Sick AGAIN

The Shaw Family is sick again! Nick fell first, and Charlie and Jack were soon to follow. Even Mimi picked up some of our germs. I mean, really? Apparently the germs did not get the memo that it is NOT winter anymore.


Nick never felt horrible, but I made him go back to the doctor because he has been sick so many times since his bout with pneumonia last December. He is on a strong antibiotic and some other meds, but Dr. Mommy wants him to have another chest X-ray to see if the pneumonia is still lingering. Charlie had a runny nose and cough, but he is feeling much better. Jack, on the other hand, is pathetic. There is nothing worse than a stuffed up baby. He is generally happy during the day and just wants to be held more. As with any sickness, the nights are horrible. He has had three nights of waking up screaming because of congestion. The only way that I can get him to sleep is in my arms. So, last night (his worst) I kicked Nick and Samson out of bed so that Jack and I would have a more comfortable night. He was grumbling and thrashing around most of the night and even started running a fever around 2 a.m. Fortunately, he has been taking extra long naps to make up for the lack of sleep at night. I wish I could say the same for myself. At least I am not sick, right?


So, all of my boys are sick again, and I am over it! Not that we would be spending a lot of time outside considering it is up around 100 degrees, but we are missing out on a lot of fun play dates with friends. We have got to get better by next week, because Pooh and the girls will be getting back from Hilton Head, and we really want to spend as much time with them before they head back to LA in a couple of weeks.

It goes without saying that we NEED to get healthy around here. I am pretty sure my pediatrician's office suspects that I enjoy visiting them on a weekly basis. Pretty soon, I will be having girls' night out with the office staff, be planning shopping trips with the nurse practitioners, and will be inviting the docs over for dinner parties. I certainly spend enough time with them to make them my new besties!

Patriotic Pals

Playgroup was at our place last week, and I thought it would be fun to have all of the kids dress in red, white, and blue and try to get come pictures of the little cuties - easier said than done, we have learned in the past. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get six toddlers to sit still long enought o take a picture??? It's been a few months since we last tried a group shot, and this time around the mommies discovered that bribery will get you far at this age. It was the best photo shoot we have had since they were three months old. We even managed to get some pictures of the three new additions to the play group. Aren't these kiddos cute in their 4th of July outfits?!?!

Stars and Stripes

Our 4th of July celebration really started on Friday this year. Nick had a four-day weekend, so we have been spending a lot of time together as a family. We went to the pool yesterday and had the entire place to ourselves. Jack took his first dip and loved every minute of it. He lounged in his little baby float and sucked his fingers peacefully. Charlie had a fun time too playing with his water cups and balls and swimming with Nick and me. It was such a relaxing trip to the pool, and I have no pictures to share because I forgot the camera...oops. After our trip to the pool, Auntie Vicki and Uncle Justin came over with Cousin Rylee, and we grilled out steaks, potatoes, and corn on the cob. Dinner was so yummy, and we were thankful for the extra time with Vicki and Justin.

Today we spent some more quality time with Vicki, Justin, and Rylee. We had grand plans to take pictures of all of the cousins in their 4th of July outfits, but Jack napped pretty much the entire visit, Rylee was exhausted by the time Jack woke up, and Charlie refused to take part in the photo shoot, and yelled, "No pictures!" while we tried to take pictures of Rylee and Jack. Oh well, right?

After nap time, we headed over to Baba and Mimi's house for a cookout and fireworks. Dinner was so yummy, but Charlie was much more interested in desert. He was in heaven eating his ice cream out of the special 4th of July bowl that Mimi got for him. After stuffing our faces, I stayed over to see fireworks with Charlie, and Nick took Jackson home to go to bed since he probably could care less about fireworks this year. Charlie was happy to be up past his bedtime, and enjoyed playing with glow sticks, looking for the moon (which was hiding), and seeing the stars. He did not really care for the fireworks, however. Shortly after the show started, Charlie announced that it was "too scary" and wanted everyone to go inside. I had a feeling that he was not going to love the fireworks, so that is why we did not take him to a full blown fireworks show this year. After our mini-fireworks show, Charlie spent the night at Mimi and Baba's, and I headed home. It was a busy, fun day with our family! Our day was spent with the people we love, and I could not have asked for any more! We hope your family had a great holiday, too!

We Will Miss You!

Goodbyes stink! Today we had to say an especially stinky goodbye to Charlie and Jack's Auntie Vicki and Uncle Justin. They are on their way to New Orleans so that Justin can get his Masters at LSU. We are so proud of Justin and know that this is a wonderful accomplishment, but it does not make it any easier to see them leave. Charlie and Jack are so lucky to have Vicki and Justin in their lives, so we are already thinking about when we can plan a trip to visit them in their new home.

Vicki and Justin,

We love you both and wish you all the best as you start this adventure together! You are beginning a wonderful, new chapter as a couple, and we are certain that this experience will create a lifetime of special memories and friendships. Have an amazing time in New Orleans! Just don't have too much fun...We want you to come back, of course!

We love you and will miss you!!!

Love,

Nick, Lindsay, Charlie, and Jack

Pooh is Here!

We have been anxiously awaiting my best friend Lisa's (aka Pooh's) arrival from LA. She visits once a year during the summer and stays for a few weeks. This trip is extra special because we are meeting Sidney, Lisa's baby girl who was born one week before Jack. Because we were sick, we had to hold off on seeing Sidney and Pooh's oldest daughter, Alex. Lisa was able to come over to meet Jack and play with Charlie, but we had to steer clear of the girls to keep them healthy. I was disappointed to say the least.

After waiting for a few days until our rash cleared, we were finally able to see everyone over at Lisa's parents' house. It was so nice having all four of our kiddos together and finally meeting Miss Sid. The kids played, ate, and did very little napping. It was definitely a lot more chaotic with two more children in the mix, but it was amazing seeing our beautiful children all in the same room!

Our second day together was spent at the Georgia Aquarium. Jack stayed home with my mom so that Charlie and I could have a mommy and me date with the fish. Much like our last visit, Charlie was less than impressed with the exhibits. He was more interested in Grandma (Lisa's mom) and going through her purse. The highlight of his trip was when Grandma gave him a part to an old pen. He held onto it like it was gold and called it his present. Go figure!

The Boy With the Curl

You can't really see it very well in this picture, but Jack has one curl on the top of his head. I know it's still early to tell if his hair will be curly like mine. I just can't help hoping that he gets my hair. There are only a few physical attributes that I hoped to pass onto my boys and good hair is definitely one of them. It's just so much fun to see a little bit of yourself peaking through in your babies. Everyone seems to agree that Charlie is a little mini-me of Charlie, so I am enjoying the fact that Jack seems to favor his mommy.