Taste of Summer

I cannot believe this is the LAST week of school! I literally blinked and the year was over. I am so looking forward to all the extra time with Tuttle and Maggie that I get during the summer months, and we started with some fun outdoor fun this past week.

The Brookhaven Food Trucks started back up Wednesday. I have gotten smarter over the past few food truck seasons, and now I pack a dinner for the kids and treat them to King of Pops at the park. They are so excited to run around with their friends that they do not eat a normal dinner, and it got expensive to throw away food from the food trucks. :) I tried a new truck this year that served flatbread pizzas. I devoured my favorite- Hawaiian! I grabbed Jay some yummy tacos for him to eat once he got home from work.

We were invited over to our sweet friends' house for a cookout Friday evening. I absolutely love Alyssa. We are different in almost every way, but we mesh so well. Tuttle had a blast dressing up in various superhero costumes and battling in the backyard while Maggie discovered a flower girl princess costume. She was so enchanted with her outfit that Alyssa let Maggie borrow it. Maggie's face was priceless when we told her that she could take it home. She even slept in it!

I have been working for months on the preschool spring fundraiser. I coordinated class baskets for a silent auction, and it finally all came together this weekend. I am very happy to have all the basket items out of my living room and dining room! Although I was stressed out at multiple times during the planning, the event was a HUGE success. I am waiting on the final count of the money we raised, but I know we surpassed our goal.

Stacey and I displayed the baskets Thursday and Friday at the school, and we moved them to the event space on Saturday. I dropped off the final baskets to the winners today! Yeah!!

Tuttle was able to bring home the class stuffed pet for one last visit this weekend. Puff traveled with us to organize auction baskets, cheered for Tuttle at his soccer game, and played with Tuttle and Maggie while I cleaned on Sunday. He also took a much needed bath in the washing machine!

We cannot wait for lazy summer mornings, pool time, and beach trips! Bring on summer vacation!

Back to Life

I unfortunately came down with strep throat the night that Tuttle came home from the hospital from his surgery. It was awful. I kept a steady high temperature for three days until I finally went to Minute Clinic for an antibiotic. I hated that I was not able to comfort Tuttle. Jay was such a HUGH HELP. He took care of Tuttle and me, kept Maggie entertained, and managed to work from home, as well. 

Tuttle's recovery was a little longer than we had anticipated. The doctor had told us that he would feel back to normal the next day, but it took about two full days until he was not sore anymore. I felt so bad that he was uncomfortable. 

Luckily Maggie had the chance to spend the night with Gram on Friday. She had been the sweetest girl during the sickness and recovery days. She played independently for hours on end. When Gram called to see how she could help, I immediately suggested that she spend some time with Maggie. Maggie could not get out the door fast enough. I was ready to see Moo when she returned.

I decided that we had to return to the land of the living on Saturday, so we ventured to Tate's birthday party at Little Chef's Academy. Tuttle was able to learn how to make a pizza from scratch, including decorating it with toppings. He was the only child at the party to pick black olives for his pizza. :)

I let Jay off the hook for Mother's Day. He had been the best Daddy for three days taking care of the family, so he needed some time alone to recover himself. :) I took the kids to Toys-R-Us, so Tuttle could spend his birthday gift card from Larry and Beth. It should come as no surprise that he chose Legos. Maggie found a little kit to take home, too.

I am so lucky to be Tuttle and Maggie's mommy. I tried to soak up every moment of a normal Sunday with my babies this year. 

We have hit the ground running this week with preparing for the preschool silent auction on Saturday, attending soccer practice/gymnastics/swim lessons, and trying to get the house back in order after being dead for four days.

Tuttle's Surgery

Tuttle had his five year check up on Monday. It was a pretty basic visit, and much to Tuttle's delight, there were no shots. We did have to deal with a finger prick that may scar him for a few years. I was not a fan as a child, so I understand his reaction. Dr. Loventhal was pleased with Tuttle's growth and development. 

Tuttle is 44 inches tall (71%) and weighs 41 pounds, 6 ounces (54%). 

Today we scheduled Tuttle's umbilical hernia repair. He was not allowed to eat after midnight yesterday and could not drink liquids after 10am today. Since his surgery was not scheduled until 2:15pm today, I was nervous that he would be starving, but in typical Tuttle fashion, he was in good spirits all day.

The doctors and nurses at the surgery center were all very nice, and the facilities had toys and children's shows on in all the waiting areas. Tuttle and Maggie were even able to pick out a toy from the treasure closet!

I went back with Tuttle until the anesthesia put him to sleep. It was extremely hard to watch Tuttle struggle with the anesthesia mask, but it quickly did its magic, and he was out. I know he does not remember the panic right before the surgery, but it hurt my momma heart to watch him cry. :(

Jay, Maggie, and I waited in the recovery room for a little over an hour before he was brought to us. He was a little groggy and wanted to continue to rest, but he was ready to go home after about thirty minutes. Jay drove him to the house while Maggie and I picked up Tuttle's dinner request: tacos!

Any pain should subside by tomorrow. The stitches will dissolve on their own, and the bandage will fall off in about a week. The recovery should be fairly mild. 

Luckily Daddy could take tomorrow off to help Tuttle recover. I know a movie marathon is in their future. We are so relieved to have such a healthy boy. 

End of Year Pre-K Picnic

Friday the Pre-K classes went on a field trip to Keswick Park for an end-of-year picnic. The students made their own sandwiches in the classroom before meeting the parents to carpool to the playground. Of course, Tuttle chose to make a peanut butter and honey sandwich. He would eat that for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if I would let him!

It was the perfect day to play outside with all of Tuttle's sweet preschool friends.

After the sack lunches the kids were treated to ice cream. I might have grabbed an extra cup for myself, too. :)

I cannot believe we are three weeks away from summer vacation. Tuttle has loved every minute of being a Dragon at OPP! (The photo below features all three Pre-K classes.)

We are continuing to enjoy beautiful weather this weekend. I put together meatball subs for dinner last night,and we enjoyed them in the front yard until the sun set.

We started today off very early with an 8:30am soccer game. Since Tuttle and Maggie typically sleep until 9am on the weekends, it was a struggle to get out of bed! There has been so much rain that this was only the third game that Team Italy has played. It was by far Tuttle's best game of the season. He was involved in the action the entire time. I am optimistic that he is well on his way to scoring a goal this season!

I even caught a rare snuggling moment between Tuttle and Maggie. They are usually wrestling if they are touching at all. :)

I fixed a quick breakfast of cinnamon rolls, sausage, and eggs when we got home, and then sneaked off to visit Holland in the NICU. She is seriously the sweetest little bit ever. How fantastic does my sister-in-law look a week after her emergency c-section?

We are counting down the days until Holland can come home. She is well on her way.

iPhone Photo Dump

Tuttle's 5th Birthday Party

We celebrated Tuttle's 5th birthday on Saturday at The Gym at Peachtree Presbyterian Church. 

We attended a party there last year, and it was so much fun! Tuttle's party was a "Fun and Games" theme, and the coaches did an excellent job keeping about 15 preschoolers very entertained and busy.

The party started on one side of the gym with Red Light, Green Light, a hula hoop chase, and a parachute shake with balls. The games continued with a team challenge to pick up all the balls tossed from the parachute and put them individually into buckets. I have never seen those kids runs so fast!

The coaches ended the entertainment with an obstacle course set up on the other side of the gym. Maggie joined in at that point, so she could show off her gymnastics tricks. :)

Tuttle's friends were a combination of school friends, neighborhood buddies, and our friend's kids. It was a great group!

We wrapped up the party with cake and ice cream in the party room. It was Star Wars themed, of course. 

Jay and I made light sabers out of pool noodles and duct tape for Tuttle's party favor. I think they were a hit from babies to adults!

I know Tuttle had a blast with all his friends and family. He is one blessed little boy, and we are so lucky to be able to see him grow up.

Happy 5th Birthday, Tuttle! We love you so very much!!

Welcome Baby Holland!

We just wrapped up a VERY EXCITING weekend! We celebrated Tuttle's 5th birthday with our friends and family, but the biggest event of the weekend was the surprise arrival of Holland!

Around 1am on Saturday morning Jay received a phone call that Allison was at the hospital due to reduced fetal movement. She had that mother's intuition that something was wrong, and we are so relieved that she decided to get Holland examined when she did. The heart rate was dangerously high, so the doctors ordered an emergency c-section immediately.

I rushed to the hospital to be there for Drew and Allison since Grandmommy and Grandaddy were driving from Madison, and Jay was not feeling well. Drew was not allowed in the room during the delivery, but I was able to get text updates to pass onto the family. 

Thankfully Holland was born healthy and able to breathe on her own at 34 weeks. She was 3 pounds, 12 ounces and ABSOLUTELY beautiful.

We went as a family today to officially meet our sweet niece. She is in the NICU, so we visited with Aunt Peach and Uncle Drew for about an hour before we could go down to see her during "cuddle time" at 3pm. :)

She is such a tiny ball of perfection. I loved every minutes of those baby snuggles.

Jay is a very proud uncle. 

Congrats, Allison and Drew. Welcome to the family, Holland!

Tuttle and Maggie could not visit Holland in the NICU, but they are looking forward to holding their cousin as soon as she goes home. Tuttle was very interested in Holland's feeding tube in her nose that he saw in our pictures. He asked if they cut up her food really small to fit in the tube. We decided macaroni and cheese is probably her favorite. :)

I will post tomorrow about Tuttle's party. I just could not wait to introduce our perfect niece!