You Aint Seen Nothing Yet

Happy Birthday Party To ME! (okay, us). Steph and I had our annual joint birthday party. This is one of my favorite things about my birthday--the fact that Steph and I always have a double family party. Just ANOTHER thing that makes us besty friends.

Amelia was tickled pinkkk about the party. Mommy and her girl. And Mommy's two girls.
And when Ingrid arrived and was even more thrilled that Ingrid is now walking!! It was so cute seeing her toddle around. This hug sums up the love, ha.
Hubsy pulled off a mega surprise. As I have mentioned, Ross isn't the best at getting gifts. He over-analyzes and puts too much pressure on himself and waits until the last minute and, yeah, he struggles. I thought I was diving into a box that would contain a gift card or a book--his go to gifts. Imagine my surprise when I pulled out a zip line voucher! I was so pumped. Can't wait until we go.

The surprise didn't end there. I pulled out the rest of the paper and there was an IPAD TWO. Are you kidding me? No pictures because Ross stopped taking pictures because he was so excited. I still have no words. We have never discussed getting an iPad--ever. You know, other than the occasional those are so cool. It was an awesome surprise and I can never say that he doesn't get good gifts. Still in shock :)
I got a gorgeous ring and scarf and Tanger gift card and other wonderful birthday goodies. Isn't opening presents so fun? Steph and I have wanted a Coldstone cake forever, but they cost a million bucks. We got lucky and scored TWO this birthday. Thanks Mom and Dad--they were delish.
I love when everyone comes to our house! I almost let one small -turned large by me- incident ruin the night, but I reigned it in. Amelia threw a fit and I should have just let it go in front of such a big group and addressed it later. Filing that in my discipline for dummies notebook. Which is coming in another post.

Yippee for fun gifts- surprise gifts- huge gifts and turning 30.
Yahoozle for feeling 20, but having the blessings of 30.

Chin Up

I was so happy to head to Elise's checkup (minus the shots of course) to report to our doctor what the MRI and CT had shown. She hadn't gotten the report and was waiting on our update. However, the mood took a turn when she picked up on a heart murmur that seemed pretty strong to her and said we were going to need to get an ECHO done at the cardiologist. Another test. Sigh. Even though the rest of the appointment went well and Elise was weighing in at a healthy 16 pounds, I just was so upset. Her shots went fine (even though she cried the hardest this time) and she doesn't get any more until she is a year old. But, I couldn't shake the test. A test on my baby's heart? After one on her brain? TOO MUCH for this mom.

The test came and went. I didn't even blog about it or talk about it. Just wanted to pretend it didn't exist. She did wonderfully during the test and it was quick and painless. The results have me a bit puzzled. "Patient could have bicuspid aortic valve with increased velocity. Follow up in two years." So, does she or doesn't she? That is the question. We are kind of getting the runaround, but Ross is making some calls Monday and I will update you.

On top of that, the neurosurgeon called yesterday and recommended an eye exam be set up for August. I began to lose it. My attitude hasn't been the greatest and I vowed today to turn it around. These are just trials we are going through and I know what the word says. Give the glory to God. I need to give thanks for all the blessings we have amidst the rough patches of countless tests and questions and doctor bills. Because we are called to.

And because I have much to be thankful for. A big rain shower came up right after naptime and Amelia said, "Oh my word, I have to get my umbrella." I thought it was hysterical, so I let her get out there in the rain. The sun came out and there was just a sprinkle or two left coming down, but she had the most wonderful time. Blessing.

Thankfully, my friends came up for a fun birthday dinner and night out. I had planned on pouting through some of it (told you my attitude stunk) but I just couldn't. We had so much fun and tons of laughing-- as usual. We ate at Hu Hot, went to TJ Max, and to Cheddars for dessert. A wonderful evening that came at the perfect time. Blessing.

So, anxiety, please get the heck out of my way. I have really been struggling with some fear and anxiety lately. It stinks and even though I have dealt with this all my life, it comes in waves and I'm in the middle of one. Praying it moves on because I've got some blessings to count.

Happy Birthday Steph!

Steph's not much for gush and since it is HER birthday, I will try to limit the overflowing amount of gush I have for her.

Happy Birthday to my built in best friend. Everyone knows that Steph is my favorite person to be around--it is no secret. I've felt this way the moment that chunky, slanty eyed, black headed baby entered this world. She was my baby sister and I immediately needed to start teaching her things. And I am sure I did teach her a few things along the way, but she has taught me many more.
She teaches me about unwavering faith, determination, forgiveness, unconditional love, and encouragement. She has taught me about fashion, cooking, and decorating. She has taught me that it certainly is worth a try to stay calm.
And so, by nature, she is a fabulous teacher to her wonderful students. They are loved and adored and she is, in turn, loved and adored by them. She juggles it all: wonderful wife, inspiring teacher, patient and devoted mother. She goes to bed late and gets up early. Steph teaches me to limit my complaining. She rarely complains about much other than not having enough time to watch all her shows :)
Stephanie Michelle,
From backyard swing sets, to dorm rooms, to delivery rooms, you have remained the one steadfast friend that I knew would be there. The one it was impossible to royally tick off. The friend that would for sure RSVP. The person that totally understood me. From secret crushes to first dates to wedding aisles, you have been my favorite person to dish to. The one I told things I thought were crazy, just to have you verify. Thank you for all of this and for the joy you bring to all my life. I hope you have a very happy day.

Say What??

Elise Mae is crawling everywhere! About a week ago she woke up one morning and just decided to crawl. And day by day she has gone further and further until it is official: she can get anywhere she wants. I wasn't prepared for this at six months old, but away she goes. Just this morning I left her on her pallet playing nicely as I went to get a drink and when I poked my head back around she was trying to escape.
Amelia used to sit in her green chair for snack time in the morning, but she can't anymore because Elise tries to pull up and steal her snack, lol. And her giraffe told her he wanted up on the couch so Elise wouldn't get him...
And here she was yesterday "chasing" Amelia down the hall. What a big girl, crawling for the first time.
AND, another big announcement is that Amelia Claire is potty trained. I put her in big girl panties two weeks ago and she has had five accidents in two weeks. Three of those were on her first day! She has done so wonderfully and there are no words to describe our pride level. She wears a diaper for naps and bedtime and panties all other times and everywhere we go. I still cannot believe how well she has done and how cooperative she has been. She honestly acts like it is no big deal and has from the beginning. We took her to her very first movie and told her (for the five millionth time) how proud we are of her.

She was beyond excited to be at the "movie player" and getting to see Winnie the Pooh.

She got to have popcorn and a drink and she narrated the whole movie, lol. I teared up a couple of times when she reached over and grabbed my hand because it was such a fabulous treat for Ross and I to be out with our big girl. (Elise stayed with her Aunt Jen and was spoiled too). Amelia was perfect the whole movie and then when it was over she burst into tears. A big, huge, loud crying fit just screaming for Pooh to come back. Ross and I got so tickled. Ross said, "She's passionate, just like you. From high to low." Hahaha. So, to say she loved her first movie in the theater would be an understatement.

We also made our first yogurt pops the other day. My cousin Nikki did this and we are wayy into borrowing ideas. It was another huge success. Amelia was very into helping scoop in the yogurt and putting in the sticks.
Since it was just yogurt, Elise got a bite!

And since this post has turned into a novel of firsts, Elise stood up on her own for the first time too. She constantly wants to stand and seemed pretty steady, so I let go. Amelia clapped and clapped for her. Melt my heart. She didn't stand too long, but I'm counting it!

Party Pool

When Ross and I shelled out 30 bucks for this pool, we thought, eh, hope it's worth it. Let me tell you, totally worth it. Amelia has so much fun in this thing. The name on the box says "The Party Pool," and while completely hilarious, it is quite true. Sunday afternoon here was our party...

Amelia made soup for us all. Not sure what made her think of soup in the thousand degree temperature, but thankfully it had ice cream and yogurt in it. She was quite diligent with her pouring.She gave Elise some "soup" right over the head, but it didn't seem to bother our little water bug.


Amelia then proceeded to chase us all around the pool being a huge monster.
We also got out the sprinkle mat to see how Elise would like it and she had a blast. G got us this sprinkle mat last year and we have gotten so much use out of it.

Ross is FINALLY off his two weeks of nights. I was determined not to complain about it on here, but now that it is over let me say that I still greatly despise it. Whew. Tough to not have him here to help in the evenings and then try to explain to Amelia that he has to sleep during the day. We had such a fun weekend together as a family :)

Musings with Amelia

on the way home from a yummy treat of Orange Leaf yogurt (aka total yumm)--

A: I'd like to go in the sky.
M: Like, in an airplane?
A: Yes
M: Okay, when you get a bit older we will take an airplane ride.
A: I will catch the moon while I am up there.
M: Really?
A: Yes, then I will bring him home.
M: But then we wouldn't have any light at night.
A: The sun could do all the work.

almost verbatim. this kid is hysterical. every minute of every day. love her.

oh, and if you haven't been to orange leaf, go! it is so delish. we go often.


A: (with a baby up her shirt) me need Dad to get this baby out of my belly.
M: well, he is up at the hospital helping other mom's have real babies.
A: my baby is REAL and me is just sitting here waiting for him.
M: he's working nights, so it might be a long wait....

poor girl. she is really sick of her daddy being up at the hospital or in bed. good news is that she gets to go for a special treat tomorrow--a trip to branson with gammy and gampy. hope she doesn't go into labor while out with them..

Ingy Bingy is ONE

Seems just yesterday I was pacing the halls of the hospital waiting for tiny and precious Ingrid. I will NEVER forget the moment I stepped in to the hospital room and she was there with her perfectly round face and tiny little lips and bright eyes staring up at me.

Her birthday party was so much fun. Steph, of course, is awesome. She made everything from food to crafts to hats to wreaths and did more than I could have if I had planned for years. Check out her blog for perfect pictures of all the handmade preciousness. Here are some of my favorites.
The evening was perfect and breezy and the food was delish. Best party of the summer for sure. Happy First Birthday Ingrid Cate Henderson!

Be Still

I'm not great at this. Why is it so hard to just sit and clear your mind to allow the Lord to speak? I've tried to do it over the past few weeks of waiting and it seems Satan uses that as the perfect foothold to create fear and doubt. So, the alternative seems to be filling my mind full of useless television shows and internet sites. But, I will keep trying. That's what it is all about, right? Constantly trying to become the people Christ created us to be.

We were so blessed with Elise's appointment. I truly felt the prayers surround me as we sat in the office waiting for the results. I just knew that she had to be okay. For the past few days I hadn't allowed myself to think of anything else other than positive results.

The neurosurgeon said that her brain is perfect and so is the membrane that holds the brain in. He saw nothing on the MRI or CT scan that looked less than perfect. The radiologist saw a small amount of tissue in the nose that could have been a sack of fluid or tissue, but was unsure. Dr. Sami said he did NOT see this when he was looking at the scans, but that we would do another MRI in one year to see if that "spot" was still there. He said he honestly thought the only thing the radiologist saw was the sinus cavity.

We also met with the plastic surgeon who advised us to get nothing done until around the age of 13. No bone reconstruction or anything. This was shocking ( I thought he would recommend doing it very soon), but kind of a load off because we don't have to think about it. He was very nice and extremely thorough, as was our neurosurgeon. Two huge blessings. They took photos of Elise to send out to some other medical professionals because they said they honestly had not seen a case where the nasal bone was split with no actual reason. I want to stress that we think Elise is gorgeous. I have never seen a brighter smile or more precious cheeks. However, we met with the plastic surgeon simply to discuss options. It is tough to be a girl in this world that stresses outer beauty. Our goal for both of our girls is that they know God made them exactly as they were intended to be.

As soon as they left the room to grab some paperwork I started bawling. I was so elated with the news and then, an odd thing happened. I started crying even harder for those parents that do not receive good news. The parents that are left sitting in that room with an enormously difficult road ahead of them. It was almost too much to bear. I'm so thankful Ross was able to be there with me. That man has such a calming presence. Love him.


Elise is excited, to say the least. She is ready for everyone to quit talking about her forehead and nasal bones and just tickle her and let her try to drink out of a sippy cup :)

My Grandma Cates was in from Tennessee and got to meet Elise for the first time and Elise was tickled about that as well. It was great to get to spend some time with her.

And while we are on a happy kick, Elise thinks her Gampy is hysterical.


Thanks for the prayers. I cannot stress enough how much we felt them. The texts and messages were overwhelming and humbling and encouraging. Thank you for remembering. Amelia knew we were going to the "head doctor" and was very concerned that all would be okay. She prayed for Elise and has such a tender heart, especially for her sister.