As if having the nasty stomach bug once wasn't bad enough, we've now had it in our house a second time. It just doesn't seem fair. I, somehow, have avoided it so far.  Unfortunately, Addison, Fischer, Scott and my mom have all had it, and are still recovering. It sucks. I've had my fill of cleaning up throw up for the next several decades. And the laundry that accumulates with this kind of bug is crazy. I think I have done around 12 loads since Saturday. Not all of it from being sick, I was a little behind anyway, but I'd say about half was from all of the sickness. But, that stuff comes with the territory of being a Mommy! This is a picture of about half of the mound of laundry waiting to be folded...

If you don't like throw up talk, I wouldn't read anymore! The good news is, we got them both to start using a bowl, so that helped us out a lot when it came to cleaning up.

Friday night, we woke up to Addison crying around 12:30. We normally let them cry and put themselves back to sleep. Something sounded weird about her cry though, so I decided to go check on her. As soon as I opened the door, I smelled the unmistakable smell of throw up. I looked in her crib and she had gotten sick everywhere. So, I took her into Scott in our room so he could change her while I changed her sheets.  As I was changing her sheets, she got sick again, all over herself and our bed. So, I gave her a bath while Scott changed OUR sheets. She continued to get sick while I was giving her a bath, so we decided to just keep her in the bed with us since it was clear it was going to be a long night. We put towels and blankets as an extra layer all around us so that we could just change those out if necessary, instead of having to change the sheets again. None of us got much sleep, but thankfully, Fischer slept through it all! Addison was pretty out of it all day Saturday but wasn't as sick. She was still refusing to eat but did drink some Pedialyte, so at least she was hydrated.

We all slept Saturday night but woke up to Addison crying at 5 am. Again, her cry sounded weird. I went in there to check on her. She hadn't gotten sick but she was shaking really bad, so I took her back to bed with me, where she and I slept until 8:15! She got sick once more, but then seemed a little better.

Here is Addison sleeping in our bed...

We went on about our day, enjoying some outside time since it was so nice! The kids took their naps, and I went in to get Fischer when he woke up at 2. As soon as I picked him up, I smelled it. Again. I was really hoping he'd somehow avoid the sickness, but no such luck. From that point on, he got sick about every 15 minutes until around 8:00 last night. Somehow, both of them slept through the night until 5:00 this morning. In the meantime, Scott started getting sick and was up most of the night. I am still feeling OK, so I am praying it stays that way! Both Addison and Fischer are out of sorts this morning and refusing to eat, but hopefully they are all on the mend and will all be back to normal.  Because they got up at 5 am, our schedule is going to be completely off today. They are already taking a nap (they went to sleep at 9:00 am), so we'll see what the rest of the day holds. Something tells me I'll be relying on Mickey Mouse and friends a little more than I normally do!

Here's Fischer last night, right before he fell asleep on the couch...I'm pretty sure he's thinking "you're really taking a picture of me right now?!"

A few other things...

As I was cleaning up after Fischer got sick, he looked at me and said "Thank you, Mommy." It made me a little teary-eyed - it was sweet and just what I needed to hear as I was doing that nasty job! :)

Speaking of Mickey, they have both stared singing the theme to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Instead of "M-I-C-K-E-Y  M-O-U-S-E" they sing "I-C-C-YYY  I-C-C-YYY" but to the same exact tune. They like to drag out the Y letter. It is so funny, and I'm constantly asking them to sing it again.

Addison was SO worried about Fischer while he was getting sick. She is such a little mama! She would come pat him on the head and say "I'm sorry she-she" or bring a book over and read to him. She also tried to offer him some of her pretzels. She is so sweet and thoughtful (most of the time). She also helped me out by putting some of her eye shadow (it's fake) on my chin while I was helping Fischer out.

My parents left yesterday morning, but we took a trip over to the new house beforehand to take a look.

It is so weird to look at what used to be trees and see part of a house! It's really moving along, and you can even see where the different rooms are going to be. We are hoping the 2nd floor gets added this week!

Here are a few pictures from yesterday (Addison and Fischer were asleep in the car).

Here are my parents in the soon-to-be guest room!

Here we are in our soon-to-be bedroom!

In front of our front door!

A look at the house from the driveway.

Scott was gone on a hunting trip this week (his idea of a dream vacation) so I've been pretty busy keeping up with Addison, Fischer and the house, which means I have not been keeping up with the blog. My mom has been here helping out but things have still been busy! I always appreciate the extra set of hands though! We did some fun things, which I will talk about soon!

We did make it out to see what was going on with our house a couple of times during the week. Yesterday, they were working on the sub-flooring. It was nice to see such a significant change! This morning, however, Scott went out to check up on things (he got home late last night). When he got there, we had walls!! This is a huge change from yesterday. We are all heading over in the morning before my parents head home so we can check everything out.

Here are a few pictures Scott took this morning.... Yay walls!!

This is taken from inside the house, looking out where our screened-in porch will eventually be...

This is where our living room will be....

This is taken looking into where the dining area will be...

I can't wait to see what happens next week!

I can hardly believe it, but I finished another book. That means I've read 2 books this year, and January isn't even over! I think I read 2 books last year.. maybe 3. I'm excited to keep going and hopefully read at least one book per month.

This time, I read The Only True Genius in the Family by Jennie Nash.

I picked it up for $1.00 last time I was at Books-A-Million. I love finding deals on books, because then I don't feel pressured to love the book, or even finish it, if it's awful.  I rarely start a book that I don't finish though, even if I have to struggle through it.

I did like this book though. It was a pretty quick read and held my attention so that I wanted to keep reading most nights.  I'm not sure what's next on my list. I have a few piled up, but also have several I want to buy, including the newest Nicholas Sparks book. Stay tuned... :)

As I mentioned, Addison and Fischer were 23 months old yesterday!

They are still doing and saying so many new things that it's hard to keep up with. That's part of why I haven't blogged much lately - it's sort of overwhelming trying to put everything they are doing into words! They stay busy all day long... talking, playing and getting into trouble. :) It amazes me how much they understand now and how many more directions they are able to follow (when they want to, that is).

Our biggest change right now is that we are slowly transitioning them to 2% milk.  So far, they are both tolerating it well. We have been mixing just a little 2% milk with their current milk (soy for Addison and whole for Fischer). It will be nice if we can get them both on the same type of milk, but not a big deal at all if it doesn't work out.

They had a busy day yesterday. Not only did they get to ride Dumbo at the toy store, but they also helped us clean in the morning...

Then Addison took care of her new baby doll (that we got while at the toy store)....

She wrapped her up, rocked her, gave her a "ba ba" and even burped her. Then decided to let her take a nap in a box...

Fischer was busy playing with his new Matchbox cars...

On Friday, we went over to look at our new foundation! We let Addison and Fischer run around on the inside of the foundation walls and they had a great time.

Addison and Fischer are 23 months old today. They celebrated by riding Dumbo. They were a little nervous at first but ended up loving it!

Just a quick house update tonight! They finished up the block work for the foundation today. They work fast...they just started around noon yesterday.

Scott took a couple of pictures today when he went to check on things.  It's exciting to see how the house takes shape as they do more work. We are pretty sure they'll be taking tomorrow off to let everything firm up a bit and then will start back up on Monday. Next week should be a big week of changes as the will hopefully start the framing process!

Both of these pictures are from where our yard will be in the back of the house. The first picture is looking at the back of the garage. The second picture is still the back of the garage on the right and our bedroom area on the left. You can see where trucks are parked - this will be our actual driveway and will go straight into the garage, with a concrete pad for parking and/or turning around, for those of us who can't back up very well.  :)

More house updates to come next week!

Despite the warmer days we've been having, it has taken quite awhile for our snow to melt. The lot where we are building our house stays shady (which will be great in the summer!) so it took even longer for the snow to melt there, which meant even more of a delay in the building process.

Finally, today, they were there working! They laid a lot of the block and it's looking great. I watched them for awhile, sort of in awe. I have no idea how they know what they're doing, or how they lay that block so straight!

Below is part of the house that needs a lot more block since we are building on a hill.

This is the front corner of the house...

And this is where the deck and porch will be...

All of the blocks...

And the very important porta-potty...

I'm so excited to go back tomorrow and/or Friday to see what else has been done!

What's more fun than going through my wallet and pulling everything out? Not much, in Addison and Fischer's opinion. At first, I tried to fight it. Then I realized how much fun they have doing it - I just watch to make sure they don't misplace any of my important cards!

Addison and Fischer are going to be 2 very soon, and there are reminders everywhere! Not only have I been searching online for party supplies, but I'm also being reminded in other ways.

Since I was pregnant, I've been a member of a local grocery store's Baby Club. With that, I would receive newsletters with baby information pertaining to their age, and also coupons for items we were currently using. I got a letter from them the other day saying we were no longer members of the Baby Club since Addison and Fischer are turning 2. We have graduated to the Preschool Club. It sounds so old.

Also, we've been going to My Gym since September. Addison and Fischer were enrolled in the Waddlers class and have had a great time. I got a call from them the other day saying that it was time to move them up to the Gymsters class. I knew the time was coming, but it still seemed sudden all at the same time! We attended our first class as Gymsters last week, and they had just as much fun. It is basically the same structure with a few things added in that are a bit more challenging. One of which is for them to say their own names during circle time... this will give us something to work on at home.

I'm definitely not as emotional about this birthday....I was pretty emotional in the days leading up to their first birthday. I couldn't believe a whole year had passed already. I still can't believe how fast time is going with them, but am excited to see what's in store this year.

And, I've realized that ready or not, they are turning 2... and soon!!

You might want to sit down for this...

I finished a book!! I love to read, but haven't made it a priority since having Addison and Fischer, and I really miss it. Before having them, I read ALL the time - in the mornings, during my lunch at work, after work, and before bed.

Last year, I managed to finish a couple of books, but I would read a little and then weeks would pass before I had a chance to read again.

So, I'm pretty excited that I read a book in just a week! I've had several books stacked up in my "to-be-read" pile so I figured I'm going to have to make some time for this hobby that I love.

The book I just finished was...

And it was good! I knew before starting it that it was a happy ending for the adorable little puppy on the front. Otherwise, I don't think I could've read the book.

The book was a little hard for me to read, though, for a couple of reasons. One being that the majority of it takes place in Fallujah, Iraq, which is where Scott was stationed in 2004. I didn't like reading parts of the book knowing that he was there. Secondly, I am an animal lover so parts of the book were hard to digest.

But, like I said, the book had a happy ending for the puppy, Lava. And I really did enjoy reading this book. It probably wasn't the best choice for my first book when I'm just getting back into reading, but it was a quick read, so now I can move on to something lighthearted!

Just a few random thoughts tonight...

- Addison is getting better and better at her new skill - taking her clothes off. This new skill makes me               very nervous because our luck of not having any messes related to it will run out eventually....
- Addison and Fischer are making so many connections between people, places, events and food.. some of the connections they make really amaze me... for example, they talked about Buzz Lightyear when they saw a picture of a spaceship after only seeing a little bit of Toy Story.
- They have great memories too! They remember little details, and Scott and I are having to be very careful with what we say now. If we say something like "If you help clean up, we can watch a movie," we better be ready to watch a movie, even if it's an hour or more later. They don't forget much these days! They also know when we try to skip words and/or pages in a book.
- I ordered A and F a book about going to the potty and they love reading it. One page says "I did it!" and now they walk around saying that.
- Addison still asks about our Christmas tree almost everyday. I keep telling her that we will see it again next year. Then Fischer asks about our stuffed snowman (which we named Chester), and I tell him that we will see him again next year too!
- Fischer learned the word bra (which he pointed out while I was folding laundry). I have no idea where he heard this or how he knew what it was!
- They are both getting so good at following directions! They help me put clothes in the washing machine and/or dryer, pick up toys, put diapers in the diaper genie and much more!
- We are lucky that they are both still great eaters!
- We may try switching to 2% milk as they get closer to turning 2. We are hoping Addison will be able to tolerate 2% better than whole milk, then we can just buy 1 kind.
- Fischer LOVES watching movies after dinner now. We've been watching a variety of Disney movies, and will usually watch about 30 minutes after dinner and before bath. He pulls the blanket onto the floor now and says "moomee!" The 4 of us lay there and relax, and it's great family time!
- I really need to get over my issue with the play-doh colors being mixed. It's going to happen and I just need to deal with it. On that note, I bought A and F a play-doh kit with 15 accessories and they are loving it!

I could go on and on with these random thoughts. Addison and Fischer do so much everyday that I don't want to forget. I need to write more of it down.

Here they are enjoying their pudding snack last week.

I can't believe it snowed here again! Scott and I were saying that now that we're trying to build a house, it'll probably be the snowiest winter on record in South Carolina. Oh well, at least it gives us something fun to do outside with Addison and Fischer.

Today, after nap, we got bundled up so we could play outside. It was already starting to sleet a little bit and there was a layer of ice on top of the snow, so we didn't stay out too long.  They even wore their new hats that they got for Christmas from Aunt Jenny and Uncles Sam.... I consider it a small miracle that Addison left the hat on her head. They sure look adorable in them though! The last picture is the only one I got of them in the same shot.

Life is busy, and it always seems like we have specific things to do on the weekends. Yesterday, however, we had nothing planned. It was nice to get up and go with the flow of the day! After a breakfast of cake (pancakes) and some playtime we decided to go explore a nearby (and very small!) town. We went into a few shops, then had lunch at a restaurant that only had 1 highchair.... that should tell you how small the town is. :) Luckily, they also had a booster seat, so Addison got to sit in that. While we were there, our server told us how well behaved Addison and Fischer were. I know it's not always the case, but it's certainly nice to hear!!

After lunch, we made a couple stops and then headed to the mall. I can't remember the last time we went to the mall to leisurely walk around on a Saturday afternoon. I actually can't believe Scott agreed to it! Addison and Fischer had a great time riding around in this...

Then, we had an ice cream treat and headed home. It was a nice way to spend our family day!

Things have been slow going with our new house, but progress is still being made. A lot of smaller things have been done this week, so it's hard to actually see any differences, but they are there.

As of this morning, more blocks were moved into place so that once they actually start laying them things will move quickly. They also put the strings up that indicate how high the blocks need to go.   Some areas are quite high because our house will be on a hill, so the side with our deck will be quite high off the ground! There is also now a porta-potty and a microwave on site... exciting stuff! It's neat to see these changes but I am ready to see something big happen! I just need to be patient.

In other news, I can hardly believe that it was two years ago today that I was admitted to the hospital because I was in labor, and then put on bedrest. We all thought that Addison and Fischer were coming that day, so today could've been their 2nd birthday. Thank God they decided to behave and wait 7 more weeks!

After an eventful and tiring week, Fischer finally seems to be on the mend. And Addison is still healthy. Woohoo!!  I ended up having to take Fischer to the doctor yesterday... poor kid can't  catch a break! He woke up with a rash all over his stomach and back, and I was worried he was allergic to his antibiotic. The doctor determined it wasn't an allergy-related rash, and that it was most likely from a viral infection. He's doing better today and will hopefully be back to normal tomorrow!

While things have been stressful with Fischer, Addison has kept me laughing.

Yesterday morning, I woke up to Addison saying "Mama! Mama!" She wasn't crying but it sounded sort of like she was panicking. My first thought was that she had a fever and wasn't feeling well. I went into their room and found her standing at the corner of her crib. She was holding her pajamas (they were the 1 piece, zip up kind, and even had the feet attached)... she was saying "on! on!" Then, I looked down and her not-so-clean diaper was halfway off. I made it there just in time!! She undressed herself again today while playing. I think it might be time to start up the potty training again (which we stopped when we realized Addison wasn't as ready as we thought) or we could have some serious messes on our hands.

Today, she was playing by herself with some Legos they got for Christmas. She was building a tower, and it eventually broke in half. I overheard her say "Oh no!! Shoot!" It was so funny, and she said it several more times today.

Fischer has become quite the little wrestler. He will tackle anything from Addison to a pillow! Today, he kept running up to me and throwing his arms around my neck and pressing his face into mine. I think he was trying to be "tough" and wrestle but it was actually very sweet. :)

I need to get better about writing this stuff down because they are constantly saying funny things!

A couple days after Christmas, we traveled to my Grandma's house to see her and some other family. My parents were there visiting too, so it was a nice little gathering. We spent one night, and Addison and Fischer had their first stay in a bed and breakfast. I think they enjoyed it, especially the cake (pancakes) that the owner made. :)

Addison and Fischer met some of my family for the first time while we were there! They didn't spend too much time getting to know anyone though - they were way too busy exploring my Grandma's house... and by exploring I mean climbing on her low coffee table, trying to jump on her bed and pulling all of her books out of her bookcase. Addison also learned a new trick... she was fascinated watching my cousin's 3 year old jump off the bed. Addison kept trying to do it too, but I was there so that she couldn't actually jump on her own. Now, I see her all the time on our couch and in her crib counting to three ("two, three, twooo!"), then jumping straight up and landing on her butt (or as Addison and Fischer call it, hiney). It's so funny and she has the best time.

My Grandma happens to live across the street from a fire station, so we also ventured over there and asked if Addsion and Fischer could look at the trucks. They nice firemen weren't busy, so they were happy to show us around and let them sit in the truck with Scott! I don't know who was more excited - Scott or the kids (probably Scott, since it looks like Fischer is trying to jump out of the truck)...

I hate it when Addison and Fischer are sick. I hate that there isn't a whole lot I can do for them, and that they can't really tell me what's wrong. And I REALLY don't like it when Scott starts to worry, because then I really start to freak out.

Back up a few days.... On Saturday, Fischer was a little grumpy in the morning but it didn't seem like anything out of the ordinary.  When he woke up from his nap, he felt really hot when I picked him up. He had a fever - 102. We gave him some Tylenol and it went down a little bit. He was still grumpy and not eating as much as normal, but didn't seem to have any other symptoms (no runny nose, no cough, no getting sick, etc...).  Later that night, around 3 a.m., he woke up crying. Scott went in there to check on him and he was extremely hot. He had another fever - this time 104. His little body was so hot! Scott gave him a luke warm bath to try and cool him off, and it seemed to work. We gave him some more Tylenol and then he went back to sleep. He woke up around 5 a.m. and was crying again. When I went in, he was covered in sweat and his fever was down to 101. I held him for a little while, then he went back to sleep.

Sunday morning he woke up and refused to eat breakfast, which is very unlike him. There were still no other symptoms so we were confused by the fever. All day, it kept creeping up, getting up to 102.5 at one point. After Tylenol it would go back down, then slowly creep up again between doses.  He didn't eat much at lunch or dinner either but was drinking, so that was good. Scott was getting him ready for bed and commented on how hot he was. His fever was 105. We both freaked out a little. Scott gave him another luke warm bath, and it came down a little bit. We wanted him to see a doctor because it seemed so weird that the fever kept coming back higher. We talked about our options since it was a Sunday night. I talked to the on call nurse at our pediatrician's office and she suggested waiting until Monday, but we weren't comfortable with that. He wasn't acting like himself and we knew something was off!

At first, one of us was going to stay home with Addison while the other took Fischer to the Emergency Room. We quickly realized that neither of us wanted to stay at home and wait. Thankfully, our friends, Jim and Dianne, quickly came over and stayed with Addison (she was already asleep) while we took Fischer.

We were at the ER for a little over 3 hours. We waited for awhile, and then they took his temperature (in a not so fun way, and he was NOT happy) and it was down to 102. They gave him some Motrin, and we waited some more.  Then they took his blood pressure (which was great!), and swabbed him for flu (in his nose, which made him mad all over again), and strep throat. The nurse also mentioned they may test him for RSV, which made my stomach turn a little. I've heard awful stories about RSV and was nervous when she even mentioned those 3 letters. Luckily, we never got that far in the testing process. After the flu and strep tests, we were sent out to wait... again. After an hour or so, Fischer was extremely restless. He was very tired, sick and confused about everything! We weren't sure how much longer we could wait. Luckily, we found a little room with just 2 chairs so everyone else in the waiting room didn't have to listen to his screaming and crying. :)

We ended up asking the nurse how much longer she thought it would be before we could see a doctor. She said we were next on the list to be called to the back. Then she checked our test results and told us that Fischer tested positive for strep throat!  That explained his lack of appetite, as I'm sure it hurt when he tried to swallow anything. So, the nurse said it was important that we wait for the doctor so he could get some medicine. She ended up sneaking the doctor up to our little room (since there were still a couple of people ahead of us on the list) so we could get out of there sooner.  She did a short exam, and saw little blisters in his throat. Poor thing!

Fischer got a dose of Augmentin, and they sent us home with a prescription for that, and instructions to alternate Tylenol and Motrin every 4 hours for fever and pain. We were also told to set our alarms for 3 nights so that we don't miss a dose. As long as his fever is under control after a few days, we can start stretching out the doses. We don't want to give the fever a chance to creep back up. So far today, he has been feverless!

Fischer seems to be feeling a little better and is finally drinking and eating a little more. He is still grumpy, but I don't blame him at all. Strep throat hurts! Now, we are just hoping that Addison, by some miracle, doesn't get it.

I'm glad that Soctt and I took him to the ER, even if the waiting wasn't fun. We were both so worried about his fever, and I'm glad we got an answer pretty quickly. Like I said, I hate it when they are sick!

Here we are in our little room. I'm smiling because we finally got some answers and were going to get to go home soon.  In the second picture, Fischer is looking out the window in the door - I'm sure he was thinking "Get me out of here!!"

I can't seem to get caught up around the house, so I've been busy trying to get some things done today. So, for now, I'll just say Happy New Year!

Here are Addison and Fischer before bed last night (they definitely did not make it until midnight)...

And last New Year's Eve before bed. They have changed so much this past year!  I think I'll try to do this type of picture each year before they go to bed....it might be a fun tradition.