Happy Father's Day!

We had a wonderful Father's Day today celebrating the dad's we love. We were at my parent's house because we went and saw Lion King last night so we had the extra treat of getting to be with my dad on Father's Day.

I am so thankful for Paul. He is an AMAZING father. He works so hard to provide for our family and then comes home and helps with the kids. I have loved watching him go from this guy who didn't know how to change a diaper to the guy who will clean up throw up off the carpet at 4am all by himself (that's a great story for another blog post but pretty much he's super dad and super husband). He went from a guy who could barely manage one child to the dad who takes 4 kids by himself to birthday parties and the grocery store. I love to watch the kid's faces light up when he comes home from work (especially JP...he's such a daddy's boy!). I'm so thankful that my children have a dad who shows them what a Christian husband and father looks like!

I am so thankful for my dad. Two children and four grandchildren later and he still may not know how to change a diaper but he is the BEST dad and Grandaddy. I have loved watching my kids warm up to their loud, wild Grandaddy. He has acquired the nickname "Boo" as he is prone to hide around corners and jump out and scare them. I love to watch him play chasse around the house with them just like he did when I was little. It's always so sweet to walk in a room and see him reading with them or playing quietly. These kiddos love their Grandaddy and JP has decided that he needs to be Grandaddy's shadow. I'm pretty sure my dad didn't make a move this weekend without JP right behind him. I'm so thankful that I had a dad that I could look up to and I always knew that I wanted to marry a man like my dad.

I was so fortunate to gain a wonderful father-in-law when I married Paul. I am so thankful to Fred for raising 2 amazing young men. He raised Paul to be respectful, and loving, and selfless, and to put family first and most of all he taught him from an early age to love God. I have loved watching the tough football coach who only had boys melt when the little girls come around. And I have loved watching him with a grandson. He loves the grandbabies so much and it shows every time he's around them.

The kids and I are blessed beyond measure to have these wonderful men in our lives!

20 months!

I am 20 months old!

• I wear a size 5 diaper, size 12-18mo shorts and size 18-24mo shirts, and a size 5-6 shoe.
• I sleep from 8pm-7:20ish in the morning (when we have to leave to take my sisters to school). I take a nap from 12-2:30.
• I still don't say a lot of words but we're working on it. I know how to say many words I just generally choose not to say them.
• I still love my pacifiers.
• I love my sisters. Especially my buddy Ruthie!

• I LOVE the water. The splash pad makes me super happy as does the water table at home. My sisters have been taking swim lessons and I can't wait until the pool opens and I finally get a turn in the water!

• This month I went to Aunt Suzy and Uncle Clyde's house for cousin's weekend. I had a great time getting lots of hugs and playing with their dogs...and the other kids. But the dogs were the highlight of my trip!

• I love to throw things...and I'm really good at it!
• I'm a great climber. I can get in and out of the car and my carseat by myself.
• I love anything that makes noise. Even better if it makes a loud noise when I throw it!
• I can be entertained for a long time with kitchen items. A container of uncooked noodles and a spoon are so much fun!

• I'm loving books more and more each month. My favorite books are one from the library called Huggy Kissy and any book about Clifford.
• At night I sleep with my little pillow, 2 aden and anais blankets, Clifford, and my pacifiers.
• I like to wear hats.
• I think grandparents are GREAT!

Emmie at 20 months.

Ellie at 20 months.


Ruthie at 20 months.

End of the School Year

Today was our last day of school! Emmie and Ellie had such WONDERFUL years and we are so thankful for their sweet teachers and sweet friends that helped make it so great.

Evelyn is an honorary Edwards kid :)

Emmie's friend Abby is moving to Okinawa this summer. Abby broke my heart wiping away her tears to take this picture. We'll miss her!

Emmie got the teacher that she had been dead set on having AND her best friend, Evelyn, was in the same class. She also had a little boy from her class last year that was in her class again this year. Poor guy. Within the first few days of school last year she made him her "project" and she was thrilled to have him in her class again. I guess they figured he needed to be with his "mother"!

Our tradition...a "bench" picture with Evelyn and Emmie at the beginning and end of the school year...August 2016

May 2017...these sweet girls have grown up so much!

This year Emmie grew even more as a reader. I'm constantly amazed at what a great reader she is! She struggled some in math but I'm so proud of how hard she worked on her math assignments and I loved seeing her big smile when she figured it out! She started doing spelling tests and reading comprehension tests (they were graded but didn't count for anything). I'm proud of how determined she was to make 100 on her tests and I loved celebrating when she FINALLY went from a 90 to a 100 on the comprehension...she was so determined!

Emmie's teacher was just amazing. We had such a great year with her. AND...the BEST part...she's looping to second grade! We're beyond excited. (As an FYI, looping is when a teacher follows her class to the next grade. She'll have many of the same kids with some new ones added in as they had a few that moved at the end of the school year.) As a parent I love that we will start second grade already knowing our teacher very well and knowing how she operates. It's also nice to know, roughly, which friends will be in the class.

Emmie LOVES her teacher!

Ellie had a different teacher than Emmie did in kindergarten. She absolutely loved her teacher and the aide in the room. Ellie is sure that her teacher is the smartest teacher ever. She was always coming home telling us some interesting fact that her teacher told her about whatever their unit of study was that week. She would tell us all the time how smart her teacher was.
I am so proud of all that Ellie accomplished this year. She learned to read, has excelled in math, and LOVES to write! Her teacher told me that Ellie always goes above and beyond on any assignment. For instance, the kids will be told to write a sentence about their picture and Ellie will write a story. This was the child that a year and half ago we could barely get to write her name. I'm SO proud of her! Ellie is very excited about heading to 1st grade and we can't wait to watch her grow even more!

Ellie and her teacher. The other teacher was out sick this day so I wasn't able to get a picture of Ellie with her.

Tonsils

Ruthie got her tonsils out yesterday. She has had throat pain almost every day since mid February so we were VERY ready to get her tonsils out (although, I'm pretty sure our pediatrician might be going through Ruthie withdrawals...we were there all the time between February and mid April).

We headed to the hospital yesterday morning. Ruthie of course charmed everyone and was super patient before surgery. She had to get a finger stick and did awesome...she didn't even flinch! Child life came in and played with her while she was getting the finger stick and that definitely helped. Then she had to drink some medicine and she took it like a champ. They loaded her up with prizes for her fabulousness. Then she got to pick out her hat to wear during surgery. She picked a princess hat of course.

The nurses in preop were wonderful. I was really happy because Ruthie's nurse anesthetist came in and it was one of my sorority sisters. Lauren was a year or two behind me in school and I was so happy that she was going to be taking care of Ruthie! Ruthie happily headed back to the OR with Lauren and the doctor and Paul and I headed to the waiting room.


Ruthie's surgery was just over 30 minutes and I was able to go back to the recovery minutes within a few minutes of getting the call that the surgery was over. I walked into the recovery room to a VERY angry little girl. She was hurting and mad, mad, mad!

We finally got her calmed down and settled in my lap. Paul headed to work once I texted him that Ruthie was ok. We were being admitted overnight and of course the Children's Hospital was full that day so we were in the recovery room for about 4 hours waiting for a bed.

We had a really nice nurse in recovery and I was very thankful that she asked me if I wanted something to eat after we had been in there awhile. I had eaten a small breakfast at 8 and so by 2pm I was pretty hungry! The goldfish she brought me were pretty great! Ruthie was pretty angry and fussy the whole time we were in recovery. She did eat a popsicle and drink some juice.

Getting a little snooze in recovery.

After we had been there for a few hours her doctor came back through and Ruthie started crying and glaring at him when he came by. As soon as he walked back around the corner she instantly stopped crying. The nurse and I were pretty amused!

A little bit happier after her nap.

We finally made it up to our room around 3:30. We were on my floor and so of course we were very well taken care of! Ruthie was very glad to get into her bed and be somewhere quieter. She just laid around in bed all afternoon and watched TV. She was pretty glazed over. My friend Meredith was our nurse and she took excellent care of us, as did all of my coworkers who dropped in to see us. Ruthie ate a another popsicle after we got to her room. I had brought her favorite lime popsicles and put them in the freezer on the floor a few days before and she was thrilled to have them. Our child life specialist, Kendall, came by and brought Ruthie some movies to watch and a teddy bear and coloring sheets to take home. Paul came by at dinnertime and brought me Groucho's...yumm. That was the first real food I'd had all day and it was sooo good.

She was so glad to get to her bed!

Once Lauren, our night nurse, came in and did her assessment I settled Ruthie down to go to sleep. Ruthie had a REALLY rough night until about 3am. She was waking up crying and holding her throat about every 15minutes. Sometimes she would settle back down with just a little pat and sometimes she could cry and scream and kick and just be really mad. She was fussing enough during those episodes that a few times Lauren came in to check on her. Poor Lauren had the fun job of bringing Ruthie her pain medicine 3 times. Ruthie was not amused. After her dose of pain medicine around 3am we got her settled back down and she actually slept until about 6:30. By then I was sooo ready for some good sleep!

This morning my coworker Cari brought me Chick-fil-a. I was sooo happy to see that CFA chicken biscuit! I had been trying to get Ruthie interested in some food like applesauce or a muffin but she was not interested at all. Well that CFA came in and her eyes lit up. She ate a couple bites of the biscuit part which made me quite happy. then she decided that she might like some chocolate ice cream for breakfast. I was happy to oblige. She scarfed down her ice cream and was pretty excited to have such a special breakfast!

Ice cream for breakfast earned a half smile.

Ruthie's doctor came in to see her and that little flirt, who hadn't cracked a smile or talked to anyone who wasn't family since surgery, popped up in bed with a big grin on her face and held out her arms for a hug. I guess she felt she had to make up for crying when she saw him in recovery. After the doctor left Meredith came and took out her IV and discharged us and we headed home! I was sooo glad to get out of their quickly and get Ruthie home to her own bed! She was definitely pretty blah feeling when we got home (by way of a quick stop at chick fil a to get her a plain biscuit). She laid around and watched TV for a bit. Then she started perking up. By lunch time she was much more willing to eat and had a few bites of fruit, biscuit, and cheese and a bowl of chocolate ice cream. She also had a popsicle before lunch. We played a game with Gran and then Ruthie and I laid down to take a nap. It was such a good nap. We were both worn out and then it started raining. Perfect nap weather.  My mom went and got the big girls from school and Ruthie slept until after they got home. The big girls were so glad to see Ruthie and Emmie was excited to give Ruthie the book and card that Emmie's teacher had sent for Ruthie. Ruthie felt so special. Within an hour or so of the big girls being home Ruthie had perked up enough to go play in the puddles outside with them. She asked for noodles and cheese for dinner and ate two servings and was going strong tonight long after her sisters went to sleep! I am so happy that my little curly headed baby was back this afternoon. I know there will be some rough days ahead but it was nice to have a good day early on!

My mom came and helped out while we were at the hospital and she's staying until tomorrow and then Paul's parents are coming to help out tomorrow and Friday. I am so thankful to have grandparents that are so willing to come help and that live close enough to come help!

We had such good care the whole time we were at the hospital. It is definitely different being on the "other side" and you have a whole different perspective. I couldn't have asked or a better experience! Everyone was so friendly and helpful and so sweet to Ruthie. I have always been proud of our Children's Hospital because I work there and I think we do a pretty fabulous job but experiencing it as a parent makes me even prouder of my hospital and my coworkers! (On a side note as relates to having a different perspective: We had talked to Ruthie beforehand and told her that she would be spending the night at the hospital and I would stay with her. We got all settled in our room and everyone left and she looked at me with big, tear-filled eyes and said "I thought you were spending the night?" I reassured her that I was. She then said "but where are you going to sleep!?!" as a big tear rolled down her cheek. Poor baby. She didn't see another bed and thought she was being abandoned! I assured her that I would be sleeping on the couch in the room and she immediately calmed down. Poor baby! It has never occurred to me that a small child might not realize their parent can sleep on the couch!)

Dance Recital

Emmie and Ruthie both took dance this year. Emmie took ballet and jazz and Ruthie took creative movement (ballet and tap). They both had WONDERFUL teachers and enjoyed dance so much. The dance recital was this past Saturday. They were really excited and had a great time dancing on the stage!

Ruthie was in the 9:30 recital and Emmie was in the 11:30 recital so we got a babysitter for JP!

Ruthie's class danced to the Aristocats. They were adorable.

Ruthie and her friend Ellie

Emmie's ballet class danced to "True Colors". Emmie does such a good job in ballet...I love to watch her dance.

Emmie's jazz class danced to "I'm Still Standing"

Ellie got a flower for being such a trooper. She had to sit and watch from 930-130 and she was awesome!

We had dress rehearsal last week. Gin-g came to watch since they weren't going to be at the recital and I was so glad to have the extra pair of hands! I was able to video the girls during the dance recital.


(Emmie is on the end of the front row)



(at the very beginning Emmie is the second from the left)

Roo's Swim Lessons

Ruthie just finished up 2 weeks of swim lessons with Palmetto Aquatics. She was SO excited for swim lessons this year and she learned a lot over her 2 weeks. We still have to work on getting her to kick her legs out instead of bicycle kicking but other than that she was doing awesome! We got lucky and Ruthie had the same teacher both weeks AND it was her teacher the second week she took last year. It definitely helped the first day for Ruthie to have someone she already knew. I LOVED her attitude throughout the two weeks. She was always ready to swim and she kept a big smile on her face the majority of the time. The first week she was having a lot of throat pain and then she drank a lot of water the first day which did horrible things to her stomach but she never complained during her lessons and she didn't let it slow her down when she was swimming. This kiddo is a trooper!

Week 1




Week 2


(Also, apparently roo can dive!)




She is so ready for the pool this summer! Ruthie gets to be on the mini team for swim team this year and she is beyond excited to do swim team like the big girls!

Emmie goes to Summerville

A few weekends ago Emmie got her turn to go to Summerville to spend the weekend with GiGi and PaPa all by herself. Of all the kids she was definitely the most anxious about going. She is very much a Mama's girl who likes to be at her own house with all her people. She gave us lots of hugs before she left (as opposed to Ellie and Ruthie who grabbed their bag and bolted for the car)! She of course had a wonderful time...although she was stuck to me like glue when she got back and told us she missed us over and over. She has had the best time telling us all about her adventures! Like the rest of the girls, she's already planning what she's going to do when she goes back!



Gin-g sent me this picture Saturday morning. Emmie got up and made her bed. She loves to make her bed and have things neat and orderly!


They did SO much on Saturday. Emmie had lots of great experiences!

They went to Angel Oak.



They went to the Fire Museum.

Emmie told me she got nervous driving the fire truck. I love her and how serious she takes things.

She made badges for herself and JP.

There were replicas of the Nina and the Pinta docked in Charleston and so she got to go see them. So neat!

They took her out for a nice dinner. She really, really enjoyed that! She's at a great age to do things like that but at home if it doesn't have a playground we generally don't go so I'm thrilled that she got to have this experience!

Emmie wanted to go to a River Dogs game but it ended up being sold out so they took her to Folly Beach and the pier instead. She was excited that she got to watch some people catch fish!

Krispy Kreme doughnuts! AND they brought us back a dozen doughnuts...win!

When Emmie got home she lined up Ellie and Ruthie and told them all about her adventures. She had a few small presents for them and she gave them their presents in a very orderly fashion.