baby steps

I'm big on celebrating small feats. And this news certainly warrants a "Woo-Hoo." Knock on wood, my friends, Reese has not cried in two mornings.

Maybe we've turned a corner, maybe not. Whatever the case, with two days of tear free mornings under my belt I feel like a new woman. I know "tear free" days are possible.

And a funny school story for you::

I have a little boy in my class who has quite the boisterous personally. He also has some serious gastro-intestinal issues, as in, he "toots" all the time. We have had extensive conversations about how releasing gas in the classroom is not appropriate. For obvious reasons, others find it disturbing.

Yesterday he raised his hand and asked if he could go into the hall. I was a little perplexed. What kid asks to be sent into the hallway? When I posed this question to him he said, in a meek little voice, "I really need to poot." Then by all means baby doll-- get out in the hall. Quickly!

mini me

I adore marshmallows. I sort them out of lucky charms, devour peeps at Easter time, and dig them out of rocky road ice cream. They are one of my happy foods. You know the foods you eat when you are bummed out and need to feel better?

I vividly remember being a little girl and packing to go to my grandmother’s with my mom. She put everything in the car but forgot my marshmallow snack on the hood. By the time she remembered, my cup full of goodness was long gone. Clearly I’ve been scarred for life.

A few weeks ago my mom suggested I pick up some marshmallows to try as a snack for Reese. I was desperate for him to eat something other than goldfish {guh-fee, as he calls them}. Not that there is anything wrong with goldfish, but he has enough problems going to the bathroom. I thought the cheese might be compounding the situation further.

Enter:: Puffy clouds of heavenly scrumptiousness.

He loves them. Can’t get enough! Sunday he actually shunned goldfish in favor of mini marshmallows. Then yesterday when we got home from school he walked to the cabinets where I keep them, looked up, and bumped those chubby fists together. He even smiled and said “peas.”

How could I resist a child with such impeccable manners?

it's a beautiful day in the neighborhood

Hope you are enjoying the sunshine! We certainly are. Lofton stayed home today to play with Reese and I. Someone was in dire need of some daddy time.

This afternoon we ran some errands and then loaded up for a trip to the park. This was the first trip where Reese could actually play on stuff. And play he did-- through the tunnels, in the dirt, and on the swings. Lofton followed him to ensure he stayed safe.

He super loved the slides. I know what he'll be getting for birthday number two! We went down them many, many times.

Reese screamed when we left, but Lofton promised we'd go back soon. We are ready for him to be done with extra work so we can hold him to that promise!

keeping it honest

I try to keep things transparent around here, so in the interest of remaining honest, here’s a truthful account of our week thus far:

Lofton is settling into work just fine. Although he had some initial hesitation and apprehension over becoming a salesman, things are going very well for him. This is certainly an adjustment, salesmen don’t have the same authority managers do, but we still firmly believe we have made the right decision.

I am also settling into my routine. My mornings start a little earlier and my drive to work actually allows my car time to warm up. It’s really not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. If I leave the house at 6:20 I can be to the school by 6:50. Not bad--- I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get here until after seven, but so far things are working in my favor.

Not settling into a new routine so well would be my little man. To say he hates me dropping him off is an understatement. This morning he started screaming as soon as we turned into the parking lot. The screaming was accompanied by furious head shaking and lots of pitiful “Mamas.” He plastered his body to mine and then had to be peeled off of me by Lee {the director} and Tracy {his old teacher}.

It breaks my heart into a million pieces.

Clearly he is traumatized. At home this week he has been my constant shadow. He doesn’t want Lofton to touch him, hold him, bathe him, or put him to bed. If I walk out of the room he becomes hysterical. Developmentally he is at that “clingy” stage so this new transition could not have come at a worse time.

Every night I pray the next morning is better, and I know one day it will be, but for now this just stinks.

Two things that will make you laugh and a picture to make you smile::

#1. I got a gift. Did you doubt my ability to guilt Lofton into letting me get a present? Surely not. What did I get? A My Touch from T-Mobile. With internet access! Praise the Lord, I know material things should not make me this happy, but I do love a new phone.

#2. Jake has morphed into a nocturnal camel. Literally, he drinks water ALL night long. I’m not sure what the deal is, but Lofton and I are quickly getting annoyed {and sleepy}. Raleigh is almost as bad. Sunday night she tricked Lofton into getting up—he thought she had to go potty. Nope, princess just wanted water from the other toilet.

{side note: If you think it’s gross that we let our dogs drink out of the toilet, too bad. Jake drank out of the toilet long before I came into Lofton’s life. He will not drink from a bowl unless he is on the verge of dehydration. Raleigh took her cues from big brother. So there.}

Climbing under things is our new favorite activity. This picture is an old one, taken pre-tubes when we caved and let him have his paci out of bed. I think it was a self-preservation kind of night.

adjusting to a new morning routine

Settling into a new schedule is sure to take a few days at the Beasley house.
Here is a glimpse into our first go at it---

As we prepared for bed last night, I reminded Lofton to iron his clothes before he got in bed so that he A) wouldn’t have to do it in the AM and B) I could make sure they matched. He complained about ironing and asked if we could have Aunt Linda come back soon.

Sweet husband reminded me to set my alarm so I could “sleep in until 5:45.” I laughed. Long ago I realized Lofton sounds like an elephant trying to perform ballet in the mornings. No matter how hard he tries, he cannot be quiet. Not even a little bit. My mornings from here on out will begin earlier.

After he left the bedroom {it took him a few tries to get out the door} I drug myself to the shower and began the process of getting ready. I listened to the news by myself, ironed my own pants, and then had no one to tell me if I looked “cute.” It was a little sad.

I got Reese up a few minutes earlier than usual and in a ridiculously chipper voice talked about how great it was going to be to go to school with Mama. I sang all the way to daycare about how fun it was going to be to play with friends and eat snacks. Reese helped me hang up his bag like a big boy and then I dropped him off with Ms. Tracy in his old room.

Everything went fabulously until he realized I was leaving him. Our fun morning screeched to an abrupt halt, the angels quit singing, and all hell crashed down around us. It wasn’t pretty, but I put on my big girl panties, dried my own tears, and left him wailing with a cookie. Yes that’s right. I took cookies for him just in case.

When I got to work I sent Lofton the following email::

Dear Hubs,

I hope you sell lots of lumber stuff at your new job cause taking little man to school is a not so fabulous way to start my day. I’m probably going to need a gift to make it better.

Love,

E

I’m 100% serious about that gift thing.

And I’m hoping tomorrow this gets better.

the great escape and v-day 2010

The Beasley family drove south Thursday night, frantically trying to outrun the winter weather. We’d had a couple’s weekend at the beach planned for many, many months and we were determined not to get stuck in Opelika.

Our original plan called for us to drive to Pensacola Friday morning, but we quickly revised that on Thursday afternoon and instead headed home Thursday night. It actually worked out quite well—little man slept the whole ride home. We hung out with Buck and Uncle J Friday morning, they also had snow days, and then we ate a quick lunch with Nonna.

Reese didn’t even blink an eye when we handed him off to Buck and Nonna. I, on the other hand, wept like I was going off to war. I’m slightly dramatic like that.

Lofton and I enjoyed lots of friend time with his high school buddies and their wives. We stayed out way too late Friday night and then the boys surprised us with a Valentine’s trip to the spa on Saturday. We were treated to facials and massages while the guys played putt-putt golf. Last night we wrapped up our trip with a yummy dinner and a rousing game of “Things.”

I woke up at the crack of dawn itching to get back to my little man. Lofton was dead to the world when I started sighing loudly and kicking my feet to “gently” wake him up this morning. As soon as his eyes cracked, I sprung out of bed and got us packed in record time.

Clearly my parents wore Reese out. He slept for two hours in the car and then napped again when we got home. We’ve had lots of cuddles and kisses this afternoon to make up for our time apart. Oh how I love my little cupid!

dinner theater

I present to you,

Reese-- Unplugged::

Reese, pondering the meaning of life.

Crazy excited for his green beans.

Fish face.

Pouty pants.

Sugary sweet.

changes

Sweet husband came home with some BIG news on Friday. He is transferring to the Columbus, Georgia, Builder’s First Source—effective next Monday.

We have prayed and prayed about what direction his career should move. Asking God for help never provides a quick or easy solution, and we have hit many a speed bump on what we thought was the “right” plan.

Little did we know what was in store for us! This job materialized late last week and Lofton turned in his notice this morning.

We leave the Auburn store with mixed emotions. Eight years is a long time to invest in one place--- Lofton has invested many hours into making the store successful and into riding out this downturn in the building industry. Unfortunately, our future at this location just didn’t seem as promising as we would have liked.

New opportunities await him in Columbus. He will be in a sales position, not a management position, but he is excited to learn about a new aspect of the company. Personally, I’m excited about the raise and the company truck! Columbus is only thirty minutes away so we won’t have to move and Lofton will even be home in the afternoons.

I’m not so excited about having to take Reese to school everyday, but I’m a big girl with big girl britches. At least that’s what Lofton tells me.

Can I tell you how proud I am of his husband of mine? So proud. Heart-bursting, eyes watering, dance around like a wild woman proud. He deserves this--- 100%.

mullet monday

We said a sad goodbye to Reese's mullet last week. It was hard, but it was time to let go. When wet, his little mullet would trail down his back like a tail. Gross.

I miss the curls but his little boy haircut is absolutely adorable.

What a stud muffin.

mended

Can I tell you what a relief it was to wake up this morning and start a new week? Last week was one for the record books. I am oh so glad it is over.

Reese is doing fantabulous. I am amazed at the amount of noise coming from his little mouth. His communication has increased dramatically since Thursday. In fact, on Friday my mom noticed that when a train rumbled by {yes, we live near the tracks} he actually stopped mid-play and looked around. Can you believe he had never heard the train before?

We have even started saying some words other than "Mama"--- Nonna {nuh-nuh}, please {pees}, and juice {juh}. I refuse to believe it is a coincidence that he started talking the day after having tubes.

Now that he is feeling spiffy, we are back to battling his strong will. This morning we were enjoying snuggling on the couch when he decided to pull my hair. When I let him know that hair pulling is not appropriate behavior, he spit in my face. Let's just say he probably won't be doing that again. I made it very clear that sweet boys do not spit in people's faces. Ever.

Sassy pants will return to school tomorrow for the first time in a week. I pray for his teachers. After an entire week of undivided grandparent/aunt/great grandparent attention, this little squirt has been loved rotten.

model patient

We are home.

Surgery was quick and relatively painless. We shed a few tears--- me most of all. But overall, the surgery was as simple as everyone promised it would be.

Reese has just woken up from a very long nap and is his usually bouncy-self. He was quite angry when he woke up from sedation. In fact, he was pummeling the nurse when we walked into the recovery room. Once we got home, he ate a little breakfast but just couldn't seem to understand what was making him feel so yucky.

The nap has cured him. I can hear him squealing with his Nonna as I type.

The plan is to finish up our antibiotics, use ear drops for the next week, and hopefully move on from all this ear drama. I am oh so thankful this long ordeal appears to be over.

well piss

Sorry. That is not a very blog appropriate… mother of a baby… third grade teacher… classy lady statement… BUT that is the nicest way to sum up my feelings right now.

Sucky. That is how I feel. And really, really, really - - - you get it.

Reese has an ear infection.

Lofton took him to the doctor this morning. I am truly amazed at how quickly these little devils pop up. No infection Thursday afternoon, severe infection Monday.

He woke up this morning blazing with fever {very unlike him—even with an ear infection}. We took his temperature the best we could, medical instruments are not his friends these days. Do you blame him? It registered a steamy 101.7 degrees.

Fabulous.

Here is the problem. We can have surgery with an ear infection, but we cannot have surgery with a fever. Fever can equal complications.

Well, piss. Every inch of my being is praying this fever goes away before Thursday.

We must have tubes. We must have tubes. We must have tubes.

I cannot take this agony anymore. Actually, I can take the agony; I just can’t watch my baby in agony anymore.

We have a call into the ENT to check the fever policy. And to beg and to plead and to offer Lofton’s kidney if they'll still do surgery. Whatever it takes. WHATEVER.IT.TAKES. Cause I've hit the wall with this, yall. Hit the wall.