Pout x 2

I just had to show the side-by-side. I sure do love my babies.

Eye Update...

I had an eye appointment this week and it looks like the inflammation is going down SLOWLY. I am still on 60mg of prednisone but he put me on different eye drops. Hopefully these ones will make a difference.

I finally got an appointment with a rhuematologist! I go Thursday morning... woo hoo! Hopefully the rheumatologist will be able to recommend a different medication which will help with the inflammation and get me off of the steroids.

Also, my mom was talking to a doctor up in AK and his sister dealt with something similar to what I am going through. It took 20 years but she finally went to a neurologist and found that the eye problem was linked to MS. I'm going to talk with my eye doctor tomorrow to see if he can get me in with a neurologist.

It would be nice to know the cause and not just treat the problem. Hopefully we will get to the bottom of this VERY soon.

On a lighter note, I have lost 5 pounds and 1 inch! I was actually able to button a pair of my pre-pregnancy jeans!! Now if I could just get into the rest of them. Oh well. I will keep up with my workouts. I have completed 23 days of the shred! I have been on level 3 for the last 3 workouts and it is INTENSE! I'm so glad I started the program.

Seven more days and I am going to do another round of the shred. I'm going to see how much I can accomplish before I move on to P90X.

Pictures and Play Date

Feeding time, all the time!
Getting ready for our play date with Sandy and Sam

Get ready to see two VERY cute little boys! I'm sure Sam and Rowynn will grow up to be best buddies.

It is so nice to have friends with kids Rowynn's age. I'm looking forward to MANY more "play dates" with Sam and Sandy. I can't wait until they can play on the floor together. It will be so great watching them grow up.

I'll have to download the pucker picture of Abigayl. They are definitely brother and sister. Horsing around in my horsey shirt and cowboy boot socks!The hands are ALWAYS moving!

Yadda, Yadda, Yadda

Guess who rolled over?! Yup, Rowynn decided to roll from his tummy to his back... twice! He hasn't done it since but hey, a milestone is a milestone!

Rowynn decided it was more fun to watch BabyTV rather than me...

I think if he could talk he would be saying, "mom... move... you're blocking the TV!".
Blowing bubbles I caught a half smile.

During the week I volunteered and then shopped the Just Between Friends sale. By volunteering, I was able to shop earlier than the public or the consignors. It was GREAT! If you have never been to one or have never heard of them, click on the link to see if they have one in your area. It is a giant consignor sale with TONS of clothes, shoes, toys and gear. The prices are great and it all revolves around kid stuff.

This is all the loot I took home:

Clothes, clothes and more clothes!

My $130 stroller that I got for $60! It is like new. The $100 bounce thing I snagged for $35.

I loved shopping the sale! I went a little overboard but I really did get some great deals. I've already been dressing Rowynn in all his new clothes. Poor guy goes through 2-4 outfits a day. What can I say... he's is my baby doll!

For those of you in the Tulsa area, there is a shrimp truck, Fabian Seafood, that comes into town every 2-3 weeks during the spring-fall. You can sign up on their website to get on their mailing list. It is THE BEST shrimp. They bring up fresh, gulf shrimp along with oysters, red snapper, crab meat and any other fresh seafood that is available.

This week they came into town and I bought some shrimp and crab meat. This was the dinner I made that night: Yummy!! I made crab cakes and pepper shrimp. Needless to say, neither of us walked away hungry.

Fat and NOT so happy

Well, it has been a full month since I started working out (not the shred just working out in general) and I decided since my last weight and measurements were from March 17Th it was time. Needless to say, it was VERY disappointing.

Before starting the shred I had been using my elliptical machine and some of my other workout DVDs. I have done the shred for ~20 days (minus four since I've missed four days). In all the effort I have put forth I have gained 5lbs and lost almost zero inches. I have actually gained a little in some places.

Discouraged? I think so. I know that the prednisone plays a role in the weight gain but it is still hard to put forth SO much effort and see VERY LITTLE in the way of change. I guess I just have to focus on the muscle strength that I have gained over the past couple of weeks.

All I can say is GRRRR.... I'm frustrated!!!

It's Been a While

Sorry it has been so long.... it has been pretty busy around here. Our weather has been BEAUTIFUL which has made for a lot of time outside.

For the past few weeks Rowynn and I have had a weekly "date" to the zoo with a friend of mine and her 9 month old daughter (Rowynn's first girlfriend). It is so nice to know I have at least one day out of the house and with another adult! It doesn't hurt that I'm getting a little walking in either.

Speaking of walking/working out, I have been doing 30 Day Shred for 19 days (I can't count today because I haven't done it yet) and in the 19 days I have only missed 3 days. I'm pretty proud of myself. I am currently on level 2 and it continues to kick my butt every morning. I get done and I feel like I'm going to pass out or throw up. I'm wondering at what point it will get easier for me.

If I'm going to be honest, I have to admit that though I am working my butt off every morning I am having a REALLY hard time staying away from sugar. I have heard that this could be a result of the oral steroids. So, my working out may just be cancelling out the junk I'm eating. That may be why I'm not seeing much of the way of results. I can see more muscle definition in my legs and arms though. It is my core that is being difficult.

Unfortunately, my eye took a turn for the worse this week. I went in on Friday to find that my vision has gone back to 2500. That is the single, big E on the eye chart. In actuality, I couldn't even see the E. My doctor has upped my steroid to 60mg and is going to try to get me in to a Rheumatologist (specializes in inflammation) and I am going to call a retinologist on Monday. I think it is time for me to get a second opinion. I have been dealing with this issue for 2 months now and I really don't want to lose my sight in that eye.

I really hate posting pictures of myself right now because I am NOT happy with the way I look. But, I love my little man.
Rowynn may be teething. He was super fussy this night and was only happy when he had something to suck/chew on. This is a toy Rusty bought him that vibrates when you move the wing. Rowynn seemed to like it!
After seeing a couple of friends put their babies (younger or same age as Rowynn) in their Bumbo seats, I decided to let Rowynn sit in his. It made it so nice because I was actually able to eat lunch without him getting fussy at me!

This and That

What a great, beautiful weekend we had here in Oklahoma! We were able to get a bunch of outdoor work done. Example, I mowed the lawn! Yes, there is an exclamation mark. I have not been able to mow the lawn in over a year. Last year I was pregnant and it was not a good idea to jump on our riding lawn mower in our VERY bumpy yard.

Not only did the lawn get mowed but Christmas lights came down, flowers got bought and planted and we had a major plumbing issue that completely revolved around floss!

This is my absolutely handsome son completely overdressed for the 80 degree weather. I'm still getting used to the whole dressing and not overdressing!

He looks mighty cute though...

Especially with his HANDSOME daddy ;-)

The first area we worked on this weekend was Abigayl's garden. Though it looked BEAUTIFUL last year, we decided to plant perennials in her garden this year. That way the color will pop up year after year.

Hopefully, the mums in the back will fill out soon. If not, we will have to get some more! Sunday we headed to Sanders Nursery because they were having a sale. I am so impressed with their nursery! If you live in the area, you should become a fan on facebook so you will know when the sales take place. They are supposed to have another one in May and June.

Anyhoo, We bought the beautiful, fragrant lilacs (above) and I can't wait for them to get bigger and spread out. I really want this end of the porch to be all part of Abigayl's garden.

We also bought these blooming evergreen shrubs. Last year we planted azaleas where they are and the azaleas did not make it. I'm glad Lowe's takes back dead plants! It just means we will be able to put our money into flowers or ornamental grass for this flower bed. Someday this bed will only need to be weeded! I think we have re-planted this bed every year that we have lived here. I can only imagine how much money has been put into this flower bed.

I'm ready to get our flower beds under control and making sense so that next year I can have a vegetable garden. I'm sure Rusty is REALLY looking forward to that adventure!

As for the plumbing, thankfully the problem was resolved pretty quickly but it took a lot of elbow grease and getting on the roof. I'm happy that Rusty was able to get some help from his dad. Otherwise, it would have been a LONG night!

It ended up that flushing floss is not a good idea. It looks like floss gets caught up in the pipes and then creates a blockage so that other things can't get passed it. Moral to the story.... DON'T FLUSH FLOSS!

The End

Two Month Stats....

Today Rowynn had his two month check-up. So far, he is 24 inches and he is weighing in at 13 pounds 6.5 ounces that puts him in the 90 percentile for both!

Yup... he's my big boy!

Poor guy had to have two shots today. He was so brave. He did cry after each one but he is doing good now. I'm just hoping he stays happy and fever free today.

Updates....

Alright...

First, I had an eye appointment today and my vision is now 20/25!! In the last ten days it has gone from 20/60 to 20/25... IMPROVEMENT!! I'm super excited and ready to be done with the whole mess. Unfortunately, I have to stay on the oral steroids for probably another 3-4 weeks. I will be taking 20mg for the next two weeks plus the steroid eye drops, antibiotics and dilating eye drops.

Second, I LOVE my new workout! I am doing Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred and it is GREAT! So far I have gone 8 days straight. I did level one for 7 days and went to level two today. Unfortunately, the oral steroids are making it hard for me to see much in the way of body change. My face is still fat and tummy has gotten bigger since starting the steroids. My doctor says that once I am off the steroids I should see a vast improvement in my results. So, I'm trying VERY hard not to get discouraged. I just really want to see results since I'm putting in so much hard work.

My bible reading is going well. I'm not getting in as many pages a day as I want but I am getting in as many as I can per day. I'm just happy that I'm sticking with it this time. I'm really enjoying learning the word of God.

Going to my eye appointment

That's my life in a nutshell!

Two Months!

My baby is two months old today!

"My big sister is an angel"... yes she is! Thank you Carrie.

Egg-cellent Weekend

What a wonderful weekend! Not only was it beautiful but we have such an amazing reason to celebrate. We are given salvation through Jesus Christ and his work on the cross. I'm so thankful for my salvation and the knowledge of where I will be when my time comes. I'm so thankful that Abigayl is in such an amazing place and that one day I will meet her there.

Rowynn's first (of many) ride in daddy's work truck...

My handsome men!

Saturday we had our Sunday School class over for an egg hunt and lunch. What a spectacular day! The weather was in the 70's, it was sunny and beautiful. This was our second annual egg hunt. Last year it was 4 adults and 2 children and this year it was ~22 adults and ~16 kids!! I'm really looking forward to next year and seeing how much it grows.

There were plenty of candy filled eggs to find. I think there were about 12-16 dozen eggs. It was a really great day!

Ready, Set, Go!

Taking stock...

Rowynn slept through the egg hunt.

Sunday was a busy day as well. We started our morning with church and then headed to Sedan, KS to see family.

Mommy's ready but Rowynn still needs to get dressed!

Ready to visit family!

Rowynn's great-grandma Iva Jean

Rowynn's great-grandma Kathleen

It was a fun filled, love filled, happy weekend. We are so blessed.