Happy 1/2 Birthday!

This is Rhett at 6 months!  These monthly pictures may look like an easy way to document Rhett's growth, but here's a few of the behind-the-scenes shots:

Yes, every time I take Rhett's picture, I must take Allie's, too.  Six month sticker and all! 

I don't have a picture of Allie's current hobby... wearing socks.  She will put on 18 pairs if we let her. If she wasn't such a light sleeper, I'd have snapped her in bed the other night ASLEEP with a sippy cup in one hand, Barbie in the other, wearing Snoopy pajamas with Christmas socks.  It was quite a scene. 

My Addie started Pre-K this year.  The first picture below is from her orientation day and the other is on her official first day of school.

 I always worry that Addie will struggle in school not because she's not learning or doesn't know the answers, but because she refuses to let people know that she's learning or knows the answers.  I've worked for years to get her to say her birthday when asked.  I got a note from school asking for help this week getting the kids to know their birthdays.  After I saw the note, I asked Addie when her birthday was, and got the usual answer to everything these days, "I can't remember."  So I told her no tv until she knew her birthday, to which she said, "NOVEMBER 27!!!"  Good luck, Ms. Karen. :)

Allie Noel

This was Allie on August 10, 2010:

She had just finished her first appointment with a pediatric oncologist who examined her all over, took urine, blood, x-rays of her skull and lungs, and did a complete bone scan.  The month that followed included many repeat tests, a CT scan, and an ultrasound.  Doctors were hoping that all of these tests would confirm our "best case scenario", which was a diagnosis of LCH.  They were hoping against a diagnosis of neuroblastoma.  What they concluded was the ACTUAL best case scenario:  OUR ALLIE IS FINE!  This is Allie on August 10, 2011:

She is at Stormi's, in the process of stripping ALL of her clothes off, which is one of her favorite things to do at 18 months old!  In honor of my Allie, who defies the norm (both medically and in general), here are some pictures of things she's been up to this past year.  Enjoy!

He's growing up so fast!

Gotcha!

Here's the real 5-month photo:

He's rolling... he's eating rice cereal, oatmeal, and all his veggies... and he's trying to crawl!  So despite the lack of facial hair, he really is growing up so fast!

There's no Allie story/pictures this post, because I'm hoping to do a post completely dedicated to my precious middle child later this week...

As for Addie, a couple weeks ago she and I were eating lunch at Steve's Rib with my parents and I was talking to my mom about types of beer.  When I mentioned the Mexican beer, Modelo, my mom jokingly asked, "Like Nelson Modelo?"  Without skipping a beat, Addie said, "Grammy, it's Nelson MANDELA."  WHAT?!?!?!  Then she asked, "What town is he from again?"  Thinking this was some kind of crazy coincidence, I asked Addie if Nelson Mandela was young or old.  She proceeded to tell me that he was 93 years old.  Correct again!  (Which I only knew after googling it.)  Apparently Nelson Mandela had just celebrated his birthday the week before and they had talked about it at school.  Shout out to My Small Wonders!  Next topic, I asked Addie what she had done in swim lessons THAT MORNING, to which she replied, "Um, I can't remember."  :)



4 months

Rhett - 4 months old!

 Allie - started gymnastics this month!  It has only made her MORE daring!  This morning I thought that I could run to her room to grab her an outfit while she was preoccupied with looking at herself in the mirror.  She would take the pacifier out of her mouth, attempt to shove it in the mouth of her reflection, put it back in her actual mouth...  I was gone 30 seconds, but when I got back to my room, I saw 2 arms and 2 legs hanging over the sides of Rhett's bassinet, while she happily watched the mobile going round and round to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star".  I have no idea how she climbed into it, I am thankful it did not tip over or collapse, and luckily Rhett was in the bathroom with Ryan.  But, IT WAS HILARIOUS!  If she does it again (of course she will), I promise to get a picture.  Until I do, this should make you smile:

Addie - is spending 2 weeks in TEXAS with my parents!  The day she left I told her how much I was going to miss her and she said, "Mom, you have pictures of me on your phone."  She is having a grand time.  ***  For Father's Day, Ryan chose to eat at San Marco's (Mexican food).  Addie's quesadilla came with rice and refried beans as sides.  She scooped up a spoonful of beans and asked, "Mom, why did you order me mud?"  ***  This past weekend, we went to Grand Lake with some friends.  We were outside Saturday night and I asked Addie if she thought the twinkling lights in the trees were fireflies or fairies.  She thought a moment, then said, "Well, since I don't see any pixie dust, they must be fireflies!"

That's all for now.  Have a happy and safe 4th!

Growing

These are Rhett's monthly photos so far.  Can you believe he'll be 4 months old next week?

And here's my other baby pretending to be a baby.  I almost fell for it until she turned on the music and buckled herself in...

Last week, Addie went to see Kung Fu Panda 2 with her Papa and cousin James.  I was watching her play in her room while we were waiting for time to go, and I stuck out my bottom lip, pouting that my first baby was getting to be such a big girl.  When she asked me what was wrong, I asked her to stop growing up.  She walked over to me, sweetly held my face in her hands, and said so sincerely...
"Mom, I just want to grow big enough to ride a ferris wheel."  I have no idea where she comes up with this stuff!  :)

Far Behind

I am so far behind...  Rhett is 8 weeks old today.  With both of the girls, I practically didn't leave the house until they were 8 weeks old.  I was so scared of germs and that they would get sick.  Poor Rhett.  He's 8 weeks old today, and he's been all over the place.  So guess where we spent his 8 week birthday?  The same place we spent his actual birthday.  Mercy Hospital.  Rhett has bronchiolitis caused by RSV and a double ear infection.  He hasn't been eating since Sunday night, so Dr. V admitted him last night for IV antibiotics, fluid replacement, and to monitor his oxygen levels.  He's actually doing very well tonight, so as long as nothing changes, we'll be going home tomorrow.  So I will take his 2 month picture at home, in his chair, on Friday.  Which reminds me that I never posted his 1 month picture (but I did take it on March 15)...

That was the happiest picture I could get that day.  He wasn't a fan.  Now to make you smile...

Allie discovered that if you lick Wheat Thins, they'll stick to just about anything!  I don't know what I'm going to do with this girl!

Lastly, Brooke tagged me weeks ago to answer some questions on my blog.  Here goes!  I'm not good at this kind of thing, because I always want to list my all-time favorites, then it ends up taking me so long that I never get it done, so I'm just going to list the first things that pop into my head:

Places I Go:
1.  Ryan's parents' house
2.  Jenny RoRo's
3.  Sonic
4.  My Small Wonders/Stormi's

Favorite Smells:
1.  Rain
2.  Babies
3.  Fresh-cut grass
4.  Martinis (but I don't like to drink them)

TV Shows:
1.  Criminal Minds
2.  Friends
3.  Modern Family
4.  Army Wives

Movies:
1.  P.S. I Love You
2.  Dumb and Dumber
3.  The Little Mermaid
4.  The Gods Must Be Crazy

Recommendations:
1.  Ken's Steakhouse
2.  Put the toilet seat down!  (This should be a given, but my husband hasn't grasped it yet.)
3.  Find a church home.
4.  Be nice to your pharmacist!

Favorite Things To Do:
1.  Read
2.  Lay out
3.  Go on vacation
4.  Clean (So why is my house always dirty?)

Dislikes:
1.  Throwing up
2.  Moving
3.  Drama
4.  Stupidity

Friends To Tag:  (This means you answer these same questions on your blog!)
1.  Lee Anne Stone
2.  Jaime Huddleston
3.  Adrienne Hare
4.  Annie Pacheco

So now I'm not so far behind!  Wish I could do fancy stuff on this page so that the Candlebox song would play while you read this post.  1994 was so much fun!

For Jenny

I wrote the following last Saturday when I came home from the hospital.  When I started typing, I didn't know what I was going to say, I just somehow wanted to have a record of what I'd experienced that morning.  This past week has been both terrible and wonderful, sorrowful and joyful, heartbreaking and heartwarming.  Baby Kanon changed my life.  I'm so honored that I was a part of his...

I spent the morning with some wonderful women and I am overwhelmed by their beauty.  I only met Melissa Vincent yesterday, but God placed her in Jenny's life several months ago so that she would be there for today.  Although we just met face to face for the first time, I've known her through Jenny's eyes for a while now.  I don't know if I've ever known a more selfless person in my life.  She was the caretaker this morning for everyone else, despite having a newborn at home herself.  Because of her, I know that Jenny will be taken care of today and for the days to come.  Melissa is beautiful.  Emily Overland has been blessed with the gift of kindness.  Truly.  Friend, foe, or stranger, Emily has only good things to say to you and about you.  Because her heart bleeds for everyone, I think this morning was the hardest on her.  She cried her little eyes out.  Emily is beautiful.  Brooke Brewer's calling is in administration.  She gets things done, and she's not afraid of who she has to face to do it.  She made sure that this morning went perfectly, even paging Jenny's doctor last night to make sure things would be just right!  The best part of her is that it all comes from love.  Her heart's desire is to make those that she loves happy.  Brooke is beautiful.  Four of the ladies there this morning have been friends with Jenny for over twenty years.  Shelly Willis was one of the first ones there this morning.  I think out of everyone, she's been Jenny's friend the longest.  She just sat there quietly, a picture of strength for her friends.  Her presence this morning lets Jenny know that she's a friend for life.  Shelly is beautiful.  Candace LaGere has the best sense of humor of anyone I've ever met.  Honestly.  She brought smiles and laughter to the room this morning and always at the perfect time.  Those moments wouldn't be the same if I tried to recount them here, but they were priceless.  Not only is she striking and funny, but she got so much done for Jenny in the last 24 hours, you wouldn't believe it.  Candace is beautiful.  Bless Julie Kirk's heart.  She talked to everyone.  Not just the people there with us, but with the guy getting coffee in front of her, with the scrub tech, with everyone who walked by... literally.  She is so honest.  Most touching was watching her cry.  She would just get overwhelmed with emotion and it was precious.  Julie is beautiful.  Lee Anne Stone.  I don't even know if I'll be able to put her presence this morning into words.  All of our hearts ached this morning for Jenny, but I know Lee Anne's ached the most.  She's made her way down the road that Jenny started traveling today.  I know she wishes Jenny didn't have to walk it at all, but she'll be right there by her side, crawling with her at times, and carrying her friend when she needs it.  Lee Anne is beautiful.  I don't even know the last name of one of the beautiful women I watched this morning.  Melissa's friend Becky took pictures of the Laisle family last night at Hafer Park and was with them again this morning to capture Kanon's birth.  She took hundreds of pictures for them.  She'd met Jenny only once before and had never photographed moments like those shared this morning.  She was so strong and did a wonderful job.  But each time she was told to stop for a moment or to step out, she broke down.  She really put her heart into the task this morning and I know Jenny and Rory will treasure the gift that she gave them forever.  Becky is beautiful.  Of course the most beautiful woman of all this morning was Jenny.  She's been so brave over the past four months, but brave doesn't even describe that mother this morning.  You would have never known she'd just had major surgery as they wheeled her through the hallway as she proudly introduced us all to Kanon William Laisle.  Jenny, I'm so happy that you got to spend so much time with that precious miracle.  You will never be more beautiful than you were this morning.  Kanon saw his mommy at her best and he must be so proud!  We all love you so much.  Thank you for letting us be a part of Kanon's life.  Kanon William Laisle March 26, 2011 8:19 am 2 lbs 2 oz 12.5 in

My Little Boy's Nursery

Rhett's baby book has a page for a picture of what his nursery looked like when he was born.  Since this blog is serving as his baby book in case I never get it together and fill out the actual one, here it is...  Poor guy!

The Third Child

December 2006:

"Ryan, Addie's belly button fell off! What a milestone! We must put it in a Ziploc bag and keep it forever!" (Don't worry, I didn't keep it. I threw it away, but I did consider it.)

January 2010:

"Ryan, Allie's belly button fell off!" and in the trash it went.

February 2011:

"Ryan, Rhett's belly button fell off! I can't find it! It's not in his diaper, not in his jammies... Did it come off when you changed him earlier? No?!? You mean there's a chunk of dried up umbilical cord somewhere in our house!?! What if Jake eats it!?! What if Allie eats it!?!"

The disgusted panic ended shortly thereafter when I found it lying in the floor of the kids' hallway... and quickly put it in the trash where it belonged!

Meet Rhett Alderson Featherstone...

Meet Rhett Alderson Featherstone, one week old!  Rhett was born on February 15, 2011 at 1:48 pm.  He weighed 6 lbs 13 oz and was 19 in long.  He is the reason I'm starting this blog.  Based on my four years with Addie and my 13 months with Allie, I've discovered that I'm a failure at preserving memories.  So I'm hoping that this blog will someday make up for the empty baby books, blank milestone calendars, boxes of unassembled scrapbooks, and lack of pictures and videos.

Why did I choose the title "Life as I knew it"?  My life was changed forever when I met my husband and each of my children.  Life obviously got richer with each addition, but there are other changes as well.  I used to be known as a planner, a list-maker, and organized.  Now when I think of those qualities, I say, "Who me?"!  I decided to embrace the chaos when I learned I was pregnant with Rhett, when Allie was only 5 months old!  I definitely didn't plan to have babies 12 months apart!

So welcome to my blog!  Hopefully you will enjoy keeping up with my kids and our crazy life.  I guarantee you will read some funny and unbelievable stories on here.  If you don't know our family yet, you will.  It's going to be a wild ride!