The Nelson Adventures

Dinosaur Exhibit

2011-08-12T17:37:00.000-05:00

This summer we joined the Museum of Natural Science and History and got to see the Dinosaur Exhibit at the Sugarland museum. I don't know about the kids, but I had a blast checking out the dinosaurs and can't wait to go back again.

my kids, so photogenic!!

T-Rex

this is a turtle, wow, that's one ginormous turtle!!

Moving and Selling

2011-06-16T15:05:00.003-05:00

It's almost official!!

We will officially have our house up for sale by this Saturday.

When Ryan came home from Afghanistan it was to a new job in the Woodlands. That's great, we love him having a job right after coming home except that we live in the Cypress area which is very far away from the Woodlands.

I love my house.

I love the open spaces.

I love all the space and nooks and crannies that I've been afforded in this house.

I do not love my small yard.

I do not love sitting on my front patio and having people's car lights in my eyes because we are at the cross street.

We decided it would time well spent to just look and see what houses were available near Ryan's office. We happened to find an older home that has an large, shaded big back yard and a covered patio. It has a big garage and a storage shed and it's only 8 miles from ryan's office.

Woohoo.

The downside, no gameroom and an itty bitty kitchen/pantry. It also has wood paneling throughout the living room and a fireplace.

But I can live without a game room and I can paint over the walls and one day redo my kitchen if it means my family can have an awesome back yard and we can be minutes from Ryan's office.

So we put an offer on it and after some negotiations they agreed to sell us their house. We will be closing next week and moving out of our house about two weeks later. We will have our house listed this weekend but only living here while it's listed for a few weeks. Hopefully, all our updates and paint will help our house sell fast so we only have one mortgage to worry about. I'll post pics soon of our new house.

I can't wait to get in the new house and paint, paint, paint!!

My cutie patatooties

2011-04-19T13:24:00.000-05:00

So my kids are close in age and usually have a love/hate relationship. Lately they love much more than they dislike each other so they have been getting into all kinds of trouble together. And of course everything brother can do, sister can do better, this seems to be the motto in my house. (Please ignore my daughter's lack of shorts, lately she pulls them off as soon as I look away.)

Mackenzie is trying to pull her brother on the blanket. He is ginormous and she had a hard time getting him around.

She finally has given up and has decided to play with him, I love their smiles!!

Schroeder has decided it's his turn, of course Z is much easier to pull around.

Mama and Schroeder before school (ignore the jelly covered mouth)

Z decided she should pose for Daddy

Z got a new Dora nightgown and a pink hat, so she decided she should wear her new nightgown in the middle of the day. And Schroeder thought he should wear a hat if she was wearing a hat. Of course, he picked one of Z's hats.

What is she thinking, that is a confused look.

My Dora gown and spring hat, tada!

Thomas the Train

2011-04-18T15:42:00.000-05:00

Ryan is home and we are super excited. Yay!! He started work today at his new job in the Woodlands. We are trying to decide if we want to stay in our house or try to sell our house and move closer to his office. We already tried to sell our house in the last 2 years and it didn't get many viewings, so we don't know yet what we are doing.

I visited a friend's blog recently and saw that she and her family did A Day with Thomas and it looked awesome. We lucked out in that it was in Rusk this past weekend which is only 3 hours away from us. So we packed up the kids on Thursday and took them on a suprise trip to Rusk, TX. The kids were very excited about sleeping in a hotel and stayed up till 10:30, eek. We got up early Friday morning and went to the train station. We had so much fun and the people were all very friendly. The Thomas train will be in Burnet in September and we might just have to go do it again.

Goobers

2011-04-18T15:07:00.000-05:00

I haven't taken many pictures lately because we have been taken over by sickness in this house. We've been sick about 7/8 times since the end of December. Many times we get sick just 2 weeks after getting better from the last time we were sick. So I have rarely taken my camera out, but I am hoping to rectify this soon.

We got new couches in December and the kids love to bounce and play all over them. I decided to take some pictures of the kids being goobers.

Zoo in December

2011-01-10T15:27:00.000-06:00

The Zoo in December

Portrait Innovations 2010

2011-01-10T14:54:00.003-06:00

Ryan came home for 10 days in December and we managed to get some family pictures before everybody got sick and before Daddy went home. The kids weren't very cooperative but we managed to get a few great shots!

Beach

2010-10-12T22:25:00.000-05:00

This summer I took the kids to Corpus for a few days and one of our main goals was to go to the beach. Of course, we picked a day where there was not any breeze(almost unheard of in Corpus) and it was over 100degrees. Schroeder's cheeks get red if it's 85 degrees outside, so we didn't get to stay long. We did manage to play for a little bit and I got a few good pictures.

What is that on my toes?

Blgh, it feels gross!

This sand is everywhere and won't come off!

Family Pictures

2010-10-08T22:54:00.000-05:00

We took family pictures this summer when Ryan was able to visit us for a few days. Mackenzie would not smile and Schroeder managed to smile a few times in between the crying. Oh well, we will try again in December and next summer. One day we will manage to get everybody to smile in the same picture.

Soon

2010-08-08T23:24:00.005-05:00

So we have been very, very busy in the last couple of months. We have been out of town often and/or we have been sick and stuck in our house.

We have one last trip before the summer is up. We are going to the river this week to hang out with my dad and stepmother. When we return we will have no more trips for awhile AND the kids start Mother's Day Out. Yay!

Once we are settled back home again after our last hurrah trip, I will begin to recap all that has gone on the last couple of months.

P.S.- Ryan was able to come home for two weeks in July, so we were able to hang out and enjoy him for a little while before he had to go back overseas. Here are a few pictures of us hanging out together.

San Antonio Vacation

2010-05-13T13:50:00.012-05:00

1. Sea World

Well, we made it to Boerne and we all loaded up and went to Sea World. We had to stop at Grandma's school first so she check on some things and we ended up getting to watch a cement truck pouring concrete for a patio/sidewalk. The men let Schroeder and I hold the drain while the mix poured out. It was great until I got some on my leg and I had us move away. Schroeder still remembers it getting on my leg.

We got to Sea World a little later than planned but we went to our first show and the kids did great. We went to lunch afterwards and the melting began. My kids are less trusting when I walk away b/c for all they know Daddy walked away and hasn't come back yet. So as I'm getting food the kids are with Grandpa and freaking out hysterically. I don't know until I'm checking out and I hear them and then see them. Let's just say nobody got to eat food for about an hour and a half, we finally convinced the kids to eat popcorn and they were better. We got to see the sharks, dolphins, fish, pengiuns, sea lions and seals, feed some birds and some seals. IT was a great day!!

2. Natural Bridge Wildlife Ranch

We had so much fun doing this and it was only a half hour from my inlaws place. We took Grandma, Grandpa, me, Schroeder, Mackenzie, and grabbed Nonni when we got there. Mackenzie got a snack when we got there and couldn't be bothered with animals until it was gone. Schroeder had so much fun seeing all the animals. Grandpa was the lucky one that fed the animals and many of then came up to his window to get the food. A few ostriches were done eating and we started to drive off and they decided they wanted a little more so they stuck their head back in and gave us all quite a scare. There were some animals that had these bugeyes that gave me the hibby-jibbies just looking at them. But overall we had many giggles and animal viewings while there.

The animal that gives me the hibby jibbies. Look at its' eyes.

This zebra came to my window and stared at me. It really wanted me to feed it but my window is broken so I couldn't put food out for it. Poor zebra, he really tried to stare me down for some food!

We weren't sure if he wanted food from us or was dancing to scare us off. He put on quite a performance.

Schroeder feeding the goats.

A Vacation

2010-04-21T23:37:00.003-05:00

We're heading to Boerne tomorrow and come Friday, weather permitting we're going to Sea World. Yay!! Ryan's parents, Grandma and Grandpa, and my mom, Nonni are going with us. Yay!! It's going to be our first family vacation and unfortunately our first one without Daddy, but we will take lots of pictures so he can pretend like he was with us.

I've been talking to Schroeder about it, so we will see how he reacts. I bought the kids some cute fish/whale/shark outfits and we are ready to go. If it doesn't rain on Saturday then we will try to go to the Natural Bridge Wildlife Safari. I'm so excited and a bit nervous. I guess I better get to bed because I get to finish up loading the car in the morning, dropping off the dogs at the kennel, and driving the long drive to Boerne. Oiy, what did I get myself into!!

Hats and Aprons

2010-04-06T22:04:00.006-05:00

Aprons and hats make great dress-up fun!!

What a good job he's doing!

Oh no! It broke, now what?

Hi, I'm cute!

(Tip hat) Howdy pardner!

Keep your head down and nobody will ever know it's you

Hmm, what is it?

Definitely not Schroeder

Such a hoot!

2010-03-26T13:10:00.005-05:00

Mackenzie...

* is fiesty and passionate about everything she does or wants.

* has red hair(thus the fiestyness in her).

* loves her brother.

* believes everything brother can do she can do better.

* likes to be heard and will use a high octave voice to alert you of her wants.

* is such a goofball and has a hilarious pretend grin/laugh she does all the time.

* babbles all the time, especially "that". She will say that repeatedly 30 times in a row really fast.

* is a tomboy, she will let us put a bow in hair but it won't be there long.

* loves, loves, loves all of her brother's toys and would rather stay and sleep in his room as opposed to her toys and bed.
* is loved by her family.

My kids

2010-03-19T13:35:00.004-05:00

Look at those teeth! She grows teeth almost as fast as Schroeder did at her age.

He's saying "cheese".
I can't believe the chin on him. It's so defined.
Cute girl

Riding on brother's truck. She doesn't want to ride on any of her girl toys, she only likes brother's boy riding toys!

She love her tongue and sticking it out and playing with it. She's a goober!

Mama and Mackenzie

Can you see the dog's eyes in the background? Spooky!

Homemade dress

2010-03-18T22:22:00.004-05:00

I was able to get some clothes from my mom this summer that were ones that I wore when I was little. I put Mackenzie in one of the dresses a few weeks ago and she was too cute.

Going Away

2010-02-19T13:23:00.005-06:00

So we didn't sell our house which means we took it off the market.
Ryan's company only paid for a few weeks of living expenses so almost all of our savings has been depleted trying to have us live separate lives the past 7 months.
We were faced with a tough decision about what to do.
Tough decision made - Ryan's going away again. I can't actually say the name or I will start tearing up and if you know me that doesn't happen very easily.
Not sure how I'm gonna survive the next year without at least seeing Ryan on the weekends.
Fortunately I'll have a traveling allowance of sorts so I will take the kids once a month and go somewhere, anywhere so long as it's not here.
Ryan leaves in about a week and I don't have grad school anymore to keep me preoccupied so I'm hoping to start going crazy with taking pictures, scrapbooking, and sewing(got a sewing machine for Xmas) just so that it keeps me busy.

We're gonna miss you while you're gone but we will be counting down the days until you get to come home on each R&R!!!

Mackenzie's birthday

2010-02-10T14:19:00.013-06:00

The week of Mackenzie's birthday Schroeder got real sick with a cold. He was coughing and sneezing and just pitiful and by Thursday Mackenzie was sick as well. We called grandparents and told them they were welcome to come but they risked the chance of getting sick. Grandparents all decided to come anyways. The day of her birthday party Mackenzie slept halfway through her party. She wouldn't wake up, poor girl. We finally were able to wake her and then everybody got to watch her eat. She wasn't sure what was going on and why everybody stared at her while she ate.

When it came to eat her cake she couldn't figure out why we were letting her get messy and dig in, she kept hesitating when it came to her cake. Presents didn't really interest her until they were opened up and played with. Overall we had fun and she was able to enjoy her birthday for a little while.

Mackenzie's big present was a Cozy Coupe. We gave it to her after she woke up, so she looks a little tired in the pictures.

Successful Surgery

2010-01-31T10:56:00.003-06:00

Schroeder's surgery was successful. When we got to the hospital they took us back to a preop room pretty quickly. The nurse let Schroeder play in a wagon and then it was time for his happy cocktail. It definitely made him happy, I wish I had recorded how goofy he became after drinking that medicine. The nurses took my baby away and within 25 minutes the dr came to tell us it was all done. He said the adnoids were so large he could only see adnoids. Oiy! Dr. Toung said we should notice a big difference immediately. If he can sleep and eat then I will be a happy mama.

He's been home a few days now and he's starting to feel more like himself. His throat hurts but he is starting to eat pudding and drink his juice so I think he's on the road to recovery.

Surgery

2010-01-23T12:51:00.000-06:00

Schroeder went to the ENT a week ago and the dr. decided Schroeder's tonsils needed to come out. He told us we could wait until he's 3 but then he might not make any progress in speech. He's in speech because he's not talking, so we decided to go ahead and schedule surgery. He will have his tonsils out this Thursday, Jan. 28. Since he's under the age of 3 he has to stay in the hospital overnight. I'm hoping he's so groggy afterwards that he just sleeps, otherwise we will have one freaked out little boy on our hands.

The dr. said he will have a very bad sore throat and that days 4-7 will be the worst of his recovery. He also told me to have Schroeder relax and not move much, but if you've ever met Schroeder he's never one to sit still. We'll have to see how this recovery goes.

He's been to see his speech teacher, Ms. Christie, twice now and he seems to like her. She plays with him and acts really silly so that helps. We have homework we work on at home and he has to either sign or attempt the word when he is talking with me. For example, if I say "bubbles" then he has to say a word that sounds similar to bubbles and has two parts to it. He usually says "da dl" which is close enough. Ms. Christie said after surgery his tongue will have more space to lay down correctly which will help him be able to say the sounds better. Speech has already him be more aware that words are important to use so he has been trying to say more things and even trying to repeat me when I say things to Mackenzie. Hopefully getting his tonsils out will make it easier for him to speak and he will start talking our heads off!!

Speakin

2010-01-09T21:37:00.001-06:00

So Schroeder is still not speaking and it's been a concern for us for about half a year because we kept thinking he should at least be saying "Mama" and "Daddy". The best he can do is "Da" and he's 2 1/2. I took him to an audiologist in November and his hearing is great and he did so well in the little hearing booth the audiologist really wished she had recorded him because he responded so perfectly.

The next step was getting him evaluated by an speech therapist. I took him this past Friday and it turns out he does need speech and also a visit to an ENT. She said that he has apraxia tendencies which means his brain doesn't send the signal to his mouth to make the speech motions and movements. There's more to it but that's the simple version. Also, he has a tongue thrust and part of that is because of his ENLARGED tonsils. She was talking to me about how his bite is off when he bites down and that it could be caused by a tongue thrust. So she proceeds to look at his tonsils and gasps. She handed me the flashlight and made me look and his tonsils are so big you can't see down his throat. I guess that's why he's only requested fruit cups the past week!!

She said that with enlarged tonsils the tongue is not able to rest correctly and that causes a tongue thrust. The tongue thrust also makes it hard for him to make sounds correctly. Anyways, she suggested speech and a visit to the ENT to see about his tonsils. I'm nervous about him possibly needing surgery, but if he needs it so be it. I am just so glad I'm not a crazy person thinking my child should be speaking by now. He wants to communicate with us and has learned to point, prod, and yell at us to get our attention and has learned to drag us places to tell us what he wants. I am so glad that he will be getting speech and hope the new therapist will provide us better ways to communicate with each other as well as help him begin to use his mouth muscles so that he can start speaking. He starts Monday so I will have to let ya'll know how it goes.

P.S. - I have birthday pics from Mackenzie's party as well as Christmas pics that I will be posting soon.

Decorating the tree

2009-12-21T21:31:00.000-06:00

The weekend after Thanksgiving we decorated our little tree and this was the tree the kids got to help us decorate.

Not sure what everyone's doing.

She's decided she can help out by trying to pull the lights off the tree, sorry Mackenzie they are attached to the tree.

Posing for the camera

Brother and sister putting on ornaments

The kids loved being able to help put ornaments on the tree. I think Mackenzie's favorite part was posing for the camera.

Playing in Mama's Room

2009-12-21T20:56:00.000-06:00

My kids love playing in my room, so we are often all in there listening to music and playing around. I was able to get a few pictures this day while the kids played.

He was acting like an inchworm and crawling along the floor.

That tongue is her new favorite friend. She shows it often.

Schroeder loves playing peek-a-boo, so he loves to hide behind the curtains and have us wonder where he could be hiding.

I wish I knew what he is thinking when I snapped the picture.

Halloween Fun

2009-11-04T20:53:00.000-06:00

The Zoo

We decided to go to Zoo Boo at the Houston Zoo the morning of Halloween. The weather said it would be cool in the morning, so our kids didn't wear their costumes to the zoo, but the animals didn't mind. In fact, it appeared several times that the animals were posing just for us. Wasn't that so nice and considerate of them.

Too cute, my boy is too cute for words, of course I'm pretty biased!

Fall Festival

Our church didn't have a trunk-or-treat this year, but we managed to find one near us that had a fall festival of sorts on Halloween, so we decided our kids would get dressed up and we do that instead of going door to door for candy. They had all kinds of inflatable bouncing things that were too big for Schroeder to do, but they did have a trunk-or-treat, a small petting zoo and some fun games to play. We had a great time.

His first score for the day.

My pirate, arggh

He got bandaged in the Kooky clinic.

Have sword, will use. Give me my candy!

sitting pretty, loving this picture

The Zoo with a Buddy

2009-11-04T20:29:00.000-06:00

Valerie and I are friends and lucky for us we each have a boy and even luckier than that they like to play together. It had been raining forever and ever around here. The days it didn't rain the outside was so muddy that we couldn't go out to play. We have a membership to the zoo and I had been wanting to take the kids but the weather wouldn't allow it. Finally we had two days of nice weather and Valerie and I made the zoo the play date. The boys had fun. They got to run around on a gorgeous day looking at animals. Mackenzie was content just to hang out in the stroller. It was a great day!

Checking out elephants

Going solo

The baby elephant

Watching this giraffe and trying to figure out what it was doing was a hoot. It spread its' legs, went down, stood up again, spread its' legs further and bent over again all to get some greens on the ground. I have never seen a girafe do that for any reason.

Hmm, do I like flamingos?
Just hanging out!

Our pumpkin

2009-10-23T13:16:00.000-05:00

Saying cheese over and over again after noticing my camera.

This is as close as Schroeder got to helping dady take out the pumpkin guts.

Playing in the kitchen while the boys worked.

Schroeder decorated his own pumpkin.

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-23T13:06:00.000-05:00

I read about a pumpkin patch that was near our neighborhood so when my dad came to visit we decided to go check it out. They have only been open on the weekends in October. When we got it was very muddy and not quite what the adults expected. They did let us in free because it was the first weekend it hadn't rained and they were not ready. Schroeder got so excited at getting to see the ponies that it was worth going. We got to pet some chicks and rabbits, pick out a pumpkin, and Schroeder was able to have a pony ride (that quite terrified him). All in all it was a great morning to be outside.

Holding hands on the way to the pumpkin patch

Hanging out in daddy's warm sweatshirt

The tears are starting to stop.

Which one do I choose?

I found the perfect pumpkin!

My kids loved the ponies.

Moments I Treasure

2009-10-06T10:41:00.000-05:00

Moments in Time

I treasure...

the moments when the little boy touches his little sister's face and she reaches out to touch his as well.

I smile...

at the moments when the big brother plays peekaboo with his beloved little sister.

My eyes moisten...

in the moments that brother and sister get mad because they cannot hold hands in the backseat of the car.

I adore...

seeing the moments when the daddy gets to play with both daughter and son and everyone is laughing.

I know love...

in the moments after I open the door to a child's room and that child puts on a smile reserved just for me.

I am thankful...

for as many moments I am allowed to be a mommy to two beautiful, cherished children and a wife to one amazing man who loves me unconditionally.

pancakes and love

2009-09-01T13:19:00.000-05:00

"I am sooo cute!"

When Schroeder and Mackenzie play together, I never know if it will be all smiles and giggles or crying and tears. Schroeder loves to play with his little sister but he's still working on being gentle with her. This time it was all smiles.

"I got you brother."

Camping at the Frio

2009-08-20T14:19:00.000-05:00

It's not really camping anymore because in the last 15 years we have stayed in a cabin down along the river, but we still grill outside, have a campfire(when there is no burn ban), and eat with camping utensils.

My dad and stepmother had the bigger cabin and the shaded trees, so each day we headed their direction to hang out and eat supper together. While we were waiting to eat, Schroeder found some sticks, dirt, leaves, and just about anything to play with while he was outside. At our house our backyard gets the setting sun and since we have no patio cover, it gets very hot. Schroeder doesn't get to play outside much, so he was in hog heaven playing outside.

We wanted to do smores, but since there was a burn ban we had to use the grill. Ryan was trying to hold onto Schroeder to help him to his own, but it got too hot.

So he moved away, but then

he decided he could stand a little closer.

Last summer when I took Schroeder to camping he was on a gluten free diet and couldn't eat anything we had. It was nice this year to let him try some of the foods we ate. This was his first attempt at trying to eat a smore.

He realize he needs to just get in there and bite down.

Can you tell he doesn't want to get messy, he's using as little fingers as possible.

Poor Schroeder got worn out from licking the chocolate, I mean eating the smore. He actually never ate it and gave it to his dad.

Daddy and Mackenzie

Down at the river

Sitting in the water for the first time.

We caught a minnow and Schroeder had to keep checking on it.

Overall, it was a great, tiring, fun, sleepless trip. It was our first trip as a family of four and I can't wait for us to go on more trips. Maybe next time our little girl might actually let everybody get some sleep!!

Corpus Christi

2009-07-30T22:01:00.000-05:00

I was able to Corpus for a few days to visit my parents. I visited my dad and then was able to visit my mom. My sister's 10 year reunion was this past weekend, so coincidentaly she and I got to be in Corpus at the same time. I don't think that's happened for many years.

Apparently in addition to using a booster seat at the table, it's also good to use as a seat in front of the tv.

The pool at dad's house

Mom, Tamara, myself and both kids all went to the beach. Both kids did not like the sand. Schroeder cried and jumped on me everytime I made him stand up. He loved the water and waves as long as I was holding him. I guess we will just have to keep going to the beach so the kids get used to it.

Aunt RaRa and Schroeder

Nonni and Mackenzie
Sleeping Baby Girl

Tamara and Carrie Mama and her red headed little lady

Panjo's Pizza Parlor

I loved their pizza growing up, so of course my kids had to experience the fun.

It was oh so scrumptious and greasy!

Do you notice my son with a KNIFE trying to cut my pizza up so that he could eat it?

My son loves to clean. If he spills something, gets a little spot on his finger, or finds a dirty spot on the floor, he goes berserk until someone cleans it.
Also he is always finding the broom and cleaning tools and trying to clean up. He definitely takes after his Grandma Susie whe loves to clean. At Nonni's house he found the broom and dustpan and we just let him clean up a little.

Daddy and Schroeder

2009-05-13T13:20:00.001-05:00

Schroeder loves to play with his daddy. One day I was able to actually get a few pictures of them playing on the couch.

We made him lay next to daddy, he looks real excited.

Chuck E Cheese and Easter

2009-05-11T21:44:00.001-05:00

For Schroeder's birthday we thought we might try Chuck E Cheese but we had never been there with him, so a few weeks ago we decided to check it out. He had a blast and we decided to go with ChuckECheese, but then swine flu scare hit the US and we decided to instead just have a party at our house(those pics will be at a later date)

Riding with Bob the Builder

Backing up the backhoe

Hey Bob, how you doin?

Can you tell he likes this ride?

Maybe now?

Mackenzie and Nonni hanging out at together

Grandpa and Mackenzie

Trying to get a picture of the three of us(he's happy)

Now he's not!

My kids

2009-05-06T20:12:00.000-05:00

I am trying to get caught up with the random pictures I have of Mackenzie and Schroeder. I took a few pictures of Mackenzie while she was in her entertainer and Schroeder playing with her in the entertainer.

He is oblivious to his little sister looking at him with adoring eyes.

Now, he's looking at her and she's focused on a toy.

Finally they see each other. He's trying to get her to smile, can you tell.

So Ryan and I have let Schroeder help us out when we cook and since he's not tall enough to reach the counter, we have occasionally brought the chair over to the counter. This day, I had pulled an old bag of potatoes and put them on the counter by the trash. Later, I hand washed some dishes and dried them on the counter across from the potatoes. I went upstairs with the kids and later I realized Schroeder is missing when I hear the chair scraping across the floor. I was feeding Mackenzie, so I waited a few minutes before I checked out what he was doing. He had grabbed the potatoes and the chair and pulled them to the counter with the clean dishes. I guess he knows the muffin pan is for cooking because he laid out a potato in each one. When I came down, he decided to try to eat the potato. I tried to contain my laughter!!

Red cheeks after playing outside a few minutes.

Cutie patootie!

Not sure of the photo session

Mackenzie got a doll for Easter but Schroeder has decided he likes it. He put the doll in the bouncer so she could bounce like Mackenzie.

My son is too old for that pacifier, I said he should take it out and he did. If you can understand me, you're too old for it.

Hanging out with Aunt Margaret but checking out her brother.

Smiling at Aunt Margaret
Trying to get that hand but that silly bib got in the way!

Daddy hanging out with his two kids. Can you tell they are watching tv?

Oil Ranch

2009-05-01T23:10:00.001-05:00

These pictures were taken in October and I was so pregnant and busy with school that I never posted them. We took a trip to the oil ranch around Halloween time with our family, my mom, and Ryan's parents. We had a fun time and got to play with animals, ride the train, walk with Nonni and Grandma, and pick out a pumpkin.

Horse

2009-05-01T22:14:00.000-05:00

We have a toy horse that my inlaws bought for Schroeder. It's a horse on stick that has a button and plays very, very loud music. It's one of those toys that gets to come out only at certain times of the year, like when the inlaws visit. Well, the inlaws visited and Schroeder got freaked out by the horse, so we had to put it out of sight. A few days passed and I decided to try it with him again. Do you think he likes it this time?

Hmm, what it is this toy?
Oh, I can ride it.

Giddy up horsie!

The horsie died!

Cute clothes and a little pb

2009-03-30T13:51:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago, Schroeder looked adorable all dressed up and ready for church, so Ryan tried to take a few pictures. Can you tell he likes his pacifier?

Finally his pacifier is gone and he smiles, yay!

My son loves peanut butter and sometimes just a little too much. I've learned that the shirt must come off because he can be hosed down better than his shirt.

Downtown aquarium visit

2009-03-30T13:35:00.000-05:00

In February, we were able to go to the Downtown Aquarium with some friends from church. Schroeder couldn't get enough of all the fish.

He really wanted to get into the water, but we wouldn't let him.

He's looking to find the big fish swimming around the tank.

He finally sees one of the big fish.

This time everybody is looking at the fish but my son. Of course, cute Camden is much prettier than any fish!

He wouldn't look at the camera because he thought the tiger might get him.

He's a seaman!!

Pictures from the last few weeks

2009-03-02T19:57:00.000-06:00

Schroeder with a stolen ziploc bag.

Showing off his bag that now has playdough in it.

Mackenzie on her boppy.

Schroeder looking like he could have used a longer nap.

He's starting to feel better.

Now he feels good.

Schroeder loves to help his baby sister do stuff She was laying on this boppy and he decided to try and put the blanket on her.

She's not so sure about it.

She's beginning to worry.

She's made her peace with it.

He still thinks she needs something.

Mackenzie smiles all the time now, but I cannot get her to smile for the camera. She will look right at the camera, but she won't smile. One day, I hope to get a smile caught on camera.

Almost a smile

She's ready to dance!!

Sitting with Mama

I'm happy, but apparently she is not.

Playing catch up - pics of Schroeder from the fall

2009-01-30T13:39:00.001-06:00

Looking cute

For Halloween, we dressed Schroeder as a greaser. He had his black comb, rolled up jeans, white shirt, and of course slicked back hair.

This was the best photo we could get of him with his outfit because he wouldn't stop running around.

The morning after hair. It took a lot of washing and several days to get all of the hair gel out of his hair.

We went to Corpus to see my mom and we took Schroeder to Cole Park. It's a massive park that is downtown along the water. The neatest part is that when they were building the park, Tamara and I were a part of it. They were asking for volunteers and my mom took the three of us down there. Thanks Mom!

You can't see it, but Schroeder is piling up the tire mulch on top of the deck and then knocking it off to start all over again.

Loving the slide

Enjoying the swing, but itching to get back down and play with the tire mulch.

Down at the water there is always an ample supply of seagulls. I wanted Schroeder to have the experience of feeding the seagulls. He loves birds and I thought he would get a kick out of seeing so many birds in one place. In this picture, you can see the seagulls mean no harm and Schroeder doesn't looked scared or frightened of the birds at all.In this picture, look at Ryan's and my mom's shoulders. They are scared the birds are going to get them. I nearly fell down laughing when I took the picture because the adults are petrified of those gulls, yet Schroeder is just enjoying the moment.

The supper before I went to the hospital, we were at Chili's with Schroeder. My son has many, many food allergies, so it's hard to find food he not only likes but is able to eat without having any allergic reactions. One thing we've found he enjoys is lemons. He likes to suck them dry until nothing is left. He managed to eat about 3 lemons along with drinking a cup and a half of lemonade all before he ate his supper. These are a few of the better pictures with him eating the lemons.

Taking a break from the lemon to drink the lemonade.

Mackenzie

2009-01-16T15:49:00.000-06:00

A weary daddy determined to hold his new daughterShe's making herself comfortable.

Grandad and Mama looking at sweet Mackenzie

Big brother Schroeder checking out Mackenzie

Grandad and Mackenzie

Getting picture with her eyes open

One of Ryan's good friends Dave got married the first weekend in January. With my original due date, we would have missed their wedding. Lucky for us, she came early, so we took our 3 week old to her first wedding.
Christine, the bride holding Mackenzie
Dave, the groom, holding Mackenzie

Our first wedding with Mackenzie

New Baby Girl

2008-12-22T13:13:00.000-06:00

I wrote this 2 weeks ago and am just getting around to posting it. This week was my first week by myself with no extra help. Of course, Schroeder is sick again, but Mackenzie is starting to sleep in her bed more than a few minutes at a time, yay, and I am finally beginning to feel like a person again. I will try to update more pictures soon.

Mackenzie Elizabeth Nelson arrived on Sunday, December 14, 2008 at 12:19am. She had tried to come the Tuesday before, but the doctor at the hospital decided it was too early and gave me medicine to stop the contractions. I was able to get another ultrasound and the technician said the due date looked more like Christmas Day instead of my January 6 due date, which is what the ultrasound technician said at my 32 week ultrasound.

On Saturday, I was determined to do what I could to get her to come on out because though the medicine from Sunday slowed down my contractions, it didn't stop them and I thought she would make a great Christmas present. I went shopping by myself Saturday morning and I kept feeling strange sensations, but kept going for as long as I could. I came home and Ryan and Schroeder got home from their shopping and we decided we would go have an early supper. We went to Chili's and I had two refills of Dr.Pepper(lots of caffeine) and we orderd the Molten Chocolate Lava cake (more caffeine). On the way home I noticed my contractions were starting to feel more pressurized and different from earlier. By 6:30, I was calling my mom saying Iwas having contractions. By 8:30, Schroeder had been picked up by a friend, my contractions were a minute apart, and we were heading to the hospital.

My dr. has never remembered that I was going to have a C-section. I had so many complications with my epidural, Schroeder's collarbone and other issues last time that I decided to do a Csection. They hooked me up at the hospital and then the dr. said to walk for an hour. After walking 30 minutes we let teh nurses know we were having a csection and they wondered why we were walking. They called the dr and within a few minutes they started getting me ready for a Csection.

Once I had the Csection, the dr. came by and said we would've ended up doing a Csection anyways because her cord had been wrapped around her head and it would have been too dangerous for me to push. I'm so glad I had her early and that I had planned on a Csection.

I don't have as many pictures yet, because Schroeder has been sick with a cold and upset tummy all week, I had a fever and migraines on top of the recovery for several days, and Mackenzie had been very congested.

Here are the pictures I have so far. We are all starting to feel much better, so I can't wait to take more pictures and post them. She is so little that she is only fitting in preemie clothes, so I don't have very many different outfits.

Banana

2008-10-10T23:07:00.000-05:00

I haven't updated in forever and it seems like a recurrent theme on this blog. I am trying to finish up school and hopefully if I am successful I will be done this December. I hope that once school is over, I will be able to get on the computer and do more fun things, like updating my blog.

I have plans to post pictures soon, but while you're waiting enjoy this video. Of course, Schroeder is now allergic to bananas, but at the time nobody knew, so he is enjoying his banana.

Baby ultrasound

2008-08-27T20:39:00.000-05:00

Ryan and I went to my 20 week ultrasound last Friday. When we saw the technician, she asked us if we wanted to know the sex of the baby and we said yes. She turned the machine on and immediately said "Ya'll are having a daughter and here she is with her legs spread open." Leave it to my daughter to not have any modesty.

The arrow points to the girl parts.
Here is a picture of her foot.
This is a side profile.

At the end when the technician asked if we were happy with the pictures, I asked her to confirm we were having a girl. I have this fear we would be told it was one sex only to find out the day of delivery that is of the opposite sex. She asked if I wanted her to zoom in and magnify the area and I said yes. Below is the picture of our little girl with her legs still spread open and showing us she is definitely a little girl.
The technician said we can keep the due date and that she is weighing about 1lb. So far everything on the baby looks great. I talked with my doctor and because I had so many problems with the epidural(it never worked and the shots they gave me never worked), I will probably be having a Csection. Ryan hopes I go into labor before the new year, so we can get a tax break for this year. My due date is January 6th, so we will see what happens. I will get to schedule the Csection, so I may beg for a day at the end of December so both grandmothers who are in the teaching profession will be able to come without missing days.

April trip to New York

2008-08-14T10:52:00.001-05:00

Last year I wasn't able to go with my dad to New York to see my sister because I had Schroeder. This year I was fortunate enough to have a husband who not only helped me go to New York, but also watched the baby for 4 days by himself after he'd only been home from Iraq about a week.

The plane ride started off awful because I got sick on the plane and then on the taxi ride home(she was a crazy driver which didn't help). I was worried I might have caught something, only to realize later I was just sick because I was newly pregnant. Whoops! Anyways, here are some pictures of our trip.

Tamara and I riding the Jersey transit

Dad and I at Ellis Island

Ellis Island

Statue of Liberty

I love this picture. Tamara and Dad are both taking a picture of the statue of liberty.

Cherry Blossoms near the Statue of Liberty

At a cute Hoboken breakfast place

The three of us before we head out to our dinner cruise.

My dad, I love it when he really smiles.

Tamara and I at our table on the cruise.

Dad and I on the top of the cruise deck with the Statue of Liberty behind us.

Tamara and I near the Statue of Liberty at night.

I had a great trip with Tamara and Dad. It may be my last trip to New York for awhile since we have a new addition coming along to our family in a few months. At least I have some good memories of my time spent there.

Schroeder's new wagon

2008-07-10T14:33:00.000-05:00

We bought Schroeder a wagon for his birthday and we were excited to see Schroeder's reaction to it. Of course, he ended up loving the box it came in more than the wagon.

Again I apologize

2008-07-09T11:50:00.000-05:00

Well, I thought I would be able to start updating more often.

Reasons why I was unable to post

1. Planning Schroeder's first birthday party
2. Finishing the semester(only 6 hours left to go, woohoo!!)
3. Going to New York
4. Computer crashing(not a good couple of days, until we found a way to save most everything)
5. Being sick as a dog all day long
6. Finding out I was sick as a dog because I am pregnant
7. Doing nothing but laying around because anything else makes me sick

Each of these reasons caused me not to post, but hopefully I can post now. I don't feel as sick anymore and am able to do more sitting up, so I should have no more reasons not to post. I can't wait to post all the cute pics and videos I have of Schroeder.

Way overdue

2008-05-22T15:00:00.000-05:00

I apologize for not updating much the last month because so much happened. My husband came home from Iraq(after being gone for 8 months), I had to finish up my hardest course yet, I went to New York with my dad, and I got to plan Schroeder's first birthday party. I took plenty of pictures and will slowly begin posting them to the blog.

These pictures were taken after I received my free camera(through AMEX points) and my mom came to visit.

Birthday Boy

2008-05-08T21:35:00.000-05:00

Sweet baby boy

You turned one today. I still can't believe you were born over a year ago. It amazes how much you've grown and changed as the time passed. In the beginning you were big and then you got so small that people assumed you were a preemie. Lately, you've gotten such big cheeks that people think you're much older. My how you've grown! I can't wait to see how much you'll change between now and when you turn 2.

The ball

2008-04-03T19:51:00.000-05:00

Schroeder loves Sadie's(the dog) ball. He found it a couple of weeks ago and as much I tried to keep it away from him, he always found it.

I wonder what this tastes like.

Hmm, it's not too bad.

Maybe I could use it as an extra arm.

Stopping to watch Diego on tv

Nonnie's visit

2008-04-01T15:36:00.001-05:00

My mom came to visit me and I used her visit to get my hair cut. We also sat outside with Schroeder and he got to wear his zoo hat.
I'm not in love with this new cut, but it prevents Schroeder from pulling up using Mama's hair.

Monica's visit

2008-04-01T15:21:00.000-05:00

My friend, Monica visited me a couple of weeks ago. Her daughter, Eva and Schroeder played, Eva and Simone played, and Eva and the train played together.

This is the dog's bed that the cats like to use.

She's putting candy in the train.

We caught her putting candy in the train.

We all had fun and Schroeder had his first girl play date. We can't wait to do it again!

Crawling

2008-03-03T01:24:00.000-06:00

Schroeder has been trying to crawl for about a week, but he has been sick so he wasn't able to much until he felt better. He finally felt better and I was able to persuade to try to crawl by luring him with cheerios.

March 2nd is Tamara's birthday, so in honor of that I had Schroeder wear his New York onesie and I snapped a few pictures.

I'm not sure what he is doing in this picture.

Pretend smile

He loves his Cheerios!!

Cousin Becca's visit

2008-03-03T01:00:00.000-06:00

My favorite cousin Becca came to see Schroeder and I this past weekend. Becca and I watched many Gilmore Girls episodes, but we were able to drag ourselves away to take Schroeder to the park and go out to eat.

Okay, so once we got to the park, Schroeder was so intrigued by the girls playing there that we were never able to get him looking at the camera.

Mom won't give me any food, so I'm left to eating my fingers.

What is cousing Becca saying, I'm quite interested.

You can see Schroeder's three bottom teeth if you carefully.

Silly faces

Happy faces, look how Schroeder scrunches his nose, I think he gets that from seeing me do it. Whoops!

Outfits

2008-02-07T21:52:00.001-06:00

Schroeder received a plaid outfit from a f riend and he just looked so cute in it that I had to take some pictures.

Auntie M went to Switzerland this summer and brought back some authentic Swiss onesies for Schroeder. He is just now able to wear them, so I took a few pictures of him wearing one. Auntie M is working in Iraq and unable to see Schroeder up close and personal. Auntie M I hope you enjoy the pics.

Christmas Part 2

2008-02-07T21:39:00.000-06:00

My aunt Linda painted this picture for Schroeder.

I'm thinking he likes to open presents!!

He looks like he has an Elvis grin going on.

He had too much fun opening presents and he fell asleep when we sitting at the table eating a meal.

Christmas morning

2008-02-02T22:00:00.000-06:00

Schroeder opening his new train.

My train

Should I pet her?

I did it, I touched Sydney

My Bob the Builder movie
Ryan and Schroeder

Schroeder's new ATM hat. I guess he likes it.
He loves his new puppy towel.

Schroeder's Santa present, he's not sure what to do now.

Chrismas visit with family

2008-02-02T21:36:00.001-06:00

"Smooch, I love you"

Cousin Darren, Aunt Ra-Ra, Cousin Becca, and Schroeder

Cousin Darren and Cousin Cuatro anxiously awaiting the opening of presents.

No, more presents, I'm done.

Grandma and Schroeder

Daddy and Schroeder

Happy Baby

Favorite Pictures

2008-02-01T15:59:00.000-06:00

My favorite picture of my Babydoll and my baby. It was taken the day Ryan went back to Iraq. Can't wait for my Babydoll to come back home to me and stay here for good.

My favorite picture of Schroeder, my sweet little boy.

The Zoo

2008-01-09T23:33:00.001-06:00

The Houston Zoo

Ryan was with us for two weeks during the Christmas holidays and one thing I wanted us to do as a family was go to the zoo. Ryan and I found it very exciting because the animals were out and moving for everyone to see. Well, Schroeder was quite excited as well and when we looked to see which animal made him so excited, we laughed because it was an animal not caged in. IT was a squirrel. That squirrel ruined it for the rest of the animals because everywhere we went he scanned the ground for squirrels. We did finally find see some animals that were down on the ground and he became interested in those.

Mom, I want that for Christmas.

Dad and son looking at the elephant(It wouldn't turn around.)

The infamous squirrel

A baby orangutan playing with a basketball

I want this bird.

Or maybe I should have this meerkat.

Hmm, I'll take the fish because they don't stink.

Visiting with Aunite M

2008-01-05T23:32:00.000-06:00

Auntie M, aka Margaret, is off in Iraq making money. She took a few pictures with Schroeder before she left.

Talking to the kitty

2007-12-06T21:51:00.000-06:00

I recorded Schroeder talking to Simone and telling her he wants to grab her. I do pick him up after he falls over, but after he smiles at me.

Cute pictures

2007-12-06T12:41:00.000-06:00

Here are a few pictures of Schroeder.

Schroeder looking cute.

Schroeder wearing his tiger outfit.

Schroeder and Sydney both watching tv

Chilling in Daddy's chair

I can get the that toy if I just stretch.

Just a cute grin

Biter Biscuit

2007-11-29T22:47:00.000-06:00

Schroeder keeps grabbing at things, especially at my food, so I thought it was time to introduce him to Biter Biscuits. They are basically like a cookie and they are long enough for him to hold. I thought it was hilarious that we kept wiping off his nose and he kept managing to get more biscuit on it.

I'm ready for it!

I can eat this all by myself.

This is not as good as it looks!

Maybe I'll just stick with my finger for now.

Highchair in public

2007-11-29T21:56:00.000-06:00

My baby is growing up. He has been too small to use highchairs or shopping carts in public, but he has finally plumped up enough that I tried in a highchair at Panera bread. I even fed him rice cereal while he sat in it. He didn't mind it too much.

Thanksgiving

2007-11-29T21:39:00.001-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving

I was able to travel with Schroeder to Corpus for Thanksgiving, so we were able to see my mom and dad. Here are a few pictures from our visit.

Mommy and Schroeder(with his first thanksgiving outfit)

Before we went to visit everybody, we asked Schroeder about who he was going to see. Here's his response.

Nonni and Schroeder stopping their story to listen to Great Grandma's story

Nonni telling a story and Laci(cousin) and Schroeder listening

Trying to decide which toy to play with first

Grandad feeding Schroeder(he usually wears pants, but Grandad keeps his house warm)

Methinks it's time to buy a crib tent!

2007-11-06T16:53:00.000-06:00

I was downstairs getting ready and Schroeder was upstairs sleeping. I heard some rustling on the monitor and for a moment I thought it sounded like Simone, my cat, getting in bed with Schroeder. Well, I laughed it off and figured Schroeder was just moving around. I was done getting ready, so I walked upstairs and happened to glance at Schroeder's door. It was slightly open and I had remembered leaving it closed. I walked in and saw two warm bodies in the crib.

Little Simone decided Schroeder's bed was as good as any to sleep in, so she just joined him. I guess it's time to buy that crib tent to help keep the animals out and the baby in.

My little boy is growing up

2007-11-06T16:39:00.000-06:00

My little boy is starting to do things all by himself. He's been standing on my legs for awhile, but he's never stood with a toy. I put him to a toy today and he stood up all by himself. After a minute, I had to be near him to help keep him steady, but he did most of the work all by himself.

The toy

Leaning on the toy

Standing with the toy

Standing up on his own two feet

Yay Schroeder!!

Tired of being sick

2007-11-01T23:34:00.000-05:00

My son and I have both been sick this past week. It started this past weekend and it seems when one of us feels better, the other one feels worse. I think Schroeder is finally getting better and has passed it along to me. Needless to say, we didn't go out trick-or-treating or hand out candy for fear we might make someone sick. I did put him in an outfit, but he wiggled so much that none of the pictures turned out well. I know it won't be the same, but I will try to put him in his tiger outfit tomorrow and take more pictures. Hopefully, I will feel well enough to take enough pictures and one will turn out well.

On the lighter side of things, I have been working on my Master's to become a librarian and last year I volunteered at my mentor's school. I was pregnant while I volunteered, so Mary(my mentor), saw me from the beginning to the end of the pregnancy. She hadn't seen him since he was a month old, so I took him by for a visit last week. I snapped this cute picture of them together.

They were both all SMILES!!

Baby Blues

2007-10-28T12:13:00.000-05:00

I love Schroeder's eyes. He has blue eyes, but they are not light like his mommas, but deep blue like his granddad's eyes. His eyes are the blue that look quite intense if you are able to look at him when he holds still. Many times when people stop to look at him, they comment on his eyes.

Schroeder and his "baby blues".

The hopes of having pumpkin fun

2007-10-28T00:06:00.000-05:00

Well, we tried to have some "pumpkin fun" today. The young families from my church went to the Oil Ranch, which is a working and playing ranch. Right now, they have pumpkins and hayrides and other fun things related to Halloween and October. I know Schroeder can't do much yet, but I have been so pumped about getting some pictures of him with pumpkins. I asked my mom to come up and visit, so she could also enjoy some "pumpkin fun".

Fun was not ours to be had. I have had migraines all week and today was no exception. Except today I had a migraine and sinus pressure, which made it nearly impossible to do anything. While taking pictures, I moved my mom's purse and put it on the ground. Afterwards, I needed to go rest, so we walked over to the picnic tables. My mom reached for her purse to get some money and we realize it's not there. I realize I left it on the ground and didn't put it back in the stroller. My mom rushes over to the pumpkin patch to find her purse missing. She checked several areas and nobody turned it in.

While she was gone, I realized I can't stay with such an intense migraine, so when she gets back, we pack up our stuff and head home. On the way home, I get sick in the car and Schroeder begins to spike a fever.

After getting home, Schroeder kept his fever for most of the day and I was sick in bed from a migraine. We didn't have much pumpkin fun, but we certainly had more adventures. I'm not sure my mom wants to come back for a visit if Schroeder and I are going to be this much fun each time. Lucky for us, she was here to take care of us while we were sick.

Hopefully, when we go next year we will get to actually have "pumpkin fun"!!

Let the adventures continue...

2007-10-26T13:11:00.000-05:00

My "too cute baby"

This is my first attempt at blogging. I am not the best at keeping up with things, especially with school and the house, oh and the baby, so we will see how this works out.

Well, Schroeder and I got out today and shopped at the newly opened HEB. We don't have anything but Kroger and Randall's near us, so an HEB is a big deal. I decided to put Schroeder in his snugli, so that I could take full advantage of the shopping experience. Um, he's just too cute to do that often. I got stopped every few minutes of people wanting to look at him. He was much more interested in looking at everything else, so I literally had to turn myself towards the people so they could see him. I had several employees stop me and want to visit with him. They eventually let me get back to my shopping experience, but I did learn if I don't want others to see him, I shouldn't carry him in front of me. He's just too cute for others to pass up.

Carrie