Parker Goes to School..Kindergarten Kiddo!

watch yourselves ladies!

hugs for little bro


Charming...

not happy at all that more pictures were taken!

Daddy & Parks with their morning Starbucks mugs

off to school in a convertible ride!

The first day of school is here! Well..was here, on Monday.:) I could hardly sleep the night before in hopes of rising before the little kindergartener and pushing that button on my coffee pot. I made sure everything was in order the night before, socks out in the shoes ready to go, uniforms washed and actually IRONED...and oddity for me! I packed him breakfast in a brown bag and even put a note in it since he rides to school with Daddy early, he eats breakfast with him every morning in his classroom. What a great morning it was, although I was tired from staying up until midnight, I was just as excited as I was when I went to school. Check out these cute photos!:)

Update on Parker

Just realized....I'm almost in a new category..starting to outgrow the stay-at-home Mom of toddlers identity! I have myself a 5 year old after all, who can do all sorts of things! Vacuums the floor for me, helps his little brother and has even taken on the roll of all thing recycled in this house. While my kitchen counter is covered full of "trash" to be ran out to the recycling bin, I am most thankful for my environmentally aware and helpful firstborn. Kuddos to you, Parks for forcing this family to "go green.":)
I am enjoying my littlest man these days and relishing the last few times of "babyhood" with him, he's about to turn 2, but let's be honest, he's really still a baby! I do more clean up and assistance after him than I can even wrap my mind around, trying to recount doing all this work for Parker! I know I did, it just seems ions ago.
The next few days I will be washing up little boy school uniforms, no more of the 2T, 3T, 5T clothing, yup, real boy clothes now! I am equally excited for my Parkie bear to begin his school career. Now that we finally have an answer to what was making him so miserable, and treatment seems to be working, I am thankful that he will do well at school and everything else. Parks seems to suffer from a somewhat rare iron deficiency, a low ferritin level that went undiagnosed for over a year when we last had a blood draw. From what I understand, a person's level should be over 50 and if it is under, restless leg syndrome (in which you can't sleep well) results and extreme irritability. The poor guy's number was a mere 11. When I got the call from the lab almost immediately after the draw was done, I cried to the lab attendant who gave me the news. I was so thankful and relieved to have finally found something! I knew there was a missing puzzle piece, I knew something was wrong with my kiddo. I can't tell you how frustrating that is as a Mom! But to have confirmation and a treatment plan and that's it's not something serious was more than music to my ears. So far, his treatment of prescription iron twice a day seems to have some improvement, although Dr. says it will take months.
I owe Dr. Luitjohan a MASSIVE plate of cookies for suspecting this, even when the Pediatrician laughed and assured me he's only had 1 child in his 20 years that has ever tested positive for this...Dr. Luitjohan, you were right on! :)

A Kindergartener in the Making!

Here he is and all of his divine school supplies! Can't believe this kiddo is headed off to Kindergarten. I am really excited for him, he will love it. I'm not one of those Moms who's sniffling about it..while very sentimental I am and I do love to cuddle my Parks, I'm excited for this and embrace it full on. I may shed a tear or 2 when it's just Mr. Jack and I..what an adjustment that will be. I'm enjoying labeling all his markers and supplies...would you believe each and every marker has to have a name on it? I also found it funny that I am completely clueless in the world of new Crayola products. What in the world is a twistable?! And whatever happened to regular old Crayola crayons?! Parker will be learning so many news things, and apparently, so will I! Here's to a great year of Kindergarten Parks!!! xoxox

~Mommy~

My Kind of Town, Chicago Is.....

An exquisite dinner at Tuscany

Love my man :)

Me & the Mr.

Cheers to lifelong friends!

Mrs. D & Mrs. D freshly manicured from the spa sportin' our fav. drinks! Cosmos!

Frank Sinatra said it best...my kind of town, Chicago is! I love, love, love this windy city! So many great memories, the ambiance of the city, the lights, the wind, the coolness and the electricity of the "mini New York" feel. I love Starbucks on every corner, people on trains with black bags, large black sunglasses..Chicago has a fancy feel. A certain fancy feel that I fancy at least once a year! Every year we have started making a tradition of taking a trip up there to see our great friends, curiously named the Dreyers...very close to Dwyer isn't it now?:) It is SO great to getaway just the 2 of us and have a weekend of sheer bliss! I will have to post pics I have from 3 years in a row! Here are some of my favorite memories from that weekend..

Basketballs and Bathing in Clothes...

Well what to my wondering eyes should appear this fine day! I had just removed Mr. Jack from the bath and sent him down the hall to diaper him. I succeeded at wrangling him into a clean diaper...I did not succeed in pulling the drain of the tub in time and leaving the bathroom door open. Back in he went, diaper and all! We all laughed so hard and Parker decided he should get in too in his PJ's, so we let him.

We also put together our fabulous new basketball hoop that was a gift from our good friends, Josh & Jacquie. They have always spoiled our kids rotten! The Parks loves to shoot hoops and it's pretty amazing he lands them in the basket most times! I love my little clowns so much..really enjoying the summer with them.

Parker

Been doing a lot of thinking lately and praying for my little, yet big man Parks. Wondering how his little body is feeling and trying to connect dots for him. Say a little prayer for him if you think of it and for us. Worrying and stewing over your kids seems to be a past time for us Mommies..it's all heart and it seems to be what we do best. I'm thankful I have someone I can dump my burdens on.:) I love my little man so much.

Airplanes & Coconut Milk

Deep into the world of little boys...airplanes! They soar in the air, and down low, ram into your unsuspecting shins as you sit on the couch, the come with noises of spit fire, and really do "spit" on you when they fly by. Their pilots so unpredictable and uninhibited by surroundings and happenings around them....so cute.

All the while I am in a hair funk. It's summer...the mop is all dried out and frayed. I stumble across a dessert for the lifeless hairs on my head...coconut milk conditioner! It's like a tropical dessert for my tired, weary head! Such an easy fix for my blah, dull, hair days. Walgreens, you have once again come to my rescue.

While the boys prefer their planes, I prefer my coconut milk conditioner on these hot summer days..:)