An Almost Napless Weekend

Our weekend was not too eventful. Samuel has yet another cold. So, Friday morning I took him to the doctor for them to tell me he has a cold. ugh. Not much they can do for a cold unfortunately. So, he has had 1 - 2 baths a day since Friday just to get all the gunk off his face and help clear him up a bit. He seems to be doing a bit better now. His nose is no longer just pouring out constantly, thank goodness.

While at the doctors they detected that Samuel apparently has a heart murmur. So, they did an EKG on the lil guy. I was so surprised how well he did laying there with all these wires. I thought for sure he would be grabbing at them all but he didn't. The doctor said his EKG appeared normal however they referred us to cardiology.

We also discovered that Samuel now weighs 24 pounds and is 30.5 inches long. (He's gained 4 pounds since his 6 month check up).

So, Saturday morning we didn't really have any plans so when Nelly called first thing in the morning I was happy to say that we'd meet her, Brooke and Reed at the mall. We got there right around 10 a.m. and met up at the play area. I think it was pretty crowded due to the fact that we had about 3 consecutive days of rain (finally). Benjamin was playing and having a ball. But unfortunately we're having an issue of him hitting and just kind of bullying other kids. So, he played for quite awhile before I spotted him literally knocking a lil girl over. The girl cried and I had Benjamin apologize to her. Her dad said that she is already having problems not playing with other kids. ugh. Then here comes Benjamin and knocks her off her feet. Poor girl. So, as soon as he apologized he proceeded to go hit another child. So, that was it for our time at the play area. He was not happy to be leaving so hopefully he will realize the consequence for acting that way. I'm sure there were plenty of parents witnessing this whole episode thinking "thank goodness that one is leaving!"

We ended up having a nice time shopping and I even managed to get a lil Christmas shopping done. Yes, Christmas shopping (my shopping time is limited and we have a pretty long list!). Nelly was a total life saver and watched Benjamin and Brooke run around a store a bit while both the lil guys slept in their strollers and I managed to shop. Thank you, Nelly! Overall, I was surprised just how successful our shopping trip really was.

On the way home Benjamin fell asleep in the car. And after lunch he refused to nap. We are having yet another issue with naps! ugh. He really needs his nap because otherwise he is just not his happy self (and I tend not to be as well).

So, I had an appointment to get their photos taken in their Halloween costumes at Portrait Innovations (a photo studio in nearby Leesburg). We got their a lil early and Samuel fell asleep en route. So, he slept for a bit then I had to wake him up and get their costumes on. It went okay. Getting their photos taken together is not the easiest task at this point in their lives. Samuel wanted to crawl away and Benjamin didn't want to follow directions (after his napless afternoon! ugh). We managed to get some cute pics though so I was happy.

As I sat selecting the photos I liked from a t.v. monitor Benjamin kept busy playing with a Lego table they have there. Until I heard "Treat others as you would like to be treated." in a kids voice. I turned to see Benjamin and two other kids who had gotten their photo taken as well. It was a 6 year old boy telling my son this. So, I approached Benjamin and had him apologize for apparently throwing the Lego's. I went back to viewing the photos and next thing I know I turn around and Benjamin has a ride-on toy that he is trying to put on top of the Lego table. (This is precisely how he acts without a nap). So, I put him in the double stroller and gave him a snack. He was much better behaved from that point on. Of course he fell asleep on the ride home. And he went to bed at 7:30 p.m. and slept until 7 a.m.

This morning we made it to church for both Sunday school and church. However, I volunteered in the nursery doing the church service. Samuel snuck in a good morning nap in the nursery but otherwise pretty much refused to nap today. ahhhhh. What is with my boys? After trying unsuccessfully to get both boys to nap for about an hour I decided we ought to just head out to do some grocery shopping and try the nap thing when we returned. Benjamin ended up crashing on the couch around 4 p.m. and Samuel only napped for probably 20 minutes. ugh.

Don called while Benjamin was sleeping. It was nice to hear from him and we talked for about 45 minutes. He was supposed to be traveling so I was a lil surprised to hear from him. His trip apparently was postponed. We are so looking forward to him coming home in a few short weeks! He sounded good. He's trying to keep up with some course work that he needs to complete for an Army course by July.

Please continue to pray for Don and for my strength and understanding with the boys. It has been somewhat of a challenging weekend with their schedules being off and Samuel battling this cold with some restless nights. I often find myself praying for strength as I approach Benjamin. Some days definitely prove to be more challenging than others. And it is weekends like this that I am thankful that I still work part-time and have that outlet to look forward to. I believe it helps me to be a better parent in the long run.

Well, I think I'm going to get some laundry done now and turn in for the night.