The Happiest Place on Earth

It finally happened............................DISNEY!! Earlier in the year we took adavantage of Disney's "give a day, get a day" special. If you gave a day to volunteer or drop off food to particpating Nu-Hope organizations you received a free day pass to Disney.

We were able to let Bauer have a Mommy/Daddy day. Grandpa watched little miss. Its hard to get one on one time with a newborn, but we took advantage of the day.

We had a blast. Buzz Lightyear, Race Cars, the ungodly Teacups, Bear Jamboree, Tom Sawyer, Safari ride, a Merry-go-Round, T-Rex for dinner, a little bit of LegoLand, Build a Dinosaur toy, some $10 gummy snacks, and of course Santa Claus all added up to a fun day away. Did I mention he LOVED the teacups? I think I would rather get hit by a bat than spend 5 seconds on those things. And of course, daddy had to teach the next generation the fine art of spinning the cup from beginning to end. BLAAAAHHHH!!!

We really did have a great time. Bauer was excited about bringing Aubrey next time. Hopefully he realizes we aren't going again for at least 3 more years or until Nu-Hope needs more supplies! :)

Always on the Go!!

Whether its hiking, walking, running, fishing, kayaking, or just playing outside our family loves to go go go!) Perhaps its learned behavior, but Bauer and Aubrey love being outside as much as we do. Either way we are incredibly blessed. Now don't get me wrong we greatly enjoy our sit-on-the-couch-with-the-third-cup-of-coffee days too, but you know as well as I do with kids its easier on everyone to just go do somethin'! And its usually not the third cup anyways. Its more like the 3rd time microwaving it after being sidetracked by super hero attacks, stinky diapers, hungry bellies, and 3 million questions. It's amazing how kids change things. While we are on the subject her are a few "then and nows" you might relate to:

1. Then -Car rides were filled with intelligent conversations, holding of hands, and great music - Now - You spend time talking to yourself or speaking a language only the baby you're communicating with can interpret. ooshhii, doodi, baba, goo - popular terms used. Perhaps your Raffi cd is scratched and Wheels on the Bus plays 14 times in a row. Then there's always the point when hungry hits every child at the same time producing a sense of complete panic as though we've just been told we're never going to eat again. Just remember to breathe until the car slows down just enough to roll out without breaking any bones!! HA!

2. Then - Grocery Store run lasted 10 minutes - Now - After you've unbuckled everyone, dismantled stroller, given out snacks, and changed diapers, you reach the entrance only to realize you've left the list in the car. Everyone knows you don't even TRY to go back. You pray to the good Lord that your memory holds up for at least 30 minutes. Wooh! Finally, you get inside. Hmm. What was I in here for? Well, we're gonna just shoot from the hip. After 10 minutes of being inside people begin to wonder why you keep shouting, "HEY! Get back over here now!", "NO MORE GUMMIES!", or "Quit kicking me!" 27 times before you reach aisle 3. There are times when you must call for an "ABANDON BUGGY". This is when the trip has reached such a point of chaos and confusion you simply grab the children, abandon the buggy, and head for the doors. On those good days when you make it to the checkout line you feel totally horrible because you've said "No." to every single item on the candy line. But the guilty feeling soon leaves when you've realized your kid almost pushed the "cash back" button totaling $100 more than your groceries!! Eventually, we leave with juice, 1 1/2 apples, 1 opened bag of chips, a carton of half broken eggs, 3 jars of baby food, ice cream, and some toy that has been sucked on for the last hour. None of which were on the list. You just reach a point when you start throwing stuff in the buggy, make yourself feel like you went shopping, and run for your life.

Whew! Let's get out of here. Cross back through cars, unload random groceries, buckle everyone up, snack delivery, ........where are my keys? Oh boy. hmm. Oh there they are! hanging outside the truck. oh and look there's my wallet on the road. At least we all made it back safely. Finally get home. "What are we having for dinner?" "Chicken!" ---- Oh no. I forgot the chicken. It was on the list. ;)

Maybe tomorrow.

3. Staying at a hotel- Then- was a relaxing getaway. Time to sit and watch a movie, order room service, and take a quick dip in the pool. hahahahahaha!! yeah right!! NOW - NEVER book a hotel too far away to come home in case of a LEVEL 3 MELT DOWN. You know, the kind when you find yourself screaming and crying just because everyone else is screaming and crying. If you haven't had to use a UHAUL to travel consider yourself blessed. We always pack one of everything JUST IN CASE!! Just in case what, Stacy? The world ends? I'm really starting to think I have a problem.

Let's go down to the beach. Okay, everybody up, eat breakfast, clean up the toys, find a bathing suit or anything that resembles a bathing suit, meander on over to the sunscreen station where everyone is COATED in Banana Boat 95 for kids from head to toe. Find shoes, grab a raft for everyone. I mean EVERYONE!! I'm not in the mood for temper tantrums. If you don't have one then borrow the neighbors. We'll tell them when we get back. lol! 2 hours later we start our trek down to the beautiful ocean water. Half way there you hear, "Mommy, I'm firsty." "Mommy, I'm hungry". "Mommy, I'm hot." Just keep the train moving. Stay focused. We're almost there. Ah, finally my toes are touching the water. What? "Mommy, I wanna go to the pool." UGH!! To the pool we go. WAAAAHHHH!!! Ah the baby hasn't eaten in 3 hours. I'll feed her real quick in the hot burning sun. Gosh, I feel faint. Oh that's because I haven't eaten since yesterday. Geez these kids keep me busy! No worries. I'll eat tomorrow........and step, step, step, step. We'll do what it takes to keep this fun factory moving! LOL!

AND THE CRAZY PART IS I WOULDN'T TRADE IT FOR ANYTHING IN THE WORLD. MY KIDS MAKE MY LIFE SO MUCH MORE FUN AND INTERESTING!! I MEAN JUST LOOK HOW BORING "THEN" USE TO BE!! :)

Missing Moments

I realize I've already posted a few new items, but as I read through a few older posts I was reminded AGAIN how much time has passed since my blogging skills fell off the face of the earth! It would take weeks to catch you up on all the Smehyl land adventures. So I will do what I can to capture our moments in the best delayed fashion possible. I am not promising anything to be in perfect chronological order. At this point posting again is a Victory in my life! :) If there are any misspellings its probably because one of my children decided to pounce on me at just the right minute and somehow manage to post things of which I am completely unaware. But I do promise that I will not wait until our next child is born to continue posting. This will be easy since we aren't having any more children. ha!

I do feel somewhat bad for letting you guys down a bit. I love keeping up with everybody and for all you know our little family could have decided to live under the sea with our cousin Ariel, gone to the serengeti with our friend Simba, or even become movie stars on the road with our sweet dog Bolt. Who knows? Anything could have happened. So I will do my best to keep you updated on the newest news with our little crew! Hope you enjoy!!

Christmas Pictures!!

We had a wonderful time in our Christmas photo session!! Looking at these I can't believe how big our babies are now compared to 6 months ago!!

Christmas is one of my favorite holidays. Being teachers we both get two entire weeks to spend with family and friends and simply relax. Bauer is getting more and more into the surprise of presents and the REAL reason for the season. It's neat to watch him put the pieces together about our Lord. He would get excited and say, "Mom! It's Jesus birthday!"

Can't wait until next year when Aubrey can understand the fun and joy of the holiday season!! Or at least be able to rip open a few goodies. ;-)

4 score and 7 years ago..................

Well Bauer is driving, we have 3 more children, and I've retired since our last post. Okay, well, maybe it hasn't been THAT long, but GEESH!!

Bauer is still his fun-loving, sweet, 100 mph, villain fighting self. He is starting pre-k in the fall. He loves to read especially if its with daddy and his bible stories. David and Goliath is probably his favorite story. I think mainly due to the fact that he (david) gets to throw rocks at Goliath's (daddy) forehead!! Although the story of the Garden of Eden with a SNEAKY snake tends to run a close second. :)

He loves dinosaurs, super heroes, cars, and anything to do with being outside!! Oh and he is CRAZY about his new baby sister!!

YEP! WE'VE HAD A BABY SINCE LAST POST!! YOU THOUGHT I WAS KIDDING!! LOL!!

Our sweet baby girl, Aubrey was born last July. What a precious bundle of joy. Loves to laugh, has daddy in complete control, and I'm pretty sure she is sneaking cupcakes when no one is looking. :) She and Bauer are two peas in a pod. He's the funniest person she's EVER met!

We are blessed beyond measure!!

I'll post a few pics and then catch you up on some of the big moments of the past year.

Boys and Girls

A typical day with Bauer and Ellie playing usually involves her being pushed, slung, or otherwise manhandled by Bauer. It's all in good fun. He tries to be gentle and she tries to be big, but it doesn't always happen. There are always a few shoves, bites, and stealing of toys, but in the end they always cry when they have to leave.

Readin' & Pickin'

Bauer loves animals. His animal books get more use than any others. While watchin' him read with daddy is one of my favorite things, what he eats for a snack is a little unsettling. I love how he looks at me right in the middle of it like, "If she sees me she's not gonna like it." I'm trying to train him to at least wipe it on his shirt. But Lord knows, right as he starts doing that I'll run into some famous big name person in public and have my son sitting there covered in boogies lookin' like the "mom of the year". Oh geeze. What ever to do!?!?

HAPPY, SAP, SURPRISED!

Bauer loves to make these faces. And no, "Sap" is not a type-o. That's exactly how he says it. It's my favorite one. He makes me laugh so much.

Where should I sit?

He could play in the living room, kitchen, dining room, bedroom, or even the bathroom. But today he chooses a laundry basket. Yep, no reason to even have the rest of the house. Think of the money we could have saved. Maybe we should all get baskets!! ha!!!

Mini Vacation!

Adam and I celebrated our 7 year anniversary this week!! Woo Woo!! We decided to splurge a little bit and actually LEAVE town. Gaylord Palms in Orlando has an anniversary special if you stay 2 nights. It was a unanimous YES!! Once we got there they even upgraded us to a suite for free. The second night my brother and grandma brought Bauer up and stayed the second in another room. We had a blast. The best part was the pool. It has a gradual decline at one end giving Bauer the option to actually swim by himself!!! Well, I don't know if it actually counts as swimming. It's more of a splash everywhere and jump all over mommy and daddy kind of action. Either way he loves it and we get to relax a little. What a great anniversary!

Best $2.00 ever spent

Found these little tent popups at a garage sale for $2. They have caused more joy and arguing within a 5 minute span than any other toy in our house. The kids love playing with them. But usually there comes a certain point of a "Mine! Meltdown Moment" The act of sharing becomes minimal and it is "every man for themselves"!! Just watch and see.

Our Little Italian Babies!!

So we get a talk the other day at school about giving our kids the appropriate portions of food in every meal. Something makes me think we would have failed today's evaluation.
What can I say? They LOVE spaghetti!!

Egg Extravaganza!

It's official...........we survived our first egg hunt!! We're happy to report after a very intense expedition all eggs were found. And yes, Adam and I slowly but surely threw all of Bauer's eggs away within a week. Our living room was becoming a mine field of egg remnants.
The kids had a blast. Can't wait for next year!!

Mr. Big Shoes

I just couldn't figure out what was funniest....
1. The pants not coming close to matching the shirt
2. The stomach peeking out from under the 2T pjs
3. Walking with mommy's shoes.........on the wrong feet or
4. The fact that I'm not certain whether the object to the right is a cracker or a puzzle piece. :)

Time with Buddies

This weekend we spent time with some of our dearest friends. Doug & Katie were down from Atlanta during our Spring Break and we jumped at the chance to meet up with them. We had a blast and Bauer & Ellie were finally able to spend some time together with their buddy Pierce. It was funny watching the difference between daycare and homecare toddlers. Bauer and Ellie's vocabulary was full of "mine, go, no, aaahhhhh" while Pierce was,"mommy, daddy, cup, etc. and the occassional stare at our daycare babies like, "oh my, what is happening? Why are these mommies chasing these kids around?" Pretty hilarious.

Time to catch up!!

Well since we haven't posted since January I'll do my best to update you on the past 2 months.

It's one of my mid-year resolutions to keep this thing a little more fresh!!

Bauer is doing great. He has gone from 110% boy to 115%. It's hilarious. Run run go go run run go go......... throw something.........run run run ..........yell a little bit.............go go go go go go .......................get a drink and do it all over again.

And he is TALKING TALKING TALKING!! It absolutely amazes me how quickly these little people pick up on things. His last speech evaluation went really well and we just praise the Lord. He is using tons of words and trying to put them together to, of course, tell me and daddy what to do. He's getting very good at it actually. It's funny to think how we as adults spiritually struggle with "It's all about me" sometimes. I'm convinced it's because we've been trying to fight it since birth. Here are some of Bauer's favorites:

1. "Mommy,......juice!
2. "Mommy......eat!
3. "Mommy..........I want it."
4. "Mommy.......go outside!!"
5. "Mommy.....GO, GO, GO!
6 "Mommy.....No"
7. "Mommy..... I don't want it"
8. "Mommy......more, more, more"
9. "Mommy.....I'm ready!" (usually to eat, for me to chase him, pull him in the wagon, or for daddy to play football tackle.)
10. "Mommy...... all done"
11. "Mommy......Bite" (usually wants to eat whatever I'm eating)
12. "Mommy....read...want read"

But even with all the commands and demands from our little guy there is nothing sweeter than hearing him say, "Hey Mama, Hey Daddy".

Here are some pics from the last couple months. By far my favorite are the two videos. The one with him eating may need a little bit of explanation:

When Adam and I fix our coffee we put whipped cream on top. Bauer loves it and in his mind coffee is the whipped cream. So now when we go to any coffee house Bauer says, "coppee, coppee, coppee, coppee". He gets a shot of whipped cream in a small coffee cup and eats it with a straw. I can't wait until he actually tastes the REAL stuff!! :)

Button Ups!

This post is for Sabra's Journey blog. You posted a comment about where to find button-ups but there isn't a "comment or a contact" area on your blog. This is the only way I knew to repond. We found them at JcPenney. I believe Target has them now too. I hope this helps. Sorry I couldn't get to you another way. You are totally welcome to e-mail us if you would like.
Let us know if we can help you with anything else!! :)

Your little man is adorable!! www.sabrasjourney.blogspot.com
Everybody should check Mr. Hudson out!!

Snow in Florida?

For all of our northern friends freezing their little toes off lately we feel now that we can finally empathize with you. :)

Our town holds an annual "Snow Fest" for the kids in the community. It mainly consists of bouncehouses, rockwalls, ropewalls, and yes 3 large piles of man-made snow!!! It's great.

Bauer wasn't quite sure what to do with all of the cold white stuff, but he seemed to enjoy it.

I will say it was nice to be able to go from snow to 75 degrees within a couple steps. :)

Lovin' some berries

Today we went out to Henscratch Farms. It's a cute little family owned farm that grows blueberries and strawberries throughout the year.
Bauer loved it. His favorite part was the chickens running around all over the place. We were reminded quickly that with a chicken coop comes chicken POOP!! I'm not sure how, but by the end we had to toss the shoes in the truck and sanitize his entire left leg. We had to laugh.

The strawberries were delicious!!

Gone Fishin

Over our Christmas break we actually took a few mini-vacations versus staying home and hibernating for a week. As teachers we get in free to Sea World so it didn't take long to figure out where we would go.
I'm pretty sure that someone somewhere was giving out free somethings in Orlando because I've never seen so many people on the road or at the park in my life!!

We were able to see almost everything except...............SHAMU!! I know, I know, that's the whole purpose in going, but at 1:45 they made an announcement over the park-wide intercom saying, "The 2:00 show is full, come back later" (paraphrased)
Oh well. Maybe next time.




Here is a picture of the crazy crowds. Can you find Bauer and Daddy?

ALABAMA!

We usually have Christmas in town and spend some time with my family and Adam's. Well this year we were invited to Alabama with the rest of Adam's family spanning from Virginia all the way down to Florida. They get together every 5 or 6 years and we were on the 6th year so our time had come!!

We had a massive decision to make that wouldn't involve what food to bring, what jackets to wear, or even what presents to buy. We had to decide HOW WERE WE GOING TO GET THERE!! Drive or Fly? Anyone with a toddler knows that a car ride can go from great to torture within minutes. We would be in the car a minimum of 10 hours both ways!!!! The thought of it made me want to cry. I was in complete fly mode, but as we kept checking prices it became clear that the only pilot we would have was Adam. So now do we go during the day or at night? (Should a trip really be this difficult? :))
Day time = many stops and a very awake baby that wants to get up and play
Night time = a very sleepy baby and a small overdose of caffeine for mommy and daddy.

NIGHT TIME! NIGHT TIME! NIGHT TIME!!

Praise the Lord Almighty!! Bauer slept 8 of the 10 hours we were on the road. And when he was awake it was almost like he sat there in shock thinking, "Why am I in the truck this early in the morning? .....Surely this is a dream." And then he fell back asleep.

The entire week was great! There was tons of family, food, and fun!!! The weather was wonderful minus the first day being 18 degrees!!! It warmed up pretty good after that.
The homes were gorgeous. We couldn't help but take a photo shoot with one of them that had a lake at the bottom of their property.
Big thanks to Mitch and Mika for letting 6 family members stay with you!! We had a great time and are so glad we decided to go. It's the first time in a long time that we were ALL able to get together. What a blessing. We love you guys!!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!

Finally Christmas time has come and one of our favorite things to do is watch the parades. Avon Park's was first on the list and it was up in the air as to how the babies would do. We prepared as any toddler mom would with snacks that would last an entire day and sippy's full to the brim. I had recently found a wagon a a garage sale and the kids loved it. So we brought it with us to the parade. For emergency purposes we brought one stroller in case someone tried to escape. I can't even put into words how well they did.
They were in a trance the entire wagon ride (which was about 4 miles - that's another story) and throughout most of the parade. We were a little late in arriving so we had to sprint along side the parade for a while until we met up with Laura. So many people thought the babies were actually in the parade!!! They kept waving to them and, of course, the babies waved right back. Maybe we should have made a sign for the side fo the wagon. We would have fit in a little better. Anyways, it was a great time.
The Sebring parade wasn't quite as crazy. Daddy got to come to this one and we sat with Bauer's friend Hunter. We parked and walked across the street to our spot. Ahh, so much easier. We also got to sit with my grandma and aunt for a little while too.
Much much fun the whole week!!!

Gettin' Out Of Town

We loaded up today and headed towards the Florida Aquarium in Tampa. It's free admission for teachers and children under 2. So we paid $0.00!!!! Definitley the best deal I've ever made!!
Bauer loved it. He has taken a liking to animals so it was cool for him to actually see some in real life. His favorite is the alligator. Every time he sees the Florida Gator emblem he says, "Alli". Pretty cute!
The aquarium is more suited for ages 5 and up, but it was still worth going especially since it was FREE!!

Farmer Brown

We decided to take advantage of a perfect picture opportunity today. A friend of ours decorates his yard every year for the fall season. We couldn't resist pulling out the overalls and checkered shirts!! I was very worried that Bauer's wouldn't fit. They were size 18 months and he is in nothing but 24 months and above. I'm pretty sure the Lord did some serious adjusting to the seams because normally we would have had to grease him up just to get him in them. Who knows how we would have gotten him out.........scissors??? Thank goodness they fit and worked perfectly.

I have a million pictures, but I'll just share a few.

Me and my pal Hunter

Ellie and Hunter talkin' some apple business.

Farmer Brown and family!!

Cuddling by the fire....

Okay, so there wasn't much cuddling going on, but there were plenty of laughs.

We had a mini-Thanksgiving meal with some great friends this week. The kids chased each other and fought over toys all night. It was great.
After we were finished eating we decided it was a perfect night to take everyone outside and get a little bon-fire action going. Unfortunately, toddlers don't come programmed with a mindset of "fire----hot". Instead, it's "ooooh, sparkly lights-----gimme, gimme, gimme!!"
Nonetheless, we had a good time. Once Uncle Mike got the jungle gym out for the kids they were happy as could be.

Just growin' and growin'

"What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a while and then vanishes." James 4:14

It is amazing how quickly time has gone by. Just a year ago we were introducing foods, starting to roll, and perfecting the language of babble. Now we're climbing into cabinets, running away from mommy, hiding toys in small crevices, eating more than daddy, perfecting the word "no", and playing as hard as possible.
I can't imagine the changes in the next year or so. (I know some of you are laughing right now saying, "oh, she has no idea." :)) I just hope we can make the most of every opportunity and cherish every moment. Even when we feel like we're hanging from a thread. :)

Here are just some cute pics of our little man growin' and movin'.

Yabba Dabba Doo!!

Halloween was awesome this year. We decided to have Bauer go as Bam Bam and his friend, Ellie, as Pebbles. OH MY GOSH!! They were adorable. Ellie was struttin' her stuff with her little Pebbles bag and Bauer was giving everyone a little smack with his caveman club. Thank God that thing was filled with cotton!!!

We went to a fall festival with the kids and picked up a few pieces of candy for mom and dad in a neighborhood nearby. :) They had a blast!!
Jen's mom made these costumes!! Thanks so much!

Headed Home

Saturday morning we were at the airport by 7:30 a.m. Flight leaves in 2 HOURS!!! Once again, it was time for baby track-and-field through the airport. Praise the Lord we got home safe with excellent news from the docs. Couldn't ask for better! :)
Here are some pics.




This is what we did for about an hour!!

Little bit of fun.

Our appt. was only about 45 minutes long (expected to be 2 1/2 hours) but it was going to cost $1000 for us get an early flight out. We can usually get ahold of someone that will make us an awesome deal to switch tickets, but not today. So we decided to take a tour of Fenway Park.

I'm so glad God didn't let us find a way home that night because we would have missed some much needed down-time and a really cool ballpark! :) It was nice to not have to rush rush rush!
That day I feel like God kept saying, "would you guys quit trying to go a million miles an hour and SLOW DOWN!" Oh how much of God's plan and creation we probably miss by trying to keep up with OUR schedule.

We had a blast at the park. We did get a few looks from people like, "who would bring a baby, a stroller, a backpack, etc. on a tour of a park?" We were the oddballs, but Bauer did great. And we got to give a little shout-out for the Devil Rays!! Of course, we were booed shortly after. But we got a little laugh out of it anyway!!

Check-up

We made it to Boston, found our luggage and headed to the doctor's office. I was really excited because we were going to meet a few of the amazing moms that have been such a huge help in our journey with Bauer. Their kids were having their check-ups the same day. We met with the dental team, speech, and Dr. Mulliken, Bauer's surgeon. All had good things say and shared suggestions to help with Bauer's progression.

The dental team said his top 2 teeth are slanted back a little bit, which we knew, and that some of the other teeth will need to be watched. They said the tooth alignment isn't great so there is a little abrasion between the top and bottom. But it didn't seem to be a massive issue at this time.
All the other teeth are coming in at a good rate too. Wonderful news.

Speech team decided since we were in a speech program down here there wasn't any need for services there. Great!

Finally we met with Dr. Mulliken. It is a pure joy to see him and his nurse Dotty. They are just wonderful people and God has gifted them so mightily. It's amazing to think that he had helped every child in that office that day with some of the most intense, complex surgeries. What a blessing to all of us.

He said Bauer's lip and palate looked great. No fistulas!! (holes in the palate) He said the palate looked long too. That's a good thing.
He did ask us to keep using the sunscreen and mederma on the scar as it was still a little red. He wants us to keep massaging as well. What a great report. You just hope and pray that whole first year that you are doing everything right and that you won't hear at his first big check-up, "Oh gosh, what have you been doing????"
So praise God we got really great news. Such a smooth and quick appt. And the best part is we don't have to go back for an entire YEAR!!!! Music to my ears.

In between doctors we were able to visit with the other moms. These ladies have been an unbelievable encouragement and help for us. It was such a treat to finally get to chat a little face to face. Jen and Josh Ford were with their little girl Sydney and Terri Cote had her little boy Jaron with her. Here are some pics.




What a great day!!
"'Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; His love endures forever." Psalm 118:29

Boston Boy

This past weekend we had a check-up appt. in Boston. This one would be a little different than the others for a few reasons. Bauer wasn't having any surgeries. Praise the Lord. We were coming back the next day. And there wouldn't be a million bottles, jars of food, etc. in every possible crevice of every bag we had. Every mom would give a shout of "Amen" to that!!

But the new adventures would include a very mobile child on a plane. There was no second guessing bringing the carseat aboard. I think if we had to hold him through the whole flight the only option for a successful trip would have been duct tape or a retractable harness.
Also, Bauer does well going to sleep in the hotel, but now that he can move and roll all over the place we would have to figure out how to keep him IN the bed. For a trip there and back it wasn't worth dragging a pack and play around.

All this in mind we knew it would be a crazy, fun, interesting trip. We just prayed the Lord would let all go well and get us back safely. Needless to say, God is good!!

We finally arrive at the Orlando Airport around 8:00 a.m. Whew, we made it!!! .............wait a minute. What are we gonna do for an HOUR AND A HALF!!! No worries. Bauer had his own schedule including the following.
1. Climb all chairs and charm the ladies
2. Run from mom and dad because I know they want to chase me.
3. Ask for my sippy and a snack
4. Run some more.
5. Scream a little bit.
6. Climbing
7. Dad catches me........Scream.
8. More sippy please..........Sling sippy on the floor.
9. Running again.
10. Repeat previous list until about 9:20.

As crazy as it was we were happy to let him run because it meant that he would pass out on the plane. He did awesome during the flight. We are so thankful for how well he does.
Here are some pics:

Basket Head

I can't wait until Bauer is 18 and his girlfriend wants to see some pictures or video of Bauer. We are so pulling this one out. Usually he hates stuff on his head, but I guess this one fit his big ol' noggin' better than most hats!! :)What a funny boy.

Basket Head

Fun in the sun

This morning we had a yummy yummy breakfast with Jen, Tim, and Ellie Bell and afterwards headed to a nearby playground. The playground lasted an embarassingly 15 minutes due to the heat and the fact that our 13 month old children aren't exactly ready to go down the 8 ft. tall slides just yet. The swings were fun, but they only do that for so long. We actually started laughing after a few minutes b/c everyone with children knows that for the amount of time it takes to pack the kids up wherever we're going better be worth it!! Well, when we all started pouring sweat 10 minutes into our adventure we all gave up! "That's it! Pack 'em up! We're out of here!"
So when we got home we had a better idea to let them play in the pools. Praise Jesus for water!! :) I think we'll wait until around December to try the playground again. ;)

My Cutie Pies

Adam was tickling Bauer today and he was laughing so hard. It was hilarious.

We're still here!!

Some of you may have been thinking, "Stacy must be waiting until Bauer's in kindergarten to post any new pictures." Ha!
I'm really sorry I've been a blog slacker. I shall be updating as quickly as I can!:)

Coffee House!

Usually on Fridays we load up the babies and go to Starbucks for some much needed caffeine and down time. This has to be done very carefully. Now that the kids are no longer ground dwellers and walking has become the transportation of choice we can't just sit and watch anymore. We use to able to get away with putting them down and having at least 3-5 minutes before we had to go catch them. Now we have to barricade the entire area. 20 seconds of not watching and someone is getting ready to throw a $15 cup on the floor, putting someone's 3-day-old cookie in their mouth, or just running off into the next store. They try desperately to escape, but to no avail. We had a great time today!

Mini Vacation!

Thanks to wonderful friends and family Adam and I were able to get out for an entire day and go to the Gators vs. Hawaii game on Adam's Birthday!!. We were on the 50 yard line!! So much fun!!!

It's always weird not having a baby to change, feed, or comfort for more than and hour. Being the longest and furthest away we had ever been from him I was definitley getting Bauer-sick by the end. All day I just kept thinking about how awesome it would be if he played football and what a complete, ridiculous mess I would be in the stands.

Our wonderful family watched Bauer for us. For the most part he was very good, but by the end of the day I think he was giving them a run for their money!!! We owe them one!! Thanks bunches!!!

We've created a monster!!

Bauer's Aunt Jojo and Uncle Mike bought him a Little Tykes playyard. He is an animal on this thing!! He will go up and down the slide 4,000 times before he even thinks about tiring out! The only bad thing is that there isn't a back to it so one of us has to be in front of it and one behind. We have to stick it in the garage when not playing on it. It's either that or put in an electric fence. :)

He's so stinkin' cute!!!

Ellie is 1!

Bauer's best friend Ellie had her first birthday part this weekend. It was adorable. I don't think the boys quite new what to do with flowers and pink everywhere, but you better believe they had a great time. Between the pool and taking all of the pink flowers out of the ground they were lovin' it. Now they are officially all TODDLERS!!!

It is amazing how quickly Bauer has grown. We were looking at old pictures of him at about 2 months of age and it almost brought tears to our eyes. Everyone kept warning us that time flies faster and faster as they get older. That first month when we were delirious with lack of sleep we couldn't imagine why it would be bad for the time to "fly". But now it's crazy with him going to "big boy" school and watching him change every day. He's is talking constantly, running all over the place, and usually eating more than Adam and I.

It's amazing. We're so blessed to have such a handsome, wonderful little boy.

Busy Boy!

Well, Adam and I are back at work now so Bauer is experiencing his first run of daycare. He loves it. By the time I pick him up he is usually the sweatiest one of the bunch. He has a blast. I can't say that he's crazy about me leaving him in the morning, but after about 2 minutes he's fine. I almost peed in my pants when he brought home his first coloring project. I think I counted 5 crayon marks. I guess those were the only ones lucky enough to actually hit the paper!! It was hilarious. I plan on framing it!!

Mr. Gardner

Bauer discovered the waterhose the other day. Day kind of went like this.......... Pick up hose, hold it in air, water runs into his face, he cries, realizes he not drowning, and then do it all again. I couldn't help but laugh. :)

Pow! Kerplam!! Splat! Bam!!

I hope all true original Batman fans recognize the reference being made in the title of this post!

I know lots of you are going to see the new Batman movie, but you haven't seen anything until you've seen this...........................................................................................

Birthday Bash!!

What a great day!! We decided to throw Bauer a monkey-themed birthday party. For some reason when he was about 6 months old he fell in love with monkeys. We're just hoping he isn't pleading for a real live chimp by the time he's 5!!
All of the kids had a blast. We couldn't believe how well everyone did. Usually with 8-9 babies all under the age of 18 months there tends to be that inevitable "melt down" period. Not today. They were awesome. I think they were so busy with the pools, toys, and food that they forgot nap time was way overdue.


After an hour or so of playing outside the moment of truth had come. It was now time for .....................THE CAKE!! Up until now Bauer really hadn't had a large portion of pure sugar in any of his food. Well, that was all about to change. Adam spent the morning before preparing Bauer's first cake. I must say I was very very very impressed.

When we set it in front of Bauer he just kind of stared at it like, "hmmm, I wonder if I'm going to get in trouble if I touch this thing?" But once I took some and put it in his mouth, it was ALL OVER!! The monkey had met it's match! Soon he was just as happy with feeding it to everyone else too!

We are so thankful for everyone who came out today. We had a fantastic time and we hope you did too. Thanks for everything! We are incredibly blessed to have such wonderful family and friends.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Wow! An entire year has already gone by!! Crazy crazy crazy!! It's amazing to think what God has brought us all through in just this first year. We were flipping through pictures the other day and the change that's taken place as Bauer has grown is incredible. He was such a skinny little squirrel for the first month and then it looks like we started giving him creatine with every meal. :) ha! We are so thankful for how well he has grown and how easily he's adapted to all his different feeding methods. A lot of cleft babies don't transition so smoothly. He's always been in the 90th percentile or higher in every measurement which, again, isn't typical of cleft kids.

Just in the last month his personality is starting to shine brighter than ever! He has the gentle sweet side with hugs and kisses and then his 110% boy side comes out and the next thing you know you're being smacked in the head with a book or bottle. If we have another boy it's gonna be a constant battle of "Rock'em Sock'em Robots".

We've learned a lot about him this past year, but probably more about ourselves and who God is helping us become. We've learned to lean on God in so many different areas. When we thought we were patient enough, strong enough, or even smart enough on our own we quickly realized that leaning on Him was the only way we were going to make it. I'm a "fixer" by nature and sometimes I remember getting so frustrated because I couldn't fix the problem at the time. And God started heavily laying on my heart that I can't always fix it on my own, sometimes nothing is even broken-it's just inconvenient, and I'm not a failure for being unable to fix it - that's what He's there for. We realized after a while that babies are babies and they do what they do without a clear explanation on how to make things better. It's pretty much a combination of patience and trial by error.

Here's a picture of him the day he was born and exactly 1 year later. Doesn't even look like the same baby!!

Do you see what I see?

We've had a lot happenin' over here at the Smehyl house. Talking, Eating, Sucking, and now...........................................WALKING!! Oh yeah, that's right....watch out world .......... Here he comes!! It took a while but he finally has figured out that he doesn't need to cling to the couch, walls, mommy, daddy, or anything to keep himself standing. He's also noticed how much more convenient this whole walking thing is. He escapes faster, can run away within seconds, and we especially love him getting into the bathroom and eating toilet paper.

All cabinets are bolted shut, hallway doors are closed, and we are on constant watch for anything laying around that he can put into his mouth. Yesterday, that something was a crayon which was nearly followed by a recipe he tore from a book. Today it was a new mustard bottle and relish I bought at Publix!!

He definitely loves his new set of wheels and is making us so proud every day. It's really cute watching him waddle from room to room like a little penguin. I just praise the Lord we don't have to keep lifting 26 lbs too much longer!! :)

Do You Hear What I Hear???

Oh I never thought we would be so excited about saying this, but Bauer can finally suck!!! It's by far one of the sweetest sounds he's made since birth. :) We've been slowly backing off on how much we cut his sippy cup nipples. One day he finally made some suction sound and has made improvement with every meal, but about a week ago we gave him a completely normal sippy with a brand new nipple and he totally figured it out!!! God is so good. His palate is not only repaired, but it's finally functioning properly too. Music to our ears!!! To think that he was born with a massive whole in the top of his mouth and within a year he is totally sucking from a regular nipple. So awesome. It's funny how the little things in life get you the most excited!! Praise the Lord!

Aaahhhh! A week away from home!

Oh my goodness it was so nice to get away for a few days. Adam had a conference down in Marco Island and family members were able to come too. So you better believe we packed up everything and headed down for a nice little vacation. Of course, anyone would have thought we were going to Europe for 6 weeks with what we packed, but that just goes with the territory of traveling with a baby.
We had a great time. Sleeping is comical on these trips. Once the baby is asleep everyone in the room is on stealth mode. Everybody knows if the baby wakes up someone is going to get hurt. :) So we all just lay quietly in the dark like prisoners hoping to fall asleep at a decent hour. So funny. Bauer slept good most nights, but a couple times the rooster crowed WAY too soon. He would wake up and you just see this little head pop up out of the crib and then he spots us. At that point it's over!! There is no hiding. HE KNOWS WE'RE THERE!! It was cute. Much cuter around noon the next day than at 2 a.m., but nonetheless it made us laugh.
Sunsets were great, water was perfect, and the pool was huge. Bauer had a blast. He is now obsessed with pointing to every bird that flies by. He points and says "bi bi".
We were also able to go the Naples Zoo. It rained shortly after we arrived, but Bauer got to see some actual live monkeys!!! His favorite animal.

Ellie's Big Day!

Adam and I were blessed to be a part of Miss Ellie's Christening on June 22nd. As you can see she was so sweet in her little white dress. Just think mom and dad, in just a few years that will be a wedding dress!! ha! By the way, I think I caught Bauer winkin' a few times. Little flirt!

WATER DAY!!

The babies had a blast today playing in the water. Of course, Ellie crawled all over the place and Bauer stayed in no more than 2 spots the entire time. It's almost like watching a grizzly bear and a butterfly play together. Hilarious. I expect at any moment we'll look over and Bauer will be bench pressing Ellie.
By the way, I bet you can't guess who owns all the fun toys today? Here's a hint.......IT'S ALL PINK! :)

Smehyls = 4

Bauer wanted to announce he will be a big proud brother very soon!!! Yep, THERE'S A BUN IN THE OVEN!! We found out about a week ago that the Lord has blessed us with another little life. We're both very excited and anxious. The doc says we're about 5 weeks along so it's still really early. Just praying the Lord will keep the baby healthy and that everything over the next 8 weeks fuses together perfectly. The lip and palate finish fusing around 12 weeks. We know the Lord will provide for whatever happens, but still praying for wholeness.

Is there something on my face?

Bauer is trying all kinds of new foods. He will pretty much eat anything you put in front of him. Actually, he'll put anything he can pick up in his mouth -- grass, dog hair, sticks, mulch, carpet fluffs, newspaper, receipts, magazines, etc. etc. We constantly have to keep an eye on what he has in his hands. Usually, if it's something he knows he shouldn't have he'll try and turn his back to us as to hide the evidence!! It's pretty funny!
Today he was eating some blueberries and we couldn't resist snappin' this shot!!

A new playpen!

Well, we thought about buying Bauer a playpen soon, but it seems he found something he likes better!! I wanted to toss him into a bowl of sanitizer when I saw this, but it was too funny not to take a quick pic!!

Clean Ears!!

We took Bauer to his Ear, Nose, Throat specialist, Dr. Cotter, last week in Orlando to check on a recent infection and to have his hearing checked. There was concern that his ears were still red after a week on antibiotics. After examining they also noticed his eardrums had perforated on both sides which explained the load of drainage over the last 3 days They decided Bauer needed tubes put in ......................................THE NEXT MORNING!!

The day before the doctor had an emergency surgery twenty minutes before we arrived so we didn't get to have Bauer examined. One drive to Orlando. They felt bad for making us drive so far and cancelling so the next day they were able to get us in. Now 2 trips to Orlando. So when she said "he needs to go ahead and have tubes put in TOMORROW" I've never wished so badly that I had my pilot's license!! ;) She said the palate probably isn't functioning 100% yet so that's probably added to the build-up and infection. It needed to be removed quickly.

We're just so thankful that we found a great doctor who's worked with cleft children. It's what was best for Bauer. We would have driven to Miami if needed, but 3 trips back and forth to Orlando in 3 days was a little crazy. Praise the Lord Adam and I were both able to make it and Bauer got the help he needed.

The surgery lasted about 20 minutes. Bauer came around the corner on his bed drinking a sippy cup. He was good to go! We couldn't believe how fast it was. The doctor said there was a massive amount of stuff in his ears. The best news of the whole day was that the perforations had already healed over. Praise praise praise. We're so cautious with Bauer's hearing. We don't want to do anything to cause any permanent damage.

I wondered a few times over those 3 days if we did the right thing in March by not putting the tubes in, but we both felt at peace with the decision and we can't change it now. The Lord knew what was coming and he allowed us to get the help we needed when we needed it.

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Matthew 6:27

Hide n' Seek!

One of Bauer's favorite toys is now my cell phone. He was playing with it the other day and I couldn't find it anywhere. One second he's got it in his hands the next I'm looking everywhere but in the toilet. I used Adam's phone to call it and we were looking under, around, and in everything. We finally spotted it and busted out laughing.
See if you can find it.

Daddy's little football man!

Bauer was so stinkin' cute in this jersey. We are NOT Dallas fans, but I couldn't resist putting it on him. Such a handsome little man.

My buddy's birthday!

Saturday, June 7 was Hunter's birthday party. Bauer had a rough start and needed a nap, but he came back towards the end and had a great time. Uncle Mic and Aunt La threw a great party and we loved the western theme!! It's so crazy to think our "babies" are already a year old.

My Bestest Pink Friend

Bauer's friend Ellie came over and played today. It's so funny watching them. Ellie is as fast as lightening when she crawls and Bauer just waits until she gets close enough and snatches her in. Since Bauer is more like a cement block Ellie likes to use him to crawl up on. When Bauer tries doing that it's like a bear climbing a flower.
Bauer loves playing with Ellie Bell! He also refers to her as the pink friend. She is always dressed in something sweet and pink!! So cute.

Blue Man Group

For Mother's Day Bauer bought Adam and I tickets to Blue Man Group in Orlando. Such a sweet boy!! ha! :) It was awesome. If you haven't been you need to make time and go. We ate at Margaritaville beforehand and we both gave it a 10!!! Halfway through the night we realized that it was the furthest away and the longest time spent away from Bauer. We pretty much talked about him the whole time, but really enjoyed getting a night away. It was fun going on a REAL date again!!

CHOKOLOSKEE BOUND!!

Adam and I have been dying to get back down to Chokoloskee and go fishing. We finally decided to go ahead and go with Bauer and just see what happens!! It's not exactly a beach resort and there isn't much for little people like Bauer to do. But my grandma said she would watch Bauer and we could go fishing with our friend, Redmond, for the day. Oh man, are we glad we went. It was so nice to get away from the house and get out of town for a while. Very refreshing!! Plus , we caught a good amount of fish and saw tons of wildlife, porpoise, sea turtle, shark, & stingray. We had a great time.

Praise the Lord Our Shepherd, Provider, and Healer!!

We have finally reached the long awaited day!! On
May 7th we were exactly 6 weeks post-op. YEAH!
YEAH!! YEAH!! Now Bauer is officially recovered! It's estimated that after surgery each week that passes allows for 15%-20% further healing.

It's neat to think that Bauer's palate is pretty much like ours now. He went from a gaping whole in his mouth to a completely closed off palate like anyone else's. It won't function fully for another couple months, but everything is in tact as if it were never cleft. There is a tiny pin-sized whole on his uvula, but they pretty sure it will close on its own.

He will have to go through some muscle/speech therapy to really get everything moving properly, but he's doing great even now.

We're going to start working more on his ability to suck from the sippy cups too. Right now he's still munching on the cut nipple with the Nuby Sippy. He bites down and liquid comes out much faster. Every now and then you'll hear a little suck, but it's not consistent simply because he's never been able to do it. Hopefully, he catches on quickly and we can be on a regular sippy cup by mid-summer.

All in all the 6 weeks post-op with the palate wasn't too bad. We were on constant eggshells with any objects put in his mouth and staying away from certain foods, but it definitley wasn't as strenuous when dealing with the cleaning aspect like with the lip.

It's been incredible how God has guided us through every step, provided all we needed through family, friends, finances, and more, and definitley brought a healing to our son through the miracle of medicine. We still don't know why all of this happened. We may never know, but we have had to trust Him in a way we never have before. I pray when dealing with future surgeries and times of need with Bauer we will remember how powerful God worked and is working in our lives and that He will continue to do so day by day.

AQUA BAUER!!!

Bauer has enjoyed his bath since day 1 so we were so excited at the chance to get him into a full-size pool. This past weekend my uncle came in from Oregon and my family all stayed at Longboat Key for the weekend. It really is hilarious the amount of stuff we pack for just a day at the beach!! Here's a brief list:
* stroller/backpack carrier
* exersaucer - just in case he hates the pool
* fun floating boat
* random amount of toys
* sunscreen (50+ - Ultra-block-out-everything-but-the-bacon baby sunblock) - If he has my skin he could come back looking like a little tomato!!
* Sand toys - just in case he has a sudden urge to build a sandcastle !?!
* Enough clothes to last 3 days
* Little Swimmer diapers - no surprises in the pool please!!
* Baby Food, Baby snacks, Bibs, Formula, Juice, Sippy Cups
* BABY

Anyone with a baby knows any car ride past an hour can be really smooth or really loud. But Bauer did great and didn't start getting fidgety until we were about 10 minutes from the hotel.

He had an absolute blast in the pool and loved watching the ocean waves. It was too cold to get in and play. He and daddy are quite the water acrobatics team!!

SEE YA LATER BRACES AND HELLO NEW FOOD!!

We're getting closer and closer to that magic "6 weeks" window. I called Bauer's nurse today and she said he could start munching on pieces of toast this week. We have to wet it a little bit with water and smash it down so it's not so coarse. Bauer loved it!! Even though we have the "okay" to do it we still find ourselves being extremely cautious. I just have this fear of his palate being ripped open even though I know deep down that it would take more than a piece of wet toast to do so.

We we're also given permission to take his arm braces OFF FOR GOOD!!! Praise Jesus!! Here lately Bauer had figured out how to dismantle the braces on his own. I would always laugh when we would be in the car and all of a sudden I hear the ripping crunch of velcro straps. A couple seconds later I would see an arm brace being swung around in the air in the rear view mirror. I couldn't exactly put the car on auto-pilot and fix them so I just prayed he didn't find anything other than his fingers to chew on.

The only way we could get them to stay on overnight was putting them under his long-sleeved pajamas. You've got to look for a certain sleeve too. Some sleeves are almost too tight for their arms much less any type of brace. Sometimes it's sad watching him have to sleep with those things, but it has to be done and he really doesn't seem to mind it. It's amazing how the babies adapt so quickly.

Jail Time!

Today I looked over while Bauer was playing with his toys and saw this:

I think he was slightly irritated that instead of helping him bust out I took time to find the camera!!

Takin' his motorcycle and cell phone out for a drive!!

Actually, he looks like he's saying, "What, what.....I didn't do it!!"

WE JUST LOVE THIS BOY!!!

Those two bottom teeth will make anyone fall in love!!:)