First day...

Jackson's first day went pretty much how I thought it would.  :)  Eliza and I dropped him off and literally ran out of the room.  We hung out in Riverton while he was in class because I was expecting a call any minute telling me to come rescue the teachers from him.  So while we waited we had a good time shopping and worrying.  We got back to his school with about 10 minutes to kill which we spent hiding from the classroom door so he wouldn't see us.  But let me tell you, we HEARD him.  The poor kid was crying his eyes out, and from the sounds of it, he had been doing it for a long time.

When I talked to the teacher she said he didn't cry the "whole" time.  Yeah, that probably means when he had food in his mouth he didn't cry.  When I came into the room to get him he was on one of the teachers laps crying in between bites of cinnamon toast.  Big old tears and the kind of crying where they sort of inhale sharply every couple of seconds.  They told me not to worry...he was very typical for a first day.  I really hope he can adjust and know that I'm not abandoning him.  He needs to just enjoy it!!  It's so cute and the teachers are great!  We'll get there...

Thanks to everyone for the encouragement and advice!

Maybe I should send him with a package of bologna next time?  That seems to help...

Speech update

Jackson has been in speech therapy for 6 months.  He has done awesome!  When we started, one of the goals I set for him was for him to be able to say or sign at least 5 words.  Right now, he is saying at least 40 words.  He is not putting two words together yet but I can't believe how far he's come.  He is learning his colors also.  His speech therapist has helped him (and me) so much.  Since he is 2 1/2 now he can go to a toddler class at the child development center.  It's like a pre pre-school.  His first day is TOMORROW.  I am so nervous.  I know he's going to scream and cry the ENTIRE time.  I just know it.  He has major separation anxiety.  He'll probably like his class for about two seconds until he realizes I'm not there.  I already warned his teacher.  She said it's fine - lots of kids cry but eventually they get used to it.  Um, we'll see...  I KNOW this will be good for him if he can just get over his issues with being without mom or dad.  Who knows how long that will take but I'm sure the teacher is going to deserve a HUGE raise by the time that day comes.  Oh my word...she has no idea what she's in for.

Fishing

Who knew there was a fishing pond like 10 minutes away??  It was perfect weather and the kids had a blast.  Too bad we're not as good at catching fish as seaweed and sticks.  Maybe next time!

Roxie!

We were lucky enough to adopt this sweetheart from the Humane Society today!  She is a 6 year old German Shepherd mix.  And she fits right in!  We are still settling into our routine and I'm trying really hard to not have anxiety over every little thing.  I first looked at Roxie a few weeks ago on their website.  We met her on Saturday at Petsmart during their adoption day.  We didn't want to make a huge decision like that right away so we thought about it over night.  She had been at the shelter for a month.  No one adopted her all day Saturday or Sunday.  We decided if she was still available on Monday it was meant to be.

We brought her home today and she has been great.  Sweet and patient with the kids and follows me around like a little puppy dog.  Or a big puppy dog.

The people who overlooked her because she is an older dog really missed out.  She is housebroken, knows her basic commands and doesn't require running a marathon every day to get her energy out.  She's a sweetheart!

Daddy Daughter

The night before Valentine's day Matt took Eliza to a daddy daughter dance at the high school.  She was so excited to go on a double date with her friend Hailee and her dad.  The whole week before, she could not stop talking about it!  Thanks to her cute friend, Brayden, she could pick out the perfect dress to wear.  Eliza loves spending one on one time with her dad.  And thanks to the dance, we now have "Barbie Girl" on our iPods.  Yay...  

Let's see...

I haven't updated forever!  Nothing big to report.  We're still here keeping busy.

A few weeks ago Jackson BIT Eliza on the arm.  Full on bite.  For no reason.  What the heck?  This kid is going to be trouble.  He already is...I'm scared of what's to come.

Speaking of Jackson, we spent New Year's at my brother's house.  These pictures do not do Jackson's love for the dog justice.  I have never, ever seen a child act the way Jackson does around animals, especially dogs.  His entire face lights up and he is in heaven.  He would not leave Sage alone the entire time we were at my brother's house.  This is what he did the whole time we were there.  Eliza wasn't much different.  She LOVES dogs.

So...we are thinking about adding a new member to the family.  A fur child.  We have been looking at shelters around the valley looking for Jackson and Eliza's new sibling.  I had a dog growing up and loved it.  I think a dog would be great for him.  It would keep him busy, help him talk more, and have a friend to goof around with.  We're trying to get our fence finished and then we'll start looking more seriously.  We're looking for a medium sized dog.  We can't have too big of one because our yard isn't huge and we don't want to feel like we're living with a horse.  But we can't have a small one...the dog needs to be sturdy enough to handle Jackson.  

Wish us luck!

Stitches - take 2

At least it wasn't Jackson again!  The Wednesday before Christmas, I was in the kitchen making dinner when I heard a crash followed by a scream come from the living room.  Being the great mom I am, I shouted towards the living to stop jumping off things and calm down.  A minute later I turned around to see Eliza walking in the kitchen, screaming,  leaning forward with blood POURING from her forehead.  Seriously, dripping puddles on the floor.  I rushed her to the bathroom to clean it up and see how bad it was.  Thankfully it looked much worse than it really was but no question she needed stitches.  I told her we needed to go to the doctor and she started crying, "No!  I don't want stitches!!"  I guess she still remembers the trauma of holding Jackson down for 30 minutes while they stitched him up in the summer.  I got the kids in the car and took off for Instacare while trying to call Matt.  Of course that's the day his phone dies.  Ugh.  I think I called probably 40 times.  I don't know what he thought when he got home and saw dinner on the stove, blood trailing from the living room to the kitchen and us missing.  I FINALLY reached him and he met us there. Eliza was scared of what was going to happen but when it came down to doing the actual stitches, she was very brave.  She didn't cry at all.  She got two stitches in almost the same spot where Jackson got his 8 a few months ago.

So what happened was she was in the living room trying to feel what was in her stocking.  She must have tugged on it too hard because the heavy stocking holder came crashing down as she looked up.  OUCH.  We're going to forgo those next Christmas because I can already see Jackson doing it next year when he's taller.

I took her back the day after Christmas to get the stitches out.  It looks a lot better.  Hopefully it doesn't scar too much.  I've accepted the fact that Jackson will have a few scars by the time he's her age but I don't want her to have a bad one.

Santa may have gotten her an extra present for being so brave!