Crawfish Boil

We had a crawfish boil with friends a few weekends ago and had a wonderful time.  The weather couldn't have been more perfect and the company was even better.  Thanks for hosting Shelby's!

SO MUCH FUN!!

A Little Bit of Everything

I wonder how much I can cram into this blog post?  Ya'll...life has been great!  So busy and so fun, but of course the blog takes a back seat to everything. I'm going to attempt to capture about a month's worth of our memories with tons of pictures, so get comfy. ;)

All the loot these two kiddos received on Valentine's Day. LOVE!

My love machine ;)

First V-day party at His House

Second V-day party...

Matt and I always opt for a family dinner at home on V-day, but we did get out to enjoy some lunch together.  Red Lobster for the WIN. (so random, I know...but I was craving crab legs.)

Me and my boy

Kayla came by in February to ask Reese to be her flower girl in her upcoming wedding. It was the sweetest, and Reese is over the moon excited!

This kid wears his "lovey" on his head all the time, I had to capture a picture of it. :)

GNO with some of my favorites!

Date Night at Bonefish :)

Oh this kid...in his little Polo vest

My sweet girl

On Sunday, February 26 one of our good friends, Matt Shelby was baptized. Landon baptized him in the lake and our amazing Life Group got together to celebrate Matt's new birth. I love these girls and their families to the moon!

"Like Father, like Son."

B-man got a new big boy bed!! 

Watching it snow...

Pawpaw came over for a tea party after helping Matt get the mower ready for Spring.

This boy loves his Pawpaw!

Date Night at the Pressroom!

Drinks at the Preacher's Son

I love this handsome man!

St. Patrick's Day...when Mama sent them both to school with no green on.

#momfail

This one is always my snuggle monster

Reese's Half Birthday

Oh my sweet girl!! It is crazy to me that you will be turning 5 in just 6 short months?! Where is time going? We've had a rough month that we've managed to get behind us (with the Miralax episode), but you are back to thriving. This incident that we had with your reaction to Miralax -see previous post- really impacted me. While we were unsure of why your emotions were so out of control,  I turned daily to God. I prayed over you more than you will ever know, and I would read James 1:2-4 daily. "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kind, because you know the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."  I prayed that there would be some kind of good to come out of this situation. 

I believe some of that good was how it affected me. This situation opened my eyes and reminded me that you are just 4 years old. I don't know if it's because you are my firstborn, or maybe it's because you're a girl, and I know the expectations I have for MYSELF, therefore have similar ones for you. But I realized maybe I'm too hard on you....  Maybe my expectations of you and your behavior are a little high.  Your vulnerability to this drug and the reaction it had on your little body and brain reminded me that you need LOVE more than anything. Your Daddy and I love you fiercely, but this situation was an eye-opener to show you that even more! I am choosing to take good out of one of the scariest weeks for me as a Mom. I'm so proud of you Reese! You're a fighter, and that's obvious even at this young of an age.  I can see it!

You are growing before my eyes, and there are so many things I love about you right now.


Your kind heart always compliments people. You tell me every day that I look pretty, even if I'm still in my pajamas with no makeup on. You tell Brooks all the time how handsome he looks in his clothes.

You still love playing with your baby dolls. You take care of Stella, Molly, Evie, and Heart every day. You will be a wonderful Mommy.

You use your manners all the time, keep it up girl!

You still love watching Doc, Daniel Tiger, and Paw Patrol. Your favorite movies are Moana, Trolls, and The Chipmunk Aventures.

I've been laying down with you every night in your bed. We always say our prayers, and then you ask to hold my hand. You fall asleep every night curled up next to me, never letting go of my hand, until I get up to go downstairs.

You often want me to reassure you at night that I am right downstairs with Daddy in our bedroom by the kitchen. ;)

You have always been girly, but in the past 2 weeks, you've found a new love for dresses. They are all you've been wearing.

You are excelling at MDO, and doing such a great job with writing your name and numbers. I can't believe you'll be Pre-K in the fall. I hope you always have a love for school and learning.

You are still 32 lbs. (a tiny, dainty thing) but are getting taller by the minute, measuring just the other day at 40 inches.

You are such a light in our life, Aven Reese. I thank God every day for allowing me to be your Mommy. I pray with every ounce of my being that I'm doing this thing right. Keep loving yourself and loving others. Always listen to your heart and keep your eyes on the Lord above. I love you so much!

Our Nightmare with Miralax

I have been so behind on blogging...I guess you can say LIFE has gotten in the way.  It's been a pretty difficult 3 weeks for our little crew.  If any of you follow me on Instagram, you're already well aware of what I'm about to post. 

Our sweet Reese has been battling what we thought to possibly be bladder spasms. We established care with a pediatric Urologist last November at AR Children's Hospital.  At the time, she wasn't symptomatic and was doing great, however we felt it was important to make sure we saw a specialist, as our PCP (who is amazing) had already done an ultrasound, X-ray, UA testing, etc.  Everything was coming back perfectly normal.  

Fast forward to two weeks ago.... I called AR Children's because her symptoms had returned.  I was told to try Miralax, they were thinking it was constipation causing her problems.  Reese was to take Miralax every day.  So, for 6 days straight we loaded her little body with this horrible toxic drug.  After 3 days of taking Miralax regularly, I began to notice a change in her temperament.  She was angry, would get frustrated so easily, and her anxiety level was through the roof.  She would obsess when it came time to go to the bathroom. At drop off at MDO on Tuesday, she went into a fit of rage that I couldn't control.  It was so horrible, I carried her out screaming and had to call into work. She had the same reaction on Thursday, I had to call into work again. What was most disturbing about this day was that she refused to wear any clothes once we got home.  This medication was affecting her tactile nerve endings. She was curled up in a ball and telling me to leave her alone.  This was OBVIOUSLY NOT.MY.CHILD. 

Being in the pharmaceutical industry, I knew enough to start researching this drug more in depth. I also had an HCP who brought up to me that he thought there was something concerning about using Miralax with kids. Sure enough...after extensive research, I found that there is a study underway (the FDA is funding it with a grant) that is looking into the neuropsychiatric problems Miralax can cause children.  This drug is indicated for 17 years of age and above, however we have specialists all over who are prescribing this for children as young as 6 months. The effects that have been seen are
exactly as I've described with Reese.

I'm so thankful that we were able to identify what was causing all of these tantrums, anger, and anxiety. Thank God she only took Miralax for 6 days. We're going on 10 days without it, and I feel like my sweet girl is finally back. I hold her each night (I've been lying with her until she falls asleep) and just thank the Lord for watching over her. 

I write this to say please do not use this drug, no matter how safe physicians feel it is.  Second, we are our children's advocate. Research everything that is ever prescribed for them, know the side effects, and always trust your Mommy instinct. Mine has never been wrong!!