Ratatouille

We took Will to see his first movie (Ratatouille) in the actual theater last night. It went okay...the movie was pretty long and wasn't as "exciting" as say, Cars or Nemo, but I think he enjoyed himself. There were only a few people in the theater and we had a whole row to ourselves, so he enjoyed walking up and down the row and pausing every once in a while to watch the screen. He did sit in Scott's lap a lot of the time. Claire did pretty well, too. We had taken her with us a couple of weeks ago when we went to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Will stayed behind with a babysitter) and she was awesome...just ate and slept through the whole thing. Since she's not sleeping as much as she was and will only progress to be more awake, we knew we needed to take Will to see this movie sooner rather than later. She didn't sleep through the entire movie as I'd hoped, but at least she didn't scream or anything :)

The movie itself was entertaining; I think Pixar did a good job, but I didn't like it as much as some of their other movies. Toy Story, Nemo, The Incredibles...those are all just really fantastic. I wouldn't say this one ranks with those. It's good, though, don't get me wrong. I'd like to see it again at home where I can pause it when I need to do things like change an explosive diaper :)

50 odd things...

I got this interesting survey on MySpace. I thought I'd post it here, too...I haven't posted a survey here in a while. Notice question number two...I thought that was definitely odd!!

1. How tall are you?
5'7"

2. Have you ever done heroin?
Seriously??? Who answers yes to this???

3. Do you own a gun?
not personally, but my husband does

4. Do you recycle?
No :( (wish I did/could).

5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments?
It depends on the kind of doctor appointment or what it's going to be about. Not normally, though.

6. What do you think about hot dogs?
alright every now and then...I do NOT want to know what exactly is in them.

7. What's your favorite Christmas song?
O Holy Night

8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning?
Coffee and OJ

9. Can you do push ups?
I'll be honest on this one...no.

10. Is your bathroom clean?
Honestly, no. It could use a good scrubbing (it's not horrificly dirty, though).

11. What's your favorite piece of jewelry?
My wedding ring

12. Do you like painkillers?
When I'm in pain, yes :)

13. What is your secret weapon to lure in the opposite sex?
That's a good question for Scott. I have no idea :)

16. Middle Name?
Patrice &/or Reed

17. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment?
I should be getting ready for bed.
I'm tired.
I hope Claire lets me sleep tonight :)

18. Name the last 3 things you have bought:
Diaper bag.
Birthday card for my brother.
Pajamas for Will.

19. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink:
Water, Diet Coke, tea

20. Who is your hero?
Scott

21. Last person you called?
Mom

22. Current worry?
I'm a mom. This almost requires me to constantly worry about my children. Currently I worry that Claire is getting enough to eat, and that Will might be getting sick.

23. Current hate?
being tired

24. Favorite place to be?
With friends and family.

25. How did you bring in the new year?
We traveled from Florida to Houston. Then we sat in the hot tub at my parents' house.

26. Where would you like to go?
The UK, most of Europe, Australia

27. Do you own slippers?
yep

28. What shirt are you wearing?
a green one

29. Do you burn or tan?
burn then tan

30. Favorite color(s)?
Red, purple, green, coral

32. Are you wearing socks right now?
nope

33. What songs do you sing in the shower?
depends what is stuck in my head

34. What did you fear was going to get you at night as a child?
the Boogey-man

35. What's in your pockets right now?
nada

36. Last thing/person that made you laugh?
Either Scott or Will

37. Best bed sheets as a child?
I had Strawberry Shortcake sheets, but what was even better was my Smuf sleeping bag!

38. Worst injury you've ever had?
I've never really been horribly injured. I've given birth twice, though.

39. Are you doing anything else right now?
nope

40. How many TVs do you have in your house?
Two, but only one works.

41. Who is your loudest friend?
Chelsey

42. Who is your most silent friend?
Beth P.

43. Does someone have a crush on you?
Scott

44. Do you wish on shooting stars?
I haven't seen one in years!

45. What is your favorite book?
How could I ever choose??? I'll list a few of my favorites: Gone With the Wind, the Outlander series, Harry Potter series, The Poisonwood Bible, A Painted House...I could go on and on.

46. What is your favorite candy?
Snickers. It really satisfies.

47. What song do/did you want played at your wedding?
Acapella's version of Canon in D

48. What song do you want played at your funeral?
Never thought about it.

49. What were you doing @ 12 AM last night?
I was about to go to bed.

50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up this morning?
I have to feed that baby!

Random Thoughts & Requesting Feedback

A few random thoughts for you:

1. It's super-HOT outside!

2. We are seriously considering getting ourselves a mini-van. I know, I know, I said I would NEVER get one, but never say never, right? We just don't have enough space as it is right now. So, friends that have them, what do you like/dislike? What kinds do you have/wish you had instead of what you have? I need opinions!

3. Since I have had Claire and started nursing again, I have read almost 4 books. One of them was almost 800 pages long (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows--totally awesome, by the way!). Since she's 4 weeks old, that averages out to be about one book a week. I'm getting low on books I have at my house that I haven't read yet. Any suggestions?

4. I changed some stuff on my blog. It's probably so little of a difference that you can't even tell, but I think I like it better.

5. I'm considering getting a swing for Claire. I have one of those "Take Along" portable swings that was a hand-me-down from someone at church, but you can't really put a tiny baby in it because it props them up too much. For those friends that have swings for their little ones, do think they're worth it and what type do you have/what type do you like?

I hope everyone's having a blessed week! Love to all~

Brother & Sister

Just a few new pictures of our precious kiddos...I had a very hard time getting Will to be still long enough for a picture.
She's growing!
No, he's not strangling her, he's hugging her :) This is the first time Will has "held" Claire.
Aren't they cute? I'm not sure Will is too thrilled with this set up, though :) And yes, I was sitting right next to them!
Will is "petting" Claire's head again :)
"Huh?"
Claire in Will's bed, hugging his beloved Lion. Will was quick to take it away a few minutes later once he realized she had it!Daddy and Claire

Clean Kids

Special Visit

Reese and Claire--Reese is only 5 weeks older than Claire!

Reese, Claire, Raylee, Will, and Ryland--this is the only decent picture I got out of about six!

Today we were blessed to see the Malletts again; they had to come to town to tie up a few loose ends. Leland and the three older kids hung out at our house while Harmony, Reese, Claire and I went to play bunko with friends from church. We had fun and were able to get a few pictures of all our kids together. It was good to see them again!

Pictures, Finally!

Our Internet is finally working well enough for me to post pictures! Here are a few from the last three weeks...can you believe she's already three weeks old?!

My mom (Nana) and Claire
My Dad (Grandpa) and Claire
Will, Grandpa, & Claire
Will likes to "pet" Claire
Scott's Dad (Papa) and Claire
Big eyes!

Just chillin' out
Hi!

Sleepy girl
Awake!

Life

It is now just the four of us; all the family has gone and we are trying to get used to our new life as a family of four. Claire is doing great. Thankfully she finally got the hang of nursing, so that is going a lot smoother. She still just sleeps most of the time, which is kind of nice. It's kind of easing us into this new sense of normalcy. Will is interested in his new sister, but not overly so. He likes to touch her on the head and kiss her every once in a while. He's always interested as to where she is. I am doing pretty good; still tired, of course, but catching sleep whenever I can. Scott, if you will remember, the best dad ever, so he is of course doing everything he can to help out.

Last week was quite an emotional week for me, what with just giving birth, having to stay in the hospital an extra day and seeing my two day old with an IV in her arm. On top of all that our best friends moved away. Harmony and Leland and their three precious kiddos moved out of Big Spring on Wednesday (a little over a week ago now) and we were fortunate enough to be able to share one last meal with them before they left. I had told myself, "don't cry, you've done enough of that in the last two days," but when we parted ways in the parking lot, I couldn't help it. The Malletts have been very special to us over the last several years. They had always been here and it seemed like we'd always have each other.

But it was inevitable that with Leland being a teacher and Scott a youth minister that one of our families would eventually move on, and it so happened that it was their time to do so. It hasn't hit me quite yet because of the fact that I've been occupied with Claire and visiting relatives, but soon I'll expect to see them at church or to get a call from Harmony asking me if I want to go eat lunch or head to Midland with her. And that isn't going to happen. I miss them incredibly already and it's going to be difficult getting used to life without them here. I'm so glad that we were able to become such good friends with them and I know that we will remain friends; we'll just have to visit the Metroplex a lot more often! (Harmony, get ready, because we're coming as soon as we can!).

***Of course, my computer still won't let me upload photos...I've tried three times already. As soon as I can, I'll get pics up. Don't give up on me yet!***

We are HOME!!

Yea, we were finally released from the hospital yesterday!! :) The culture came back negative for Group B, which is very good news and also what we expected. I am so glad to be out of the hospital! Claire has been doing great since we got her home, she's eaten and slept. Maybe later we'll attempt a bath. Unfortunately, our Internet is having difficulties right now...what a week for it to go nuts on us! Anyway, I have tried several times to post more pictures but keep getting shut down. So, I promise, as soon as I can get it to work, more pictures will come! Thank you to everyone who has been keeping us in your prayers!

Not Quite Home

We just got some news about Claire. When Lauren was pregnant with her, she was tested for Group B Strep and the test came back positive. That meant that Lauren had to have antibiotics when she was in labor to keep Claire from contracting the disease. When it was time to deliver, she did get the antibiotics. However, there was still a 5% chance that Claire could still get the infection. They did a culture to see if she had it (all of this is a fairly normal situation for Labor & Delivery staff). Unfortunately, the culture was tainted (other germs were in the culture that weren't supposed to be in there) which meant that it was not conclusive. They are going to perform another culture on Claire today.....which means she cannot come home like she was supposed to. As you can imagine, this is not fun news for the any of us.

If the culture comes back negative, then she can go home and it's no big deal. If the culture comes back positive, Claire gets to stay at the hospital for about 4 days while they give her antibiotics through an IV (which is normally placed in the baby's thigh or in her head). That will not be much fun. At Terri's (Lauren's mom) suggestion, they started the antibiotics today until they find out the results of the culture.

The most annoying thing about this situation is that they have known since Monday morning that the first culture they performed was tainted. However, they chose not to do a second one until TODAY. If they had done the culture yesterday when they realized the first one was tainted, Mother and Baby could be coming home now. Wouldn't it be nice if doctors thought about these kinds of things a little more thoroughly. :(-

So for now, Lauren is at the hospital feeding Claire and waiting. Please keep all of us in your prayers, especially the new momma who was supposed to come home with her little, precious baby today.

She's Here!!!

Claire Elise Prather was born on July 8, 2007 at 10:14 a.m. in Big Spring, TX. She weighed 6 pounds 10 ounces and was 19 inches long. Both mother and daughter are doing very well. We will have more pics and information in the very near future!!!

Still Pregnant!

Yes, I'm still pregnant! We've made it to 37 weeks ;) I went to my regular doctor yesterday morning and he said that since I was to be 37 weeks today, I didn't have to be on bed rest or take Terbutaline anymore after last night. He even said I could go to work. So, I came home from the doctor's office, reported what he told me to Scott and went to work yesterday! So, technically, I only missed about 30 minutes worth of work between Friday and Monday. One of the ladies at work is convinced that I am going to have Claire on Saturday and her birthday will be 07- 07 -07. Honestly, I think that would be pretty cool, but I'm not holding my breath.

A small update on my grandma: her surgery went well yesterday; it lasted about 12 hours. The doctor said the tumor was about as large as his fist. It ended up being wrapped around her brain stem, so it is very good that they did the surgery to remove it. He said it was a life-threatening tumor. We are thankful that the surgery went well. Of course, she is still in ICU and I haven't heard anything today, but that is what I know as of last night when the surgery was finally over. Thanks to everyone who has been praying for her.

Well, I'm off to try and take a nap. It's getting harder and harder to sleep at night, so maybe I can catch a few winks this afternoon!

Recent Happenings

Thank you to everyone who commented on my last post...whether in sympathy, encouragement or advice. It's so nice to know that so many people care! The next two nights of VBS went more smoothly; I just avoided the "opening ceremonies" in the auditorium altogether and brought Will in time for his class. That seemed to work much better. We survived and VBS is over--yea! VBS is always a stressful time for our family since Scott is one of the main people in charge, so we always feel really relieved when it's behind us.

On Thursday, Scott took a much needed day off and rested as much as possible. That night, he and I went on our last Midland trip before Claire comes. Will stayed with his surrogate grandparents while we went shopping for a few essential baby items.

Why was it our last trip you ask? Well, because on Friday morning, I became really dizzy and swollen very quickly. I called my OB/GYN office to see what I needed to do. The nurse told me she would feel most comfortable if I went up to L&D and let them check me out. So, we went back up there, me thinking that this probably wasn't necessary...maybe I just got too hot or something. Well, evidently I was wrong. When we got there around noon, I was dilated to 2 cm. I already knew this because my doctor had told me so at my regular appointment on Monday. They of course hooked me up to the fetal monitor and discovered I was having contractions--again, something I already knew because I'd been having sporadic Braxton-Hicks contractions for a couple of weeks. Problem being, I was having a lot of them, and they started to become a little more regular/closer together than they wanted. So they flushed me with fluids for a while trying to see if maybe I just wasn't well hydrated. That did not stop the contractions. So they then gave me terbutaline (a contraction-stopping drug) at two separate times. At about 4:45, the contractions had pretty much stopped and they were ready to let me go home. But, of course, they had to check my dilation again. It had progressed to 3 cm with all that contracting. They still let me go home, but I have to take oral terbutaline every six hours for this next week. And I have to "rest." So, therefore, no more working, shopping, etc! It was a good thing we got that last Midland trip in before this happened :)

I'm feeling alright, but of course I'm paranoid that I'm having contractions and not knowing it. Also, the terbutaline makes me very shaky and kind of crazy feeling. I guess it also makes my heart race, so I feel more tired than normal too. I will be 37 weeks (full term) on Tuesday, so maybe if we can just get past then, everything will be good :)

This has made us really get down to business on getting ready for Claire's arrival, though...we finally hung up the shelves in her room and washed the infant carrier seat pads today. Our bags are packed and ready to go, too. Please pray for a safe and uncomplicated delivery...I have no idea if I'll be able to post again between now and then :) It seems my babies don't like to cook as long as they're supposed to!

Terrible Twos

Oh. My. Word. My son has dove in headfirst into the terrible twos. I am somewhat beside myself. The past two nights he has put me in tears. I know I'm hormonal because I'm pregnant, but he's really got me at my wit's end lately.

I don't want y'all to think he is a horrible demon-child. He's not. He's just two, and I'm tired and 9 months pregnant (in fact, I don't even remember sleeping last night. I know I must have, but it seems like I looked at the clock a thousand times and just waited for the sun to come up). I'm starting to freak out a little about what will happen when Claire gets here. How will I handle things then?

Anyway, I'm just a little frustrated. It seems like it centers around church. I absolutely cannot keep the child in worship service. He will not be quiet ("Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!") and he will not sit still ("Get down!"). I try to make staying in the auditorium fun for him...we bring books, colors, cars and snacks...but he just won't sit still and be quiet. So we take him out. We do not take him to the nursery so he can play with toys; we make him sit on our laps and be still. This makes him pretty mad, but we feel like he needs to learn that you can't leave worship service and have fun--it's not supposed to be a good thing to be taken out. But, this has gone on for a while, and he still hasn't gotten the picture. So, last night I was upset because I had to take him out, yet AGAIN, and it's just so horribly embarrassing. Everyone knows us; everyone knows Will. It's not like we can just sneak out and fade into the background.

Then, there was tonight. We started VBS tonight and for some reason, which I have never agreed with and still don't understand, we include two year olds in VBS. (I have always thought it should just begin when kids start school, but whatever.) Anyway, since Scott is one of the main VBS organizers and I was a helper, we had to be there at 5:30 (it started at 6:30). So, we ate dinner and went over there. Well, Will just wasn't cool with the fact that Daddy was there in plain sight but could not hold him every second. We tried to sit down in our designated little pew with his teachers, and I even held him and told the teacher I was supposed to be helping that I didn't think I could leave Will because he was on the verge of a melt-down. Even with me holding him, he still couldn't handle it. I was so embarrassed that I just decided to take him home. I felt really bad because when we left, he was the only one in his class, but Scott told me later that five others ended up coming. I asked if they were as horrible as Will and he said no, but they also didn't have their dads there standing up in front of everyone and ignoring them (which Scott really wasn't doing, but that's probably how it felt to Will). Anyway, I was just really upset because Will doesn't usually act like this. It's a new development and I'm having a really hard time dealing with him.

Okay, well I guess I've spent enough time venting about my mothering problems...but I know (well, I hope) that some of you out there have had similar experiences. And I guess I'm just hoping that you understand what I'm dealing with. It's just hard for me because I see so many kids at church that are so very good and almost never have to be removed, and with mine, it's an every-time thing. And we're the youth minister's family!

As for other news, my grandma will be having surgery next Monday. The tumor is benign, but still needs to be removed, of course, because it is causing problems. Thank you so much for all your continued prayers...my family and I appreciate it so much.

Maternity Portraits

Yesterday, Scott and I went and took "maternity portraits" at Sears. Will stayed with a good friend from church because he's not feeling too well. So, unfortunately he didn't get to be in the pictures with us. It was still fun and I think they turned out pretty good. What we ended up getting, I can't post here, but it's a really neat "portrait study" with 9 square black & white pictures. Below are a few of the individual shots in natural color. For some cute recent pictures of Will, visit www.pratherplace.blogspot.com :)

On a completely different note, I ask for your prayers for my grandmother. It was discovered this week that she had a mini-stroke in the very recent past (maybe even when I was there last week) and today we found out that she has a brain tumor. She's in the hospital right now...I don't really know anything else. I'm not sure what this all will mean for the future. I just know that I am extremely thankful that God allowed Will and I to spend some good time with her last week. Thank you in advance for your prayers.

Showered with Love :)

Last Saturday was my baby shower! It was so nice--very lovely with lots of goodies to eat and of course, some really wonderful gifts! I am so blessed to have such sweet people in my life. Thank you!

A few pictures from the event:

Yummy!!

Awww...

All the goodies

The lady whose home at which the shower was held had this motorcycle on the back porch (her son-in-law's). We thought it was too funny and so I had to pose with it! Just call me "Motorcycle Mama."

Best Dad Ever!

Proud dad with a brand-new baby boy (probably only two or three days old)

Cuddling after a bath

Scott's first Father's Day

Posing professionally in November 2005

Taking a wagon ride

My son has the best dad ever! He is such a wonderful daddy--never squeamish about changing diapers or handling sickness; never afraid to be the disciplinarian; always willing to give baths, tuck in, and get up in the middle of the night. I could go on and on. But these aren't the only things that make Scott a fabulous dad. He loves his children deeply and truly. We are sad because our Daddy can't be with us all day today. He is travelling on his way back from a mission trip to Wyoming and won't be home til tonight. But at least he will be home! We are ready to see him again and give him lots of hugs and kisses! We love you, Daddy!

33 Weeks and "Glowing"

I'm in the shadow because the sun was SUPER bright and it was really hot out, so we took these as fast as we could so we wouldn't be all sweaty at church! :)
In front of the pomegranate (sp?) trees on the other side of the alley. This is what I back my car into everyday :)

Overdue Update

Thank you to everyone for their sweet comments concerning my birthday and anniversary! Even though we were apart for the actual day, we still had a good anniversary and birthday. Scott and Will went to the Tulsa, Oklahoma, area for Scott's family reunion and I travelled as far as Amarillo with him and stayed a few days with my wonderful friends Chelsey (at her home) and Jen. I hadn't seen Chelsey since September, so it was really nice to get to spend some time with her. I was glad to get to see my friends one more time before Claire is born. We had lots of fun cooking, watching movies, catching up, and we even got to relax by the pool. It was an excellent way to spend my birthday :)

Scott and Will came back through to pick up Jen and I on Tuesday morning and we all headed home. Wednesday was an exciting day because some of our very best friends had their third baby! I spent most of the morning at the hospital waiting but I had to go to work at 1:00 pm. Sure enough, as soon as I got to work, the baby was born. So I played flower-delivery-girl and took some flowers up to the hospital and just stayed a little longer than normal :) Congratulations to Leland and Harmony on the birth of Reese Ann! Go look at her adorable pictures here.

Scott and I had our anniversary date on Thursday night. We had a great time enjoying a meal with just the two of us and ate waaayyy too much. We walked it off by going shopping afterward :) Friday was spent preparing for our yard sale on Saturday...finally!! It seemed like everytime I would try to do this thing, it would rain or some other circumstance would pop up. We finished pricing things and prepared ourselves to wake up at 5:30 on Saturday morning to get set up and get the signs out. Yuck. We ended up doing pretty well, though, and it wasn't unbearably hot, so that was all good! The rest of the stuff was donated to charity, so hopefully someone will get some good use out of it.

This week, we will be preparing in a couple of different ways. Scott is headed to Laramie, Wyoming, for a mission trip on Sunday. He just found out last week that a couple that was going to go was going to have to stay home (for good reasons), so he has to take over their class. So, he'll be busy not only getting prepared to lead the trip, but also putting together a VBS class for 4th through 6th graders. My dad is coming on Friday to pick up Will and I for a trip to San Antonio. My cousin is getting married on Saturday and then I am going to stay there with my grandma for about week until my mom comes through to take us back home. My baby shower is on Saturday, the 16th, so she was going to be coming back our way anyway. So I figured it would be easier for me to stay with my grandma than be without Scott for another week at home.

After all that, I think we'll slow down a little (with the exception of local VBS) and will be getting ready for and anticipating the birth of baby Claire. I can't believe that I am 33 weeks along...that means only 7 to go! Hopefully we'll find a moment to take some pictures of my growing belly sometime soon. She is really quite the gymnast/kick-boxer. Sometimes I wonder if she will actually break through my skin, she pushes so hard! Seeing Reese got me really excited to get my little one here (although I don't really want her to come quite this early!) and see what she looks like and hold her. Babies are so precious! Soon enough...

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!