well this will work because I am not sure how many people actually read my blog. Because I am a new mom and many of my friends and family are new moms, I want to know what your favorite baby products or advice are. Anything like home remedies for diaper rash, or home made baby wipes, or even the best way to keep baby boy from peeing on you! It could be anything to do with baby care all the way up to school aged children. Ok, I will start, and add a new thing for the next few days.

Mine and Landon's very favorite product is Little Remedies saline nose drops. We go through a bottle of this a week. He has allergies and gets very congested, this helps to moisten so you can suck those little boogers right out.

My second favorite is Aveeno baby moisturizer, it is hypoallergenic and I even put it in Landon's hair and it doesn't get greasy.

Ok, that's all I am going to add today, I will add more Monday (I work 11 hours a day the next 3 days). Please participate, this could be fun and helpful I think.

this song is dedicated to Brayden

I heard this song on Bee Movie today and automatically thought of Brayden and what his family has been through. Please enjoy and say a little prayer for him as you listen!

I love this video

As most of you know, Natalie has a heart defect that requires open heart surgery. They diagnosed it when she was 2 months old, and anitially they said she would need surgery by the time she was 6 months, then they said 1 year, and now it is being scheduled at her 2 year check up. Arkansas Children's Hospital has a clinic here every few months, where she gets to see the different cardiologist from there. We are so thankful for everything they do at ACH, not only for our Natalie, and little Brayden, but for all the precious children they save every day! We are so lucky to have this hospital so close to home! About this video, it shows kids before and several years after heart surgery at ACH. This is such a blessing for me, I love to see the sucess stories! While I know Natalie is in good hands there, and they are the best, it does put your mind at ease to see how well these kids grow healthy after there surgeies. In case anyone is curious, Natalie has ASD (atrial septal defect), and a cleft valve. While the hole is easy to fix, the valve is a little tricky, and the bigger her heart is for surgery, the better, thats why they keep waiting. While we are waiting, she is perfectly fine! She runs and plays like anyone else. The only affect her heart has on her is that if she get slightly cold, like after a bath, her lips turn blue, and if she is outside for a minute in the cold her face looks purple, and it takes a few hours for her hands to warm up. And she is tiny! Thanks for watching this video!

Landon turned 3 months old yesterday!

My baby is growing up so fast! I can't believe it has already been 3 months. Poor baby has been fighting allergies for the last month, he inherited that from me. Landon will most likely be my last baby, so I really don't want him to get any older. I have kind of been babying him because of it. With Natalie, I was always rushing for the next stage, not with this one! I have to charge my battery on my camera, and then I will add a picture from yesterday! We have been having formula issues with Landon, first we did the Infamil lipil, and he got constipated, so we switched to parent choice gentle formula, and he got diareah. So, now I switched back to the enfamil thinking that maybe since he is older he could digest it better, but now he has gas sooo bad. Poor thing has bowel issues. I have know idea what to do next, so I give him mylicon with about every bottle. That seems to help some. Also I have problems with Natalie eating as well. This has been an on going thing since she was born. She doesn't eat very well. she is 21 months and weighs only 22lbs. She should be at least 25lbs, but more like 30lbs. The dr suggested we give her pediasure to help her gain weight. Problem is, she wont eat real food if she drinks pediasure because it fills her up. So, I am sure Landon will out weigh her in a matter of months!

Bathing Beauties

I thought this picture was cute! Natalie loves to take baths with her brother. Natalie is into washing right now, so she loves to scrub bubby's hair. I don't know if you can tell, but Landon has a huge handful of Natalie's hair, don't worry, she deserves it. Well, I successfully got both the kids down for a nap at the same time, so I don't really know what to do with myself. I have absolutely nothing to talk about, so I will just update later!