Birthday Fun

Parkes' cousins Abby James and Draper turned 2 and 1 this week and celebrated at Build-a-Bear on Saturday. Parkes had a great time as he had never been before. Here he is with his Aunt Hayley. And here is Parkes and Draper. Cash came along for the fun, but didn't participate in the bear making. Instead he just enjoyed being held. Here he is smiling at his Grammy. Parkes favorite part was bathing his newly formed Koala. Here he is with his friend Gates. And finally after all the fun here Parkes is with his Koala that he named "Girl" which he told me was in honor of me since I'm a girl. After the party Brandon, Parkes and Cash dropped me off to meet the girls out celebrating Laura's birthday and since Laura asked if the picture would be blog worthy I had to include it for her on her birthday....Happy Birthday.

Here's some sweet pictures of Parkes and Cash hanging out together last night before bedtime. Parkes always wants Cash right next to him, and we have found that Cash really enjoys being on his stomach showing off how strong he is.

Baby Blessing and Doctor's Appts.

Well we have had a busy week so far here with our church's Baby Blessing for the 30 something baby's born this past year (Cash was the second youngest baby there). Parkes had the option to go up on stage with us when they announced Cash or sit with Mrs. Laura and he chose to sit...thank you Laura. Then everyone in the family has had a doctor's appt this week. I had my 6 week check-up from the c-section and all is good. Parkes had his 3 year check-up which he finally made it to the 50% on height, but he was also almost two months late for his check-up so he got a little extra growing time in there. And he is up to 35 lbs. Then Cash had his 6 week check-up and he is up to 11 lbs...yes that is right 11 lbs!!!!! Everything else looked good on him as well. And then Brandon had a appt. to try to get into a study for a diabetic pump so he'll have his insulin provided for 2 years and get on a pump as opposed to the shots he takes now, but as of now he is too healthy which is good, but free medicine for 2 years would be nice too so he'll try again in a couple of weeks. So it's been a good week since we all are very healthy.

Happy Valentine's Day

Hope y'all all had a great Valentine's Day!!! We had Parkes' party at school today and Cash and I went with him. And then we went to dinner as a family tonight to celebrate. Tomorrow night Brandon and I are going to celebrate with a kids free evening. Cash likes to look at his big brother in the rare time that he is actually awake. And as far as my free stuff shopping is going...I got my first thing of free formula earlier this week from CVS, and for the deal of the week I got 2 cans of Oust Surface and Air for a profit of a quarter after the sale price and the coupons I had and 2 bottles of Robitussium for a profit of $2 after the register rewards and coupons both deals at Walgreens.

Sorry No Pictures

Well I have not been very good about getting my camera out lately (Brandon does keep taking it with him to work so I do have a little bit of an excuse). Which for all those that have asked since I have not updated on Brandon's job...he is working for a construction company that specializes in remodels and is doing sales and estimating for them and loving it. He, also, is working with our friend Matt to start up a company that does smaller handyman jobs especially working with realtors to do the list of repairs before houses are sold. And finally he is working at the Y one early early morning a week for our insurance. So with all that and the schedule of a newborn we hadn't spent much time together these last 5 weeks until friday night when our wonderful neighbors watched the boys so we could go out to eat downtown. We then came home to a house full of guys playing cards since Joel was in town and we are actually one of the only houses not under construction right now that had space for them to play. Saturday Laura and Keri hosted a sip-n-see for me and Cash. It was so thoughtful of them and I did not do a good job getting pictures (Laura did take a few but I don't have my camera right now). Cash has been having pretty good nights now that I have given up the idea that he is overeating and given in to how much he would like to eat (Parkes ate like crazy and he is doing well so I guess that is just how our children are). Parkes still refuses to take naps and doesn't go to bed until at least 11 and it's about to exhaust me how much energy he has without sleep, and he has taken to some of the Jessica Seinfield recipes I've made to sneak veggies or fruits in him...it does still have to be only snack food so we've made lots of french toast and muffins. This week should be pretty quiet with the cold weather we'll be staying in as much as possible.

Yeah Eli!!!!!!!

We went out on a family outing over to the Essner's for Super Bowl festivities. And we were very very excited over the Giants win (I was excited to see an Ole Miss boy win the big game, however, I think Brandon was more excited to see the Patriots loss, Parkes was just excited to play with Jay, and Cash didn't really care what was going on as long as someone was holding him). Here's Brandon and Parkes' Eli action figure Santa brought him...Brandon held him for the last 2 mins of the game for luck. And here's the girls with Cash...I look a little tired as it was after the game and sleep is limited these days.

So much for free!!!

Well my sister went to a coupon cutting class a couple weeks ago and has been sharing all the knowledge she learned with me, and it is amazing what all you can get for free. I had no clue that Walgreens and CVS offered products each month that you get the total cost back. I always just thought of drug stores as higher prices on most grocery items and just ran in them when I didn't feel like dealing with a big grocery store which was rare anyway because we've got our neighborhood store down the street that Brandon loves to go to and knows the workers (big shocker I know). But anyway you can go to www.moneysavingmom.com and it outlines all the CVS deals right now, and when you go into Walgreens they have a Register Rewards booklet at the front where you can see the deals for the month. We just got 6 12 pk of pepsi products for $10 at CVS. And at Walgreens this month you can get razors, deodorant, lipstick and more for free after the rebate. I might be a little overly excited about these deals as it is what I'm using to keep me sane and use my brain while I try to cope with not leaving the house too much with 2 kids since it has been so cold and a little overwhelming to take them both out right now...the thought of shopping with both of them is a little scary right now as Parkes is having a few adjustment problems with not having my full attention all the time. We did make our first outing though to storytime at the library this week and it did go pretty well so hopefully it will continue to get easier and it will warm up soon.

The world through the eyes of Parkes

Parkes got his very own digital camera for Christmas from his Grammy and Grandad and has been very busy ever since taking pictures of everything (I just downloaded 402 pictures that he had taken since Christmas). So here are a couple of his shots to show you what he sees as picture worthy...the quality isn't the best because we have the camera on the lowest setting so he could take more pictures and it is a camera made to be sturdy for 3 year olds. Since I lasted wrote we have been busy getting back to life and trying to get Parkes back into his normal routine and adjust with having Cash along with us. Cash did get a cold thanks to his big brother but there is only so many times I can try to explain to Parkes why he can't touch Cash so it was bond to happen and we made it through with a few nights of no sleep, but we are back to doing much better for a 3 week old. Cash did have his 2 week check up and he is growing quickly just like his big brother did and is already up to 8 lbs 1 oz....yes I know crazy how quickly our boys seem to grow probably because they eat as if I'm never going to feed them again. And everything else looked great on him according to the doctor so that is always good.

Too Good to be True

Well Cash's first week of being a great sleeper came to a quick stop Friday night when he decided to begin to not only look just like his brother but act just as he did as a newborn and want to eat every hour on the hour. So after a very exhausting night for me and Brandon we decided instead of driving ourselves crazy we would start giving some him some formula at night which seemed to work pretty well last night. Cash also will sleep all day on his own in his crib during the day but of course when night time comes he refuses to sleep anywhere but laying on top of me or Brandon. Parkes spends his days now begging to feed Cash and hold Cash. We did go on a family outing yesterday to Chuck E. Cheese to let Parkes get some much need attention and he had a blast playing all the games. Then we head to Lowe's so Brandon could get some wood to start building his shed and carport out back...we will never be done with all the home renovations we have planned because they keep growing. But for anyone else doing some work or need some stuff from Lowe's the one on Nolensville Rd is moving to the old Wal-Mart building and they are not moving any of their inventory so it is right now 20% off, but should go even more. Stuff is going quick though and they even have their paint on sale.

Home for a Week

Well today Cash and I have been home for a week and so far so good (of course I still am on the drugs so it could be them talking). But so far Cash is sleeping for a few hours at a time on his own, and Parkes loves being a big brother but doesn't like to leave Cash alone ever even to go to school. Last night wasn't great, but compared to Parkes coming home from the hospital and mine and Brandon's illusion of thinking how great our child was in the hospital it still doesn't seem that bad this time around (I think I had myself so scared about the first week home with two kids). And the night before last Cash sleep the whole night going to bed at 9:30 to only wake up at 1:30 to eat and then not again until 6 in the morning....it was so wonderful.

A Few more Pictures

Thought I would add a few more pictures for y'all to enjoy. This is my first night at the hospital alone as Brandon's Dad and Grandma had to head home so he is home with Parkes tonight, and I just put Cash in the nursery to get some rest before they bring him in at some point to feed (however here I am on the computer instead, but it's nice to have some just me time before I fall asleep so I do plan to look at a mindless magazine as well before I go to bed). But here is Parkes first attempt at holding Cash...it took him a little while to feel comfortable, but now he is all about holding his "baby brother." In fact Brandon said when they went down to get food that he told everyone in line that he was a big brother and had a new baby brother. Then here's Cash and his massive paci. I did not want Parkes to have a paci at all, but he still ended up with one so this time around I just gave in earlier and it looks so funny in his mouth. He's also scratched up his face some so those are the red marks you see. Then here's me and my boys (not a good pic of me, but thought I would still through it in) So we will be headed home tomorrow or the next day (my doctor comes tomorrow so I will find out then when Cash and I will go home).

It's A Boy!!!!!!!

Cash Edwards Waymire 7 lbs 5.6 oz 19 inches 12:15 PM

Well for everyone, but Parkes who was the only person who thought this baby was a boy we were all surprised when Cash came out. He's very healthy, and we are all doing great. More pictures will come later, but wanted to let those who hadn't heard yet know.

Ready or Not....

The baby will be here Monday at noon. We actually just got the crib up this past weekend and got the car seat out of the attic so I guess we are as ready as we ever will be (although I have moments of thinking am I ready for 2 kids). This one won't have quite the welcoming to the world Parkes had with him coming while everyone was off work or home for Christmas he had over 20 people waiting to meet him when he came down to the nursery with Brandon, but it is nice that it is planned and we can prepare for it. So we will post a picture as soon as we can to let those that aren't here know whether we have a little Sage or Cash (yes we changed the boy name once again, but this time we are sticking with it). Below is a picture of the nursery and of the baby's first outfit thanks to Keri and Matt.

Happy New Years!!

Well looks like the baby is going to wait until the New Year to get here so we went ahead and made New Year's plans. Hope everyone has a great and safe new year celebration.

Parkes turns 3

Yesterday was Parkes' birthday. It is so hard to believe that he is already 3 years old. We did a "small" family birthday party for him this year....he wanted one with all his friends but with having the baby soon and his birthday when most people are out of town we decided this would be the best this year (he'll have a big birthday next year for all his friends to come to). He might go through withdrawal today from not having people bringing him presents all the time and not having so much activities going on. We did go to the doctor yesterday as well and found out I am almost halfway dilated which was quite a jump from the week before so I was informed to take it easy and gain weight this week, but if the baby wants to come on before the end of the year I won't complain.

Santa Came!!!!

Parkes was a little in shock and overwhelmed this year with all the festivities that happen. We started out Christmas Eve doing Christmas with Brandon's parents in Lexington who came up for the day and then all headed out to my parents for dinner that night. Then we came home to find Santa's elf had left Parkes some Pj's and got him to bed. Brandon was more excited then Parkes to wake up the next day and woke up about every hour throughout the night and finally asked if he could go wake Parkes up about 7:15, and even though I said it would be best to let him sleep until he was ready to wake up I told Brandon he could.... So this is what Parkes looked like when he came out to see what Santa had brought him. And it took him a long time to actually register what was going on which Brandon was hoping for him to come running out yelling about his Yellow Hummer. He finally started to warm up to the idea that Santa had actually brought him his Yellow Hummer that he had talked about for so long. Then after having Christmas at home we headed over to my parents to have lunch and Christmas over there which is not small in my family as I come from a family of 5 kids (3 of us which got married within a year of each other, and then we've added a baby every year since Parkes was born) Parkes was completely warmed up to his Hummer and gave the dogs rides around the yard. And then my sister, Hayley, got a ride too. When we finally got back home we expected Parkes to crash, but he was still too excited and Brandon and I finally went to bed around 11 with Parkes still awake in his room watching a movie and playing with cars. A little side note that made Brandon and I laugh the other night...We had put Parkes to bed which we have always been able to put him to bed awake and he plays for about an hour and then falls asleep on his own (except right after we moved our room upstairs and we had about a 3 week adjustment phase) so we had put him to bed and Brandon and I were watching TV and all of a sudden we here little footsteps running down the hall. Parkes runs right past us into the kitchen informing us, "don't worry just getting a night night snack." Then he opened the cabinet got a couple of crackers and ran back to bed.

Gingerbread House

Well I had high hopes for making our gingerbread house. I saw in the Rachael Ray magazine were they made one out rice krispie treats and thought well I could do that. I've never been really talented in regular gingerbread houses but how hard could it be out of rice krispie treats (and of course the picture in the magazine was so cute). So we made the treats and let them cool in the fridge to harden up before I pulled them out to start assembling....after about three attempts I finally got it to stay like this (Brandon got a good laugh at my many attempts, but he wouldn't take a try at it). So then Parkes decorated it with his M&M's which I think he definitely ate more then what made it on the house, and then shortly after this picture was taken the walls started to all fall down, but at least we have a picture of my attempt and Parkes had a good time. Then Parkes had his school Christmas party yesterday which I heard he had a great time (my doctor's appt got moved up so I missed it, but I have pictures coming). And he sat in Mrs. Claus' lap, but still wants nothing to do with Santa. As far as the baby goes, everything is still looking good, but I have been uped to Ensure once a day (it is really nasty especially since I don't like sweet things) and am showing signs of labor which I showed the whole last month with Parkes and he only came 3 days early so I'm not really expecting anything to happen. Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!!!!!

Christmas Outing to Opryland

Last night we decided to make an impromptu trip to Opryland Hotel so Parkes could see the decorations as we are running out of time before Christmas is here. Parkes had a great time looking at all the lights and the elves hiding in the trees. Today we are making a gingerbread house because Parkes has been talking about wanting to make one for over a month now and tomorrow he has his school Christmas party so I'll post some of those pictures sometime soon. I, also, have a doctor's appt tomorrow so we are getting close just over two weeks left before we are a family of four!!!!

Santa is Coming to Town...

I will get some pictures up sometime soon...I have been really bad about taking pictures lately so I really don't have any and Parkes was away all weekend with his grandparents which I should of gotten some pictures of me and Brandon at some of the Christmas parties but I didn't, so I promise I'll get some up soon. Just thought I would share how obsessed Parkes is with getting a "yellow Hummer with a radio"....when he hears the song Santa Claus is coming to town he starts singing really loudly "Santa Claus is coming to my house to bring me my yellow Hummer."

Well Parkes has decided very adamantly that this baby is a boy. He won't even think that there is a possibility it could be a girl. He got so mad at me yesterday when we went out to look for a gift for his friend's Emery's new baby sister because he thought I was buying it for "his baby" and I was buying "girl toys" and not "boy toys". He, also, got to feel a nice strong kick from his baby sister or brother the other day. Parkes has gotten were he likes to listen to and hug and kiss the baby all the time. So he was listening and all of a sudden the baby had a big kick right at his face which Parkes thought was so funny. He is getting really excited and likes to point out the baby's "that just came out" as he calls newborns when we go out. And then informs whoever will listen to him in the store that "his baby has not come out yet". He has become quite the social butterfly in stores talking to every person that will listen to him which he gets from his daddy as we can't go anywhere without Brandon making new friends too. I have had several people tell me where all they seen us and what Parkes was talking about. So that is what Parkes has been up to lately as we enjoy the last month before the baby gets here. Parkes has gone to his grandparents for the weekend while Brandon and I enjoy a weekend of Christmas parties with friends.

Breakfast with Santa

Parkes had Breakfast with Santa this morning. He actually had the one from his school and the one from our church both this morning so we asked him which one he wanted to go to and he picked his school one since his friend Holden was going to be there...he and Holden have become good friends. So we woke up this morning and I got him dressed in a cute plaid button up shirt with his jeans all tucked in with his belt, but he was not happy with the outfit I had picked out so he wanted to add his Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer shirt on top of it (I had hopes of taking it off before the Santa picture, but that was not happening). Parkes was very friendly and liked to talk to Mrs. Claus, but Santa was different story. As you can tell in the first picture, Parkes clinged to Brandon and would not allow him to let him on Santa's lap. So we took the picture with Brandon and Parkes kneeling next to Santa. After Playing around with his friends for a little while he decided he might want to give Santa another shot and went back up. He sat on his lap this time, but would not put his hands down from crying. Finally when Holden joined him on Santa's lap we got to see his face. Of course when we got home Parkes wanted to go back because he forgot to tell Santa that he wanted a yellow Hummer for Christmas.

New Bed

Parkes finally got his new big boy bunkbed the other day thanks to my grandparents for giving it to us and my parents for picking it up on the way home from my little sister's cheerleading competition in Sevierville (where both her squads won). He was a little worried about giving up his toddler bed as Parkes does not like change at all, but when it got all put together he decided he did like it. We will still have to go pick out a football quilt to go on it to match all the Alabama football pictures he has up in his room (Brandon has way too many to fit in the upstairs game room that they needed to go somewhere). As far as our job/insurance situation, Brandon is starting a remodeling sales job on Monday that he is excited about the job, but there is no insurance with it so if you or anyone you know is looking to remodel your home give him a call and he can quote it for you. So Brandon is also looking into some part-time jobs that offer benefits. He has been offered one at Ross as a door agent aka rent-a-cop or another one at the Y in customer service aka door greeter so we will have to see what one works for us (i like the one at ross because i would get a discount and on things at ross that would make their clothes almost free, but he is leaning towards the y because the hours are in the early morning and he would get to be home in the evenings and weekends with the family which makes me love him even more that he is a father and husband who will do what it takes to be home and wants to be home). So that is where we are...thanks to everyone that cares to ask and check in on us.

I really don't have any pics to post this week except this one of Parkes where he was wearing my Uggs around the house yesterday calling them his work boots playing with his tools. Parkes also found a new friend this weekend in our friend Frank who Friday night at dinner entertained Parkes and Jay with sorting sugar packets, and Parkes hasn't stopped asking when he's coming over since then. I, also, need to tell our mystery person or people who are paying for Parkes' school thank you once again. I really wish I knew who you were so I could tell you in person just how much it means to us.