First Ear Infection

I realize that we will be experiencing many firsts with McCoy...first smile, first tooth, first steps, first word....but this was one I wasn't looking forward to, his first ear infection!!

It all started on Wednesday night at about 11:00. McCoy is really laid back and hardly ever cries, except for when he's hungry or has an upset stomach. But that night, he had just eaten and he started wailing! LOUDLY! I was freaking out because there was nothing we could do to get him to calm down. We took his pajamas off in case something was poking him, changed his diaper, fed him some more...we did everything! I was so tempted to jump in the car and head to the emergency room.

But Kirk got him in this position...

And he fell right to sleep. (Kirk calls this his "patented butt tap because he also pats his butt while in this position...pretty creative!) So once he had been asleep for awhile we would lay him down and about 30 minutes later he would wake up screaming, so then we'd put him back into this position. This happened about 3 times before I put him on my chest and slept with him like that for the next 4 hours.

On Thursday, he stayed pretty fussy so we made an appt and went to the doctor at 4:00. That's when we got our prognosis. I was very relieved because I started thinking maybe it was pneumonia or something since he was also a little stopped up. I was also bummed because I feel like he's pretty young to have an ear infection already. Did anyone else's kids get them this early??

The doctor set us up with some amoxicillin, which he loves, and we were good to go! He's been doing great so I think he's recovering wonderfully!

Her he is Thursday night when we started his medicine.

Ear infections can't keep me down!

This pink stuff is excellent!

While McCoy has been getting over his ear infection, we've been staying home and trying out some new toys...

Thanks for the new toy, Santa!

Learning some new tricks...

Weeeeeee, I can fly!

Dad, maybe you should put the camera down and make sure Mom knows what she's doing...SERIOUSLY!

and just hanging out!

What ear infection??

What are we doing next??

Obviously, he's feeling much better and we're so glad! We hate for him to be so upset and feeling bad!!! I know it's something we'll have to get used to but I don't know if that's possible!

Baby's First Christmas

Christmas is my absolute favorite time of year, like most people's, but this year was extra special!! I loved going out and buying toys for McCoy, filling his stocking, and playing Santa, even though he had no idea what was going on! It was good practice for next year! Kirk, McCoy and I had a very busy Christmas and we loved every minute of it!

Where shall I begin...

On Friday night, we went to Kirk's parents for our annual game night. We do this every year. Doug gives out lots of prizes and we are happy to receive! We played Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader on teams and Kirk and I now know that we definitely are not! Although, we're both pretty good at 1st grade math! It was Owen's job to hand out the prizes and he did a great job! However, at one point in the night, we lost him and found him in the garage refrigerator with his fingers digging into a chocolate pie!! What a sneaky little guy!

When we got home that night, my parents were here. McCoy was so excited to see them!


My goal for the weekend was to make sure McCoy got lots of wear out of all of his Christmas gear. He has so many cute things!

How would any girl resist that face and pick-up line?

Of course he is!

On Christmas Eve, we went to the evening service at Fellowship with mine and Kirk's parents, Sara, and Mama T. It is a service catered to children and McCoy loved it! They had a big TV screen playing Christmas cartoons when we walked in and he was staring at it with big smiles. Afterwards, everyone came over to our house for chili and dessert. We had so much fun!!

After church

After dinner, it was time for McCoy to get ready for Santa, so we went and got his Christmas pjs on. Every year, the girls' have matching pjs and now that Kirk is in the family, my dad and him match, too. McCoy can't wait until his old enough to wear the same pjs as the boys!

Boys in their pjs

Is Santa here yet??

Christmas Day was so much fun! We ate A LOT, opened lots of presents, and laughed with our families. We woke up and opened presents with my family at our house. McCoy was so excited to see what all Santa had brought him! He got lots of toys and several cute outfits!

I was a really good boy!!

After all the presents and pictures, McCoy decided he needed a nap under the tree. While he napped, the rest of us opened our gifts. This year was a clothes Christmas for me. Mom got me lots of cute clothes and jewelry that I loved! And Kirk picked out some really cute things for me all on his own! I was so impressed! After all the gifts were opened, we ate breakfast casserole and cheese grits. YUMMY!

That afternoon we went over to Doug and Linda's for lunch and more present opening. We thought it was going to be postponed to later in the day because Anna Grace was at the emergency room!!! That morning, she had tripped over a toy and fallen down. It wouldn't quit hurting so Clint and Molly decided to take her to the hospital and they found out it was broken!! Poor thing! However, she was still her smiley, social self so we were glad to see she wasn't letting it ruin her day.

Because of her splint, Anna Grace went shirtless for Christmas! It was so funny! Doesn't she look adorable in her red cowboy boots? Kirk, McCoy and I gave her these. I wish they had them in my size!

Opening presents at Dig and MeMe's!

McCoy got lots of toys and a cute wagon to carry them all in! I can't wait to take him on walks in his wagon this summer. He is going to love it! I got lots of fun things, too. Linda knows how much I love mixing bowls so she got me two really cute sets. One is lime green and the other is red. I wish I would've gotten more pictures but Jessica got a lot so she'll have to give me copies!

When we got home that night, we had another wonderful meal of steaks, sweet potatoes, spinach madeline, and salad!! We were stuffed!

We had such a great day spending time with both of our families! McCoy gives Christmas a THUMBS UP!!! I hope everyone's Christmas was as merry as our's!!!

11th Annual Christmas Party

Last night, Kirk and I went to a Christmas party with all of my friends from Jr High and High School. This party has been going on for 11 years, always at the same place. since we were 14! A few years have been skipped and some I have missed because we were out of town. However, no matter how many years it has been, whenever I get together with this group we always have a blast! We have a few new people every year with people getting married or bringing their boyfriends/girlfriends. It's always fun to meet the new additions and they always fit right in. This was Kirk's first year at the party and he had lots of fun!

The girls

Joanna, me, and Lauren

One thing we did was get out our ninth grade memory book and go through it. This was a book that our school did where we all wrote down our favorite memory from JH and they put it all in a book. It was so much fun to hear what people had written! We also had written prophecies for each other and what we thought they would be doing in ten years. Someone had written they thought I would be a lawyer in Manhattan...not exactly!

I had so much fun visiting with everyone! We had a great turnout! Can't wait for next year!

Two Firsts for McCoy

On December 16, we took McCoy to his very first birthdayy party. His friend, Harry, turned 1 and we wanted to help him celebrate. We had so much fun!

Harry looked so cute in his birthday outfit and crown!!

Kirk and Chad...friends forever and now dads together! How fun!

Family pic!

The most fun part was watching Harry chow down on his cake! He loved the icing!

McCoy's second first of the day was meeting Santa Claus! Amanda had arranged to have him there and we were so excited to have his picture made. McCoy loved telling Santa exactly what he wanted for Christmas!

We had so much fun helping Harry celebrate! We can't believe that he's already 1 year old! We love you Harry and have had so much fun watching you grow!!

Happy Birthday, Gigi!!!

Today is Gigi's birthday! McCoy wanted to send her a little message!

Here is his reaction when I told him she wouldn't be here until Friday to celebrate....

I could say so much about my mom and go on and on but I'll try and keep it short! She is my best friend and #1 shopping buddy! She has been so supportive of me in every aspect of life and has always been my biggest fan. I can't thank her enough for all that she has done for me! And I would've been lost without all her help when I had McCoy. I absolutely love how much she loves him!

Tears of joy for McCoy!

Gigi, We love you so much and hope that you had a wonderful birthday! We can't wait to see you this weekend!

Eight Week Check-Up

Friday Kirk and I took McCoy to the doctor for his 8 wk check-up and first round of shots. We were so glad that he passed all of their developmental questions and we were dying to hear how much he weighed and how long he was. He weighs 13.2 pds and is 24 inches long!! The doctor said he is in the 95th percentile for both height and weight! He also said that if he keeps this up, he will be 6'2" or taller by the time he is 18!! He's going to be such a big boy!


So that part was fun...but then came the shots. I don't know who it hurt worse, him or his mommy! He cried so hard and I had to hold back the tears. I was dying for the nurses to say I could come over and hold him. Once they did, I was able to calm him down, but it was definitely a traumatic experience for us both! However, he did get some pretty cool Snoopy band-aids for his pain...

Showing off his battle wounds

Still a happy boy!

When we got home, I curled up with him on the couch so that we could take a nap together. This is one of my favorite things to do with him. I know all the books say always have your child nap by himself in his crib but I don't care! I love cuddling with him!!
It's been a long time since I posted so I've missed some things...


This past Tuesday my bunco group had our ornament exchange at my house. December is such a busy time that not all the group got to come. Lots were out of town and some were sick, but the 8 of us had a great time. McCoy came home at the end to meet the girls he hadn't yet. He was definitely a hit!

Leanne, Me and McCoy, Lindsey, Joanna, Kayla, Ellen, Courtney and Erin

And on December 5, we went with Kirk's family to eat dinner to celebrate my father-in-law's birthday. We had lots of fun!

McCoy and Dig

And as always, here's some cute pics I've taken recently...you know I can't resist...

End of a smile...so funny!!

Such a great smile!

Half smile, half cry? Cute little elf hat!!

Loving some bathtime!!

TIMBER...Well, almost!

When you read the title of this post, you should read it out loud and say it like a lumberjack would if he was chopping down a tree. Why, you ask??

Well, let me tell my story... Last weekend when we went to El Dorado, we left Henry (our very large cat) in charge of the house. We always do this when we go out of town and Kirk's parents come over to feed and talk to him every day. This has always worked out great...until we decorated for Christmas.

I love Christmas decorations and I especially love trees!! So we have several that I will show you now...

Dining Room

Kitchen tree with little gingerbread men

Kirk's office sport tree

Topiary in the foyer

Bathroom tree (not the best picture)

And now for our big tree...

That's right...it's about to tip over! And it also looks like someone took a bite out of the middle. That's because Henry decided to get up in there and take a little nap. For all I know he might have eaten a few ornaments too!

The culprit

The good news is that Kirk fixed the top of the tree tonight. It involved some hot glue and him almost falling off a ladder but it looks a lot better. I'll post the new and improved tree once I get the branches looking a little better...if I can.

I also thought I would post a few of our most recent pics of McCoy. I feel like I can't post without including some of my new favorite pictures!!!

My new favorite picture!!

Sweet angel face!

Love this outfit that Amanda gave him!

Such a happy boy

First nap in his crib!