The Fourth of July...Better Late Than Never

Happy Fourth of July...just about 2 weeks too late!!! We have had a lot going on around here (see previous post)...which is why I am just now getting around to posting about our first road trip as a family of four!!!


My little blonde girls in their red, white, and blue


Baby always looks as though she is just tolerating Big Sister!

After Dr. Levy said it was okay for Jules to travel (July 3rd)...we packed up all four of us plus Tyson...and were on our way in about an hour! That is pretty good considering it was our first roadtrip with ALL FIVE of us, and I am a HUGE planner and had done absolutely NO planning or packing since I thought we weren't going! We debated on actually making the trip, but it will be so long before we are actually able to get back up to Arkansas...so we thought we would just give it a shot! The car ride didn't go bad at all. Jules was her usual perfect self in the car and Jillian did GREAT considering past roadtrips with her. She is now at a fun age because we don't watch Barney or the Wiggles anymore. We watched Toy Story 1, Toy Story 2, and Nemo the entire way up and down...but I will take a Disney movie over Barney HANDS DOWN! Tyson was lucky enough to take a MAJOR leap up the food chain and got to sit shotgun. I decided to save myself all the trouble of climbing back and fourth and I just sat between the two girls. There were times when I was holding a bottle in one hand and dishing out raisins with another! What a sight. I actually meant to take a panoramic of my view from the backseat, but never got around to it.

So, we get to Arkansas just in time for some food and fireworks. Now, being from the city...fireworks to me, means going to a HUGE show put on by professionals from far away. Well, that is not how it is in Arkansas. Just about anyone can buy and set off fireworks anywhere in the city! The Patterson's had a good crowd out on the night of the 3rd...and they put on a nice show. I am actually only assuming it was nice because we spent the whole night in the living room. My girls HATED the fireworks...Jilly and Jules are city girls just like their mama!!! Jillian preferred sitting on the couch and watching Nemo. We did get her to check a few out from the window, but she was not interested! I think they were just too close for comfort with her...I don't blame her!

That night as we went to bed...we figured out the best sleeping arrangement that we could. I want to include it on here, so that Seth and I can look back one day and laugh! Jillian is notorious for being a great sleeper...but ONLY in her bed. She never has slept with us...not once. But, the child will sleep 12-13 hours every night in her own bed. Always before when we came to AR, we would put her in the pack and play in the room next to ours with a sound machine, and Seth and I would sit in bed not breathing all night so that we didn't wake her. Well, she is obviously too big for the pack and play now! So, we had a blow up mattress and Seth and Jillian slept there. Me, Jules, and Tyson ended up sleeping on the bed. Jillian ended up just passing out each night because we let her stay up so late!!! Hey...it worked! We actually got decent sleep compared to our other trips to AR!


Here is Jillian that first night that we were in AR. It rained from the second we stepped out of the car off and on all night and the humidity was ridiculous! The Patterson's lost power in the storm too, and so we had NO AIR!!! Jilly was SOOOOOOOOO dirty..I could hardly look at her! She was covered in dirt and sweat and I just felt so sorry for the girl! I think my camera is even having a hard time looking at her! :) This is right before a major nighttime meltdown...and a HOT shower!

On the day of the 4th, a lot of Seth's family came out for lunch and some boating! We had a really great time with Great Aunt Lynn, Great Uncle Tommy, Grandmother, Cousins Jacob and Jenny, and Uncle David. Seth's bro, Uncle Caleb came too from Dallas. He decided NOT to ride with us, since the last time he did, all I did was pump!!! Jillian started calling Caleb...Cable...like Cable TV. So, that is what he shall be called! Jilly loves her Uncle Cable.


Mommy, Jilly, and Baby on the fourth...and Tyson of course!


Mommy and Baby


Jillian holding her little sister!


B-Pa showing Jillian how to drive the boat...or is it the other way around???


"Hey B-Pa...I got this!"


Jules getting ready for her very first ride on the boat!


CC trying to convince Jillian to walk all the way to the lake


Here is Great Aunt Lynn getting her hands on Baby Jules


Here is Great Aunt Lynn getting her hands on Jilly! Aunt Lynn LOVES our girls and checks our blog more than I do!!!


Here is Grandmama doing her thing with Baby Jules...she has such a way with the babies


Uncle Tommy REALLY knew his stuff with Baby Jules! She immediately was content whenever Uncle Tommy picked her up! He also promised Jules a horse ride the next time we are up!


Here is Seth on his way back up from the lake riding on the wave runner. I put this picture on here because I think he looks hot in his life jacket!



Here is Tyson just enjoying being in the country! He also likes that he gets to eat cat food all week long!


Jillian taking an after-dinner hike. I love this picture.


Here is Jillian at the end of the night on the 4th...SO tired! She fell asleep on Daddy WHILE Uncle Cable and his friends were still setting off fireworks! This poor girl was TIRED!!!


And here is Baby just doing her thing. She really got tired of being passed around be everyone and wanted to just lay down and stretch her legs!!



Here is Jillian being a little country girl!

On our last day in AR, we woke up to two sick girls. Jillian had a runny nose and wouldn't stop sneezing. She was also in a TERRIBLE mood and acting like she didn't feel well at all. This is actually not surprising because EVERY SINGLE TIME we are in AR, Jillian gets sick. She never eats a thing, and then she either runs a fever or gets a cold of some sort. I don't know what her deal is! Then, Baby Jules barfed everywhere!!!! I am already nervous about her because of the never-ending cough, so we decided to just call it quits and head back home.


Here is Jilly right in the middle of throwing a HUGE fit that morning! I think she had enough of all the excitement...she couldn't handle herself anymore. This is nothing new for me...I see MANY of these throughout each day! Isn't 2 the best age??? NOT!


B-Pa, Uncle Cable, Jillian, CC, Cousin Jenny, and Baby Jules at our farewell lunch. CC and Aunt Lynn cooked the best lunch that day!


Uncle Cable and Jilly...she just loves him!!

The car ride home was A LOT longer! Jillian didn't sleep but about 25 minutes and she was so bored. I also ran out of magazines and didn't even bother bringing a book...so I had to just sit by Jillian and listen to her complain! NOT fun at all. As soon as we got home, we scrubbed both girls clean and got them ready for bed. In an effort to help the girls NOT get any sicker...I boiled EVERYTHING that might touch their mouths!!! Passy's everywhere! Jillian sleeps with one in her mouth and holds about 5 of them in her hands each night...so they all had to take a hot bath! We are definitley ridding J of the passy before our next trip!!!



We had a good time in Arkansas and really enjoyed seeing all of Seth's family! Traveling with babies is not easy at all...but we found with Jillian, that as she got older, each trip got easier! I am sure that one day we will go on a trip and actually get to stay the entire time that we planned to!

Sweet Baby Jules is STILL sick...

*WARNING...this post is really long, but I want to remember the whole story! SORRY!!!


So, just because it isn't OFFICIALLY whooping cough...something is STILL going on with my baby! Poor Jules is still coughing and just can't seem to shake whatever is wrong with her. We did end up going to Arkansas for a few days over the fourth since my doctor cleared us to go...but ended up leaving early since both girls weren't feeling great! (I will post about the fourth...eventually!!!)


Anyway, so we get back into town and Seth and I and Jules stay up late watching a movie. Well, Jules starts to do her coughing thing...but this time she would wake herself up coughing and not be able to catch her breath for a few seconds! It was scary and happened about 4 times in a row! Seth really thought we should take her into the ER and make sure that she could breathe okay. So, we wake up Jillian and get in the car, and then we called my parents and they met us up at the ER. My parents have LOTS of experience rushing to the ER with my sister's kids (mostly Macy)...but this was our first official ER visit with kids...thank the Lord! Anyway, my mom takes J home and puts her back to sleep...and my Dad stays up there with Seth and Me. When we get there, Jules doesn't look too good. My Dad saw it in her too...her eyes were all purple and she was very clammy. All of these weird things together just really freaked me out and I really wanted a doctor to tell me that she was okay and I didn't have to stay up all night watching her breathe or anything!!!

BUT...that never happened! Of course, there is this MAJOR domestic disturbance going on in the ER. Some dude has beat his baby mama and the cops are interviewing him. Apparently, the woman is unconscious...and the entire family (20+ people) are polluting the ER!!! Please remember, that we do NOT live in the ghetto...but ER's must just attract the worst, huh??? This incident seems to take over the ER...because we sat there for THREE HOURS and never got seen! We were seriously NOT happy! My poor Dad had to be up to fly out of town the next morning and there he was sitting in some CRAPPY ER until 1:15 in the morning! (If you live in North Dallas, let me know...and I will tell you where NOT to go!!!) So, since Jules turned into the smiliest baby in the south and was acting fine by this time, we decided to take her home and I would just take her into the pediatrician the next day.


Here is Baby Jules in the ER looking TOTALLY fine...Thanks Jules...a little more effort on your part may have actually gotten us seen by a doctor!!! (this picture isn't the greatest...taken from my cell phone...I forgot to bring my camera to the ER...can you believe it?)

Of course, Baby Jules slept with me and Seth that night...which may be why she pulled this stunt to begin with!!! She did fine, but still had her coughing episodes....she just no longer was loosing her breath.


At the doctor, Dr. Levy can hear a lot of congestion in her upper airways. So, she wants to try out a breathing treatment on Jules. The nurse comes in first to check Jules and her heart rate is through the roof! The nurse says she has only 85% lung use...and then she sees the reading of her heart rate and actually says that the number can't be right. Then the nurse manually counts with her stethoscope...and the number was right! She said her heart was beating so fast that she couldn't count it! Of course, I am FREAKING out now...what is wrong with my baby??? Then they do the breathing treatment and her numbers jumped back to normal. She had 99% lung use and the heart rate dropped back down to normal! The whole experience had me thinking that we were about to be admitted to the hospital. Our final diagnosis was to come home on breathing treatments for the next week and hopefully that will break everything up and she will be fine after that. My doctor seems to think that she caught a virus and is just having a hard time getting rid of all that crap (for lack of a better term) in her lungs! Hopefully...this will be the last of the sickness!


So, for the next week or so, I have to give Jules a 10 minute breathing treatment 3 times a day. Needless to say...she HATES it! This baby RARELY cries about anything, but she is so mad the whole time! I just hate seeing her upset.


Here is Baby getting one of her treatments...how sad!!!


Poor girl is just miserable!!


I know there are going to be a couple grandmothers out there that might shed a tear at the sight of these pics!!!


Almost done sweet girl!


Here she is right after we finish...still upset over the whole thing.



So, then I feed her to comfort her!



I will keep you posted on how this whole things turns out. I pray that this will take care of the problem and that Jules will get to feeling better VERY soon!


Here are my two girls just being together! I love how they interact already...I can't hardly wait to watch them become best friends!!!


My two girls after their baths and all ready for bed


Baby trying to find a happy place...


Jillian playing with Baby


Sweet girl is so tired... (Carolyn...Baby has major Lego Hair in this picture!)

THANKS so much to my Mom and Dad for rushing out of bed and meeting us at the ER! We know we can count on you always and we are so thankful to have you so close to us!!!!!

Jules Birth Announcement

I have been meaning to post this for those of you who we didn't get to send a birth announcement to...

WHOOP...there it is...OR NOT!!!

In the last couple of weeks, Jules has been coughing and it seemed to get worse. Well, this past Sunday night (June 29th), she coughed all night long to where even Seth (who NEVER worries) really wanted me to take her in to the doctor. We were planning to leave to go visit Seth's family on that Tuesday...and we definitely wanted to make sure she was okay before we took her so far from home. Well, at the doctor's appointment, Jules actually coughed for Dr. Levy (or Dr. L-Wee as Jillian likes to call her). I was shocked she did it because my kids always make me seem like a liar when I describe symptoms and then take them in to the doctor, and they seem perfectly healthy!!! Anyway, this cough REALLY concerned my pediatrician. She said there is an outbreak of whooping cough in our area and she really thought that Jules might have it!

WHAT???? I mean, from the sounds of things, it appears that I let my children roll around on truck stop bathroom floors...I mean, first Jillian with the rotavirus, and now the whooping cough? What in the world? I consider myself very clean and cautious, but I guess you can't be too careful! My doc says that whooping cough is airborne and Jules could have gotten it anywhere...like a grocery cart, or someone coughing around her. Jillian has already been immunized for it, but since Jules is so tiny, she has a greater possibility of getting it!

So, we put her on an antibiotic immediately and my doctor wouldn't let us leave town until we got the results back on Thursday. So, we postponed our trip and just waited to hear back. Jules continued to cough all week long and so we were sure that she had the whooping cough. After looking it up...it is a really serious sickness...especially in a small baby! We were very nervous, but Jules seemed so happy and fine except when she was coughing!

Well, Thursday morning came and the nurse finally called and said that she tested negative for whooping cough! We were so excited since I read that most babies have to be hospitalized...and that would have been very scary! So, our little Jules just wanted to make sure that she got a little extra attention...since the competition with Big Sister is pretty fierce!

Here are some pictures of our little cougher...she is SUCH a happy baby!!!!


Sweet girl enjoying her swing


I love this picture...isn't that face PRECIOUS???? Those lips are too much!



Jules has REALLY blue eyes and I don't think that the pictures do them justice...but this shot shows them fairly good. With those blue eyes, pink lips, and blonde hair...I just want to bite her face or something! I almost can't stand it!!!



Kicking her legs and playing before church


Stretch those legs girly!!!


I just think this picture is cute...I can't figure out why, but I love it!



Just chillin on the couch watching big sister act CRAZY!!!


Somebody just woke up. Love her bed head!


Being smothered by Big Sister...Jilly loves her Baby!

Happy Birthday Seth!!!

Seth's birthday was this past Saturday...but due to my Internet being down all week and having a sick baby (more on that later), I am just now posting! June is an obviously VERY busy month for us. Every weekend we have a HUGE event...our anniversary, Father's Day, Jillian's birthday, and then Seth's birthday! We do lots of partying and picture taking during the month of June!!!

But now on to the main attraction......HAPPY BIRTHDAY SETH!!!!

We had a fun day on Seth's big day. I told Seth that we could do anything he wanted for his day and he wanted to go to the pool and grill out that night. So, that is exactly what we did. We started the day off with some homemade breakfast. I made Seth some bacon (his very favorite) and some biscuits and gravy. Seth and Jillian enjoyed their yummy breakfast together. Me and Baby had to miss out since we are both on diets...hers a liquid diet and mine just does NOT include bacon...or gravy.


Of course...being in a house of all girls...all we had were pink candles. I am sure that Seth is going to continue to get used to pink being the primary color around here!


Here are these two buddies playing around with their breakfast.


And here is Baby sleeping away but still wearing her cupcake onesie in support of Daddy's b-day


Then Seth got to open some presents. I am a terrible gift giver because I always want Seth to open the gifts immediately. I had been begging him all week to open and barely made it to Saturday morning. So...he opened his gifts from Jillian and Jules...


Getting some much-needed help from Jillian on reading his card


Opening the gifts...


Then we all went to the grocery store and Costco to get our yummy dinner that Seth wanted to cook. Then we went to the pool for about 3 hours...it was just the usual at the pool...Jillian and Seth playing out in the water...Mama sitting in the shallow end listening to Baby...and Baby sleeping in the shade. Just another usual day at the Castle Hills pool! I was a sucky picture taker...and didn't take any pictures of us all out at the pool! BUMMER!

Here are Jillian and Jules discussing how great their Daddy is!

Here is Daddy opening up his gift from Mommy! Both girls wanted to help.

Seth and J sharing an inside joke, no doubt!

What a big help!!!

Then, Seth got visits from my parents, then The Dales, then Aunt Kourtney...all dropping off their gifts for him. By about this time, Jillian was in a bad mood from being worn out at the pool and baby was really fussy(still...more about this later)...so I didn't take any pictures of our dinner either! Seth grilled out some nice ribeye steaks, asparagus, and corn on the cob! It was so good and he did a great job! I really wish that I had a picture to share! Nothing like cooking on your own birthday...but it was his choice!

So, Seth...we hope you had a WONDERFUL birthday! We all loved celebrating what a wonderful Daddy and Husband you are!!! WE love you...B, Jilly, and Baby

This was before church on Sunday...Seth and Jillian just having a quick tea party before church! He is such a good Daddy!!!!!