Opening Day At Dollywood

Friday was opening day at Dollywood. We made plans two weeks ago for us all to go and take my niece Tori with us. We woke up Friday morning to rain. Drats! But what started out as a dreary, rainy day turned out to be a fairly nice day for fun at Dollywood. We were well prepared with rain coats and umbrellas, so it wasn't so bad. Fortunately, the rain stopped and we got to enjoy many rides, some music, and a really neat bird show. The hubs and I even got to ride a roller coaster thanks to Tori keeping an eye on the kiddos!

Dollywood is really a great place and very kid friendly. There were even NURSING ROOMS! I was so excited when I found out. Seriously, it made my day! It was so nice to have a quiet and comfortable place to nurse Sparky.

We stayed until close, a lot later than we had planned. It was a long day but both kids were great! Sparky was his normal, calm, low maintenance self and Cakes was terrific, even with missing her afternoon nap. The day couldn't have been better.

My Little Equestrian

On Cakes actual birthday we took her out to the barn to ride. She hadn't been on a pony in a long time so we thought it would be a nice treat for her birthday. She, of course, had a blast! We got to see Susan, my childhood riding instructor and second mother, and Bonni, one of my former students who now works for Susan. Bonni was nice enough to give Cakes a lesson and lead her around for close to an hour.

She got to ride her favorite pony, Dickens. He is the best pony ever! I have a long history with ol' Dickey and have known him for many, many years. He has taught numerous children how to ride and is about as safe as a pony can be. He was the first pony Cakes ever rode, and will hopefully be around for several more years so that Cakes can continue to ride him.

Although she hadn't ridden in a while, you couldn't tell. She was perfectly comfortable and had the most amazing leg position. I know I'm kind of biased, but she really is a natural. I've taught a lot of kids how to ride and I know she's got what it takes. I'm just not sure about her really riding and taking lessons until she's a bit older. Falling off is unfortunately a part of riding and I'm not ready for her to fall off. Not that I will ever be, but I want her to be a little older before I'm willing to risk it.

I put together a slide show of our afternoon at the barn...enjoy!

Rambles, Rants, and Raves

I have been thinking about the name of my blog lately. When I started this blog I planned on writing anonymously and not telling anyone about it. It was going to be my personal spot in the blogosphere where I could write about anything, or anyone without feeling the need to censor myself. I could ramble, rant, or rave about whatever was on my mind. Well, as it turned out, I didn't write about many things that I felt I needed to keep secret. No rants about people in my life. No deep, dark secrets. I write about my life, my husband and my kids, our family activities, and a few other topics that I find interesting. So why should I keep it hidden?

Who better to share my rambles about my life and family with than my family and friends? So, I sent out an email to a select few friends and family members announcing the blog. And then I placed a link on my facebook profile. And now my blog has become a place for me to share bits of our life with all of our family and friends. It has been a great way for everyone to keep up with us. I love that they can check the blog and see what we've been up to and "watch" our children grow. It's neat that they get to see a little slice of our life. I feel like it brings us closer, more connected.

I know that I really enjoy reading other blogs. I have actually gotten to know hubby's 3rd cousin via her blog Maybe Baby. I have never met her but have "been" with her through her pregnancy and now the birth of her new baby girl. This is a relative that I probably would never had known if not for her blog. Kinda cool I think!

Anyway, where I was going with this is this...I mostly just ramble. I don't really ever rant about anything, not even in real life. But I do have many things that I rave about. So, in order to have my blog name make sense, and to have more stuff to write about (as if I need more to do), I'm planning on adding "Raves of the Moment" periodically and perhaps a "Rare Rant" every now and then.

Cakes Birthday Celebration

It has taken me a bit to get this on here but I have finally gotten around to it.

The Sunday before Cakes birthday we had a birthday celebration with my side of the family...my parents, my brother, my SIL and my niece and 2 nephews. We always have a good time and this day was no exception.

We met for lunch and had some good bar-b-que and a yummy cake! But the real fun began after lunch. We went to Zuma Fun Center! Most of us played some video games. Cakes and Tori rode a few kiddie rides. Everyone but me and Sparky, my mom, and SIL went go-cart racing. And a few hit some balls at the batting cakes.

Check out the slide show...


I think everyone had fun. I know Cakes, the Hubs, and I did...and Sparky had a nice nap in the MoshiPak!

The Boy - 6 months

Today was Sparky's 6-month well-baby visit with the doctor. He checked out just fine and is developing right on track. He had another round of shots and took them like the big boy he is! He weighed in at 17 pounds 11 ounces which is around 50th percentile. At 5 months he was 95th percentile for weight so it suprised me that he was down to 50th but the doctor wasn't concerned. He definitely is thriving and growing appropriately. He measured 26 3/4", 75th percentile, so he continues to be above average in height.

So, what's Mr. Sparks been up to? He continues to try new food. He will begin fruits this week and will also continue to try new veggies. He hasn't found a food he doesn't like so far. He sits by himself pretty well, but will topple over after a little while on his own. That big brain gets heavy! He's rolling over front to back and almost back to front. He has a great love for his toes and hands and just about anything he can get into his mouth. So far, no teeth, although he drools so much you'd think there was a tooth getting ready to pop out. He is a very verbal guy, and babbles all the time. He is full of giggles and loud belly laughs and he squeals like a little piglet! He is sooooo sweet and easy going! And he enjoys sticking his bottom lip out and blowing bubbles... I can't believe it has been 6 months already! They have gone by so quickly. My little guy will be crawling and talking before we know it.

The Girl - 3 Years

Three years ago today my sweet Cakes was born. Here she is the very first day of her life...amazingly calm. The calm didn't last for long! Her personality emerged quite quickly. Here she is now...full of personality! She is my chatty Cathy, full of 'tude, but oh so sweet little girl!
She, like I already mentioned, is quite the talker. She talks and talks, and talks some more. She knows her alphabet and recognizes all the letters and knows what sounds they make. She is very outgoing and very self confident and knows exactly what she wants and how she wants it! She is most definitely sassy!

So, what's she up to these days? She has just started gymnastics, which she seems to really like, and she begins ice skating lessons this week. She also really enjoys riding ponies. I've been a bad mommy though and have not taken her to ride very often. I guess I have been delaying the inevitable. I'd say she inherited my pony gene. I foresee lots of ponies in her future! Don't tell daddy though!

Unfortunately, what everyone says about them growing up so fast, is so very true! I still can't believe she's 3 already! She's mommy's girl and I'm holding on tight!

From The Mouth Of Cakes

While on an afternoon walk today, as we were headed back home, Cakes begins running and looks back at the hubs, Sparks and me and yells,

"Come on, guys! Run like the wind!"

Where does she come up with these things?!

Babies who aren't breastfed are twice as likely to die of SIDS.

A friend of mine just posted this on her blog and I thought it was worth sharing. Please pass it on!

Babies who aren’t breastfed are twice as likely to die of SIDS, study says.

A study published this month in the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics has found that breastfeeding protects infants from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). SIDS is the leading cause of death for infants in developed countries, and yet the causes are not fully understood. Past studies have linked breastfeeding with SIDS prevention, and this research shows that infants who are formula fed are twice as likely to die of SIDS than breastfed infants. Any amount of breastfeeding was found to have a protective effect. The researchers recommend that all SIDS-prevention campaigns carry a message promoting breastfeeding. The study was a case-control design and included 333 cases of SIDS and 998 age-matched controls in Germany, from 1998 to 2001.

While previous research has documented the relationship between breastfeeding and low SIDS rates, there was speculation that the this relationship may not be causal. The argument is made that parents who are more likely to breastfeed are also more likely to be of high socioeconomic status, and therefore statistically less likely to engage in behaviour which puts infants at risk for SIDS, such as smoking or dangerous co-sleeping habits. In this study researchers adjusted the data to control for the effect of socioeconomic status and suggested a mechanism which could explain a causal relationship between breastfeeding and SIDS-prevention. Most infants who die of SIDS are between two and four months old. At this age, maternal acquired immunoglobulin G is low and the infant has not yet begun to produce large amounts of its own immunoglobulin. Breastmilk contains immunoglobulin and cytokines, which may help stave off infections which are believed to contribute to SIDS. It has also been shown that breastfed infants are more easily aroused than formula-fed babies, another mechanism which could help prevent SIDS.

After the age of four months, infants are at a lower risk for SIDS and the older they get, the more their risk declines. Because the risk is so low by six months of age, researchers recommend that all babies be breastfed until six months of age.

Current recommendations from the Canadian Paediatric Society do not take into account the impact that breastfeeding has on SIDS rates, nor do those of the American Academy of Pediatrics or the UK Department of Health. Because breastfeeding rates are low in economically deprived sectors of society, the researchers recommend “special programs” which encourage mothers with low socioeconomic status to breastfeed.

For the full study see: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/123/3/

Cakes is back!

The last 2 days were rough on poor little Cakes. She spent all of Friday and Saturday on the couch drifting in and out of sleep. She would wake up long enough to have a sip of water or a little bite to eat and then would rollover and go back to sleep. She has never been so sick. Thankfully, she only got sick once yesterday, at around 11:30. The rest of the day we tried to get lots of fluids in her and a little bit of food. She was very reluctant to eat, but she managed a few bites of banana, some crackers, and some applesauce. Since she had slept all day, we thought she would be up all night, but she slept until 8:30 this morning and awoke with a big smile. Our sweet Cakes is back!