First Haircut

Grant got his very first haircut last Thursday at a place called TikiCuts for Kids. This place was wonderful as the women that owns her own business does nothing but cut kids hair and has been doing this for 10 years. The place was adorable as it was set up like a Tiki Hut with toys to play with for the kids while you wait and a really cool truck to sit in while they get their haircut. Not only do they get to sit in a really cool camo truck they get to watch their favorite cartoons on television that is positioned right in front of them while they get clipped! At the end of the haircut she saved his first locks and a certificate as a keepsake for his first haircut and amazingly he did really really well!!!! No meltdowns!

A bad progress report

Well to fill you all in Rachael just received her progress report this past week and well.....things are not looking so good. She received an F- and a D on two of her subjects (History and Language Arts) and once again we have pulled her out of Cheerleading for the next two weeks. I think Brian may be going through a mid-life crisis as he is very frustrated. We stayed on top of her last report card and we were looked at like "monsters"and horrible parents in the eyes of Rachael but the work payed off when she received her last report card. So we decided to give her a little bit more slack to prove herself that she alone can do this and gave her some space....and well it back fired on us.....so Brian once again is back to what we were doing last time which is giving her no slack and currently no freedom until once again she can prove that she can get back on track. He is meeting with her teachers next week for a parent teacher conference in hopes that we can gain more information on how to help Rachael. Please keep us in your prayers as we are going through a really tough time with her.

Halloween Pictures at Grammy and Poppy's

More Pictures of our Michigan Trip

Halloween with Grammy and Poppy!

Well this year we spent Halloween with Grammy and Poppy! We had fun dressing up like a pirate and visiting and getting into EVERYTHING! Grant managed to break a ceramic pumpkin that Grammy had and if your asking "did he say he was sorry......the answer is no" (of course he doesn't know that word yet and will probably be the last one he finally learns!) Here we were having a great time in the quarter machine (It was an IceCream Truck with music and buttons!) after a while the music begins to sound creepy.....lol WE HAD FUN!

Ridin on the "Hov Around" and playin with cousins in MI.

Yes you guessed it it's amazing what a "Hov Around" can do...I think Grant and I could have some good times on one!

Here you see some footage of Grant with cousin Mitch and your first glimpse of Grant being mean! (yeah right)

Fall in Michigan

Brian and I decided to travel to Michigan to see some of Brian's family and visit for a few days. I was not sure how Grant would do on this trip since this is the farthest he has been and longest he would have ever ridden in a car.....and he did GREAT! I had snacks, drinks, blankets, plenty of DVD's and anything else I could think of for possible meltdowns (for both Grant and Brian...lol) and I didn't need any of them because he slept the ENTIRE way. Of course we left after his last little sippee cup of milk he has at night and the rest of the way was very silent....so it was a very silent night of driving. So once we arrived in Michigan we did a lot of visiting, a lot of reminiscing (well Brian did), and etc. We saw Grandma and Grandpa Hungerford, Aunt Mary and Uncle Scott, Mitch, and Will (and both of their families) and Grandpa Mecomber and Joyce. We had a good time and we miss you all! Here was some footage from our trip!

Dancin' Like a Pirate!

Now this has to be the cutest thing yet I have managed to catch on video. This is Grant dancing "Grandma Billman Style" and he is SOOO good at it. As soon as Brian put on one of his crazy CD's Grant stopped dead in his tracks and started what you see on the video and didn't stop until the song was over! Oh and if your wondering what in the world he has on his head ...it's his pirate hat from his pirate costume....we are going as a pirate for Halloween....I think he likes the do rag....it does look a baby do rag doesn't it?

Happy!

Baby Mohawk!

Suds and Mohawks!

French Toast this Morning!

I cannot stress how much this kid LOVES French Toast right now. He will sit and eat as many pieces as I will give him. And we can FINALLY feed ourselves.!!!!.....I didn't think I was going to see the day we were off baby food! I guess they just have to do it when their ready (he's been feeding himself now for 3 weeks or so). I feel so free when we can go to McDonalds and he sits and eats a cheeseburger and his french fries....I just can't hardly believe it! We are on a sippee cup but he refuses to hold it so I'm constantly doing it for him STILL.....but hopefully that will change! Maybe I wasn't giving him enough credit and he could have been doing this on his own much earlier!

Rainbows and Yellow Brick Roads

Well we are beginning to see a little bit of a rainbow at the end of our week. Grant is clearing up on his rash and feeling great and my blisters are beginning to show signs of going away! Rachael got some good grades back on her end of quarter exams as well! Last but not least my testing that I had done on the breast turned out to be ok so no worries! I guess these days I think metaphorically (I guess that's part of my dark side or weird side?) and ironically I feel it's totally fitting for Grant to be a scarecrow this year for Halloween! We have some bad stuff happen over the past couple of weeks and thought that it was perfect!

Lip, Hand, Foot, Mouth, House, and Breast...what next?

Ok so I'm sure the title instantaneosly got your attention. This has been one CRAZY week. Last Sunday Grant decides to fall next to our wicker basket filled with his toys. I had just picked up his toys in the living room when he inevitably always goes right behind me to dump them out again. I saw him stumble and graze the side of the wicker basket (your thinking no big deal right...well that's what I thought) I then picked him up as he was crying like I have never heard him wail as I was consoling him with Grant's head over my shoulder. Well then I leaned forward with him...only to see a mouth full of blood gushing out ...so of course I go into panick mode. I couldn't see where the source of the blood was coming from as everything was ....well... bloody. So I did what I thought could help and wet a paper towel with cold water and let him bite down on it to try and get the bleeding to stop. After about 6 bloody filled paper towels and my shirt that looked like someone had just been shot........Brian had just left to go to Wal-Mart and after calling him 3 times saying "LEAVE THE CART GRANT's CUT HIS MOUTH OPEN". What I found out after examining him was he not only busted his lip but he cut and split open the little piece of tissue that's right underneath the top of the lip (top of the gum). So after calling my best friend asking what in the heck should I do....we both concured that maybe calling the ER would be a good idea......so I called the ER and let them know what happened and their response was "we can't give any medical advice over the phone".....so my response was "fine but should I bring him in? I don't know if something should be stitched or not?"....the ER's response was "well if you think you should then you can but we can't advise you!" I couldn't believe what I was hearing....so of course I then ask "well if he had a broken bone pertruding out of his skin and I was dumb enough to call and ask you if I needed to bring him in...your response would be I'm sorry we can't give any advice over the phone do what you think is best? That's DUMB!!" and then I hung up the phone....it made me feel better! Next morning called pediatrician and he said it would mend itself not to do anything with it. Grant's lip is healing and is looking back to normal!

So..... Grant get's sick a couple of days after the lip incident.! He was running a pretty high temperature of about 103. There was nothing leading up to this sickness like a runny nose or a little cranky it was like we were fine when we entered Target and when we came out we had a fever (literally that quick!) So I start pouring tylenol down Grant the minute I suspect this mysterious fever that came out of no where....as the night wore on I was counting the hours till the 4th hour mark like an egg timer and then administered more tylenol (wasn't breaking at this point) finally the fever appeared to start breaking around 6 am as he was beginning to cool off.....after speaking with mother that morning she suggested that I check the bottoms of his feet.....when I noticed little pinprick rashy on the sides of his feet....so I decided to give him a bath thinking maybe I could wash the rash away (well it was a thought ok!) So after the warm bath I notice more and more rash around his mouth and more on his feet...so we were headed to the pediatrician at that point...when the Dr. checked for Strep and what is called "Hand, Foot, Mouth disease" he tested negative for Strep and Pediatrician said he had this "hand, foot, mouth" which is a viral thing that starts with a nasty fever and when the fever goes away the rash comes on and stays for a period of 3-5 days. Apparently it runs rampid this time of year in toddlers (fall time). All he said was it has to take it's course and just give him tylenol with plenty of fluids....so we are in the rash phase now but hopefully will clear up in the next couple of days.

Ok so as I am getting ready for my OB/GYN appointment I get a call from our realtor saying someone wants to see our house in an hour. So I begin pleading as my house is a disaster zone with Rachael being out of school for the day (teacher in/service) and Grant getting out everything he owns and my Dr. appt in an hour I ask if they can come back after 6pm to view the home.....of course the answer is NO they can't...and they really wanted to see our home. So Brian and I swept through the house putting/stuffing/shoving anything we could so that the house looked alright. So next is the Dr. appt.

So the Dr. appt....we race to the Dr. appt (at this point I look like death warmed over....running a slight temp because I think I've gotten a little bit of what Grant had) No time to put makeup on or fix hair because we busted it to get this house cleaned up in a matter of an hour slap a baseball cap on and we go. So get to the Dr. appt where he finds the mass that I had discussed with him on my breast (dr. feels like it is a cyst) but have to go in for testing next Tuesday (so this throws me into a little bit of a stir) ...get to the car....then Brian tells me that I need to call the realtor because it sounds like they are pretty positive and want to know if we can get out by the middle of November because they are pretty serious about possibly buying our home (and they are cash buyers coming from Florida) ...well as you can imagine....I'm just a little overwelmed about EVERYTHING. At that point I handed the phone over to Brian and said you are going to have to deal with this because I just have too much on my plate right now. So that's where we are.....pray for us.....for healing...for grace...and for mercy....God gave me a lot this week...so he must have some kind of faith in me (right?)

Bath Time Baby

Rub a Dub Dub.....now there's a little boy with a lot of suds!

This kid LOVES baths....it's like everytime I put him in a bath (which is every day) it's like it's a totally new experience for him. Just as long as I don't get any water in his mouth when washing his hair/rinsing we are good.....otherwise it turns into a catastrophy when we get the mouth. When we do hit the mouth usually there is some sort of crying/wailing, a choke, a choke with a gag, and then finally if we have eaten ANYTHING at all....we WILL vomit (but luckily that hasn't happened since we were at Grammy's house before church).

Check out my new Girlfriend (she's older then me!)

This is yet another cute video we took inside a little plastic play gym. Grant was showing his flirtatious side this evening!

Playworld Down Under

Well we decided to take Grant over to Playworld Down Under (they have a toddler section) and wore him out playing all night! It's amazing what a sign and a net can do to pacify your child for a while. We're a cheap date!

Hard Lessons to Learn

Rachael had to sit out yesterday evening for getting some grades we shouldn't be getting. As a consequence Rachael had to sit out of her game last night and while studying in the bleachers watching the other girls cheer. She appeared to look a little humiliated and embarressed. This year has been off to a REAL rocky start. Rachael has been "testing" the waters of consequence since she started school this season. I think my fortune is telling me "this is the season for tough lessons learned". She is definately a TWEEN....and I need more patience!!!!!

"My Name is Rachael and I Like to Shake"

Yes you guessed it.....here is their "Name" cheer. This is one of Rachael's favorite cheers they performed this past week playing Hamilton Middle School (sadly we lost our first game of the year).

Big Boy

Well my little man is growing up soooooo fast! I can't believe that he is already 14 months (almost) and he has such a BIG personality. Grant's day consists of throwing his toys in the toilet, TP the bathroom (loves to shred tissue paper and throw it around), getting into any cabinet he can find, walking around in one small circle until he makes himself so dizzy he falls down. He constantly is saying "nonah nonah nonah" which is what Brian and I interpret as "No No No No" and that's the best he can say it because the child is CONSTANTLY being told "no Grant....no no Grant....NO GRANT followed by a little smack on the hand when he is getting into something he shouldn't which is pretty much all the time. When Grant is told "NO" he likes to talk back and yell back with a look of disgust of which I have to turn my head and laugh or smile so that he can't see me ( I can't help it). Here is some recent pics.

HOME FOR SALE

Well it's official...our home is for sale. WE DESPERATELY need a BIGGER home. I have stuffed about everything I can in our closets and well we just don't have any room anymore. We met with a realtor team today (they came to our home) and interviewed them and Brian and I both feel very comfortable we picked the right team to sell our home....(we went for the Bulldogs of realty). Of course when you go with the best .....you pay for the best....so their commission is a little higher then everyone else in our market but after incorporating that into our asking price and figuring our net on what we need out of home that would be a sufficient amount to lay down on our future home we feel we made the best choice. Today was EXHAUSTING though.....we had originallytried to sell the house on our own (that lasted for 2 weeks) and we got a nibble and felt like time is closing in on us on the whole "tax credit" that ends the end of November for those new first time buyers as our big window of opportunity. So we had to make the decision to sit and wait or go after those buyers through the internet and over 100 different websites that our team has access to and twilight showings that we just wouldn't have access to if we are trying to sell on our own. They suggested that we not change anything that we haven't already done to the house as they said "this house looks great the way it is....I wouldn't change anything". So our home will be listed on Monday through MLS.....so we'll see. I'm a little nervous as I am with any big move or change but I know this is what is best for the family.......

Another Meetup I joined.

Well I decided to join 2 meetups instead of just one. The one I joined for Moms starts tomorrow at Imagination Station which I am very excited about....now if Grant can just get rid of that cold. Grant has the "summer" cold that's been going around so he's been really snotty and sneezy. The second group I decided to join is called "It's a Girlfriend Thing" and they are meeting for coffee at Rembrandts this Saturday and it's basically for women looking to meet new people and make some friends (which is what I really really need....some good ole' fashion girltalk. I'll let you know how everything pans out but really looking forward to both!

Mom's Outing

Went to get my haircut on Saturday afternoon and colored and got into a conversation with my stylist about a website called meetup.com and basically you plug in your zip code and your interest and it gives you a bunch of local meet groups according to your search in your city. For example I searched moms group and it pulled up about 4 local groups here in Chattanooga that meet every week. These groups are a chance to meet other moms and give your kids a chance to play (kind of like a playdate but with some adult conversation thrown in!) So my first meet is this Wednesday at "Imagination Station" which is a giant playground for children in a really nice area...so we'll give it a try. I'll let you all know how it goes.

THE LITTLE EXECUTIVE

These were also cute that we decided not to get but got them on CD. All he needs is a phone up to his ear and a little assistant taking notes for the next business meeting! LOL

One Year Pictures

Here are some pics of Grant we got on CD that we didn't get copies of but thought they were too cute to not get on the CD.

HALF TIME DANCE ROUTINE

Rach's Half Time Dance Routine......Beyonce Remix...."If You Really Want It.....Then You Need to Put a Ring On It".

CHEER CHEER CHEER....BEAT THOSE HAWKS...AND WE DID!

Here is a couple of Rach's cheer/dance routines. (Notice the picking of the wedgie!....lol)

She's a great CHEERLEADER!!!!

Our First GAME!!!!!!

WE BEAT THE HAWKS!!!!!!

Well we won last night and Rachael cheered great. She did a good job (if she would just keep from picking her wedgie the entire time in between cheers it would be perfect!) I loaded her up on carbs/starch before the game (spaghetti) and afterwards we had brownies. Grant did pretty well during the game (a little fussy at times as it was hot at first when the sun was still out but then got much cooler as the night wore on).

Rachael's First Day as a "MIDDLESCHOOLER"

Well Rachael had a great day on her very first day of school as an official Middleschooler!
She has Cheer practice everyday this week until 5:30 (so it makes for a very long day at school-she is literally there from 7am until 5:30...that's life in the fast lane for ya!) She has been very excited to start school and I hope she keeps the motivation and momentum going. I managed to volunteer myself to find 200 cups that hopefully one of these fast food chains will give me as a donation for their very first game which is next Tuesday for the concession stand. So between here and there I have to put my saleman hat on and beg for cups!lol Grant is a maniac as this has not changed much since he has been walking. Oh yeah.....my husband got us tickets to go see Keith Urban in concert in Knoxville on August 28th for my birthday (it's what I had asked for....something he and I could both do together....so we'll be rocking out with Keith in a couple of weeks...and I can't wait!

Rachael's Birthday at Nana's and Papa's

Well we had a good weekend celebrating with family Rachaels's big 11th birthday! Rachael had asked her Nana to make a monkey cake for her birthday. We had fun visiting with Grandpa Mecomber and Joyce. Rachael received lots of money from cousins (wish I had that kind of money...lol) and stuff for her Nintendo DS.