First ER visit

January has been a miserable month for this O'Neal family. Virginia and Graham both had miserable colds over Christmas and then the stomach bug hit our entire family. Thankfully Michael and I were staggered with our sickness but never-the-less, we couldn't rest in bed because we had two sick babies. Miserable! Virginia wasn't able to overcome hers as quickly as the rest of us so after 6 pediatrician visits in 7 days, we were sent to the ER to get fluids and IV antibiotics because she had acquired two ear infections. What a nightmare of a week but praise the Lord, once we got her hydrated, she started coming back around.

Her rosy cheeks finally came back after a few hours of fluids. Poor baby, this was no way to spend her 9 month birthday. She still pretty though :)
We were stuck out in the hallway because there were no available rooms. No privacy but I was just so thankful we were well enough to be out there and not in critical care room like the children next to us. We were in the hall for 6 hours and then sent home. Virginia's ears are still infected after two weeks of oral, IV and antibiotic shots. We'll be heading to the ENT on Tuesday to schedule our tube surgery date.
6 ear infections in 9 months=misery

But here we are a few days later.....

Yeah-our little munchkin is back to smiling and giggling. Oh how we have missed this face!

Big Changes for a Big Boy

We returned from Christmas vacation with a lot of changes in store. Graham got his first professional haircut. Up until now, I've been trimming it myself. I was hoping it would grow thicker before I had to decide his style. In desperate need at this point.
He watched Michael get his haircut before he jumped in the chair. He was so still and obeyed the stylist when she asked him to look a certain way. I was very proud of our little man.
All grown up :(
So our next big change was moving out of the crib and into the bed. I decided to try it one day for a nap and much to my surprise Graham slept 3 hours and didn't try to get up. We kept the crib up for two more weeks and then it was time to break it down.
No more crib in G's room.
Again, all grown up. :(


On New Year's Eve, I decided we were no longer using diapers. I started a chart for the fridge and used "tractor treats" for his reward. Only two accidents the to date since beginning. I agree with the school of thought, 'when they are ready, they are ready'. This little guy was ready. The first weekend he wouldn't let me cover his race car pants with any other pants. He was so proud of them.

All grown up. :(

So far, my only funny public bathroom story came last Monday after we took my mom to the airport. We were gathering things and it never crossed my mind to ask Graham if he needed to go to the bathroom before we left so...
After dropping mom off, we stopped by Lonnie's shoe store to get Graham some new running shoes. i got him out first and he was standing next to me as I got Virginia out. He said "Mommy, I need to go potty." I looked down and he had pulled his pants down in the parking lot and was trying to go. YIKES!!! Thankfully it was too cold for him to go so I yanked his pants up and we made it inside to the restroom. I was trying so hard not to laugh because I didn't want him to be embarrassed since he didn't know he couldn't do that. Oh me, it was quite a sight to see.

Merry Christmas!

PaPaw gave Virginia her first Auburn item. A cute beach hat with her initials. Adorable!
Santa may have been a little too generous for a two year old. This jeep is so big we had to leave it in Mississippi. Not sure who is going to trailer it to Nashville.

Can you notice the background. Michael is filming the dogs on Christmas day, not Graham and his new toy. HA!

" What is it GiGi?"

It is impossible to break into toys these days. Virginia LOVES her new gumball machine toy. It is so fun for me to watch her learn how to grab the balls and take them in and out.

Hmmm! Not sure what PaPaw is up to in the kitchen.

The Cars wrapping paper may have been a bigger hit than the toys wrapped inside.

Can you tell I'm encouraging baseball? We also have a basketball goal at home that I am encouraging. Trying to stay away from football against my brother's best wishes.

Sissy's big Santa gift. She loved it. We had to leave it behind too. Maybe when we go back her legs will be a little longer.

My first Baby Doll.

Fun around the house

Virginia is 8 months old.



Graham at 8 months. It just amazes me how different they look.

Airborne!

Yes we do let our kids do some crazy things at our house. You can see Graham had placed pillows on the floor for his landing. We had been at Lily's house the night before jumping in her big bounce castle so I think that is where this began. He loves to jump.

My Goodness. Let me clarify to new readers, this is Virginia's room and not Graham's.

Yes Michael even places our children on top of the refrigerator. Graham has always thought this was so funny so we decided to add Sissy to the mix. You can tell from the next picture, he was ready for any falls.

First attempt at the bouncy. She wasn't so sure about it, but the wipes bag, now that can entertain her for 30 minutes.

Christmas picture time.

Graham is not afraid of heights we've discovered. He managed to climb up there while we getting Virginia situated.

It's hard to tell the difference in some of Virginia's faces. She's getting upset here, but the picture above she is laughing and to me, it looks like the same face.

Returning Home

We couldn't return home empty handed so Virginia got her first American Doll-a mini Samantha. It's basically the size of a Christmas ornament, but at least it was affordable compared to my previous post.
She wasn't real crazy about the doll. All she has ever played with are trucks, trains, and tractors.

Graham got a Top from FAO Schwartz.

Before Mom came, I filled up a basket with a lot of crafts and busy work to do inside. Graham loved the watercolors and his large Cars coloring book.

New York City

Michael and I headed to New York last weekend. GiGi flew up to take care of the kids so we could be by ourselves. It was frigid but at least it was dry.

Our hotel was on Broadway next door to the Late Show. It was the perfect Central location to everything we wanted to do and see.

Now who has heard of the "American Girl"? I had heard of them but was not aware of the craze they have become amongst little girls. By the time they hit mainstream I was out of the doll stage and aren't my parents lucky. These little dolls cost $115-$149 each. That does not include a change of clothes or accessories either. You can even buy matching clothes for your daughter to wear. We thought Cabbage Patch dolls were expensive at $30 and $40 but this is unbelievable. I hope consignment sales carry this line when Virginia gets into them.

Look at this place. You couldn't even move and people were walking out with one and two large full bags. That would be at least 2 or 3 hundred bucks a pop. I will say, however, it was one of the sweetest things to see some of these little girls so excited to be there. One Mom told us she and her daughter went to a brunch in the store and her little girl was so excited that she didn't eat a bite of her $40 plate.

You won't believe this one... They have a hair salon so you can cut the doll's hair to match your daughter's hair.

Okay, enough about American girl....

The store fronts were so creative. here we are at Macy's. When we got inside we found out that every girl with the name Virginia, got a $10 gift card to Macy's today. Of course we didn't have Virginia with us, and there was no way Mom was going to load them up to go to our Macy's back home. They were promoting the movie "Yes, Virginia".

We got half price tickets to Mary Poppins. What an awesome show it was too!

For you Dad, there is a post office inside the Manhattan Macy's.

I can't remember what building this is.

30 Rock

Did anyone else know that U.S. Grant's tomb is in Harlem? We didn't.

Rockefeller plaza Christmas Tree.

The Chrysler building.

Checking out Brooklyn from the Sea Port.