Went to Publix today. Good times. :) After all, Jacob does love a nice trip to Publix (almost as much as Target). Annabelle enjoys grocery store trips too. It's a good thing they both enjoy shopping because it seems our trips take twice as long as they used to. You see, we live in the retirement capital of the universe. (Ok, maybe it isn't the retirement capital, but it must be close to the top of the list.) Whenever we go to Publix, there are always lots and lots of very sweet grandparent-type (and great grandparent-type) people shopping along with us. I usually have Annabelle in the Baby Bjorn carrier facing out and whenever someone so much as glances at her, she smiles her biggest smile. Of course, that prompts people to come over and see us.....errr....see the baby. Then we usually stand there and talk for several minutes. I listen as these people take a walk down memory lane and share their stories -- stories about shopping with their children; stories about cloth diapers and baby food; stories about how things used to be. While they are talking, typically, Jacob is doing some talking of his own. "Mommy, I want some gapes....Mommy, want some bananas....mommy, want some goldfish....mommy, want some fuut (fruit) snacks," he whines. While I, sometimes, find his behavior embarrassing, the people talking to me usually think it's cute. I get a lot of comments like, "Oh...I remember those days...ha ha ha ha ha!" and "You sure do have your hands full! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Today, as I was having a conversation with a lady about the abnormally large grapes (among other things), Jacob was trying his best to climb out of the buggy. She said, "...and that's why I always went shopping at night. I made my husband stay home with the kids so I could take my time." Now, there's an idea!

I have to say, I enjoy my grocery store encounters. I love talking to people and hearing their stories. I also love that my children can brighten someone's day. Even if people don't stop to talk, they almost always smile.

SAY WHAT????

Last night on the way home from church, Jacob and I had our usual sing-a-long. About halfway home, I turned on the radio to see what was on XM Kids. Honestly, I think I could come up with better childrens' songs than some of these. Take this one for example, sung to the tune of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, and done in sort of a bluegrass style:

"Stinkle, stinkle little skunky

Tell me why you smell so funky....."

I have to admit, when I heard it, I did chuckle, but I was also thinking, "Wow....this guy is actually getting rich off of THIS song??????"

Jacob loves to sing. He sings all the time. He does not, however, sing "stinkle, stinkle little skunky"...at least, not yet. Here he is singing B-I-B-L-E. You'll probably want to go ahead and pause the blog music now. :)

Jesus Loves Me is another favorite. He can sing this one while also playing a drum. Now that's talent!

He will sing just about anything he hears. Someone recently gave Annabelle a CD of personalized lullabies and he's been walking around the house singing all the songs...very, very cute.

Notice anything funny here?

Yes, Jacob is laying across Annabelle...and yet, she's still happy! This was his way of getting in the picture.

Some Things I've Learned....

Have you ever taken a handful of rocks and thrown them in the dryer just to see what it would sound like when you turned it on? No? Me neither. But I have thrown a large load of baby clothes in the dryer, which, judging from the sound, you could easily mistake for rocks. Baby clothes have about a gazillion snaps on them. When those things are tumbling around in the dryer, it is incredibly noisy. Tip: Don't put baby clothes in the dryer just before going to bed. Sleep does not come easily when you're hearing what sounds like firecrackers going off in the laundry room. I guess I could snap all the clothes before washing them, but honestly, who has time to do that???

That's just one of the many, many things I've learned since having children. Another thing I've learned is that when one child gets sick, so does the other...and so does Daddy.........and then, inevitably, it gets passed on to Mommy too. Yep...I finally caught the cold that has been coexisting in our home with us for the past couple weeks. So far, it hasn't seemed to hit me quite as badly as everyone else, though. Thank goodness for that! I've still been able to be an active participant in playtime, which usually entails some type of dancing, singing, acting crazy, or all of the above.

Since everyone in the house has had a cold, we ran out of tissues long ago. I keep forgetting to buy more, so we've been forced to use toilet paper. Jacob is better now, but last week when he had a runny nose, every time I asked him to go get a tissue, he would bring back one tiny square of toilet paper -- not nearly enough. I know the economy is bad and times are tough, but it's ok to use more than one square, Jacob. Each time he brought me a square, I was reminded of my Granny who used to ration out toilet paper like it was the last roll on earth. "Only use three squares!" she would say. Sometimes I used four, just to be a rebel.

Annabelle has had lots of fun this week with a new toy -- the Jumparoo. She loves it! Her eyes get really big when I put her in the seat, then she usually starts jumping like crazy. It's so funny to see her little feet moving all over the place. In this video, she's not quite as active as she has been, but it's still cute.

While Annabelle was in the Jumparoo tonight, Jacob was shaving and playing Santa Claus (a.k.a taking a bubble bath). He loves bubbles! He put the bubbles all over his chin and said, "Yook! I shavin'!" Then a couple minutes later, he said he was Santa Claus. When he got some in his mouth and started to eat them, I hollered, "Ewwww! Don't eat bubbles!" For some reason, he thought that was hilarious. He cracked up and laughed harder than I've heard him laugh in a long time -- so hard that it even brought on what I call the smoker's laugh. You know, the laugh that sounds kind of like Mutley? So funny!

Naptime has been interesting lately. For the most part, Jacob still stays in his big boy bed, but there are some days when he decides he has better things to do. One day last week, he kept getting out of the bed saying he needed to use the potty. He is a smart boy and has learned that the potty excuse works everytime. If he says he needs to go, I feel like I have to take him. Well, after almost an hour of "false alarms," he finally stayed in bed for a while, so I thought it was safe for me to go get ready. When I got out of the shower, I went to check on him and found him laying on the couch with a couple of his friends. I decided to leave him there. A nap on the couch is better than no nap at all!

As far as potty training goes, we're not quite there yet. He gets it. He just doesn't do what he's supposed to all the time. He's getting better though. He's eating more and more marshmallows lately, which is a good thing (marshmallows are potty rewards). I've tried to use big boy pants as an incentive, but it's not really working quite the way I had hoped.

Annabelle is just as happy as ever and she has the smiles to prove it. She smiles on command. All she needs is someone to smile at her first. I've discovered I can make her laugh by tickling her up around her neck. She is also constantly talking and making the most adorable little baby noises.

Here she is hard at work....."Hmmmm...how can I get this thing into my mouth?"

She has definitely reached the "mouth stage." She wants to put everything in her mouth. She is also fascinated by drink bottles. If you are holding a bottle in your hand (or a glass or a cup for that matter) she will grab it and put it in her mouth. You can see the thrill in her eyes when she sees something that interests her. Playtime is getting more and more fun!

On the Mend

After a week of colds, coughs, fevers and ear infections, I think everyone is finally on the mend. Jacob started sleeping through the night again as soon as he started the pink stuff. Judging by his behavior, his ears seem to be much better. He still has a lingering cough, but the runny nose isn't nearly as bad as it was. Annabelle's worst day was Thursday. She was PITIFUL. Her eyes were red and watery, her nose was running like a faucet and she developed a terrible cough. I thought she was choking a couple times -- very scary. She is slowly getting better. Like Jacob, she still has a cough, but it isn't nearly as bad as it was last week. Heath is starting to feel better too, but due to the pollen showers (more like downpours) allergies are coming on strong. I am praying we'll get a little rain to wash away the yellow blanket that is covering all of the Lowcountry right now. As of today, I still don't have any signs of a cold or a cough (crossing my fingers).

With all the illness we've dealt with lately, it's a good thing we have a doctor in the house to take care of everyone -- Dr. Jacob. Heath bought Jacob a doctor's kit last week and he absolutely loves it. He plays with it everyday. He is mostly busy curing the ailments of his stuffed animals. Usually it's kitty, Curious George, or baby monkey who is sick. Here's the doctor in action:

Even though Jacob was sick last week, we managed to get out of the house and play in the backyard one afternoon. Jacob wanted to play in the sandbox. I think that was the first time we opened the sandbox since last summer. I was afraid bugs and critters may have made their home in the box and I was right...about the critter part. As Jacob was digging sand with a little shovel, I saw a lizard crawl into a bucket. Ok...I know they are just little lizards, but I DO NOT like them (guess I get that from my mom :o) ). I tried not to freak out about it, but I did scream a little when I scooped it out (no, I did not use my hand!) and threw it into the yard. I am sure it will be back in the sandbox eventually. It's probably there now. Ewwww.

Annabelle is a little roly poly. She rolls over as soon as you lay her down. It's like she's saying, "Hey! Look what I can do!" She's also started something new this week. She likes to suck in her bottom lip and make a little noise. You can see and hear her do it towards the end of this video.

It's so cute to watch Annabelle and Jacob together. I can tell they love each other. If Jacob is close by, Annabelle will stretch her neck to follow him around the room. She is probably intrigued by him. I know I am. She still smiles all the time, but it takes a lot to get her to laugh. If you want to see something funny, just stop by our house when Heath and I are trying to get Annabelle to laugh. Adults do really silly things to make babies laugh. I can only imagine what Annabelle is thinking as she watches us make funny faces and ridiculous sounds. My guess is something like, "What is wrong with my parents?????"

Jacob wanted to give Annabelle an eskimo kiss (you know...the kind where you rub noses). Jacob actually calls it an astronaut kiss.


Earlier today I was changing the sheets on Jacob's bed when he walked in and saw his pillow on the floor. "Oh no!" he said. "The pillow needs a banket! Pillow needs a banket wiff cars and tucks on it!" He didn't like the fact that his pillow did not have a pillow case on it yet. I thought that was cute.

I have been hard at work painting a tree on the wall in Annabelle's room. I have to say, I am pleased with how it turned out. Even Heath said he thought it looked good...after confessing that he wasn't sure about my idea. I had originally wanted to get a wall decal, but they are so expensive. So, I put on my artist hat (ha ha) and painted a tree instead. Can you believe Jacob's room still isn't finished? I'm still looking for pictures to hang on the wall. Anyone seen any cute (and inexpensive) transportation themed art? Hey...maybe I should paint something! Or maybe not. A tree is one thing, but cars, trucks and airplanes? I don't think so.

So, now her room is almost done. Hooray! I have a little more touching up to do on the tree and a couple more pictures to hang, but other than that, it's finally finished!!

Hello Dr. Lowe.....again.

13 pounds, 2 ounces and 24 inches long. That's how big Annabelle is now! Those measurements put her in the 25th - 50th percentile. Her head circumference is 16 inches -- also in the 25th - 50th percentile. I guess you could say she is very well proportioned. Her temperature was up (100.1) yesterday which told us she had caught Jacob's virus. I knew she was getting sick because she started coughing yesterday morning.

Look, Mom! I can touch my toes!

It has been a rough couple days at our house. Sunday night was the worst. Jacob kept waking up crying and finally around 2:00 AM, he came walking in our room saying, "Mommy, take a temp-a-ture...Mommy take a temp-a-ture!" He didn't feel like he had a fever, but the way he was crying, I suspected an ear infection. I was up with him until about 6:30 AM and everytime he started crying, Annabelle woke up crying too. Heath wasn't feeling well either, but there was no way he could get any sleep with two crying children in the house.

Needless to say, I called the doctor's office and told them I needed Jacob to be seen too. It's kind of funny (well, not really) that the last time I took Annabelle to the doctor for a well visit, we had to get Jacob in because he had an ear infection then too. I hope this isn't a trend. Annabelle's next doctor visit is in May, but, Jacob, that doesn't mean you need to go too. No more ear infections, ok? I know if it were up to him, he would never have an ear infection. They are no fun.

While sitting in the waiting room for OVER AN HOUR yesterday, I heard all kinds of crazy stories. One woman, who now has two children, didn't even know she was pregnant the first time. She found out she was having a baby one month before she delivered! She said she just thought it was "moving gas." I don't know....I just can't imagine not knowing you're pregnant. Strange. Another woman, who had 16 month old twins, was put on bed rest at 18 weeks because her water broke. Wow. She said when she was admitted into the hospital, it was 90 degrees outside and when she came out, it was winter. I am so thankful I had relatively easy pregnancies. I guess being sick all the time is better than having to be in the hospital for several months.

Well, now that Jacob is back on the pink stuff (Amoxicillin), hopefully, he'll get over this ear infection and return to the world of the healthy. I pray Annabelle gets over her cough and yucky nose and hope Heath gets rid of his sore throat. I seem to be the only one sans symptoms right now. I'm praying really hard that I won't catch it too. I'd like us all to be enjoying the warm weather. This weekend maybe????

Answered Prayers

This is definitely a JoBeth face:

It's been another eventful week for the Duncan family!

I never mentioned anything about this before, but Jacob was actually scheduled to have surgery today. He's had this thing (sort of like a hernia) for about 8 months or so (maybe longer) and a few weeks ago, his doctor referrered us to a pediatric surgeon. I was not happy at all about the prospect of surgery. In fact, I was REALLY nervous and anxious about it. He's only two years old...just a baby. I didn't want him to have to go through anything like that. I had hernia surgery when I was four and it was pretty traumatic. I remember being taken away from my parents and I remember the mask being put over my face as I cried and screamed.

Anyway, we took the surgeon's advice and scheduled surgery for March 6. I kept praying that everything would go well -- that it would not be traumatic for him and that recovery would be quick. I was so caught up with the surgery part, that I'm a little ashamed to admit, I don't think I ever asked God to take away the problem entirely. I told my sister about the scheduled surgery last Wednesday. She told me she would pray for God to heal him so that he wouldn't need surgery. Her prayers were heard and were answered immediately. The next morning, Jacob was healed! We took him to the doctor two days ago and he confirmed that surgery was no longer necessary. Thank you God! When we walked up to the front desk with the doctor, the receptionist said, "I didn't know these things could just go away like that." I replied, "Prayer works!" and the doctor said, "Yes, it does."

Needless to say, I was ecstatic...still am. I knew we were going to get good news from the doctor when we got in the car to leave and one of Jacob's favorite songs came on the radio: Give Me Your Eyes by Brandon Heath (it's on the playlist). Jacob loves that song for some reason, especially the "yeah, yeah..." parts. He sang along through the entire song, then fell asleep for the rest of the ride.

So, we avoided surgery, but still ended up back at the doctor's office today. When we came home from visiting the surgeon the other day, Jacob was really cranky. I thought he was just overly tired from not getting a full nap. Later that night, I discovered he had a fever of 100.3. We made it through the night and yesterday morning, his temperature was 101, but it went back down to normal by lunchtime. Well, last night his fever went up again, this time, to 102.1. The doctor said Jacob has some sort of virus (his throat was red too, but it's not strep) and it's possible the fever could stick around for another three to five days. Yuck. God, please take away this virus...fast! And please help the rest of us to stay healthy.

Annabelle has been very entertaining lately. She's starting to grab toys and put them in her mouth. Jacob likes to help her out with this by sticking toys in her mouth and saying, "Here Annabale...eat it...eat it!" She's laughing more and more. She laughed harder and louder the other night than I've ever heard her laugh before. Of course, those laughter moments come and go so quickly, it's hard to capture them on camera. Annabelle, could you give me a heads up the next time you feel a laughter outburst coming on?

We'll be back at the doctor's office for her well visit on Monday. I'm starting to feel like I go to the doctor's office almost as frequently as I go to Target. I've gotta say, Target trips are much more fun.


Annabelle's new trick is to throw her feet up in the air and grab them. I'm just waiting for the toes to go in the mouth.