Snow!

Well if you haven't had enough snow pictures I thought I would give you a few more...the first day we had about 1/2 inch of snow and I was ecstatic. Needless to say I had no idea we would get about 5 more the next night. It truely was beautiful. It was a blessing to see God's peace and experience his tranquility through scenery. It was refreshing. I love the snow and we had lots of fun playing in it but I will also admit that I am glad I don't live in a place where it does that all the time. We did have a lot of limbs come down and we still have a big clean up project to do. Trey loves burning things so I am sure that he will have the best time burning up all the branches. Several hit the house and our fence but luckily no damage was done. We were very concerned that we would have damage because our pine trees are huge and they are so close to the house. God took care of us though and spared us from having to deal with home repairs.

Tradition for Valentine's Day

Trey and I started a little tradition not too long ago that on Valentine's Day we could only spend the amount of money equal to the number of years we have been married and that you had to make your gift. For example, we have been married 7 years so you could only spend $7. I love homemade gifts and there is just something heart felt when you open up something that someone made for you. This year I had a great idea. I emailed, texted, and FB all of our family and close friends and asked them to write a few sentences about what Trey meant to them and then attach a picture of themselves to it. I took all the contributions and turned them into iron-ons, sewed together a quilt and voila he had a blanket of love. It was so much fun and I was so excited to give it to him. He told me that he thought it might be one of the best presents he has ever received. It wasn't the easiest project I have ever done especially because our power went out on Thursday night and didn't come back on till Saturday afternoon. I had to go to my sister-in-law's house for 5 hours on Saturday so that I could finish it. If it wasn't for her I don't think I would have been able to get it done...also thanks to Trey for being so willing to watch the girls so I could finish it. I told him I didn't even care if he gave me anything because I was just pumped to see his reaction when I gave it to him. It was AWESOME. I don't think I will be able to top this next year but I guess I better get to brainstorming since I will only have $8 next year.

18 months old

I will admit I haven't done a very good job of blogging lately but I just haven't had things that I wanted to share. Anyways, there are a lot of very positive things going on in the Carlile Crew. The first of which is that Mollie is 18 months old today. I can't believe how big she is getting. I feel like we just brought her home from the hospital yesterday. It is so bittersweet how fast they grow. When Maddie was little I would catch myself saying, "when she gets a little bigger..." all the time. Not that I was wishing away time but we were always looking forward to more things. Now I know just how fast it does pass us by and I am trying to take in every moment, good and bad. I told Trey a few days ago that I understand why it is people have 10 or so kids...not that I want that but just that I understand it. I am sad when I think that I will never be pregnant again or hold our own newborn baby again and realize just how blessed we are to have been able to do that and to have done it twice for that matter. Every step of the way has been a priviledge and I am trying so hard to savor each moment. We will blink and they will be all grown up. Mollie is so different from Maddie...I feel like she has broken the mold of babies but what I hear is that lots of second babies tend to do that. I don't know but I guess you just assume they will all be similar in most apsects and they surprise you by not being that way but by doing it all their own way which is different. She is full of personality and spunk. She makes crazy faces sometimes out of frustration and anger and sometimes just to be contrary...they always make us laugh though. Mollie doesn't talk much but she understands everything we tell her. Maddie was talking sentences by now but Mollie just isn't interested. It is okay because we have found other ways to communicate. She does pretty good at sign language and she nods REALLY well. She doesn't take an afternoon nap but rather a morning nap, she likes to eat. She only has 7 teeth (the two front top, two front, bottom, and 3 molars....nothing in between), she loves being around Maddie and playing with her toys. She loves our dogs and cat. Mollie is so cute...we just stare at her all the time and enjoy her blooming personality. I know without a doubt that God designed her just for our family and she is just what we needed to be complete. I never knew anything was missing till she got here and I held her in my arms, but at that moment there was such clarity.

On another note about Mollie...every night we put the girls in the bath before bed. We have our little routine that works great. I say the word bath and Mollie goes running toward the bathroom. They both shed their clothes and hop in for some fun in the water. Maddie always makes a pit stop at the potty before she gets in the tub. Well, the other day while I was getting Mollie undressed at the tub she points to the potty. I was joking around and asked her if she needed to go teetee. I sat her up on the potty just being silly and sure enough she went. I could hardly believe it. We hooted and hollared and sang praises to her. Maddie was so impressed too. Maddie even gave Mollie the coveted pink dolphin (a bath toy) to play with while she was in the tub. I thought for sure that it was a fluke, but then she did it again the next night. Like I said earlier she understands so much she just isn't interested in talking back. I guess I don't give her enough credit when it comes to language but I will go out on a limb and say that just because she isn't talking a lot doesn't mean she isn't comprehending. We aren't going to jump into potty training anytime soon but just let her go at her own pace and we will se where it takes us. Needless to say we are excited about it and about the prospect of being out of diapers before too too long.

Not the best picture but it is fairly current. I haven't been doing that great of getting the camera out either. Hope to have some better pictures before too long.

Rejuvenated

I may just have the best husband ever. I know I have said stuff about him before but I just want to reiterate that he knows just what I need when I don't even know sometimes. For Christmas, he and two other husbands of some very close friends of mine got together and planned a special trip for us. As stay at home mommies they figured we probably needed a little girl time away from the everyday stuff. They planned a weekend get away at a beautiful hotel, reserved us a suite, and gave us spending money and an entire weekend of freedom. I must say it is one of the best gifts I have received in a long time. We, us girls, took off Friday evening and drove to Dallas, we stayed up late and slept in on Saturday. We did some serious shopping buying shoes, coats, jeans, and a whole lot of stuff in between. It was so refreshing to not be in a hurry, to look at whatever we wanted, and really relax. We ate some amazing food, and even saw a movie. One of my favorite parts was the adult conversation. I sometimes forget what that is all about....don't misunderstand I love talking to my little girls but speaking to other mom's or adults, for that matter, is a welcomed time. We wore ourselves all out but in a totally different way from being a mom. I took my camera but forgot to take pictures so I don't have any to share. I have to say thank you again for the selfless gift and willingness to take care of the girls so I could have a break. Trey, you are fantastic and I totally appreciate all you did. I think the girls even enjoyed their special alone time with Daddy. I love my family and truly feel their is no greater joy than being a Mom. With all of its hard work there are priceless moments and memories that make it worth every minute. At times I start to take it for granted or sometimes even get tired of it but then I look at those sweet faces and I would do anything for them. Having no true words to describe my love for them and as much as I try to teach them and help them grow I strongly believe that they teach me and help me grow just as much if not more. I love you Trey, I love you Madeline, and I love you Mollie. Thank you for being a part of my life.

Mollie Health Update

As many of you know Mollie has been sick a lot lately. We have been to the doctor so many times, tried one med after another, had numerous sleepless nights, and so much more. I was really beginning to feel so helpless. Maddie has had such great health and I have never really had to deal with a lot of sickness. Last week we went back to the doctor because I was sure that she was wheezing. Well, I was right and they wanted her to go on breathing treatments 3 times a day with two types of meds one being a steriod and the other with side effects that make her very hyper. She has been on both of these meds before but never in conjunction. I was so upset and depressed about the whole issue. I cried so much and then forked over $225 for this stuff. After talking to a friend, she advised me not to do it. I was amazed at how strongly she disagreed with this stuff and told me her daughter had all the same symptoms that Mollie had. She said she knew of someone who could help and it wouldn't be as invasive. I asked her if I should give her one breathing treatment that night and then try to get her into this new doctor the next day? She said she wouldn't give her that medicine at all. Needless to say, I took her advice, prayed very hard and after a serious coughing fit, God performed a miracle in our house. He provided rest for her from 9:30 to 6 am with zero coughing. I began to think that it was impossible for her to sleep all night without having a coughing fit. I am so thankful for his miracles and I completely give God all the glory. Now it was just a matter of getting her into this other doctor. After a few phone calls we had an appointment for the next day. We continued to withold medicine and surprisingly she seemed almost better without it. The doctor appointment finally arrived. He did such a great job...I would have never thought that a chiropractor could have providied us with so much help. Yes, that is right we went to a CHIROPRACTOR. He used a strange but very uninvasive technique called muscle testing. He adjusted several vetabrae in her neck, discovered she had an allergy to lettuce and egg whites, adjusted her ilocequeal valvue (connects large and small intestine) all without a single tear or struggle. He suggested a few all natural supplements that would help her. He believes that the body initially has the ability to heal on its own sometimes it just needs a little kick start. I was amazed at all he could tell by a few muscle tests. It was a unique experience. In one day her drainage turned clear and in three days she was back to her healthy self. I am exstatic about this. Luckily, the pharmacy took back the meds and I was able to get my money back and the supplements only cost $30. The people who make the supplements are the same that make the teething tablets that you buy at walmart. So we don't have a huge battle with her taking them. She pretty much thinks it is candy and willingly takes them. God has placed his healing hand on our Mollie and I am hoping we are on the upward swing now. I am thankful to a good friend for standing her ground and sharing this great doctor. She was right! To all of those who have been praying for Mollie, thank you as well.

Maddie turns 5

The past month has been very crazy around here and I have done a terrible job of blogging and/or keeping up with anything else.

Maddie turned 5 on Decemeber 30th. I can't believe that my little girl is getting so big. It seems like just yesterday she was a newborn and we were watching her do all those "1st" things. She is so grown up and it is hard to let go as she discovers her independence and freedom. She is such a creative and imaginiative little girl. I love her smile and her curiosity even if it does include 20 thousand questions a day. We still do experience "1st" things in our house but I must say they are not quite the same. Last week she got grounded for the 1st time, didn't need any help taking a shower, sat with a friend at church in their own row, reading words, and so many more things on a regular basis. Some of the 1st things are blog posts in themselves. Anyway, on her birthday we opened presents and spent some time together in the morning, Mollie was sick so I had to run her to the doctor, but Maddie and daddy spent the morning together. Then, Nana and Pappa came over and we opened more presents. We then went to Build-a-Bear and she made a special birthday bear. After that we headed to Maddie's favorite place ever...Chuck E. Cheese. We spent the rest of the evening playing and eating pizza. We had a great time together. Mommy even won 500 tickets playing a game....so we got a good prize at the end of the night to say the least. Finally when we got home we ate cake and sang Happy Birthday. Maddie told me when we tucked her in, "this was the best birthday ever, Mom." She made my day with that said. We had to wait a week to have her party because of all the holidays. It really worked out well though because more of her friends were able to come. She choose to have a princess party at a little place where you paint pottery. They each got to choose a pottery piece to paint, we ate pizza and cake, then opened gifts. Maddie asked me to make her cake this year which I have no experience in but told her that I would try. It took me two days but it turned out great. Check out the picture at the bottom. She loved it and asked for the top part all to herself. It was such a good time and the girls got to be super girly. They dressed up in costumes and sat around a table just talking up a storm while they painted. I can only imagine what in 10 years they will all be doing...probably the same thing. It was a joyful time.

Dear Maddie,
You are an amazing little girl. You are so smart and make me smile everyday. I know that you are going to do wonderful things when you grow up. You tell us all the time that you will stay home with us forever and even if you get married that you will stay living with us. You are welcome to stay in our house as long as you want. I anticipate as you get older that will change but we love your infectious laughter and kind heart. I know that whatever you decide to be when you grow up that you will be very good at it. I am proud of your never give up attitude. Sometimes being a big sister is hard. Mommy and Daddy have to take care of little sister at times and all of our attention isn't always on you, but you are so good about understanding and learning about sharing. We don't think that their could be a better big sister. Mollie has a great roll model to look up to. Thank you for being a part of this family. God has blessed us with you and you are truely special and hand made by God. Never forget how much I love you.

Love,
Mommy

Christmas and updates

It has been a fun filled Christmas season around here. It has been more and more fun every year as Maddie has grown older and understood more and more of the Christmas season. I am looking forward to watching Mollie go through the same process of understanding Christmas. We started off Christmas morning here doing our family Christmas. It was great watching Maddie light up and Mollie was completely overwhelmed by the wrapping paper and the entire production. She wondered around and would check stuff out periodically but by the time all of the Christmas present openings were over she finally was able to unwrap something. We played all morning and even got a visit in with Grandy. Later, we headed over to Trey's Aunt's house for some Christmas gift exchange. We watched 9 cousins play and glow as they exchanged gifts. After that we headed to my parent's house. We arrived just in time to eat dinner and then we opened some more gifts. It was a great day and also very exhausting. We had promised Maddie we would take her ice skating so the next day we headed over to the Ice at the Parks and took on the endeavor head on. She did really good and learned very fast. She fell a lot but she was a great sport. My Mom took a bunch of pictures and we got some really good ones. It was a lot of fun spending that time with just us three and I look forward to when Mollie is old enough to strap on some skates too. Between the gifts, dinners, music, decorations, friends, and family...we have felt so blessed this year. I am thankful for the experience and memories we have all made.







Mollie has been such a trooper. She hasn't really known what to make of all of the festivities but she has done her best to keep up. On the 20th she woke up in the middle of the night with a 105.6 fever. It was very scarey and I was moments from going to the ER. Luckily, she responded to medicine quickly and she was able to eventually settle down. The next morning I took her to Urgent Care to see what was wrong. They diagnosed her with an ear infection probably caused by Strep. She was put on antibiotics for 10 days. Thus, I have been pretty over protective of letting her go outside or just in general doing too much. She hasn't liked that one bit but I didn't want her to be sick on Christmas. It seemed like the medicine helped at first but then the last few days she has started running fever again, coughing, not sleeping and feeling bad all over again. I took her into the doctor again on the 30th after being up with her most of the night again and this time they are saying she has Croup. I feel like we are in a never ending battle. Needless to say there has been a lot of sleepless nights around here, terrible coughing fights, and tonight when I layed her down for bed I started noticing she is weezing. I don't want this to turn into breathing treatments again because it is so difficult but I do want her to get better. I just wish we could kick all of this sickness. Please pray that she will get better soon and that the doctors will have wisdom to figure out what we need to do to help her get better and stay better.




Among all of the dealings with Mollie being sick I have somehow hurt my back. On a scale of 1-10 for pain with 10 being the highest amount of pain I am at about an 8 on a daily basis. I thought maybe a pulled muscle or something like that but after a week of intense pain nothing has got any better. I can barely pick up Mollie, lean over the crib, or sit on the ground. I have had some major back issues over the past few years and I am hoping that this is not turn into something serious. After an injury playing soccer when I herniated a disc, fractured my sacrum, and displaced my tail bone I was told I could continue to have back problems. I suffered from a lot of pain during pregnancy but it went away after the delivery. I was also informed that I had a fractured L5 that was several years old and that it would never heal at this point. The doctor's said that it could cause pain and problems too. Right now I am just hoping that it can quit hurting so that I can do the day to day stuff. Luckily, Trey has really stepped up and helped me so much. He let me lay in bed all afternoon today with the heating pad on it and took care of the girls. He has been such a help. Please add me to your prayer list please that this will get better with minimual treatment.

So now that I have celebrated, complained, and thrown a pity party on here I have more posts for later....like Maddie turned 5 this week and we had some fun celebrating with her. I will post all about her later.