Tulsa Trip

Jared had to go to Tulsa for work on Friday, so the boys and I packed up and joined him. We got there around 11:00 and dropped Jared off while the boys and I headed to Wal-Mart. They had these carts:


Which I hadn't seen before. It was great because I needed to give Porter a bottle while we walked around so this way I could reach him! Paxton was ready to leave after a few minutes and started screaming. He had picked out a bus that he wanted and threw it during his fit. I'm not very good at not letting him have things he wants, especially now that he realizes it, but he also can't act like that in public. The first time he threw it, I gave it back but told him he couldn't throw it again or he would lose it. He threw it again. I hated watching disappointment fill his little face, but I hope he can learn from it.

He had calmed down by the time we got to the front so I let him have the Cheetohs he was begging for.


It made him happy. We picked Jared up and headed to lunch.


We knew it was risky, but we decided to let Pax skip his nap because we wanted to take him to the Tulsa Children's Discovery Lab.


Paxton had a blast. He was the perfect age for it and he loved every activity.








There was a huge playscape made out of packing tape. This was his favorite part.


Jared had to go up with him the first time to show him how it worked, but after that he did it all by himself.





He especially loved the big slide at the end. He did not understand the concept of waiting his turn to go down the slide...but he still had tons of fun.


On the way out, we had to pass a splash pad to get to the car and Paxton had to go. I didn't have a swimsuit for him so he was the kid in the regular diaper and shorts. Luckily I had another outfit for him to wear home.


It was a fun family trip and it almost felt like a vacation even though we weren't far from home.

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The Fourth!

The Fourth is always a busy day for us and this year was no exception! We started by grabbing donuts and heading to the parade downtown. Paxton loved it this year. His two favorite things right now are fire trucks and motorcycles and the parade had tons of those.






After the parade, we came back home to cool off and hang out with Josh and Candy. Porter had a blow out while Aunt Candy was holding him, but we noticed right in time. He changed into his second outfit.


We went over to Granny's house for the family cookout. Paxton got to play with Reagan. He loved her! It will be so fun to watch them grow up together.


After we ate, we came home for Pax to take a nap.


When he woke up, we went outside and played in his pool and started cooking out. My family came over to eat and hang out.


After dinner, we packed everything up and headed towards UCO to watch the fireworks. I just knew Pax would love them this year. He isn't scared of loud noises and he's finally big enough to pay attention. He was a little wary at first, but warmed up to them after a few minutes. Porter slept through the whole thing.


It was such a fun fourth!

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Speech-Day 1

We have known that Paxton wasn't exactly where he should be with his speech for awhile. At his two-year well visit, Dr. Campbell said that he should be saying at least 50 words, using two-word sentences and using pronouns. He wasn't doing any of that. I knew I wanted to be proactive about this so he would be caught up by the time he started school so I asked about speech. Dr. Campbell said to give him 2 months to catch up and if he hadn't reached those milestones, we could try speech.

Six weeks passed and he hadn't made much improvement so when we went in for Porter's two week check-up, I told Dr. Campbell I was ready.

It took awhile to get the paperwork sent through and I ended up having to call to get things rolling, but we finally did. The evaluation wasn't terrible. Paxton did really well for the first half, and I was impressed at all the colors he identified and the pictures he could point out. But then things started getting harder and he just wanted to play. Then the lady evaluating Paxton would offer him something fun and then take it away until he answered her question...he hated it. He threw a massive fit. The other lady that was helping got down on the floor with Paxton and played cars with him and asked him questions. This helped us get a little further into the exam. The first lady kept insisting that he come back and sit at the table and then would tease him with a fun toy...things didn't go well. They ended up having to ask me the rest of the questions.

A few weeks later, we got assigned a therapist and were scheduled to start with Anna today. Paxton recognized the building as we pulled up and said "pee" for speech. For the first session, she mostly wanted to just get to know Paxton so they did some puzzles and played with Mr. Potato Head and stacked some cups. Paxton didn't really say much which was kind of disappointing...she kept asking him the colors and he wouldn't say anything. He also threw a couple fits when she would try to change activities. At the end, she was talking to me about the process and what she thought of him. She was very positive, but she said, "he's definitely delayed" and even though I knew that, it hurt to hear. I know he's a smart little kid. He already knows his colors and all his body parts and has several of his books memorized, but it is very hard to hear the word "delayed" in reference to your child.

I'm glad we have started this now, and I know all he needs is a little help and a chance to focus on saying the words right instead of just blurting out his attempt. I'm excited to watch his progress and start hearing him say real words.


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Keeping Busy

Adjusting to two little boys has definitely been keeping us busy and I haven't had a chance to blog lately! I wanted to document everything we've been doing.
Jared was out of town for two weeks in June. It was not easy for me on my own. We tried to have some fun while Daddy was gone though.
We went to the park:




Went to Wal-Mart where Paxton spotted a Mickey straw cup and fell in love. It didn't have a price tag so he was holding it (and giving it kisses) while we continued to shop and look for a price scanner. When we found one, I discovered the cup was $10! Gramsy traded him for a box of cookies, then he saw this ball and HAD to have it. He almost lost it when we had to hand it to the cashier to pay...he even held it in the car.




We went to Braum's and Pax got a strawberry ice cream cone.




Paxton has been a big help (for a two-year-old) with Porter. He takes his bottles to the sink when Porter is finished, he covers Porter up with blankies and he loves to give Porter his pacifier.




He's always so proud when he jams it in.




Lately he has been asking to hold Porter a lot which I think is precious. He says "hold him" and tries to scoop him up. As I pick Porter up to hand him to Pax, he sits so still and holds out his arms. About two seconds into holding him Pax is done and wants to get down.
Jared found Pax this remote controlled firetruck at Granny Pat's house that he used to play with when he was little. Paxton loves it! I love watching him play with things from Jared's childhood.




We have been spending a lot of time outside. Paxton loves the pool and has learned to kick his feet and swim across the pool (in his puddle jumper) and float on his back.
He also likes Kool-aid Popsicles.








I accidentally put both boys in their OU gear a few days ago and when I noticed I had to take a brother picture!




Apparently I have taken brother pictures a lot lately because Paxton knows the drill. I put him in the chair and he holds out his arm and says "baby".




They love each other.
And this guy has been a lot happier lately. We have caught lots of smiles.












Porter had his two month check-up and shots. Even though he weighed a pound and an ounce less than Pax did at birth, at his check-up he weighed 2 ounces more than Pax did at his 2 month check-up and was only a half inch shorter! We knew he was growing a ton lately but I definitely didn't expect that! He was between the 50th and 75th percentile for weight and height.




And Paxton came too and loved the stairs up to the exam table. I even had the iPad (which he is OBSESSED WITH lately) and he wanted nothing to do with it.




After Jared got back from his traveling, we took The boys to a splash pad in OKC.




Paxton was hesitant at first because he didn't understand what was happening. But, a few minutes in, he was running around and having a blast. Since it was a Monday, we had the place to ourselves!




Porter didn't have as much fun:




We celebrated Father's Day with a trip to Garbanzo for lunch.




We took Jared's dad pictures (which is a yearly tradition). They go in a three opening frame on his desk and we will update them every year.












Hopefully they'll go a little better next year. That night we cooked out and took some pictures of Jared with his boys.




Last weekend, we got to watch Uncle Josh marry Aunt Candy! Jared was the Best Man and looked pretty handsome in his tux.




Of course that meant that I was on my own with the two boys for the wedding...and Paxton is not at a stage where he enjoys sitting still or being quiet. Porter had his shots the day before and was fussy, so I decided at the last second not to take him. We stocked up on all the supplies we could think of to keep Paxton busy for the ceremony and got ready.




It was a perfect wedding! I am so happy for Josh and Candy and am very excited to have a sister-in-law on that all boy side of the family!




Paxton did pretty well. He yelled DOWN a couple of times but we made it through without a fit.




Afterwards he loved running around the church while we took pictures. Grandpa even helped him balance.




The reception was at a hotel downtown so we were lucky enough to have my mom come stay in our hotel room with the boys during the reception. That way we could enjoy ourselves without juggling the boys, but we were able to bring Paxton down for some dancing. Then we got to spend the night as a family.
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The Lake!

We took a family trip to the lake last weekend. It was Porter's first time.


We got there Friday night and Grandpa Mark had his famous steaks waiting for us. We watched a movie and headed to bed early.

In the morning, Grandpa Mark stayed with Porter while we took Pax to the breakfast buffet and the pool. He had a blast at the pool. We headed back to the lake house and put Paxton down for a nap. We left the boys home with Grandpa Mark while we went out on the boat. It was a great kid-free afternoon just hanging out together.

We got back right as Pax was waking up from his nap. Grandpa Mark headed home and we took the boys to Soda Steve's for dinner.


We wanted to take Paxton out on the boat so we went on an evening ride.


Paxton loved the boat and kept pointing out other boats and trees and the water. Porter slept the whole time except for a brief peek during this picture:


We headed home the next morning after a brief stop for breakfast. It's so great to have a place to get away and spend time as a family. We had a great time!

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