Sunday, December 6, 2009

Quick Wrap Up...more to come

First Week of November- Sprained Back
Second Week of November- H1N1
Third Week of November- H1N1
Fourth Week of November- H1N1/ Bronchitis
First Week of December- Stomach Virus (Peyton in ER on Sunday, sick all day Monday, Peyton sick Tuesday, everyone fine Wednesday, everyone but dad sick Thursday, everyone feeling kinda queezy Friday, Dad sick on Saturday, everyone sick again on Sunday.)

Here are some pics to hold you over in the interim. (this is from our ONE day in November we went outside and did something fun!)




Those are cute enough to make you keep coming back for more right? More WILL come as soon as there is a little less nastiness in the air around here!
Publish Post

Monday, November 9, 2009

Halloween

Halloween was a highly anticipated holiday in our home this year. It seems like for a month straight, Brody would ask "Is it Halloween time yet?" So, we decorated. We put lights up, and pumpkins, and made home made decorations, and paper bats, etc. The house was decked out from the beginning of October on.

Brody was dead set on being a football player this year (after we said no to his first choice of Obama). I was just going to throw some sweats on him and a razorback jersey, and try to find a helmet. We went to Halloween Express to find a helmet, and we wound up walking past a Car's "Tow-Mater" costume. Brody was in love. So me, being the wonderful mother that I am, got him the Tow-Mater costume, and he lived in it for 2 days straight. He would take his hat off, and say "I'm Brody now." but if he was wearing his hat, he was Tow Mater, and had to be addressed accordingly.

Peyton was our little cheerleader. She is so tiny and cute, that I wouldn't doubt it if she is a real cheerleader some day. She loves all things girly, so she loved this outfit that Grandma June bought for her. She will bring me the skirt and want to wear it daily!

Nick took a nap before our Trunk-or-Treat celebration at our church, and when he woke up his hair was crazy. I told him he had "Edward hair" (as in Twilight), so I said "you should be Edward." that he was. Unfortunately, Nick has never read the books, and he wouldn't believe me that Edward doesn't have big scary nasty vampire teeth, but he insisted on wearing the big nasty scary vampire teeth anyway.

We had a great Halloween. We went to Trunk or Treat on Friday night, and then on Halloween night, we went with our good friends the Halls, the Johansons, the Binghams, and the Christensens, trick or treating in the Hall's neighborhood. Parker (see Brody's best friend post) is Jenni and Josh Hall's oldest son. The boys all had so much fun together! They kept saying stuff like "This Halloween is AWESOME!" or "This is my best Halloween EVER!" It melts my heart to see the kids having so much fun!



We have a mover and a shaker...






...and a climber, and a crawler, and a pouter, and a laugher...well, you get the point. Peyton is VERY mobile!

This one's for you Uncle Bobby

My loves.

I love it when my kids play nice together. There is nothing like the sound of the two of them laughing and playing in the play room. Except for this...

Sunday, November 8, 2009

Peyton loves her doll.

Grandma June and Grandpa Shaw sent Peyton a care package before her first big visit to Children's in Little Rock. Peyton LOVES her baby! She carries her around, feeds her her bottle, and loves on her all the time. Thanks Grandma June and Grandpa Shaw!




My children love lemons.

Some may think it is strange, but I always LOVED lemons when I was little. Anything sour, in fact. Lemons, limes, sour patch kids, bring them on! Whenever we go to dinner, Nick always puts his lemon in my water because he isn't a fan. Apparently, our kids inherited my love for lemons from me.


Brody has a best friend.

His name is Parker...and we love him!

Are they not the coolest dudes around?



Trip to Utah

Wow, so this post is like 4 months overdue, but I must post about our wonderful trip to Utah this summer!

It all began when we left Arkansas, in my mother in law's Ford Taurus. Nick and I in the front, Tashya and the kids in the back. We drove straight through, trading drivers, downing cokes, and jamming out to our Mp3 players. About 2 hours outside of Salt Lake, I looked up at Nick and said "What's that noise coming from the engine?" To which he replied "it's just the car trying to accelerate uphill. It will stop as soon as we get to the top of the hill." Sure enough, it did. The whole car stopped in fact, with a big bang. The engine blew a hole through the oil pan.

To make a long story short, we rode in the Taurus behind a tow truck all the way to a ShopKo in Salt Lake. We were true Arkansan's making the journey out West.

Once safe and sound at Aunt Julee and Uncle Bobby's house, we had a blast. We were able to attend the Temple 3 times, visit various church history locations, go to the Aquarium, Cowabunga Bay, spend wonderful time with family, and I attended the Scentsy convention.

It was my first time meeting Aunt Melanee, Uncle Donny, and Darcee and Chase. We had a blast with them when they came to visit for a night. Peyton and Shaylee were so cute together!

Brody love, love, loved his cousins and Great Aunt and Uncle. He talks about Aunt Julee, Uncle Bobby, Jenn, Jordan and Justin all the time.

Utah was so beautiful. I have never been to that part of the country, and I was amazed at the beauty and serenity of all the mountains surrounding us. It is definitely a place I could live! I am hoping to be able to make it back to SLC in February for a church Women's conference, sans husband and kids. It will be some fun girl time for all!

Here are some of the pictures from our trip:



















Thursday, October 8, 2009

Update on Peyton

So, we took Peyton back to Little Rock yesterday for her one month check up. She gained EXACTLY 10 ounces! The doctor wanted her to gain a minimum of 10 ounces in order to avoid having to do a scope exam and blood tests. The doctor and the nutritionist strongly believe that she has an intolerance to milk and soy, so she is staying milk and soy free for the next 4 months to see if she can get "on the charts". She will continue to get weight monthly in Bentonville by her PCP. Hopefully she will continue to gain weight and we won't have to be concerned anymore.

Milk and soy free has been hard, but we are all adjusting. I know that the diet is overall healthier for our family, so it is worth it.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Reflections

9/11/2001

I woke up early that morning. I walked up the hill to the University of Arkansas to check my e-mail and print out a study guide for a test I was having later that week. As I walked into the Student Union, I immediately was drawn to RZ's Coffee Shop, which was packed with people, and had people flowing out the doorway into the hall. I couldn't figure out what was going on, so I asked someone why everyone was packed into RZ's. The guy just pointed his finger at the TV set up in the corner of the coffee shop. That's when it happened. A second plane crashed into the World Trade Center...live...right before my eyes.

I frequented RZ's quite often, and was drawn to the liveliness that was typically found there. On this day however, everyone's breath stopped. Nobody spoke. Nobody moved. We all stood there, our mouths opened, and our hearts dropped into our stomachs.

I went to the couch and sat down and immediately called my mom. She had just turned the TV on and had seen the news. At this point, nobody knew if there was a malfunction with the air traffic controls, or if it was merely an accident. Terrorist attack? That never crossed our minds.

I headed to my Psychology class, my head hung down. My heart was sad for the loss of the lives that had taken place. As I sat down next to my friend Stormy, he told me that yet another plane had hit the Pentagon. He told me they thought it was terrorists. I began to fear for my family, for my friends, and for my country. A feeling of helplessness came over me and all I could do was cry.

My second class was canceled as my teacher was supposed to be at a meeting at the Pentagon that morning. Lucky for him...he got stuck in traffic that morning. He missed the plane crash by 15 minutes. The airliner flew over his taxi as he sat and watched, the building he should be in fill with smoke and debris.

My roommate and I spent the rest of the day in our dorm room. We filled our cars up with gas and made a quick trip to the store for necessities. Our country was under attack and we had no idea when it would end. We listened to the coverage on the radio, and watched the news until we couldn't take anymore in the common area of our dorm. People were jumping out of buildings, people were on fire, people were running from the buildings covered in smoke and debris. It was too much.

My heart has never been the same. Anytime I hear 9/11...see an American Flag...see the words "Let's Roll"...hear "God Bless America"...or see NY FD memorabilia, my heart hurts.

Flash forward 8 years

9/11/2009

I woke up early this morning. My kids woke up too early. Peyton was fussy and Brody was hungry. Babies changed, fed, and the TV turned on. This time however, it was not to the news station. It was turned to Noggin. Just another day.

I signed onto Facebook and realized...it's the anniversary. My heart hurt once again. I felt guilty for having Noggin turned on. I felt like I should be remembering better. I felt like I should be watching the coverage of the anniversary tributes on TV. Not Oswald. Then I realized...my children have no idea the significance of today. They are so innocent and have never had to witness the evil in the world that I, and so many others witnessed that day.

While I fully intend to teach them to remember those who lost their lives that tragic day, I am going to cherish their innocence as long as I can. And pray. Pray every day that they never have to see anything like 9/11 again in their lifetime.

I will always remember.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

Soy free...it's the way to be!

For months and months, Peyton has not grown. In fact, she has only gained 2 pounds in an 8 month period. Her pediatrician was not concerned and just told me "she will probably just be petite." It wasn't until we switched pediatricians that we found out there was a problem.

Peyton was having a bowel movement about 6-10 times a day. Her new pediatrician was very concerned about this and has set up an appointment at Children's Hospital in Little Rock to test her GI tract for functioning problems. He also sent us to an allergist to test for food allergies.

During her allergy appointment we learned that Peyton is indeed, soy intolerant. This means she can have soy, but her stomach does not digest it will, causing the constant diarrhea. She (actually all of us) are now on a soy free diet. We eat rice, potatoes, vegetables, fruit, and home made sauces with soy free ingredients. Since the new diet, Peyton has been doing much better! We are so thankful for modern medicine that can help us help our little girl.

Her allergist is still concerned that the "intolerance" is not the reason for her lack of growth, so on September 9th, we will be getting her tested for Cystic Fibrosis in Little Rock, along with her GI test. I will be sure to keep you all updated on her health! Thanks for all the prayers and help during this time!

Friday, August 21, 2009

Sorry again...

I am a horrible blogger...

Saturday, July 25, 2009

Baby Cooper


Cooper Timothy Lowden was born on July 17, 2009. His mom went into labor on her own at 4:40 AM, but at 8:15, everything went wrong. His heart rate dropped down to next to nothing, and his mother, April Lowden was wheeled away for an emergency C-section.

When Cooper was born, he had no heart beat, and was not breathing. The doctors think he was without oxygen for 2-5 minutes. He was air lifted to Arkansas Children’s Hospital, where he is undergoing extensive brain testing. He is breathing without a ventilator, but still requires assisted oxygen.

April stays at home and runs an in home day care. Because of her at-home work, she is not entitled to “paid maternity leave.” They also have insurance through her husband’s work, which is not going to pay all of their already large medical bills.

Cooper and his parents are precious to me, and I want to help them in any way I can. There are 4 ways you can help:

1.) Donate (anything will help). Donations can be made at Metropolitan National Bank into account #2581027. They can be mailed to Metropolitan National Bank, C/O Stephanie Mereweather, 3701 Pinnacle Hills Parkway, Rogers, AR 72758

2.) Purchase products from my Scentsy Website: www.scentsy.com/petersen. Click on “Cooper Timothy Lowden Fundraiser”, and 100% of the profits will be donated to the Lowden’s. This “online party” will close the 3rd week of August, and you will receive your products within 2 weeks of the closing date. I am also choosing a “mystery hostess” meaning, everyone who purchases from this party will be entered to win the hostess credit (free and half priced products)

3.) Get your carpets cleaned! From August 18-25th, my husband, who owns Celestial Cleaning Systems, is going to be donating all profits from carpet cleaning to the Lowden’s. Call 479-366-0442 to set up your cleaning! Don’t need your carpets cleaned? We also do tile, upholstery, and vehicle cleaning! www.20dollarsaroom.blogspot.com


4.) Contact me about donating items to a garage sale I am holding at my home on Friday and Saturday, July 31st, and August 1st!


Sunday, June 28, 2009

Scentsy


So...I have started on a new adventure! I am officially a Scentsy Consultant! For those of your unfamiliar with Scentsy, they are the HOTTEST new thing in candles! The creators of Scentsy have created the SAFEST, most HARMLESS, most DELICIOUS smelling, BEAUTIFUL burners and wax to give your home a fresh, clean smell. With over 80 scents and a wide variety of burners, there is something for everyone!
No more hugging your candles, no more trimming your wicks, no more harmful chemicals and smoke filtration getting into your walls and carpets! Say NO MORE with Scentsy!


You can check out my website at www.scentsy.com/petersen to see what it is all about. The employment opportunities are awesome as well!

If you are interested in hosting a party, doing a fundraiser, or just placing an order, contact me and I will get you taken care of! You are going to love the products just as much as I do!