Team Robo in the current moment

I thought I would just take a few notes of where we are today, Fall of 2009. Of course we have a new baby on the way which is very exciting for everyone. So this is life before baby:

Keaton--He is 6 years old and a 1st grader at Copeland Elem. He is an easy going child for the most part, and always has been. He does have the occasional tantrum and whines a little too much for a 6 year old, but this usually happens when he is tired. I don't think he gets enough sleep. Between our busy schedule, homework, dinner, and bath he usually doesn't get to bed until 9:00. He is pretty much asleep as soon as his head hits the pillow. He catches up on his sleep on the weekends by sleeping in and naps. We are a big nap family. Ever since Keaton was born you can expect us to be napping Saturday and Sunday between 12-4. We don't sleep as long now that the kids are older, but we used to take a serious 4 hour nap. I guess it is good we are still in a routine of naps since I know I will need one once the baby is born.

I refer to him as an easy going child because, for example, he will wear pretty much anything we give him to put on without complaint. He can be negotiated with most of the time and will accept what you are telling him. He is more likely to get his feelings hurt, than show his anger, but he can show his anger also. The anger is usually directed at Cort and I think this behavior is picked up from daycare. I think because he is easy going, he has had to learn some hard lessons at school/daycare to stand up for himself. It is hard to seem him being picked on at school, but these are lessons that every child must learn, because there are some mean kids out there.

Keaton is a picky eater (I have no idea where he gets that from....do you hear the sarcasm??) Mark and I are not forceful when it comes to eating. Our policy is, "We put it on your plate, if you don't want it, don't eat it. That's your choice" I once read if you continue to put it on their plate, it will become familiar to them and they will eventually try/or eat it. I think it has actually worked with Keaton. In addition, I also talk to him about foods he doesn't like. For example, I say to him, "when are you going to start eating squash?" and he will say "when I turn 8 years old, I will try it." These attempts to familiarize him and make him comfortable with the food and trying new things has had positive results. He didn't used to eat broccoli or carrots AT ALL. Now he eats them and more than one helping. He started with broccoli. I put a few pieces of broccoli on his plate one night, like I always do. I loaded Cort's plate with broccoli because it is his favorite. Keaton said to me, "why does Cort get to be healthier than me?" I asked if he wanted more broccoli and he ate 3 helpings that night. Since then, we have added carrots. I am very proud of him for his progress. (And they have never called Mark out for not eating his veggies.....I thought that would have started by now for sure)

Keaton still loves his scratchy(blue blanket) and fish blanket. He still wags them all over the house and sleeps with them. He also usually sleeps with 1 stuffed animal, but the animal can change from time to time. Right now it is the Baby Seal Nana brought back from New Zealand.


Cort--Is 4 years old and goes to Children's Courtyard. He is in the Preschool Room. Cort is very passionate. He knows what he wants and how he wants it. For example, he is very picky about his clothes. He will refuse to wear something if he does not like it. He mostly likes to wear 'fun shirts' with characters on them like WALL-E, Diego, or Transformers. He is picky about his shoes also and would prefer to wear pants over shorts probably because I won't let him wear boots with shorts. He has some issue with buttons. He does not like shirts that button up at all and doesn't really like the polo type shirt with a collar and buttons. If you can get the shirt on him, he will usually forget about it, but it is the convincing him to put it on that is the struggle.

On the other hand, Cort is our good eater. He loves vegetables and fruits. Broccoli seems to be his favorite. I find it amusing that he will eat his dinner, have dessert like an Oreo, and then ask for more broccoli. Many occasions we have been in a restaurant in which I order broccoli and his kid meal comes with FF. He will eat ALL of my broccoli off of my plate and skip the fries. He also loves cheese and yogurt. His favorite yogurt is 'flower yogurt'. Vanilla really, but it has the picture of a flower on the container. He always wants to try the other flavors like strawberry, but really only likes vanilla.

He will eat his dinner and then by 8:00 or 8:30 decide he is hungry again. Maybe this is a ploy to defer bedtime or maybe he is just a growing boy. Nonetheless, he will enjoy a slice of cheese and a cup of juice. Speaking of bedtime....

Cort has always had issues with bedtime....or more so his bed. He never like his crib. That baby would REFUSE to sleep in his crib. We graduated him to a toddler bed at 12 months just trying to see if something new would work better. (The toddler bed just being his crib converted) He still hated it. He once told me he didn't like the bars. I don't know if he felt claustrophobic or what. We bought him a big boy twin bed at 3 years old. I have to say it is getting a little better, but most nights he still comes downstairs. (I think the boys would prefer to sleep on a pallet on the floor in our room than in their own comfy beds) He never really was attached to a lovey. He will sleep with a stuffed animal sometimes, but it can change from day to day which one. Now, because he still takes a nap at school (and he is a good napper. I always get compliments on how he lays right down and goes to sleep) he doesn't seem tired at bedtime and always wants to stay up later. I do sometimes let him stay up and watch a show or look at books. If you tell him to go straight to bed, he is usually up 5+ times. I can't be mad at him though, because he usually wants to come give me a hug or kiss goodnight or tell me something he has thought of while trying to go to sleep. It's cute. (I know, I'm a sucker!)

For the most part the boys play really good together. Cort is just a nut and will do anything for a laugh. He wants his brother's attention. Keaton is more serious and sometimes wants to be left alone. They both are excited about the new baby. Cort wants to name the baby Ella if it is a girl and Luke if it is a boy. This is usually when Keaton pipes in and says no, if it is a boy, he wants to name is Levi. For those of you that don't know the Taylors, Levi and Ella are brother and sister and the same ages at Keaton and Cort. (Cort is sweet on Ella).

Mark's company, Strategic Utility Management, has been doing business a little over a year now. They are actually looking into expanding, by adding on a few more partners. He is still working out of our house for now, but hopes to have office space within the next year. I have been with Corrugated Concepts 2 years now as their Controller. I am excited about my maternity leave next year, I am looking at it as a 3 month vacation in which I can spend time at home and with the kids. We just had some work done on our house. We filed an insurance claim for storm damage and they covered it all. We got a new roof and some of the damaged siding replaced. Because the roof had leaked in several places, we had some internal repairs also. Our master bath had the most water damage. We no longer have wallpaper, they repaired the wall, textured and painted. They also did the same treatment to our half bath. All cracks and leaks were repaired and the whole interior was painted, walls, ceilings, and trim.

As I mentioned earlier, our schedules are really busy. The boys are wrapping up another soccer season (more to come in a new post with pictures). We also have AWANA on Wednesday nights, Cort is a Cubbie and Keaton is a Spark. The holidays are fast approaching, I need to start Christmas shopping or I will never get it done!

16 Weeks

I had a regular doctor's appointment yesterday with Dr. Imtiaz. Imtiaz has been my OB/GYN for 8 years now and delivered both Keaton and Cort. I really like her and I hope she is the actual doctor to also deliver this baby.

Anyway, a routine visit. Blood pressure 65/105-good, Weight gained 2 lbs so far-good, Baby's heartbeat-good, abdomen measures right on track. I had some blood drawn for the Triple Screen. I guess I didn't have to do this test, since we already had the Ultra Screen, but it just seems routine.

I did ask her two questions regarding the Cesarean.

At my first prenatal visit, we discussed that I would have a C-section with this baby as I did with Cort. I asked her to explain why, and here is the answer. With my previous Cesarean, my uterus was not fully developed since Cort was born at 34 weeks. The Cesarean procedure is different for a 34 week with previa, than it is with a regular 39 week. She explained I do have the option to have a Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC), but she and her colleagues do not recommend it. The risk of a VBAC would be uterine rupture during the stress of labor, which would be life threatening. Therefore, I am completely happy with a planned C-Section.

My second question was regarding the timing of the delivery. I am due April 9, but assume the surgery would be scheduled in advance to avoid me going into labor. She said she normally schedules them 7-10 days before the due date. I am sure closer to the end of the pregnancy she is able to make a better judgement if I seem to be dilating early. Although, I wonder if I would actually go into labor??? I never have in the past. With Keaton, my water was leaking, but I had to be induced, Cort a C-Section. I have not experienced the 'going into labor' part, and I guess I hope I don't this time knowing I am having a c-section. Scheduling is good, but let's stay away for April Fool's Day.

I go back in 3 weeks.

Happy 10th Birthday Dixie Dog

I was just reminded today is Dixie's 10th birthday. Mark and I got her as a puppy the December after we were married. I wanted a puppy and we had been looking for one. I really wanted a Siberian Husky and was planning on naming it Tonka. We visited a Husky family one night after driving all the way to Dickinson, but left without a puppy. I watched the mom and dad dogs and became almost scared at how active and strong they are. These dogs could leap like deer and could almost clear the backyard fence. The owners were very helpful by informing us the kind of care these dogs need. I remember they even said you would never be able to let it off the leash because it would run and never stop. I think we made the right decision. I still think Huskies are beautiful dogs.

If I remember correctly Mark's dad knew of someone giving away Golden Retriever pups. We went to the house, which wasn't very clean at all, and picked out the most laid back girl in the litter. The mom was a full yellow Golden Retriever and the dad was a mixed black long haired Retriever. Dixie was a ball of golden fur and I immediately fell in love. Mark picked the name Dixie (I assume after the Dixie Chicken). Tonka just didn't seem to fit. I gave her a middle name of Dixie Belle, but we just call her Dixie.

I remember not long after we got her, I called in sick 2 days because I couldn't bare to leave the poor little thing alone all day. We lived in our rent house (Pine Lake Drive) after we first married. She stayed in the pink bathroom at first when we went to work. Then she graduated to the kitchen with baby gates. After she ripped up the linoleum floor by the back door and managed to get the refrigerator open and help herself to lunch, she graduated to the back yard. It was a nice yard. Our laundry room was off of the garage and we left that door open for her. During the winter she had warm blankets in there that she seemed to only drag in the yard and chew. During the summer she had a baby pool to keep her cool. She led the good life.

Dixie gained a playmate 2 years later when we got Lady from our neighbor. Dixie and Lady love each other and play so well together. They slept in between Mark and I at night in our queen size bed up until Keaton was born. And I literally mean born. I remember being 9 months pregnant with Dixie and Lady both still sleeping in our queen size bed with us. (I guess that was getting us ready for kids, LOL) Once the baby was born, they were not allowed on the furniture.

Dixie has always loved water. When she was a puppy Jane and Ed watched her at their house while we were in Puerto Rico. She swam everyday, even jumping off the diving board. Her hair clogged their pool filter that had to be replaced. She loves to wallow in mud puddles and even taught Lady to love it also. I have a great picture of them in a huge mud puddle together.

They both accepted the kids easily as they were demoted in the family from our 1st children. They are great with the kids and tolerate the noise and their running around. Dixie is very happy go lucky and never meets a stranger. Lady is the protective one of the two, but they both can get into mischief. Poor little animals that wander into our yard, it never ends well for them. Dixie and Lady have killed possums, squirrels, birds, rats, a skunk, and even had their way with a cat until Mark intervened. The skunk, a fun story I will try to make short. After Cort was born, the dogs slept outside for a while. And one night a skunk made the mistake of entering our yard. We heard the noise around 4:00 am and Mark fell to his knees at the back door from the smell. It was horrid. Needless to say the dogs were banned to the yard for a good month until the smell wore off. No matter how many times you bathe the dog or in what....the smell stays.

Over the years, Dixie has been overweight (averaging 85-95 lbs, Lady is 55 lbs) for a female Golden Retriever and also had some hip arthritis issues. Now as she is getting older I suppose her activity in the back yard every day is declining so she finds entertainment in licking her front legs. This creates hot spots that she will lick until it is raw. We bandage her legs, but she will have chewed through the bandage by the next day.

One of my favorite memories of Dixie is back again at our rent house. We left her in the kitchen when we went out for dinner one night. While we were gone, she helped herself to the Cheez-Its on the counter. When we returned home she greeted us with a cheesy smile!!!

Happy Birthday Dixie Dog, we love you!

2009 East Texas Yamboree

Well, Yamboree used to be such a big deal to any child that grew up in Gilmer. The school lets out Wednesday-Friday the third week in October to celebrate. I used to love going to the carnival and riding the rides as a small child. And as any young girl would, I loved seeing the Yamboree queen and her court at the Coronation pageant. As I got older I was involved in some of the Yamboree activities. I was in the parades and marching contest as a member of the band or drill team and danced in the Yamboree pageant a couple of years. Of course during the high school years there is the invitation to the Queen's Ball you await. And you can't forget about the Barn Dance.

After I left for college, I haven't made it back that often for the yearly festival. When Mark and I were first dating I brought him home to experience the Yamboree. I think that was either 1995 or 1996. I didn't make him endure the pageant, and let's just say experiencing one barn dance is plenty.

Anyway, the kids are a great age to enjoy some of the activities this year, so we made the trip (6 hour trip) to Gilmer last weekend.

Here she is the 2009 Yamboree Queen on her float in the Queen's Parade Saturday

And I guess you can tell I am a mom of 2 boys. I took pictures of the COOL things in the parade instead of the girls in pretty dresses on beautiful floats.

A Monster Truck

Race Cars

See, I didn't bore you with too much parade stuff. The kids did great sitting through the hour plus parade of marching bands, drill teams, cars, trucks, school duchess, and the Queen's court. Their favorite was the Shriner's in the mini cars and funny hats, clowns, and the local Tai Kwan Do kids.

Then we hit the carnival. Different than when I was a kid, you can buy an all day armband and ride as many rides as you want...for a price of 20.00 per child. So we coughed up the 40.00 and made our way around the square. Here is Keaton and Cort at the top of the slide. I was nervous for Cort because it was very high. He nearly scared me to death. I thought he was going to slide down head first. When he was ready to go, his sack was hung and so he was hanging on and climbing back up to fix his sack. Needless to say, he made is down the slide safely and it was no big deal for him.

On the carousel with Gee

The boat ride

A different boat ride

As you can tell, we pretty much rode the same kiddie rides over and over.

The race car ride

And one of their favorites, the motorcycle ride

Honestly, I think these are the same exact rides from when I was a kid. There are buttons on each of these rides you can push to make honking noises.....they don't work anymore because they are so old.

And the kiddie dragon roller coaster

Cort didn't want to ride it and Keaton only rode once. It was fun, but the one kiddie ride with a long line.

I have never liked the Ferris Wheel, so we stayed clear of that. Keaton did ride the Tilt A Whirl for Aunt Kerrie one time. Cort was too short. They loved going in the fun houses. There were about 3 different ones. With the armband they could go in over and over. If you paid tokens, it cost 3 tokens=$3 a trip!!!! So the armband investment paid off.

As a kid I did love the Octopus ride, the Rock O Planes, the Sizzler, and the Tilt A Whirl. And I loved Candy Apples. The kids enjoyed some Cotton Candy during the morning parade and we snacked on a candy apple and hot dog later that afternoon.

I dont' know when we will be back, but it was a fun trip.

Proud Mama

Monday was Keaton's 1st grade parent teacher conference. His homeroom, math, science, and social studies teacher is Ms. Adam. His language arts teacher is Ms. Clements. I only met with Ms. Adam. She showed me the results of his benchmark tests. He made a 100 on his math test! She was very impressed because the test was very difficult in her opinion. In language arts he scored higher than the requirements in all categories except two. Vocabulary and the writing sample he scored in the normal range of requirement, although these are areas he needs to work on. He is reading above level and she loves his enthusiasm for reading.

She went on to say that he is very helpful and respectful. She wishes she had more kids like him in her class. Needless to say, we are very proud of Keaton and his efforts at school.

Each week he has math, reading, and spelling homework. He usually completes all 4 days of homework on Monday night. (That's because our schedule is so busy--Soccer on Tues, AWANA on Wed, and Small Group on Thur) And he usually does it with minimal help. So far, he has made a 100 on all spelling tests. Ms. Clements grades on spelling and handwriting. Although he has received a 100 on the spelling, he receives an N for handwriting. He gets very upset about this and says Ms. Clements is mean, but I tell him it is just something we need to work on. But really, we all know guys usually do not have great handwriting. And she seems to be picky to me. If the letter is below the red baseline at all, she circles it.

We are very proud of Keaton and all that he has learned. As a reward, I took him to the school book fair and he picked out 3 books for himself (2 football books and a Naruto book-it's similar to Pokemon) and 1 book from the class wish list. It was either the book fair or Bendaroos. He has been begging for Bendaroos every time we see the commercial.

Praying for Health

I have to admit the media has me terrified of the flu/swine flu. I read online today that a hospital in Arkansas has 7 pregnant women on respirators due to complications from the swine flu. This flu seems to have it out of children and pregnant women. Cort woke up this morning with 99.2 fever so Mark took him to the doctor. If it is the flu, I want to catch it early, early so the meds will work. Luckily, it is not the flu, but strep throat. (We breathe a sigh of relief) Both strep throat and the flu are posted as going around in Cort's class at daycare.

Like I posted earlier, I received my flu shot and plan on getting the swine flu vaccine in a few weeks. The risks associated with the flu seem higher than a chance something could be wrong with the vaccine. Even with the swine flu vaccine of 1976, only 1100 people had severe complications from the vaccine and 48 million were vaccinated. Given, the complications were awful and lifelong, GBS, and 25 died. The sad thing is, the vaccine killed more people than the disease did, but today a lot more have died from the swine flu.

Anyway, we normally do not vaccinate our kids from the flu due to their history with egg allergy. The flu shot is cultured in egg. This year we are trying to determine what we should do.

Keaton visited the allergist back in September. (I forgot to post about it) We received very exciting news. The allergies have improved by 50% the doctor stated. This is only based on the skin test. He can start trying more things made/baked with milk and eggs. Peanut, per the skin test, came back the highest. I looked back at my blog post last year and was reminded the blood test cleared Keaton of peanuts. I am a little confused about this result, but guess it doesn't really matter. I didn't plan on letting him eat peanuts any time soon anyway.

But, since his egg allergy has improved, he can receive the flu shot. It would be given in the allergist office so he could be monitored closely. They would test the vaccine on his skin first before injecting him. I want him to be immune to the flu, especially since he has a VSD. The heart defect puts him in the category of higher risk, but at the same time the flu shot still scares me.

Will giving him and Cort the flu shot bring back or make worse their egg allergy? Is this a risks I am willing to take to protect him from the flu?

Regardless, we have a little time to think about it more. Zambrano's office is out of the seasonal flu shot. They will be getting the swine flu vaccine the first week of November. At this point I plan on making an appointment.

High Risk Doctor

We went to see the high risk doctor yesterday. I am 13 weeks. We had a consultation with Dr. Sue Palmer mostly discussing our medical history and the ultra screen. Ultra Screen is a early detection test for Down Syndrome and other Trisomy defects. It is made up of two parts, a blood tests and an ultrasound. Both results are calculated together to see if our baby is at risk for a chromosomal defect. One of our concerns we discussed in the consultation was placenta previa. We were very eager to detect if the placenta had again placed itself in the lower part of my uterus.

Our ultrasound lasted at least an hour since the baby did not want to cooperate. In order to measure for the Ultra Screen, she needed to measure the fluid on the baby's neck. The baby didn't want to give a profile shot as needed, but wanted to stare straight into the camera. Maybe we have a celebrity on our hands. I was asked to roll back and forth on the table, go to the bathroom, touch my toes and jump up and down before they were able to actually get the measurement they needed. But we did get to see a lot of the baby and hear its heartbeat.

The tech was very excited to announce that she believed the baby was a BOY! I have to admit I felt a little deflated after that. I was not prepared to find out what we were having yet, I mean I am only 13 weeks. I didn't want to find out at all this time, but Mark was very adamant that he wanted to know. Three boys are awesome, but of course there was some part of me that was hoping for a little girl.

The GREAT news is that there is no sign of previa and the baby looks very healthy. The ultrasound part of the test fell into the normal range so we just wait for the blood test result.

I also got my flu shot while in the office. This was the first time in my life, and now 24 hours later I feel fine, so hopefully no side effects. I return to see the high risk doctor again in 6 weeks to complete the anatomy ultrasound and get my swine flu vaccine.

After the appointment we had lunch at Pappy's Cafe. I don't think I had been there in 6-8 years. I had the famous chicken fried steak and it was delicious! We talked names over lunch. We seem to be stuck in the 'C' and 'K' names. I think it would be great to find another name we love as much as Keaton and Cort regardless what letter it starts with, but another 'k' sound would fit really well too. Some names we discussed Kirby, Kiptyn, Cullen, Cruz, Carter, Cason, Kade or Caden. Mark told me over his dead body would he name his son Kirby or Kiptyn, but I think the more I say it to him the more it might grow on him. So if you have any cool names you would like to offer up, let us hear them. We have 6 months, but I would like to decide before the baby is born. Since Cort came 6 weeks early, he was 3 days old before he had a name. The funny thing is we had a girl name we both agreed on, Corrine, prounouced Cor-RIN, and could call her Rin or Cori.

Mark wanted to skip out on work the rest of the day and go see a movie, but I talked him out of a day of hooky and went to work.

I have now gained 1.5 lbs and yet I wore a maternity dress to work today for the first time. With Keaton and Cort, I was more like 20 weeks before I started wearing maternity clothes. But, the baby bump is showing and the waistbands were getting too tight!

Happy Anniversary

Today is our 10th wedding anniversary. How blessed I feel to have a happy marriage, house, 2 beautiful, healthy kids and another one on the way, and of course, 2 dogs. We are living the American dream as 'they' would say.

I wish I had photos of our wedding to post. That was before digital cameras, or least before we went digital. Even the photographer gave us negatives. I thought about scanning a few pictures, but we are still putting the house back together since having it painted. Maybe at a later date.

We were married at John Wesley United Methodist Church in Houston, the church Mark attended in his childhood. We had 8 bridesmaids (Kristee-maid of honor, Dee Dee, Genelle, Kerrie, Casey, Lisa, Vinessa, and Becky) 8 groomsmen (Adam-best man, Chris, Bob, Alex, David, Mike, Mitch, Kel) and 4 ushers (Eric, Patrick, Daniel, Drew). The reception was at Wyndehaven Terrace and we ate, drank, and danced the night away with our 200 guests!

We honeymooned in beautiful Jamaica at the Sandals Royal Caribbean Resort and Private Island. We had a wonderful time relaxing on the beach, on the Catamaran, snorkeling and visiting Dunn's River Falls.

I loved our wedding, reception, and honeymoon. It was so much fun! But most of all, I love you Mark Edward Roberson. Thank you for making all my dreams come true!

Wedding Song

I WILL BE HERE
by Steven Curtis Chapman

Tomorrow morning if you wake up,
And the sun does not appear
I...I will be here

If in the dark we lose sight of love,
Hold my hand, and have no fear
'cause I...I will be here

I will be here when you feel like being quiet
When you need to speak your mind,
I will listen
I will be here when the laughter turns to cryin'
Through the winning, losing and tryin'
We'll be together.....'cause I will be here

Tomorrow morning if you wake up,
And the future is unclear
I...I will be here

As sure as seasons are made for change,
Our lifetimes are made for years
So, I...I will be here

I will be here and you can cry on my shoulder,
When the new tells us we're older,
I will hold you, and
I will be here to watch you grow in beauty
And tell you all the things you are to me
I will be here

I will be true to the promise I have made
To you and to the One who gave you to me

I...I will be here

I have added this song to my playlist. If your speakers are on, you can select this song to listen to. This song was played at our wedding. I don't usually listen to the radio when I am driving to work, but I turned it on this morning and this song was playing. How appropriate of a time for God to remind me of this song the day before we celebrate our 10th Wedding Anniversary.

Future Aggie

I don't want to think about the day that my baby leaves home for college, but I know it will happen one day. So Mark took him to his first FIGHTING TEXAS AGGIE FOOTBALL game. Our friend Bill Little offered Mark 2 tickets for the game September 19. Mark, Keaton, Justin and Luke Bender drove to the game together. They had a great time and Keaton loved every minute of it.

On Kyle Field after the big win!

Future Quarterback?

Another 1st: On the way back from College Station, Mark and Justin were talking to Luke and Keaton about baptism. The Brewer's son, Austin, was going to be baptized the following morning. Mark asked Keaton if he knew what it meant to be baptized and explained it to him by saying, once you believe in Jesus and pray for Him to come live in your heart, you can be baptized. Keaton surprised Mark by saying he had already prayed for Jesus to forgive him of his sins and come live in his heart one Sunday when he came to the service with us. We feel Keaton is a little too young to be baptized, but this is a first step for sure. We will continue to talk to Keaton about salvation at home and in AWANA. When he is ready, he will take the class our church offers for children who are new believers. It is a wonderful feeling to hear your child said the words. It makes you feel like you are doing something right.