Closing out January

Okay, I feel like I haven't in a long time. I know it's been over a week or so because I seriously almost forgot my password to blogspot.

The past two weeks for me have been full of sicknesses. All three of us had a case of the stomach bug. Barrett has had a never ending cold, so I finally broke down and took him into the doctor to find out he had an ear ache. Good new...we got meds to help it all. Finally we're clearing up, and I think I've made it several days without have to really chase him around with a Kleenex!

This past weekend, I had my first migraine headache. It started at 2:00am Sunday morning and didn't leave until Monday afternoon. I literally thought I was going to die (and everyone else thought I was pregnant).

To all of my friends that experience migraines frequently, I don't know how you do it (Taren). Bless your heart. I wouldn't wish a headache that bad on my worst enemy!!!

Barrett is growing and growing. Everyone seems to think B is much older than he really is. I guess I should expect that, given that he has too tall parents.

He's not only growing in height, but also growing in all aspects of life.

He tells us when he is ready for bed, is starting to talk a lot more, sings, dances, and has started to pout on a regular basis when he doesn't get his way. He will stick his bottom lip out as far as it will go and lower his head. He's even beginning to tell us when he has to go poo-poo. Of course, the last time he told us that, he was in the bath tub and we couldn't get him out fast enough.

Yep, you guess it. Floaters again, and this time...he got mad because we would let him stay in the bath and play with them!!!!

Barrett's favorite shape! I love hearing him say,"SSSARRRR"

This is why we wake up late. Barrett has figured out how to turn on the alarm radio and sneaks into our room a lot. He always ends up resetting the alarm or turning it off.

In training with mommy!

Last but not least, I decided to challenge myself to run in the upcoming Cowtown Marathon. No.....don't worry. I'm not actually running a marathon, but I do plan on working my way up to running one eventually. I'm just going to start with a 6K. My goal is.....DO NOT COME IN LAST! ha I don't care about placing or winning any type of award, but I do want to run all 6.2 miles and say that I accomplished it. Wish me luck. I hope I don't get trampled.

Outdoors FINALLY...then Back Inside

It managed to warm up a little this week. Thank you God for the warming sunshine!!!! I was happy to find Barrett playing outside at his school when I went to pick him up. I'm sure the teachers were ready to let all the kids out too. They can store up so much energy and it seriously needs to be released!!!!

I rushed Barrett back to our house while the sun was still shining so that we could test out the new jogging stroller! We love it. Just being outside and soaking up the sun (what was left of it Tuesday afternoon) was wonderful.

Our subdivision finally put in a slide at the mini-park down the street, so Barrett and I walked down the street to play on the equipment. Barrett was such a big boy! He managed to climb the steps and slide down all by himself. We enjoyed the afternoon playing...and getting all of our energy out!

Then the rain came :( We were stuck inside again. I turned off the t.v. and allowed Barrett to make an entire mess of our house. He (once again) did a wonderful job of doing that. Matt couldn't really tell the difference (because our house is a constant playground of toys anyway). He and Barrett even rigged up my laundry basket for more fun!!!!

This and That

I was so ready for this week to be over because I've missed hanging out with my favorite little buddy, Barrett. Although we've been cooped up inside the house, we've managed to stay busy playing, reading, and getting into mischief (#1 thing Barrett is good at)!

Please take note of what Barrett has in his hands. He brought this to Matt and I while I was trying on clothes in Macys. Awesome, right? He even started playing peek-a-boo with it! The only reason he was on "foot", roaming the mall, was because he absolutely REFUSED to sit in his stroller. It's called, "choosing your battles".

"It's COOOOOLD!"

Barrett makes me laugh all the time. He's hilarious and I really do have a hard time getting onto him. His personality is exhilarating. He is my sunshine...and I mean that literally (warmth, energy, brightness, and glow). I love him!!!!

See...even HE has to wear shades!

As for me, I'm back on Weight Watchers and trying to lose some lbs! It's no fun counting points, and I'm not a big fan of having to exercise indoors every day of the week. Gym classes help a little because I'm able to workout with my girlfriends and have some "me" time. Matt's been great about letting me head off to the gym. His bike riding is having to take a "back seat" since the weather is below freezing!!!

I was ready to murder my treadmill this week. Actually it's not the treadmills fault...it's WHERE the treadmill is located in my house. I get so bored running without having something to watch. I have to keep the door shut, otherwise Barrett will try to crawl up on it with me. So, I'm literally confined in a small space running for about 30 to 45 minutes (if I can last that long).
Usually I watch our computer (thankfully it is in the same room). I'll load a slide show of all our pictures we've downloaded to the computer.
Thursday, I decided to pop in a DVD to watch while I was running. I thought maybe it would help to make the time go by faster.

Well, needless to say, I was running full speed when my treadmill LURCHED to a stop, almost throwing me off! (There is a wall right behind the treadmill that is like, 6 inches away. I almost made a hole in it).

With all due respect to my small town / country background of "fix it yourself quick" resolutions, I knew I had just thrown a breaker. So I pranced out into the garage, hit the switch, and tried "round 2" of getting my exercise in. Remember...I'm having to reboot my computer each time I do this AND restart my time on the treadmill. Not fun, and super frustrating when all you want to do is burn some calories and go get your child from daycare!

After 3 or 4 different attempts of trying to solve the problem, I realized I was kidding myself if I thought I could run with the luxury of not being bored! I guess my little guest room can't handle all the energy that is being pulled from it's outlets. Every time I would start the treadmill and begin running, it would throw a breaker and stop. Ughhhhh

Y'all...I ended up running with the lights off, the computer off, and the fan off. Just me, my treadmill, and the same old songs on my Ipod because I haven't been able to afford to buy another ITunes card lately.

New Addiction

I've had so much fun spending time with Barrett over the holidays. He is growing up so fast...and might I add...INTO EVERYTHING!!!!!
Here are a few of our latest addictions:

• Saying, "Help please" when he needs something or becomes frustrated. I love this! He has been communicating so well. He will even come and grab my hand and lead me to what he wants /needs
• Singing along to theme songs such as Blues Clues, Elmo Song, Backyardigans, and Dora!
• Doing the Hokey Poky
• Turning on bath tub facets
• Wearing boots (rain boots or cowboys boots)
• Not wanting to take off his shirts (unless we negotiate)
• Talking and saying so many words (love this too...it's adorable)
• Jumping (or tying to get his feet off the ground)
• Carrying around Hot Wheels everywhere (bath, stores, bed, etc.)
• The three Ts: trains, trucks, tractors

I don't know why I can't flip this video to being right side up, but if you lay on your side, you'll be able to get a great view! ha ha Oh....I apologize now for my singing (please try to ignore it)!!!